Introduction

It must be understood from the very outset that the 'will and the way' referred to in this chapter is the 'will and the way' of the All-Father, GOD, the Generator, Organizer, and Destroyer of all that there is.1 This `Will and Way' of life is flawlessly demonstrated by the life and teachings of Yashua or Jesus the Christ of the Holy Bible; it shall be presented as the ultimate science, the esoteric or spiritual science of life.

From the very beginning the Omniscient, Omnipotent, Omnipresent Creator in His wisdom, had willed into activity and motion, by the power of the word, a perfectly ideated and evolving creation. Of the four basic elements - Fire, Air, Water, and Earth - He created this planet that we call Earth; a creation incidentally, that must eventually realize the Creator's ultimate design, because His will cannot be frustrated. The ‘will and the way' for man to overcome this Earth Realm or Earth School was ordained by the Infinite Consciousness of the All-Father from the time of creation. God made no mistake as some would have us believe.

Besides the Messiah: Yashua or Jesus the Christ* of the New Testament, who represents the way whereby the will, power and activity of the All-Father are manifested in and through man, the way has also been demonstrated in the Bible by the High Priest Melchisedeck of the Old Testament, who saw not death.2 The Christ-man or Divine-man is God's ultimate plan for man; the Christ-man overcomes sin, sickness as well as death, the last sting of this Earth Realm or kingdom. There always have been doubting Thomases but even they, as Thomas of the Bible, may satisfy their doubts by reading, understanding and most importantly endeavoring to live the life science, with faith, as presented in this chapter entitled: The Will and the Way. This chapter represents a synthesis of Esoteric Teachings that are dealt with at length in other books relating to Truth and the esoteric laws of life.

"In My Father's house are many mansions."3 So said the Messiah, Yashua or Jesus the Christ. All that exists, both in the visible and invisible realms or mansions, is of substance. Our universe is divided into seven different planes or realms of substance as illustrated in diagram I; the mansions or realms of the All-Father's House. The realms or mansions may be described as follows:

7. Seventh Realm or Mansion - This is the realm or mansion of the Physical Spirit substance, which is formative and limited, the upper part of which is made up of etheric spirit substance and the lower part comprised of dense spirit substance; this is the realm of our dense material Earth where gases, liquids and solids are made manifest.4

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It should be noted that there is no arbitrariness in the divisions of the Seven Realms in that the substance of each of these realms "is amenable to laws which are ..... inoperative in" other realms.5 In the Physical Spirit Substance Realm for example, especially in the lower part, that is, in the dense spirit substance that forms our Earth, "matter is subject to gravity, contraction and expansion;" by contrast, in the Desire Spirit Substance Realm concepts such as heat and cold, contraction, expansion, distance and time are almost non-existent and are of no relevance. In the Desire Spirit Substance World or Astral Realm "forms levitate as easily as they gravitate."6

The substance of those Seven Realms of necessity varies in density, the Etheric or Physical Spirit Substance Realm being the densest, the most crystallized, the slowest in vibration. Gaseous, liquid and solid substances (in that order), are the three densest substances of our Etheric or Physical Realm. In that there are seven Realms and each Realm is sub-divided into seven sub-divisions, then, that makes solid substance the forty-ninth modification of God's Absolute substance (7X7=49). Solid substance is therefore the densest of all substances.7

From the above, it is clear that all creation came about by God, the Creator, ideating and differentiating the various realms or mansions within His Infinite Ocean of Spirit Substance, that is, as He in His Omniscience knew was necessary for the perfection and realisation of His evolutive scheme.8 Hence, during the creative process, immutable laws were promulgated by the Infinite Consciousness of the All-Father to this end.

In order to give the reader a greater sensitivity to those Realms and hopefully in time a working knowledge thereof, the following short explanation is given of the Seven Realms mentioned above:

(1) The First Realm or Mansion or the Absolute Substance Realm

All that will be said of this Absolute Substance Realm, besides what has been said earlier, is that it is the Realm of God; the Realm of the All-Father and All-Mother. From this Realm all things come.9 This Realm consists of seven sub-divisions or regions. From the lower sub-divisions of this Realm comes the highest aspect of the Christ Spirit.10

(2) The Second Realm or Mansion or the God Substance Realm

In our day of creation, God the All-Father, the Primordial Builder of the Cosmos, felt the creative urge and ideated what He desired and the ultimate results. Having done this, He projected the Word - rhythmic sound and tone carrying the particular rate of vibration, activity and motion - that would cause the differentiation of Centres of Energy or Force within "His Absolute Substance", in the form of a matrix or pattern ideated.11 It must be remembered that the Bible states that "God was the Word", and the word was life and the life became the light of man and the world.12 The initial differentiated vortices or centres of God are the Virgin, Christ or Divine Spirits, the Divine Sparks from the Infinite Flame, "the Begotten of the All-Father and Creator". These Christ Spirits, "Begotten of the All-Father" begin from this Realm to extend their consciousness downward through the various Realms of creation, eventually to descend into the Etheric or Earth Realm or plane of Physical Spirit substance.13

(3) The Third Realm or Mansion or the Universal Christ Substance Realm

This Universal Christ Substance Realm or Divine Spirit Realm is the Realm that has the highest spiritual effect on man.14 It is the spirit substance that pervades, interpenetrates and thereby correlates the planets of all Solar Systems including ours It must be realized that this perfect, Universal Christ Substance Realm, with all its attributes of universality, is the last Realm within which the differentiated Divine Sparks or Christ Spirits on their descent to the Etheric or Earth-Realm will so easily realize this natural, perfect, universality and love because they are still in and of this Universal Christ Substance Realm.

Although the Divine Sparks are differentiated from the All-Father they are still unconscious to a great extent of this differentiation and separateness.15 In that Realm the Christ or Divine Spirits although filled with universal consciousness are not conscious of their separateness; for that matter, they are not self-conscious or aware of their separateness from the rest of creation.16

It must be remembered that God makes no mistakes and therefore made no mistake then, now, nor shall He ever. Hence by Divine Ordination, the Christ Spirits, Divine Sparks of the Infinite Flame, descended to the lower and more consolidated Realms of God whereby consciousness, and a free and wise exercise of divine will, power and activity could be experienced by the Immortal Christ Spirits throughout all the Realms of the Father's Creation; and most importantly experiencing life on Earth, esoterically known as the Earth School-Room or Realm.17

Incidentally, the substance of the Universal Christ Substance Realm is the only substance continuous throughout space, for that matter, throughout the Cosmos. It is 'the bread' or 'substance' of life; the building-block substance of all creation. It is the only substance that is intimately connected to all the Realms below as well as to those above.18 It is the substance upon which the Sons and Daughters of the Light can feed, the Cosmic Fire of God, the Infinite Light which kindles the Divine Fire within us. The Living Flame that spiritualises our body-temples, creating immortality from that which was mortal; bringing back home to God (the Absolute One, the Infinite Consciousness, the All-Father of all that there is), another prodigal son or daughter. This is a very potent Realm in the process of our development and eventual evolvement into divinity; we would do well to think about, attune to, and consciously imbibe this substance into our very being; let it nourish our souls and sustain our bodies.

(4) The Fourth Realm or Mansion or the Life Spirit Substance Realm

It is in this Life Spirit Substance Realm that the vibration of the Absolute Substance has become slow enough or dense enough to allow the Virgin or Christ Spirits to feel the differentiation brought about by the Will, Power and Motion of The All-Father. Hence, although they still feel that universality or consciousness of the Universal Christ Substance Realm, they are endowed in this Realm with a sense of separateness, of 'self', of individuality; it is in this Realm that the seed of the enduring Divine Life Spirit was born. The seed of the Divine Life Spirit is the vitalizing essence that organizes, sustains and vitalizes the sheaths or bodies of the Christ or Divine Spirits through the ages as they descend into the lower, slower vibrating, formative Realms of Creation, such as our Earth Realm.

However, although self-consciousness is experienced by the Christ-Spirits in the Life Spirit Substance Realm, this Realm is a universal one and there the Divine or Christ Spirits still feel a "oneness" or universality with all things.19 The Life Spirit Substance Realm is said to be "common to and interpenetrating all the planets of our Solar System." 20 This vitalizing life sustaining substance Realm is important because it allowed the Christ Spirits to realize two aspects of their 'being', the 'universal' and the 'individual'.21 They were still aware of their universality but pleasantly conscious of their individuality. The Divine Life Spirit is said to be the centre of divine, altruistic love, which is the most potent 'cure-all' substance, the most powerful energising force by which all problems are overcome and all things are sustained and harmonized.22

(5) The Fifth Realm or Mansion or the Mind Spirit Substance Realm

The Realm of Mind Spirit Substance is subdivided into seven modifications of mind spirit substance. It is in the three lower subdivisions of this realm that the Infinite Spirit Substance becomes formative. The first three upper sub-divisions of this Realm are formless. 23

This Realm of mind substance or thought substance is a pulsating flow of mind and spirit substance, wherein, more specifically in the subtler, formless, upper three subdivisions, the germinal ideas of all form originate; be it in the form of mineral, plant, animal or man. It is the soil within which all ideas germinate, be they good or bad ideas; all seeds of desire and emotions originate here. 24

As indicated above the Absolute God substance has been modified sufficiently to make form possible. Hence the archetypes of all desire, passion, emotion, energy, thought and all forms of material phenomena that we perceive are ideated and in fact take shape here.25 The matrixes or archetypes of all creation take place here.

It should be noted that the first three upper subdivisions of this Realm, comprised of formless, mind spirit substance are referred to as the region of abstract thought; the region of the most refined mind spirit substance. The fourth subdivision of this Realm is referred to as the "Great Divide" or "Record of Nature".26 This subdivision of the Mind Spirit Substance Realm is aptly called "the Great Divide" as all above this region is formless while all below is formative. Here the formless substance World meets and flows into the formative substance World in a lemniscate or figure 8 fashion; the forces and currents of life cross-over and run into each other. This subdivision which represents the centre or meeting place of the upper and lower vibrating currents of the Spirit World is also, as indicated above, referred to as "the Record of Nature" or "the Akashic Records": the substance upon which all the imprints of life are stored like film-transparencies. This subdivision is said to be the focusing point or lens through which the Spirit World mirrors itself into the formative or material World.

The lowest three subdivisions of the Mind Spirit Substance Realm as indicated before are the real region where the archetypes, matrixes or molds of all form created by God or man take shape;27 the realm of concrete thought.

The beauty and power of this Mind Spirit Substance Realm cannot be overstated. All desire seeds or seed ideas of Man planted in this field in time must bear fruit. Hence plant good thoughts with faith; and good results are yours in visible, material form.

(6) The Sixth Realm or Mansion or the Desire Spirit Substance Realm

This Realm or Mansion of God, the Desire or Astral Realm is one of great activity, relevance and influence at this juncture of man's development. Our desires, which gain their substance from this spiritual Realm, tend to hold sway and dominate our intellect, soul and heart. Our heart centre always influences us to live love, not carnal love, but altruistic love. Hence when we do not always do right in any given situation; when we fail to do what we ought to do; when we fail to live love, it is our carnal, selfish, fearful, hateful, egotistic desires that gain their substance in the three lower realms of the Desire or Astral Realm that dominate our will, power and activity.

Like all the other Mansions or Realms referred to above, the Desire Spirit Realm is subdivided into seven (7) sub-divisions. The first three higher subdivisions are crucial to man's self-realisation. They are referred to as Organic or Soul-Power spirit substance, Light spirit substance and Life spirit substance.28 Hence the organic power substance is the seventh or highest subdivision of this Desire Realm; the organic light substance is the sixth subdivision and the organic life substance is the fifth subdivision of this Desire Realm. These three upper subdivisions are referred to as "The First Heaven." In those three subdivisions all is positive and cohesive; the place of attraction, cohesion and construction. Everything in this First Heaven is imbued with abundant life, love, harmony, joy and peace. If anyone wants to be filled with these God-like virtues one must feed on these three upper subdivisions of this Desire Realm.29

More will be said later of these three upper subdivisions in relation to the soul's experience in the after-life in the World of the Unseen, that is, after what we call death. After the first three subdivisions of this Realm to wit, Organic Power, Organic Light and Organic Life (the First Heaven), there is the "Great Divide" or "Borderland" sub-realm or region. This is the region of indifference and inaction or interest and action.30 Considering there can be no manifestation without generating interest in the object of your desire, one must be aware of this Great Divide or "Borderland"; this sub-realm or region is the battle ground of interest and indifference, action and inaction. There will be no creation and success without generating interest and right desire. It is useful to remember that generating interest and desire (emotion), increases the mind's power to transmit thoughts as well as to receive them (thought waves); whatever knowledge that is required is magnetized to anyone that seeks it with all his or her heart, soul and mind: 'seek and you shall find,' 'knock and it shall be opened unto you.'

As intimated above, the three lower subdivisions are the sub-realms of lower desires, fear, turmoil, sickness, pain, selfishness, greed, hatred, suffering, phantasmal and demoniac spirits and the desires that satisfy the relentless reaper, death. Here, the battle of Armageddon is fought daily within the temples of all Initiates on the Path of Truth.

It must be understood that in this Realm, depending on whether the initial impulse for an idea was from the Christ mind or the mortal (carnal) mind, the final result will be either good or bad, constructive or destructive. If it originated in the Christ-Spirit mind, it will gain its desire substance from the three higher subdivisions of this Realm, and the manifestation will be imbued with organic Power, organic Light and organic Life, the substances of the First Heaven; the result of this manifestation will therefore be positive and enduring; it will assist you in realizing your true Self, the Christ within you, the Eternal "I".31 If the thought or idea originated in the mortal or carnal mind, the idea will gain its desire substance from the three lower subdivisions of the Desire Realm where all is discord and confusion; where the Law of Repulsion and Dissolution holds sway. In that the idea is from the mortal or finite mind, which is limited and by and large carnal, the idea or materialized manifestation of it will be one of limitation and degradation, and therefore must ultimately be destroyed and dissolved into primal spirit substance; in time better use may be made of the substance when and where required.

Incidentally, it is in the three (3) lower subdivisions of the Desire Realm where one finds the proverbial hell and purgatory.32 This will be elaborated on later. Hence always remember, if interest is engendered in something and such interest has flowed from the mortal or carnal mind the action or end-product will ultimately be evil or deleterious to your well-being ; whereas, if the interest engendered has come from your Christ Spirit or mind, then the action or ultimate product will be good, uplifting, beneficial to your well-being, putting you steadfast on the path to God.33

(7) The Seventh Realm or Mansion or the Physical or Etheric Spirit Substance Realm

This Realm is the one that grants vitality to all chemical life forms. It may be referred to as the Etheric or Physical Realm; some of it can be seen and some of it cannot be seen by the optic senses. Our Earth and its atmosphere are comprised of the substances that make up the fifth, sixth and seventh subdivisions of this Etheric Realm. The subdivisions of this Realm from the highest vibrating substance to the lowest vibrating substance are as follows: (1) reflecting ether, (2) light ether, (3) life ether, (4) chemical ether, (5) gaseous substance, (6) liquid substance and (7) solid substance. The denser substances, such as solids, liquids and to a certain extent gases are all visible to the optic senses; whereas the more subtle substances such as reflecting ether, light ether, chemical ether and life ether are all invisible.

Obviously, we humans feel most comfortable with the substances numbered (5), (6) and (7) namely, gases, liquids and solids. Our physical bodies that we see and identify with, are comprised of those three substances.

It is noteworthy that the highest vibrating substance of this Realm, the Reflecting Ether, is a secondary memory of nature. All ideas are imprinted in this etheric subdivision and can be seen reflected in this fluidic substance by those who have eyes to see. This is the substance-medium whereby thoughts are transferred and imprints or impressions are made on the brain. Many a medium gains his information from this reflecting ether; all that we think about is reflected here. It must be remembered however that the ultimate true Record of Nature, is in the Mind Substance Realm, more specifically, the fourth subdivision thereof, "the Great Divide," mentioned earlier.

The next in line is the Light Ether. This Etheric substance is directly related to the five basic senses of sight, taste, touch, smell and hearing. It is also directly related to regulating the temperature within any material form and controlling the colouring in all life forms. Light ether is crucial in promoting the circulation of fluids or sap in plant, animal and human life.34

The Life Ether is the next Etheric substance. This substance is directly related to reproduction, propagation and the sustenance of all life forms in the physical world that we live in. It is closely related to certain substances of the Life Spirit Substance Realm.35

After the Life Etheric substance comes the Chemical Etheric substance. This substance is the force behind the basic elements of the physical world.36 It is directly involved in the assimilation of nutritive elements from food and the elimination of waste. 37

The three remaining subdivisions are comprised of the substances that we human beings are most accustomed to, that is, gases, liquids and solids. Gas, which is a substance like air, neither solid nor liquid, makes up the next subdivision of the Etheric Realm. In the air that we breathe, there are several gases: oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen to name but a few. After this subdivision comes liquid substance. The majority of our Planet Earth is comprised of this substance; so too are our bodies that seem to be quite solid. Finally, there is solid substance; as solid as rock. Solids as indicated before are the slowest vibrating God substance of creation; the slowest vibrating substance of the Etheric or Physical Realm.

Having explained the subdivisions of the Physical or Etheric Realm, it must be understood that although the Realm has been subdivided, those substances interpenetrate each other. For example, air and gas interpenetrate water or liquid, and liquid can be placed into a solid like a glass, or made to interpenetrate solids like lime-stone and wood; lime-stone and wood being quite porous. Likewise, Etheric spirit substance is interpenetrated by all the more subtle substances, such as, desire spirit substance, mind spirit substance, life spirit substance and Christ spirit substance.

(1) Introduction

The above was a brief, but hopefully understandable explanation of the seven Realms or Mansions of The All-Father's House.38 Having dealt with the Macrocosm, that is the Seven Mansions of God's Creation, we will now deal with the Microcosm, that is, the human body-temple and its seven inner realms or chakra centres; that body within which the Eternal Christ-Spirit dwells. Hence, we read: "Know you not that you are the Temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?"39 also "behold the Kingdom of God is within you."40 With that in mind, being temples of "the living Christ-Spirit of God", the interrelationship of what we call "the Spirit", "the Soul" and "the Body" should be understood and therefore will now be explained.

In Esoteric parlance God's creation called 'man' is made up of a threefold Spirit, that is, the Divine Spirit (the heavenly Father), the Life Spirit (the Son) and the Human Spirit (the holy Spirit or holy ghost); that is the triune God that must be realized 'in man'. That Spirit collectively called the Christ or Virgin-Spirit sustains man and makes man's whole life possible; it links man to the Messiah, Christ Jesus/Yashua, as well as to the Absolute One, the All-Father, the God of all Creation.

This threefold Christ Spirit via the mind lives and experiences life in a threefold body. From the interaction of the threefold Divine-Spirit on the threefold body, the Divine Spirit extracts as pabulum a conscious Soul from the Dense or Physical body, the Life Spirit extracts an intellectual Soul from the Vital Body, and the Human Spirit extracts an emotional Soul from the Desire body. Hence succinctly, a threefold Spirit begets a threefold Body and this fusion by the grace of God begets a threefold Soul. To this effect see diagram II below. 41

Diagram II

More will be said later of this interaction between the Spirit, Soul and Body, but what is important at this juncture, is that the terms and inter-linkages are understood. Before we deal with the bodies of Man, to wit, the physical or dense body, the etheric or vital body and the astral or desire body, it should be noted that each of those bodies is linked to a person's threefold Spirit by what is referred to as 'seed or permanent atoms'. For example, a seed atom links the dense body to the Divine Spirit or Father aspect of the Triune Christ Spirit; a seed atom links the vital body to the Life Spirit or Son aspect of the Triune Christ Spirit; and a seed atom also links the desire body to the Human Spirit or Holy Ghost aspect of the Christ Spirit. More will be said later about the location of each seed atom and its importance.42

(2) The Bodies Of Man

(a) The physical or dense body

Briefly, from the exterior, the human temple or dense body is comprised of a head, torso, arms, hands, legs, and feet. The head, which is the potential 'realm of heaven' in Man, is the foremost or upper part of the body containing the brain, sense organs and the mouth. The torso is the trunk of the human body, apart from the head and limbs. The arms are the upper limbs and the legs are the lower limbs; the lower limbs being basically for support and locomotion.

The body described is the body we perceive with the five basic senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Those five senses belong to the physical body or temple. It is of interest to note that the physical description of the human body in the paragraph above doesn't seem very different from any animal creation of God; although, on closer scrutiny, even physically, there are serious differences. The major difference, however, is the divine potentiality of the human being; this will be thoroughly discussed below. Before moving on, it is important to note that all that we perceive as our physical body is comprised of either gaseous, liquid or solid substance; in esoteric parlance, as indicated before, 'the gaseous, liquid, and solid substance body' is known as the 'Dense body'.

Inside that physical exterior, which is covered by skin and hair, there is an endocrine system, a nervous system and an array of organs, a skeletal structure to assist us in walking upright, meridian lines of energy, nadis (not seen by the optic senses), and seven centres or vortices of electro-magnetic energy called chakra centres or padmas (also not visible to the optic senses). These seven centres or realms within the human body (the microcosm), correspond to the seven Realms of God's Creation (the macrocosm). Hence the esoteric saying: 'as above, so below.' Before delving further into the seven realms or centres of force within the human body (the chakra centres), we will deal briefly, first with the endocrine system and then with the nervous system.

The endocrine system is described by some as 'the power behind the throne'.43 This ductless gland system is closely linked to our nervous system and the seven chakra centres within our temples of flesh. The glands of the endocrine system starting from the head and going downwards are as follows: the pineal gland, the pituitary gland, the thyroid and parathyroid glands, the thymus gland,44 the pancreas, adrenal or suprarenal glands and the gonads or sex glands.45

If one wants to enjoy good health, the proper functioning of the endocrine glands is essential and by and large they can be said to control our growth, size, metabolism, our emotional balance and vitality;46 the proper functioning of the endocrine glands or system is also essential for realising mental balance and in time transcendence of the mind.47 As can be seen in diagram III below,48 the pituitary and pineal glands are in the head; the thyroid, parathyroid and thymus glands are in the area of the neck and chest; the adrenal/suprarenal glands, the pancreas and the spleen are in the area of the abdomen or solar plexus; and the gonads, ovaries or testes as the case may be, are to be found in the pelvic area.

The endocrine system and by extension the more subtle seven chakra centres, are closely related to the body's nervous system. For example, both the endocrine system and the nervous system assist the body to adjust and deal with external stimuli in our environment. The nervous system works through nerve impulses or stimuli similar to electricity; and the endocrine system works through hormonal secretions that are transported throughout the body via the blood. The electrical nerve stimuli are quick and short-lived but the hormonal influence is slower, more all-embracing and enduring.

What may be seen as an intriguing link between the body's nervous system and the Seven Realms of creation, with its forty-nine subdivisions of the Absolute substance of God, is reflected in the sympathetic nervous system; this system has a cluster of nerves in the area of the heart consisting inter alia of a chain of nerve ganglia on either side of the spinal or vertebral column. From the chain of nerve ganglia, fibres are distributed throughout the body-temple. For example, to the heart and larynx, to the heart and thyroid, to the heart and lungs, to the stomach and abdominal organs, and finally, to the pelvic organs. These ganglia, from the head downwards, are said to be forty-nine in number; seven of them being of special importance.49 The consistency of the numbers in italics with the seven Realms or Mansions of God and the forty-nine subdivisions of the absolute spirit substance reflects yet another similarity between the microcosm: the human body, and the macrocosm: the Realms or Mansions of God, the Cosmos.

Incidentally, the sympathetic nervous system and the para-sympathetic, make up the autonomic nervous system; this system is entirely involuntary and is concerned with the automatic regulation of certain internal organs in the body and their functions. The cerebro-spinal or central nervous system on the other hand, consists of the brain and spinal cord and can be viewed as the voluntary nervous system. Before moving on to the seven chakra centres it should be noted that the voluntary nervous system is closely related to the desires of man.50

We will now deal with the seven chakra centres or vortices of force within the human body. These centres have been referred to in most religious and arcane writings; usually reflected in allegory and symbolism, their existence was understood and taught by all high cultures (civilizations). With reference to the seven vortices of spiritual-electromagnetic-energy oscillating within the human body, the Bible indicates: "Wisdom has built her house, and she has hewn out her seven pillars."51 Similar symbolism is used in Solomon's temple. The temple itself is equated to the central pillar or tree; while its two pylons Yakhin and Boaz, on the right and on the left, "represent the tree of good and evil", the positive and negative forces of life.52

The seven centres are also referred to in the Bible as the book with seven seals (Rev.5:5), the seven lamps (Zech.4:2) and the seven eyes of the Lord (Zech. 4:10). There are other references to those seven centres of light in the Christian Bible; there are also many references to the more complete idea of the proverbial tree and serpent, which represents the spine (the bony serpent), the cerebro-spinal (voluntary) nervous system, its electro-magnetic (spiritual) counterpart, the seven chakra centres and the kundalini or the Christ Fire or Light in Man. To this effect one should read Genesis 3, where the 'serpent' and 'the tree in the midst of the garden' are first mentioned; read too, Numbers 21:9, where Moses made a brazen serpent, which he set on a pole; as well as, Numbers 17:8 where the seven centres are referred to as buds on the rod of Aaron, which bloomed blossoms and almonds. The budding and blossoming referred to being the opening of the chakra centres by illumination or the realization of Christ consciousness;53 this is when the Mystic Marriage referred to in the Bible takes place.54

The references to 'the tree in the midst of the garden', and to 'the fruit and the serpent' all relate to the spine, the chakra centres and the Christ serpentine force or fire within Man; this fire or flame of life is all-pervasive and eternal throughout all Creation. This was the same eternal flame or fire that encircled the bush on the Mountain of God, but did not consume it; that engulfed Moses, but did not harm him; that not only purified Moses but exhilarated him; that inspired him to take off his shoes so as to place his feet firmly on "holy ground".55

In Eastern Philosophy and Yoga those seven centres of force or chakra centres within the human body-temple are commonly referred to as the Muladhara Chakra (Root Centre), the Svadhisthana Chakra (Pelvic Centre), the Manipura Chakra (Solar Plexus Centre), the Anahata Chakra (Heart Centre), the Vishudha Chakra (Throat Centre), the Ajna Chakra (Brow Centre), and finally the Sahasrara Chakra (Crown of the Head Centre).

The Muladhara Chakra (Root Centre), which is located at the base of the spine, is generally portrayed as a lotus with four petals. The Christ Serpentine Force or Kundalini lies dormant there and the positive and negative currents that run on either side of the spine, known as the ida and pingala nadis, also meet the central sushumna nadi here at the base of the spine. Its symbolical element is the Earth (soil) and its colour is golden-yellow.

The Svadhisthana Chakra (Pelvic Centre), which is located close to the sexual organs, is portrayed as a lotus with six petals. This chakra is within the Shushumna Nadi. Its symbolical element is water (liquid) and its colour is milky white like a conch shell.

The Manipura Chakra (Solar Plexus Centre), which is located in the area of the navel or solar plexus, is portrayed as a lotus with ten petals. Its symbolical element is fire and its colour is crimson red.

The Anahata Chakra (Heart Centre), which is located in the area of the heart, is portrayed as a lotus of twelve petals. Its symbolical element is air and its colour is a mild smoky colour. Incidentally, the seed atom of the Dense body, which links the Divine Spirit to the Dense body, is said to be located in the left ventricle of the heart.56

The Vishudha Chakra (Throat Centre), which is located in the area of the throat, is portrayed as a lotus with sixteen petals. Its symbolical element is the ether and it is a play of colours like the sea, but is mostly perceived as blue.

The Ajna Chakra (Brow Centre), which is located in the area between the eyebrows, is portrayed as a lotus with two petals. Its symbolical element is mental or mind substance and its colour is silvery white. This Chakra is really within the Shushumna nadi and represents the "Third Eye" centre.

The Sahasrara Chakra (Crown of Head Centre), which is located at the top or crown of the head, is said to be the seat of the positive pole; the realm of Vishnu,57or in Christian parlance, the Realm of the Heavenly Father, the Christ or Solar Being in the human temple. This chakra centre is portrayed as a lotus with a thousand petals. When this centre is reached by the Christ or kundalini Force, the individual will realise Christ consciousness or super-consciousness; in yoga parlance - nirvana: a state of wisdom, understanding and bliss that is only experienced when one's consciousness is voluntarily immersed into God's Infinite Sea of consciousness. This is brought about through the purifying fire of prayer and meditation, which centres one's heart and mind on God. By the means of prayer and meditation one's desires are washed clean and one's dedication to God is made complete.58

Before dealing with the other, finer or more subtle bodies of Man that interpenetrate the dense or physical body, it would be remiss of me not to point out two things. One is, that the Caduceus of Hermes, represented by a rod or staff and two entwined serpents, is yet another illustration of the symbolical tree and serpent; the Caduceus of Hermes is mentioned as it is often used today as an emblem or insignia on many medical vehicles and pieces of medical equipment throughout the World. The other is that although we have been brought up to think of the dense body as a biochemical mass, we must consciously realize its electro-magnetic nature as well. For example, it is intriguing to note that although we tend to think of food as either proteins or vitamins or minerals, at the end of the day, the cells of the dense or physical body select from the blood the ions necessary to replace those ions used in the living process.58a As we all know "an 'ion' is an electrically charged particle, consisting of one or more atoms carrying a unit charge, or a multiple";58b and ions are referred to as the carriers of the electricity of life.58c.

As a natural corollary of the above, the blood or liquid light or fire (as it is referred to in esoteric law), that feeds the cells of the physical or dense body, must be kept pure by frugal eating, fasting, the use of herbs and exercise, especially breathing exercise.58d Hence, all on the Path of Truth are humbly advised to do the exercise called "the Complete Breath" on a daily basis. It is done as follows: Sit erect and quietly so that you can consciously put your mind on breathing deeply, completely and rhythmically. Start the cycle of breathing exercise by consciously exhaling as slowly and completely as you can through your nose. It should be noted that your diaphragm should lift upwards and your stomach should sink in slightly as you complete your exhalation. After your exhalation there will be a natural pause before you inhale slowly, filling the lower portion, then the mid and upper portions of your lungs. Initially, as you inhale your diaphragm should relax downwards and your stomach should bulge out slightly.

This slow, complete inhalation and exhalation described above should be consciously continued for 10-20 minutes. This can be done every morning and afternoon or whenever required. If your mind drifts as you do your breathing exercise, ‘seed’ your mind with the thought of exhaling "fear" and inhaling either "health", "strength", "confidence", "power", "Christ Spirit" or whatever you so desire.

2. The Vital or Etheric body

There are some who are of the view that the seven chakra centres described earlier, are really an aspect of man's vital or solar body as distinct from his bio-chemical dense body. This view is certainly correct; however, those centres of energy are undeniably an integral part of the physical or dense body's electromagnetic make-up. The vital body should therefore be seen as the 'electrical' or 'solar' power source that enlivens our nervous system and vitalizes our dense bodies.

The Vital or Etheric body realizes complete organisation and vitality in the seventh year of one's life; it interpenetrates the physical or dense body and if one has 'eyes to see', or with the use of a Kilner Machine, named after the doctor who created it, one can see the etheric lines of energy emanating through the pores of the skin.59 Those initiates who may want to develop the ability to 'see' their Etheric or Vital body as well as that of others should read - History and Power of the Mind by Richard Ingalese; The Vital Body by Max Heindel; Man Visible and Invisible by C.W. Leadbeater; You-Forever by Lobsang Rampa (especially pp.27-28); and The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield.

One's state of health can also be ascertained by means of the Vital or Etheric Body; if an organic part is not healthy the etheric lines in that area of the body are weak and bent, as distinct from being vibrant and straight.60 Incidentally, the etheric substances working within the body assist in converting food into blood, which is aptly called 'the liquid fire of life'.61

The Vital Body, like the Etheric Realm of the Macrocosm described above, is comprised of the following substances: chemical ether, life ether, light ether and reflecting ether. It must be remembered that the highest vibrating etheric substance, the reflecting ether, is a rudimentary record of nature and hence your thought imagery can be seen imprinted in your reflecting ether; these imprints form part of your "aura", which will be discussed below.62

Your next highest vibrating etheric substance is your light ether. The light ether is crucial to the functioning of the physical senses, the circulation of liquids and the regulation of temperature in the body. The life ether substance is next and as reflected in its name is involved in ensuring the propagation of life through reproduction.

Finally, the slowest vibrating etheric substance that completes the Vital body is the chemical ether; the chemical ether is intimately related to the elements of the Earth. The Etheric or Vital body, which interpenetrates the gases, liquids and solids body is essential to the life and vitality of the dense or physical body.

The reflecting ether and the light ether are referred to as the 'marriage garment' or 'the ghost body' in esoteric parlance. They are called the 'marriage garment' because this is 'the garment' used when 'the Spirit-Soul' moves around in the higher Realms above the 'material world'; the 'material world' being the gaseous, liquid and solid substance world. On the other hand 'the ghost body' idea came about because the reflecting and light ether of a deceased person are what people see when they see the 'ghost' of someone. The reflecting ether and light ether, which are emitted from a person, are the exact image or replica of the physical or dense body, hence another reason for the term 'ghost body'.

Although whole books have been written about the Vital or Etheric body only certain essential facts will be presented here; hopefully, they will be sufficient to give the reader an understanding of the importance of the Vital body. In Esoteric law it is taught that true development on the spiritual path must begin with an understanding and strengthening of one's Vital body. It is the foundation upon which the physical temple for the Christ-Spirit is built. In a person who is more earthbound, the chemical and life ether form the bulk of that person's Etheric or Vital body, whereas, in a person who is more dedicated to truth and spiritual matters, the light and reflecting ethers form the bulk of that person's Etheric or Vital body; usually such an individual is quite indifferent to material wealth and extravagance.

Besides referring to the two higher ethers as the "marriage garment" and "ghost body", some refer to these two higher ethers as the "Soul body". These two important etheric substances are closely related to the conscience of a person and by extension the virtue exhibited in that person's life; this will be elaborated on later when dealing with the cycle of life.63

Incidentally, before making some closing comments about the Etheric or Vital body, it should be remembered that a child's Etheric or Vital body is not organised (although it is present), until the child is seven years of age; until that time the child draws from the Etheric or Vital substance Realm of the Macrocosm.64 As life progresses and the child matures into an adult and the adult in turn matures into an Initiate, work must be done on purifying and spiritualising the Vital body.

This spiritualising or purifying process is greatly assisted and enhanced by living love, altruistic love: doing for others, being of service to others without expecting anything in return; or at least 'doing unto others what you would have them do unto you': a theme which is to be found in the teachings of all the leading religions of the world. This adds lustre to the Soul.65 Other effective ways of advancing your cause on the path of life are to purify the Vital body through consistent prayer, the use of lofty, ennobling affirmations, harmonious chants, fragrant incense and spiritual rituals; even rituals as simple as making the sign of the cross.

It is taught that the best times to effectively use affirmations are just before you drift off to sleep and just after you awake; although when you have learnt to use affirmations, that is, by using them consistently over a period of time, they can be used at any time of the day with tremendous positive effect.66 An example of a simple ancient affirmation worthy of repetition by Christians or followers of Yashua, which will purify the Vital Body, is as follows: 'Oh *(my Christ/Yashua), I am blended with You so that forever I go forth in Thy Light. Thanks and Praises!'

The seed or permanent atom that links the Life Spirit to the Vital Body is said to be located in the solar plexus; however, the solar energy from the sun that feeds the Vital or Etheric Body enters the physical body via the etheric counterpart of the physical spleen. Some teach that the object of life in this time is oneness or union with Christ through purification of the Vital Body.67

(c) The Desire or Astral body

The desire or astral body of a person is comprised of desire spirit substance. This spirit substance is the spirit-force behind all activity and motion in one's life; this desire substance manifesting positively as organic Power, Light and Life is said to be "God in action".68 The seed atom of the desire body that links the Human Spirit to the Desire body is said to be located in the vortex of the liver and by extension the blood.69

The desire or astral body of a person becomes completely organised and strong around the fourteenth year of life; some say the fourteenth year signals the birth of the desire body. 70 The desire or astral body comprised of desire spirit substance interpenetrates the Etheric or vital substance body as well as the physical or dense substance body. After seven years of rapid physical growth, when the Etheric or vital substance body held sway between the ages of seven and fourteen, the desire substance body comes into its own between the ages of fourteen and twenty-one. From then on personal desires dramatically increase and puberty takes its course.71

An intense drama of life takes place in those formative years of maturity. It is a period when you are usually wild with desires, yet filled with utopian thoughts of purity, perfection and idealism - an idealism that unfortunately fades and in many instances dies with age. This period of fourteen to twenty-one is also the beginning of strong physical attraction to the opposite sex; during that period the pituitary and thyroid glands become more active and the sexual glands in both males and females mature - the circulation of blood is said to increase in the pelvic region during this period allowing for easy sexual arousal.72 This is a period of intense emotional development and social interaction. Those years are 'the foundation years' in the development of a person's desire body; crucial years when a person magnetizes, according to his thoughts and desires, the desire spirit substances of either the higher region of the Desire World or Realm or the lower vibrating substances of the lower regions of the Realm.

Throughout a person's life his desire body is dominated either by the higher substances of the Desire Realm or World, that is, the spirit substances of organic power, light and life or the lower substances of that Realm or World. A person who has through his hard-earned experience, purified his thoughts and desires, tends to reflect this improvement by his words and deeds; hence in that person's desire-body, the more subtle, refined desire spirit substances of the higher regions of the Desire Realm or World replace the lower vibrating desire substances that had formerly prevailed in that person.

The desire body of any person who goes through bad experiences in his life, as we all do, tends to impress the idea of revenge in the form of memory upon the vital body of that person. During a person's life this must be overcome. One must learn as the Lord's Prayer: "The Our Father" dictates - to forgive our debtors (which purifies our vital bodies), and to stay out of temptation. Desire is the great allurement or tempter of humanity. Hence we must gain control of our desire body if we are to successfully purify our Vital and Physical Bodies.

The best methods recommended to conquer the relentless ebb and flow of desires, especially the warped and degrading ones, are said to be the art of prayer, concentration and meditation. In the Holy Bible we read the following: "pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak."73

Some prefer concentration upon high ideals, or the use of mantras in meditation or Yantras, as those methods tend to be cold and unemotional, whereas, prayer tends to be emotional. Be that as it may, emotion is not inherently bad, because emotion and desire are the vortices of force behind all thoughts and actions; if those thoughts and actions are wholesome and in harmony with God's will (which is love ) - then a great degree of positive power and activity will be generated by them; if those thoughts or actions on the other hand are degrading to the higher nature in Man (the Indwelling Christ/the divinity-within) then, emotion will just increase the negative and detrimental effect of those thoughts and actions.

At such times it is wise, as indicated above, to pray relentlessly, with faith, that we 'be not led into temptation'; this is the part of "The Our Father" taught by Christ that is dedicated to the purification of the desire body.74 Incidentally, for those who do not know what a mantra is – it, (referred to in the paragraph above), is a sound vibration (with a specific meaning) based on the sounds of the Universe and the chakra centres within Man; and a Yantra is said to be a "machine" or tool in a specific form or shape, which when concentrated upon, has a tremendous calming, purifying and strengthening effect on the mind and desire body.75

If constant prayer is the method of choice, it should preferably be prayers to do the will of God and devoted to high ideals and not merely for personal gain, fame, material wealth or power; because as valid as those prayers are, they will not purify the desire body of the individual. That is why some people prefer concentration and meditation to effectively purify the desire body as distinct from prayer which is emotional and often involves personal desires; however as indicated above, prayers filled with emotion to do God's will: "Thy Will be done" - are excellent in tempering and balancing the desire body of an individual.

On our path of life our desire for love must eventually move beyond the type of love that is a mere yearning for physical attachment or control and possession of another person's body (lust), to true altruistic love, which is to do good for others without expecting anything in return. Our desire for wealth and power should be to better serve others and for ensuring the general upliftment of all humanity.

The wisdom of Antiquity and Esoteric Law teaches that the desire body is ovoid in shape and luminous in appearance; it encircles the vital and dense bodies like the albumen encircles the yolk of an egg.76 The desire body grows as one develops on the Path; and those of Saints are said to be truly beautiful, radiant and luminous.

As indicated before as one progresses the purer, brighter substances of the higher subdivisions of the Desire Realm prevail in one's desire body as distinct from the murky substances of the lower subdivisions of the Realm.77 The desire body possesses important centres of perception, which manifest, when active, as vortices within the desire body. In most people those centres are latent; in an advanced Initiate on the Path of Truth, the vortices or centres rotate from left to right or clockwise.78

It should always be remembered that the desire substance body is the counterpart of the Emotional Soul and the Human or Holy Spirit within the human (body) temple;79 and further as pointed out earlier, we humans are comprised of a three-fold Christ-Spirit that is infused into a three-fold body, which in turn realises and enlivens a three-fold Soul. All of us have to eventually purify our desire body and perfect our Emotional Soul; when that 'washing of the feet', or 'washing of the carnal desires' takes place, we become illumined or enlightened by the Human or Holy Spirit.

This unity with the Holy Spirit is well portrayed in the Christian Pentecost, with the 'tongues of fire' on the heads of the Apostles; the heads and faces of the Apostles shone with light as they spoke so that all could understand them. The race and language differentiation melted away when unity with the Holy Spirit was realised by the Apostles.

The complete Religion or Path as taught and demonstrated by Yashua or Jesus the Christ taught unity with the Higher Self within Man, that is, the Triune Christ-Spirit within: the Father (the Divine Spirit), the Son (the Life Spirit) and the Holy Ghost (the Human Spirit) within the Body-Temple. The triune Christ-Spirit is represented within the 'vestal cup' (the skull or head of the physical body), by the 'Third or Inner Eye' centre (located between the eyebrows), the Pituitary gland and the Pineal gland respectively.

Our vestal cup (cranium/skull) overflows when the Triune Christ-Spirit is realized in the heavenly sphere within us (the head) whilst we are here on Earth. As Paul, the Apostle said : "Christ must be formed in you".80 As an assistance on the Path, we must affirm good and illumined desires and always visualize that which we affirm; make all affirmations in the name of Christ. That way the will, power and activity of the Christ-Spirit will be stirred into action and all base or carnal desires will be overcome.

Accepting that our physical body (our gases, liquids and solids body, which is but a vibration of substances kept together by the Christ-Spirit), has a particular sound or tone according to our mental, physical and spiritual state of being, it must be realised that everytime one overcomes a desire that would have led to eventual death of the physical body, a higher energy, tone or vibration is realized in the body. If that higher note or tone is struck and maintained the warped desire or sin is overcome, never to return. 'The last Trump' in the Bible refers to your last keynote to desires and things of the 'world'. Sin after sin is overcome until death is swallowed up in defeat.81

A great deal more could be written about the Desire body, but suffice it to say that enough has been said to give you, the reader, the Seeker of Truth, an insight and attunement to your Desire body, as well as, hopefully, a greater ability to direct your desires in a more positive way that will certainly hasten the realization of God's grace.82

Having dealt with the Three-fold body of Man, that is, the Dense or Physical Body, the Vital or Etheric Body and the Astral or Desire Body, it must be reiterated that the Three-fold Body only enjoys and experiences life through the power, love and spirit-essence of the Christ or Divine Spirit. The (Three-fold) Christ Spirit infused into and enlivening the (Three-fold) body produces an evolving (Three-fold) Soul (the Persona); that Soul or person treads the path of life, evolving to perfection daily, until what we call death takes place. At that juncture the essence or seed-atoms of the Christ Spirit and Soul depart from the Body and the silver cord is severed. When this happens, the dead physical body is thereafter entombed in the womb of Mother Earth, where it is usually encircled by flowers and moistened by tears. We will now deal with the cycle of life.

Earlier in this Chapter, the Realms or Mansions of God's Creation were simply explained and illustrated. In our present stage of development, the more crystallized aspects of the Etheric or Earth Realm are perceived by our optic and other senses, but there are other Realms or Mansions of God in what is called 'the Unseen World'. In the Holy Bible we read - "look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."83

Unfortunately, most of us, once we get a name-tag, fall prey to seeking wisdom, happiness and success outside of ourselves. We become ensnared in satisfying our five basic senses, that is, the sense of sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch; this we do with the able and game assistance from our five motor organs, to wit, our hands, feet, vocal chord, sexual and excretory organs.84 We forget very quickly that we really belong to and ultimately are the Divine Sparks or Christ-Spirits that manifest on Earth in temples of flesh made up of the sap of earthly parents; when we realize this in every fibre of our human form, we will know the fullness of God's grace in our lives by overcoming this Earth as Christ Jesus/Yashua did almost two thousand years ago. However, until this conscious awareness becomes common-place, the norm will be to manifest in a very limited way as Mr. A, Miss B or Mrs. C for some seventy years and due to sin (living contrary to God's way or laws), go through a physical death.

We will therefore deal with the cycle of life beyond physical 'death' through the various Realms or Mansions of God until "rebirth into the physical world for a new life experience."85 I know that the last ten words may come as a surprise for some of you because you may not know of or accept rebirth or reincarnation of the Spirit-Soul, but this will be dealt with immediately after dealing with the Spirit-Soul's 'life' after 'death'.

When one has through physical, mental and spiritual abuse of the physical body or through trauma or accident brought an end to his or her physical life on Earth, one is said to have 'died'; somatic death is said to have taken place. As indicated above, in most cases, we, Earth-bound Souls, in our present state of non-being, destroy our dense, physical temples in seventy years; and amazingly, some of us even destroy them in less time, that is, despite God's perfect physical design.

At the time of death the Spirit-Soul leaves the gases, liquids and solids dense body: the bio-chemical-physical body. After leaving the physical body, the Spirit-Soul (along with the higher vibrating, subtle bodies: the vital body, the desire body and the mind) hovers above the dense, physical body connected by the silver cord for about three days;86 during this time the consciousness of all that transpired during that life is absorbed from the etheric or vital body and stored in the seed atom of the desire body. Hence, it is advised that the dense body should not be buried or otherwise disposed of prior to three days after its death so that a proper record of past experiences or 'record of life' as it is called, can be made. This is necessary if one is to benefit fully from his or her life experiences and the 'purgation' process, which will be discussed below.

In the Bible, Ecclesiastes, Chapter 12, verse 6 we read of "the silver cord" as follows: "Or....the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken,....Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." The silver cord is said to have "a glistening silvery appearance".87 The silver cord connects the Spirit-Soul to the dense, physical body throughout life and as indicated above, up to three days after somatic death.

The silver cord is similar in many ways to the umbilical cord that attaches the baby to its mother until it is severed and the baby's separate existence on Earth begins. Likewise, when your silver cord is snapped the Spirit-Soul begins a journey or another form of life in the Unseen World of God. Before dealing a little more with the record of life, it should be noted that whenever the Spirit-Soul and the more subtle (etheric and desire) bodies hover outside the dense body, like when one becomes unconscious (be it by electrical shock or otherwise), the body can be resuscitated; consciousness is regained because there is a re-entry of the Spirit-Soul and the more subtle bodies into the dense, physical body. This has happened many times when accidents have occurred or when people go into a coma, but the important thing to remember is that in all those cases, the silver cord has not been severed; those people who go through these experiences usually have interesting stories to tell about their 'out of body experiences' as they are called in common-day parlance. In considering what has been said above relating to the silver cord diagram V should be looked at.

Incidentally, the record of life referred to in the text above, begins to be imprinted on the reflecting ether and seed atom of the Vital Body from the first breath of life and only ends when the last breath is taken. During life we get impressions from around us via the air and etheric substances we breathe, even if we are not consciously aware of it.

Around three days after the somatic death of the dense or physical body the silver cord weakens and then snaps. At that point, the spiritualized aspects of the two higher vibrating elements of the etheric body (that is, the reflecting and light ether - referred to earlier as "the Ghost body"), the desire body, and the Spirit-Soul depart from the denser or physical body. The Spirit-Soul with the subtle, Solar body, moves quickly to the lower regions of the astral or desire World or Realm. This is the Region referred to as "Hell" and "Purgatory".

Before dealing with the purgation process a few words are in order about the dense or physical body that lies entombed in the elements of the Earth as well as the two lower elements of the etheric body, that is, the chemical and life ether; those two lower elements of the etheric body hover just above the grave for those who have eyes to see. The deterioration of the entombed dense body is said to be reflected by the degeneration of its chemical and life etheric substances. Both the 'dead' (gases, liquids and solids) dense body, as well as the chemical and life etheric substances related to it, degenerate and lose their organisation by returning to their original elements from which they came. Years after burial of the dense body, there is sometimes little left to reflect that a body was buried there.

We can now deal with the Spirit-Soul's journey through the three lower regions of the Desire realm. Here, the Spirit-Soul starts to go through a panorama of his or her life, more specifically of all the "wrong" that was committed whilst alive on Earth. Without the ensnarement of flesh, the Spirit-Soul's sense of "right" and "wrong" is much sharper and clearer. The 'panorama' of life's unloving or wrongful thoughts, words and deeds, which caused suffering and distress, flows like a film before the Spirit-Soul; the last wrongful act is seen and dealt with first, and the first wrong action is dealt with last. All the pain and suffering caused is felt; great lessons are learnt here from past wrongs; the anguish and even hidden hurts inflicted are felt by the Spirit-Soul that inflicted them. If your wrong actions caused suffering to many, your suffering shall be great.

Fortunately, events take place in the desire World with great rapidity. Those 'sins' or 'transgressions of God's Laws' are purged from the Spirit-Soul. Of necessity those painful experiences leave an indelible mark on the conscience or mind substance of that Spirit-Soul. The Spirit-Soul moves on to the First Heaven after a thorough purgation process, akin to going through the 'fire' so to speak in the lower three regions of the Desire Realm. It must always be remembered that all people that die, even those referred to as saints (as good as they, undeniably, were), die because of 'sin' (transgression of God's Laws); 'the wages of sin is death'.88

Before dealing with the first Heaven, it must be understood that the Spirit-Soul, after being purged of 'sin' in the lower regions of the Astral or Desire Realm, passes through the 'Borderland' region of the Desire Realm.89 Usually, little time is spent in this Borderland region in transition to the First Heaven. The only Spirit-Souls that are said to spend considerable time here are materialists who did not necessarily hurt many or any people whilst on Earth, were maybe quite honest, but thought little or not at all of spiritual things or of God; and others, who did not accept the reality of life after physical death; all those Souls tend to wander around here aimlessly; some in a very confused state, until they gradually realize their folly.

The First Heaven has been dealt with much earlier90 hence it is sufficient to remind the reader that this Heavenly Region is comprised of three substances: Organic Power, Light and Life and all is positive and harmonious here. The Spirit-Soul's desire body tends to be smaller and more refined here because it has been purified by the purgation process; the purging process in the lower regions of the Desire Realm effectively etches indelibly onto the permanent seed-atom of the desire body the sufferings caused and also imparts the quality of right feeling which acts as a deterrent to similar misdeeds in the future.91

All is joy and peace when the Spirit-Soul reaches the three upper regions of the Desire Realm because again the Spirit-Soul's panorama of life experiences is rolled back. In contrast to the purging process - of being shown all the pain and suffering caused - the experience of seeing and feeling the joy and happiness you caused to people whilst on Earth is beyond comprehension. Any kind look, gesture or act of benevolence and love shown during one's Earth-life will be felt here; nothing is missed, all the energy and exhilaration generated will be felt.92

Hence, you are advised, when on Earth to live clean because your benevolence and good works shall follow you.93 Obviously, those selfish Spirit-Souls, who were miserly with their love and gave very little, experience little joy here. It should be noted that one does not have to possess a great degree of material wealth to give. Further, giving a person money for example is not bad, but this may just make the person dependent upon you; hopefully your assistance should help the individual in time to help himself or herself, as the case may be. However, all of us can give a kind look, a sympathetic or empathetic ear to a person’s problems, or can give good, loving advice, or an expression of confidence or loving helpfulness when another is in need.94 This is crucial as you tread the path of life. Remember, there is great spiritual power in giving.

Due to the plasticity of the desire stuff of this Realm, any beautiful thing envisaged is an instant reality. Incidentally, children who die before the birth of the desire body (around the age of fourteen) usually await rebirth here. They go through no real purgation process; usually they are met by Spirit-Souls who were related to them in their last life on Earth or failing this, by others who loved to "mother" children; even on Earth we all know many people like this.95 Before moving on to the Second Heaven, which is located in the Realm of Mind, it should be remembered that the Desire Realm is known as the Realm of Colour.96

The Spirit-Soul now moves on to the Realm of Mind, which is known as the Realm of Tone; it is the ultimate Realm of music and harmony, a musician's paradise. It is interesting to note that when many materialistic Spirit-Souls depart from their physical bodies (at the time of physical death) many of them are said to go through a time of total unconsciousness; and when semi-consciousness returns it takes some time for them to realize that they no longer have physical bodies and have very little of their vital-substance-bodies remaining. Hence, there is said to be a kind of sleep or unconscious stage when materialistic Spirit-Souls make their transition from Earth to the Desire Realm.

In contrast, when Spirit-Souls make their transition from the First Heaven in the upper regions of the Desire Realm to the Second Heaven in the lower regions of the Mind-substance-Realm, this is done in an ecstatic state of complete consciousness and tranquillity. This conscious transition and the attendant "peace and silence" is called "The Great Forever" or " The Great Silence."97 The feeling of being completely alone yet unafraid fills the consciousness of the Spirit-Soul; no longer possessing a physical body, a vital body, nor a desire body, the Spirit-Soul moves about in the sheath of mind, which includes the seed atoms of the three discarded bodies.

The Second Heaven, also referred to as the region of concrete thought, is located in the region of the formative mind substances. Here, the symphony of sounds and tones, with each tone having a colour, gives the Spirit-Soul an intimate awareness of the link between sound, tone and colour; every tone creates a colour; and it is the variety of tones that create all physical forms and manifestations; the archetypes of those forms are eventually crystallized into gaseous, liquid and solid manifestations. Here too, the Spirit-Soul becomes acutely aware that the formative process is directly related to sound and tone referred to in the Bible as the "Word".98 Having no mouth the Spirit-Soul also realizes with great certainty that every thought is a vibration with an attendant tone, which is in itself accurate and formative.99

The Second Heaven is the region where the third attribute of the All-Father - "Activity" - manifests in all its glory; here, there is an incessant ebb and flow of sound, tone, colour and activity. The Spirit-Soul is said to do a great deal of preliminary work with the archetypes of force on the environment to be used in its next sojourn on Earth. The good deeds of the past life are permanently incorporated into the mind as "right thought". The seed atom of the dense body transmits all the consciousness that it appropriated from the dense body to the Divine or Universal Spirit; the seed atom of the vital body transmits all the consciousness and data appropriated from the vital body to the Life Spirit; and the seed atom of the desire body transmits all the emotional power that it managed to appropriate from the desire body to the Human Spirit. It is therefore in the second heaven that the seed atoms of the three-fold body transmit all the consciousness or data from the last life to the Three-fold Spirit. The Spirit-Soul is now ready to move onto the Third Heaven.

The Third Heaven is located in the higher region of the Mind- substance-Realm; the region of abstract thought and formless mind substance. Here the Spirit-Soul is formless, because even the sheath that encircled the mind in the second Heaven no longer exists. The Spirit-Soul in this formless Realm becomes "one with the Universal life of the All-Father."100 Here, the seed atoms of the dense, vital and desire bodies become imbedded in the Divine or Universal Spirit, Life Spirit and Human Spirit respectively. The three-fold Christ Spirit, the true child of God has come home with the quintessence of his physical experience and consciousness on Earth; through that means the Christ child has accumulated first hand experience and knowledge of this sphere of the All-Father's Creation.

Here, the Spirit-Soul or Christ-Spirit-Soul is indelibly blessed by the All-Father and rests for a period to gather strength for another Earth life, when as Mr. A or Miss B, he or she will hopefully overcome that Earth Realm by the realisation of the Mystic Marriage. The mystic union or marriage of the Christ Spirit and Soul must be realized while living in a dense body on Earth; that is the ultimate "Crown of Glory". When that happens even the dense body is spiritualised and vibrates at the level of the vital body. It is said that the essence of right thought and right feeling from past experience is infused into the Spirit-Soul for future right thoughts, words and deeds. The Spirit-Soul will be much more au courant with the laws and forces of life and so should do much better in overcoming in the next life.

Before dealing with the return journey back to the Earth Realm, when a Spirit-Soul incarnates in the temple of flesh (when a baby is born), it is now necessary to deal with the reality of what is referred to as "reincarnation" or the doctrine of "rebirth".

Reincarnation refers to a Spirit-Soul's return to the etheric or material World from the Spirit World for experience and consciousness that can only be obtained and realized in the material World on Mother Earth. Mother Earth, it must be remembered, represents the most crystallized of the spiritual substances of God. The Spirit-Soul, known as a human being or person when incarnated on Earth, goes to Earth in the same way that a person goes to school, returning home every day or at the end of every term or academic year, as the case may be.101

Usually, in the educational institutions of this world, if a student fails to "fight the good fight" by passing the required exams, he or she is given another opportunity to repeat the exams, sometimes more than once, if necessary; and further, all those students who passed the required exams for a particular class also return to school but to be promoted to a higher form or class to be further educated. This promotion, as we call it, continues until the student has 'fought the final good fight' and has passed the final exams of that institution and graduates from it. If that person ever returns to that institution he or she may return as a teacher but certainly not as a student. Nevertheless, that person may go to another institution of higher education to learn certain lessons that the previous institution could not teach.102

Similarly, the Spirit-Soul comes to Earth and keeps returning until all the lessons of time have been learnt: the Spirit-Soul having fought "the good fight" on Earth realizes the "Crown of Glory".103 A human being receives the "crown of glory" when the mystic marriage of the Christ (the Bridegroom) and the Egotistic Self (the Bride) takes place on Earth;104 then and only then, is this Earth School-room and its final 'sting', death overcome. Death can only be overcome here on Earth, not as a 'duppy' in the sky. Having passed his or her final exams, so to speak, that Spirit-Soul can be said to have graduated from this Earth-Realm and from then has access to the other Mansions or Realms of the All-Father's House or Creation.105

The truth is, although many people of the western world may know very little about reincarnation, most leading religions have taught reincarnation. For example, if you read the writings of some Jewish authorities, such as, Moses Gaster, Ph.D., who was once chief Rabbi of the Jewish Congregation of London, and vice-president of the Royal Asiatic Society, reincarnation is reflected as an accepted principle of life on Earth; the cycles of life or reincarnation was the acknowledged process of purification culminating in the perfection of the Spirit-Soul on Earth.106

Reincarnation has been the acknowledged means of human evolution. Millions of people know the truth of reincarnation and of the law of "consequence" or karma: 'as you sow so shall you reap';107 and they have been greatly assisted in understanding life and its seeming inconsistencies. It also assisted them in doing what they ought to do in any given situation, which is, living love; that which is from the heart. The early Christian Church acknowledged and taught the doctrine of reincarnation; this is not surprising in that the Christian Religion is an outgrowth or flowering of Judaism, the Jewish religion. The early church fathers, such as Clement of Alexandria and Origen, both of the 3rd century accepted reincarnation; so did St. Augustine and St. Jerome of the 5th century.108

The Church eventually decided however that the doctrine gave too much time for the realisation of salvation and further it did not enhance the doctrine of divine atonement; a doctrine that must be grasped and accepted by all good Christians in one 'quick' lifetime. Because, according to church dogma, if you are not blessed by knowing Jesus Christ/Yashua as your Messiah and Saviour in the one (in some instances very short) life afforded you, you are unfortunately doomed forever (sorry, lad/lass). Some may say: 'Not very loving or illumined to say the least'.109

Incidentally, as a matter of historical interest, Empress Theodora, the powerful and some would say notorious lady of Europe,110 also had tremendous influence on de-emphasizing the knowledge of reincarnation in the Western World. She influenced her husband, Emperor Justinian, to ensure in 553 A.D., at the 5th Council of Constantinople that the doctrine of reincarnation was dropped from orthodox Church doctrine.111 The equitable doctrine of "Divine Justice" or "Karma" was too much for her; she certainly did not want her just deserts: she did not want 'to reap what she had sown'- not in this life or in any future life for that matter. There was then a vain effort to expunge the doctrine from the Bible. I say vain effort in light of the following abundantly clear references that still remain in the Bible: Malachai 4:5; Matthew 17:10-13; 11:1-15; Luke 7:27-28 and as regards Karma one should read Genesis 9:6, 2 Cor.5:10 and Revelations 13:10. Some of these citations are discussed below.

For excellent presentations on the subject of reincarnation one can read the book "Mansions of the Soul" by Spencer Lewis Ph.D., F.R.C, as well as the Chapter entitled "Reincarnation" in the book "Teachings of the Secret Order of the Christian Brotherhood" by Edward Lewis Hodges M.A., M.D., Ph.D112 and the Chapter entitled "Rebirth and the Law of Consequence" in the book "The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception or Mystic Christianity" by Max Heindel.113

Despite the fact that some of us who think of ourselves as Christians have not been made aware of the Biblical references to reincarnation cited above, it must be remembered, that the doctrine of reincarnation was accepted by the Jews.114 It existed from time immemorial, before the coming of Yashua/Jesus the Christ, hence there was no need for him to belabour the point or criticize it as it did not detract from the main principle of his teaching, which was and is: the energy and life-force engendered by "selfless love". The doctrine of Reincarnation enhances the spirit of understanding and love.

For those who have 'eyes to see and ears to hear' some of the passages cited above are now elaborated upon: In the Old Testament we read in Malachi 4:5- "Behold I will send you Elijah the Prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." Hence, John the Baptist (the returned Elijah) was sent "before the coming ...of the Lord", as the forerunner of Christ Jesus/Yashua, the Messiah or Massu.115

To prove the above one merely has to read Matthew 17:10-13. "And his disciples asked him (Jesus/Yashua), saying, why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, that Elias is come already and they knew him not! Then the disciples understood that he spoke unto them of John the Baptist."

Further, Matthew 11:7-10 indicates: "And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitude concerning John. What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? But what went ye out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they that wear soft clothing are in King's houses. But what went ye out ... to see? A Prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and more than a Prophet. For this is he of whom it is written, "Behold I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare the way before thee."..."And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was..to come. He that hath ears to hear let him hear."116 For a further reference to John the Baptist being the reincarnation of Elijah one should also read Luke 1:13-17. It should be noted that the original spelling of "Elijah" and his disciple "Elisha" is used in the Old Testament, but was changed by the Greek translators in the New Testament into "Elias" and "Eliseus" respectively.117

An intriguing insight into an individual's conscience is given by an understanding and appreciation of the doctrine of reincarnation. The conscience of each individual is said to be "the fruit of mistakes in past earth lives, which in future guides the spirit aright and teaches it how to avoid similar missteps. Virtue, being the essence of all that was good in former lives, ..... acts as encouragement to keep the spirit ardently upon the path of aspiration." 118

Certainly Jesus the Christ/Yashua did not and would not expound the unloving, bigoted view that by dint of one sometimes very brief or long lifetime, a Soul is either condemned or blessed for eternity, that is, regardless of the cultural, environmental and other variables relating to opportunity that exist. There always have been many paths to God; all narrow but existent from the beginning of time. Arguably, to the Christian and followers of Yashua, the path of Christ is the easiest because it is open to all and he takes the yoke from off your back if you just allow him; this atonement comes about by faith (substance) in his divine sacrifice for your sins. According to your faith (substance)119 in his name, his life and resurrection, a quickening of 'the Christ spirit in you' takes place. When, as indicated earlier, the "Bride" (the Ego or Persona that you identify with by a name tag given to you at birth), by faith submits to and becomes one with the "Bridegroom", (the Christ/divinity that must be realized in you), then you will be 'one with your Christ-within'(the "Door" to the All-Father); and simultaneously, one with your Messiah, Christ Jesus/Yashua: Yeshai. From then you will be a realized Son or Daughter of the All-Father and will have access to all mansions of the All-Father's Creation; there will be no need for rebirth (reincarnation) to overcome this Earth school-room. In the words of a modern day prophet and Nazarene, Bunny Wailer, "changing names fool the innocent."120

The essence of life is to know what the purpose of life is. If one does not understand the purpose of life, one is like an individual walking aimlessly in circles. If one accepts that life is a spiritual journey in the temple of flesh, one quickly realizes that to live love is the only way to overcome this School called Earth, the only way to realize one's divine potential; the only way to realize that peace and happiness we desire so badly. One has to become centred in the eye of his or her being, wherein dwells the Christ or Divine Essence within; 121 'the doorway' to the All-Father.

When one accepts the spiritual nature of the purpose of life on Earth, a purpose which culminates ultimately with conscious attunement with God, one is then influenced in his views of law, politics, economics, education, development and life in general. One who is thus conscioutised, ultimately judges all things by the principle of love, be it in the realm of politics, economics or law; one always is influenced by what is just, fair and equitable in any given situation. All things must be seen and developed in a way to assist all humanity to be victorious in overcoming this Earth-Realm. Morality, ethics and doing that which you ought to in any given situation should be taught as the basis of this victory in life. People must see this and understand why this is so.

It is important therefore, that in the education process, besides teaching people English (and other languages), History, Mathematics, Biology, Geography, Chemistry, Physics, Physiology, Sociology and other worthwhile subjects, they must be taught the truth about God's laws including the fundamental laws of "love" and "as you sow so shall you reap" and "doing unto others as you would have them do unto you". That form of education is essential if people want to develop a viable and enduring society.

It is noteworthy that most great civilizations or high cultures, at their zenith, had developed great spirituality and devotion to God as well as a conscientious work ethic and a moral code to guide their daily lives; this seems to be the recipe for wholesome development and success. As soon as a reversal of those values set in, so did decadence, decay and rapid decline. It must be realized that moral codes that have evolved in all cultures of humanity have usually been based on God's spiritual or natural laws: eternal truths that can be found in every leading religion of the world.

Having dealt with the cycle of life and reincarnation, we can better appreciate the physical birth of a 'living Soul' on Earth. When Mr. A or Miss B decides to continue their spiritual journey on Earth so as to overcome that School-Room or Realm by realizing the fullness of God's grace (the Christ or divinity within), the Spirit-Soul finds an environment most conducive to working out his or her destiny, as the case may be. The environment of necessity includes the parents and country where the Spirit-Soul hopes to incarnate.122

With the above having been decided, when the prospective parents are joined in sexual union, just prior to conception, the seed atom of the dense body, which is part of the incarnating Spirit-Soul, enters and quickens a sperm cell, a positive nucleated element of the potential father; this quickened sperm cell in turn fertilizes the negative ovum of the potential mother. The operation of the Christ or Divine principle in the seed atom of the dense body is crucial in successful conception; for that matter, the life-giving principle in the four seed atoms of the Christ Spirit makes the life of Mr. A or Miss B possible as will be elaborated on below.123

Undeniably, the biological or earthly parents contribute significantly to the gases, liquids and solids, bio-chemical body, which is the flesh, blood and bones body: the physical temple of the Spirit-Soul. But as indicated above, even in creating the physical temple, the seed atom of the dense body, which is an atom of the Christ Spirit, must quicken the male seed otherwise conception and ultimate birth of a human being would not occur.

Likewise, it is the seed atom of the vital body, the desire body and the Mind that allows the three other vehicles or bodies of the Spirit-Soul to be developed and perfected on Earth. As indicated before, the dense or physical body is complete at birth, the vital or etheric body is born at age seven, the desire or astral body at age fourteen (puberty), and the mind substance vehicle or sheath at age twenty-one. Each one of us if we honestly observe our own lives, will notice or would have noticed, as the case may be, those changes in vitality, desire and intellectual maturity around those times in our lives; each change occurring seven years apart.

From the above, it is clear that we truly belong to the Christ or Divine Spirit from birth.124 However, in the noisy confusion of life, we lose track of this; but when as adults we eventually, consciously become aware of this in every fibre of our human form, by the grace of God, the "Mystic or Spiritual Marriage" takes place; perfection and union with the Infinite Consciousness of the All-Father becomes a living reality through the realized Christ within the holy temple of flesh; spiritualisation of the molecular or Atomic structure takes place here on Earth and you are thus 'translated'.125

As indicated at the beginning of this Chapter the doctrine or science of spiritualising the physical temple through the Christ-within was not only taught but demonstrated by Yashua or Jesus the Christ. He taught his disciples and close associates that the seed or permanent atom of the dense body dwells in the left ventricle of the heart like a tiny flame of life;126 each time the heart beats, according to the purity of a person's blood127 and thoughts,128 the fire or flame of life is transmitted throughout a person's physical body. By this method the physical temple is quickened and spiritualised,129 achieving a similar vibration to that of the etheric or vital body. By this method, ordained incidentally by the All-Father, death loses its sting. The molecular structure, having been spiritualised can be re-assembled by the Spirit-Soul whenever it is necessary to manifest itself on Earth to do God's Will. A realized son or daughter of God has access to all the mansions of the All-Father's House. This is the All-Father's plan for all of us - not some of us. And so it is! Praise God. Hence, we read: "My little children, of whom I travail in birth (again) until Christ be formed in you"130

All who require light on the path of life have an earnest desire for "the Word", be it the spoken or written word; spiritual nourishment via the word is always necessary to the Initiate on the Path. The Bible, for example, is considered by Christians and other adherents to be the inspired word of God. Others consider the Osirian Text, the Coming Forth by Day, the Torah, the Talmud, the Upanishads, the Vedas, the Bhagavad Gita, the Holy Quran, the Kitab-i-iqan (and many other sacred writings that are deserving of the utmost respect and admiration) as their sacred book of Divine guidance.

Most of the great Messengers, Masters, Prophets and Avatars taught the inner esoteric Truths of life via symbology and allegorisms (parables).131 True, most of the Bible can be taken literally, referring to historical happenings and personalities as well as future events (prophecy); however, to the Initiate on the Path, esoteric truths of the Will and the Way are presented in symbology and allegorisms (parables) throughout the Bible. To the Initiate on his spiritual journey on Earth, gaining an understanding of the inner meaning of the Bible, the inner mysteries of life, is light and nourishment on the Path: sustenance for the Soul. Some would say that seeing the Bible as merely historical events, personalities and prophecy is the crude understanding, the outer layer of the Bible; whereas, seeing the eternal truths reflected in the symbology and allegorisms in the Bible about realising the Inner or Eternal Self, the Christ, the Elohim is the subtle understanding or inner essence of the Holy Book. These priceless truths are for every man or woman 'who has eyes to see and ears to hear'; all those who desire with all their heart that their will becomes one with God's Will; to those people all things will become possible. We are therefore humbly advised to keep our Bible or other sacred Book enshrined in a special yet accessible place in our home so that we can nourish our Soul on a daily basis.

Since ancient times the distinction between exoteric Christianity and esoteric Christianity has been made. Certainly, the Alexandrian School of North East Africa made such a distinction and so did Origen, himself an African. Origen, born in 185 AD, was one of the most distinguished theologians of the ancient Christian Church. Although Origen was eventually disowned by Christendom during the middle ages when the world was plunged into a spiritual abyss ("the Dark Ages"), the Encyclopedia Britanica describes Origen’s character as "blameless" indicating that "there are few church fathers whose biography leaves so pure an impression on the reader."132 St. Augustine, another African, was the only other church father and theologian who may have been as distinguished and influential in developing the theology and religious science of the early Christian Church.133

We read in the Bible - "Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables."134 We also read - "And with many such parables spake he the word unto them (the multitude), as they were able to hear it. But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his Disciples."135 Similar statements can be seen in many other areas of the Bible, such as, Matthew 13:11, Luke 8:10, Romans 11:25, 16:25, 1 Corinthians 2:7, 4:1, 13:2, 14:2, 15:51, Ephesians 1:9, 3:3, 3:4, 3:9, 5:32, Colossians 1:26, 1;27, 2:2, 4:3, 2 Thessalonians 2:7, 1 Timothy 3:9, 3:16, Revelations 1:20, 10:7, 17:5 and 17:7. The word "mystery" when used in the Bible did not mean some strange occurrence, but "that which is known only to the initiated."136

The first esoteric key to the Initiate is that although stories in the Bible may refer to historical events, nations, races and personalities, at the same time, they can relate to happenings within our being on the path of unfoldment. The Apostle Paul not only understood this but reflected this in his teachings. To Paul the Nativity of Christ was not merely an event that occurred in Bethlehem but the experience of humanity as well as the individual Initiate who gradually awakens to the reality of the redemptive power of the Christ within. Thus he wrote .."I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you" and also ".....this mystery...is Christ in you, the hope and the glory".137

Incidentally, the need for veiling the esoteric truths in narratives of history, places and personalities was to prevent the premature awakening of certain innate powers within "uninitiated" people (hard-hearted, carnal materialists), who would merely use those powers for selfish purposes to the detriment of others and eventually (by dint of the law of Karma) to the detriment of themselves.138

The second esoteric key to the Initiate is that places (e.g. "the Red Sea", which symbolises salt, matter, a material problem139 and "Egypt", which symbolises spiritual bondage unless we are referring to the story of the flight of Jesus to Egypt, which refers to his visit to the Mystery School of Egypt for Initiation and Mastership),140 and personalities (e.g. Mary the mother of Jesus and Mary Magdaline, whose personalities are dealt with below) in the Bible represent states of consciousness or qualities of character;141 and by extension, clashes between personalities represent the struggle between the Christ, divine mind (the higher mind and intuitive nature) and the arrogant, carnal mind (the lower, base, animal mind); or simply put, between the higher spiritual nature and lower physical nature in Man. An epic example of the foregoing is the struggle between the shepherd boy David (the higher, spiritual, intuitive mind that shepherds our thoughts: our sheep)142 and the giant Goliath (the excessively arrogant carnal mind that eventually must be destroyed). Those states of consciousness, qualities of mind or character-types as reflected by personalities in the Bible do not only relate to the internal struggles within the individual initiate but sometimes also refer to humanity generally in a certain era of development when that state of consciousness, quality of mind, character-type or behavioural pattern was exemplified.

When the central personality being portrayed in a story is a normal human being, the usual, slow spiritual evolvement of every day (materialistic) humanity is being described. When the personality and events relate to a semi-divine being the hastened or enhanced progress of the initiate on the path of spiritual self-realisation is being described. Finally, when the experiences of an Avatar are spoken of, or those of divine conception or descent, this refers to humanity in the later phases of God's human evolutive scheme when humanity will go through certain inner experiences and realise perfection as divine beings, or it may refer to individual initiates who are advanced Souls within whom "the Mystic Marriage" (Mastership) takes place during their sojourn on Earth. Those keys are not only relevant to the Bible but to many eternal parables and allegories in other sacred writings.143 It must be remembered that God is the underlying Essence of all religious thought and the Eternal Truth underlying all religion; the spiritual or golden thread to be found throughout all sacred writings.

States of consciousness or qualities of character are well reflected in the Biblical personalities such as Mary, the mother of Jesus (Yashua), whose virtues of selfless love, devotion and humility are an example to all of us; of Mary Magdalene and Peter, in whom the potential for transmuting human frailty into ultimate sainthood is exemplified; of the two sisters Martha and Mary, representing both sides of the coin or character-types, the busy (materialistic) Martha, who was filled with the cares of the world, and Mary, on the other hand, who was more interested in pursuing the Word, the Spirit, the contemplative nature within herself. The comment of the Messiah to Martha, on the face of it, may look to some as an unfair rebuke, but in fact it merely reflects an esoteric truth that one must seek first and foremost spiritual truth: Wisdom - and all material things requested, as long as it is for a wholesome purpose required by you,144 shall come to you to bless and sustain you; not to whip, worry and destroy you, as some ill-gotten, material possessions do when obtained by greed, selfishness, or by some other clearly immoral means. All these attributes of character seen in the Biblical personalities referred to above can be found in each individual or can be seen emphasised more in one individual than another.145

The accounts in the Bible of Christ and the twelve Disciples refer esoterically to the twelve major character types, attributes or potentialities exemplified in the Astrological Zodiac Signs as well as within each living Soul on Earth. The closeness of the twelve Disciples to the Divine Teacher reflects a high state of spiritual evolution or refinement of character; when the twelve Disciples or qualities of character are disciplined (discipled) by the Centrifugal Figure, Christ Jesus (the Messiah), or the Indwelling Christ realised within one's bodily temple, the Christ Spirit in the Disciples of the Bible or within the true devotee or initiate, as the case may be, will be awakened from sleep as reflected in the ship in Galilee, when a great storm arose and Christ was awakened by the Disciples;146 or will be born as reflected in the Mystic Nativity, when "Christ" is said to "be formed in you."147 When this discipleship (discipline) is realised the initiate is perfected "unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."148

The third esoteric key to the Initiate is that each narrative reflects a graphic description of the stages of the Spirit-Soul’s evolutionary journey to the Promised Land (Christ or Cosmic Consciousness). In using this third key each narrative can be interpreted from at least two perspectives.149 The first is the normal process of evolution along the wide and heavily used way or path of the majority and the second is the 'straight and narrow way' or path of the minority; hopefully the 'straight and narrow path' will become the path of the majority, that is, if those living Souls of the present era have ears to hear.150

The parable of the sower who encountered various soil and environmental conditions is a beautiful example of the above. As explained by the Messiah to his Disciples privately, the environment and soil conditions and the results that followed from the sowing can be related to the spiritual receptiveness or lack of it, as the case may be, of individual Souls or of humanity generally at certain stages of development.151

The Biblical narrative of the ten virgins spoken of in Matthew 25:1-13, refers on one hand to those living Souls on the Path of life (the five foolish Virgins), who are not sufficiently evolved to respond to and receive the higher spiritual impulses from the higher Self, the bridegroom or Christ-within (these Souls show little interest in spiritual matters); and on the other hand, to those other living Souls (the five wise Virgins), who are sufficiently evolved and disciplined to respond to the higher spiritual stirrings of the Christ-Spirit culminating in the mystic marriage of the mortal and immortal natures in Man; mortality is thus raised to immortality through the grace of God, which is the Divine Essence or Christ-Spirit within the body-temple. When this is fully and consciously realised in the hearts and minds of all of us living Souls, then, God's grace in us will be fulfilled. All marriages referred to in the Bible relate to the same mystic marriage; this will be elaborated on further below.152

The fourth esoteric key to the Initiate is that certain physical objects, words, actions and numbers have specific esoteric or symbolic meanings that can be applied throughout the Bible according to the context. A few examples are as follows:

(a) "water" and its associations at a macrocosmic level esoterically refers to all-pervading life, Universal or Cosmic space; and at a microcosmic level, according to the context, to the emotions within a living Soul153 or when referred to as "wells of water, rivers of water, still waters, pools of water, springs and brooks"154 - to spiritual refreshment or life-force to the Soul;155

(b) "air" generally refers to the intuition and "fire" to the mind; however, quite often fire also refers to the creative life-force of "the Word", "the Logos" as well as the creative Christ or Serpentine force within Man, which is frequently represented as a serpent or dragon in some Ancient Sacred writings;

(c) "city" represents a state of consciousness in Man and reference to "mountain" or "mountains" means spiritual ascent, an elevation of consciousness; this is in keeping with the second esoteric key, above, which indicates that references to places reflect a state of consciousness.

(d) "feet" refer esoterically to the desires of the Initiate: by a man's desires you know him; hence, for example, we read of the Master, Jesus washing the feet of his Disciples, which symbolically means that the Disciples' grosser attributes and desires (their desires of the World) were washed clean by the Massu and their desires were therefore no longer of this World but one-pointed on God; hence you are said to be in this world, but not of this world;

(e) "flesh" (which is sometimes referred to as "meat") of a divine Being esoterically refers to "spiritual truth and God's natural law";

(f) "blood" symbolizes the eternal outpouring of "divine life by which the Universe and Man are spiritually sustained;"156 it always symbolises life in its divine sense, the eternal Christ substance of life; the wholesome eternal life force that cannot die, for there is no death in life; only evil can be destroyed.157 Hence the sprinkling of the blood on the door posts represents the sprinkling of the Christ blood or Christ life at the doorway of our consciousness whereby the angel of death (evil, destructive thoughts and actions, sin, which bring about death) cannot enter our minds and lives.

(g) "the act of the eating of such flesh and the drinking of such blood" signifies the Initiate's conscious absorption of Eternal Truth as well as the "conscious coalescence with the one life of the Universe......unity with its Source."158

(h) "seven" is the spiritually perfect number; the sacred wisdom is said to have seven layers, there are seven Realms or Mansions of creation, there were seven days of creation "and on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day". Solomon's temple was built in seven years;159 there are seven chakras or vortices of force in Man; in Revelations there were seven stars, seven churches, the dragon had seven heads and seven crowns, there were seven angels, seven golden vials, seven Mighty Spirits before the Throne, and seven mountains. In Daniel the furnace was to be heated seven times ................ before Shadrach, Meshach and Abendego were joined by a fourth, who appeared like the Son of God;160 likewise, the walls of Jericho were encircled on the seventh day for seven times before they came tumbling down. Man is said to have a sevenfold nature, and esoterically, the number seven is symbolized by the square and the triangle; the triune Christ or divine Spirit enters the square or "four-sided city of Jerusalem" (the lower self and physical body) and spiritualises it into New Jerusalem: the three sided triangle merges or marries the four-sided Square and becomes seven; the Egyptians expressed this sacred number in the structure of their pyramids; a pyramid was built with triangular sides on a four-sided base; with the apex or 'eye' of the pyramid pointing to the heavens.161 The Bible is replete with the use of the number seven in this esoteric manner.162

(i) "forty" is another of the many esoteric numbers utilised throughout the Bible and means - a time of probation, preparation, waiting and purification. The flood is said to have lasted forty days and Moses and the Israelites were in the wilderness for forty years; Joshua had to wait until he was forty years before he was fit to become leader of Israel and the children of Israel were delivered to the Philistines for forty years; Mary and Joseph waited for forty days before Christ was presented in the Temple and Moses, Elijah and Jesus the Christ (Yashua) fasted in the wilderness for forty days.163

We will now deal with a few Biblical narratives in Genesis, Exodus and Revelations reflecting the esoteric or inner meaning to all Initiates of the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God. To my mind there is no better place to start than the Adam and Eve story.

In Genesis we read: "Male and female created He them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created." The Mesopotamian word ADUMAH, ADAM or ADM in Hebrew, represents the number 9 and means "of the ground"164 or "child of black clay";165 hence, we read in Genesis that God "formed man out of the dust of the ground" (the rich, black soil of Mother Earth, which is filled with heat and electro-magnetic energy from the sun and all the necessary chemical elements), "and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul."166 Esoterically, as the name relates to humanity, Adumah or Adam (ADM) symbolises the original human family when humanity, in keeping with God's creative evolutionary impulse, was in its infancy, totally pure and unconscious of things of the flesh. This period of innocence represents the time before the separation of the sexes when human beings were said to be passionless, androgynous beings, who were self-reproductive.167

The Adamic era and even for some time after the separation of the sexes (reflected by the story of God causing a deep sleep to come over Adam whereby one of his "ribs" - more accurately one of his sides with the more feminine attributes - was taken), can be seen as a period of innocence similar to the period between the birth of an individual to the time just before puberty. This is reflected when we read that God "closed up the flesh...thereof. And with the rib, which the Lord God had taken from Man, made He woman, and brought her unto man. And Adam said, this is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of Man.......And they were both naked, the man and his wife and were not ashamed."168 Their lack of shame at their nakedness reflects an innocence and purity of mind: the carnal or lustful aspect of sexuality had not yet taken hold of humanity. Humanity is said to have performed the act of fecundation (sex) within a natural cycle of life influenced by the positioning of planets around the sun; for some time this innocence and attunement with natural law continued and human beings were almost unconscious of the sex act; some may say they were so attuned to the higher spheres and laws of life that they lived like automatons under God's immutable, natural laws.169

In that the story of Adam and Eve is dealt with in the Chapter 3, to wit, "Beyond the veil of history", suffice it to say here that the temptation of the more intuitive, sensitive, Eve (the female) and the eating of the proverbial apple represents a lowering of spiritual consciousness to a lower plane of physical consciousness (esoterically, this can be taken to refer to the individual initiate or to humanity generally during that era); this was brought about by self-willed, physical indulgence, which reflected behaviour outside the natural rhythms or cycles of the spheres and contrary to the natural laws of human existence. After the abuse of the creative force, the eating of the forbidden fruit, they realized their nakedness, and lost their power of divine attainment and their gift of eternal life.170 Hence by the sweat of their brows they thereafter lived to sustain and support the off-spring, in some cases, of their indulgence, who incidentally carried within them the ignorance (lack of right knowledge and attitude) of their 'flesh and blood' earthly parents.171

The Cain and Abel story as reflected in the Bible may seem quite unfair to some people, if taken at its face value. But like many stories throughout the Bible besides the historical or prophetic aspect there is also the dual esoteric understanding that refers to the spiritual and psycho-physical development of humanity at a certain period in time as well as to the spiritual and psycho-physical development of the individual on the Path of self-realisation; the Path that leads to the conscious realisation of the Christ or divinity within: Christ consciousness, the door through which you must pass to get back to God, the All-Father. Incidentally, this is the same door through which Jesus the Christ passed to become one with his All-Father whilst here on Earth.

With the above having been said "Cain" who is represented as the tiller of soil, refers to the more physical, masculine, sons of fire type, the head or mind type; those who were and those who still are more influenced by reason and materialism. That nature or emphasis can be seen in individual character-types or experienced within each individual, to a lesser or greater extent.

Relating the name Cain to humanity generally, it represented humanity's total immersion into the material, physical world when they lost their attunement to things of the spirit; they lost their birth-right to eternal life; a time when humanity developed the concrete mind at the expense of the heart or the spiritual side of their nature. As indicated above, "Cain" represents the 'head' or 'reason', the sons of fire; whereas "Abel" on the other hand represents, the 'heart', (the feminine) or spiritual side, the sons of water.172

"Abel" it must be remembered was a "keeper of sheep" like David; and keepers of sheep in the Bible always represent purity of thought, innocence, pertaining to the heart, the more feminine or intuitive nature. Hence, the offerings of the heart (Abel) given in faith and love were acceptable to God whereas the offerings of the head (cold intellect, reasoning and materialism - Cain) were not acceptable nor pleasing to God.

It should be noted that Cain, the head, the cold, selfish intellect, kills Abel, the heart, and great misery sets in;173 hence when the selfish, reasoning mind dominates the heart (the love nature) in an individual or humanity generally, misery is the result. Hence, Cain and Abel represent types of humanity at different eras of time as well as qualities of character to be found in each of us.174

The idea of the voice of Abel crying from the ground represents the unhappy heart or spirit being engulfed by the earth or ground (the physical body) whereby the heart or spirit is dominated by the 'heartless' mind or intellect; the heart or spirit therefore cries out for release from such materialistic bondage. Eventually, the heartless intellect or intellect without heart always brings pain and suffering until one realises the futility of putting one's faith in materialism and carnality, that is, as distinct from things of the heart, the spirit or of God.175

Cain's movement in consciousness to the land of Nod, as distinct from a mere physical movement of Cain to a place called Nod, means a time of mental and physical unrest and trouble. As indicated above 'the head without the heart' brings about spiritual and physical imbalance and trouble; as a consequence going to the land of Nod means that one's consciousness is lowered. But suffering and pain always follow such lowered states of consciousness; and suffering and pain tend to assist us in changing our evil ways, hence, Cain, the head, the intellect, started to cultivate the more feminine aspect, the heart, and began to nurture the spiritual and altruistic aspect of his nature. Thus we read that Cain knew his wife who bore him a son called Enoch, a name that represents wisdom, a state of high consciousness; hence we read that Cain built a city and as indicated before "a city" means a state of consciousness.176 From the foregoing we learn that through experience and suffering wisdom can be realized within the very centre of our being. It is what we make of experiences that counts; what we get out of them. Do we learn from our mistakes and become better people for those experiences? At the end of the day that is what will give us the crown of glory - the faith (which is of substance), in good over evil and in love vanquishing hate; that is what will make us rapidly move forward in our glorious journey in realizing God's will 'within us' on Earth.

Remembering always that all sacred writings, like an onion, have several 'layers' (meanings) and that all narratives must be understood and realized within our own beings, the Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel saga of the Bible can be esoterically internalised and summed up as follows: Adam represents within the initiate the pure Monadic Ray or Christ Spirit; Eve, the Soul or Ego encased in the solar and physical body; Cain, the intellect, reasoning, the brain, body consciousness, carnality and materialism; and Abel, spiritual awareness, the heart, the intuitive nature, faith substance and spirituality. Incidentally, for those who have ears to hear, the mere incarnation of the Spirit-Soul in the mire of clay (the dense, physical body) symbolises a burial in the ground (an entombing) until the deadening effect is overcome and the Spirit re-attains his spiritual glory, bringing home with him to the Almighty (the All-Father), the pristine, perfected Soul (the Bride).177

Another narrative we will deal with briefly is the Biblical story of the Patriarch, Noah. Besides reflecting the history of the descendants of Adam and Noah, Chapters 5 to 10 of Genesis reflect the epochs of Man. Each "begat" or generation indicates a principle or phase of human development; a state or quality of consciousness. The basic character or principle exemplified by the patriarch is the key to what was the emphasis of human development during that epoch.178 Hence Noah and those like him represent the pioneers of the human race who managed to conquer the carnal or lower nature by building "the Ark or Soul Body of the Initiate",179 'the Marriage Garment' or 'Solar body' of the Indwelling Christ (divine) Spirit; over time, those pioneers or "Sons of God" eventually married "the daughters of men": this reflects marriage (merging) with the more carnal minded, flesh, blood and bones consciousness, which resulted in the gradual decline spiritually of the human race. Noah and those like him however represented those dedicated to the Path that did not yield to carnality and abject materialism. Noah is said therefore to have walked with God.180 By building an "Ark", a marriage garment or solar body,181 by pure living, the initiate cum Master rises above the flood waters of passion and emotion; hence the "Ark" comes to rest on Mt. Ararat. The door of the "Ark" to the Initiate is the spleen (or more specifically, the etheric double of the spleen), where solar energy from the sun enters the "Ark" (the solar body); and the window of the "Ark" is in the head, more specifically, "the parietal occipital suture, where the Ego (Soul) enters and leaves the body in sleep and at death."182

A helpful, yet easy to remember esoteric insight into Noah and the flood is that it also refers to the spiritual evolution of Mankind. "The animals" in the Ark represent the lower, animal, or carnal nature in Man that must be transmuted to the higher, divine, immortal nature or Self represented by "Noah and his family"; "the Ark" represents the Solar Body or Marriage Garment of the perfected Soul that successfully rides "the flood waters covering the Earth" (the earthy, animal passions). This is accomplished by sublimating and transmuting those forces, whilst on Earth, into high spirituality and mental illumination represented by "the Mountains of Ararat".

Another insight into interpreting an aspect of Noah and the flood story is that the "raven" represents the intellect and reasoning - and the "dove" represents the intuition and the will (the divine or spiritual aspect in Man); incidentally, the concept of doves and the like flying through the air reflects that the Soul is pursuing, or experiencing a higher state of spiritual consciousness. By using the intellect and reasoning alone (the raven), one will not attain or experience Truth and spiritual awareness, one needs to also use the intuition and the will (the dove) for one to realize, whilst on Earth, spiritual truth, life and illumination within one's being (Mastership or Christ-consciousness); the intuition and the will go beyond the intellect and become one with the universal life force (symbolised by the dove eventually returning with the olive branch: which signifies "peace" that passeth all understanding).183

The Noah narrative also represents to all who have eyes to see the life cycle or some may say 'the after-life experience', starting from the Spirit-Soul's conscious experiences immediately after physical death until rebirth on Earth in another temple of flesh. For example, when the Spirit-Soul takes leave of the physical, dense body, the Spirit-Soul spends some time in the Astral or Desire Realm, where as indicated earlier in this chapter,184 there is a precipitation or flood of one's past deeds and experiences; so -called good and bad karma. This part of the cycle is represented by the flood waters; it is a rapid, intense, emotional experience.

Fairly soon after physical death, but for the Desire seed-atom (the pure, spiritualised, desire essence), the Spirit-Soul is basically purged of its desire substance; thereafter, the Spirit-Soul experiences a unity and peace (a loving dispassion), in the subdivisions of the Desire Realm described earlier in the chapter as the First and Second Heavens. Here, all is peace, an ecstatic calm. This represents the period in the Noah story when the rain was restrained and the waters were abated;185 a state of mental and spiritual equilibrium.

The period of the Spirit-Soul's journey in the Third and final Heaven (which is located in the three higher subdivisions of the Mind Substance Realm), is represented in the Noah story by the Ark coming to rest on the Mountains of Ararat.186 Here, remember, the divine, three-fold Spirit imbued with the essence of the seed-atoms of the Soul, becomes one with the Universal Spirit of the All-Father. The eventual emergence of Noah from the Ark and the descent from the mountains to lower ground represents the Spirit-Soul's descent to Earth for rebirth. This cycle of life is continued until perfect Christ or divine consciousness is realized whilst the Spirit-Soul is in the temple of flesh on Earth. Incidentally, the rainbow in the Noah story represents the bridge or link between the two lives, as well as a covenant between God and Humanity to unite the mortal self with the immortal, spiritual, Self: the Christ that must be realized in you by the grace of God, the All-Father of all creation.

Finally, in esoteric ethnology and history, the Noah epoch also represents the time of the Atlanteans spoken of in Chapter 3. Some refer to them as the Fourth Root Race, who abused both their psychic and material powers for selfish and aggressive ends; eventually, this behaviour of necessity brought about their own end via the proverbial floods referred to by all ancient cultures.187 As reflected later in Chapter 3, the remnants of ancient Atlantis can still be seen via the mountain ranges that peak as islands in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean188 Noah and those individuals, saved by the grace of God, were chosen as the progenitors of the next generation or Root Race of humans to live and enjoy God's Earth.189 A great deal more could be said about Noah and the flood, but enough has been said for one to get a true feel of the inner or esoteric meaning of not only this Bible story, but for that matter, many of the stories of the Bible.

We shall now briefly deal with a few excerpts from Exodus and Revelations. In the Exodus story Man's spiritual development is also reflected. The country "Egypt", in Judeo-Christian esoteric teaching, is said to represent a state of consciousness, whereby the individual or Soul is still in bondage or slavery to the material senses, evil and carnality.190 "Jerusalem" on the other hand represents the ultimate goal or end of the spiritual journey; to be in Jerusalem is to be in the purified holy body–temple wherein the divine One dwells and Spiritual or Christ consciousness is realized.191

As indicated earlier, characters in the stories of the Bible represent thoughts generally or thoughts of a certain type or quality and countries reflect states of consciousness; "countries" (states of consciousness) within which we sometimes dwell or stay for a while (until we overcome those thought patterns or habits) and subsequently move on to another country (a higher state of consciousness and behavioural pattern).192

It will be noticed that "Moses kept the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led his flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb."193 This is consistent with earlier guidance that indicated inter alia that men who tend sheep represent the regenerated, the chosen of God, the Davids, the Isaacs, the Abels, those of pure, wholesome thoughts related to things of the spirit, whereby the mountain is reached, which represents an elevation of consciousness or spiritual awareness (spiritual and mental illumination). The "flame of fire" out of the midst of the bush, which strangely, did not consume it, refers to the Light of the Spirit, the Christ within Man that engulfs the initiate cum Master, who submits his desires to God; "feet" remember refers to one's desires and "shoes" especially leather shoes, represent materialism - hence, the reason for God's communication with Moses to remove his shoes to "stand on holy ground". Moses therefore did away with his material desires to realize the fulness of God's grace and light, hence his feet (his desires) were engulfed and purified by the flame of Light (of Truth).194

Pharaoh, the King of the Egyptians, represents the alluring, ensnaring power behind the lower thoughts and tendencies in Man; hence, we are told in the story that Pharaoh held the "Israelites" (who represent 'spiritual thoughts that aspire to Truth and godliness'), in a vice grip demanding bricks without giving them straw. The eternal esoteric battle within Man, between his Divine and carnal mind, continues; a stalemate ensues until Moses, the leader of the "Israelites" decides to put an end to this ensnarement or bondage.195 True to life, when Moses (Divine mind and will) tries to lead the Israelites (aspiring spiritual thoughts) out of Egypt (a state of consciousness where base, carnal and material thoughts hold sway), there was a fight literally to the death by Pharaoh and his legions (the carnal mind and base habits) against Moses and the Israelites.196

Consistent with what has been said and explained earlier, under the subheading "The Fourth esoteric Key to the Initiate", paragraphs (f) and (g), "blood" symbolises divine Life, Truth, the Christ life substance - hence the Angel of death destroyed the Egyptians but not the Israelites, who "sprinkled blood 'on two sides of the posts' and on the upper door" of their houses......."for in life there is no death, and it is only evil that can be destroyed."197

As related in the story although the Israelites began their journey with confidence they soon came upon their Red Sea: "old (material) thoughts, fears, habits, appetites, crying wildly" to be satisfied.198 They had to be exhorted by their leader Moses to "Fear..not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord,.......for the Egyptians (material allurements) whom you have seen today you shall see no more."199

The words "Fear.. not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord" do not reflect spiritual stagnation, but on the contrary, reflect the means by which spiritual progress and communion with God is realized; in similar vein one reads "Be still, and know that I am God".200 In other words on the path of Truth, one must go fearlessly ("fear not"), because the only thing to fear is fear itself; to fear evil is to fear ignorance, because wherever truth is, ignorance is dispelled. Also, besides walking the Path fearlessly, one must be still (one must go into the silence), which means one must stop those carnal and material thoughts, so that in that quietness of mind, God, the All-Father can commune with the devotee, the spiritual Aspirant or Initiate. As pointed out earlier, in paragraph (a) of "the Fourth Esoteric Key to the Initiate" we should always observe the difference in the Bible between salt water (material, selfish or carnal thoughts, passions and desires) and fresh, pure waters from rivers and wells for example (which means spiritual refreshment or life-force to the Soul). The colour red is also significant; the sea was not only salt but red. Red is said by the physicist to be the lowest colour vibration that is perceptible to the naked eye, whereas on the other hand violet is produced by the highest vibrations in the ether. Hence, red in this context also represents the lower animal thoughts: angry thoughts, thoughts of rage. That is why when people are overcome by temper, some say: 'he or she saw red'.201

Above it was indicated that only evil can be destroyed as distinct from good, but to this may be added: evil destroys itself.202 This is well demonstrated in Exodus for example, in Chapter 10 verses 14 to 19, where one reads that the terrible locusts not only went all over the land of Egypt, but they covered the face of the whole Earth, so that the land was darkened; they ate herb and fruit and left nothing green on the trees - and "a mighty strong west wind.......took away the locusts and cast them into the Red Sea; there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt." "East" in Esoteric Law represents amongst other things, spiritual light, spiritual thoughts; our spiritual thoughts are said to emanate from the eastern or left hemisphere of our brain (consciousness); also the physical sun that brings life and light to the Earth rises in the East. "West" on the other hand represents the opposite of life and light, to wit, death and darkness. Hence the locusts (evil or error) were taken away by a mighty strong west (symbolising death, darkness or error) wind and they were destroyed in the Red Sea (the sea of error).203 So too, in Exodus, Chapter 14, verses 21 to 28 where one reads of a strong east wind that divided the waters and made the sea dry land; the children of Israel went through safely but the story relates that the same fate befell the Egyptians as the locusts: they perished in the Red sea; hence, in Judeo-Christian Biblical symbology, evil destroys evil because in reality evil is out of sync with the vibration of Love and Harmony.

We shall now move into the New Testament, more specifically, to Revelations where we will deal with the esoteric meaning of a few passages, that is, as they relate to the inner life of the true Israelite or Initiate on the Path: the true child of the Kingdom of God. Undeniably, Revelations, it must be remembered, also has a prophetic or visionary aspect, but this will be dealt with later in Chapter 4 of this book.

In Revelations, Chapter 6, we read: And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four Beings (some Bibles say 'living creatures', others, 'beasts) saying: Come and see. And behold a white horse appeared. And he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.204

For those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, the opening of "one of the seven seals" refers to the opening of the pelvic or Svadhisthana centre or chakra, mentioned earlier in this chapter. This chakra (vortex of energy) belongs to the generative region, where the pingala (positive) and ida (negative) currents flow strongly; it is at the base of the somatic division. It is said to represent Sagittarius in the Ancient science of Solar Biology or Astrology, hence, the Biblical reference to the horse and man with a bow. In that he rides a white horse, the Being is said to represent the Conqueror, who is starting off on his (spiritual) journey of conquest, hence, the words "he went forth conquering, and to conquer".205 This interpretation, like in all the other paragraphs to follow relating to the seals, must also be internalised in the microcosm, that is, in each human being or initiate on the Path of God.

And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second Being (living creature) say: Come and see. And there came out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the Earth, and that they (men) should kill one another; and there was given unto him a great sword.206

The above refers to the opening of the solar plexus or Manipura chakra; its colour is red or crimson, like the red horse, which "symbolizes the abdominal somatic division," and the horse in conjunction with the rider epitomises passion, aggression, war (violence). This seal is also referred to as "the epigastric chakra"; its sign is Scorpio and its planet Mars, the ruler of war.207

And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the Third Being say, Come and see. And behold a black horse came out; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances (scales) in his hand. and I heard a voice in the midst of the Beings saying: A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see that you do not hurt (damage) the oil (olive trees) and the Vine (yard/wine).208

The above refers to the opening of the heart or Anahata chakra. It is quite clear that it corresponds to the sign Libra with the balance or scales; the ruler of this somatic division is said to be the "parsimonious weigher", the lower mind or lower intellect that is tainted by emotions, selfish motives and carnal desires.209 The lower mind is said to be able to achieve admirable advancements in science and conventional knowledge, but this superficial, material advancement will be devoid of spiritual attunement or insight;210 the result of this spiritual deadness or dormancy: chaos, because our culture, science, and social behavior will not be consistent with God's natural laws of life on Earth. This lower mind eventually has to be conquered by the Higher/Divine or Christ mind, which imbues the heart with love and compassion, and the body with life. Eventually, the heart and mind work in unison and in a balanced manner as God planned it.

And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the Fourth Being say: Come and see. And I looked and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell (Hades) followed him. And power was given to them over the fourth part of the Earth, to kill with sword (war), and with hunger (famine), and with death (disease), and with the beasts of the Earth.211

The above refers to the opening of the throat or Vishudha (laryngeal) chakra. This is the highest chakra that belongs to the Sympathetic nervous system (the chakras above the throat chakra are said to belong to the brain); the throat chakra is ruler of the highest of the somatic divisions, the lower 'sky' (the cerebral region, incidentally is referred to as the mid-sky or the First Heaven within Man, the ultimate abode of the Christ Spirit and mind within the temple of flesh). The vocal chord is the mystical organ of creation: the word (logos), activity, motion.212 However, until this mystical organ of creation is perfected, when Man shall create as God planned it by the power of the word, this throat chakra works in conjunction with the lowest somatic divisions of generation (the higher generative organ and the lower generative or creative organ). In that the sex force (drive and energy) exists only in the physical and psychic realms, Death and Hades reflect the effect of the abuse of the creative force at the physical (material) and psychic levels.213 The abuse of the creative force therefore brings death by war (violence), famine and disease not only within the individual initiate but to the broader society that indulges itself in such abuse.

And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying: How long, O Lord, Holy and True, does Thou fail to judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the Earth. And white robes were given to them; and it was said to them, that they should rest for a season (keep still for a little while) until their fellow-servants and brothers, who are to be killed, were killed, as they were.214

The above refers to the opening of the Ajna Chakra that is said to correspond to the sign Cancer.215 This chakra is closely connected to the Pituitary gland, one of the two key glands of great power that are dormant and to be awakened within the brain centre (the heavenly sphere). The seventy plus (the mystical three in one) centres of the brain, taught of in Phrenology, are said to remain dormant (dead so to speak) by the typical unspiritual, materialistic life, until 'their brothers' (the other chakras) are first brought into activity then 'killed' or put in abeyance, while the cerebral centres, (the Pituitary and Pineal centres), are awakened. Those seventy plus one brain centres referred to above, are then said to receive "white robes" as currents of the celestial Flame begin to suffuse through the brain due to the gradual awakening of the two cerebral chakras aforementioned.

And I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became dark and the moon became as blood, and the stars of the sky fell to the Earth, even as figs drop their untimely fruit (unripe fruit) when shaken by a mighty wind. And the sky was removed as a scroll being rolled up; and every mountain and island was moved out of their places. And the kings of the Earth, and the great men etc......hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains. And said to the mountains.....hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of his wrath has come; and who shall be able to stand.216

The opening of the sixth seal in Revelations refers to the opening of the Root or Muladhara chakra or seal, thereby releasing tremendous spiritual and electro-magnetic energy up the Sushumna, the principal nadi in the human temple (the closest physical counterpart of the Sushumna is the Spinal chord). Nadis are like tubes of energy and life-force that flow through the Astral or Solar body of each human being; they are akin to the peripheral nervous system in the physical body. This electro-magnetic, Spiritual body interpenetrates and electrifies or vitalises, so to speak, the physical body via the chakras ('seals') and peripheral nadis. However, as indicated above, this release of life force and electrical-energy flows from the base of the spine right up the brain stem into the brain; this gives the mind and body an overwhelming experience.

'The darkening of the sun' refers to 'the blanking out of the mind' by this surge of electro-magnetic, spiritual energy into the brain; 'the falling of the stars' refers to the falling away of thoughts;217 the 'fig tree dropping her untimely or unripe fruit as if shaken by a mighty wind' refers to the awakening of the Spiritual fire before the carnal or lower mind has submitted to the Christ Mind (before the 'fruit'/individual is ripe/mature and ready for Christ Consciousness); this is reflected in the words of pandemonium and fear when we read of 'the removal of the sky, mountains and islands and the panic and hiding of the Earth-dwellers (lower mind and faculties)'.218 The 'ripeness of the fruit'/Initiate is directly related to the re-orientation of mind and the transmutation of the sex force; a fact that most organised Christian Religions do not bring to the fore, because it is a hard 'pill to swallow' in our hard-core sex-oriented societies; a fact that would certainly not make them popular. It should be noted that the Roman Catholic Christian Church demands celibacy from its priests, some may say with varied success. The direct link between the sex-force or sexual energy and spiritual development will be dealt with briefly later.

Before moving on to Revelations Chapter 8, verses 1 to 6, when the seventh seal is opened, a few words are in order about Chapter 7 of Revelations. In symbology, it reflects the final preparation of the Soul for the mystic fusion or marriage with the Christ-Spirit or Lamb, who is in 'the middle of the throne' to guide those Souls that have fought the good fight and gone through the ordeals of the Path of realising him (the Indwelling-Christ that must be realised in you), the gift of the All-Father. Each of those Soul's 'scroll of life' (every thought, word and deed coupled with the relevant emotion) is brought to the fore and the final conflict of cause and effect within the initiate (Soul) takes place. The Lamb (the Christ-Spirit/the Logos) will then "shepherd them (the Souls) and guide them to springs of life-giving water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."219 In symbology the lower principles in each Soul on the Path are chastised and purified and the higher faculties and principles receive the seal of the All-Father's approval.220

As indicated above, the opening of the Sahasrara chakra is reflected in the words of the first six verses of Revelations, Chapter 8: "And when he (the Lamb) had opened the seventh seal there was a silence in the sky (heaven) for about half an hour. And I saw seven Angels that stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. And another Angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer (incense holder); and there was given to him much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints (devotees) upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which went up with the prayers of the saints (devotees), ascended before God out of the Angel’s hand. And the Angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar, and cast it into the Earth: and there were voices, and peals of thunder and lightning and an earthquake. And the Angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to give the trumpet-calls."221

As indicated above, these verses of Revelations relate to the opening of the seventh chakra centre, which incidentally corresponds to the sign of Leo, the Lion, the domicile of the sun. This centre or chakra is directly linked to the Pineal gland or the proverbial "third eye", which is said to be the focal point of the nerve system and the aura of the individual; when the forces of the aura and the nerve system realize an equilibrium in this seventh chakra or Pineal gland centre a great 'silence in the sky or heaven' (esoterically, the head, the brain or mind) prevails before the great changes take place within the mind (the sky) and body (the earth) of the individual; the calm before the storm, so to speak.222

During this mystic silence or meditation, each chakra that has been opened becomes fully awakened. Leo is said to be the fixed fire sign of the Zodiac and thus the reference to the Christ 'fire of the altar' that was cast into the earth (the body), with tremendous purifying and internal effect, both psychic and physical. The Christ fire or flame of life flowing up and through the seven chakra centres makes the body vibrate (earthquake) and each chakra centre produces a vibrant sound, referred to as trumpet-calls.223 Each trumpet-call or keynote of each chakra (from the base of the spine to the head) reflects a higher tone or vibration, which in real terms means that a higher state of consciousness is realised and certain sins (weaknesses and transgressions) overcome.224

The rest of Revelations, for those who have eyes to see, represents many permutations (in symbology and allegory) of the mystic drama of the true child of God (the true Israelite, Initiate or devotee) realising oneness with Christ or Christ-consciousness: the true marriage on Earth of the Soul to the Immortal Christ-Spirit; the overcoming of the epithumetic nature and carnal mind by the Christ mind, whereby the fullness of God's grace and love is made manifest here on Earth. One could go on and on about the esoteric meaning of Revelations as it relates to the Initiate on the Path of Truth, but sufficient has been said. For those who want to pursue this further via the written word two excellent books relating to the esoteric meaning of the Bible and other sacred writings are Volumes I and II of "The Hidden Wisdom in the Bible" by Geoffrey Hodson. Obviously, there are many other outstanding works on the subject that the true Initiate, the child of God, the Lover of Truth, will also find illuminating.

(3) The All-pervading Law of love and a few other immutable laws of God225

In Chapter 1 and the beginning of this Chapter, we dealt with the fact that all is of divine spirit substance; that includes both visible and invisible substances. All life is of substance. "Faith" remember is said to be "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen". "Love" like "faith" is not just a word or an emotion, but is also of substance; it has a particular vibration and colour. It is the highest vibrating substance on Planet Earth; the all-pervading, cohesive spirit of the Universe. The Love substance is referred to by some as 'the Ultimate Solvent' that dissolves all evil: restores purity where there is impurity and balance where there is imbalance. Presently, for those of us that are television viewers, we see advertisements of a host of different fabric cleansers for the removal of different types of stains, be they caused by blood, rust, ink or whatever. In God's esoteric science, the quick vibrating love substance (a product of the Christ spirit), is the cleanser for all stains (sins/transgressions) that adversely affect our mental, physical and spiritual well-being; it has a quickening effect on the substances of our minds and bodies; love in action reflects the Soul's attunement and response to the divine or Christ Spirit within.

For one to get to the root of how the law of love or love as a science works, the law of love must be understood to be one of God's esoteric, immutable, natural laws that was decreed from the very beginning by the Omniscient Mind of the All-Father as the working basis of all creation; without such law no manifestation could occur and nothing we perceive could exist. The purpose of God's Laws, including His paramount Law of love, is to progressively ensure the evolvement and upliftment of all creation, that is, despite the obstacles put up by Man (by his ignorance) to thwart their operation. The motive behind those immutable Laws must always be understood to be the preservation of life for attaining the ideal expression. With God, the All-Father, justice is always done: balance is always restored and love is always made manifest.

As we have indicated before, in God's perfect creation all is vibratory and of substance. If we are to understand and live the love science (as Jesus the Christ taught), we must truly imbibe this; this is the bed-rock of realising the (Christ) light of love within us and by extension in our lives. The low vibrating substances form the more crystallised, static or visible objects: gases, liquids and solids; whereas, other higher vibrations of substance, within a certain range of frequency, are designated as sound or light, as the case may be; and some may say by extension what we perceive as colours (which are sensations produced on the eyes by rays of light when resolved by prisms). As regards what we designate as sound, it should be noted that certain very high vibrating sounds vibrate beyond a frequency range that we usually can hear. We are therefore taught of the dog whistle that can be heard by a dog (with its keen sense of hearing), but not by the average person. Likewise, the colours above the colour vibration we designate as violet cannot be seen with the optic senses, but with the help of machines, created by Man, we perceive the ultra-violet rays and x-ray.

Likewise, it must be imbibed that the vibrations of the mind or thoughts, like radio waves or television signals travel instantaneously hundreds of miles. And it is interesting to note that Man emulating his Creator (the All-Father), creates, hence he created amongst many other things the radio and the television; and remember that that is Man, who has not yet realized his ideal, divine expression. Nevertheless, with a radio created by Man, we can tune into different radio stations by attuning to the appropriate wave-length and frequency. Similarly, in that every thought is a vibration having a set frequency and wave-length, it is transmitted from the brain like a radio station. And further, the mind and (its 'telecommunications') the brain centre, not only operate as a transmitter, but as a receiver par excellence. It is said that the mind is the most important instrument possessed by Man (a Spirit-Soul in flesh) and is certainly a crucial instrument in the law of creation.

With the foregoing fixed in our hearts and minds, as we live our lives on God's Earth, we must seek to create harmonious, loving environments - starting with ourselves. Obviously, as indicated above, love being of substance, it has its own particular rate and range of vibration; altruistic love being the highest and most dynamic force (substance/vibration) on Earth. When one lives by this high energy substance of pure, altruistic love, not carnal lust, which is also of substance, but of a vastly different vibration, one encircles himself or herself with the (high frequency) vibration substance of love; this is one's auric shield and highest form of protection. The more one transfers or exhudes the love energy to others and things around him, the more one magnetizes a never ending flow of love from the Universal Source.

It may interest some to know that even the teachings of Psychology accept that for every idea or thought, there is a corresponding vibration or movement of brain tissue, and to this may be added, an emission, like a transmitter, of the thought vibration. The Bible once again expounds an eternal law (truth) when one reads : "as a Man thinketh in his heart so is he" - as this represents the sum total of the vibration and frequency of that personality or individual. Hence, just like each radio station has a particular frequency in a wave band and transmits at a certain power, so too does each and every individual who walks this Earth.

In light of this, one can therefore better understand the exhortation of Jesus the Christ/Yashua to "love your enemies". Many are puzzled by this precept of "love thy enemies". Others hypocritically mouth it, say they adhere to it and go around hating with gusto. Understanding the law of love, however (love being the highest vibrating substance), one is shielded from slower vibrating thoughts of hate directed to him or her, that is, if one lives by the law or substance of love.

As an illustration, if A and B hate each other insanely, whatever negative or deleterious thought processes that may be directed from A to B will only be received by B because B, by mutually hating A is on the same wave-length and by the mental frequency attachment of hate picks up A's negative thought vibrations. This occurs just as consistently and easily as one tunes in on a radio to a radio station of one's choice, be it 5:95 or 6:10 medium wave band or whatever. That is the Law.

We must all remember when pure love energy is sent forth by a person devoted to living by the law of love, it vibrates as a constructive and positive force that repels the slower vibrating thoughts emitted from a person filled with the emotion of anger and hate. 225(a) Hence, always remember "love thy enemies." In fact you must pray for them. The Holy Scripture indicates "love is the fulfilling of the Law."

Incidentally, the Holy Bible underscores the power of love by the use of the words "love" and "loved" over three hundred times.226 If the teaching of Jesus the Christ/Yashua had to be expressed in one word, it would be "love". All Wise men, Seers, Sages, Spiritual Teachers, Prophets and Avatars of all cultures have exhorted and emphasised the principle of love. In every major Religion of the World the words reflecting 'love in action' are expressed in some permutation of the following words : "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."227 Always judge your thoughts and deeds by the query: "Is it from the heart?" Remember God judges us from the heart; the root-cause of the action is in the heart. The illumined master Sri Aurobindo indicates that love is "the secret of secrets, the mystery of mysteries." and "(t)here is nothing which is beyond the reach of the God-lover or denied to him;"228 you are therefore advised: "love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength," and you are assured all the peace, happiness and success you desire. Get your priorities right.

Before moving on to the final subheading of this chapter, to wit - Sex, the Proverbial Serpent and Spiritual development - we will deal with two other basic, but important, immutable laws or principles that should be imbibed, if we are to realise the fullness of God's grace, as we tread the Path of life. The first is "the Law of Periodicity" and the other is "the Law of Cause and Effect" or "As you sow so shall you reap".

It is taught that God's Natural Law of Periodicity causes a thought or an act to be repeated within a determinate time. The initial intensity with which the thought was projected or the act performed, determines the time in which the tendency to repeat itself will manifest (occur). The Law of Periodicity is crucial in the formation of good or bad habits; and therefore, by extension, is important in overcoming bad habits and replacing them with good habits. Here is a simple illustration of the law of Periodicity, also known as the Law of Periodical Return. If you were to look at an electric light bulb for a few seconds then close your eyes you will notice there is a mental vibration or picture of the light, which is pulsating, rhythmic fashion (appearing and disappearing), growing dimmer with each pulsating appearance, until it fades away entirely228(a).

The above is an example "of the law of periodicity and every thought, ...feeling and...tendency will" likewise "repeat itself at given periods of time according to the intensity of the initial impulse that gave it birth". 228(b) Recognising this law, if you observe the exact time your bad habits repeat themselves, you will be prepared to overcome them with greater success. For example, if you think you have a problem and in the privacy of your own room you worry intensely about this 'supposed problem' at six (6) o'clock this evening, rest assured, you can be watching a netball or football match tomorrow evening, at roughly six (6) o'clock the thought process in relation to that 'supposed problem' will return to you. If you are not aware of this law, you will pick up the thought process and again, seemingly helplessly, repeat it. By the following day and the days after you have more and more a binding date with that worrisome thought process, which in extreme cases can become an obsession culminating in insanity. Knowing the law however, you can cut the initial thought process in the bud, replacing the worrisome thought or visualisation of failure, ill-health, sadness, defeat and death with an opposite visualisation and thought process of success, vibrant health, happiness, victory and (abundant) life everlasting.228(c)

The other simple but important law that we must deal with is "as you sow so shall you reap", or the law of "cause and effect". Every thought, word and deed to a greater or lesser extent, has its resultant effect. It is like throwing a stone into a pond. From the central point (where the stone entered the water) ripples will go out causing a reaction on any object floating on the surface; so too, likewise you will observe that when the ripples reach the retaining wall of the pond, ripples will also be set in motion returning to the centre of the pond where the initial vibrating impulse began where the stone had entered the water. In light of this and accepting that all life is of substance in vibration and that each thought, word or action will bring a natural reaction, I am of the view that we should be all overjoyed that such is God's law and that it is invariable. Because the question may be asked, which farmer would plant a pumpkin seed and expect a watermelon, or plant a mango seed and expect a pear tree?. A farmer doesn't plant one crop and expect another; likewise in human endeavour plant good seeds in the Mind Spirit Substance Realm with faith and reap God's harvest with certainty. Remember, that "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Hence, we should glorify in the immutable law that whatever we sow into the formative God substances brings back in the physical realm that which was sown in it. If you want only that which is good then sow only that which is good. Remember always therefore "that which is sown is that which comes up" - such is God's law.

When relating our minds to the topic of spiritual development most of us shy away from seriously dealing with 'sex' and the 'proverbial serpent'. But the truth is - sex, the proverbial serpent and spiritual development - are all inextricably intertwined. Some people, like the proverbial ostrich, may want to bury their heads in the sand. However, if you are serious about realizing truth you must not run away from any aspect of it that may not appeal to you because it either conflicts with your sex life (your 'macho' or 'sexy' image), or because propagating it may not make you popular.

It should be noticed that most of today's established religions encourage sexual purity; fornication or sex outside of marriage is usually discouraged and frowned upon. Most religions demand or at least expect chastity from their Religious leaders, Holy men and women, Pastors, Ministers or Priests. Hence, even within the framework of today's religious system, the need for sexual purity and in some instances celibacy is realised. Whether Pastors, Religious leaders, Priests and people generally are successful in realising this purity is another matter; however, be assured that all who realize this purity in their lives will indeed be blessed. In the Bible it is written: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."229 and "to the pure all things are possible."230

Although sex may be the foremost subject in the hearts and minds of many people, it still remains a 'taboo subject'; you usually have to deal with it carefully (like some fragile article), or not at all, if you don't want to offend some people. The following paragraphs present certain facts about 'sex, the proverbial serpent and spiritual development' that may or may not offend some people but, as some would say: Truth is Truth; and it should not be an offence.

The act of sex between a man and a woman is a physical expression of the creative life-force inherent within them. Some would say sex is the culmination, with orgasm, of physical love-making.231 As indicated earlier,232 in many cultures, the serpent represents what in esoteric Christianity is referred to as the Christ Fire or Light, the Christ Serpentine Force or the Flame of Life in the temple of flesh; in Yoga and Eastern philosophy it is referred to as the 'kundalini' represented by a coiled serpent at the base of the spine. It should also be observed that the bony frame of the spine (running from the base of the skull to the tail bone - coccyx) that encases the spinal chord looks very much like a 'bony' serpent.233

In the Kabalistic doctrine, which represents the esoteric wisdom of the Hebrews, the tree of life is a symbol of the entire macrocosm, the Universe, and the microcosm, Man; in Hindu yoga, the relationship of the Universe and Man. To an initiate on the Path of Truth and Self-realisation, the proverbial serpent, entwined around the tree, is represented within man by the human spine and the positive (ida) and negative (pingala) currents of electro-magnetic energy flowing up and down on either side of the spine (more specifically, the central Sushumna coupled with the kundalini). As indicated earlier in this Chapter the same symbolism is demonstrated in Solomon's temple.234

Throughout history, the serpent has always represented the duality of wisdom (Perfect knowledge) and sexuality. For example, readers of the Bible should observe references to the two different types of serpents in the story of the children of Israel in the wilderness with their great guide and leader Moses. One was "the fiery serpent" that the children of Israel were supposedly bitten by; that one caused death. Then there was the brass serpent, which God directed Moses to hang from a pole in the centre of the camp site; this one brought health and life to all those that were bitten by the fiery serpent. This duality as regards serpents is also reflected when Moses confronted Pharoah in Egypt and the good serpents of Moses destroyed the bad or evil serpents of Pharoah's High Priests.

With the foregoing in mind, Man, as a miniature creation of God, with creative force inherent in his divine nature, participates in the creation of life at a physical level. This he presently does by using this creative force or potentiality for physical ends whereby that force flows downwards into the generative organs; in this form the creative force is known as sexual energy, which because of our material and carnal emphasis creates a constant urge for sexual release through sex; from this sexual release children are born (many times out of lustful unions that had nothing to do with procreation or love) and Man lives by the sweat of his brow to support his offspring. However, on the other hand, Man may sublimate this force by directing this creative, divine energy or force upward to the brain granting the incarnate soul in flesh divine attunement, physical regeneration, and wisdom; the mystic marriage with his Christ-Spirit within.

It should be remembered that Paul of the Bible advised his followers that if they could not be like him, that is, celibate, then, they should get married and control their lust with their spouse. In other words, two initiates on the path of life (male and female, who still have carnal desires or lust in them), joined together in 'holy matrimony', endeavouring together to realise the Christ-Spirit or divinity within themselves; this process can be facilitated by practicing sex magic (whereby the married couple make love and have sex without spasm or ejaculation), which causes regeneration, as distinct from normal sex (whereby spasm and ejaculation occurs), which results in generation (and in time, if the chrism or sap of the body is wasted excessively, to degeneration and death). The Christ-Spirit (the Bridegroom within the body-temple) is the ultimate grace (gift) of God to each and every one of us; a gift we must all willingly accept if we are to overcome this Earth. For those who have eyes to see, let them see : the ceremony of marriage (in a Church or a court) between a man and a woman is an exoteric religious ritual (with serious legal implications) representing a deeper spiritual truth - the esoteric marriage that must take place within each one of us. This will be elaborated on further at the conclusion of this Chapter.

Accepting therefore, as reflected above, that the sex force is the said life-force of God within us, and that ultimately - as taught by the Ancient Masters - without celibacy or sex magic (which is sex without spasm or ejaculation) higher spiritual attainments are quite impossible,235 we shall now briefly examine the realities of how people relate to sex in today's society.

At this point in Man's history most people will agree that Man has reached his decadent best. Sodom and Gomorah were just cities. but today the whole world has, if anything, outstripped the city of Sodom. With our advancements in science and technology we can pervert ourselves much more efficiently and thoroughly. Selling a chocolate or candy bar on television is usually nothing short of sugar-coated seduction; most so-called love song videos are 'sex simulations'. Man's abuse of the creative (sexual) force and his sex function has made sex 'deadly'; "AIDS" has taken root throughout the world and spreads its tentacles like a white plague.

God bless the young people who live in the sewer of our times, because instead of being taught about the value of purity and the truth about celibacy: the power of virtue and the necessity of sound morals - they are being taught about 'safe sex'! What is that? How to put on a condom properly and what condoms are best! Do they tell those young children how to deal with the fact - after a bout of sweat-filled sex - that this so-called 'life saving' condom worn by the male 'partner' has during coitus, to their dismay, burst (as it does quite often), or that no condom (regardless of brand) is fool-proof to the AIDS virus. We must realize that if we pervert our youth we destroy ourselves. Nothing weakens a people and destroys whole societies, a nation, a world like the abuse and perversion of the sexual or creative force; the creative force, within Man is a divine force, and must not be abused. In these times however, carnality thrives and is doing a booming business.

Having said the above, on a more mundane or down-to-earth level, sex can and does play an integral part in the lives of most men and women. In the strict religious sense this sexual experience should take place during marriage - hence the statement of Paul referred to above. In the average marriage, as long as the couples are fairly healthy, a fair amount of normal sex is indulged in; this is not only accepted by most people as legitimate indulgence, but is expected behaviour; a matrimonial right, so to speak, commencing with the obligation to consummate the marriage. Despite our passion for sex and our need to be macho (in the case of men) or sexy (in the case of women), we must observe that even the common dog as well as most other animals indulge in sex only when procreation is possible. Hence it is clear that the sex force and fluids should either be used for generation or regeneration whereby the seed is retained and the Golden Child or Christ Spirit is consciously realised in the body-temple.

However, before we have reached the level of understanding, control and illumination, whereby one does not need or desire to have sex, sex as a physical and pleasurable act can be positive between two people in love. It is said that those who have not purified their blood236and their thoughts237 will find it difficult, if not impossible, to practice celibacy or sex magic. They may burn up mentally with carnal desires racing through their minds; their nervous system may deteriorate from the sexual tension (including spasm and ejaculation) and anxiety. Hence, for those souls (which includes most of us) the occasional release of sexual tension (including spasm and ejaculation) may be necessary and pleasurable.

The truth is most people cannot at this juncture relate to celibacy or sex magic; that is just too much to ask of them. Despite this, normal sex is usually still a problem for them and represents an area of tension and frustration in their lives. Many men frustrate women and vice versa by their total lack of understanding and sensitivity to each other. Both parties should have foremost in their minds the feeling of love, pleasure, harmony and completeness that they desire for their companion and lover. Their bodies should be clean and healthy so that both parties can enjoy each other to the fullest; as some would say all parts of one's body are capable of high sexual arousal and pleasure, if dealt with, with love and sensitivity.

Men who want to be good lovers should always remember that generally women take longer than men to reach their climax so women need to be nurtured and aroused with embraces, kisses and foreplay. All men who genuinely desire to please their mates should learn to breathe deeply, rhythmically and completely as taught earlier in this Chapter.* Having mastered the complete breath, during the act of sex, a man must breathe rhythmically and slowly through his nose (not through the mouth as many do as they pant to uncontrolled orgasm). If he consciously breathes rhythmically through his nostrils, as advised, his ability to 'ride and stay in the bucking saddle of love' will increase dramatically. This improvement will not only be to his satisfaction but to the complete satisfaction and undying gratification of his mate.238

Having said the above, we must not digress too far from the underlying reality that every orgasm dissipates tremendous vital energy and life-force. The French traditionally refer quite rightly to "orgasm" as "petit mort"; this reflects a profound esoteric truth. Some authorities indicate however, that when a man and a woman who eat nutritious, wholesome food, occasionally engage in sexual intercourse, this does not destroy them, but on the contrary, may keep them harmonious and together; although it would be folly to believe that such indulgence does not also extract its toll. On the other hand, people who are undernourished that indulge in excessive sexual activity find themselves considerably weakened in mind and body. That they are aware of it or not, their mental and physical capacity declines and ill-health and death follows. Many a materialist cynic would say that disease and death are certain regardless, so let us have sex wantonly, drink and make merry because tomorrow you die anyway; that is the guidance and ensnarement of Sodom.239

The above guidance of Sodom, it must be emphasised, is contrary to what has been taught and demonstrated by Jesus the Christ and the Great Spiritual Masters. Further, in harmony with Christ's teachings on overcoming death, some scientific authorities of today indicate that there is no real reason for the physical body of a human being to die, in that as long as the blood is kept healthy the body continuously renews itself. And those authorities base their conclusions on a material science (bio-chemical standpoint) that in no way takes cognizance of the underlying Spiritual laws as well as the other more subtle bodies of Man - such as the Vital or Etheric (electro-magnetic) body and the Astral or Desire body - that interpenetrate and influence greatly the health of the dense, (bio-chemical) physical body.

Although not generally taught and emphasised by the exoteric religious teachings of today, esoteric wisdom throughout the ages teaches that the sublimation and transmutation of the life (sex) force brings about the regeneration of the body and the mental faculties thereby allowing the incarnate Spirit-Soul to eventually manifest as God planned it. This regeneration can be realised as indicated before through celibacy or by a married couple practicing sex magic, because both methods transmute the sex force by assimilating it within the temple without spilling or wasting the holy chrism or seed. The sex force and sap of the physical body should either be used for generation or regeneration.

At a basic bio-chemical or physical level, esoteric law teaches that the "golden oil"240 or "oil"241 within the body temple - also known as Chrism or the Christ substance in Man - flows from the head (the heavenly sphere in Man), more specifically, from the thalmus (the interior region of the brain where the sensory nerves begin) down the spine to the solar plexus (esoterically called "Bethlehem" or "the house of bread"). Therefore, to the Initiate cum master, Christ or Chrism comes down from heaven (the head) to be born in Bethlehem (the solar plexus).242 Hence when one reads that "Our Lord (Golden oil, Chrism) was crucified in Egypt" - (the lower body or generative organs)- this refers to the consumption of the golden oil or life-force in sexual activity.243 The secret of life, which most people do not want to hear, is that when Man subdues or crucifies his lower self and realises the virtue of sex magic or celibacy for a seven year period, the holy chrism or golden oil no longer flows downwards into the reproductive organs (Egypt) but flows back up from the Solar plexus to the brain where it drips back into Optic Thalmus, thereby activating the pituitary and pineal glands, which opens the Inner or Central Eye of the temple of God.244 When that spiritual eye is opened " the Sun shall be no more thy light by day; neither for brightness shall the Moon give light unto thee: But the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting Light and thy God thy glory!"245

At that juncture the threefold body (the Desire, Etheric and Physical) will be in perfect harmony with the threefold Soul (the Emotional, Intellectual and Conscious), both of which will be in total harmony and submission to the threefold Christ Spirit (the Human, Life and Divine). Esoterically, the loving, willing submission of the Bride (the threefold Soul) to the Bridegroom (the threefold Christ Spirit) is the Mystic Marriage that must take place here on Earth in the temple of Flesh; when this occurs the threefold body (the temple) is transmuted from mortality to immortality; from that moment onwards that son or daughter of God has overcome this Earth, having graduated with excellence; death thereafter loses its sting and that Spirit-Soul may materialize himself or herself on Earth at will without passing through the womb of a woman. This feat is achieved by these illumined Spirit-Souls' ability to magnetize the molecular structure necessary to be seen and touched; these sons and daughters are then said to be in this World but not of this World. Those sons and daughters of God - (having fully realised with all the fullness of their consciousness that they are children of the All-Father) - shall forevermore have access to all the other Rooms, Realms or Mansions of the All-Father's House or Creation.

In conclusion, with the above reality of your true potential permeating your being, the following should be considered as you live the Will and the Way:

"The Kingdom of God is within you."246

"Know that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If a man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."247

"It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you." 248

"Flee fornication...... he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God." 249

"Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor coveteous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." 250

"For when ye were servants of sin,................What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." 251

"For if you live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 252

"Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should turn from his ways and live." 253

"Cast away from all your transgressions, whereby you have transgressed; and make ye a new heart and a new spirit: for why will you die..?" 254

"For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye." 255

"As I live, saith the lord , I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but the wicked turn from his ways and live: turn ye, from your evil ways: for why will ye die...?" 256

"Your fathers ate manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever." 257

"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him shall not perish, but have eternal life." 258

"Verily, verily I say unto you, if a man keep my sayings, he shall never see death." 259

"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons and daughters of God." 260

Finally always remember – Love is the spirit of God in action. Live love by using your talents to serve others. Always do what you perceive in your heart to be the right and loving thing to do in any given situation. Do this with detachment and you are assured an Eternal Blessing of Universal Love, power, peace and success. And so it is.

Footnotes:

1As regards GOD being the Generator, Operator and Destructor. see "The Thoughts of P.R. Sarkar" p10. Ananda Marga Publications Tiljala, Calcutta-700039. For an interesting short presentation on "Nija: The Way" See Molefi Kete Asante- Afrocentricity-pp. 21-24 ; and on the meaning of "God" - see "Muntu" by Janheinz Jahn, pp.104-105; Also see Frank L. Riley's - Biblical Allegorism - A Key to the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God - the Chapter entitled: The Way pp.95-128.

*Also referred to as Yeshua or"Yeshai" – see Dr. R.W. Bernard’s "The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Life of the Ancient Essenes" – p.4. 

2 As regards Melchisedeck - see Heb. 7:10-11; 7:15-26; see too Heb. 11:5 - for reference to the translation of Enoch so that he should not see death.

3 See John 14 : 2

4 See Edward Lewis Hodges – Teachings of the Secret Order of the Christian Brotherhood and School of Christian Initiation Chapters 8 and 9; also Max Heindel – The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception or Mystic Christianity Chapters 1 and 2; and Vera Stanley Alder – The Finding of the Third Eye p.45 as regards the realms, planes or mansions of God. See too, Leadbeater, - Man Visible and Invisible-Illustration Plates nos. II - IV dealing with the planes of Nature, which appear between pp. 22- 23 .

5 Heindel, n. 4 supra. p. 29.

6 Ibid.

7 It should be noted that in the book - History and Power of the Mind - by Richard Ingalese, it is said that there are forty-nine states of consciousness; see too, text immediately before and after n. 49 below, relating to the consistency of the number "forty-nine".

8 Reflect on the text to this footnote after studying Diagram I; consider the seven main Realms or Mansions and their sub-divisions- from the REALM of GOD to the REALM of MAN; reflect too on the text beneath Diagram I and to nn.1 to 4 supra. See too Heindel, n.4 supra p.188.

9 Hodges supra. n. 4. p107

10 ibid. pp. 58 and 59.

11 ibid.

12 Heindel, supra.n.4 p.703; for a profound presentation on "Nommo", the Word, see - "Muntu, the New African Culture" by Janheinz Jahn,pp.121-155, especially pp.132-133.

13 Hodges, supra. n.4 p.59; as regards "the Word" being inherent in the creation and manifestation of all "form" that we perceive in the material World that we live in; see too, Chapter 3, sub-headed: The Materialization of the Earth-plane.

14 Heindel, n.4 supra. p.54.

15 See Hodges, n.4. supra. pp.108-109.

16 ibid. p.109.

17 See Heindel n. 4. supra. p.189 - where he explains why the Earth-Realm or 'School Room of the Earth' must be attended and victory finally realized; the Earth-Realm must be overcome.

18 See Hodges n.4. supra. p. 58; see too Diag. I.

19 Heindel.n.4. supra. p. 216; Hodges. n.4. supra. p. 110.

20 Heindel ibid.

21 Heindel ibid; Hodges.n.4. supra. p. 110.

22 See Hodges ibid. See too text to nn. 225-228 re: Love as a science.

23 See Hodges, n. 4 supra p.111.

24 See Heindel, n. 4 supra pp.48-55; see too Hodges, ibid p.108.

25 Hodges ibid.

26 Ibid.

27 Ingalese Richard, History and Power of the Mind, pp.128-130.

28 See Hodges, n. 4 supra pp 108, 113; also Heindel n. 4 supra pp.54, 113-121.

29 Hodges ibid.

30 See Hodges ibid. pp.108 and 115.

31 Incidentally, the Eternal "I" is the same "I'n'I" Spirit in the theology of Rastafari; see Appendix II entitled - Rastafari: Today's Nazarites.

32 Hodges n. 4. supra p.114.

33 Ibid. p.111.

34 Hodges ibid. See too Heindel n. 4 supra pp. 36-37 and pp.143-144.

35 Hodges ibid pp. 116-117.

36 Ibid p. 117.

37 See Heindel n. 4 supra pp.35, 94 and 143.

38 John 14:2.

39 1 Cor. 3:16.

40 Luke 17:21.

41 Diagram II reflects the three-fold spirit, the three-fold body and the three-fold soul linked by the mind; see Max Heindel - The Vital Body; also Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception - L. N. Fowler & Co., Ltd., 29 Ludgate Hill, London, Ec. 4.

42 See text to nn.56, 67 and 69.

43 See Desmond Dunne - Yoga made Easy p. 34.

44 Some also include the spleen- see Professor Hilton Hotema "Awaken the World Within" p. 233

45 Ovaries in females and testes in males.

46 Although it should be noted that vitality is also realized at a more subtle and powerful level through our Vital or Etheric bodies - see Corinne Heline -"Occult Anatomy and the Bible" p.163 as well as pp. 245-274 for a priceless presentation on the endocrine glands - on p.246 the seven ductless glands are referred to as "the anatomical sphinx".

47 See Avadhu tik Anandamitra Acarya, "Beyond the Superconscious Mind" pp. 7-8. Published by Acarya Daya brata nanda Avadhuta (CL Secretary) Ananda Marga Pracra raka Samgha, Tiljala, Calcutta 700039.

48 See Diagram III.

49 See Heline n. 46 supra pp.161-162.

50 See Heindel- The Vital Body -p.33.

51 Prov. 9:1.

52 See G. Hodson. The Hidden Wisdom in the Bible p. 146; see Genesis 2: 9 and 17.

53 Illumination, Moksha in Hinduism, and Nirvana in Budhism.

54 See text to n. 246 below for elaboration on Christ consciousness and the Mystic Marriage.

55 Ex. 3:1-4.

56 See Heindel n. 4 supra p.97; see too, nn.122-129 and the text relating thereto. Also engraved on this seed atom, located in the left ventricle of the heart, is said to be the record of one's life on Earth, whereby the soul is judged - see to this effect : Heline, supra. n.46 p.27.

57 Some authorities say Shiva instead of Vishnu.

58 See Hotema - Awaken the World Within - pp.245-255; Hotema -Sacred Wisdom of the Ancients! Living Fire and God's Law of Life pp.18-23; Swami Vishnudevananda -The Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga pp.321-325. It should be noted that the Sahasrara Chakra is the seventh centre; another example of the 'complete' spiritual number "seven" which pervades the Bible and all religious and sacred writings. Note too: God, the Creator of all that there is, is the All-Father (Gen.1:1, Acts 17:24-28); the Christ in - Jesus\Yashua, and in Man is the Heavenly Father; and the man who begets a child on Earth is the Earthly Father. See too, Appendix I - relating to - Prayer and Meditation.

58a See Dr. Edward Shook – Advanced Treaties on Herbs. Lesson 5 page 4.

58b Ibid p. 3.

58c Ibid p. 4; only recently, more specifically, August 5th, 1996 on the CNN TV Channel it was reported that a computer programme to assist in the prevention of heart attacks was being developed which was directly linked to understanding the electrical currents within the body. It was also stated in that report that every time the heart beats, not only blood flows, but waves of electrical current flow through the whole body; other statements were also made about the research being done on the electrical currents in the brain and other parts of the body. For those who have eyes to see and ears to hear – this is in keeping with the inner Teachings of Christ to his Apostles and close followers – (see text to nn. 126-129 below).

58d As regards frugal eating and fasting read "Rational Fasting for Physical, Mental & Spiritual Rejuvenation" and "Mucusless Diet Healing System" by Professor Arnold Ehret; as regards the use of herbs read a simple but enlightening book called "Back to Eden" by Jethro Kloss or "Advanced Treaties on Herbology" by Dr. Edward E. Shook N.D.D.C; and finally as regards exercise, especially breathing exercise, read "The Hindu Science of Breath" by Yogi Ramacharaka, "The Complete Illustrated Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnudevananda, and "Light on Yoga" by B.K.S Iyengar.

59 See Richard Ingalese-History and Power of the Mind.

60 See Heindel supra n. 4 p. 63.

61 See Edward Lewis Hodges - The Scientific Procedure of Spiritualizing the Physical Body. p.12

62 See n.76 below and text relating thereto (Desire Body); also, Lobsang Rampa - Wisdom of the Ancients, p.16; and his - You-Forever, pp.30-41.

63 See Max Heindel- The Vital Body p.114-115; also, text leading up to n. 88, as well as, text to n. 118 infra.

64 See Max Heindel- ibid p.124.

65 See Max Heindel- ibid pp.145-146.

66 See Max Heindel - ibid pp.159-168 and 434-435 .

* Use what is in accordance with your faith.

67 See Heindel n. 4 supra pp.10 and 433.

68 Hodges p113.

69 Heindel, n. 4 supra p.10.

70 See Heindel n. 4 supra p.142.

71 ibid. See Llaila O. Afrika's - African Holistic Health, pp.161-163 re Wholistic Female/Male Puberty.

72 See, Swami Narayanananda - Brahmacharya for Boys and Girls, p. 22.

73 Matthew. 26: 40-41

74 See Heindel - n. 4 supra pp.462-464.

75 Re: Mantras and Yantras, see - The Way of Tantra - by Acarya Bhavamuktananda Avadhuta, pp.59-69 and pp. 97-99.

76 See Heindel n. 4 supra pp. 66-67; also referred to by some as the "aura", which reflects the condition of the Soul; see too, Ingalese, Richard, History and Power of the mind, pp101-106.

77 Heindel ibid. p.66.

78 ibid. p.67.

79See Heindel n. 4 supra pp.96 and 404 respectively.

80 Gal. 4:19 and Gal. 2:20; see also, text to n.66 and immediately thereafter relating to affirmations.

81 See Hodges n. 4 supra pp. 68-69: also 1 Cor. 15:52-54.

82 See text to n. 55 relating one's 'feet' to the cleansing of one's desires ; and the text immediately following n.79.

83 11 Corinthians 4:18

84 See Avadhu tika Anandamitra Acarya, n.50 supra p.9.

85 Hodges n. 4 supra p.126

86 This is illustrated in Diagram V.

87Hodges n. 4 supra p. 126.

88 Re: Death and Purgatory - See Heindel, n. 4 supra pp. 97-112; the exceptions to the text to this footnote are some Masters, who give up the use of their physical bodies after their missions on Earth are completed.

89 See text to n. 30 supra and Diagram I.

90 See text to n. 4 and 30 supra.

91 See Heindel, n. 4 supra pp.113-121.

92 See Hodges, n. 4 supra pp.134-138.

93 In the words of Peter Tosh "Live clean, let your works be seen."

94 Hodges, n. 4 supra. p.114.

95 Heindel, n. 4 supra p.117; also Hodges n. 4 supra, p.136.

96 Heindel, ibid.p.119; Hodges, ibid. p137.

97 See Heindel ibid pp. 121-122.

98 See Hodges n.4 supra pp. 138-140.

99 Ibid. p.140

100 Hodges n. 4 supra, p.142; and Heindel, n. 4 supra, pp. 129-133.

101 See Hodges n. 4 supra, p.155-156; also, Lobsang Rampa, "Wisdom of the Ancients", p.109; and H. Spencer Lewis, Ph.D., F.R.C, "Mansions of the Soul" pp.125-139. The idea of returning home every day or at the end of every term or academic year can be equated to the different lifespans on Earth experienced by different people; after this, those Beings or Spirit-Souls return to the other Mansions (Realms or Rooms) of God in the Spirit World.

102 Hodges, ibid; Rampa, ibid.

103 Prov. 4:9, 16:31; Peter 5:4; Isai. 28:5, 62:3; Jer. 13:8; see too, James. 1:12 and Rev. 2:10 re "crown of life"; also Rev. 3:11 and 6:2 - there are numerous other references to "crown" used in that esoteric sense.

104 See Isaiah 62:1-5 and 61:10-11; also Jer. 7:34, 16:9 and 25:10; Math. 25:1; Jn. 3:29; Rev. 18:23 and 22:17.

105 Ibid.

106 Spencer Lewis,supra.n. 101 pp.149-157.

107 "The Secret Doctrine of Jesus" by H. Spencer Lewis, pp.141-146; also Heindel, n. 4 supra, pp.125, 130,136,147-174, 282, 357,471, 507-508; reconciled to Christ's atonement at p.401.

108 Paramahansa Yogananda, Autobiography of a Yogi p.199;

109 See Heindel, n. 4 supra, p. 167.

110 Referred to by some authorities as "a courtesan".

111 Paramahansa Yogananda, n. 108 supra.

112 Hodges, n. 4 supra pp.153-163

113 Heindel, n. 4 supra pp.147-174. There are countless other presentations and real life stories on the subject; "seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened for you".

114 See text to n.106 supra.

115 Yogananda, supra. n. 108 pp.371-372;

116 Matthew verses 14-15.

117Hodges n. 4 supra pp.153-154; also Yogananda, supra. n. 108 n. 43.

118 The Vital Body by Max Heindel p.115; the word in italics was inserted by the author; see too, Ingalese, n. 7 supra, p.88. See too, Heb.13:18 and 1Pet. 2:19 and 3:16-18 re conscience.

119 Remember always "faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

120 See Bunny Wailer’s Blackheart Man album.

121 In other schools of thought referred to as the Shiva, Vishnu or NTU Essence within; NTU is the cosmic universal force or spirit that is inseperable from its manifestation: "NTU is Being itself ,". See Janheinz Jahn's "Muntu - the New African culture, p.101; for an insight into "NTU" read Chapter 4, pp.96-120 of this illuminating book. See also Appendix I.

122 See Ingalese, supra. n. 7 pp.94-96; see too, Heline, supra n.46, pp.18-20, where hereditary diseases are discussed - certain diseases are more related to past misdeeds of the incarnating soul.

123 Hodges n. 4 supra, pp 147-148; as regards the permanent or seed atom of the dense body being placed in the semen of the earthly Father -see- Heindel, n. 4 supra p.137.

124 Mark 9:41 " ..Ye belong to Christ."; also 1 Cor. 3:23 " Ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's."

125 Note the translation of Enoch cited in Heb.11:5; and the reference in 1 Corinthians 15:51 to those who shall not sleep (meaning: they will not know death - see too Ps.13:3) when Jesus The Christ returns; see also, Rom. 8:10-14.

126 In Eastern Esoteric teaching, one learns of the mantra that reflects the above, to wit - "Om Mane Padme Hum": He dwells within the Lotus of the heart. Note too, the concept of the "Sacred Heart of Jesus", with the Flame or Fire of Life in the Heart of Jesus/Yashua.

127 Blood nourished by wholesome food, fresh air and cosmic energy.

128 That is, thoughts that do not dishonour God, the All-Father or the Indwelling Christ.

129 See: The Scientific Procedure of Spiritualizing the Physical Body - Teachings of the Secret Order of the Christian Brotherhood.

130 Galatians 4:19.

131 See for example, Mark 4:2; Gal.4:24.

132 Vol.XVII. p.838. See too, Frank l. Riley, M.D. - "Biblical Allegorism : A key to the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God" - Introduction p.li; see too,Geoffrey Hodson - The Hidden Wisdom in the Holy Bible Volume II, pp.19-21 as regards the esoteric nature of the Bible and other sacred writings.

133 See Riley, ibid. pp.xlvii - lii.

134 Mark 4:11;

135 Mark4:33-34.

136 See H.Spencer Lewis, F. R. C., PhD. - The Secret Doctrines of Jesus - pp. 73-95.

137 See Gal 4:19, Col. 1:27 and 1 Cor.3:16; see too, Hodson, n.132 supra, pp.27-28.

138 Hodson, Ibid; see too, text between nn.111-112 and the text to n.107 re: karma; as well as, Riley n. 132 Introduction p. xiv. Also Mark 4:11-12.

139 More specifically, the Red Sea obstructing the Path of the Israelites represents the carnal, materialistic, animal mind or lower state of consciousness that must be crossed before true freedom from bondage can be realized -Riley, ibid, pp. 9-10.

140 See - for a simple but excellent presentation on the Massu's experience in Egypt - The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ by Levi. (DeVorss & Co., Publishers, Marina Del REY, Calif. 90294-0550); see also Riley n. 132 supra p. 115.

141Hodson, n. 132 supra ibid.p.29.

142 Another aspect of the David persona is that he reflects the "half-way house" of a living Soul's journey back to God; he represents the partially regenerated person who oscillates between high spirituality and Divine inspiration and the unregenerate or carnal mind that brings one down to the depths of sensuality, perversion and cruelty. See Riley, n. 132 supra p.17.

143 Hodson, n. 132 supra, p. 29.

144 See text immediately before and after n. 75 supra re effective prayer as well as Appendix I.

145 Hodson, n. 132 supra p.30.

146 Mark 4:38.

147 Galatians 4:19.

148 Ephesians 4:13; See too, Hodson, n. 132 supra p. 31.

149 Hodson, n. 132 supra p.32.

150 Ibid. p.33; see too, Matthew 7:13-14. That is why traditionally it has been said: ' wide is the path to destruction and narrow is the path to salvation.'

151 Matthew 13:18-23; and 24-53. See also, Hodson, n. 132 supra p.33.

152 Hodson, ibid.

153 Gen. 16:7

154 Riley, n. 132 supra p.6.

155 See for example Gen. 21:14-20.

156 Hodson, n. 132 supra p.41.

157 Riley, n. 132 supra p.6.

158 Hodson, n. 156 supra; see John 6:47-58.

159 Kings, 6:38.

160 Dan 3:19-25.

161 Riley, n. 132 supra 83-84.

162 Another example in Genesis is Gen. 7:1-4 when one reads about Noah being directed to collect within his ark seven clean beasts, seven fowls of the air and "for yet seven days" before it was to rain for forty days and forty nights;" See too, Hodson, n. 132 pp.169-171.

163 See Riley, n. 132 supra p133; see as regards the numbers: "ten" p.101-102, "twelve" p.102 and 118, and "thirty" p119.

164 Riley, ibid p.69.

165 Rev. Ishakamusa Barashango, "God, the Bible and the Black Man’s Destiny" p.23; also read pp.20-25.

166 Genesis 2:7.

167 See Hodson, n.132 supra pp.51-52, (parthogenesis) 59, 148-149; John P. Scott, "The Hidden Bible – Genesis p. 2; Riley, n. 132 supra, p.69. See too, Hotema, n. 58 pp.199-201.

168 Genesis 2:21-25; Scott, ibid; Hodson, ibid, p.129; Riley, ibid.

169 See Chapter 3, "Beyond the Veil of History" where this is developed and further insight into the Adam and Eve story is given.

170 see Scott, n. 167 supra p. 2.

171 See Gen. 3:16-24.

172 Scott, n. 167 supra p.3.

173 Gen. 4:8.

174 Scott, n. 167 supra p.4.

175 Scott, ibid.

176 Ibid p.5.

177 Hodson, n. 132 supra p. 161-162, but read pp.161-165 for the dual esoteric meaning of the above.

178 Hodson, ibid, p.171; Scott, n. 167 supra pp. 5-6.

179 Scott, ibid. p.6.

180 Gen. 6:9.

181 Also referred as the "Robe of Glory", "Auric Envelope" or "Causal Body", Hodson,

n. 132 supra pp. 177 and 180.

182 Scott, n. 167 supra pp.6-7; incidentally, Christ-conscioutised Spirit-Souls (Masters) can consciously leave and return to the body at will - this is called astral travelling.

183 Hodson, n. 132 supra p.181; also pp.200-203.

184 See text to nn. 88-92 supra.

185 Gen. 8:2-3.

186 Gen. 8:4.

187 Hodson, n. 132 supra p.179.

188 Ibid.

189 Ibid.

190 See Hodson, n. 132 supra p.249.

191 Riley, n. 132 supra pp.4-5.

192 Ibid.p.4.

193 Exodus 3:1.

194 Exodus 3:2-5.

195 Riley n. 132 supra p5; see too, Exodus ch.5

196 Riley, ibid.

197 See text to n. 157 supra; and Riley, n. 132 supra p.6. See too, Exodus ch.12.

198 See text to n. 139 supra where the esoteric meaning of the "Red Sea" is mentioned.

199 Riley, n. 132 supra pp. 6-7; also Exodus,14:13,14.

200 Riley, ibid p.7; Psalms 14:10.

201 Riley, ibid pp. 11-12.

202 See text to n.197 supra.

203 Riley, n. 132 supra pp.12-14.

204 Rev. 6:1-2.

205 Hotema, "Awaken the World Within", p.125.

206 Rev. 6:3-4.

207 Hotema, n. 205 supra .

208 Rev. 6:5-6. the bracketed words reflect the slight variations in wording one finds in different Bibles.

209 Hotema, n. 205 supra p.126

210 Ibid

211 Rev. 6:7-8

212 Hotema, n. 205 supra 126-127.

213 Ibid.

214 Rev.6:9-11.

215 Hotema n. 205 supra pp. 127-128.

216 Rev. 6:12-17

217 Hotema, n. 205 supra p128.

218 Ibid.

219 Rev.7:17.

220 See Rev.7:3; also, Hotema, n. 205 supra pp. 129-132.

221 Rev. 8:1-6.

222 Hotema, n. 205 supra pp132-133.

223 Ibid.

224 Hodges, n. 4 supra pp.68-69.

225 Spiritual or Natural Laws of God not commonly known or consciously considered.

225(a) See Ingalese, Richard º The History and power of the Mind pp. 114-115.

226 See for example, 1 Cor. 13 and 14:1.

227As an aside, in these times of rapid change, even this simple 'rule of thumb' could, in the exceptional case, lead to difficulties. We do have some people with weird or 'warped desires', who may do to you strange things that they may not mind you doing to them! That is why a 'rule of thumb' is not absolute, but a guide to be used intelligently.

228 See Sri Aurobindo - On Yoga I : The Synthesis of Yoga - p.565; read the pp.559-565, Chapter entitled: The Mystery of Love.

228(a) See Ingalese 225(a) supra p. 77.

228(b) Ibid.

228(c) See Ingalese n. 225 supra pp. 77-78.

228(d) See an excellent tiny pamphlet by Enoch Penn entitled - Sex and Spiritual Development or the Story of the Serpent of Brass.

229 Matthew. 5:8.

230 Tit. 1:15.

231 For a profound understanding and distinction between "orgasm" and "ejaculation" see Llaila O. Afrika's - African Holistic Health - pp. 176- 177.

232 This will also be dealt with in the Adam and Eve story in Chapter 3,

233 See Hotema, n. 205 supra p.234-235.

234 See text to n. 52 supra.

235 See - Sex Sublimation - by Swami Narayanananda, as well as his - Brahmacharya for Boys and Girls; see too - The Perfect Couple - by Samuel Aun Weor re: sex magic.

236 Purification of the blood comes about when one eats frugally – pure, wholesome food or by being a Breathatarian.

237 When one's thoughts are purified the mind is free of thoughts that dishonour the Indwelling Christ-Spirit or divinity within.

* See text immediately following n.58d.

238 See Jess Stearn, Yoga, Youth, and Reincarnation, pp.123-134. There are whole books written on the preservation of the life-force even if you are sexually active by the Masters of non-ejaculation; see also - The Perfect Couple - by Samuel Aun Weor.

239 Incidentally, for an illumined, balanced, wholistic view of sex, that is, if one does not practice celibacy,or sex magic, one should read pages 172 -190 of Llaila O.Afrika's book - African Holistic Health.

240 See Zec. 4:12 - "the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves".

241 See Ps. 23:5 -"thou annointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over."

242 See Jn. 6:35, 41 and Mat. 2:1.

243 See Rev. 11:8; and Hotema, n. 205 supra p.3 18-320.

244 Mrk. 16:19.

245 See Is. 60:19; Mat. 6:22; Luke 11:34; also Hotema, n. 205 supra

pp. 320-330.

246 17:21

2471 Cor. 3:16-17u.

2481 Cor. 5:1

249 Cor. 6:18

250 1Cor. 6:9-10

251 Rom. 6:21-23

252 Romans 8:13

253 Ezek. 18:23

254 Ezek. 18:31

255 Ezek. 18:32

256 Ezek. 33:11

257 Jn. 6:49-51

258 John 3:14-15

259 Jn. 8:51; also see Jn. 5:24; 5:25.

260 Romans 8::14