Filename: RC4002.TXT

                ROSICRUCIAN CHRISTIANITY PHILOSOPHY COURSE:

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                               LESSON NO. 13:

                       THE CREATIVE POWER OF THOUGHT:

  When the ego first entered into possession of its vehicles in the Lemurian
Epoch, it possessed neither brain nor a larynx. To supply this deficiency,
one-half of the creative sex force, which formerly had been used solely for
propagation, was then turned upward for the purpose of building these organs
through which thought and reason might be produced and thought might be
communicated to others. Thus we see that thought is creative, because it
was derived through the instrumentality of the creative force. Likewise,
the voice is creative; that is, the spoken word has the power to create for
the same reason, namely, that it had its origin in the creative force.
From this it may be deduced that if the creative sex force is conserved, we
shall have a correspondingly greater amount of power available for the pro-
cesses of reasoning, and our minds will become much more forceful than in
the case of the person who wastes the creative force. However, this force
must be used up in constructive mental or physical work or transmuted in
the service of the race, otherwise it will cause trouble. If emrely bottled
up, it will eventually produce mental, emotional, or nervous disturbances
and ailments.

  Thinking is a very complicated process, which involves not only the use
of the physical brain but also the etheric brain, the desire body, and the
mind or mental body. The process is as follows: We as egos function in that
part of the Region of Abstract Thought which we have specialized within our
auras. From here we observe the impressions made by the outer world upon the
vital body through our chain of vehicles and their faculties which we call
our senses. These impressions, together with the feelings and emotions gen-
erated by them within the desire body, are then imaged within the mind. From
these mental images we form our conclusions regarding the things observed;
these conclusions are ideas. By power of will, we as egos project an idea
through the mind, where it takes concrete shape as a thought-form by drawing
mind stuff around itself from the Region of Concrete Thought. Thought is
the power we use in making images and thought-forms, according to ideas from
within. The thought-form then ordinarily clothes itself in desire stuff ob-
tained from the desire body, which gives it added life. This composite
thought form is then able to act upon the etheric brain and propel the vital
force through the necessary brain centers and nerves to the voluntary muscles
which produce action. Thus thought is the mainspring of human activity.

  The effect of thoughts of fear and worry upon the desire body is very de-
trimental to the development of the soul. Worry is a condition in which the
desire currents do not sweep in long curved lines as they do under normal
conditions, but which causes this vehicle to be full of eddies--nothing but
eddies in extreme cases. This latter condition often prevents the person
from taking any action which might correct the condition which is causing
him to worry and fret. It may be likened to the state of water which is a-
bout to congeal under a lowering temperature. Fear which expresses itself
as skepticism, cynicism, and pessimism may be likened to that same water
when it is frozen, for the desire bodies of people habitually harboring these

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thoughts are almost motionless, and nothing one can do or say seems to have
the power to alter their condition.

  Every time one of these thoughts is indulged in, it helps to congeal the
material of the desire body, and to build a steel-blue shell, in which the
person who habitually fosters fear and worry will some time find himself
shut off from the love, sympathy, and help of all the world. Therefore it
is important that we should strive to be cheerful and optimistic, even under
adverse circumstances, or we may find ourselves in a serious condition here
and hereafter.

  The subconscious mind is a very important factor in man's development.
With every breath which we take, the air we inspire carries with it an ac-
curate detailed picture of our surroundings. The slightest thought, feeling,
or emotion is transmitted to the lungs, where it is injected into the blood.
The blood is the highest product of the vital body. The pictures it con-
tains are impressed upon the negative atoms of the vital body to serve as
arbiters of man's destiny in the post-mortem state. If a person creates a
thought form, whether of a constructive or destructive nature, and projects
it out into the world, when its work has been accomplished, or its energy
expended in vain attempts to achieve its object, it gravitates back to its
creator, bearing with it the indelible record of the journey. Its success
or failure is imprinted on the negative atoms of the reflecting ether, and
forms part of the record of the thinker's life and action which is some-
times called the subconscious mind.

  Thought breaks down tissue in the dense body, and it is well known to
science that negative, destructive thoughts such as those of fear, anger,
sex, and sensuality break down the power of resistance of the body and
thereby lay it open to disease. The person of a jovial good nature, or one
who is devoutly religious and has faith and trust in divine providence,
does not often create negative thoughts, and as a result he has greater
vitality and better health than those who worry. Through thoughts of love,
benevolence, and kindness we call out similar qualities in others, and
attract people to us who have these qualities. This subtle and potent
thought power may also be used in healing the sick. Moreover, it is through
abstract thought that man is enabled to lift himself above the material world
and come into contact with God.

  If we think thoughts of optimism, of kindness, of benevolence, of help-
fulness and service, then these thoughts gradually color our atmosphere in
a manner which is accurately expressive of all these qualities and virtues.
And as our bodies are built by the ego or spirit, they become an expression
of our mental attitudes; our thoughts react upon our physical bodies, also
upon our environment, bringing to us health and material well-being. This
illustrates the creative power of thought. it is merely one way of proving
the truth of the saying of Christ, that if we seek the Kingdom of God and
His righteousness, all other things will be added.

  Please study the preceding lesson carefully; then without consulting it
answer fully but concisely the following questions, and send the answers
to us. Upon receipt of them we will send you the next lesson.

                               QUESTIONS:

1] How was the power of thought obtained by man?

2] What is the result of conserving the creative sex force, and why?

3] Describe the technical process of thinking.

4] What are the effects of fear and worry upon the desire body?

5] What are the effects of fear and anger upon the physical body?

6] How are the records of the subconscious mind made?

7] How do thoughts of optimism, benevolence and service react upon our
   environment?

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                 THE WORK OF THE ASPIRANT TO THE HIGHER LIFE:

                                LESSON NO. 14:

   There are no special gifts bestowed upon anyone.   All may know for them-
selves the truth concerning the pilgrimage of the spirit through matter, its
method  and its object.   There is a method whereby this valuable  knowledge
may be acquired and by which, if persistently followed,  God-like powers may
be developed.

   The ego has several instruments:   a dense body,  a vital body,  a desire
body, and a mind.  These are the tools of the spirit, and upon their quality
and condition depends how much or how little can be accomplished in its work
of  getting experience in each life.  The archetypes of these  vehicles  are
build before each earth life.  The vehicles themselves are good, bad, or in-
different  according to what we have learned through past experience in  the
building of them.  As one works with these wonderful tools, they improve and
grow in power and efficiency.

   The  time required to achieve positive spiritual development varies  with
each  individual and depends upon his application,  his stage in  evolution,
and  his ripe destiny to be liquidated in any particular life.   If one  has
become aroused from the usual lethargy and is anxious to progress, the ques-
tion usually arises:   "What must I do?"   The answer is:   Labor to protect
your vehicles, and at the same time constantly employ them in the service of
humanity.   Work on the different bodies of man is carried on synchronously.
One  body cannot be influenced without affecting others,  but the  principal
work in any particular life may be done on any one of them.

   The  object  of this work on the bodies is union with  the  Higher  Self.
Through  the strictest attention to hygiene and diet the dense body is  par-
ticularly  benefited.   This also produces a slight effect on the vital  and
desire bodies.  As purer and better materials are built into the dense body,
its particles are enveloped in purer planetary ether and desire stuff.   But
if attention is paid to food and hygiene only,  the vital and desire  bodies
may  remain almost the same as they were,  except that it is just  a  little
easier for the person to get into contact with the invisible worlds that  if
the gross foods were used.

   Esoteric  development does not commence until work on the vital body  be-
gins.   The fundamental principle in building the vital body is  repetition.
It  is  therefore of the very highest importance that  spiritual  truths  be
given utterance again and again,  in an endeavor to express the Christ  love
and altruism in everyday life.  The Leaders of humanity,  who desire to give
us help by certain exercises,  instituted prayer as a means of bringing  the
power of lofty thoughts to work upon the vital body.  If we pray aright,  we
lift ourselves to God, thus working upon and purifying our vital bodies.

   Concentration is invaluable in helping to separate the two higher  ethers
of the vital body from the two lower,  the former then constituting the soul

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body.   This separation is necessary before the aspirant can travel or func-
tion consciously on the higher planes.  However,  when prayer is inspired by
a pure,  unselfish devotion to high ideals,  it is much more effective  than
cold concentration.

   Most  people leave physical life with nearly the same  temperament  which
they brought into it.  But the aspirant must do more than this; he must sys-
tematically  conquer all attempts of the desire body to assume mastery.   He
must overcome with noble aspirations the selfish love which seeks the owner-
ship of another,  and subdue all desire for wealth,  power,  or fame arising
from narrow,  personal motives.  A fit of temper may result in poisoning the
whole system.   Therefore the aspirant should cultivate an even temper  amid
the various annoyances of daily life.

   The mind is one of the most useful instruments of the spirit;  but it  is
also  very hard to control at man's present stage of development.   A  thor-
ough,  comprehensive study of the scheme of cosmic evolution is  of  immense
value  in mastering the mind.   It trains the mind in abstract thought,  and
elevates it above the sordid things of concrete existence,  thus helping the
imagination to soar beyond the hampering toils of self-interest.

   The mind may become amenable to the dictates of the spirit within through
the  following  exercises:   concentration,  meditation,  observation,  dis-
crimination,  contemplation, and finally adoration of the Supreme.  The last
is the highest step possible,  whereby man unites himself with the source of
all things, reaching by that act the highest goal possible of attainment un-
til  the time when permanent union takes place at the end of this Great  Day
of Manifestation.

   The  keyword of the Rosicrucian method of spiritual development  is  ser-
vice.   Repetition of right thoughts, desires,  feelings,  and emotions  ex-
pressed  through  right actions (self-forgetting service) is  the  shortest,
safest,  and the most joyful road to God.  Thus shall we come to a conscious
realization  of the unity of all life,  the "fundamental unity of each  with
all."   We can ultimately get from the universe only as much as we  give  to
it.   At the present time we are mainly debtors, not creditors.   We can pay
our debts to the universe and become eligible for promotion to higher states
only by working to perfect our vehicles and by service to the race.

   Please study the preceding lesson carefully:   then without consulting it
answer fully but concisely the following questions,  and sent the answers to
us.  Upon receipt of them we will send you the next lesson.

1. Name the vehicles of the spirit.

2. How may positive spiritual development be attained?

3. What is the nature of prayer, and how does it develop the finer vehicles?

4. Compare concentration with prayer.

5. What definite progress must the aspirant to the higher life make?

6. By what exercises may the mind be developed?

7. How may we pay our debts to the universe?


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                                LESSON NO. 15:

             THE MISSION OF CHRIST AND THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS:

   When  the  earth was yet a part of the sun,  there was one  common  group
spirit,  composes of all the Creative Hierarchies which controlled the whole
human  family.   But as it was intended that each body should be the  temple
and instrument of an indwelling spirit,  it became necessary to have a divi-
sion  of rulership.   Jehovah then came with his angels and  archangels  and
made the first great division into races.

   Each  race was put under a Race Spirit,  and each group in the  race  was
placed  under a Tribal Spirit.   Jehovah also appointed an angel to  act  as
guardian for each ego until the individual spirit had grown strong enough to
be safely emancipated from all outside influence.

   A number of archangels (sun spirits) were given to Jehovah as helpers  in
reflecting  the  spiritual impulses from the sun upon the  humanity  of  the
earth in the form of Jehovistic or race religions.   All race religions were
religions  of  law,  and resulted in sin through disobedience of  that  law.
This  fundamental  principle of a race religion is  separation,  inculcating
self-seeking  at the expense of other men and nations.   If  this  principle
were  carried to its ultimate conclusion, it would necessarily have  an  in-
creasingly destructive tendency, and finally frustrate evolution unless suc-
ceeded by a more constructive religion.   Therefore the separative religions
of the Holy Spirit must give place to the unifying religion of the Son.

   This the reason why the intervention of the Christ became necessary.  Un-
der the regime of Jehovah unity was impossible.   Therefore the Christ,  who
ordinarily functions in a vehicle composed of the unifying Life Spirit,  en-
tered  into  the dense body of Jesus.   He appeared as a man among  men  and
dwelt in a human body because only from within is it possible to conquer the
race religion which influences man from without.

   The expression,  "the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ," means that as the
blood flowed on Calvary, it bore with it the great sun spirit,  Christ,  who
by that means secured admission to the earth and since that moment has  been
its indwelling Planetary Spirit.  He diffused His own desire body throughout
the planet, thereby cleansing it from all the vile influences which had been
created  under the regime of the Race Spirit.   Under the law all sinned  as
they had not evolved to where they could do right for love's sake.   The de-
sire  nature had become so strong that it was an impossibility for  them  to
altogether rule it, therefore their debts piled up to enormous proportions.

   Evolution would have been incalculable delayed and many lost to our  life
wave altogether if some help had not been given.   Therefore did Christ come
"to  seek  and to save that which was lost."   He took away the sin  of  the
world  (not of the individual) by his cleansing blood,  which gave  Him  en-
trance to the earth and its humanity.   He purified the earth's desire body,
and  we thus owe it to Him that we are able to gather for our desire  bodies
purer desire stuff than formerly.

   Christ is, therefore, in a very real sense the savior of the world as the

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Church  maintains,  for the reason that a large part of humanity had gone as
far as they were able to go alone and were at the point of retrogression  at
the  time when He came.   Also the etheric rays of the Christ as  indwelling
Planetary Spirit,  radiating outward constantly through man from the  center
of  the  earth and being absorbed by him,  constitute the  "inner  urge"  to
higher endeavor,  which is the chief factor at the present time in impelling
man in his evolution.

   The  forgiveness  of sins through the instrumentality of  the  Christ  as
taught  in  the orthodox Christian religion is an actual fact.   It  may  be
brought about through true repentance and reform,  which clear the seed atom
in  the heart of the records of past evil actions.   When this seed atom  is
thus  cleared,  the  pictures of these actions are  dissolved  and  are  not
present after we pass out of the physical body in death to bring us  suffer-
ing in the purgatorial region.  Such forgiveness of sins, however,  does not
do  away  with the necessity of making restitution to people  whom  we  have
wronged.  This restitution may be made direct to the individual in question,
or,  when this is impossible,  it may be made indirectly through service  to
others, that is, service to the universe.

   Christ  is the chief factor in making possible for us the forgiveness  of
sins through the fact that He gives us the inner urge and desire toward  re-
pentance  and reform,  and also makes these processes easier through  having
furnished us with purer desire stuff for our desire bodies, as stated in the
earlier part of this lesson.   The help which Christ thus gives us day after
day through this spiritual urge makes it possible for us to reform our char-
acters and blot out our own sins.   Christ thus becomes in a very real sense
our  personal savior,  although he does not personally take away  our  indi-
vidual sins.

   The  help  from Christ is given at the expense of much suffering  to  Him
through  the fact of His being confined in the cramping environment  of  the
earth as indwelling Earth Spirit.  Thus the "Vicarious Atonement"  is an ac-
tual  fact,  although its modus operandi is quite different  from  that  de-
scribed in church doctrine.

   The aid received from Christ, our Great Elder Brother, constitutes a cos-
mic loan, so to speak.  This is what the Rosicrucians mean by "grace."  This
loan,  however, is not in the nature of a gift.  It must be repaid,  and the
means  whereby it is to be paid are service to others and also to  the  life
waves which follow ours, namely the animal, plant, and mineral kingdoms.

   During  the regime of Jehovah,  Initiation was possible only to a  chosen
few whose vehicles had been specially prepared.   The mission of Christ,  in
addition to saving the lost, was to make Initiation possible for all.

   Please study the preceding lesson carefully;  then answer fully but  con-
cisely the following questions, and send the answers to us.  Upon receipt of
them we will send you the next lesson.

1. What is the object of evolution?

2. How did races come into existence, and what are some of their
   disadvantages?

3. Why was it necessary for Christ to come to earth?

4. What is meant by "the cleansing blood of Christ," and how does it purify
   mankind?

5. Why and how is Christ the Savior of the world?

6. What is the origin of the "inner urge" to spiritual endeavor?

7. How may sins be forgiven, and what part does Christ take in this process?

8. Are we under any obligations to Christ, and why?  How may they be
   discharged?

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                                LESSON NO. 16:

                       CORRECT DIET FOR THE ASPIRANT:

   That all oxen thrive on grass and all lions eat flesh,  "while one  man's
meat  is another man's poison,"  is an illustration of the influence of  the
group  spirit as contrasted with that of the human ego,  which latter  makes
the requirements of each human being differ more or less from those of  oth-
ers as regards kind and proportions of food.

   From an occult standpoint it is desirable for the ego to live as long  as
possible in each dense body, particularly after a start has been made toward
living a spiritual life,  and to retain as long as possible a body that  has
become to some extent amenable to the spirit's promptings.

   It  is  highly important that we partake only of such food and  drink  as
will deposit the least amount of earthy substance in our tissues,  also such
as require the minimum of energy to assimilate,  but which at the same  time
will  keep the body in normal condition.   It is aciomatic that  the  entire
body is nourished by the blood,  and that everything contained in the  body,
of whatever nature,  has first been in the blood.   Analysis shows that  the
blood  holds  earthy substances and that the arterial  blood  contains  more
earthy matter than the venous blood.  This is highly important, for it shows
that in every cycle the blood deposits earthy substances.  It is, therefore,
this  common  carrier which brings the material that chokes up  the  system.
But its supply of earthy matter must be replenished,  otherwise it could not
continue to do this.  The food and drink which nourish the body must thus be
the primary source of the earthy matter which is deposited by the blood  all
through the system, causing decrepitude and finally death.

   To  sustain physical life it is necessary that we eat and drink,  but  as
there  are many kinds of food and drink,  it behooves the occult student  in
the  light of the above facts to ascertain what kinds contain  the  smallest
proportion of obstructive elements.   As each human being is at a  different
stage of development,  there can be no absolute rules given,  the matter  of
diet  being  an individual one.   On pages 450 and 451 of  the  "Rosicrucian
Cosmo-Conception"  is printed a table of food values which will aid the  as-
pirant in selecting the foods suited to his individual needs.   Modern  sci-
ence  has discovered that the so-called vitamines are of  tremendous  impor-
tance  in  maintaining health and vitality.   The  vitamines  are  contained
mainly in whole grain, leafy vegetables, fruit, and milk.

   The  matter  of chemical combinations is a complicated one,  and  one  on
which expert opinion differs widely.   In general,  it is necessary and best
to experiment and study the matter out individually,  using due  discrimina-
tion.

   The aspirant to the higher life should entirely avoid using flesh food if
possible.   No one who kills, or causes another to kill for him, can go very
far  along the path of holiness.  Certain food products from  animals,  how-
ever,  such as milk,  cheese, and butter may be used.  Milk is a very impor-
tant food for the occult student.  It contains very little earthy matter and
has  an influence upon the body possessed by no other food.   Buttermilk  is
valuable both as a food and a solvent of obstructive matter in the tissues.

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   Fresh  fruit  contains water of the purest and  best  kind.   Unfermented
grape  juice is a particularly wonderful solvent.   It thins and  stimulates
the blood,  opening the way into capillaries which are dried and choked  up.
Its use materially defers old age, that is, if the crystallizing process has
not gone too far.   The aspirant should use only soft of distilled water in-
ternally.  Boiling does not remove the carbonate and other compounds of lime
from water.  Water used both internally and externally is a great solvent of
the crystallized earthy substances in the body.

   Proteid  is  the essential builder of cellular tissue but  contains  some
earthy matter.   Carbohydrates,  including sugars,  are the principal  power
producers.   Fats  are the producers of heat and the storehouse  of  reserve
force.   Of vegetables we digest about 83 percent of the proteid, 90 percent
of the gat,  and 95 percent of the carbohydrates.   Of fruits we  assimilate
about 85 percent of the proteids, 90 per cent of the fat,  and 90 percent of
the carbohydrates.

   The  brain is built of the same substances as are all other parts of  the
body,  with the addition of a much larger amount of phosphorus that is found
elsewhere  in the body.   The logical conclusion is that phosphorus  is  the
particular  element by which the ego is able to create and  express  thought
and  thereby influence the dense body.  It is therefore important  that  the
aspirant who is to use his body for mental and spiritual work should  supply
his brain with the special substance necessary for that purpose.   Most veg-
etables and fruits contain a certain amount of phosphorus,  but the  greater
proportion  is found in the leaves.  It is found in considerable  quantities
in grapes, onions, sage, beans, cloves, pineapples, in the leaves and stalks
of many vegetables, and in sugar-cane juice, but not in refined sugar.

   Temporary  abstinence of food if kept within certain definite limits  and
not  overdone,  is of great value in clearing the system of the  accumulated
debris  which  may be choking it and interfering with the functions  of  the
various  organs.   At the first sign of any disorder the omission of one  or
two meals is highly advisable.   A fast of twenty-four hours occasionally is
an excellent thing for most anybody, provided it is taken at a time when one
is not doing severe mental or manual work which requires a great deal of en-
ergy.   Longer fasts may be taken under the direction of a competent  health
adviser.  People who are physically negative should avoid much fasting,  for
it tends to increase their negativity.

   Overeating, in the final analysis, is probably the cause of two-thirds of
all human ailments.   The majority of people at the present time could  with
much profit reduce by one-third the amount of food eaten each day.   Greater
mental and physical efficiency and keenness would certainly result from  it;
also added years of life.   The excessiveness use of starchy foods is to  be
particularly avoided.   People past fifty years of age can in a vast  number
of cases live on two meals a day to much better advantage than on three.

   Please study the preceding lesson carefully;  then without consulting  it
answer fully but concisely the following questions,  and send the answers to
us.  Upon receipt of them we will send you the next lesson.

1. Why is long life desirable for the aspirant to the higher life?

2. How do the tissues of the body become choked up, and what is the
   result?  How may this condition be overcome?

3. Of what should the diet of the occult student consist?

4. What substance is of particular aid to the ego in brain work, and from
   what articles may it be obtained?

5. Why is limited fasting beneficial, and how should it be regulated?

6. What are the facts about overeating?

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                                LESSON NO. 17:

       WHY WE SHOULD AVOID MEDIUMSHIP, HYPNOTISM, AND THE OUIJA BOARD:

   In the early development of humanity all were involuntarily  clairvoyant.
This was caused by the loose connection between the vital and dense  bodies.
Since  then these bodies have become much more firmly interwoven in the  ma-
jority of people,  but in all sensitives the connection is still loose.   It
is  this looseness which constitutes the difference between the psychic  and
the ordinary person,  the latter being unconscious of all but the vibrations
perceived through the five senses.

   There  are two classes of sensitiveness:  those who have not  yet  become
firmly enmeshed in matter, such as the lower races, and those who are in the
vanguard  of evolution.   The latter are divisible into two grades:   First,
those who by their own will are unfolding the vibratory powers of the organs
now connected with the voluntary nervous system and thus becoming  voluntary
trained clairvoyants or occultists; the sense centers of their desire bodies
are spinning in a clockwise direction.  Second,  those who are developing in
a passive,  weak-willed manner.  They reawaken the solar plexus or other or-
gans  connected  with  the  involuntary  nervous  system,   and  develop   a
mirror-like  picture  of consciousness of the inner planes similar  to  that
possessed by man in the Lemurian Epoch.   The sense centers of their  desire
bodies are rotating in a counter-clockwise direction.   Thus they become in-
voluntary  clairvoyants  or mediums who have no control of  the  clairvoyant
faculty.

   The second grade are often the prey of earthbound spirits, who constitute
themselves "spirit guides" and develop their victims as "trance mediums"; or
if  the  connection  between the medium's dense and  vital  bodies  is  par-
ticularly lax, they develop him into a "materializing medium".  Spirits of a
high  ethical  nature  do not usually control a medium;  it  is  rather  the
earthbound and low spirits who do this.   There is no transforming power  in
death.   The sinner does not become a saint nor the ignorant become wise  of
it.  It is a pathetic sight to the trained clairvoyant to see the imposition
practiced by unprincipaled spirit controls upon many sensitives.

   The  wise spirit-control manipulates the organs of speech or other  parts
of the body from outside.   But the inexperience spirit sometimes enters and
takes  possession of the body in such a manner that it cannot leave when  it
wishes.  Then the go has lost its body, and its personality becomes entirely
changes.   Elementals,  a class of subhuman spirits, frequently take posses-
sion  of the shells or discarded bodies of low human beings,  and  then  act
upon mediums as spirit controls.   In spirit materialization the ether  from
the medium's vital body is drawn out through the spleen,  and is used as the
basis of materialization,  attracting to itself particles of dust to make it
visible.  The medium's vitality is seriously depleted by this process,  pro-
ducing  extreme  exhaustion,  and  often causing the  medium  to  resort  to
stimulants or drugs.

   Sometimes evil spirits pose for years as saints just to get possession of
their victims.   Usually they give out nothing but high-sounding  platitudes
and  goody-goody  nonsense  of  no  value whatever.  They delight in leading

[PAGE 40]

their  dupes into trouble,  after which they usually abandon  them.   Having
controlled a medium during life,  the control may oust him at death from the
vehicles  which contain his life experience and retain them  for  centuries,
thus disastrously retarding that ego in his evolution.   We would  therefore
voice a warning to all our students not to allow themselves to be guided  or
controlled by spirits whom they cannot see and about whom they know nothing.

   In  the case of hypnotism,  the hypnotist gains control of his victim  by
first requiring him to make himself perfectly negative or passive.  The hyp-
notist  then  proceeds to work upon the head of the  subject's  vital  body,
squeezing it down through the physical head so that it lies around the  neck
in thick rolls.   The connection between the ego and the dense body is  thus
severed  as in sleep.   The physical head is now filled with ether from  the
hypnotist's  vital body.   Thus he obtains power over his  subject,  because
through the connection thus established he can transmit commands and  compel
the hypnotized person to do his will.  When a hypnotist has once established
connection with his subject,  he can maintain it as long as he desires,  and
the victim can be brought completely under his domination,  independently of
distance.   Death alone will break the connection.  It is highly inadvisable
to  attend spirit seances or hypnotic demonstrations,  for there  is  danger
that  some  low  spirit  there may attach itself to us  and  cause  us  much
trouble.  It is also inadvisable to burn incense, for when we inhale it,  we
inhale  elemental spirits with it which tend to incite us to  sensuality  or
negative practices.

   The ouija board and planchette furnish another method by which discarnate
spirits  or elementals may gain control of unsuspecting victims.   In  using
these for amusement many a negative person has been gradually brought  under
control,  first by having the hand and arm used and finally the entire  per-
sonality.   Parents should never allow their children to use the ouija board
as a plaything.

   There  is a way by which all may protect themselves from external  influ-
ence and domination.   When we live a life of purity and our days are filled
with  service  to God and man,  our thoughts and actions are of a  pure  and
noble nature.  We thus build up and make positive our finer vehicles so that
no  outside entity can effect an entrance to our aura or control us  in  any
way.   We also build the soul body, the two higher ethers,  by this  method,
which constitutes a radiant spiritual force that no outside entity can pass.
The object of the Rosicrucian method of development is to emancipate the pu-
pil from dependence upon others and make him self-reliant in the very  high-
est degree.   If we are the slaves or tools of hypnotists or of  disembodied
or elemental spirits,  we cannot obey the God within nor listen to the  dic-
tates of the Higher Self.

   Please study the preceding lesson carefully;  then without consulting  it
answer fully but concisely the following questions,  and send the answers to
us.  Upon receipt of them we will send you the next lesson.

1. Name and describe the different classes of sensitives.

2. Explain the nature of "spirit controls"; how they operate, and the
   dangers in connection with them.

3. Of what does spirit materialization consist?

4. What is the usual nature of communications from "spirit guides"?

5. What is the great danger to the medium after death?

6. Explain the process of hypnotizing.

7. Why should we not attend spirit seances or hypnotic demonstrations nor
   burn incense?

8. What is the danger of using the ouija board?

9. What is the advantage of the Rosicrucian method of spiritual development?

[PAGE 41]

                          THE EVOLUTION OF RELIGION:

                                LESSON NO. 18:

   Man in his religions have evolved  side by side and in equal degree.  The
earliest  religion of any race is found to be as savage as the  people  gov-
erned by it and as they become more civilized,  their religions become  more
and more humane and in harmony with higher ideals.  The law for the body may
be the survival of the fittest,  but the law for the evolution of the spirit
demands sacrifice.   It is evident that whatever urges man to a higher stan-
dard  of conduct toward his fellow men must come from within.   That such  a
force exists, even though often not understood, no one will deny.   Selfish-
ness is being slowly but surely replaced by altruism.   In the breast of ev-
ery  human  being the Christ force of altruism works as a leaven.   It  will
gradually  transform the savage into the civilized man,  and in time  change
the latter into a god.

   The steps by which man climbs up to God are four in number.  First, with-
out  his consciousness he was worked upon by the high Beings who guided  his
early evolution.   Then he was placed under the rulership of divine  messen-
gers of kings whom he could see and whose commands he was required to  obey.
Next  he was taught to reverse the commands of a God whom he could not  see.
Finally he must learn to rise above commands, become a law unto himself, and
by conquering himself live in harmony with the laws of nature, which are the
laws of God.

   The race religion was the first religion to be developed.  This was given
to  man by the Race God or Race Spirit.   It inculcated a certain degree  of
unselfishness  by requiring sacrifices,  in return for which,  however,  the
Race Spirit became the protector and preserver of its people.  Judaism, Tao-
ism,  Confucianism,  and the like are race religions.   The Race Spirits are
archangels who are working out one phase of their evolution in this  manner.
The  race  religions  are religions of  separativeness,  and  all  inculcate
self-seeking at the expense of other races,  because at this stage  humanity
can best learn its lessons through separateness.  Patriotism is the cardinal
principle  of the Race Spirit.   But if the "fundamental unity of each  with
all"  and an era of love are ever to be realized,  race religions have to be
replaced by one more universal, such as the Christian religion.

   There  were several religions previous to Christianity which  taught  Re-
birth and the Law of Consequences,  but with the advent of Christ it was  no
longer  conducive to man's advancement that he should know the  doctrine  of
rebirth.   Therefore we find that the Christian religion as publicly  taught
does  not embody it,  although Christ taught it to His disciples.   Man  was
destined  to master the material world, therefore it was necessary  that  he
should  forget  for a time the knowledge of rebirth which  prevails  in  the
East, and think of the life he is now living as the only earth life, so that
he might concentrate all his efforts upon material advancement.

   From an occult point of view,  missionary,  whether from the East to West
or vice versa,  is in the main not desirable,  because it is contrary to the
trend of evolution.  Missionary work  promotes the interests of civilization

[PAGE 42]

and  culture to a certain degree through the exchange of ideas  and  methods
between  different races,  but from the standpoint of religion alone it  ac-
complishes very little.   In general,  when an ego is ready for an  advanced
religion, he will be reborn in a country where this religion prevails.   The
great Leaders of humanity who are in charge of our development give us every
aid necessary.   There are excellent reasons why the Bible,  containing both
the Jewish and Christian doctrines, should have been given to the West.   It
was  the  Supreme Wisdom which gave us this double religion,  and  no  other
system of the present day is suitable to our peculiar needs.

   As a class of spirits evolves, it advances from race to race.   Evolution
progresses from east to west.   We of the Western nations at one time inhab-
ited Hindu bodies.   Later we left those bodies and built in turn the bodies
of  the succeeding races.   During this process we have sensitized  our  ve-
hicles  to a very high degree,  and the western race body is vibrating at  a
much  higher rate than the Hindu body.   Therefore the  breathing  exercises
which  the Hindu uses to raise his vibrations are disastrous to the  Western
aspirant.   They cause a premature separation of the ethers,  which is often
followed by consumption or insanity.

   Modern science has been a great aid in mastering the material world,  and
has its legitimate place as an educator of the human race.   But when it di-
vorces itself from religion and becomes entirely materialistic, it is tempo-
rarily a menace to humanity.  There was a time when religion, art,  and sci-
ence were united and taught in the Mystery temples, even as late as the time
of ancient Greece.  But as this is the place of separateness and specializa-
tion,  they have been purposely separated for a time.  In due time all three
will be united again, and then we shall get perfect satisfaction through the
heart,  the intellect, and the senses.  The heart will enjoy the devotional,
ceremonial aspect of religion, the intellect will be satisfied by its scien-
tific aspect,  and the aesthetic side of the nature will be provided for  by
the various arts employed in the temple service of the future.

   When  man has spiritualized his being under the influence of  the  future
scientific and artistic religion,  he will have learned self-control and be-
come  unselfishly  helpful to his fellow beings.   He will then  be  a  safe
guardian  of THOUGHT POWER.   He will be able to form accurate IDEAS,  which
will be immediately fit to crystallize into useful THINGS.  This will be ac-
complished by means of the larynx, which will speak the CREATIVE WORD.   All
things  in nature were originally spoken into existence by this  WORD  (John
1:1-3).   Sound, or spoken thought, will be our next force in manifestation,
a force that will make us God-men when through our present schooling we have
fitted ourselves to use such an enormous power for the good of all,  regard-
less of self-interest.

   Please study the preceding lesson carefully;  then answer fully but  con-
cisely the following questions, and send the answers to us.

1. What are the steps by which man may rise to Godhood, and what are the
   various stages in the development of religion?

2. Who are the Race Spirits, and what is the nature of race religions?

3. How does Christianity differ from the race religions?

4. Why was the doctrine of rebirth not publicly given out by Christ?

5. Why is missionary work, in the main, not well advised?

6. What are the dangers of Eastern breathing exercises?

7. What will be the nature of the future religion?

8. What power will man eventually possess, and what may he do with it?

[PAGE 43]

                                LESSON NO. 19:

                            THE SCIENCE OF DYING:

   The term "death" refers only to the form.  The spirit is deathless.  Also
birth  and  death are relative terms:   what we call death is in  reality  a
birth into the spiritual world,  and what we call birth is temporarily dying
to the spiritual world.

   When we have exhausted the possibilities of any particular life,  it  be-
comes necessary to pass on to higher spheres through the medium of the  mis-
takenly  dreaded process of dying.   In the heart there is located  what  is
known as the seed atom of the physical body.  This seed atom is spoken of in
Rosicrucian  parlance as "The Book of God,"  because all the experiences  of
our  past lives are inscribed upon it.   This particular atom is  permanent,
and it will be taken with us through all our future existences,  forming the
basis of our individuality throughout all eternity.   Death is brought about
by the rupturing of the connection between this seed atom and the heart, af-
ter which the forces inherent in the seen atom together with the higher  ve-
hicles,  namely,  the vital body,  the desire body,  and the mind  pass  out
through the top of the head.  A connection, however,  is maintained with the
body by the silver cord for a period of about three and one-half days.   The
silver  cord is threefold,  one segment consisting of ether,  one of  desire
stuff,  and one of mind stuff, these segments being attached to the seed at-
oms of the corresponding bodies.  The breaking of the connection between the
dense seed atom and the heart causes the heart to stop beating, but the body
is not yet dead, nor does it become so until the silver cord is broken.

   At this stage a very important process is carried on, namely,  the review
of the panorama of the past life and the etching into the desire body of the
pictures  contained in this panorama.   During life the reflecting ether  of
the vital body acts in the capacity of a sensitive place, upon which are re-
corded all the thoughts,  emotions, incidents, and surroundings of the life.
The  ether  which is inspired with the breath carries  these  pictures,  and
through  the  medium of the blood they are impressed upon  the  vital  body.
They constitute the basis of the post-mortem experiences.

   During a period of approximately three and one-half days after death  the
ego  is engaged in concentrating upon this panorama,  unrolled before it  in
reverse order;  that is, the incidents in the last part of life appear first
in the panorama.   If the concentration is clear-cut and not interfered with
by noise or disturbance of any kind,  the etching is deep and clear,  and in
the  post-mortem life the ego will be able to assimilate the full  spiritual
value of the life just completed.  If, however, the ego is disturbed by emo-
tion,  the  weeping and wailing of relatives, or strife such as  that  of  a
battle  field,  its concentration is destroyed,  and the experiences of  the
past  life are etched very lightly or not at all into the desire body.   The
result  is  that the past life is practically lost;  namely,  the  spiritual
qualities which normally should have been gained by it.  We should therefore

[PAGE 44]

be  very careful to surround the person who has just died with quiet  condi-
tions  so that this panoramic retrospection may not be interfered  with,  as
upon it depends the development of conscience and the incentive to right ac-
tion for use in succeeding lives.

   Another process which takes place simultaneously is the separation of the
ethers.   The two higher ethers,  namely,  the reflecting and light  ethers,
spoken of in the Rosicrucian philosophy as the soul body,  separate at  this
time from the two lower, namely, the chemical and life ethers.   They adhere
to the higher vehicles and proceed with them through the higher worlds, act-
ing  as the basis of consciousness in those worlds,  while the lower  ethers
remain  with  the body and disintegrate with it.   If there  is  disturbance
around the body during the life retrospection period,  this cleavage between
the ethers does not take place properly.

   Administering stimulants to the dying is ill advised.   It is  productive
of  considerable pain to the ego.  The stimulants force the higher  vehicles
back into the body with a jerk and keep the person dying for hours and  days
when  he might otherwise pass out with comparatively little distress.   When
it  is clear that life cannot be prolonged beyond a few hours or  days  such
stimulants should not be given.

   After death the body should be placed in an ice pack for a period of  not
less than three and one-half days.  Embalming should be avoided,  because it
interferes with the panoramic retrospection.   Likewise cremation should  be
avoided during this period,  because the ego is still in connection with the
body through the silver cord,  and to a certain limited extent feels pain as
a result of any mutilation of the body.   Premature cremation dissipates the
ethers and destroys the panoramic record which they contain.  After this pe-
riod of three and one-half days, however,  cremation is advised,  because it
disintegrates the physical body and the two lower ethers with their residual
magnetism,  thus liberating the ego into the superphysical worlds  at  once.
In  the case of burial the magnetism of the body and the lower ethers  holds
the go earthbound for a varying length of time,  usually until decomposition
has reached an advanced stage or been completed.   This results in retarding
the ego for years in some cases.

   If  we  know the facts about dying as determined by occult  science,  and
utilize  our knowledge,  we may be of great service to those of our  friends
and acquaintances who pass over before us.  Likewise,  we may leave instruc-
tions so that when the time comes for us to slip our moorings, we shall have
the same service performed for us.

   Please study the preceding lesson carefully;  then without consulting  it
answer fully but concisely the following questions,  and send the answers to
us.  Upon receipt of them we will send you the next lesson.

1. What is the real nature of death?

2. Describe the seed atom in the heart.  What part does it play when we
   finally leave the body?

3. Describe the silver cord.

4. What is the life panorama, and how made?  What function does it perform,
   and how is it preserved?

5. What conditions should be maintained around a person who has passed out,
   and why?

6. Describe the separation of ethers.

7. How should the body be cared for after the ego has left it?

Continued with file "RC4003.TXT"

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