This is the ninth
chapter of the book "The Secret Doctrine of the Rosicrucians."
THE
SEVENFOLD SOUL OF MAN
In
the Secret Doctrine of the Rosicrucians, we find the following Seventh
Aphorism:
“VII. The Soul of Man
is Sevenfold, yet but One in essence; Man's Spiritual Unfoldment has as its end
the Discovery of Himself beneath the Sevenfold Veil.”
In this Seventh
Aphorism of Creation, the Rosicrucian is directed to apply his attention to the
concept of the Sevenfold Soul —One in essence— of Man; which in the figurative
language of the mystic constitutes the seven veils which conceal from (yet
reveal to) Man his real Self.
This concept is
represented by the Rosicrucians by means of the symbol of the figure of a man
surrounded by seven outlined shapes — the man, himself in his essence, is
represented by the blank space disclosed by the inmost outline, and each one of
the "concealing but revealing veils" is represented by an outlined
figure, each being but one of the series of seven. The series of outlines, be
it noted, is enclosed in the circle representing the Infinite Unmanifest.
Figure 12. Symbol of the Sevenfold Soul
(I
suspect that this image is not a Rosicrucian representation, but rather was
drawn by William Atkinson for his book.)
The
Symbol is interpreted as follows:
·
The Infinite
Unmanifest manifests itself in the Elemental Soul.
·
The Elemental Soul takes
upon itself the outward form of Mineral Substance.
·
The Mineral Soul
evolves from itself the Plant Soul.
·
The Plant Soul
evolves from itself the Animal Soul.
·
The Animal Soul
evolves from itself the Human Soul.
·
The Human Soul
unfolds into the Soul of the Demi-Gods.
·
The Soul of the
Demi-Gods unfolds into the Soul of the Gods.
·
And finally, the Soul
of the Gods once more is resolved into Pure Spirit, which
is represented by the blank space at the centre of the symbol.
This statement will be more clearly apprehended
by those who have carefully studied the preceding chapters conveying
instruction concerning the Seven Planes of Consciousness, and much of the
information contained in those chapters is to be taken into consideration in
the study of the present chapter.
It will be noted that while these
Seven Veils serve to conceal the
Real Self — in the sense of imposing limitations and shape to it, yet at the
same time it reveals the
presence of Spirit by means of its outlines.
The ancient teachers were wont to
illustrate this concealing-revealment by means of a bit of thin gauzy drapery
suspended across the space of an open door or open window into which the breeze
is blowing. The drapery covers (and thus conceals) the moving wind, yet at the
same time it shows a form
representing the movement and presence of the wind, and thus reveals the latter.
Another favorite illustration was
that of an invisible hand, of itself impossible of being perceived, but upon
which was placed seven gloves, one over the other. The gloves were filled, and
the presence of the hand revealed; but each glove, in turn, is mistaken for the
hand itself. The hand is able to feel but faintly, and to act clumsily when the
gloves are all on it, but as each glove is taken off it feels more sensitively,
and performs more delicate actions; but without at least one of the gloves it
is not apparent at all, even to the eyes of its owner.
Let us now briefly consider each of
these Veils with which Spirit is concealed, and yet revealed.
1.
The Elemental Soul
There is only one REAL Soul, of
course; and when the Rosicrucians speak of "The Elemental Soul" they
mean simply the Soul clad in the
garments of elemental substance — covered with the veil of elemental substance,
which while concealing its real nature yet serves to reveal it in
manifestation.
Following the terms of the symbol,
it may be said that the Infinite Unmanifest involves itself first in the
garment of Elemental Substance, or wraps itself in the veil thereof.
(The Infinite Unmanifest initially envelops
itself in subtler substances before reaching the elemental substance.)
Elemental Substance, in the sense in
which the term is used by the Rosicrucians in this connection, is a very
subtle, tenuous form of substance — a form of substance which may be regarded
as the "ancestor" of the most subtle form of matter known to science
today. It lies far back of the plane of the electrons, ions, or corpuscles of
which matter (as commonly known) is composed.
The Elemental Soul, clad in the
garments of Elemental Matter is the pattern
upon which the ordinary physical body is built. It is the "ghost" of
the physical body, and persists after the disintegration of the latter. The intelligence or consciousness manifesting in this
garment of substance is quite simple and elementary, and performs merely the
office of providing and sustaining a pattern
or form upon which the ordinary
physical body is built.
This Elemental Soul, embodied in
elemental substance as stated, is that Something which to the race has been
known as the "ghost," "spirit" (in this case the term
"spirit" is grossly misused and inappropriate), ethereal body,
"fluidic body," "double," "wraith,"
"doppelganger," etc. It has sometimes been called "the astral
body," but this is a mistake, for what the occultists have long known as
the true "astral body" is something very different.
(In fact, double, spectrum and doppelganger
are synonymous with the astral body, William Atkinson here makes a jumble
between the astral body and the pranic body.)
This Elementary Soul survives the
dissolution of the physical body of the individual to which it belonged, and
under certain conditions and circumstances it may become visible to living
persons as the "ghost" of the deceased person. When the Elementary
Soul has been "sloughed off" by the higher vehicles of the Soul
(after the physical "death"), and has also been released by the
partial or complete disintegration of the physical body, it is really but a
"shell" having for form and shape of the latter, and is almost
lifeless, although held together by the cohesive forces of the fast-dying
vibrations. In such cases it possesses neither intelligence nor consciousness
beyond that concerned in holding its substance together and to all intents and
purposes can be regarded as nothing more than a mass of cloudy vapor assuming the form of a human being, and
destined to become speedily disintegrated on its own plane.
(Here Atkinson is mistaking the elementary
soul and the kama-rupa.)
2.
The Mineral Soul
By the term "The Mineral
Soul," the Rosicrucians seek to indicate the Soul embodied in the Mineral
or Chemical Substance of which the Physical Body is composed. The concept
sought to be expressed is the physical body of man considered merely in its
aspect of mineral or chemical substance and their atoms — rather than in its
aspect of protoplasmic, living
substance (using the term "living" in its popular, rather than in its
esoteric sense).
The term "Mineral" of
course means "inorganic substances having a definite chemical composition;
neither animal nor vegetable substances." We need scarcely to call the
attention of the student to the fact that the substance of which the physical
body is composed is, itself, composed of certain chemical or mineral
substances, such as oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulphur, phosphorus,
iron, and other chemical elements.
(Here William Atkinson is very confused,
because the mineral soul does not incarnate in the matter that makes up the
physical body, but "incarnates" in the minerals, and it is the pranic
energy that allows matter to come to life.)
Cremate a body and the greater part
of it will disappear as the vapor of water (composed of oxygen and hydrogen),
and other gases; the remainder being composed of other chemical or mineral
elements. The physical body is built up of mineral and chemical elements
transformed by the action of plant chemistry into protoplasm, and then absorbed
by man as food in the form of vegetables or animal meat. The basis of all
organic matter is chemical or mineral substance. Protoplasm, the basis of
organic substance, vegetable or animal, was evolved from carbon — that same
element which manifests as coal, diamond, graphite, etc. The physical basis of
the bodies of animals and plants is solely mineral or chemical, and all such
bodies are built up from the chemical material originally furnished by earth,
air, and water.
The intelligence and consciousness
manifested in and by the Mineral Soul is confined to that required for the
purely chemical processes of the body, and the coordination and regulation of
the chemical and mineral particles of which the body is composed. There are
important chemical processes under way in the life of the physical body — many
of them quite complicated, so complicated in fact that they cannot be
reproduced or duplicated in the laboratory of man's making and operation. These
important processes are under the control and direction of the Mineral Soul —of
Soul embodied in the chemical and mineral substance of which the body is
composed. These processes are not merely mechanical— they are the product of
intelligence and consciousness, and are impossible without the presence of
these mental forces.
(This is false because the processes of the
physical body are regulated by elementals and not by the mineral soul.)
When the physical body is discarded
by the soul at "death," it proceeds to disintegrate; first the
organic substances of which it is composed, i.e., the vegetable and animal
organic material, become resolved into their mineral and chemical elements, and
then these, in turn, become resolved into their more simple forms and
conditions, and are used in supplying material for the bodies of other forms of
living creatures.
3.
The Plant Soul
By the term "The Plant
Soul," the Rosicrucians seek to indicate the Soul embodied in the
Vegetable Cellular Substance of which a very large proportion of the human
physical body is composed. Apart from advanced scientists and advanced
occultists, few realize how great proportion of the processes of the human and
animal body is really vegetable in nature. The growth of bodily tissue, of
parts and organs, is distinctively vegetable in character.
(This asseveration is false.)
Recent discoveries in the biological
laboratories and in the realms of surgery have shown us that not only portions
of skin and bone may be "grafted" from one body to another, and made
to grow as well in the new body as in the old; not only that portions of organs
may be "transplanted" in a similar way and made to grow and perform
their offices; but also that portions of the human body, and organs thereof,
may be removed from the original body, and made to grow and perform their
offices independent of the bodily general organism. And these processes are not
merely chemical — they manifest all the characteristics of purely vegetable
processes.
(Once again what he says is false since
they are also processes that can be carried out with animals and humans without
the need for there to be "the plant soul" in them, for example:
carnivores never eat vegetables and still may have skin and bone transplants.)
The chief distinction between the
intelligence and consciousness of Plants and Animals is that the former
manifest almost entirely along the lines of instinctive or unconscious
mentation, while the latter manifest in a steadily increasing degree
purpositive and deliberate conscious activity.
(This is also false since mental activity
in plants is very insipient, whereas in animals it is essentially instinctive,
and it is only with the human that it becomes conscious.)
In the processes of the human body
we find a large proportion of those performed clearly along the lines of the
instinctive, unconscious vegetable kingdom. These processes come under the
control and direction of the Plant Soul. They are performed on the Plane of
Plant Consciousness just as truly as are the processes of the ordinary types of
plant life. Some of these processes are very complex — but so are the processes
involved in the life of the ordinary plant.
(This is not true either since the
vegetable soul does not intervene in the processes of the human body because
when you eat a vegetable, you ingest its substance, not its soul.)
The distinction between the plane of
the Plant Soul and that of the Animal Soul will become more apparent and clear
as we proceed to consider the phenomena of the latter.
4.
The Animal Soul
By the term "The Animal
Soul," the Rosicrucians seek to indicate the Soul embodied in the Animal
Organic Substance, both in the lower animals and in man. The Animal Soul is the
animating spirit, or vital spirit, manifesting in the many activities of animal
life, high and low. Its intelligence and consciousness are very high in
comparison to those of the Vegetable Soul, but is limited to the requirements
and needs of the purely animal life. In its lower manifestations it is but
little if any higher than that of the higher manifestations of the Plant Life,
and in its highest manifestations it is but little if any lower than that of
the lowest manifestations of the Human Soul. In fact, as we have repeatedly
said in this book, the various Planes of Consciousness (and hence the powers
and limits of the several Souls) blend into those on each side of them, and
with which they are linked.
The Animal Soul is the seat of the
purely animal desires, and in the work of developing and satisfying the same it
has built up out of the substance of which it is composed, and which it has
absorbed from the substances of the vegetable and mineral plane beneath it,
certain complex organs and groups of organs. Its intelligence and consciousness
are concerned simply with the physical well-being of their owner, the man, just
as in the animal they are concerned with the physical well-being of the animal owner. Moreover, certain of the
purely vegetable processes, such as nutrition, reproduction, etc., are in part
taken over by the Animal Soul and additional power and complexity bestowed upon
them. The desires of man which we usually refer to as "purely
physical" belong to the Animal Soul. The chief desires of the Animal Soul
are concerned with the offices of nutrition and reproduction, and manifest
respectively as Self Preservation and Sex Desire (on the physical plane, of
course), and as Love of Offspring.
In its higher phases the Animal Soul
develops and manifests certain higher qualities, such as the desire for
Comradeship, Companionship, Mutual Sympathy, Affection, etc., which closely
resembles similar feelings and emotions in the lower animals—this because the
two Planes of Consciousness are linked together and are blended one with the
other. The Animal Soul, however, never has the consciousness of "I
Am"—at the most it may be conscious as "Am," but the
"I" consciousness is never present in its true form.
(Here William Atkinso confuses the animal
soul and the kamic principle.)
5.
The Human Soul
The Human Soul is distinguished from
the Animal Soul not only by its special aptitude for intellectual reasoning,
and voluntary choice and action, but also by its consciousness of itself — of
the "I am I." This distinction has been fully explained in previous
chapters of this book, and need not be gone into in further detail at this
place. The following paragraph, however, quoted from a writer, may prove of interest
in the consideration of this phase of the general subject before us. The writer
says:
« Among the lower animals there
is very little of what may be called Self Consciousness. In fact, the
consciousness of the lowest forms of animal life is little more than mere
sensation. Life in the early stages of animal life is almost automatic. The
mentation there is almost entirely along subconscious lines, and the mental
operations are only those which are concerned with the physical life of the
animal — the satisfaction of its primitive wants.
After a bit, this primitive
consciousness developed into what psychologists call “simple consciousness,”
which is an awareness of outside things, and an apprehension of them as things.
But there is no self-consciousness manifested at this point. The animal does
not think of its hopes and fears, its aspirations, its plans, its thoughts, and
then compare them with like thoughts of others of its kind. It cannot indulge
in abstract thinking, or use symbols of thought. It simply takes things for
granted and asks no questions. It does not seek to find answers to perplexing
general questions, for it does not know that such questions exist.
With the advent of
Self-Consciousness, man begins to form a conception of the “I”. He begins to
compare himself with others, and to reason about the result thereof. He takes
mental stock of himself, and draws conclusions from what he finds in his mind.
He begins to think for himself, to analyze, to classify, to separate, to
deduce, to form judgments. He begins to create for himself, and is no longer a
mere mental automaton. »
Another writer has said concerning
the evolution of the consciousness of man:
« For some hundreds of years,
upon the general plane of self-consciousness, an ascent, to the human eye
gradually, but from the point of view of cosmic evolution rapid, has been made.
In a race, large-brained, walking erect, gregarious, brutal, but king of all
other brutes, man in appearance but not in fact, was from the highest simple
consciousness born the basic human faculty, Self Consciousness, and its twin,
Language.
From these and what went with these,
through suffering, toil, and war; through bestiality, savagery, barbarism;
through slavery, greed, effort; through conquest infinite, through defeats
overwhelming, through struggle unending; through ages of aimless semi-brutal
existence; through subsistence on berries and roots; through the use of the
casually found stone or stick; through life in deep forests, with nuts and
seeds, and on the shores of waters, with mollusks, crustaceans, and fish for
food; through that greatest, perhaps, of human victories, the domestication and
subjugation of fire; through the invention and art of bow and arrow; through
the taming of animals and the breaking of them to labor; through the long
learning which led to the cultivation of the soil; through the abode brick and
the building of houses therefrom; through the smelting of metals and the slow
birth of the arts which rest upon these; through the slow making of alphabets
and the evolution of the written word.
In short, through thousands of
centuries of human life, of human aspiration, of human growth, sprang the world
of men and women as it stands before us and within us today with all its
achievements and possessions. »
A writer on the subject of the
evolution of the soul has well given the following words of warning:
« The awakening of the intellect
in man does not necessarily make him a better being. While it is true that the
unfolding of a higher faculty gives an upward tendency to man, it is also true
that some men are so closely wrapped in the folds of the animal sheath —so
steeped in the material side of things— that the awakened intellect only tends
to give them increased powers to gratify their low desires and inclinations.
Man, if he chooses, may excel the
beasts in bestiality — he may descend to depths of which the beast never would
have thought. The beast is governed solely by instinct, and his actions, so
prompted, are perfectly natural and proper, and the animal is not to be blamed
for following the impulses of his nature. But man, in whom intellect has
unfolded, knows that it is contrary to his highest nature to descend to the
level of the beasts — yea, lower by far. He adds to the brute desires the
cunning and intelligence which have come to him, and deliberately prostitutes
his higher principle to the task of carrying out the magnified animal
propensities. Very few animals abuse their desires — it is left for some men to
do so. The higher the degree of intellect unfolded in a man, the greater the
depths of low passions, appetites, and desires possible to him. He may actually
create new brute desires, or rather, build edifices of his own upon the brute
foundations.
It is unnecessary for us to state
that all occultists know that such a course will bring certain consequences in
its train, which will result in the soul having to spend many weary years in
retracing its steps over the backward road it has trodden. Its progress has
been retarded, and it will be compelled to retravel the road to freedom, in
common with the beastlike natures of undeveloped creatures whose proper state
of the journey it is, having an additional burden in the shape of the horror of
a consciousness of its surroundings, whereas its beast-companions have no such
consciousness and suffer not therefrom.
If you can imagine the feeling of a
cultured, civilized man being compelled to dwell among the African Bushmen for
many years, with a full recollection of his past living in civilization, you
may form a faint idea of the fate in store for one who deliberately sinks his
higher powers to the accomplishment of low ends and desires. But even for such
a soul there is escape — in time. »
The Human Soul occupies a place of
great trials and struggles between two conflicting forces. On the one hand is
the force of the lower animal nature, striving to pull it downward into the
plane of the Animal Soul and urging him to employ his newly awakened
intellectual powers on the lower plane. On the other hand is the awakening
forces of the higher spiritual nature, striving to draw him upward into a
consciousness of his relationship to the All, and urging him to open his
intellect to the inflow of the higher vibrations of spiritual consciousness and
to turn his faculties to the carrying out of the dictates of the higher portion
of himself.
6.
The Soul of the Demi-Gods
As has been said in the preceding
chapters of this book, the Soul of the Demi-Gods has as its distinctive and
characteristic consciousness the conscious realization of its relationship to
the All — to the Universal Life. Its mental and spiritual horizon has expanded
until, in its higher stages, it takes in All Life and feels itself identified
therewith. All that has come to man of humanity, justice, kindness, sympathy,
nobility and Human Brotherhood has come to him filtered through from this
higher region of himself. Man feels sympathy for others because of his dawning
sense of his relationship to, or Oneness with all the rest. With the coming of
the flashes of the Cosmic Consciousness, all narrow feelings of distinction and
caste fade away, and he feels the urge of Unity. Not only does he enjoy the
thrill of Universal Life, but he also may suffer the World-Pain, at least until
a fuller understanding of the latter comes to him.
A writer has well said of this stage
of consciousness:
« As man unfolds spiritually, he
feels his relationship with all mankind, and he begins to love his fellow-man
more and more. It hurts him to see others suffering, and when it hurts him
enough he tries to do something to remedy it. As time goes on and man develops,
the terrible suffering which many human beings undergo today will be
impossible, for the reason that the unfolding spiritual consciousness of the
race will make the pain be felt so severely by all that the race will not be
able to stand it any longer, and it will rebel and insist that matters be
remedied. From the inner recesses of the soul comes a protest against the
following of the lower animal nature, and, although we may put it aside for a
time, it will become more and more persistent, until finally we will be forced
to heed it.
The struggle between the higher and
lower natures has been noticed by all careful observers of the human soul, and
many theories have been advanced to account for it. In former times it was
taught that man was being tempted by the devil on the one hand, and helped by a
guardian angel on the other hand. But, as all occultists know, the struggle is
between the two elements of man's nature, not exactly warring, but each
following its own line of effort, and the Ego is torn and bruised in its
efforts to adjust itself. The Ego is in a transition stage of consciousness,
and the struggle is quite painful at times, but the growing soul in time rises
above the attraction of the lower nature, and its dawning spiritual consciousness
enables to understand his real nature and his real place in the universe. »
The same writer has said:
« The higher planes of the soul
are also the source of the 'inspiration' which certain poets, painters,
sculptors, writers, preachers, orators, and others have received in all times
and in all lands. This is the source from which the seer obtains his vision—the
prophet his insight and foresight. Many have concentrated themselves upon high
ideals in their work, and have received rare knowledge from this source,
attributing it to beings of another world—but the inspiration came from within:
it was the voice of the Higher Self speaking to the Ego. »
The writer aforesaid, informs us as
follows concerning the experiences of Inspiration and Illumination coming to
the Ego from the regions of this Higher Self:
« These experiences, of course,
vary materially according to the degree of unfoldment of the individual, his
previous training, his temperament, etc., but there are certain characteristics
common to all. The common features are as follows:
1) A conviction of a sense of
actual being —of immortality; this apart from faith or religious conviction,
and coming seemingly from a deeper source than these— it has been described as “the
faith that knows.”
2) A total slipping away of all
fear and the acquirement of a feeling of trust, certainty, and confidence,
which is beyond the comprehension of those who have never experienced it.
3) A feeling of universal Love
which sweeps over one — a Love which includes all Life, from those near to one
in the flesh to those at the furthest parts of the universe; from those whom we
hold as pure and holy, to those whom we have regarded as vile, wicked, and
utterly unworthy. All feelings of self-righteousness and condemnation seem to
slip away, and one's love, like the light of the sun, falls upon all alike,
irrespective of their degree of development or “goodness.”
4) A feeling of the utmost
bliss and joy, the memory of which abides long after the actual experience.
5) A feeling of exalted
knowledge and wisdom, in which all doubt disappears and a sense of
understanding the deeper meaning of all things takes its place, for the time of
the experience at least. To some these experiences have come as a deep reverent
mood or feeling, which took possession of them for a time, while others have
seemed to be in a dream and have become conscious of a spiritual uplifting
accompanied by a sensation of being surrounded by a brilliant and all-pervading
light or glow. To some, certain truths have become manifest in the form of
symbols, the full meaning of which in some cases have not become apparent until
long after the actual experience.
These experiences, when they have
come to one, have left him in a new state of mind, and he has never been the
same man afterward. Although the keenness of the recollection has worn off,
there remains a certain memory which long afterward proves a source of comfort
and strength to him, especially when he feels faint of faith and is shaken like
a reed by the winds of conflicting opinions and speculations. The memory of
such an experience is a source of renewed strength — a haven of refuge to which
the weary soul flies for shelter from the outside world which understands it
not. From the writings of the ancient philosophers of all races, from the songs
of the great poets of all peoples, from the preachings of the prophets of all
religions and times we can gather traces of this illumination which has come to
them — this unfoldment of spiritual consciousness.
One tells the story in one way, the
other in other terms, but all tell practically the same essential story. All
who have recognized this illumination, even in a faint degree, recognize the
like experience in the tale, song, or preaching of another, though centuries
may roll between them. It is the song of the Soul, which when once heard is
never forgotten. Though it be sounded by the crude instruments of the
semi-barbarous races, or the finished instruments of the talented musician of
today, its strains are plainly recognized. From Old Egypt comes the song — from
India of all ages — from Ancient Greece and Rome — from the early Christian
saint — from the Quaker Friend — from the Catholic monasteries — from the
Mohammedan Mosque — from the Chinese Philosopher — from the legends of the
American Indian hero-prophet — it is always the same strain, and it is swelling
louder and louder, as many more are taking it up and adding their voices or the
sounds of their instruments to the grand chorus. »
(This writer that William
Atkinson mentions so much is himself and the excerpts are from
his book "Fourteen Lessons in Yogi Philosophy and Oriental Occultism")
The student must remember that in
the experiences noted above, the individual simply has flashes, or period of
dawning consciousness on this Sixth Plane of Consciousness, and is not to be
regarded as having entered fully and completely into its manifestations, much
less as having evolved into a state in which he functions normally and
habitually on this high plane. There are beings —once men— who have evolved
into the higher state in which they function normally and habitually on this
plane of conscious being; but these individuals are no more than mere men, and
have earned the right to be called "Demi-Gods." But, even as they
once were men, so all men become as they now are by the unfoldment of this
higher region of Self. These flashes of consciousness from this high plane are
prophetic signs and messages indicating the awakening of the higher faculties,
and giving assurance of further growth and unfoldment.
In concluding our consideration of
this high plane, let us glance at the following words from the pen of Sir
Oliver Lodge, the great English scientist, who has given the world startling
corroboration of some important ancient truths known to the occultists and
esoteric teachers; he says:
« Let us imagine, then, as a
working hypothesis, that our subliminal self —the other and greater part of us—
is in touch with another order of existence, and that it is occasionally able
to communicate, or somehow, perhaps unconsciously, transmit to the fragment in
the body something of the information accessible to it.
We should then be like icebergs
floating in an ocean, with only a fraction exposed to the sun and air and
observation; the rest, by far the greater bulk, eleven-twelfths — submerged in
a connecting medium, submerged and occasionally in subliminal or sub-aqueous
contact with others, while still the peaks, the visible bergs, are far
separate. Such an iceberg, glorying in its crisp solidity and sparkling
pinnacles, might resent attention paid to its submerged subliminal supporting
region, or to the saline liquid out of which it arose, and to which in due
course it will some day return.
“We feel that we are greater than we
know.” Or, reversing the metaphor, we might liken our present state to that of
the hulls of ships submerged in a dim ocean among strange beasts, propelled in
a blind manner through space; proud, perhaps, of accumulating many barnacles of
decoration: only recognizing our destination by bumping against the dock wall;
and with no cognizance of the deck, and the cabins, and spars, and sails, no
thought of the sextant and the compass and the captain, no perception of the
lookout on the mast, of the distant horizon, no vision of objects far ahead,
dangers to be avoided, destinations to be reached, other ships to be spoken
with by means other than by bodily contact — a region of sunshine and cloud, of
space, of perception, and of intelligence, utterly inaccessible to those parts
below the water line. »
(This
citation William Atkinson had previously mentioned in his book "The Inner
Consciousness".)
7.
The Soul of the Gods
It must be apparent to every careful
student that it is practically impossible to speak in ordinary terms of the
expression and manifestation of the Self which is known to the Rosicrucians as
"The Soul of the Gods." It is sufficient for the purpose to merely
indicate its existence as a phase of the Ego — existing in a latent state in
most individuals, but affording occasional flashes of its presence to a few,
and destined to become the normal plane of conscious functioning to the whole
race in the course of spiritual evolution. Moreover, on certain planes of life
and being, even today, there exist beings to whom this phase of consciousness
is habitual and normal, even as is the plane of human consciousness normal and
habitual to the majority of our race today.
To such beings, separated from the
Infinite Unmanifest —the Eternal Parent— but by the most tenuous and subtle
substance serving as the veil, the whole process of the Universe must appear
merely as a great moving picture show of shadow forms, magnificent
phantasmagoria having apparent substance and form but having no actual reality
when viewed from the aspect of the Eternal. Such beings are, indeed, Gods as
compared with the rest of living creatures. Close up to the very heart of the
Eternal, these exalted beings are conscious of the very heartthrobs of the
Eternal Parent.
As almost incredible as it may seem,
however, there are among us on earth today certain advanced souls in whom this
consciousness has already begun to manifest itself; and their number is
growing. Such souls have experienced an actual conscious realization of the
truth that the One is All, and that other than the One there is nothing — the
entire array of the Cosmic Phantasmagoria being perceived as Illusion, Mirage,
Maya, Glamour, Unreality. Into such, the Soul of the Gods is beginning to
manifest itself. No more can be said here on this particular subject.
(William Atkinson said the same in his previous book The Kybalion: “that very bit can be said on this subject”, but in reality it is he who does not have
knowledge about it, and in what little he said here he makes mistakes, since master
Kuthumi specified that humans will only reach that level in the seventh round,
so it is false when Atkinson states that "there are already among us on
earth souls who have reached that level of development.")
Summary
The student must not fall into the
error of supposing that man really has seven separate and distinct souls,
either tied together like a bundle of twigs, or else worn as one would wear
seven overcoats, one over the other. The symbol is only figurative, and must
not be construed literally. There are not seven selves in man — but only One
Self concealed by seven veils, each of which while serving to conceal the real
nature of the Self yet serves to disclose the presence and power thereof to
some degree.
It is as if seven planes of
variously colored glass, ranging from the darkest to the almost-transparent and
colorless, were to be placed before a brilliant light. The darker glass would
almost entirely obscure the Light, though yet revealing its presence in some of
its rays; the next lighter would reveal more, and obscure less; and so on to
the last in which the obscuration was but slight, and the revelation almost
perfect. All illustrations of this ineffable fact of the Eternal are, by the
very nature of things, imperfect, faulty, and misleading if taken too
literally.
The lesson to the student is that in
every man there lie concealed the potentiality of Godhood, and stages less than
Godhood though above that of ordinary Manhood; and that in every man also abide
the lower phases of manifested existence, even the very lowest of all. The wise
man uses the lower, but does not allow the lower to use him; he maintains a
positive, masterful mental attitude toward the lower planes of being, while
opening himself receptively to the influences of the higher planes of his Self.
In conclusion, you are asked to once
more consider the Seventh Aphorism:
"The Soul of Man is Sevenfold,
yet but One in essence: Man's spiritual Unfoldment has as its end the Discovery
of Himself beneath the Seven-fold Veil."
OBSERVATIONS
In this chapter
William Atkinson makes a real mess, mixing the souls that evolve through the
different kingdoms of existence (mineral, vegetable, animal, etc.) with the
different principles that make up man (physical, astral, mental, etc.)
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