Theosophy - Mankind today and tomorow by Ivan A. Hawliezek
MANKIND:
TODAY AND TOMORROW
or
PROGRESS
TOWARDS THE SIXTH RACE
The
Blavatsky Lecture
1937
By
Iwan
A. Hawliczek, B.Sc.
It has, on the
whole, been customary for the Blavatsky Lectures to treat of abstruse subjects
in a somewhat academic fashion, as befitted an age in which the manasic principle
was the seat and centre of human consciousness. Now that the world has definitely
entered upon a new age, with its accompaniment of fundamental changes in every
department of life, it seems only right that a lecture dedicated to the great
Founder of our Society in the outer world should also change with the times,
and should endeavour to express something of that dynamic force of the new age,
applied to life's immediate as well as to its more remote problems, which was
so marked a characteristic of H. P. Blavatsky herself - for she was not
only philosophically profound but also dynamically and disturbingly practical.
In considering, therefore,
the progress towards the Sixth Race, one must bear in mind not only the eternal
background of human life, but also its changing expressions, which form the
living link between past and future. For evolution is the shadow of the Eternal
passing across the screen of Time, or, as H. P. Blavatsky herself wrote:
"Atma neither
progresses, forgets, nor remembers. It does not belong to this plane. It is
but the Ray of Light eternal, which shines upon, and through, the darkness
of matter."(The Secret Doctrine, 1, 264.)
In order to understand
the significance of all that goes by the name of evolution in the phenomenal
worlds one must constantly bear in mind the reality of the Noumenon whence these
things arise. Hence Occultism is the most practical of all the sciences, for
it deals with causes while the exoteric sciences are mainly occupied in the
examination of effects.
The Theosophical Society
has lately devoted much time and thought to the study of the Great Plan. At
the end of this period a member was heard to remark: "We have heard a great
deal about the Plan, but no one has yet told us what it is."
From which one surmises that the Plan has been studied as though it were an
architect's drawing which the Elder Brethren frequently consult in order to
ascertain the next step to be taken. The Plan, however, is -not a scheme,
and it can never be made known by means of diagrams and words. It is a Force
inherent in the very nature of Life itself. It is Life expressing its own self,
naturally and inevitably. For this reason everything that happens, even so-called
tragedy and failure, is part of the Plan, for all is an expression of the Life.
This does not mean that
an intellectual conception of the Plan is impossible, but such a conception
should never be confused with the Plan itself, which is natural, cosmic living.
Moreover, the real understanding of the Plan is [The
references to The Secret Doctrine are all taken from the third and revised
edition of 1893.]
dependent upon the student
possessing an awakened intuition which illumines his mind. Since:-
" Knowledge differs
much from sense; for sense is of things that surmount it, but Knowledge is
the end of sense - i.e. of the illusion of our physical brain and its
intellect; thus emphasising the contrast between the laboriously acquired
knowledge of the senses and Mind (Manas) and the intuitive omniscience
of the Spiritual Divine Soul (Buddhi)." (The Secret Doctrine,
I, 300.)
First, then, one must
deal with the eternal background to Life, of which the following quotation affords
an excellent summary:-
" The Monad of
every living being . . . is an individual Dhyan Chohan, distinct from others
with a kind of spiritual Individuality of its own, during one special
Manvantara. Its Primary, the Spirit (Atman) is one, of course, with the One
Universal Spirit (Paramatma), but the Vehicle it is enshrined in, the Buddhi,
is part and parcel of that Dhyan-Chohanic Essence." (The Secret Doctrine,
1, 285.)
The inherent nature
of this spiritual individuality lies outside the field of Time and Experience,
being the Reality transcendent to the five worlds of manifestation. It is, nevertheless,
that which lies behind the unique evolution of each Monad, and determines its
distinctive growth within the compass of the Great Plan. In order that this
work may be achieved, the transcendent Self is under the necessity of establishing
points of contact with the phenomenal worlds (these are the permanent atoms),
and its first vehicle is spiritual Buddhi which, in due time, becomes the divine
soul of a human being. The purpose and method of this procedure is well described
in these words :-
"No purely spiritual
Buddhi (Divine Soul) can have an independent conscious existence before
the spark which issued from the pure Essence of the Universal Sixth Principle
- or the Oversoul - has :
(a) passed through
every elemental form of the phenomenal world of that Manvantara, and
(b) acquired individuality,
first by natural impulse, and then by self-induced, and self-devised efforts,
checked by its Karma, thus ascending through all the degrees of intelligence
from the lowest to the highest Manas, from mineral and plant up to the holiest
Archangel (Dhyani-Buddha)." (The Secret Doctrine, 1, 45.)
This is the pathway
of experimental discovery which begins with involution, the descent into matter
through the various Elemental Kingdoms, the turning point in the Mineral world,
and then the re-ascent on the pathway of return through the vegetable, animal,
human, and superhuman stages of unfoldment.
It is with but a fragment
of this that one is concerned today, that part which deals with the transition
from one human Root-Race to another, upon one Globe of one Chain of the many
worlds in which this purpose is being slowly but surely wrought in its human
phase. At this point it becomes possible to leave the transcendental and pass
into the very much narrower field of the temporal. But the foregoing was a necessary
preliminary, more especially because the mass of detail which confronts one
in a study of modern world conditions is apt to be so overwhelming, that one
loses sight of fundamental purposes, of root causes and of the ultimate goal
towards which events are moving. All this is inherent in the Great Plan, and
should not be lost to sight merely because a small phase of that Plan is selected
for special study.
The Indo-European population
of the world is described theosophically as belonging to the Fifth Root-Race.
A number of major subdivisions are recognised - five, with an incipient sixth
- each comprising a group of related national types. But to understand the reality
of a Root-Race much more than a mere superficial classification is required.
One must endeavour to enter into the causative forces of human life in their
spiritual essence in order to perceive the reason for the existence of such
a Race, and why it must of necessity assume the particular characteristics which
a study of its history partially reveals. Behind each Root-Race stand the Eternal
Monads of those humans whose stage of unfoldment compels them to fashion that
mode of experience. The elements which constitute the true wholeness of a Root-Race
are three in number. Firstly, its purpose -that which might be called its determining,
atmic principle, which only the Race Manu and his colleagues of the First Ray
can know clearly and fully, and which fixes the type and form of the Race on
all planes down to and including the physical. Secondly, the quality of consciousness
which is to be associated with the Race, the unfoldment of which in man is the
care of the Bodhisattva and his co-workers of the Second Ray. Thirdly, the environment
or organisation of the field of manifestation which is both the natural expression
of and also the stimulus to progress for the transcendent Self in that particular
phase of its growth. This environment, which is in the charge of the Mahachohan
and his hosts of agents belonging to the remaining five Rays, must not be thought
of only in physical terms. On the purely physical side it includes such items
as details of racial civilisation, the geological arrangement of mineral wealth,
conditions of climate, of flora and fauna, the geographical distribution of
nations, and so on. But it also comprises a superphysical environment of the
astral, mental and higher worlds, the forces of which play upon man's consciousness
and stimulate his growth. Every Root-Race is a complex of all these elements,
each of which will receive attention in turn in relation to progress towards
the Sixth Race.
So stupendous an undertaking
as the fashioning of a Root-Race naturally occupies vast periods of time. One
is apt to think of human evolution in terms of the few thousand years of history
which are available to exoteric students. Little in the way of real progress
seems to have been made during that time, and people become impatient because
beneath the thin veneer of civilised life today there still lurks so much of
greed and selfishness. It is well to recall the fact, therefore, that the Aryan
Race was actually founded about B.C. 100,000; but even this is by no means the
whole story, for the first beginnings of the Race are said to have been made
1,000,000 years ago. Since this Race was developed out of the preceding Atlantean
Root-Race, it means that 900,000 years of training and preparation were needed
in order to change the nature of certain human Egos from the Atlantean to the
Aryan phase. The time-scale of evolution must be thought of in terms comparable
to the space-scale of the astronomers.
Evolution in its human
phase is fundamentally concerned with the development of self-consciousness
in the phenomenal worlds, and in this work Mind is the essential constituent,
for:
"Without Manas,
the 'Reasoning Soul,' or Mind . . . Atma-Buddhi is irrational on this plane
and cannot act."(The Secret Doctrine, I, 263.)
Mind is indeed the pivot
upon which the whole process of human evolution turns, and from which self-consciousness
can proceed in either of two directions into the field of the pairs of opposites.
"Manas is dual
- Lunar in the lower, Solar in its upper portion. That is to say, it is attracted
in its higher aspect towards Buddhi, and in its lower descends into . . .
its animal Soul."
(The Secret Doctrine, II, 520.)
The growth of self-consciousness,
which is the work of the Second Ray, will therefore be taken as the central
theme for study, around which the development of racial types and the organisation
of environment will fall naturally into place. These two last are sometimes
regarded as the Form aspect, and the first as the Life aspect, of manifestation.
Both aspects are necessary to perfect self-realisation, but it is well to recognise
both their differences and their relationships.
Life is expansive, fluidic,
outward turned, moving from a centre towards an ever-receding circumference.
It is the causative and motive force in evolution, and the "expanding universe"
is one of its physical manifestations. Form, on the other hand, is contractive,
rigid, inward-turned, tending to hold at the centre that which lies within its
immediate circumference. It therefore serves to give clarity and definition
to consciousness.
In the physical, mental,
and atmic worlds the form aspect of manifestation preponderates, while in the
astral, buddhic, and monadic worlds the life aspect is dominant. These latter,
each in their turn, are therefore the true causative worlds in human affairs.
The first of them, the
astral, is for man the region of desire, and this desire furnishes the motive
(i.e. The driving force) in the majority of human affairs at present. Hence
the relative futility of the numerous modern attempts to solve the problems
of civilisation merely by an adjustment of the forms, be these of government,
of finance or of social relationships, without at the same time changing the
motive of human living. So long as the motive remains largely one of greed and
selfishness, no reorganisation of the forms of civilisation can be more than
palliative. If, however, the motive itself can be changed, then the outer adjustments
will follow as a matter of course, and will be both stable and effective.
For the average man,
therefore, the seat of motive is astral; for the initiate it is buddhic; for
a Master of the Wisdom it is monadic. The evolution of human consciousness consists
largely in the transference of motive from the astral to the buddhic centres
of life. Mind which stands between these two, serves as the pivot of self-consciousness
and as an intelligent guide which can give direction to evolution, but it can
never be the driving power. A simple parallel will serve to illustrate this
fact. One speaks habitually of a man as being the driver of a motor car. He
is nothing of the kind. Petrol is the motive power in the car, the so-called
" driver " being merely the intelligence which controls speed and
direction. The actual mechanism is the physical body of the car; petrol represents
its emotional force, while man, the driver, is the guiding or manasic principle.
Returning to the main
theme, one may say in general terms that the Lemurians were concerned with emotional
development, the Atlantean and Aryan peoples with mental evolution in its lower
and higher aspects respectively, while the Sixth Root-Race will address itself
to unfolding the potentialities of the Buddhic world. The typical emotion is
sympathy, for it is the means of contact for the outward-turned life with the
world outside its immediate field of self-consciousness. It is the emotion of
expansiveness. That same force has to serve as motive through both the Atlantean
and Aryan Races, until such time as self-consciousness can function in the Buddhic
world. The motive then will become true or spiritual love, which leads to unity.
At the present time it is desire which, working through the synthetic faculties
of the higher mind, gives rise to co-operation, brotherhood, teamwork, collective
security, inter-religious fellowship, &c., &c.
The history of every
Root-Race consists of three principal parts. After its actual foundation, the
first period is recapitulatory, dealing with the types of experience appertaining
to earlier epochs and Races, but treating them in the light of the new mode
of consciousness which is to characterise the new Race. When this recapitulation
is over, the Race enters upon the period of its own unique development, and
performs the work of evolution for which it was specifically created. Towards
the close of its existence, certain elements anticipatory of future Races are
introduced into its life. Finally comes dissolution and the destruction of the
continent upon which the Race had its dwelling.
The Manu of the Race,
who is the incarnation of its purpose, and whose task it is to hold the Race
true to type during the whole period of its existence, is therefore the responsible
officer up to the very end. As The Secret Doctrine says:
"Each (Manu)
has to become the witness of one of the periodical and ever-recurring cataclysms
(by fire and water) that close the cycle of every Root-Race." (The
Secret Doctrine, II, 323.)
Furthermore, each Root-Race
reflects in miniature cycle the great process of involution and evolution which
occupies the entire period of a Manvantara. Starting at a relatively high level
of spirituality, it passes through a phase of increasing materialism up to its
middle point, before reascending to the expression of its true spiritual significance.
The same is true also of the sub-races and of the nations comprising a sub-race,
a fact which must be evident in the affairs of the world today. H.P.Blavatsky
uttered the reminder that:
" As we are at
the midpoint of our sub-race of the Fifth Root-Race - the acme of materiality
in each - the animal propensities, though more refined (than in Atlantis)
are none the less developed; and this is most marked in civilised countries."(The
Secret Doctrine, I, 668.)
The peak of scientific
materialism was reached in the nineteenth century. Since then a complete revolution
has taken place, and one finds a measure of spiritual insight among the leading
scientists of today which one wishes was equally discernible among the leaders
of the Christian Church. In the affairs of social and national life there is
as yet less evidence of a turn in the tide away from materialism, and for this
reason if for no other the strength of the Theosophical Movement is vital to
the welfare of the world at this critical stage of its history. The position,
indeed, is even more critical than is generally recognised, for humanity of
the Fifth Root-Race has developed its mental individuality up to the point where
a self-conscious choice can be made between the lunar and the solar aspects
of Manas. It is inherent in the nature of Life, and it is consequently part
of the Great Plan, that Manas should be attracted towards Buddhi, but this will
not be achieved without much stress and struggle, and if Theosophists can see
clearly the real nature of this struggle, they can do more to help humanity
to a successful and happy issue than any other group of people in the world.
For this to be possible they must have true understanding, and not a mere superficiality
of judgment or bias of feeling.
So far as consciousness
is concerned, it may be said that today man has reached the full knowledge of
the possibilities of pure mentality in a self-conscious individual at the human
stage of evolution. He has by no means worked out all those possibilities, and
it will be the task of the fifth sub-race to carry them to their perfection
during the remaining centuries of its existence. But the time has also come
for active preparation for future stages of consciousness, and for the races
and civilisations which will give them embodiment.
The first step towards
this is the awakening of intuition. The sixth Aryan sub-race is coming into
existence for this purpose.
Intuition is, in fact,
the spiritual significance of that sub-race. It is by no means easy to describe
intuition in clear terms, for there exists neither language nor experience to
render it fully intelligible. But intuition must not be confused with the consciousness
of the Buddhic world. It will be the task of the Sixth Root-Race to develop
as much of the Buddhic consciousness as is possible during the present fourth
Round of the Earth Chain, and the sixth sub-race is a stepping stone towards
this achievement.
The seat of intuition
is a department of the higher Manas, i.e. that which belongs to the second sub-plane
of the Manasic world, which can become attuned to and receive into itself the
life force from the Buddhic world. When Buddhic life thus illuminates the mind
with its own peculiar nature, then intuition is the result. Intuition therefore
depends upon mind for its ability to function, but has its roots in a higher
world. Wherefore H. P. Blavatsky speaks of:
"Manas, the 'Human
Soul,' the Spiritual Wisdom or Soul being Buddhi, which, being so near the
Absolute, is, Per se, only latent consciousness, and is dependent
upon Manas for manifestation beyond its own plane."(The Secret
Doctrine, II, 287.)
At this point it may
be useful to distinguish between a principle and a sense. In The Secret Doctrine
it is stated that:
"No modern philosopher
has asked himself how these (five) senses could exist, i.e., be perceived
and used in a self-conscious way, unless there were the sixth sense, mental
perception, to register and record them."(The Secret Doctrine, I,
583.)
But Manas is the fifth
principle, and one reads that:
"Buddhi (is)
the seventh sense, but the sixth principle."(The Secret Doctrine,
II, 676.)
The distinction here
is between a field of consciousness as yet unexplored, and the faculty which
ultimately results from the conquest of that field. To the Atlanteans the lower
Manas was a principle - until, towards the end of their history, it became a
sense. With the Aryans lower Manas is definitely a sense, or a faculty, since
logic is now a science and no longer a form of mysticism. Similarly the higher
Manas has been for us a principle, the fifth, but is now in process of being
converted into a sense, because Buddhi is emerging above the threshold of self-consciousness.
At present intuition is not a sense. It remains somewhat of a mystical experience,
not yet having been brought under self-conscious control. It will become a sense
in the future.
Since the unfoldment
of consciousness belongs to the Second Ray line of work, religion has always
played a major part in this process. During the earlier or recapitulatory phase
of Aryan history successive religious teachers have appeared, whose task it
has been to awaken the various levels of self-consciousness each in their due
order. Thus Vyasa came to ancient India in order to establish, with the help
of the Laws of Manu, the foundation of brotherhood upon which the whole purpose
and intention of the Aryan Race are based. Highly metaphysical on its inner
side, ancient Hinduism is outwardly intensely real as regards its emphasis on
the right relationships of man to man, and to the non-human kingdoms of nature.
The orthodoxy of Hinduism is one of active observance and not, as with Christianity,
a matter of belief. Its watchword was Dharma, meaning that which is due
to be done.
Vyasa was succeeded
by Thoth or Hermes Trismegistus in Egypt, who called forth a realisation of
the hidden forces which give to facts in the outer world their spiritual significance.
In Parsee lands Zarathustra came to awaken right feeling, inviting man's self-consciousness
to function through the emotional nature in the proper way. Hence his insistence
upon purity and happiness as the chief essentials in human life. Orpheus, his
Greek successor, sought to awaken the lower Manas to the true measure of its
function as a window for the intelligence of spiritual man, through which he
could look out upon the complex multiplicity of forms in nature, could see the
intrinsic worth of each, and could establish that delicate balance of right
relationship between them which is the very essence of Beauty. So compelling
was the beauty which thrilled through his music that it is said the very beasts
and birds and trees responded to his song. Thus were the Greeks stimulated to
a mental perception of right relationships in philosophy, and to an expression
of these relationships in arts and crafts, which have left an undying mark upon
the pages of Aryan history.
These four teachers,
while not losing sight of universal and transcendental values, gave their messages
in a form which was peculiarly adapted to the needs of the first four
Aryan sub-races, awakening in them the perceptions, the actions, the emotions,
and the analytical faculties of mind which are appropriate to the Race.
There followed the Lord
Buddha to close the recapitulatory period by giving a magnificent summary of
the principles of intellectual understanding of the meaning of life, and by
opening wide the door to self-realisation on the pathway of understanding. As
an example of what Manas can achieve in terms of right perception and a balanced
estimation of true values, Buddhism stands unrivalled in the world today
He was followed by Christ,
the essence of whose teaching lies in the unique and supreme value of the individual
soul of man. So great is this that the ninety-nine sheep were temporarily left
to their own devices in order that the hundredth might be sought and found.
"What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world, and lose his own
soul?" The spiritual significance of the Aryan Race being the synthetic
nature of higher Manas, the human individual is not left by Christianity in
the enjoyment of a splendid isolation, but is envisaged as a social unit. Hence
the two great commandments of Christendom: to love God, because the true man
is fashioned in His image; and to love one's neighbour.
This religion, with
its emphasis on spiritual brotherhood, is the one specifically needed for the
fifth sub-race. It has not yet succeeded in producing a markedly Christian civilisation,
but it is scarcely 2,000 years old and will doubtless have several more millennia
of existence before its effects become fully manifest and its usefulness outworn.
A new age demands a
new teaching to inspire and mould its consciousness. Signs are already apparent
that such a teaching is in process of emergence. Mr. Krishnamurti is probably
its clearest exponent at the present time, but there are a number of others
in the world who are also expressing some aspects of such a teaching in their
own special departments of life. It is, of course, too early to give definition
to this teaching, but evidently it will be such as will transcend the ordinary
reasoning processes of the mind and awaken the intuition in man. For this reason
alone it will be impossible to understand such a teaching in purely mental terms,
and in so far as Mr. Krishnamurti and others are giving expression to this teaching
it will prove unintelligible to all save the few who have already developed
some measure of intuition. Anything which the intellect alone is unable to grasp
and which also arouses a faculty beyond in an endeavour to understand it, may
be said to form part of that training of consciousness which will enable an
individual to take his place as a member of the sixth sub-race.
"Only those who
realise how far intuition soars above the tardy processes of ratiocinative
thought can form the faintest conception of that absolute Wisdom which transcends
the ideas of Time and Space."(The Secret Doctrine, I, 31.)
It is, of course, possible
to set oneself deliberately to the task of awakening the intuition through meditation
- but it is meditation of a particular kind. It begins as usual with concentration
upon some particular idea. Patanjali calls this "meditation with a seed."
Taking, for example, generosity as the seed, one begins by eliminating the unessentials.
A gift of money for some altruistic purpose may be generous; but it is not the
amount of money which is significant, for one calls to mind the story
of the widow's mite. Nor is money itself an essential to generosity, for those
who have it not may still be generous in giving comfort to the distressed, friendship
to the lonely, food to the hungry, understanding and sympathy to those in difficulty,
protection to the weak, encouragement to the young, and in many other ways.
Gradually eliminating each of these unessentials, one arrives at the underlying
idea of generosity as an attitude of readiness to give to each according
to his need. Beyond this point of highest concentration the mind alone cannot
go, and this is where most people are inclined to stop. But it is only now that
the real meditation begins, which Patanjali terms "meditation without a
seed." Retaining the intense but untrained concentration of mind, one drops
even the idea itself of generosity and, if successful, into the silence of the
void thus created there enters a new realisation, wherein one experiences the
dynamic source of life, which is both individual and universal, and which is
the creator not only of generosity but also of all the other ways in which Life
chooses to manifest its own inherent nature. By constant practice along such
lines as these the student may deliberately awaken first of all his mental intuition
and, later, the Buddhic self-consciousness also, and may thus prepare himself
of set intention for the pioneer work needed in establishing the sixth sub-race,
and in due time the Sixth Root-Race. This is the true purpose of occultism,
that certain individuals may fit themselves to become the pioneers of new Races
and sub-races.
In Man: Whence, How
and Whither an interesting description is given of the early community of
the Sixth Root-Race. Superficially it would appear that the chief qualification
is that of living happily in a community with others. This is no mean
achievement, for one is reminded of the witty saying of an Anglican Bishop who
found it easier to love the brothers whom he had not seen rather than the ones
whom he had seen. But the essential qualification for this work of pioneer
race-building is for the sixth sub-race an awakened intuition, and at least
some measure of the Buddhic consciousness for the Sixth Root-Race. Nowhere is
the purpose and nature of this self-training so clearly and so openly given
as in The Theosophical Society. Would that its members could be brought to realise
the value of their membership and the precious opportunity and privilege which
it bestows upon them. There could never then be loss of interest, or the running
after other organisations whose methods may be more spectacular or sensational,
for the theosophic life would be known as one continuous adventure in cosmic
experimentation, full of the joys of fresh and uncharted discovery.
Occultism is sometimes
regarded as a path different from the road by which ordinary humanity is travelling,
but it is not. There is but one road which all are following. On it the occultist
is a pioneer who goes ahead in order to prepare the way for others. The laws
and practices of occultism today represent the nature and achievements of humanity
tomorrow. The aspirant should ever feel himself to be an integral part of the
human family even while striving to represent in himself the next stage of its
development.
In terms of consciousness,
progress towards the Sixth Race means, therefore, first an awakening of intuition
in the individual, this being needed for the sixth sub-race, and later an absorption
of Manas into Buddhi, which is required for the Sixth Root-Race. When this is
achieved, Manas will cease to be a principle and will have become a sense or
faculty. The Sixth Root-Race consciousness is well described in The Secret
Doctrine as follows :
"Buddhi is the
faculty of cognising the channel through which divine knowledge reaches the
Ego, the discernment of good and evil, also divine conscience, and the Spiritual
Soul, which is the vehicle of Atma.When Buddhi absorbs our Egotism (destroys
it) with all its Vikaras, Avalokiteshvara (the Logos or the Divine
in Man) becomes manifested to us and Nirvana or Mukti is reached,' Mukti being
the same as Nirvana, i.e. freedom from the trammels of Maya or Illusion."(The
Secret Doctrine, I, 3.)
Having dealt to some
extent with the development of consciousness leading towards the Sixth Race,
it is now necessary to consider the other two departments of evolution connected
with race-building and with environment and civilisation. Concerning the former
there is not very much that can be said. On its physical side the work of
the Manu is that of moulding the physique of the Aryan Race with its various
sub-races and nations in such a way that the structure of the human body, its
nervous organisation and its mental equipment, shall be such as will express
most fittingly the consciousness that is to function through it. By intermarriage
he therefore mixes and blends the various types of human body as an artist mixes
his colours. His instrument is heredity. His method of bringing suitable types
into juxtaposition is by migration either of individuals, tribes, or nations,
by using warfare and conquest when necessary, by trading instincts, by the spirit
of adventure, or by any of the various means of inducing people to leave their
homes and to travel abroad. National pride, greed for colonisation or conquest,
and many another human weakness can be turned to good account. Indeed, the skill
and wisdom of the Inner Government of the world is perhaps nowhere more apparent
than in those instances where folly, weakness, or so-called evil is made to
serve a useful purpose. The ruthlessness of an Attila, or, in modern days, of
a Mussolini in respect of Abyssinia, may well be deplorable in itself, but who
can assert with assurance that it is contrary to the purposes of the Great Plan
and a retrogression in evolution? After some centuries, when history can estimate
more truly the value and significance of past events, it will be more possible
to pass sound judgment upon present-day events.
For 900,000 years the
Manu of the Fifth Root-Race patiently laboured at certain Atlantean individuals,
gradually evolving from them a bodily and mental organism of Aryan type. 100,000
years ago the first actual Aryan appeared in corporeal form. Since then four
additional subdivisions have been evolved, comprising the nations of the second,
third, fourth, and fifth sub-races. In its early stages this work had to be
carried out in seclusion, and so colonies were established in separate valleys
running up from the shores of the Gobi sea, which had been chosen as the cradle
of the Aryan Race. A few years ago Sven Hedin visited this region and discovered
there traces both of the sea itself, now but a tiny lake, and also of the valleys
leading upwards from its former shores.*
As regards these modern
days H. P. Blavatsky wrote in the following terms:
"Now, Occult
Philosophy teaches that even now, under our very eyes, the new Race and races
are preparing to be formed, and that it is in America that the transformation
will take place, and has already silently commenced.
"Pure Anglo-Saxons
hardly three hundred years ago, the Americans of the United States have already
become a nation apart, and, owing to a strong admixture of various nationalities
and intermarriage, almost a race sui generis, not only mentally, but
also physically.
"The Americans
have become in only three centuries a ' primary race,' temporarily, before
becoming a race apart, and strongly separated from all other now existing
races. They are, in short, the germs of the sixth sub-race, and in some few
hundred years more, will become most decidedly the pioneers of that race which
must succeed to the present European or fifth sub-race, in all its new characteristics.
After this, in about 25,000 years they will launch into preparations for the
seventh sub-race; until, in consequence of cataclysms - the first series of
those which must one day destroy Europe, and still later the whole Aryan Race
- the Sixth Root-Race will have appeared on the stage of our Round."(The
Secret Doctrine, II, 463-4-)
It is interesting to
note how this admixture of nations has been brought about. First the pure spirit
of exploration which led Columbus to the discovery of North America. Then greed
for gold, which caused the Spaniards and others to extend their conquests southwards
and westwards. Religious persecution in England drove people to seek shelter
and freedom across the Atlantic. Traders and colonists gradually spread westwards,
while economic factors [ See Across the Gobi Desert, by Sven Hedin.]
in Europe caused a continuous flow of emigrants from almost every country to
take the places of those who had moved from the eastern seaboard. In such ways
as these the Manu brought together those individuals - who were needed to fashion
the sixth subdivision of our Race.
The refusal of the
United States to take part in European affairs and disputes has been deplored
by many, since it weakens the attempt to form a League of Nations, and so forth.
But the Monroe doctrine of American isolation is a necessary part of the Plan,
for by its means the segregation of this incipient sub-race is being guarded
and maintained. The quota system of immigration is another factor operating
towards the same end. In ways such as these does a study of the Great Plan give
significance to national policies which otherwise seem arbitrary, pointless,
or incomprehensible.
Although only the physical
side of race-building and a few of the methods by which it is brought about
have been discussed, let it not be forgotten that the whole personality of man
is characteristic of his racial and national type. The Manu's work therefore
includes also a fashioning of the astral and mental vehicles to the required
pattern: and behind all this lies the sense of unalterable purpose for which
the race is born, to the fulfilment of which it must steadily and inevitably
move. In this respect the Manu's work is one of fixation, demanding stern and
relentless concentration over a period of millennia during which the Race is
prepared, born, nurtured, sent upon its appointed way, and finally brought to
dissolution when the harvest has been gathered in.
The Lord Vaivasvata
Manu is concerned only with the Fifth Root-Race and its subdivisions, of which
the incipient sixth sub-race is the latest development, but the future Manu
of the Sixth Root-Race is also already at work upon the materials out of which
his people will be fashioned. The Theosophical Society includes a number of
Monads who are set apart for this great work. Under the stimulus of Theosophy
in its deeper aspect they are slowly but surely being changed into the pattern
of the Sixth Root-Race. The discipline of occultism is transforming their personalities,
physical, astral and mental, that they may become vehicles of Buddhic consciousness,
and the practice of meditation and study is stimulating their consciousness,
and awakening its Buddhic qualities.
Attention must now be
given to the third great department of the work, which is in the care of the
Mahachohan. It has already been pointed out that this work includes an almost
overwhelming array of details from which it is difficult to make a suitable
selection. From the standpoint of the ordinary person the most important part
is that which deals with personal, national, and international affairs of civilisation,
and it would be well to study this first.
What is the source of
civilisation? Being the third term in the trinity of human life, the phrase
" proceeding from the Father and the Son " is applicable to it. This
means that civilisation is the product on the one hand of the transcendental
purpose for which any race or nation exists, and on the other hand of the immediate
stage of evolution of mankind. It contains the two elements of future destiny
and present achievement. Thus does the future ever exert a pressure upon the
present. So far as the Fifth Root-Race is concerned, the transcendent aspect
of civilisation is to be found in the principles underlying the Laws of Manu,
for details of which the student is referred to the published literature on
the subject.* All that can be said here is that among Aryans humanity is envisaged
as a spiritual hierarchy of self-conscious interrelated individuals. In the
hierarchical sense the world consists of those who stand higher than, upon a
level with, or beneath any particular individual. Since brotherhood is a spiritual
fact, he owes the duty of right relationship to those in each of these three
categories. The nature of this relationship is expressed by the words reverence,
goodwill, and compassion respectively.
Within the general framework
of a social order based on these principles there exist four types of people,
who are represented in India by the four castes. These are not arbitrary social
divisions but represent natural functions. [See The Science of Social Organisation,
by Bhagavan Das.]
The first type comprises
those who are the purveyors of wisdom to the nation. They include priests and
teachers, and to it belong all those whose spiritual insight is most highly
awakened. The second type is the purveyor of justice to the nation. To it belong
the statesmen, the warriors, the judges, and other ministers of justice and
protection. Both these types are non-productive in the material sense of that
word. The third group is composed of the merchants, and is the purveyor of material
prosperity to the nation, it being always understood that the primary function
of commerce is to render service to the community, and not to earn profits for
a few individuals. Lastly comes the operative or wage-earning group, together
with all those who work upon the land. To this group belongs the bulk of the
population. In general these are people whose spiritual perceptions are not
yet sufficiently awakened to enable them to see the inner significance of Life
in such a way that they consciously align themselves with its real purposes.
Leonardo da Vinci perceived
something of this truth when he divided humanity into three groups: firstly,
the few who see by themselves; secondly, those who can see when they are shown;
and lastly, the many who cannot see even when they are shown. The type of vision
implied is that concerned with eternal values as the raison d'etre of
temporal circumstances.
Such a hierarchical
system implies differences both of temperament and degree of evolution,
and hence the need for sub-races and nations. Each nation has a different purpose
to fulfil, though all of them come within the scheme for the Root-Race as a
whole. In these days of world chaos and political cross purposes it is well
to bear in mind the necessary distinctions between the different national types.
One speaks theosophically of an Inner Government of the world. It is the source
whence national destiny is inspired and a nation's policy is guided. It is essential
for the leaders of a nation either to perceive clearly its purpose, or at least
to be capable of being inspired to work along the right lines. And not alone
the leaders who, according to da Vinci, can presumably see for themselves, but
also those who are capable of seeing when they are shown, owe it as a duty of
good citizenship to be aware of the contribution of their nation to the welfare
of the Root-Race as a whole. If they can also perceive something of the unique
contributions of neighbouring peoples then so much the better, since it would
enable happier relations to be established between one nation and another. The
great need of the day in political affairs is vision and understanding.
It is easier to see
the special contribution of past nations than of present peoples because the
former have already left their mark on the pages of history. For the ancient
Greeks it was beauty, for the Romans law, for the Phoenicians commercial enterprise,
for the Egyptians knowledge of the hidden forces of Nature. The Aryan Race is
the richer for all of these. But what of modern times? Do Britons understand
their own contribution, and do they perceive something of what other nations
have to give? This is a matter of vital importance, for it has been said truly
that "where there is no vision the people perish." Theosophy should
give one clearer knowledge of these matters than might otherwise be possible,
for it offers three clues which are not to be found elsewhere. These are, firstly,
the spiritual evolution of the individual by the help of racial and national
experience; secondly, reincarnation, which brings to each individual the experience
of citizenship in many different lands; and, thirdly, a knowledge of karmic
law, which gives an entirely new meaning to the attitude, belligerent or pacific,
friendly or suspicious, of one nation towards another.
These unique contributions
can best be discovered by a study of racial and national psychology. The special
work of the Aryan Race is to unfold the powers and qualities of the fifth principle
or higher Manas. Its quality is synthetic. In the thought world it expresses
itself in a philosophy of fundamental categories in a manner of which Kant is,
perhaps, the most outstanding exponent. In emotional terms it gives rise to
that sense of right feeling which demands harmony for the satisfaction of aesthetic
values. In practical affairs it is represented socially in an understanding
of the right relationships of man to man, and of man to nature, in the fulfilment
of which it looks for brotherhood and co-operation.
In accordance with cyclic
law, these factors are most prominent in the fifth sub-race, and especially
in its fifth nation which comprises the Anglo-Saxon peoples. It is among these
that the typical Aryan mode of civilisation will ultimately find its most perfect
expression. The preceding sub-races and nations are to a certain extent recapitulatory,
manifesting a blend of Aryan psychology with pre-Aryan modes of living; while
the sixth sub-race marks a preliminary step towards post-Aryan achievements.
The higher Manas, being
both the centre of individuality and the home of synthetic thinking, has caused
the Anglo-Saxon peoples to sound the note of freedom for the individual within
a co-operative social framework. Their unique contribution is expressed partly
in the phrase "Britons never, never, never shall be slaves" and partly
in a phrase of Dr. Besant's wherein she spoke of a "federation of free
peoples" in contradistinction to an empire of force. Based on individual
freedom and on hierarchical relationships, the democratic system of a limited
monarchy such as Great Britain has evolved is the typical social system for
the Aryan Race as a whole. Extended internationally, this means a commonwealth
of nations in which each country is a free individual associating voluntarily
with other free peoples, each managing its internal affairs for itself and placing
its external relationships in the hands of a superior or imperial government.
This is the real meaning of dominion status. Essentially democratic in its foundations,
the social and political organisation of the Anglo-Saxons needs to include also
a clear perception of hierarchical principles of government. In this respect
democracy will need some readjustment before the real fulfilment of Aryan idealism
becomes possible. 'True democracy is not majority rule whereby out of an electorate
of, say, twenty-five million, the will of thirteen million shall prevail over
the remainder. In a higher mind type of civilisation it is not the rule of the
people by the people, but rather the rule of the wise among the people
by consent of the people, which is implicit. The pressure of circumstances
is driving the Anglo-Saxons towards this culmination. The sooner people can
be brought to realise these things, and to understand the forces which are at
work to bring them about, the more quickly and happily will it be possible for
national destiny to be fulfilled.
For this reason also
neither communism nor fascist dictatorship will ever be acceptable to Anglo-Saxons,
and there is not the slightest danger that either of these systems will prevail.
In dealing thus far
exclusively with the Anglo-Saxons it must not be forgotten that there are other
nations belonging to the fifth or Nordic sub-race. With suitable modifications
the same general principles apply to them also, and it is therefore not surprising
to find that the Nordic nations on the whole favour democratic forms of government
whereas, for equally cogent reasons, the Alpine or Latin peoples are, on the
whole, subject to some form of dictatorship. Each type of government is appropriate
in its own setting and is necessary to the fulfilment of the Plan. Danger lies
in the assumption by any group that all countries ought to be organise upon
the same basis as themselves, giving rise to a policy of interference, active
or passive, in the internal affairs of other nations.
It would be well to
understand why, in Latin countries, dictatorship is generally appropriate, for
with understanding comes tolerance and the possibility of real co-operation.
Among nations of the Latin temperament, which belong mainly to the fourth sub-race,
there is a less clearly objective sense of individuality and a tendency, therefore,
to live in terms of a group-soul mode of consciousness. There is consequently
less insistence upon individual freedom. This is due to the fact that the fourth
sub-race lives with its consciousness focused in the lower Manas, with which
the karmic or astral principle is almost inextricably interwoven. The latter
produces a more or less strongly marked devotional element, which needs to express
itself either through art, through idealism, or in devotion to a personal leader.
Politically it is generally the last of these. If someone arises in whom the
people have confidence, they will follow him wholeheartedly to almost any extent.
Dictators are such people. The depth and reality of the devotion which is given
to Mussolini and to Hitler, for instance, can scarcely be realised until one
experiences it at first hand. There is criticism in plenty of the effects of
their policy, but the blame for this is laid upon the subordinates who are said
not to be carrying out the dictator's real intentions. Inspired leadership and
devoted following are the elements of which social and political Organisation
in the fourth sub-race are made up.
To all of this, however,
a new and powerful force is being added in these modem times. To say that one
is entering a new age with the appearance of a new sub-race is not merely to
fix one's eyes upon western America. The effects of the new age are becoming
apparent throughout the whole of the Aryan Race. The awakening of intuition
is not confined to America. Through this awakening, for the first time in history,
something of the real force of Buddhi is incident in human affairs. It has already
been noted that motive is astral until it can become Buddhic. Today we are witnesses
of the beginning of that time. The mind period from which mankind is emerging
was a mechanical one, ranging from a mechanical Deity through a mechanical education
to a mechanical mode of conduct in accordance with a mechanical moral law. Civilisation
comprised a number of separate compartments in each of which specialists sought
to know more and more about less and less.
The Buddhic world, however,
is not mechanical but dynamic. It does not require compartments because its
nature is expansive and unifying. This unifying force is today everywhere at
work in the affairs of men. In the individual first, it draws together the different
sides of human nature-mental, aesthetic, moral, active-making of them a true
individuality endowed with dynamic purpose. It performs a similar work in the
larger life of a nation, drawing together the different compartments of its
life into a real national unity. It is being found that these compartments are
not, in fact, separate one from another, but are aspects of a unified national
life. The trades unions, for example, were formed originally to deal with purely
industrial affairs. It now appears that industry is not an isolated factor,
but has connections with both politics and social conditions. Hence the trades
unions have been obliged to enter the field of politics. Political parties,
on the other hand, have been driven to consider both economic and educational
affairs, and even domestic issues. Education is intimately connected with health;
health is affected by housing and sanitation, and also by food; this last involves
agriculture, transport and trade relationships with other lands. Health also
involves mothercraft, marriage conditions, national insurance, and the regulation
of labour, especially for women and children. In this and in many other ways
does the unifying dynamism of intuition gather together the threads of human
activity and make a unity of the whole of national life. Under our eyes there
is growing up a sense of national unity, national solidarity, national purpose,
all of which belong to the working out of the Plan.
Fascism is an example
of this. It is one way of establishing national unity under dictatorial leadership,
which is appropriate to the fourth sub-race and also to those nations of the
fifth sub-race which reflect the fourth stage of growth. Among the nations of
the fifth sub-race this same result of unification has to be achieved, not by
compulsion of leadership, but by persuasion of usefulness. It is a slower process,
but ultimately more stable.
Behind this lies an
interesting and important lesson. Consciously or unconsciously the Aryan Race
is being taught Discrimination, which is the first lesson on the path of future
progress. Desirelessness is the lesson which the Sixth Root-Race must learn,
Good Conduct, or right Will, being reserved for the Seventh Root-Race, by the
end of which the average man should arrive at the stage of the first Initiation.
It has already been shown that the pathway of occultism is also the main road
of evolution. Hence it is part of the Plan that Aryan humanity should learn
Discrimination, for this is a faculty of the enlightened Manas. The Real stands
for spiritual or Eternal values such as character, friendship, and inner freedom,
while the Unreal implies temporal or material conditions. For our Race spiritual
values are expressed in terms of Brotherhood; hence the importance of our First
Object, which is the guiding star of the Fifth Root-Race.
World conditions today
are compelling men to learn this lesson. It is becoming clear that the individual
cannot solve his problems - unemployment, for example - in isolation. He is
dependent upon his neighbours. The nation cannot solve its problems - disarmament,
for instance - in isolation. It is dependent upon other nations. Even the League
of Nations cannot overcome its difficulties alone, because it is dependent upon
humanity. Brotherhood alone holds the key to these problems. For this reason
affairs cannot be put right merely by the adjustment of organisation, by the
substitution of a new for the existing system of politics, industry, finance,
or education. A change of consciousness is needed first, as the basis for these
external adjustments. Only Discrimination can bring about this change, for it
means converting humanity from an attitude of acquisitive greed leading to disaster
to one of outgoing brotherhood which is the road to happiness.
Desireless being the
lesson for the Sixth Root-Race, one would expect to find its adumbration among
the members of the incipient sixth sub-race. Already these people are placing
far less value upon possessions and security. Saving for old age, for instance,
while being a virtue for the fifth sub-race, holds no place in the lives of
new age people. They realise something of the indestructible nature of Life
which is characteristic of Buddhi, even through its intuitional reflection.
And as Life is the creator of its environment, this last can be left more or
less to take care of itself. Life has the power to deal with every situation
as it arises; it need not anticipate. Intuitional people tend to live in the
present, which for them is the only reality. Past and future lie outside the
immediacy of intuition. With Buddhi, past present and future become merged into
the Eternal Now.
Changes in other aspects
of human life are equally significant. Among scientists certain discoveries
are being made which point to the future. At a time when Physics was the handmaid
of Chemistry, H. P. Blavatsky prophesied that in the near future the former
would make discoveries of profound importance. She has been amply justified,
for physicists have discovered something at least of the etheric structure of
chemical atoms, and have shown the common basis of all the elements. In The
Secret Doctrine it is stated that :
"Occult Science
recognises seven Cosmic Elements -four entirely physical, and the fifth (Ether)
semi-material, which will become visible in the Air towards the end of the
Fourth Round . . . The remaining two . . . will appear as presentments during
the Sixth and Seventh Races of this Round."
(The Secret Doctrine, 1, 40).
"We shall transmit
Aether, or rather its gross subdivision, in its fullness to the Sixth Root-Race."
(The Secret Doctrine, 1, 366.)
Under the guidance of
the Mahachohan, modern science would seem to have made a good beginning towards
the fulfilment of this task.
But there are other
aspects of work connected with the department of the Mahachohan which are now
due for consideration. The emergence of a new Race is coincident with changes
in both animal and vegetable life. The Secret Doctrine reminds
us :
"That as these
Races evolve from ethereality to materiality, and from the latter back again
into relative physical tenuity of texture, so every living (so-called) organic
species of animals, with vegetation included, changes with every new Root-Race."(The
Secret Doctrine, II, 737.)
The most obvious example
of such a change is concerned with the horse. Once a prominent and indispensable
feature of industrial and domestic life, this animal is now rapidly disappearing.
Against this there is a quick growth in the cult of the dog, of which many new
varieties are being bred, and which is becoming an almost universal domestic
pet. Is it only a coincidence that the horse is a Third Ray animal with its
characteristic mental quality, while the dog is a Sixth Ray creature expressive
of the devotion which has its roots in the Buddhic world? Changes such as these
have a deeper meaning than mere chance or fashion can dictate.
Equally striking, in
the vegetable kingdom, is the modern cult of the grapefruit. Until recently
an expensive luxury, it is now a common article of diet. There is also a tendency,
in England at least, for oaks and elms to disappear. At one time England was
renowned for its oak trees, but now they are becoming difficult to find. Their
place is being taken by the conifers. It is noteworthy that, of all trees, the
pine is the most friendly towards man, being able to share with him something
of its vitality and healthgiving properties. Here is another indication of the
unifying force of Buddhi.
These are, of course,
only isolated instances of changes which are occurring in our midst. It would
be an interesting and valuable contribution to our knowledge of the Plan if
members from other parts of the world would take note of similar local happenings.
The Theosophical Research Centre would form a useful clearinghouse for the information
which would thus become available.
Climatic changes are
also taking place. The old-fashioned December is now only to be found on Christmas
cards so far as western Europe is concerned, while the climate of north America
is said to be becoming increasingly extreme in its limits of heat and cold,
of drought and deluge. Here again more exact information would be valuable.
There remains one other
aspect of the Mahachohan's work of preparation for the new Race which needs
consideration, even though men themselves have little or no conscious part to
play in carrying it out. This is the work of building continents and changing
the configuration of the earth. Each Root-Race has its own continent, so situated
that its geological structure will conform to the needs of its inhabitants and
its climate will provide the environment necessary for the flora, fauna, and
human life which the continent is intended to support. Thus Lemuria, of which
the south Pacific Islands are the remnants, was the home of the
Third Root-Race. Atlantis, the bulk of which now forms the bed of the
Atlantic Ocean, belonged to the Fourth Root-Race. One is accustomed to regard
Europe, with parts of western Asia, as the home of the Fifth Root-Race, and
to look upon north America as the "new world", and the habitat of
the Sixth Root-Race. According to The Secret Doctrine, however,
America is not a "new" world, save in terms of European exploration,
for one reads that:
"The fifth Continent
was America; but
. Europe and Asia Minor, almost coeval with it . .
. are generally referred to . . . as the fifth."(The Secret Doctrine,
II, 7.)
"America, the
'new' world, is thus . . . not much older - still it is older - than Europe,
the old world." (The Secret Doctrine, II, 425.)
For this reason America
as one knows it today is the field of growth, not for the Sixth Root-Race, but
for the sixth sub-race, and it therefore forms part of the Aryan continent.
It will serve as the cradle for the Sixth Root-Race, which will be born out
of the sixth sub-race, and which in due time will enter into Shaka, its own
continent. Concerning this one reads that :
"Shaka . . .
does not yet exist, but into it will enter such lands as some portions of
America."(The Secret Doctrine, II, 422.)
It would appear that
this continent is in process of slow upheaval from the bed of the northern Pacific,
and that the Rocky Mountains will form its eastern boundary.
To destroy one continent
and to build another in its place is a colossal undertaking needing millennia
for its achievement. Once again one is reminded of the need for thinking in
astronomical figures. H.P.Blavatsky makes this abundantly clear in the following
quotation which summarises much of this process of form-building:
"This process of
preparation for the Sixth great Race must last throughout the whole sixth
and seventh sub-races. But the last remnants of the Fifth Continent
will not disappear until some time after the birth of the new Race;
when another and new dwelling, the Sixth Continent, will have appeared above
the new waters on the face of the Globe, so as to receive the new stranger.
To it also will emigrate and there will settle all those who will be fortunate
enough to escape the general disaster. When this shall be - as just said -
it is not for the writer to know. Only, as Nature no more proceeds by sudden
jumps and starts, than man changes suddenly from a child into a mature man,
the final cataclysm will be preceded by many smaller submersions and destructions
both by wave and volcanic fires. The exultant pulse will beat high in the
heart of the race now in the American zone, but there will be no more Americans
when the Sixth Race commences; no more, in fact, than Europeans; for they
will have now become a new Race, and many new nations. Yet the
Fifth will not die, but will survive for a while; overlapping the new Race
for many hundred thousands of years to come, it will, as we have just said,
become transformed with it more slowly than its new successor - still getting
entirely altered in mentality, general physique, and stature. Mankind will
not grow again into giant bodies as in the case of the Lemurians and the Atlanteans;
because while the evolution of the Fourth Race led the latter down to the
very bottom of materiality in its physical development, the present Race is
on its ascending arc; and the Sixth will be rapidly growing out of its bonds
of matter, and even of flesh." (The Secret Doctrine, II, 465.)
One is tempted to wonder
what the Sixth Race will be like, what its purpose will be, what type of consciousness
it will serve to express. It is, indeed, the plain duty of the occultist, and
of all those who aspire to be of practical assistance to the Elder Brethren
in their work of founding this new Race, to know something of the task in which
they will be engaged. That there will be direct guidance at the start is certain,
for :
"There have been
several Divine Dynasties - a series for every Root-Race beginning with the
Third, each series according and adapted to its Humanity." (The Secret
Doctrine, II, 447.)
But agents of the Elder
Brethren are expected to use their own initiative, and not to wait until they
are instructed what to do. One can begin to fit oneself for this by self-training
here and now, but one needs a clear sense of objective and direction in order
to do so intelligently. The objective is to awaken the consciousness of the
Spiritual Soul. Signposts are not lacking to point the way, which is outlined
briefly in the following words:
"The Body follows
the whims, good or bad, of Manas; Manas tries to follow the Light of Buddhi,
but often fails. Buddhi is the mould of the garments of Atma;
for Atma is no body, or shape, or anything." (The Secret Doctrine,
1, 265.)
The immediate task is
explained thus:
"The Spiritual
Ego - the Higher Self - (is) formed of the indissoluble union of Buddhi, the
sixth, and the spiritual efflorescence of Manas, the fifth, principle."
(The Secret Doctrine, II, 241.)
"Our earth
and man (are) the Products of the three Fires (Electric Fire, Solar
Fire, and Fire produced by Friction). In the metaphysical sense, the
' Fire by Friction ' means the union between Buddhi, the sixth, and Manas,
the fifth, 'principle, which thus are united and cemented together,
the fifth merging partially into and becoming part of the Monad."(The
Secret Doctrine, II, 258.)
Is this "Fire produced
by Friction" perhaps an explanation of the stress, struggle, and anguish
of life in these modern days?
A task such as this
involves initiation. Initiation, however, must not be thought of as a ceremony,
but rather - in the literal meaning of the word - as a beginning. The First
Initiation marks the commencement of the absorption ,of Manas by Buddhi, for
the causal body ceases then to be a centre of consciousness and becomes a vehicle
- part of the objective self or personality. It is only a beginning,
however, and from the standpoint of that new birth one looks forward to a future
of illimitable splendour whose ultimate possibilities are veiled in the blinding
Light of Eternal Being. For though Buddhi itself seems to be nothing but Light
Universal, yet even that is not the end. H. P. Blavatsky again points to further
possibilities in these final words:
" The Sixth Principle
in Man (Buddhi, the Divine Soul), though a mere breath, in our conceptions,
is still something material when compared with the Divine Spirit (Atma) of
which it is the carrier or vehicle. Fohat, in his capacity of Divine Love
(Eros), the electric power of affinity and sympathy, is shown, allegorically,
trying to bring the pure Spirit, the Ray inseparable from the One Absolute,
into union with the Soul, the two constituting in Man the Monad, and in Nature
the first link between the ever-unconditioned and the manifested."
(The Secret Doctrine, I, 144.)
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