Theosophy - Yoga-Practice in the Roman Catholic Church - by Franz Hartmann - Adyar Pamphlets No. 91
Adyar
Pamphlets No.91
YOGA-PRACTICE IN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
by Franz Hartmann
Reprinted from The Theosophist, February, 1911
Theosophical Publishing House Adyar. Madras. India
July 1918
Using
the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius de Loyola [Founder
of the Order of the Jesuits]
[Page 1] THE
study of comparative religion being one of the objects of the Theosophical
Society, it may be of some interest to compare the yoga-practices of the
Roman Catholic Church with those described in the Oriental writings. We
will then find that they are to a certain extent identical, consisting
principally in meditation (prayer), shakti, self-control, abnegation, faith,
concentration, contemplation, etc, or what Shankarâchârya describes
as Shâma, Dama, Uparati, Titîksha, Shraddhâ and Samâdhâna, not to
forget bodily posture and the regulation of breath (Prânayâma).
The most detailed instructions are contained in the writings of Ignatius de
Loyola, a Catholic Saint, and founder of the (later on ill-reputed) Order of
Jesuits. He was an officer in the Spanish army, born at Guipozcod in 1491],
as the son of a nobleman. After [Page 2] having been severely wounded in
battle, his mind took a religious turn; he abandoned his military career,
became an ascetic, made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, studied afterwards at
Salamanca and Paris, and became in 1541 General of the Order of Jesuits.
His writings have been translated into German by B. Kohler, and the
following pages contain some extracts from the same.
The exercises prescribed by Loyola are calculated to develop the powers
of the soul, especially imagination and will. The disciple has to concentrate
his mind upon the accounts given in the Bible of the birth, suffering and
death of Jesus of Nazareth, as if these were actual historical facts. He thus
regards them, as it were, as a mental spectator, but by gradually working
upon his imagination he becomes, so to say, a participator of it; his feelings
and emotions are raised up to a state of higher vibrations; he becomes
himself the actor in the play, experiences himself the joys and sufferings of
Christ, as if he were the Christ Himself ; and this identification with the
Object of his imagination may be carried on to such an extent that even
stigmata, or bleeding wounds corresponding to those on the body of the
crucified Christ, will appear on his body. In this way compassion and love
are awakened and developed within the soul, and as the love of a divine
ideal is something quite independent of the correctness of the scientific
opinion which we may have concerning the actual existence of that ideal
itself, this way of awakening divine love by the power of imagination [Page 3]
may be very well suited for those for whom love without an object is at first
unattainable. Therefore the spiritual exercises of Loyola consist principally
of regularly prescribed and gradually ordered meditations and
contemplations of the passion of Christ. If properly executed, they may
produce freedom from the illusion of self and awaken the power of
discrimination (Viveka) between the eternal ego and the temporal self.
The exercises and penances
which Loyola taught to his disciples he practiced himself, and they were
by no means easy. He spent seven hours in prayer, and scourged himself three
times every night for the purpose of subduing the desires of his flesh .
Some of the Catholic Orders still practice such severe exercises. The Trappists,
for instance, have to work very hard, and their only recreation is prayer.
Each brother receives at his entrance to the Order a gown as his only garment,
which he has to wear until the hour of his death, without ever being permitted
to take it off, whether in daytime or at night, unless it should become so
dilapidated as to have to be replaced by a more solid one. Their Matins begin
at midnight, lasting for one hour, and one being followed at short intervals
by others, so as to allow very little time for rest. They are exposed to
the summer heat and have to do without fire in winter, being permitted only
a hard bed to sleep on and barely sufficient cover. Moreover they are not
permitted to speak with each other or with anybody, and the food they receive
is hardly sufficient to keep up their strength.[Page
4]
The Catholic Church, as
a whole, may be regarded an as exoteric
school of religion, and the different Orders therein as esoteric schools
for practicing Yoga. How far some of these Orders have become degraded
and have lost the right to be called schools for Yoga, is not our purpose
to investigate at present. Certain, however, it is that the Mysteries contained
in the Catholic Church are far too high to be grasped by everybody, be
he priest or layman, and that the greatest danger which threatens the Catholic
Church is the great number of its followers who are incapable of
understanding its true spirit, in consequence of which its doctrines are
misrepresented and misunderstood. Nevertheless, in some of the Orders
practicing the above-described austerities, some of these Mysteries are
still alive. These people lead a life of great hardship, and there are probably
only few among our parlor-yogîs and would-be magicians willing
to exchange places with them; but we meet smiling faces and joyous hearts
among them, and the fact of their having voluntarily taken upon themselves
the Cross of Christ testifies to their intrepidity and sincerity,
Loyola objects to theoretical
explanations regarding the divine Mysteries, as they would only gratify scientific
curiosity in unripe minds and disturb them; he only gives instructions concerning
the practice of meditation, etc., because, if this practice is properly carried
on, the Mysteries will reveal themselves in the natural course of time.[Page
5]
The states of mind under
consideration are in their progressive order as follows :
1. Cogitation.
The state in which the mind is moved and swayed by influences coming from
without. These emotions have to be subdued.
2. Concentration.
The ego assumes power over the thinking process, regulates his thoughts according
to his will, and uses them accordingly.
3. Meditation.
The ego closely examines the object upon which his mind is concentrated.
4. Contemplation.
The mind enters the object of its meditation; it becomes an indweller of
its sphere.
5. Sanctification.
The mind becomes pervaded and sanctified by this association with the holy
object; it becomes penetrated by its divine influence.
6. Unification.
The contemplating mind becomes one with the object of its contemplation.
To this may be added :
7. Mortification.
or the entire disappearance of the illusion of separateness; there is no
separate self which knows, because the knower, the known and the knowledge
are one.
The object of meditation
is, as has already been stated, the life and suffering of Christ. This is
divided into different periods for contemplation, from the Incarnation to
the Crucifixion and Resurrection. At first only the memory is called into
action by studying the supposed historical facts; next comes the imagination,
associating itself with the actors in the divine play, and finally the mind
becomes the actor itself; [Page
6] i.e., Christ is born,
lives, becomes crucified and resurrected within ourselves.
There are numerous
instructions given as to how these practical exercises are to be carried
out, of which we will mention the following:
The first thing is
to free oneself from all sinful thoughts and sensual emotions, and to seek
to realize the direct action of the divine will; one should not seek to
pry with one's intellect into the divine Mysteries, but wait in humility
for their interior revelation. This is far more useful in the end than lengthy
explanations on the part of the teacher.
The disciple should,
while engaged with one object of meditation during one week, not be informed
of what will be the object given to him for the next period; but he should
be warned against the aggressions of evil spirits, and have their nature
explained to him.
He should meditate
for five hours every day, beginning at midnight, each meditation lasting
at least one hour, and he must not let his mind wander from the object of
his meditation.
He should never make
a solemn promise or vow until he is perfectly certain that he is able to
keep it; that is to say, until God (the Master) Himself reveals to the soul
His readiness to receive her. Then he does not follow his own selfish desires,
but obeys the divine will.
The teacher should
not seek to pry into the sins and innermost thoughts of the disciple ; nevertheless
he should observe him, so as to be able to give
[Page 7] him
such guidance and instruction as his case may require.
Ignorant and uneducated
persons cannot be guided in the same manner as those who have more intelligence.
No one should be offered spiritual truths which he is not yet ripe enough
to grasp or comprehend.
Each meditation should
begin with prescribed prayers (the Lord's Prayer,
Ave Maria, etc.).
The candidate should
go to confession once in every week, and take every fourteen days the holy
sacrament of communion.
He should separate
himself from all his friends and acquaintances, and avoid all external disturbances,
directing his mind solely to the service of God. The more he frees himself
from all external attractions, the more will he become ready to receive the
light, the grace, and the blessing of God.
The disciple should
be instructed, according to the degree of his capacity to understand, about
the origin and the real object of his life, which is to praise God and to
serve Him. He ought to be made to see the relative worthlessness of all earthly
things, and the value of that which is of eternal duration.
He should examine himself
carefully every day, and compare the results of each examination with those
of the previous one, in the same way as a father watches his child to see
what progress it makes.
He should carefully
avoid all doubt and despair and also all spiritual pride, and not dwell upon
his own personal merits, but sacrifice them to God.[Page
8]
SPECIAL
DIRECTIONS
Upon rising in the morning
the disciple should at once firmly resolve to avoid all those sins of which
he wishes to purify himself, and hold fast to that resolution during the
day. Before retiring to rest he should examine himself again, to see whether
he has been steadfast in his purpose, and it is useful to note his failures
in some diary.
Resist and suppress
every evil thought as soon as it arises.
Avoid all useless talk
and gossip.
Look upon all worldly
possessions with contempt; desire nothing for yourself, neither bodily comfort
nor mental consolation, neither riches nor fame.
The disciple should
be indifferent to wealth or poverty, honor or disgrace, suffering and death,
and always be ready joyfully to accept martyrdom for the glorification of
Christ.
Here follow certain
rules which may be found somewhat objectionable from our point of view, namely:
He should never think
of agreeable things, such as the joys of Paradise, but always have his mind
dwelling upon grief and repentance for his sins, and think of death and the
Last Judgment.
He should always keep
his room dark and exclude all light, keeping doors and windows closed, except
while he is praying, reading or eating.
He
ought never to laugh, nor say aught that may cause hilarity in others.
[Page 9]
He ought never to look at
anyone, except at receiving and taking leave of a visitor.
He ought to avoid in
eating or sleeping not only that which is superfluous, but even as much as
possible of what is considered necessary.
He ought to castigate
and lacerate his body by means of lashes, applied with rods or ropes or in
other ways, but without injuring the bones. This is for the purpose of doing
penance for past sins and for conquering the lusts of the flesh, and also
for entering into sympathy with the tortures suffered by our Lord Jesus Christ.
[It is hardly necessary to remark that these ascetic exercises have
fallen generally out of use, and are only practiced by certain religious Orders
at certain times, or by some especially fanatical persons]
THE
THREE METHODS OF PRAYER
The first method or
step is to meditate successfully upon the seven mortal sins, the three powers
of the soul, and the five senses of the body. This may be done while standing,
sitting, kneeling, or in a recumbent position. While meditating upon the
seven deadly sins, compare them with the seven cardinal virtues.
The
second step is to meditate about the meaning of each separate word of the
prayer, sitting or kneeling, and keeping the eyes either closed or gazing
steadfastly upon some selected spot, and not letting his thoughts or eyes
wander around. [Compare Bhagavad-Gîta VI, 13] [Page
10]
Thus he ought to remain
for one hour or more, always beginning his meditation with an invocation,
and ending with repeating the Lord's Prayer,
Credo, Anima-Christi and Salve Regina. He ought not
to proceed to meditate about another word before he has found in the previous
one full satisfaction.
The third method consists
in regulating the breath according to a certain measure of time. While drawing
each breath some word of the prayer ought to be spoken within the heart,
so that between each inhalation and exhalation, and during the whole time
that this lasts, only one word is inwardly spoken. For instance, if you meditate
about the Lord's Prayer,
beginning with " Our Father, which art in heaven," let your whole attention
be directed only to the word our and its meaning, and then proceed
to the next word, etc.
THE
MYSTERIES OF THE LIFE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
These Mysteries cannot
be satisfactorily explained to the human intellect; but they can be spiritually
grasped by identifying oneself with the events historically described in
the New Testament, and mentally participating
therein.
In this way the imagination
acts upon the will and the emotional nature, causing the higher vibrations
of the soul to enter into action, to lift the mind up to the region of spiritual
perception, and the love [Page
11] of God to enter
the heart. It is then necessary to learn to discern between good and evil
influence. Only God has the power to illuminate the mind without any
preceding cause; but if there is such a cause, the good angels, as well
as the evil ones, may send comfort to the soul; the first ones with good
intentions, the evil ones with an evil object (such as to incite vanity
or spiritual pride, etc.) in view, and the evil spirit may assume the shape
of a messenger of light for the purpose of leading us to perdition. We
therefore ought to examine the origin, current, and object of our thoughts.
If the beginning, the middle and the end are good and the object the highest,
it is the sign of a good influence; but if the thoughts are disturbed by
doubts and turned to inferior objects, it is a sign that an evil spirit
is at their back. Moreover the touch of a good influence is mild and sweet,
and that of an evil one at first harsh and disturbing; but if the heart
is inclined to evil, the evil spirit also enters silently, as if it were
into his own house through the open door.
Finally it may be
of some interest to hear what Loyola says in regard to the Church :
We must never use any
judgment of our own, but be always ready to obey in all things the orders
of the true bride of Christ, our holy mother, the Church.
If I see that a thing
is white and the Church calls it black, I have to believe in its being black.
We must always approve
of and praise the sayings and doings and manners of our superiors, whatever
they may be; even if they are not such as can be praised [Page
12] publicly, because to do
so would lower these persons in the estimation of the crowd.
One ought not, to the
ignorant, to say much about predestination (Karma); because, instead
of working for their own improvement, they will become lazy and say: "Why should
I trouble myself? — If it is my predestination
to be saved, I will be all right, and if I am predestined to be damned, I cannot
prevent my damnation." One ought also not to speak about the divine
grace of God as if it were a gift, rendering all our own works unnecessary.
The highest truths are frequently misunderstood, and the best medicine
becomes a poison if misapplied.
Some of the rules given
by S. Ignatius de Loyola may be objectionable, but nowhere do we find among
them the often quoted Jesuitical maxim that the object sanctifies the means.
Moreover there is no doubt that while an object, be it holy or unholy, cannot
sanctify its means, a holy purpose can and will sanctify the means, provided
they are neither holy nor unholy, but indifferent. Thus for instance, the
using of a knife upon a man's body may be a holy or unholy act. If it is
done for the purpose of cutting his throat, it is unholy; but if the surgeon
uses it for saving a person's life it is holy, and the purpose sanctifies
the means.
The Roman Catholic
Church has originally derived its doctrines and practices, and even its ceremonies,
from the Northern Buddhistic School. Loyola is a true representative of its
spirit. His spiritual exercises are in many ways identical with the instructions
given in the East for the practice of Raja-Yoga, and a comparison of the
two systems may be useful [Page
13]
for those who do not merely desire
to gratify their curiosity in regard to the astral plane, but desire to
become more spiritual by letting the divine powers within their soul become
awakened and developed through the influence of divine Love, divine Wisdom,
and eternal Life.
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