TWENTY-THIRD TALK 459
through the causal body on a lower plane. But, at
all events, what the Monad knows, we must assume
he knows with certainty and conviction; and similarly
even the ego either knows a thing, or does not know
it and knows that he does not know it. You see the
great trouble down here, in this world of the personal-
ity, is that half the people who know nothing what-
ever about things are persuaded that they know all
about them. That is the harm of most of these
religious difficulties. People who know nothing
about things are nevertheless clamorously insistent
that others shall believe that particular delusion that
happens to occupy their minds. The ego is never
like that; if he does not know, he knows that he
does not know. * He is not deceived about things, but
he may be ignorant about certain things. That is
quite clear; you cannot always depend upon the
voice of the ego. That voice is conscience, you know.
It is the voice of the ego, and you had better follow
it, because it is the highest that you know ; but it
may be quite wrong. In hiltory we find all sorts of
atrocities committed with the approval of the con-
science of the people. They persecuted, burned and
tortured for conscience's sake. Well, an ego who
recommends to them such ideas as those is certainly
an ego as yet distinctly ignorant on many important
points. Remember Bishop South's celebrated reply
to a dissenter : lt By all means follow thy conscience,
but take heed that thy conscience be not the conscience
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