In the sanctuary. Sequel to On the heights of Himalay

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OJ.1XU3O 73

I '92 HOHVJfi

TERIAL
\L MEET
BERKELEY

meeting of the
20 Presbyterial so-
held next Thurs-
liday at St. John's
h church, Berkeley,
ling sessions begin
the afternoon ses-
Mrs. C. W. Wil-
c secretary for the
•rd, and Miss Mary
[Smith Community
In, Ky., will speak.
A Hunter will
Iffice'rs. Mrs. Ruth
Anderson will sing
r. Lunch will be
Rr by the women of
Saturday at 2:30 p

ETEfil
SOU

. "Eternity o
the subject
Bishop Mazzi
night at the (
Truth,

He says of
question has
er number of
sent men in
universe fo_r
is no questioi
to the humai
question mor
nected with
this one cc
eternity of t

Oakland Professor at 97

Proof of New Book in Jc^sophical

Prof. Albert Van Der Naillen,
called the world's oldest author,
has discovered the Fountain of
Youth. Verging on 98, today he is
busy reading proof for his latest
book. The hand that holds the
proofs is firm. The eye that scans
;hem seldom needs a glass lens.

"How to live to be 98, you ask.
The whole secret is in my book,"
le declares.

Besides being one of the most
nteresting men in Oakland, with
records of a vigorous an*d useful
ife, Prof. Van Der Naillen has
delved deep into the occult. From
;he retort of a near-century of liv-
ng, he has produced crystals of
eternal wisdom.

"What is your advice to a man
or woman on the threshhold of
ife?" he was asked.

"Whatever you do, ask yourself:
Will God approve?' "

The professor's coming book is
'Sacred Revelations of Antoine,
he Wonderful Divine Healer."
The next question was:
"Can a man restore his shatter-
ed faith. in God?"
His answer was:

"Yes. Faith comes through ex-
perience.".

Q. — Should a young man Join a
:h.urch ?

A. — He should have a religion,
•emain true to it, and practice it
with all sincerity.

Q. — What is the rule for long life
and happiness?

A. — In all that you do, keep in
ouch with the Higher Power. Ask
^ourself if God will approve and
lave faith in his approval. That
embodies the theory of life and is
a certain guide to morality.

Q. — Should we help others?
GIVE ONLY REQUESTED HELP.
A. — Never thrust anything on a
man. It is not right to take a
'ellow being out of the gutter un-
ess he reaches out a hand or ex-
presses a desire for help. What
do, we must do free, all of us.
Q. — Does a faith prayer bring
material blessings?

A.— Yes, if the motive for pos-
session is right.

337 13th St.

i,< Lecture Sun a

hibition? March 21, 8 P ]\
A. — All mjby MRS.* EDIT

customed to
moderate quj
years it has

LEE RUGGLES
of Sacramento.
Subject

articles of g<feals in Prison

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A. — Until
heavy smokfee

or

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Collectic

89 I stopped^ Tuesdays, lt):J
Q.— Must J^esdays, 8 P- M

hurch

live long?

A. — I ha^_
special diets!
eyes and thd
to prolong pr
velop his spr
EXPERIMEj

Professor
Antoine, th
gmm, the 1
on a Europ
that time
and had su
the first st£
States, spai
Pittsburgh.

Besides '
sion, "Whi
Van Der I
first to ex
telegraphy
ago Albert
on him the ^
of the Orde 01
searches.

But the
for him.
Antoinism
where a d
healer was
from hum
Antoine, in
lo, Van De
nessed mir
ing that o
from tumo
eration.
ed to opera

Van Der
of Antoinis
temple of t
Oakland.

"For this
longed," he

In Belgi
temples ha\>
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class, 1 P. M.

M.

in the morning

the midweek

IN THE SANCTUARY

SEQUEL TO

ON THE HEIGHTS OF HIMALAY

BY

A. VAN DER NAILLEN.

\TJNIVERSITY /!

SAN FRANCISCO:
WILLIAM DOXEY.

COPYRIGHT, 1895,
BY A. VAN DER NAILLEN.

All Rights Reserved.

PRESS OF THE HICKS-JUDD CO.

.

PUBLISHER'S PREFACE.

TO-DAY we issue the first volume of the
" California Authors Series," and, as its
name implies, it will be essentially a Cal-
ifornia literary enterprise. Our State is
comparatively young, but as every young
mother is particularly fond of her chil-
dren, so are we especially proud of those
who have added a ray to the scintillations
of its own star in the blue field of " Old
Glory," and those children it would now
fain claim as its own. Among the Califor-
nia authors who have added to the luster
of our country's literary achievements, we
would name Joseph Le Conte, Josiah Royce,
Right Rev. Wm. Ingraham Kip, Henry
George, John Bonner, Timothy H. Rear-
den, Ambrose Bierce, Professors Moses,
Howison, Gayley, and Jones, of the Univer-
sity of California, President Jordan and
Professors Anderson, Hudson, and Warner,
of Stanford University, Bret Harte, Kate
Douglas Wiggin, Gertrude Atherton,
Archibald Gunther, Richard Henry Sav-
age, Bdward Townsend, A. Vander Naillen,
Horace A. Vatchell, Elizabeth K. Thomp-
kins, Jeremiah Lynch, Joaquin Miller, Gen.
L. H. Foote, and many others.

The Eastern literary publications and
publishing houses have for many years

4 PUBLISHER S PREP ACE. ', >

recognized the merit of our California
authors, and afforded them efficient help in
the dissemination of their works. For so
doing, we offer them our unfeigned thanks,
and cherish the hope that, with true Amer-
ican spirit, the East will welcome this new-
born of the most westerly and far away of
our lands, in its legitimate efforts to create
for itself a shining mark in the world of
letters, which must of necessity redound to
the credit of our mother country.

WM. DOXEY.

INTRODUCTION.

THE publication, at this late date, of a
sequel to "On the Heights of Himalay," *
may strike our readers as being somewhat
out of chronological consistency. The fact
is that it has been unexpectedly delayed by
the author's discovery of the existence of
an order of occultists higher than that de-
scribed in " On the Heights of Himalay."
It was his intention to have issued a sequel
two years ago, but his investigations, made
in the direction of this mysterious order,
brought to his knowledge so many momen-
tous facts in connection with the origin of
religious observances and their significa-
tions, that the faithful exposition of them
necessarily consumed much time. Such
being the case, we deem it advisable to pre-
sent in a few paragraphs a faint outline of
the contents of the previous volume, with
the twofold object of refreshing the memory
of those of our readers who perused the
former work, and of rendering the present
one more intelligible to those who have not.

It will suffice to state that Prince Arthur
de Silvereau, the hero of "On the Heights
of Himalay," had been in his youth a cap-
tain in the body-guard of the King of
France. His position conferred on him
many privileges, among which was that of

*Nom— (By A. Vaii der Naillen, New York, United States
Book Company, Sixth Avenue.)

6 INTRODUCTION.

being present at the Court family entertain-
ments. Thus was he thrown in contact not
only with the King, but also with the royal
princes and princesses. Among the latter
was the princess Dolora, who, although not
physically beautiful, as the fashionable
world would judge, was possessed of that
harmony of features and of that distin-
guished and lovely mien which are the
appanage of a pure and lovely soul.

Prince Arthur, on the other hand, was a
handsome young cavalier, the beauty of
whose aristocratic features was further en-
hanced by the splendid uniform worn by
the officers of the King's body-guard. He
was, moreover, more poet than soldier, more
of a dreamer than of a warrior, and as is
generally the case when two young beings
possessed of exalted feelings are brought
together, their hearts soon learn to beat in
unison, and mutual love is the result.
There was no exception in the case of
Princess Dolora and Prince Arthur. They
loved each other with that Platonic, spirit-
ualized love whose vibrations pure and holy
are carried on angels' wings. But their
chaste love was destined to remain unre-
warded. The King of a neighboring nation
sued for the hand of Princess Dolora, and
his suit was granted.

When it became known that such decision
had been made by the French monarch, the
young couple gave way to intense grief.
But it is the fate of those occupying high

INTRODUCTION. 7

station that their affections are disregarded,
and the most sacred and legitimate feelings
of the heart are sacrificed to what mon-
archs are pleased to name uthe welfare of
nations."

Prince Arthnr soon after resigned his
commission, asked and obtained a letter of
introduction from the King to the Pope,
and, armed with this missive, proceeded
forthwith to Rome. On his arrival in that
city he obtained audience of His Holiness,
who thereat, in accordance with his wish,
assigned Prince Arthur to the very strict
order of Trappist Friars, in an Italian
cloister. He was soon admitted to the
priesthood, and ten years later we find him
in Simla, India, a Roman Catholic Bishop
in charge of all the missions of that coun-
try. In the volume referred to we narrated
the life of Bishop Angelo in India, how he
became interested, by daily contact with
mystics, in the occult performances of the
high-priests, and how, subsequently, he was
led in a mysterious way to Thibet, where
he was initiated into the order of the Hima-
layan Brotherhood. Having passed through
the ordeals and ceremonies of the three de-
grees of the order, he finally was ordained
a Master, and thus became an Adept.

Soon afterwards he was called to Europe
by the Pope, who invested him with the
dignity of Archbishop of Simla, with resi-
dence in the City of Liege, in Belgium.

8 INTRODUCTION.

With this preliminary sketch of our
hero's experiences down to this period of
his life, we will now proceed with the nar-
ration of his future career.

0 NI Vr/RSi

CHAPTER I.

BEFORE entering on his military career,
the Prince had received from the foremost
university of France the degree of Doctor
of Science and Philosophy, and while in the
army had zealously pursued his studies.
These he continued more earnestly than
ever, now that he was stationed in Liege
with merely the duties of Honorary Arch-
bishop, for in them lay an enigma the solu-
tion of which would be of incalculable
benefit to the human race, and to that solu-
tion he had devoted his life with all the
earnestness of an entlmsiast.

As a thorough scientist and true philoso-
pher, he knew that all manifestations of
power, whether occult or visible, are the
result of some natural force, either known
or yet unrevealed. Hence he concentrated
his power on the discovery of the laws
underlying the various phenomena he had
witnessed not only in India, but during his
residence in Belgium. Many times, indeed,
in their astral bodies, had the Masters visited
him from far-off Himalay, and vouchsafed
to him much valuable instruction. Thus
year after year he spent in the study of the
principles, to the occult operations of which
could be traced the marvels he had wit-
nessed, and many of which he himself could
now produce at will.

10 IN THE SANCTUARY.

So engrossed was lie in his researches
that he was rarely seen in the street of
Liege, and seldom, indeed, outside the walls
of the palace, except on sacred or festal
days when it became his duty to celebrate
the Mass. On such occasions his carriage,
drawn by four milk-white steeds, was driven
in state to the cathedral, a courier preceding
him and announcing with note of trumpet
the advent of the Prince and Prelate ; and
as he passed, all heads were bowed and all
knees were bent in obeisance. From his
equipage to the door of the cathedral he
passed over costly carpets of bright purple
hue, while vicars upheld his silken robes,
and thence by a train of priests in full
sacerdotal vestments he was conducted to
the grand altar, where Mass was solemnized
with all the pomp and ceremonial of the
Catholic ritual. Far, however, was the
heart of the Archbishop from all such vain
display; but he must perform his duties
as prescribed by the canons of the church.

One evening, while secluded in his studio
and given over to deep reflection, Angelo
(this was the name given to the Archbishop)
was asking himself why it was that, almost
in proportion as his studies progressed, in
degree as his investigations in science
seemed to approach nearer to a solution of
the mystic enigma by revealing the natural
law upon which might rest the many occult
phenomena he had witnessed — why it was
that in the same degree the visits of the

IN THE SANCTUARY. II

Hindoo Masters became more rare, and their
influence less distinctly felt. "Still," he
said to himself, " I feel in the very depths
of my being that I have given them no
offense ; that my line of investigation even
meets with the approval of the Holy Ones.
Why is it that the bright radiance which so
often surrounded me and filled niy studio,
when at prayer asking for aid from above,
has gradually been replaced by one more
brilliant, though seemingly more attenu-
ated, as if composed of a more refined, more
rarefied aura, tinged with golden, hue ? Have
my Hindoo Masters deserted me ? "

No sooner had Archbishop Angelo form-
ulated this mental question than the room
was gradually filled with the bright efful-
gence of old, and in its midst, as the sun
from which it emanated, appeared his old
Hindoo Master.

In solemn words and with a tinge of sad-
ness, he said :

"To answer my brother's inquiry have I
come. As he has truly observed, the white
and brilliant light, or the aura characteristic
of the Brethren of Thibet to which our
brother belongs, has gradually been replaced
by one more attenuated, though brighter
and with golden radiance, characterizing the
aura of the European branch of the order
of the sacred Magi. For years in the past,
attention has been drawn to our order
through discoveries made by European
travelers, especially by Englishmen, of

12 IN THE SANCTUARY.

many sacred writings deposited in Buddhist
Temples, but neglected even by the Budd-
hists themselves. The philosophy set forth
in these sacred writings was so lofty, as well
as so spiritualizing in its tendency, that a
study of them was now begun, a zealous
and earnest study, with the result that many
of the best and most learned men of Europe
turned their eyes toward the Orient, hoping
to find there an antidote to the ever-increas-
ing evils of materialism, to the belief that
matter alone is supreme and has in itself all
the potentialities of existence and of final
destiny.

" Hence Europeans of note were received
into our orders, and there taught many
occult laws endowing them with the gifts
that pertain to the seer, with the faculty of
traveling in their astral bodies, with the
power of commanding the atoms of matter
to obey their will when duly strengthened
by practice and endowed with various occult
powers. The manifestations of these powers
my brother has personally witnessed in
Simla and in the monastery of Thibet, where
he took the three degrees.

" Several of the Europeans my brother
has seen, and a few he has recognized in the
monastery. They were more than satisfied ;
they were amazed at the powers they wit-
nessed to their hearts' content, and which
gradually became developed in themselves.
At first they thought of nothing else than
to prepare to become worthy to receive these

IN THE SANCTUARY. 13

powers, to make use of them for the benefit
of their European brethren, many of whom
— and those the brightest minds of all-
were struggling in the darkest meshes of
materialism.

" They started the European propaganda
with all the zeal of which their minds were
capable. Many were those who listened to
the new revelation, many and bright were
the eyes that were turned toward the Orient
for light, and many were they whose hearts
throbbed within them, hoping that here, in
Thibet, the Mecca of the human soul had
at length been discovered.

u Gradually, however, the European initi-
ates of our order found themselves con-
fronted with the questionings of the scientist
and the philosopher. They wanted proofs.
The few manifestations of occult power
which it was lawful for our initiates to ex-
hibit, although astonishing to those who
witnessed them, were disbelieved by those
to whom they were narrated, and after some
time much ridicule was attached to the word
Occultism.

uAs our initiates knew from personal ex-
perience that the occult powers were true ;
that in man lay dormant forces of which we
could as yet form no adequate conception ;
as they also knew that on the belief in the
reality of these occult powers rested, in large
measure, the hope of salvation for humanity
through the downfall of materialism and
the belief in a Supreme Being, our initiates,

14 IN THE SANCTUARY.

all men of intellect and, for the most part,
of scientific attainments, worked with untir-
ing zeal to find a corelation in science with
all these manifestations of occult powers.

" When my brother was admitted into
our order in Thibet he found in our monas-
tery complete scientific laboratories, estab-
lished there by European initiates. As
my brother observed, these laboratories were
of great service, and he was pleased, and,
perhaps, not a little surprised, to find that
our occult powers were based on science,
and, in some instances, were capable of
scientific demonstration.

u And now it has come to pass that the
old Masters of Thibet, whose powers were
obtained by a life-long discipline, by a con-
tinuous strengthening of the will, and com-
plete subjugation of self, can no longer
follow our European brethren in their scien-
tific studies. The latter also found it tire-
some, and not infrequently (as in times of
planetary disturbance, when the atmosphere
was filled with destructive vibrations) even
dangerous, to pass eastward in their astral
bodies and continue to prosecute in India
their studies of Scientific Occultism.

" Finally a council was summoned in
Thibet, and it was then determined, in all
harmony, in all good will and brotherly
love, that the European initiates of Thibet
should join the European branch, the higher
branch of the order, each one having first
obtained the consent of the Supreme Master.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 15

"The influence of this higher branch,
my brother, thou hast gradually drawn
upon thyself, thy studies being in perfect
harmony with their investigations of Scien-
tific Occultism ; and the attenuated or rare-
fied aura with golden radiations, so often
perceived by my brother, is the one pertain-
ing to the European members of our
brotherhood, to those selected to enter the
one supreme order of earth, unknown as
yet to thee, and to wear the mantle of the
holiest office that can be bestowed on man.
Soon wilt thou, my brother, own allegiance
to that sacred order, and to-day have I come
to say that ere long thou shalt obey the
Supreme Master of the European Brother-
hood, that from this day the Master of
Thibet doth release thee from all fealty to
the Himalayan Brotherhood. Only thou
art asked to visit the monastery once a
year, on the anniversary of thy initiation,
to renew the ties of brotherhood in Para-
brahm ; for well art thou aware that the
Masters love thee and fain would have thee
visit them at intervals. Farewell, dear
brother, farewell ! The best wishes and the
blessing of the Masters follow thee."

From those who have received the initia-
tion into the third degree, it is said that all
the emotions of our common humanity
have forever departed. Be this as it may,
the voice of the Himalayan Master quiv-
ered as he bade farewell to Angelo, while
the heart of the Archbishop swelled within

l6 IN THE SANCTUARY.

him, and a sob was smothered in his breast.
Long did Angelo remain absorbed in deep
and solemn thought, mentally reviewing
his career from the moment when, gnided
by unseen influences, he journeyed from
Simla to the very door of the monastery at
Thibet, -where, amid the fastnesses of Him-
alay, he was initiated into the three degrees
of occultism. Well did he remember the
laboratories through which he passed, and
his pleasure and astonishment at the mani-
fold apparatus they contained. It also
came to his memory that the Masters he
found studying in those laboratories were
all of them Europeans.

And now he comprehended why it was
that there must be a separation between the
Hindoo and European branches of the order,
since their methods of study and investiga-
tion were directly opposed to each other.
To state the conditions more precisely, the
former was content to exercise the occult
powers, the secret of which was transmitted
to them by the succession of Masters, hold-
ing these powers as sacred and inviolable ;
hence they were non-progressive. The lat-
ter did not rest satisfied merely with the
exercise of these powers ; but, aware of the
unbounded possibilities of man, they were
wont to investigate them, to try to discover
the laws upon which they were based, call-
ing to their aid the discoveries in every
branch of science known to man, especially
those of physiology and psychology. Thus

IN THK SANCTUARY. 17

had their progress been most remarkable.
All this Angelo thoroughly understood.

While still absorbed in meditation, the
well-known silvery ring of the astral bells
was heard in his room directly overhead.
Listening to their sweet tones, he was
utterly amazed to find them gradually
resolving themselves into words, which
presently conveyed to him the following
message :

"Proceed to London, and there thou wilt
be guided to thy destination. One of the
European Masters desires to converse with
thee."

The message indicated that its summons
should be obeyed without delay; that new
and important revelations in occult science
were to be made to him ; and, moreover, that
this was the first step toward affiliation with
the European branch of the brotherhood.
Placing, therefore, the affairs of the arch-
diocese in order, he set forth on his journey
to England with perfect confidence thai,
during his absence, all would be well.

Not without emotion, however, did Angelo
undertake this journey. The same train of
thought which had filled his soul when,
mounting his horse at Simla, he had set his
face toward Himalay, guided day by day by
an unseen but none the less palpable occult
influence to the very door of the monastery
where dwelt the Holy Masters — by the same
thought and by a similar influence was he
now possessed, and yet by an influence dif-

1 8 IN THE SANCTUARY.

fering in degree, a more lofty one, a more
refined one, giving buoyancy to his spirit,
not as of earthly joy, but as of a blissful
emanation from above. Scientific occult-
ism— the discovery of the laws nnderlying
occult phenomena — this had been the dream
of his life since his initiation, and to this
end his studies had been constantly directed.
The difficulties he had met with were almost
insurmountable, but he had already discov-
ered enough to confirm in him the belief
that his life's ambition was attainable, and,
he hoped, soon to be attained. Various
specialists in science would pursue their
studies in parallel lines, and perhaps he was
already on the way to meet them, to com-
bine with theirs his own investigations.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 19

•

CHAPTER II.

ARRIVING in London, Angelo was accosted
at the railroad station by a young gentleman
who bade him enter a carriage, the panels of
which bore a coat of arms, the door being
opened by a liveried valet. As the vehicle
rolled away in its short journey over the
hard pavements of the city, neither of the
occupants spoke, each one being seemingly
intent on making a spiritual diagnosis of his
companion. The Archbishop was much
pleased with the lofty and harmonious influ-
ences proceeding from the young English
gentleman, while the latter concluded that
the Prelate wrould be a most suitable com-
panion for his master.

Presently the carriage passed under a
stone archway, the entrance to a stately
mansion situated in one of the older quar-
ters of London. Alighting, Angelo found
himself at the foot of one of those stairways
seen only in the more ancient palaces of the
metropolis. Invited to ascend, the young
Englishman leading the way, he was ush-
ered into a large drawing-room, in which was
the rarest of antique furniture in blue and
gold. A moment later the side door opened,
and he found himself in the presence of a
man of striking and venerable aspect, with

2O IN THE SANCTUARY.

long, flowing beard, and locks of silvery
whiteness — a veritable patriarch of his
order.

"Welcome to this palace, most welcome,"
he said, with gentle and slightly quivering
voice. u My age is my only apology for
not having met your Grace at the station.
Your message must have partly informed
you of the motive that summoned you
hither. Ralph, my pupil"-— indicating the
young gentleman — u will show you the room
set apart for your use. In half an hour
dinner will be served."

Following his guide, Angelo was con-
ducted to apartments fit to be occupied by a
king. His toilet was of the simplest — for
he was dressed in civilian garb — and, this
completed, the sound of a gong was
heard, followed by a gentle knock at the
outside door of the suite of apartments,
which was opened by Ralph, who proceeded
to lead the way to the dining-room. Two
covers only were laid. The service was of
silver and gold, each article being engraved
with the coat of arms pertaining to the host.
It was then observed by Angelo that, in the
outer world, his host bore the same rank in
the nobility to which he belonged himself.

The servants being present, the conversa-
tion ran upon the incidents of the journey,
the crossing of the channel, and the rough
passage.

The dinner ended, Angelo was invited by
his host to visit the art gallery of the pal-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 21

ace and the room devoted to scientific pur-
poses; then followed a brief interval of
repose, the honr of nine having been ap-
pointed for Ralph to conduct him to the
ante-room of the Sanctuary, when would
be revealed the object of his summons to
England.

Fain would Angelo have lingered in the
art gallery, where priceless treasures were
displayed, paintings whose values none could
estimate. What, however, more than all
else, attracted his attention, were the family
portraits, some of them antedating the period
of the Crusades. He admired especially four
portraits of the Knights of Malta, of almost
gigantic stature, each clad in coat of mail,
with helmet inlaid with gold or silver, and
brandishing aloft the huge two-handed sword
which none but him could wield, while in
their features were portrayed a strength of
will, a decision of character, that knew not
how to yield. And yet, softer tones were
expressed, denoting all the depths of feel-
ing, the capability of those higher and
holier emotions which marked the heroes
of this age of chivalry.

While intently gazing on these magnifi-
cent specimens of manhood, Angelo thus
mused within himself: "Noble souls were
hidden under these stern and warlike exte-
riors. Yes, they were warriors; but they
fought against wrongs, and only against
men when they would not right those
wrongs. In the medieval ages, when every

22 IN THE SANCTUARY.

knight was a law unto himself, a self-consti-
tuted monarch upon his own estates, con-
stantly making war on his feebler neighbors
in order to enlarge those estates by the cap-
ture of lands and vassals, thus enhancing
his power to commit further outrages-
then did these Knights of Malta, each a
scion of the highest noblesse, and many of
them exceedingly rich, travel alone on horse-
back, attended only by a single herald, over
the terrorized regions. By them all serious
charges were investigated, all wrongs re-
dressed, no matter how powerful those to
whom they were brought home, for to their
aid could be summoned, if need be, the entire
order of Knights, with all the weight of their
influence and wealth. Where now are the
warrior-priests (for all were duly ordained)
who devoted their lives to the noble purpose
of meting out justice to the lowly, and re-
lieving those oppressed by the wealthy and
high- stationed? "

With a sigh the Archbishop followed his
attendant to the spacious cabinet-room of
science, where the silver chimes of the clock
reminded him that the time was approach-
ing when his host would await him in the
Sanctuary. He now asked to be reconducted
to his room to prepare to enter worthily the
sacred chamber of the palace.

"The third door to the right gives en-
trance to the ante-room of the Sanctuary,"
replied Ralph, as with low obeisance he
retired.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 23

In the apartment leading to the ante-room
was a prayer-desk at which the Archbishop
knelt as he addressed to the throne of Grace
the most fervent prayer that hnman soul
could utter. UO Infinite Father, once more
Thy humble servant follows the mysterious
beckonings of Thy hand. Continue, I pray
Thee, to lead me in Thy way, to guide me
in the paths of truth, however hidden to me
they appear. Let me ever feel the influence
of Thy heavenly will, that my feet may
stumble not, my thoughts stray not, from
things above. Make plain to me the teach-
ings I am now about to receive, and open
my understanding to Thy light, that I may
more worthily serve Thee. And if Thy
servant is to be an instrument for the dis-
semination of Thy holy truths here below,
then, O Heavenly Father, sustain me in the
sacred duty, and give me strength that I
falter not."

At this moment there descended on the
Bishop a ray of effulgent light coming from
on high, and a solemn but gentle voice
answered :

"Amen."

At the hour of nine the door of the ante-
room was opened in some mysterious man-
ner, and Bishop Angelo entered. His host,
who had preceded him, motioned the Prelate
to be seated, himself occupying a chair
directly opposite, but rather, as it seemed,
for the purpose of familiar converse than

24 IN TH$ SANCTUARY.

for any more serious interview. After a
few preliminary remarks the host continued :

" Be it known that there exists upon
this earth but one supreme occult order,
and that is the sacred order of the Magi.
The origin of this order is lost in the dawn
of time. When the tribes of Israel dis-
persed, it became divided into three
branches, and presiding over each was a
lawfully appointed Magus. One branch
went to India, where Melchior established
the order. Another, under Balthazar, re-
mained in Egypt, having dominions over
Persia, Arabia, and the adjoining coun-
tries. The third was located on what is
now the European continent. Of this
European branch I am now the head. My
name is Caspar, and the title of Magus was
bestowed upon me by my predecessor,
whose name will presently be disclosed to
thee, together with the names of all the
Magi who have preceded me. To our
order belonged the three Magi, who, from
the remotest parts of the earth, journeyed
to Bethlehem, there to do homage, at His
birth, to the great Master who was to give
to the world the teachings of the order."

At this sudden disclosure Angelo was
filled with awe, for now, for the first time,
he found himself in the presence of one of
that sacred order whose predecessors had
adored at the birth of Jesus of Nazareth.
His head was bowed in reverence, as before
his mental vision there passed the succes-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 25

sive incidents in the life and death of earth's
greatest Master. Nor could he for a moment
realize that before him stood a true successor
of those who had witnessed the awful drama
on Calvary, a successor possessed of all the
occult learning, all the supreme worthiness
and holiness of character, of the three
"wise men of the East."

"With us, in our sacred temples," con-
tinued Caspar, "the Child passed His youth
from the age of twelve to the time when He
entered on His mission in the world which
received Him not, although that mission was
to implant the seeds of truth eternal — truths
that henceforth were never to perish, but to
fructify and increase in the hearts of men,
to become their spiritual food, to give them
holiness in the life that is, and to bestow on
them the more perfect happiness that awaits
the humble disciple in the life everlasting.

" While among us, the Nazarene lived in
our temples ; little food did He eat, and few
were the hours that He passed in sleep.
His life was one of constant prayer. Alone
He wandered forth in abstract mood, and
seemed mentally to dwell in a world higher
than our own. Often, in moments of
intense devotion, His body became trans-
lucent, shilling with such dazzling bright-
ness that even the walls of the temple
seemed to disappear amid the celestial radi-
ance that surrounded Him, as though He
had already entered upon the kingdom of
His Heavenly Father.

26 IN THE SANCTUARY.

" Little did He converse, though, often
expressing His gratitude to those who had
admitted Him to our temples, for under their
sacred shrines He could receive, directly,
the influence of the Heavenly Father,
bathe more fully in the divine aura, through
the radiations of which came mandates from
on high, with inspirations undefiled by the
auras of earth.

" Thus it was that the young Nazarene
did not receive direct instruction from our
order, but the purity and loftiness of the
aura emanating from our sacred shrine,
destroying all earthly influences, enabled
him, though still in the human body, and
subject to its laws, to receive, unimpaired,
the divine instruction and guidance with
which the aura of the Heavenly Father is
always impregnated.

" For remember well, my son, that it is
transmitted in our sacred and most authen-
tic records, that the human body, the
human brain of Christ, was spiritualized
through the same law that regulates the
body and the brain of all men; its cells or
molecules were subject to the same process
as those of other men, and that is the puri-
fication and the harmonization of the parti-
cles of the human body with those of the
celestial body. And this is accomplished
through lofty thoughts, divine aspirations,
holy practice, and heart-felt prayer, all of
which place us in direct harmony with the
attributes of the Heavenly Father. The

IN THE SANCTUARY. 27

more we cultivate and develop these attri-
butes, the nearer we approach to Him ; the
more we assimilate of His nature; the more
we become one with Him. This, my
brother, is the secret, the source, of all
occult powers, of all divine occult powers,
for to no other should man aspire.

"The sacred aura pervading our temples,
excluding, as it did, all vibrations proceed-
ing from earth, was peculiarly favorable to
the harmonization of the human body and
to the evolution of the cells composing it,
until the point of complete assimilation
with the divine was reached. Nor was the
Nazarene exempt from this slow process of
spiritualization ; He also must part, so to
speak, with Himself, and such parting d )es
not take place without a struggle. This
conquest of self is always attended with
pain ; the birth-throes of the Spirit are ever
accompanied with suffering to the atoms of
matter which they dislodge, and these do
not vacate the temple of flesh without vio-
lent and oft-repeated protests, in the shape
of innumerable temptations, assailing him
who aspires to spiritual enlightenment.
Hence it was that the Nazarene passed
many years in our temple amid the
desert."

No words can describe the emotions of
the Archbishop while listening to this
marvelous revelation. So sacred was the
ground on which Caspar was treading, so
vivid his narrative, such the awe and rever-

28 IN THE SANCTUARY.

ence which, his teachings inspired, that his
hearer felt almost as one suspended between
heaven and earth, as one whose footsteps
were already on the threshold of another
world. Never, during the many startling
experiences of his eventful life, had his
soul been thrilled as it was now. Nor had
the good Bishop any misgivings about the
lawfulness of his mission. Rather did it
appear as one fore-ordained to be fulfilled at
that very moment, as a scene in which the
principal actors were appointed of God
Himself.

"And now," continued the Magus, paus-
ing for a moment to select the words that
followed, " it becomes my duty to inform
thee that to this sacred order, of divine
origin, thou shalt be admitted at high noon
to-morrow. Thou, Angelo, the most worthy
of the Masters of Himalay, shalt be in-
vested with the highest office that can be
bestowed on man. Retire, therefore, to thy
chamber, and prepare thyself for the cere-
mony that awaits thee. When the time
shall come thou wilt be summoned to the
Sanctuary. n

With senses half paralyzed, with fevered
brain, and with uncertain step, the Arch-
bishop withdrew to his room. Throwing
himself on a settee, his head sunk upon
his breast, tears in copious streams coursed
down his cheeks.

Poor Angelo! on him was about to be
conferred the foremost office that could be

IN THE SANCTUARY. 29

bestowed on human being. On the morrow
he wonld be invested with the highest sac-
erdotal functions in the gift of the sacred
hierarchy. Yet in his inmost soul there
was not the faintest consciousness of exal-
tation or of pride ; rather was he appalled
at the responsibility, and at what he deemed
his own un worthiness.

" O my God, my Heavenly Father ! " he
exclaimed in agony of spirit, u lay not on
me this heavy burden, but on some one
worthier than myself. Behold, I am all
undeserving of this holy office; temptations
still assail me ; worldly attractions beset
my path. My desires are not always di-
rected to Thee, and I would fain address
my supplication to Thy sacred throne, they
are but feeble and lukewarm aspirations.
Not for me is this holy trust, and before
Thee I can but fall prostrate, in all humil-
ity, and cry, in contrition of heart, ^Mea
culpa, mea culpa, me a maxima culpa? !

And now passed quickly before him in
review the leading incidents of his career
since receiving the degrees in the Hima-
layan Brotherhood. Now were recalled to
him the many temptations that had as-
sailed him, the many weaknesses he had
discovered in himself, all rendering him, in
his own esteem, unworthy of the sacred
office that awaited him. Of his many noble
deeds, his lofty principles, the transcendent
wisdom of his philosophy; of the manhood
he had always displayed in espousing the

30 IT THE SANCTUARY.

cause of right; of the childlike enthusiasm
of his soul at the apprehension of new and
elevated ideas ; of his exceptional qualifica-
tions to sift the real truth from the many
glittering theories and ideals presented to
him almost daily by the outside schools of
philosophy ; of the fitness acquired by his
thoroughly scientific attainments; of his
absolute purity of character — of all these
supreme qualities, which made him, per-
haps, the only man in Europe worthy of
the sacerdotal office, he was all unconscious.
To him they appeared but as the natural
appanage of man ; to possess them was no
merit, though to want them was indeed a
loss.

At the temptations that at times assailed
him, he was greatly concerned. Why did
they come to him ? They could be but the
children of his own depraved nature, ves-
tiges of the old Adam, of which he had not
been able to purge himself; and until he
had done so, until every temptation should
pass by him without stopping at his door,
until his life should resolve itself into one
continuous aspiration toward the Father
above, into one uninterrupted prayer, into a
life that mirrored the heavenly radiance
ttndimmed by the passing shadow of a
cloud — not until then was he fitted to re-
ceive upon earth the sacred office of Magus.

Alas, in his noble efforts toward human
perfection, little did he know that so long
as man lives in the human body, just so

IN THE SANCTUARY. 31

long will he be subject to the laws of the
body, and the still baser laws of the flesh.
For no man, however pure and guiltless in
intent, can, while still in the flesh, prevent
the thoughts of other men, whether good or
evil, from flitting through the radiations of
his personal aura, and thus gaining access
to his brain. Yet he can prevent them from
making a home there, and in this rejection
of evil thoughts lies one of his brightest
duties and highest responsibilities.

Long did Angelo remain in sore dejection
of spirit, his head still bowed upon his
breast, and at times giving utterance to a
sob which no restraint could suppress.
Gradually, however, a more gentle influ-
ence stole over him, soothing, encouraging,
strengthening; and, as the vibrations of a
sacred hymn attune the soul by placing it
in harmony with its Maker, so the influence
which now possessed him seemed to whisper
in melodious strains a song of infinite har-
mony, bringing hope and peace to the suf-
fering soul of the Archbishop. Raising his
head and brushing away the tears that still
lay on his cheek, with eyes uplifted toward
heaven, and bright with an almost celestial
radiance, he exclaimed in firm but submis-
sive tones :

"Thy will be done, my Father, on earth
even as it is in heaven. Thy servant shall
obey, beseeching of Thee divine guidance
and strength."

32 IN THE SANCTUARY,

Much comforted, he arose from the prie-
dieu at which he had been kneeling, and in
doing so observed beside him, to his great
astonishment, a scroll of paper inscribed
with the words, "Assume the vestments of
thy order." Beside it lay the white robes
of the third degree of the Brethren of Him-
alay, which he had left in his palace at
Liege. Thanking his unseen friend with
renewed emotion at this manifestation of
occult power, he proceeded to array himself
in the spotless garments.

At high noon, when the spiritual forces
are at their highest, Ralph informed the
Archbishop that his master desired his
presence in the Sanctuary.

Passing through the ante-room, he en-
tered with downcast eyes the sacred cham-
ber, where in front of him was a pric-dieu
at which he knelt in supplication. This
ended, with uplifted gaze he now perceived
that light entered the Sanctuary from a cen-
tral point overhead, through a large open-
ing representing, in natural colors, the
All-seeing Eye. Near the eastern wall was
the shrine, a tabernacle of gold, on the door
of which was the carved image of a lamb
with the pilgrim's staff, placed upon an
altar of the rarest marble. Above it was a
magnificent painting of a woman whose
features were radiant as those of an angel.
Around her head was displayed a crown of
glory, the divine halo or aura. The paint-
ing bore a great resemblance to the image

IN THE SANCTUARY. 33

of Mary, the Mother of Christ, that may be
seen in every Roman Catholic church ; but
under the figure were inscribed the words,
so full of meaning to the Occultist,
"Sophia, the Virgin of the World." Upon
the southern wall was another painting
representing the birth of Christ and the
adoration of the three Magi. In the
heavens shone the Mystic Star, its color
that of the occult fire. Before the altar,
suspended from the ceiling, hung a golden
vase in which a tiny flame was burning.

While thus engrossed with his observa-
tions, strains of celestial melody were heard,
and at the same moment a light stole into
the Sanctuary, of the same mysterious hue
that had often appeared to him at Liege.
By degrees the music grew louder, yet
sweeter in tone, while the light became
effulgent. Presently the Sanctuary was
filled with a radiance so bright that nothing
else was visible, and yet of the mellowest
golden hue. Such soul-stirring vibrations
did these musical notes create that Angelo
was almost in a supersensuous condition, so
intensely did they work on his spiritual
consciousness.

Almost before the Archbishop had real-
ized his condition, the venerable Magus en-
tered by a door opening near to the altar.
From his body emanated rays of such
brightness that even Angelo, accustomed
as he was to spiritual light, could scarcely
endure their brilliance. The form of the

3

\rtxr-.

34 IN THE SANCTUARY.

Magus was garbed in white flowing robes;
upon his breast and back was a cloth, bear-
ing figures and inscriptions in a foreign
tongue; on his head was a golden crown
studded with glistening jewels. Directing
his steps toward the shrine, and kneeling
before it, he uttered a short but fervent
prayer, then rising turned toward Angelo,
whom, with arms extended, he thus ad-
dressed :

uMay it please the Heavenly Father to
open thine understanding to the truths
which are presently to be revealed to thee,
so thou mayest transmit them in all their
fullness to those whose privilege it is to re-
ceive them. May He also open thy heart,
that thou niayest love and cherish them,
and may He give thee strength and courage,
that thou mayest defend them even unto
death — the death, if need be, of a martyr to
the cause.5'

While Caspar thus spoke, the Archbishop
perceived that from his outstretched hands
emanated a stream of golden light proceed-
ing toward himself, and presently envelop-
ing his entire frame. At the same time the
molecular force of his brain seemed, as it
were, to be revivified, developing there the
three conditions prayed for, understanding,
love, and courage.

"Ascend the steps of the altar," said the
Magus, "and kneel at this prayer-desk, for
at the foot of the sacred shrine, before the

IN THE SANCTUARY. 35

image of the virgin Sophia, must the truth
of heaven be revealed to thee."

Angelo obeyed, half trembling with awe,
though inwardly fortified by the holy influ-
ence bestowed in answer to his prayer.
Kneeling before Caspar, he listened in rapt
attention to the words that fell from his lips :

"In the midst of the turmoil of nations,
through bloody revolutions and wars, when
man killed man that monarchs might win
or retain dominion over men, foster their
insatiate ambition, or exact the homage and
obedience of gods, the order of the Magi has
ever been steadfast in its allegiance to the
only true God, the Creator and Ruler of the
Universe, the Feather of us all, to whom we
owe our being, from whom all things have
sprung, and to whom all things must re-
turn. Our order has kept pure and unde-
filed the sacred records embodying the will"
of Him who reigns on high, obedience to
which places us on the true path leading
to the everlasting throne of Grace, to life
eternal.

"The order of the Magi has also sacredly
preserved, and is the only custodian of, the
occult powers wielded by the wise men of
old, by the prophets, and, above all, by
Jesus of Nazareth, whom the world cruci-
fied— the world which He came to redeem
from darkness and guide unto life eternal.
And what is the object of these occult
powers ? In what do they consist ? How
can they be utilized for the benefit of men ?

36 IN THE SANCTUARY.

" Know then, my son, that man is ever
the toy, the plaything, and completely at
the mercy, of the influences that surround
him. Driven from one belief to another,
from one school of philosophy to another,
acquiring habits from which it is almost
impossible to extricate himself, controlled
by the magnetic aura of men possessed of
superior strength of will, attracted by the
glittering religious baubles that strew the
roadside of life, man is thus constantly sub-
ject to the domination of heterogeneous
agencies which attract and too often over-
power him. Thus arise countless modes
and phases of life, with endless ramifica-
tions, until not only individuals, but entire
communities and nations, are seen strug-
gling in the path of error while striving to
find the true one. Ever urged onward and
upward by the spirit of the Infinite, or aura
of the Heavenly Father, the breath of God
permeating all things and beings, man
never tires in his efforts to find the true
aim of life, and, with it, his final destiny.

u In the midst of all this strife and dis-
cord, the order of the Magi has never
swerved from the true and only path, and
has always striven, so far as lay in its
power, to induce men to direct their steps
to it. For many long years, however, their
efforts have been almost in vain, their
powers dormant. Heartsore and in distress
of soul, they have been compelled to remain
the sad and silent witnesses of a world grop-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 37

ing in ever-increasing darkness, the dark-
ness of materialism, whose lowering cloud
has overspread, as with the wings of a
fallen angel, every quarter of the civilized
globe.

uThis lamentable condition has been
largely due to the pernicious doctrines and
policy of those who have assumed control
of the religious world. The exponents of
religion have, indeed, sought little else than
the enhancement of their special creeds,
overawing the minds of their devotees, in
order to bring them to unquestioning obedi-
ence, holding constantly before them threats
of awful and everlasting tortures, thus as-
cribing to the Almighty, the All-merciful,
Him whose name is a synonym for good,
atrocities that could hardly enter into the
heart of the devil. Such, as they would
have us believe, was the punishment fore-
ordained for those who disobeyed their cruel
and, at times, ridiculous articles of faith.

" Then came science. As it progressed
its discoveries gradually proved that the
precepts held as sacred by the religious
bodies are the most absurd of fallacies.
Having exposed the false pretensions of
their priestly leaders, the men of science
finding that many devotees of the church
forsook their faith to become adherents to
their own more attractive theories, these
scientists, instead of remaining true to their
calling, intoxicated with success as their
followers increased in number, began to

38 IN THE SANCTUARY.

propagate a most baneful system of philos-
ophy. Thus came into existence the dark
school of materialism, claiming the author-
ity of science for the wildest vagaries and
assertions of their pseudocreed.

"To-day, after long years of disbelief and
irreligioii, finding nothing in the promises
of the gloomy creeds to satisfy the void left
vacant in his soul, man, his spiritual nature
utterly starved, has slowly returned to his
search after truth, his aspirations after the
Infinite; and in this search it behooves the
sacred order of the Magi to direct his foot-
steps. Hence it has been determined to
abandon the state of inaction in which it
has been compelled to remain these many
years. But for this purpose it requires
devotees mature in wisdom and active both
in mind and body. Thou, my worthy son,
art the man who has been chosen to direct
this sacred endeavor. My weary limbs, my
enfeebled frame, are sufficient tokens of my
inability to inaugurate a successful cam-
paign against the monstrous evil of our
day. On thee does the duty fall, and on
thy shoulders will be placed the mantle of
God's noblest warrior. Thou art rny suc-
cessor; thy name will also be Gaspar, and
on the morrow thou wilt become the Euro-
pean Magus."

Instantly rising, with hands uplifted, and
with awe-stricken gaze, as one over whom
some dread calamity impended, Angelo
cried out in anguish of soul :

IN THE SANCTUARY. 39

"No, no, my holy Master, I am not
worthy of the sacred office; I am but a
weak and erring mortal, one too often
tempted to sin. Oh, pardon me, but this I
cannot, I dare not, accept."

" Here in the Sanctuary I will leave thee,"
calmly resumed the Magus ; "kneel before
the shrine and fervently ask from above
divine support and guidance; in an hour I
will return and receive thy answer."

40 IN THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER III.

SLOWLY proceeding to the foot of the
holy shrine, the Archbishop fell prostrate
before it; but no word could he utter.
Long did he remain as one from whom life
had departed, an occasional sigh being the
only indication that his spirit had not taken
flight to Him before whose altar he wor-
shipped in mute but fervent supplication.
At length, slowly raising his head, he
directed his gaze toward the tabernacle,
where was the carved image of the lamb
holding the pilgrim's staff. In this he
dared not recognize the emblem of his own
life, which presently was to be, though
pilgrim and wanderer he might become,
according to the words of Caspar. The
image was, indeed, that of the lamb, the
emblem of purity, of innocence, of spirit-
uality. Hence it could have no part in
him, the man of the world, almost,
who entered his cathedral in state, a
trumpeter announcing his advent in blar-
ing tones, while the people fell on their
knees to receive his blessing. Was he sure
that he had never felt, however secretly, a
feeling of worldly satisfaction at this token
of reverence?

IN THE SANCTUARY. 41

" O Lamb of God! " lie exclaimed, "Thou
knowest my un worthiness to assume this
sacred office."

At this moment, his prayer was inter-
rupted by music of such sweetly solemn
tones, such soul-entrancing and celestial
harmony, as seldom has fallen on human
ears, transfiguring the countenance of the
Archbishop, removing from his features
their expression of unutterable sadness,
and filling his eyes with the light of joy
and gladness. As by degrees the notes
grew louder, they developed into a rhythmic
melody in which was conveyed, as he
thought, a mystic, but as yet unintelligible
meaning.

While thus absorbed, the door of the
holy tabernacle was slowly opened as by
invisible hands, and in the depths of the
shrine he beheld the All-seeing Eye en-
closed in its mystic triangle, while the
radiations proceeding from this emblem of
the Heavenly Father gave forth a luster so
dazzling that the Bishop could not look
upon them except for the moment. Even
the closing of his eyes did not obliterate
the image of this occult emblem ; he saw it
as plainly as before, but not as before did
its luster blind him. Then, from above,
descended two celestial beings, who, hover-
ing on white wings, displayed a scroll of
gold above the shrine, and pronounced, in
tones of sweetest melody, the mysterious
words inscribed thereon:

42 IN THE SANCTUARY.

" Thou art the chosen one ; have faith,
for thy election is from on high."

And now the music became still more
spiritual, more exultant in its intonation.
It was the "Gloria in Excelsh " of the
angel world.

The Bishop now arose, and, uplifting his
hands, cried, in a voice whose accents were
no longer tremulous :

" Lord, Thy servant will obey. His life
is in Thy hands, and Thou shalt order it
as seemest good unto Thee."

At this moment, the venerable form of
Caspar appeared at the entrance of the
Sanctuary. Angelo approached him, and
making low obeisance, exclaimed :

u Master, before Thee stands Thy humble
and dutiful son, ready to obey ; command,
and Thy orders shall be executed."

"Amen," answered Caspar, with a placid
smile of content, " for so God willeth it."

Inviting Angelo to follow, he then pro-
ceeded toward the altar, in front of which
each took the position he had occupied
before, Angelo at the prayer-desk, Caspar
standing near and opposite to him.

" I will now proceed with my discourse,"
continued the Magus.

" Man lost faith, as I have said, in his
religious leaders, and, consequently, in the
dogmas they gave forth, as handed down by
God Himself, loss of faith having for its
cause the discoveries of science, which
proved erroneous many so-called truths,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 43

and the consequent pretensions of the
scientist to be himself almost a God,
declaring that henceforth man should be-
lieve only that of which he should approve,
and claiming that if there be a God, he will
surely find him, no matter how far distant
in space his abode.

"The supreme task of our order, and con-
sequently thy first duty, will be to kindle
anew in man the true and living faith ; not
faith in dogmas or in creeds, but faith in
God, the Divine Ruler of the Universe, whom
we address as 'Our Father in Heaven.' In
Him all empires, all nations, all creeds, can
harmonize, for He is supreme above all, and
other beliefs are merely secondary. As
above Mohammed is Allah, above Buddha,
Brahm and Parabrahm, and above Moses,
Jehovah, so above Christ is God, His
Father.

"We must then inspire man with the
true religion. We must again, as it were,
bind him to his God, place him on the only
path that leads to life everlasting. And
now let me explain to thee more fully the
doctrines of our order, the origin and the
secret of its occult powers, together with the
fundamental laws which underlie them.
Occult phenomena of whatever kind, when
not based upon these laws, can only proceed
from the art of the magician. Magic,
whether white or black, is unlawful, and
both are discountenanced by the true
occultist.

44 IN THE SANCTUARY.

"First among all occult powers is the
power begotten by faith — faith in God — such
perfect and abiding faith as places, with
absolute trust, life and destiny in His
hands, living in Him and for Him. Faith
of such intensity begets the gift of healing
all ailments of the human body. And this
gift is the reward of such faith, regardless
of any secondary beliefs that the devotee
may profess, or of the church or sect to
which he may belong, since faith in the
Supreme Being takes precedence over all
other religious states of the mind or soul.

"Faith places man in harmony with God,
with all the laws of the Universe ; further-
more, a divine aura of such density gathers
around the truly faithful, that the projection
of its rays induces harmonious conditions
in those who seek to be healed, and although
these conditions may last but for a moment,
their duration depending on the worthiness
or receptivity of the patient, they may
nevertheless be sufficient to restore to its
natural channel the flow of life-forces which
had been perverted by opposite conditions of
the mind or body, thus removing the cause
of illness from him who asks relief.

" Will, developed preternaturally through
long-continued exercise and practice, gives
mastery over many conditions of matter,
and may endow us with the gift, as some
people consider it, of performing miracles.
This control over matter is not necessarily
dependent on a religious life ; the vibrations

IN THE SANCTUARY. 45

emitted by a powerful will can, in many
instances, pervert ordinary manifestations
of nature, create apparitions, cast out devils
from the so-called insane or possessed,
and this power is what constitutes the art
of rnagic. Where these powers are used
for evil purposes, they become what is
termed ' black magic.'

"Will, grown strong through a life-long
battle with the conditions of earth, its
allurements, its sin, over all of which it
has finally triumphed — such will is the
real fruitful, occult will, the divine.

"The sciences, with astronomy as a base,
will lead to an understanding of the laws of
matter, as far as known. Philosophy will
give to these studies an upward direction r
and become the link between the material
and the spiritual, for the spiritual cannot
fail to be evolved, in every true soul, from
the knowledge and comprehension of the
beautiful manifestations and harmonies of
the universe. Understanding, elevated to
the spiritual plane, begets love, love divine,
love supreme and universal, not only for
man, but for beast, and plant, and all that
is. This love, ever partaking, though un-
consciously, of the universal soul, attracts
individual souls, these being fragments,
more or less pure, more or less developed,
of the universal soul. Love, thus reaching
the soul of man, has power to uplift it
through the operations of the divine occult
will, and bring it into harmony with the

46 IN THE SANCTUARY.

Spirit of God. While faith heals the body
by restoring to harmony the parts that were
diseased, will creates conditions permitting
the successful workings of the powers of
faith.

"When divine faith, divine love, and
divine will, are united in one human being,
this being becomes itself divine, becomes
itself a Master. His faith enables him to
heal the ailments of the body, his love to
minister to the needs of the soul and to
lead it on the true road to God, while will
gives him the power to harmonize natural
conditions ; thus the health of body and
soul are maintained, and the latter is freed
from the influence of outward and retarding
agencies.

" Divine faith, when unaccompanied by
scientific learning, begets the gift of heal-
ing, but no other gifts inure.

"When love divine is deprived of faith,
it becomes what may be termed intellectual
spirituality, with the gifts of influencing
souls for good, but with no other gifts. In-
tellectual spirituality, without divine faith,
resembles somewhat a tall and slender tree
which may overtop the surrounding forest,
but its slim trunk will sway unceasingly to
and fro before the breath of philosophical
breezes, which now-a-days are continuously
springing up in the schools of learning;
but if it have faith, while its growth in air
would be equally r?pid, the tree would de-
velop a strong, healthy body, the roots of

IN THE SANCTUARY. 47

which would anchor deep in the clefts of the
rock of ages, and be proof against all the
blasts which the intellectual world unceas-
ingly hurls against those who dare to tran-
scend the plane of the common mortal.

ult must, however, be well understood
that the gifts of healing obtained through
faith, or the power of subverting the order
of nature through abnormal strength of
will, or even the divine gift of influencing
souls for good, is in reality no gift at all,
but purely and simply the natural sequence
of the devotee's spiritual condition. All
changes which the human mind undergoes
are accompanied by a corresponding change
in the physiological condition of the cells
of his brain, for brain-cells are very im-
portant living entities, having birth and
growth, and are subject to the laws of evolu-
tion, as well as all other things in nature.
All moral, mental, or spiritual discipline
affects these cells, gives them higher quali-
ties, and when they have attained a certain
state of evolution requisite for the emission
of an aura whose magnetic radiations carry
the power to heal, or to effect certain phe-
nomena of nature, or to help human souls
in their upward endeavor, then such power
manifests itself as a natural sequence of the
developed condition of the brain-cells. This
is purely a physical process, and not at all
miraculous.

"It is indeed possible that persons may
be born with brain-cells in a state of natural

48 IN THE SANCTUARY.

development similar to those acquired under
any of the three conditions of spiritual dis-
cipline above described, and by the devotee,
begotten only through earnest endeavor and
prayer. In such cases the native condition
of the brain-cells endows the person in whom
they occur — and that through purely phys-
ical causes — with powers similar to those of
the devotee, without regard to the moral or
religious condition of the individual thus
favored. On the other hand, it may happen
in the case of a devotee, no matter how tena-
cious the earnestness of his faith, how great
the strength of his will, or how deep the
intensity of his love, that pre or post natal
physical conditions hinder the harmonious
development of his brain-cells, and thus
debar him from powers the acquisition of
which he would have been justified in ex-
pecting. We meet occasionally in life illus-
trations of these cases.

"It may perhaps be as well to explain
here the theory of brain-cells, those micro-
scopical, innumerable little worlds consti-
tuting the brain of man, and which are the
occult agents of all its wonderful activities.

"Cells of various descriptions constitute
the principal portions of all organisms ; they
have their poles and dia-magnetism ; their
attractions and repulsions ; their birth,
growth, evolution, multiplication, and often
death. As, in this instance, we are mainly
concerned with those brain-cells to which
the outworking of the higher functions of

IN THE SANCTUARY. 49

life lias been intrusted, we will confine our-
selves to an explanation of the functions
and action of these only.

"To convey to the mind a clear concep-
tion of a cell, we will compare it to an egg.
The cell has an outside envelope or mem-
brane containing a quantity of protoplasmic,
Or, rather, cytoplasmic matter, the entire
cell being protoplasmic; this matter itself
holding within its mass a nucleus of more
refined material. We will compare the out-
side of the cell to the shell of the egg ; the
region of cytoplasmic matter, to the white;
and the nucleus, to the yelk. Within this
nucleus, or yelk, is a nucleolus, and within
this nucleolus are discovered little specks,
or intra-nucleolar bodies. We will, for the
present, omit to speak of the centrosomes in
the archoplasm. [Full explanation in re-
gard to these very important bodies recently
discovered in the cell, will be found in the
Appendix, at the end of this volume, page
244.] Now, in the man whose nature is
purely materialistic, this is the only matter
the brain-cells contain : they are spiritually
unfructified. In human beings whose souls
have taken birth and grown into conscious-
ness, the eye of the seer discovers amid the
intra-nucleolar bodies a speck of intense
whiteness, growing in brilliancy as the
spiritual development of the cell progresses.
This luminous point indicates that the cell
is spiritually fructified, having received
within itself, as the reward of a pure and

50 IT THE SANCTUARY.

well-ordered life, a spark from the Spirit of
the Infinite, a concretion of divine aura of
the breath of God, constituting the basis of
immortality — the first step toward the union
of man with his Maker.

" But in the case of the man who is
entirely absorbed in things material, the
man whose soul has not yet entered the
state of consciousness, his brain-cells con-
tain no point of light, no intra-nucleolar
brilliancy, though surrounded, like every
other entity, by the Spirit of God, the
divine aura, awaiting only the first aspira-
tion of the awakening soul to condense
into a luminous spark, to fructify the brain-
cells, and lay the ground- work of his
immortality. These brain-cells are the
very embodiment of man's moral, intel-
lectual, and spiritual nature, and unerringly
indicate his condition and progress, whether
toward animalism or spirituality.

" We will now proceed to explain the
very important occult process of this growth
and evolution of the brain-cells.

"When the fructified egg is surrounded
with conditions congenial to the develop-
ment of the life principle which it contains,
that is, with a certain degree of heat, this
life principle gradually expands, feeding
upon the yelk and the white of the egg,
which have gradually been converted into
food through the action of heat. The con-
ditions remaining favorable, the life prin-
ciple gradually becomes life itself, an entity

IN THE SANCTUARY. 51

with a force of its own, which it uses, at
the proper time, to burst its prison walls
(the shell of the egg), from which it emerges
fitted to enter upon a career of higher
activities. And thus it is with the cells
composing the brain of man.

" For a first illustration, we will take a
cell already possessed of the luminous
atom, and hence belonging to the brain of
a man awakened to spiritual consciousness.
If this man, following the promptings of
his soul, seriously resolves to lead a life in
accordance with the laws of the Spirit,
enters resolutely upon the upward path,
conforms his actions to his ideals, purifies
his thoughts, and aspires to become one
with God, then does he surround the spirit-
ual atom of the brain-cell with conditions
congenial to its growth. Under this vivi-
fying influence, the living atom rapidly
expands, increases in brightness, becomes
stronger as by degrees it transforms and
absorbs the intra-nucleolar bodies, the
nucleolus and the nucleus on which it feeds,
just as with the life principle of the egg
finding sustenance in the yelk. When
from the nucleus it has taken all the mat-
ter it could assimilate, this spiritual atom
now finds itself in contact with the cyto-
plasinic element of the cell. After taking
therefrom the little matter it was capable
of refining, having now gained mastership
over the cell, it bursts the membrane enclos-
ing it, emerges into life a new and higher

52 IN THE SANCTUARY.

entity, and the old cell falls to pieces, or,
as the men of science properly designate
it, is destroyed by granulation.

"The spiritual atom, now set free and of
great radiance, we will compare to a bright
nucleus in the head of a comet, the tail of
which is composed of the most refined mat-
ter, both of the nucleus and the cytoplasm
of the old cell. That which is not absorbed
is rejected, and its granules are slowly elim-
inated from the brain, and soon thereafter
from the body. This cometary cell will
now gradually condense into a complete
cell ; but this new cell will enter upon its
career with a spiritual germ of larger devel-
opment, will have attained a higher plane
in the realms of the spiritual, be surrounded
by a brighter aura, with extended radiations,
and hence will be possessed of greater pow-
ers. And now, if this new cell be again
surrounded by higher conditions of spirit-
uality, the same process of evolution will
obtain anew, the spiritual germ will enlarge,
will finally burst its shell, and once more
emerge from it, a higher entity. A nearer
approach will have been made toward its
Maker; granulation will set in, as before,
and, repeating the process, the liberated
spiritual atom will recommence building a
new cell, an abode of its own still more per-
fect than the previous one. Thus will it be
until it reaches the mansions of the Eternal,
where finally it will rest amid glory and
bliss unspeakable.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 53

"These cells, as we have said before, are
small microscopical worlds, endowed with
polarity, and consequently with well-defined
attractions and repulsions. They possess
an aura, the distinctive radiations of which
convey the qualities of the cell, and hence
exert a certain influence either for good or
evil. The sum total of these brain-cell
radiations constitutes the aura or halo sur-
rounding the head of man.

u Fora second illustration of the workings
of these brain-cells we will now take a cell
as we find it in the brain of an intellectual
man, a man of science, for instance, in
which the divine atom may or may not
exist.

" We will suppose that this man uses his
intellectual powers in search of purely sci-
entific truths, makes record simply of the
facts he discovers, is content with the appro-
bation of his fellow-men, and never Hits an
eye toward the Creator of all things. How
does the brain-cell of this man appear?

" If the spiritual atom exists at all in this
brain-cell, and has not been expelled by
increasing materialistic tendencies, it will
remain in stain quo, for the conditions sur-
rounding it are not congenial to its growth
or evolution. The nucleus of the cell — the
seat of man's intellect — will, however, ex-
pand, develop, intrude upon the cytoplasmic
region, convert to its own use more or less
of its coarse matter, in proportion to the
degree of materialism existing in the man

54 IN THE SANCTUARY.

of science. The cell will also granulate,
preparatory to the formation of a cell of
higher intellectual order. And this process
of intellectualization will continue so long
as the main efforts of this man center upon
intellectual studies pursued for material
ends. The spiritual germ of this cell, how-
ever, will remain dormant.

"The brain-cell of the merely animal
man, though in a measure endowed with
intellect, finds the principles of its activities
in the cytoplasmic region. As he possesses
but little intellectual ambition, this nucleus
no longer finds conditions congenial to its
growth; hence it remains latent, if not
fatally degraded by gradual absorption into
the cytoplasmic region, for the demands of
animalism as displayed in the depravity of
human passions are all-absorbing and inex-
orable. The brain-cells of such a man also
granulate successively, and their evolution
is retrograde, for they grow in animality ;
but, mark well, when this animality trans-
gresses certain limits, the cells, after granu-
lation, die, and no re-birth ensues. For this
man there is no immortality, since immor-
tality awaits only those into whose brain-
cells the divine spark, the Spirit of the
Eternal, has entered. Though every cell,
even in the brain of the animal man, is
surrounded with the divine aura, this aurar
having failed to obtain recognition, returns
to the spirit reservoir of nature, there to
await a new incarnation. Immortality can-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 55

not be bestowed as a gift ; it must be won
as a prize, for such is the fiat of the
Everlasting.

" Strongly wonld we impress on onr
disciples that the evolution of a brain-cell
is a process of growth, which, in order to be
healthy, harmonious, and lasting, must also
be gradual. A calm, spiritual life, trusting
in God with a plenitude of faith ; patient
submission in His name to all vicissitudes ;
the fulfillment of all earthly duties ; the
doing, in a quiet way, of all possible good
to our fellow-beings, and the exercise of the
broadest tolerance of, and charity toward,
the opinions, beliefs, and actions of others
for whom we should always feel and profess
respect — these are the fundamental require-
ments for the formation of a pure and
healthy brain-cell. An excess of effort, a
restless anxiety for progress or for the pos-
session of occult powers, merely serves to
engender nervous excitement, followed by
disease of the nerve centers, and sometimes
causing insanity.

u To bring home to the mind of the disci-
ple a still clearer understanding of this
most important occult truth, it is well again
to illustrate it by giving an outline of the
force involved in the formation of a natural
crystal. If we dissolve a salt in water and
apply a gentle heat, causing slow evapora-
tion, elements toward the formation of a
crystal will soon be seen in activity ; and if
the mixture be left undisturbed, a crystal

56 IN THE SANCTUARY.

of geometrical form, characteristic of the
salt dissolved, will gradually take shape,
possessing all the attributes and forces of a
perfect crystal — polarity, dia-magnetism,
attraction, and repulsion. It will also be
surrounded by a well-defined auric corona.
If this process of evaporation be found too
slow, crystallization may be hastened by
agitating the solution. The result, how-
ever, would be, that instead of one perfect
crystal, there would be many of multiform
shapes, but none possessing the geometrical
outline characteristic of a perfect crystalli-
zation. These various and heterogeneous
crystals would have the forces of polarization
acting abnormally, erratic attractions and
repulsions ; and these forces would produce
disharmony whenever and wherever called
into activity. As with the crystal, so with
the cells out of which spring the activities
of the human brain. Similar agencies are
at work in the formation of both.

" Hence, let our disciple be calm, pos-
sessing his soul in peace, and awaiting
God's own time for the baptism of the
spirit, and the development of occult
powers. If he continue to surround the
divine atoms contained in the cells of his
brain with conditions congenial to their
evolution, these endowments and powers
will surely ensue, for they are but the inev-
itable outcome of a divinely constituted brain-
cell, and the aura surrounding this cell is
possessed of the greatest of all occult powers.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 57

"When the spiritual evolution of the
brain-cell has been induced by supreme
faith in God, healing the sick will, as I
have said, be the occult power derived.
The evolution of the cell, resulting from
such faith, accompanied with intellectual
spirituality or the philosophic understand-
ing of the laws and harmonies governing
the manifestations of the Universe, brings
into existence the power of healing the
mind as well as the body, and even of influ-
encing the souls of men.

"But the brain- cell whose evolution pro-
ceeds from intellectual spirituality alone
will not possess the gift of healing either
body or mind. Though it may be the brain-
cell of a person professing veneration for
the Author of all that is, nevertheless, if
that man be lacking in the perfect and liv-
ing faith which has its root in the inmost
depths of being, its aura will not have
attained the healing power, though it may
exercise a great influence for good over
minds susceptible to its odic radiations.

"The power of will, approaching almost
the divine, and vouchsafed only to him who
has achieved successive victories over the
obstacles that stand in the path of spiritual
growth — such power acquires, after many
evolutions of the cell, a certain control over
matter. If this will is allied with faith in
God and intellectual understanding, the oc-
cult powers become very great, and may, after
many evolutions, become almost limitless.

58 IN THE SANCTUARY.

uTo conclude, then, and to render still
clearer the laws of our spiritual evolution,
the principal attributes of our Divine Maker
are infinite harmony and goodness, or love,
omniscience, and omnipotence. According
to the degree of earnestness with which man
tries to develop these attributes within him-
self, in the same degree does he approach
nearer to God.

"Hence, divine faith, based on a progres-
sive and philosophic comprehension of the
divine phenomena of nature, leads us,
through a series of innumerable granula-
tions and re-births of the brain-cells, toward
love and harmony, culminating in the great
consummation, the influx of the Holy Spirit,
whereby we are exalted, step by step, to the
portals of omniscience.

" The development of the divine will,
based upon understanding and faith, be-
stows an ever-increasing control over mat-
ter, in proportion as our brain-cells undergo
their ever-ascending transformations. This
places us fairly on the road toward the
greatest attribute of God, omnipotence.
Thus man, having latent within him all the
attributes of his Maker, may, after the lapse
of eons, and through a perfect and contin-
uous process of evolution, become one with
God Himself.

"These, my son, are the fundamental
principles underlying all occult manifesta-
tions."

IN THE SANCTUARY. 59

The Archbishop, almost overwhelmed by
these new revelations, although the scien-
tific explanations vouchsafed by the Magus
caused him deep pleasure, bowed his head
in respectful assent.

"And now that the teaching's of the order
are indorsed by thine inner consciousness;
now that with heart and soul thou canst
work for their dissemination, thou art pre-
pared to be invested with the insignia of
office. Proceed, therefore, to the prayer-
desk in the center of the Sanctuary, before
which is an altar; upon this altar lies a
golden cushion supporting the mystic lamp
whose light is a star. The cushion signi-
fies peace; the lamp is a symbol of light —
* Light and Peace ' being the motto of the
order of the Magi. Offer up thy soul to
God, for presently thou shalt be more than

man."

The Archbishop obeyed, and kneeling
before the altar — now, however, with up-
lifted eyes — offered up a humble and fer-
vent supplication, having murmured, as he
touched his breast, "Non sum dignus; non
sum dignus ."

60 IN THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER IV.

MEANWHILE the Magus stood in front of
the golden vase suspended before the shrine
and containing the sacred fire. Here, in a
low voice, he continued to recite a prayer or
incantation, the rhythm of which emitted
vibrations which strangely affected Angelo,
who felt, however, that they were not di-
verted upon himself. While thus engaged,
the Magus passed his hands several times
above, over, and around the fire, as one
making magnetic passes ; and, as he pro-
ceeded with the ceremonies, the flame ap-
peared to increase in volume and brilliancy.
Taking from a golden casket a handful of
granules apparently of some kind of aro-
matic gum — the frankincense of the Magi-
he threw them into the vase. The effect
was instantaneous; the flame shot upward,
and the Sanctuary was gradually filled with
a perfume charged with a potent spiritual-
izing influence; such, at least, was its effect
on Angelo, who felt as if all senses of the
flesh were benumbed to open wider the
avenue of the soul.

Caspar then proceeded to the northern
side of the Sanctuary, where, by means of
a cord attached to the wall, he opened the
window in the center of the dome overhead,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 6 1

representing trie All-seeing Bye. The vapor
proceeding from the burning incense then
arose in spiral form through the opening, and
disappeared in air. He then returned to the
shrine, before which he bowed low, and soon
was absorbed in prayer.

And now the solemn stillness of the Sanc-
tuary was broken by the distant rumbling
of thunder, whose tones reverberated in
ever-increasing volume. Presently a gleani
of lightning shot athwart the dome from
which looked down the All-seeing Eye.

"My brother," exclaimed Caspar, as he
arose to his feet and stood with uplifted gaze,
"the Egyptian Magus is approaching."

A moment later a blinding flash illu-
mined the Sanctuary, and with it a thunder
crash directly overhead shook, as with the
concussion of an earthquake, the walls of
the sacred temple. Then a cloud of bril-
liant light descended into the holy place,
and, behold! there stood before the marble
altar, in front of the shrine, a being of
divine aspect, his eyes beaming with infinite
love ; his noble features of most perfect out-
line, but gentle and delicate as those of a
woman; in complexion dark, and with thin,
silken locks, silvered by the touch of time.
His head-dress, resembling a turban, was
fashioned of silk, of delicate texture, having
in front an aigrette fastened into it with a
rare and precious stone, and above it a
golden crown. His robes were of spotless
white, long and flowing, and over them he

62 IN THE SANCTUARY.

wore another vestment, also white and of
the finest material, plaited in many folds
and fastened at the shoulder by a golden
clasp. Upon his breast and over his back
he wore a square-cnt garment of cloth of
gold, bearing an inscription intimating that
he who wore it held dominion over the
tribes of Egypt and other lands. After
kneeling in the act of devotion before the
shrine, he moved toward Caspar, and as
they met, each inclined toward the other,
their foreheads meeting and remaining in
contact for the space of a ininnte, as if in
silent communion ; then, turning toward
Angelo, Caspar quietly said:

" This is Balthazar, the Magus of Egypt.''

With a heavenly smile illuminating his
face, Balthazar extended his arms toward
Angelo, and as he did so the odic flames
enwrapped him with their radiance. In
acknowledgment of the sanctity of the
Egyptian Magus, the Archbishop made low
obeisance before him.

And now Caspar, again approaching the
sacred fire, threw into it a handful of scented
wood, whereupon the Sanctuary became filled
with a sweet but pungent odor; again the
flames increased in volume, the perfume
arose in a thin, transparent mist, and pass-
ing through the opening in the dome was
lost in air.

The two Magi now took seats on either
side of the shrine, upon a dais extended
before the altar. A moment later the sacred

IN THE SANCTUARY. 63

fire grew strangely bright, and soon shot
forth in tongues of flame in every direction
and darting upward toward the dome. Grad-
ually they appeared to form themselves into
serpents of fire, and soon a sound as of hiss-
ing began to be heard, while fiery serpents
with tongues of flame darted to and fro, mov-
ing in spiral curves through every part of
the Sanctuary. Finally the hissing became
louder and more terrible, the serpents of
fire arose upward toward the dome, which
appeared as if in flames, and an instant later
the Magus of India stood by the shrine, bow-
ing in adoration before it.

He, also, was of a noble type of manhood.
His features were striking, but unlike those
of the other Magi. His eyes, although bear-
ing the dreamy and inward look of the mys-
tic, had, nevertheless, an expression of great
power, in harmony with his features, which
were somewhat stern in cast, with strong
facial lines betokening unusual strength of
character. As the three holy personages
met, bringing their foreheads in contact with
each other, a perfect communion, a perfect
bond of harmony, was established between
them. Turning again toward Angelo,
Caspar said :

"This is Melchior, the Indian Magus."
Extending his hands toward Angelo,
he also bathed him in an effulgence of his
own aura, which was felt by the Arch-
bishop to possess the same virtue as that of
the other Magi, but suggesting the impres-

64 IN THE SANCTUARY.

sion of greater strength of will. Angelo
bowed before him, and the harmony between
the three wise men and the neophyte was
complete.

Surprised, indeed, was Angelo that the
Magns of India was entirely unknown to
him. When taking the third degree in the
mountains of Himalay, he had supposed
that the Supreme Master was the head of
the occult order there, but from the more
brilliant aura of Melchior, and the divine
influence radiating from his entire being,
he perceived that he must be vastly superior
to him who presided over the community at
the monastery of Thibet.

And now the three Magi, kneeling before
the altar, prepared for the ceremony of
initiation. Dressed in white linen robes,
the attendant, Ralph, entering by a side
door, brought into the Sanctuary a mantle
fashioned of most brilliant cloth of gold,
which the Egyptian Magus placed on the
shoulder of Caspar. Then was handed to
Melchior, and by him in turn to Caspar, a
small golden vase suspended from thin
golden chains, in pattern resembling the
one containing the sacred fire.

Caspar now proceeded to fill the smaller
vase or censer with burning coals from the
sacred fire ; in the hands of Balthazar and
Melchior were also golden vases studded
with rare and costly jewels, the one filled
with frankincense, the other with myrrh.
With a golden spoon Caspar poured into

IN THE SANCTUARY. 65

the sacred fire a portion of the contents of
each. Then the Magi bent low before the
shrine and offered up prayers, chanting
them with solemn intonation. The Egyp-
tian and Hindoo stood one on either side of
the European Magus, each holding an end
of the golden mantle which covered the
form of Caspar; the latter, raising his head
toward the shrine, swung his censer thrice
toward it in token of adoration.

And now, still chanting prayers, they
arose, and while Caspar swung the censer
before him, the other Magi still upholding
the golden mantle, all three passed around
the altar, and then made the circuit of the
entire Sanctuary, the censer still giving
forth its incense as if to drive away all
earthly influences that might yet linger in
the temple.

Returning to the main altar, the Magi
knelt again in front of the shrine, where the
censer was nine times swung before it, en-
shrouding it in vapor. A spiritual song or
hymn, such as Angelo never before had
heard, was now intoned, and, as if in re-
sponse, a sweet celestial melody of voices
and instruments arose and filled the place,
while amid the incense which floated above
the shrine appeared a choir of angelic be-
ings hovering on white wings. Their
music, interblending with the intonations
of the Magi, seemed to obliterate all the
material part of the Sanctuary, save only
the shrine, which now shone like a brilliant

66 IN THE SANCTUARY.

meteor, the temple being filled with a golden
cloud and illumined with the glory of the
shrine.

Descending from the altar with slow and
stately tread, the Magi now turned toward
Angelo, who, overawed by this celestial
vision, had inclined his head upon the
prayer-desk, where still it rested. Raising
his eyes he now beheld the three Masters,
calm in mien, of godlike aspect, arrayed as in
the pure garbs of holiness, each resplendent
with an aura of surpassing radiance shining
like a sun — Gaspar bright with a golden
effulgence, and Melchior and Balthazar with
halos of paler hue, but none the less daz-
zling in their brilliancy.

Attended by the other Masters, who still
upheld his golden mantle, Gaspar passed
thrice around Angelo, chanting a paean of
joy. Then once more the Magi ascended
the steps of the altar, and while the heav-
enly choir poured forth its divine harmo-
nies, Gaspar, swinging the censer three
times toward the Archbishop, exclaimed in
accents gently modulated, yet distinctly
heard throughout the Sanctuary: "An-
gelo, thou hast been found worthy, and
now shalt thou be exalted to the dignity
of Magus."

In answer to these words, the Prelate was
about to offer a humble protest, when from
the All-seeing Eye everhead proceeded a
stream of golden light so dazzling that he
could not utter a word.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 6/

The Kgyptian Magus now took the
censer from the hands of Caspar, and
swinging it toward the Archbishop, repeated
in similar words : u Angelo, thou hast been
found worthy, and on thee shall fall the
mantle of the European Magus."

Thereupon flashes of lightning shot
athwart the dome overhead, and the crash
of thunder shook the walls of the Sanctuary,
as had occurred when Balthazar first stood
in his astral body in front of the altar.

The censer was then handed to the
Hindoo Magus, and as he swung it to and
fro serpents of fire seemed to dart their
tongues of flame at Angelo, hissing as
before in loud and threatening tones. But
not a whit was he disturbed by these dem-
onstrations of occult power, for so entranc-
ing was the music of the celestial choir that
his soul was exalted to the heavens, as it
were, and he knew not the sensation of
fear.

This ceremony ended, Caspar, proceeding
to the sacred shrine, opened the door of the
tabernacle, and taking therefrom a small
golden vase containing consecrated oil
approached the Archbishop whom he thus
addressed :

uln this vase is oil extracted from the
seeds of the sacred plant, with which the
fire of the Magi has been kept alive for
many centuries of the past. The shrub
was grown in Palestine, and was gathered
by virgins. This oil is transmitted by the

68 IN THE SANCTUARY.

Magi to their successors, and blessed by
each, of them in turn; it is endowed with
the highest of occult powers. With it I will
anoint thee."

Uttering with great solemnity a few sono-
rous sentences pronounced in an unknown
tongue, the Magus, placing the thumb of
his dexter hand in the oil, proceeded to rub
the forehead of the Archbishop between the
eyebrows.

Immediately his language was understood
by Angelo, whose intelligence was quick-
ened and expanded by the anointing of oil.

"May it please the Almighty God,"
prayed Caspar, "to give thee the under-
standing of things divine, so that, from this
time forth and forevermore, the stars, the
planets, and this our earth, with the nations
that dwell thereon, will have for thee no
secrets. ''

Then, proceeding to anoint the eye of the
Prelate, he continued :

"May it please our Heavenly Father so
to enlighten thy spiritual vision that thou
mayest behold Him in His own almighty
presence, through the medium of this His
holy shrine, where. He deigns to dwell amid
the sacred rays of the divine aura here con-
centrated by the prayers and exercises of the
Magi."

At this moment there shot forth from the
altar, like a ray from the throne of the Eter-
nal, a dazzling streak of golden light,
enshrouding the Archbishop with such

IN THE SANCTUARY. 69

ineffable radiance that it seemed to per-
meate his entire being, as if his body were
composed of spirit unalloyed by the pres-
ence of matter. All the cells of body and
brain seemed to become harmonized into
one; the very portals of heaven appeared
to open before him, making him realize
that now he was indeed in the presence, in
the visible and tangible radiation, of the Infi-
nite Author of all things.

Finally, placing his thumb on the tongue
of Angelo, Caspar endowed the vocal organ
with the gift of speech in all languages, and
with the gift of eloquence to utter the dic-
tates and inspirations of the Heavenly
Father. His ears he opened to apprehend
at will the voices of angels and the thoughts
of all who were pure in spirit. His hands
he consecrated to the healing of the sick in
body or mind; his feet, to the guidance of
the lost into the true path of life ; and his
heart, to the love of all that is, the first and
foremost object of that love being God, the
Infinite Spirit.

"And now," said Melchior, the Hindoo
Magus, "let the Supreme Master of the
Brethren of Himalay appear before us, and
let it be his will to divest the candidate of
the robes of his order, which he himself
placed upon Angelo."

In a moment, prostrate before the shrine
lay the form of the Supreme Master who
had presented to Angelo his robes of purest
white when he was admitted to the third

70 IN THE SANCTUARY.

degree at the monastery in Thibet. After
an act of adoration he approached his former
disciple, on whom he cast a glance of min-
gled affection and reverence. His mission
performed, he at once disappeared, tarrying
only long enough to bestow on him his
blessing, and to ask in return that Angelo
\vould remember him in his prayers.

Caspar now proceeded to divest himself
of the vestments of his office, which, one by
one, he placed upon Angelo, the celestial
choir meanwhile pouring forth such tri-
umphal notes of joy, such soul- entrancing
melody, that the vibrations produced con-
veyed to all the participants in the ceremony
a realization of the immediate presence of
the Deity.

While placing on the shoulders of An-
gelo the cloth of gold, upon which were em-
broidered characters in an unknown tongue,
Caspar explained: "This is the most
sacred of all the insignia of the office of
Magus. It is many centuries old, and has
been worn by every Magus of this branch
of the order from the time of its origin. It
is permeated with the auras of all the wise
and holy men whose vestment it has been ;
its influence for good is almost unlimited,
and surpassed only by that of the Deity Him-
self. In its semblance thou wilt cause to
be made a talisman before wearing, which
thou must place, together with the cloth of
gold, in the shrine. This talisman thou
must always wear, for never canst thou

IN THE SANCTUARY. 71

otherwise make use of the occult powers
presently to be vested in thee. The cloth
of gold will remain in the shrine, as also the
sacred oil. And now we present to thee
another emblem of the supreme dignity
bestowed upon thee."

With these words he removed the golden
crown from his own head, and placed it
upon Angelo's.

Then the three Masters, extending their
hands over him, pronounced together in sol-
emn tones these words: "Thou art King,
King in the Kingdom of the Heavenly
Father ; King of equal rank with ourselves,
and to hasten the coming of the Kingdom
of Heaven upon earth must all our powers
be directed."

" So mote it be," answered a mysterious
voice proceeding from the shrine.

" Thy name is Caspar," exclaimed the
Magi, "andthou wilt bear it forever."

"Accept this scroll of papjaris," contin-
ued the self deposed Magus, with enfeebled
voice. " Thou canst now read its foreign
characters, for they are no longer unknown
to thee. Upon it are written the names of
all those who have been elevated to the
sacred rank of Magus, and the instructions
vouchsafed to the head of the order by the
wise men of the past, by those who have
been found most worthy of this holy office.
On a smaller scroll contained within, thou
wilt find the names of certain members be-

72 IN THE SANCTUARY.

longing to the European branch of the
order."

During these solemn rites the strains of
the celestial choir still blended with the
voices of the Magi, while faint gleams of
lightning, the roll of distant thunder, and
serpentine flames of fire, glancing athwart
the walls of the temple, added to the weird
and supernatural aspect of the ceremony.

And now, the Indian and Egyptian Magi
placed their foreheads against the forehead
of Angelo, who at once became conscious of
their supreme spirituality and worthiness,
while they in turn realized the spiritual
status of Angelo.

At that moment, and thenceforth forever,
a condition of supreme harmony was estab-
lished between the newly anointed Magus
and his brethren.

The Magi then turned toward the altar,
and as he who had resigned his holy office
stood before it, with hands and eyes uplifted
toward heaven, his countenance shone like
that of an angel. The golden radiance of
the shrine enfolded him, and as the melo-
dies of the celestial choir grew still more
ethereal and sublime, he appeared as one
transfigured. Turning toward his hearers,
in a low, musical, but impressive voice, as
if proceeding from the spirit rather than
from the flesh, he said :

u Soon shall I return to my Heavenly
Father to render an account of my steward-
ship here below; for great is my age — much

IN THE SANCTUARY. 73

greater than the number of years allotted
as the span of human life. A period of
great activity of religious, social, and politi-
cal revolution (peaceful, let us hope) is near
at hand, and our sacred order must play an
important part in the events that will soon
take place among the nations of the earth.
All the powers of which mind and body are
capable will be required in the coming
contest between truth and falsity, and of
physical force I have none to give."

Turning toward his newly installed suc-
cessor, he said :

u The sphere of thy activities will mainly
lie beyond the seas, on the great continent
of America, where Liberty has made her
abode. The inhabitant of that country is
essentially a servant of God, since fealty to
religious belief in the face of most terrible
persecution drove him to that new world,
there to dwell amid the severest hardships.
Placed upon an unknown continent, face to
face with primitive nature, he made a home
for himself and for those he loved, while in-
cessantly battling against well-nigh insur-
mountable obstacles. Wild beasts molested
him, the forests prostrated him with malaria,
and savage man made constant war upon
him, hourly endangering his life. But
through courage, perseverance and implicit
faith in his Heavenly Father, he emerged
victorious from his long and bitter struggle.

u Under such conditions the American
could not fail to develop into a child of

74 IN THE SANCTUARY.

nature, a very child of God. No schools of
transcendental philosophy there existed to
dwarf his natural instincts, his native com-
mon sense. Such environment necessarily
produced in him a unique individuality, an
independence of spirit that could never stoop
to profess belief in principles which the
inner consciousness could not admit. On
the other hand, his manhood would readily
yield allegiance to such religious beliefs as
he found superior to his own ; for the Amer-
ican is eminently progressive, a constant
searcher after higher truths, and a restless
investigator of the most hidden laws of
nature.

u Such are the characteristics of the true
American, and to-day he is less prejudiced,
moie open to truth, given to a wider field
of ethical, philosophical, and spiritual inves-
tigation, than the inhabitant of any other
country on earth. To that country, there-
fore, must thou go, meeting there thy
brother Magi, when the planetary conjunc-
tions shall be favorable. In those western
lands shalt thou, in concert with thy com-
peers, select for consecration the most worthy
of Americans, who shall establish taberna-
cles and shrines in all parts of that conti-
nent, so that through every quarter of the
world our order may extend its beneficent,
exalting, and purifying influence."

" When the proper time shall arrive,"
responded the three Magi, " on the conti-
nent of America shall we meet."

IN THE SANCTUARY. 75

"And now/' continued Caspar, " as one
about to be summoned from his earthly
abode conveys to his kindred his worldly
goods, so do I intrust to thee other and far
more valuable possessions which I have
gained during the long years of my study
and pilgrimage. Give heed to my words,
for it is from the threshold of my heavenly
home that now I speak.

" The present cycle of time, the end of
which is fast approaching, will terminate,
as every cycle has terminated in the past,
with a general upheaval of those elements
of human social organization whose rights
are being willfully and selfishly ignored;
whose forces, having failed to gain recogni-
tion, are now pent up under a despotic
pressure, but are ready to burst forth from
the dark dungeon of suppression whenever
the proper impetus shall be supplied. This
impetus will be given by the strong occult
influences which invariably become mani-
fest at the end of a cycle heralding the
approach of a new one.

u' What,' thou mayest ask, 'are these oc-
cult forces ? ' Often hast thou already
witnessed their action, though perhaps un-
consciousl}-. They are the same forces
which cause the vivification of the germ in
a kernel of wheat, its gradual expansion
until it causes the shell to burst, thus bring-
ing into existence a new plant, and provid-
ing for its subsequent growth and future
fructification. It is the same mysterious

76 IN THE SANCTUARY.

force that summons into activity and focal-
izes the vital energy of the mother to bring
into existence her cherished but unborn
babe. And, similarly, the end of every cycle
of time brings in its train a series of poten-
tial occult forces, promoting the evolution
and strengthening the growth of all good
seeking expression, of all rights clamoring
for recognition, and demanding enactment.
By the aid only of the powerful stimulus af-
forded by these occult forces, can a general
social reformation become possible.

"But, dear brethren," continued Caspar,
his face assuming an expression of still
greater solemnity, " these social upheavals
are always accompanied with great dangers,
as you are well aware, and it becomes our
special duty to evoke against such dangers
all the powers of our brotherhood. Our
brethren must be enlightened as to their
nature, learn to detect their presence, and
realize their import, at the moment they
become manifest.

" The birth of the new era, which will
assert and secure the rights of man, and
permit him to live in peace and harmony
with his fellow man, as he will live in peace
and harmony with his God, must of neces-
sity come to pass. This birth will be ac-
companied with the throes and agonies
inseparable from all births ; the mother-
country will suffer, intensely perhaps, but
these sufferings are but the forerunners of
a new existence, and should be confined to

IN THE SANCTUARY. 77

material interests, the displacement or re-
adjustment of which will necessarily be
keenly felt. No plundering, no bloodshed
is required to bring into existence the new
order of things ; and the intrusion of spoil-
ers would counteract the beneficence of the
occult forces, which the end of this century
and cycle will put in action. We realize,
however, that it is almost unreasonable
to hope that the coming revolution will
be entirely a peaceful one, or that its con-
summation will be accomplished without
bloodshed ; but what we also realize, and
what we know from a thorough search into
the occult laws which control the birth of
cycles, is, that man — the educated, the re-
ligious man — can so mitigate the severity
of the social shock, so assuage the anger
and vindictiveness of the parties concerned,
that the birth-throes, contracted into a
period of short duration, will result in caus-
ing the rights of the people to become fully
recognized, and the enactment of just laws
for their protection to be immediately in-
augurated, thus opening the era of peace
and happiness.

"And now, dear brethren, it behooves me
to explain what should be not only the atti-
tude of religion, but its supreme duty dur-
ing and before the advent of these upheavals.
Religion must stand by the country and aid
her during her throes, as the good doctor
stands by the side of the mother, aiding and
encouraging her in the hour of her severe

78 IN THE SANCTUARY.

trial, and enjoining order and quiet to be
maintained in the Household. But this
support cannot be effectively given until the
various religious bodies are in harmony with
themselves, and thereby gain the respect of
the people. For assuredly, and mark this
well," said the Magus, with much earnest-
ness, " those sects which may have been
unable to elevate themselves to that plane
of tolerance where respect is felt for other
religious bodies, thus showing that their
professed love of God is but a cloak of dis-
guise, foul within, worn by love of self—
these sects will surely be blotted out of ex-
istence by the anger of the people.

4 'Moreover, after the birth of a cycle, as
at the birth of a human being, there will be
present the placenta, and in this social pla-
centa will be found the uncharitableness
to-day so openly displayed toward each other
by the religious followers of different creeds,
as well as by the members themselves of
individual denominations, in which even the
heart-felt love of God has been powerless to
generate a spirit of forbearance and affection
toward their fellow creatures.

u For man, realizing that these religious
bodies have ceaselessly propounded doc-
trines tending to make him forget his nat-
ural rights in this world, preaching forgive-
ness toward those who have mercilessly
trampled him under foot and robbed him of
his earthly inheritance, while holding out
as a reward for his peaceful submission

IN THE SANCTUARY. 79

priceless treasures to be enjoyed after death
to the end of time. Man, fully realizing the
hollowness of such promises, will sweep
these sects into oblivion, if, during the birth-
throes of the new cycle, they do not undergo
a change of heart, but refuse to come to his
rescue in his time of need, by stretching
forth a helping hand for the emancipation
of poor, suffering humanity. We are not
without hope, however, that the steady
growth of man's intellect, with a correspond-
ing development of his spiritual being, will,
in the near future, cause the nobler followers
of each creed, church, or sect, to realize that
all religious communities are but bands of
pilgrims, whose steps are directed alike
toward the unknown Mecca, the home of
everlasting bliss; that the differences be-
tween them consist merely in the choice of
the roads leading thereto, each persuasion
at present harboring a deep-rooted convic
tion that its own is the safest and most
direct.

"When the religious bodies have pro-
gressed thus far, then will the salvation of
society rest in their hands ; then will men
lovingly recognize them as worthy leaders,
and with them take counsel ; then will they,
and they alone, be able to keep the masses
under control, to lead them onward to their
higher destiny, to bring on earth the era of
peace and good-will destined to prelude the
millennial reign. Therein lies the grand
consummation, the sacred duty of prepara-

So IN THE SANCTUARY.

tion for it, resting with the various religious
bodies. To this end their best and most
powerful forces should be concentrated,
should be utilized with the utmost vigor and
determination. Nor can such efforts fail
to be effectAial, inasmuch as the masses
always yield ready obeisance to religious
leaders who have gained their respect and
confidence.

u In the hands of the regenerated religious
bodies, then, lies the successful birth of the
new cycle ; let them prepare to become
faithful servants of God by first becoming
faithful leaders of men. Hence, toward the
elevation and harmonization of the divers
religious creeds should your most earnest
efforts now tend."

Brother Angelo and the twro other Magi
were deeply impressed with the profound
intuitive knowledge of Caspar. Perceiving
him to be in a highly supersensuous condi-
tion, Balthazar, the Egyptian Magus,
availed himself of the opportunity, and
asked him his opinion as to the actual spir-
itual condition of the planet Earth, and its
future and final destiny.

"The destiny of our planet is similar to
the destiny of all other planets, and to the
destiny of all things that have existence, be
they mineral, vegetable, animal, man, angel,
or archangel. That destiny is spiritualiza-
tion, or a gradual return to God or Para-
brahm, through the ever-ascending processes
of evolution." All things in the Universe,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 8 1

from the indivisible atom to the most Titanic
system of worlds, are co-related and inter-
dependent, inter-solidary, and mutually
reciprocal. The planets and all things, and
all existing entities upon them, are especially
so; progress in one series of beings produces
progress in another; retrogression in one
generation retards advancement in the fol-
lowing one. But, as the Omnipotent has
decreed in the breathing forth of the divine
Word, the proclaiming of the mystic fiat,
that all things in the Universe must finally
revert to Him, progress is the law, and that
law obtains.

"True, there have been periods when,
from various causes, the earth remained in
an unprogressive condition, as in those
epochs when heterogeneous influences were
projected upon her by surrounding planets;
or, later, when disturbing odic or thought-
forces were introduced into her aura by
human races whose lives were in utter dis-
cord with the conditions of her growth,
evolution, and destiny. Under such cir-
cumstances the spiritualizing influence of
the aura of Parabrahni was temporarily
arrested, causing progress to be interrupted,
and giving cause to terrestrial catastrophies,
such as the cataclysms of the glacial epoch,
which endured until the aura of the earth
was purged of its mephitic element,"

"Will Earth be subjected to other glacial
periods in the future ? " was asked.

82 IN THE SANCTUARY.

" Not, let us hope, until the advent of the
final one, caused by death, and due, as we
sincerely trust, to the plenary fulfillment
of her destiny, which is spirit ualization.
For the death of a planet may be caused
also by her hopelessly diseased or degraded
condition ; but this happens only when her
aura has become so thoroughly polluted by
the selfish and bestial lives of its inhabitants
as to render her evolution and the conse-
quent fulfillment of her destiny an utter
impossibility.

"It is nevertheless true that mephitic
aura is constantly being introduced into
Earth's spiritual atmosphere by millions of
people whose every thought is bent on the
acquisition of earthly possessions, many of
them consciously violating every moral law
that stands in the way of self-aggrandize-
ment. Moreover, the sufferings of the
poorer classes add immeasureably to this
dark, pernicious aura, owing to the feeling
of hatred felt for their oppressors. Most
detrimental of all, however, are those bane-
ful vibrations cast into the earth's aura by
the man of large intellect, by the scientist,
or so-called philosopher, whose spiritual na-
ture is dead, whose superior attainments
have failed to develop any symptom of
worthy aspirations, whose mind rests satis-
fied with the search and understanding of
the laws that govern matter and fain would
endow matter with infinite possibilities and
potencies, denying any superior cause, and

IN THK SANCTUARY. 83

even scoffing at the idea of a supreme con-
sciousness. I refer to the materialists.

" Nevertheless, there is a vast region of
luminous mist being developed around the
earth, caused by the steady evolving of a
higher grade of aura, the outcome of a lof-
tier religious thought entertained by a large
class of her inhabitants. This aura impels
the mind to form ever higher ideals, and to
proceed steadfastly on the path leading to
their realization."

"Among all the phenomena of the pres-
ent age, there is nothing more phenomenal
than the achievements of man's intelligence
in the realm of science, though he is as yet
merely at the portal of that realm. Never
\vas inquiry in every field of human attain-
ment more earnest; never was search after
new and higher truths more unremitting.
But when, reaching the farthest limit of re-
search, the investigator is confronted with
the limitless vista of the beyond, fain must
he confess his impotence and insignificance,
must regard himself as but a child gather-
ing the shells that lie scattered here and
there by the side of the pathless and un-
trodden sea. Then it is that, as a true
child of God, whether scientist or philoso-
pher, far from becoming discouraged, he
lifts a confident eye toward the blue expanse
above, and, with bosom heaving with hope
and faith, looks upward for the solution of
the mysterious questions that lie unsolved
before him, henceforth trusting to inspira-

84 IN THE SANCTUARY.

tion for guidance. Ever restless in mind,
he continues to ask 'Whither?' But with
heart full of reverence, and steadfast in
purpose to know, he still pursues his inves-
tigation into the mysterious realm of
nature.

" Surely, these bright constellations, fret-
ting the firmament by night, reveal to him
their common origin and common destiny.
The offspring of cometary vapor, they grow
into bright suns, the parents of solid plan-
ets whose functions are to give life to mate-
rial beings in ever-ascending series with the
sad destiny, alas ! as it seemed to him, of
being finally cast, race after race, no matter
how worthy, into the mysterious void of
eternity. This appalling duty fulfilled, the
planets themselves he knows must die and
crumble into dust.

" Our known Universe he considers to be
not unlike a gigantic panorama, rapidly dis-
played before some super-celestial spectator,
constantly unfolding new scenes of birth,
life, and death. On one scroll is repre-
sented the transformation of the mineral
and vegetable substances, of fish, fowl,
animal and man ; on another, the evolution
of nebulae, comets, stars, clusters, systems,
galaxies, suns, planets, each receiving birth,
and proceeding through youth, maturity,
and old age, to decay and death. To what
purpose is all this, he asks, with heart grow-
ing faint. Why that vast universal grave-
yard with its innumerable tombs always

IN THE SANCTUARY. 85

replenished, yet always unsated ? Vividly
conscious, however, of the glorious harmo-
nies presiding over all the workings and
manifestations of nature, and especially of
the sweet enjoyment, the perfect happi-
ness and peace bequeathed to him whose
activities are in conformity with the on-
ward and upward law, with eye uplifted,
heart pulsating, and with infinite trust,
hope, and faith, he sends forth to the myste-
rious Author of all things, whom he recog-
nizes by His works as infinitely good and
great, an ardent aspiration after knowledge
and truth. And, as aspiration begets
inspiration (for such is the law), he pres-
ently receives the supreme reward — gradual
insight into things spiritual — until finally
in him is vested the greatest of all celestial
endowments, the gift of the Holy Ghost,
bringing him nearer and nearer to Para-
brahm, to the Godhead, in his purest
essence."

Thus Gaspar spoke with voice deeply
solemn, with such accents of spiritual love,
that his hearers stood as though transfixed.
Meanwhile his body, rising gradually to the
height of the altar, had become transparent;
and from his brain proceeded golden radia-
tions of heavenly light. During his dis-
course the celestial choir continued to give
forth subdued and soul-entrancing melodies,
the vibration of which added a still more
brilliant luster to the spiritual illumination
of the Maeus.

86 IN THE SANCTUARY.

For a moment Caspar paused, as if
expecting a question from one of the breth-
ren, and with eyes turned upward seemed
longingly to await the summons to his
heavenly home. Interpreting his thoughts,
Melchior asked of him an exposition of the
doctrine of reincarnation, and whether in
his experience that doctrine — so vividly
discussed at the present day — was founded
on truth.

"Yes, reincarnation is true," he replied,
"and its law operates, first, on every human
being whose soul has not entered the state
of self-consciousness; secondly, on those
having entered that state who yield to the
powerful and ever-recurring attractions of
earth, which often control every thought
and action in the life of the individual. In
both instances man is of the earth, earthy.
His ambitions and desires center in self.
He cherishes no hopes, aspires to no higher
state of existence, but leaves earth with
regret, and fain to earth would he return.

" In such condition of life man constantly
gathers unto himself elements for a reincar-
nation, thus illustrating the saying of one
of our order, that 'man is the architect of
his own destiny.' After death he will assur-
edly enter a new body and return to earth
as soon as the odic and planetary influences
permit him so to do.

" When, however, man has acquired spir-
itual consciousness; when, with eyes up-
lifted, he sends forth heart-felt supplications

IN THE SANCTUARY. 87

to the Heavenly Father — not prayers for the
granting of some personal favor, but earnest
petitions for more spiritual light; when,
realizing the omnipotence and omnipresence
of the Almighty, he yearns for a more ex-
alted condition of existence, prays for the
deliverance from the miseries of this life,
and from the obstructions to spiritual growth
pertaining to earth, then will the soul, im-
bued with such aspirations, no longer have
to pass through the ordeal of reincarnation ;
never again will it return to flesh and blood.
Though reembodied, the body that it will
put on will be a spiritual one, and this pro-
cess of reembodiment will be repeated
through all the eons of eternity, every spir-
itual body being succeeded by a more bril-
liant one as the soul progresses through
higher stages of being, ever gaining new
experiences, acquiring greater knowledge,
increasing steadily in purity and goodness,
until, finally, it becomes worthy of alliance
with the Infinite Spirit that governs the
Universe.

"But never, even thus exalted, does the
soul become absorbed and lost in the infini-
tude of God or Parabrahm . No ; for through
a long series of earthly reincarnations and
spiritual reembodimeiits, having mastered
all the sciences, material and occult, and
acquired infinite experiences through spirit-
ual divine illumination, it has of itself ap-
proached to omniscience. Through its own
long- fought battles against the lower forces

88 IN THE SANCTUARY.

over which it has gained a supreme victory,
the soul has unfolded the ' Divine Will,'
which, together with the nearly-acquired
omniscience, endows it with qualities bor-
dering on omnipotence. And now the soul,
being thus found worthy, is received into
the bosom of the Supreme Ruler of all
things, and assuredly it does not there lose
its individual consciousness, but becomes
possessed in its own domain, in its own indi-
vidual right, of omniscience and omnipo-
tence. Thus deified by means of its own
struggles, its own hard-won victories, it is
not robbed by the ever just God of its right-
ful possessions ; but, being one with Him
in all that is, is joined with Him, dwells
in Him, and enjoys with Him forevermore
the prerogatives and attributes possessed
by Divinity itself. Such is the reward
of a soul exalted into a purely spiritual
condition.

" I am aware, however," continued Gas-
par, after a moment passed in profound
meditation, "that reincarnation, rebirth in
the flesh upon this earth, is believed in
India, as my brother Melchior well knows,
to take place innumerable times in the life
of man, whether debased or highly spiritual-
ized ; and, indeed, the majorit}^ of the people
there, living, as they do, on a low or animal
plane, are subjected many times to this
process ; but the true disciple of Buddha,
although believing in reincarnation — a
belief transmitted to them by religious dog-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 89

mas, the origin of which is lost in the night
of time — discover, when translated through
death, that the incumbrance of a new earthly
body would only retard their evolution, and,
rather than return to earth, prefer to work
out in the realm of spirit their spiritual
development.

"And now, my beloved brethren and
worthy successor, I am about to leave you.
Be steadfast in your duty ; falter not. In
the coming events which will prove so
momentous in the history of this planet,
you must play a most important part.
Your responsibility is great, but your
powers are greater. You are the spiritual
guides, the generals in command, of the
great army of God, and your first endeavors
must be directed toward the ministers and
leaders of the religious creeds. They must
be counseled and directed to establish har-
mony among themselves, and then to
focalize their combined strength for the
relief of the distressed and disinherited
classes of humanity. By so doing, these
classes, which constitute the basis of all
revolutions, recognizing as their best and
truest friends the ministers of religion, will
follow them as disciples, and with them, in
the holy name of God, demand their social
recognition, their social rights ; and God
will lead these people, as in olden days he
led the children of Israel, unto victory.

u I must add, however," continued Gas-
par, with all the solemnity of which his

QO IN THE SANCTUARY.

failing voice was capable, " that when this
universal revolution shall take place, the
religious creeds will be accorded their final
opportunity. If among themselves they do
not join hands, and, with united effort, aid
the people in their just endeavors for eman-
cipation, the divers religions, as now pro-
fessed, will be swept from the face of the
earth as worthless institutions, useless alike
to God and man. In such an event, the
demon of materialism will enjoy a long and
uninterrupted reign. This is one of the
greatest calamities that could befall the
nations of earth, and to you, more than all
others, belongs the power to prevent it.

"And now, farewell, my brethren, and
may the blessing of the Heavenly Father
attend you ; may His peace be with you ;
may you be inspired with all knowledge
and wisdom to direct His children into
the path that leads into life everlast-
ing, even as you have yourselves been
directed. Once more, farewell, until we meet
in the realm of eternal bliss, never again to
be parted. My spirit goes unto Him that
gave it."

While pronouncing this solemn benedic-
tion, the form of Caspar gradually arose
above the altar, his hands uplifted in
prayer, and his eyes radiant with the
rapture of unspeakable joy. Around him
hovered the angelic choir, with outstretched
wings moving in unison with their celestial
harmony, their melody as that of the sera-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 91

phim. Slowly his form ascended until,
high in the expanse of the firmament, lus-
trous as a shining star, it disappeared in a
golden cloud of dazzling glory.

Thus passed from earth the Magus,
translated to the kingdom of his Heavenly
Father, as one whose purity of soul, un-
blemished by worldly pollution, had fitted
him to stand in the very presence of the
Eternal.

Silently and with dejected mien, Bal-
thazar and Melchior withdrew from the
sacred precincts of the temple, where, pros-
trate on the steps of the altar, Angelo long
remained unconscious, save of the roll of
thunder and the hiss of serpents that
betokened the departure of the Egyptian
and Hindoo Magi.

Already the shroud of night enfolded the
temple when Angelo regained his conscious-
ness, and no light was there except for the
subdued flames of the sacred fire and the
radiance emitted from the shrine. Fixing
his gaze on the altar, he presently realized
the solemn scenes that had transpired but
a few hours ago, though this interval
appeared to him almost as the space of a
lifetime. Still in his hands were the scrolls
of papyrus presented by him who, though
no longer of earth, had known not death.
The door of the shrine was yet open, and
there in a golden box, near the conse-
crated oil and the emblems of the office of
Magus, he deposited the sacred documents.

92 IN THE SANCTUARY.

This done, he knelt in prayer, and on rising
to his feet, perceived standing beside him
the attendant Ralph, who said, as he made
a low obeisance:

" When the most Worshipful Master
shall wish to divest himself of the vest-
ments of his office, I will lead him to the
sacred cabinet."

UI will follow you at once," answered
Angelo.

Guided by the novitiate, the Archbishop
passed into a room in the rear of the taber-
nacle, whence, by pressing a hidden spring,
a door was opened leading into a small
chamber divided by a wooden partition from
the Sanctuary. There Angelo divested
himself of his robes, carefully placing his
golden crown in a casket of sweet-scented
wood fashioned for the purpose. Here also
were the garments which he had left in his
apartments, and after donning his usual
attire he rejoined the attendant who, hand-
ing to him a large sealed envelope, said :

" My Master, before leaving us, gave this
to me, instructing me to deliver it to you at
the fitting moment."

On breaking the seal, Angelo drew forth
a document somewhat in the form of a will,
wherein was bequeathed to him the mansion
in which the Sanctuary was located, to be
kept in trust for the order and transmitted
to his successor. It was also requested that
he should adopt the novitiate Ralph, who
was the scion of one of the Masters, and well

IN THE SANCTUARY. 93

worthy of his noble origin. To him the
Archbishop at once extended his hand, which
Ralph, on bended knee, pressed to his lips
with sincere emotion. The newly-made
Magus now retired to his apartments and
passed a night replete with rest.

s ['

94 - *N THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER V.

No sooner had the Archbishop returned
to Liege, and to the duties of his episcopate,
than he received a letter from the Cardinal -
Secretary of the Pope, enjoining him to
repair to Rome without delay. A week
later found him in the Vatican, where
apartments were assigned him adjoining
the library. Here, in dejected mood — for
well he knew that the citation had been
issued in no friendly spirit — he awaited the
summons of His Holiness.

A generation had passed away since
Angelo, renouncing the world with its hol-
low mockeries, its gaudy pageantries, its
sensual depravity, had first set foot within
the walls of Rome. And now once more he
gazed on the Eternal City, where yet lower
depths of debasement mingled with the fast-
waning grandeur of the papacy.

As Angelo's train of thought drifted more
and more into philosophic fields, he reflected
that the infancy of civilizations, like that of
individuals, is followed by youth with its pas-
sions and selfishness, by manhood with its
development of intellect, its scientific and
philosophic research, and finally by old age,
when fruition takes place, and life is given
to riper thought and spirituality. He recog-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 95

nized that Rome had passed through all
these stages. The barbaric splendor of its
youth had been replaced by an era of science,
art, and philosophy, inquiring critically into
all sources of human knowledge, and soon,
like every other civilized community, must
enter on the period of fruition, on an era of
spiritual enlightenment. True spiritualiza-
tion, he was now convinced, could never
originate in the Roman Catholic church as
it exists to-day; this church must first
undergo a radical change; in a word, the
Catholic church must no longer be Roman,
but become, as it were, a federation, each
country possessing its own responsible
head. Thus would the fundamental arti-
cles of belief be gradually harmonized with
science, and become its handmaiden in the
service of God.

While thus absorbed, Angelo was in-
formed that His Holiness awaited him, and
a moment later he was ushered into the
presence of the Sovereign Pontiff. After
the customary greetings, the Pope thus
addressed the Archbishop, whom, for an
instant, he regarded with stern and inquis-
itive gaze.

" It has been reported to the Vatican that,
while in India, you have joined the Hima-
layan Brotherhood, have been invested by
them with the robes and the insignia of the
three degrees of their order. Is this true,
Archbishop Angelo?"

"It is, your Holiness."

96 IN THE SANCTUARY.

"It has also been reported that you have
recently assumed the robes and insignia of
a mystic order in England, and that they
have been placed upon you by a Protestant."

" It is most true that I have been invested
with the insignia of a sacred office in Eng-
land, but he who bestowed them upon me is
far above the professions and dogmas of sect
or creed."

" Far above the professions of creed; of
the Catholic, also, I presume you would
say ? "

" Yes, your Holiness," answered Angelo,
firmly, but respectfully.

"Very well, sir," exclaimed the Pope,
barely able to repress an outburst of anger,
"hand over to me the insignia of your office
as Archbishop."

Slowly and with dignity Angel o divested
himself of the pallium and handed it to the
Supreme Pontiff, who thus dismissed him
from his presence :

" You are a Prince of the royal blood of
France, and for that reason only I give you
a last chance to renounce the evils of your
way. Retire to the library, and there read
the lives of Saint Augustine and Saint
Thomas Aquinas. To-niorrow we will de-
cide upon your fate."

Conducted to the library by an attendant,
the Magus — Archbishop no longer — for
many hours gave way to profound and sor-
rowful meditation on the event which had
just transpired. With a soul intensely de-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 97

votional, he suffered unutterable agony at
the thought of being thus deprived of his
sacred functions, soon, perhaps, to be pro-
nounced anathema, and expelled from that
church which had bestowed on him one of
the highest dignities within its gift, which
had placed him on the upward path to a
consecrated and spiritual life. He realized,
however, that the course he had followed
was the right one, and approved in its en-
tirety by his conscience and inner sense of
right.

" Come what may," he said to himself,
"I must follow the dictates of my own
convictions."

Turning his eyes toward the immense
shelves of the library, heavily laden with
innumerable tomes, and to the many glass
cases filled with ancient documents, he thus
soliloquized :

" These rooms are the custodians of the
oldest historical records of all those peoples
on earth in whose countries a missionary
has chanced to set foot. All the learning of
the world is herein contained. On these
shelves and in these cases can be found, as
nowhere else, the true records of the evolu-
tion of the brain of man, religious and intel-
lectual ; its growth and decline, through
the beautiful period of nascent Christianity,
the horrible years of the Spanish inquisi-
tion, and later of the profound diplomatic
achievements of the Popes in succession.
In some obscure recess are also hidden the

98 IN THE SANCTUARY.

only authentic papyri that record in writing
the most secret and sacred occult knowledge
professed by the Egyptian High Priests of
old and the Hierophants of our order.
These papyri have now become useless to
the Popes of Rome, and ought, it seems to
me, to be restored to our order."

At this moment the clock struck the
hour of midnight, and, as its note died
away, the library became illumined with
that golden light, the radiance of which he
knew so well. Turning to discover whence
it came, he saw, to his utter astonishment,
a large glass case filled with ponderous
tomes move slowly away from the wall at
the touch of some mysterious power, dis-
closing a niche containing rolls of ancient
papyri. Angelo was possessed with an
uncontrollable impulse to learn the secrets
of these venerable documents, and took them
from the case with the intention of replac-
ing them after a cursory examination of
their contents. Turning round to resume
his seat, he was rooted to the spot on which
he stood, at seeing before him, in an open
door, His Holiness the Pope, watching him
with eyes aflame with anger.

"Now," said the Pontiff, "have I beheld
with my own eyes the finger of Satan work-
ing through the infernal agency of thy
demoniacal powers. In order to further
thy accursed arts, thou didst intend to steal
these papyri which were handed to me by
my predecessors, and to them by one of the

IN THE SANCTUARY. 99

magicians of Egypt. I had come to hold
friendly converse with thee, hoping that I
might induce thee to renounce thy evil
ways. Leave this palace forthwith ; return
home and rejoin thy Himalayan jugglers
and thy Protestant occultists. Go, and
may the curse "

With hands extended toward Angelo, who
stood as one transfixed, the Pope was about
to pronounce him anathema, when sud-
denly a blinding flash of lightning filled
the room, and a terrific crash of thunder
shook the building from roof to foundation.
Then appeared before them a being of radi-
ant brightness, whom Angelo instantly rec-
ognized as Balthazar, the Magus of Egypt.
With one stroke of his hand Balthazar
lowered the arms of the Pope, whom, sternly
regarding, he thus accosted:

" Thou who art styled the Holy Father,
recall thy curse ; it is unworthy of thee ;
for blessing alone should thy hands be ex-
tended, even as were those of Him whose
steps thou dost pretend to follow. I am
Balthazar, the Egyptian Magus, successor
to him who intrusted these papyri to a dis-
tant predecessor of thine, a holy and most
worthy Pontiff. The documents are sacred,
and destined to enhance the spiritual evo-
lution of man, containing instructions for
the head of the Church of God upon earth,
how best to aid this process of evolution.
From many of these instructions the
Romish church has departed, and hence to

100 IN THE SANCTUARY.

that church they have become useless. My
brother, here present, is Caspar, the recently
appointed Magus of Europe; he is chosen
of God, and has been lawfully anointed.
To him these documents henceforth belong,
and to him shalt thou make obeisance."

Balthazar spoke with all the dignity of a
monarch, and, as his words were ended, the
Supreme Pontiff, utterly bewildered, bowed
low before the Magus — Angelo, with tears in
his eyes, returning the salutation. Pale as
death, and with faltering steps, the Pope
returned to his apartments. Thereupon,
with an affectionate greeting to Angelo—
now Caspar — Balthazar disappeared, and on
the following day the former set forth for
Liege, bearing with him the sacred papyri.

A few weeks after this occurrence, the
Archi-episcopal palace of Liege was closed.
The Prince-Archbishop Angelo, now Magus
Caspar, had mysteriously disappeared there-
from, and a new Archbishop had been
appointed by Rome. The newly elected
Prelate informed all questioners that his
predecessor, Angelo, had been sent by the
Holy See on a secret mission across the
seas, whither nobody knew but the Pope
himself, he added, mysteriously. By this
frank avowal all inquiries stopped, and
wonderment ceased. The fact is, how-
ever, that His Holiness was entirely igno-
rant of the whereabouts of the Archbishop ;
indeed, was well contented at his departure,
and secretly hoped with much confidence

IN THE SANCTUARY. IOI

that he would never appear again in the
Catholic world, and that the dramatic scene
which took place in the Vatican library
would thus forever remain unrevealed.

102 IN THK SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER VI.

YEARS, many in number, have elapsed
since the scene in the Vatican library oc-
curred. We find Archbishop Angelo, or
Magus Caspar, installed in a sumptuous
apartment situated in the most fashionable
thoroughfare of one of the large cities near
the Atlantic coast in North America. Very
old, indeed, does he appear at this time, but
no signs of decrepitude could be detected in
his features, the brightness of his eyes tes-
tifying to the unimpaired vigor of his intel-
lect. His was a venerable face, every line
denoting supreme goodness and spirituality.
His broad forehead, framed with silvery
locks, indicated a gigantic intellect, and the
entire physiognomy, overspread with that
sweet, calm, loving expression, was emi-
nently characteristic of the noble child of
Parabrahm.

He was examining with deep interest a
large roll of paper of strange form and
appearance, seemingly yellowed by age, the
leaves being covered with unknown writing,
the characters of which appeared like those
of hieroglyphics.

"For years," mused the Magus, "have I
been occupied in deciphering this extraor-
dinary document, kept so long and so unprof-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 103

itably in the library of the Roman Vatican,
and so carefully concealed in that hidden
niche. At last I have discovered the key
to its translation and mastered the secret of
its contents, learning the great import to
the world, alike to the scientist and to the
earnest student of religion.

"And now must I find a successor to
whom to transmit these papyri, and explain
their contents. A highly intellectual and
scientific man must he be, and of a thor-
oughly spiritual nature. In preparation
for my search I have fasted and prayed.
To-morrow at high noon I set out on the
spiritual journey. May Parabrahm grant
me guidance."

The next day at twelve, Caspar retired
to the inner chamber of his apartments,
giving orders that no one should be admit-
ted. After fervent supplication to Para-
brahm, that he might be successful in this
most important mission of his life — the find-
ing of a man worthy of occupying, after due
preparation, the sacred office of Magus — he
slowly clad himself in the vestments and
insignia of his holy office. He devotedly
kissed the talisman, and, having blessed the
golden crown before placing it upon his
head, he seated himself in a chair, and,
leaning back with arms crossed upon his
breast, he closed his eyelids and in low tones
uttered a mystic invocation.

By degrees, the small chamber became
filled with golden radiance, ever gaining in

104 IN TH^ SANCTUARY.

brightness until a dazzling brilliancy ren-
dered the body of the Magus invisible, and
in its place appeared the likeness of a great
star.

Not in his natural body, however, did he
travel, nor yet in his astral form ; it was
consciousness, far-reaching spirit-conscious-
ness, one of the transcendental attributes
pertaining to the sacred functions of Magus,
that enabled him to conduct his search.
This consciousness, ascending to the high-
est radiation of the spirit zone belonging to
earth, permitted him to observe and exam-
ine with close attention the vibratory waves
sent up from humanity below, caiiscd by
prayer, aspiration, spiritual endeavors of
whatever nature, and urgent appeals to the
Divinity. Many of these currents of vibra-
tion, rising to different altitudes in the zone,
did he carefully regard, and of one he took
especial cognizance, its appearance being ex-
ceptionally striking. To his supernatural
sight, undimmed by the clouds of materiality,
it presented a shaft of intense golden light,
interspersed with turquoise-colored radia-
tions, reaching high into the spirit zone, and
exceeding in dimensions that of any other
ray. Following this ray of gold and blue,
which denoted a high degree of spirituality -
and intellect, Caspar found it to proceed
from a group of three men, wearing appar-
ently the clerical garb, assembled in the
library of a plain but substantially built
house situated in a large metropolis of the

IN THE SANCTUARY. 105

Atlantic coast of America. With the deep-
est interest the Magus examined the physi-
cal and physiognomical qualities of these
personages.

Each was a noble type of manhood; tall,
handsome, and of imposing presence, of
aspect proud, intellectual, and self-contained,
and with countenance overspread with, or
rather illumined by, the tinge of mysticism
which results from deep and prolonged spir-
itual meditation. All three were regularly
ordained priests of the Roman Catholic
church, American born, and American in
sympathy. One was a Jesuit; the second
was the rector of a prominent New York
parish, and the third, a member of a religious
order of high repute.

The Jesuit was in the act of offering a
fervent prayer to the Infinite Father, asking
for divine guidance, inspiration, and wisdom,
in the deliberations about to be held. His
supplication ended, he thus addressed his
confreres :

"We have here assembled, my brethren,
in the interest, as we believe, of true religion,
of a religion acceptable to humanity at large,
and aiming to open a true path to the king-
dom of God, as well as to promote the
worldly welfare of his creature, man. The
day has come when man can no longer
intrust the salvation of his soul to another's
ipse dixit, be he priest, minister, or even
Pope. Faith, although an indispensable
basis of salvation, being now a-da}^s often

106 IN THE SANCTUARY.

perverted into blind trust, has ceased to
be its only basis. Knowledge longs for
recognition, and understanding clamors for
a hearing. The American people demand
a religion that appeals to the intellect as
well as to the heart; one that shall recog-
nize the legitimate claims of science and
philosophy, and welcome these as worthy
helpmates in the work of man's salvation,
terrestrial as well as celestial. If the des-
tiny of man be to develop from the animal
up to the Godhead, through a series of evo-
lutionary transformations, true religion is
the way and the means to effect such a
growth. Man's consciousness of his rela-
tionship to the Supreme Being begets faith.
Philosophy, or intellectual inquiry into the
conditions of such relationship, develops
understanding, and science, opening its rich
storehouses replete with proofs of the gran-
deur, beauty, and harmony of the Universe,
transforms such understanding into positive
knowledge.

" Man, being born in ignorance, can arrive
at the true knowledge of his destiny and the
duties pertaining to its fulfillment, only
through a gradual apprehension of the laws
and destiny of the Universe of which he is
a part, and in which he moves and has his
being. Science alone is able to reveal to
him those laws, and philosophy, giving
homogeneity to established facts, proclaims
the harmony and wisdom that preside over
the force governing God's entire Universe.

IN THE SANCTUARY.

How, then, can science be fairly considered
as antagonistic to true religion? n

Here the Jesuit father's face betrayed
the emotion of his soul.

" Many passing years, " he continued,
u have witnessed my earnest labors in the
scientific laboratory of our college ; by day
studying the physical sciences which ex-
plain the harmony and relation existing
between the natural forces of the Uni-
verse of matter, the analysis of matter
and the evolutionary laws indicating its
destiny; by night, with eye at the telescope,
I have never wearied of scanning the heav-
ens, or of communing with their brilliant
hosts, those creations of the Infinite whose
destiny, even as our own, is forever upward.
Oh, my brethren, the comprehension of the
sublime synthesis of our Universe was
forced upon me as by a ray of inspiration,
the origin of which could not be otherwise
than divine, and which showed, to my
mind, that the destiny of all things is
upward, through ever ascending transfor-
mations until, purified and resplendent,
they return to the bosom of the Heavenly
Father."

A vivid glow had now overspread the
countenance of the priest, who, after a
moment's pause, resumed :

"Yes, science proves that our planet
Earth had its origin eons ago, and that
man, even man, has existed upon it for
more than six hundred centuries; aye I

T08 IN THE SANCTUARY.

strong indications going to show that he
may have been in existence half a million
vears ago. And yet these discoveries of
science, these facts which it has demon-
strated to be true, are in direct opposition
to the doctrines promulgated by Rome, and
imposed upon us as articles of belief \vhose
verity must not for a moment be questioned.
For many years this antagonism has
brought sadness to my soul, a sadness
almost beyond endurance. That the ago-
nies of my conscience might be stilled,
prayer after prayer did I send up to heaven,
beseeching the Infinite Father to harmonize
the discoveries of science with the dogmas
of Rome ; but without avail.

" At length came an answer. It was in
the stillness of a summer night, in the hours
when silence has a voice that is heard by
the soul. With eye directed through my
telescope, trying as ever to pierce the star-
depths in their immeasurable distances, I
sat musing over the splendors of the firma-
ment. Suns, stars, planets, comets, star-
clusters, galaxies, and nebulae, the whole
brilliant panorama of the heavens moving
in endless procession, was unrolled before
me, and my heart, enraptured with the
beauty and grandeur of God's handiwork,
ascended to him in profoundest adoration.
With head bowed low I offered up this sup-
plication from the inmost depths of my
being : * My Heavenly Father, may it
please Thee to enlighten my understanding

IN THE SANCTUARY. 109

and let me know if this ceaseless universal
motion of the celestial bodies, this ever-
changing and constant journeying onward
of all things that exist, is the mysterious
journey of the Universe on its return to
Thee?' And a voice, distinctly audible,
responded :

u ' Yes, my beloved son. Inspiration has
revealed to thee the truth, and may thou
abide by the voice that speaketh within
thee.'

"Then and there, my brethren, did I lay
out the path which I now follow, and still
propose to follow. If science is right and
Rome is wrong, and if my conscience em-
phatically so dictates to my consciousness ;
if, furthermore, it continues so to do after
prayer, fasting, and penance, then will I
follow its admonitions, whatever may be the
consequences. I am, moreover, a free born
American, free to think and to speak that
which I believe to be the truth, and fealty
to myself and to my highest realization of
truth is my first and most sacred duty.
Free, also, I purpose to be in all my actions,
no less than in thought and speech."

The latter part of the Jesuit father's
address was uttered with deep solemnity,
his accents betraying the magnitude of the
struggle through which his soul had passed.
While listening to him, the features of his
associates betrayed emotions no less pro-
found. His ardent love of science, and of
the momentous truths which science re-

110 IN THE SANCTUARY.

veals ; his enthusiasm at the discovery of
the laws which control the Universe; his
realization of the harmony and unvarying
consistency of these laws, and especially
of the sublime law of evolution, constantly
impelling upward everything that is — all
these feelings, filling his soul with a mael-
strom of emotion, shed their influence over
them, and stamped on their souls the con-
victions which had grown upon and absorbed
his own.

A period of silence followed, during which
all three seemed absorbed in deep and sol-
emn thought.

Presently the parish priest and the friar
said, almost in the same breath :

"The noble father is right. May his
soul be true to the light it receives from
God ; may his life be in accord with his be-
lief, understanding, and knowledge, regard-
less of all the strictures of church or society.
God is higher than man ; God is higher than
the Pope of Rome." These latter words
were uttered with firmness, yet not without
a feeling of awe.

Upon hearing this emphatic expression
of approval, the face of the Jesuit father be-
came for a moment illumined. Directing
heavenward his eyes, beaming with a spirit-
ual expression, he exclaimed :

" Blessed be the Lord of eternal truth,
and blessed be you, my brethren."

Thus saying he arose, and, taking in his
hands those of his companions, continued :

IN THE SANCTUARY. Ill

" Henceforth may I hope not to tread
alone the rugged path of the spiritual life
as exemplified by fealty to true religious
conviction and to the noblest attributes of
manhood."

The member of the religious society now
spoke. Tall and well proportioned, though
somewhat slight in figure, he displayed in
his features the true American type. His
long, pale face was surmounted by a lofty
and massive forehead, beneath which large,
soft brown eyes shone with lustrous self-
inspective gaze derived from the inward
concentration of thought during long years
of meditation on spiritual things. He was,
in truth, a striking personage, the very
image of the ancient mystic, with face
changeless as that of a statue, yet one which
a beautiful idea would suddenly illumine
with an expression almost divine.

u During my long career as priest and
confessor of various religious orders," he
said, "I have met with experiences at once
depressing and consoling. While it is true
that in some instances the causes which
move some persons to enter our cloisters
are merely the incapacity or disinclination
to battle with the world, and that others of
nervous, impressionable temperaments have
been influenced only by a momentary exal-
tation of their religious feelings ; yet, in the
majority of cases, those who have been ad-
mitted into our austere religious fraternities
have joined their respective societies with a

112 IN THE SANCTUARY.

real, decided, and well considered purpose
of working out therein — as being the only
places in which they deemed it possible to
do so — their highest conceivable ideal of
existence, devoting their entire life, their
every thought and act, to the service of the
Heavenly Father. Of this class, many de-
velop into the real children of God, true
mystics or illuminati.

" In our order, and, I may truly say, in
all the orders of the Roman Catholic church,
the life of its members is that of an ascetic.
Absolute chastity, obedience to the rules of
a stringent discipline which has for its object
the control and repression of the senses,
constant prayer, interrupted only by periods
of deep meditation on things divine, cannot
fail, in those rightly disposed, to bring forth
spiritual insight or true apprehension of
things eternal. But, alas ! " (and here the
speaker's countenance was overspread with a
tinge of sadness) "there are many whose
lives are being made a continual sacrifice,
who are being sinned against in a most un-
pardonable fashion, whose reason even is
endangered, and, what is even worse, whose
soul-growth is constantly being repressed.
A sad instance of this has lately occurred
in our cloister. A brother, and a most de-
vout one, fell, at intervals and for days at a
time, into a state of abstraction, during which
he would neither eat nor drink nor sleep,
but steadily remained in kneeling posture,
with clasped hands and upturned eyes, be-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 113

fore his prayer-desk, and wearing such an
expression of facial transfiguration, that
tears of joy, not unmixed with anxiety,
would flow from the eyes of all who beheld
him.

u During these periods of ecstatic rapture
he often spoke as if he were a visitant from
regions far above earth. He professed to
have witnessed, for instance, the formation
of worlds, their origin, growth, decadence,
and death. His discourses were eloquent
and lofty, and he gave utterance to truths
so divine that gradually the brethren began
to look upon him as a superior being, a
favored son of the Almighty, one intrusted
with the mission of infusing a new spiritual
life into the order, and, eventually, of be-
coming its Superior, to guide it into spiritual
destinies far beyond human conception.

"One night, about a year ago — it was
Good Friday, as I well remember — this
sainted brother, while pondering over the
life of our Saviour, slowly entered, as it
seemed, a state of physical unconsciousness,
and commenced to discourse upon the life
of Christ, setting forth in solemn and
musical tones the mystic doctrine of renun-
ciation, or the subjugation of the outer self
for the benefit of the real, or inner self; a
renunciation of all that is temporal, in order
to foster that which pertains to the life
eternal. He depicted in glowing terms the
ideal life of the true man — his abnegation,
his spiritual endeavors, his constant striv-

114 IN THE SANCTUARY.

ing for upward growth, and his gradual
approach to that state of supreme conscious-
ness where man becomes more than man,
becomes almost one with God; when, hav-
ing completely mastered self, he may lead
a life sublime in its perfect purity and sanc-
tification. For him thereafter earth no
longer possesses attractions; the allure-
ments of the senses are disregarded, and,
free and unfettered, he may ascend, as
in a halo of glory, direct to the throne
of God.

u When the brother had thus described
the phases of the most spiritual life attain-
able on earth, he entered upon a theme
whose grandeur and sublimity were almost
beyond the ken of human comprehension.
He spoke of the Universe, its beauty, its
forces, and their co-ordination and co-rela-
tion; of suns and sun-clusters, of stars and
star-clusters, and of all the heavenly bodies,
discoursing at length on the purpose of their
creation, and the final destiny of each and
all. Finally he dwelt on evolution, much
in the same strain as did our brother a
moment ago, explaining the ever upward
course of all things in existence, describing
the birth of our own planet millions of years
in the past, and elucidating the different
stages through which it canie to be the hab-
itation of man.

" His discourse, forcible and majestic in
tone, was such as if truth personified were
giving utterance to his words. It proclaimed

IN THE SANCTUARY. 115

a system of cosmogony most rational, and
yet most sublime; one which the soul of
those present absorbed as the plant of the
desert absorbs the drops of dew deposited
upon its parched and thirsting leaves.

" At its conclusion, all of us realized that
we were the better for having heard it, and
felt that we had received, as it were, a new
baptism. We did not, however, retire that
night without a shade of anxiety in our
hearts, for well we knew that many things
spoken by the brother were in direct conflict
with the theory of creation and the system
of cosmogony set forth and dictated by the
Romish church. Nevertheless, we knew,
as by intuition, that from the brother's lips
had come the truth.

" As we expected, rumors were presently
carried to Rome of the inspired utterances
of our brother, and in due time the Secre-
tary of the Holy See asked for precise in-
formation as to the doctrines and theories
advanced by him, especially in his later
discourse. In answer, a detailed statement
was forwarded, and recently an order was
received from Rome for the incarceration
of the gifted brother until he should be will-
ing to make a full retractation of every prin-
ciple he had at any time promulgated, by
tongue or pen, in opposition to the tenets
of the church of Rome.

" Our brother was accused of being pos-
sessed by the demon of personal ambition,
was stigmatized as a heretic, and threatened

Il6 IN THE SANCTUARY.

with the thunders of the church should he
fail to recant.

" Prayers were ordered with Masses for the
salvation of his soul, to be continued for the
space of nine days; after which the Supe-
rior, or Abbot, was directed to bring him
before the members of the cloisters in full
assembly, there to bid him retract the here-
sies he had proclaimed and profess sincere
repentance. The papal dispatch also inti-
mated that the accused might prove to be
insane, in which case it would be advisable
to remove him to some cloister in Italy,
where he might be cared for until reason
should be restored.

uln presence of the assembled friars
the orders from Rome were communicated
to our brother, on whom the blow fell un-
awares and with a shock that laid him pros-
trate on the floor. Soon, however, he
rallied, and casting to heaven a look of
divine serenity, answered gently, but with
firmness :

" 'Do with your servant as seemeth best;
neither have I spoken nor written aui^ht but
the truth, as vouchsafed unto me by the
Infinite Father of truth.'

" Thereupon, in obedience to the instruc-
tions of the Papal See, he was led to the
prison of the cloister.

" For nine days Masses were celebrated
and prayers offered in behalf of our brother.
But no prayer, I can assure you, passed our
lips that was not breathed in entire sympa-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 1 17

tliy with him. We besought the In Unite
Father to strengthen him in this his hour
of trial, to make him steadfast in his allegi-
ance to tlie truth, to grant him wisdom and
understanding to discern the truth, and to
give it utterance, whatsoever he might find
it to be. As the time assigned for his re-
cantation approached, every heart in the
cloister beat taster, and, though none of the
brethren spoke a word, the anxious look on
every face betokened the sentiments that
filled their souls.

"At early morn on the appointed day the
Abbot commanded that all the friars should
assemble in the church. After prayer the
accused was brought forth, and, being con-
ducted to the middle aisle, was ordered to
kneel upon a \\ooden bench. All eyes were
turned upon him, and few more piteous
sights have been beheld by human eyes
since our Saviour's death on the cross.
Hrect, but with a deathlike, pallor, his gaze
turned heavenward, and with an expression
infinitely divine, our beloved brother ap-
peared as one spiritualized even unto the
portals of heaven. Arrayed in the long
white robes of our order, and with the radi-
ance of heavenly hope shining through the
agony of his soul, he seemed the image of
the Saviour when in the hour of his passion
he was forsaken by those whom he loved.

"All eyes were moist when the Abbot,
assisted by his priests, intoned the first notes
of liili Mass. His voice, which at first was

Il8 IN THE SANCTUARY.

clear and distinct, became, by degrees, un-
steady, and toward the middle of the cere-
mony, while chanting the opening lines of
the ^Dominus VobiscumJ as he beheld the
supreme expression of glory and grace
which illumined the countenance of the
persecuted brother, he broke down utterly
and continued the service in low and falter-
ing tones.

"And now, after the consecration of the
host, the Abbot had to put the fatal ques-
tion formulated by Rome : ' Do you retract
the words spoken by you, at any and at all
times, that are in conflict with the sacred
doctrines and articles of faith as promul-
gated by the Holy Father, the Pope of
Rome; and do you make repentance? ' If
the accused should make a full and com-
plete retractation, with true and unfeigned
repentance, then the holy communion would
be administered to him. Should he refuse
to recant, he must be reconducted to prison,
awaiting the final disposition of the Pope,
and this, we all knew, would result in
his transfer to some Italian convent, and
there— — ?

u Holding the sacred host above the chal-
ice, the Abbot descended the altar steps,
slowly and with unsteady gait. Approach-
ing the accused, who was absorbed in fervent
prayer, with eyes cast heavenward, and
his features still wearing an expression
of divine serenity and hope, he held be-
fore him the consecrated wafer, and thus,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 1 19

in tremulous accents, delivered the Papal
inj unction :

" 'Brother Albertus, it is the order of the
Holy Father, the Pope of Rome, Vicar-Apos-
tolic of our Lord Jesus Christ upon earth,
that you retract each and all of the words
ever spoken by you in opposition to the
dogmas and articles of belief as promulgated
by the Catholic Church of Rome, and espe-
cially those in opposition to the doctrines
relating to the creation of the world.'

"Here again the voice of the venerable
Abbot broke down, but, recovering his firm-
ness with a strong effort, he continued : ( My
brother, dost thou make retractation, and
dost thou in thy soul repent of the sins that
are laid to thy charge ? '

"Directing his eyes toward his Superior,
who still held before him the sacred host,
our brother observed that the Abbot could
scarce refrain from tears. Rising to a stand-
ing posture, he looked him steadily in the
face, but with a gaze as loving and heaven-
like as a Raphael or a Cellini might impress
upon the features of an archangel. Then
slowly lifting his hands, he extended them
toward the Abbot, as if to bestow on him
a blessing.

"At this moment a halo of light encircled
the head of our brother, whose features
were glorified as with the radiance of a celes-
tial being. Overpowered by emotion, the
venerable Abbot sank upon his knees, still
upholding the proffered host. Then spake

120 IN THE SANCTUARY.

Alberttis in slow and solemn tones, his
emaciated hands extended in benediction
above the head of his Superior : ' Nothing
have I to retract, nor alight to repent; this
only can I say, my beloved and revered
Superior; may the Holy Spirit of the Infi-
nite Creator abide with thee, even as it now
abides with thy servant.'

"'Amen,' responded in unison the assem-
bled brethren, and, as it seemed, sponta-
neously.

"On bended knee the Abbot accepted the
benediction, and slowly rising as Brother
Albertus again bowed before him, adminis-
tered the holy communion. Then, with
head erect, as one who had performed an act
of Godlike justice, he returned to the altar
and proceeded with the Mass, which he
chanted in tones that betokened the exulta-
tion of his soul.

"The service ended, all the brethren sur-
rounded Albertus and besought of him his
blessing — all save one, an Italian friar
named Sebastianus, a recent arrival from
Rome, and newly admitted to our cloister.

"And now for the conclusion. Only a
few days ago this Italian friar received from
Rome a package bearing the seal of the
Papal See; and yesterday the venerable
Abbot, having summoned the brethren in
assembly, read to us from a dispatch which
he held to view before us an order dismiss-
ing him from office, and commanding him
to proceed at once to Rome, accompanied

IN THE SANCTUARY. 121

by Albertus, Sebastianus being appointed
his successor.

" The reading of this Papal mandate fell
upon us like a thunder- stroke, and we all
stood for a moment paralyzed. Then, with
a sudden impulse, we gathered around our
beloved Abbot and brother Albertus, on
whom we lavished every token of heart- felt
sympathy and affection. Turning our eyes
to the Italian spy, who shrank for a moment
from our angry gaze, each asked the other
what should be done. A decision was
quickly reached. Burning with indigna-
tion, we entreated the Abbot to remain with
us as our Superior, promising to address an
earnest and solemn protest to the Pope with
the object of inducing him to reconsider his
decision. Thereupon the Italian friar, who
had somewhat regained his composure,
approached the Abbot, and with a thin and
quivering voice requested to know whether
the Abbot intended to obey the order of
the Holy Father.

"All eyes were turned on the Superior,
whose features were deadly pale, and in
breathless silence we awaited his reply.
For a moment he hesitated, and then, with
tears streaming from his eyes, in choked
and faltering accents, interrupted by sobs
which our hearts could not suppress, he
said :

" 'I will obey the mandate of His Holi-
ness, for so I must. Were it for your sake
alone, my American brethren, I would wil-

122 IT THE SANCTUARY.

lingly render obedience in order to spare
you the enmity of Rome and the conse-
quences that would attend it. Let the good
wishes and prayers of all rest with our
sainted brother Albertus, whose danger is
most imminent.'

u i We will keep him with us and protect
him against any one who would do him
harm,' exclaimed in unison the American
brethren.

u 'Will our beloved Abbot hand me the
key of the cloister and the seal of his office ? '
asked the Italian, advancing a few steps
toward the Abbot.

" Without a single word, but with a look
of ineffable scorn and contempt, our worthy
Superior — Superior no longer — handed to
his successor the insignia of his Abbotship.
Then with heads bowed low, and with sad-
ness and sorrow at heart, we retired to our
cells.

" Brethren, my story is ended.

"And now I am anxious to hear 3rour
suggestions as to the measures that it would
be best to adopt. For my own part, I
have determined, when the proper time
shall come, publicly to protest against the
authority of Rome. In this free land of
ours, why should Rome, with her arbitrary
orders, be allowed to interfere in religious
matters, any more than other foreign po-
tentates, in political matters ? The time
has come to establish an American Catholic
church."

IN THE SANCTUARY. 123

"Amen," responded together the other
members of the council, with accents of
deep conviction.

"And now," said the Jesuit father, who,
by tacit consent, acted as chairman of the
party, " we will listen to the words of our
esteemed and worthy colleague, who for
many years has been rector of a densely
populated parish in this great city. He,
certainly, is thoroughly acquainted with
the spiritual and material needs of the
people."

"The most painful experiences of my
ministration," the rector began, "have been
among the poor and indigent, who form, I
am sorry to say, a large proportion of our
parishioners.

"Night after night have I lain awake
pondering over this sad problem of poverty —
poverty in its most repulsive aspect, at-
tended with bodily suffering, completely
paralyzing the human soul in its upward
growth. As daily observations clearly prove
to us, poverty is the primal cause of spirit-
ual darkness, personal degradation, and
actual crime. Looking for the cause of all
this misery, we find its origin in the insa-
tiable greed of the sordid and unscrupulous
money accumulator.

" How has the church of Rome departed
from the precepts and example of our Sav-
iour, who cast forth the money-lenders from
the temple; whose entire sympathies were
with the poor ; whose noblest mission was to

124 IN TIIE SANCTUARY.

aid the afflicted and oppressed. Do we not
see to-day even Bishops and Archbishops,
ignoring the house of God, go to the gilded
parlors of the rich to administer the rites
of matrimony ? Alas ! the times are passed
when Kings and Emperors, with their be-
trothed consorts, had to repair to the cathe-
drals, where, kneeling before the altar, they
received the holy sacrament of matrimony
uniting them in indissoluble bonds.

" Oh, my brethren, this question of pov-
erty, of hopeless and steadily increasing
poverty among the people, is the saddest of
all the problems of our time, one which the
priest above all other men confronts by day
and night. To foster religious sentiments
among the poor and destitute is utterly be-
yond his power.

u I cannot avoid the conviction that Rome,
if not entirely indifferent to the suffering of
her children, willingly refrains from taking
an active part in any plan of reform which
might bring permanent relief. Does not
history force upon us the conclusion that
the countries over which Rome has held
almost undisputed dominion have been those
where poverty was most prevalent and ex-
treme ? Does history bear record of Rome
ever siding with the people against royalty,
against the rich, the great, the powerful,
their immemorial oppressors ?

u I do not for a moment deny that, as is
the case with other religious denominations
and even with associations that profess no

IN THE SANCTUARY. 125

religion, Rome supports orphan asylums,
hospitals for the infirm, homes for the aged,
and not infrequently sends personal relief
to sufferers — charitable ministrations which
redound to her credit. But Rome takes no
decisive measures to prevent distress, or to
organize a scheme of social reform such as
may permanently improve the material con-
dition of the poor. With an immense moral
and spiritual force at its command, the
church of Rome is afraid to give offense to the
rich and powerful, and seems to be content to
remain forever in the peaceful slumbers of
a spiritual dolce far niente. Her ambition is
to rule over all nations of earth ; her dreams
are concerned with the reestablishment of
the temporal power of the Holy See, with
conversions to her faith, with the founding
of new parishes to provide livings for foreign
priests sent forth by Rome in ever-increas-
ing numbers to these American shores. In
fine, Rome neglects religion, limiting all
her efforts to the building up of the church
into an invincible body politic,

u The evils resulting from this condition
of hopeless poverty are brought first to the
notice of the priest ; for he is regarded as
the friend of the people, and to him they
repair to confide their woes and ask for aid
and counsel. Thus it is he who, above all
others, is made aware of the extent of pov-
erty, destitution, and abject misery existing
among a very large class of God's own
children.

•v>f \

r

126 IN THE SANCTUARY.

' Thus it was that being thoroughly im-
bued with the idea that our social condi-
tions, as they exist to-day, are pernicious
and corrupt; being keenly in sympathy
with the sufferings on earth, and endeavor-
ing to follow the example of Him. who, born
in a stable, had not a place to lay His head,
I determined to begin a crusade against the
evils which have plunged so many worthy
families into hopeless poverty. Nor were
my labors in vain. Ere long my church
could no longer contain the crowds that
came to hear me, for fearlessly did I uphold
the right of every man, woman, and child to
his or her proper and just share in the
.good things of earth. Presently the title
of ' Father of the People ' was bestowed
on me, and I could not but feel that the
Spirit of God was with me while delivering
those discourses, for I was conscious of the
spiritual glow which uplifted the soul from
earth. Never did I ascend into the pulpit
until I had first offered up an earnest and
heartfelt prayer for inspiration from on high,
and that the Infinite Father would vouch-
safe unto me wisdom and understanding to
discern the truth, and to declare it unto
others as His holy will. In answer to these
supplications I was endowed with the gift
of eloquence, often bringing tears into the
eyes of my audience. From the approbation
which I received, in encouraging letters ad-
dressed to me by strangers as well as in the
cheering words of friends and members of

IN THE SANCTUARY. 127

my congregation, it now became evident that
my sermons were exercising a decided in-
fluence for good, not only in my own par-
ish, but throughout the entire city.

" But one day I was summoned to the
episcopal residence, and there for the first
time was made aware that Rome knew of
my ministrations, and was greatly dis-
pleased thereat. I was accused of creating
ill-feeling among the poor toward the rich,
of breeding un-Christian strife and hatred;
of preaching doctrines leading directly
to communism and anarchy. All these
accusations, I need hardly say, were false.
While perfectly aware of the intense an-
tagonism existing between poor and rich ;
while stating the mutual relations of
each, I always endeavored strongly to im-
press upon my congregation that God
could never dwell in a heart where hatred
has found an abiding place; that a just un-
derstanding of the reciprocal obligations of
mankind could only be reached through
man's forbearance, and by sympathy for his
fellow man.

" Reluctantly the Right Reverend Bishop,
a true-born American, and in perfect accord
with my own opinions, placed in my hands
the missive from Rome. It was an order
directing him at once to put a stop to my
so-called socialistic preachings. I have re-
cently heard that the good Bishop had been
for some time in correspondence with Rome,
and had steadily espoused my cause, until

128 IN THE SANCTUARY.

the Holy See, tired of his procrastination,
insisted on his giving me official warning,
and sent him a peremptory order to com-
municate to me a formal notice of its dis-
pleasure. You are well aware, my brethren,
that if I do not obey this order, my suspen-
sion, and soon afterward my expulsion,
from the church, will follow.

"Rome, poor Rome," continued the
worthy pastor, " in its senile dreams can
see in all its grand mission but one thing
supreme, and that is the restoration of its
temporal power. To be once more monarch,
surrounded with royal retinue and gorgeous
soldiery; to treat in dictatorial terms with
all the sovereigns of earth ; to force them to
kneel before him and to receive from his
hands their scepters and crowns — such are
the aspirations that are paramount in the
mind of the Pope of Rome. As to the
masses of the people, he is content to let
them take care of themselves as best they
may, bestowing on them his Platonic sym-
pathy. For ourselves, as American priests,
we have no need of temporal power. Spir-
itual power alone do we crave — the power to
save human souls."

"Arnen, amen," ejaculated his hearers, in
accents that came direct from the heart.

" We have no desire to interfere in the
making of Presidents or electing of Con-
gressmen ; but we do desire the privilege of
criticizing their acts ; of saying to our law-
makers— and that without any interference

IN THE SANCTUARY. 1 29

on the part of Rome : ( You are mistaken ;
these measures of yours are wrong ; they
work injury to the masses; and this we
state without fear of contradiction, for daily
in the homes of the people have we wit-
nessed their baneful effects. You must
change the land laws, so that those who
wish to obtain land suitable for cultivation
can secure it readily and cheaply. You
must change your government to a more
paternal form, so that each State may be
permitted to help its children as would a
father, and especially to extend its protec-
tion over the weak. The doctrine of unob-
structed and unlimited competition means,
in fact, the oppression of the weak and en-
hancement of the strong, an extension of
the law of the survival of the fittest, which
is adapted to the development of plants and
brutes, but is not applicable to intelligent
mankind, among whom the weakest are
often the most deserving.'

u To the capitalist who is guilty of oppres-
sion I would fearlessly say : * Forbear thy
unjust exactions. These people whose tem-
poral welfare is in thy hands are no beasts
of burden, but worthy and God-fearing
human beings, who, with the conditions of
life against them, are endeavoring to make
the best of their circumstances. I give thee
fair warning, that if thou dost continue to
act thus heartlessly toward these parish-
ioners, I will expose thy conduct, and treat
thee as mercilessly as thou art treating

130 IN THE SANCTUARY.

them.' Such denunciations against those
who trample on the down-trodden, against
those who avariciously hoard or misapply
the wealth gathered from the sweat of Labor's
brow, I would utter in thundering tones,
regardless of any censure or peril with which
they might be attended, especially," he
added in emphatic tones, "without fear of
the interference which Rome might attempt
to interpose."

"Amen," again responded the fathers, with
tokens of warm approbation.

"And," he continued, "I most heartily
concur in the proposition of the father who
spoke before me, namely, that we have no
use in America for a church whose head is
Rome, and who is entirely ignorant of the
needs, the progress, the idiosyncrasies, and
independence of character of the American
people. What we want, as the father says,
is an American Catholic church, whose vis-
ible head, an American, will dwell in the
United States."

The rector had spoken with warmth and
eloquence, and had carried conviction to
the heart of his listeners, who, however,
had already arrived at almost identical
conclusions.

After a moment's silence, the Jesuit father
took up the discussion, and proceeded thus :

"We seem to be agreed that in the inter-
est of man's spiritual growth, and also of
his material welfare, the doctrines of true
religion must harmonize with the principles

IN THE SANCTUARY. 131

of science and admit its proven conclusions.
Let us, then, freely confess that science,
with its wonderful revelations in regard to
the Universe, will be a welcome handmaid
and co-worker for the elevation of mankind.
It will unfold to us such limitless vistas
that the infinitude of the Universe, in keep-
ing with the infinitude of its Creator, will
bestow on the mind ever-increasing compre-
hension. This will develop inquiry; in-
quiry, in its turn, will develop understand-
ing ; and understanding begets faith — faith
positive, based on knowledge, and not on
the ipse dixit of all and sundry, be they
even the Popes of Rome.

"At the present day, science has become
sadly materialistic. In the interest of sci-
ence and of Mammon, God's earth is being
ransacked and its surface seamed with rents ;
telescopes are built to pierce the secrets of
the skies ; but does the astronomer look for
discoveries that will aid our spiritual aspira-
tions through a better understanding of the
wonders and perfections of the Universe?
No ; even the astronomer, whose domain is
infinitude itself, whose science is the science
of the heavens, is, alas! often himself a
materialist. Astronomy no longer strives
after the attainment of its higher and
nobler purpose. It mainly searches for
comets, calculates the volume, the distances,
velocities, orbits, ages, and stages of growth
of the heavenly bodies. If the true philos-
opher had not assumed the task of spirit-

132 IN THE SANCTUARY.

ualizing this science by carefully collecting
and comparing its discoveries, by studying
their importance and co-relation, and then,
with these revelations as a basis, directing
the mind of the student to the many indi-
cations pointing toward the sublime destiny
of all that is, then would the astronomer no
more minister to the spiritual needs of hu-
manity than does the pure mathematician
of to-day.

" Let us cast a glance at that great occult
force named ( Electricity,' which is the very
handmaid of the Infinite Father in building
-up and supporting His Universe. What
does man do with it? He takes it by vio-
lence from the free realm where the Al-
mighty placed it to perform its part in the
working out of his transcendent scheme —
the evolution of worlds, with all things con-
tained therein; he compels it to light up the
streets of cities, to transport heavy loads,
to carry messages to distances of thousands
of miles. In fact, he makes use of it as he
would of a domesticated animal. What
return does man make unto God for the use
of one of the most potent of his forces?
Does he even address to him an occasional
prayer, an expression of gratitude and
thanksgiving ? No ; as the African slave-
hunter beats the bush, scours the forest and
plains in search of his human quarry, so do
our scientific men, in every quarter of the
globe, hunt for their servitors. As new
forces are discovered, man brings to bear

IN THE SANCTUARY. 133

upon them all the powers of his command,
and, when he has gained the mastery, they
must thenceforth work without ceasing for
his benefit. The scientist who makes a
discovery may, perhaps, send forth to the
great Architect of the Universe a sponta-
neous expression of admiration, but the
next day he will direct his steps to the office
of the man-brute, who pays him money for
his invention, applies the yoke and instru-
ments of travail, places the harness on the
captured force, and sets the slave to work.
He never thinks, for one moment, that he
ought at least to be thankful to God for
being permitted to make use of His force,
though such acknowledgment is all that
God demands, and is invariably answered
by His blessing on him who offers it, mak-
ing him better and nobler, and bringing
him nearer to his Maker.

" But to return to the church ; we do not
wish the head of our American Catholic
church to assume the garb of infallibility.
There is no infallibility on earth ; for the
higher we climb, and the greater the stream
of inspiration we receive from above, the
more profoundly do we realize the immeas-
urable distance which separates us from In-
fallibility, that Godlike child of supreme
divine knowledge. No ; our candidates for
priesthood should study the natural sciences,
for the reason that such study largely de-
velops the intellect, and in a safe direction,
and also because a thorough understanding

134 IN THE SANCTUARY.

of the laws of the Universe and their sub-
lime co-relation cannot fail to awaken a pro-
found adoration for the Author of all things,
and instill a feeling of infinite trust in the
final destiny of man.

"Here is the domain of true religion.
Our priests, imbued with the Spirit of God,
in possession also of the knowledge pertain-
ing to earth, will become the steadfast
friends of the young, and the beloved and
trusted spiritual advisers of all. Our young
men, returning from the secular schools of
philosophy and science, will know that they
can address us freely concerning the en-
larged ideas which these lofty branches of
learning always instill into young and in-
quiring minds; that they will receive en-
couragement from us, and find in us a
feeling of warm and responsive sympathy.
Then will they be attracted, and constantly
apply to us ; and hence shall we derive an
opportunity to continue our spiritual guid-
ance, to counteract any leaning toward
materialism, should some poor, deluded
teacher have taken upon himself the
responsibility of instructing them in its
soul destroying doctrines."

"Amen, amen," responded his listeners,
in tones that betokened the sympathy of
honest conviction. "American Catholicism,"
remarked the father of the cloister, " must
encourage inspiration from on high, by
allowing free expression of thought to the
members of all religious orders whose pure

IN THE SANCTUARY. 135

and abstemious lives, whose ardent aspira-
tion for spiritual enlightenment, have opened
to them the portals of the supersensuous
world, giving them entrance into the domain
of the Infinite and vivid consciousness of
the omnipresence of their Divine Maker.
In almost every convent one member at
least can be found, who, through supreme
devotion and faith, supplemented by a hy-
persensitive organization and fostered by
an ascetic life, has become gifted with in-
sight into things eternal. But since the
dogmas emanating from Rome condemn
spiritual revelations unless they be in ac-
cord with its warped and superannuated
doctrines, thereby rendering soul-progress
impossible, American Catholicism must free
itself from them if it would crave for its
children guidance from on high.

" Then," continued the rector, " since
Rome forbids us to take an active part in
social reforms tending to better the condi-
tion of the poor in their spiritual no less
than in their temporal condition, by cleans-
ing their hearts from baneful thoughts,
their hands from the pollution of crimes
often committed in utter despair, forbids us
to help the middle classes in their almost
hopeless struggle for material independence,
it becomes imperative that American Cath-
olicism should ignore the authority of
Rome. Americans, born on their own free
soil, on a continent separated by thousands
of miles from the old world with its fossil-

136 IN THE SANCTUARY.

ized institutions and fading superstition s,
have no other choice than to withdraw from
the church of Rome, over the record of
which we will, in charity, draw a veil — a
record, the responsibility of endorsing and
justifying which no American priest, with
honest heart, can conscientiously assume.
" And in relation to this it may be well
to say a few words about what is called the
school question, and the effort of the Pope
to mix himself up in our internal American
affairs; of his endeavors to obtain public
money for the benefit of Catholic schools,
under pretext that no religious instruction
is given in the schools of the State ; that
these schools are Godless institutions, and
far too successful in producing worshipers
of Mammon. I certainly agree with the
Holy Father as to the Godlessness of the
public schools, and the total absence therein
of religious instruction. But I ask, can no
other way be found to instruct youth in the
precepts of religion than by diverting the
public school funds for the benefit of every
creed and sect now in existence, and of
others that would assuredly spring up if
such a system were adopted, if only to
secure a share of the appropriation ? No ;
the instruction and education of the people
must remain in the hands of the State, and
equally must they remain unsectarian.
That no religion should be taught in
schools is one of the most pernicious of
errors; one that undermines the very foun-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 137

dation upon which man may build an hon-
orable career. Religion, moreover, is above
sects and creeds, and instruction in that
higher religion we must endeavor to estab-
lish in the schools of the commonwealth.
All sects and creeds of whatever church or
denomination agree upon the existence of
a Supreme Being; some call it God, others
Jehovah; the Mohammedans call it Allah,
and the Hindoos, Brahm and Parabrahm.
All these variously designated Supreme
Beings are endowed with the same transcen-
dental attributes by their devotees, and con-
stitute one and the same Deity. As to the
introduction into our public schools of this
Supreme Being worshiped by all, members
of all churches and beliefs could be brought
to harmonize, and non-believer or materi-
alist, can urge no serious reasons to oppose
to the belief in a Supreme Being, for such
belief develops veneration, a love for higher
attainments, admiration for all that is
grand, noble, good, and true, teaches respect
for and obedience to parents — to all of which
the unbeliever can surely oppose no serious
objection. Upon secondary deities and
prophets only do the followers of creeds dis-
agree— Moses, Christ, Buddha, Mohammed,
and others. In concert with the leaders of
all religious beliefs, the Catholics should
use the immense influence they wield to
bring this Supreme God into the public
schools, and thus instill reverence into the
minds of the children, proving thereby that

138 IN THE SANCTUARY.

what lies uppermost in their hearts is the
spiritualization of man, regardless of any
mercenary compensation.

" These endeavors of the Pope to get his
hands upon the school fund are the cause of
great social disturbance, and have led to
the springing-up of various anti-Catholic
societies, who fill the air with powerful dis-
turbing vibrations, to the detriment of all
religious advancement among the brother-
hood of man.

"The thought of diverting the public
school fund to the purpose of promoting
the interest of any religious creed would
not for one moment occupy the mind of a
native-born American priest. Nor would
he wage war against the fraternal orders of
Free Masons, Odd Fellows, Knights of
Pythias, and others, for well he knows that
these orders, in this country at least, are
composed of the most inoffensive and best-
intentioned men, practising fraternity not
only in its esthetic sense, but affording
material aid to its members with lavish
hand. For this reason the proceedings of
those societies must remain unpublished,
and in order to keep out the intruder and
undeserving persons the secrecy of their
tenets must be surrounded by efficient safe-
guards. Hence from Rome alone could
emanate the command to the American
priest to try to lay hands upon the school
fund, and through the confessional ask the
wife to become a spy against her husband,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 139

the daughter against her father, in the mat-
ter of secret societies.

" The Catholic religion, my beloved
fathers, is an institution of divine origin,
but sadly polluted by man. Let us free it
of all that man's ignorance (we will in
charity call it such) has added to or taken
from it, and let it be our united endeavor to
restore it to its pristine purity, grandeur,
and usefulness."

UI would suggest," remarked the Jesuit,
" that the holding of lectures on philosophy
and science, somewhat similar to those we
would prescribe for theological seminaries,
should be introduced into our cloisters and
religious brotherhoods, and that even nuns
be in a measure instructed in the arts as
well as in matters spiritual. After a few
years passed in cloister or convent, when
the members of our religious organizations
shall, through positive knowledge and di-
vine intuition, have become sufficiently
fortified against the allurements of the
world, then, instead of having recourse to
vain castigations, needless hardships, and
routine prayers for the salvation of their
own individual souls, the majority of them,
as a worthy consummation of their long
and profitable term of probation, might be
sent forth into the world as instructors and
companions to the young. The spiritual-
izing influence which such worthy, learned,
and absolutely reliable preceptors, free from
all trace of superstition, would exercise

140 IN THE SANCTUARY.

upon the members of American families,
would be of incalculable benefit both in a
moral and religious sense."

"As a parish priest, whose duties often
bring him in contact with the best families,"
observed the rector, " I can assure you
that this suggestion is most valuable, for
thus would our cloisters and convents be
converted from almost useless institutions,
as they are to-day, into powerful agencies
for the redemption of society, whose condi-
tion grows every year more Godless and
insincere."

"Well spoken," ejaculated the fathers
enthusiastically.

"Thus," continued the priest, "might be
avoided the lamentable error of admitting
into, and having to retain in, our convents
and cloisters those who, discovering too late
that their religious vows were taken rashly
and hastily, realize their entire unfitness to
lead an exclusively religious life, and con-
stantly chafe under the prescribed austeri-
ties and discipline, but whose return into
the world is made impossible by their ina-
bility to struggle for the means of exist-
ence. The lives of these unfortunates are
a mere succession of days filled with dark-
ness and despair, until death, as an angel
of deliverance, puts an end to their misery."

"This is, unfortunately, too true," ex-
claimed the listeners.

"I still remember with horror a visit I
made while in Europe to a cloister of Trap-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 141

pist friars. Though its site was in a desert
of sand, the gronnd appeared to have been
made extremely productive by the friars.
The buildings were of brick, of imposing
dimensions, and with no windows visible
from the exterior. High, blind walls sur-
rounded the entire structure. In the inte-
rior, the walls of the halls, cells, passages,
and even the stables, displayed printed in-
scriptions setting forth the utter worthless -
ness of man, and well calculated to drive its
inmates to desperation. The daily fare was
of the scantiest — a few ounces of bread, with
a modicum of oil. Self-castigation of the
body with knotted cords was inflicted each
night and morning. The friars repaired to
the chapel at nine in the evening, at mid-
night, at four in the morning, and at other
brief intervals, offering prayers without ces-
sation for their deliverance from earth.
When one of them dies he is buried without
a coffin, while his companions sing a hymn
of joy — th^TeDeum* — in honor of his trans-
lation; for the Trappist monks, according
to their tenets, are admitted into heaven on
the very day of their death, there being no
purgatory for them.

" Many of the friars, on learning that an
American priest was visiting the cloister,
asked permission to confess to him. The
request was granted by the Abbot. Then
it was that I became utterly appalled to find
that many of these poor wretches were par-
tially demented, others entirely so. Their

142 IN THE SANCTUARY.

faces were pale, their look was haggard,
while their spasmodic jerking motions pro-
claimed terrible injury to the nervous and
muscular systems. Most of them were par-
tially bereft of the faculty of speech, since
from the moment they pass through the
entrance of the cloister their vows bind them
to silence and close the gate to conversa-
tional intercourse. Oh, dear fathers, this
picture of wretchedness has haunted me for
years. For my own part I am convinced
that I could not have remained in that
dreadful institution a single year without
becoming a confirmed and hopeless lunatic."

This heart-rending account greatly im-
pressed the fathers, who doubted not the
truthfulness of the description. After a
moment's pause the father of the cloister
asked :

"What are the ceremonies and articles of
faith that the American Catholic church
should adopt ? "

"This is a matter too serious to be de-
cided off hand. In my opinion," suggested
the parish priest, " the ceremonies should in
the main be retained. Confession, however,
should be recommended only as an act to
be voluntarily performed by those who earn-
estly strive for spiritual growth, and who,
meeting with repeated obstruction, find
themselves in need of spiritual advice.
They ought faithfully to relate their strug-
gles ; unreservedly confess their failures
and the cause of them ; point out the obsta-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 143

cles which have impeded their spiritual
progress; and then ask counsel of their
spiritual advisers, as they would of their
best and most trusted friends in secular
matters, knowing them to be fully compe-
tent to render the aid and consolation
desired.

"As to an American Pope, it is my hum-
ble opinion that we have no need of one.
A supreme council of cardinals who should
choose their spiritual head, or chief execu-
tive, from their own body, is all that we
seem to require. "

" We fully concur," answered the other
priests.

uAnd now," asked the Jesuit, "when and
how shall our American Catholic church be
organized? "

At this momentous question a grave and
serious look overspread the countenance of
every member of the council.

"Let us pray for enlightenment," said
the rector with solemnity, "and may the
Heavenly Father grant us inspiration."

After the lapse of some minutes, during
which was offered the most fervent prayer
these men of God could utter, the Jesuit
father resumed :

"We can but abide God's own time," he
said. "Meanwhile, let us proceed in our
ministrations in conformity with the prin-
ciples adopted by us to-night as being the
fundamental basis of an American Catholic
church. Soon enough the conflict with

144 IN TH£ SANCTUARY.

Rome will ensue, and when it comes we
must remain true to the dictates of con-
science, whatever the consequence may be,
whether temporary suspension from our
ministrations, or even excommunication
from the Roman church. This may hap-
pen soon, perhaps, to any one of us, and
then it will be the duty of the others to give
to him whom God shall have chosen as the
corner-stone of his true church on earth, all
the moral support of which they are capa-
ble, and, if God so wills it, to proclaim vol-
untarily their severance from Rome, and
follow in his footsteps."

" Ainen," exclaimed the others.

" And if the lot should fall upon some
father at present unknown to us — for rebel-
lion against Rome, unmanifest and unpro-
clainied as yet, is being silently brooded in
the breast of many an American priest-
then let us accord him our warmest encour-
agement until God's time shall arrive for
us to array ourselves on his side."

" Amen, amen," once more exclaimed the
others.

u Do we all agree to what has been said? "
asked the Jesuit.

" We do," responded the others with rev-
erential emphasis.

"Then, brethren, let us address our
thankful supplications to the throne of
God, for I feel that the Holy Spirit has
been with us."

IN THE SANCTUARY. 145

After long and earnest prayer, the
three holy men departed, each bearing
with him the strength and fervor of his
convictions.

146 IN THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER VII.

MAGUS CASPAR, while listening to the
utterance of these regularly ordained Ro-
man Catholic priests, felt as one in a dream.
He could hardly realize that these men had
taken upon themselves the grave and sol-
emn responsibility of declaring war against
the infallibility of the Pope of Rome, the
time having finally arrived when they would
have to choose between fealty to him and
the open declaration of their conviction and
conscience.

Upon reentering his body, the first words
that passed his lips were :

" God bless the American people which
has given birth to such noble specimens of
humanity. This, indeed, is the country
that will inaugurate the reign of God upon
earth, and divine was the inspiration of my
holy predecessor that instigated him to send
me to this favored land. To contemplate
the intellect, the earnestness of purpose in
the service of God, and the high degree of
spirituality possessed by these priests, gives
me much happiness. With their efficacy
in working out good they would be of high
value as members of our order; for with
them as our coadjutors, the social and spirit-
ual reformation of the commonwealth might

IN THE SANCTUARY. 147

be accomplished in peace. It is to such
intellects as these, to the counsel given with
the eloquence of conviction, that the masses
are ready to listen; arid it is the force of
will that is directed toward raising them
from their oppressed condition that they are
willing to obey. Indeed these priests, with
their great personalities and separate char-
acteristics, have all the qualities of true
leaders of men, the three constituting the
holy trinity of learning, spirituality, and the
love of humanity. May Parabrahm lead
them on to the fulfillment of their noble
purpose, and grant them strength to remain
steadfast to the dictates of their consciences ;
with them, henceforth, will my spirit abide."
A few days later, Caspar again laid his
body to rest, and disengaging from it his
consciousness once more made ascent into
the spirit zone of earth. Scanning with
deep interest the radiations sent into this
zone from below, he soon perceived, promi-
nent among all, a ray of exceptional bril-
liancy and great steadiness, betokening in-
tense faith in Parabrahm, and a truthful,
unwavering recognition of the existence
and power of spiritual forces. Im merging
himself into this ray, Caspar traced it to its
origin. Descended to earth it led him to a
mountainous country dotted with snow-cov-
ered peaks. Upon the side of a principal
spur lay a cottage snugly ensconced in a
pleasant nook. From its wide veranda an
enchanting view was seen. Meandering

148 IN THE SANCTUARY.

brooks, like silvery ribbons, flowed through
flowery valleys which gradually rose to the
foothills, while these in turn were crowned
by a range of pine-covered mountains whose
forms were bathed in a soft blue haze of
transparent atmosphere. This lovely vista
was canopied by a sky of softest mellowness,
inviting poet and mystic to dreamy medita-
tion and the contemplation of things divine.
In front of the cottage was a beautiful flower
garden, and from a huge rock in its rear
there flowed a spring of crystal water so
pure, yet so impregnated with life-giving
magnetism, that ablutions in it invigorated
body and brain, and removed all feeling of
fatigue or exhaustion.

The cottage was inhabited by a man who
had passed the middle age of life. His sil-
very hair, full white beard, and venerable
appearance imposed respect, while his noble
mien, distinguished manner, and grace of
movement were suggestive of the high-bred
gentleman.

He was standing at the moment before a
huge rock with a flat surface, generally desig-
nated a table rock. Upon this rock a tree
was growing, the offspring of a seed which
had been planted years ago probably by some
traveling bird. As he gazed on this pro-
duction of nature the following reflections
passed through the mind of the recluse and
were read by the Magus.

u Some years ago this tree, no longer able
to find on this rock sustenance necessary

IN THE SANCTUARY. 149

for the preservation of life, began to wither
during the dry season of summer. With a
feeling of compassion in my heart for the
suffering plant, which I saw was slowly
dying, I waited with a certain degree of
anxiousness the approach of the rainy sea-
son, wondering whether moisture would
instill new life into the tree. In due time
the rains came, and a process of vivification
set in. Not only did the tree revive, but
the shrunken roots swelled out again to
their normal size, and to my astonishment
sent forth tender rootlets in the direction of
the earth beneath, which they evidently
strove to reach. These efforts, however,
were fruitless, the dry season causing the
delicate shoots to perish before they had
reached half-way down the side of the innu-
tritions rock. These struggles of the tree
to reach the fertile ground, which could be
its only possible savior, were renewed year
after year with ever-repeated failure, until
two years ago, when, the wet season being
of unusual length, one little rootlet at last
succeeded in reaching, and implanting itself
in, the bosom of the foster-mother of all
growth. Thereupon the rootlet expanded
rapidly and sent up nourishment to its
starving parent which soon assumed the
aspect of perfect health. The root, which
had reached the earth, ere long acquired
size and strength, and then a further pro-
ceeding on the part of the tree was notice-
able. It began to bend over toward the new

150 IN THE SANCTUARY.

root, and, slowly detaching itself from the
rock, finally rested its body altogether upon
it. Thus a new and vigorous existence was
vouchsafed to my beloved plant.

"I think that I really loved thee," he
mused aloud as he continued gazing at the
tree. u While watching for years thy life's
career, I seemed to participate in thy suf-
fering as thou wert slowly withering
through inability to obtain food. With thy
hopes I hoped, as year after year thou didst
send forth those little rootlets toward the
earth, and as these in turn became atro-
phied by the summer heat, with thy suffer-
ings did I suffer — thy disappointment be-
came mine. At last, when one of thy ten-
tacles reached the bed of mold beneath thee,
when it succeeded in implanting its tiny
filament in the rich soil, and this filament
swelled and sent up sap, then I seemed
to feel its palpitations and thy own heart-
beatings when the life-giving fluid reached
thee. Thy fresh and juicy leaves, as they
put on their brilliant verdure, seemed to
send up to heaven a triumphant hymn of
praise in thankfulness for having been res-
cued from death."

Ceasing to soliloquize aloud, the moun-
taineer philosopher resumed his reflections :

" What is the occult force that guided
this tree in the different stages of its career ?
It cannot be attraction and repulsion only,
for there was undoubtedly exhibited a cer-
tain grade of instinct approaching to a low

IN THE SANCTUARY. 151

degree of intelligent thought. Disappoint-
ment and suffering must have been expe-
rienced, as also joy and exultation when the
life-saving earth was reached. Fain would
I know the truth about this unseen force."

As the thought flashed through the re-
cluse's mind, the Magus projected a ray of
his own consciousness upon that earnest
inquirer who, immediately looking upward,
as though he had received a fresh inspira-
tion, resumed his soliloquy :

" Now do I perceive that all the phe-
nomena of the Universe unfold themselves
in an ever-ascending scale, no point of in-
terruption being perceptible on the line of
upward march. The mineral kingdom is
blended into the vegetable kingdom, and
the vegetable realm into the animal realm,
so gradually intermingling as to leave no
line of demarcation between them. All is
harmony, all is complete — no hiatus, no gap
exists in the Universe of God.''

The Magus at once perceived the psychic
status of his newly-discovered hermit, his
noble, true and intellectual qualities. That
he was possessed of high scientific attain-
ments was evidenced by a complete labora-
tory of philosophical instruments, among
which electrical apparatus, a goodly sized
telescope, many astronomical charts, both
old and modern, were noticeable. A deep
student in occult lore as expounded by the
oldest masters and the latest devotees to the
investigation of magnetism and hypnotism,

152 IN THE SANCTUARY.

a soul full of veneration for the powers that
be, vividly desirous to know more of the
supersensuous world, overflowing with faith
in the supreme powers that govern the
Universe, spiritual in the highest degree,
and in religious matters absolutely unbiased,
welcoming every creed with upward tend-
encies— such was the man in whom termi-
nated the golden radiations followed by the
Magus.

And now made happy in his fortunate
discovery, Caspar enwrapped the dweller
on the mountainside with his own aura of
spirit-consciousness, and having bestowed
his most heartfelt blessing on him, re-
turned to his body which, as if in the
stillness of death, awaited him in the
armchair.

When the Magus enfolded in his aura
the mountaineer recluse, the latter instan-
taneously felt an influx, .the impression
conveyed being that a visitor of a higher
sphere had entered his abode. Though
unaware that such visitation had actually
occurred, and which had lasted but a mo-
ment, he, nevertheless, became conscious
that a blessing had been bestowed upon
him, and sent a prayer of thankfulness to
the Ruler of all things, offering his life to
the service of those on high, if such service
might prove acceptable. As if in answer
to his heartfelt appeal, in the night of the
same day a voice, audible and distinct, said
to him :

IN THE SANCTUARY. 153

" Thy services are accepted. Prepare to
enter upon thy duties. Nine days and nine
nights shalt thou fast, pray, and do
penance."

The recluse obeyed this mandate, fasting,
praying, and doing penance for the nine
consecutive days and nights. During the
whole of that period he felt himself to be
overshadowed by a divine presence, instill-
ing into him confidence, and conveying the
impression that a great destiny, accom-
panied with corresponding responsibilities,
lay before him ; that he had been chosen to
fulfill a most important mission, the faith-
ful accomplishment of which might grant
to him his life-long desire, namely, the
award of spirit illumination, or cognizance
of the laws regulating the supersensuous
world, and the gratification of the powers
inherent therein.

On the night following the ninth day,
the moon was shining in all its loveliness
over mountains and valleys, converting
brooks into streams of quicksilver, and giv-
ing fantastic shapes to the mountain tops,
their profiles being sharply silhouetted on
the bright evening sky.

Seated on the front porch of his lovely
cottage overlooking the electric lights of a
distant city, situated in the plain below, the
venerable man, gazing at the stars that fret-
ted the sky of the beautiful summer night,
was pouring forth to heaven the last prayer of
his imposed devotion. The prayer ended,

154 IN THE SANCTUARY.

a voice was heard in the air uttering these
words :

" On the morrow shalt thou journey east-
ward to the western border of the great
waters. Thou wilt be guided on thy way.
Have faith."

This recluse on the mountainside we will
name Marius for convenience' sake, inas-
much as the divulging of his real name
would lead to identification, which at the
present time, in the opinion of the order,
would not be conducive to the greatest useful-
ness. His ancestors were among the first
Pilgrim fathers, and from father to son had
been ministers of the Gospel. Marius also
had been ordained. His large intellect,
aided by a thorough scientific education,
supplemented by a complete course in phi-
losophy, taken in the most noted University
of the United States, had been further ex-
panded by studies in France and Germany.
His acquaintance while there with the lead-
ing intellects of Europe ; the study of
music and the fine arts in Italy, the country
of their birth, had united in evolving
Marius into one of the most intellectual and
religious men of the world. Religious senti-
ment was born in him, inherited from a
succession of worthy ancestors ; nor did he,
in his most eager pursuit of science, ever
separate it from religion. Every natural
law, the harmonious workings of which
were explained to him, evoked worship of
the Heavenly Father; every discovery in

IN THE SANCTUARY. 155

astronomy, unfolding the grandeur of the
Universe, awoke in him a feeling of adora-
tion ; every law of magnetism and elec-
tricity that was brought to light, giving a
more complete understanding of these oc-
cult forces of nature, filled him with
respectful enthusiasm expressed in a wor-
shipful sentiment, which he never forgot to
send up to the Author of all the beautiful
manifestations of the Universe.

These high attainments had, however, so
enlarged his understanding, that he could
no longer preach the narrow dogmas of the
Puritan creed. This he made plain to his
relatives and friends in a simple and honest
manner. Their resentment at what they
termed his backsliding soon became mani-
fest, and Marius, in sadness of heart (for
dearly did he love his kin) wended his way
toward that great West which ever opens
its grand expanse to the suffering soul, and
there made his abode on a mountain range,
at an altitude above the inharmonious
vibrations of city and valley, and where
inspiration from on high could be received
undisturbed by the auras of mercenary and
bartering humanity below. There Caspar
discovered him, and found him worthy.

156 IN THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER VIII.

ON the morrow Marius set out on his
eastward journey. Not a shade of mistrust
crossed his mind ; faith absolute had taken
possession of his soul. The occult voice he
would obey, for he knew that all would be
well.

A few hours later, when the fast-speed-
ing train carried him onward to his unknown
goal, his spirit was singing an exultant
hymn, as if he were wending his way to a
joyful festival, to wedding festivities, per-
haps, for, indeed, a wedding it was to be—
a wedding that would bind him more closely
and forever to the powers of heaven.

Arriving one evening at a large city, not
far distant from the sea coast, Marius felt
impressed to alight. On stepping from a
sleeping-car, he was met by Ralph, who
bade him enter a carriage which was in
waiting. Without hesitation, Marius did
as requested r and soon he was in the pres-
ence of the Magus Caspar. The latter,
after having spiritually communed with his
newly arrived guest, instructed Ralph to
conduct him to the apartments prepared for
him, in order that he might take the rest
much needed after so long a journey.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 157

"On the morrow, at trie hour of nine, I
will see my brother," he said, with a
friendly gesture.

Thereupon Marius, preceded by Ralph,
retired, and was soon enjoying the much-
coveted repose.

During his sleep a vision opened before
him, by which he was made to behold the
entire career of Brother Angelo, afterwards
Bishop of Simla in India ; his temporary
sojourn in a monastery of Thibet, where
the three degrees of the Himalayan Brother-
hood were conferred upon him ; his resi-
dence in Belgium as Prince- Archbishop of
Liege ; his subsequent call to England,
where he was invested with the dignity of
Magus; the translation to heaven of. Gas-
par, his predecessor; his experience in
the Vatican; and, finally, his journey to
America.

The vision, continuing to unroll events,
proceeded to show Marius the occult means
that had brought him to the notice of the
Magus whose guest he now was, and the
reasons why he had been found worthy.

When he awoke, the vision of the night
remained vividly impressed on the mind of
Marius ; he realized that he had beheld
more than the phantasmagoria of a dream —
it was, indeed, a didactic exposition of real-
ities which had taken place in the life of
his worthy host — and that the privilege of
being allowed to contemplate the transcend-
ing scenes of such a holy life had been

158 IN THE SANCTUARY.

vouchsafed to him for instruction, in order
that he might be aware of the surpassing
spiritual altitude to which his host had been
exalted.

Marius at once understood the import of
the vision, and to the Heavenly Father sent
up an ardent prayer of thankfulness. Al-
most dismayed at the vast responsibilities
which he felt were about to be entrusted to
him, he, nevertheless, with unwavering faith
and firm trust, awaited the hour which would
summon him to the presence of the one
whom he now knew so well, and of whose
celestial attributes and dignity he had
lately been made aware.

When the clock struck nine a rap at the
door notified Marius that the time was at
hand. Ralph entered, and making obei-
sance informed Marius that his Master
awaited him.

Proceeding together Ralph led the way
through a series of rooms, until they stood
before the door of an apartment which Ralph
intimated was the Sanctuary. Opening the
door they entered the sacred place, and
Marius was conducted to a prayer-desk, the
Magus being engaged in devotion before
the shrine. Marius joined in fervent prayer.

The prayer ended, the Magus seated him-
self, and, motioning his guest to a chair by
his side, entered into converse with him.

" Last night," commenced the Magus,
" thou wast made aware of the various inci-
dents of my career, of the steady occult in-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 159

fluence that has overshadowed it, and of the
existence of different occult orders. Thou
knowest the holy functions vested in my-
self, the responsibilities of my office, its
ideals and aims, both social and spiritual.
Thou hast also been made to realize that in
America must our sacred order be estab-
lished, sanctuaries erected, and holy shrines
blessed; furthermore, that upon thyself
that duty will devolve, if thou art willing.
Useless will it be to claim unworthiness,
for thou hast been found worthy. Dost
thou assent? "

" I do, Most Worshipful Master, as you
deem useless any protest of unworthiness,"
answered Marius, making profound obei-
sance.

"It is well. Now will I proceed to un-
roll before thee the sacred papyri containing
the philosophy professed by our order and
the duties imposed by it.

" Many years have I spent in deciphering
the instructions imparted by the volumin-
ous rolls lying on this table and condensing
them into a plain, concise statement, easy of
comprehension by men of good ordinary in-
telligence, as well as by the scientist and
philosophical student. Have I thy atten-
tion? "

" Your servant listens, Most Worshipful
Master."

Magus Caspar then proceeded thus:

" It is now admitted by some of our fore-
most scientists that our Earth is governed,

l6o IN THE SANCTUARY.

its rotary motion induced, its journey
through space directed by magnetic lines
of force, the vibrations of which are as yet
immeasurable, and the origin of which is
supposed to lay in the Sun.

"The discovery of the existence of these
lines of force in the Universe is the most
momentous step humanity has yet taken
along the road of progress, of evolution.

"In truth, the Earth, and the other satel-
lites of the Sun as well, are controlled and
permitted existence by lines of force eman-
ating from that brilliant orb. We must
add, however, that all other bodies, celestial
or terrestrial, in fact, the entire Universe,
manifest and unman ifest, is guided, directed,
and controlled by lines of force emanating
from a much higher source, from the Spir-
itual Sun itself, the abode of pure spirit,
the occult, primal source, not only of all
force, but of all that is.

"The law and origin of these primal
lines of force, and of their innumerable
derivatives, have constituted, for untold
ages, the most awful of the sacred mysteries
of our order, and well may it be so con-
sidered, for in them lies hidden the secret of
the very existence of God, of Parabrahni.

" The mystery of the involution and evo-
lution of the Universe, and, consequently,
that intricate and most studied of all prob-
lems, the destiny of man, can be elucidated
only through a clear understanding of these
lines of force, of their origin and functions.

IN THE SANCTUARY. l6l

"The order is aware (and this is most
encouraging to the disciple), that physical
science will soon become a helpmate to the
occultist, and a very valuable one, for it has
ventured across the threshold of the higher
knowledge, and now trespasses resolutely
upon the domain of occultism. It is trying
earnestly to unlock the portals of the tem-
ple where, thus far, have dwelt undisturbed,
in absolute peace, the holy custodians of the
most sacred mysteries.

"The Masters for many years have
watched, with anxious care and sympa-
thetic interest, these investigations of the
scientist, have fostered them with occult
encouragement, and they now plainly
discern that science has attained a stage of
growth such that its devotees are able to
understand and appreciate an elucidation
of the Great Law; the order, consequently,
has permitted that this elucidation shall be
given to the world.

" Firstly, we will confirm the discovery
of the scientists above referred to, those
pioneers into the realms of the * vague
world,' as they term it, by saying that lines
of force exist in reality between the Sun
and his satellites, and, moreover, that to
interference with these lines of force, caus-
ing in them a lowering of their rate of
vibration, are due all the manifestations of
growth, of life, which is constantly taking
place upon these satellites. We must add,
however, that these lines of force are merely

. C.A'_ I FO

l62 IN THE SANCTUARY.

secondary ones, magnetic in their nature,
the functions of which are solely interplan-
etary, limited to the various solar systems.

"The primal lines of force, those which
give birth to the numberless secondary
lines, the occultist knows originate in space,
at a point so remote, so far beyond our
Universe inhabited by suns and stars, that
its distance far transcends the conceivable.

" For many centuries the belief has been
that all space, however limitless in its ex-
panse, is the abode of heavenly bodies,
and this belief is based, reasonably enough,
upon the discovery that, in proportion as
the telescope in its evolution, if we may
so speak, grows in power, a new field of
heavenly bodies invariably appears beyond
the farthest star seen by means of the pre-
ceding instrument of less magnitude. And
this process of discovery of new fields of
stars, as more powerful telescopes and giant
astronomical mirrors may be evolved, will
go on for centuries yet; it is nevertheless
true that the Universe, with its celestial
occupants — suns, stars, planets, comets,
nebulse, and the entire array of its brilliant
galaxies, occupies actually but a small por-
tion of endless space. Far beyond this
manifest Universe ; far beyond the remotest
star brought to view by the most powerful
instrument, inconceivably distant in the
endless regions of infinitude, abides the
Sun of all suns, the center of all force, the
nucleus of all consciousness, the brain-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 163

essence of all intellection, the unmanifest
source of all manifestation, the prime factor
of all existence, the Omnipotent, the Omnis-
cient, the Incomprehensible, the Divine
Awfulness, Parabrahm — the Godhead in its
primeval, pure, and divine essence.

"From this occult and divine center of
pure spirit, emanate, or rather are projected,
lines of force which permeate all space and
govern the Universe. Vibrations, unim-
aginable in number, incomprehensible in
velocity, convey this force in radiating lines.

" These lines of force being direct emana-
tions from the Godhead, yea, projections
from its own Divine Being, are endowed
with all the attributes, possibilities, and
potencies of pure spirit.

"They fill all space, permeate all things,
and to the modifications brought into the
mode and velocity of the vibrations trans-
mitting this force, our visible Universe, with
all the wonderful creations it contains, owes
its existence.

" You will ask, what causes may prove
adequate to interfere with these lines of
force to compel them to evolve manifest
nature? What power in the Universe, or
out of it, is sufficiently great to be able to
affect the number of vibrations in these
lines emanating directly from the divine
central Sun, from the All-powerful, the
Omnipotent ?

uTo answer this transcendent question,
in a manner conducive to a clear under-

164 IN THE SANCTUARY.

standing of so deep a mystery, it is well to
proceed with a few material illustrations.

u Physical science sets forth and proves
that our planet Earth is a gigantic magnet,
lines of magnetic force surrounding it, per-
meating it in all parts. This magnetism is
the life-giving principle of all physical
manifestation upon this earth, as will be
elucidated farther on.

uAs a first illustration, we will place a
pane of glass upon one of the poles of a bar
magnet, and upon it sift iron filings; these
filings will arrange themselves in sym-
metry with the lines of force emanating
from the magnet, which will be in straight
radiating lines, as illustrated in Fig. i.

u Secondly, let us curve this magnet into
the shape of Fig. 2. The lines of force will
immediately appear between the positive
pole A and the negative pole B, and in
their mutual effort to reach each its opposite
pole a magnetic stress will become clearly
established. This stress acts in lines which
science designates as lines of force, of mag-
netic force, and inferentially it may be
stated here that along these lines of mag-
netic force, and only along these lines, can
intelligent communication ever be estab-
lished without the use of wires.

" If we insert between the magnetic poles
A and B a drum covered with wire, thus
obstructing the free passage of the magnetic
lines of force, we have the principle of the
dynamo- electric machine. (Fig. j.)

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IN THE SANCTUARY. 165

"A dynamo converts magnetism into
electricity, and it is this electricity which
lights np our streets through its arc
lamps, our theaters by means of incandes-
cent lights, which runs our street cars by
inducing a rotary motion to a motor to
which wheels are attached, etc.

uThe principle of the force given out by
the dynamo lies in the magnets which form
its most important parts.

"If we revolve the drum or armature
inserted between the poles of the magnets,
the motion will interfere with the direct
course of the magnetic lines of force, and
by cutting them cause a physical change
resulting in the formation of other lines of
force with a lower rate of vibration, consti-
tuting what science terms ' Electricity. '

"When the electricity thus formed is
offered a path congenial to its nature, it
follows such path immediately, and the elec-
tric current is established. Metallic wires,
especially of copper, offer such paths.

" In the dynamo, the electricity evolved
will flow along the wires connected with
the armature, provided its opposite pole,
which it always endeavors to reach, is at the
other end of the wire, and a current or cir-
cuit will immediately ensue.

" The electrician, through long and prac-
tical research, has discovered that when
obstacles are opposed to the free course of
this current, certain well -determined phe-
nomena appear. Taking advantage of this

1 66 IN THE SANCTUARY.

discovery, lie places in the path of the cur-
rent such mechanical contrivances as will
offer a closely calculated resistance to its
free passage, thus lowering considerably its
rate of vibration, and the perceptible physi-
cal effects of heat and light are produced,
as illustrated in the arc and incandescent
lamps.

u Interference with the magnetic lines of
force surrounding and permeating our
Earth, a reduction in their rate of vibration,
originates thunder-storms, tornadoes, earth-
quakes, northern lights, the aurora borealis,
and the like.

"The occultist well knows that all mani-
festations in nature, physical, intellectual,
and spiritual, are due to interference, to
changes brought in the ratio of vibration of
the imponderable forces of the Universe.

" In a ray of light, for instance, place an
obstacle, say a triangular piece of crystal
called a prism, thereby lowering its rate of
vibration ; visible effects will appear imme-
diately in the form of the colors of the rain-
bow, each color possessing a different rate
of vibration.

ulii electrical science, a certain voltage
or electrical pressure will give heat, light,
motion, and may be harmless to man. A
high voltage is used in electrocution ; the
electric current, with a terrific increase in
the number of its vibrations, penetrating
and disintegrating every nerve, muscle, and
tissue, causes death, while an immensely

IN THE SANCTUARY. 167

higher number of volts, inducing current
vibrations of thousands of millions per
second, is perfectly harmless, the current
being so swift that it runs upon the surface
of nerves and muscles, having no time to
penetrate these organs, hence causing no
harm to man, who receives this tremendous
current almost unperceived.

"Similarly, man is living in the midst of
the all- pervading divine lines of force.
Their velocity is so inconceivably swift,
the number of their vibrations so immeas-
urably great, that he is totally unaware of
their existence. The effects only of decided
interference with their ratio of vibration are
perceived by him.

" And now, listen well to this most occult
revelation, made for the first time to the
world :

u The divine lines of force are composed
of three main rays, forming the mystic
Trinity — the Ray of Matter, the Ray of
Mind, and the Ray of Spirit.

"The Ray of Matter is the parent of the
material Universe. In it is contained, in an
utterly inconceivable state of sublimation,
the essence of all material things. The
first interference with the vibrations of this
Ray of Matter is caused by the natural cur-
rent inherent in polarity. This first inter-
ference, or lowering of the rate of vibration,
engenders the magnetic lines of force; these
in turn produce electric currents, and the
infinite combinations of both, due to their

.l68 IN THE SANCTUARY.

limitless interconvertibility, project inces-
santly into the Ray of Matter such endless
series of counter vibrations that matter,
gradually passing through the un perceiv-
able state of essence, becomes visible in its
radiating and gaseous condition, finally to
assume the visible and tangible form of
liquid and solid — this, mark well, by
having its rates of vibration constantly
lowered.

" I spoke about currents inherent in polar-
ity. Physical science is wide awake as to
the momentous importance of polarity in
nature, and its researches into that field will
lead eventually to the admission of the
divine lines of force, and finally to the recog-
nition of their transcendent origin, the
source of pure spirit — of God.

u The divine lines of force, as well as all
forces thence derived, are guided in their
course through infinitude by attractions and
repulsions induced by polarity. All things
and beings in existence, from the unimagin-
able atom of science to the divine Godhead
Himself, are polarized, and hence endowed
with attractions and repulsions. Polarity
is eternal. Its indestructibility is well illus-
trated by the magnet.

" Take, for instance, a bar magnet, ascer-
tain its poles, cut this magnet in two pieces,
sprinkle iron filings upon the ends, and
polarity will immediately be manifest, for
each end of each piece will attract the fil-
ings. Proceed farther, and cut this magnet

IN THE SANCTUARY. 169

into twenty, a hundred pieces, and each
piece will immediately manifest polarity.

" We repeat and attest — for this law is
the basic law of the Universe and of evolu-
tion— that polarity cannot be destroyed, or
its attendant attributes, attraction and re-
pulsion. Furthermore, there can be no
attraction or repulsion without producing
motion; hence, motion not only cannot
cease, but, by uninterruptedly cutting end-
less series of divers lines of force, thereby
inducing a change in the ratio of their vibra-
tions, is the direct cause of the infinite mod-
ifications in organic as well as in inorganic
life; consequentially life cannot be de-
stroyed— life is eternal.

" The magnetic force, and electricity — its
derivative — are a component, or radiation,
of the divine Ray of Matter, and the mo-
mentous rule these subforces play in all
growths, in all manifestations of life, is
becoming daily better understood by physi-
cal science.

"And as it is below, so it is above; as it is
on the earth, so it is in the skies; as is tJ:e
microcosm, so is the macrocosm.

"The Divinity, the spiritual Sun, the
abode of which lies in the fathomless depths
of infinitude, being, as we have said, the
origin of all that is, of all force, material,
intellectual and spiritual, is positive in
polarity. The nucleus of the material Uni-
verse— a derivative of the Divinity, as will
be shown — is negative; polarity exists be-

170 IN THE SANCTUARY.

tween the two, and between them a current
is constantly flowing, constituting the ' di-
vine lines of force.7 These divine lines of
force, in their primal course from the God-
head to this nucleus of the material Universe,
work out what is termed ' Involution,' or the
Godhead becoming manifest in matter. The
function of involution is to materialize
worlds, peopling space. This conversion of
imponderables into solids is brought to pass
through a lowering in the rate of vibration
of the Ray of Matter due to interferences
caused by the polar currents.

"The secondary course of these divine
lines of force, from the material Universe or
negative pole back to the divine or positive
pole, is called * Evolution,' along the lines
of which all creations and creatures, if we
may so speak, in their ascending march
through endless progressive processes and
tran storm ations, return to the bosom of the
divine Godhead, the abode of pure Spirit,
of Parabrahm, whence they sprang, and
which is their final destination. The pro-
cess of evolution is essentially an accelera-
tion in the rate of vibration of the divine
lines of force.

"Again we will state that all lines of
force, whether emanating primarily from
the Divinity or presiding over the destiny
of the unimaginable atom of science, run
invariably from the positive to the negative
pole, where their vibratory motion is acted
upon, interfered with by the specific cur-

o

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c

(p

IN THE SANCTUARY. 171

rents always induced by polarity; and it is
these currents which are the occult agents
of the mysterious processes working out,
through infinite transformations, the des-
tiny of all that is. Interference with the
divine lines of force, causing a decrease in
the inconceivable velocity of their vibra-
tions, has for one of its immediate effects
the slow but gradual transformation into
visible substances of the material essences
or radiations which constitute the divine
' Ray of Matter.' Matter, in essence or
radiation, becomes visible, as we have
already stated, by having the number of its
vibrations enormously lowered. The pho-
tosphere of our Sun, for instance, contains
in gaseous state all the metals compos-
ing his satellites. A change in the vibra-
tory motion of these gases, causing also a
fall of temperature, induces their slow con-
densation into metalloids. Similarly the
divine Ray of Matter contains in a state of
essence extremely refined, all the elements
of the metals composing the Universe, as
well as of the forces controlling the unceas-
ing process of their transformation into
various salts, earths, plants, and living
existences.

" I dwell much, and it may be deemed
with unnecessary length, upon the process
of these occult transformations, but they
should be thoroughly understood by the
disciple; therefore, I will repeat that polar-
ity exists everywhere; every atom, every

172 IN THE SANCTUARY.

molecule, every cell in the Universe is
polarized, has its attractions and repulsions
which induce motion. The Universe, then,
is filled with motion. This universal mo-
tion is bound to cut an infinite number of
lines of force of the most varied nature,
causing in them marked vibratory changes ;
this induces endless transformations in
matter, producing multitudinous existences,
i. e., life in all its phases. If there were no
polarity, there would be no motion, there
would be no life — death would reign
universal.

"The atomic and molecular theories,
corroborated by most careful experiment,
uphold these statements. When atoms,
through their polar attractions, conglomer-
ate into molecules, the temperature of these
molecules as well as their rate of vibration
is lower than those of the original atoms.
The temperature and rate of vibration of
these newly formed molecules must them-
selves be lowered before they can be con-
verted into the gaseous condition, and the
accumulated masses of gas molecules must
follow the same law, i. e., a still further
lowering of both temperature and rate of
vibration before they can resolve themselves
into liquids, and still lower grades must they
reach in order to enter upon the formation
of the consolidated masses of planetary
materials.

uAt this moment, however, it is not neces-
sary to enter further into the theory of heat ;

IN THE SANCTUARY. 173

suffice it to say that Heat, in its highest
degree, at its absolute potential of vibra-
tion, or rather, when it transcends vibra-
tion, is the concomitant of the One Supreme
Life, the sublime Oneness, Parabrahni.

" Thence, as one of the main factors of
the divine lines of force, and with vibratory
waves still at their highest potential velocity,
it radiates through the infinite regions of
space, there to aid in the working out of
the destiny of all things, as given forth by
the great and mysterious 'Fiat.'

"Absolute cold is vibration in its lowest
potential, indeed, where vibration ceases its
activity and constitutes the negative pole of
the Universe.

" We shall presently be able to under-
stand the function of the divine Ray of Mat-
ter. I will, however, state in addition that
this Ray is called into action primordially
by interferences with its rate of vibration
caused by the natural currents surrounding
the negative pole of the Universe. The
vibrations of the Ray of Matter, although
transcending human understanding, are en-
dowed with a lower rate of velocity than
either of the two other divine Rays, hence, it
is the first to be affected by the counter-vibra-
tions induced by the polar currents of the
Universe, and these first interferences have
the effect of causing that wonderful occult
force ' Magnetism ' to spring into existence.

"And now, through the infinite intercon-
versions of its subrays — magnetism and its

174 IN THE SANCTUARY.

consequent ally, electricity — the rate of vibra-
tion of the Ray of Matter is subjected to end-
less interferences, causing the unmanifest
to become manifest, thus gradually bringing
forth the inhabitants of space, nebulae, com-
ets, suns, stars gradually resolving them-
selves into planets, upon which, in the
course of time, living entities find existence
and development.

" It will now readily be understood that
matter is simply force reduced to a low
degree of vibration, to a lower degree of
temperature, to a lower potential.

" And now listen attentively to the second
revelation here to follow.

" As soon as life comes into existence,
such life as requires effort for its preserva-
tion, the second Ray composing the divine
lines of force, the Ray of Mind, is called
into action, and intellect, its principal sub-
ray, becomes manifest. Instinct, a sub-
radiation of the intellect, is, however, first
appealed to by the lowest order of animal
organisms, by those possessing but a micro-
scopical dot of brain or nerve matter. In
these the necessity for nutriment begets a
stress, a faint mental anxiety, perhaps. But
every mental operation, however evanescent,
causes the emission of vibrations or mental
waves, consequently mental motion, and
motion always interferes with lines of force
of some kind, however feebly. In this case,
the lines of force thus interfered with be-
longing to the realm of mind, the result

IN THE SANCTUARY. 175

obtained is a grade of instinct, of conscious-
ness in fact; it may be of a very low order,
perhaps, but adequate to the fulfillment of
the necessities, as yet very elementary, for
the preservation of the life of these lower
animals.

" Thus takes place the first action, the
initial demand upon the Ray of Mind, and
its answer thereto is the vouchsafing of
instinct, of incipient consciousness.

u As living entities gradually ascend the
scale of being, and in proportion as the
nervous system and cerebral mass obtain
in them a larger development, commensu-
rate necessities are experienced, swifter
vibratory waves are projected into the Ray
of Mind, cutting more important lines of
force, and a superior grade of instinct and
consciousness is evolved as possessed by
the higher animals.

"Still ascending on the animal scale we
reach man, the later product of evolution.
Here we find a nervous system with vast
and delicate ramifications capable of taking
cognizance of the most diversified sensa-
tions, crowned with a cerebral mass or brain
able to compare these sensations, and con-
sequently endowed with judgment. The
vibrations emitted by this brain are very
powerful and resolve themselves into
thought- waves. These waves projected into
the Ray of Mind affect its vibratory ratio in
a most marked degree, the result of their in-
terference being the production of infinitely

176 IN THE SANCTUARY.

varied mental phenomena, from the sim-
plest process of reasoning to the most sub-
lime and transcendental phase of intellection
and consciousness.

" As the Ray of Matter is the parent of
all material manifestation in the Universe,
similarly is the Ray of Mind the parent of
all manifestation of mind from the lowest
order of instinct to the highest degree of
intellection, and these manifestations of
mind are obtained through the same law of
counter-vibrations as that presiding over the
operations of the Ray of Matter.

" In the latter Ray, however, interferences
of a comparatively low rate of vibration can
effectively affect its lines of force and pro-
duce material results, while in the Ray of
Mind, the vibration carrying the brain-waves
into its lines of force, and capable of affecting
these, are of such subtle nature, so incom-
prehensibly transcending in velocity, num-
ber, and quality the vibrations affecting the
Ray of Matter, that they penetrate the latter
Ray without in the least interfering with its
vibratory motion, and this through the oper-
ation of the same law that enables man to
remain unaffected while subjected to an
electric current of say a hundred thousand
volts pressure, while a current of five thou-
sand volts is almost sure to kill him.

" And now it becomes our duty — a solemn
one, indeed — to elucidate the mode of action
of the Ray of Spirit, this sublime Ray em-
anating from, and, on its return road, lead-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 177

ing directly to the center of the Spiritual
Sun, the very bosom of the Infinite Father,
of Parabrahm, the abode of pure spirit.

" To man alone is allotted the inestimable
privilege of reaching this divine Ray, to
assimilate, to appropriate, to make his own
the infinite spiritual treasures therein con-
tained. Yea, verily, to live in the radia-
tions of this Ray, to become ever more
conscious of its presence, to be steadfast in
the endeavor to attain higher and higher
radiations through the attunement with it
of our aims and of our aspirations to reach
our loftiest ideals, to constantly raise these
ideals, and to ceaselessly strive to conform
to them all our acts — such is the sublime
destiny of man here and hereafter, until
the final goal be reached — his reintegration
into the bosom of the Infinite, whence he
sprang, there to live in omniconsciousness,
in omnipotence, as a living factor of Para-
brahm, whose supercelestial attributes will
have been duly earned, and will be right-
fully granted.

"The divine Ray of Spirit is composed of
an infinite number of subrays, radiations,
and subradiations. Of these, each gives
response to man's invocations or upward
endeavors in accordance with their degree
of worthiness, in accordance with the de-
gree of potency of the vibrations conveying
these endeavors. For, indeed, as the cords
of the ^[Jolian harp answer the breath of the
zephyr, each cord giving forth its own sweet

178 IN THE SANCTUARY.

tone in accordance with the greater or lesser
intensity of such breath, similarly the innu-
merable components of the divine Ray of
Spirit vouchsafe a willing response to every
invocation, spiritual aspiration, or pra}/er
sent up by man, each Ray, subray, or radia-
tion giving answer when the ratio and
qtiality of the vibratory waves that convey
these spiritual endeavors are in harmony
with their own vibratory potential.

" Prayers offered to God asking Him to
grant material favors emanate from the
brain ; hence, the vibrations conveying them
cannot affect the infinitely swifter and more
sublimated vibrations of the Ray of Spirit,
and the prayer remains unanswered, except
it chances to meet in the Ray of Mind some
radiation which provides an intellectual
mean toward the solution or granting of the
prayer.

" In the soul of man alone is vested the
power of emitting vibrations able to affect,
the absolutely incomprehensible rate of
motion even of the least of the infinite
subradiations of the Ray of Spirit. The
vibrations emitted by the soul, be they con-
veying a supplication, an aspiration, or a
simple longing directed toward the Infinite,
always bear the sweet characteristic of im-
personality and of implied adoration.

" The soul, from the moment of her awak-
ening in the human body — for she lies in a
deathlike sleep in many — never ceases to
send out tentacles through the psychic

IN THE SANCTUARY. 179

realms, in the fond hope of encountering
some radiation of the Ray of Spirit and
receiving from it comfort, encouragement,
and recognition.

u The soul instinctively feels that her
home lies somewhere afar off, in spheres as
yet unknown, and these radiations of the
spirit appear to her as the highways that
will eventually lead her to that home — at
least she is tempted so to judge from the
congeniality and happiness that overshadow
her, when, in hours of liberation, she dwells
in these radiations and communes with the
celestial influences which they carry with
them.

" ( In hours of liberation/ we say, for too
true it is that the soul is imprisoned in the
human body, being permitted to look into
the psychic world only through the medium
of the intellect, which, be it large or unde-
veloped, is often smothered by the unwhole-
some auras of uncontrolled senses.

" The awakening intellect of man may
open to the poor soul but a vista of witch-
craft ; the perverted intellect, even the hor-
rors of an auto-da-fe ; still, the soul, with
blind faith, clings to the one noble idea
uppermost in the mind of persecutors.
Thus it was in the time of the Spanish
inquisition, when the cruel priests honestly
believed that the burning at the stake of
heretics was a meritorious action. Indeed,
when the dreadful ceremony was performed,
they prostrated themselves before the altar,

l8o IN THE SANCTUARY.

covered their heads with ashes, and thanked
God with fervor for having been selected as
His humble instruments to put so many of
His enemies out of the way.

"As the intellect of man develops, and a
larger conception of nature is acquired, the
openings to advancement offered to the soul
are coordinate with the growth of the intel-
lect. The vista embraces a wider field,
faith is strengthened, aspirations grow
nobler in degree as the soul realizes the
existence of the higher powers presiding
over nature's realms. And so the expan-
sion or contraction of the soul, in fact her
liberty, is entirely under the control of the
intellect. It is true, however, that the soul
is an ever-active principle, always agitated
by upward urgings, which, alas ! can be
understood by the body that imprisons it
only in degree as its brain-matter attains
higher qualities. Thus in a harp, the most
sublime melodies may lie dormant for years,
to be awakened only by the touch of the
artist whose soul is attuned to the silent
whispers of the Infinite, whose brain- cells
vibrate with the occult caresses of the im-
ponderable forces of God's Universe. To
such being alone is allotted the supreme
privilege of drawing forth those sublime
harmonies which are capable of entrancing
the mind and uplifting the soul of man to
the empyrean of spirit.

"When man has been normally devel-
oped ; when his intellect has steadily grown

IN THE SANCTUARY. iSl

to a scientific and philosophic understand-
ing of the laws governing the Universe, as
far as these laws may be known ; and if,
while carrying on these investigations, his
noble endeavors have succeeded in build-
ing for him a character in harmony with
most lofty ideals, then, having arrived at
the extreme limit of scientific knowledge as
vouchsafed by the century in which he
lives — then, we say, will he survey with the
eye of the spirit the limitless regions of
the unknown that stretch out before him
into the psychic world. Fain will he project
a vivid aspiration, an intense soul-breathing
into the occult realms, the vibrations of
which may be potent enough to reach the
higher radiations of the Ray of Spirit.
Then will be forthcoming moments of
divine illumination, granting consciousness
of Verities eternal, for during these mo-
ments of exaltation, the soul is permitted
to partake of, and make her own, the
boundless treasures of the supersensuous
world.

u Life, for the man who has attained this
stage of progress, becomes an anthem, a
song of heavenly harmonies ; it is replete
with endeavors always upward and cease-
less climbing up the Ray of Spirit, until
finally the bosom of Parabrahm is attained.

u This is the road laid out for the human
soul, and this road she must pursue sooner
or later; for all things in existence must
follow fatally the lines of force, the lines of

182 IN THE SANCTUARY.

evolution leading from the negative pole of
the material cosmos to the positive pole
of the Universe, the Spiritual Sun, or center
of pure spirit."

This elucidation of the grandest nat-
ural and divine philosophy he had ever
heard expressed by man, overpowered
Marius with emotion, for he had listened
with rapt attention. The Magus had waxed
warm during the exposition of the tran-
scendent truths he was now setting forth
to his disciple. His eloquent words, con-
veyed in a vivifying magnetic flow, kept
Marius spellbound, while in his brain was
developed the highest faculty of compre-
hension. Desiring, however, more light
upon certain points touched upon, he ven-
tured the following inquiry:

"If it would not be lacking in respect, I
should like to propose a question to my
Master. The scientific world, as well as
the schools of higher philosophy, is much
concerned at the present time with the
momentous question : ' Is man a free agent
or is he not?' If man is a free agent,
free to act as personal impulses may lead
him, then, of course, is he responsible
for the consequences of his acts ; but if
man is not a free agent ; if his destiny has
been mapped out beforehand by some
higher power over which he has no control,
then he cannot rightfully be held respon-
sible for such consequences. Learned phi-
losophers, men of high scientific attain-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 183

ments, both earnest and desirous of knowing
the truth, are found warmly advocating
each side of this most momentous question.
May I ask of you, Master, on which side of
these schools lies the truth? "

u Such a question is highly proper, and
can be answered convincingly. Now that
the existence of the divine lines of force of
the Universe has been demonstrated, and
their function clearly laid down, it will be
easily understood that man, coming into
existence only when the divine lines of
force have completed their involutionary
function, and are launched upon the road of
evolution — man, as well as all other exist-
ences, must of necessity, yea, fatally, follow
these divine lines of evolutionary force, and
eventually arrive at the bosom of Para-
brahm, therein being reinstated with all the
perfections and powers belonging to such
state. Thus is the destiny of universal
man.

"Progress he fatally must; no choice has
he in the matter ; he is no free agent here ;
the divine lines of evolutionary force will
carry him on in spite of himself, and com-
pel him to fulfill his transcendental destiny.

u But man can retard his progress, can
temporarily neutralize the evolutionary im-
pulse of the divine lines of force, and in
this respect he is an absolutely free agent;
the choice lies with himself. The divine
lines of evolutionary force may be compared
to a large river with calm surface and slow,

184 IN THE SANCTUARY.

but steady flow, man being a voyager on it
in the skiff of life. Destiny has given him
his senses for oars, his conscience for com-
pass, and intuition to forecast storms, ap-
proaching obstacles, or helpful breezes.
Herein man is a free agent. It lies with
him entirely to endeavor to follow the cur-
rent of the river or not. He may choose to
row directly against it, or partially so, going
in any direction except straight down stream.
This stream, of course, is very slow, and it
takes a keen observation to discover the
exact way it flows, but conscience is a sure
guide, and intuition a superior master
mariner.

"It is easily surmised that the man who
propels his skiff up stream will in time find
himself exhausted, and will discover how
useless, yea, impossible, it is to pursue this
fruitless, contrary course. As soon, how-
ever, as he endeavors to find an easier path,
he gets nearer to the true direction of the
stream. Similarly with those who take the
stream crosswise; all get warning by expe-
rience and conscience, and in the course of
time every human being, however much he
may have wilfully or unwittingly .retarded
his entering upon the true course, will jour-
ney in the direction of the stream along the
divine lines of evolution.

" In the general outworking of the destiny
of the Universe, man is no free agent. To
Parabrahm he must inevitably return by the
evolutionary road. He is, however, a free

FIG- 4-

utSE Ll£

OF THE

ITNIVERSri

IN THE SANCTUARY. 185

agent in his choice of helping or opposing
the destiny, of hastening or retarding the
end. In the universal life, man must obey
the universal law; in individual life he is
free to oppose this law if he choose. I must
add here, however, that although man is
incontrovertibly a free agent in his individ-
ual life, the absolutely free will in him lasts
only one moment. To make this assertion
clear to you, I must have recourse to another
material illustration ; and again it shall be
the dynamo-electric machine.

" The armature A (Fig. 4), as already
known, revolves between the magnets M,
and converts into electricity the magnetic
lines of force running steadily between the
north and south poles of this magnet. A
wire W connected with the armature is
wound or coiled around the body of the
magnet. As soon as the armature is made
to revolve, an electric current passes through
this wire or coil, imparts increased magnetic
power to the magnet, and multiplies its
lines of force. These the armature con-
tinues to cut with the result that an in-
creased electric current is produced to such
an extent that, if not controlled, the arma-
ture itself is in danger of being destroyed
by excessive heat.

" Man is the electrician in charge of his
life's dynamo, the free agent, the custodian
of his life's destiny. The electrician is per-
fectly free to let the armature of the dynamo
remain at rest, and let the magnetic lines

1 86 IN THE SANCTUARY.

of force move peaceably in their natural
course from the north to the south pole, or
he can, at his option, cause the armature to
revolve and convert the magnetic force into
electric force.

" Similarly is man an absolutely free
agent to commit or not his first transgres-
sion of moral law. He is perfectly free to
take his first glass of whisky or not to take
it ; to become guilty or not of a first immoral
act, no impetus or momentum operating to
urge him thereto ; but as soon as the first
transgression has been committed, man
ceases to be an absolutely free agent, for by
this first transgression the aptitude to trans-
gress has been acquired, and a momentum
thereby instituted. The armature has been
made to revolve, the current running
through the wire coiled around the magnets
has increased the magnetic force in these,
and in them causes to remain a residuum of
force which is ever active ; in man it urges
him incessantly to repeat the transgres-
sion, henceforward he ceases to be an
absolutely free agent. In the dynamo-
electric machine, this residuum or artificially
created force can be eradicated only by
sending an inverse current through the
poles. So, too, in man, the momentum of
a newly acquired habit can only be de-
stroyed by a strong and continued effort of
the will. If the pernicious habit be of long
existence, occult means of a highly relig-
ious nature must be employed ; while in the

IN THE SANCTUARY. 187

physical realm there must be introduced
into the blood new particles which, when car-
ried to the brain, have the property of
giving tone to its relaxed texture, thereby
neutralizing the residuary force that urges
to the continuation of the pernicious habit.
Is this explanation clear to you ? "

" It is, Most Revered Master, and I
am very thankful for the elucidation of
this problem so important to the welfare
of man."

"In continuation of our previous dis-
course, I will say that it is proper to state
here that there is another mode of reaching
certain radiations of the Ray of Spirit, and
of obtaining therefrom relative spiritual
powers like those of healing, or helping in
an efficacious manner undeveloped brethren
on the upward road, although the devotee
may not himself be possessed of a large
intellect; and this mode is the consecrating
of the whole life, the entire being, to the
cult of the Spirit, through fervent prayer,
adoration, the overcoming of the allure-
ments of the senses and an absolute detach-
ment from the things of earth. In such a
life the intellect, as well as all other facul-
ties, is made subservient to the highest aim,
to the unfolding of the spiritual nature of
man. In this devotee, the intellect will
await development in a future state; for the
intellect of every individual must, at some
period, reach its apogee of expansion.
Without such development, the apocalypse

;D^V

1 88 IN THE SANCTUARY.

of tlie most sublime truths, borne on the
wings of trie divine Ray of Spirit, would
remain unintelligible to him; he would
enjoy the never-ending spiritual feasts of
the supersensuous world in the same man-
ner as an uninitiate of to-day enjoys a
spectacular performance in a theater, ad-
miring one dissolving view after another,
but remaining ignorant of the scientific
processes which produce the wonderful
effects that afford him so much delight.
This is the spiritual development aimed at
in convent and cloister — spiritual develop-
ment vouchsafed in response to intense
religious faith.

"The divine mysteries that have lately
been revealed for the first time to the world,
have been kept in absolute secrecy until the
present day by the Magi, for the reason be-
fore stated, namely, that humanity was not
ready to consider the profound philosoph-
ical statements just set forth. The scien-
tist and the philosopher of to-day, these
leaders of the human mind, however, are
fully prepared to adopt the new line of
thought, and the way thereto has already
been paved by the most advanced thinkers
among them. We are aware that many
unlearned, good and honest souls, whose
loftiness of conception does not transcend
the anthropomorphic God — the God-man—
will pass by our sacred revelations, and per-
haps consider them impious. For these we
have not one word of reproach. From the

IN THE SANCTUARY. 189

beginning of the world every tribe, every
nation, lias had a conception of a God in
harmony with the development of their in-
tellectual faculties, from the God of the
African, carved in wood, before whom the
native falls prostrate, asking for rain when
drought desolates his home — a god whom
he drags in the dust, with a rope around
the neck, when rain does not come at the
time expected — thence through numerous
stages of evolution (for evolution obtains
even in these gods of humanity) up to the
anthropomorphic gcds of Islaniism, Budd-
hism, Judaism, and Christianity. For the
gods of all these creeds we have respect,
and, for the last mentioned ones, deep rev-
erence, inasmuch as they are made the em-
bodiment of the highest ideals of their wor-
shipers, and, being vested by them with
the most perfect attributes they can con-
ceive, are undoubtedly powerful instruments
at work in the elaboration of true humani-
tarian progress. Far be it from us to dis-
turb any of the established religions or
creeds, for our sincere sympathies lie with
all beliefs having an upward tendency, an
elevating aspiration, and our blessing rests
upon them all, for in God's own time they
will reach the more lofty planes of evolu-
tion. Our greatest concern lies, however,
with the honest materialist, the man of sci-
ence, who, with scalpel and crucible, micro-
scope and atomic balance, telescope and
spectroscope, searches for God by the ana-

190 IN THE SANCTUARY.

lytical method, and fails to find him ; with
the student whose earnest endeavor, by aid
of the midnight oil, tries to discover the
origin offeree, of man's faculties, of thought,
and who arrives, through unbiased investi-
gation, at the sad conclusion that all forces,
of whatever nature, originate in matter, as
well as all faculties of man. 'No liver, no
bile,' says he; 'no glands, no secretion; and
110 brain, no thought. All life and exhibi-
tion of life are the results of material con-
ditions. The planets move and develop and
mature according to well-known laws. All
power is inherent in matter; above matter
we find nothing but fanciful speculations,
dreams, sometimes brilliant, enticing, be-
witching even, but dreams, nevertheless,
and as such unworthy to be given hospi-
tality by the intellect.'

" To these honest men, men loving science
for the sake of science itself, men without
illusion or imagination, adhering firmly to,
and drawing conclusions from, elements
which they can weigh, carve, feel, see, hear,
which come fully under the senses of the
body — to these good men we would fain
say: 'Higher, brothers, a little higher.'
We would call the attention of such to the
role which vibrations play in the world of
imponderable forces, and bid them investi-
gate it; to them we would commend the
perusal of the revelations now for the first
time given to the world ; and we feel confi-
dent that scientific endeavors in this new

IN THE SANCTUARY.

line of investigation will soon open a vista
to the soul of the materialist, and canse her
to chant an exnltant i Gloria in Excelsisj
which will send a thrill of happiness through
his entire being. It will pour upon him a
baptismal shower of new and encouraging
vibrations from above destined to awaken
witliin him responsive cords, the spiritual-
izing harmony of which had lain dormant,
and of the possession of which he had
hitherto remained unconscious.

" You should now, my dear brother, be
able to fully realize the momentous role of
vibration, not only in life, but through the
entire Universe ; that all phenomena in the
material world take place through vibrations
infinitely varied in their mode and motion;
that by means of vibrations all forces are
transmitted, and operate in nature; that of
the workings of these forces we obtain daily
proofs ; that forces of greater potentiality are
periodically discovered by science — all this
conclusively demonstrating that there must
be a source somewhere from which all these
forces emanate. Surely, this source, the
origin of all force, of all power, of omnipo-
tence, in fact, lies in the bosom of Parabrahm.

" Furthermore, inasmuch as we have indu-
bitable proof of the existence of various grades
of intellect, from that of the Hottentot to
those of the crowned heads of the philosophic
and scientific schools of to-day, we have in-
controvertible proof that greater intellect
can be acquired by the earnest devotee in

192 IN THE SANCTUARY.

direct ratio to liis efforts. Similarly, there
must exist the source of absolute intellec-
tion, of omniscience, which must dwell some-
where; and, truly, it does so dwell in the
bosom of Parabrahm, the Supreme Mind.

" Thirdly, as proofs are daily vouchsafed
to us of the existence of relative good and
love, that good and love may be unfolded
through cultivation and practice, so the
source of the highest good, of the highest
love, that is, absolute good, absolute love,
must exist somewhere, and, indeed, such
source exists in Parabrahm.

" Parabrahm, or the Divine Godhead, is,
therefore, the central source of pure force —
Omnipotence ; of mind or pure intellection
— Omniscience; of absolute love or pure
Spirit.

" These are the attributes of Parabrahm,
the Divine Trinity, one and indivisible.
They constitute the Supreme Spiritual
Sun, whose Rays, the divine lines of force,
illumine and penetrate all that is. Of these
divine attributes, man may partake at his
option, for it cannot be too often repeated
that the divine lines of force which convey
all the divine qualities, permeate man. In
order to make these qualities his own, give
them a home within himself, what he has
to do is to place his individuality within the
currents of the lines of force, place obsta-
cles in their way, interferences with their
march, thereby compelling them to tarry
with him. As Franklin compelled an elec-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 193

trie current to descend from the clouds by
offering an appropriate conductor, and thus
became possessor of the force — so it is with
man. If he projects vibrations into the
psychic world with a ratio of motion suf-
ficiently rapid and of the proper quality to
be in harmony with some radiations of the
divine lines of force, these radiations must
answer, and a current must come from
them to man, a current conveying the spir-
itual qualities of the radiations. These
man can make his own if he choose. Ever
ascending from subradiation to radiation,
from radiation to subray, from subray to
Ray, each higher state attained becoming
a new center of force for the projection of
more powerful, more sublimated vibrations,
thus making his own ever higher quali-
ties, the great consummation will finally be
achieved — reintegration into Parabrahm,
there to be one with him, and command, as
one who has duly earned them, all the
attributes of the Deity. "

"Venerable Master, the system of cos-
mogony explained in the papyri is most sub-
lime indeed ; they refer, however, exclusively
to Rays of Force as constituting God or
Parabrahm, and to one of those Rays as
being the Ray of divine consciousness — is
there then no personal God ? "

u My son, there is no consciousness with-
out coexisting and correlative personality.
If one becomes conscious of a certain fact-
abstract idea, or material object — it is his

194 IN THE SANCTUARY.

personality that is the recipient of such
consciousness. God, or Parabrahm, there-
fore, being the source, the alpha and omega,
of all consciousness, must also be the begin-
ning and goal of all personalities, every
one of which originates from and ends in
Him the supreme or absolute personality.
Hence, to answer thy question, I say that
God is the acme, the supreme degree of per-
sonality, a person in the most sublime
sense. What the form of that personality is,
transcends our conception in this our mun-
dane state. When man shall have arrived
at that stage of evolution which he is to
occupy hereafter in the spheres, and in
which his immensely enlarged vision and
apprehension will enable him to compre-
hend the Universe in its entirety as well as
the universality of the being composing it,
then he will, perhaps, be able to grasp the
immensity of God's personality. ' God is
all that is."

" The explanation is most lucid and con-
vincing, venerable Master; pray continue
your instruction so intensely interesting."

" Over the world of matter, man has little
control. The lines of divine force radiate
from the bosom of Parabrahm, the supreme
positive pole of all that is, the absolute
potential of vibration, and consequently of
heat. Thence they run into the vastness
of infinitude toward the lowest potential of
vibration, absolute cold, the primordial neg-
ative pole of the Universe. These divine

IN THE SANCTUARY. 195

lines of force constitute, as we have stated
before, the lines of involution through which
God becomes manifest in the form of mat-
ter. These lines, in degree as they proceed
further from the divine Godhead and ap-
proach the primordial negative pole, undergo
a lowering of their rate of vibration, caused
by the interferences of the currents always
surrounding a pole, and in this case, also,
by the inconceivably low degree of cold of
these currents.

"Heat is not the proper term for the
highest sublimation of temperature caused
by vibratory motion at its absolute poten-
tial, but it is the only term that, in our
actual condition of knowledge, may convey
the idea to the understanding. Similarly,
the term 'absolute cold' is used to convey
the meaning of lowest potential of vibration.

"As a consequence of these most potent
interferences of the polar currents, the
vibratory motion of certain of these lines
of force is so reduced as to make them per-
ceptible to the senses of man ; they become
manifest and appear in the shape of nebulae,
comets, stars, suns, planets, upon the last
man finding his abode in due course of
time. Thus around this primordial nega-
tive pole of the Universe the cosmos is
called into existence, gradually unfolding
its wonderful galaxies which to-day so bril-
liantly illuminate the heavens."

" Dear Master, I would respectfully ask
for further elucidation in regard to the posi-

196 IN THE SANCTUARY.

tion of tliis negative pole of the Universe of
which you speak. I can readily understand
the existence of the Spiritual Sun as the
origin from which emanate the divine lines
of force. But these, as the papyri state,
run to the negative pole; where is this neg-
ative pole? I have an intense desire to
gain comprehension of this sublime system
of cosmogony."

"Most cheerfully will I endeavor to give
thee a lucid explanation of it," responded
the Magus, "for the question is a legitimate
one.

" The whole system of the Universe, in its
totality and in all its individual units, from
the minute cells that constitute all organ-
ized bodies, up to the most stupendous
structures, suns and worlds, is spherical in
form. From the Spiritual Sun, which is the
positive pole, radiate lines of force in every
direction. To render this clear we will
have recourse to a material illustration—
our Earth. Suppose the Spiritual Sun were
located in the center of it, and its light ra-
diated in all directions toward the outer
crust of the earth, this outer crust, corres-
ponding with the outer membrane of the
cell, would represent the region of the neg-
ative pole of the Universe — an immense re-
gion, indeed, where so-called cold reaches
its lowest degree. Hence this negative pole
is not a point, but a circumferential region
where polar currents have their abode. In
this region the divine lines of force first

IN THE SANCTUARY. 197

meet with interference and resistance, and
the Ray of Matter, whose rate of vibration
is lower than those of the other two Rays,
is first affected. Materialization and con-
densation into worlds are the results. The
limitless space beyond this region is being
gradually and continuously invaded by new
worlds, incessantly springing into exist-
ence under the same process of interference
by polar currents. The region of involu-
tionary activity increases in proportion as the
inhabitable region of the cosmos is enlarged.
The effect of one of these enormous polar
currents is illustrated in the 'Milky Way/
where numberless new worlds are in process
of construction."

" This system of cosmogony, beloved
Master, is truly wonderful and grand, and
the teaching of it is of most momentous
import. For the first time has the forma-
tion of worlds (a subject which has occupied
my deepest thought) become clear to me.
The workings of God, the true God, are
brought within the reach of man's compre-
hension, if man is willing to learn. The
honest materialist can now conscientiously
join in the worship of God, and will recog-
nize that such worship will be an incontro-
vertible proof for the enlargement of his
mind and the elevation of his intellect."

198 IN THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER IX.

" FOR the present," resumed Caspar, " we
will proceed no further in the scientific
exposition of the Deity and its attributes.
Numberless elucidations of cosmic phe-
nomena are, however, given in these papyri,
but, as yet, the world is unprepared to
receive them. What has been vouchsafed
for thee to hear is deemed sufficient to offer
a scientific basis of true religion, and a
religious foundation to true science.

"And now I will relate how it came to
pass that these papyri, of such surpassing
importance, came to be deposited in the
archives of the Roman Catholic Papacy, the
impressive scene of their recovery from
oblivion having been presented to thee in
last night's vision.

" The greatest of Egypt's Hierophants,
seeing with the undimmed eyes of the ad-
vanced occultist the hopeless condition of
materiality into which his country had sunk,
and despairing of being able for centuries
at least to rekindle a spark of spiritual-
ity in the sensual lives of his people;
seeing, moreover, that the High Priests sur-
rounding him had gradually lost interest
in the scientific possessions of the order,
the Sovereigns and people being too igno-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 199

rant to understand them; and that these
High Priests, in order to keep in check the
ever-increasing sensuality of these same
Sovereigns and people, were devoting their
efforts entirely to the production of occult
phenomena of the most overawing nature,
he decided to transfer to more propitious
fields the mysterious and transcending
truths of which he had become possessed,
as custodian of the occult lore transmitted
to him by the Hierophant and Magus, his
predecessor. To find this more propitious
field, he retired to the hoi y chamber of the
Great Pyramid, and, reposing his body upon
the sacred couch before the shrine, assumed
his higher supersensuous life. He then
began to explore the cities situated on the
trans Mediterranean littoral, where, rumor
said, a new religion had sprung into exist-
ence, the dogmas of which had been conse-
crated by the death of many martyrs,
thereby winning over to the creed earnest
devotees, whose number was constantly
increasing.

"Above the City of Rome he beheld a
great light, and upon close investigation
found it to be the golden radiance of Spirit-
uality in the midst of which was a brilliant
nucleus, like that of a comet. It proceeded
from a small group of men assembled in a
council hall. They were, seemingly, men
of authority, and to one of the number great
respect was shown by the others. The
matter under discussion was the prevailing

200 IN THE SANCTUARY.

materialism, the unbounded reign of unbri-
dled sensuality, the Godlessness of the
period, and the measures to be adopted in
order to promote a better life. They recog-
nized that in the cultivation of the attributes
of the soul lay the only means of overcom-
ing sensuality, and that supreme faith in
Cod, the Ruler of all that is, was the first
principle to be proclaimed. Next to this,
the necessity for strong and more extended
brotherhood among men should be made
prominent. How to disseminate most effect-
ively these truths among the people was
being fully discussed.

"After having been present at several
councils of similar import and tendency,
the Hierophant concluded that these leaders
of the comparatively new sect had in them-
selves all the elements necessary to under-
stand, accept, and proclaim the sacred truths
of the occult order of which he was, as he
then thought, the last representative. Some
of these men were possessed of much scien-
tific and occult learning, and would be fit
recipients of the solemn trust. He fervently
desired to be translated to his home above,
owing to the fact that his life here below
was a life of much suffering, caused by the
constant stream of a low order of vibrations
which had encountered him whenever he
ventured outside the Sanctuary of the
Pyramid.

"To Rome, therefore, the Hierophant at
last wended his way in his natural body.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 2OI

Inclosed in a large golden casket which he
carried with him was a roll of papyri, which
he evidently regarded as a most precious
trust, to judge from the care, amounting
almost to veneration, with which he handled
it. Directing his steps to the building
where he had seen the worthy men in
assembly, he there met the Pope of Rome,
for the person to whom the members of the
council had shown high respect was none
other than the head of the Christian church
at that epoch.

"A most venerable and learned man was
he, of imposing mien, but most simple in
manner withal. He was a thorough mys-
tic, having become such by a profound study
of the works of the occultists of old, prin-
cipally of the Chaldean mysteries, which,
owing to their being based upon science,
more particularly interested him.

" Well was he prepared to receive the
Hierophant and understand the vast import
of his mission. As they met, their auras
in terbl ended, and they instantly understood
each other, and mutual confidence was at
once established.

" For many days they dwelt together in
unison, during which time the Pope was
thoroughly instructed in the import of the
hieroglyphic works submitted to him and
henceforth intrusted to his care and keep-
ing. He solemnly promised forthwith that
their contents should form the basis of his
religion, being in full harmony with the

202 IN THE SANCTUARY.

principles proclaimed by their Leader when,
alive — Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified.

" The contents of the sacred papyri being
mostly of a scientific and occult nature, the
council of High Priests was convened by the
Pope to deliberate on the use to be made of
them. After several meetings it was con-
cluded to formulate and promulgate articles
of faith, belief in which would be obligatory
on all followers of Christ. This was a nec-
essary proceeding, inasmuch as the early
Christians, being mostly uneducated, were
unable to understand scientific and deeply
occult reasoning. These articles of faith
were to be impressed on the minds of the
devotees by means of divers ceremonies
intended to appeal to the emotions, thereby
rendering faith more earnest and enduring.

" The ceremony of Holy Mass was then
first established, and was suggested by the
following rite described in the sacred
papyri : Once a year, at a designated time,
when planetary conditions are most condu-
cive to spiritual influx, the Hierophant, sur-
rounded by his High Priests, after nine days'
abstinence, repaired to the Sanctuary of the
Pyramid. There, at high noon, when celes-
tial influences are most potent, he conse-
crated a large loaf of pure gluten, this
substance, when kept in the sacred shrine,
retaining for a period of twelve moons the
aura of Parabrahrn. By concentrating the
will on this loaf while directing to Para-
brahm prayers, recitation of manthrams, and

IN THE SANCTUARY. 2O3

deeply occult invocations, his aura thor-
oughly impregnated it with pure Spirit.
Once a year, all the priests, initiates, can-
didates, and neophytes partook of the
consecrated loaf at the epoch of the year
designated at a later date as Easter by the
Christian church, after having duly pre-
pared themselves by fasting for a period of
seven times seven days, of which nine days
were dedicated to special prayer and cere-
monies during which fasting was not
required.

" This communion with Parabrahm, by
partaking of the consecrated loaf, was most
efficacious in uplifting all who were ad-
mitted to this sacrament. Mind and soul
being appropriately prepared, this aura long
remained with the recipient, extending to
him peaceful spiritual help, and enabling
him to advance a step higher up the ascent
leading to the Supreme. With the priests
this aura remained about twelve moons;
with the High Priests it abided forever ; the
Hierophant was one with it.

" The initiates of the second degree, can-
didates and neophytes, when lacking spir-
itual strength, could be permitted to partake
of the sanctified loaf at any time of the
year.

" The ceremonies attending the conse-
cration of the loaf were directed against the
domination exercised by the senses. A
cross surmounted the shrine, to which the
carved image of a man was fastened by

204 IN THE SANCTUARY.

wooden nails, one driven through, the hand
of each extended arm, and one through both
feet, nailing them together to the vertical
beam of the cross. Upon the head of the
figure was a crown of thorny wood, and the
exposed heart was bleeding ; before the lips
a spectral hand, beautifully shaped, held a
cup of exceedingly bitter beverage. The
occult meaning of this image was that the
empire by the senses over man must be
overcome by suffering and mortification of
the flesh. The head and brain must be
sorely disciplined, the heart must bleed,
and the tongue be made to feel how bitter
are the sorrows it may entail. The conjoint
suffering and rigid discipline of head, heart,
hands, and feet, are necessary to effect an effi-
cient control over the lower nature of man.

"During the ceremony of consecration,
when the extended hands of the Hierophant
covered the loaf, and he recited the mystic
formula of invocation, a large metallic gong
was made to give forth its deep, soft note,
the vibrations of which penetrated to the
inmost recesses of the human soul, arous-
ing in it a powerful spiritual activity. This
note was the mysterious key-note of the
Universe, as given forth by the ocean in its
perpetual moan ; by the large forest, when
the breeze sighs in its bowers at eve; as
heard in the distant murmur of large cities,
when above them hover the wings of night.

"The Rosary, or string of beads, in use
by the Roman Catholic devotees, and also

IN THE SANCTUARY. 205

their recital of divers litanies and rogations,
are substitutes for other vehicles for prayer
employed by Eastern mystics, and now
called by the somewhat sarcastic name of
'prayer-machines,' objects of much ridi-
cule on the part of the modern skeptic.
Nevertheless, in the light of the new science,
their usefulness is readily conceded. The
long-continued repetition of the same ratio
and tone of vibration begets a potential in
the psychic realm, sufficient to cause a
decided interference with the swift passage
of some radiation of the Ray of Spirit, com-
pelling it to tarry on its way and to grant
to man the spiritual enlightenment or con-
solation sought for by the oft-repeated
prayers. The Rosary acts like an electric
battery, each bead, by adding a cell to the
current, increasing its potential. High
Priests recognized the fact that without the
intervention of numerous beads, or the
repeated revolutions of the prayer-machine,
the attention of the supplicant could not
remain undisturbed, but would fluctuate
between heterogeneous thought-waves that
are ever floating in air. Hence would ensue
the emission of vibration of inconstant qual-
ity, inefficient to project effectual interfer-
ences into the Ray of Spirit.

"The Roman Catholic monasteries are
instituted in imitation of those of ancient
Egypt, presided over b}' our order, a de-
scription' of which is set forth in these
sacred papyri. The object of the founding

206 IN THE SANCTUARY.

of the Trappist order, for instance, with its
very severe rules of discipline, fasting, bod-
ily castigation, the observance of silence,
constant vigils, was to afford effective help to
devotees whose senses have kept a mastery
sway over them ; the isolation in which the
members of the society are kept in the
monasteries frees them from all outside
temptations and allurements of the world.
"One of the mysteries, the importance of
which was fully realized by the Egyptian
priesthood of our order, is that the neo-
phyte, and in truth every man or woman
who essays earnestly to tread the upward
path, is beset by constant and exceptional
dangers. The senses, the despotism of
which it is the first duty to overcome — a
duty requiring most fervent endeavor-
rebel violently against any intrusion into
their rightful domain, and on this occasion
the papyri divulge a most deep occult truth
which will ere long be fully corroborated by
science. The spiritualizing of the brain-
cells, their growth and evolution, granula-
tion, palingenesy or rebirth, progress mostly
at the expense of cells of a lower order. A
cell, in process of evolution through the
urgings and action of higher forces, absorbs
the vital energy of its antipolar cells, which
are always of lower development. This
process of absorption produces in the latter
cells a vibratory excitement, a battle for
dear life, as it were, a rebellion against be-
ing gradually atrophied, causing their exist-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 2O/

ence to be strongly felt. In the case of
brain-cells undergoing the process of spirit-
ualization, they emit vibratory waves draw-
ing forth the energy of their antipolar cells
which govern the animal or sensual nature
of man. The latter become excited, with
the result that a powerful appeal for recog-
nition is produced, culminating in an un-
ceasing clamor for satisfaction. If the will
of the neophyte be not strong, or he neg-
lects to summon help from above through
prayer, or is not provided with a talisman,
a serious fall may be the consequence, fol-
lowed, sometimes, by a total abandonment
of the path. Nor are instances rare wherein
people with decided spiritual tendencies,
even after having published meritorious
works on occultism or spiritualism, have
stumbled by the wayside and fallen into the
path of shame. To avoid this fall, to guard
the neophyte, during his period of weak-
ness, against the powerful assaults with
which the lower senses incessantly harass
him, monasteries have been established,
within the walls of which temptation doth
not enter, and before the shrine of which
spiritual strength is ever ready to be
granted. Herein lies the origin of convent
and cloister, and the safeguard which they
afford to the neophyte is well-nigh indis-
pensable to him.

u The order of priests, as set forth in
these papyri, had its neophytes, candidates,
and priests of the third, second, and first

208 IN THE SANCTUARY.

degree. It was an order of most learned
men, who studied the sciences with great
earnestness, aided both by occult illumina-
tion and worldly mechanical means, living
in their monasteries undisturbed by secular
cares, which were assumed by lay brothers.
The highest spiritual attainments were
vouchsafed to these men, and from their
ranks one was exalted to the dignity of
Hierophant, or Magus. This order in the
Roman Catholic church is represented by
the Jesuits. As to how true they have
remained to the spirit of the order of the
Egyptian priests the world must pass judg-
ment. For the sake of justice, however,
which, under all circumstances, must be
respected, I have to state that many Amer-
ican fathers of that society have progressed
spiritually far beyond the ken of the ordi-
nary world ; and if to-day they decline to
discuss the advanced ideas of religion and
occultism, they do so merely through the
necessity of remaining obedient to the exac-
tion of a terrible oath taken with their
vows, and not because their convictions or
sympathies lie with the iinprogressive.

" The confession of sins, as practiced in
the Roman church, the absolution bestowed
by the priest, and consequent admission to
holy communion, are also derived from the
avowal of weakness made by the neophyte
or candidate to a High Priest, when seeking
for help after a fall, and counsel in his strug-
gle for spiritual growth; upon true repent-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 209

ance such neophyte was admitted to par-
take anew of the consecrated loaf, and was
restored to divine grace. This practice
gave a fresh impetus, a powerful stimulant,
to his soul's upward efforts.

" In addition, many minor exoteric relig-
ious ceremonies, having deep occult mean-
ing in reference to externalization of the
Egyptian mysteries, have been adopted by
the Romish church. Although, at the
present time, such ceremonies are but
imperfectly understood by the clergy and
church-goers, they are, nevertheless, en-
dowed with real spiritual power.

"The scapulary, however, is the most
potent of all the occult safeguards that
were adopted by the Pope and council.
Much impressed, indeed, was the latter, by
the description which these papyri give of
the far-reaching occult powers possessed by
the talismans consecrated by the Hiero-
phant. It is related in these documents
that the most powerful talisman consists of
two square pieces of cloth connected by two
cords, so arranged that when the head of
the devotee is passed between them one
piece of cloth will rest on the back, and the
other cover the breast. Upon the covering
011 the back it was imperative that the All-
seeing Eye, surrounded by radiations, should
be embroidered, and upon the front one the
image of Sophia, the Virgin of the World.
The pieces of cloth composing the scapu-
lary represent in form the insignia of the

210 IN THE SANCTUARY.

sacred office of the Hierophant, which were
two squares of cloth of gold worn by him
above his vestments, one in front and the
other on the back. Upon them were em-
broidered, in addition to the above-mentioned
figures, strange hieroglyphics, the front
ones representing the forces surrounding
the negative pole of the Universe, the one
covering the back, the Spiritual Sun, or
Parabrahm, the supreme positive pole.
When duly consecrated by the assembled
Magi, divine lines of force ran constantly
from the positive to the negative pole, trav-
ersing the solar plexus and the most vital
parts of the wearer's body, neutralizing
their lowering tendencies, and surrounding
the brain with such strong, purified aura as
to leave it uninfluenced by external prompt-
ings or impressions of an animal nature.

"The scapulary, or talisman, being kissed
night and morning by the devotee, thereby
constantly renewing the intimate relation
by thought projection between himself and
the powers invoked during the consecra-
tion, proved effective not only in guarding
him 'against the wiles of evil, but never
ceasing to administer to his spiritual nature,
steadily urging him on to upward growth.

"The scapulary worn by Catholic youth
has itself great occult powers, and number-
less are the instances that have come under
my own observation, during my ministry, of
the influence exercised by it. I have known
calamities to individuals and families to be

IN THE SANCTUARY. 2 1 1

averted; great blessings to be bestowed;
confiding souls of many to be rescued from
the snares of the tempter, and others even
from the quagmire of sensuality.

"During my pastorate I visited many
public hospitals, both in Europe and India,
and whenever I met a fallen woman, often
finding her upon her deathbed, I never
omitted to inquire if she had her scapulary
or talisman on her person at the moment of
her first fall. The answer was invariably
the same. They all admitted that at the
time when they had given way to the se-
ductions of the tempter, they had either
abandoned wearing it or had temporarily
laid it aside. In no single instance did I
discover that a girl had fallen a prey to the
seducer, had lacked strength to resist him,
while the scapulary was on her body. This
safeguard, borrowed by the Catholic church
from occult orders of Egypt, has rendered,
and is still rendering, immeasurable spirit-
ual service to its devotees. Before proceed-
ing to explain the adaptation by the Romish
church to her religious service of the occult
mysteries and observances set forth in the
sacred papyri, I must, for clearness' sake,
briefly consider again the primordial system
of the Universe, in order to make plain the
origin of the extensive worship paid to the
Virgin Mary by the devotee of that church."

212 IN THE SANCTUARY.

CHAPTER X.

" THE manner is now well understood in
which the divine lines of force proceed from
the Spiritual Sun, the origin of every force
in its highest potential of vibration and
temperature, to the negative pole or lowest
potential of vibration and absolute cold.
On their way to this negative pole, these
divine lines of force, in their involutionary
course, are constantly interfered with by
the polar currents, their ratio of vibration
and temperature, through this action, being
constantly lowered, until, near the negative
pole, the interferences become so potent as
to cause their velocity to be reduced to such
an extent as to render matter visible, first,
in the form of nebulae and comets, and then
tangible, when these have been condensed
into worlds. The currents of the negative
pole, however, affect the Ray of Mind and
the Ray of Spirit, as well as the Ray of
Matter, for the three main Rays constitut-
ing the divine lines of force, being inter-
volved, are one and indivisible. In degree
as the polar currents interfere with the
rapidity of the vibrations of the Ray of
Matter, equally so do they interfere with
those of the Ray of Mind and those of the
Ray of Spirit, and the interferences with

IN THE SANCTUARY. 213

the ratio of vibratory velocity of these latter
Rays also beget in them subrays, radia-
tions, and subradiations, many of which
can be obtained by man when planets reach
conditions appropriate to his abode on
them.

" Hence, the Ray of Matter, by the action
of the polar currents, becoming differentiated
into visible, and, later on, into tangible
matter, is followed by the Ray of Mind,
which becomes similarly differentiated into
all grades of intellect, from instinct of the
lowest order, as possessed by the animal
with a single microscopical dot of brain-
matter, np to the most powerful intellects of
the world. Plants and the lower organisms
of the animal kingdom, such as infusoria
and other series without brain-specks, move
by attraction and repulsion only. The
same process of differentiation obtains in
the Ray of Spirit, from the subradiation
that answers the first prayer of the babe
whose little hands are upheld by the
mother, to the subray that conveys divine
illumination to the brain of the Magus.
All the differentiations originate at the
negative pole of the Universe, where invo-
lution ceases, and evolution commences, its
grand career. There, also, parallel with
the differentiation of the qualities of the
Supreme Mind and Infinite Spirit, are de-
veloped the gradations of universal con-
sciousness, from the faint consciousness
possessed by the lowest grade. ;of instinct,

214 IN THE SANCTUARY.

to tlie supreme consciousness of things
divine. These gradations may be grouped
into the three following states or classes,
namely: the simple consciousness of exist-
ence, consciousness of understanding, and
consciousness of things spiritual.

u The latter consciousness is imaged in
these papyri by the divine Sophia, the
Virgin of the World. Virgin she is called,
because the radiations into which the Ray
of Spirit is differentiated (many radiations
of which are attainable by man) are purely
virgin, emanating as they do directly from
Parabrahm, through the lines of involution.
Having never yet passed through the brain
of man, they are consequently unsullied by
any influence that heterogeneous thought-
waves might impress upon it.

u The divine Sophia, or Virgin of the
World, then, represents divine consciousness
in its differentiated condition of applicability
to man. Of that consciousness man may
partake in degree as he succeeds in sending
up into its transcendental realm effective
vibratory interferences.

" But let it be well understood that the
vibrations which he sends up, in order to
reach effectively the realm of divine con-
sciousness, even in its lowest differentiated
subradiation, must proceed from the soul,
for brain -vibration entirely fails to come in
touch with, and cause interference with,
any radiation of spirit consciousness.
Prayer, spiritual aspiration, acts of adora-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 215

tion, springing from profound faith in the
Supreme Being, love, vivid love of things
divine, crowned by a pure and charitable
life — these are the qualities and practices
which bring down upon us abundant show-
ers of divine Sophia's choicest gift, the con-
sciousness of things divine.

"And now we will proceed to relate how
it came to pass that the Romish church
became possessed of its greatest pillar of
strength, the rock upon which is built its
edifice — lEt super hanc petram edificabo ec-
clesiam me am?

" The Pope and his council fully pre-
pared, both scientifically and spiritually, to
understand the surpassing importance of
the part allotted to divine consciousness in
the evolution of man, at once proceeded on
their course in the true spirit of holiness.
The Pontiff selected by the Hierophant to
become the guardian of the sacred papyri,
was a true son of God, and competent to
devise ways and means of bringing the
realization of this divine consciousness to
the undeveloped but trusting minds of their
devotees. Furthermore, he had the ability
to prescribe for them the simplest and best
regulations to be adopted in order to reach
this consciousness, and thereby obtain the
choicest blessings it could vouchsafe.

" It was decided, therefore, to clothe Mary,
the Mother of the Crucified, with all the at-
tributes of the divine Sophia, and place her
ima^e before the devotees. It was, however,

21 6 IN THE SANCTUARY.

distinctly stated that worship was not to be
offered to Mary as a divinity, but that she was
to be regarded solely as a powerful media-
tor before the divine throne.

"This decision of Pope and council was a
real inspiration from on high, for the good
done by the myriads of invocations daily
sent up by the Roman Catholic devotees to
the divine consciousness, to them imaged
by the Blessed Virgin, is far beyond the
powers of realization, even by the high
dignitaries of that church to-day.

"No disciple can enter upon the upward
path," continued Caspar solemnly, u until
all prejudices in the matter of religion have
been obliterated in him. Every creed, be-
lief, congregation, church, association, and
individual man, in their upward endeavors,
must not only be respected by him, but his
good-will at least must be directed toward
them, if his open encouragement cannot be
bestowed. Ill-feeling in the smallest degree
.against any church would fatally paralyze
his own progress.

" Our order, as yet, has no temple or
monastery in this country, and until one is
proffered, our main reliance must lie in the
existing churches for an occasional revival of
spiritual strength. Similarly with a musi-
cian ; it matters not how excellent his pri-
vate rehearsals may be; how efficient his
daily practice; how earnest his endeavors,
while in his studio, to reach higher attain-
ments in his art; he must, at intervals,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 2 1/

listen to the symphonies of superior artists,
in order, as it were, to rebaptize his soul, to
open new avenues to loftier inspiration.
Likewise must the disciple, at intervals,
repair to temples of worship, there to re-
ceive strength for the practice of greater
purification; to sanctuaries where strife
entereth not; where psychic force is abund-
ant, and the spiritual conditions harmonious
enough to enable the soul to place herself in
affinity with, and receive spiritual strength
from, the divine afflatus there present.

" Our monastery, when established, will
be open as a place of occasional retreat to
our disciples whenever they feel a renewal
of spiritual strength necessary. In the
monastery will be a sanctuary and a shrine,
blessed by the Supreme Master, or Magus.

"And there the image of Sophia, the
Divine Virgin of the World, the occultist will
also find enthroned. No worship is be-
stowed on this image any more than on the
images or photographs of our dear departed
while our eyes lovingly linger upon them.
No, they simply recall to memory the good
qualities of those now in another sphere,
establishing an affectionate bond between
them and us. Similarly, the invocations
formulated at the feet of Sophia reach the
divine consciousness she represents, and
places us in affinity with it.

" Until this building is erected, toward
some church our disciple must direct his
steps. Surely he will be able to discover a

2l8 IN THE SANCTUARY.

place of worship in harmony with his soul's
aspirations. A sign will certainly be given
him, for in answer to his earnest supplica-
tion will he feel a guiding influx from
above; that is the sign.

"These psychic conditions exist in some
of our Jewish synagogues and Protestant
temples, but more prevalently in many of
the Catholic churches. The latter, being
open to worship daily, from morn till night-
fall, offer opportunities for prayer not found
in other places of religious meeting; hence
these churches have always before their
altar a number of devotees whose profes-
sions of faith constantly fortify the psychic
aura ever abiding within the church. In
many synagogues is felt a strong religious
atmosphere caused by intense faith, but
that high psychic condition which loftiness
of aspiration alone can induce seems often
to be wanting. The psychic power in many
of the Protestant temples is small ; espec-
ially so is the abode of those creeds where
intellectuality has taken precedence over
faith. In some temples, however, where
devotees assemble who have preserved the
faith of old, the psychic force is strong. If
those temples would keep open doors dur-
ing week days, so that the psychic emana-
tions produced during the Sabbath services
might constantly receive reinforcements
through the prayers of the daily attending
devotees, they would be excellent places
for the disciple to repair to in time of

IN THE SANCTUARY. 2 19

spiritual need, and there would he receive
comfort.

" Some Catholic churches, though not in
all of them, by any means, save in those
presided over by priests of living faith,
whose lives are entirely consecrated to the
worship of God and the salvation of hu-
manity, both material and spiritual — such
churches are the abiding-places of the Spirit
of the Infinite. Such priests assuredly im-
pregnate the virgin gluten, or Host, with
aura of the Heavenly Father, there to abide
as long as burns the occult fire before the
tabernacle. The occult power of a conse-
crated flame to retain in activity the object
of the prayer for which the consecration
was made, is so great that its import can
hardly be realized outside the circle of
initiated occultists. When a prayer is ut-
tered before the image of Sophia, the Virgin
of the World (in Catholic churches repre-
sented by the Blessed Virgin), and if a
candle be lighted before that image every
day for nine consecutive days, that prayer
will undoubtedly be granted, if its scope be
legitimate and its solution lie within the
psychic realm ; yea, verily, spiritual aid will
be accorded."

"Master, if I were permitted to express
an opinion, it would be that the invitation
to Protestants, Hebrews, Free-Thinkers, or
Materialists, to repair to the Catholic
churches for the purpose of praying before
the altar of the Blessed Virgin, is likely to

220 IN THE SANCTUARY.

meet decided opposition. With much diffi-
culty will they be brought to understand
that this Virgin, to the occultist, is simply
the divine Sophia imaging the first radia-
tion of divine consciousness that can be
assimilated by man."

"Most true is thy suggestion, my son.
The advanced occultist, however, will hesi-
tate but a moment, for readily will he realize
the great succor to be derived from Sophia.
She alone is the dispenser of divine con-
sciousness, the rays of which we must reach
if we would gain spiritual growth. Prayers
addressed directly to that consciousness will,
undoubtedly, be highly beneficial ; it is diffi-
cult, however, for the disciple to concentrate
the mind upon mere invisible, impalpable
consciousness, and the vibrations which
these prayers emit are vascillating, weak,
and may easily be deviated from their
intended course by intruding thoughts.
On the other hand, when the image of
Sophia is before the disciple, upon it his
mind may rest, and his prayers be carried
in unwavering vibrations to the divine
consciousness which Sophia represents.

u Furthermore, the image of Sophia in
Catholic churches is surrounded by such
powerful aura or odic atmosphere, the result
of numberless demonstrations of faith per-
formed during a long succession of years,
that it acts like an electric battery adding
its potential to the vibratory current con-
veying the prayer of the disciple.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 221

" Before the image of Sophia in every
city will be found the occultist who desires
to become a true child of God, and before
that image (and primarily in the Catholic
churches) will he or she receive the
( Word ' which will be vouchsafed to the
devotee elected to preside over the first
temple or sanctuary to be instituted in each
locality. No, my son, stay thy misgivings;
the earnest students of the sacred mysteries
have, one and all, been sadly disappointed
by the several schools of mysticism which
promised occult powers of the most varied
degree to those of their votaries who would
strive either to strengthen their will, or
proceed to starve their bodies, or study the
mystical literature of the Hindoo, so
utterly obscure as to have given birth to
many sects actually professing the most
bewildering metaphysics ; or practice Yoga
until the brain reels, and visions are be-
held by the disciple — visions produced by
the same process of hyper-excitation as
those developed by prolonged alcoholic in-
toxication. All these sadly disappointed
students, having failed to find peace, will
go to Sophia, and if they rest their hopes
and burdens and fears at her feet, with
faith and confidence, and light a candle,
where candles are habitually kept before
her altar, and if they follow this course for
nine consecutive days, they will obtain a
peace of soul, a feeling of rest, of safety,

222 IN THE SANCTUARY.

and of trust, conveying the assurance that
the way has been found at last.

"As soon as a temple shall have been
consecrated in a city, no longer will our
devotee proceed to the Catholic churches,
for in his own Sanctuary, wherein will be
enthroned the image of Sophia, will he find
a psychic atmosphere powerful and pure,
which will enforce his prayer and carry it
triumphantly to the divine consciousness.

" The occult order of the Magi vouch-
safes but little instruction to its devotees,
once the contents of the papyri having been
mastered by the latter, and then only in
answer to a direct request. Too often a
superabundance of instruction is bestowed
upon novitiates, and with the result that
the human soul is not left sufficiently alone
to choose for itself the food best adapted to
its growth. Priest, minister, rabbi, philos-
opher, theosophist, reformer — all these
place the soul in a state of siege. By con-
stant and untiring efforts to force upon it
their own religious beliefs and dogmas, they
virtually deprive it of its liberty to beget
native thought. Thus sated with the spir-
itual pabulum supplied in the recipes and
formulae of those whose idiosyncrasies and
needs are different from its own, the soul is
crippled, its growth is stunted, its destiny
falls short of what might otherwise have
been its goal.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 223

" The only good office which one soul can
bestow upon another is to place before it
the spiritual food which has proved most
beneficial to itself, leaving it entire liberty
to partake or not of this sustenance after
being submitted to the test of its own moral,
mental, and religious convictions. No two
souls are alike, any more than are two bod-
ies ; nor can they relish exactly the same
description of food. Novitiates, being en-
dowed with a goodly intellect, should read
any book they may prefer, if only they con-
tain sound moral, religious, or metaphysical
doctrines, and out of these they should
select the food which they honestly believe
most suitable to foster their spiritual growth.
But the soul is too often bewildered on find-
ing itself in a labyrinth of precepts, maxims,
creeds, and systems of such varied nature —
though all apparently possessed of merit —
that it becomes utterly incapable of selecting
the true path. In such cases the soul should
earnestly pray unto God for light, and if it
be accustomed to prayer, if it have faith,
the answer will come from on high. Many
prayers, however, do not reach the throne
of grace; they rise only in direct propor-
tion with the karma, or spiritual status of
the soul, some reaching the aura of earth
only, and others ascending into infinite
space, in search of the Heavenly Father, as
the radiations of the aurora dart upward to
the zenith.

224 IN THE SANCTUARY.

" The shrines or tabernacles which it will
become thy province to establish, will have
solely for aim the keeping of the novices of
the order tinder their holy influence. The
sacred objects which thou shalt place therein
will give forth auric radiations of such di-
vine power that those coming in contact
with them, and being in the proper spirit of
faith, will be enlightened when in doubt,
comforted in despondency, aided in distress,
and consoled in the time of suffering. At
the foot of the shrine the devotee will be
covered by the aura of the order, and be un-
der its direct protection. If he so wills, and
if he have faith, his life will then be passed
in harmony with the laws of the Universe;
and his soul, guided by the sacred influ-
ences emitted from the shrine, will proceed
on its upward path, live a life of its own, be
an entity of itself, and work out in fullness
its own evolution according to the laws of
its own physiological conditions. And such
is the destiny of every human soul, though
few can fulfill it unhampered by extraneous
influence. It therefore behooves our order
to correct abuses and restore to the human
soul its rightful inheritance, the choice of
its own process of evolution, of its own path-
way to the Heavenly Father.

"And now, dear brother, retire to thy
apartment, ponder well over all that has
been set before thee; fast and do penance
until the morrow at high twelve, when
thou wilt again repair to the Sanctuary to

IN THE SANCTUARY. 225

meet Balthazar and Melchior, and be in-
vested with the highest dignity Earth can
confer."

The night following this first but re-
markable interview with Marius, the body
of Caspar lay in repose on a conch before
the shrine in the Sanctuary, bnt his spirit
was traveling afar off. Perceiving a golden
light that shone like a sun over the city of
Alexandria, in Egypt, he knew that it was
the aura of Balthazar. To him he forth-
with proceeded, and found him absorbed in
deep meditation not unniingled with sad-
ness. His reflections were directed toward
the actual unprogressive condition of Egypt
and the adjoining countries, all subjugated
under the yoke of Islamism. Having noti-
fied Balthazar of the meeting set for next
day and of its object, he hastened onward on
his journey through the psychic realms of
space, and reaching India, similarly notified
Melchior of the projected meeting. He
found this brother Magus also in a dejected
mood, for he had just returned from scenes
which to him were revolting. A man of
note and worth had lately died. A multi-
tude of women carrying new-born babies in
their arms were assembled near the funeral
pyre, upon which lay the body of the man.
Lifting their babes toward the body soon to
be consumed, they prayed in an excited
manner, some vociferously, that the spirit
of the great and good man might be
incarnated in their babes.

226 IN THE SANCTUARY.

"And thus," said Melchior aloud, "is
interpreted the doctrine of reincarnation.
Sad result of ignorance and non-progressive
teachings."

While Caspar was traveling to these
far-away countries, Marius lay sleepless
upon his couch, mentally reviewing the
resume of the papyri as explained to him
by Caspar. For the first time in his long
life of study had he received information of
a system of cosmogony that cleared away
his doubts, answered satisfactorily all the
mental questions he had so often pro-
pounded to himself without being able to
solve them. The anthropomorphic God was
in many points far below his highest ideals,
and he felt that his loftiest acts of adora-
tion reached some Deity far transcending
the God-man. And now a supreme being
had been revealed to him of unspeakable
majesty, the divine attributes of whom
could even be reached by man if he so willed.

" The man of science," he reflected, " the
philosopher to whom thus far gods have
been presented with revengeful attributes
and arbitrary rulings, gods unworthy to be
entertained by his intellect, can no longer
say ' My microscope, magnifying one thou-
sand diameters, has yet not found him ;
my thirty-six-inch telescope, piercing the
realms of infinitude to an immeasurable
distance, has not yet discovered him ; ' these
men of science and of philosophy, many of
whom I know so well, and know to be hon-

IN THE SANCTUARY.

est m their convictions, may presently
direct their investigations toward the divine
lines of force permeating the Universe, and
from the Ray of Matter ascend to the Ray of
Mind, and with an enlarged comprehension
vouchsafed by this Ray, reach ont for the
Ray of Spirit and discover there the treas-
ures of divine consciousness it contains.
This is religion, and the word religion is
derived from religare, to bind together anewy
and the system of cosmogony set forth by
the papyri is merely one continuous binding
together of all the manifestations of the
Universe, both material and spiritual, one
grand religion culminating in the sublime
Spiritual Sun, the positive pole of all that
is, Parabrahm, beyond Brahm, beyond the
anthropomorphic God.

u How much in accordance with the later
discoveries of science are these interferences
with the divine lines of force, resulting
ultimately in effects perceptible by the
senses of man. Indeed, the force called
magnetism cannot be imprisoned ; its rate
of vibration is so infinitely swift that it
traverses all substances. Electricity, a
force obtained by placing resistances in the
magnetic lines, can always be controlled,
yea, confined in glass jars, compelled to
run into mapped-out or insulated channels,
and this for the simple reason that the
electric current has a much slower rate of
vibration than the magnetic current, its
parent. All this is beautifully grand. "

228 IN THE SANCTUARY.

Continuing his review of the instructions
he liad received from the Magus, he dwelt at
some length upon the revelations made con-
cerning the occult powers evolved by means
of ceremonies, or invocations addressed to
certain images of the Catholic church.

" I remember well," he soliloquized, u see-
ing on a certain day a number of girls
dressed in white, with long veils nearly
trailing on the ground, and crowns of white
flowers on their heads, entering a church.
I felt impelled to follow them. A solemn
Mass was being celebrated, for this was a
festive day, a day appointed for the confir-
mation of the children. The sermon was
preached by a priest whose face bore all the
characteristics of the true mystic. In him
the senses had been vanquished, and his
soul was surely attuned to the harmonies of
the Infinite, for as he spoke to the children
from his pulpit, invoking the Holy Ghost
to descend upon them, to take abode in their
young hearts, so innocent and pure, to in-
spire their actions during life, and to be the
safeguard of their faith in God, powerful
waves of spiritual odic force issued from his
hands and brain, permeating the entire
church, and holding the devotees spell-
bound. The children kept their sweet eyes
riveted on him, and assuredly they received
the influx of the Holy Ghost, for undoubt-
edly that priest was a saint.

•"At other times I have entered Catholic
churches and found them cold and spirit-

IN THE SANCTUARY. 229

ually empty. I must confess, however, in
truth, that before the altar of Sophia, or the
Blessed Virgin, as the Catholics would name
her, I have always found a certain spiritual
atmosphere, and before such images as are
called miraculous, at the foot of which the
devotee may burn candles, I have never
failed to find a powerful divine influx, a
strong auxiliary to upward growth."

Twelve strokes on the large bell of the
city's cathedral indicated high noon. At
the last stroke the door of the Sanctuary
before which Marius had arrived opened
wide. In prayer at the foot of the shrine
Caspar was kneeling; and now Marius be-
held him attired in the vestments of Magus.
The consecrated square pieces of cloth of
gold, insignia of the sacred office, in the
image of which the talismans are made,
reposed on his breast and back, and on his
head glittered the golden crown. The facial
expression of the Magus as he thus knelt
in prayer was that of a saint.

Marius advanced a few steps toward a
desk, and bent in prayer.

Soon a rumbling as of distant thunder
was heard; a blinding flash of lightning
shot athwart the Sanctuary, followed by a
terrible crash of thunder, and before the
shrine, clad in his sacerdotal vestments,
stood Balthazar, the Egyptian Magus.

To describe the astonishment of Marius
would be impossible. Never had he wit-
nessed any occult phenomena, and had he

230 IN THE SANCTUARY.

not been a brave man, gifted with the true
courage derived from deep learning, he
would certainly have been greatly fright-
ened. Hardly had he rallied, however, from
his bewilderment, when the Sanctuary re-
sounded with the noise of fearful hissings
coming from all directions and surrounding
Marius. In an instant these hissings ma-
terialized into tongues of flame, and later
into hideous serpents darting their fiery
tongues at him. For one moment the hiss-
ing became terrible, and Melchior, the
Indian Magus, also vested with the rai-
ments of his sacred office, appeared and
stood near the shrine. Thereupon the three
Magi united in prayer, after which they
clasped hands, and, bringing their foreheads
together, thus communed for a moment.
This brief communion of their souls being
ended, they took their respective seats.
Then Caspar spoke:

" Brethren Magi, in obedience to the last
request of my most holy predecessor, made
before his translation to a higher sphere of
activities, I have come to America, and have
endeavored to find the most worthy of
Americans. A learned, wise, and religious
man is Marius, here present; he has been
found worthy and well qualified to enter our
most sacred order, and has been selected by
me to establish Sanctuaries and make in-
itiations on this great continent of America.
The establishment of Sanctuaries here has
been found necessary to lead to the true

IN THE SANCTUARY. 231

upward path innumerable souls who are
eagerly searching for spiritual light, who
are earnest in their endeavors, honest at
heart, and are reaching out for the highest,
ceaselessly grasping at every straw with
spirit glitter that chances to drift before
their mental vision.

" It is high time that temples should be
opened, neophytes initiated, and true spirit-
ual food placed before the hungry souls. No
one is better qualified, in my estimation, than
Marius, to enter upon the duties of the
sacred office, and for your approval, dear
brethren Magi, do I now present him."

While Caspar was speaking, the eyes of
the other Magi were directed upon Marius,
or rather their inner vision, for he felt their
searching glance penetrate every recess of
his brain, as if trying to reconnoiter the
worth of every cell.

"Our brother is worthy and well quali-
fied," they responded in unison ; ulet him
be anointed."

" Let his name be Balthazar," exclaimed
the Bgyptian Magus.

*' Rather let it be Melchior," remarked
the Magus from India.

" Egypt and the neighboring countries
over which my ministrations extend," re-
plied Balthazar, " are overwhelmed by the
suppressive yoke of Islamism. No progress
is desired by my people, hence no progress
is possible. Intellectual attainments are
ignored by them, and even the manifesta-

232 IN THE SANCTUARY.

tion of our occult powers, however developed
at times, can hardly arouse them momenta-
rily from their spiritual lethargy. Isj o longer
can my stay in these countries be of benefit
to the people, and, therefore, I would retire
to my home above and join niy predecessors
now awaiting my coining."

Melchior then took the word and said:
" My longer abode in India is also fruit-
less. Real occult phenomena and most
bare-faced frauds are being exhibited side
by side in our public streets. The vast
occult powers produced in our temples have
degenerated into mere magical perform-
ances, awe-inspiring, it is true, but the
value of which, for spiritual enhancement,
is absolutely naught. The scientist covers
us with scorn, unable as we are to base the
facts we produce upon any known law.
Our old dogmas are being desecrated by
vulgar abuses — the dogmas of reincarnation
for instance — and naught can I do to reform
these abuses ; ignorance reigns supreme.
To my home above do I long to go, Marius
being my successor."

"With due respect for my brethren,"
interposed Caspar, " I desire to make a sug-
gestion in the interest of the order, which
we all have at heart. I would call thy
attention, O Melchior, to the fact that the
eyes of the world seeking for light are
now turned toward India in search of occult
truths, and as a preliminary thereto, are
looking for genuine manifestations of occult

IN THE SANCTUARY. 233

powers. These, Melchior, thou canst vouch-
safe to them when the proper time shall
arrive. Barnest, honest men of learning
and science will repair to thy country, con-
fident that the wonders of occultism, if
found to be true, must rest upon law, and
that law they are bent upon discovering.
Science and philosophy will be the great
spiritualizers of the future; wonder-workers
will be made subservient to them.

"Balthazar estimates truly the present
condition of hopelessness, spiritual hope-
lessness, which holds his country in bond-
age. For years he has realized this, and
his ceaseless longing for his celestial home
has well-nigh paralyzed his efforts at rescue.
These, however, he knows only too well
would prove of no avail in the present
cycle of time — Balthazar's successor
Marius should be. This, brethren, is my
suggestion."

Melchior instinctively understood the
wisdom of the counsel volunteered by Gas-
par, and willingly gave his assent thereto.
He knew, moieover, that both of them could
not retire, for there can be no less than
three Magi to constitute lawfully the order,
wherever their abode may be.

Presently Marius was invited to kneel on
the steps leading to the shrine ; Caspar
standing on his right, Melchior on his left,
and Balthazar behind him. The latter took
the square of gold cloth resting upon his
own breast, and placed it upon the head of

234 IN. THE SANCTUARY.

Marius, the insignia of the office of Magus,
being thereby made to unite them.

While thus bound together by the most
sacred tie, a hymn was sung by an unseen
choir. Caspar, assisted by Melchior, then
took the censer which had been kindled
with the mystic fire that ever burns before
a shrine, and pouring on the glowing em-
bers a small spoonful of sweet-scented gum,
proceeded to swing it around the united
brethren, Melchior upholding the golden
mantle of Caspar, thus giving the latter
precedence.

The fumes soon surrounded both, and
their fragrance at first seemed to have an
intoxicating effect upon Marius, gradually,
however, opening his brain to the compre-
hension of things celestial. No longer did
he see with his natural eyes, for the psychic
world, the soul world, seemed to have opened
its spiritual realms to his interior vision.

Balthazar then proceeded to anoint the
forehead, eyes, ears, tongue, hands, and feet
of Marius, commanding him to use all these
senses for the furtherance of the interest
only of the souls of man.

All the ceremonies which took place dur-
ing Caspar's consecration in London were
repeated at the dedication of Marius, the
celestial choir lending its soul-entrancing
harmonies to the sacred proceedings.

And now Balthazar began to disrobe him-
self and place the sacred vestments on
Marius, at the same time explaining the

IN THE SANCTUARY. 235

occult significance of each. While he was
adjusting over his head the cords uniting
the two squares of gold cloth, the censer
was swung high toward Marius, and the
celestial choir sung a hymn of exultation,
the vibrations of which endowed his brain-
cells with superior spirit-illumination and
understanding. For now Marius was a
Magus. The name of Balthazar was given
him to bear forever,

Handing to his successor a scroll of
papyri, Balthazar added :

"These documents have reference to the
occult powers possessed by the Magus of
Egypt. In them are given in detail the
rules to be scrupulously observed for the
production of these phenomena. Do thou
make use of them with wisdom, and for the
greatest benefit of humanity."

The ceremonies terminated, Melchior
and Balthazar departed amid their habitual
terrorizing occult manifestations. Before
taking final leave, however, Balthazar, with
indications of tenderest affection, embraced
his brethren, saying that they w^ould meet
again on high, after their earthly mission
would also be fulfilled. Then, in last
words, Balthazar said:

u To the crypt of our holy temple in
Egypt I will now return, there to prostrate
myself before the sacred fire of the order,
and slowly be absorbed by it. Farewell,
brethren."

Then, turning toward Marius :

236 IN THE SANCTUARY.

"Upon thee, Balthazar, my successor, I
bestow my last blessing. May thy career
be the source of everlasting good. Upon
science, allied with faith in the powers that
be, now rests the redemption of poor, be-
nighted humanity. Again, fare thee well."

"Amen," responded in unison a chorus
of unseen voices.

A terrible crash of thunder marked the
departure of Balthazar.

When Caspar once more was alone with
Marius, now Magus Balthazar, these were
his last words :

"Before my departure for my home in
Europe, where lies the field of my future
activities, I would fain impart to thee my last
views upon the work that now lies before
thee. It is to be of momentous importance,
and is destined to bring to pass events that
will result in religious and social reforms,
the vast influence of which no one can at
present realize; reforms leading toward the
harmonization of man's spiritual nature
with his earthly needs, without which no
contentment or real progress is possible
here below.

"In the first place, we must recover our
religious inheritance ; to the Catholic church
we must go and claim our rights. At the
feet of the Virgin of the World, Sophia, the
divine consciousness, must we assert our
privileges, and of her we must ask counsel,
advice, and help — for help will surely be
granted.

IN THE SANCTUARY. 237

" Let the would-be neophyte kneel before
her image, burn a candle in her name, ask
that its flame may convey his prayer to the
first radiation of her divine consciousness.
Thus may occult guidance be bestowed, and
when the mystic word shall be given to him
by Sophia, when it shall be brought to his
consciousness by her, then mayest thou
consider his claim to discipleship.

"His admission even to the lowest rank
of the order must be earned, for he must be
able to receive the 'Word' in the occult
way — the only way it may be imparted.
Sophia it was who permitted initiation in
ancient times, by vouchsafing to the devoted
applicant the sacred password, proving him
to be overshadowed by the divine conscious-
ness. To-day, this same password must
again be received at the foot of Sophia, and
the renewed promise given to the order is,
that it will be given by her to any applicant
found worthy and well qualified.

"Hence, the first period of thy ministra-
tion will be with Roman Catholicism. From
it we must wrench our rightful belongings.
Moreover, it is promised that out of its
ranks will arise some of our most devoted
adherents.

" Toward the eve of this day I will con-
duct thee to a place where assemble three
priests, as yet belonging (in form only,
however,) to the Roman Catholic hierarchy.
In them abides the Spirit of God and of true
reform, and with them shalt thou labor;

238 IN THE SANCTUARY.

thou must help them to bring to pass the
realization of their cherished humanitarian
and religious ideals.

" Meanwhile, in degree as the spirit of the
order shall move thee, at the proper time
and place thou shalt consecrate sanctuaries,
and there will I be with thee."

When the dusk of eve overspread the
city, Caspar and Balthazar repaired to the
Sanctuary, and, after prayer, took their
seats. Having joined hands, Caspar bade
his companion follow him. In a moment
they beheld the three priests again assem-
bled in council.

" With these men lies thy present work,"
said Caspar. " Now that thou art en rapport
with them, study them well ; this done,
pay them a personal visit, during which
a complete harmony will be established
among you. Thy intuitions will guide
thee in thy further intercourse with them."

Having returned from their psychic visit
to the priests, Caspar communed an instant
with Balthazar, and in parting words the
former exclaimed :

" To thee is entrusted the most momen-
tous mission that can be confided to man.
Upon thy shoulders rests the task of bring-
ing a ray of light into the heart of the
honest materialist, of instilling into his
soul the hope that his noble efforts, his
disinterested endeavors toward the advance-
ment of human attainments, the aggran-
dizement of man's intellectual faculties,

IN THE SANCTUARY. 239

culminating in the enhancement of all that
is noble and true and grand in him, may
be continued in another sphere of higher
activities, when his body has been 'planted,'
as he now designates death, this single
word, with the sad irony it conveys, indica-
ting the loss of all hope in immortality, or
even future life.

"Beside this great task entrusted to
thee lies the one, not less in importance, of
restoring to our order its religious privi-
leges, its rightful belongings, used and
abused during so long a period by the
Catholic church of Rome. There wilt thou
lay the foundation of the great final religion
of humanity, the religion of science, or the
science of religion.

uAnd now again, Balthazar, fare thee
well, and may the Spirit of Parabrahm
overshadow thee forevermore.''

"Amen," answered in unison the un-
seen choir.

[The more than interesting career of our American
Magus Balthazar will be followed in another volume.]

THE END.

EPILOGUE.

AMONGST the readers of " On trie Heights
of Himalay," while a few will wonder why
the present work, which is designated as the
sequel to that volume, does not follow the
career of many of the actors playing roles
therein, the greater number, caring only for
instruction and understanding in the domain
of the occult, will congratulate themselves
on having been saved from wandering
through love stories and other incidents,
however interesting they may prove.

Most of the periodicals which have hon-
ored u On the Heights " with a review,
have expressed regret that it did not confine
itself to the elucidation of occult themes,
which they are pleased to state was done in
a clear and comprehensible manner. Such
regret has been strongly formulated in the
following article from the New York Critic,
which we reprint.

This suggestion has been obeyed in the
present book, hence the author's excuse for
having omitted to follow the career of
Trouvere, Olga, the Queen, and others,
which may perhaps be done in a subsequent
work.

[From the New York Critic.}

"On the Heights of Himalay," by A. Van der
Naillen, is a book of which it is difficult to speak to

242 EPILOGUE.

one's satisfaction. While in form a romance, it
should not be regarded from that standpoint alone.
The stor)^, to be sure, is inconsiderable, save as it
serves for the illustration of occult forces. Its fault
is in its continuance when that service is over. The
tale is pure in tone, however, and its language and
style are such as to satisfy the demands of good
taste. The serious purpose of the author is to pre-
sent the cosmogony of the theosophist in such
elemental form and with such perspicuity that it
may be understood by minds unused to abstract
thinking. The success with which this has been
accomplished merits the highest admiration. We
recall, indeed, no book in which notions so difficult
of apprehension by the average reader are more
clearly presented or rendeied more palatable than
in the chapters devoted to the primitive doctrines of
Parabrahm. It must not be assumed from this that
the book is merely a first lesson in Buddhism, or
even that it concerns itself with that subject solely ;
upon other themes that currently interest thinking
people the author speaks with the same lucidity.
The education of women, the philosophic basis of
communism, and many questions of physical and
psychic science, are thus elucidated. In fine, one
cannot pick up this book or lay it down without
feeling that it is the work of an honest and clear-
ininded man, who knows whereof he writes.

APPENDIX.

CONSOLING, indeed, is the fact that in
measure as physiological science progresses,
its discoveries ever corroborate the knowl-
edge possessed for centuries past by the
order of the Magi.

The microscopical investigations into the
cellular system of man, and especially into
the brain-cells, made recently by such emi-
nent men as Van Beneden, Haidenhain,
Flemming, Gustav Eisen of California,
and others, have revealed elements in them
hitherto unknown, elements of great im-
portance to the world.

Before long the man of learning will be en-
abled to understand the pretensions of the
occultist, namely, that occult laws are based
on fact, and that their foundation may be
discovered by physiological science, as in-
struments of greater magnifying power are
gradually produced, permitting deeper in-
vestigation into the realm of the infinite
and of the infinitesimal. Moreover, in pro-
portion as these pretensions become sub-
stantiated, it will appear more legitimate to
take into serious consideration the claims
of the seer in regard to the activities, as yet
occult, of the different parts of man's body,
of the innumerable cells composing it, and
mainly of the brain-cells, the functions of

244 APPENDIX.

which it is most important that progressive
man should now understand.

We will state here that the natural size
of a brain-cell, as illustrated, is about YITOTF
of an inch, or smaller than the impress
made by the point of the finest needle.
To such wonderful developments has micro-
scopical science arrived, as will be related
presently.

The statements of pure science in regard
to the quality and functions of cells are as
follows :

Microscopists have found that every cell,
vegetable as well as animal, contains two
main parts entirely distinct, which stand
towards each other in a kind of symbiosis,
for mutual aid, advantage, and protection.
These parts may be designated as the cell
proper and the nucleus, the latter entirely
enclosed in and surrounded by the former.

The main constituents of the cell were
believed, until lately, to be the cytoplasm
(Fig. i-a) and the nucleus, or caryosorne.
More recent microscopical investigation
has discovered that the nucleus itself con-
tains at least three different and distinct
parts; these are the two kinds of chromo-
somes, so called because they respond to
the basic and acid stains applied by the
microscopist, and the "linine threads," or
filaments. There are also some two or
more elements in the nucleus which micro-
scopists are now separating optically and

Fig. /-a.

Cenfrosome

Microtomes

/, /nine threads/:;

Chromosomes
Intrct-Nucleolar bodies

THE CELL

APPENDIX. 245

chemically. However, the chromosomic
elements are the most important.

In addition to the above two elements of
the cell proper, modern science has discov-
ered in its cytoplasm a new, distinct, and
most important element, the "Centrosome,
or Centrosomes." These again are sur-
rounded by a sphere of peculiar matter
known as the Archoplasm.

When a cell is at rest, the archoplasm
and its centrosornes are seemingly united
in one body, situated near, but not in, the
center of the cell. (See Fig. i.) Shortly
before the cell begins to multiply, which
it does by dividing itself into two dis-
tinct cells, the centrosome, being the real
life-giving or life-directing organ of the cell,
shows an unusual activity ; it increases
by budding, and becomes double. (Fig. 2.)
The newly-formed or second centrosome
scon begins to' move quickly around the
side of the nucleus (Fig. 3), carrying with
it its own share of archoplasm and fila-
ments, and finally lands at the opposite
pole of the nucleus. (Fig. 4.)

Thus we have in the cytoplasm a nucleus
with two centrosomes, one at each of its
opposite poles.

Presently a very important transforma-
tion takes -place in the cell. The centro-
somes cause the nucleus to be enveloped
or surrounded by a spindle of archoplasmic
rays projected from the two centrosomic
poles. (Fig. 5.) These rays or filaments

246 APPENDIX.

press initially upon the membrane sur-
rounding the nucleus ; later on they dis-
solve the same, after which they push the
chromosomes of the nucleus together, press-
ing them in one equatorial band across the
entire nucleus. (Fig. 5.) Later yet the arch-
oplasmic rays divide or push the chromo-
somes apart in such a way that the rays
from the south pole drive one- half of the
chromosomes toward the north, while the
rays emanating from the northern archo-
plasm send the other half of the chromo-
somes into the southern portion of the
nucleus. (Fig. 6.)

After the chromosomes have thus sep-
arated into two equal parts, a new membrane
is formed around each part or zone of chro-
mosomes, thereby creating an additional
nucleus (Fig. 7), while the membrane
around the original cell contracts in the
equatorial plane, dividing the cell in two
(Figs. 8, 9), each new cell enclosing one-
half of the original nucleus. We thus be-
come possessed of two cells instead of one.

The work of this multiplication of cells
is done and directed by the centrosomes,
the archoplasniic rays or filaments being
the instruments accomplishing said won-
derful transformation. The centrosomes,
moreover, are believed by the microscopists
to be the organs of the hereditary transmis-
sion of all idiosyncrasies, proclivities, and
propensities characterizing the parents.

APPENDIX. 247

Physiological science having thus spoken
and laid open to us its valuable discoveries
up to the present time, occult science will
now step in and continue the important
work.

The microscopist, in his achievements
previously described, has ascertained that
the chromosomes filling the nucleus are also
endowed with linine threads, but these, as
3/et, appear very dim in the instruments of
to-day. The occultist, however, knows that
the chromosomes of the nucleus and their
filaments have functions similar to those of
the centrosomes and their linine threads,
the former acting upon the nucleolus in the
same manner as the latter act upon the
nucleus, and also causing the multiplication
by division of the nucleolus. Furthermore,
amongst the intranucleolar bodies is found
to exist an infinitesimal speck of semi-
matter and semi-spirit, constituting in real-
ity a spiritplasm around which spirit aura
first concretes itself into a brilliant little
star. This infinitesimal star is the initial
point of contact between- man and the Spirit
of the Universe, of which he may now par-
take and make his own in degree as he
keeps his higher self in affinity with it.
Thus on the side of a glass retort filled with
watery vapor a single drop of liquid is
formed at first by condensation of the
vapor; this drop, however, steadily enlarges
as, by affinity, it gathers more vapor into
itself.

248 APPENDIX.

The growth of the animal body of man,
and, in fact, of any other body, animal or
vegetable, takes place through the multipli-
cation of cells. The process originates, as
we have seen, in the centrosomes situated
in the cytoplasmic region, which is the
region of animal instincts; there it acts
upon the nucleus — the seat of the intellect
— which is much disturbed by the linine
threads while they carry minute particles
of said nucleus into the opposite polar
region of the cell. The action of these
occult forces is well illustrated by the
growth of a child, in whose steadily devel-
oping body the multiplication of cells is
most rapid. There we find the animal pro-
pensities to reign almost supreme, holding
sway over the incipient and struggling intel-
lect. Later on in life, when cells multiply
less rapidly, the nucleus being more at
peace, the intellect steadily improves, while
in mature age, when the cell now undis-
turbed is given the opportunity to ripen, the
intellect may attain a higher development.

The nucleolus is the seat of superior intel-
lection, of the higher philosophical attain-
ments; and the intranucleolar bodies are
the abode of transcendent religious idealism.

The infinitesimal luminous speck of spir-
itplasm amongst the intranucleolar bodies,
as before stated, is the matrix of spirit, the
link between mind and soul, the human and
the divine, man and his GOD, the Adept
and Parabrahm.

APPENDIX. 249

When man has attained to that state of
development where he has overcome his ani-
mal nature, has acquired intellection in the
degree vouchsafed by a refined nucleus and
nucleolus, and has surrounded the intranu-
cleolar bodies by esthetic and sound religious
idealism, then the spiritplasm is ready to as-
sume its divine function. One vivid aspira-
tion toward the Infinite, one earnest prayer
addressed to the Supreme Being, one huni-
ble supplication to the Higher Powers that
rule the Universe, for more light upon the
mysterious destiny of all that is, will vivify
and bring to active life the spiritplasm of
the cell, consecrating it with pure spirit,
the hallowed concretion of the aura of
Parabrahm.

Thus takes place the spirit birth of the
cell, the initial act assuring the immor-
tality of man. The spiritplasm once vivified
through divine radiance becomes the guid-
ing star of the cell. With the aid of appro-
priate practices of a pure and religious life,
it grows in quality and brightness, soon to
rule over the intellect by spiritualizing its
organs — the nucleus and nucleolus — caus-
ing their expansion, and consequent con-
traction of the cytoplasmic area, the region
where all animal propensities of man
originate.

This spiritualizing of the cell takes place
through a physical process similar to the
one in operation during the division of the
cell, but working inversely. The linine

250 APPENDIX.

threads in this case receive their energy
from the spiritplasm, then influence the
nucleolns and nnclens in turn, the outer
membrane of which they expand by the
constant pressure they exert upon it. This
forces it to impinge upon the cytoplasm,
compress it into a smaller volume, event-
ually bringing forth the evolution of the
cell instead of its division, the latter being
the case when the vivifying energy origi-
nates in the cytoplasm.

Thus it is seen that the spiritual growth
of man, the unfolding of his higher self, is
not wrought by miracle, but is primarily
a process of nature, of physical evolution
terminating in, and finally merging into,
the psychic realm. Then the battle of the
angel against the animal in us is nearly
won, and will henceforth resume itself in a
succession of skirmishes, severe at times,
but holding forth the promise of final
victory.

In our dissertation upon human cells, we
have confined ourselves to the consideration
of those only which are entrusted with the
working out of the higher functions of the
brain of man.

.UNIVERSITY
V ... OF