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The 


the  Age 


CONTAINED    IN   THE 

jctrine  of  all  Religions. 


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i^M^^ 


Illllii 


; : 


■ 


THIRD    EDITION. 


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^  tV*t  ®¥alagim  ^ 


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PRINCETON,   N.  J. 


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BP  565  .C23  1887 
Caithness,  Marie  d.  1895. 
The  mystery  of  the  ages 
contained  in  the  secret 


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Win 


^lo-W.     jilc^-oX^ 


& 


THE 

Mystery  of  the  Ages 


CONTAINED    IN   THE 


j$£tret  goctnuc  uf  all  §c(t0tons. 


(THIRD    EDITION.) 


BY 

MAEIE,   COUNTESS    OF    CAITHNESS, 
DUCHESSE    DE   POMAR. 

AUTHOR   OF 

"old  truths   in   a  new   light,"    etc.,    etc. 


Published  for  the  Authoress. 


LONDON : 

C.    L.    H.    WALLACE, 

PHILANTHROPIC    REFORM    PUBLISHER, 

OXFORD    MANSION,    W. 

1887. 


PREFACE. 


When  Hiero,  the  tyrant  of  Syracuse,  once  proposed  to 
the  philosopher  Simonides  the  question :  What  is 
God?  the  latter  desired  a  day  to  consider  it.  Being 
asked  the  same  question  the  next  day,  he  desired  two 
days  for  that  purpose,  and  thus  from  time  to  time 
doubled  the  number.  Hiero,  being  greatly  surprised 
at  this,  inquired  the  reason  of  his  conduct.  "Because," 
said  Simonides,  "the  longer  I  consider  the  subject, 
the  more  obscure  it  seems  to  be." 

"  Should  you  now  ask  of  me  this  same  question," 
says  Cicero,  in  his  dissertation  De  Natura  Deorum, 
'  On  the  Nature  of  the  Grods,'  "  I  will  reply  to  you  as 
Simonides  did  to  the  tyrant  of  Syracuse;  and  I  am 
disposed  to  believe,"  he  continues,  "  that  Simonides, 
who  was  not  only  an  excellent  poet,  but  also  was 
neither  wanting  in  erudition  nor  in  good  sense,  after 
his  mind  had  followed  opinion  after  opinion,  one  more 
subtle  than  the  other,  without  being  able  to  discern 
which  were  true,  finally  lost  all  hope  of  finding  Truth." 

Thus  far  the  learned  of  old.  Uninspired  reason,  it 
would  appear,  cannot  attain  to  a  knowledge  of  the 
Divine ;  and  if  this  was  the  state  of  mind  of  the  great 
Roman  orator  when  he  wrote  his  treatise  On  the  Natura 
of  the  Gods,  well  might  an  average  Roman  of  that 
period  exclaim  :  What  is  Truth  ?  while  Truth  incarnate 
stood  before  him. 


IV  PREFACE. 

To  ask  what  is  Truth  is  but  to  ask  what  is  God ;  for 
God  is  the  essence  of  Truth,  and  Truth  is  the  essence 
of  God.  The  knowledge  of  truth  is  therefore  the 
knowledge  of  God,  even  as  the  knowledge  of  God  must 
be  a  knowledge  of  the  Divine  and  omnipotent  Truth 
that  sustains  the  Universe.  Truth-knowledge  and 
God-knowledge  must  be  identical,  for  it  is  impossible 
to  conceive  a  truth  opposed  to  the  Divine  All-Truth, 
even  as  it  is  inconceivable  that  God  could  be  opposed 
to  our  knowledge  of  a  Truth  whereto  our  Soul  urges  us 
to  seek.  Truth  and  God  being  one,  the  knowledge  of 
that  Truth  which  is  God  and  of  God,  who  is  the  Truth, 
is  the  Divine  Wisdom  of  the  Ages,  and  the  Eeligion 
connected  therewith  is  the  Eeligion  of  Wisdom. 

This  Esoteric  Wisdom,  ever  jealously  guarded  by 
Initiates,  the  writer,  by  a  course  of  studies  which 
became  both  a  consolation  and  a  recreation,  has  been 
able  to  trace  in  most  Eeligions,  and  herewith  presents 
the  results  of  those  investigations  in  a  collected  form. 
Although  these  studies  cannot  equal  the  researches  of 
a  man  who  can  devote  his  life  to  the  subject,  yet  being 
thus  far  in  the  favoured  position  of  having  had  all  kinds 
of  views  providentially  presented,  it  is  thought  that  at 
least  a  one-sided  exposition  has  been  avoided,  and  the 
reader  will  get  a  truly  catholic — that  is,  a  universal — 
idea  of  what  the  Secret  Doctrine  really  is,  which  has 
been  kept  concealed  from  the  beginning. 

In  this  age  a  universal  inquiry  into  all  religious 
systems  is  carried  on  around  us  by  kindred  spirits, 
clearly  indicating  that  it   is  the   age   of  revealment, 


PREFACE.  V 

or  of  making  known.  The  sacred  books  of  every 
land  and  age  are  being  translated,  and  their  merits 
discussed  ;  imperfectly,  no  doubt,  at  present ;  but  let 
us  not  despair,  for  others  shall  follow  the  path  to 
esoteric  knowledge  that  we  have  but  intuitionally  indi- 
cated. What  has  been  kept  secret  from  the  beginning 
is  now  made  manifest;  and  although  the  less  liberal 
ecclesiastics,  inspired  by  fear  for  the  safety  of  their 
sheltering  church,  still  strive  to  obscure  the  divine 
light  emanating  from  what  they  are  pleased  to  call 
pagan  sources,  who  is  there  that  can  now  believe,  for 
instance,  that  the  teachings  of  Gotama  Buddha  were 
inspired  by  Satan  simply  because  they  anticipated 
those  of  Christ  Jesus  ? 

Virtue  is  divine  by  whoever  it  may  be  taught  and 
practised,  and  no  sect  can  claim  a  monopoly  of  good- 
ness, or  to  have  originated  a  virtue  that  was  not  known 
and  practised  long  anterior  to  the  existence  of  that  sect. 
God  is  Truth,  and  was  known  from  the  beginning. 
Man  stood  ever  in  the  same  relationship  to  his  Divine 
Father.  To  say :  "  other  religions  may  have  been  good, 
but  mine  is  the  best,"  is  but  to  assert:  "other  men  may 
have  been  good,  but  I  am  the  best."  For  the  religion 
is  the  man  himself,  and  his  highest  ideal.  If  that  ideal 
is  imperfect,  the  whole  man  is  imperfect ;  if  wrong  and 
false,  the  whole  man  is  wrong  and  false,  and  becomes 
the  very  reverse  of  his  pretensions.  Therefore,  to 
assume:  "all  religions  except  mine  are  bad,"  is  but 
to  declare  :  "  all  men  are  devils,  I  only  am  an  angel," 
and  is  the  height  of  egotistical  presumption.    The  Truth 


Vi  PREFACE. 

of  the  Heathen  is  as  true  to  him  as  the  Truth  of  the 
Christian;  for  Truth  is  its  own  law,  and  its  Divine 
Spirit  knows  no  sectarian  distinctions.  Some  of  these 
are  more  liberal-minded  than  we  are,  when  they  say: 
"  Though  we  may  each  look  out  of  different  windows,  we 
all  see  the  same  great  Sun— source  of  light  and  warmth." 

The  occult  Theo-philosophy  set  forth  in  these  pages 
is  not  a  new  invention,  nor  the  mystic  craze  of  a  few 
visionaries,  as  irresponsibly-minded  Agnostics  and  the 
soi-disant  Orthodox  would  fain  describe  it,  but  the 
continuance  of  the  most  ancient  Divine  Wisdom- 
Eelio-ion  co-eternal  with  the  existence  of  the  Divine 
Soul.  For  wherever  the  Soul  was,  there  was  the  Law 
and  Way  of  re-birth  and  re-ascension. 

To  whom  shall  we  now  turn  for  information  on  this 
mystic  knowledge  ? 

The  ordinary  religionists,  depending  for  their  know- 
ledge of  the  Divine  upon  the  Sunday  sermon,  which 
but  too  often  is  given  by  one  who  is  only  a  Theologian, 
and  who  consequently  teaches  but  what  he  has  been 
taught  by  those  who  knew  as  little  as  he  himself  knows 
of  the  inner  truth,  can  afford  us  no  reply.  The  words 
of  the  Word  are  only  incidentally  produced  in  as  far 
as  these  can  be  twisted  to  agree  with  a  mass  of  arbi- 
trary dogmas,  that,  like  parasitical  creepers,  overgrow 
and  conceal  the  tree  of  life  from  our  views. 

Nor  can  the  atheistic  Materialists — or,  as  they  prefer 
to  be  called,  "Agnostics," — tell  us  that  which  they 
themselves  do  not  know.  These  would  rather  enslave  all 
mankind  with  the  bonds  of  their  own  wilful  ignorance, 


PREFACE.  Vll 

to  compel  the  debasing  belief  that  not  only  God  but 
even  a  life  beyond  the  grave  are  subjects  hopelessly 
unknowable.  How  gladly  would  the  Materialists  stamp 
out  the  ideas  of  God  and  Immortality  and  erase  the 
words  from  the  Dictionary !  For  to  admit  a  knowledge 
beyond  their  comprehension  is  to  resign  their  preten- 
sions to  positive  science ;  and  rather  than  accept  the 
reality  of  a  spiritual  knowledge,  which  they  by  their 
perversity  are  incapable  of  acquiring,  they  would  will- 
ingly, to  uphold  their  own  prestige,  condemn  all  man- 
kind to  spiritual  blindness. 

Therefore  must  Theosophists  submit  to  be  called 
visionaries,  and  Theosophy  remain  a  tabooed  subject ; 
and  with  characteristic  forgetfulness  they,  whose  pre- 
decessors but  a  century  ago  were  crushed  by  the 
intolerance  of  ecclesiastic  bigotry,  would  now  set  up 
a  system  of  pseudo-scientific  infallibility,  from  which, 
according  to  them,  it  is  not  only  heresy,  but  insanity, 
to  differ.  Such  is  the  modesty  of  the  Agnostics,  or 
know-nothings,  that  they  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that 
Spiritualists  and  joroh  pudor  Theosophists  cannot 
possibly  be  right-minded ;  for  are  not  they,  the  Mate- 
rialists, the  absolute  authorities  for  all  Science,  and 
have  not  they  the  sole  monoply  of  reason  ?  To  hear 
them  discourse  one  would  be  inclined  to  believe  that 
all  the  knowledge  in  the  world  is  already  their  own ; 
yet  the  Gospel  of  their  Unfaith  amounts  only  to  this : 
there  is  no  God,  and  the  Agnostic  is  his  prophet.  This 
No-God,  however,  does  not  increase  our  knowledge  of 
the  unknown  laws  of  nature,  and,  having  not  even  an 


Viii  PKEFACE. 

existence,  his  poor  nothingness  can  afford  us  but  small 
consolation. 

What  justification  have  such  men,  vain  of  that  little 
knowledge  known  to  be  a  dangerous  thing — what 
justification  have  they  to  consider  those  deluded  who 
differ  from  them  because  they  preacn  the  Unknown 
God?  The  greatest  madman  is  the  Atheist;  for  can 
he  be  otherwise  than  insane  who  denies  the  existence 
of  that  omnipotent  All-Eeason  whose  manifestation  is 
the  Universe  ? 

Wiser  than  the  moderns  with  their  ephemeral 
science  were  the  ancients,  who  more  concealed  than 
revealed  their  spiritual  knowledge. 

Seeking  the  Truth  therefore,  neither  in  unbelief  nor 
in  blind  belief,  neither  lightly  condemning  nor  lightly 
believing,  by  following  the  self-constituted  authorities 
of  credulity  or  incredulity,  but  accepting  Truth 
wherever  it  is  found,  and  giving  credit  to  all  for  the 
knowledge  that  they  really  possess,  we  have  arrived  at 
the  conclusion,  which  the  impartial  reader  is  at  liberty 
to  accept  or  reject,  that  in  antiquity,  as  well  as  in  more 
recent  times,  there  were  beings  claiming  to  have  a 
knowledge  of  the  Divine,  that  they  attained  to  this 
knowledge  by  practising  virtue,  and  whether  their 
claims  are  justifiable  can  be  discerned  from  a  perusal 
of  this  our  Tnquiry,  wherein  we  also  indicate  the  works 
that  will  aid  the  reader  desirous  for  further  information. 

Truths  that  we  already  know  become  not  more 
valuable  because  we  find  them  accepted  by  a  multitude 
of  witnesses,   or   garbed    in    outlandish   jargon ;    but 


PREFACE.  IX 

sometimes  the  very  familiarity  with  a  Truth  that  has 
been  inculcated  to  us  from  early  youth  prevents  us  from 
appreciating  its  value  and  perceiving  its  importance 
upon  which  a  new  wording  often  throws  new  light 
and  displays  the  jewel  that  has  been  all  the  while 
overlooked. 

Our  investigations  have  been  carried  on  in  accordance 
with  the  rules  Bishop  Beveridge  (1636—1707)  laid 
down  for  himself,  in  his  Private  Thoughts  on  Religion, 
Part  I.,  Article  2,  and  whose  remarks  are  prefixed  to 
the  first  volume  of  the  Sacred  Books  of  the  East : — 

"The  general  inclinations  which  are  naturally  im- 
planted in  my  soul  to  some  religion,  it  is  impossible 
for  me  to  shift  off :  but  there  being  such  a  multiplicity 
of  religions  in  the  world,  I  desire  now  seriously  to  con- 
sider with  myself  which  of  them  all  to  restrain  these 
my  general  inclinations  to.  And  the  reason  of  this 
my  inquiry  is  not  that  I  am  in  the  least  dissatisfied 
with  that  religion  I  have  already  embraced,  but 
because  it  is  natural  for  all  men  to  have  an  overbearing 
opinion  and  esteem  for  that  particular  religion  they  are 
born  and  bred  up  in.  That,  therefore,  I  may  not  seem 
biassed  by  the  prejudice  of  education,  I  am  resolved  to 
prove  and  examine  them  all ;  that  I  may  see  and  hold 
fast  to  that  which  is  best 

"  Indeed  there  was  never  any  religion  so  barbarous 
and  diabolical  but  it  was  preferred  before  all  other 
religions  whatsoever  by  them  that  did  profess  it ;  other- 
wise they  would  not  have  professed  it 

"  And  why,  say  they,  may  not  you  be  mistaken  as 


X  PREFACE. 

well  as  we  ?  Especially  when  there  is,  at  least,  six  to 
one  against  your  Christian  religion ;  all  of  which  think 
they  serve  God  aright,  and  expect  happiness  thereby  as 
well  as  you.  .  .  .  And  hence  it  is  that  my  looking 
for  the  truest  religion,  being  conscious  to  myself  how 
great  an  ascendant  Christianity  holds  over  me  beyond 
the  rest,  as  being  that  religion  whereinto  I  was  born 
and  baptized;  that  which  the  supreme  authority  has 
enjoined  and  my  parents  educated  me  in ;  that  which 
everyone  I  meet  withal  highly  approves  of,  and  which 
I  myself  have,  by  a  long-continued  profession,  made 
almost  natural  to  me :  I  am  resolved  to  be  more 
jealous  and  suspicious  of  this  religion  than  of  the  rest, 
and  be  sure  not  to  entertain  it  any  longer  without 
being  convinced  by  solid  and  substantial  arguments  of 
the  truth  and  certainty  of  it.  That,  therefore,  I  may 
make  diligent  and  impartial  inquiry  into  all  religions, 
and  so  be  sure  to  find  out  the  best,  I  shall,  for  a  time, 
look  upon  myself  as  one  not  at  all  interested  in  any 
particular  religion  whatsoever,  much  less  in  the  Chris- 
tian religion ;  but  only  as  one  who  desires,  in  general, 
to  serve  and  obey  Him  that  made  me  in  a  right 
manner,  and  thereby  to  be  made  partaker  of  that 
happiness  my  nature  is  capable  of." 

Having  carried  on  our  investigations  in  this  very 
spirit,  we  now  declare  to  have  found  in  the  Esoteric 
Doctrine,  or  Universal  Wisdom-Religion,  which  forms 
the  secret  Doctrine  of  all  religions,  the  solution  to  that 
mystery  of  the  ages  which  satisfies  both  the  aspira- 
tions of  the  Soul  and  Intellect. 


PREFACE.  XI 

This  Secret  Doctrine,  which  we  have  found  to  be  the 
Esoteric  basis  or  foundation  of  all  the  religious,  we 
have  been  able  to  study,  and  which  we  have  therefore 
named  Universal,  is  sometimes  known  as  the  Ancient 
Wisdom-Eeligion,  which  derives  its  name  from  the 
Divine  Wisdom  Itself,  of  which  we  read  so  much  in  the 
Proverbs  of  Solomon,  and  in  the  Book  of  Ecclesiastes, 
and  which  is  so  evidently  shown  forth  as  being  the 
feminine  principle  in  the  Divinity. 

To  quote  from  Swedenborg — in  whose  writings  we 
find  this  theory  so  clearly  set  forth — "  Love  and  "Wis- 
dom are  the  two  Essential  Principles  in  the  Divinity  " ; 
in  speaking  separately  of  either,  it  is  customary  to  say, 
"  The  Divine  Love,"  or  "  The  Divine  Wisdom."  They 
represent  the  Masculine  and  Feminine  sides  of  the 
Great  First  Cause,  whom  we  call  God,  or  the  Divine 
BEING,  for  God  alone  IS. 

Eeason  comprehends  that  where  there  is  Being,  or 
Esse,  there  is  also  Existere  ;  one  is  not  possible  with- 
out the  other,  for  an  Esse  is  not  an  Esse  unless  it 
exists,  because  it  is  not  in  a  form ;  and  what  is  not  in 
a  form,  either  spiritual  or  natural,  has  no  quality — 
is  nothing.  Whatever  exists  from  an  Esse  makes  one 
with  the  Esse.  Now,  this  is  the  case  with  the  Divine 
Love  and  Wisdom.  These  two  are  so  much  One  that 
they  may  be  distinguished  in  thought,  but  not  in  act ; 
they  may  therefore  be  said  to  be  distinctly  One — that 
is  to  say,  Biune,  or  Two  in  One. 

The  Divine  Spirit  of  God-man  is  understood  by  the 
Divine  Love  (Esse),  and  His  Divine  Soul  by  Wisdom 


Xll  PREFAOE. 

(Existere)  ;  they  are  distinctly  One,  since  Divine  Wis- 
dom exists  from  Love,  and  Divine  Love  makes  itself 
seen  and  known  by  Wisdom. 

All  that  proceeds  from  Divine  Wisdom  is  called 
Teuth. 

"  The  Truth,"  then,  is  no  other  than  the  form  of  the 
affection  which  is  engendered  by  the  Divine  Love. 
For  this  reason  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  is  called  the 
Only  Begotten  Son  of  God,  although  the  Churches  may 
not  be  aware  of  this  spiritual  interpretation,  or  inclined 
to  reason  concerning  it.  But  Jesus  himself  declared  it 
before  the  Judgment  Seat  of  Pilate.  "  Thou,  say  est 
that  I  am  King.  To  this  end  was  I  born,  and  for 
this  reason  came  I  into  the  ivorld,  that  I  should  bear 
ivitness  to  the  Truth.  Everyone  who  is  of  the  truth 
heareth  my  voice." 

Let  us  not  then  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  this  voice,  in  our 
search  after  Truth  ;  for  by  listening  to  it  we  may  be 
directed  to  find  the  fundamental  Truth  underlying  all 
the  religions  of  the  Ages ;  and  as  Christ  himself  said  : 
"Your  Father  Abraham  rejoiced  to  see  my  day"; 
which  the  Jews  could  not  at  all  understand  when  they 
looked  upon  a  man  who  was  "  not  more  than  thirty 
years  old " ;  for  they  were  as  limited  then  in  their 
Spiritual  views  as  we  are  now,  to  whom  the  same 
Christ  is  speaking  nearly  two  thousand  years  later ;  but 
we  can  still  only  see  the  historical  man,  who  laid 
down  his  life  to  bear  witness  to  the  Truth  at  the  age 
of  33,  and  not  The  Truth  to  which  he  came  to  bear 
witness,  which  he  manifested  to  the  world,  and  whr;h 


PKEFACE.  xiil 

belongs  to  spiritual  light,  or  insight ;  "  that  light 
which  shineth  in  darkness,  and  the  darkness  com- 
prehendeth  it  not";  the  Only  Begotten  Son  of  God, 
Born  of  the  Divine  Wisdom,  whom  the  Lord  possessed 
in  the  beginning,  before  ever  the  earth  was.  (Kead 
the  VIII.  Chapter  of  Wisdom.) 

But  to  avoid  repeating  this  formula,  we  prefer  to 
adopt  an  expressive  word  derived  from  the  Greek,  or, 
rather,  from  two  Greek  words — Theo,  God,  and  Sophia, 
Wisdom — which  together,  as  "  Theosophia,"  or,  in 
English,  "  Theosophy,"  means  the  Science  of  "Divine 
Wisdom  " ;  and  though  we  can  never  hope  to  know  this 
in  its  fulness,  yet  we  may  certainly  quench  our  thirst 
at  the  ever-flowing  fountain ;  for  it  is  that  source  of 
which  Christ  said  :  "  If  any  man  drink,  it  shall  be 
to  him  a  well  of  water  springing  up  into  Eternal 
life." 

This  divine  science  has  been  known  in  all  ages,  and 
by  the  followers  of  many  different  systems  of  religion, 
because  it  is  the  oldest  science  there  is  in  the  world ; 
though  the  outward  name  has  been  adopted  by  an 
extensive  organization,  inaugurated  in  India,  with 
which  it  has  perhaps  become  rather  too  exclusively 
identified  of  late,  as  Branches  of  this  Society  or  Brother- 
hood are  extended  in  all  directions,  not  only  over  all 
India,  but  exist  also  in  Europe  and  America;  this 
Society,  however,  makes  no  claim  to  the  exclusive  use 
of  the  term,  and  its  members  are  quite  aware  that  there 
are  many  Theosophists  in  the  world,  belonging  to  all 
religions,   although   they  do  not  outwardly  bear  that 


xiv  PREFACE. 

name.  We  cannot  suppose,  therefore,  that  a  narrow, 
prejudiced  party-spirit  will  prevent  any  large-minded 
reader  from  following  us  through  this  earnest  inquiry 
we  have  endeavoured  to  make  concerning  the  Divine 
Wisdom,  or  Theosophy,  underlying  all  the  Keligions  of 
the  Ages. 

We  are  told  that  the  disciples  of  Jesus  were  indig- 
nant because  they  saw  someone  casting  out  devils  by 
the  same  power  or  Name,  who  followed  not  them :  but 
Jesus  replied :  "  Forbid  them  not,  for  he  that  is  not 
against  us  is  on  our  part."  This  is  the  first  lesson  to 
be  learned  by  every  true  Theosophist ;  for  to  be  a 
Theosophist,  you  must  rise  to  the  height  of  view  that 
finds  the  underlying  truth  in  every  system. 

The  Study  and  Science  of  the  Priests  of  all  religions 
is  Theology — and  Theology,  as  well  as  Theosophy, 
may  also  be  dignified  as  a  Divine  Science,  because  it  is 
the  study  of  God  and  the  Scripture — or,  so  called, 
Sacred  Writings ;  but  whilst  Theology  affirms  the  know- 
ledge of  God  to  be  inaccessible  to  Eeason,  and  only 
attainable  through  Faith,  which  is  a  gift  of  God,  Theo- 
sophy affirms  the  intellectual  and  intuitional  appre- 
hension of  divine  things,  and  declares  that  God  is  to 
be  seen  in  all  His  works,  and  is  still  more  particularly 
to  be  found  and  understood  by  the  investigation  and 
study  of  the  Occult  laws  of  nature,  whilst  keeping  clear, 
however,  of  Theurgy,  a  study  which  might  end  by 
leading  the  student  in  an  opposite  direction. 

"  Theosophy  professes  to  exclude  all  dialectical 
proofs  (which   is   the  method    employed    by  Theology 


PREFACE.  XV 

and  by  Philosophy),  and  to  derive  its  knowledge  of 
God  from  direct  and  immediate  intuition  and  con- 
templation, or  from  the  immediate  intuition — com- 
munication— of  God  Himself.  So  far,  therefore,  as 
regards  the  Science  of  God,  Theosophy  is  but  another 
name  for  Mysticism,  although  the  latter  name  implies 
much  more,  and  the  direct  and  immediate  knowledge 
or  intuition  of  God  to  which  the  mystics  lay  claim, 
was  in  fact  the  foundation  of  that  intimate  union  with 
God,  and  consequent  abstraction  from  outer  things, 
which  they  made  the  basis  of  their  moral  and  ascetical 
s}Tstem  "  (Chambers'  Encyclopaedia). 

If,  then,  it  be  true,  as  it  is  thus  implied  by  a  gene- 
rally received  authority,  that  mysticism  is  the  Soul's 
inner  knowledge  of  God,  may  we  not  define  Theosophy 
as  the  Science  that  cultivates  the  spiritual  perceptions 
and  faculties  of  the  Soul,  and  thus  helps  it  to  unfold 
that  intuitional  knowledge  which,  as  a  divine  seed,  is 
already  planted  in  that  precious  garden  ? 

The  mission  of  man  is  to  learn  to  know  God  as  far 
as  He  can  be  known ;  but  as  long  as  we  are  worshippers 
of  the  external  God  only,  we  are  idolators  and  creed- 
mongers,  and  are  led  mechanically,  like  sheep,  through 
our  own  indifference  in  neglecting  to  cultivate  the 
interior  faculties  of  our  souls. 

The  Soul  is  the  One  little  Garden  given  by  our 
heavenly  Father  to  each  one  of  His  children  in  par- 
ticular, and  which,  were  we  to  cultivate,  tend,  and  care 
for,  as  we  do  our  outer  earthly  bodies,  would  richly 
reward  us  by  the  fragrance  and  beauty  of  the  flowers 


XVI  PREFACE. 

and  rare  fruits  it  would  put  forth,  and  which  would 
bloom  and  flourish  in  its  fruitful  soil. 

If  we  realize  what  Soul  is,  we  realize  what  Theo- 
sophy  is.  The  infinitude  of  God  cannot  be  made 
known  to  us  in  words,  it  must  be  acquired  in  the 
infinite  region — the  region  of  the  Soul.  The  carnal 
mind  cannot  apprehend  Spiritual  Truth.  Above  the 
realm  of  the  senses  and  passions,  out  of  the  noise  into 
the  silence  must  he  go  who  would  find  the  truth. 
"  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God." 

The  Soul  of  man  is  a  mirror  in  nature,  and  the 
mind  may  read  the  lessons  written  there  in  the  lurid 
fires  of  passion,  or  in  the  clear  light  of  eternity.  If 
the  mirror  of  the  Soul  be  turned  habitually  towards 
the  spiritual  world — if  passion  be  subdued,  and  pride 
destroyed,  the  mists  will  roll  away,  and  knowledge  of 
everlasting  verities  will  flow  into  the  Soul. 

"Theosophy  is  the  Divine  Wisdom  which  is  the 
science  of  divine  bliss  ;  it  is  the  science  of  contem- 
plating   problems    that   lie    deep    in    man's    spiritual 

nature This  great  Science  is  the  Science 

of  Eternal  Life;  the  contemplation  of  which  causes 
the  present  life  to  assume  its  true  proportions. 

"  Theosophy  is  the  essence  of  all  doctrines,  the 
inner  truth  of  all  religions.  Creedless,  nameless,  un- 
taught by  priests,  because  it  is  of  the  Spirit  and  not  to 
be  found  in  temple  or  synagogue.  It  is  the  still  small 
voice  heard  in  the  whirlwind,  and  felt  in  the  storm." 

Theosophy  believes  in  the  still  small  Voice  of  God 
within,  or  the  Spirit  within  the  Soul.     God  is  Spirit, 


PKEFACE.  XV11 

and  Spirit  is  One,  Infinite  and  Eternal,  whether  it 
speak  through  the  life  of  Buddha  or  Jesus,  Zoroaster 
or  Mohammed. 

The  words  Jesus  spoke,  and  the  works  He  performed, 
he  spoke  and  wrought  through  the  Spirit,  or  the  God 
within  his  own  Spiritual  Soul.  And  whoever  lives  in 
the  Spirit  bears  the  same  witness.  The  truths  of  the 
Spirit  are  only  known  by  the  Spirit.  When  we  walk  in 
the  light  of  the  Intellect  alone,  and  without  the  Intui- 
tion, these  things  are  foolishness  unto  us,  because  they 
are  intuitionally  discerned  by  the  Soul,  and  it  is  only 
after  they  have  been  first  discerned  that  they  can 
become  understood  by  the  intellect. 

The  ideal  of  the  Theosophist  is  the  At-one-ment  of 
his  own  spirit  with  that  of  the  Infinite,  and  to  be  able 
to  say  with  Jesus,  "  The  Father  and  I  are  one''  The 
Theosophist  sees  that  this  is  the  essential  teaching  of 
all  religions,  and  to  obtain  and  enjoy  this  union  you 
must  believe  in  and  obey  the  voice  of  your  own  higher 
conscience ;  for  the  true  Christ  is  the  Divine  Spirit 
within  you,  and  thus  God  manifest  in  humanity. 

All  truly-inspired  men,  as  well  as  Jesus  himself, 
advance  the  claim  of  their  unity  with  God.  The  sense 
in  which  Jesus  meant  this  is  revealed  when  he  said : 
"  It  is  written  ye  are  Gods."  The  spirit  of  man  is  part 
of  the  breath  of  God.  When  man  comes  to  a  true 
knowledge  of  himself,  he  also  comes  to  a  true  know- 
ledge of  God,  and  from  being  the  son  of  man,  he  feels 
he  can  say  with  Jesus,  "  I  am  the  Son  of  God"  "  I 
and  my  Father  are  one"     And  though   on  earth  he 

b 


XVlil  PEEFACE. 

suffers  and  dies,  yet  angels  minister  to  him,  and  death 
is  but  the  entrance  into  a  larger,  fuller,  and  more 
perfect  life. 

When  we  attain  to  this  exalted  state  the  Immanuel 
of  the  heart,  or  God  with  us,  the  Christ  born  within 
us,  will  work  mighty  works,  and  redeem  us  from  the 
world  and  the  flesh,  and  make  us  conscious  of  our  own 
relation  to  God,  and  our  heirdom  of  Eternal  life. 

To  be  a  true  Theosophist,  or  lover  of  Divine  Wisdom, 
we  must  have  largeness  of  heart  to  embrace  the  whole ; 
therefore  a  heart  attuned  to  divine  melodies ;  or,  in 
other  words,  a  spirit  that  feels  and  thrills  to  the  glorious 
harmonies  of  all  that  comes  to  us  so  bountifully  from 
the  Divine  Love  and  Wisdom  of  our  Heavenly  Father 
and  Mother  God,  and  keenly  alive  to  all  the  beauties 
that  surround  us  on  every  side,  as  well  as  to  all  the 
dangers  to  which  we  are  continually  exposed,  and  from 
which  we  are  only  saved  by  their  ever-watchful  and 
merciful  providence  for  the  safety  of  all. 

True  Theosophy  studies  all  religions,  but  teaches 
none,  leaving  to  each  the  right  of  finding  Truth  for 
himself.  Nevertheless,  it  is  the  summary  of  the  Wis- 
dom of  the  Brahmin,  of  the  Buddhist,  of  the  Jew,  and 
also  of  the  Christian;  for  it  is  that  branch  of  Chris- 
tianity which  demonstrates  and  distinguishes  the 
Spiritual  Christ  from  the  historical  Christ,  too  exclu- 
sively taught  by  Theology. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Inteoductoey. 

PAGE 

Statement  of  the  momentous  Problem.  Method  of  Investi- 
gation. The  Supreme  Eternal  Being.  Our  Divine 
Mother.  No  "  irresponsible  "  Deity.  Theosophia,  the 
Divine  Knowledge.  The  "Martyrs"  or  "Witnesses"  for 
the  Divine  Truth.  Heaven  and  Hell  within  us.  God- 
denying  the  cause  of  Satan's  kingdom  on  Earth.  Theo- 
sophy  the  Saviour  of  all  ages  Both  Saviour  and 
Salvation.  Fallacies  of  Scepticism.  The  No-God-Idea 
demands  more  credulity  than  the  God-Idea.  The  Mani- 
festation of  the  Absolute.  The  testimony  of  the  World- 
Teachers.  Selfishness  the  real  Evil  in  Man.  The  Unity 
of  all  Esoteric  Doctrine.  Occult  value  of  Mathematics. 
Mathematical  Theosophy.  Thought  is  also  Prayer. 
The  Absolute  Self  or  Divine  Soul.  How  to  attain  to 
Soul  Knowledge.  Occult  Practice.  The  Rationale  of 
Yoga.  The  one  way  to  God.  The  Great  Work.  Quo- 
tation from  an  old  Theosopher 1 


CHAPTER  II. 

The  Theory  and  Practice  op  Theosophy. 

The  Science  above  all  Sciences.    Belief  an  initiatory  necessity 
for  final  salvation.     List  of  accessible  works  on  various 


XX  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

systems  of  Theosophy.  The  study  of  Tlieosophy.  The 
Ever-Beginning.  Time  cannot  measure  things  of  Eter- 
nity. Power  and  Love.  The  Laws  of  Spirit.  The 
Stream  of  Existence.  A  physical  and  spiritual  Death. 
Soul-Force.  The  Roscicrucian  teaching.  Possibility  of 
the  One  becoming  the  All  and  the  All  becoming  the 
One.  Divine  Magic.  The  Female  Principle.  Spiritual 
Exercise.  "  Dwellers  on  the  threshold."  The  world  as 
seen  from  above.  The  primary  qualifications  of  an  Adept, 
quoted  from  the  Private  Instructions  on  the  Science  and 
Art  of  Organic  Magnetism,  by  Mrs.  C.  Leigh  Hunt- 
Wallace.  The  Perfection  of  Christ  (quotation  from  The 
Perfect  Way).  "How  to  attain  to  'Power  and  the 
Resurrection,'  Polarisation  of  the  Divine."  Without 
Knowledge  no  Salvation.  Yoga  Practice  (selection  from 
"The  Arya").  Theosophy  based  on  Anthropology. 
The  Pantheon  of  Universal  Theosophy 20 


CHAPTER  III. 

Hermetic  Theosophy. 

Pabt  I. 

The  Seceet  of  Mythology. 

The  origin  of  man.  Ape  or  Angel  ?  Pre-historic  Hermeti- 
cism.  Theo-philosophy.  Hermetic  Language.  Mystic 
Myths.  The  Great  Arcanum.  Only  Initiates  can  under- 
stand Initiates.  How  to  interpret  Occult  Soul-Allegories. 
The  Eternal  Now.  Peculiarities  of  Kabbalists  and  Her- 
metists.  The  Secret  of  Mythology.  The  Knowledge 
which  is  Power.  Two  quotations  defining  what  Adepts 
can  do.  The  Secret  of  Mythology  not  astronomical  but 
psvchological  and  occult.  Soul  the  only  thing  eternal. 
Non-existence  of  Matter.  The  Soul-World.  The  Course 
of  Re-birth  symbolized  by  the  course  of  the  Sun.  The 
Rule  of  the  Gods.  Difference  between  Myths  and 
Allegories.  The  great  simplicity  of  the  Divine-human 
and  human-Divine  Theosophy 4.6 


CONTENTS.  XXI 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Hermetic  Theosophy. 

Part  II. 

Egyptian  and  Christian  Gnosticism. 

PAGE. 

God  and  the  gods.  Soul-worship  and  Demon-worship.  Man 
ever  the  same.  Polytheism.  Misdirected  Religion.  The 
place  of  the  "  Gods  "  in  ancient  Theosophy.  Necessity 
for  Occult  fables.  Unity  of  Mystic  Doctrine.  Spiritual 
Democrats  and  Aristocrats.  The  struggle  between  know- 
ledge and  ignorance.  A  war  between  the  occult  and  the 
official  Church.  Continuance  of  Hierarchic  Obscurant- 
ism. The  most  ancient  book  of  Theosophic  teachings. 
The  "Book  of  the  Dead."  Division  of  the  "Ritual." 
Gnosticism  a  revival  of  Egyptian  Theosophy.  The 
Books  of  Hermes.  The  "  Imperishable "  in  Egyptian 
and  Hindu  Theosophy.  Quotations  from  the  ancient 
Papyri.  Osiris,  the  Spirit  of  Brahma.  The  Pantheism  of 
Initiates.  The  Egyptian  Hierarchy.  The  Smaragdine 
Tablet.  Selections  from  the  Books  of  Hermes.  The 
Influence  of  Hermetic  Theosophy  upon  the  Genesis  of 
Christianity.  Formulation  of  the  Christian  Doctrine  at 
Alexandria.  Christian  and  Pagan  Gnostics.  Gnosis  the 
Sanctuary  of  Christianity.  "  Men  are  not  saved  by  the 
historical  but  by  the  metaphysical."  Christ  and  Horus. 
Hermes  Trismegistus 63 


CHAPTER  V. 

Oriental  Theosophy. 

Part  I. 

The  Theosophy  of  the  Brahmins,  Magi,  and  Druids. 

Whence  are  the  Hindus  ?  Their  ancient  "  Wisdom-Re- 
ligion." Indian  Caste  a  reproduction  after  the  Egyptian. 
A  Hiero-aristocracy.  Occult  Temples  and  monumental 
poetry.  The  Trimurti.  The  Vedas.  Hindu  Philosophy. 
The  Darsanas.  Many  names  for  the  One  Being.  Selec- 
tions from  the  Bhagavata-Purana.  "  The  Practice  of 
Devotion."    "Acquisition  of  Deliverance."    "  Distinction 


Xxii  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

of  Nature."     "  The  Yoga  of  Devotion."     "  Time  Infinite 
which  ends  all."     Text-books  of  Hindu  Theosophy       .  .     91 

The  Theosophy  of  the  Magi.  All  equally  pure  and  each  one 
a  priest.  Soldiers  of  Light  against  powers  of  darkness. 
Selections  from  the  "  Desatir."  An  Epitome  of  Occult 
knowledge  from  the  Book  of  the  Prophet  Jyafram. 
Theosophical  aspect  of  the  Magian  System.  Magi  and 
Brahmins.  The  War  between  Ahura-Mazda  and  Angra 
Mainyu  purely  spiritual  and  esoteric.  Zoroaster.  The 
first  translation  of  the  Zend-Avesta  by  Anquetil  du 
Perron.  Zoroaster  a  contemporary  of  Abraham.  Origin 
of  the  Kabbala.  The  mysterious  "Brethren."  The 
Gnostic  doctrine  according  to  the  Codex  Nazarmus. 
Did  the  Kabbalists  borrow  of  the  Gnostics?  En-Soph 
"the  Eternally  Boundless  One"  of  the  Zend-Avesta. 
Platonism  deduced  out  of  the  theosophic  dogmas  of 
Zoroaster.  Radical  Principles  of  the  Kabbalistic  doc- 
trine. The  practical  direction  taken  by  the  Magi  on  the 
Occult.  A  journey  through  Heaven  and  Hell.  Arda 
Viraf.  The  Spirit  of  Zoroastrian  Religion.  The  mys- 
tery of  the  Fire  Element.  The  Logos,  the  Persian 
"Honover."  The  advent  of  the  New  Dispensation. 
Our  Lady  of  Light 109 

Theososphy  of  the  Druids.  Druidism  identical  with  Oriental 
Theosophy.  Druid  Monuments.  Adepts  of  Druidism 
still  existing.  "  Les  Homines  de  la  Religion  Blanche." 
The  ante-Christian  Theosophy  of  the  West.  The  Bards. 
Druid  Triads  and  Bardic  Aphorisms.  Druidic  idea  of 
the  Spheres  of  Existence.  Similarity  to  Esoteric  Budd- 
hism.    Books  on  Druid  Theosophy 133 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Oriental  Theosophy. 

Part  II. 

Buddhist  Theosophy. 


The  pre-historic  Wisdom-Religion  a  Buddhism.     Hierocracy. 
A  New  Spiritual  Influx.    Contemporaries  of  the  Buddha 


CONTENTS.  XXHl 

PAGE. 


Cycle.  Buddhism  the  first  Catholic  System  historically 
known.  Character  of  Buddha's  teachings.  Buddhist 
Missionaries.  The  Theosophy  of  Gotama  Buddha.  How- 
to  become  an  Initiate.  Karma  the  law  of  consequences. 
The  annihilation  of  Selfhood.  Buddhism  summarised. 
Christ  and  Buddha  manifestations  of  the  same  Divine 
Principle.  Buddhism  a  Christ-like  Philosophy.  Brah- 
minism  summarised  and  contrasted  with  Buddhism. 
Yoga  and  Samadhi.  The  Spiritual  He-birth.  The  Soul- 
state  an  individual  Divine  gift  to  each  Being.  The 
Meaning  of  Nirvana  defined  in  a  dialogue  between 
Milinda  and  Nagasena       140 

Esotebic  Buddhism. 
Esoteric  Buddhism  the  ancient  Wisdom-Religion.  Com- 
parison of  the  Constitution  of  Man  with  the  Constitution 
of  the  Universe.  (Plate.)  The  figure  of  the  Cross  used 
as  a  sacred  symbol  long  anterior  to  the  Christian  Era. 
The  Mystery  of  Mysteries  represented  in  the  seal  of 
Solomon.  The  Male  brain  or  Solar  Plexus.  The  Female 
brain  or  Cerebro-Spinal  System.  The  seat  of  Life  or 
fourth  Principle.  Manas,  theffth  Principle,  or  Human 
Soul.  Kama  Loca  and  Kama  Rupa.  The  Seed  of 
the  Woman.  The  seven-fold  Nature  of  the  Divine 
Essence.  Separation  the  cause  of  Evil.  Man  the  arbiter 
of  his  own  destiny.  Kama  Loca  or  Purgatory.  Deva- 
chan.  The  Eternal  "Two  in  One."  The  ceaseless 
Chain.  New  Birth  or  Regeneration.  Jivatma  and 
the  Linga  Shabiba.  The  seven  degrees  of  the  Masonic 
Jacob's  Ladder.  Seven  Sephiroth  and  seven  Senses. 
The  Arcanum  symbolized  by  the  Great  Pyramid.  The 
Will  the  axis  whereon  the  Seven  Principles  turn.  The 
Seventh  Principle,  Atma,  or  the  Divine  Spirit.  The 
Law  of  the  lower  nature.  Spiritual  Evolution  and 
Involution.  The  Planetary  Chain.  (Diagram.)  The 
Sleep  of  Worlds.  The  Rounds  of  Mankind's  Evolution. 
NOW  is  the  Turning-Point.  Note  on  the  Mahatmas. 
The  present  the  fifth  race  of  the  fourth  Round.  The 
approaching  New  Dispensation.  Esoteric  Buddhism 
affording  a  scientific  explanation  of  all  the  phases  of 


XXIV  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

existence.  Comparison  of  the  Sankkya  Philosophy  with 
Esoteric  Buddhism.  Kapila  a  Positivist.  Purush  and 
Prakriti  defined 153 

Chinese  Theosophy. 

The  System  of  the  Tao-Sse.  Directions  from  the  Nan  Sua 
on  Occult  Practice.  Lao-Tse's  attempt  to  systematize  the 
Laws  of  Fate  and  Destiny.  Selections  from  the  Tao-Te- 
King.  The  Manifestation  of  Virtue.  Arriving  at  the 
Source.  The  Abyss  of  the  Absolute  Being.  Far-Seeing. 
Confucius  and  Lao-Tse.  A  Discussion  on  the  True 
Way  (Tao) 193 


CHAPTER  VII. 
Pagan  Theosophy. 


The  three  great  classes  of  Theosophy.  "  Heathen  "  Theosophy. 
The  Divine  Masters  all  one  in  Doctrine.  Characteristic 
of  the  Heathen  Initiate.  Monotheistic  Religions.  Soul- 
Worship  in  the  midst  of  Demon- Worship.  The  Mythos 
interpreted  by  Astronomers  and  Alchemists.  Spiritual 
Science  the  Sanctuary  of  the  Physical  Sciences.  Elec- 
tricity and  Magnetism.  The  Pillars  of  Hercides.  Theo- 
sophy the  Key  to  Mythology.  The  exclusiveness  of 
Pagan  Theosophy  demolished  by  two  Jews.  Initiation 
to  the  Mysteries.  Autopsia.  All  ancient  Philosophers 
were  Initiates.  Selections  from  the  writings  of  Orpheus, 
Hesiod,  Xenophanes  (Note  on  ekagrata  or  one-pointed 
thought),  Empedocles,  Kleantkes  the  Stoic  and  Synesios. 
A  hymn  full  of  fearless  love.  The  "  Unknown  God." 
Pallas  the  Divine  Virgin  Wisdom.  The  Phidian  Jupiter. 
Causes  producing  the  dissolution  of  Paganism.  The  old 
lights  becoming  extinct,  new  beacons  were  foimd.  Hea- 
then Orthodoxy.  Man's  mind  in  a  cosmic  prison.  The 
Letter  which  killeth.  The  Cynics,  Grecian  Yogis.  The 
Pythagorean  System  (quotation  from  Cleobolus).  The 
lost  Key  to  Esoteric  Knowledge.  Paul  declaring  the 
"Unknown  God"       .. 201 


CONTENTS.  XXV 

PAGE. 

Theosophic  Ideas  of  the  Ancient  Romans. 
The  mission  of  the  Romans.  Their  Temples  having  originally 
no  Statues.  Greek  influence  on  Roman  Religion.  The 
Roman  Cultus.  Numa  the  last  of  the  Adept  Kings. 
Gives  the  people  a  settled  form  of  religion  and  Divine 
Law.  The  Etruscans.  The  Culte  of  Virtue.  The  Sy- 
billine  Oracles.  God's  great  plan  of  educating  the  world. 
The  Roman  Cultus  formulating  Christian  Ecclesiasticism  227 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Semitic  Theosophy. 

Pabt  I. 

The  Kabbala  ob  Hebbew  Theosophy. 

Theosophy  the  Salvation  of  the  Jews.     Monotheism  the  only 
true  Theosophy.     The  Jews  a  chosen  people  through 
their  adherence  to  the  God  of  Israel.     The  Kabbalists. 
The  Sefer  Jezira.     Philo  Judseus.     The  Tora,  or  Oral 
Law.     Its  transmission.     Moses  a  Theosophist.     The 
Tora  full  of  occult  ideas.     God  a  holy  God.     Keepers  of 
the  Oral  Law.     Note  on  the  Rationale  of  the  Sacrificial 
Culte.    The  Nazarites.    Christ  a  Nazarite.    Elias,  founder 
of  the  Carmelite  Order.     Priests  opposed  to  Prophets. 
Solomon's  architectural  Occultism.     The  Tora  a  Kabba- 
listic  book.     Judaism  permeated  with  Kabbalism.     The 
mystic  Tora.    "  The  Brethren."    Philo  on  the  allegorical 
Books.     "  The  Truth  shall  make  you  free."     "  The  Spirit 
giveth  Life."     Christ  the  end  of  the  Law.    The  Essenes. 
Hermetic    Theosophists.       Mystical    Interpretation    of 
Scripture. '  The  allegory  of  Abraham  and  his  two  wives. 
The  Law  and  the  Spirit  of  the  Law.     The  ever-present 
spirituality  of  the  Holy  One  of  Israel.     The  Eternal 
Word.      The    Bible  both    Sacred   and  universal  His- 
tory.    Macrocosm  and  Microcosm.     The  Spiritual  Soid. 
Abraham  and  Zoroaster.     An  outline  of  the  Kabbala. 
"  In  the  Beginning."    Bereschis  and  Mercaba.    Easith  or 
Wisdom.      Divisions   of   the   Kabbala.      Principles  of 


XXvi  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Kabbalistic  Pliilosolipy.  The  Sephiroth.  Esoteric 
Hebraism  and  Christianity.  Selection  from  the  Zohar. 
"The  Initiation  of  Rabbi  Khija."  Selections  from 
the  "  Tad  Hachazakah"  or  Mishne  Torah  of  Moses 
Maimonides.  Sefer  Hamada,  the  Book  of  Knowledge. 
Jehovah,  One,  described  in  human  language.  Involution 
through  Evolution.  Variety  of  Angels.  Unity  of  the 
Creator.  The  work  of  the  Chariot,  the  Mystery  of  the 
Universe.  Different  Orders  of  Intelligences.  The 
Maasei  Mercabah,  description  of  the  Chariot,  to  be  ex- 
pounded in  secret,  and  to  Initiates  only.  Pardeis,  the 
Garden  of  Knowledge.  Nephesh,  Soul.  Olam  Habba, 
the  Land  of  the  Living      234 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Semitic   Theosophy. 

Pabt  II. 

The  Sufis  and  Mohammedan  Theosophy. 

Mohammed,  "The  Praised."  Medina,  the  city  of  the  Prophet. 
"War  with  the  Christians.  Character  of  Mohammed. 
The  return  to  Monotheism.  God  as  Supreme  Will. 
Islam,  Resignation.  Christianity  a  progressive  Religion. 
The  Mohammedan  Heaven.  No  recognition  of  human 
brotherhood  in  the  Koran.  The  permanency  of  Islam. 
The  Crescent,  emblem  of  Sophia  (Wisdom).  Tendency 
to  Monotheism  in  the  Semitic  race.  The  children  of 
Abraham.  A  pantheism  of  force.  The  two  Covenants 
at  work.  "Our  Father  in  Heaven."  Quotation  from 
"Domestic  Life  in  Palestine."  The  Muezzin's  call  to 
prayer.  The  Koran  embodying  two  religions.  Number 
of  verses,  etc.  Genghis  Khan.  Note  on  the  Mage  or 
Mogul.  The  cause  of  the  Crusades.  The  end  of  the 
Second  Cycle,  A.D.,  1881.  Mo-hammed,  or  Om- Ahmed, 
the  desire  of  all  nations.  The  Tenth  Avatar.  The 
Sufis.  Origin  of  their  Theosophic  Orders.  The  Thirty- 
two  Orders  of  the  Dervishes  enumerated.     Esoteric  Mo- 


CONTENTS.  XXV11 

PAOE. 

hammedanism.  Bayezid's  explanation  of  Mystic  terms 
quoted.  Sancta  Sophia,  the  Divine  Wisdom.  The  three 
stages  of  Sufi  Initiation.  Sufeism  in  Gnosticism.  Sir 
John  Malcolm  and  Sir  William  Jones  on  the  Sufis 
(quotations).  Sufis,  Sophists,  or  Theosophists.  The 
Moollah  of  Room.  The  Rashees,  or  Rishis.  The  tonsure 
of  the  Priests.  Selections  of  Sufi  Poetry.  Sufism,  true 
Theosophy.  Harnmer-Purgstall  states  that  the  Koran 
contains  a  secret  Doctrine.  Sopheistic  character  of  the 
Ishmaelites.     Signs  of  the  Times      293 


CHAPTER  X. 

Christian  Theosophy. 


Christ  Himself  the  Spirit  of  Christian  Theosophy.  The  doc- 
trine of  Christ  practical  and  not  theoretical.  A  living 
Christ.  The  Apostles  God-knovv-ers,  or  Theosophists. 
Theology  separate  from  Theosophy.  The  Gospel  of  Life 
and  a  Gospel  of  Death.  Rise  of  the  Heretics.  Harder 
to  unlearn  than  to  learn.  The  Church  most  necessary. 
A  true  Reformation.  The  "  No-God  "  of  the  Materialists. 
The  Messiah-Mysterion.  Christ  the  Divine  Incarnation. 
The  Divine  Spirit  individualized.  Christ  must  be  in  us. 
Jesus  imparted  true  Gnosis.  To  understand  the  Apostles 
one  must  be  a  true  Theosophist.  Theosophy  the  only 
Ortho-Doxy  or  Right  Doctrine.  Christ  the  "  Head  Stone 
of  the  Corner."  Note  on  the  Great  Pyramid.  The  Soul 
is  feminine.  The  Theosophic  histories  of  the  Gospels. 
The  Mystery  of  Christ.  Are  the  Gospels  histories  or 
allegories  ?  The  Naronic  Cycles.  Note  on  the  historical 
Jesus.  The  Christ  Spirit  in  David.  Christ  an  Eternal 
Verity.  Truth,  One  and  Eternal.  The  Saviour  of  all 
Men.  Sonship  of  the  Christ  Spirit.  Hercules  a  per- 
sonification of  the  Spiritual  Sun.  The  Heavens  a  book. 
The  Son  in  Taurus.  Melchizedec  an  Avatar.  The 
Second  Coming  of  Christ.  Former  Incarnations  of  the 
Christ  Spirit.  The  Avatar  Wittoba.  Hercules,  accord- 
ing to  Orpheus,  "  bringing  a  cure  for  all  our  ills."    The 


XSV111  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

New  Birth.  The  Earthly  Eve  and  the  Heavenly  Mary. 
The  Logos  of  Plato,  the  Adonai.  Father,  Mother,  and 
Son.  Quotation  from  the  "  Anacalypsis  "  on  the  Sephi- 
roth.  Significance  of  the  Serpent-Symbol.  The  Holy 
Virgin,  or  the  Divine  Wisdom.  The  Destroyer  of  the 
Serpent.  The  Christ  Circle.  The  Spirit  of  the  New 
Testament  (quoted).  "A  greater  than  Solomon."  Christ 
a  title  indicative  of  a  state.  The  Anointed.  A  lecture 
concerning  "The  Spirit  of  the  New  Testament"  (quoted). 
The  Kingdom  of  the  Inner  Life.  The  Star,  or  Christ 
Circle,  a  body  of  faithful  souls.  The  Christian  type. 
Fundamental  Doctrine  of  the  Logos.  Continuance  of 
Gnosticism  in  Christianity.  The  "A gnosis"  of  Dionysius 
the  Areopagite.  The  Theosophy  of  Christ.  Conflict  of 
Exoteric  with  Esoteric  Christianity.  The  Reformation. 
The  Jesuits  as  Theosophists.  Adepts  of  Theosophy  in 
the  Reformed  Church.  Esoteric  Texts.  Two  Epistles 
of  Dionysius  the  Areopagite.  Quotation  from  "  St.  John 
of  the  Cross."  The  Story  of  Master  Eckhard  and  the 
Theosophist.  The  realm  of  the  Soul  far  greater  than 
any  kingdom  on  earth         341 

The  Theosophy  of  Christ. 

How  to  understand  Ancient  Scripture.  The  "Name"  of 
Christ.  The  Blood.  Faith  in  Christ.  The  Truth.  The 
Five  New  Commandments  of  Christ,  or  Beatitudes. 
Love  is  the  Great  Truth.  Christ  is  God,  or  the  Logos 
in  Man.  Extracts  from  a  discourse  by  Professor 
Buchanan,  "  What  is  True  Christianity  ?  "  "  Christ 
not  a  personal  name  although  connected  with  Jesus. 
Immanuel,  or  God  with  us.  Churchianity  not  true 
Christianity.  Constantine.  The  recognized  Christs 
of  the  Ages."  Krishna  and  Arjun.  Quetzalcoatl,  the 
Mexican  Christ.  Note,  quoting  Lord  Kingsborough's 
"Antiquities  of  Mexico."  Suchiquetzl.  Unity  of  the 
Divine  Messengers  and  evolution  of  the  One  Great 
Truth.  The  Spiritual  Significance  of  Astro-Masonry. 
Dupuis'  "Origin  of  the  Cultes"  and  Melville's  "Veritas." 
The  Sun-Gods  types  of  the  Christ  or  Saviour  in  Man. 
Christ  the  central  or  spiritual  Sun 409 


CONTENTS.  XXIX 

CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Theosophic  Interpretation  of  the  Biele. 

PAGE. 

All  that  is  true  is  Spiritual ;  no  chapter  in  the  Bible  bears  a 
physical  meaning.  Concerning  the  Interpretation  of 
Scripture,  a  fragment  from  "  The  Perfect  "Way."  Mystic 
books  should  have  a  mystic  consideration.  The  Legend 
of  Adam  and  Eve.  Abel.  Spiritual  Sacrifices.  Moses 
an  Egyptian  Hermetist.  What  Idolatory  is.  The  bite 
of  the  Serpent      433 

The  Bible  a  collection  of  Theosophic  writings.  The  doar  to 
all  Divine  Symbolism.  The  Divine  Marriage  of  Soul 
and  Spirit.  The  subject  matter  whereon  the  Bible  treats. 
Christ  the  Spirit  (quoted).  "The  common  people  con- 
sidered unfit  to  receive  the  doctrine  of  the  Spirit.  The 
Gospel  writers  Essenes  and  belonged  to  a  Masonic 
brotherhood.  Hiram  a  predecessor  of  Christ.  The 
"  Brethren."  The  Gospels  written  by  Therapeutse 
(physicians  of  the  Soid),  at  Alexandria,  symbolize  the 
Life  of  the  Divine  Spirit.  Accessions  from  "  without " 
diluting  the  true  doctrine.  The  Church-Fathers  imbued 
with  the  Spirit  of  Truth.     The  Essene  doctrine  not  lost.    438 

Allegory  both  in  the  Old  and  New  Testament.  The  inward 
sense  in  Scripture.  Types  of  Genesis  (quoted).  Note 
on  the  different  senses  of  Scripture.  Theosophic  inter- 
pretation of  Sacred  writings.  Pbilo  Judaeus.  Summary 
interpretation  of  the  books  of  the  Old  Testament,  quoted 
from  Types  of  Genesis.  Theosophic  interpretation  does 
not  exclude  the  verity  of  Bible  history.  Fathers  of  the 
Church,  quoted  on  the  Theosophic  interpretation  of  the 
Bible.     Origen.     St.  Hilary.     St.  Augustin.     St.  Jerome  442 

Texts  from  the  Christian  Fathers  in  Latin,  with  English 
translations :  St.  Augustine  on  the  Creation :  The 
"beginning."  Our  Earth.  The  inward  fulfilment  of 
the  work  of  the  first  three  days.  The  fourth  day,  humus, 
development  of  humanity.  The  fifth  day.  The  living 
Creatures  are  the  emotions.     The  stronger  effect  begins 


XXX  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

to  operate  on  the  fifth  day.  The  sixth  day.  Having 
outgrown  the  beast,  man  is  made  in  the  image  of  God. 
Concerning  "  Eden."  The  Fall.  Distinction  between 
the  first  or  earthly  man,  and  the  latter  or  spiritual  man. 
Cain  and  Abel.  Origen's  interpretation  of  the  Creation : 
The  separation  of  the  waters.  The  lights  which  illumin- 
ate us.  Thoughts,  things  that  creep  and  fly.  Gregory 
the  Great  on  the  Mystic  Creation.  What  the  sea  is. 
Shutting  the  sea  with  gates.  The  Ordinary  Gloss  on  the 
generation  from  Adam  to  Noah.  St.  Ambrose  He  Noe 
et  Area.  Noah's  Sons.  Note,  quotation  from  Christ  the 
Spirit,  on  Man  as  the  Microcosm  being  the  Ark.  St. 
Augustine  concerning  the  Tower  of  Babel,  or  self-eleva- 
tion. Note  thereon,  quoted  from  Types  of  Genesis.  The 
Gloss  in  the  Catena  Aurea  on  the  Genealogy  of  Christ. 
"  Morgenrothe  "  by  John  Pulsford  (quoted).  St.  Augus- 
tine on  the  meaning  of  Egypt.  Types  of  Genesis  (quoted). 
Abram  the  spirit  of  faith.  The  men  in  the  Bible  repre- 
senting minds,  their  wives  the  affections.  Remarkable 
passage  from  Bossuet's  "  Discourse  on  the  Universal 
History."  St.  Augustine's  comments  on  the  life  of 
Abraham.  His  two  Sons.  The  conflict  to  deliver  Lot 
interpreted  as  the  struggle  of  the  spirit  of  faith  to  save 
the  outward  man.  The  five  kings  the  five  senses. 
Keturah.     Mr.  Juke's  instructive  comments 451 

The  Bible  a  Theosophic  book  to  the  Theosophist  only.  East- 
ern Symbology.  Christian  Mystics.  Jacob  Boehme. 
Hermetic  Philosophy.  Spiritual  Alchemy.  The  Philo- 
sopher's Stone.  Reasons  for  concealment.  The  Hermetic 
Society.  The  President's  opening  address  (quoted). 
Swedenborg.  His  works.  The  Arcana  Ccclestia.  Doc- 
trine of  Correspondences,  illustrated  in  selections  from 
the  writings  of  Swedenborg.  The  Secret  and  Mystery  of 
the  Christ.  Discussion  on  "  Genesis  "  in  the  Nineteenth 
Century  Magazine.  Godfrey  Higgins  on  Genesis. 
Maimon  ides'  Key  to  Bible  and  Talmud.  The  time  for 
making  known  has  come.  Hermetic  Science  is  Esoteric 
Truth 472 


CONTENTS.  XXXI 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Conclusion. 

PAGE 

Revelations  coming  in  Cycles.  Intermingling  of  systems. 
Waves  of  Materialism  and  Mysticism.  J.  F.  Clarke  on 
the  types  of  religions  (quoted).  Origin  of  all  true 
religions.  The  seven  ages  of  the  World.  Undefinahle 
waves.  Collection  of  former  Revelations.  Value  of 
past  experience.  Where  to  go  for  Soul-knowledge.  A 
proud  saying  hy  the  humblest  of  men.  Esoteric  reality 
indifferent  to  distinctive  designations.  Soul-Life  alone 
Perfection.  Revelation  of  Revelations.  Catholicity  of 
Buddhism  and  Christianity.  The  Heresy  of  one  age 
the  Orthodoxy  of  another.  Absolute  Truth  attainable. 
Ecstasy  not  absolute.  The  Divine  Manifestation  un- 
defmable.  Supreme  Good  the  one  Law  of  God.  The 
Soul's  means  of  communication.  Demon  est  Deus  In- 
versus. Individual  Spirit  and  Universal  Soul.  The 
early  Mystics       499 

Soul. 

How  to  know  one's  true  state  according  to  Swedenborg. 
The  Spiritual  Body.  No  middle  state  in  Spirit.  All- 
embracing  or  all-repelling.  The  growth  of  the  Spirit. 
Spiritual  Love  alone  absolute.  Purity.  The  Spiritual 
Guide.  Grades  in  good  and  evil.  Intuition.  Spiritual 
and  Material  Alchemy.  Gnosis,  the  direct  path.  God, 
passive.     Advice  to  Inquirers 516 

Infinity. 

Infinity  without  and  within  us.  Contemplation  of  the  starry 
heavens.  Translation  of  Camille  Flammarion's  Essay, 
"  Stars  and  Atoms."  "A  star  of  the  seventh  magnitude, 
a  colossal  sun.  Its  distance  and  velocity.  All  stars 
animated  with  analagous  motion.  The  immateriality  of 
matter.  An  iron  rafter  solid  through  immaterial  force. 
Molecular  attraction.  The  human  body  a  vital  vortex. 
Materialism  superannuated.  The  voice  of  the  Infinite. 
Magnetism.      Modern  physics  proclaiming  the  invisible 


XXX11  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

Universe.  The  real  is  the  invisible  force.  "We  are  in 
infinity  and  eternity.  Velocity  making  no  advance." 
The  illimitable  Divine  Spirit.     God  our  all 523 

The  Path. 

Life  and  Thought.  Evil  and  Error  perversions  of  Good  and 
Truth.  The  square  of  the  Absolute.  Intuition  the 
voice  of  the  Soul.  Absolute  Power  is  beyond  man. 
Divine  attributes.  Love,  the  direct  way  to  God.  Reality 
of  Salvation.  Our  aim.  The  seed  of  Infinity.  To 
what  we  can  attain.  The  Logic  of  Nature.  Man-made 
religions  forced  upon  woman.    The  religion  of  the  future  532 

Nibvana,  The  End. 

The  Sabbath,  or  7th  State.  There  is  but  one  I  Am.  The 
Eternal  Memory.  Internal  Infinity.  Those  who  rule 
by  force  shall  perish  by  force.  The  invisible  body. 
Michael  the  ruler  of  the  New  Dispensation.  Conclusion. 
Omnipresence  of  the  Divine  Being.     End  . ,      . .     537 — 541 


UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 


The  word  Theo-sophia,  according  to  Plato,  signifies  "Divine 
Wisdom."  It  is  therefore  that  "Wisdom  which  is  from  above,  and 
•which  will  lead  the  Soul  from  earth  to  heaven  ;  from  animalism  to 
Divinity.  Its  study  begets  immortality  by  bridging  the  gulf  between 
life  and  death  ;  whilst  it  alone  enables  man  to  feel  that  divine  love 
which  is  the  supreme  good,  and  the  manifestation  of  the  Eternal  in 
his  own  being. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

AT  the  outset  of  our  enquiry  into  Theosophy  and 
the  Occult  we  are  confronted  with  the  most 
momentous  questions. 

Is  there  a  Supreme  Principle  commonly  designated 
God  ?  Can  God  be  known  ?  And  how  is  the  God- 
knowing  faculty  acquired  ? 

The  magnitude  of  these  questions  renders  them  un- 
approachable in  their  entirety  by  the  human  mind. 
Then  to  whom  shall  we  turn  for  an  answer  ? 

In  Physical  Science  information  is  not  accepted  by 
reason  of  belief,  or  of  unbelief ;  and  in  the  Spiritual 
Science  of  Theosophy,  both  the  credulous  dogmatist  and 
the  incredulous  agnostic  should  also  be  deemed  equally 
incompetent,  and  the  subject  should  be   treated  from 

B 


2  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

a  stand-point  of  neither  belief  nor  unbelief,  but  simply 
as  experimental  Gnosticism,  or  Science  illustrated  by 
historical  examples,  and  guided  by  individual  research. 

Verily,  we  consider  ourselves  the  least  learned  in 
Theosophy,  but  what  little  we  know,  we  do  know.  Yet 
most  humbly  and  diffidently  do  we  take  up  so  ponderous 
a  subject,  even  the  more  so  as  each  of  those  colossal 
systems  which  we  can  but  point  out  and  pass  by, 
demands  the  study  of  a  life-time  to  be  rightly  under- 
stood and  valued.  The  following  pages  may  therefore 
only  be  judged  of  as  a  mere  attempt  to  induce  others 
who  are  more  qualified  than  ourselves  to  enlighten 
students  of  the  Occult  with  their  illumination. 

Theosophy  we  consider  to  be  the  knowledge  of  the 
Deific,  the  Supreme  and  Eternal  Principle. 

But  what  do  we  mean  by  a  Supreme  Principle  ?  Is 
it  that  which  John  Henry  Newman  defines  as  the 
"  Supreme  Being  "  in  the  following  language,  and  in 
reply  to  this  very  question  ? 

"  I  mean,  then,  by  the  Supreme  Being,  one  who  is  simply  self- 
dependent,  and  the  only  Being  who  is  such ;  moreover,  that  He  is 
without  beginning,  or  eternal ;  that  in  consequence  He  has  lived 
a  whole  eternity  by  Himself,  and  hence  that  He  is  all-sufficient, 
sufficient  for  His  own  blessedness,  and  all-blessed,  and  ever-blessed. 
Further,  I  mean  a  Being  who,  having  these  prerogatives,  has  the 
supreme  Good,  or  rather  is  the  Supreme  Good,  or  has  all  the  attri- 
butes of  Good  in  infinite  intenseness;  all  wisdom,  all  truth,  all 
justice,  all  love,  all  holiness,  all  beautifulness ;  who  is  omni- 
potent, omniscient,  omnipresent ;  ineffably  one,  absolutely  perfect ; 
and  such  that  we  do  not  know  and  cannot  even  imagine  of  Him, 
is  far  more  wonderful  than  what  we  do  and  can.  I  mean,  more- 
over, that  He  created  all  things  out  of  nothing,  and  preserves  them 
every  moment,  and  could  destroy  them  as  easily  as  He  made  them  ; 


OUR    DIVINE    MOTHER.  3 

and  that  in  consequence  He  is  separated  from  them  by  an  abyss ; 
and  is  incommunicable  in  all  His  attributes.  And  farther,  He  has 
stamped  upon  all  things,  in  the  hour  of  their  creation,  their  respec- 
tive nature,  and  has  given  them  their  work  and  mission,  and  their 
length  of  days,  greater  or  less,  in  their  appointed  place.  I  mean, 
too,  that  He  is  ever  present  with  His  works,  one  by  one,  and  con- 
fronts everything  He  has  made  by  His  particular  and  most  loving 
Providence,  and  manifests  Himself  to  each  according  to  its  needs  ; 
and  has  on  rational  beings  imprinted  the  moral  law  and  given 
them  the  duty  of  worship  and  service,  searching  and  scanning 
them  through  and  through  with  His  omniscient  eye,  and  putting 
before  them  a  present  trial  and  a  judgment  to  come." 

Far  more  inclined  do  we  feel  to  adopt  the  inspired 
definition  of  Mr.  James  MacDowell,  of  Glasgow,  in  his 
papers  on  "  Spiritual  Science  and  the  Fourth  Dimen- 
sion," who,  when  contemplating  the  glory  of  the 
starry  heavens,  exclaims  : — 

"  Here  we  feel  the  hand  of  the  Lord  is  upon  us,  and  like  the 
prophet's  servant  of  old,  our  eyes  are  opened  to  a  still  more 
glorious  sight.  Suddenly  the  whole  universe  of  space  bursts  into 
a  blaze  of  glory  like  ten  thousand  noondays,  and  with  unutterable 
awe  and  reverence  we  perceive  that  the  whole  Stellar  Universe  of 
Suns,  Planets  and  Satellites  are  whirling  their  joyous  waltz  of 
times  and  periods  within  a  Sun  whose  diameter  is  measured  by 
Infinity  and  its  period  by  Eternity, 

"  This  is  our  Divine  mother,  the  bride  of  God.  Her  being 
tremulous  with  love  and  joy— teeming  from  her  prolific  womb  His 
myriad  myriad  sons  and  daughters — but  where  is  God  ? — Within 
every  point  of  our  Divine  mot  her — '  the  same  yesterday,  to-day,  and 
for  ever  '  unmoved,  through  her,  He  moveth  all." 

There  is  far  more  mystic  thought  in  this  conception 
of  the  Deity  than  in  the  former  which,  however  ably 
defined,  neither  satisfies  the  head  nor  comforts  the  heart. 

We  must  uphold  the  Kabbalistic  doctrine  of  ex 
oiihilo  nihil  fit,  and  deny  the  possibility  of  the  Creator 


4  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

destroying  His  own  creation,  for  to  destroy  would  mean 
to  have  failed  with  that  particular  object;  while  an 
absolute  power,  emanating  from  an  absolute  intelli- 
gence, can  never  fail  to  accomplish  its  object  in  every 
item.  We  must  deny  a  totally  "  irresponsible  "  Deity, 
and  affirm  God  to  be  the  Supreme  Kesponsibility ;  and 
although  the  Infinite  and  the  Absolute  may  be  con- 
sidered to  have  no  relation  to  the  finite,  and  the 
conditioned,  we  can  become  more  and  more  Divine 
only  in  so  far  as  we  recognise  our  responsibility.  Mr. 
Newman's  "abyss  of  separation  "  contradicts  the  Apostle 
Paul,  who  says  that  "  in  God  we  live  and  move,  and 
have  our  being,"  God  not  merely  confronts  His  works 
but  lives  in  them.  Nature  is  not  God,  but  God  is 
latent  in  the  whole  of  nature,  and  lives  in  every  atom  of 
the  ever-changing  eternal  cosmos. 

In  every  age,  and  among  every  nation,  not  totally 
lapsed  in  barbarism,  we  find  there  were  those  who 
affirmed  with  the  utmost  emphasis  that  God  is,  that 
man  can  knoiv  God,  that  he  can  acquire  this  knowledge 
by  a  pure  and  holy  life,  and  that  this  Divine  experience 
is  the  Supreme  Good— THEOSOPHIA—  or  the  Divine 
Knowledge. 

These  beings  have  borne  witness,  even  unto  death, 
and  laid  down  their  lives  heroically.  Every  age,  every 
nation  has  had  its  "  Martyrs  "  or  "  Witnesses  "  for  the 
Divine  Truth ;  every  age,  every  nation  has  more 
neglected  than  respected  these  Witnesses,  even  as 
Truth  herself  was,  and  is,  passed  by  unheeded  by  the 
multitude. 


HEAVEN  AND  HELL  WITHIN  US.  5 

Shall  it  be  for  ever  thus?  Are  we  indeed  in  this 
century  of  boasted  civilisation  and  enlightenment  no 
farther  advanced  than  in  times  of  a  semi-barbaric  past, 
or  have  we  even  retrogaded  ?  How  slowly  does  progress 
progress  !  What  a  delusion  is  our  vaunted  Physical 
Science  when  the  origin,  the  object,  and  destiny,  of 
all  things  are  unknown,  and  nothing  remains  for  our 
consolation  but  a  limited  register  of  dry  facts,  a  few 
fanciful  theories  of  more  or  less  ingenious  fallacies,  con- 
taining nothing  positive,  but  displaying  rank  ignorance 
of  the  Absolute. 

Shall  it  be  for  ever  thus  ?  Are  we  to  be  totally 
denied  the  possibility  of  any  higher  Sciences  than  those 
inculcated  in  our  Schools  and  Universities  ?  True,  they 
demand  much  trouble  to  learn,  and  more  to  imlearn, 
and  are  only  worthy  to  be  forgotten,  as,  beyond  mathe- 
matics, they  can  teach  us  nothing  absolute. 

You  may  deny  the  Soul  her  aspirations,  nevertheless 
she  will  aspire  ;  if  you  bar  the  way  to  Heaven  by  denying 
its  existence,  the  Soul  will  make  her  Heaven  in  Hell. 
If  goodness  is  a  delusion  and  conscience  means  merely 
education,  the  Soul  will  cry  with  Lucifer,  "  Evil,  be  thou 
my  Good,"  and  bursting  the  bonds  of  her  rational  self 
will  let  loose  the  very  Hells  of  irrationality.  For  even 
as  Heaven  is  within  us,  so  is  Hell;  and  where  the 
Dominion  of  God  is  denied,  Satan  rules  unasked. 

God-denying  is  the  cause  of  Satan's  kingdom,  or  Hell 
coming  on  Earth.  Modern  Science,  like  another  Frank- 
enstein, has  in  Atheism  created  a  monster  which  it  is 
unable  to  master  and  whereby  not  only  Modern  Science 


6  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

herself,  but  all  civilisation  will  be  crushed  unless  a 
higher  power  steps  in. 

Is  Theosophy  that  higher  power?  Theosophy  has 
been  the  Saviour  of  all  ages,  why  not  of  the  present  ? 
It  is  not  Gotama,  not  Plato,  not  Jesus,  not  Lao,  but 
Theosophy,  the  Divine  Knowledge  experienced  and 
taught  by  these  exalted  individuals,  that  is  the  Buddha, 
the  Logos,  the  Christ,  the  Tao.  When  Gotama  found 
Nirvana,  when  Plato  found  the  Logos,  when  Jesus  found 
the  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  when  Lao-Tse  found  Tao  (all 
these  being  but  different  in  name,  for  one  identical 
thing — the  manifestation  of  the  Divine  Spirit),  they 
became  Illuminati — God-inspired  teachers,  true  Theoso- 
phists  ;  but  had  they  not  found  that  Supreme  Good,  and 
Eevelation  of  the  Absolute  in  their  own  being,  they 
would  have  been  but  ordinary  men. 

As  it  was  then,  so  it  is  now,  darkness  when  most  dense 
shall  be  dissipated,  and  the  light  of  the  Soul  shineth, 
though  the  darkness  of  the  mind  comprehendeth  it  not. 

Theosophy,  the  Divine  Knowledge  or  God-wisdom,  is 
both  Saviour  and  Salvation.  A  system  combining 
boundless  faith  with  mathematical  exactitude.  It  is  the 
Eternal  Yea,  and  there  can  be  no  Eternal  Nay,  no 
positive  negation  can  pose  itself  beside  an  absolute 
affirmation.  One  affirmation  of  Science  outweighs  the 
countless  negations  of  nescience.  If  there  is  a  Positive 
Science  of  God  there  can  be  no  Positive  Science  of 
"No-God."  Where  there  is  an  Absolute  affirmation 
there  can  only  remain  a  confession  of  ignorance  of  that 
Absolute  fact ;  but  no  no-fact  can  be  opposed  to  it. 


FALLACIES   OF   SCEPTICISM.  7 

Negation  of  a  thing  one  does  not  know  is  merely  a 
confession  of  ignorance  of  the  possibility  of  the  affirma- 
tion. Not  to  have  seen  a  thiDg  is  no  evidence  of  its 
non-existence,  but  only  that  he  who  has  not  seen  it, 
has  not  seen  it,  yet  the  thing  may  nevertheless  exist. 
Such  a  thing  is  the  "  God-idea,"  as  some  are  pleased  to 
call  it.  Those  who  deny  the  ubiquitous  Presence  go 
altogether  beyond  the  domain  of  their  experience,  for 
they  can  only  affirm  that  by  a  wilfully  perverse  exercise 
of  their  incomplete  and  undeveloped  faculties,  they 
believe  to  have  succeeded  in  excluding  the  Deity  from 
their  minds,  and  to  have  consequently  arrived  at  a  state 
of  mind  that  is  adverse  to  the  reception  of  Divine 
Truth ;  but  they  cannot  affirm  that  the  Deific  Principle 
has  no  existence,  for  they  have  not  attained  to  a  stand- 
point like  the  true  Theosophist,  where  they  would  be 
competent  to  make  an  Absolute  affirmation. 

Negation  which  may  be  called  the  shadow  of  affirma- 
tion, just  as  the  demon  is  said  to  be  the  shadow  of  the 
Divine,  having  been  shown  to  be  not  absolute  ;  Scepti- 
cism is  even  less  absolute  than  negation,  for  it  is  weak- 
ness, not  strength,  merely  a  reaction  of  blind  belief  to 
blind  unbelief,  and  all  the  doubt  in  the  world  cannot 
produce  one  absolute  affirmation,  for  weakness  com- 
bined is  not  strength,  but  combined  weakness  :  a  rope 
of  cobwebs  is  as  nothing  to  a  steel  blade. 

Whether  the  Sceptic  doubts  even  his  own  Scepticism 
or  not,  his  conceptions  are  so  totally  devoid  of  reality 
and  positiveness  that  they  cannot  stand  before  an 
affirmation  of  The  A  bsolute. 


8  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

If  we  suppose  there  is  no  Deity,  then  this  "  No-God  " 
idea  is  even  more  wonderful  than  the  existence  assumed 
for  the  Absolute  Being  ;  and  far  from  doing  away  with 
the  inexplicability  of  existence,  this  assumption  increases 
it  in  many  ways  to  an  incalculable  degree.  If  God  is 
merely  an  abstract  expression  for  a  sum-total  of  ignor- 
ance among  the  uninitiated,  the  "  No-God  "  is  just  as 
well  a  multiplication  to  infinitude  of  the  same  sum  of 
ignorance,  given  a  newly-invented  expression  to  hide 
by  sound  the  vacuity  of  thought  among  the  pseudo- 
scientific.  Whatever  that  ontological  concept  may  be 
called,  which  is  made  to  account  for  everything,  and 
which  keeps  the  worlds  in  their  course,  be  it  Force, 
Ether,  Electricity,  Matter,  or  Nothing,  it  is  merely  old 
ignorance  newly  labelled  with  a  grand,  empty  name. 
If  Atheists  have  no  belief  in  the  one  Presence,  which 
is  an  absolute  fact  to  all  true  Theosophists,  how  can 
we  be  expected  to  believe  in  the  "No-God"  of  whom 
they  know  nothing  ? 

As  long  as  people  merely  quibble  about  the  words 
"God  "  or  "No-God,"  they  are  only  exchanging  emblems 
of  ignorance ;  but  when  we  come  to  Absolute  Truth  and 
Principles,  God  is  all  that  is,  and  His  existence  is  an 
absolute  necessity.  The  cant  of  belief  has  generated  a 
cant  of  unbelief,  but  true  knowledge  is  alike  opposed  to 
both  belief  and  unbelief. 

If  the  existence  of  a  Supreme  Principle  of  Absolute 
Thought,  Power,  Justice,  and  Love,  does  not  satisfy  the 
spoilt  children  of  Modern  Science,  is  the  absence  or  the 
non-existence  of  God  more  satisfactory,  and  does  it  help 


THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  THE  ABSOLUTE.  9 

them  out  of  the  maze  of  the  problems  of  existence  ?  If 
they  are  satisfied  that  the  parts  are  living  and  intelli- 
gent, and  the  whole  is  dead  and  devoid  of  thought,  they 
thereby  expose  but  their  own  deadness  and  unintelligence, 
and  it  will  be  useless  to  argue  any  further  with  such. 

He  who  finds  not  the  Divinity  in  his  own  Soul  may 
seek  God  in  vain  in  the  entire  Universe,  yet  even  the 
mechanical  mathematics  of  the  Solar  systems  may  recall 
God  to  one  who  ignores  the  psychical  mathematics  of 
his  own  Soular  system. 

If  there  is  a  God  for  and  in  us,  the  Deity  is  not 
buried  in  a  hoary  Past,  nor  concealed  in  a  remote 
Future,  but  is  the  God  of  an  eternal  Present,  and  ubi- 
quitous Presence. 

The  historical  manifestations  of  the  Deity  are  only 
examples  for  us  to  follow,  but  not  idols  for  us  to  worship. 
God  is  not  something  strange  to,  and  apart  from,  our 
Being,  but  is  the  very  essence  and  core  of  it,  not  of  the 
artificial  Non-Being,  that  by  sensualism  and  Self-Will 
we  have  agglomerated  around  us,  but  of  the  real  Eternal 
Being  in  its  purity.  If  we  can  but  arrive  at  the  source 
of  our  Being  we  find  the  God-head  to  be  the  fountain- 
head. 

The  wisest,  greatest,  holiest,  and  most  truthful  of 
mankind  affirm,  and  speak  from  individual  experience, 
that  God  is,  that  the  Deific  Principle  dwelleth  in  the 
Soul,  that  the  Soul  is  eternal,  that  the  manifestation  of 
the  Soul  is  the  manifestation  of  the  Absolute.  An 
enumeration  of  names  is  not  necessary.  Initiates 
know  we  allude  to  the  World-Teachers,  who  have  served 


10  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

as  media  between  Deity  and  man.  However  their 
views  of  the  Infinite  may  verbally  differ  when  inter- 
preted in  the  spirit  of  true  Theosophy,  emanating  from 
an  individual  Gnosis  or  spiritual  initiation,  these  exalted 
ones  are,  by  their  knowledge,  found  to  be  in  perfect 
harmony  upon  the  Divine  verities  concerning  the  Soul, 
and  the  Path  to  be  pursued  to  attain  to  Soul  Science. 
Can  we  feel  anything  else  but  sincere  pity  for  those 
who  would  make  the  negation,  which  is  generated  by 
ignorance,  appear  as  an  outcome  of  Science  ? 

We  do  not  intend  to  await  nor  to  anticipate  the 
verdict  of  posterity,  but  without  heeding  the  raillery 
of  materialism,  we  affirm  that  we  can  and  will  think 
for  ourselves,  and  that  we  are  not  content  with  the 
empty  sounds  that  in  modern  Science  (and  also  in 
so-called  Orthodox  Keligion)  pass  as  counters  for 
thoughts ;  and  in  the  following  pages  we  shall  at- 
tempt to  place  the  simple  facts  before  the  impartial 
reader  of  whom  we  demand  a  hearing  on  behalf  of 
Theosophy,  that  neglected  and  rejected  Saviour  of 
Humanity. 

However  various  race  or  creed,  however  different 
ethnical  conditions  and  social  surroundings,  however 
ill-advised  the  educational,  mis-educational,  or  non- 
educational  efforts,  to  which  each  individual  is  subjected, 
however  unfavourable  hereditary  predispositions,  never- 
theless the  impulse,  striving,  and  inclination  of  the 
human  Being  is  on  the  whole  for  Good ;  and  evil  is 
only  done  because  man,  in  his  ignorance,  hopes  to  get 
some  Good  out  of  it. 


SELFISHNESS,   THE   REAL  EVIL   IN  MAN.  11 

Evil  is  not  a  thing  that  is,  not  a  thing  of  Eternity. 
There  is  no  Evil  principle  in  man  but  selfishness,  de- 
rived from  ignorance,  and  this  is  merely  a  temporary 
and  transitional  stage  of  imperfection,  a  kind  of  insanity, 
an  irrational  state  which  has  no  permanence  before  the 
Eternal  Eeason.  These  stages  of  imperfection  man  out- 
grows but  slowly,  but  then,  he  is  a  Being  of  Eternity. 

Considering  all  the  details  of  imperfection  that  are 
forced  upon  us  by  our  surroundings,  it  is  wonderful,  not 
that  there  should  be  so  much  variety,  but  that  there 
should  be  any  unity  of  thought ;  and  when  we  find  that 
the  unity  is  on  the  side  of  any  one  particular  idea,  and 
that  idea  expressed  as  a  positive  fact,  an  absolute  ex- 
perience, and  given,  moreover,  by  men  of  the  very 
highest  moral  character,  yea,  by  those  to  whom  we  owe 
the  very  Science  of  morals,  and  who  were,  and  are,  the 
living  standards  of  morality,  then,  even  as  Law  is  the 
agreement  of  competent  legislators  and  not  the  dis- 
agreement of  the  multitude,  who  are  only  bound  by  a 
common  tie  of  ignorance,  the  evidence  of  the  God- 
knowers  should  be  considered  as  conclusive. 

The  unity  of  Esoteric  doctrine  is  a  great  proof  of  its 
truth.  The  Theosophy  of  all  nations  is  identically  the 
same.  It  is  Soul  Science,  God  Science.  Where  it 
is  mixed  with  human  inventions,  be  they  originated 
by  embodied  or  disembodied  beings,  it  is  in  the  same 
degree  fallible  and  erroneous.  For  there  is  but  one 
Truth,  one  Good,  one  Absolute,  and  that  is  God.  And 
if  we  are  to  point  to  one  book  of  positive  and  unadul- 
terated Truth,  it  cannot  be  the  Bible,  nor  the  Vedas, 


12  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

nor  the  Tripitaka,  nor  the  Avesta,  nor  any  of  the  books 
held  sacred  by  peoples  and  tribes,  nor  any  of  the  writings 
of  the  Mystics,  for  these  are  all,  even  though  in  some 
it  be  but,  in  an  infinitesimal  degree,  mixed  with  human 
non-absolute  concepts.  There  is  but  one  book  that  could 
prove  the  reality  of  an  Absolute  Truth,  and  that  is,  the 
Elements  of  Euclid.  Not  that  we  deny  that  Poets  and 
Seers  are  inspired,  but  that  their  inspiration  does  not 
come  always  direct  from  the  Absolute. 

The  ancient  Greek  Initiates  knew  only  too  well  that 
without  exactitude  there  could  be  no  true  Science  of 
God,  and  all  neophytes  had  with  them  to  pass  through 
probationary  classes,  where  a  system  of  mathematics 
was  taught,  of  which  modern  mathematicians  ^have  no 
conception ;  for  if  modern  and  ancient  mathematics 
were  identical,  how  is  it  that  not  one  of  the  modern 
mathematicians  has  yet  been  able  to  supply,  out  of  his 
own  mind,  the  lost  books  of  Euclid  ?  (asserted  by  Isaac 
Barrow  to  be  complete !)  There  was  a  Theosophical 
secret  in  ancient  mathematics,  of  which  no  modern 
(except  perhaps  the  late  Thomas  Taylor)  has  any  idea. 
Mathematics  were  to  the  ancients  simply  a  mode  of 
Theosophy.  The  object  of  the  system  of  psychic  mathe- 
matics, inculcated  by  the  Pythagoreans,  the  Platonists, 
and  other  Hellenic  schools,  was  similar  to  that  aimed  at 
by  Yogis,  Ssufis,  Kabbalists,  and  other  Theosophists  in 
their  Occult  practice.  It  was  concentration  of  thought 
upon  transcendental  objects. 

Depraved  man  is  decentralised,  his  centre  is  a  gross 
body,  the  lower-self  and  all  his  feelings  and  passions  are 


MATHEMATICAL  THEOSOPHY.  13 

pointed  to  that  low  and  unreal  state  of  being.  To  bring 
the  neophyte  away  from  his  lower  self,  the  thoughts 
had  to  be  isolated ;  and  while  in  the  East,  Yoga  was 
considered  the  chief  Theosophic  practice,  the  West,  in 
the  time  of  the  Alexandrian  School,  had  so  perfected  a 
system  of  mathematical  Theosophy,  or  rather,  had  made 
so  exact  a  system  of  Theosophic  mathematics,  that 
Ammonios  Saccas,  Plotinos,  Proclos,  Synesios  and 
others,  attained  by  its  sole  aid  all  the  results  claimed 
by  Adepts.  The  "  Commentaries  of  Proclos  on  the  first 
book  of  Euclid's  Elements,"  form  a  valuable  fragment 
of  that  profound  system  of  Occult  Philosophy. 

Thought  is  also  Prayer.  He  who  thinks  prays,  and 
one  who  would  disdain  the  Spiritual  exercises  of  St. 
Ignatius,  may  respect  the  transcendental  exercises  of 
the  Platonists.  Those  who  reject  the  Bible  may  res- 
pect Euclid,  those  who  decline  to  pray  may  not  object 
to  think.  We  Theosophists  or  Students  of  Divine 
Wisdom,  like  that  all-pervading  Divine  Principle,  reject 
none,  except  those  who  reject  themselves.  But  by 
whatever  exercise  it  be,  that  of  the  Seraph  or  the 
Cherub,  of  intellect  or  love,  the  mind  must  be  purified 
and  drawn  off  from  the  material  earth  in  order  to 
become  a  citizen  of  Heaven. 

Man  first  exists  in  this  world,  as  a  self-volitional, 
semi-conscious  Being.  The  greatest  part  of  his  life  is 
unconsciously  and  involitionally  manipulated  for  him 
by  a  Being  which  verily  is  within  him,  yet  over  which 
he  has  not  the  slightest  control !  However  man  may 
strive  against  it,  the  Involitional,  or  the  "  unconscious  " 


14  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

(as  Modern  Philosophy  phrases  it),  is  his  absolute 
master,  and  his  imperfect  Will  cannot  cope  with  it, 
although  he  can  so  persistently  stifle  it,  as  lastingly  to 
injure  his  human  and  his  Divine  self.  This  Being, 
which  is  the  centre  of  Being,  is  the  latent  " /  am" 
the  life  and  growth  principle  within,  the  Real,  Eternal 
and  Absolute  Self,  which,  by  its  restless  and  sleepless 
activity,  foreshadows  the  Divine  activity,  and  the 
Omniscient  and  Omnipotent  ubiquity. 

It  is  difficult  to  explain  this  "  Being,"  which  is 
indeed  our  very  highest  self,  and  not  another,  for  it  is 
the  Eternal  Essence  individuating  itself  in  us.  It  is 
the  Eternal  Being,  the  latent  /,  the  Divine  Principle 
within  us.  But  before  the  Light  can  shine,  the  opposing 
shell  must  be  destroyed,  before  the  God  can  be  born,  the 
demon  must  die,  and  Hell  must  be  passed  through 
before  Heaven  can  be  entered  ;  for  Hell  is  eternal,  but 
man  is  not  eternally  in  Hell. 

The  Human  Spirit  is  Divine  Spirit,  but  with  a  de- 
monic shell  about  it  derived  from  materiality.  Cast  off 
the  opposing  shell,  and  you  become  what  you  were  before 
you  entered  upon  the  fallen  state  of  a  selfish  and  sensu- 
ally perverted  phase  of  existence.  The  depraved  sensual 
Self -Will  is  the  ever  delusive  hindrance  preventing  the 
manifestation  of  the  Divine  and  Absolute  Will. 

Let  this  sensual  Self- Will,  which  is  the  Demon,  be 
annihilated,  and  the  Divine  Soul  can  be  born  within  us ; 
and  our  Being  is  identical  with  the  Infinite,  the  Abso- 
lute Good. 

There  can  be  but  One  Divine  Will,  One  Good,  One 


THE  DIVINE  SOUL.  15 

Absolute,  One  God,  and  as  long  as  we  are  external  to 
that  One,  we  are  not  in  our  true  eternal  Being,  not 
Divine,  not  good,  not  Absolute,  not  rational  even,  but 
deluded,  erroneous,  and  irrational ;  therefore  necessarily 
demonic,  evil,  erring,  and  false,  both  to  ourselves  and 
to  God. 

While  in  the  human  state,  the  Divine  Being  at  times 
manifests  Itself  in  us,  as  a  warning  voice  ;  it  is  the 
cause  of  prophetic  dreaming,  prescience,  intuition,  and 
the  yearning  for  the  Mystical  and  unknown,  which  is 
merely  a  sensing  of  the  Divine.  It  really  is  a  Being, 
or  rather  the  Being — yea,  pure  Thought,  Love,  Life. 
A  Law  unto  Itself,  the  Law  of  all  Law,  human  and 
Divine,  temporal  and  eternal.  It  is,  and  there  is  no 
being  external  to  its  existence.  It  is  the  core,  the 
kernel,  and  the  all  of  Life,  for  not  Matter  but  Thought 
is  Being.  Thought  is  the  Divine  link  that  unites  us 
with  the  Eternal.  Thought  scintillates  through  the 
human  mind,  the  Microcosm,  and  manifests  its  golden 
rays  through  the  glories  of  the  Divine  mind,  the 
Macrocosm. 

The  self-conscious  human  being  is  a  mere  reflection, 
a  lesser  Intelligence.  The  greater  Intelligence  of  the 
Divine  mind  can  only  express  itself  fully  when  unre- 
sisted by  the  lesser  Intelligence  of  the  self-volitional 
Being.  It  does  not  dispute  with  the  lesser,  but  with- 
draws itself;  nor  can  we  compel  it  to  speak  so  long  as 
we  are  not  identical  with  it ;  for  as  long  as  man  follows 
the  lesser  Intelligence,  he  is  guided  by  a  depraved  Self- 
Will,  and  forces  the  Divine  Principle  from  his  thoughts. 


16  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

We  perceive  as  we  write,  and  it  will  surely  be  observed 
by  those  who  read,  that  we  have  here  given  the  true 
account  of  the  origin  of  Evil  on  earth,  which,  as  we  have 
said  before,  is  separation  from,  and  opposition  to  the 
Divine  Will — and  also  the  true  definition  of  Hell,  which 
is  no  locality,  but  a  state  opposed  to  that  state  known 
as  Heaven,  or  the  abode  of  goodness  and  peace.  Hence 
the  reason,  and  the  beauty  of  the  prayer,  "  Thy  will  be 
done  on  earth  as  it  is  in  Heaven,"  which,  when  obtained 
through  the  growth  and  developement  of  the  Anima 
Divina,  or  Divine  Soul  in  us,  will  so  effectually  annihilate 
our  own  Self- Will,  or  Anima  Bruta,  as  to  transform  the 
very  earth  on  which  we  dwell  into  Heaven  ;  or  rather 
the  state  in  which  we  are,  into  a  heavenly  state. 

This  Anima  Divina,  or  innermost  Being  of  our  Being, 
which  Modern  Philosophy  has  agreed  to  call  the  "  Un- 
conscious," but  which  really  is  the  Supremely  Conscious 
Omniscient  Being,  must  be  experienced  to  be  knoivn. 
And  yet  this  so-called  "  Unconscious  "  involitional  part 
of  our  Being,  the  living,  growing,  multiplying,  eternal, 
Divine  Principle,  is  in  itself,  the  Supreme  Absolute 
Divine  Omniscient  Intelligence,  and  from  it  comes  all 
knowledge.  Whoever  consciously  attends  to  its  Divine 
manifestation  arrives  at  the  cause  of  causes,  the  Soul 
World.  The  Soul,  in  manifesto,  has  alone  performed 
the  miracles  historically  recorded  of  the  highest  Adepts, 
or  Heroes  of  Theosophy,  and  whoever  will  live  as  they 
lived,  can  become  what  they  were,  and  can  know  what 
they  knew. 

How  are  we  to  attain  to  Soul-Knowledge  ? 


OCCULT   PRACTICE.  17 

By  practice  of  that  internal  quiescence  known  to  all 
true  Theosophists,  whereby  the  volitional  passes  into  the 
involitional,  and  the  dissevered  and  semi-antagonistic 
duality  of  our  Being  resolves  itself  into  the  primitive 
Monad  of  Divine  existence,  the  Soul  state. 

Grotania  Buddha  did  not  speak  vain  words  concerning 
the  annihilation  necessary  for  the  possibility  of  the 
Nirvana,  for  it  is  literally  by  the  dying  of  the  Demon 
self,  the  Anima  Bruta,  that  the  God-self  or  Anima 
Divina,  is  re-born,  and  thus  may  Nirvana,  "  The  King- 
dom of  Heaven,"  be  attained  even  on  earth. 

The  Occult  practice  of  all  true  Theosophers  is  directed 
to  attain  a  quiescence  of  Soul,  intended  to  let  the  lower 
volition  become  entirely  silent,  and  thus  to  allow  the 
involitional,  or  human  "  Unconsciousness,"  which  is  the 
Divine  Volition,  and  Consciousness,  to  express  itself,  and 
the  Two,  instead  of  being  dissevered  and  antagonistic 
as  they  are  in  every  unregenerate  Being,  become  united, 
re-born,  and  harmonious.  And  as  the  human  depraved 
Self-Will  is  the  delusion  and  hindrance  which  prevents 
the  Divine  Absolute  Will  from  expressing  itself,  the 
former,  which  is  the  Demon  in  man  (because  the  opposer), 
must  be  totally  annihilated. 

Thus  the  human  Being,  when  united  with  the  latent 
Principle  of  Infinity,  the  Divine  Soul,  within  his  own 
Being,  can  become  identical,  and  One  with  the  Infinite, 
the  Absolute,  or  God. 

This  is  the  rationale  of  the  practice  of  Yoga,  Tao, 
the  Kabbala,  &c.  In  brief  the  Great  Work  is,  to 
identify  oneself  with  that  innermost   Self,  that   invo- 

c 


18  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

litional  part  of  our  Being  which  is  the  Divine  Living 
Soul,  the  Christ  in  us. 

The  more  man  has  Self- Will,  the  less  he  has  the 
Divine  Will,  and  the  less  can  he  become  united  with 
the  Divine  Intelligence  that  permeates  the  Universe, 
and  wherein  man  "  unconsciously  "  lives,  and  moves, 
and  has  his  Being,  and  the  less  can  the  Divine  Illu- 
mination become  manifested  in  him.  Man  is  decen- 
tralised from  his  Divine  Centre  of  Absolute  Reason, 
in  the  same  ratio  as  he  is  concentred  upon  his  human 
centre  of  depraved  irrationality. 

One  way  leads  to  God,  one  way,  and  only  one  way  ; 
it  is  the  path  of  earnest  striving  for  truth  and  justice; 
it  is  the  path  of  self-denial.  As  the  Divine  is  in  the 
human,  so  must  the  human  be  in  the  Divine — unselfed. 
As  the  Divine  is  in  the  human,  so  must  the  human  be 
in  the  Divine — quiescent.  As  the  Divine  is  in  the 
human,  so  must  the  human  be  in  the  Divine — latent. 
As  the  human  is  in  the  Divine,  so  must  the  Divine 
be  in  the  human — manifested.  As  the  human  is,  so 
will  the  Divine  be ;  as  the  Divine  becomes,  so  is  the 
human,  for  the  Two  are  inseparable.  When  dissevered, 
they  are  united  in  two-fold  misery  ;  when  truly  united, 
and  re-born,  they  are  in  the  supreme  happiness  of 
Nirvana,  which  is  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven. 

"  For,"  as  an  old  Theosopher  has  said,  "  so  it  is 
ordained  between  God  and  man  from  all  eternitie,  that 
man  should  be  God,  and  God  man,  neither,  without 
the  other :  That  is,  as  God  Himself  is,  and  will  be 
the    Paradise,    Garden,    Tabernacle,   Mansion,   House, 


THE  GREAT   WORK.  19 

Temple,  and  Jerusalem  of  Man :  So  also  was  man 
created  for  the  same  end,  that  he  should  be  the  Paradise, 
Garden,  Tabernacle,  Mansion,  House,  Temple,  and 
Jerusalem  of  God ;  that  by  this  mutual  union  and 
friendship  of  God  with  man,  and  of  man  with  God,  all 
the  wisdome,  power,  vertue,  and  glory,  eternally  hidden 
in  God,  should  be  opened  and  multiplied.  For  God 
once  made  all  things  for  man,  but  man  for  Himself." 


20 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  THEORY   AND   PRACTICE  OF   THEOSOPHY. 

'•PT^HERE  is  a  Science  which  is  above  all  sciences; 
-*-  and  is  the  unrecognised  fountain  of  every  science. 
There  is  an  Art  which  is  the  source  of  all  arts,  yet 
cannot  be  taught,  as  it  only  teaches  itself.  There 
is  a  Philosophy  that  comprises  the  highest  truths 
attainable  by  man.  There  is  a  Religion  which  has 
no  belief,  but  an  absolute  knowledge,  and  is  a  direct 
communion  between  God  and  man.  This  Religion, 
Philosophy,  Art  or  Science — call  it  what  you  will — ■ 
is  "  Our  Art,"  "  The  Kabbala,"  "  The  Occult,"  or 
"  The  Science  of  the  Absolute,"— THEOSOPHY.  The 
whole  course  of  Theosophy  is  given  by  Anselm,  of 
Canterbury,  in  the  following  few  but  pithy  words : 
"  We  must  believe  to  know,  we  must  know  to  under- 
stand." 

We  can  apply  to  Theosophy  with  equal  truth  the 
statement  made  by  Eliphas  Levi  of  Magic,  that  one 
cannot  practise  Theosophy  who  does  not  therein  be- 
lieve; and  as  it  cannot  be  known  without  practice,  an 
unbeliever  is  necessarily  incapable  of  understanding 
Theosophy,  no  matter  how  much  he  may  assail  it  with 
ignorant  disputations. 


THE   THEORY   AND  PRACTICE  OF  THEOSOPHY.        21 

However  displeasing  the  statement  may  be  to  un- 
disciplined minds,  belief  is  an  initiatory  necessity  for 
final  salvation.  We  commence  but  do  not  end  with 
belief.  To  inverse  the  given  dictum:  To  understand, 
one  must  know;  to  know,  one  must  have  practised; 
and  to  practise,  one  must  believe. 

There  are  two  methods  of  study :  the  theoretical 
and  the  practical.  The  course  we  would  suggest  is  a 
combination  of  the  theoretical-historical  investigation, 
with  practical  and  experimental  efforts. 

The  theory  of  Theosophy  can  be  gathered  by  an 
attentive  perusal  of  the  various  Theosophic  classics; 
the  practice  demands  a  life  of  uncompromising  physical 
and  spiritual  purity,  accompanied  by  continual  aspira- 
tional  psychic  striving. 

To  give  an  approximately  complete  list  of  books  to 
be  studied  that  contain  theosophical  information  would 
be  very  difficult,  as  we  find  that  in  most,  and  even  in 
the  best  books  on  the  subject,  excepting  a  few  chosen 
ones  specially  indicated  in  this  volume,  the  information 
is  scattered  and  is  not  given  in  the  concise  and  practical 
way  we  would  desire  it  to  be. 

For  general  and  genuine  information  on  the  various 

systems   of    Theosophy    we    would    however   advise   a 

perusal  if  not  study  of  the  following  works  : — 

For  Egyptian  Theosophy:  Hermes  Trismegistus.1    Also  Jambli- 
chos  on  "  The  Mysteries  of  the  Egyptians."  '2 

1   Hermes  Trismegiste,  traduit  par  Menard.     Paris,  Didier,  or 

an  English  translation. 
S  A  new  translation,  by  Professor  Wilder,  appears  in  the 

first  volume  of  The  Platonist. 


22  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Chinese  Theosophy :  The  "  Tao-te-king,"  by  Lao-Tse ;  the 
"  Nan-Hua,"  by  Chuang-Tse,  and  the  other  classics  of  the 
Tao-Sse  (i.e.  the  followers  of  Tao).3 

Hindu  Theosophy :  The  "  Upanishads,"  the  "  Bkagavat- 
Gita,"  &c.4  The  "  Vedantasara,"  the  "  Sankhyakarika,'' 
the  "  Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha,"  and  Gough's  "  Philosophy 
of  the  Upanishads."  3 

Buddhist  Theosophy  :  The  "  Lotus  of  the  True  Law,"  the 
"  Dhammapadda  "  and  "  Sutta-Nipata,"  "  Vinaya  Texts," 
"Suttas."4  Beal's  "Catena  of  Buddhist  Scriptures," 
"  Udanavarga,"  &c.3 

Magian  Theosophy:  "Zend  Avesta,"  and  "  Pahlavi  Texts."4 
The  "  Book  of  Arda  Viraf,"  the  "  Desatir,"  &c. 

Mohammedan  Theosophy  :  The  "  Mesnevi."  3 

Hellenic  Theosophy:  "Plutarch's  Morals:  or,  Theosophical 
Essays,"  translated  by  C.  W.  King.5  Translations  of  Plato, 
Proclos,  Plotinos,  &c,  by  the  late  Thomas  Taylor,  also  the 
Journal  called  The  Platonist,  which  has  among  its  objects 
the  re-publication  of  the  writings  of  Thomas  Taylor. 

Hebrew  Theosophy:  The  "Old  Testament"  and  "Apocrypha," 
"  Philo  Judasus."5  "  Etheridge's  Introduction  to  Hebrew 
Literature,"  Ginsburg's  treatise  on  "The  Kabbala,"  Molitor's 
"Philosophic  der  Geschichte"  (the  third  volume). 

Christian  Theosophy:  The  New  Testament  "Canon,"  and 
"Apocrypha."  Also  the  works  of  Origen,  Augustin, 
Dionysius,  Hugo  St.  Victor,  and  Richard  St.  Victor,  as  well 
as  those  of  the  Christian  Fathers,  Saints,  Mystics  and 
Kabbalists,  amounting  to  too  many  to  enumerate. 

Scientific  Theosophy  and  Occult  Philosophy  may  be  studied 
in  the  works  of  the  Gnostics,  Alchemists,  Rosicrucians, 
Mediaeval  Occultists,  Illuminati,  Magnetists,  Spiritualists 
and  Spiritists,  and  the  modern  Theosophists,  which  should 
be  read  with  discrimination. 

3  Published  by  Triibner. 

4  Sacred  Books  of  the  East.     Published  by  The  Clarendon 

Press. 

5  Published  in  Bohn's  Series. 


THE   STUDY   OF  THEOSOPHY.  23 

With  the  exception  of  the  last  three  classes,  namely 
the  Hebrew,  Christian,  and  the  Scientific  Theosophy, 
the  books  referred  to  are  moderate  in  price,  easily 
obtainable,  and  of  comparatively  facile  comprehension  for 
beginners.  We  have  abstained  mentioning  more  expen- 
sive and  more  abstruse  works.  As  regards  the  other 
classes  of  Theosophy,  they  nearly  all  demand  an 
acquaintance  with  ancient  and  modern  languages:  as 
for  instance,  a  further  study  of  Hebrew  Theosophy 
would  demand  a  knowledge  of  the  Hebrew  language, 
as  also  of  the  Soharitic  idiom.  Books  of  the  Hebrew 
Kabbalists  are  neither  so  expensive  nor  difficult  to 
obtain,  but  they  are  sealed  to  all,  save  to  those 
who  are  Initiates  and  at  the  same  time  Hebrew 
scholars.  The  "  Kabbala  Denudata  "  and  Pistor's 
"  Scriptores  Cabalistici  "  contain  valuable  texts  in 
Latin. 

Christian  Theosophy  must  be  separated  from  the 
ecclesiastic  bias  that  disfigures  an  otherwise  valuable 
system,  wherefore  we  abstain  from  giving  many  names 
of  writers,  and  would  prefer  the  student  to  form  his 
ideas  by  individual  investigation. 

As  Scientific  Theosophists,  we  consider  all  those  who 
directed  their  efforts' to  individual  Gnosis  even  in  oppo- 
sition to  Dogma.  Unlike  the  Christian  Saints  and 
Mystics  who  attempted  to  explain  exoteric  Christianity 
esoterically,  and  some  Heretics  who  in  outspoken 
terms  differed  with  the  teachings  of  the  Church,  the 
Alchemists,  Eosicrucians  and  Occultists,  and  other 
mediaeval    spiritual    pioneers,   preferred    to    invent    a 


24  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Hermetic  Language  which  is  incomprehensible  to  all 
except  the  favoured  few  who  are  in  possession  of  the 
esoteric  key  to  their  symbolical  jargon  for  the  elucida- 
tion of  the  system  of  Theo-Philosophy  which  they 
designated  "  Our  Art." 

The  works  of  the  Alchemists,  Eosicrucians,  and 
Occultists,  are  generally  not  readily  obtainable  nor  easily 
understood,  while  the  phraseology  of  the  Gnostics 
is  so  thoroughly  Hermetic  as  to  render  their  works 
useless  for  beginners.  The  Pistis  Sophia,  a  work  attri- 
buted to  Valentinus  the  Gnostic,  can  only  be  appreciated 
by  advanced  Initiates.  C.  W.  King's  work  on  "The 
Gnostics  "  contains  much  valuable  general  information, 
but  must  be  read  with  discrimination. 

Alchemy,  in  so  far  as  it  is  a  spiritual  science,  forms 
but  a  branch  of  Theosophy,  or  it  can  rather  be  said  to 
be  but  Theosophy  under  another  name.  The  Adepts 
in  Alchemy  are  at  times  discovered  to  be  spiritual 
Adepts,  although  a  material  Alchemy  or  Occult  Chemis- 
try no  doubt  also  existed. 

An  acquaintance  with  modern  Philosophy  will  be 
found  a  useful  preparatory  study  for  a  course  of  Theo- 
sophy. Many  ideas  now  current  in  Philosophy  are  mere 
reflections  from  earlier  Theosophists.  Jacob  Bohme 
may  be  considered  as  the  precursor  of  German 
Philosophy.  Giordan  Bruno,  and  Spinoza,  are  found  to 
be  self-taught  Initiates,  and  not  Atheists.  Descartes, 
Leibnitz,  Malebranche,  Berkeley,  are  teachers  of  a 
high  order.  The  study  of  Kant  cannot  be  too  highly 
recommended.     Fichte,   Herbart,   and   Hegel   may   be 


THE   EVER-BEGINNING.  25 

left  to  specialists  in  metaphysics,  but  the  works  of 
Schelling,  Lessing,  Baader,  and  Lotze,  will  be  found 
to  be  invaluable  adjuncts  to  show  the  variety,  yet 
unity,  of  mystic  Philosophy.  Among  the  Illuminati, 
Jane  Leade,  Pordage,  Gichtel,  Swedenborg,  St.  Martin, 
and  Divonne,  give  most  important  information. 

Mere  reading  will  never  make  an  Adept.  The  vital 
practice  must  not  contradict  the  mental  theory.  It 
is  only  the  striving  aspirational  Soul  that  can  create  a 
Divine  World  out  of  its  own  chaos.  Books  are  only 
guides  where  they  are  not  merely  theoretically  studied 
but  practically  followed.  Those  who,  following  the 
voice  of  the  Soul,  go  to  the  source  of  all  knowledge,  will 
find  a  few  of  the  many  books  sufficient  to  guide  them 
to  perfection. 

The  Beginning  is  in  the  now  and  ever  unbeginning, 
and  the  End  is,  and  ever  shall  be,  in  the  unending.  In 
the  Beginning,  that  is,  in  the  Divine  Being,  the  Soul 
was  a  conscious  part  of  God,  but  Self- Will,  becoming- 
manifest,  the  Divine  Will  became  latent,  and  this 
was  the  Fall  from  the  Divine  to  the  Demonic,  from 
the  greater  to  the  lesser,  from  the  macrocosm  to  the 
microcosm,  from  love  to  fate.  For  the  Beginning 
is  an  Eternal  Present,  and  whoever  arrives  at  the 
Divine  Being,  arrives  at  the  Beginning  and  End  of 
all  things. 

In  this  Beginning,  or  Divine  State,  man  lived  con- 
sciously in  God,  and  the  Supreme  Consciousness,  God, 
was  known  to  and  manifested  in  man. 

Man  was  then  an  Absolute  Being,  having  God-like 


26  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

power  over  the  elements.  He  was  not  subject  to  time 
nor  change,  but  existed  even  as  God  in  Eternity,  as  an 
immutable  Being;  and  this  was,  and  shall  be,  the 
rightful  and  ultimate  state  of  every  living  Soul. 

By  Self- Will,  man  fell  from  this  Divine  and  Absolute 
state.  He  then  became  enslaved  in  evil  desires  and 
passions,  and  so  much  as  man  receded  from  the  Divine 
Perfection,  God,  the  Omnipresent,  became  more  and 
more  occult  in  him  who  had  banished  the  Divine 
thought  from  his  mind.  God  has  not  changed,  but  is 
ever  immutable,  and  the  Divine  Light  shineth  now  as 
ever ;  it  is  man  only  who  has  become  so  unconscious 
that  he  now  knows  not  the  Divine  Consciousness,  but 
names  it  "  the  Unconscious." 

Time  cannot  measure  things  of  Eternity.  To  fix  a 
term  when  man's  Soul  first  receded  from  the  Divine 
Being,  or  when  She  shall  return,  is  impossible. 

Man  is  the  only  being  in  existence  we  know  of  having 
Free-Will.  He  is  free  to  use  or  abuse  his  faculties, 
free  to  advance  or  recede,  free  to  return  or  to  stay 
away  from  his  Eternal  home. 

The  exercise  of  Man's  Free-Will  only  leads  him  away 
from  God.  The  Wise,  knowing  there  is  but  one  Good, 
and  that  is  God,  volitionally  renounce  this  apparent 
Free-Will  and  attach  themselves  to  the  Divine  Will, 
where  they  can  alone  experience  their  true  and  Eternal 
liberty. 

The  Laws  of  Nature  are  rigid,  and  unbending. 
Nature  jests  not,  she  obeys.  Everything  in  nature 
obeys  God  except  that  extra-natural  thing,  the  Free- 


TOWER   AND    LOVE.  27 

Will  of  man.  This  Free- Will  God  has  given  to 
man  on  probation,  that  is,  to  prove  and  prepare  him 
for  his  career  as  a  child  of  Eternity.  If  man  had  not 
this  Free-Will,  if  the  archangels  (for  they  are  but 
former  human  beings)  had  not  the  free  power  to  become 
arch-demons,  if  the  human  being  were  in  spirit  to  be 
surrounded  by  laws  as  rigid  as  those  that  rule  his 
physical  being,  and  he  could  therefore  follow  only  one 
given  direction  at  a  given  speed,  he  would  be  nought 
but  an  automaton  or  machine.  Thus,  evil  is  the  ne- 
cessity of  Free-Will ;  and  to  know  evil  is  necessary, 
in  order  that  we  may  know  how  to  avoid  it.  Ac- 
cording to  Eliphas  Levi's  interpretation  of  the  He- 
brew Kabbala,  God  rules  by  Power  and  Love — Gebura 
and  Chessed.  The  laws  of  matter  illustrate  to  us  rigid 
laws  of  Power,  the  laws  of  spirit  are  expansive  laws  of 
Love. 

The  distinction  of  Power  is  for  the  dissevered.  Divine 
Love  is  for  those  who  are  United  to  the  Divine  Being. 
It  is  an  occult  law,  that  man  reflects  God,  and  God 
reflects  man. 

One  Principle  pervades  the  Universe,  and  man  beholds 
this  Divine  Being  according  to  the  grade  of  his 
development.  In  the  highest  state  God  is  experienced 
as  Absolute  Love,  in  the  lower,  i.e.,  in  the  intellectual 
and  spiritual  state,  as  Absolute  Thought,  but  in  the 
lowest,  merely  as  Absolute  Force. 

Verily  God's  Love  is  ever  active,  while  His  Power  has 
never  yet  been  specially  exerted,  for  against  what  should 
it  be  directed  ?     As  God  containeth  All,  is  All,  and  is 


28  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

in  All,  although  the  atoms  may  be  unconscious  of  the 
whole,  and  the  straying  spirit  has  eclipsed  the  Divine 
memory  of  the  Soul — the  being  that  will  but  restore 
himself  to  the  state  of  primitive  purity,  shall,  in 
himself,  behold  the  fountain  and  beginning  of  all 
existences,  and  will  become  aware  that  God  rules  alone 
by  Absolute  Love. 

In  that  state,  known  as  the  Beginning,  man  lived 
an  Absolute  Life,  which  in  Spirit  was  the  Paradise,  or 
Garden  of  the  Soul,  and  on  earth,  the  Golden  Age. 
Man  fell  in  Spirit  from  God  to  Demon,  and  had  to 
re-ascend  before  he  could  again  become  a  living  Soul, 
and  when  ascended  to  be  a  God-like  creature,  he  may 
again  fall  to  a  lower  state.  The  laws  of  Spirit,  though 
expansive,  are  tenacious  ;  and  while  man  has  a  Free- 
Will,  his  progress  is  incalculable  by  our  finite  concep- 
tions. Well  might  Newton  say  "That  the  orbit  of  a 
comet  can  be  computed,  but  not  the  course  of  human 
folly."  Yet  even  this  human  folly  has  Divine  Wisdom 
in  it,  and  even  the  most  bitter  evil  is  intended  to  teach 
us  the  sweetest  good  in  the  end. 

That  there  are  such  things  as  falls  possible  for  the 
human  being,  much  as  it  is  to  be  deplored,  is  only 
natural  to  the  Divine  economy,  and  it  is  mans  privilege 
to  seek  truth  in  error.  For  by  folly  we  come  to 
wisdom,  from  darkness  we  pass  unto  light,  and  by 
falling  into  evil  we  learn  to  value  and  adhere  to  good. 
Thus  we  acquire  experience. 

Existence  may  be  compared  to  an  infinite  stream 
wherein  all  beings,  or  conscious  monads  are  embodied 


THE  STREAM   OF  EXISTENCE.  29 

as  drops  or  particles.  The  current  of  the  stream  is  the 
Divine  Will,  each  monad  having  however  a  Self-Will 
can  retard  or  hasten  its  individual  progress,  but  those 
who  identify  themselves  with  the  Divine  Will  pass  most 
rapidly  through  the  stream  of  existence  and  arrive 
at  their  ultimate  end — the  ocean  of  Absolute  happiness. 
For  there  is  but  one  Eternal  Good,  and  that  is  God  ;  and 
all  things  external  to  that  One  are  delusive,  imperma- 
nent. Everything  is  only  in  as  far  as  it  is  right,  for 
only  everything  which  is,  is  right ;  we  must  therefore 
search  out  and  identify  ourselves  with  that  which  really 
is,  and  not  be  psychologized  by  things  having  no  real 
existence.  Human  distinctions  are  only  real  so  far  •  as 
they  are  true,  and  thus  far  are  they  also  Divine ;  fel- 
onry that  which  is  true,  is  Divine,  and  only  what  is 
Divine,  is  true. 

Lost  Atoms  of  Deity,  erring  monads  of  the  Absolute, 
how  long  will  you  continue  in  the  eccentricities  of  Self- 
Will ;  when  will  you  discern  the  real  from  the  unreal, 
the  true  from  the  false,  the  good  from  the  evil  ?  How 
weak  are  those  who  are  strong  in  Self-Will,  for  there  is 
only  one  Omnipotent  Will  possible,  and  all  who  are 
external  to  that  Will  are  omni-impotent  only ;  "  Who 
is  not  for  me  is  against  me."  0  return  all  you  that 
issued  from  God,  return  to  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven ; 
the  Soul  latent  within  you  awaits  your  return.  The 
Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  at  hand  for  those  who  are  pre- 
pared to  receive  it — but  seek  not  for  it  external  to  your 
own  Divine  Soul,  for  therein  only  is  the  Kingdom  of 
Heaven. 


30  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

The  whole  system  of  mathematics  commences  with  a 
point ;  as  with  the  unit  commence  centillions  of  num- 
bers, and  with  a  seedcorn  endless  multiplications  of  life, 
so  with  the  Soul  commence  infinite  manifestations  and 
deflections  of  noumenal  and  phenomenal'  existence. 
The  Soul  is  extra-and  supernatural,  and  all  creation  is 
insufficient  to  illustrate  her  faculties  and  powers.  Each 
thought  may  be  capable  of  infinite  combination,  each 
work  of  interminable  development,  each  being  of 
endless  progression,  but  the  Soul  attains  her  highest 
expresssion  by  becoming  united  with  her  Infinite  Source, 
the  source  of  Infinity. 

The  Soul  in  us  is  doubly  encased,  in  Self-Will,  and 
sensual  mind.  These  form  the  Anima  Bruta  and 
shell.  When  by  the  destruction  of  the  depravity  of 
the  senses  and  the  perversity  of  the  Will,  this  shell 
becomes  dissolved,  the  Anima  Bruta  dies  (i.e.,  changes) 
while  still  incarnate.  In  the  unregenerate  state  of  life 
the  Anima  Divina  is  literally  bound  by  the  Anima 
Bruta,  until  released  by  the  mystic  death.  Indeed,  the 
physical  death  does  not  liberate  the  human  Spirit  so 
much  as  the  mystic  death  of  the  perverse  and  depraved 
in  us  emancipates  the  Divine  Spirit.  To  slay  the 
Anima  Bruta  while  yet  in  the  physical  body  is  then 
the  work  of  the  Adept.  He  dies  while  yet  living 
and  lives  when  supposed  to  be  dying.  There  is  a  phy- 
sical and  a  spiritual  death,  and  the  latter  is  as  inevitable 
as  the  former. 

The  unenlightened  die  first  physically  through  decay 


SOUL- FORCE.  31 

or  violence,  then  pass  through  probationary  Spirit- 
Spheres  that  surround  the  scenes  of  their  former 
actions,  and  remain  earthbound  for  ages.  When  at  the 
end  they  have  acquired  the  simple  knowledge  that 
they  should  have  no  Will  but  the  Divine,  passing 
through  the  death  of  Self- Will,  the  Spirit-death,  they 
attain  the  Beginning  ;  the  Soul-World. 

The  Initiate  dies  first  in  Spirit  and  thereby  attains  to 
the  Eternal  Life  of  the  Divine  Soul.  The  shells  of 
perverse  Self- Will  and  depraved  sensuality  having  been 
dissolved,  the  errors  of  irrationality  being  discarded,  the 
Soul  diffuses  the  vital  force  of  immortality  into  the 
good  which  remains.  The  Spirit  becomes  absorbed  with 
the  Soul,  the  senses  and  intellect  are  consolidated  into 
a  whole,  and  the  Supreme  Thought  is  manifested. 

The  Rosicrucians  taught,  that  by  delivering  the 
human  Soul,  and  spirit,  into  the  Divine  Soul,  it  over- 
leaps the  intermediary  states,  or  earth-bound  spheres, 
and  the  spark  becomes  the  Flame-Soul.  Thus  the  in- 
visible body  dies  and  becomes  spiritualised  or  rather 
Divinised.  The  spiritual  death  is  the  actual  death  of 
the  depraved  in  us,  and  is  as  real  as  the  physical  death, 
but  far  more  difficult  to  accomplish.  The  invisible 
body,  the  shell,  must  die  before  the  Soul  can  live  for 
ever. 

Whether  one  subsequently  continues  in  the  physi- 
cal body  unto  a  patriarchal  age,  or  prefers  to  shuffle  off 
this  mortal  coil  earlier,  is  of  no  importance ;  being 
at  one  with  the  Absolute,  the  Soul  abides  in  her  own 


32  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Eternal  undying  state,  happen  what  may  to  the  physical 
body. 

The  Soul-force  is  the  supreme  force  in  Nature.  The 
cause  of  causes.  The  source  of  sources  is  the  Soul- World. 
The  Spirit- World  is  but  a  reflection,  and  the  material- 
world  but  an  effect.  Spirit  has  only  power  over  matter 
by  virtue  of  the  Soul  that  is  latent  in  the  Spirit.  Soul 
cased  in  Self- Volition  is  already  by  a  wall  removed  from 
the  Absolute,  encased  in  a  sensual  mind  the  Soul  is  still 
further  removed  from  her  primary  archaic  state.  The 
manifest  Soul  alone  stands  in  direct  communion  with 
the  Cause  of  Causes. 

This  possibility  of  the  One  becoming  the  All,  and  the 
All  becoming  the  One,  is  not  pleasing  to  earth-bound 
spirits,  who  would  assume  themselves  to  be  "  our 
Guides "  while  they  again  have  "  Guides,"  and  their 
Guides  are  guided  by  other  Guides,  and  so  on.  Theo- 
sophy  and  Spiritualism  therefore  are  not  yet  reconciled 
on  this  subject,  for  Theosophy  acknowledges  only  one 
supreme  Guide — the  Divine-Soul. 

Becoming  one  with  his  own  Soul  the  true  Theoso- 
phist  acquires  the  Soul-Power  of  the  Absolute  without 
aid  of  any  other  Spirit  but  his  own.  To  demand,  or 
rely  upon  extraneous  aid  from  the  Spirit-World  en- 
dangers the  progress  of  the  Soul. 

Magic  and  mediumship  in  so  far  as  these  pertain  to 
the  earth-bound  spheres  of  the  Spirit-World  are  to  be 
carefully  avoided  by  all  who  aspire  to  a  higher  life,  and 
who  would  not  retard  the  growth  of  the  Divine  seed 
within  them. 


DIVINE   MAGIC.  S3 

Mundane  cares,  perverse  pleasures,  and  all  irrational, 
unthinking  evils,  must  be  philosophically  considered, 
wisely  understood,  and  carefully  eschewed. 

Not  the  human,  but  the  Divine  Will  is  the  Agent  in 
Divine  Magic.  The  human  Volition  can  only  be 
directed  to  suppress  irrational  wants,  to  will  away  the 
impure,  vain,  and  evil  thoughts  that  cling  to  us  from 
former  habits.  Living  upon  pure  food,  in  charity  and 
humility,  the  senses  soon  become  pliant  and  subjugated. 
No  tortures  of  the  Hatta  Yogis,  nor  evocations  of  spirits 
are  necessary,  for  these  practices  would  only  lead  astray. 
The  manifestations  of  Soul-Power  alone  can  perform 
miracles  of  healing,  &c,  although  aspirational  spirits 
may  voluntarily  aid  and  assist. 

Excessive  ascetic  practices,  such  as  fasting,  may  give 
a  temporary  mystic  experience,  but  the  true  practice  is 
to  refine  the  sensual,  to  become  spiritual,  and  the  spirit 
to  become  Divine  by  a  life  of  abstinence  from  all  im- 
purities, be  they  physical,  spiritual,  or  moral,  as  wrong 
food,  wrong  actions,  or  wrong  thoughts.  Everything 
must  be  rationally  understood,  and  whatever  is  irrational 
will  also  be  found  to  be  wrong.  When  once  we  are  but 
truly  rational,  we  are  at  one  with  the  Supreme  Keason, 
the  Supreme  Grood. 

It  may  require  years  of  physical  and  psychical  purity 
before  any  mystic  knowledge  is  received  or  experienced, 
but  in  the  ordinary  unregenerate  course,  ages  pass  by 
and  the  Soul  becomes  choked  with  iniquity. 

"  It  comes  best  when  of  itself."  Before  striving  to 
be  filled  one  should  be  thoroughly  void.     The  Divine 

D 


34  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

knows  best  when  we  are  ready  to  receive.  Having 
within  us  a  particle  of  the  Omniscient,  all  we  can  do  is 
to  allow  it  to  grow  and  not  retard  the  growth.  We 
must  attain  to  a  state  of  unison,  to  become  aware  of 
the  Divine  Harmony.  Behold,  Christ  comes  as  a  thief 
in  the  night,  and  "blessed  are  those  that  are  born 
during  sleep."  In  that  night  of  sense  that  surrounds 
all  humanity  arises  a  midnight  Sun,  the  Divine  mani- 
festation. Therefore  it  is  said  that  Eve  who  represents 
the  Human  Soul  was  created  during  the  sleep  of  Adam, 
and  the  Christ  Child  was  born  at  night,  when  all  the 
world  slept,  except  the  few,  faithful  watchers. 

Even  as  Adam  mystically  fell  through  Eve,  or  the 
weakness  of  his  human  Soul,  so  can  he  only  be  saved 
through  Mary,  or  the  power  of  the  Divine  Soul. 
It  is  the  seed  of  the  Woman,  or  Female  Principle  which 
bruises  the  serpent's  head. 

The  Divine  Soul  is  the  Female  Principle.  Man's 
better  half  is  Woman  ;  this  is  not  only  a  fact,  as  exo- 
terically  understood,  but  is  also  the  great  esoteric 
truth.  The  Mystic  Woman  within  is  Eve,  the  Organic 
Soul,  the  Mother  of  all  living.  Our  Divine  Nature,  is 
Mary,  the  Divine  Soul,  that  principle  of  life  and  growth 
wherein  we  live,  and  have  our  being,  that  enfolds  and 
sustains  us  without  living  for  itself;  this  great  truth  we 
must  understand  and  learn  to  cultivate.  The  Woman 
"  from  above  "  must  be  manifested,  and  the  masculine, 
i.e.  the  volitional,  must  be  ruled  by  the  involitional, 
which  then  becomes  the  Divine.  It  is  "  not  my  Will 
that  is  to  be  done  but  thine " ;   even  as  in  the  unre- 


SPIRITUAL   EXERCISE.  35 

generate  state,  nature,  the  Woman  within  us,  lives  not 
for  herself,  but  for  us  only ;  and  we  have  our  life  only 
by,  and  through  her ;  so  in  striving  for  re-birth  we  must 
become  a  passive  instrument,  but  only  to  the  working 
of  our  own  Soul,  not  to  a  strange  spirit.  No  more 
living  for  himself,  but  only  for  the  Soul,  thus  becoming 
the  medium  of  his  own  Divine  Spirit,  ruling  himself  by 
himself,  the  two  principles  in  man  become  united  and 
re-born  in  the  Divine.  This  is  the  mystic  marriage  of 
the  King's  Son. 

There  are  several  methods  of  spiritual  exercise  that 
predispose  the  Soul  to  re-birth.  Most  religious  cere- 
monies were  instituted  by  Initiates,  and  have  an 
Occult  or  Theosophic  reason.  When  the  esoteric  object 
is  ignored,  the  exoteric  observance  is  in  itself  with- 
out virtue.  There  is  no  salvation  by  proxy.  The 
whole  course  of  Divine  initiation,  or  re-birth,  must  be 
individually  undertaken,  and  passed  through ;  and  no 
spiritual  intoxication,  no  biological  fetish,  no  supersti- 
tious name  or  belief  will  save  one  who  has  not  worked  out 
his,  or  her  own,  salvation.  For  here  we  are  in  the  domain 
of  Absolute  Eeason  and  Omniscience,  and  no  unreason 
or  falsehood  can  hope  to  stand  the  ordeal  that  has  to 
be  passed  through  before  the  so  much  bandied,  yet  so 
little  understood  term — "Salvation"  is  attained. 

Many  Mystic  terms  are  so  much  in  current  use  and 
have  become  so  thoroughly  hackneyed,  that  some 
readers  may  rather  prefer  to  seek  for  Spiritual  Science 
among  the  unfamiliar  Oriental  systems,  than  look  for 
the  spiritual  meaning  of  their  own  religion,  that  con- 


36  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

tains  a  sanctuary  as  esoteric  as  any  which  can  possibly 
be  found  in  the  East. 

Theosophic  Practice  was  completely  summarized  in 
the  words  of  that  Divine  Teacher,  who  said,  "Be  perfect, 
even  as  your  Father  who  is  in  Heaven  is  perfect."  The 
danger  of  individual  aberration  and  misguidance  differs 
for  each  individual  character.  It  is  useful  to  read 
the  accounts  given  of  the  temptations  of  Saints.  Jacob 
Bohme,  in  his  Treatise  of  the  Four  Complexions,  at- 
tempted to  systematise  the  temptations  to  which  Theoso- 
phists  are  subjected  according  to  their  predispositions. 

The  individual  idiosyncracies,  and  acquired  or  educa- 
ted perversities,  are  the  chief  cause  of  most  of  the 
temptations  experienced  by  those  who  strive  for  the 
higher  life. 

The  depravities  with  which  the  mind  and  Self-Willed 
spirit  has  tainted  the  Soul,  or  involitional  part,  has 
degraded  the  latter  from  a  Divine  to  an  animal, 
or  even  to  the  lower  demonic  state.  The  (rod  within 
us  having  become  a  Demon,  this  demonic  being  is 
the  primary  cause  of  temptation.  Long  after  we 
have  thought  ourselves  freed  from  the  depraved  groove 
wherein  the  mind  was  used  to  run,  outside  spirits 
attached  to  this  inclination  will  do  their  utmost  to 
thwart  our  attempts  at  self-liberation,  because  with  it 
they  will  be  deprived  of  their  participation  of  sensuous 
pleasures  and  associates.  These  are  Bulwer's  "  dwellers 
on  the  threshold." 

All  human  beings  are,  more  or  less,  influenced  by  out- 
'  side  intelligences,  be  they  embodied  or  disembodied. 


THE   WORLD   AS   SEEN   FROM   ABOVE.  37 

Mediumship  is  far  more  common  than  is  generally 
recognized,  and  ■  it  is  the  antithesis  of  Adeptship. 
To  be  open  to  all  outside  influences  is  the  chief 
danger  to  be  feared  and  avoided  by  those  who  attempt 
to  be  true  Theosophists. 

The  same  defect  that  causes  mediumship,  if  carried 
to  its  full  extent,  will,  in  some  cases,  produce  insanity. 
When  we  consider  that  all  human  beings  are  mediums 
to  a  certain  extent,  the  number  of  absolutely  sane 
people  becomes  very  small  indeed.  Many  may  be  sane 
in  the  outer-world  sense,  but  to  the  Omniscient,  or 
All-seeing  eye  of  the  Soul,  most  individuals  must  appear 
as  if  insane. 

To  be  sane  is  to  be  perfectly  balanced,  physically  and 
mentally,  and  to  act  only  in  accordance  with  the 
absolute  dictates  of  Divine  Eeason.  It  is  but  those 
who  have  arrived  at  the  other  shore  in  this  life,  and 
whom  the  world  often  calls  fools  and  visionaries,  that 
are  comparatively  in  a  state  of  sanity,  beholding 
the  world  as  it  is.  And  how  are  these,  in  turn,  to 
impart  their  views  ?  Some,  like  Democritos,  have 
laughed  at  the  world  and  denounced  it  mad  ;  others,  as 
Heraclitos,  have  wept,  as  Jesus,  who  wept  over  Jeru- 
salem ;  while  others,  like  Jesus  and  Gotama  Buddha, 
strove,  by  precept  and  example,  to  instruct  all  in 
Spiritual  Science ;  some  again,  like  Pythagoras  and 
the  Hermetists,  formed  severe  esoteric  classes  and 
schools;  while  such  as  Simon  Ben  Jochai,  resolutely 
eschewed  and  hated  worldly  intercourse. 

Like  can  only  become  united  with  its  like,  and  if  one 


38  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

would  become  united  to  the  Absolute  Eeason,  he  or  she 
must  act  in  strict  conformity  with  the  laws  of  Eeason, 
and  not  be  impelled  by  irrationalities.  Every  act  has 
a  Divine  and  ultimate  object  and  purpose,  which  we 
must  recognize,  and  act  in  accordance  with. 

The  Practice  to  be  adhered  to  by  one  who  aspires  to 
be  a  Theosophist,  is  well  set  forth  in  the  following 
extracts  from  two  eminent  text-books  in  different 
branches  of  respectively  occult  (or  mesmeric)  practice 
and  theosophic  Doctrine  : 

"  The  primary  qualifications  are,  a  great  and  good  spirit,  and 
great  powers  of  mental  concentration.  A  great  and  good  spirit, 
of  course,  cannot  be  imparted.  Its  development  means  the  de- 
velopment of  the  Holy  seed  within  us,  or,  the  outward  expression 
of  the  Divine  within.  The  greatest  recognised  example  of  such 
development  in  this  and  other  Protestant  and  Catholic  countries, 
has  been  in  the  miracles  performed  by  Jesus  Christ.  An  adept  of 
this  description  is  known  to  the  true  occultist,  as  the  '  Red 
Magician.'  To  become  a  '  Red  Magician  '  you  must  strictly  follow 
Christ's  laws,  and  imitate  his  life,  both  in  the  letter  and  in  the 
spirit,  till  it  is  your  very  nature  to  be  good,  and  there  is  absolutely 
no  evil  in  you.  Your  Physical  life  must  be  entirely  subservient  to 
the  spiritual.  Your  observations  of  externals  must  be  simply  to 
make  a  right  use  of  them.  Food  and  drink  must  be  taken  merely 
as  necessary  supports  to  the  body.  Fish,  flesh,  fowl,  alcohol, 
drugs,  tobacco,  mineral  substances,  and  every  such  perversion 
of  the  natural  appetite  must  be  religiously  abstained  from,  and 
your  tastes  therefore  re-directed  into  their  proper  channels. 
Good  cannot  be  good  if  it  be  joined  to  one  particle  of  evil.  It  is 
then  only  a  mixture  of  good  and  evil.  To  become  a  '  R'3d 
Magician,'  therefore,  you  must  become  all  perfect,  even  as  God 
within  you  is  perfect.  I  do  not  say  all  powerful.  You  are  always 
perfect,  as  long  as  you  absolutely  act  up  to  the  light  within  you, 
and  ever  pray,  and  strive  for  more  light.  This  light  will  grow 
infinitely,  this  light  is  Deity,  this  light  cannot  die,  because  it  is 
life,  and  there  is  no  death  in  life.     Decay  of  the  body  is  destruction 


THE  PERFECTION   OF    CHRIST.  39 

only  of  the  machine,  and  not  death  to  life.  God,  Life,  Light,  and 
Good,  in  this  sense,  are  synonymous  terms.  Good  is  immortal. 
Evil  is  mortal,  and  there  is  no  satisfaction  in  it.  This  light  is  fed 
only  by  constant  prayer  or  desire  for  good.  I  am  explaining  facts 
to  you,  not  mythical  imaginings.  If  you  wish  to  become  a  '  Red 
Magician,'  mount  the  ladder,  and  you  will  find  your  Kingdom  of 
Heaven  which  is  '  within  you,'  and  '  Our  Father  who  is  in  Heaven,' 
and  then  you  will  be  at  one  with  god." — (Private  Instructions  in 
the  Science  and  Art  of  Organic  Magnetism  by  Mrs.  Chandos  Leigh 
Hunt  Wallace.) 

The  foregoing  practically  agrees  with  the  cardinal 
doctrines  of  Theosophic  Practice  set  forth  in  the  Perfect 
Way,  as  the  following  shows  : 

"  To  attain  to  the  perfection  of  the  Christ — to  polarise,  that  is, 
the  Divine  Spirit  without  measure,  and  to  become  a  '  Man  of 
Power  '  and  a  Medium  for  the  Highest, — though  open  potentially 
to  all, — is,  actually  and  in  the  present,  open,  if  to  any,  but  to  few. 
And  these  are,  necessarily,  they  only  who,  having  passed  through 
many  transmigrations  and  advanced  far  on  their  way  towards 
maturity,  have  sedulously  turned  their  lives  to  the  best  account 
by  means  of  the  steadfast  development  of  all  the  higher  faculties 
and  qualities  of  man  ;  and  who,  while  not  declining  the  experiences 
of  the  body,  have  made  the  spirit,  and  not  the  body,  their  object 
and  aim.  Aspiring  to  the  redemption  in  himself  of  each  plane  of 
man's  fourfold  nature,  the  candidate  for  Christhood  submits 
himself  to  discipline  and  training  the  most  severe,  at  once  physical, 
intellectual,  moral,  and  spiritual,  and  rejects  as  valueless  or  per- 
nicious whatever  would  fail  to  minister  to  his  one  end,  deeming  no 
task  too  onerous,  no  sacrifice  too  painful,  so  that  he  be  spiritually 
advanced  thereby.  And  how  varied  soever  the  means,  there  is  one 
rule  to  which  he  remains  constant  throughout,  the  rule  namely  of 
love.  The  Christ  he  seeks  is  the  pathway  to  God ;  and  to  fail,  in  the 
least  degree  in  respect  of  love,  would  be  to  put  himself  back  in  his 
journey.  The  sacrifices,  therefore,  in  the  incense  of  which  his 
soul  ascends,  are  those  of  his  own  lower  nature  to  his  own  higher, 
and  of  himself  for  others.  And  life  itself,  it  seems  to  him,  would 
be  too  dearly  bought,  if  purchased  at  the  expense  of  another,  how- 
ever little  or  mean — unless,  indeed,  of  a  kind  irremediably  noxious, 


40  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOrHY. 

whose  extinction  would  benefit  the  world.  For — be  it  remem- 
bered— though  always  Saviour,  the  Christ  is  sometimes  also 
Purifier,  as  were  all  his  types,  the  Heroes — or  Men  Regenerate — 
of  classic  story.  Enacting,  thus,  when  necessary  the  executioner's 
part,  he  slays  for  no  self-gratification,  but  '  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord.' 

"  They  who  have  trod  this  path  of  old  have  been  many,  and 
their  deeds  have  formed  the  theme  of  mystical  legends  innumerable. 
Epitomising  these,  we  find  that  the  chief  qualifications  are  as 
follows : — In  order  to  attain  to  '  Power  and  the  Resurrection,'  a 
man  must,  first  of  all,  be  a  Hierarch.  This  is  to  say,  he  must  have 
attained  the  magical  age  of  thirty-three  years,  having  been,  in  the 
mystic  sense  of  the  terms,  immaculately  conceived,  and  born  of  a 
king's  daughter ;  baptised  with  water  and  with  fire  ;  tempted  in 
the  wilderness,  crucified  and  buried,  having  borne  five  wounds 
on  the  cross.  He  must,  moreover,  have  answered  the  riddle  of 
the  Sphinx.  To  attain  the  requisite  age,  he  must  have  accom- 
plished the  Twelve  Labours  symbolised  in  those  of  Heracles 
and  in  the  signs  of  the  Zodiac  ;  passed  within  the  Twelve  Gates 
of  the  Holy  City  of  his  own  regenerate  nature  ;  overcome  the 
Five  Senses;  and  obtained  dominion  over  the  Four  Elements. 
Achieving  all  that  is  implied  in  these  terms,  '  his  warfare  is 
accomplished,'  he  is  free  of  Matter,  and  will  never  again  have  a 
phenomenal  body. 

"  He  who  shall  attain  to  this  perfection  must  be  one  who  is 
without  fear,  and  without  desire,  save  towards  God ;  who  has 
courage  to  be  absolutely  poor,  and  absolutely  chaste  ;  to  whom  it 
is  all  one  whether  he  have  money  or  whether  he  have  nonet 
whether  he  have  house  and  lands  or  whether  he  be  homeless, 
whether  he  have  worldly  reputation  or  whether  he  be  an  outcast. 
Thus  is  he  voluntarily  poor,  and  of  the  spirit  of  those  of  whom  it 
is  said  that  they  inherit  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  It  is  not 
necessary  that  he  have  nothing  ;  it  is  necessary  only  that  he  care 
for  nothing.  Against  attacks  and  influences  of  whatever  kind, 
and  coming  from  whatever  quarter  without  his  own  soul's  kingdom, 
he  must  impregnably  steel  himself.  If  misfortune  be  his,  he  must 
make  it  his  fortune ;  if  poverty,  he  must  make  it  his  riches ;  if 
loss,  his  gain  ;  if  sickness,  his  health  ;  if  pain,  his  pleasure.  Evil 
report  must  be  to  him  good  report ;  and  he  must  be  able  to  rejoice 
when  all  men  speak  ill  of  him.    Even  death  itself  he  must  account 


POLARISATION   OF   THE  DIVINE.  41 

as  life.  Only  when  he  has  attained  this  equilibrium  is  he  '  Free.' 
Meanwhile  he  makes  Abstinence,  Prayer,  Meditation,  Watchful- 
ness, and  Self-Restraint  to  be  the  decades  of  his  Rosary.  And 
knowing  that  nothing  is  gained  without  toil,  or  won  without 
suffering,  he  acts  ever  on  the  principle  that  to  labour  is  to  pray, 
to  ask  is  to  receive,  to  knock  is  to  have  the  door  open,  and  so 
strives  accordingly. 

"  To  gain  power  over  Death,  there  must  be  self-denial  and  govern- 
ance. Such  is  the  '  Excellent  Way,'  though  it  be  the  Via  Dolorosa. 
He  only  can  follow  it  who  accounts  the  Resurrection  worth  the 
Passion,  the  Kingdom  worth  the  Obedience,  the  Power  worth  the 
Suffering.  And  he,  and  he  only,  does  not  hesitate,  whose  time  has 
come. 

"  The  last  of  the  '  Twelve  Labours  of  Heracles '  is  the  conquest  of 
the  three-headed  dog,  Cerberus.  For  by  this  is  denoted  the  final 
victory  over  the  body  with  its  three  (true)  senses.  When  this  is 
accomplished,  the  process  of  ordeal  is  no  longer  necessary.  The 
Initiate  is  under  a  vow.  The  Hierarch  is  free.  He  has  undergone 
all  his  ordeals,  and  has  freed  his  will.  For  the  object  of  the 
Trial  and  the  Vow  is  Polarisation.  When  the  Fixed  is  Volati- 
lized, the  Magian  is  Free.     Before  this,  he  is  '  subject,' 

"  The  man  who  seeks  to  be  a  Hierarch  must  not  dwell  in  cities- 
He  may  begin  his  initiation  in  a  city,  but  he  cannot  complete  it 
there.  For  he  must  not  breathe  dead  and  burnt  air— air,  that  is, 
the  vitality  of  which  is  quenched.  He  must  be  a  wanderer,  a 
dweller  in  the  plain  and  the  garden  and  the  mountains.  He  must 
commune  with  the  starry  heavens,  and  maintain  direct  contact 
with  the  great  electric  currents  of  living  air  and  with  the  unpaved 
grass  and  earth  of  the  planet,  going  barefoot  and  oft  bathing  his 
feet.  It  is  in  unfrequented  places,  in  lands  such  as  are  mystically 
called  the  'East,'  where  the  abominations  of  'Babylon'  are 
unknown,  and  where  the  magnetic  chain  between  earth  and  heaven 
is  strong,  that  the  man  who  seeks  Power,  and  who  would  achieve 
the  '  Great  Work,'  must  accomplish  his  initiation."— (The  Perfect 
Way:  or  the  Finding  of  Christ.    Lect.  viii.,  part  ii.,  pars.  18—23.) 

Without  Knowledge  no  Salvation,  without  Salvation 

no   Knowledge.      Theosophy  has   diversity   yet   unity, 

and    not    being    based   on    belief    but    on    individual 

Science,  admits  what  all  other  systems  fear— the  right 


42  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

of  private  judgment.  Thus,  although  we  are  not 
Yogins,  we  can  sympathize  with  the  aim  of  the 
true  Yogi,  observing  at  the  same  time  that  Yoga, 
although  considered  by  Hiudus  as  an  indispensable 
Occult  Practice,  can  only  induce  by  Art  in  some, 
what  becomes  spontaneously  manifested  by  Nature  in 
others.  When  man  attains  to  the  apex  of  his  Being, 
he  sounds  the  Divine  Octave,  and  another,  the  Divine 
Being,  resounds  in  him.  The  Divine  becomes  spon- 
taneously manifested  when  man  is  in  unison  with  the 
Divine.  Yoga  may  be  considered  as  a  laborious  tuning 
to  bring  the  human  in  accord  with  the  Divine  Harmony. 
Man  to  become  a  Medium  for  the  Highest  must  be  the 
Highest. 

°  YOGA     PRACTICE. 

"  A  perusal  of  the  Upashnakand  of  the  Veda  Bashya  Bhumika, 
of  Swami  Dayanund  Saraswati,  and  several  treatises  on  Yoga 
philosophy  taught  me,"  says  a  student  in  Yoga-Vidya,  "  that  there 
are  eight  parts  of  Yog,  viz. : — Yama,  Nyama,  Asana,  Pranna- 
jama,  Pratyahara,  Dharanna,  Dhyana,  and  Samadhi." 

The  principles  of  Yama  enjoin  us : — 

1.  To  observe  perfect  freedom  from  the  desire  of  injuring 
others,  and  to  realize,  in  practice,  real  love  and  heartfelt  sym- 
pathy for  all  creatures. 

2.  To  speak  always  the  truth,  making  our  words  convey  our 
exact  meaning. 

3.  To  be  free  from  a  desire  to  misappropriate  others'  property, 
however  insignificant. 

4.  To  practise  self-denial,  or  in  other  words,  never  to  allow 
gratification  to  carnal  passions,  even  in  thought. 

5.  To  keep  always  and  everywhere  aloof  from  pride  and  vanity. 
The  principles  of  Nyama  enjoin  us — 

1.  To  observe  cleanliness  of  body,  and  purity  of  mind. 

2.  To  be  content  and  cheerful  under  all  the  vicissitudes  of  life. 


YOGA   PRACTICE.  43 

3.  To  listen  to,  and  practise,  the  doctrines  calculated  to  exalt 
our  mind,  and  refine  our  thoughts. 

4.  To  read  the  sacred  hooks,  such  as  the  Vedas,  &c,  and  to 
have  full  faith  in  the  existence  of  the  Infinite  Spirit,  Om. 

5.  To  hear  always  in  mind  that  our  actions  and  thoughts  are 
watched  and  witnessed  by  the  Omnipresent  Spirit. 

"Asana  treats  of  the  posture  to  be  adopted  at  the  time  of 
performing  Yoga.  The  posture  assumed  should  be  quite  easy 
and  in  no  way  painful  or  inconvenient.  For  Oriental  people, 
squatting  is  the  one  generally  preferred. 

"  Pranayama  relates  to  the  suppression  of  the  inspiration  and 
expiration  of  breath. 

1.  When  the  breath  is  exhaled,  the  student  should,  before  he 
takes  it  in  again,  allow  as  much  time  to  pass  as  he  conveniently  ? 
can. 

2.  And  when  it  is  inhaled,  he  should  suffer  the  same  amount  of 
time  to  elapse  before  it  is  exhaled  again. 

3.  He  should  then  suspend  breathing  altogether,  of  course, 
for  a  few  seconds  at  the  beginning,  and  never  so  long  as  would 
cause  him  inconvenience,  or  prove  dangerous  to  his  health.  In 
short,  his  practice  must  be  regulated  by  his  strength. 

4.  He  should  then  inhale  and  exhale  his  breath  slowly,  and 
with  less  force  than  usual.  I  advise  no  person  to  practise  this 
part  of  Yoga  unless  he  has  a  Yogi  at  his  side,  inasmuch  as  it 
endangers  health  and  life  if  unskilfully  attempted,  and  in  the 
absence  of  an  instructor. 

"  Pratyahara  requires  to  control  our  mind,  so  as  to  exercise  full 
authority  over  one's  feelings  and  emotions. 

"  Dharanna  is  to  withhold  the  mind  from  all  external  objects  and 
internal  thoughts,  and  to  concentrate  it  upon  a  certain  part  of  the 
body,  either  the  navel,  heart,  forehead,  nose,  or  tongue ;  and  then 
to  meditate  on  Om  and  its  attributes. 

"  Dhyana  is  to  intensify  that  meditation,  and  to  keep  the  mind 
void  of  any  other  thought,  feeling,  or  emotion. 

"  Samadhi  leads  the  Yogi  to  gain  that  perfection  in  the  inten- 
sity of  meditation  which  enables  him  to  obtain  absorption  in  the 
Infinite  Spirit. 

"In  Dhyana,  the  Yogi  is  conscious  of  his  own  self,  of  his  mind 
and  of  the  Infinite  Spirit;    but  in  Samadhi  he  loses   the  con- 


44  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

sciousness  of  the  first  two,  and  the  Infinite  Spirit  only  remains 
before  his  mind's  eye. 

"  Dharanna,  Dhyana,  and  Samadhi,  are  together  called  San- 
nyama. 

"  No  one  should  expect  to  enjoy  the  bliss  of  Sannyama,  which 
is  beyond  all  description,  without  first  observing  the  principles 
of  Yama  and  Niyama. 

"God,  the  Primeval  cause  that  pervades  the  universe,  and  is 
Master  of  all  things,  either  animate  or  inanimate,  is  a  Being 
invisible  to  the  physical  eyes,  imperceptible  to  the  bodily  senses, 
and  incomprehensible  to  our  finite  intellect.  Who  dares  define 
such  a  Being,  and  in  what  language  ? 

"No  other  language  than  that  of  the  Deity  Himself  (if  He 
can  be  said  to  have  any  specific  language  at  all)  can  boast 
of  representing  Him  as  He  is.  And  in  Sannyama  the  devotee 
is  brought  face  to  face  with  this  Being." — The  Arya,  Vol.  I., 
p.  251. 

Theology  and  Theosophy  are,  in  a  measure,  based 
upon  Anthropology.  The  deductions  that  Materialists 
would  draw  from  this  simple  fact,  however,  are  not 
admissible.  Theology  is  not  a  branch  of  Anthropology, 
but  with  more  truth  can  it  be  said,  that  as  the  human 
is  but  a  part  of  the  Divine,  Anthropology  is  but  a 
branch  of  Theosophy ! 

The  very  innateness  and  universality  of  a  God-idea 
proves  the  reality  and  truth  of  that  idea.  Its  modi- 
fications, according  to  the  variety  of  human  mentality, 
and  national  character,  are  subject  to  anthropological 
laws;  but  the  Idea  itself,  and  the  Truth  and  Eeality 
of  a  Divine  Knowledge,  are  above  the  laws  of  Anthro- 
pology, as  a  light  above  our  finite  Eeason. 

The  ethnic  character  and  the  national  genius  are 
no  doubt  reflected  in  the  God  of  each  people.  The 
limitation  of  all  nations  to  one  particular  ethnic  God- 


THE   PANTHEON  OF   UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY.         45 

idea  is  not  desirable,  nor  is  it  aimed  at  in  universal 
Theosophy.  Our  Temple  is  a  Pantheon,  admitting-  all 
Divine  Ideas,  and  excluding  only  the  Demonic;  but 
before  a  God-Idea  is  admitted  into  our  Pantheon  it 
should  be  mathematically  examined  as  to  whether  it  is 
truly  Divine. 


46 


CHAPTEE  III. 

HERMETIC  THEOSOPHY. 

Part  I. 

THE  SECRET   OF   MYTHOLOGY. 

WHEN  man  first  appeared  upon  this  planet, 
whether  as  an  animal,  or  "as  a  God," 
whether  a  pre-historic  Golden  Age  was  terminated 
by  a  cataclysm  to  destroy  a  race  of  highly  developed 
but  evil  beings  who  abused  the  Divine  Power  en- 
trusted to  them,  or  whether  man  laboriously  ascended 
to  a  consciousness  of  the  Divine,  through  cycles  of 
slow  and  steady  progress,  cannot  be  decided.  Suffice 
it  to  say  that  there  is  as  much  evidence  for  an  in- 
volution, as  for  an  evolution ;  for  the  fallen  angel,  as 
for  the  ascended  ape. 

There  may  have  been  a  physical  evolution,  and  a 
spiritual  involution,  or  a  spiritual  evolution,  and  a 
physical  involution  (matter  degenerating  as  spirit  left 
it),  or  a  combined  spiritual-physical  evolution,  or  a 
combined  spiritual-physical  involution, — so-called  facts 
could  be  adapted  to  any  of  these  theories. 

The  existence  of  pre-historical  Hermetic  Myths  affords 
us  important    evidence   of  a   pre-historical   system   of 


HERMETIC    LANGUAGE.  47 

Theo-philosopby,  which  all  subsequent  systems  have  not 
been  able  to  equal.  That  such  could  not  have  belonged 
to  tribes  of  savages,  but  were  the  outcome  of  an  ad- 
vanced state  of  civilisation,  is  but  a  natural  conclusion. 

We  may  hazard  the  theory  that  the  legendary  Golden 
Age  was  a  period  when  man  lived  in  his  rightful 
Divine  State,  gifted  with  Divine  attributes.  But  by 
desecrating  his  Divine  Nature,  and  abusing  his  powers 
(wherein  may  have  been  comprised  a  command  over 
the  worlds  of  matter  and  spirit),  he  may  have  become 
obnoxious  to  the  Divine  Beings  of  the  other  worlds,  and 
caused  a  retrogression. 

Nature's  laws  obey  only  those  who  are  at  One  with 
the  law  giver.  When  the  primitive  people  defiled  their 
Divine  Being,  they  lost  their  Divine  Knowledge  and 
Power,  became  subject  to  Laws  of  force,  and  were  then 
unable  to  avert  or  foresee  the  catastrophe  that  probably 
destroyed  the  Continent  they  inhabited. 

This  cataclysm  did  not  destroy  all  the  Initiates,  but  a 
great  fear  seems  to  have  seized  upon  those  remaining, 
— a  fear  of  communicating  the  former  manifest  Divine 
Knowledge ;  and  instead  of  expressing  their  system  of 
Theosophy  in  plain  language,  they  preferred  to  invent 
Occult  allegories,  mystic  myths,  and  an  Hermetic 
language  to  which  only  the  Hierophants  retained  the 
esoteric  key;  this  however,  in  the  course  of  trans- 
mission was  totally  lost. 

The  mythologic  age  was  succeeded  by  the  mytho- 
graphic.  As  a  spirit  of  allegorizing  seems  to  have 
seized  the  Initiates  of  all  nations  at  one  time,  it  may 


48  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

well  be  considered  to  be  the  period  following  the  Golden 
Age.  Whatever  then  remained  of  Theosophy  was 
veiled  under  Hermetic  expressions,  and  by  force  of 
habit  the  Hermetic  language  and  the  language  of 
allegory  seemed  to  be  considered  essential  for  the  trans- 
mission of  Theosophic  teachings;  and,  as  the  Soul  in  her 
supreme  delicacy  delights  in  veiling  aud  concealing 
herself  from  prying  curiosity,  even  Self-Initiated  Occult 
Poets  and  Seers  were  involitionally  drawn  into  an  Occult 
mode  of  expression,  and  used  Hermetic  language  by  pre- 
ference. 

It  is  generally  admitted  that  an  esoteric  doctrine 
existed  in  ancient  times.  This  esoteric  doctrine  was 
Theosophy,  the  individual  knowledge  of  God  and  of  the 
Occult  laws  of  Nature. 

As  an  Hermetic  language  or  Occult  method  of  com- 
munication had  to  be  used  to  conceal  the  Divine 
Science  from  the  profane,  we  can  only  deduce  what 
symbols  could  have  served  as  analogies.  Spiritual  sym- 
bols could  not  stand  for  Spiritual  knowledge,  for  these 
would  have  betrayed  themselves ;  but  material  symbols 
afforded  a  ready  analogy.  Laws  of  matter  are  laws  of 
Absolute  Thought.  They  are  the  Potential  mathe- 
matics of  the  Absolute.  The  Supreme  Eeason,  and  the 
principal  of  individual  Reason  are  identical.  Man  is 
the  Microcosm,  God  the  Macrocosm.  Therefore  matter, 
which  is  one  of  the  reflections  of  Deity,  would  serve 
as  a  true  symbolical  illustration  of  the  mysteries 
of  the  Divine  Spirit,  the  direct  ray  of  the  Eternal 
All-illuminating  Sun  of  the  Divine  Being. 


MYSTIC   MYTHS.  49 

The  ancient  Theosophists,  Philosopher?,  Prophets, 
Seers,  Poets,  and  Initiates  in  general  therefore  availed 
themselves  by  preference  of  objects  of  the  material  and 
sensual  world,  as  physical  symbols  for  psychic  secrets, 
and  they  may  possibly  have  also  used  psychic  illustra- 
tions for  physical  secrets  of  the  Occult. 

The  entire  esoteric  system  of  Antiquity  may  thus 
be  contained  in  the  exoteric  writings  that  have  been 
transmitted  to  us,  and  he  who  shall  apply  the  KEY  of 
Theosophy  to  the  portals  of  Paganism  may  yet  enter 
the  Pagan  Temple  and  find  the  Great  Arcanum — the 
ONE,  enthroned  in  the  Sanctuary  in  solemn  splendour. 

The  great  lost  Secret  that  was  reflected  in  the  Ancient 
Mysteries,  was  the  knowledge  of  God  and  His  relation 
to  Nature  and  Man;  and  the  knowledge  of  Man  and 
his  relation  to  Nature  and  God.  The  ancient  Hiero- 
phants  had  an  Occult  but  Absolute  Science,  wherein 
Self-knowledge,  God- knowledge,  and  Nature-knowledge, 
were  combined  in  an  exact  and  mathematical  system, 
and  of  which  the  Hermetic  and  profane  sciences  that 
have  survived  were  merely  fragments,  and  these  were 
in  turn  used  as  a  vocabulary,  more  as  a  means  to  con- 
ceal than  reveal.  For  whether  the  terms  of  Astrology, 
Alchemy,  Magic,  Mythology,  Natural  Science,  Philo- 
sophy, Ethics,  or  Metaphysics,  were  used,  they  were  only 
employed  esoterically  to  transmit  the  one  great  Secret, 
which  was,  and  is,  the  Great  Arcanum  of  all  ages — the 
Manifestation  of  the  Occult,  and  the  realisation  of  the 
Absolute. 

Nearly  all  Philosophers,  Poets,  and  persons  of  culture 

E 


50  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

among  the  people  of  antiquity  were  initiated  in  lesser 
mysteries,  corresponding  to  our  Spiritualism ;  while 
the  more  advanced  were  acquainted  with  the  greater 
and  higher  mysteries  of  the  Eternal  Soul  Truths  of 
Theosophy. 

The  writings  of  ancient  Initiates  can  only  be 
understood  by  Initiates,  and  we  find  that  many  ancient, 
now  accepted  as  classic  writers,  hint  at  the  Great 
Arcanum  in  obscure  and  mysterious  language. 

The  works  of  the  Mythographers  and  inspired  poets 
are  permeated  with  the  Hermetic  language  of  Ancient 
Mystic  Theosophy. 

Homer,  Hesiod,  Orpheus,  Virgil,  Ovid,  teach  us 
mystic  myths.  Empedocles,  Pythagoras,  Democritos, 
Heraclitos,  Plato,  Xenophon,  Aristotle,  Proclos,  Plotinos, 
and  many  more,  teach  a  veiled  Theosophy.  But  all 
use  a  special  Occult  mode  of  expression,  and  both  Poets 
and  Philosophers  seem  to  have  an  agreed  method  of 
mystic  and  allegorical  Hermeticism  for  those  higher 
truths,  which  were  ever  beyond  the  grasp  of  the  unphilo- 
sophic  and  untrained  minds  of  the  multitude. 

To  give  merely  an  outline  of  the  principal  terms  used 
as  Hermetic  symbols  by  some  philosophical  Poets,  and 
poetical  Philosophers,  would  demand  a  volume,  and, 
in  any  case,  more  space  than  the  limits  of  this  work 
permit,  and  probably  would  require  more  attention 
than  the  reader  would  care  to  devote  to  their  study. 

We  must,  therefore,  content  ourselves  with  stating 
that  the  Theosophist  beholds  an  inner  meaning  in  Epics, 
Myths,  and  Systems  of  Thought,  and  those  vast  mental 


THE   ETERNAL   NOW.  51 

monuments   of  antiquity  are   Occult  works  which   he 
reads  in  a  spirit  totally  different  to  the  exoteric  letter. 

To  the  Theosophist  the  Occult  Truth  doffs  her  veil, 
and  he  beholds  her  Holy  beauty  in  that  intensity  of 
chasteness  that  guides  his  Spirit  to  her  Divine  Manifes- 
tation, wherein  he  must  abide. 

To  interpret  Occult  Soul-Allegories  one  must  strive 
for  the  regenerate  Soul-Spirit,  which  is  the  Divine 
Spirit.  When  in  that  Spirit  these  Epics  are  not  tales 
of  the  hoary  past,  nor  are  the  Apocalypses  visions 
of  a  remote  future.  They  ever  treat  of  the  eternal 
NOW,  the  ever-abiding  and  everlasting  Presence,  that 
has  been  called  by  a  multitude  of  names,  and  yet  Itself 
remains  unnamed  and  Ineffable. 

The  vast  stores  of  mystic  Allegories  of  the  Mythc- 
loo-ists  are  creations  and  relations  of  the  Soul.  The 
Soul  creates,  the  Soul  relates,  the  Soul  mirrors  herself 
to  herself. 

Saint  Paul  tells  us  in  plain  words  that  the  history  of 
Abraham,  Sarah,  and  Hagar,  is  an  Allegory;  in  like 
manner  is  the  Kamayana  a  poem  of  Occult  philo- 
sophy, and  every  Adept  is  the  "great  hero"  of  the 
Mahabarat.  The  "  Iliad  "  and  "  Odyssey,"  as  well  as 
the  Bible,  mystically  illustrate  occurrences  that  every 
human  Soul  at  one  time  passes  through.  Sacred  History 
is  merely  a  veil  for  Allegory,  and  Allegory  another  veil 
for  true  Theosophy — the  Occult  Knowledge  of  God. 
Whenever  Allegory  historizes,  or  history  allegorizes, 
it  is  but  to  conceal  the  Great  Arcanum  of  the  Occult 
from   the    gaze    of   the    profane,    vulgar,    vicious,  and 


52  UKIVEESAL  THEOSOPHY. 

depraved.  But  when  a  man  begins  to  think,  he  ceases 
to  be  profane,  when  he  begins  earnestly  to  study,  he 
ceases  to  be  vulgar,  when  he  begins  to  discipline  his 
mind,  he  ceases  from  being  vicious,  and  when  he  begins 
to  act  rightfully,  he  ceases  to  be  depraved. 

Thus  these  Divine  Allegories  had  the  fourfold  inten- 
tion of  refining  the  four  Kabbalistic  Elements  of  Man's 
Mind — the  Senses,  the  Eeason,  the  Imagination,  and  the 
Understanding ;  and  to  aid  him  by  a  concentration  of 
thought  to  re-create,  and  re-generate  his  Spiritual  Being. 

The  Soul  is  at  once  the  subject,  actor,  plot,  aim,  and 
object  in  these  allegories,  and  to  understand  these  Occult 
Teachers,  the  disciple  should  be  on  the  same  spiritual 
plane,  and  thus  he  will  understand  the  hints,  and  seeing 
the  meaning,  will  smile,  and  feel  the  friendly  grasp  of 
the  Brother-Initiate  who  wrote  for  his  guidance. 

For  the  Kabbalists  and  Hermetists  have  a  most 
peculiar  humour,  which  no  one  who  is  not  in  the  same 
way  of  thinking  can  appreciate.  They  have  solemn 
jokes,  serious  puns,  cool  contradictions,  and  grave  mis- 
statements, which  when  strictly  considered  are  no  mis- 
statements, but  only  misapprehensions  for  those  who  are 
on  the  lower  plane.  Deliberate  mystifications  stand  at 
times  side  by  side  with  the  most  outspoken,  honest,  and 
Absolute  Truths.  It  is,  therefore,  only  natural  that  the 
superficially  learned  have  given  up  all  attempts  to  in- 
terpret Hermetic  writings,  all  of  which  demand,  if  they 
are  to  be  rightly  understood,  more  or  less  of  the  spirit 
of  illumination. 

However  indispensable  in  the  past,  when  it  was  neces- 


THE  SECRET   OF   MYTHOLOGY.  53 

sary  to  reserve  sacred  knowledge  for  the  initiated,  Alle- 
gory is  a  mode  of  teaching  quite  unsuitable  to  the  present 
unspiritual  age,  and  must  be  supplanted  by  an  exact  and 
plainly  worded  science.  The  Spiritual  Science  of  the 
future  will  be  no  more  "  Occult,"  but  manifest,  the  time 
having  come  for  making  known  the  unknown. 

Should  it  be  objected  that  fables  and  myths  are 
mere  inventions  of  the  imagination,  we  would  point  out 
that,  even  if  we  grant  this,  they  do  not  therefore  cease 
to  be  Divine.  The  imagination  is  the  highest  gift  of 
God.  It  is  the  link  connecting  the  human  Soul  with 
the  Divine  Being ;  and  with  beings  as  perfect  and  pure 
as  the  ancient  Illuminati,  therefore  the  imagination 
would  communicate  a  pure  stream  of  Divine  truth, 
inculcating  eternal,  psychic  facts,  demanding  only  to 
be  rightly  understood  in  order  to  be  prized  and  valued. 

To  conceal  the  Great  Arcanum  from  the  profane, 
the  ancient  Theosophists  invented  systems  of  Her- 
metic language  which,  indeed,  proved  effectual.  This 
Kabbalistic  vocabulary  passed  out  of  the  Sanctuary, 
among  those  who  knew  nothing  of  the  Occult  meaning ; 
hence  Principles  and  Ideas  were  ignored,  and  only 
names  and  dead  things  considered.  It  is  thus  that  the 
Hermetic  language  has  led  the  whole  world  astray. 

Mankind  of  the  present  age  being  endowed  with  the 
same  faculties  that  the  races  of  the  mythologic  age  were 
gifted  with,  the  illustrations  from  Myths  and  Allegories 
will  be  found  as  applicable  to  the  psychic  state  of  the 
present  generations,  as  to  those  of  the  past. 

Myths  were,  by  the  Hierophants  of  Hermetic  Theo- 


54  "UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

sophy,  intended  to  describe,  under  the  guise  of  various 
Allegories  and  symbols,  the  faculties  and  powers  of  the 
Soul,  her  history,  and  course  of  Ee-birth  into  the  Divine 
State. 

The  Secret  of  Mythology  is  not  astronomical  or  astro- 
logical, but  psychic  and  Theosophic.  Myths  may  borrow 
physical  symbols  as  illustrations  for  psychic  Arcana,  but 
they  do  not  ultimately  refer  merely  to  the  course  of 
planets  and  stars,  to  tell  us  that  it  is  cold  in  winter 
and  warm  in  summer;  for  why  should  the  ancient 
Hierarchs  have  taken  such  a  roundabout  way  to  tell  us 
simple  facts,  the  knowledge  of  which  would  neither 
endanger  them  nor  others  ? 

But  there  is  a  Knowledge  which  is  Power — this  is 
Soul-Knowledge,  Divine  Knowledge,  Theosophy — our 
Divine  Magia.  Possessed  of  the  secrets  of  that  Divine 
Spiritual  Science  and  becoming  even  as  God,  acts  of 
Power  can  be  performed ;  and  were  that  knowledge  to 
become  common,  incalculable  evil  might  result,  as  wit- 
ness the  knowledge  of  Dynamite  on  the  material  plane. 
The  knowledge  must,  therefore,  be  only  imparted  to 
those  who  are  worthy.  The  sword  of  Power  should  not 
be  given  to  him  who  would  use  it  as  an  assassin's  dagger. 

The  following  is  not  a  bad  definition  of  what  our 
Science  can  do  when  manifested  in  one  who  has  passed 
through  all  the  grades  of  initiation  and  who  has  become 
what  is  commonly  called  an  Adept. 

"  True   Science,  according-  to  Buddha   as  well   as  the  best  of 

Hindu  sages,  exercises  dominion  over  the  forces  of  nature  and  all 

(  created  beings ;  it  is  endowed  with  the  powers  of   miracle  and 

enchantment ;  for  it  enables  its  possessor  to  assume  any  form,  to 


THE  KNOWLEDGE  WHICH   IS   POWER.  55 

see  and  hear  at  any  distance,  to  fix  the  length  of  his  life  and  to 
know  the  thoughts  of  others,  to  make  himself  visible  and  invisible 
at  will,  to  fly  through  the  air,  to  walk  on  water  as  others  walk  on 
dry  laud,  to  tell  how  many  drops  and  how  many  living  creatures 
there  are  in  the  ocean,  to  dry  up  the  sea,  to  grasp  the  sun  and  moon, 
to  hide  the  earth  with  the  tip  of  his  finger,  and  to  shake  to  their 
foundations  earth  and  heaven ;  nay  more,  it  is  Science  alone  which 
leads  to  true  and  imperishable  happiness,  since  it  is  the  last  stage 
before  the  soul  enters  into  the  bliss  and  salvation  of  the  Nirvana." 
— Kalisch,  "Path  and  Goal." 

The  following  is  another  definition  of  the  capacities 
of  a  Spiritual  Adept : — 

"  The  Yogi  may  not  see  or  hear  what  passes  around, — he  may 
be  insensible  to  external  impressions,  but  he  has  intuition  of  things 
which  his  neighbours  cannot  see  or  hear.  He  becomes  so  buoyant, 
or  rather  so  sublimated  by  his  Yoga,  that  gravitation,  or  as 
Bhaskaracaiy^a  calls  it,  the  attractive  power  of  the  earth,  has  no 
influence  on  him.  He  can  walk  and  ascend  in  the  sky,  as  if  he 
were  suspended  under  a  balloon.  He  can  by  his  intuitive  process 
inform  himself  of  the  mysteries  of  astronomy  and  anatomy,  of  all 
things  in  fact  that  may  be  found  in  any  of  the  different  worlds. 
He  may  call  to  recollection  the  events  of  a  previous  life.  He 
may  understand  the  language  of  the  brute  creation.  He  may 
obtain  an  insight  into  the  past  and  future.  He  may  discern  the 
thoughts  of  others.  He  may  himself  vanish  at  pleasure,  and,  if 
he  choose  to  do  so,  enter  into  his  neighbour's  body  and  take  posses- 
sion of  his  living  skin." — Banerjea,  "  Dialogues." 

If  the  reader  will  attempt  to  imagine  what  the 
disastrous  consequences  would  be  should  a  vicious  being 
become  possessed  of  this  power,  he  may  well  compre- 
hend with  what  anxious  care  the  ancient  Hierarchs  kept 
this  knowledge, — which,  to  some  favoured  individuals,  is 
synonymous  with  Spiritual  Power — the  Great  Arcanum 
of  their  Hermetic  Theosophy.  There  was  ample  reason 
for  concealment  where  there  ivas  something  to  conceal ; 


56  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

but  it  would  have  been  absurd  to  invent  elaborate 
systems  merely  for  astronomical  observations,  the  know- 
ledge of  which  could,  even  in  the  most  mischievous 
hands,  injure  no  one.  If  there  was,  moreover,  a  tradi- 
tion of  the  destruction  of  former  highly  developed  races, 
brought  about  principally  by  their  abuses  of  magic 
power,  it  would  all  the  more  serve  to  foster  the  spirit 
of  mystery  which,  under  such  circumstances,  may  have 
had  a  raison  d'etre. 

We  affirm,  therefore,  that  the  Secret  of  Mythology 
is  to  be  found  in  Theosophy  only,  and  that  physical, 
astronomical  symbols,  were  invented  but  to  foreshadow 
and  conceal  psychic  and  magical  mysteries. 

The  Mythos  does  not  refer  merely  to  the  course  of 
the  sun  through  the  signs  of  the  Zodiac ;  for  these 
material  objects,  however  vast,  are  objects  of  time,  not 
of  eternity.  The  only  Eternal  thing  is  the  Soul.  Why 
should  the  ancients  limit  their  thoughts  to  matter 
and  its  phenomena,  when  at  Death  the  whole  material 
universe  disappears  and  becomes  as  invisible  as  the 
spirit-world  appears  to  be  to  the  incarnate  ?  The  only 
thing  visible  to  the  spirit  is  spirit ;  and  matter  would 
be  all  but  invisible  but  for  the  spirit  embodied  in  it. 

Those  things  which  are  most  material  to  our  physical 
senses  are  least  material  to  those  in  spirit-existence 
who  have  freed  themselves  from  the  trammels  of  sense. 
What  is  matter  to  us  is  nothing  to  them ;  while  spirit, 
which  is  their  matter,  is  as  nothing  to  us ;  and  thus  it 
is  that  we  penetrate  their  spirit  substances  without 
being   conscious    of  it,    while   they   pass   through    our 


NON-EXISTENCE   OF   MATTER.  57 

matter  as  unconscious  of  and  unaffected  by  it  as  if  it 
were  non-existent. 

Man  in  his  perfect,  that  is,  in  his  Eternal  state, 
being  One  with  the  Absolute,  is  a  Being  of  Power. 
This  Power  is  only  in  the  Soul.  The  Soul-Power  is  the 
supreme  Power  in  Nature.  It  extends  over  the  worlds 
of  Soul,  Spirit,  and  Matter.  These  are  the  Three 
Eealms  of  Science  of  one  who  aspires  to  be  a  Trisme- 
gistus  or  Divine  Adept,  and  to  the  embodied  this 
Supreme  Glory  is  attainable  by  a  Knowledge  of  their 
own  Soul,  for  that  is  the  Knowledge  which  is  Power. 

The  Soul- World  radiates  and  illuminates  its  Power 
through  all  things  and  beings.  Things  are  only  what 
the  Soul  makes  of  them ;  and  beings  are  what  they 
have  made  of  themselves,  by  virtue  of  that  very  Soul 
that  is  within  them,  which  they  can  exalt  to  re-ascend 
to  its  Divine  source,  or  degrade  to  demonic  depravity. 

Mythology,  esoterically  interpreted,  intends  to  cha- 
racterize the  almost  infinite  variety  of  the  mani- 
festations of  Soul.  Taking  Hellenic  Myths  as  an 
example,  we  find  the  most  ancient  God  is  Eros — Love. 
This  Love  is  typified  by  a  child,  and  Plato  says,  "A 
better  guide  than  love  cannot  be  found."  Volumes 
could  be  written  on  the  Spiritual  mysteries  embodied 
in  this  Mythos  of  Eros — the  re-born  Soul — the  subject 
can  never  be  exhausted,  for  it  is  Eternal  and  Infinite. 

Phoebus-Apollo,  the  Soul  resplendent  as  understand- 
ing and  science;  Minerva,  the  Soul  in  its  unerring 
wisdom ;  Diana,  the  Soul  as  intuition  and  chaste 
imagination;  Mars,  the  Soul  as  the  striving  principle; 


5S  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Mercury,  or  Hermes,  the  Soul  as  mind,  intellect, 
thought;  Jove  and  Juno,  Spirit  and  Soul,  united  in 
their  sovereign  unity ;  Venus,  the  Soul  as  Love  and 
Beauty;  and  Saturn,  that  slow,  lame,  heavy  judgment, 
the  faculty  acquired  by  many  gradual  steps  of  ex- 
perience. 

This  is  not  intended  to  be  a  guide  through  the 
Pagan  Pantheon,  but  merely  an  attempt  to  unlock  the 
doors  of  the  Sanctiiary,  that  very  Sanctuary  of  which 
we  feel  assured  that  THEOSOPHIA,  the  Divine  Science, 
was  there  enshrined,  as  a  perusal  of  "  Proclos's  Theology 
of  Plato  "  will  convince. 

The  course  of  the  sun  through  the  signs  of  the 
Zodiac  only  serves  as  a  symbol  to  the  Hermetic  Theo- 
sophists,  to  illustrate  the  course  of  the  Soul  to  Divine 
Re-birth.  The  manifestation  of  the  Divine  Spirit, 
opposed  by  the  Demon,  or  Self- Willed  depravity  of 
individuated  beings,  causes  the  spiritual  whirlpools  or 
vortices  we  call  passions.  The  unregenerate  mind 
of  man  seems  to  be  entirely  ruled  by  a  certain  number 
of  passions.  Whether  these  are  determined  by  his 
descent  into  this  particular  system  of  the  universe,  and 
correspond  to  the  number  of  planets,  we  will  not 
attempt  to  say. 

Astrological  configurations  of  the  natal  hour  hold 
apparently  omnipotent  sway  over  those  who  are  enslaved 
in  the  merely  sensual  life.  Up  to  spiritual  Re-birth 
man  is  ruled  by  Fate,  but  thereafter  by  Grace  alone. 

The  vortices  wherein  the  human  mind  manifests  itself 
were  fitly  symbolised  by  the  planets  of  the  solar  system. 


THE  KULE   OF   THE   GODS.  59 

The  orbs  of  Heaven  and  the  mind  of  man  are  by  more 
than  one  law  united,  and  can  become  fit  illustrative 
symbols  for  each  other.  Astrology  and  Psychology,  like 
time  and  eternity,  are  connected  in  us. 

The  many  names  invented  to  express  the  manifesta- 
tions of  Soul- Power  show  the  superiority  of  the  Her- 
metists  over  other  Theosophists  in  that  respect.  While 
the  Hermetic  system  was  a  science  of  the  Absolute,  the 
systems  of  Theology  officially  promulgated  were  dog- 
matic assertions  based  on  ignorance. 

The  Eule  of  the  Gods  or  Divine  Adepts,  the  Grolden 
or  Edenic  age  has  left  traces  of  reality  sufficiently 
substantial  to  remove  it  from  the  range  of  fable  to 
the  record  of  history. 

The  so-called  C}rclopean  remains  were  no  more  con- 
structed by  uncultivated  races  than  they  were  erected 
by  the  Djinns  of  Arabian  fable. 

Mythological  personages,  having  historical  prototypes 
that  were  adorned  for  the  purpose  of  serving  as  illustra- 
tions to  Occult  Allegories,  may  have  borne  totally 
different  individual  characters  from  the  various  alle- 
gorical attributes  and  national  idiosyncrasies,  whereby 
hierarchic  Hermeticism  concealed  more  than  revealed 
the  Occult  ideal  by  an  exoteric  idol. 

Hercules  may  have  been  a  mild,  inoffensive  indi- 
vidual, and  his  Twelve  Labours  may  be  interpreted  as 
accomplished  in  the  course  of  Ke-birth.  His  name, 
Hera-cleos,  means  Earth-cultivator,  and  his  labours 
indicate  that  this  cultivation  was  of  a  Mystic  and 
invisible  earth,  the  sensual  world  within,  not  without. 


60  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

We  know  so  little  even  of  historical  characters  that 
it  is  not  surprising  if  individuals  who  were  systemati- 
cally veiled  in  Mystic  clouds  should  gradually  be  lost 
to  sight  and  only  distorted  forms  appear  in  their  places. 

In  many  instances  Mystic  Allegories  are  strongly 
marked  by  the  locality  where  they  were  invented,  show- 
ing how  the  inventors  borrowed  illustrative  and  familiar 
symbols.  Many  of  these  friendly  hints  and  glances  are 
lost  to  us,  and  although  the  style  often  serves  to  indi- 
cate the  source  of  particular  myths,  it  at  times  renders 
the  myths  themselves  partly  incomprehensible  and 
causes  them  to  lose  their  greatest  beauty  to  those  who 
are  not  intimate  with  the  objects  that  were  most  familiar 
to  the  Mythologist  of  the  past. 

The  difference  between  a  Myth  and  an  Allegory  is 
this : — The  Mythologist  allegorizes  and  gives  certain 
names  to  his  characters,  the  Allegorist  mythologizes 
upon  characters  to  whom  he  applies  no  special  name. 
Jesus  gave  no  names  to  the  Characters  of  his  sym- 
bolical Allegories,  which  being  devoid  of  the  obstrusive 
personality  of  enacting  characters,  were  never  con- 
sidered as  anything  else  than  anecdotic  inventions, 
such  Meshallim  as  are  customary  among  the  Jews. 
Different  was  it  with  the  Myths  invented  by  the 
more  Ancient  Hierophants,  the  Hermesians,  Magi, 
Brahmins,  Druids,  or  by  originators  of  ancient  reli- 
gious systems,  as  Moses,  Maim,  Zarathustra. 

Thus  Moses  and  his  followers,  going  upon  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  Hermetic  system  of  Egypt,  until  the 
Prophets  became  acquainted  with  the  teaching  of  the 


MYTHS  AND  ALLEGORIES.  61 

Magi,  invented  a  Mythos,  that  has  been  preserved  in 
our  Bible,  which  is  a  Mystic  Drama  representing  the 
career  of  the  Spirit  and  the  development  of  the  Soul 
through  the  different  male  characters  successively  pre- 
sented, the  females  representing  the  Soul,  or  that  par- 
ticular affection  or  Will  to  which  these  are  successively 
united.  Each  of  the  characters  figures  one  stage 
or  form  of  the  inward  life,  for  Soul  and  Spirit  though 
ever  the  same,  take  fresh  form  at  different  stages, 
as  the  self-same  individual  is  different  in  outward 
appearance  at  different  stages  of  his  growth.  The 
purport  of  this  Mystic  Drama  is  to  show  what  Adam 
is,  and  what  can  spring  out  of  him  of  good,  bad,  and 
desperately  wicked,  through  Eve  or  the  human  earthly 
Soul ;  or  in  other  words,  Adam  and  his  seed,  the  fruit 
of  animal  and  human  nature,  until  finally  perfected  in 
the  Mystery  of  the  Holy  Incarnation  through  the  Seed 
of  the  WOMAN  (Mary,  or  the  Divinely  conceptive 
Soul),  all  which  will  be  found  most  elaborately  set 
forth  by  Mr.  Andrew  Jukes  in  his  remarkable  work, 
"TYPES  OF  GENESIS,"  which  he  has  founded  on 
the  writings  of  the  early  Christian  Fathers  of  the 
Church,  who  most  unequivocally  declare  in  their  works 
that  this  is  the  true  meaning  of  the  sacred  story,  or  his- 
tory, but  it  is  the  history  of  the  Spiritual  progress  of  man 
as  an  individual,  and  not  the  material  history  of  the  race. 
The  difference  between  Myths  and  Allegories  consists 
thus  only  in  the  methods  of  their  invention.  Both  are 
one  in  purport,  and  were  invented  to  teach  Mystic 
Truths  illustrating  and  inculcating  the  process  through 


62  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

which  the  Soul  has  to  pass  anterior  to  her  Divine  Re- 
generation or  Re-birth.  These  truths  could  not  be 
commonly  and  indiscriminately  imparted,  as  pearls 
should  not  be  thrown  before  swine,  or  that  which 
is  Holy  given  unto  dogs.  In  the  course  of  time 
the  mythic  names  themselves  became  barriers  in  the 
way  to  the  Mystic  Truths  they  were  intended  to 
point  out,  and  where  a  Hierophant  gave  no  names 
in  his  Allegories,  his  own  name  and  character  became 
the  object  of  erroneous  adoration,  in  preference  to 
God,  as  is  notably  illustrated  by  those  Divine  teachers 
Gotama  Buddha,  and  Jesus  Christ.  Mankind  is  too 
little  minded  for  the  great  simplicity  of  the  Divine- 
human  and  human-Divine  Theosophy.  The  grandeur 
of  the  I — Nought,  I — All,  I — God,  can  only  be  appre- 
hended by  one  who  can  be  Nought,  All,  and  God. 


63 


CHAPTER  IV. 

HERMETIC   THEOSOPHY. 

Part  II. 

EGYPTIAN   AND    CHRISTIAN   GNOSTICISM. 

THEOSOPHY  in  Antiquity  was,  as  it  is  now  among 
the  Brahmins,  considered  the  exclusive  privilege 
of  the  Hierarchy,  so  that  others  who  wished  to  attain 
to  a  knowledge  of  the  Occult,  had  to  go  for  initia- 
tion either  to  the  priests,  or  to  initiate  themselves  by  a 
life  of  isolation  and  earnest  spiritual  striving. 

Meanwhile  the  masses  of  mankind  gradually  fell  lower 
and  lower.  While  the  Soul  was  continually  striving  and 
urging  them  on  in  search  of  Her  lost  happiness,  they 
consequently  perpetrated  the  greatest  evils.  Evil  being 
only  ignorantly  misdirected  striving,  and  separation 
from  the  (rood ;  when  man  has  not  God  in  his  Soul,  he 
developes,  or  rather  becomes,  a  demon. 

As  man  is  in  the  body,  so  he  remains  in  the  Spirit. 
When  the  fallen  ones  die  in  their  irrational  and  insane 
condition,  they  find  themselves  bound  to  their  depravi- 
ties. 

These  spirits  are  thus  earth-bound,  and  instead  of 
seeking  to  ascend,  combine  together  and  influence 
sensitives,  to  proclaim  them  as  Gods,  and  to  offer  to 
them  a  culte  of  depravity  as  conditions  of  manifestation. 

Thus  God  and  the  gods  became  as  opposites  in 
ancient  Theology. 

Man,  having  once  given  credence  to  the  false,  became 


64  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

still  more  deluded;  and  Demon- Worship  was  at  one 
time  a  religious  culte  among  nearly  every  nation  on 
earth,  either  as  Polytheism  or  Idolatry. 

Some  writers,  on  what  is  called  the  Science  of 
Keligions,  whose  views  it  is  not  our  intention  to  con- 
trovert, have  invented  an  hypothesis,  intending  to  prove 
that  Animism  gradually  developed  into  Spiritualism 
and  Monotheism.     This  we  cannot  fully  endorse. 

It  is  not  always  the  lower  that  has  developed  the 
higher,  but  the  higher  that,  in  some  instances,  has  be- 
come lowered.  There  is  no  proof  that  the  entire  human 
race  was  at  one  time  in  a  state  of  savagery,  while  on 
the  other  hand  there  are  many  reasons  to  believe  that 
savage  races,  as  races,  are  but  remnants  of  a  degenerated 
and  lost  civilisation. 

With  Idolatry  ranks  worship  of  spirits,  correctly 
speaking  Demonisrn,  be  it  expressed  in  the  cultus 
of  Fetichism,  Polytheism,  Physiolatry,  and  the  magi- 
cal phenomena  that  from  such  cultus  sometimes 
results.     All  these  are  degenerated  Spiritualism. 

Soul-Worship,  Monotheism,  the  Pantheism  of  the 
Initiates,  Theosophy,  and  true  Mysticism,  we  would 
class  with  the  Psychic,  Esoteric,  and  Occult.  False 
Mysticism  is  generally  a  degraded  kind  of  Spiritualism. 
As  the  Divine  decreases,  the  Demonic  increases. 

Idolatry  is  a  luxuriance  of  Theism,  an  irrational 
perversion  of  the  religious  feeling.  In  Hinduism  for 
instance,  where  the  religious  feeling  of  the  lower  castes 
is  left  to  itself  by  hierarchic  contempt,  and  allowed  to 
be  freely  misguided  by  earth-bound  spirits,  a  Polytheistic 


MAN   EVER   THE   SAME.  65 

Spiritualism,  as  elaborate  as  degenerate,  is  the  result. 
Physiolatry  never  existed  among  Initiates,  with  whom 
Material  Symbols  ever  stood  for  Spiritual  Truths. 

Fetichism  we  might  class  as  Spiritualism,  for  the 
very  reason  that  as  some  Savants  of  the  future,  who 
ignore  the  spiritual  part  of  religions,  as  do  modern 
Savants  when  attempting  to  interpret  the  religion  of 
savages,  may,  for  instance,  learnedly  relate  how  the 
sect  of  Modern  Spiritualists  were  Table-Worshippers, 
Fetichists,  whose  Fetich  was  a  table,  around  which  they 
collected,  regarding  it  as  their  God.  Trees,  rocks,  and 
consecrated  spots  may  be  to  savages  what  tables  are 
to  Spiritualists — mere  means  of  spirit-intercourse. 
Those  who  assume  to  interpret  the  religions  of  the 
past,  should  be  aware  that  man  is  ever  the  same,  and 
the  identical  feelings  and  ideas  of  the  past  exist  among 
us  in  the  present,  however  disguised  they  may  be 
under  new  names. 

An  evolution,  or  gradual  perfecting  of  religious 
ideas  can  no  doubt  be  traced,  but  the  theory  of  Evolu- 
tion cannot  well  apply  to  Free-Willed  Beings.  Whether 
the  lower  ever  developes  into  the  higher  we  will  not 
stay  to  question ;  a  Free-Willed  Being  can  progress 
or  retrogress,  evolute  or  involute,  as  he  Wills,  but  the 
Laws  of  Nature  ever  go  in  one  direction. 

All  Creation  obeys  these  Laws  of  Nature;  man  only 
as  a  Free-Willed  Being  has  the  too-often  abused  privi- 
lege of  disobedience.  Though  every  trangression,  be  it 
physical,  spiritual,  or  moral,  must  inevitably  meet  its 
chastisement,  man  only  too  often,  either  knowingly  or 

F 


66  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

unknowingly,   avails   himself    of  his   prerogative,   and 

wars  against  Nature  and  God  to  his  own  retrogression. 

Had  the  path  of  evolution  that  naturalists  claim  to 

have  traced  in  the  organic  world,  been  apparent  in  the 

moral  world,  man    would   now   be  a  God-like   Being, 

having,  by  his   Divine    Union,  an   Absolute   knowlege 

of  Nature ;    whereas,  when   we  attempt   to   trace   the 

wisdom   of    the    Ancients,    we    find    that    they    were 

psychically  more  advanced,  and  developed,  and  nearer 

to  the  spiritual  and  Divine  world  than  man  is  of  the 

present  day.     We  are  therefore  led  to  believe  that  as 

the  human  being  is  perfected,  in  so  far  as  he  reaches 

this  higher  state  of  development,  he  passes  on  to  higher 

states,  thus  making  way  for  succeeding  generations  who 

by  comparison  appear  to  be  both  mentally  and  morally 

degenerate. 

We  cannot  decide  whether  the  ancient  Hierarchs  at 

first  merely  humoured  the  popular  demand  for  gods  that 

could  be  bribed  through  the  intermediary  of  the  priests, 

or  whether  the  priests  themselves  created  such  demand, 

and  compromised  with  the  earth-bound  spirits  for  their 

services.     The  more  scrupulous  among  the  priests  may 

have   stifled   their  conscience  with  the  idea  that  as  a 

Divine    Principle    underlies    all    natural    phenomena, 

Polytheism  and   Idolatry  could  be  no  great  evil,  nor 

so  very  irrational  as  we  now  know  it  to  be. 

"  If  the  Vedic  Polytheism  represents  God  in  Nature,  worshipping 
the  manifestation,"  says  :  J.  F.  Clarke  in  "  A  Comparison  of  All 
Religions,"  "the  Egyptian  Polytheism  represents  God  behind 
Nature,  and  the  Greek  Polytheism  gives  us  God  wholly  detached 
from  Nature,  and  developed  into  human    beings,  with  human. 


MISDIRECTED   RELIGION.  67 

passions,  experiences,  and  enjoyments.  The  Greek  gods  are  men, 
Jail  of  human  life  ;  the  Vedic  gods  are  powers  of  nature ;  the  gods 
of  Egypt  are  abstract  symbols."  * 

"  But  through  all  the  Polytheisms  of  the  earth  there  runs  this 
one  conviction,  that  the  whole  is  filled  with  spiritual  powers.  Be- 
hind all  matter  is  spirit ;  above  all  that  we  see  is  the  unseen  ;  the 
phenomena  which  pass  before  our  eyes  in  Nature  do  not  come 
from  any  iron  fate  or  any  blind  chance,  but  from  intelligence, 
purpose,  a  Will  that  chooses,  a  heart  that  desires,  a  mind  that 
creates.  In  all  Polytheisms  there  is  unity  and  variety ;  in  some 
of  them  the  unity  is  more  pronounced,  in  some  the  variety." 

"  Idolatry,"  continues  the  same  writer,  "  is  Polytheism  pushed 
to  its  extreme  limits.  In  this  degenerate  system,  which  has  so 
widely  prevailed,  the  unity  in  Nature-worship  has  been  wholly 
overcome  by  the  variety.  The  Divine  powers  have  become  de- 
tached from  the  All  of  Things,  and  become  independent  local 
deities,  each  worshipped  in  his  own  house,  and  at  his  own  altar. 
Such  were  Baal,  and  Ashtaroth  in  Syria,  Juggernauth  and  Rudra 
in  India.  Osiris  and  Typhon  in  Egypt,  Artemis  at  Ephesus,  Aphro- 
dite at  Cyprus  and  Corinth.  In  this  form  of  worship,  passions, 
instead  of  being  restrained  are  deified.  Each  man  worships  the 
God  after  his  own  heart,  and  so  justifies  his  own  limitations.  He 
makes  his  gods  not  merely  like  himself,  but  like  his  lower  self,  his 
one-sided  self." 

Idolatry  had  a  spiritual  part,  and  wherever  there  was 
a  place  for  Idolatry,  that  place  became  a  haunt  for 
demons,  who  at  times  would  manifest  themselves  and 
assume  a  specious  appearance,  and  when  they  found 
believers  their  pretensions  increased  until  they  were 
considered  as  the  sole  Gods.  Thus  it  will  be  perceived 
that  even  religious  feelings,  when  not  rightly  directed, 
may  lead  to  Hell  instead  of  to  Heaven. 

It   is   not   quite    known   how   far  we   are   ruled  by 

*  May  not  all  Gods  invented  by  the  ancient  Hierarchs  have  been 
symbols  ? 


68  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

friendly  or  unfriendly  demons,  but  their  power  over  us 
can  be  no  greater  and  no  more  lawful  than  the  power 
assumed  by  man  over  man.  A  compromise  to  pacify 
unjust  beings  who  domineer  without  reason  or  autho- 
rity, however  beneficial  it  may  have  appeared  at  the 
time  to  all  except  the  Eternal  Being,  would,  in  the  end, 
only  show  itself  to  be  an  evil  measure,  equally  destruc- 
tive to  all  connected  with  it. 

We  have  thus  far  undertaken  an  excursus  into  the 
lower  regions  of  the  Spirit-World,  as  the  so-called 
"Grods"  occupy  such  a  formidable  ground  in  Ancient 
Theosophy,  we  think  it  necessary  to  give  some  definition 
of  the  popular  worship.  The  people  did  not  invent  the 
Grods,  or  we  should  have  systems  of  planless  absurdity, 
but  the  Priests,  in  compliance  with  popular  clamour, 
interwove  among  the  mass  of  fables,  here  and  there, 
some  Occult  truths.  It  is  possible  that  all  these  "  Gods" 
were  merely  symbols  of  Divine  or  Demonic  Passions. 

The  Divine  Light  was  not  in  all  equally  darkened. 
Even  in  the  most  depraved  generations  there  still 
remained,  or  became  spontaneously  developed,  Initiates 
and  Adepts,  who  desired  to  impart  to  those  who  were 
worthy,  that  only  Truth  attainable  by  man ;  and,  in  order 
to  prevent  the  total  loss  of  the  Divine  Mysteries,  they 
perpetuated  their  system  by  tradition,  and  continued 
the  invention  of  those  Occult  fables  and  myths  wherein 
they  implanted  the  Secret  of  Theosophy. 

In  those  early  ages  this  may  have  been  a  necessary 
precaution.  The  profane  were  unworthy  because  in- 
capable of  receiving  Divine  Truth,  which  can  only  be 


UNITY  OF   MYSTIC   DOCTRINE.  69 

communicated  to  those  who,  by  a  pure  life,  have  become 
Divinised  or  Re-born ;  and  the  Logos,  the  Great  Arca- 
num, communicates  itself,  and  cannot  be  communicated 
volitionally.     There  is  no  forcing  the  Great  Secret. 

All  Theosophists  have  intuitionally  the  same  Mystic 
Philosophy,  which,  when  their  various  systems  are  com- 
pared, gives  the  most  conclusive  evidence  of  the  truth 
of  Theosophy,  and  of  the  reality  of  the  Great  Arcanum  ; 
as  so  many  exalted  individuals  arriving  independently 
at  the  same  view  must  prove  to  all  rational  minds  that 
the  things  related,  namely,  Theosophy,  and  the  Great 
Arcanum  thereof,  cannot  be  otherwise  but  real  and 
absolute  facts. 

In  the  course  of  time,  as  Hierarchies  were  over- 
thrown, Schools  and  Academies  were  dispersed,  religious 
systems  were  abolished,  the  Key  to  the  Hermetic  terms 
and  Mystic  symbols  of  that  venerable  science  became 
lost,  and  the  Hermetic  wording  is  now  to  the  un- 
initiated but  a  source  of  hopeless  confusion. 

As  the  Heathen  Hierarchies  had  Theosophists  among 
the  priests,  we  encounter  the  strange  paradox  of  Abso- 
lute Truths  and  untruths  being  blended  together,  Soul- 
worship  in  the  Sanctuary  for  the  Initiated,  with  Demon- 
worship  in  the  outer  courts  for  the  uninitiated.  But 
when  even  the  Soul-worship  degenerated,  and  the  Her- 
metic system  was  found  to  be  insufficient  to  manifest 
the  Eternal  Soul-Truths,  then  God  the  Soul  gave  a  fresh 
impulse  to  the  spiritual  life  of  mankind,  by  becoming- 
manifested  to  individual  ascetics  and  self-taught  Initi- 
ates.    Eevelations    are    only    Revelations  to    those    for 


70  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

whom  they  were  revealed ;  but  these  spontaneous  mani- 
festations, emanating  through  solitary  individuals,  and 
coming  with  new  life  and  great  power,  were  generally 
liberal,  and  attempted  to  be  universal.  The  fossilized 
ethnic  systems  that  veiled  themselves  under  Hermetic 
symbols  were,  however,  Theosopbic  as  well,  but  more 
inclined  to  be  national,  tribal,  and  conservative  to  the 
last  degree.  Thus  the  Church  of  Egypt  was  full  a 
thousand  years  decaying.  The  Church  of  India  resisted 
even  a  Buddha,  and  the  Jewish  Church  remained  nearly 
untouched  by  the  efforts  of  Jesus. 

In  the  spiritual  economy  of  the  world,  the  national  and 
the  individual  thus  equiponderate  ;  and  while  the  spiri- 
tual democrats  made  the  esoteric  exoteric,  the  spiritual 
aristocrats  made  even  the  exoteric  esoteric. 

These  two  inclinations  are  endemic  to  humanity ;  and 
while  some  would  draw  all  up  into  Heaven,  others  would 
exclude  all  but  the  select  few  who  guess  their  riddles, 
and  to  them  only  would  they  measure  out  air,  and 
light,  letting  none  have  a  fraction  more  than  they 
believe  he  merits.  It  is  equally  as  great  an  error  to 
initiate  the  unprepared,  as  to  leave  the  people  totally 
without  a  guide.  It  is  almost  better  to  throw  open  the 
doors  of  The  Temple  to  all,  than  to  close  them  to  all  in 
such  a  manner  that  none  can  have  access  to  the  Sanctu- 
ary. The  more  the  Soul  is  tyranically  forced  down,  the 
more  She  will  rebel,  and  the  more  a  people  are  de- 
graded, the  more  the  degradation  will  rebound  on  the 
degraders. 

In  religion  there  is  apparently  a  struggle  between  the 


THE   OCCULT    CHURCH.  71 

esoteric  knowledge  of  the  few,  and  the  exoteric  ignor- 
ance of  the  many.  As  ignorance  is  ever  the  enemy  of 
science,  the  teachers  who  know  are  often  persecuted  by 
those  who  pretend  to  know.  The  true  Church  had  at 
times  to  remain  Occult,  while  an  official  church  was 
dominant,  and  illumination  was  eclipsed  by  dogma. 
The  exoterists  were  not  always  at  the  same  time  the 
esoterists,  although  this  was  the  case  in  some  Hierarch- 
ies. 

The  war  between  the  Occult  and  the  official  Church 
became  at  times  in  the  West  bitter  and  uncompromis- 
ing, and  neither  would  grant  the  other  a  right  to  exist. 
But  while  the  exoterists,  when  in  power,  had  their 
opponents  destroyed,  the  esoterists  have  shown  them- 
selves more  merciful,  as  they  have  desired  but  the 
enlightenment  of  their  enemies. 

It  will  be  seen  that  supposed  dead  and  long-for- 
gotten tendencies  and  ideals  in  the  human  mind,  con- 
tinue to  exist,  and  are,  although  unrecognised,  still 
among  us.  The  spirit  of  Hierarchic  Obscurantism,  far 
from  being  annihilated  by  the  Christ,  availed  itself  of 
that  symbol  and  acquired  a  new  career  of  life  and 
power.  Hermeticism,  which  many  may  have  supposed 
to  have  died  and  perished  in  Egypt,  continues  in 
Christian  Exoterism. 

If  we  are  not  told  to  believe  the  fable  of  Osiris,  we 
are  commanded  to  revere  equally  fabulous  Biblical 
narratives  as  historical  and  incontrovertible  facts, 
which  we  have  just  seen  are  historical  only  as  regards 
the  inner  and   spiritual  life   of  man.     The  science  of 


72  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Biblical  exegesis  not  only  denies  the  truth  of  the 
Bible  as  History,  but  prepares  the  way  for  the  refor- 
mation of  the  Hierarchy,  who  by  a  combination  and 
renewal  of  the  heterogenous  religious  elements  of 
India,  Persia,  Judea,  Hellas,  Eome,  and  Egypt,  pro- 
duced what  has  for  nearly  twenty  centuries  been  known 
as  the  Christian  Religion. 

The  most  ancient  book  of  Theosophic  teachings, 
"  The  Book  of  the  Dead,"  which,  even  by  its  title,  is 
indicative  of  its  Mystic  contents,  forms  a  complete 
course  of  initiation  for  Spiritual  Adeptship. 

"  The  Book  of  the  Dead  "  is  not  of  those  who  died 
physically,  but  who  have  passed  through  the  mystery 
of  the  Spiritual  Death,  the  crossing  of  the  Mystic 
River,  without  which  there  is  no  arrival  at  the  other 
shore.  This  miraculously  preserved  Mystic  volume  was 
consigned  as  a  last  gift  by  the  ancient  Hermetic  Hier- 
archy to  every  initiated  Egyptian,  to  guide  him,  after 
the  death  by  decay,  through  the  realms  of  spirit-dark- 
ness, wherein  the  uninitiated  are  lost.  It  was  given 
with  the  loving  intention  that  if  the  physically  de- 
ceased had  not  completed  his  initiation  in  this  world, 
he  might,  by  aid  of  that  book,  which  was  for  many 
ages  considered  as  the  ne  plus  ultra  of  Spiritual 
Science,  complete  his  initiation  and  arrive  at  Perfec- 
tion, the  Supreme  Good,  by  the  Path  of  the  Just. 

The  to  us  unfamiliar  Egyptian  symbolism  of  those 
pre-historic  Gnostics — or  men  who  knew  the  Absolute — 
may  be  difficult  to  interpret  at  present  after  that 
Hermetic  system  has  been  dead  for  nigh  two  millen- 


THE    BOOK    OF    THE    DEAD.  73 

niums,  and  has  been  re-discovered  in  its  stupendous 
ruins  only  by  a  series  of  providential  miracles.  The 
phraseology  may  be  as  incomprehensible  to  us  as  that 
of  the  Christian  Theosophists  may  appear  strange  to 
the  Theosophists  of  the  remote  future,  but  those  of  the 
coming  millenniums,  as  those  of  the  past  and  the 
present  ages,  however  dissimilar  their  language  may  be, 
they  can  but  radiate  the  one  Eternal  Truth,  the 
Truth  of  the  Absolute,  the  Absolute  Truth. 

"The  Book  of  the  Dead"  is  a  volume  embodying 
and  indicating  the  whole  course  of  the  Spiritual  Re- 
birth, but  hermetically  sealed  in  every  conceivable 
manner  from  the  gaze  of  the  profane,  by  mystic 
writings,  teachings,  allegories,  and  myths.  All  its 
physical  symbols  must  be  psychically  interpreted. 
Divided  according  to  Birch's  translation  into  sixteen 
books,  and  in  the  version  of  Pierret  into  one  hundred 
and  sixty  five  chapters,  each  of  those  headings,  be  they 
of  Book  or  chapter,  are  so  strikingly  esoteric  that  we  are 
surprised  to  find  ourself  the  first  Theosophic  interpreter 
of  a  volume  which,  however  dumb  it  may  be  to  the 
uninitiated,  seems  to  cry  aloud  to  be  rightly  understood, 
by  those  who  know. 

Taking  the  "  Ritual "  according  to  Dr.  Birch's  divi- 
sion, the  sixteen  books  are  arranged  in  the  following 
mystically  and  suggestive  manner.  The  first  book, 
entitled  "The  Manifestation  to  Light,"  commencing 
with  "Sayings  of  Thot"— the  Soul  speaking  in  the 
name  of  the  Father — Osiris  ennunciates  the  prelimi- 
nary   initiation,  which,    on    account   of    its    Hermetic 


74  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

language,  would  be  nearly  incomprehensible  verbiage 
without  the  spiritual  key.  The  "  deceased  "  is  hence- 
forth called  the  "  Osiris,"  and  thus  identified  with  the 
Divinity.  Succeeding  books  then  treat  of  the  "  Egyp- 
tian Creed,"  the  "  Ee-formation  of  the  Mystic  Dead," 
the  "  Keeping  of  the  Body,"  and  "  Protection  in  Hell," 
"Celestial  Food,"  "The  Changes,"  "The  Keeping  of 
the  Soul,"  "The  going  in  and  out  of  Hell,"  "The 
Hall  of  Dual  Truth,"  "The  Gods  of  the  Orbit," 
"  The  Passage  to  the  Soul-Kingdom,  or  the  Birth- 
day of  Osiris,"  the  "Names  of  the  Gods,"  and  con- 
cluding with  a  description  of  the  Mystic  "  House  of 
Osiris " ;  considered  as  the  most  important  part  of 
the  Occult  volume —  "  none  but  a  King  or  a  Priest  may 
see  it." 

Investigating  the  remnants  of  Egyptian  Theosophy, 
it  can  be  understood  that  the  task  of  the  Christian 
Gnostics,  when  they  appeared  as  Eeformers,  was  to 
simplify  and  make  plain  what  the  Pagans  by  too  great 
care  had  complicated.  It  would  appear  that  the  Chris- 
tian character  had  subsequently  deteriorated  and  become 
impregnated  with  the  spirit  of  awe,  accompanying  the 
obscurantive  efforts  of  spiritual  conservatism. 

In  remote  antiquity  a  pre-historic  system  of  Theo- 
sophy can  be  traced,  entwined  in  mystic  myths;  and 
to  preserve  that  one  great  Absolute  Truth,  the  Great 
Arcanum,  that  ever  esoterically  underlies  all  true  reli- 
gious and  philosophic  systems,  monuments  of  an  Occult 
symbolical  character  were  erected,  as  the  Cave  Temples 
and    the   Pyramids.      Symbolism    was    interwoven   in 


THE  BOOKS   OF   HERMES.  75 

language  and  philosophy,  and  every  art  and  science 
was  made  a  vehicle  for  mystic  ideas.  The  Occult  is  to 
be  everywhere  encountered. 

Egyptian  Theosophy  is  so  profoundly  Hermetic  that 
it  is  hardly  advisable  for  a  tyro  to  commence  his  study 
with  that  system  in  any  other  manner  than  by  a  pre- 
vious perusal  of  the  Book  of  Hermes.  The  Occult 
phraseology  used  in  Egyptian  Hermetic  books  (that  is, 
in  books  relating  to  the  Soul,  and  given  by  the  Divine 
understanding,)  however  easy  and  familiar  it  may  have 
been  to  the  ancient  Egyptians,  is  nearly  incompre- 
hensible to  the  modern  student ;  and  all  that  was  living 
spirit  to  them,  is  nearly  a  dead  letter  to  us,  unless 
interpreted  with  the  Spiritual  Key. 

The  "Kitual,"  or  "Book  of  the  Dead,"  is  not  the 
Divine  Text  book  to  us  that  it  was  to  the  Ancient 
Egyptian  Initiates.  It  is  a  veritably  dead  book  to  us, 
full  of  unfamiliar  names  and  words,  and  the  student 
will  derive  more  instruction  from  a  perusal  of  the 
writings  of  Jamblichos  and  Hermes  Trismegistus. 

The  "  Sai  an  Sinsin"  is  an  Occult  treatise  on  the 
spiritual  resurrection  and  Re-birth  that  has  not  yet  been 
fully  appreciated.  Many  so-called  Magical  texts,  given 
in  the  "Kecords  of  the  Past,"  may  also  have  a  more 
profound  Theosophical  meaning  than  modern  scholars 
can  discern.  There  are  no  doubt  many  Occult  truths 
hidden  in  the  papyri,  but  the  difficulty  to  discern  and 
divest  them  from  the  unfamiliar  names  and  words 
in  which  they  are  encrusted,  discourages  many  readers 
from  making  a  thorough  and  esoteric  study. 


76  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

If  the  Theosophist  is  under  obligations  to  the 
scholar  for  rendering  ancient  texts  available,  he 
must  nevertheless  regret  that  the  latter  is,  in  most 
cases,  not  acquainted  with  that  key  to  ancient  litera- 
ture— Theosophy. 

To  testify  that  Theosophy  was  known  among  the 
Egyptians,  we  will  give  a  short  extract  from  Pleytes' 
translation  of  the  Turin  Papyrus,  which  contaius  several 
so-called  Magical  texts : — 

"  THE     IMPERISHABLE. 

"  The  Self-born,  maker  of  heaven,  earth,  waters,  life,  fire,  gods, 
mankind,  animals,  cattle,  reptiles,  fishes,  kings,  all  gods,  the 
seasons  ;  whose  way  I  know  not,  for  I  know  not  the  path  of  the 
gods.  Behold  Isis,  in  female  form  !  she  embraces  myriad  gods, 
she  judges  myriad  spirits.  She  is  not  unknown  neither  in 
Heaven  nor  on  earth,  even  as  the  sun.  She  makes  the  Divine  on 
earth,  and  names  herself  in  her  heart,  according  to  her  own 
will,  the  venerable  goddess." 

This  will  bear  comparison  with  an  often  quoted  hymn 

of  Eig  Veda,  as  rendered  by  Monier  Williams : — 

"The  embodied  spirit  has  a  thousand  heads. 
A  thousand  eyes,  a  thousand  feet,  around 
On  every  side  enveloping  the  earth, 
Yet  filling  space  no  larger  than  a  span. 
He  is  himself  this  very  universe ; 
He  is  whatever  is,  has  been,  and  shall  be : 
He  is  the  lord  of  immortality." 

The  only  difference  is,  that  the  Egyptians  here 
worshipped  Grod  as  Woman  (Divine  Soul),  under  the 
name  of  Isis,  while  the  Hindus  held  that  the  Divine 
Spirit  is  the  Male  Principle.  The  "  Tao-Te-King,"  how- 
ever, also  teaches  that  the  Female,  or  Occult,  is  the 
Divine  Principle. 


THE   PANTHEISM   OF   INITIATES.  77 

The  Male  Principle  was,  in  its  spiritual  sense,  not 
ignored  in  Egyptian  Theosophy.  In  a  most  ancient 
hymn  to  Osiris,  translated  by  M.  Chabas,  Osiris  is 
addressed  as  the  Supreme  Being : — 

"Lord  of  Eternity,  King  of  gods,  many  are  thjr  names,  thy  holy 
transformations,  thy  mysterious  forms  in  the  temples  ...  he 
abides  in  the  human  mouth,  the  creator  of  the  world.  Atoum, 
who  among  the  gods  fills  the  beings  with  happiness  ;  the  benevo- 
lent spirit  among  spirits. 

"  From  him  the  celestial  abyss  draws  its  waters  ;  from  him 
comes  the  wind  and  air  to  breathe  and  enter  the  nostrils,  for  his 
satisfaction  and  for  the  pleasure  of  his  heart. 

"  He  causes  the  soil  to  bring  forth  delicious  produce.  Heaven 
and  the  stars  obey  him.  He  opens  the  great  portals ;  he  is  the 
master  of  invocations  in  the  southern  heavens,  and  of  adorations 
in  the  northern  heavens.  .  .  He  is  good  in  will  and  word,  he  is 
the  praise  of  the  great  gods  and  the  love  of  the  little  gods." 

The  uniformity  of  the  Divine  teachings  of  true 
Theosophists  can  be  gathered  from  a  comparison 
of  the  above  with  v.  2  &  3,  of  the  sixth  Kathaka 
Upanishad  : — 

"  The  entire  Universe  moves  in  the  Spirit  of  Brahma  ;  it  is  the 
issue  of  that  Spirit.  He  is  the  great  fear,  the  thunderbolt. 
Those  who  know  this  become  immortal. 

"  Through  fear  of  Him  the  fire  burns  ;  through  fear  of  Him 
the  sun  shines  ;  through  fear  of  Him  the  heavens  revolve  ;  through 
fear  of  Him  Death  flies  ; — He  the  Supreme  !  " 

Yes,  this  is  Pantheism  ;  but  Pantheism  as  the  Theo- 
sophist  understands  it,  and  not  as  it  is  misrepresented 
by  the  unenlightened  Theologian,  is  the  Truth,  The 
Only  Truth  ;  while  all  the  stupendous  edifice  of  dogma, 
erected  in  ages  of  spiritual  darkness  is  a  monument 
of  superstition  and  ignorance  that  at  the  first  ray  of 


78  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

spiritual  illumination  must  crumble  into  the  dust.  The 
Truth  itself,  the  Knowledge  of  The  One  and  All  of  the 
Divine  Soul  and  Spirit  within  us  shall  abide  for  ever 
and  aye ! 

There  are  several  hymns  and  litanies  and  other 
Occult  Texts  that  we  could  quote  to  prove  conclusively 
the  existence  of  a  far  more  scientific  and  exact  Theo- 
sophy  among  the  Egyptian  Initiates  than  their  suc- 
cessors possessed,  if  it  were  not  for  the  fact  that  these 
Texts  would  require  as  explanatory  comment  an  eluci- 
dation of  the  whole  system  of  Egyptian  Hermeticism  ; 
so  we  are  content  to  refer  the  student  to  the  second 
volume  of  the  "  Bibliotheque  Orientale,"  published 
by  Maisonneuve ;  also  the  volumes  of  the  "  Eecords  of 
the  Past,"  and  the  "  Book  of  the  Dead,"  translated  by 
Paul  Pierret.* 

The  Egyptian  Hierarchy,  the  most  powerful  of  its 
time,  had  male  and  female  priests,  and  even  kings 
and  queens  among  them.  The  priests  had  a  very  com- 
plicated ritual  and  were  divided  into  numerous  degrees. 
They  wore  a  distinctive  habit,  and  were  obliged  to 
lead  a  life  of  strict  moderation  and  purity.  They 
had  a  speculative  religio-philosophic  system  with  an 
esoteric  doctrine  that  was  reserved  for  Adepts  and 
Initiates  only.  The  "  Book  of  the  Dead,"  which  we 
have  already  cited  as  one  of  their  principal  Hermetic 
text-books,    is    said    to   describe    in    the    most    Mystic 


*  The   "  Litany    of    Ra,"    "  Records  of   the  Past,"  Vol.  viii., 
p.  105,  may  be  consulted  as  a  specimen  of  Eg}  ptian  phraseology. 


THE   SMAEAGDINE   TABLET.  79 

and  Occult  terms  they  could  invent,  the  Divinization 
of  the  individual  Soul.* 

The  theory  generally  accepted  by  superficial  exoter- 
ists,  that  the  books  of  Hermes  were  "  probably  "  written 
by  a  Neo-Platonic  Christian,  has  been  repeated  often 
and  emphatically  enough.  The  modern  Hermetic 
Theosophists  however,  inverting  the  statement,  consider 
the  New  Testament  as  an  Hermetic  book,  and  assert 
that  these  records  were  with  more  probability  compiled 
by  a  conclave  of  Neo-Hermetists.  Who  can  tell  whether 
this  hypothesis  may  not  yet  serve  to  explain  the  true 
origin  of  Christian  Theosophy  ? 

The  celebrated  Smaragdine  Tablet  of  Hermes  is  a 
compendium  of  the  Highest  Art,  and  can  be  interpreted 
equally  in  Alchemy,  Magic,  and  Theosophy  as  an  abso- 
lute guide ;  it  reads  as  follows  : — 

"  It  is  true  without  falsehood,  certain  and  absolute.  That 
which  is  below  is  as  that  which  is  above,  and  that  which  is  above 
is  as  that  which  is  below  to  accomplish  the  miracles  of  one  thing. 

"  And  as  all  things  were  from  one,  by  the  meditation  of  one, 
so  all  born  things  were  from  that  one  thing's  adaptation. 

"  The  father  thereof  is  the  sun,  the  mother  thereof  the  moon, 

*  An  obscure  Arabian  writer,  Ahmed  Ben  Abubekr  Ben  Wah- 
shih,  in  his  book  "Ancient  Alphabets  and  Hieroglyphic  Characters," 
gives  what  purports  to  be  an  account  of  the  Egyptian  Priests,  their 
Classes,  Initiation,  and  Sacrifices ;  but  like  most  Oriental  writers,  he 
seems  not  to  discern  the  truthful  from  the  marvellous.  We  refer 
the  curious  reader  to  the  English  translation  by  Joseph  Hammer 
for  further  information.  The  account  given  in  "  Crata  Kepoa  "  of 
the  Initiation  among  the  Egyptian  Priests,  refers  to  a  period  when 
these  orders  were  already  in  decadence,  and  endeavoured  to  replace 
a  spiritual  experience  by  theatrical  performance.  The  Treatise 
of  Jamblichos  on  the  Mysteries  is  not  exclusively  Egyptian,  but 
is  a  most  valuable  Treatise  on  Spiritual  Science  in  general. 


80  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

the  wind  carried  it  in  its  belly,  its  nurse  is  the  earth.  It  is  the 
father  of  all,  and  of  every  perfection  in  the  whole  world  and  its 
power  is  perfect  if  it  is  changed  into  earth. 

"  Separate  the  earth  from  the  fire,  the  subtle  from  the  gross  very 
carefully  and  with  ingenuity.  It  ascends  from  the  earth  into 
heaven,  then  again  descends  into  the  earth,  and  receives  the  force 
of  above  and  below. 

"  Thus  shalt  thou  have  the  glory  of  the  entire  world.  Then  every 
darkness  shall  fly  before  thee. 

"  This  is  the  force  of  all  forces.  It  overcomes  every  subtle  thing 
and  penetrates  every  solid  thing. 

"  Thus  is  the  world  created. 

"  Thence  were  mirific  adaptations,  the  method  of  which  is  here. 
For  this  reason  am  I  called  Hermes  Trismegistus,  as  I  have  the 
knowledge  of  The  Three  Principles  of  the  Universe. 

"  Thus  is  complete  my  doctrine  of  the  Solar  Work." 

This  compendium  of  the  Hermetic  Art  has  also  been 
called  the  Hermetic  Creed,  and  as  such,  being  compared 
with  the  Church  Creed,  affords  striking  points  of  simili- 
tude, which  can  be  gathered  from  a  perusal  of  those 
"  Creeds  "  in  our  "  Occult  Texts:' 

As  a  further  example  of  the  Theosophic  and  Occult 
Wisdom  of  the  ancient  Egyptians  we  refer  the  reader 
to  the  Table  of  Isis,  or  Bembine  Table,  given  in 
"  Occult  Texts"  and  the  following  short  selection  from 
the  first  book  of  Hermes. 

"HERMES    TO    INTELLIGENCE: 

"  The  opinions  upon  the  universe  and  upon  God  are  numerous 
and  different,  and  I  know  not  the  truth.  Enlighten  me,  0  Master, 
for  I  can  but  believe  thy  revelation." 

"  INTELLIGENCE    TO    HERMES  : 

"  Learn,  my  son,  what  God  and  the  Universe  is.  God,  Eter- 
nity, the  World,  Time,  Generation.  God  causes  Eternity; 
Eternity  causes  the  World,  the  World  causes  Time,  Time  causes 
Generation.     Good,  Beauty,  Happiness,  Wisdom,  are  the  essence 


SELECTIONS    FROM    HERMES.  81 

of  God.  The  essence  of  eternity  is  identity,  that  of  the  world  is 
order,  that  of  time  is  change,  that  of  generation  is  life  and  death. 
The  energies  of  God  are  the  intelligence  and  the  soul,  those  of 
eternity  are  permanence  and  immortality,  those  of  the  world  com- 
position and  decomposition,  those  of  time  are  increase  and  de- 
crease, those  of  generation  quality." 

"  Eternity  is  in  God,  the  world  is  in  eternity,  Time  is  in  the 
world,  generation  is  in  Time.  Eternity  remains  fixed  in  God,  the 
world  moves  in  eternity,  time  is  accomplished  in  the  world, 
generation  is  produced  in  time.  The  power  of  God  is  eternity, 
the  work  of  eternity  is  the  world,  which  has  not  been  created 
at  one  time,  but  which  is  ever  being  created  by  eternity.  Also 
will  it  never  perish,  for  eternity  is  imperishable,  and  nothing  is  lost 
in  the  world  because  the  world  is  enveloped  by  eternity. 

"  HEltMES  : 

"  And  what  is  the  wisdom  of  God  ?  " 

"  INTELLIGENCE  : 

"  Good,  Beauty,  Happpiness,  all  Virtue  and  Eternity.  In  pene- 
trating matter,  eternity  gives  it  immortality  and  permanence,  for 
its  generation  depends  upon  eternity  as  eternity  depends  upon 
God.  Generation  and  Time  are  the  two  different  Natures  in  heaven. 
Immovable  and  incorruptible  in  heaven,  movable  and  perishable 
on  earth.  The  soul  of  eternity  is  God,  the  soul  of  the  world  is 
eternity,  the  soul  of  the  earth  is  heaven.  God  is  in  intelligence, 
intelligence  is  in  the  soul,  the  soul  is  in  matter  and  all  throughout 
eternity.  The  soul  fills  the  universal  body  that  contains  all  bodies  ; 
intelligence  and  God  fill  the  soul.  Fill  the  internal  and  envelope 
the  externals.  The  soul  animates  the  universe  ;  from  without,  that 
great  and  perfect  animal,  the  world  ;  from  within  all  living  beings. 
There  on  high  in  heaven  she  dwells  in  identity ;  here  below  on 
earth  she  transforms  generation.  Eternity  sustains  the  world 
by  necessity,  by  providence,  by  nature  ;  the  explanation  that  can 
be  given  matters  little.  God  acts  in  all  the  universe.  His  energy 
is  a  sovereign  power  to  which  nothing  human  or  Divine  can  be 
compared.  Believe  not,  Hermes,  that  nothing  below  or  above  is 
like  God  ;  thou  wouldst  be  far  from  the  truth.  Nothing  resembles 
to  the  dissimilar,  the  sole,  the  One  ;  and  believe  not  that  another 
shares  his  power.  To  which  other  will  you  attribute  life,  immor- 
tality, changes  ?    What  would  it  do  else  ?     For  God  is  not  idle, 

G 


82  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

otherwise  all  would  be  repose,  for  God  fills  all.  Inertia  exists  not 
in  the  world,  nor  anywhere,  neither  in  the  Creator,  nor  in  the 
creation ;  it  is  an  empty  word.  It  is  necessary  that  all  things 
should  become,  for  ever,  and  everywhere.  For  the  Creator  is  in 
all,  has  no  particular  abode ;  He  creates  not  one  thing  or  another, 
but  all  things  ;  His  creative  power  dwells  not  in  the  beings  He  has 
created,  they  remain  dependent  on  Him. 

"  Were  God  to  separate  Himself  from  His  work,  life  would  be 
withdrawn,  and  all  would  be  at  an  end;  for  He  is  at  once  the 
Creator  and  the  Creation.  All  is  living,  life  is  One,  and  God 
is  Life.  Life  is  the  union  of  Spirit  and  Soul;  death  is  the 
rapture  of  what  was  united.  Man  calls  transformation  Death, 
because  the  material  body  is  decomposed  and  life  ceases  to  be 
visible  or  apparent ;  but,  my  dear  Hermes,  you  may  understand 
that  the  world  itself  is  transformed  continually  ;  each  day  some 
part  of  it  disappears  without  its  ever  decomposing.  These  revo- 
lutions and  these  disappearances  are  the  passions  (or  phases)  of 
the  world.  Revolution  is  a  return,  disappearance  is  a  renewal. 
The  world  contains  every  form,  they  are  not  outside  of  it,  it 
transforms  itself  in  them.  But  if  every  form  is  in  the  world, 
what  must  be  the  form  of  the  Creator  ?  He  cannot  be  without 
form,  and  if  He  had  but  One  form,  He  would  be  inferior  to  the 
world.  What  then  shall  we  say  of  Him  that  we  may  not  say 
anything  imperfect?  For  one  cannot  think  of  God  as  incom- 
plete. He  has  a  form  which  is  His  own,  which  does  not  appear 
to  the  eyes  of  the  body,  but  which  is  in  all  bodies.  Be  not 
astonished  that  He  has  an  incorporeal  form,  so  it  is  with  the  form 
of  a  discourse,  or  the  margin  of  a  manuscript  which  borders  the 
lines,  and  is  even  and  equal. 

"  Reflect  upon  a  word  which  is  bold  and  true  ;  just  as  man 
cannot  five  without  Life,  so  God  cannot  live  without  doing  good. 
The  life  and  the  movement  of  God  is  to  move  and  make  live. 
Some  words  have  a  particular  sense ;  reflect  then  upon  what  I 
tell  you.  All  is  in  God,  not  as  something  placed  in  a  place,  for 
the  place  is  corporeal  and  immovable,  and  things  which  are  in  a 
place  have  no  movement.  God  is  in  the  incorporeal  otherwise 
than  in  appearance.  Understand  that  He  contains  all ;  under- 
stand that  nothing  is  so  rapid,  so  vast,  so  strong  as  the  incorporeal ; 
it  surpasses  everything  in  capacity,  in  celerity,  in  power.  Perceive 
this  in  yourself — order  your  Soul  to  go  to  India,  and  it  is  there 


GOD  OUR   ALL.  83 

quicker  than  your  order ;  order  it  to  go  to  the  Ocean  and  it  is 
there  at  once,  not  by  moving  from  one  place  to  another,  but  on 
the  instant.  Order  it  to  mount  to  Heaven,  and  to  do  so  it  requires 
no  wings ;  nothing  will  stop  it,  neither  fire  nor  sun,  nor  ether,  nor 
whirlwinds,  nor  the  bodies  of  the  stars— it  will  traverse  all,  and 
will  fly  beyond  all  bodies.  Do  you  desire  to  pass  this  limit  and 
to  contemplate  what  is  outside  the  world,  if  there  is  anything,  you 
can  do  so.  See  what  power,  what  quickness  you  possess,  and 
think  you  that  what  you  can  do,  God  cannot  ? 

"  Conceive  of  God  as  having  in  Himself  all  thoughts,  the  whole 
world.  If  you  cannot  equal  and  compare  yourself  to  God,  you 
cannot  comprehend  Him.  Like  comprehends  like.  Enlarge  your- 
self to  an  immense  size,  outpass  all  bodies,  traverse  all  times, 
become  eternity,  and  you  will  conceive  and  understand  God. 
Nothing  can  prevent  you  from  supposing  yourself  immortal  and 
all-knowing— Arts,  Sciences,  the  habits  of  all  animals.  Lift  your- 
self above  all  heights,  descend  below  all  depths,  collect  in  yourself 
every  sensation  of  all  created  things,  of  water,  of  fire,  of  the  dry 
and  the  wet.  Suppose  that  you  are  everywhere  at  the  same  time, 
on  Earth,  in  the  Sea,  in  Heaven  ;  that  you  have  never  been  born, 
that  you  are  still  in  embryo,  that  you  are  young,  old,  dead, 
beyond  death ;  comprehend  all  things  at  once,  time,  place,  things, 
quantities,  qualities,  and  you  will  comprehend  God.  But  if  you 
shut  up  your  Soul  in  the  body,  and  if  you  humble  yourself  and 
say,  '  I  understand  nothing,  I  can  do  nothing ;  I  neither  know 
what  I  am  nor  what  I  shall  be,'  what  are  you  in  common  with 
God?  If  ycu  are  bad  and  attached  to  a  body,  what  can  you 
understand  of  great  and  good  things  ?  Not  to  recognise  the 
Divine  is  the  perfection  of  evil ;  but  to  be  able  to  perceive,  to 
desire  it,  and  to  hope  for  it,  is  the  means  of  reaching  it  by  a 
direct  and  easy  road.  By  following  it  you  will  see  it  everywhere : 
in  the  place  and  the  hour  where  you  least  expect  it,  in  wakeful- 
ness and  in  sleep,  at  sea,  in  travelling,  by  night  and  by  day, 
in  speaking  and  in  keeping  silence.  For  there  is  not  anything  but 
what  is  the  image  of  God. 

"God  is  not  invisible;  there  is  nothing  more  apparent  than 
God.  If  He  has  created  all  things,  it  is  that  we  may  see  Him  in 
and  through  all  things:  this  is  the  good  of  God,  this  is  His 
virtue,  to  appear  in  all,  nothing  is  invisible  even  amongst  the 
incorporeal— Intelligence  is  seen  in  thought,  God  in  creation.   This 


84  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

is  what  I  had  to  reveal  to  you,  Oh,  Trismegistus.     Look  for  it  in 
yourself,  and  you  will  not  lose  your  way." 

The  influence  Hermetic  Theosophy  had  upon  the 
Genesis  of  Christianity,  and  the  fact  that  Christian 
Theosophy  may  be  considered  as  a  renewal  of  Ancient 
Hernieticism,  deserves  to  be  attentively  studied. 

In  the  first  centuries  of  Christianity  the  majority 
of  enlightened  Christians  were  called  Gnostics,  and 
the  probabilities  are  very  great  that  the  system  now 
known  as  the  Christian  Eeligion  may  have  originated 
in  Alexandria  instead  of  Jerusalem. 

Nearly  every  one  of  the  sentences  attributed  to  the 
historical  Jesus  Christ  could  be  traced  to  some  anterior 
source.  The  Gospels  (God-spells),  considered  as  com- 
pilations of  Esoteric  Allegory  and  Theosophic  teachings, 
are  really  books  of  Christian  Hermeticism;  and  their 
authors  as  well  as  their  hero  are,  by  some,  thought  to  be 
mythical  and  allegorical  and  not  historical  personages. 

The  truths  set  forth  in  the  Gospels  as  teachings  of 
the  Christ  are  gnostic  verities,  and  no  matter  by  whom 
they  were  personally  uttered,  they  are  communications 
of  the  Word,  the  Eternal  Christ  Principle. 

It  is  not  improbable  that  the  system  of  Christian 
Theosophy  may  be  a  compilation  of  esoteric  truths 
from  various  sources,  carefully  concocted  for  several 
centuries  by  an  Hermetic  Hierarchy.  Their  propaganda 
gradually  replaced  by  a  more  simple  Myth  and  a  com- 
prehensive moral  and  religious  system  the  effete  Pagan 
Institution  which,  with  all  its  recondite  mysteries,  no 
longer  answered  the  wants  of  the  age. 


CHRISTIANITY  A  RENEWAL  OF  EGYPTIAN  GNOSTICISM.     85 

The  mob  who  were  following  the  culte  of  Osiris 
or  Christ,  never  knew  the  esoteric  reasons  for  the 
religious  revolution.  The  Gnostic  Christian  Theosophy 
of  the  period  anterior  to  the  establishment  of  the 
Christian  State  Keligion,  was  totally  different  to 
the  system  of  dogma  subsequently  engrafted  upon 
it.  As  already  observed,  there  is  no  doubt  that 
Gnosticism  was  early  Christianity.  The  Gospel  of 
John  is  pure  Gnosticism. 

The  Christian  Mythos  constructed  out  of  Egyptian 
and  Hellenic  Hermeticism,  Indian,  Magian,  and 
Hebrew  Theosophy,  far  from  being  the  teaching  of 
a  few  uneducated  Hebrews,  was  in  all  probability 
the  carefully  planned  system  of  a  Neo-Hermetic  secret 
conclave. 

Should  the  hypothesis  of  the  formulation  of  the 
Christian  Doctrine  at  Alexandria  be  right,  the  very 
burning  of  the  Alexandrian  Library  would  go  to  prove 
that  those  certain  Hierarchs  in  the  time  of  Theodosius, 
who  knew  the  real  origin  of  the  Christian  system,  being 
anxious  to  destroy  the  self-evident  sources  of  the  com- 
pilation called  the  New  Testament,  caused  a  tumult, 
during  which  they  burned  their  own  Library  and  threw 
the  blame  upon  the  mob. 

The  establishment  of  the  Christian  Religion,  accom- 
panied by  mental  and  social  transitions,  not  unlike 
those  occurring  in  the  the  present  age,  may  at  times 
have  been  a  matter  of  extreme  difficulty,  on  account 
of  the  resistance  offered  by  the  more  conservative 
Pagan  leaders    who    were  opposed  to   the   new   myth, 


86  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

and  would  persist  in  upholding  Pagan  ideas  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  proposed  Christian  Theosophy,  thus  giving 
occasion  to   violent  intestine  feuds. 

Then,  as  now,  Initiates,  striving  to  guide  the  unthink- 
ing masses  from  the  mazes  of  error  into  the  path  of 
Truth,  were  opposed  by  popular  leaders  and  misleaders. 
Paganism,  with  its  sensualistic  exoterism,  was  not 
content  to  die  and  allow  the  Christian  system  to  live. 
The  Christian  Gnostics  who  claimed  Soul-Science,  were 
opposed  by  Pagan  Gnostics.  The  Pagan  definitions  of 
Gnosis  so  increased,  that  at  last  the  Christian  Gnostics, 
with  St.  Dionysius  at  their  head,  taught  a  positive 
Agnosticism  in  Theosophy,  similar  to  that  inculcated 
by  Gotama  Buddha,  and  other  ancient  Theosophists. 
In  the  last  chapter  of  "The  Mystic  Theology"  St. 
Dionysius  probably  denies  all  the  definitions  of  the 
Pagan  Gnostics.    (See  "  Occult  Texts") 

Christianity,  the  outcome  of  a  Neo-Hermetic  Gnos- 
ticism, and  opposed  to  the  sensualistic  culte  that  for 
ages  disfigured  the  ancient  religions  systems,  had  in 
the  first  centuries  of  its  establishment  a  hard  struggle 
for  existence. 

"  Gnosis,"  Individual  experience,  Knowledge  of  God, 
was  the  Centre,  the  Great  Arcanum,  and  the  Mystic 
Christ.  The  sanctuary  of  Christianity  is  Theosophy. 
Christianity  would  have  perished  as  the  ephemeral 
teachings  of  the  so-called  false  Messiahs  of  the  Jew?, 
had  it  not  been  that  it  was  established  by  those 
ignorantly  deplored  and  abused  Gnostic  Heresies' 
Gnosis,  the   sanctuary   of   Christianity,  being  attained 


GNOSIS   THE   SANCTUARY   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  87 

to  by  some  earnest  striving  souls,  life  and  reality  was 
given  to  the  new  system  by  their  enthusiasm. 

"  The  meaning  of  the  term  Gnosis  or  Knowledge,  as  applied  to 
a  system  of  philosophy,  may  he  illustrated  hy  the  language  of 
Plato  towards  the  end  of  the  fifth  book  of  the  Republic,  in  which 
he  distinguishes  between  knowledge  {gnosis)  and  opinion  (doxa)  as 
being  concerned  respectively  with  the  real  (to  on)  and  the  appa- 
rent (to  pkainomenon)." 

"...  This  knowledge  differs  in  name  only  from  that 
'wisdom'  (sophia)  which  Aristotle  tells  us  is  by  common  consent 
admitted  to  consist  in  a  knowledge  of  First  Causes  or  Principles." 

"...  Already  in  the  Septuagint  translation  of  the  Old 
Testament,  and  still  more  clearly  in  the  Apocryphal  Book  of 
Wisdom,  the  term  gnosis  had  been  employed  to  denote  a  knowledge 
of  the  true  God,  or  a  knowledge  especially  given  by  Him  (Ps.  cxviii. 
cxix.  66;  Prov.  viii.  12,  xxx.,  3  (xxiv.  26  in  Vat.) ;  Eccl.  ii.  26 ; 
Isa.  xi.  2;  Wisd.  ii.  13;  vii.  17;  x.  10;  xiv.  22);  and  the 
same  term  was  employed  by  the  writers  of  the  New  Testament 
for  that  knowledge  of  God  through  Christ  which  is  given  by 
the  Gospel.  The  mission  of  John  the  Baptist  is  prophetically 
declared  by  his  father  as  to  give  knowledge  of  salvation  to  the 
Lord's  people  (Luke  i.  77).  Reference  to  Gnosis  is  made  in  the 
following  texts  :  I.  Cor.  i.  5  ;  I.  Cor.  xii.  8 ;  II.  Cor.  iv.  6 ; 
II.  Cor.  x.  5;  Phil.  iii.  8;  II  Peter,  i.  5-6:  II.  Peter  iii.  18  i 
I.  Cor.  viii.  1.;  I.  Tim.  vi.  20. 

"  It  is  probable  therefore  that  the  adoption  of  the  terms  Gnosis 
and  Gnostic,  as  special  designations  of  a  philosophy  and  its  profes- 
sors, arose  from  the  language  of  Christianity,  and  was  intended  to 
distinguish  the  Gnostic  teaching  as  the  rival  and  assumed  superior 
of  the  Christian  Church."  (Summarised  from  the  Introduction  to 
"The  Gnostic  Heresies  of  the  First  and  Second  Centuries,"  by 

M  ANSEL.) 

The  Neo-Hermetic  Christ-ideal  formed  a  base  of  unity 
for  Theosophic  ideas,  but  the  truth  was  not  by  all 
accepted.  There  were  those  who  knew,  and  those  who 
pretended  to  know,  and  it  is  difficult  to  discern  the 
real  from  the  counterfeit.     There  were  so  many  schools 


88  UNIVERSAL  TBEOSOPHY. 

who  knew,  and  each  one  knew  best,  that  the  classification 

of  the  Gnostics  is  a  subject  of  some  difficulty  to  modern 

scholars. 

"  Different  classifications  of  Gnostics  have  been  made  on  various 
principles.  Mosheim  treats  Gnosticism  as  produced  exclusively 
by  the  combination  of  Oriental  philosophy  with  Christianity. 
Neander  classifies  them  according  to  their  affinity  with  or  oppo- 
sition to  Judaeism ;  Gieseler,  according  to  countries  and  the 
preponderance  of  dualism  or  emanation,  as  Syrian  and 
Egyptian ;  Matter,  as  Syrian,  Roman,  Egyptian,  and  of  Asia 
Minor ;  Hase,  as  Hellenistic,  Syrian,  and  Christian.  Baur's 
classification  is  :— (1.)  The  Valentinian,  which  admits  the  claims  of 
Paganism,  together  with  Judaeism  and  Christianity.  (2.)  The 
Mareionite,  which  refers  especially  to  Christianity  ;  and  (3)  the 
Pseudo  Clementine,  which  espouses  the  cause  of  Judaeism  in 
particular."     (Globe  Cyclopcedia.) 

The  symbols  used  by  the  Gnostics  which  are  in  general 
literally  considered,  must  be  spiritually  and  Theosophi- 
cally  understood  as  meaning  purely  stages  of  the  indi- 
vidual Re-birth.  Then,  when  we  divide  the  leading 
Gnostics  into  Theosophists  and  Spirit-Mediums,  the 
Absolute  from  the  Non- Absolute  truths  can  be  more 
easily  discerned. 

We  must  always  remember  that  Hermetic  Theosophy 
could  only  gradually  open  the  doors  of  the  Sanctuary, 
and  these  attempts  were  resisted  by  the  Pagan  Hier- 
archy. The  Christianity  that  is  taught  by  the  Church, 
were  it  not  embued  with  esoteric  ideas,  would  be  as 
decayed  as  ancient  Paganism.  As  enunciated  by  Fichte 
in  his  "  Anweisung  zum  seeligen  Leben,"  "  Men  are 
saved  not  by  the  historical,  but  by  the  metaphysical." 

The  similarity  between  the  ancient  Egyptian  and 
subsequent   Christian  Theosophic   symbolism,  is  unde- 


ODE  TO   HERMES   TRISMEGISTUS.  89 

niable.     Isis  may  be  called  Mary ;    Horns,  Christ ;  but 
the  idea  underlying  these  names  is  the  same. 

"The  Christ  was  the  Good  Shepherd.     So  was  Horus. 

Christ  is  the  Lamb  of  God.     So  was  Horus. 

Christ  is  the  Bread  of  Life.     So  was  Horus. 

Christ  is  the  Truth  and  the  Life.     So  was  Horus. 

Christ  is  the  Fan-bearer.     So  was  Horus. 

Christ  is  the  Door  of  Life.  Horus  was  the  Path  by  which 
the  dead  travel  out  of  the  sepulchre  ;  he  is  the  god  whose  name  is 
written  as  the  Eoad,"  etc.,  etc. — Gerald  Massey,  "Natural 
Genesis,"  Vol.  ii.,  p,  404. 

The  Alexandrian  conclave,  to  whom  we  probably 
owe  the  Christian  Mythos,  had  materials  enough  for 
even  a  far  more  scientific  system  than  the  Theosophy 
embodied  in  what  is  accepted  as  the  New  Testament. 

Jesus  and  the  Apostles  no  doubt  are  historical  person- 
ages ;  and  Jesus,  in  as  far  as  he  was  the  Christ,  is  the 
Manifestation  of  God  on  Earth,  the  Divine  Being, 
very  God  and  very  man,  not  only  to  be  adored  but  to  be 
followed.  The  Death  of  Jesus  is  the  Mystic  Spiritual 
Death  by  which  all  are  saved ;  but  only  those  who  live 
the  Christ-Life  can  have  part  in  that  Death. 

The  Church  dogma  is  indeed  based  on  Mystic  Truth, 
but  it  is  only  that  Mystic  Truth  which  is  the  Truth 
of  the  Church  Dogma.  Esoterically  understood,  these 
are  eternal  realities  ;  but  their  exoteric  acceptation  is  a 
thing  of  the  past  and  has  no  virtue. 

Esoteric  Christianity  was  but  a  continuation  of  the 
esoteric  Egyptian  Theosophy  under  another  name.  It 
was  as  if  the  spirit  of  Hermes  Trismegistus  inspired 
the    votaries    of    the    new    religion    to    keep    to    the 


90 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


ancient    symbols    for  the   perpetuation  of  the  Eternal 
Soul  Truths. 


Still  through  Egypt's  desert  places 

Flows  the  lordly  Nile  ; 
From  its  banks  the  great  stone  faces 

Gaze  with  patient  smile  ; 
Still  the  pyramids  imperious 

Pierce  the  cloudless  skies, 
And  the  Sphinx  stares  with  myste- 

Solemn,  stony  eyes.  [rious, 

But  where  are  the  old  Egyptian 

Demi-gods  and  kings  ? 
Nothing  left  but  an  inscription 

Graven  on  stones  and  rings. 
Where  are  Helius  and  Hephoestus, 

Gods  of  eldest  eld  ? 
Where  is  Hermes  Trismegistus, 

Who  their  secrets  held  ? 

Where  are  now  the  many  hundred 

Thousand  books  he  wrote  1 
By  the  Thaumaturgists  plundered, 

Lost  in  lands  remote. 
In  oblivion  sunk  for  ever, 

As  when  o'er  the  land 
Blows  a  storm-wind,  in  the  river 

Sinks  the  scattered  sand. 

Something  unsubstantial,  ghostly 

Seems  this  Theurgist, 
In  deep  meditation  mostly 

Wrapped,  as  in  a  mist. 
Vague,  phantasmal,  and  unreal 

To  our  thought  he  seems, 
Walking  in  a  world  ideal, 

In  a  land  of  dreams. 

Was  he  one  or  man}',  merging 

Name  and  fame  in  one, 
Like  a  stream,  to  which,  converging, 

Many  streamlets  run  ? 
Till,  with  gathered  power  proceed- 

Ampler  sweep  it  takes,         [ing,  i 


By  the  Nile  I  see  him  wandering, 

Pausing  now  and  then, 
On  the  mystic  union  pondering 

Between  gods  and  men  ; 
Half-believing,  wholly  feeling, 

"With  supreme  delight,  [ing, 

How  the  Gods,  themselves  conceal  - 

Lift  men  to  their  height. 

Or  in  Thebes,  the  hundred-gated, 

In  the  thoroughfare 
Breathing,  as  if  consecrated, 

A  diviner  air ; 
And  amid  discordant  noises 

In  the  jostling  throng, 
Hearing  far,  celestial  voices 

Of  Olympian's  song. 

Who  shall  call  his  dreams  fallacious ? 

Who  has  searched  or  sought 
All  the  unexplored  and  spacious 

Universe  of  thought  ? 
Who,  in  his  own  skill  confiding, 

Shall  with  rule  and  line 
.Mark  the  border-land  dividing 

Human  and  divine  ? 

Trismegistus !  three  time  greatest ! 

How  thy  name  sublime 
Has  descended  to  this  latest 

Progeny  of  time  ! 
Happy  they  whose  written  pages 

Perish  with  their  lives, 
If  amid  the  crumbling  ages 

Still  their  name  survives  ! 

Thine,  0  priest  of  Egypt,  lately 

Found  I  in  the  vast 
Weed-encumbered,  sombre,  statcly 

Grave-yard  of  the  Past ; 
And  a  presence  moved  before  me 

On  that  gloomy  shore, 


Downward  the  sweet  waters  leading  I  As  a  waft  of  wind,  that  o'er  me 
From  unnumbered  lakes.  |      Breathed,  and  was  no  more. 

Longfellow. 


91 


CHAPTER  V. 

ORIENTAL    THEOSOPHY. 

Paet  I. 

THE  THEOSOPHY  OF  THE  BRAHMINS,  MAGI,  AND  DRUIDS. 

EASTWARD  from  Egypt,  now  we  take  our  way  to 
a  country  equal  to  Egypt  in  monumental  as  in 
Theosophic  grandeur.  In  India  we  encounter  some  of 
those  mazes  of  Theosophy  which  we  will  not  attempt  to 
enter,  but  content  ourselves  with  merely  acknowledging 
their  existence.  The  very  people  are  a  mystery.  Whence 
are  the  Hindus  ?  Are  they  a  race  descended  from  the 
heights  of  Tibet,  are  they  a  colony  from  Egypt,  or 
are  they  a  branch  of  that  mysterious  pre-historical 
Atlantian  world,  which  left  its  colossal  vestiges  in 
various  cyclopean  architectures  ? 

Affirmative  arguments  could  be  brought  in  favour 
of  each  of  these  queries. 

For  the  first  theory  could  be  adduced  the  existence 
of  Buddhist  Temples  in  Tibet,  which  by  competent 
archaeologists  are  pronounced  to  be  anterior  to  the 
present  Avater,  now  exoterically  worshipped  as  Buddha  ; 
that  is  to  say,  there  are  colossal  Buddhistic  Monuments, 
said  to  have  been  built  centuries  if  not  millenniums 
before  Gotama  Buddha  was  born  into  this  world.  It 
could  also  be  shown,  that  prior  to  Gotama  Buddha  there 
was  an  ancient  "Wisdom  Religion,"  and  that  this 
pre-historic    Buddhism,   which    only   left   architectural 


92  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

vestiges,  antedates  the  Vedas,  and  was  the  Theosophy 
of  the  primitive  race  that  descended  into  India. 

For  the  Egyptian  theory  it  could  be  urged  that  so 
many  striking  traits  of  similarity  in  the  religious  and 
social  institutions  of  Egypt  and  India,  could  not  be 
accidental.  The  Egyptian  priests,  or  Hermesians,  were 
esoterically  Theosophists,  and  exoterically  they  had  a 
complex  system  of  Polytheism  and  Idolatry,  as  also 
have  the  Brahmins.  The  Egyptian  priests  were  in 
their  higher  degrees  strict  Vegetarians,  as  the  high 
Caste  Brahmins  now  are.  The  Egyptian  order  of  archi- 
tecture we  also  find  reproduced  at  Dawlatabad,  Tanjore, 
and  elsewhere,  in  Temples  showing  the  pyramidal  form ; 
while  the  institution  of  Caste  may,  in  India,  be  the 
reproduction  after  the  Egyptian  original.*  It  has 
also  been  philologically  shown,  that  not  a  few  Sanscrit 
words  have  their  apparent  primitive  root  in  the  ancient 
Egyptian  language. 

The   Egyptian   hypothesis    does    not   invalidate   the 

*  Brahminism  is  a  representative  remnant  of  the  most  ancient 
social  institution,  which  if  we  might  coin  a  new  word  could  be 
called  the  Hiero- Aristocracy.  Has  Brahminism  a  future  ?  We  will 
not  attempt  a  reply  to  this  query,  which  would  have  to  take  into 
consideration  the  most  weighty  social  and  psychic  problems  that 
have  agitated  man's  mind  ever  since  the  human  race  existed. 
Brahminism  is  not  yet  dead  ;  there  is  still  life  in  the  ancient  tree, 
though  a  Buddha  failed  in  the  attempt  to  cut  it  down  more  than 
two  millenniums  ago.  It  is  but  by  new,  and  more  powerful  attacks, 
caused  by  a  universal  spiritual  influx,  that  the  barriers  of  Caste 
shall  fall  to  rise  no  more.  All  shall  be  of  one  Caste  when  all  are 
equally  pure.  But  when  will  this  Utopian  universal  Aristocracy 
of  God  appear  on  earth  ? 


THE030PHY   OF   THE   BRAHMINS.  93 

Atlantian  theory,  but  renders  it  all  the  more  probable, 
as  the  traits  of  similarity  existing  between  the  systems 
of  Egypt,  India,  Persia,  Mexico,  and  Peru,  justify  the 
suggestion  that  they  may  all  be  derived  from  one 
primeval  system  which  flourished  on  the  lost  Continent 
of  Atlan. 

India  can  be  said  to  be  as  rich  in  pre-historical  monu- 
ments as  Egypt.  In  Ellora,  Elephanta,  Salsette,  and 
Carli,  we  encounter  those  famed  Cave-Temples  whose 
date  of  construction  has  been  as  little  ascertained  as 
their  gigantic  symbolism.  A  disquisition  on  the  Hindu 
Cave-Temples  and  interpretation  of  their  symbolism 
would,  in  itself,  demand  several  volumes.  Not  only 
in  India,  but  in  Cabul,  Tibet,  Ceylon,  and  Borneo  are 
the  remains  of  temples  and  pagodas  to  be  seen,  bearing- 
all  the  mystic  traits  and  emblematical  figures  of  that 
pre-historic  system  of  Hermetic  Theosophy  which  once 
united  all  Initiates  into  one  esoteric  Brotherhood, 
while  the  people  of  the  outer  world  were  divided  into 
clans  and  tribes. 

The  Vedas  and  the  Theosophic  poems  Eamayana  and 
Mahabarat  may  be  considered  among  the  volumes  of 
the  Occult  as  colossal  as  are  the  Ancient  Hindu  Temples 
among  architectural  monuments.  They  astound  and 
humiliate  us  by  their  very  enormousness,  and  the  inscru- 
table profundity  of  thought.  Without  the  esoteric  key 
they  are  sealed  to  the  Neophite,  and  however  he  may 
admire  the  outer  structure,  the  Sanctuary  is  closed  to 
him,  and  he  may  pass  it  by  unconscious  of  its  very 
existence. 


94  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

The  following  is  an  example  of  a  profound  Hindu 
allegory : — 

"  The  theory  of  the  Hindu  theologians  is,  according 
to  Colebrook,  that — 

"  There  is  one  Supreme  Uurevealed  Being — Para-Brahm.  By 
self-contemplation  he  produced  the  universe.  Then,  as  Siva,  or 
Maha-Deva,  he  destroyed  it ;  then,  as  Vishnu,  he  restored  and 
henceforth  sustained  it.  This  is  the  Hindu  Trinity — the  Trimurti. 
Its  holy,  inexpressible  name  is  the  sacred  tri-literal  word  A  U  M." 

"  This  doctrine,"  say  the  Hindus,  "  is  so  mysterious, 
that  neither  man  nor  angel  can  understand  it." 

To  understand  it,  one  must  be  at  One  with  God,  for 
this  is  the  Great  Arcanum  of  Theosophy  in  all  its 
simplicity.  It  is  a  purely  Theosophic  Doctrine,  and 
esoterically  relates  to  the  Eegenerative  process  within 
us.  The  Supreme  Unrevealed  Being  is  the  God  within 
us.  By  self-contemplation,  man,  or  rather  this  Divinity 
in  man,  produces  the  Universe  of  Mind,  the  mental, 
sensual  world,  the  aggregate  of  visualized  and  sensual- 
ized impressions  that  he  has  acquired  from  childhood 
upwards.  Then  this  God  within  us,  manifested  as  Siva 
or  Maha-Deva,  destroys  the  Universe  of  the  Sensual 
Mind.  He  destroys  it  in  order  that  as  the  Divine 
Spirit  he  may  restore  and  sustain  it  as  a  pure,  har- 
monious Divine  World.  Thus  this  Trimurti  is  really 
within  us,  even  as  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  within  us. 

There  is  but  One  Mystery,  one  Secret,  and  that  is  the 
Divine  Being,  and  how  it  can  from  being  Occult  become 
Manifest.  This  One  Great  Arcanum  of  all  Theosophies 
is  the  centre  from  which  all  Divine  Revelations  and 
Manifestations  emanate,  and  they  are  but  Eevelations 


THE  VEDAS.  95 

and  Manifestations  of  the  Divine  within  us.  All  Revealed 
Words  are  but  Words  of  the  Word — the  Divine  Logos. 
Thus  are  the  "  Vedas  "  not  the  "  Word  "  but  Words  of 
and  about  the  "  Word,"  and  only  as  such  are  they  with 
all  other  "  Sacred  Words  "  Divine. 

"  The  Veda,  '  Divine  Knowledge,'  is  divided  into  Mantras,  i.e., 
texts,  and  Brahmanas,  or  comments.  To  the  latter  are  added 
mystical  treatises,  in  prose  and  verse,  called  Aranyakas  and  Upani- 
shads,  'which  speculate  upon  the  nature  of  spirit  and  of  God,  and 
exhihit  a  freedom  of  thought  and  speculation  which  is  (assumed 
as)  the  beginning  of  Hindu  philosophy.'  '  All  the  Vedic  writings 
are  classified  in  two  great  divisions,  exoteric  and  esoteric  :  the 
Karma-kanda,  '  department  of  works,'  the  ceremonial ;  and  the 
Jnana-kanda,  '  department  of  knowledge.'  The  hymns  and  prayers 
of  the  Mantra  come  under  the  first ;  the  philosophical  speculations 
of  the  Brahmanas,  and  especially  of  the  Upanishads,  under  the 
second  division.     All  are  considered  alike  Sruti  or  revelation."* 

"  The  literature  of  India,"  says  Professor  Max  Miiller,  "  is 
saturated  with  the  idea  of  a  book-revelation  ;  and  in  no  country 
has  the  theory  of  revelation  been  so  minutely  elaborated  as  in 
India.  .  .  .  According  to  the  orthodox  view  of  Indian  theo- 
logians, not  a  single  line  of  the  Veda  was  the  work  of  human 
authors.  The  whole  Veda  is,  in  some  way  or  other,  the  work  of 
the  Deity  ;  and  even  those  who  received  the  revelation,  or,  as  they 
express  it,  those  who  saw  it,  were  not  supposed  to  be  ordinary  mor- 
tals, but  beings  above  the  level  of  common  humanity,  and  less  liable; 
therefore,  to  error  in  the  reception  of  revealed  truth.  The  views 
entertained  of  revelation  by  the  orthodox  theologians  of  India,  are 
far  more  minute  and  elaborate  than  those  of  the  extreme  advocates 
of  verbal  inspiration  in  Europe.  The  human  element,  called 
paurusheyatva  in  Sanscrit,  is  driven  out  of  every  corner  or  hiding- 
place  ;  and  as  the  Veda  is  held  to  have  existed  in  the  mind  of  the 
Deity  before  the  beginning  of  things,f  every  allusion  to  historical 

*  Cf.  Dowson,  Classical  Dicionary  of  Hindu  Mythology,  etc. 
Article  Veda. 

t  A  similar  view  prevails  in  rabbinical  orthodoxy  with  regard 
to  the  Thora. 


96  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

events,  of  which  there  are  not  a  few,  is  explained  away  with  a  zeal 
worthy  of  a  better  cause." 

The  same  able  scholar  also  remarks  : — 

"  The  only  sphere  in  which  the  Indian  mind  finds  itself  at  liberty 
to  act,  to  create,  and  to  worship,  is  the  sphere  of  Eeligion  and 
Philosophy ;  and  nowhere  have  religious  and  metaphysical  ideas 
struck  root  so  deep  in  the  minds  of  a  nation  as  in  India.  The  shape 
which  these  ideas  took  amongst  the  different  periods  of  civilisation, 
naturally  varies  from  coarse  superstition  to  sublime  spiritualism. 
But,  taken  as  a  whole,  history  supplies  no  second  instance  where 
the  inward  life  of  the  soul  has  so  completely  absorbed  all  the  other 
faculties  of  a  people." 

Thus  Hindu  Philosophy  is,  to  a  certain  extent, 
merely  the  reflection  of  Hindu  Theosophy;  and  many 
of  the  philosophic  systems  of  India  can  be  said  to  have 
an  esoteric  root,  and  to  be  branches  of  Theosophy. 

"  The  Hindu  schools  of  philosophy  are  usually  cast  in  the  follow- 
ing order : — 

1.  The  Nyaya,  founded  by  Gautama. 

2.  The  Vaiseshika,  by  Kanada. 

3.  The  Sankhya,  by  Kapila. 

4.  The  Yoga,  by  Patanjali. 

5.  The  Mimansa,  by  Jaimini. 

G.  The  Vedanta,  by  Badarayana ;  sometimes  called  Vyasa,  or 
Veda  Vyasa. 

"  They  are  called  the  six  Sastras,  or  writings  of  authority,  and 
sometimes  the  six  Darsanas,  views,  or  exposition  of  doctrine." 
(Davies'  "  Hindu  Philosophy") 

Of  the  Darsanas,  as  the  Indian  Philosophic  Schools 
are  called,  the  Nyaya  excels  in  analytical  enquiry  into 
all  the  objects  and  subjects  of  human  knowledge, 
including,  amougst  others,  the  process  of  reasoning  and 
laws  of  thought :  a  kind  of  Hindu  Aristotelianism. 
The  Vaiseshika  is  a  supplement  to  the  Nyaya,  carrying 


THE  DARSANAS.  97 

its  method  to  Physical  enquiries.  The  Sankhya,  Yoga, 
and  Vedanta  are  nearly  altogether  Theosophical  systems, 
as  a  perusal  of  the  Aphorisms  of  Kapila,  the  Yoga- 
Sutras  of  Patanjali,  and  the  Atma-Bodha  of  Sankara,  will 
convince.  If  the  Student  will  also  undertake  the  task 
of  reading  the  Upanishacls,  and  the  Brahma-Sutras  of 
Badarayana,*  he  will  be  able  thereby  to  initiate  himself 
into  Hindu  Theosophy,  and  acquire  a  knowledge  of 
important  psychic  facts,  that  everyone  who  desires  the 
welfare  of  his  Soul  should  be  aware  of. 

While  the  Yoga  appears  as  the  most  practical,  the 
Vedanta  is  the  most  scientific  of  the  Hindu  Theosophic 
systems.  "  Vedanta  "  means  "  end  of  the  Veda";  and  as 
it  is  based  upon  the  Upanishads,  which  the  reader  knows 
to  be  a  part  of  the  Vedas,  it  forms  the  Sanctuary  of 
Brahmanism. 

This  Sanctuary,  to  which  we  Europeans  have  access, 
is,  however,  closed  to  the  masses  of  the  Hindus  them- 
selves; who,  being  misled  to  take  symbols  for  things, 
are  lost  in  the  mazes  of  Exoterism,  Polytheism,  and 
Idolatry.  Only  few  know  that  the  names  of  the  many 
Gods  are  merely  names  of  the  attributes  of  the  One 
Divine  Being.  The  masses  erroneously  think  there  are 
many  Lords.  Although  one  particular  God  or  name 
may  be  highly  exalted  in  a  Mantra,  "  nothing  is  said  to 
disparage  the  Divine  character  of  the  other  Gods  " ;  for 
it  is  simply  the  representation  of  the  Divine  Spirit  under 
a  particular  form. 

*  Translated  by  Banerjea  in  the  "  Bibliotheca  Indica." 

H 


98  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Thus  Agni,  Indra,  Surya,  Varuna,  &c,  have  their 
occult  meaning,  and  are  symbols  for  positive  Theoso- 
phic  Elements.  Although  the  Initiates  who  invented 
these  names  made  some  of  them  synonymous  with 
physical  forces,  these  exclusively  spiritual  teachers  could 
not  inculcate  the  materialistic  ideas  attributed  to  them 
by  modern, so-called,  "competent"  scholars;  as  such  ideas 
are  but  the  outcome  of  the  present  materialistic  age, 
but  were  neither  known  nor  respected  in  the  pre-historic 
ages  we  refer  to,  when  all  science  was  comprised  in  the 
one  word — Spirituality. 

Hindu  Theosophy  is  one  of  the  most  important 
Theosophies  known.  In  order  that  the  Student  may 
have  an  opportunity  of  becoming  acquainted  with  some 
of  the  text  books  of  its  leading  systems,  a  selection  from 
the  Bhagavata-Purana,  translated  from  the  French 
version  of  Burnouf,  follows,  elucidating  the  principles 
of  the  Sankhya  Theosophy.  The  Vedanta  and  Yoga 
will  be  found  represented  in  our  "  Occult  Texts."* 

The  following  ample  quotations  from  the  rare  and 
expensive  French  version  of  the  Bhagavata-Purana  are 
given  in  full,  as  being  the  gist  of  Theosophic  teachings 
contained  in  that  valuable  work  known  only  to  Oriental 
scholars,  by  whom  these  treasures  are  as  yet  hardly 
appreciated : — 


*  For  a  more  thorough  comprehension  of  the  latter  we  would 
recommend  a  study  of  "  The  Yoga  Philosophy  ;  being  the  text  of 
Patanjali,  with  Bhojarah's  commentary,  with  Introduction  by 
Colonel  Olcott,"  published  by  the  Bombay  Branch  of  the  Theoso- 
phical  Society. 


THE  BHAGAVATA-FURANA.  99 

SELECTIONS  FROM   THE  BHAGAVATA-PURANA. 

THE    PRACTICE    OF    DEVOTION. 

Bhagavata  (the  Divine  Being)  says  : 

The  Yoga  that  has  the  Supreme  Spirit  for  its  object  is  established 
by  Me,  as  the  means  that  men  have  to  obtain  Absolute  Beatitude  ; 
and  it  is  thereby  that  good  and  bad  fortune  are  terminated. 

Behold!  the  Doctrine  I  am  about  to  expound  to  you,  is  the 
same  that  I  have  already  communicated  to  the  Rishis  desirous  of 
knowing  the  Yoga  in  the  perfection  of  all  its  parts. 

The  heart  is  known  to  be  as  equally  qualified  to  enchain  as  to 
liberate  the  Individual  Soul.  Attached  to  qualities  it  is  a  chain ; 
devoted  to  Purusha  (the  Divine  Spirit)  it  is  a  means  of  deliverance. 

When  freed  from  the  defilements  of  desire,  from  cupidity,  and 
other  passions  that  are  engendered  by  selfishness,  the  heart  is  pure ; 
insensible  to  pain  and  pleasure,  and  in  perfect  quiessence. 

Then  man  beholds  the  Absolute  Spirit  as  superior  to  Nature, 
uniform,  self-luminous,  subtle,  and  continuous ; 

With  a  devoted  heart  he  beholds  it  by  his  science,  as  detached 
from  all  things  ;  he  beholds  it  completely  impassable,  and  he  under- 
stands then  that  Nature  is  without  energy. 

No,  for  Yogis  there  is  no  path  that  can  so  happily  conduct  them 
to  the  possession  of  Brahma,  as  the  devotion  that  applies  itself  to 
Bhagavat,  the  Soul  of  all  things. 

Wise  men  know  that  attachment  to  things  is  the  chain  of  the 
Soul  which  is  indestructible  ;  but  this  very  attachment,  when; 
applied  to  virtue,  is  an  infallible  medium  of  Salvation. 

The  patient,  the  compassionate  for  all  beings,  who  are  not  at 
enmity  with  any,  and  are  calm,  good,  and  adorned  by  virtue 
who  with  exclusive  affection,  have  for  Me  a  profound  devotion; 
who  for  Me  renounce  their  works,  renounce  if  necessary  their 
parents  and  families;  who  are  freed  from  the  various  kinds  of 
suffering  because  their  heart  is  directed  towards  Me ;  who,  having 
purified  themselves,  listen  to,  and  recount  as  examples  the  lives  of 
those  who  had  Me  for  their  object. 

These  are  the  virtuous  men,  0  my  mother  ;*  the  men  free  from 
all  attachment ;  thou  shouldst  seek  them,  for  intercourse  with 
them  frees  from  sinful  attachment  to  the  world. 


*  This  is  supposed  to  be  a  dialogue  between  the  Divinely  in- 
spired Adept  and  his  mother. 


100  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

The  man  who  has  arrived  at  entire  detachment,  by  a  Devotion 
exclusively  contemplating  the  works  of  My  power,  and  the  happi- 
ness that  the  senses  give  in  this  and  the  other  world,  when 
practising  Yoga  should  employ  all  his  energy  to  seize  his  Spirit 
by  the  direct  ways  of  this  Doctrine. 

With  indifference  for  the  qualities  of  Nature ;  with  a  knowledge, 
developed  by  the  detachment  from  all  things  ;  with  the  practice  of 
Yoga,  and  a  Devotion  directed  towards  Me,  man,  even  while  in  the 
mortal  body,  arrives  to  possess  Me  ;  I,  that  am  the  Essence  of  the 
Individual  Soul. 

Devahuti  said :  What  is  that  Devotion  which  is  due  to  Thee, 
and  tell  me  how  must  I  apply  to  it  that  I  may  quickly  possess 
Thy  state,  that  of  the  Supreme  Deliverance  ? 

That  Yoga  whereof  Thou  hast  spoken,  O  Thou  who  art  that 
self -same  Deliverance;  that  Yoga  which  has  Bhagavat  for  its 
object,  and  wherefrom  results  the  Knowledge  of  the  Principles, 
what  is  it  and  what  are  its  parts  ? 

Explain  me  all  this,  in  distinct  manner,  0  Hari  !  that  I,  who 
am  but  a  woman  of  slow  intelligence,  may  easily  comprehend,  by 
Thy  favour,  that  which  is  otherwise  difficult  to  comprehend. 

Knowing  thus  the  desire  of  his  mother,  Kapila,  full  of  affection 
for  her,  taught  her  the  Doctiine  wherein  are  enumerated  the  prin- 
ciples called  Sankyha,  which  contain  the  Devotion  and  Yoga. 

Bhagavat  said :  When  the  senses,  those  luminous  organs,  whose 
office  it  is  to  seize  the  qualities,  acting  in  conformity  with  the 
Divine  Law,  direct  themselves  in  the  man  whose  heart  is  fixed 
towards  the  Being  whose  manifestation  is  the  Good ;  when  their 
action  is  natural,  is  disinterested,  it  is  then  that  the  Devotion  for 
Bhagavat  exists ;  a  virtue  more  important  than  perfection,  and 
which  consumes  the  envelope  of  the  Spirit  as  quickly  as  the  breath 

of  life  causes  food  to  digest 

Finally,  summarises  Bhagavat,  only  a  heart  that  gives  itself  to 
Me,  and  attaches  itself  to  Me  fixedly,  by  the  practice  of  an  ardent 
devotion,  can  give  man  true  happiness. 

ACQUISITION   OP   DELIVERANCE. 

Bhagavat  said  :  I  will  explain  to  you,  daughter  of  the  king,  the 
definition  of  Yoga,  that  has  Vishnu  (Re-birth )  for  its  object,  and 
will  tell  you  by  what  means  a  pure  heart  can  enter  the  path  of 
virtue. 

It  is  to  fulfil  your  duties  according  to  your  power ;  to  abstain 


THE   PRACTICE  OF  DEVOTION.  101 

from  all  strange  duties;  to  content  yourself  with  what  Destiny- 
brings  ;  to  honour  those  who  know  the  Spirit. 

It  is  to  renounce  vulgar  duties,  and  love  only  those  which  con- 
duct to  Salvation.  Partake  of  little  but  pure  food,  and  seek  the 
healthy  and  retired  spots. 

Be  good  and  truthful;  abstain  from  theft,  and  receive  no 
presents  but  for  necessities ;  be  chaste  and  pure  ;  give  yourself  up 
to  a  life  of  penitence  ;  read  the  Vedas  and  adore  Purusha. 

Observe  an  absolute  silence ;  .  .  gradually  master  the  breath  • 
detach  the  senses  from  visible  objects,  and  draw  them  within  by 
aid  of  the  heart. 

With  the  heart  maintain  the  vital  breath  immovably  in  one  of 
the  divers  places  of  the  body  where  it  resides;  .  .  .  place 
yourself  in  possession  of  yourself. 

These,  together  with  others,  are  the  paths  whereby  the  wise 
master  of  his  breath,  must,  by  Yoga,  with  his  intelligence,  gradu- 
ally overcome  all  sinful  and  evil  inclinations  of  the  heart. 

Indifferent  to  the  manner  of  sitting,  let  him  sit  in  a  pure  spot ; 
there  place  himself  erect,  keeping  a  decent  posture,  and  exercise 
the  retention  of  his  breath. 

Let  him  purify  the  way  of  the  vital  breath,  by  inhaling  the 
exterior  air,  retaining  it,  then  allowing  it  to  issue  ;  and  repeating 
this  practice  inversly,  he  then  fixes  his  heart  in  solid  manner  to 
make  its  mobility  cease. 

The  heart  of  the  Yogi,  who  has  mastered  his  vital  breath,  soon 
becomes  pure  from  all  passion,  as  a  metal  is  freed  from  dross  when 
submitted  to  a  current  of  air  and  fire. 

Let  him  consume  his  corporeal  vices,  by  retaining  his  respira- 
tion; his  sins,  by  becoming  master  of  his  heart;  his  inclinations 
for  sensual  objects,  by  collecting  his  senses  to  himself ;  and  the 
qualities  that  deflect  the  Supreme  Being,  by  meditation. 

When  the  heart,  purified  from  all  passion,  has  been  completely 
arrested  by  the  practice  of  Yoga ;  let  the  ascetic,  fixing  his  eyes 
upon  the  end  of  his  nose,  meditate  upon  the  form  of  Bhagavat. 

When  thus  abstracted  from  all  objects,  the  heart  knows  no 
more  what  to  hold ;  and  detached  from  all,  it  is  also  consumed 
similar  to  the  flame  that  expires.  In  this  state  man,  thence 
protected  from  the  influence  of  qualities,  beholds  his  own  Spirit, 
with  which  he  is  at  one  and  no  more  distinct  from  it. 

Thus  absorbed  by  this  final  annihilation  of  the  heart  in  the 


102  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHT. 

bosom  of  Supreme  Majesty,  man,  placed  out  of  the  reach  of 
pleasure  and  pain,  infers  the  origin  of  that  double  imperfection  to 
personality,  to  this  cause  of  action  which  does  not  really  exist,  as 
he  has  seized  in  his  own  bosom  the  substance  of  the  Supreme 
Spirit. 

Having-  thus  arrived  to  an  understanding  of  that  which  consti- 
tutes his  own  being,  the  Perfect  pays  no  more  attention  to  his 
own  body  ;  and  although  by  the  rule  of  fate  the  body  may  lift 
itself  up,  while  he  has  quitted  or  again  entered  it,  yet  he  no  more 
distinguishes  it  than  a  man  blinded  by  intoxication  perceives  the 
state  of  his  garments  about  him. 

The  body,  nevertheless,  acting  under  the  rule  of  fate,  continues  to 
live  with  the  senses  as  long  as  the  action  lasts  which  it  has  com- 
menced ;  but  the  man  who  has  attained  to  the  end  of  his  con- 
templation has  understood  the  Real,  and  has  no  more  contact 
with  the  body,  which,  as  all  that  thereon  depends,  is  to  him  but 
as  a  vain  dream. 

Even  as  man  is  distinct  from  his  children  and  his  wealth, 
although  he  regards  these  as  another  self,  thus  is  the  Spirit  dis- 
tinct from  the  body  and  other  things. 

Even  as  the  fire  is  distinct  from  the  burning:  log,  or  the  spark 
from  the  smoke  it  produces,  although  these  things  are  regarded 
as  forming  part  of  its  nature  ;  thus  the  Spirit,  that  internal 
spectator,  is  distinct  from  elements,  senses,  and  personality,  as 
Brahma  is  from  the  individual  Soul  and  Bhagavat  from  Nature. 

With  a  heart  estranged  from  all  other  things,  man  sees  that 
Spirit  in  all  beings,  and  all  beings  in  that  Spirit,  which  is  for  all 
beings  the  Soul. 

As  the  fire  which  is  one,  appears  many  through  the  diversity 
of  substances  that  feed  it,  so  the  spirit  residing  in  the  bosom  of 
Nature  appears  as  many,  through  the  unequal  distribution  of 
qualities  that  compose  the  bodies  wherein  it  is  enclosed. 

Also  it  is  only  after  having  triumphed  over  Nature,  so  difficult 
to  overcome,  by  that  Divine  Energy  to  which  it  is  united,  and 
which  is  that  which  exists  as  well  as  that  which  exists  not,  that 
the  Spirit  reposes  on  the  bosom  of  its  veritable  form. 

DISTINCTION    OF   NATURE. 

Liberated  from  the  conditions  which  bind  intelligence ;  having 
rejected  from  his  sight  everything  else  but  the  Soul,  having 
seized  hold  of  his  Spirit,     .     .     .     and  seeing  himself  face  to  face — 


DISTINCTION   FROM   NATURE.  103 

The  wise  man  perceives  in  the  midst  of  his  personality,  that 
really  does  not  exist,  a  reflection  of  The  Being,  that  he  beholds 
free  from  attributes,  allied  to  the  Cause,  enlightening  the  effect, 
contained  in  all  things  and  One. 

Even  as  by  seeing  in  a  closed  house  the  disc  of  the  sun  repro- 
duced on  the  wall,  it  is  inferred  that  the  reflection  was  caused  by 
water ;  and  so,  the  sun  is  in  the  heavens  ;  in  this  same  way  triune 
Personality  is  inferred  from  the  existence  of  the  elements  by  the 
heart  and  senses  acting  as  reflectors,  and  from  Personality  in  its 
turn  is  concluded  the  Self-Existing  Being  reflecting  itself  in  the 
spirit  that  sees  the  truth. 

When,  in  this  world,  the  elementary  particles,  the  senses,  the 
Intelligence,  and  other  faculties  have  been  annihilated  by  pro- 
found sleep  on  the  bosom  of  the  Cause  that  exists  not  for  our 
organs  ;  the  man  who  then  escapes  sleep  and  personality,  and  who 
erroneously  thinks  because  his  personality  disappears,  that  his 
soul,  that  does  not  perish,  is  annihilated,  is  even  as  one  who 
believes  himself  to  be  dead  because  he  has  lost  his  riches. 

This  man,  if  he  collects  within  himself  his  reflection,  and  seizes 
it  in  his  own  bosom,  he  attains  to  his  own  real  Essence,  which  is 
the  dwelling-place  of  the  being  endowed  with  personality. 

THE    YOGA   OF   DEVOTION. 

The  Yoga  of  Devotion  divides  itself  into  as  many  species  as 
the  means  employed  in  practising  it,  for  the  inclinations  of  men 
are  as  varied  as  the  individual  natures  with  their  divers  qualities. 

The  rash  man  believing  in  distinction,  who  in  thoughts  of 
violence,  of  hypocrisy,  or  envy,  shows  affection  for  Me,  is  a 
being  delivered  up  to  darkness. 

The  man  who  is  attached  to  distinction,  who  dreaming  of 
externals,  of  glory,  or  power,  honours  Me  with  a  culte  or  other 
homage,  is  a  being  delivered  up  to  passion. 

The  man  equally  attached  to  distinction,  who  with  the  view 
of  annihilating  his  works,  or  of  directing  them  towards  the 
Supreme  Being,  celebrates  the  Sacrifice,  saying  to  himself, 
"Sacrifice  is  a  duty,"  is  a  being  that  participates  of  the  quality 
of  goodness. 

The  motion  of  a  heart  that,  as  the  Ganges  going  to  the  sea, 
is  incessantly  drawn  towards  Me,  Me  the  refuge  of  all  Souls, 
by  the  one  desire  of  hearing  the  reciting  of  my  qualities,  thus  this 
is  the  sign  of  the  pure  Yoga  of  Devotion  to  the  best  of  Spirits,  and 


104  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

is  disinterested  devotion  that  no  longer  distinguishes  itself  from 
Me. 

Those  who  are  animated  with  this  Spirit  would  not  accept  the 
happiness  to  live  in  the  same  world  as  I,  to  have  the  same  great- 
ness, to  be  in  My  presence,  to  have  the  same  form,  and  yet  not  to 
be  other  than  at  one  with  Me,  should  it  be  offered  to  them  with- 
out adoring  Me. 

Therein  is  that  which  is  called  the  Yoga  of  Devotion,  a  Yoga 
which  is  definite,  and  which  assists  man  to  surmount  the  three 
qualities,  and  unites  them  infallibly  to  My  nature. 

By  absolute  and  disinterested  accomplishment  of  that  which 
forms  the  individual  duty  of  each,  by  irreproachable  observance 
of  the  ceremonies,  by  constant  absence  of  all  disposition  to  injure, 
by  sight  and  touch  of  the  forms  wherein  I  abide,  by  culte,  praise, 
homage  addressed  to  them,  by  the  faith  in  My  presence  in  the 
bosoms  of  beings,  by  virtue  and  detachment,  by  profound  respect 
shown  to  Sages,  by  compassion  felt  for  the  unfortunate,  by  the 
friendship  shown  for  those  in  whom  one  discovers  the  same 
qualities  as  in  one's  self,  and  by  the  practice  of  virtue  and  religious 
duties,  by  attention  lent  to  discourses  relating  to  the  Supreme 
Spirit,  by  reciting  My  name,  by  rectitude,  by  intercourse  with 
good  men,  by  absence  of  selfishness,  by  all  these  virtues  the  spirit 
of  man  that  follows  My  law,  ascending  to  the  state  of  perfect 
purity,  has  but  to  hear  of  the  recitation  of  My  qualities  to  unite 
himself  at  once  to  My  essence. 

As  a  scent  lifted  by  the  wind  from  the  place  of  its  origin  takes 
possession  of  the  sense  of  smell,  so  the  spirit  that  attaches  itself 
to  Yoga  arrives  at  seizing  himself  in  his  own  immovable  Essence. 

I  reside  perpetually  in  the  bosom  of  all  beings  of  which  I  am 
the  Soul ;  the  man  who  knows  Me  not  as  such  has  but  the  false 
image  of  piety. 

He  who  neglects  Me — the  sovereign  Lord,  the  Soul  of  all  beings 
in  whose  bosom  I  reside — to  fulfil  in  his  folly  religious  duties, 
sacrifices  but  to  ashes. 

The  heart  of  the  man  who  is  selfish  and  attached  to  distinction, 
who  hates  Me  in  the  body  of  another,  and  who  has  an  aversion 
for  his  fellow-creatures,  attains  not  to  Quiescence. 

No,  I  am  not  satisfied  with  a  sacrifice  celebrated  with  the  most 
varied  substances,  when  he  who  offers  it  to  Me  despises  living 
beings. 


THE  YOGA   OF  DEVOTION.  105 

Let  man,  in  accomplishing  the  works  imposed  upon  him,  render 
Me  a  religious  culte  and  other  homages,  as  long  as  he  has  not 
arrived  at  seeing  Me  in  his  heart ;  Me,  the  Supreme  Lord,  who 
resides  in  the  bosom  of  all  beings. 

He  who,  attached  to  distinction,  and  perceives  the  least  difference 
between  his  Sold  and  the  Supreme  Being,  must  fear  the  most 
terrible  danger  from  Mrityu,  who  is  no  other  than  I. 

Also,  man  should  honour  Me,  who  reside  in  the  bosom  of  all 
beings  of  which  I  am  the  Soul,  by  offerings,  by  respect  and  love, 
without  making  any  distinction. 

The  beings  that  have  life  are  superior  to  those  who  have  it  not ; 
those  who  have  the  vital  breath  are  superior  to  those  who  have 
life;  those  who  have  intelligence,  to  those  who  have  the  vital 
breath  ;  those  who  possess  organs  of  sense,  to  those  who  have  in- 
telligence. 

Among  those  who  possess  organs  of  sense,  those  who  have  the 
sense  of  taste  are  superior  to  those  who  have  only  that  of  feeling ; 
then  come  those  who  have  the  sense  of  smell,  and  above  these 
are  those  who  perceive  sound. 

Above  these  latter  come  those  who  perceive  diverse  forms,  then 
those  who  have  a  double  row  of  teeth ;  among  which  those  that 
have  many  feet  are  superior  to  others ;  then  come  those  that  have 
four  feet ;  and  finally  man,  who  has  but  two. 

Above  man  are  four  classes.  Among  them,  the  first  is  that  of 
the  Brahmans  ;  among  the  Brahmans  themselves,  the  first  are 
those  that  know  the  Vedas,  and  among  these  latter  those  that 
possess  the  meaning. 

Above  these  who  possess  the  meaning  of  the  Vedas  comes  he 
for  whom  this  meaning  has  nothing  dubious  ;  above  this  latter,  he 
who  accomplishes  the  works  that  are  imposed  on  him  ;  then  he 
who,  detached  of  all,  does  not  disquiet  himself  about  the  result  of 
his  works. 

Above  this  latter  is  he  who,  after  having  directed  towards  Me 
all  his  actions,  the  consequences  of  his  actions  and  his  very  person, 
does  not  distinguish  himself  from  Me  ;  for  I  see  no  being  superior 
to  a  man  who,  having  directed  his  soul  towards  Me,  and  deposited 
in  Me  his  works,  acts  no  more  and  sees  no  more  than  Me  in  himself. 
Let  the  sage  venerate  in  his  heart  all  those  things  with  great 
respect,  saying :  "  It  is  Bhagavat,  the  Supreme  Being,  that  here 
is  entered  with  the  individual  soul,  part  of  its  substance." 


106  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

I  have  explained  to  thee,  O  virtuous  woman,  the  Yoga  of 
Devotion  and  the  Yoga  of  Meditation,  these  two  doctrines  by 
which  man  arrives  equally  unto  Purusha. 

This  form  of  Bhagavat,  which  is  Brahma  and  Paramatman, 
forms  that  which  is  at  the  same  time  the  Supreme  Being,  Nature, 
and  Destiny  ;  whereof  result  the  diverse  consequences  of  works. 

That  which  is  the  divine  receptacle  of  diverse  forms ;  this  is 
Time,  which  is  the  terror  of  beings  emanated  from  Intelligence, 
when  they  attach  themselves  to  distinction. 

He,  who  after  having  penetrated  into  the  bosom  of  creatures, 
destroys  them  by  other  creatures ;  that  Being  of  whom  the 
Universe  is  the  abode,  and  which  is  named  Vishnu,  this  supreme 
chief  of  the  sacrifice  is  Time,  the  most  potent  of  those  that  rule. 

For  him  there  is  neither  friend,  nor  enemy,  nor  ally.  Always 
watchful,  he  seizes  man,  who  thinketh  not  of  him,  to  terminate 
his  existence. 

It  is  by  fear  of  Time  that  the  wind  blows  ;  by  fear  of  Time 
that  the  sun  radiates ;  by  fear  of  Time  that  Indra  gives  rain  ;  by 
fear  of  Time  that  the  hosts  of  stars  shine. 

It  is  by  fear  of  Time  that  the  kings  of  the  forests,  with  the 
sheltering  trees  and  annual  plants,  each  cover  themselves  in  their 
season  with  flower  and  fruit. 

It  is  by  fear  of  Time  that  the  rivers  flow,  that  the  ocean  passes 
not  its  boundaries,  that  the  fire  burns,  that  the  earth  with  her 
mountains  fall  not  into  the  abyss.- 

It  is  by  His  order  that  the  atmosphere  gives  a  habitable  abode 
to  breathing  beings ;  that  intelligence  developes  the  world  that  is 
its  body  and  which  it  surrounds  with  seven  enfoldments. 

And  the  Devas,  to  whose  empire  belong  the  movable  and  im- 
movable worlds,  give  themselves  up  to  their  qualities  for  the 
creation,  conservation,  and  destruction  of  the  universe,  through 
the  rule  by  Time. 

This  is  Time  Infinite,  and  which  ends  all.  That  is  without 
beginning  and  makes  all  beginning,  which  is  imperishable,  which 
produceth  creature  by  creature,  and  which  destroys  by  death  the 
God  of  destruction. 

Among   the   Text-books    of   Hindu   Theosophy   and 

Occult  Science  the  following  are  considered  the  most 

notable,  viz :  The  "  Yedas,"  namely  :  The  "  Eig-Yeda," 


TEXT-BOOKS  OF  HINDU   THEOSOPHY.  107 

"  Yayur-Veda,"  "  Sam  a-  Veda,"  and  "  Atharva-Veda." 
The  celebrated  epics  called  the  "Kamayana,"  the 
" Mahabharata,"  the  "Harivanso"  (said  to  be  a  part 
of  the  Mahabharat). 

The  "Puranas,"  namely:  The  "Vishnu,"  "Naradiya," 
"Bhagavata,"  "  Garuda,"  "  Padma,"  and  "Varaha." 
These  latter  are  Vaishnava  Puranas,  in  which  the 
Divine  as  Vishnu  "the  unconquerable  preserver "  and 
all-pervading  essence  holds  the  pre-eminence.  The 
Puranas,  in  which  the  qualities  of  gloom  or  ignorance 
are  described,  are — the  "Matsya,"  "Kurma,"  "  Linga," 
"  Siva,"  "  Skanda,"  and  "  Agni."  These  are  devuted  to 
the  Divine  as  Siva,  the  destroyer  of  Evil.  Those  in 
which  the  psychic  forces,  known  to  the  unregenerate 
only  as  passions,  are  delineated,  are— The  "Brahma," 
"  Brahmanda,"  "  Brahmavaivarta,"  "  Markandeya, " 
"  Bhavishya,"  and  "Vamana"  Puranas,  which  describe 
the  manifestations  of  Brahma,  the  Divine  Spirit. 

The  "  Upa,"  or  Secondary  Puranas,  eighteen  in 
number,  viz:  " Sanat-Kumara,"  " Nara-Sinha,"  "Nara- 
diya," "Siva,"  "Durvasasa,"  "Kapila,"  "Manava," 
"Ausanasa,"  "Varuna,"  "Kalika,"  "Samba,"  "Nandi," 
"Saura,"  "Parasara,"  "Aditya,"  "Mahesvara,"  "Bha- 
gavata," and  "Vasishta." 

We  are  also  assured  that  the  "Tantras"  are  mis- 
understood occult  texts,  although  they  are  in  current 
use  only  for  magical  evocations  and  other  practices 
of  Goetia.  The  "  Brahmana,"  which  has  been  aptly 
called  a  kind  of  Hindu  Talmud,  embodies  works  com- 
posed by  and  for  Brahmins,  but  is,  equally  with  the 


108  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Mantra,  held  to  be  "  Sruti  "  or  revealed  word.  Each  of 
the  Sanhitas  or  collections  of  the  Vedas  has  its  Brah- 
mana,  which  generally  maintains  the  essential  character 
of  the  Veda  to  which  it  belongs.  The  Brahmana  is 
especially  connected  with  the  Eitual  and  Liturgy,  and 
contains  the  details  of  Vedic  ceremonies,  with  long- 
explanations  of  their  origin  and  meaning,  and  abounds 
with  curious  legends,  Divine  and  human,  in  illustration.* 
The  "Satapatha  Brahmana,"  translated  in  the  "Sacred 
Books  of  the  East,"  may  be  consulted  as  a  specimen 
of  the  "  Brahmana  "  literature. 

The  "Upanishads"  esoteric  doctrine,  about  150  works, 
probably  even  more ;  of  these  the  most  authoritative 
ones,  ten  in  number,  form,  with  their  Commentaries 
by  Sankara  Acharya,  the  corner-stone  of  Brahmanical 
Theosophy.  The  object  of  these  treatises  is  to  ascertain 
the  Mystic  sense  of  the  text  of  the  Veda,  and  so  they 
enter  into  such  abstruse  questions  as  The  Origin  of 
the  Universe,  The  Nature  of  the  Deity,  The  Nature 
of  Soul,  and  The  Connection  of  Mind  and  Matter. 

Of  the  Darsanas  or  philosophic  schools,  Madhava- 
Acharya  in  the  "  Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha  "  enumerates 
eighteen  systems,  viz :  the  Charvaka,  Bauddha,  Arhata 
or  Jaina,  Eamanuja,  Purna-prajna,  Nakulisa-Pasupata, 
Saiva,  Pratyabhijna,  Easesvara,  Paniniya,  Vaiseshika  or 
Aulukya,  Akshapada  or  Nyaya,  Jaiminiya,  Sankhya, 
Patanjala,  and  Vedanta.  The  last  six  systems  are  gene- 
rally accepted,  and  have  an  esoteric  base.     Theosophic 

*  Cf.  "  Dowson's  Dictionary." 


THE  THEOSOPHY  OF  THE  MAGT.        109 

directions  can  also  be  gleaned  from  the  "  Sacred  Law- 
books "  as  the  "  Manu-Sanhita "  commonly  called  the 
"  Code  of  Manu,"  and  also  from  the  "  Institutes  of 
Vishnu,"  and  the  "  Sacred  Laws "  of  Apastamba, 
Gautama,  Vasishtha,  and  Baudhayana,  Even  the 
"Sacred  Books"  of  Hindu  Sectarians,  as  the  "Adhi- 
Granth "  of  the  Sikhs,  are  found  to  be  replete  with 
Theosophy.  If  Materialism  is  the  leading  character- 
istic of  Western  Modern  Science  and  Philosophy,  the 
chief  trait  of  Oriental  Wisdom  is  its  Spirituality. 


THE   THEOSOPHY   OF   THE   MAGI. 

A  symbolism  of  a  different  character  from  that  of 
Egypt  and  India,  a  kind  of  ante-Buddhistic  Buddhism, 
meets  us  in  ancient  Persia. 

"  Persia  has  no  caste.  All  are  equal  from  a  religious  point  of 
view.  All  are  equally  called  the  Pure.  Each  one  is  a  priest, 
officiating  for  his  own  household. 

"Persia  has  no  temples,  no  other  religious  ceremonies  than 
prayer  and  word.  No  mythology;  no  imaginative  poetry.  All 
is  true,  positive,  serious,  and  strong.  Force  in  Holiness  :  Note 
there  a  precocious  vigour  of  wisdom  and  good  sense.  Fire  is  no 
more  a  god  hut  a  symbol,  the  benevolent  genius  of  the  hearth. 

"  The  animal  is  not  glorified,  but  loved,  well  and  magnanimously 
treated,  according  to  its  rank  in  the  house;  its  place  in  the  scale 
of  souls. 

"The  simple,  and  in  all  things  humane,  law  Persia  left— that 
nothing  has  surpassed  the  ever  living  law,  and  which  ever  remains 
the  path  of  the  future— that  is  heroic  agriculture,  the  courageous 
effort  of  good  against  evil,  the  life  of  pure  light  in  work  and 
justice. 

"  Thence  the  morals  of  the  man  and  the  worker— not  the  idler, 
the   Brahmin,  or  the  monk— a  morality  not  of  abstention   and 


110  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

dreaming,  but  of  active,  fruitful  energy.  It  is  all  comprised  in :  Be 
pure  to  be  strong.  Be  strong  to  be  pure."  (Michelet,  La  Bible. 
de  FHumanite.) 

Persian  Theosophy  is  aspirational  and  intellectual 
striving — as  can  be  gleaned  from  the  Avesta  and  most 
of  the  Pahlavi  Scriptures.  Each  and  every  Initiate 
is  a  soldier  of  Light,  fighting  for  Good  against  Dark- 
ness and  Evil.  But  that  the  Supreme  Good,  the 
Supreme  Knowledge,  is  attained  by  the  individual 
becoming  united  with  the  Supreme  Omnipresent  Being, 
this  is  taught  in  the  "  Desatir,"  where  the  Unity  of  Man 
and  God  is  beautifully  expressed.  This  book  is  not 
recognised  by  modern  Savants,  but  let  it  speak  for 
itself: 

"  The  Deity  said  : 

"  Me  thou  seest,  Me  thou  hearest,  Me  thou  smallest,  Me  thou 
tasteth,  Me  thou  touchest. 

"  What  thou  sayest  that  I  say  ;  and  thy  acts  are  My  acts,  and 
I  speak  by  thy  tongue,  and  thou  speakest  to  Me.     .     .     . 

"  Thou  wilt  be  asked,  By  what  dost  thou  know  God  ? 

"  Say,  By  what  descendeth  on  the  heart. 

"  For  could  that  be  proved  false,  Souls  would  be  utterly  helpless. 

<l  There  is  in  thy  soul  a  certain  knowledge,  which  if  thou  dis- 
play it  to  mankind  they  will  tremble  like  a  branch  agitated  by 
the  strong  wind.     .     .     . 

"  If  thou  be  asked,  Hast  thou  seen  God  ? 

"  Say,  How  should  I  know  a  God  whom  I  never  saw  ?  I  would 
not  enjoin  the  worship  of  a  God  whom  I  could  nut  show. 

"  The  Wise  hold  the  existence  of  created  things  as  a  proof  of 
the  being  of  God. 

"  And  Thou,  by  the  light  of  the  Creator,  seest  and  she  west 
what  is  created.     .     .     . 

"  I  created  the  world  an  individual. 

"  The  world  is  an  idea  of  the  Self-existent. 

"  Non-existence  is  the  mirror  of  existence. 

u  Without  the  light  of  the  Self -existent  Nothing  is. 


AN   EPITOME   OF   OCCULT   KNOWLEDGE.  Ill 

"His  Light  extendeth  over  all,  and  conferreth  being  on  all 
existences. 

"  The  choicest  of  all  effulgences  is  the  shining  of  knowledge  on 
men  of  understanding. 

"  By  a  single  flash  of  the  Creator  both  worlds  became  visible. 
"  The  multiplicity  of  worlds,  invisible  and  visible,  is  unity  in 
respect  to  the  unity  of  God,  for  nothing  else  has  being. 

"The  Perfect  seeth  unity  in  multiplicity,  and  multiplicity  in 
unity." 

If  the  extract  just  given  sets  forth  the  Descent  of 
the  Divine  to  the  human,  the  following  summary  of 
Occult  Knowledge  delineates  the  ascent  of  the  human 
to  the  Divine  : — 

"Excellence,  Worthiness,  Beneficence,  Goodness,*  must  be 
comprehended  !  must  be  comprehended  !  must  be  comprehended  ! 
must  be  comprehended !  must  be  comprehended  ! 

"Godhead,  Unity,  Perfection,  Attributes!  must  be  compre- 
hended !  &c. 

"  Life,  Knowledge,  Desire,  Power,  must  be  comprehended ! 
"  The  Word  of  God,  the  Book  of  God,  the  Angel  of  God,  the 
Prophet  of  God,  must  be  comprehended  ! 
"  Oldness,  Newness,  Stability,  Instability,  must  be  comprehended ! 
"  The  World,  its  Inhabitants,  the  Free,  the  Dependent,  must  be 
comprehended ! 

"  Intelligence,  Soul,  Heaven,  Stars,  must  be  comprehended  ! 
"  Fire,  Air,  Water,  Earth,  must  be  comprehended  ! 
"  The  nature  of  the  Elements,  their  principle,  their  form,  and 
phenomena,  must  be  comprehended  ! 

"  Mineral,  Vegetable,  Animal,  Human  kind,  must  be  compre- 
hended ! 

"  Reward,  Punishment,  Heaven,  Hell,  must  be  comprehended ! 
"  Merit,  Crime,  Love,  Anger,  must  be  comprehended  ! 
"  The  Prophet,  the  Prophet's  successor,  the  Enquirer,  the  Wise, 
must  be  comprehended  !  must  be  comprehended  !  must  be  compre- 
hended !  must  be  comprehended  !  must  be  comprehended  ! " 

(From  the  Book  of  the  Prophet  Jyafram.) 

*  These  are  four  Persian  words,  Hamesteni,  Eamesteni,  Shame- 
steni,  Famesteni,  all  signifying  Good. 


112  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Although  the  foregoing  may  to  some  read  like  the 
chorus  from  an  opera,  there  is  more  wisdom  in  it  than 
lies  on  the  surface,  and  it  may  be  equally  taken  as  a 
guide  to  material,  as  to  Spiritual  Knowledge  and  Power, 
not  an  imaginative,  poetical  one,  but  a  mere  epitome  of 
Physical  and  of  Psychic  facts. 

The  institution  of  the  system  of  the  Magi  was  a  revolt 
against  Demon-Worship.  The  Devas,  whom  the  Hindus 
worshipped  as  (rods,  the  Magi  designated  as  demons, 
which  did  not  detain  them,  however,  from  having  inter- 
course with  spirits  in  their  groves,  and  at  their  altars. 

The  Magian  system  made  a  great  division  between 
Divine  and  Demonic.  When  Ahura  Mazda  (Ormazd) 
and  Angra  Mainyu  (Ahriman)  are  considered  under  the 
Theosophical  aspect,  as  they  were  intended  to  be  by 
the  Adepts,  with  whom  this  system  originated,  as  the 
Divine  and  Demonic  in  Man,  then  the  Magian  system 
is  a  mode  of  thought  embodying  the  highest  truths 
attainable. 

"  The  substance  of  the  law  is  the  command,  Think  pure!;/,  speak 
purely,  and  act  purely.  All  that  comes  from  Ormazd  is  pure,  from 
Ahriman  impure,  and  bodily  purity  has  alike  worth  with  moral 
purity.  Hence  the  multitude  and  minuteness  of  precepts  con- 
cerning bodily  cleanliness.  In  fact,  the  whole  liturgic  worship 
turns  greatly  on  this  point."— (Cf.  J.  F.  Clarke,  "Ten  Great 
Religions.") 

The  Theosophist,  as  a  true  eclectic,  hails  with  satis- 
faction the  translations  of  the  Zend  and  Pahlavi  Scrip- 
tures of  this  most  interesting  system  of  Theosophy, 
which  well  rewards  the  earnest  student  for  the  re- 
searches he  may  undertake  therein. 


MAGI   AND   BRAHMINS.  113 

But  these  studies  should  be  carried  on  not  only  in  a 
Theosophic  but  also  in  a  true  scholarly  spirit,  and  the 
study  of  the  Avesta  should  be  preceded  by  an  acquaint- 
ance with  the  Vedas. 

"  We  begin  to  see  a  natural  progress,  and  almost  a  logical 
necessity,"  says  Professor  Max  Miiller,  "  in  the  growth  of  these 
three  systems  of  worship.  The  oldest,  most  primitive,  most 
simple  form  of  Aryan  faith  finds  its  expression  in  the  Veda.  The 
Zend-Avesta  represents  in  its  language  as  well  as  in  its  thoughts 
a  branching  off  from  that  more  primitive  stem ;  a  more  or  less 
conscious  opposition  to  the  worship  of  the  gods  of  nature,  as 
adored  in  the  Veda,  and  a  striving  after  a  more  spiritual,  supreme, 
moral  Deity,  such  as  Zoroaster  proclaimed  in  Ormazd.  Buddhism, 
lastly,  marks  a  decided  schism,  a  decided  antagonism  against  the 
established  religion  of  the  Brahmans,  a  denial  of  the  true  Divinity 
of  the  Vedic  Gods,  and  a  proclamation  of  new  philosophical  and 
social  doctrines. 

"  Without  the  Veda,  therefore,  neither  the  reforms  of  Zoroaster 
nor  the  teachings  of  Buddha  would  have  been  intelligible :  we 
should  not  know  what  was  behind  them,  or  what  forces  impelled 
Zoroaster  and  Buddha  to  the  founding  of  new  religions ;  how  much 
they  received,  how  much  they  destroyed,  how  much  they  created. 

"  The  Dews  or  Daevas  of  the  Avesta  are  demons,  in  the  Vedas 
they  are  gods.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Ahuras,  or  gods  of  the 
Avesta,  are  Asuras  or  demons,  in  the  Vedic  belief.  The  original 
land  of  the  race  is  called  Aryavesta  in  the  'Laws  of  Manu' 
(II.,  22),  and  Aryana  Vaejo  in  the  Avesta.  The  God  of  the  Sun 
is  named  Mithra,  or  Mitra,  in  both  religions.  The  Yima  of  the 
Parsi  system  is  a  happy  king;  the  Yama  of  the  Hindus  is  a  stern 
judge  in  the  realms  of  death.  The  dog  is  hateful  in  the  Indian 
system,  an  object  of  reverence  in  that  of  Zoroaster.  Both  the 
religions  dread  defilement  through  the  touch  of  dead  bodies.  In 
both  systems  fire  is  regarded  as  divine.  But  the  most  striking 
analogy  perhaps  is  to  be  found  in  the  worship  paid  by  both  to 
the  intoxicating  fermented  juice  of  the  plant  Asckqrias  Acida, 
called  Soma  in  the  Sanskrit  and  Iloma  in  the  Zend.     .     .     . 

"  It  would  seem,  therefore,"  concludes  Mr.  Clarke,  in  "  Ten 
Great.  Religions"  from  which  book  this  quotation  is  taken,  "that 
the  two  religions  setting  out  from  the  same  point,  and  having  a 

I 


114  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

common  stock  of  primitive  traditions,  at  last  said  each  to  the 
other,  'Your  Gods  are  my  Demons.'  The  opposition  was  mutual. 
The  dualism  of  the  Persian  was  odious  to  the  Hindu,  while  the 
absence  of  a  deep  moral  element  in  the  Vedic  system  shocked  the 
solemn  Puritanism  of  Zoroaster.  The  religion  of  the  Hindu  was 
to  dream,  that  of  the  Persian  to  fight.  There  could  be  no  more 
fellowship  between  them  than  there  is  between  a  quaker  and 
a  Calvinist." 

The  war  between  Ahura  Mazda  and  Angra  Mainyu  is 
purely  spiritual,  and  is  carried  on  in  every  individual 
Soul,  and  describes  the  striving  of  the  Pure  and  Im- 
pure, the  Good  and  Evil,  the  God  and  Demon,  in  man. 
Originally  man  is  created  as  God.  The  Primitive 
Man  is  as  God,  the  Supreme  I  Am,  an  Unself.  The 
becoming  a  Demon,  a  Selfish  Being,  is  the  fall  from 
the  Divine  State,  concomitant  to  which  the  Divine 
becomes  latent,  Light  becomes  eclipsed  by  Darkness, 
and  Divine  Thought,  the  eternal  memory,  is  lost,  and 
supplanted  by  ignorance. 

Ahura  Mazda,  the  God,  the  Light,  the  Divine  Spirit 
(the  Light  that  shineth  in  Darkness)  is  ever  striving 
with  Angra  Mainyu,  the  Self-Will,  the  Demon,  the 
Darkness  in  us.  We  have  to  become  Soldiers  of  Light, 
and  fight  the  good  fight  on  the  side  of  Ahura  Mazda, 
the  Divine  in  us,  against  Angra  Mainyu,  the  King 
of  Darkness,  the  Demonic  selfish  perversions  that  we 
have  acquired. 

The  combatants  and  the  battle-field  are  in  us,  and 
the  war  in  which  all  the  powers  of  the  Universe  (of  the 
mind)  are  engaged  on  one  side  or  the  other,  and  some- 
times on  both  sides,  ends  with  the  Beginning  of  all 
Things   Divine — the    death   of  Angra    Mainyu,    when 


ZOROASTER.  115 

Good  triumphs  and  Evil  disappears,  becoming  trans- 
formed into  Purity,  Truth,  and  Love.  The  death  of  the 
Demon  conditions  the  birth  of  the  Divine. 

Herodotus  describes  the  worship  of  the  Persians  in 
many  parts  of  his  history; — he  says,  "They  have  no 
altars,  no  temples,  nor  images ;  they  worship  on  the 
tops  of  the  mountains.  They  adore  the  Heavens,  and 
sacrifice  to  the  Sun,  Moon,  Fire,  and  Water."  Yes,  but 
in  so  doing  they  worship  the  symbols  of  their  God. 

The  whole  religion  of  the  Avesta  revolves  around 
Zoroaster.  In  the  Sacred  books  he  is  called  "  The 
Pure,'''  good  in  thought,  speech,  and  work,  and  it  is 
said  that  "  He  alone  knows  the  precepts  of  Ormazd " 
(Spiegel  Gatha  Ustvaiti  XLII.  8).  Zoroaster  bases 
his  law  on  the  eternal  distinction  between  good  and 
evil,  right  and  wrong;  he  abhorred  wrong-doing,  con- 
vinced that  it  had  its  origin  in  a  Spirit  of  Evil  of  awful 
power,  with  whom  we  should  constantly  do  battle ;  but 
his  weapons  were  not  carnal.  "  Pure  thoughts "  ex- 
pressed in  "  true  words,"  and  shown  forth  in  "  right 
actions,"  would  result  in  the  triumph  of  goodness.  He 
might  have  used  the  words  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  and 
said,  "  We  wrestle  not  with  flesh  and  blood,"  that  is, 
our  struggle  is  not  with  man  alone,  but  with  principles 
of  evil,  rulers  of  darkness,  spirits  of  wickedness  in  the 
super-mundane  world.  "  Wherefore  take  unto  you  the 
whole  armour  of  God,  and  the  sword  of  the  Spirit, 
which  is  the  Word  of  God  (Ephesians  vi.  10 — 17). 

Until  near  the  end  of  the  last  century  there  was  no 
certain  information  concerning  Zoroaster  and  his  teach- 


116  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

ings.  We  are  indebted  to  the  indefatigable  perse- 
verance of  a  young  Frenchman,  named  Anquetil  du 
Perron,  born  in  Paris,  in  1731,  for  the  first  translation 
of  the  Zend  Avesta  into  any  European  language,  which 
was  published  in  French  in  1771.  When  only  twenty- 
four  years  of  age  he  started  alone  for  India,  with  his 
knapsack,  a  Hebrew  Bible,  and  a  case  of  mathematical 
instruments.  He  travelled  on  foot  over  a  great  part  of 
Hindostan,  arriving,  after  many  wonderfully  romantic 
adventures,  at  Surat,  in  1759,  where  by  patience  and 
much  perseverance  he  induced  the  Destours,  or  Priests 
of  the  Parsi  Community  of  Fire  Worshippers,  to  teach 
him  the  Zend  language,  and  to  furnish  him  with  manu- 
scripts of  the  Avesta.  Of  the  age  of  these  books,  how- 
ever, and  the  period  when  Zoroaster  lived  nothing  is 
really  known,  although  it  has  been  asserted  that  he  lived 
in  the  time  of  Darius,  and  gave  lessons  of  philosophy 
in  Babylon  to  Pythagoras;  but,  "the  language  of  the 
Avesta,"  says  Max  Miiller,  "  is  so  much  more  primitive 
than  the  inscriptions  of  Darius,  that  many  centuries 
must  have  passed  between  the  two  periods  represented 
by  these  two  stratas  of  language"  (Chips,  Vol.  I.  p.  88). 
He  is  mentioned  by  Plato  (Alcibiades  I.  37),  who 
speaks  of  the  "Magism  (System  of  the  Medes),  of 
Zoroaster,  the  Ormazdian,"  which  would  only  carry  the 
epoch  of  Zoroaster  back  to  the  sixth  or  seventh  century 
before  Christ ;  but  Aristotle  and  Eudoxus,  according  to 
Pliny,  place  him  six  thousand  years  before  Christ. 
Spiegel  considers  Zoroaster  as  a  neighbour  and  con- 
temporary of  Abraham,  therefore  as  living  two  thousand 


ORIGIN   OF  THE   KABBALA.  117 

years,  instead  of  530  B.C.  Freeman  Clark  says,  "  It  is 
not  'likely  that  Zoroaster  ever  saw  Pythagoras  or  even 
Abraham."  From  an  ancient  Hindu  source  we  learn 
that  "  Zuruaster  was  the  title  of  the  spiritual  teachers 
of  Ahura  Mazda,  a  title  corrupted  later  into  Guru- 
Asters.  There  was  a  series  of  fourteen  of  these  Masters, 
or  Gurus,  one  after  the  other."  Thus  no  date  can  be 
assigned  as  an  epoch.  "  The  Jews,  on  returning  from 
the  Babylonian  Captivity,  were  thoroughly  imbued 
with  Zoroastrian  and  Magian  ideas,  and  their  Kabbala, 
or  secret  book  of  Occult  Wisdom,  was  the  offspring  of 
the  Chaldean  Kabbala.  The  name  by  which  its  students 
were  known  in  the  secret  lodges  of  the  Jewish  Pharisees 
(or  Pharsis)  was  Kabirim — from  Kabeiri,  the  Mystery 
Gods  of  Assyria." 

Dr.  Etheridge,  author  of  many  learned  works,  and 
amongst  others  the  "Hoile  Aramaics  ";  or,  Outlines 
on  the  Shemitic  Languages,  in  his  "Introduction  to 
Hebrew  Literature,"  devotes  a  chapter  to  a  very  interest- 
ing inquiry  concerning  the  origin  of  the  Kabbala.  After 
pointing  out  the  striking  analogy  that  exists  to  Platon- 
ism  in  the  notions  of  pre-existence,  reminiscence,  and 
the  metempsychosis,  he  passes  in  review  the  Alexandrine 
School,  saying  that  between  the  Kabbala  and  Neo- 
Platonism  there  are  indeed  unquestionable  resem- 
blances; but  decides  that  historical  considerations 
render  it  impossible  that  the  latter  should  have  been 
the  model  of  the  former;  adding  that  we  are  more 
justified  in  supposing  that  the  Neo-Platonists  copied 
from  the  Kabbalists  than  the  contrary.     He  then  nega- 


118  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

tives  the  idea  that  it  conld  have  had  its  origin  in  the 
writings  of  Philo — the  Jewish  philosopher  of  Alexan- 
dria— who  seems  to  have  been  unknown  to  the  Jews  of 
the  Middle  Ages,  and  almost  equally  so  to  their 
rabbinical  ancestors  in  Palestine  and  Babylon.  After 
devoting  some  pages  to  Philo,  and  finally  dismissing 
him,  without,  however,  adverting  to  his  frequent 
allusion  to  the  mysterious  "Brethren"  (which,  had 
he  remarked  it,  might  very  likely  have  helped  him 
to  find  the  true  solution  he  is  seeking),  he  passes  on  to 
say: 

"Some  writers  have  thought  they  have  perceived  such  an  affinity 
between  the  doctrines  and  phraseology  of  Christianity  and  the 
Kabala  as  to  warrant  the  notion  that  the  latter  had  its  origin 
in  the  former." 

And  in  discussing  this  possibility  he  points  out 
many  analogies  between  the  Kabbala  and  the  leading 
opinions  of  the  Gnostics,  particularly  those  to  be  found 
in  the  "  Codex  Nazaraeus,"  which  has  been  well  called  the 
Bible  of  Gnosticism.  "  And  here,"  he  says,  "  the  simi- 
larity of  the  two  systems  comes  out  in  full  light, 
particularly  when  reading  the  fragments  of  the  teach- 
ings of  the  Gnostics,  which  occur  in  the  writings  of 
the  early  Fathers,  especially  Irenseus,  it  would  be 
possible  to  make  out  the  leading  points  of  the  Kabbala 
itself:  the  depredation  of  natures  at  each  degree  of 
remoteness  from  the  Divine  fountain ;  the  production 
of  actual  things  by  the  Logos ;  the  four  worlds ;  the 
male  and  female  Soul,  and  their  union ;  and  even  the 
symbolism  of  the  numbers  and  letters  of  the  Alphabet, 


THE  ZEND   AVESTA.  119 

all  which  leave  no  doubt  there  was  some  intimate  rela- 
tion between  the  two  theories."  All  this  again  induces 
us  to  express  a  regret  that  he  did  not  pay  more  par- 
ticular attention  to  the  frequent  mention  by  Philo  of  the 
mysterious  "  Brethren,"  to  whom  we  will  call  more 
particular  attention  in  our  section  on  "  The  Theo- 
sophig  Interpretation  of  the  Bible." 

"  What  then  ?  "  exclaims  Etheridge  (in  his  "  Introduction  to 
Hebrew  Literature,"  p.  339).  "  Bid  the  Kabalists  borrow  of  the 
Gnostics  ?  The  truth  is  the  exact  reverse.  But  from  whom  did 
the  Kabalists  borrow  ?  Whence  came  those  metaphysical  dogmas 
which  were  neither  derived  from  the  Greek  philosophy,  either 
of  the  heathen  or  the  Judaso-Alexandrian  schools,  nor  yet  were 
indigenous  to  Palestine,  because  transplanted  thither  ? 

"  To  find  the  true  answer,  we  must  take  a  new  standpoint,  and 
revisit  Babylonia.  In  that  '  land  of  the  children  of  the  East, 
those  very  doctrines,  at  the  time  of  the  Hebrew  captivity,  were 
taking  their  full  development  in  the  teachings  of  Zeraduscht,  or 
Zoroaster,  of  which  we  have  a  valid  representation  in  the  Zend 
Avesta.  This  ancient  record  was  first  brought  to  Europe  by 
M.  Anquetil  du  Perron  in  the  last  century,  when  its  authenticity 
was  subjected  to  a  vigorous  investigation.  At  length  the  personal 
researches  and  vast  erudition  of  the  Banish  philologist,  M.  Eask, 
dispelled  the  last  doubts  of  the  most  sceptical,  and  imprinted  the 
work  with  the  true  seal  of  antiquity.  The  original  is  written  in 
Zend,  a  language  which  bears  a  strong  affinity  to  the  Sanskrit. 
According  to  Sir  William  Jones,  in  ten  Sanscrit  words  seven  are 
Zend." 

"  Zoroaster  flourished  at  the  very  time  of  the  Jews'  captivity  in 
Babylonia,  which  terminated  in  the  first  year  of  Cyrus,  B.C.  530; 
at  which  time,  then  about  forty  years  of  age,  Zoroaster  had  for 
fourteen  years  been  extensively  engaged  in  effecting  those  reforms  in 
the  old  Persian  religion  with  which  his  name  was  thenceforth  to 
be  identified."*     .     .     .     "But  the  influence  of  the  Zoroastrian 

*  Can  Br.  Etheridge  have  read  the  opinions  of  the  other  histo- 
rians we  have  quoted  concerning  the  age  of  Zoroaster  when  he 
makes  this  decided  statement  ? 


120  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

doctrines  was  yet  more  remarkably  unfolded  in  the  metaphysical 
system  which  had  such  a  charm  for  the  learned  Hebrews  who  had 
found  in  the  Persian  dominions  their  abiding  home.  In  the  Rab- 
binical Schools  in  Babylonia,  an  esoteric  teaching  accompanied,  in 
the  case  of  a  select  few,  the  traditional  law  doctrines  which  finally 
embodied  itself  in  the  Talmud."  ..."  Now  in  the  Zend  Avesta 
may  be  found  all  the  great  primordial  principles  of  the  Kabalistic 
theory.  Observe,  we  do  not  speak  of  the  ramified  practice  of  the 
Kabala,  but  of  the  principles  of  its  theory.  Thus,  the  En  Soph 
of  the  Kabala  answers  to  the  Zervanne  Akerene,  '  the  Eternally 
Boundless  One,'  of  the  Zend  Avesta.  The  Magians  apply  the 
epithet  of  Zervanne  Akerene  to  illimitable  space  as  well  as  duration; 
and  one  of  the  names  given  by  the  Kabalists  to  the  Deity  is  that 
of  Makom,  '  Place,'  in  the  same  way.  The  Logos  or  Memra,  as 
the  Targumists  always  designate  him,  is  the  Honofer  or  Ormuzd 
of  the  Zend  Avesta,  which  calls  him  also  expressly  '  the  Son,'  and 
affirms  that  it  was  by  him  the  Zervanne  produced  the  world.  The 
Honofer  is  the  Mediator  between  the  boundless  incomprehensible 
Zervanne  and  finite  being,  and  himself  becomes  more  intelligible 
and  more  clearly  revealed  in  the  character  of  Ormuzd,  who  has 
sometimes  manifested  himself  in  a  human  form  in  a  body  resplen- 
dent as  the  Light,  at  once  Spirit  and  Word ;  and  in  him,  rather 
than  in  the  Zervanne,  the  attributes  which  constitute  absolute  per- 
fection become  knowable  by  the  mind  of  man.  His  throne  is 
light  (compare  the  Merkava),  and  like  •'  the  heavenly  man '  of  the 
Kabala,  he  unites  in  himself  the  true  '  wisdom,'  the  highest 
'  understanding,  greatness,  grace,  beauty,  power,  and  glory,'  and 
is  the  fashioner  and  sustainer  of  all  beings.  What  have  we  here 
but  the  sefiroth  of  the  Kabala  ? 

"  As  in  the  Platonic  so  also  in  the  Kabalistic  system,  all  finite 
being  proceeds  from  a  Divine  idea.  But  this  is  also  the  doctrine 
of  the  Zend  books,  which  give  to  this  archetypal  idea  the  name  of 
Feruer  or  Feroher,  the  Divine  prototypal  conception  of  all  things, 
whether  collectively  or  individually  considered.  In  looking,  too, 
at  the  account  which  Du  Perron  has  given  of  the  psychology  of 
the  Parsees  {Mem,  de  VAeademie  des  Inscriptions,  tome  xxxvii.), 
it  will  be  seen  that  it  answers  to  the  distribution  of  the  elements 
in  the  human  being  adopted  by  the  Kabalists.  In  like  manner 
the  angels  of  the  latter  are  represented  in  the  Dewes  of  the  Per- 
sians ;  and  finally,  even  the  Ahreman,  the  evil  being  of  the  Zmd, 


ORIGIN   OF  THE   KABBALA.  121 

lias  his  reflection  in  the  Samael  of  the  Kabala,  the  personified 
principle  of  darkness  and  evil. 

"  Thus  far,  I  think,  it  appears  plainly  that  the  Kabala  is  not  a 
mere  shadow  of  the  Platonic  philosophy,  either  old  or  new — not  a 
fabrication  of  Philo,  nor  an  imitation  of  Christianity,  but  that  its 
material  was  deduced  out  of  the  theosophic  dor/mas  of  Zoroaster, 
not,  indeed  as  a  servile  copy,  but  as  a  modification,  adapted,  so 
far  as  the  Jews  could  make  it,  to  the  theology  of  Moses  and  the 
prophets. 

"  The  question  now  is,  were  these  wondrous  ideas  the  creations 
of  Zoroaster's  own  fancy,  or  had  he  derived  them  from  another 
source  ?  A  little  further  investigation  will  lead  us  to  conclude 
that  the  truth  lies  on  the  side  of  the  latter  alternative,  and  that, 
at  least,  the  primary  principles  of  his  creed  had  existed  in  more 
remote  times,  and  were  adopted  and  modified  by  the  Persian 
hierophant  in  the  construction  of  the  theosophic  system  which  has 
come  down  to  us  with  the  imprint  of  his  name.  To  see  this  we 
must  do  in  imagination  what  he  did  in  reality, — look  still  towards 
the  East,  and  visit  the  lands  beyond  the  Indus.  We  there  find  a 
people  who,  at  that  time,  had  reached  a  height  of  civilization 
which  had  not  been  surpassed  by  any  of  the  nations  of  antiquity." 
.  .  .  .  "  Waving  all  consideration  of  topics  extraneous  to  the 
question  before  us,  it  will  be  enough  that  we  restrict  ourselves 
here  to  the  sacred  literature  of  the  Indians  as  an  accessible  and 
undoubted  means  of  ascertaining  their  credenda  on  those  points  of 
Theosophy  which  bear  upon  the  matter  we  have  in  hand."  .  .  . 
"  This  is  now  sufficiently  unfolded  to  be  within  the  reach  of  ordi- 
nary students  in  excellent  translations,  in  English,  French,  and 
German."  ..."  The  original  language  in  which  they  are 
embodied  is  the  Sanscrit,  one  of  the  most  ancient  tongues  of  the 
earth,  if  not  the  primeval  one,  and  which,  even  in  the  times  of 
the  authors  of  these  books,  was  taught  in  perfect  grammatical 
forms,  and  had  attained  a  grandeur  and  refinement  but  rarely 
surpassed.  It  was  then,  and  still  is,  the  language  of  religion  and 
science  among  the  Hindoos."     .     .     . 

After  naming  the  Vedas,  the  Upavedas,  and  a  host  of 
the  celebrated  symbolical  Books  of  the  old  Indian 
religion,  Dr.  Etheridge  goes  on  to  observe  (page  347) : 

"  Now,  without  saying  that  all  the  details  of  the  Kabalistic 
theory  are  found  in  these  antique  writings,  we  may  safely  affirm 


122  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

that  the  radical  principles  of  it  are  there  existent  in  their  strongest 
germs.  The  Theosophy  of  the  Indians  may  be  technically  ranged 
under  three  heads :  the  Ni/ai/a,  Mimansa,  and  Vedanta.  The  first 
investigates  the  phenomena  of  mind.  It  has  to  do  with  the  abstract 
metaphysics  of  logic,  and  leads  to  a  theory  of  pure  idealism, — the 
identity  of  being  and  thought.  The  second,  of  which  the  prin- 
cipal sect  or  school  is  the  Sankhya,  recognizes  two  Divine  sub- 
stances, or  rather,  the  one  Divine  substance  in  two  states  ;  the  one 
Punish,  eternally  quiescent ;  and  the  other  Prakriti,  from  which 
has  emanated  the  entire  system  of  nature.  The  third  School,  the 
Vedanta,  opening  the  true,  ultimate,  and  pantheistic  aim  or  end  of 
the  Vtdas,  regards  the  Divine  nature  as  existing  in  two  conditions : 
first,  abstract  essence,  quiescent  in  itself,  and  incomprehensible 
by  us ;  secondly,  a  being  coming  forth  in  a  Divine  activity,  and 
producing  the  Universe.  It  will  be  perceived  that  in  these 
theosophies,  mixed  up,  indeed,  with  a  multitude  of  mythologic 
and  extraneous  elements,  may  be  found  the  root  principles  of  the 
Kabalistic  doctrine. 

"1.  The  recognition  of  a  self-existent  and  eternal  nature, 
undefinable  and  inconceivable ;  to  which  they  give  the  neuter 
appellation  of  Brahm ;  the  Zervan  Akerene  of  Zoraduscht,  and  the 
Unsoph  of  the  Kabala. 

"2.  A  filial  emanation  of  this  infinite  nature,  who  is  as  a  first- 
born son  of  the  Brahm,  and  who  bears  the  name  of  Brahma. 
'From  that  which  is,'  says  Menu,  '  without  beginning  or  end,  was 
produced  the  Divine  man,  famed  in  all  worlds  under  the  appellation 
of  Brahma.'  This  personification  is  equivalent  to  the  Kabalistic 
Memra,  the  Adam  Kadmon,  or  heavenly  Man.  It  may  be 
observed  also,  that  Brahma  is  often  represented  with  a  human 
form. 

"  3.  The  natural  universe  is  produced  by  Brahma.  From  him 
proceeded  'the  heavens  above  and  the  earth  beneath.  In  the 
midst  he  placed  the  subtle  ether,  the  eight  regions,  and  the 
primeval  receptacle  of  waters.'    (MENU.) 

"  4.  Yet  the  natural  Universe  is  considered  to  have  been  self- 
emanative;  a  pantheistic  dogma  which  has  its  counterpart  in  the 
procession  or  development  of  the  Sejiroth  worlds  from  the  First- 
begotten  Son,  who  is  at  once  the  archetype  and  principle  of  all 
finite  being,  and  nevertheless  in  his  own  substance  Divine. 

"5.  A  trinal  distinction  in  the  Divinity,  unfolded  in  the  results 


THE  ALL-ONE.  123 

of  production,  preservation,  and  renovation.  This  trimurti,  or 
Divine  triad,  consists  of  (1.)  Brahma  so  called  from  a  root  which 
signifies  '  to  unfold,  or  expand.'  (2.)  Vishnou,  from  vis  '  to  pene- 
trate or  pervade,'  as  with  sustaining  energy.  (3.)  Siva,  or  Iswara, 
signifying  'powerful.'  He  who  bears  this  latter  name  is  known 
as  the  power  which  will  destroy,  but  will  destroy  only  that  he 
may  renovate.  Siva  is  called  also  Mahadeva.  These  names  of  the 
three  persons  are  abbreviated  in  the  symbolic  books  by  the  letters 
A.  U.  M.,  or  more  commonly  by  the  word  O'M,  a  word  which  the 
Hindu  is  as  reluctant  to  pronounce  audibly,  as  the  Hebrew  is  to 
utter  the  Name  of  four  letters. 

"6.  The  existence  of  an  evil  principle,  occupied  in  counter- 
acting the  benevolent  purposes  of  the  good  one,  in  their  execution 
by  the  Deioata,  or  subordinate  Genii,  to  whom  is  entrusted  the 
control  over  the  various  evolutions  of  nature. 

"  7.  Metempsychosis.  The  Soul,  an  offset  from  the  Deity,  an 
emanation  from  the  Light  of  Lights,  is  destined  ultimately  to 
return  to  its  great  original.  Subjected  to  the  depraving  effects 
of  evil  in  time,  it  is  to  work  out  a  purifying  probation  ;  and  if  it 
fail  in  this  in  one  era  of  probation,  another  and  yet  another  is 
granted  till  the  work  shall  be  complete.  The  new  probation  may 
be  achieved  in  another  human  body,  in  which  case  the  Soul  is  so  ■ 
far  regenerated,  i.e.,  literally  born  again ;  or  the  probation  may 
have  to  be  worked  out  in  the  body  of  a  beast.  This  doctrine 
becomes  with  the  Indians  a  ruling  principle  of  existence,  the  basis 
of  their  life.* 

"  8.  ^The  entire  world  an  emanation  from  the  Deity,  and  there- 
fore of  one  substance.  One  only  has  existed  from  eternity. 
Everything  we  behold,  and  ourselves  too,  are  portions  of  Him. 
The  soul,  mind,  and  intellect  of  men,  and  all  sentient  creatures, 
are  offshoots  from  the  universal  soul,  to  which  it  is  their  fate  to 
return.  '  But  the  mind  of  finite  beings  is  impressed  with  a  series 
of  illusions  which  it  considers  as  real,  till  re-united  with  the  great 
fountain  of  truth.'  Of  these  illusions,  the  most  potent  is  that 
termed  Ahanycar,  or  '  the  feeling  of  individuality.'  By  its  influence 
the  soul,  when  detached  from  its  source,  becomes  ignorant  of  its 
own  nature,  origin,  and  destiny,  and  erroneously  considers  itself 

*  "  See  on  this  point  the  fourth  of  the  '  Lectures  on  History,'  by 
that  learned,  wise,  and  good  man,  Frederic  Von  Schlegel." 


124  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

as  a  separate  existence,  and  no  longer  a  spark  of  the  eternal  fire, 
a  part  of  the  universal  whole,  or  a  link  in  one  unbroken  and  im- 
measurable chain. 

"9.  The  universe  being  of  one  substance,  and  an  emantion 
from  God,  it  follows  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  Matter  in  the 
gross  and  vulgar  sense  of  the  word.  According  to  the  Indian 
Sophists,  matter  has  no  essence  independent  of  mental  perception  ; 
existence  and  perceptibility  are  convertible  terms ;  external  ap- 
pearances and  the  whole  outward  world  are  illusory ;  and  what 
we  take  to  be  the  attributes  of  matter  are,  in  effect,  so  many 
manifestations  of  spirit.  The  substance  we  call  '  matter '  is,  and 
yet  is  not,  eternal:  the  first,  when  considered  in  relation  to  its 
Divine  original ;  and  the  second,  with  regard  to  its  figured  states 
or  phenomenal  developments." 

"  Such  are  the  fundamental  principles  of  the  Indian  philosophy, 
delivered,  with  more  or  less  clearness,  in  the  books  to  which  we 
have  referred.  The  various  Schools  of  the  old  Brahmanic  faith 
do  not  agree  in  all  things,  and  have,  on  some  points,  wide  diver- 
gencies, making  use  even  of  different  names  for  the  same  things 
in  which  they  do  agree;  but,  with  all  these  variations,  they 
substantially  coalesce  in  the  recognition  of  the  doctrine  here  set 
down.  Now,  the  oneness  of  these  principles  with  those  which 
form  the  groundwork  of  the  Kabala  is  too  plain  to  be  denied ; 
and  as  it  is  highly  probable  that  the  Jews  obtained  their  Kaba- 
listic  ideas  from  the  School  of  Zoroaster,  so  is  the  probability 
equally  great  that  he  obtained  them  from  the  Indians. 

"  Though  thus  far,  both  as  to  time  and  region,  we  have  traced 
the  genesis  of  the  Kabala,  we  are  aware  that  the  ultimate  answer 
is  not  achieved.  For  still  the  question  recurs,  From  whom  did 
the  Indians  derive  it  ?  So  remote,  however,  is  the  antiquity 
which  enshrouds  the  origines  of  that  people,  that  it  must  be  con- 
fessed that  no  reply  can  be  given  to  such  a  question  but  what  is 
conjectural.  But  they  who  are  inclined  to  the  investigation  of 
it  would  find  it  reasonable  to  consider  whether,  first,  this  whole 
pantheistic  doctrine,  which  so  early  took  hold  of  the  human 
intellect,  and  still  sways  it  so  widely,*  may  not  have   been  a 

*  As  witness  the  Indian  Brahmaism,  the  Zoroastrian  Ma- 
gianism,  the  Jewish  Kabbalism,  the  Alexandrian  Neo-Platonism, 
the  Scholastic  Mysticism  of  the  Middle  Ages,  and  the  Pantheistic 
Philosophy  of  our  own  time,  which  are  all  the  same  in  principle. 


A  JOURNEY  THROUGH  HEAVEN  AND  HELL.    125 

perversion  of  primaevally  revealed  truth ;  and  whether  the  revela- 
tions made  to  the  patriarchs  of  our  race  were  not  more  ample 
and  rich  than  we  commonly  suppose  ;  whether  they  had  not 
some  knowledge  of  the  trinal  Mystery  of  the  Elohim,  the  Media- 
tion of  the  second  principle  of  the  Trinity  in  creation  and  redemp- 
tion, the  existence  of  Angels  and  of  the  Satanic  foe,  a  future 
and  immortal  life,  and  the  ultimate  felicity  of  the  sanctified  in 
the  eternal  fruition  of  God ;  but  that  their  descendants  were 
faithless  to  these  divinely  spoken  truths,  and  sank  into  the 
abyss  of  heathenish  error.  Compare  here  St.  Paul's  assertion 
(Rom.  i.  21)." 

The  extremely  practical  and  utilitarian  direction  that 
religious  ideas  take  among  the  Persians  is  at  times  re- 
markably  curious.  Not  only  are  there  many  ceremonies 
that  are  simply  hygienic  rules  which,  although  defec- 
tive, have  been  copied  by  the  Jews  in  their  religious 
ceremonial,  but  we  read  even  of  Seers  being  entrusted 
with  the  solution  of  problems  in  Spiritual  Science, 
upon  which  they  had  to  report. 

In  the  first  three  chapters  of  the  Book  of  Arda  Viraf 
it  is  related  how,  when  in  the  sixth  century  of  the 
Christian  Era,  many  new  sects  and  religions  arising, 
the  followers  of  Zoroaster  began  to  entertain  doubts 
about  the  truth  of  their  ancient  faith,  especially  as 
regards  rewards  and  punishments  in  another  life,  that  in 
order  to  solve  these  doubts  finally  and  satisfactorily,  a 
great  council  of  forty  thousand  Magi  was  convened, 
and  from  it  Arda  Viraf,  as  the  wisest  and  most  virtuous, 
was  elected  to  undertake  personally,  and  while  yet  in 
the  body,  a  clairvoyant  expedition  through  Heaven  and 
Hell.  Arda  Viraf  accepted  the  task  and  executed  it  in 
seven  days;  whereupon  he  returned  to  life,  and  dictated 


126  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

his  report  to  a  scribe.  This  report,  which  in  some  parts 
anticipates  Dante's  Divina  Comedia,  forms  the  con- 
tents of  the  Book  of  Arda  Viraf.  * 

Arda  Viraf,  the  purest  of  the  Magian  priests,  describes 
"the  pitiable  state  to  which  the  Soul  of  a  covetous 
money-hoarder  is  reduced  after  death ! "  The  poor 
wretch,  penniless — since  he  could  take  not  a  direin 
with  him — his  heart  buried  with  his  savagely-loved 
treasures,  his  once  pure  nature  corrupted  and  deformed, 
moved  the  Seer  to  profoundest  pity. 

"  I  saw  it,"  says  he,  "  creep  along  in  fear  and  trembling,  and 
presently  a  wind  came  sweeping  along,  loaded  with  the  most 
pestilential  vapours,  even  as  it  were  from  the  boundaries  of  hell. 
.  .  .  In  the  midst  of  this  wind  appeared  a  form  of  the  most 
demoniacal  appearance.  .  .  .  The  terrified  soul  attempts  to 
escape,  but  in  vain;  the  awful,  vengeful  shape  by  voice  and  power 
roots  him  to  the  spot.  He  inquires  in  trembling  accents  whom 
he  may  be,  and  is  answered,  '  I  am  your  genius  [that  is,  his 
spiritual  counterpart  and  now  his  mastering  destiny],  and  have 
become  thus  deformed  by  your  crimes.  Whilst  you  were  inno- 
cent I  was  handsome.  .  .  .  You  have  laid  in  no  provisions 
for  this  long  journey ;  you  were  rich,  but  you  did  no  good  with 
your  riches,  .  .  .  and  not  only  did  no  good  yourself  but 
prevented,  by  your  evil  example,  those  whose  inclinations  led 
them  to  do  good ;  and  you  have  often  mentally  said,  "  When  is 
the  day  of  judgment.  To  me  it  will  never  come  !"  '"  ("  Ardai 
Viraf  Nameh,"  by  Captain  J.  A.  Pope,  p.  56.) 

The  Holy  Fire  with  which  the  Persian  Priest  of  old 
filled  the  Censer  from  the  Sacred  Altar  was,  as  an  act, 
symbolical  of  imparting  to  the  worshippers  the  know- 

*  See  "  The  Book  of  Avda  Viraf."  The  Pahlavi  Text  prepared 
by  Dastur  Hoshangji  Jamaspji  Asa,  with  an  English  Trans- 
lation by  M.  Haug,  assisted  by  E.  W.  West.  Bombay  and 
London.     1872. 


THE   HOLY   FIRE.  127 

ledge  of  Divine  Truth  ;  and  in  the  Gita,  Krishna  in- 
forms Arjun  that  God  is  in  the  fire  of  the  altar.  "  I 
am  the  fire  ;  I  am  the  victim." 

That  Holy  Fire  is  ever  burning  on  the  sacred  altars 
of  Persia ;  it  is  never  rekindled,  for  never  is  it  per- 
mitted to  die  out.  It  is  indeed  no  common  fire  to  be 
rekindled  at  pleasure,  but  would  require  the  flames  of 
a  thousand  different  fires  to  be  collected  from  every 
imaginable  source,  to  gather  only  the  quintessence,  as 
it  were,  of  their  separate  flames —  and  why  so  ? 

"  Because,"  as  we  read  in  "  The  Spirit  of  the  Zoroastrian  Reli- 
gion,''1 "this  spiritual  element  of  Fire  pervades  all  nature,  is  its 
life  and  soul,  is  the  cause  of  the  motion  of  its  molecules,  which 
produces  the  phenomenon  of  physical  heat.  And  the  fires  from 
all  these  thousand  hearths  are  collected,  like  so  many  fragments 
of  the  universal  life,  into  one  sacrificial  blaze  which  shall  be  as 
perfectly  as  possible  the  complete  and  collective  type  of  the  light 
of  Ormazd.  See,  the  priest  takes  not  the  crude  coals  from  the 
various  hearths,  and  furnaces,  and  pits ;  but  at  each  flame  he 
lights  a  bit  of  sulphur,  a  ball  of  cotton,  or  some  other  inflam- 
mable substance ;  from  this  secondary  blaze  he  ignites  a  second 
quantity  of  fuel ;  from  this  a  third,  from  the  third  a  fourth,  and 
so  on ;  taking  in  some  cases  a  ninth,  in  others  a  twentieth  flame, 
until  the  first  grossness  of  the  defilement  of  the  fire  in  the  base 
use  to  which  it  was  put  has  been  purged,  and  only  the  purest 
essence  remains.  Then  only  is  it  fit  to  be  placed  upon  the  altar 
of  Ormazd ;  and  even  then  the  flame  is  not  ready  to  be  the  type 
of  that  eternal  brightness:  it  is  as  yet  but  a  body  of  earthly  flame, 
a  body  which  lacks  its  noblest  soul.  .  .  .  Upon  a  stone  block 
the  dried  sandlewood  is  laid.  Four  priests  stand  at  the  four 
cardinal  points.  The  Gathas  are  intoned,  the  priests  bow  their 
faces  in  reverential  awe  ;  the  Dastur  raises  his  eyes  to  heaven, 
he  recites  the  mystical  words  of  power :  lo  !  the  fire  from  the 
upper  world  of  space  descends,  and  with  its  silvery  tongues  laps 
round  the  fragrant  wood,  which  bursts  into  a  blaze.  This  is  the 
missing  spirit  evoked  by  the  adept  Prometheus.      When  this  is 


128  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOrHY. 

added  to  the  thousand  other  dancing  flames,  the  symbol  is  per- 
fected, and  the  face  of  Ormazd  shines  before  his  worshippers. 
Lighted  thus  at  Sanjiiu,  that  historic  fire  has  been  kept  alive  for 
more  than  seven  hundred  years,  and  until  another  Darah  appears 
among  you  to  draw  the  flames  of  the  ambient  ether  upon  your 
altar,  let  it  be  fed  continuously.  .  .  .  This  ancient  art  of 
drawing  fire  from  heaven  was  taught  in  the  Samothracian  and 
Kabiric  mysteries.  Numa,  who  introduced  the  vestal  mysteries 
into  Rome,  thus  kindled  a  fire  which  was  under  the  care  of  con- 
secrated Vestal  Virgins,  whose  duty  it  was,  under  penalty  of 
death  for  neglect,  to  constantly  maintain  it.  It  was,  as  Schweigger 
shows,  the  Hermes  fire,  the  Elmes  fire  of  the  ancient  Germans ; 
the  lightning  of  Cybele  ;  the  torch  of  Apollo  ;  the  fire  of  Pan's 
altar  ;  the  fire-flame  of  Pluto's  helm  ;  the  inextinguishable  fire  in 
the  temple  of  the  Grecian  Athene  on  the  Acropolis  of  Athens ; 
and  the  mystical  fires  of  many  different  worships  and  symbols. 
This  occult  science  was  shared  by  the  initiates  of  the  Sacred 
Science  all  over  the  ancient  world.  The  knowledge  was  first 
gained  in  Chaldea,  and  was  thence  spread  through  Greece  to  more 
Western  and  Northern  countries." — (From  H.  Olcott's  "  Address 
to  the  Parsis.") 

The  Parsis  face  the  fire  as  they  do  the  sun  and  the 

sea,  picturing  in  them  to  themselves  the  Hidden  Light 

of  Lights,  Source  of  all  Life,  to  which  they  give  the 

name  of  Ormazd.     This  is  "beautifully  expressed  in  the 

writings   of  Eobert  Fludd,  the  English  mystic  of  the 

17th   century.     (See   Hargreave  Jennings,    The   Rosi- 

crucians,  p.  69,  et  seq.) 

"  Regard  Fire,  then,  with  other  eyes  than  with  those  soulless, 
incurious  ones  with  which  thou  hast  looked  upon  it  as  the  most 
ordinary  thing.  Thou  hast  forgotten  what  it  is — or  rather  thou 
hast  never  known.  Chemists  are  silent  about  it,  or  speak  fearfully 
of  it  in  whispers.  .  .  Philosophers  talk  of  it  as  anatomists  dis- 
course of  the  human  body,  saying :  It  is  made  for  man  and  this 
world,  and  it  is  greatly  like  him — that  is,  mean,  they  would  add, 
and  they  do  think  it,  if  they  dare  add  their  thinkings.  But  is  this 
all  ?      Is  this  the  sum  of  that  casketed  lamp  of  the  human  body, 


THE  FIRE  ELEMENT.  129 

thine  own  body,  thou  unthinking  world's  machine— thou  man  ? 
Or,  in  the  fabric  of  this  clay  lamp"  [what  a  beautiful  simile!] 
"  burneth  there  not  a  light  ?  Describe  that,  ye  doctors  of  physics  ! 
.  .  .  Touch  at  its  heart,  ye  dissectors  of  fibres  and  of  valves, 
of  sinews  and  muscles  .  .  as  with  steel  tools  ye  gather  round 
this  '  Tree '  (human  though  it  be)  to  wind  into  the  innermost 
secret  of  it.  Cyclops — one-eyed  and  savage — break  into  meaning 
this  portent  Man  on  your  science  wheels  !  Note  the  goings  of  the 
Fire.  .  .  Think  that  this  thing  is  bound  up  in  matter  chains. 
Think  that  He  is  outside  of  all  things,  and  deep  in  the  inside  of 
all  things;  and  that  thou  and  thy  world  are  only  the  thing  between  ; 
and  that  outside  and  inside  are  both  identical,  couldst  thou  under- 
stand the  supernatural  truths  !  Reverence  Fire  (for  its  meaning), 
and  tremble  at  it ;  though  in  the  earth  it  be  chained,  and  the  foot 
of  the  archangel  Michael— like  upon  the  Dragon— be  upon  it ! 
Avert  the  face  from  it,  as  the  Magi  turned,  dreading,  and  (as  the 
symbol)  before  it  bowed  askance.  So  much  for  this  great  thing 
Fire.  .  .  .  Observe  the  multiform  shapes  of  Fire— the  spires, 
the  cascades,  and  the  mighty  falls  of  it,  where  the  roar,  as  it  grows 
high  in  imperial  masterdom,  is  as  that  of  Niagara.  Think  what 
it  can  do,  what  it  is.  Watch  the  trail  of  sparks  struck,  as  in  that 
spouting  arch  from  the  metal  shoes  of  the  trampling  horse.  It  is 
as  a  letter  of  the  great  alphabet.  The  familiar  London  streets, 
even,  can  give  thee  the  Persian's  God  :  though  in  thy  pleasures, 
and  in  thy  commerce  operations,  thou  so  often  forgettest  thine 
own  God. 

"Wonder  no  longer  then,  if  the  ancient  Persians  and  their 
masters  the  Magi— concluding  that  they  saw  '  all '  in  this  super- 
naturally  magnificent  element  — fell  down  and  worshipped  it, 
making  of  it  the  visible  representation  of  the  very  truest,  but  yet 
in  man's  speculation,  and  in  his  philosophies— nay,  in  his  com- 
monest reason— impossible  God:  God  being  everywhere,  and  in 
us,  and  indeed  us,  in  the  God-lighted  man ;  and  impossible  to  be 
contemplated  or  known  outside — being  All !  " 

No  religion  has  profounder  or  deeper  spiritual  truths 
than  the  Parsi.  Ahul  Pharaj,  in  the  "Book  of 
Dynasties"  (p.  54),  states  that  "Zarathusht  taught 
the  Persians  the  manifestation  of  Wisdom  (the  Lord's 

K 


130  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

anointed  Son,  or  Logos,  the  Persian  "Honover"). 
This  is  the  living  manifested  Word  of  Deific  Wisdom. 
He  also  predicted  that "  a  Virgin  would  conceive  immacu- 
lately, and  that  at  the  birth  of  that  future  messenger 
a  six-pointed  star  would  appear,  and  shine  at  noonday. 
In  its  centre  would  appear  the  figure  of  a  Virgin." 
Accordingly  we  read  in  the  Gospels  of  the  visit  of 
the  Magi,  or  wise  men  of  the  East,  who  followed 
the  star  they  had  seen,  and  which  led  them  to  where 
the  young  Child  lay  in  a  manger.  This  six-pointed 
star  is  the  dnal  emblem  of  the  Macrocosm  and 
Microcosm,  the  symbolical  one  of  the  Kabbala,  and  is 
represented  on  the  cover  of  this  Book.  The  Logos 
or  Saviour,  to  be  born,  means  the  secret  knowledge 
or  science  which  reveals  the  "  Wisdom  of  God." 

We  read  that  Zarathusht  was  one  of  the  first 
reformers  who  taught  to  the  people  a  portion  of 
that  which  he  had  learned  at  his  initiation,  viz., 
the  six  periods  or  Gdhambdrs  in  the  successive 
evolution  of  the  world.  The  first  is  Midyuzeram, 
that  in  which  the  heavenly  canopy  was  formed; 
the  second,  Mid-yirshdn,  in  which  the  collected 
moisture  formed  the  steamy  clouds  from  which 
the  waters  were  finally  precipitated ;  the  third,  Piti- 
shahim,  when  the  earth  becomes  consolidated  out  of 
primeval  cosmic  atoms ;  the  fourth,  Iyaseram,  in 
which  earth  gave  birth  to  vegetation ;  the  fifth, 
Midiyarim,  when  the  latter  slowly  evoluted  into 
animal  life ;  the  sixth,  Ham-espita-midam,  when 
the    lower   animals    culminated    in  man;    the  seventh 


THE   ADVENT   OF   THE  NEW   DISPENSATION.         131 

period— to  come  at  the  end  of  a  certain  cycle — is 
prefigured  by  the  promised  coming  of  the  Persian 
Messiah,  seated  on  a  horse ;  when  the  sun  of  our  Solar 
System  will  be  extinguished  and  the  Pralaya  will 
begin.  In  the  Christian  Apocalypse  of  St.  John,  the 
Persian  symbolical  prophecy  is  almost  repeated,  and  the 
Aryan  Hindu  also  awaits  the  coming  of  his  Kalanki 
Avatar,  when  the  Celestial  White  Horse  will  come  in 
the  Heavens  with  Vishnu,  his  glorious  Rider.  Thus 
we  see  the  horses  of  the  Sun  figure  in  all  religions. 

According  to  the  secret  doctrine  of  "The  Law  of 
Correspondences"  the  horse  signifies  the  understanding 
of  the  Word  of  (rod,  and  a  white  horse  the  understand- 
ing of  the  Word  with  respect  to  Truth  and  Good.  To 
ride  signifies  to  instruct,  and  to  disseminate  instruction. 
Thus  all  Religious  point  to  a  coming  time  when  the 
understanding  of  man  shall  be  opened  to  receive  and 
comprehend  Divine  Truths  which  will  then  be  forth- 
coming. Nay,  do  we  not  already  see  the  horses  of 
the  chariot  of  the  Sun,  and  the  Aurora,  or  bright 
dawn  of  the  New  Day,  swiftly  approaching?  Does 
not  all  that  is  passing  around  us  in  the  present, 
seem  to  point  to  the  fact  that  this  time  has  arrived  ? 
The  Time  for  making  known:  "When  men  shall  run 
to  and  fro,  and  knowledge  shall  be  increased."  We  see 
the  Esoteric  Truths,  "  kept  secret  from  the  beginning? 
are  now  openly  published,  and  can  be  studied  by  those 
who  show  they  are  ready  to  receive  them  by  their  eager 
inquiry  after  them. 

And  is  not  this  the  real  meaning  of  the  descent  of 


132  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Divine  Wisdom  described  in  the  twelfth  chapter  of  the 
Apocalypse,  immediately  after  the  Eider  on  the  White 
Horse,  as  "  The  Bride  from  Heaven,"  "  The  Woman 
clothed  with  the  Sun,"  therefore  robed  in  heavenly 
Light ;  "great  with  child,"  i.e.,  pregnant  with  "  Divine 
Truth  "  or  the  Knowledge  of  (rod,  thus  containing  in 
herself  all  that  Grod  sends  in  the  New  Dispensation  to 
enlighten  and  regenerate  His  people  ? 

Great  events  on  the  outer  and  material  plane  ever 
accompany  those  which  occur  on  the  interior  and 
spiritual,  no  doubt  as  a  natural  consequence,  causes 
ever  working  outwards  into  material  effects,  and  Uses  ; 
and  thus  has  it  been  with  the  advent  of  the  New  Dis- 
pensation, which  many  believe  to  have  commenced  in 
1882,*  and  which  truly  may  be  called  that  of  "  Our  Lady 
OF  Light,"  for,  besides  all  the  spiritual  signs  accom- 
panying its  dawn,  so  clearly  seen  by  the  watchers  on 
the  topmost  towers  and  on  the  high  hills,  it  was  ushered 
in  on  the  material  plane  with  great  International  Exhi- 
bitions, or  "World-Shows"  of  Electric  Light,  in  London, 
Paris,  and  Vienna,  announced  to  the  four  quarters  of 
the  earth  by  Electric  wires  and  Telephones. 

*  The  year  1881  was  shown  to  be  the  last  of  the  Old  Dispensa- 
tion by  many  prophecies  fulfilled  at  that  time,  and  particularly 
by  the  testimony  of  the  Great  Pyramid,  that  "  Pillar  of  witness  to 
the  Lord  on  the  borders  of  the  Land  of  Egypt "  (Isaiah  xix.  19), 
whose  grand  gallery  (followed  by  the  extremely  difficult,  low  and 
narrow  entrance  passage  into  the  King's  Chamber!)  terminates 
exactly  at  the  number  1881-2.  The  fractional  2  is  supposed  to 
indicate  the  first  two  months  of  the  following  year.  This  very 
narrow  and  difficult  passage  is  said  to  point  to  a  short  time  of 
great  trouble  on  earth  previous  to  entering  on  a  very  happy  one. 


DRUIDICAL   REMAINS.  133 

THEOSOPHY   OF   THE   DRUIDS. 

A  system  nearer  home,  in  many  respects  similar  to 
that  of  the  Magi,  and  evidently  also  of  Oriental 
origin,  is  the  Theosophy  of  the  Druids,  which,  how- 
ever, has  survived  only  in  a  few  literary  remains. 

We  are  taught  that  the  Druidical  institution  of  Britain 
was  Pythagorean  or  Brahmin ical.  It  is  beyond  a  doubt 
that  the  Druids  were  of  the  Oriental  family,  but  at  what 
date  they  established  themselves  in  the  "lonely  isles 
amid  the  ocean "  no  historian  can  record.  They 
brought  with  them  the  Oriental  doctrine  of  re-incarna- 
tion or  a  plurality  of  lives,  still  firmly  held  in  many 
parts  of  France,  particularly  in  Brittany,  which  is 
thickly  studded  with  very  grand  and  interesting  remains 
of  Druidical  worship.  Indeed,  we  can  judge  of  the 
ancient  Druids  simply  by  the  solemn  and  stately 
traces  left  standing  of  them,  surviving  in  their  majestic 
and  lonely  grandeur  through  the  ages  of  civilization. 
Among  the  most  remarkable  are  the  "  bowing  stones  " 
in  Wales,  which  were  evidently  oracular,  and  bowed  or 
trembled  in  response,  when  sought  for  divine  purposes, 
like  the  tables  of  modern  (so-called)  Spiritualists;  the 
wierd  and  stately  remains  in  the  Islands  of  Orkney, 
and  those  frowning  monuments  still  standing  in  solemn 
grandeur  on  the  plains  of  Salisbury. 

While  gazing  in  silent  awe  and  wonder  on  these 
mysterious  records  of  the  worship  of  the  ancient  Druids, 
as  a  remnant  of  the  long  ago  and  past  away  ages,  very 
few  have  any  idea  that  this  worship  is  still  lasting  on, 


134  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

and  that,  in  France  particularly,  they  may  be  gazing 
upon  them  in  company  with  Druids  of  the  present ; 
but  such  is  undoubtedly  the  case,  and  not  only  in 
Brittany  where  the  Druids  were  so  powerful,  but  also 
in  other  provinces  of  France,  and  in  some  parts  of 
Wales,  they  still  celebrate  their  rites,  and  continue  their 
ancient  worship,  not  openly  of  course,  but  in  the  solemn 
silence  of  the  night ;  and  shrouded  by  the  friendly 
shelter  and  companionship  of  the  old  trees  in  the  dark 
woods,  do  they  still  hold  their  mystic  meetings. 

We  learn  from  an  inhabitant  of  Charolles,  a  lady  of 
great  personal  integrity  and  high  mental  culture,  that 
in  the  Bourgogne  department  of  Saone  et  Loire  there 
still  exist  some  adepts  of  the  Druidical  faith,  which 
as  a  fervent  Catholic  she  sadly  deplores  ;  although  she 
says  that  they  lead  exemplary  lives,  and  carefully  con- 
ceal their  rites  from  those  they  look  upon  as  profane, 
making  no  propaganda,  but  contenting  themselves  with 
transmitting  their  ancient  faith  from  father  to  son.  All 
that  can  be  discovered  of  them  is  that  they  assemble 
together  in  the  depths  of  the  forests  to  perform  their 
religious  rites  on  certain  nights  in  the  year,  generally 
at  the  full  of  the  moon,  choosing  always  the  highest 
ground.  They  are  then  robed  in  white,  and  crowned 
with  leaves,  which  they  gather  with  the  mistletoe  from 
the  old  oak  trees.  In  a  standing  posture,  and  with 
their  hands  and  eyes  lifted  solemnly  to  heaven,  they 
give  themselves  up  to  prayer.  They  rarely  meet  twice 
running  at  the  same  spot,  thus  endeavouring  to  avoid 
discovery.     They  are  called  "  Les  Adeptes  de  la  Reli- 


KNOWLEDGE  OF   RE-IXCAENATION.  135 

gion  Blanche,"  probably  on  account  of  their  long  white 
robes.  Those  who  belong  to  this  faith  never  assist  at 
the  ceremonies  of  the  Catholic  Church,  and  it  is  through 
their  absence,  and  at  the  same  time  through  their 
profound  respect  for  all  religious  beliefs,  which  distin- 
guishes them  from  freethinkers,  that  they  are  at  last 
discovered.  They  are  generally  from  the  peasant  class, 
though  there  are  exceptions.  What  is  known  of  their 
midnight  meetings  and  of  their  mysterious  rites  is 
through  the  observations  of  poachers,  and  of  other 
solitary  wanderers  who  have  come  upon  them  by  acci- 
dent in  the  midst  of  their  solemn  assemblies,  and 
observed  them  from  some  concealment ;  these,  however, 
confess  to  a  superstitious  fear  which  they  say  overcomes 
them,  and  which  generally  obliges  them  to  hasten  away 
with  stealthy  tread  rather  than  stay  to  watch  their 
proceedings ;  "  Les  Hommes  de  la  Religion  Blanche  " 
being  looked  upon  as  sorcerers,  although  they  are  ever 
the  most  quiet  and  honest  of  men.  So  strong  is  their 
belief  in  the  re-incarnation  of  the  Soul  that  they  will 
lend  money  to  be  repaid  with  moderate  interest  on  their 
resurrection.  Like  their  ancestors,  they  are  physicians 
or  medicine  men,  and  also  astronomers. 

Before  the  establishment  of  Christianity,  the  civilised 
Celtic  nations  had  their  Theosophy,  of  which  the  Druids 
were  the  depositaries.  They  forbade  any  communica- 
tion of  their  mysteries  by  writing,  and  it  was  only  when 
the  Druids  were  virtually  extinct,  as  a  Hierarchy,  that 
Initiates  of  that  order  dared  to  transgress  their  com- 
mandments, and  commit  their  knowledge  to  writing. 


136  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

But  while  the  Druids  were  Druids,  the  Bards  were 
compelled  to  entrust  their  knowledge  to  memory, 
which,  by  constant  use,  they  cultivated  to  a  marvellous 
degree,  and  the  faculty  of  memory  and  music  seems  to 
have  transmitted  itself  hereditarily  to  their  present 
descendants— the  Welsh. 

For  mnemonic  convenience,  as  also  for  Theosophic 
reasons,  the  Bards  preferred  to  preserve  their  highest 
truths  in  Triads,  of  which  we  give  a  few  quotations. 


"1.  There  are  three  primeval  Unities,  and  more  than  one  of 
each  cannot  exist :  one  God  ;  one  truth ;  and  one  point  of  liberty, 
and  this  is  where  all  opposites  equiponderate. 

"  2.  Three  things  proceed  from  the  three  primeval  Unities  :  all 
life  ;  all  goodness ;  all  power. 

"  3.  God  consists  necessarily  of  three  things :  the  greatest  in 
respect  of  life;  the  greatest  in  respect  of  knowledge;  and  the 
greatest  in  respect  of  power ;  and  there  can  only  be  one  of  what  is 
greatest  in  anything. 

"  4.  Three  things  it  is  impossible  God  should  not  be  :  whatever 
perfect  goodness  ought  to  be ;  whatever  perfect  goodness  would 
desire  to  be  ;  and  whatever  perfect  goodness  can  be. 

"  5.  The  three  witnesses  of  God  in  respect  of  what  lie  has  done, 
and  will  do  :  infinite  power  ;  infinite  knowledge  ;  and  infinite  love  ; 
for  there  is  nothing  that  these  cannot  perform,  do  not  know,  and 
will  not  bring  to  pass. 

"  6.  The  three  ultimate  ends  of  God's  regulation  in  giving  exist- 
ence to  everything  :  to  weaken  the  evil ;  to  strengthen  the  good  ; 
and  to.  manifest  all  discrimination,  that  what  ought  to  be  might  be 
known  from  what  ought  not  to  be. 

"  7.  Three  things  which  God  cannot  but  perform  :  what  is 
most  useful ;  what  is  most  necessary  ;  and  what  is  most  beautiful  of 
all  things. 

"  8.  The  three  stabilities  of  existence :  what  cannot  be  other- 
wise ;  what  need  not  be  otherwise  ;  and  what  cannot  be  conceived 
better ;  and  in  these  will  all  things  end. 


DRUID    TRIADS.  137 

"9.  Three  things  will  necessarily  exist:  the  supreme  power; 
the  supreme  intelligence  ;   and  the  supreme  love  of  God. 

"  10.  The  three  characteristics  of  God  :  complete  life ;  complete 
knowledge  ;  and  complete  power. 

"11.  The  three  causes  of  living  beings:  the  love  of  God  in 
accord  with  the  most  perfect  intelligence ;  the  understanding  of 
God  knowing  all  possible  means ;  and  the  power  of  God  in  accord 
with  supreme  will,  love,  and  intelligence. 

"  12.  There  are  three  Circles  of  existence  :  the  circle  of  Ceugant, 
where  there  is  nothing  but  God,  of  either  living  or  dead,  and  none 
but  God  can  traverse  it ;  the  Circle  of  Abred,  where  all  things  are 
by  nature  derived  from  death,  and  man  has  traversed  it ;  and  the 
Circle  of  Gwynvyd,  where  all  things  spring  from  life,  and  man  shall 
traverse  it  in  heaven. 

"  13.  The  three  states  of  existence  of  living  beings :  the  state 
of  Abred  in  Annwn  ;  the  state  of  liberty  in  humanity  ;  and  the 
state  of  love,  that  is,  Gwynvyd  in  heaven. 

"  14.  The  three  necessities  of  all  animated  existences :  a 
beginning  in  Annwn*  ;  progression  in  Abred ;  and  plenitude  in 
heaven,  that  is,  the  circle  of  Gwynvyd  :  without  these  three  things 
nothing  can  exist  but  God.   etc.,  etc.,  etc." 

BARDIC    APHORISMS. 

"  Thus  says  the  Bard  : — 

"  There  is  no  advantage  but  what  can  in  no  way  be  dispensed 
with,  that  is,  God ; 

"  There  is  no  want  but  the  want  of  God  ; 

There  is  no  enjoyment  but  the  enjoyment  of  God; 

There  is  no  loss  but  the  loss  of  God; 

There  is  no  sufficiency  but  God  ; 

There  is  nothing  immeasurable  but  God  ; 

There  is  nothing  knowing  but  God  ; 

There  is  nothing  in  every  place  but  God ; 

There  is  nothing  powerful  but  God  ; 

There  is  nothing  in  everything  but  God  ; 

There  is  no  whole  but  God  ; 

There  is  no  God  but  what  is  whole." 

*  The  Mystic  Hell,  which  everyone  must  pass  through  once 
before  he  attains  to  Nirvana.     "  Annwn  is  visited  but  once." 


138  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

The  following  is  the  Druidic  conception  of  the  Circles 
or  Spheres  of  Existence  : — 

"  The  Circle  (or  Sphere)  of  Abred,  in  which  are  all  corporal  and 
dead  existences. 

"  The  Circle  (or  Sphere)  of  Gwynvyd,  in  which  are  all  animated 
and  immortal  beings. 

"  The  Circle  (or  Sphere)  of  Ceugant,  where  there  is  only  God." 

The  Druidic  ideas  of  existence  are,  in  some  respects, 
also  extremely  similar  to  those  of  the  Buddhists.  If 
we  call  Abred  in  Annwn,  Avitchi ;  Grwynvyd,  Devachan ; 
and  Ceugant,  Nirvana ;  we  have  the  same  ideas  only 
under  other  names. 

Both  systems  aim  at  liberation  from  the  circle  of 
inchoation,  transmigration,  and  their  consequent  enslave- 
ments ;  and  although  some  Buddhists  would  make  out 
Avitchi  to  be  quite  an  orthodox  Hell,  the  Evil,  mys- 
tically pourtrayed  by  the  terms  of  Abred  and  Avitchi, 
is  but  enslavement  to  ignorance,  and  the  moment  we 
arrive  at  the  state  of  liberation  we  are  also  freed  from 
the  mystic  Hell,  in  which,  until  that  moment  we  had 
to  abide. 

Those  who  desire  to  study  the  Theosophy  of  the 
Druids,  should  commence  with  "  Le  Mystere  des  Bardes, 
par  Adolphe  Pictet,"  and  "  Barddas "  translated  by 
I.  Williams  ab  Ithel.*  There  are  many  traits  of  simi- 
larity between  the  Druid,  the  Egyptian,  Brahmin,  and 

*  The  reader  is  also  referred  to  Toland's  History  of  the  Druids, 
and  to  an  important  book  published  in  London,  in  1829,  by  Sir 
Godfrey  Higgins,  "  The  Celtic  Druids ;  or,  An  Attempt  to  show 
the  Druids  were  the  Priests  of  Oriental  Colonies." 


THE   PRE-HISTORIC  WISDOM-RELIGION.  139 

Magian  systems.  These  systems  are  also  good  illus- 
trations of  the  national  or  ethnic  conservative 
Theosophies. 

The  question  naturally  occurs  to  us,  that,  since 
there  are  such  points  of  agreement  between  the  system 
of  the  Druids  and  that  system  of  Buddhism,  pre- 
sumably originating  with  Siddartha,  may  we  not 
suppose  that  a  pre-historic  Wisdom-Keligion,  anterior 
to  Siddartha,  may  have  existed  still  more  similar,  or 
possibly  identical,  with  Druid  Theosophy  ? 

When  National  Theosophies  show  that  such  unity 
of  Mystic  Doctrines  have  existed,  their  derivation  from 
a  primitive  Universal  Theosophy  may  be  reasonably 
deduced.  Everything  points  to  some  great  system  lost, 
for  centuries  if  not  millenniums,  and  only  dimly  trace- 
able in  Mystic  Myths.  These  Occult  Allegories  should 
be  considered  as  the  historical  or  traditional  source  of 
succeeding  Theosophies.  A  tradition  of  an  Archaic 
Wisdom-Religion  is  possible,  but  "  to  know  what  they 
knew  "  requires  the  life  and  study  of  an  Adept.  Indi- 
vidual aspiration  is  ever  necessary  in  order  to  become 
united  with  the  ubiquitous  ever-accessible  Divine 
Thought,  which  is  the  Mystic  source  of  Theosophy. 
Tradition  is  merely  the  ground  for  the  Divine  seed  of 
Mystic  Experience,  and  individual  Gnosis  alone  is  that 
which  reveals  the  Truth  of  Truths — the  Absolute,  to 
every  Living  Soul. 


140 


CHAPTER  VI. 

ORIENTAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Part  II. 

BUDDHIST   THEOSOPHY. 

V T7"E  will  now  attempt  to  carry  our  enquiries  into 
'  *  the  Buddhist  System  of  Theosophy 
The  pre-historic  Universal  Theosophy  has  left  no  other 
vestiges  than  colossal  stone  monuments  and  Hermetic 
Myths.  If  that  system  was  a  Wisdom-Religion  which 
inculcated  an  individual  knowledge  of  God,  it  appar- 
ently taught  Theosophy  only  to  Initiates,  whom  it 
united  into  a  vast  universal  Brotherhood,  but  the  masses 
were  probably  left  to  idolatry,  as  the  stone  monuments 
would  indicate.  It  was  with  this  as  with  every  pagan 
Hierarchy:  God  for  the  few  and  the  outward  Hiero- 
glyph, the  Demon,  or  "letter  that  killeth,"  for  the 
many. 

The  Hierocracy,  as  we  can  trace  in  all  religions 
of  antiquity,  especially  in  the  national  systems, 
made  of  God  a  Great  Arcanum,  and  of  Theosophy  a 
Monopoly.  When  spiritual  chiefs  of  nations,  as  for 
instance,  Moses,  Manu,  Zoroaster,  revolted  against  one 
Hierarchical  system,  they  ever  ended  by  producing 
another  to  favour  their  own  tribe. 

The  Hierarchies  remained  practically  unshaken,  until 
in  the  fifth  Century  anterior  to  the  Christian  Era  a 
great  influx  occurred  which  inaugurated  a  new 
Spiritual  Dispensation. 


BUDDHIST  THEOSOPHY.  141 

In  that  Century  Pythagoras  struck  a  chord  that  was 
subsequently  re-echoed  by  Plato  and  the  Alexandrian 
Theosophists,  and  which  has  ever  since  reverberated 
in  the  Souls  of  men.  In  that  Century,  and  nearly 
contemporaneously,  Lao  -  Tse,  Confucius,  Zoroaster, 
Daniel,  Ezekiel,  Jeremiah,  Habbakuk,  Anaximander, 
Heraclitos,  Xenophanes,  taught  their  various  esoteric 
doctrines ;  and  it  was  in  that  cycle  also  that  the  people 
of  India  saw  a  Great  Light,  and  that  Light  was  the 
Manifestation  of  the  Absolute  through  Gotama  Buddha. 
The  teachers  who,  contemporaneously  with  Gotama 
Buddha,  taught  their  respective  Theosophies,  were  only 
National  Teachers,  and  never  attempted  to  become 
Catholic  or  World-Teachers.  It  was  Gotama  who 
attempted  the  promulgation  of  the  first  Catholic  System 
of  Theosophy  historically  known.  A  System  of  mental 
emancipation,  accepting  all  beings  alike,  without 
regard  to  race  or  caste,  and  so  totally  opposed  to  the 
craft  of  bigoted  mystery-mongers,  that  whoever  has 
once  mastered  its  principles  cannot  possibly  forsake 
them  for  those  of  a  more  limited  and  more  selfish  creed. 

It  was  Buddhism   that   made    the   first  attempt  at 

a  universal  promulgation  of  Theosophy,  and  we  find 

even  now  that  Buddhism  stands  foremost  numerically 

if  not  esoterically  among  all  other  Systems. 

"  As  the  sun  shines  for  all  the  world,  for  the  good  as  well  as 
for  the  bad,  for  that  which  is  exalted  as  for  that  which  is  low, 
for  the  sweetly  odorous  as  for  that  which  smelleth  foully,  its  rajs 
falling-  equally  and  not  unequally,  thus  fell  also  the  rays  of  his 
divine  intelligence,  endowed  with  the  knowledge  of  omniscience."* 

*   Cf.  Lotos  of  the  Good  Law,  Chapter  V. 


142  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

Even  before  Christ  Jesus  came  and  said  :  "  Come  unto 
me  all  ye  that  labour  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will 
give  you  rest"  (Mat.  xi.  v.  28),  there  was  already  a 
Christ  teaching  the  ultimate  Salvation  of  every  human 
being.  His  grain  fell  not  on  barren  ground  ;  a  truly 
Catholic  spirit  prevailed  in  Buddhism  that  Christianity 
could  only  continue,  but  scarcely  surpass. 

"  The  missionary  spirit  displayed  by  Buddhism  distinguishes  it 
from  all  other  religions  which  preceded  Christianity.  The  religion 
of  Confucius  never  attempted  to  make  converts  outside  of  China. 
Brahmanism  never  went  beyond  India.  The  system  of  Zoroaster 
was  a  Persian  religion ;  that  of  Egypt  was  confined  to  the  Valley 
of  the  Nile ;  that  of  Greece  to  the  Hellenic  race.  But  Buddhism 
was  inflamed  with  the  desire  of  bringing  all  mankind  to  a  know- 
ledge of  its  truths. 

"  Its  ardent  and  successful  missionaries  converted  multitudes 
in  Nepaul,  Tibet,  Birmah,  Ceylon,  China,  Siam,  Japan,  and  in  all 
these  states  its  monasteries  are  to-day  the  chief  sources  of  know- 
ledge and  centres  of  instruction  to  the  people.  It  is  idle  to  class 
such  a  religion  as  this  with  the  superstitions  which  debase  man- 
kind. Its  power  lay  in  the  strength  of  conviction  which  inspired 
its  teachers ;  and  that,  again,  must  have  come  from  the  sight  of 
truth,  not  the  belief  in  error  "  (Ten  Great  Religions,  p.  153,  J.  F. 
Clarke). 

The  story  of  the  life  of  Siddartha  Sakyamuni,  or 

Gotama  the  Buddha,  as  he  is  commonly  called,  being 

now  as  well  known  as  the  accounts  given  of  the  life  of 

Jesus,  demands  no  special  comment  from  us.*    It  is  the 

Theosophy  we  shall  attempt  to  deal  with.    A  Theosophy 

that,  on  account   of  its  totally  anti-anthropomorphic 

conception  of  the  Divine  Being,  is  accused  of  having  no 

God.     In  Buddhism  God  is  not  a  reflection  of  Man, 

*  We  desire,  however,  to  offer  the  tribute  of  our  sincere 
admiration  of  the  Life  of  Buddha  as  given  in  that  exquisite  poem, 
"  The  Light  of  Asia,"  by  Mr.  Edwin  Arnold. 


KARMA.  143 

but  God  Himself,  an  Absolute  Being  not  to  be  des- 
cribed by  man  in  his  similitude,  but  a  supreme  state 
of  existence  only  to  be  known  by  experience.  External 
to  that  One  Thing  which  is  no  Thing,  everything  is 
Nothing.  That  which  materially  appears  most  real  is 
spiritually  the  most  unreal,  and  vice  versa.  There  is 
such  an  utter  dissimilarity  between  things  material  or 
sensual,  and  things  Divine,  that  we  can  never  give  a 
full  and  complete  description  of  that  which  is  incon- 
ceivable until  it  is  known. 

By  thinking,  studying,  and  brooding  over  the  Chaos 
of  one's  own  mind,  by  striving  for  Truth  and  Spiritual 
Knowledge,  by  living  rightly  and  in  peace,  one  can 
become  an  Initiate  and  gradually  arrive  at  a  true  con- 
ception of  existence.  But  the  mere  reader,  who  hurries 
through  these  pages  to  turn  to  a  novel  for  amusement, 
may  at  once  renounce  further  inquiry,  as  the  subject 
demands  earnest  thought  and  not  merely  superficial 
perusal. 

But  to  return  to  Buddhism.  As  the  present  is  the 
result  of  the  past,  and  the  future  will  be  the  result 
of  the  present,  all  things  are  the  result  of  Karma,  or 
our  own  doing,  for  Karma  is  the  law  of  consequences.* 

*  One  of  the  principal  metaphysical  doctrines  of  Buddhism  is 
that  which  is  called  Karma.  This  means  the  law  of  consequences, 
by  which  every  act  committed  in  one  life  entails  results  in  another. 
This  law  operates  until  one  reaches  Nirvana.  Karma  is  the  law 
of  consequences,  by  which  every  act  receives  its  exact  recompense 
in  the  next  life,  when  the  Soul  is  born  again.  But  unless  the 
same  Soul  passes  on,  through  a  succession  of  earth  lives,  such  a 
recompense  is  impossible,  and  neither  could  it  expiate  or  make 
amends  for  the  injuries  it  may  have  done  to  others  unless  again 


144  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

The  reign  of  Law  being  supreme,  we  can  only  eman- 
cipate ourselves  by  living,  not  merely  in  strict  accordance 
with,  but  above  the  Law,  as  becomes  those  who  are  truly 
at  one  with  the  Law-Giver. 

From    the   hour    of    our    physical    birth    we    have 

sedulously  developed  many  Soul  -obliterating  depravities, 

to    which  we  cling  with  all   the  tenacious   desires   of 

ignorance.     Things  of  Time  have  only  their  temporal 

uses,  yet  we  cleave  to  them  with  such  blind  attachment 

that  we  are  deprived  of  the  things  of  Eternity.     There 

is  but  one  "  Thing  "  in  Eternity  for  us,  and  that  is  the 

"One,"    the    Divinity    or   the   God   that  is  within   us, 

wherein  we  live  and    have  our   Being.     That  "  One " 

being  fully  expressed  and  manifested,  unites  us  with 

the  Eternal,  for  It  only  is  the  Eternal.     To  attain  to 

brought  into  contact  with  them.  In  the  words  of  Jesus: 
'  Verily  I  say  unto  thee,  thou  shalt  by  no  means  come 
out  thence  (of  prison)  till  thou  hast  paid  the  uttermost  farthing." 
And  again,  "  I  say  not  unto  thee  until  seven  times,  but  until 
seventy  times  seven,"  shalt  thou  forgive  thy  brother. 

"Karma,"  says  Buddha,  "is  the  most  essential  property  of  all 
beinsrs ;  it  is  inherited  from  previous  births ;  it  is  the  cause  of 
all  good  and  evil,  and  the  reason  why  some  are  mean  and  some 
exalted  when  they  come  into  the  world.  It  is  like  the  shadow 
which  always  accompanies  the  body."  Buddha  himself  obtained 
all  his  elevation  by  means  of  the  Karma  acquired  in  previous 
states  (Ten  Great  Relit/ions).  How  careful  then  should  we  be  of 
our  every  thought,  word,  and  action,  when  we  consider  that  each, 
even  the  most  seemingly  insignificant,  is  helping  to  build  the 
Karma  which  is  to  accompany  our  Soul  for  ever  as  its  shadow, 
either  for  good  or  ill,  and  that  every  wrong  thought,  word,  and 
action  must  inevitably  entail  upon  us  its  consequences,  namely,  its 
expiation,  but  too  often  through  the  most  terrible  sufferings  and 
afflictions,  which  are  the  result  of  our  Karma,  or  otherwise  would 
not  be  entailed  upon  us  by  a  Just  and  All-Merciful  Providence. 


THE   ANNIHILATION    OF   SELFHOOD.  145 

this  aim  and  end  the  temporal  and  lower  Self  has  to  be 

annihilated. 

If  this  were  mere  metaphysical  verbiage,  it  would 

not  have  endured.     It  is  an  Absolute  Experience  which 

any   one    truly    electing    himself    will    pass    through 

without  the  possibility  of  failure. 

"  He  whose  senses  have  become  tranquil,  like  a  horse  well 
broken-in  by  the  driver ;  who  is  free  from  pride  and  the  lust  of 
the  flesh,  and  the  lust  of  existence,  and  the  defilement  of  ignorance, 
him  even  the  gods  envy.  Such  a  one,  whose  conduct  is  right, 
remains  like  the  broad  earth,  unvexed  ;  like  the  pillar  of  the  city 
gate,  unmoved ;  like  a  pellucid  lake,  unruffled.  For  such  are  no 
more  births.  Tranquil  is  the  mind,  tranquil  the  words  and  deeds 
of  him  who  is  thus  tranquilised  and  made  free  by  wisdom." — 
Dhammapadda. 

Buddha  taught  nothing  new  ;  he  only  brought  the 
neglected  ancient  Truth  into  simple  form,  and  that, 
together  with  the  example  of  a  truly  Divine  Spirit  of 
total  unselfishness,  served  to  inaugurate  a  far  more 
thorough  effort  towards  an  individual  and  social  regen- 
eration, and  spiritual  emancipation  of  humanity,  from 
the  debasing  slavery  of  ignorance  and  sensualism,  than 
had  ever  been  previously  attempted. 

In  Buddhism  we  have  one  of  the  most  profound 
Systems  of  Theosophy.  It  is  the  Christianity  of  the 
East,  and,  as  such,  even  in  better  conservation  than  is 
Christianity,  the  Buddhism  of  the  West. 

Those  who  slight  the  teachings  of  Christ  may  yet 
learn  to  value  them  by  comparison  with  those  of 
Buddha,  and  those  Christians  who  slight  the  teachings 
of  Buddha  may  learn  to  value  them  by  comparing  them 
with  those  of  Christ. 

L 


146  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

Practical  Buddhism  may  be  thus  summarised — It  is  : 
to  see,  feel,  speak,  behave,  live,  act,  think,  and  aspire 
rightly.  This  is  the  absolute  direction  to  attain  to 
the  Absolute. 

We  find  the  same  rule  poetically  rendered  in  an 
ancient  Hindu  Drama  as  follows*  : — 

"■  Be  virtue,  friends,  your  only  store, 

And  restless  appetite  restrain  ; 
Beat  meditation's  drum,  and  sore 

Your  watch  against  each  sense  maintain, 
The  thief  that  still  in  ambush  lies, 
To  make  devotion's  wealth  his  prize. 

"  Cast  the  five  senses  all  away 

That  triumph  o'er  the  virtuous  will ; 

The  pride  of  self-importance  slay, 
And  ignorance  remorseless  kill. 

So  shall  you  safe  the  body  guard, 

And  heaven  shall  be  your  last  reward. 

"  Why  shave  the  head,  and  mow  the  chin, 
"Whilst  bristling  follies  choke  the  breast  ? 
Apply  the  knife  to  parts  within, 

And  heed  not  how  deformed  the  rest. 
The  heart  of  pride  and  passion  weed, 
And  then  the  man  is  pure  indeed." 

It  is  self-evident  that  Christ  and  Buddha  are  but 
manifestations  of  the  same  Divine  Principle.  The 
Christ  of  India  prepared  the  way  for  the  Buddha  of 
Judea.  The  difference  in  their  systems  is  purely 
exoteric.  Buddha  may  have  contemplated  the  state  of 
Nirvana,  while  Christ  spoke  of  Heaven  as  a  radiant  and 
Eternal  Principle  ;  but  both  ideals  are  identical. 


"  The  Toy  Cart."     H.  H.  Wilson's  translation. 


SUMMARY  OF  BUDDHISM.  147 

Buddhism  is  the  holiest  and  most  Christ-like  Philoso- 
phy. Alone,  its  hands  are  bloodless,  and  absolutely 
innocent  of  crime ;  alone,  it  preaches  charity  to  beast 
as  well  as  to  man,  and  inculcates  a  tender  feeling  for 
every  living  thing.  Indeed,  it  teaches  but  one  uncom- 
promising feeling — Love,  unbounded  Love,  and  Justice 
for  all.  Even  as  Christ  teaches  us  to  love  our  enemies, 
and  to  do  good  to  those  who  despitefully  use  us,  so 
does  Buddha  teach  us  that  the  Path  to  Divine  Union 
is  by  that  Supreme  Principle — Divine  Love,  which 
alone  unites  the  human  with  the  Divine. 

Buddhism  neither  exacts  blind  faith  nor  reverence, 
except  for  Truth  and  Justice.  Of  all  the  World- 
Reformers,  Buddha,  the  Prince-Mendicant,  alone,  never 
admitted  the  possibility,  much  less  the  necessity,  of 
drawing  the  sword  to  enforce  Divine  Principles. 

And  in  what  relation,  it  may  be  asked,  does  Brah- 
minism  stand  to  Buddhism,  and  how  do  the  two 
Systems  agree  with  one  another  ? 

Brahminism  is  the  nucleus  of  Hindu  life.  The  course 
of  life  of  an  Arya  is  briefly  summarized  in  the  following : 

"Purified  by  various  ceremonies  from  the  stains  of  birth,  the 
Arya,  invested  with  the  consecrated  cord  *  and  girdle,  enters  as  a 
disciple  of  the  Brahmans  on  the  first  stage  of  his  training,  and 
after  completing  his  course,  he  celebrates,  by  the  offering  of  his 

*  The  Brahminical  Cord. — This  Thread  is  called  Bramah 
Sutra,  because  it  signifies  the  Eternal  Spirit.  Each  Brahmin 
must  make  this  thread  for  himself  and  wear  it  around  his  neck. 
It  is  composed  of  three  threads,  and  as  he  weaves  them  he  says : 
"  I  shall  govern  my  body,  my  speech,  and  my  mind  ;  and  I  know 
that  these  three  are  one."  The  three  rolled  into  one  is  the  first 
Triangle  of  Pythagoras.     The  unmanifested  Monad  emerges  from 


148  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHT. 

first  sacrifice,  the  feast  of  his  new  hirth.  He  then  becomes  a 
householder  (grihapati),  and  after  having  discharged  his  duties  in 
this  capacity,  he  hands  over  to  his  son,  who  has  in  the  meantime 
himself  attained  the  same  position,  the  care  of  all  belonging  to 
him,  and  retires  into  the  forest  to  pass  his  days  undisturbed  in 
religious  works  and  silent  meditations.  The  highest  ideal  that  a 
man  can  reach  on  earth  is  to  become  a  yati  (self -conqueror),  or 
sannyasi  (self-renouncer).  The  latter  offers  no  more  sacrifices,  he 
is  raised  above  the  things  of  the  world  and  of  sense,  and  devotes 
himself  exclusively  to  the  contemplative  life.  Such  is  the  way  to 
final  deliverance  (moksha)  from  the  bonds  of  sensual  existence." — 
("  Tiele,  History  of  Religion,"  p.  128.) 

Brahminism  thus  has  virtues  that  are  wanting  in 
Buddhism.  The  Hindu  first  discharges  his  filial,  con- 
jugal, paternal,  and  social  duties  before  he  thinks  of 
his  own  salvation.-  The  Buddhists  set  their  own 
salvation  above  all  worldly  duties,  and  thereby  encourage 
the  forced  idleness  of  the  individual  who  must  become 
a  mendicant  and  lead  a  monastic  life,  while  he  still 
could  continue  to  be  a  useful  member  of  Society. 

The  difference  between  the  practical  methods  of 
the  Buddhists  and  those  of  the  Brahmins,  for  attain- 
ment to  the  Supreme  Good,  resolves  itself  chiefly  into 
this :  that  while  some  of  the  Brahmins  inculcate  that 
the  repetition  of  the  syllable  Om  is  an  essential 
part  of  Spiritual  Exercise  (Yoga),  the  Buddhists  enter 

the  darkness  first  as  a  Triangle.  The  second  manifestation  is  the 
perfect  Square  ;  the  third  is  the  Circle  of  Eternity ;  and  thus  is  the 
square  made  into  the  circle,  or  the  quadrature  of  the  circle.  It 
signifies  the  merging  of  the  individual  in  the  Universal :  "  I  and  my 
Father  are  One."  There  are  three  planes  of  manifestations,  and 
each  plane  is  of  three.  Three  times  three  are  nine,  the  number  of 
perfect  initiation,  and  at  each  nine  the  man  becomes  merged  in  the 
Universal;  and  the  circle  shows  how  the  man  becomes  the  All. 

M.  C. 


BRAHMINISM   CONTRASTED   WITH   BUDDHISM.       149 

upon  Spiritual  Exercise  (Samadhi)  by  purely  mental- 
psychic  means,  and  discard  the  repetition  of  this  or 
any  other  syllable  or  words. 

Buddhism  may  to  a  certain  extent  be  derived  from 
Brahminism.*  The  Systems  have  not  only  the  same 
object  in  view,  namely,  to  humanise  the  animal  and 
divinise  the  human,  by  freeing  the  Soul  from  earthly 
passions  and  from  the  influence  of  the  material  world, 
but  the  perfect  liberation  to  the  Soul-state  is  identical ; 
although  the  Brahmin  calls  Moksha  an  Absorption  into 
the  Infinite  Being,  and  the  Buddhist  considers  Nirvana 
as  a  total  Annihilation  of  the  lower  self.  No  doubt 
this  insistance  of  Gotama  Buddha  upon  a  complete 
Annihilation  of  the  sensual  mind,  the  demon  in  man, 
has  its  good  reasons;  for  where  there  is  no  complete 
Annihilation  of  the  demon  in  man,  there  can  be 
no  final  Absorption  of  the  man  in  God.  None  but 
those  who  have  tried  know  how  difficult  it  is  to  give 
one's  self  up  unreservedly  to  G-od,  who  is  the  unde- 
finable  and  ineffable  No-Thing  of  Buddhists  and  Kab- 
balists,  the  aim  and  object  of  every  true  Mystic.  While 
the  Brahmins  thought  the  Divine  absorption  would 
bring  about  the  annihilation  of  the  Demonic,  the 
Buddhists  insist  upon  Annhilation  of  the  sensual  self- 
hood as  the  indispensable  condition  for  entering  upon 
the  Divine  Spirit-state  of  Nirvana.  There  is  a  difference 
not  only  in  words  but  in  views  between  the  two  Systems, 


*  Cf.  Bigandet,  Parallel  between  the  Brahmin   and  Buddhist 
Religious  Orders  in  "  The  Life  and  Legend  of  Gotama  Buddha." 


150  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

yet  the  object  of  their  practice  is  essentially  one.  The 
Brahmin  Method  of  Yoga,  with  its  repetition  of  Om,  is 
more  likely  to  favour  a  mediumistic  condition  than  the 
Divine  Afflatus ;  but  the  Buddhist  Samadhi  appears  to 
us  more  simple  and  also  more  direct  and  true.  The 
methods  of  Mystic  Practice  are  very  similar  in  all 
Systems  ;  consequently,  those  of  the  Brahmins,  esoteri- 
cally  considered,  differ  but  little  from  those  of  the 
Buddhists.  It  is  probable  that  Brahm  and  Budh  are, 
in  the  Absolute,  identical  and  not  opposed  principles. 
The  ethics  of  both  Systems  are  almost  the  same,  only 
in  external  ceremonial  lies  the  chief  difference ;  but 
on  most  physical  and  psychical  rules  of  life  they  are 
agreed.  Almost  all  Brahmins  and  Buddhists  are  Vege- 
tarians. Both  have  a  high  regard  for  animal  life.  Both 
consider  continence  to  be  an  essential  part  of  Occult 
Practice  ;  and  although  the  lay  followers  of  both  systems 
are  generally  married,  the  monastic  life  is  held  to  be  a 
higher  state,  and  Isolation  and  the  conservation  of  vital 
force,  as  practised  by  all  true  Occultists  and  Mystics, 
are  enjoined  by  both. 

But  while  Brahminism  is  a  pharisaic  Hiero-aristocracy, 
Buddhism  is  a  Republic  of  Purity.  While  the  modern 
Brahmins,  forgetful  of  their  earlier  traditions,  consider 
their  race  alone  capable  of  Divine  enlightenment,  the 
Buddhists  believe  in  the  self-election  of  the  individual 
to  the  Supreme  Good.  Consequently,  while  Brah- 
minism degenerates,  Buddhism  regenerates.  For  the 
Brahmins  hold  to  physical  birth,  which  is  subject  to 
imperfection;   but  the  Buddhists  make  the   Spiritual 


THE   SPIRITUAL   RE-BIRTH.  151 

birth,  which  is  true  and  perfect,  the  central  point 
of  their  System.  Although  one  born  of  Brahmin 
parents  may  not  be  fit  to  be  a  Brahmin,  whoever 
is  spiritually  re-born  is  fit  to  receive  Divine  Know- 
ledge. Brahminism  is  built  upon  heredity,  but  Bud- 
dhism as  a  System  has  a  rejuvenating  principle,  which, 
although  it  also  exists  in  Brahminism,  is  there  more 
latent  than  developed  by  its  very  limitation  to  one 
race.  For  God  favours  no  man  or  race,  He  lives  in  all 
equally.  It  is  man  who  ascends,  and  the  higher  he 
ascends  the  more  he  becomes  Divine.  The  policy  of 
the  Brahmin  is  :  the  Demon  for  the  world  and  God 
for  us.  But  Grod  cannot  be  imparted  by  legacy,  nor 
can  He  be  made  secret.  Those  who  think  they  only 
have  God,  have  not  God  but  his  shadow  the  demon. 
God  accepts  those  only  who  sacrifice  the  demon  in 
their  own  Beings.  The  father  cannot  die  for  his  son, 
the  husband  cannot  sacrifice  himself  for  his  wife,  the 
child  cannot  offer  its  life  to  save  its  parents ;  for  the  Soul- 
state  is  an  individual  Gift  of  God  to  each  individual 
Being,  and  each  must  die  in  his  own  lower  nature  before 
he  or  she  can  be  accepted  by,  and  become  re-born 
in  God.  Therefore  the  Buddhist  idea  of  total  Anni- 
hilation of  the  sensual  Self,  or  the  demon  in  man,  may 
be  considered  as  correct.  Nirvana  is  Annihilation  of 
self-hood  ;  and  it  is  that  very  Annihilation  that  brings 
us  to  Nirvana.  What  is  Nirvana  ?  It  is  the  Manifes- 
tation of  the  Absolute,  the  latent  Divine  Soul,  which, 
when  manifested,  is  known  as  the  Divine  Spirit.  But 
let  the  Buddhists  themselves  define  it. 


152  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

In  a  dialogue  between  Milinda  and  Nagasena,  given 
by  Spence  Hardy  and  quoted  by  Max  Miiller  ("  Chips," 
Vol.  I.), — "  The  Meaning  of  Nirvana,"  the  following- 
definition  is  given  of  this  mysterious  word  : — 

"  Nagasena.  Can  a  man,  by  his  natural  strength,  go  from  the 
city  of  Sagal  to  the  forest  of  Himala  ? 

Milinda.     Yes. 

Nagasena.  But  could  any  man,  by  his  natural  strength,  bring 
the  forest  of  Himala  to  this  city  of  Sagal  ? 

Milinda.     No. 

Nagasena.  In  like  manner,  though  the  fruition  of  the  paths 
may  cause  the  accomplishment  of  Nirvana,  no  cause  by  which 
Nirvana  is  produced  can  be  declared.  The  path  that  leads  to 
Nirvana  may  be  pointed  out,  but  not  any  cause  for  its  production. 
Why  ?  because  that  which  constitutes  Nirvana  is  beyond  all 
computation, — a  mystery  not  to  be  understood.  .  .  .  It  cannot 
be  said  to  be  produced,  nor,  that  it  is  not  produced  ;  that  it  is 
past,  or  future,  or  present.  Nor  can  it  be  said  that  it  is  the 
seeing  of  the  eye,  or  the  hearing  of  the  ear,  or  the  smelling  of  the 
nose,  or  the  tasting  of  the  tongue,  or  the  feeling  of  the  body. 

Milinda.  Then  you  speak  of  a  thing  that  is  not ;  you  merely 
say  that  Nirvana  is  Nirvana  ; — therefore  there  is  no  Nirvana. 

Nagasena.     Great  king,  Nirvana  is. 

Milinda.  Does  the  being  who  acquires  it,  attain  something 
that  has  previously  existed  ? — or  is  it  his  own  product,  a  forma- 
tion peculiar  to  himself  ? 

Nagasena.  Nirvana  does  not  exist  previously  to  its  reception ; 
nor  is  it  that  which  was  brought  into  existence.  Still  to  the 
being  who  attains  it,  there  is  Nirvana.  ...  He  who  is  the 
most  meritorious  (Bhagavat)  does  exist. 

Milinda.  Then  can  you  point  out  to  me  the  place  in  which  he 
exists  ? 

Nagasena.  Our  Bhagavat  has  attained  Nirvana,  where  there 
is  no  repetition  of  birth.  We  cannot  say  that  he  is  here,  or  that 
he  is  there.  When  a  fire  is  extinguished,  can  it  be  said  that  it  is 
here  or  that  it  is  there  ?     Even  so,  our  Buddha  has  attained 


ESOTERIC   BUDDHISM.  153 

Nirvana.  He  is  like  the  sun  that  has  set  behind  the  Astagiri 
mountain.  It  cannot  be  said  that  he  is  here,  or  that  he  is  there : 
but  we  can  point  him  out  by  the  discourses  delivered.  In  them 
he  lives."* 

ESOTEEIC    BUDDHISM. 

Buddhism,  in  its  Esoteric  form,  is  said  to  be 
identical  with  the  ancient  and  eternal  Wisdom-Keligion  ; 
the  pre-historic  Buddhism  or  Hermetic  Theosophy,  that 
we  would  suggest  can  be  traced  in  all  the  Mystic  Myths 
and  Occult  allegories  of  antiquity. 

As  we  anticipate  all  our  readers  are,  or  will  become, 
acquainted  with  Mr.  Sinnett's  work  on  "  Esoteric 
Buddhism,"  this  section  is  solely  intended  to  call  atten- 
tion to  the  doctrine  of  the  sevenfold  Constitution  of 
Man,  of  his  gradual  evolution  through  a  sevenfold 
planetary  chain  of  worlds,  and  to  point  out  its  corres- 
pondence to  other  Esoteric  teachings  on  the  same  deeply 
interesting  subject.  We  will,  therefore,  at  once  put 
before  the  reader  the  tabular  form  of  the  said  Consti- 
tution, as  we  find  it  in  Mr.  Sinnett's  book,  to  which 
we  will  add  that  of  the  spiritual  states  of  the  Soul, 
and  of  the  sevenfold  Constitution  of  the  Universe,  the 
latter  as  obtained  from  one  of  the  spiritual  chiefs  of 
the  Theosophical  Society  of  Madras.  First  it  must 
be  remembered  that  Psychically,  as  well  as  Physically, 
Man  is  a  Microcosm  or  Universe,  and  the  Universe 
or  Macrocosm  is  as  Man. 


*  Cf.  Also  Rhys  David's  "Buddhism"  p.  120,  for  various  defini- 
tions of  the  word  Nirvana. 


154 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


CONSTITUTION   OF   MAN. 


Sanscrit. 
Rupa. 
Jivatma. 
Linga  Sharira. 
Kama  Rwpa. 
Manas. 
Budclhi. 
Atma. 


English. 

1.  The  Body      

2.  Life-Principle  or  Vitality 

3.  Astral  Body 

4.  Animal  Soul  or  Will  (The  Ego) 

5.  Human  Soul  or  Mind 

6.  Spiritual  Soul 

7.  Divine  Spirit 

CONSTITUTION     OF     THE 

English. 

1.  Earth  or  Matter 

2.  Vivifying-  Universal  Spirit  ... 

3.  Astral  or  Cosmic  Atmosphere 

4.  Cosmic  Will  ... 

5.  Astral     Light    or    Universal 

Illusion 

6.  Universal  Mind 

7.  Latent  Spirit 

The  accompanying  Plate  is  an  attempt  to  set  before 
the  reader  a  simultaneous  and  comprehensive  view  of 
the  teaching  of  Esoteric  Buddhism  concerning  these 
three  important  doctrines,  viz.,  the  Constitution  of  the 
Universe,  the  Constitution  of  Man,  and  his  Spiritual 
states,  both  during  and  after  earth  life. 

It  will  be  perceived  that  these  principles  are  num- 
bered beginning  from  the  outer  inwards  ;  the  first 
beina1,  of  course,  the  mere  outside  of  the  casket  which 
contains  the  seventh,  the    Jewel  of  Great  Price,  the 


UNIVERSE. 

Sanscrit. 
Prahriti. 
Punish. 
Maya  or  Akasa. 
Vach. 

Yajna. 

Narayana. 

Swayambhu. 


Sevenfold                                  Sevenfold  Sevenfold 

Constitution                              Constitution  States 

of  the  Universe. of  Man. of  the  Soul. 

An  ambitious  attempt  to  present 

The  Sevenfold  Constitution  of  Man  and  of  the  Universe 

In  the  form  of   a  Diagram. 


THE  FIGURE  OF  THE   CROSS.  155 

Shekinah,  within  its  most  interior  foldings.  But  in 
order  to  make  these  sevenfold  Principles,  States,  and 
Senses,  apparent  to  the  outward  eye  as  well  as  to  the 
mind,  we  have  taken  the  liberty  of  representing  them 
as  rising  from  the  earth  in  the  form  of  a  cross,  which 
is  the  true  symbol  of  man,  as  shown  in  the  architecture 
of  the  Christian  Church ;  but  which  was  used  by  the 
ancients  as  a  sacred  symbol  long  before  the  Christian 
era,  nay,  so  ancient  is  it  that  it  is  even  seen  on  the 
monograms  of  some  of  the  planets.  It  is  a  double 
emblem,  whose  mysteries  would  fill  a  volume,  suffice  it 
to  say,  it  is  the  true  emblem  of  man  and  woman,  or  male 
and  female.  The  figure  of  a  cross,  says  Plato,  is  in  the 
universe ;  its  four  interspaces  extend  to  Infinity — 
North,  South,  East,  and  West.  And  thus  man  stands, 
with  Infinity  all  around  him  and  Eternity  within,  rising 
from  Earth  to  Heaven,  like  the  Tree  of  Life.  The 
cross-beam,  representing  his  arms  of  "power  and  of 
glory*  may  also  represent  the  Tree  of  Knowledge  of 
Good  and  Evil  (and  does  so  in  Hermetic  Theosophy) ; 

*  In  signing  themselves  with  the  sign  of  the  cross  when  uttering 
the  last  words  of  the  Lord's  Prayer,  Catholics  express  more  than 
many  of  them  are  probably  aware  of  ;  thus  :  On  saying  "for  Thine 
is  the  Kingdom"  they  first  touch  the  forehead  with  the  back 
of  the  thumb,  and  then  the  vital  region  of  the  heart ;  thus  indi- 
cating the  first  as  the  Throne,  "  Mercy-seat,"  and  dwelling-place 
of  the  Lord  (or  as  Divine  Wisdom,  the  Lady)  of  the  Kingdom. 
At  "  the  power  and  the  glory"  the  thumb  touches  first  the  right 
and  then  the  left  shoulder  ("  The  right  hand  of  power," — "  At 
the  left  hand  of  Thy  glory  ").  At  "  For  ever  and  ever.  Amen" 
the  thumb  is  laid  on  the  forefinger  of  the  same  hand  in  the  form 
of  a  cross  and  raised  to  the  lips,  which  seal  it  with  a  kiss,  expres- 
sive of  "  So  be  it"  or  Amen  ! 


156  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

it  stands  in  the  midst  of  the  garden,  dividing  the  higher 
from  the  lower  principles,  the  spiritual  from  the  material, 
the  good  from  the  evil. 

It  will  be  perceived  we  have  enclosed  said  cross  in 
a  double  triangle  of  two  colours,  which,  when  inter- 
laced as  the  one  above  the  cross,  represents  the 
"  Mystery  of  Mysteries,"  and  is  a  geometrical  synthesis 
of  the  whole  Occult  doctrine.  Thus  interlaced  it  is 
called  by  the  Jewish  Kabbalists  the  "  Seal  of  Solomon," 
and  it  is  the  Sri-antara  of  the  Archaic  Aryan  Temple. 
It  represents  Deity  in  its  Supreme  Essence,  "  Male 
and  Female,"  "  Love  and  Wisdom,"  and  contains  the 
Squaring  of  the  Circle,  the  so-called  Philosopher's 
Stone,  the  great  problems  of  Life  and  Death,  and  the 
Mystery  of  Good  and  Evil  (viz.,  Matter  united  to,  or 
separated  from,  Spirit),  &c,  &c.  Thus,  when  drawn  as 
we  have  represented  them  around  the  Cross,  they  are, 
as  will  be  perceived,  separated,  and  will  only  unite, 
intersect,  and  cross  each  other  by  degrees,  the  lower 
triangle  rising  higher  and  higher  as  the  man  attains  to 
the  higher  states.  The  dark  or  fire  nature  rising  from 
the  earth  to  meet  the  descending  light  triangle  of 
heavenly  hue,  the  Wisdom  that  cometh  from  above  (as 
you  often  see  the  light  or  flame  fall  from  above  on 
re-lighting  a  recently  extinguished  candle).  When  at 
last  the  Eed  line  shall  reach  the  Blue  line  at  the  Sixth 
Principle — spiritual  Soul  (the  Bride  from  Heaven,  or 
Christ  state),  the  Triangles  will  be  found  to  be  perfectly 
interlaced,  and  the  Union  complete,  as  in  the  Divine  or 
double  Triangle  represented   in  Nirvana. 


THE   MALE   BRAIN.  157 

This  centre  corresponds  to  the  central  Principle  in 
man,  the  axis  on  which  his  character  must  turn.  This 
fourth  Principle  is  called  Kama  Rupa ;  it  is  the  Will, 
or  Animal  Soul,  for  it  is  possessed  by  all  animals  as 
well  as  by  man.  It  also  corresponds  physically  to  the 
great  ganglionic  centre,  called  the  Solar  (or  Soular) 
Plexus,  and  by  the  ancients  the  "  Male  Brain "  and 
the   "  Abdominal   Brain,"  *  which   is  the  first   to  live 


*  "  Majap'perihos  for  brains  behind  the  diaphragm).  The  Solar 
Plexus  was  thus  called  by  the  ancient  Greeks,  and  was  supposed 
by  them  to  have  a  large  share  in  our  internal  feelings  and  sensa- 
tions, in  addition  to  the  functions  usually  assigned  to  these  nervous 
bodies,  commonly  called  the  Epigastric  Centre  (upon  the  stomach), 
though  it  is  situated,  properly  speaking,  behind  the  stomach,  gene- 
rally called  the  pit  of  the  stomach.  This  Organic  Plexus  moves 
the  heart. 

"  In  all  ages,  and  in  all  countries,  the  site  of  these  organs  has 
been  supposed  to  be  the  site  and  centre  of  emotion  and  feeling ; 
thus  we  hear,  in  colloquial  language,  of  sensations  or  feelings  in 
the  breast  or  bosom,  to  which  people  apply  the  hand,  saying  their 
heart  '  jumps  for  joy,'  '  throbs  with  pleasure,'  is  as  '  light  as  a 
feather '  or  as  '  heavy  as  lead ' ;  but  as  far  as  the  heart  is  con- 
cerned, we  might  just  as  well  say  the  stomach,  the  liver,  or  the 
spleen.  The  cause  is  seated  far  deeper  than  these,  behind  such 
organs  where  the  'Genius'  sits  watching  over  every  organ  and 
function ;  the  heart  being  a  mere  figurative  expression.  This 
Genius  is  named  the  Solar  Plexus,  and  is  the  web  of  nerves  carry- 
ing off  and  distributing  the  vital  power  to  all  the  vital  organs. 
The  heart's  action  and  circulation  of  the  blood  by  night  and  day 
is  kept  moving  alone  by  this  Organic  Centre,  the  source  of  vital 
energy,  vital  heat,  motor  power, — this  medium  of  continuous  action 
always  going  on  night  and  day  independent  of  the  will,  and  with- 
out which  sleep  would  be  death,  and  we  could  commit  suicide  by 
a  wish,  by  stopping  the  heart's  action  as  we  would  stop  the  pen- 
dulum of  a  clock.  From  this  sympathetic  centre  first  springs  that 
current  of  vital  force  whose  action  commences  with  and  never 


158  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

and  the  last  to  die  of  the  nervous  system — the  recep- 
tacle, vehicle,  and  centre,  of  vitality,  sensation,  instinct, 
and  feeling,  as  well  as  of  intuition,  nutrition,  the  heart's 
movements,  the  circulation  of  the  blood,  and  that 
which  continues  life  in  sleep,  otherwise  we  should  die. 
This  Soul  or  Sun  is  the  life  germ,  the  first  created 
in  the  inter-uterine  or  foetal  state,  and  the  only  brains 
in  the  bodies  of  some  inferior  animals.  It  is  also  the 
Telegraphic  Centre  of  the  human  body,  with  its  wires 
diverging  in  all  directions,  and  particularly  connecting 
it  with  the  "  Female  brain,"  the  Cerebro  Spinal  system, 
by  two  nervous  cords,  situated  one  on  each  side  of  the 

ceases  during  life — for  those  organs  whose  fibres  are  furnished 
with  motor  power  or  stimulus  from  this  source,  whatever  that 
may  be,  work  the  hardest,  live  the  longest,  and  are  the  last  to  die  ; 
and  even  when  removed  from  their  connection  with  the  body,  this 
vital  power  or  impulse  continues  the  principle  of  life  for  a  time 
with  us,  and  with  some  animals  still  thrills  the  frame  and  clings 
to  them  for  hours. 

"  In  support  of  this  ganglionic  centre  being  a  Brain,  as  it  was 
designated  by  the  ancients,  the  '  Male  Brain,'  we  may  venture  to 
say  that  there  is  at  all  events  some  analogy  with  regard  to  its 
structure ;  for  as  most  physiologists  are  aware,  we  find  embedded 
in  its  substance  the  precisely  same  nerve  corpuscles  as  we  find 
in  the  brain  itself,  and  which  are  by  many  philosophers  believed 
to  be  the  source  from  which  the  thinking  powers  are  evolved. 

"  It  is  well  known  that  the  mind  or  will  is  not  engaged  in  all 
our  functions,  or  even  in  all  our  feelings,  more  especially  in  that 
class  of  sensations  that  form  the  subject  of  our  internal  sensations. 
Sensation  may  be  either  mental  or  physical,  or  partake  of  both. 
Of  the  distinct  kinds  of  feeling  of  which  we  are  conscious,  in  the 
one  the  mind  is  concerned,  and  in  the  other  the  senses  or  the  sensi- 
tive media.  It  is  through  a  sense  or  sensation,  in  the  first  place, 
by  which  they  make  themselves  felt  or  known,  and  that  we  pick 
up  the  materials  for  all  the  knowledge  we  possess,  though  gene- 


THE  FEMALE  BRAIN.  159 

spinal  column.  It  is  called  the  Solar  Plexus  from 
its  rounded  form,  constitutes  the  centre  of  the  Organic 
or  Vital  nerves,  and  presides  over  the  internal  organic 
functions,  and  is  hence  called  the  Organic  Sphere,  as 
the  female  brain  presides  over  the  intellectual  func- 
tions, and  is  called  the  Organ  of  the  Mind. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  will  readily  be  perceived 
that  this  Fourth  Principle  is  the  seat  of  Life,  as  the 
heart,  which  is  also  in  the  centre,  is  called  the  seat  of 
Love ;  and  morally  it  is  so,  for  what  a  man  loves  that 
he  wills,  and  his  every  effort  during  his  earth-life 
should  be  to  elevate  his  love  and  his  will,  above  the 

rally  supposed  to  be  an  act  of  the  mind.  Sensation  in  itself  is 
more  a  primary  power,  which  the  mind-brain  may  or  may  not 
make  use  of  or  reflect  upon  ;  so  that  it  is  possible  that  we  may 
feel  without  thinking,  or  the  sensitive  media  alone  are  the  re- 
cipients of  the  impression.  These  are  sometimes  termed  sense 
perceptions,  as  distinguished  from  purely  mental  phenomena. — 
It  is  a  different  kind  of  nervous  force  from  that  eliminated  by 
the  brain  and  spinal  cord,  and  a  principle  not  to  be  found  or 
furnished  by  any  other  part  of  the  living  body  ;  but,  as  we  have 
before  observed,  we  find  embedded  in  the  substance  of  these  gang- 
lionic bodies  precisely  the  same  nerve  corpuscles  as  we  find  in  the 
brain  itself,  and  which  are  by  many  philosophers  believed  to  be 
the  source  from  which  the  thinking  powers  are  evolved."  (Dr. 
Henry  Scott,  M.D.) 

I  wrote  down  the  preceding  some  years  ago  at  the  verbal  dic- 
tation of  Dr.  Scott,  availing  myself  of  the  first  sheet  of  paper  at 
hand.  It  was  not  until  he  had  finished  dictating  that  I  found  I 
had  quite  accidentally  written  it  on  a  paper  on  which  I  had  pre- 
viously noted  a  few  words  from  Higgins'  Anacalypsis,  which  I 
had  been  reading ;  thus  these  words  really  form  the  heading  to 
what  Dr.  Scott  dictated,  and  that  heading  reads  as  follows: 

"  Immanukl — God  with  us. 

"  Alma — Virgin — The   thought  conceived  in,  and  proceeding 


160  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOFHY. 

three  lower  animal  or  earthly  Principles,  so  that  through 
the  cultivation  of  his  fifth  Principle,  Manas,  or  Hu- 
man Soul,  which  is  his  true  'personality,  he  may,  when 
called  away  from  earth-life,  rise  above  the  fourth  Spiri- 
tual state,  Kama  Loca,  the  Astral  sphere  immediately 
surrounding  this  earth,  and  which  corresponds  to 
the  fourth  Principle,  KAMA  Eupa  or  merely  animal 
Soul  (which  can  be  seen  by  glancing  at  our  coloured 
plate),  and  therefore  the  abode  of  all  earthly  and  earth- 
bound  "  Spirits"  so-called,  though  Souls  would  be  the 
better  designation. 

The  Ego  or  Self-hood  is  centred  in  this  middle  Prin- 


from,  the  female  Brain  or  Divine  Wisdom,  (it  is  the  name  in 
modern  Hebrew) ;  the  same  as  for  the  Brain.  (Alma  in  Spanish 
means  Soul.) 

Alma-Mater— Fostering-Motker ;  the  name  of  a  University, 
(where  Wisdom  is  imparted). 

It  will  at  once  be  seen  how  extraordinary  was  this  coincidence, 
and  how  significant  this  simple  circumstance  in  its  silent  yet  most 
eloquent  confirmation  of  the  hypothesis  of  the  ancients  of  the 
Male  and  Female  Brain.  This  generation  is  said  to  be  of  Neck, 
and  the  next  generation  will  be  of  Head  development,  and  thus 
destined  to  complete  the  stature  of  Man  in  the  Human  form 
Divine,  as  the  higher  senses  shall  be  developed  in  him. 

How  significant,  then,  is  the  construction  of  the  human  form 
made  in  the  image  of  God  ("male  and  female  created  He  them") ; 
thus  Two  in  One  both  spiritually  and  physically.  How  suggestive 
the  Goddess  of  Wisdom  of  Ancient  Mythology,  springing  armed 
and  helmeted  from  the  Brain  of  Jupiter.  How  significant  again 
the  form  of  the  representative  Ark  of  the  Covenant  built  by 
Moses  after  the  Heavenly  pattern,  with  its  Golden  candlestick  of 
seven  Branches !  and  its  Laver,  which  corresponds  so  evidently  to 
the  fourth  Principle,  and  its  Holy  of  Holies  to  the  fifth,  and  its 
Mercy-seat  to  the  sixth,  as  we  see  them  represented  in  the  accom- 
panying coloured    plate.      The    Mercy-seat   which   Moses   was 


THE  SEED   OF   THE   WOMAN.  161 

ciple,  which  is  the  Will  or  Love,  described  by  the 
Hermetic  Theosophists  as  the  Fire  Nature,  which  can 
go  backwards  or  forwards,  "  imagining  into  the  first  or 
second  Ternary,"  as  its  dominant  love  wills  it  to  do ; 
returning  either  to  the  lower  states  from  which,  as  an 
animal  Soul  it  has  been  evolved ;  or  ascending  by  pro- 
gressive development  to  the  higher  states  into  which  it 
is  destined  to  be  involved. 

This  Fourth  Principle,  and  State,  could  be  better  un- 
derstood after  a  study  of  the  Kabbala,  with  its  doctrine 
of  the  seven  Spirits  of  God,  the  work  of  seven  days,  the 
seven  planets,  &c,  &c,  and  more  particularly  after  a 

commanded  by  the  Lord  to  "  put  above  the  Ark,"  saying,  "  And 
there  will  I  meet  thee,  and  I  will  commune  with  thee  from  above 
the  Mercy-seat"  (Exodus  xxv.  21  &  22). 

The  Ark  of  the  Covenant  was  a  type  to  the  children  of  an 
earlier  generation  of '  better  things  to  come,  which  better  things 
are  now  at  our  very  doors.  The  symbolic  Ark  has  long  been  lost, 
but  the  real  and  living  one  which  it  represented  is  now  to  appear 
as  the  true  Ark  of  the  Covenant  of  God  with  the  children  of  men. 
That  Covenant  was  that  the  seed  of  the  woman  should  eventually 
bruise  the  head  of  the  Serpent.  The  Serpent  represents  Mate- 
riality, or  the  three  lower  Principles  of  Esoteric  Buddhism  derived 
from  the  earth;  the  so-called  seed  of  the  woman  is  the  perfected 
humanity  or  Son  of  God  conceived  by  the  Holy  Spirit  in  the 
immaculate  womb  of  the  pure  Virgin  or  Alma,  the  feminine 
Soul,  Sixth  principle,  Buddhi,  or  spiritual  Soul  of  Esoteric 
Buddhism  ;  the  Divine  Sound,  or  sixth  Essence  of  Hermetic 
Theosophy  ;  the  "  Word,"  or  living  breathing  embodiment  and 
expression  of  Divine  Thought  of  the  Christians.  Thus  Christ  was 
called  the  Word,  because  he  was  the  offspring  of  the  seed  of  the 
woman,  or  Female  Brain,  the  expression  of  Divine  Wisdom. 
"  Love  is  masculine  because  it  brings  forth  by  impulse  without 
labour ;  Wisdom  is  feminine  because  it  brings  forth  by  labour." 

M.  C. 
M 


1G2  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

careful  study  of  the  Theosophical  Mystics,  who  also 
hold  to  the  doctrine  of  the  sevenfold  nature  of  all 
things,  resultant  upon  the  sevenfold  nature  of  the 
Divine  Essence  which  they  explain  as  follows : — 

1.  Astringency. 

2.  Mobility. 

3.  Anguish. 
IV.  Fire. 

5.  Light — Love. 

6.  Sound. 

7.  Substantiality  (spiritual). 

The  first)  Astringency,  is  the  principle  of  all  con- 
tractive force  ;  it  is  Desire,  and  it  draws.  Rocks  are 
hard  because  this  first  quality  is  dormant  in  them.  The 
second,  Mobility,  the  sweet  quality,  is  the  principle  of 
expansion  and  movement;  the  pliant  forms  of  plants, 
fluids,  &c.  The  third,  Anguish,  the  bitter  quality,  is 
generated  from  the  conflict  of  the  first  two ;  it  is 
manifest  in  the  anguish  and  strife  of  being ;  it  may 
become  heavenly  rapture  or  hellish  torment ;  its  in- 
fluence is  dominant  in  sulphur. 

The  fourth,  Fire,  is  the  transition  or  middle 
quality.  In  the  quality  of  fire,  Light  and  Darkness 
meet.  It  is  the  root  of  the  Soul  of  man,  the  source  on 
either  side  of  heaven  or  hell,  between  which  our 
nature  stands.  The  fire-spirit  is  the  lower  Soul  of  man, 
or  Anima  Bruta  possessed  both  by  animals  and  by  men, 
for  it  has  the  centre  of  nature,  with  its  four  forms,  for  its 
fiery  might.  It  strikes  up  the  fire  itself,  and  itself 
makes  "  the  wheel  of   the  essence."     The    first    three 


SEPARATION,   THE  CAUSE  OF  EVIL.  163 

qualities  belong  more  especially  to  the  nature  of  the 
Father,  or  God  in  His  wrath,  when  He  is  described  as 
"  a  consuming  Fire,"  for,  separated  from  the  second 
Ternary,  they  are  the  occasion  of  spiritual  death,  of 
wrath,  striving,  necessity,  in  other  words,  of  Evil.  The 
last  three  qualities  appertain  to  the  nature  of  the 
Mother  (or  feminine  nature),  when  the  smouldering  and 
wrathful  fire  finds  the  sweet  meekness  of  the  Love 
quality,  and  bursts  forth  into  the  bright  and  joyous 
flame,  the  source  of  Light  and  Love,  of  Wisdom  and  of 
Glory,  in  other  words,  of  Good,  produced  by  the  union 
of  the  male  and  female  qualities,  as  their  separation 
is  the  origin   and   cause  of  Evil. 

Man  is  the  arbiter  of  his  own  destiny,  and  voluntarily 
develops,  from  the  depths  of  his  own  nature,  his  heaven 
or  his  hell ;  while  adding  to  the  happiness  or  misery  of 
those  around  him  by  exerting  self-control,  or  giving 
way  to  self-indulgence ;  for  the  real  cause  of  all  the 
hideous  sin,  and  cruel  suffering  and  misery  we  see 
around  us,  proceeds  originally  from  selfishness,  from 
that  terrible  love  of  self,  that  personality  which  so 
vehemently  or  so  insidiously  accentuates  the  /  and  the 
you,  and  which  is  the  outcome  of  the  predominance  of 
the  three  lower  Principles,  or  qualities,  which  can  only 
be  elevated  and  controlled  by  the  cultivation  of  the 
higher  or  more  spiritual  Principles  described  by  Her- 
metic Theosophists  as  the  union  of  the  hard  and  dark 
with  the  love  and  light,  or  of  the  male  and  female 
qualities,  and  by  the  Ancient  Wisdom-Eeligion  as  the 
fifth  and  sixth  Principles,  the  Human  and  Spiritual  Soul. 


164  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

Thus  the  sixth  quality  is  described  by  the  Hermetists 
as  Sound.  In  Heaven  the  harmony  of  the  spheres ; 
in  man  the  five  senses,  and  the  gift  of  speech,  or  rather 
The  Word,  or  manifestation  of  the  Divinity ;  thus 
Christ  is  called  The  Word,  the  utterance  of  the  Divine 
Name,  name  signifying  the  expressional  nature,  or  its 
outward  manifestation.  And  as  he  attains  to  the  sixth, 
or  Christ-spirit,  or  Principle,  he  will  develope  the 
sixth  sense,  or  Spiritual  Soul,  which  is  that  of  the 
Intuition,  and  the  perception  of  things  spiritual  and 
eternal ;  he  will  then  become  cognisant  of  the  sub- 
jective world  around  him,  as  his  earlier  senses  have 
made  him  cognisant  of  the  objective  world,  or  world 
of  sense. 

The  seventh  Principle  is  the  Divine  Spirit  itself, 
described  as  spiritual  substantiality. 

Man  as  yet  has  only  developed  five  senses;  Esoteric 
Buddhism  teaches  that  as  he  attains  to  the  sixth  and 
seventh  states,  he  will  develope  the  sixth  and  seventh 
senses.  The  dawning  of  the  sixth  sense  can  indeed 
already  be  perceived  in  some  advanced  minds ;  and  books 
have  lately  been  published  which  clearly  indicate  that 
the  time  is  near  for  the  development  of  the  sixth  sense. 
We  allude  to   such   books  as  "The   Perfect    Way," 

"  MORGENROTHE,"  "  THE  TWO  IN  ONE,"  "  SyMPNEU- 
mata,"  &c,  &c.  The  real  Sympneumata  is  man  in  his 
duality,  male  and  female,  two  in  one,  as  he  was  created 
at  the  beginning,  in  " the  image  of  God"  and  as  he  is 
destined  again  to  become  as  he  rises,  and  developes  the 
sixth  sense,  or  Spiritual  Soul.     This  is  figured  in  Scrip- 


KAMA   LOCA,   OR   PURGATORY.  165 

tiire  as  the  coining  of  the  Bride,  and  as  the  marriage 
of  the  King's  Son. 

Concerning  the  immediate  Spiritual  State  of  man 
after  death,  Esoteric  Buddhism  teaches  that  the  three 
lower  Principles  appertaining  to  the  outward  body  are 
abandoned  and  left  on  the  earth  from  which  they 
proceeded  and  to  which  they  belong.  That  which  is 
the  real  man  himself,  viz.,  the  four  higher  and  superior 
Principles,  pass  into  the  Spiritual  World  corresponding 
to,  and  immediately  surrounding,  our  own,  it  being  in 
fact  the  Astral  plane  of  this  world,  it  is  the  Purgatory 
of  the  Eoman  Catholic  Church,  and  is  called  in  Sanscrit 
Kama  Loca  (See  coloured  Plate).  Here  a  division 
takes  place,  the  two  highest  Principles  on  the  one  hand, 
drawing  the  fifth  (the  Human  Soul)  and  real  person- 
ality, in  one  direction,  while  the  fourth  (the  Animal 
Soul)  draws  it  back  earthwards  on  the  other.  Its  purest, 
most  elevated,  and  spiritual  portions  cling  to  the  sixth 
Principle,  and  are  elevated  by  it,  its  lower  instincts, 
impulses,  and  recollections  adhering  to  the  fourth, 
remain  in  Kama  Loca,  the  "  Purgatorial,"  or  Astral 
sphere,  immediately  surrounding  the  earth. 

Thus  the  best  elements,  or  true  Essence,  of  the  late 
personality  ascends  to  the  state  designated  in  Buddhist 
Theosophy  as  Devachan',  corresponding  in  some  res- 
pects to  our  European  ideas  of  Heaven,  not,  however, 
the  highest  and  absolute  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  or 
Nirvana,  which  is  the  key-note  of  Buddhism,  as  of 
Christianity,  and  of  all  religions,  for  the  great  end  of 
the  whole  stupendous  evolution  of  humanity  is  to  culti- 


166  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

vate  human  Souls  for  their  involution,  or,  in  other 
words,  to  render  them  fit  for  that  to  us  at  present  in- 
conceivable condition,  which  is  only  reached  when  man 
is  made  "perfect  even  as  the  Father  is  perfect"  and 
the  Son  of  man  has  become  the  Son  of  Grod ;  which 
can  only  be  accomplished  through  innumerable  incar- 
nations during  the  progress  of  the  individual  Entity 
through  the  sevenfold  seven  Planetary  Bounds.  Thus 
does  this  Eternal  Wisdom-Beligion  confirm  the  words 
of  Christ,  and  teach  us  by  the  example  of  the  Infinite 
Love  and  Intelligence  to  pardon  our  enemies  and  give 
them  opportunities  of  repairing  their  shortcomings 
even  "until  seventy  times  seven.'" 

It  is  true  that  at  each  birth  the  personality  differs 
from  that  of  the  previous,  and  of  the  next  succeeding 
birth,  but  Esoteric  Buddhism  teaches  us  that  although 
the  personalities  ever  change,  the  one  line  of  life  along 
which  they  are  strung,  like  pearls  on  a  string,  runs 
unbroken ;  it  is  ever  that  particular  line,  never  any 
other.  The  line  or  thread  of  life  is  therefore  our  true 
individuality ;  an  individual  vital  undulation,  "  Two 
IN  One,"  thus  dual  and  indivisible  for  ever.  Now 
this  life  thread  on  which  our  innumerable  personalities 
are  strung  in  our  career  through  the  ages,  this  indi- 
vidable  duality,  this  Eternal  "Two  in  One,"  is  in 
reality  our  sixth  and  seventh  Principles,  which  began 
in  Nirvana  on  the  subjective  side  of  Nature,  as  the 
Light  and  Heat  undulation  through  sether  began  at 
its  dynamic  source,  ever  flows  through  the  objective 
side  of  Nature,  and  tends  through  many  cyclic  changes 


THE   CEASELESS   CHAIN.  1G7 

back  to  Nirvana.  Thus  do  we  see  how  the  Life  undu- 
lation is  our  true  individuality,  being,  in  fact,  our 
Divine  and  Spiritual  self,  and  each  of  its  series  of 
natal  manifestations  is  a  separate  personality,  the  new 
dress  or  form  it  invests  to  further  and  continue  its 
more  perfect  development ;  or,  poetically  speaking, 
one  of  the  many  pearls  of  our  One  Life's  Rosary. 

As  we  let  fall  each  pearl  and  pass  on  to  the  next, 
and  the  next,  as  they  successively  present  themselves 
on  the  ceaseless  chain,  we  see  an  eternity  of  change, 
and  that  our  present  life,  with  all  its  seeming  weight 
of  care  and  sorrow,  is  but  as  one  out  of  the  pearls  we 
let  fall  as  we  pass  on  to  the  next,  and  we  recognize 
both  the  worth  and  the  worthlessness,  both  the  signi- 
ficance and  the  insignificance  of  this  temporary  exist- 
ence. Its  worth  and  its  significance,  in  as  much  as 
every  act  and  every  thought  lives  in  its  effect  on  our 
subsequent  career,  producing  Karma  either  for  good  or 
ill.  If  we  suffer,  it  is  our  own  suffering,  brought  on 
ourselves,  if  not  in  this  present  life  in  some  previous  one, 
which  was  the  progenitor  of  our  present  happiness  or 
misery,  for  Karma  is  the  inevitable  law  of  consequences, 
in  other  words,  "that  which  we  sow  we  must  also  reap," 
and  not  something  which  we  did  not  sow.  Thus  each 
earth-life  is  valuable  for  the  lesson  it  teaches  us,  and 
the  lift  it  gives  us  onwards  and  upwards,  if  properly 
understood  and  utilized ;  but  it  is  not  worth  the  worry 
and  the  agony  we  too  often  give  ourselves  about  every 
sorrow  and  disappointment  we  meet  with,  as  if  it 
would  occasion  our  misery  for   ever  afterwards,  when 


168  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

the  next  turn  of  the  ever  shifting  glass  will  change  the 
whole  pattern  in  our  Kaleidescope,  and  all  the  colours 
will  fall  into  their  right  places,  harmonizing  by  the  ever- 
lasting triangle  on  which  it  is  based,  and  thus  each  turn 
of  the  glass  serves  but  to  produce  a  fuller  form  than  the 
last;  or,  in  other  words,  to  add  another  and  probably 
a  purer  and  whiter  pearl  to  our  Rosary. 

Our  existence  is  eternal,  but  it  is  composed  of  an 
eternity  of  existences,  or  manifest aions,  the  One  Life- 
thread  running  through  all.  To  be  truly  happy  we 
must  try  fully  to  understand  our  perpetual  changeful- 
ness,  and  the  result  will  be  that  we  shall  learn  to  live 
in  the  Now,  and  to  realize  that  all  Time  is  ours, 
because  we  are  the  children  of  the  Eternal,  to  whom 
"  one  day  is  as  a  thousand  years,  and  a  thousand  years 
as  one  day";  the  present  is  infinite,  and  infinity  is 
our  present,  a  future  would  be  finite ;  therefore,  the  one 
day  is  ever  lasting  on,  it  is  ours  now,  and  ever  will  be 
ours,  just  as  much  as  it  is  to-day,  for  it  will  ever  be 
one  perpetual  Now.*  And  yet  we  and  all  things  are 
perpetually  changing;  from  moment  to  moment  we 
are  not  the  same,  every  exhalation  and  every  inspira- 
tion of  the  breath  changes  us  by  so  much  physically, 
as  every  line  we  read,  every  thought  we  think,  changes 
us  mentally,  so  that  by  the  end  of  each  day  we  are  no 
longer  exactly  the  same,  either  morally  or  materially, 
that  we  were  at  its  beginning ;  but  our  change  should 

*  "  The  curtains  of  yesterday  drop  down,  the  curtains  of  to-mor- 
row roll  up ;  but  yesterday  and  to-morrow  both  are." — (Sartor 
Hesartus.) 


NEW  BIRTH,   OR   REGENERATION.  169 

be  from  glory  to  glory,  and  will  be  so  if  we  properly 
utilize  the  Now  which  is  ours. 

It  is  difficult  to  realize  this  perpetual,  this  eternal 
Now,  which  is  ever  lasting  on,  and  yet  ever  changing 
and  bringing  changes.  Let  us  try  to  do  so  by  narrow- 
ing the  view  and  calling  to  remembrance  One  little 
year  out  of  the  thousands ;  which  year  we  know  is  com- 
posed of  months,  and  those  months  of  weeks,  and  those 
weeks  of  days,  and  those  days  of  hours,  and  those  hours 
of  minutes,  and  those  minutes  of  seconds,  marked 
by  the  ceaseless  tick  of  the  everlasting  Clock  of  Time. 

Thus  it  will  appear  that  every  perfect  man  is  regen- 
erated, or  twice  born,  and  each  time  from  the  centre  of 
the  Cross,  or  the  Union  of  male  and  female,  first  ma- 
terially, taking  root  downivards  and  drawing  from  the 
earth  the  materials  wherewith  to  form  and  nourish  the 
body,  and  from  the  Vital  atmosphere  (described  in  the 
Plate  as  Vivifying  Spirit)  the  Jivatma,  or  Vitality,  which 
animates  it,  and  builds  it  up  in,  and  on,  the  Astral 
form  which  exists  before  the  outward  body  can  become 
visible,  by  assimilating  the  material  that  makes  it  so. 

Every  molecule  of  matter,  however  minute,  has  a 
Vital  Spirit,  or  partakes  of  this  Jivatma,  which  is  not 
by  any  means  one  with  the  Divine  Spirit  of  man, 
the  Atma,  or  seventh  Principle,  for  that  is  "  God." 

Without  this  third  Principle,  the  Linga  Sharira, 
or  Astral  form,  possessed  by  animals  as  well  as  by  man, 
there  could  be  no  outward  body ;  for  it  is  evident  that 
the  particles  or  atoms  of  matter  would  not  build  up 
of  themselves  without  a  form  to  build  upon,  "  it  may 


170  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHT. 

chance  of  wheat,  or  of  some  other  grain,  for  God 
giveth  it  a  body  as  it  hath  pleased  Him,  and  to  every 
seed  his  own  body"  (Cor.  xv.  38).  It  is  therefore  the 
same  for  all,  and  the  particles  of  matter  must  have 
a  form  to  build  on,  it  may  chance  of  man,  or  of  some 
other  animal,  to  every  seed  his  own  body.  "  There  is  a 
natural  body  and  there  is  a  spiritual  body.  The  first 
man  is  of  the  earth,  earthy ;  the  second  Man  is  the 
Lord  from  Heaven.  Howbeit  that  was  not  first  ivhich 
is  spiritual,  but  that  which  is  natural,  and  after- 
wards that  ivhich  is  spiritual"  (1  Cor.  xv.  44 — 46). 

But  to  become  Spiritual,  to  become  "  the  Lord  from 
Heaven "  the  man  must  be  "  born  again,"  born  a 
second  time,  always  from  the  Centre  of  the  Cross,  the 
Love  Centre,  the  union  of  the  male  and  female  princi- 
ples, but  this  time  he  is  born  of  the  Spiritual  union 
of  these  principles  in  his  own  nature.  It  is  the  Virgin 
womb  in  our  own  fifth  Principle,  Manas,  or  "  Human 
Soul,"  that  immediately  conceives  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 
It  is  the  seed  of  the  Woman,  or  feminine  Principle  in 
man,  that  is  destined  to  "  bruise  the  Serpent's  head," 
in  other  words,  to  overcome  Materiality  by  Spirituality, 
and  when  this  Virgin  Soul  is  prepared  to  receive  it 
that  seed  will  take  root  and  germinate,  and  the  son 
of  man  will  be  "raised  up"  and  shooting  upwards 
like  the  Tree  of  Life,  whose  branches  tend  heaven- 
wards, will  draw  its  nutriment  from  above,  from  the 
Spiritual  and  intellectual  Light  diffused  by  the 
Universal  Soul,  and  dispensed  by  the  Divine  Spirit, 
our  ever  living  Mother  and  Father,  "  God." 


JACOB'S  LADDER.  171 

Until  the  primary  substances  are  organized,  man  as 
a  personality  is  not  ;  therefore  he  is  first  boxn  phy- 
sically, and  taking  root  doivnwards  draws  his  material 
substance  from  the  earth,  as  do  his  inferiors ;  he  must 
then  be  newly  born,  or  "born  again"  spiritually,  in 
order  to  become  a  spiritual  being,  but  always  from  the 
Love  Centre  (his  Will)  ;  and  in  order  to  have  Good- 
ness and  Wisdom  and  "Universal  Love,"  instead  of 
Self-Love,  he  must  rise  heavenwards  and  draw  his 
intellectual  food  for  the  mind,  and  his  benevolent  food 
for  the  heart  from  the  never-failing  Spiritual  Source. 

There  is  another  Spiritual  State  which  has  found 
no  place  in  our  tabular  representation,  because  it 
does  not  form  one  of  the  Seven,  but  as  Nirvana  is 
above  and  beyond  these,  being  the  Supreme  state  of 
Divinity  ;  its  antithesis,  called  in  Sanscrit  "  Avitchi," 
might  be  said  to  be  below  and  beyond  in  an  opposite 
direction,  were  it  possible  to  localise  a  State. 

There  is  yet  another  ladder  of  seven  degrees  or  stages 
of  ascent  from  earth  to  heaven.  Jacob's  ladder  occupies 
a  conspicuous  place  among  the  symbols  of  Freemasonry. 
Its  true  origin  was  lost  among  the  worshippers  of  the 
Pagan  rites,  but  the  symbol  itself  was  retained.  Among 
them  it  was  always  made  to  consist  of  seven  rounds, 
which  might,  as  Dr.  Oliver  suggests,  have  been  in 
allusion  either  to  the  seven  stories  of  the  Tower  of 
Babel,  or  to  the  Sabbatical  period.  In  the  Persian 
Mysteries  of  Mithras  the  ladder  of  seven  rounds  was 
symbolical  of  the  Soul's  approach  to  perfection.  These 
rounds  were  called  gates ;  and  in  allusion  to  them,  the 


172  UNIVERSAL  THEOLOGY. 

candidate  was  made  to  pass  through  seven  dark  and 
winding  caverns,  which  process  was  called  the  ascent  of 
the  ladder  of  perfection.  Each  of  these  caverns  was 
the  representative  of  a  state  of  existence  through  which 
the  soul  was  supposed  to  pass  in  its  progress  from  the 
first  to  the  last,  or  the  state  of  truth.  Each  round  of 
the  ladder  was  said  to  be  of  metal,  of  increasing  purity, 
and  was  dignified  with  the  name  of  its  protecting 
planet.  Some  idea  of  the  construction  of  this  symbolic 
ladder  may  be  obtained  from  the  following  table : 


7. 

Gold      

Sun 

Love. 

6. 

Silver    

.     Moon    ...     , 

, . .     Wisdom. 

5. 

Quicksilver  .. 

Mercury 

Understanding. 

4. 

Copper 

Venus  ... 

Beauty. 

3. 

Lead      

.      Earth    ... 

. . .     Flesh. 

2. 

Iron       

.     Mars     ... 

Power. 

1. 

Tin        

Jupiter . . . 

Council. 

Among  the  Hebrews  the  rounds  of  the  ladder  were 
originally  supposed  to  be  infinite.  The  Essenians  first 
reduced  them  to  seven,  which  were  called  the  Sephiroth, 
whose  names  were  Strength,  Mercy,  Beauty,  Eternity, 
Glory,  the  Foundation,  and  the  Kingdom. 

"  At  its  base  this  ladder  touches  the  earth,  and  the  angels  on  it 
denote  Souls  descending  into  incarnation,  even  as  the  Kabbala 
says,  to  the  lowest  degree  of  the  Universe,  or  matter  at  its  nether- 
most point — and  ascending  again  to  heaven.  At  the  foot  of  the 
ladder  at  night  Jacob  (the  pilgrim  Soul),  lies  asleep,  having  for 
pillow  a  stone,  symbol  of  matter  at  the  lowest  point.  As  the 
place  of  the  greatest  darkness  and  division  from  God  the  spot  is 
called  Luza,  or  separation.     When  Jacob  awakes,  however,  the 


SEVEN   SENSES.  173 

Soul  knows  that  even  in  the  lowest  abyss  of  matter  there  is  no 
real  separation  from  the  Divine  presence  and  life,  hence  his 
exclamation  on  awaking,  '  Indeed  the  Lord  is  in  this  place.' 
And  he  called  its  name  Bethel  (House  of  God),  which  before  was 
Luza  (separation)." — From  a  Lecture  by  Dr.  A.  King&ford,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Hermetic  Society, 

But  to  return  to  the  Constitution  of  Man,  which 
so  immediately  concerns  and  interests  us,  we  must 
remember  the  Esoteric  Doctrine  teaches,  that  the 
three  superior  principles  of  the  seven  which  constitute 
man  are  not  yet  fully  developed  in  the  actual  state  of 
humanity  ;  but  when  man  reaches  a  perfect  state  on 
earth  he  will  be  endowed  with  all  the  seven  principles, 
and  seven  consequent  senses,  as  some  truly  divine  men, 
to  whom  we  could  point,  who  have  come  as  Messengers 
to  this  planet,  were  certainly  endowed  in  the  past. 

The  State,  to  which  we  give  the  name  of  Death,  has 
only  influence  over  the  three  first  principles,  viz.,  the 
Body,  the  Vitality,  and  the  Astral  Form.  The  first,  as 
we  know,  is  from  the  earth,  and  is  returned  again  to 
earth  there  to  be  decomposed,  and  in  process  of  time 
to  enter  into  other  combinations  and  go  to  form  other 
material  bodies.  The  Vitality  is  also  dissipated  at  the 
death  of  the  body  and  goes  to  animate  other  organisms, 
being  like  the  molecules  which  formed  the  body,  not 
confined  to  any  individual,  but  a  universal  Cosmic  prin- 
ciple ;  and  the  Astral  Form,  which  is  a  reflection  of  the 
physical  body,  although  it  may  linger  for  a  longer  or 
a  shorter  time  around  the  home  it  has  left,  and  is 
sometimes  perceived  as  the  shade  of  the  departed, 
wearing  as   it  does    precisely   the   same    appearance, 


174  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

also  fades  out  at  last  having  completed  its  mission, 
which  was  to  guide  the  Jivatma  in  its  work  of  con- 
struction to  build  up  the  molecular  atoms  in  the  form 
which  they  clothed.  These  three  lower  Principles  are 
entirely  derived  from  the  Earth  and  its  atmosphere,  and 
are  consequently  perishable  as  form,  although  indes- 
tructible as  regards  the  molecules  of  which  they  were 
formed,  but  they  are  entirely  separated  from  man  at  his 
death,  and  go  to  animate  other  organisms. 

Not  only  man,  but  the  Universe  itself  is  composed  of 
seven  Principles,  and  the  Supreme  or  Seventh  Principle, 
animates  this  uninterrupted  stream  of  life  throughout 
Nature,  uniting  by  continued  sequence  the  innumerable 
transformations  of  the  one  life  which  constitutes  the  com- 
plete series.  The  Great  Pyramid  of  Egypt,  built  upon 
the  triangle  and  the  square,  symbolized  this  Arcanum ; 
its  seventh  point,  ("  The  head-stone  of  the  corner, 
ivhich  the  builders  refused,")*  rising  gloriously  towards 
heaven,  as  if  piercing  the  skies  ;  a  symbol  to  all  time  of 
the  perfection  of  the  Christ,  or  Seventh  Principle  in  man. 

In  order  to  comprehend  this  most  ancient  doctrine 
which  appears  to  throw  so  much  light  on  the  history  of 
humanity,  and  so  perfectly  to  account  for  the  otherwise 
inexplicable  difference  between  man  and  man,  and  to 
reconcile  such  inequality  with  the  Justice  of  God,  we 
must  fix  our  attention  on  the  three  higher  Principles, 
the  Fourth,  Fifth,  and  Sixth,  and  see  the  gradual  rise 
of  the  merely  sensual  man,  through  the  human  to  the 
Divine  being,  or  perfected  humanity  (in   other  words, 

*  See  Matt.  xxi.  42 ;  Luke  xx.  17 ;  Mark  xii.  10 ;  Psalm  cxviii.  22. 


THE   AXIS.  175 

the  Son  of  God) ;  and  say  not  such  perfection  is 
impossible  and  can  never  be  attained,  for  then  were 
the  injunction  useless,  and  but  vain  the  words  "Be 
ye  perfect  even  as  your  Father  is  perfect.^ 

The  Fifth  Principle  or  Human  Soul  is  the  real  per- 
sonality of  the  man,  though  but  too  often  during  earth 
life  the  personality  is  centred,  as  we  have  seen,  in  the 
Fourth  Principle,  the  WILL,  which  is  but  the  Animal 
Soul,  or  Soul  possessed  by  animals  as  well  as  by  man. 
This  Fourth  or  centre  of  the  Seven  Principles  con- 
stituting man,  is  the  Axis  on  which  all  the  others  turn. 
On  passing  this  Fourth  Principle  we  come  into  the 
region  of  the  Psychic  Being.  But  it  is  the  highest 
principle  in  the  animal ;  and  were  it  not  for  the  deve- 
lopment of  his  Fifth  Principle,  the  Human  Soul,  man 
would  not  rise  above  the  level  of  the  beast,  for  without 
the  ascent  of  the  Understanding  above  the  Will,  he 
would  have  no  capacity  of  thinking,  or  of  speaking  from 
thought,  or  of  acting  from  reason,  but  only  by  instinct. 

Love  itself,  and  the  affections  which  belong  to  it, 
have  their  abode  in  the  Kama  Eupa,  the  Fourth  Prin- 
ciple Will,  or  Egoism ;  while  Science,  Intelligence,  and 
Understanding  have  their  abode  in  the  Manas,  the  Fifth 
Principle  or  Human  Soul,  thus  it  follows  that  all  good 
and  all  evil  belong  to  the  Will ;  for  whatever  proceeds 
from  love  is  called  good,  although  it  may  be  evil ;  but 
what  a  man  loves,  he  wills,  and  that  to  him  seems  and 
is  good.  The  Will,  therefore,  is  the  Axis  on  which  the 
other  Principles  turn,  and  such  as  the  love  and  wis- 
dom  are,  such  are   the   Will  and  understanding,   the 


176  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Will  being  the  receptacle  of  love,  and  the  under- 
standing of  wisdom ;  which  two  make  the  man  and  his 
quality. 

Since  this  is  so,  it  is  easy  to  perceive  that  the  Manas 
or  Fifth  Principle  is  as  yet  but  feebly  developed  in 
humanity,  the  great  majority  alas !  with  whom  we 
are  brought  into  daily  contact  have  scarcely  risen 
above  the  Fourth  Principle,  the  Kama  Eupa  (Animal 
Soul,  or  Self-hove),  which  indeed  we  may  see  is  gene- 
rally speaking  very  highly  developed  in  them. 

If  the  Fifth  Principle,  Manas  (Human  Soul,  Mind 
or  Understanding),  is  so  little  developed  amongst  men, 
the  Sixth  is  still  less  so,  and  may  be  said  as  yet  to  exist 
but  in  embryo,  for  we  have  only  occasional  glimpses  of 
it.  Its  development  is  the  aim  to  which  all  the  efforts 
of  our  higher  and  interior  nature  should  tend  and  aspire ; 
it  is  the  degree  of  perfection  after  which  we  were  com- 
manded to  strive  by  one  who  had  attained  unto  it. 

As  we  have  seen,  the  Fourth  Principle,  Kama  Eupa, 
is  the  Axis  on  which  all  the  others  turn.  In  the 
early  natural  state  it  is  simply  animal,  as  it  becomes 
united  to  the  Fifth  Principle  it  is  guided  by  reason 
and  understanding,  and  becomes  human,  and  by  the 
time  it  shall  have  developed  and  united  itself  to  the 
Sixth  Principle,  the  Buddhi  (Spiritual  Conscience,  or 
Christ-like  Soul),  it  will  be  enlightened  by  its  divine 
wisdom  and  purity,  and  the  nature  of  its  love  will  be 
changed  from  self-love,  which  but  too  often  engenders 
hate,  to  universal  love  and  charity,  or  love  of  God, 
because  love  of  humanity. 


THE  SON   OF   GOD.  177 

The  Seventh  Principle,  Atma,  is  the  Divine  Spirit 
Itself. 

From  another  point  of  view  we  might,  it  is  said  with 
equal  truth,  assert  that  the  Sixth  Principle  (the  Spiritual 
Soul),  or  Anima  Divina,  is  the  Vehicle  of  the  Divine 
Spirit,  whilst  the  Fourth  (the  Animal  Soul)  Anima 
Bruta,  is  the  Vehicle  of  the  Fifth  (the  Human  Soul, 
or  Understanding).  And  from  yet  another  standpoint 
we  may  regard  each  of  the  superior  Principles,  begin- 
ning from  the  Fourth,  as  the  Vehicle  of  the  One  Life, 
or  Spirit. 

The  division  of  the  Seven  Principles  in  the  Consti- 
tution of  humanity  fully  explains  the  reason  of  the 
great  inequalities  existing  between  man  and  man ;  and 
shows  that  this  is  due  to  no  partiality,  or  unequal  dis- 
tribution of  Divine  favours,  but  simply  to  the  state 
of  advancement,  or  development,  at  which  each  has  ar- 
rived, and  that  all  humanity  is  on  the  road  to  attain 
the  highest,  the  Divine  Soul,  and  thus  eventually 
to  hear  the  gracious  words, "  Thou  art  My  beloved  Son." 

All  men  are,  and  ever  must  be,  on  different  steps  of 
the  same  ladder  leading  towards,  and  reaching  up  to 
heaven ;  all  alike  are  at  the  same  School,  but  each  has 
to  sit  first  on  the  lowest  seat  of  the  lowest  form,  and 
when  he  attains  to  the  top  of  the  class  he  passes  on  to 
the  next  form.  The  forms,  as  Forms,  belong  to  the 
School,  and  are  always  there,  but  the  scholars  are  ever 
moving  along  them,  onwards  and  upwards  towards  the 
highest,  and  none  begin  at  the  top  class;  but  some 
may  remain  longer  at  school  than  others,  nay,  indeed, 

N 


178  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

some  may  remain  on  the  lower  forms,  and  even  be 
banished  from  them  at  last,  and  have  to  wear  the 
Dunce's  Cap  with  Ass's  ears,  if  they  persistently  refuse 
to  progress,  and  rise  in  their  class. 

The  Ass's  ears  of  the  said  Cap  would  denote  a  real 
retrogression,  or  return  of  the  human  to  the  animal 
plane,  and  we  know  this  is  a  doctrine  held  by  some 
ancient  Eeligions  of  Wisdom  ;  nay,  should  the  Ass  con- 
tinue in  his  wilfulness  to  kick  against  the  pricks,  and 
to  prefer  thistles  to  Oats,  after  he  has  attained  to  the 
knowledge  of  better  food,  he  may  even  be  degraded  still 
lower,  and  have  to  crawl  out  his  grovelling  evil  pro- 
pensities on  the  descending  ladder  of  existences,  as  a 
noxious  creeping  thing :  ("  On  thy  belly  shalt  thou  go, 
and  dust  shalt  thou  eat.")  For  a  very  true  definition  of 
evil  is,  that  it  is  the  Law  of  the  lower  nature  still  oper- 
ative in  those  who  have  reached  a  higher  plane. 

Thus  we  see  that  even  the  very  lowest  of  creeping 
things  have  their  uses,  and  as  receptacles  of  cast  off 
evil  passions  and  propensities,  serve  to  keep  the  atmos- 
phere pure,  which  otherwise  would  be  so  contaminated 
that  the  pure  and  good  could  no  longer  breathe  And 
thus  evil  is  gradually  eliminated  from  the  planet  on  the 
descending  scale,  returning  at  last  to  the  dust  from 
whence  it  came,  there  finally  to  go  through  processes 
of  purification.  "  Evil  is  the  dark  son  of  earth  (Matter) 
and  Good  the  fair  daughter  of  Heaven"  (or  Spirit), 
says  the  Chinese  philosopher.  "Hence,  the  place  of 
punishment  for  most  of  our  sins  is  the  earth,  their 
birthplace  and  play-ground." 


SPIRITUAL   EVOLUTION  AND   INVOLUTION.  179 

We  commenced  the  subject  of  Esoteric  Buddhism 
intending  merely  to  give  a  tabular  form  of  the  Consti- 
tution of  Man  and  of  the  Universe,  and  to  show  how 
exactly  it  fits  into,  and  corresponds  with  other  teach- 
ings, both  spiritual  and  physical.  Fain  would  we  give 
some  extracts  from  Mr.  Sinnett's  entrancing  volume 
concerning  the  Planetary  Chain  of  Seven  Planets,  and 
our  successive  lives  upon  them  as  a  corollary  and  con- 
tinuation of  what  we  have  said  concerning  the  constitu- 
tion of  man,  but  the  subject  is  of  such  intense  interest 
that  we  fear  to  be  carried  far  beyond  our  limits ;  we 
must  therefore  only  touch  in  the  slightest  manner  on 
this  circuit,  round  which  all  individual  spiritual  entities 
have  alike  to  pass,  and  that  passage  which  is  performed 
in  seven  Rounds  constitutes  the  Evolution  of  Man.  It 
is  the  Spiral  (or  Spiritual)  character  of  the  progress  by 
life-impulses  that  at  the  same  time  developes  the 
various  Kingdoms  of  Nature,  and  which  will  account 
for  the  gaps  or  "  missing  links  "  now  observed  in  the 
animated  forms  which  people  the  earth.* 

"  The  thread  of  a  screw,  which  is  a  uniform  inclined  plane 
in  reality,  looks  like  a  succession  of  steps  when  examined  only 
along  one  line  parallel  to  its  axis.  The  Spiritual  Monads,  which 
are  coming  round  the  system  on  the  animal  level,  pass  on  to  other 
worlds  when  they  have  performed  their  turn  of  animal  incarna- 
tion here.  By  the  time  they  come  round  again  they  are  ready  for 
human  incarnation,  and  there  is  no  necessity  now  for  the  upward 

*  "  Spiral  is  the  etymological  cognate  of  spirit  and  spiritual. 
Spirit  and  movement  are  related,  in  a  sense  they  are  identical 
ideas.  The  spiral  is  the  type  of  spiritual  progression,  hence  volu- 
tion; Latin  volos,  to  roll  or  turn,  whence  Evolution,  rolling  out, 
and  Involution,  rolling  in."  ("  Univeesology,"  by  Stephen  Pearl 
Andrews.) 


180  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

development  of  animal  forms  into  human  forms — as  these  are 
already  waiting  for  their  Spiritual  tenants.  It  is  for  want  of 
realizing  this  idea  that  speculation  concerned  with  physical  evolu- 
tion is  so  constantly  finding  itself  stopped  by  dead  walls.  It  is 
searching  for  its  missing  links  in  a  world  where  it  can  never  find 
them  now,  for  they  were  but  required  for  a  temporary  purpose, 
and  have  passed  away.  Man,  says  the  Darwinian,  was  once  an 
Ape.  Quite  true  ;  but  the  Ape  known  to  the  Darwinian  will 
never  become  a  man — i.e.,  the  form  will  not  change  from  gener- 
ation to  generation  till  the  tail  disappears  and  the  hands  turn 
into  feet  and  so  on.  .  .  .  There  was  a  time  when  these  inter- 
mediary forms  were  necessary,  but  it  was  inevitable  that  the 
intermediate  forms  should  be  of  a  temporary  nature  and  should 
die  out,  otherwise  we  should  find  the  world  stocked  with  missing 
links  of  all  kinds — animal  life  creeping  by  plainly  apparent 
degrees  up  to  manhood,  human  forms  mingling  in  indistinguishable 
confusion  with  those  of  animals.  .  .  .  The  forms  which  have 
gone  on  merely  repeating  themselves  for  millenniums  start  afresh 
into  growth,  and  supply  tenements  of  flesh  for  the  spiritual  entities 
coming  round  on  each  stage  or  plane  of  existence,  and  for  the 
intermediate  forms  there  are  no  longer  any  tenants  offering. 
Inevitably,  therefore,  they  become  extinct.  .  .  .  Man,  as  we 
know  him  on  this  earth,  is  but  half-way  through  the  evolutionary 
process  to  which  he  owes  his  present  development.  He  will  be  as 
much  greater,  before  the  destiny  of  our  system  is  accomplished, 
than  he  is  now,  as  he  is  now  greater  than  the  missing  fink.  And 
that  improvement  will  even  be  accompbshed  on  this  earth,  while, 
in  the  other  worlds  of  the  ascending  series,  there  are  still  loftier 
peaks  to  be  scaled.  It  is  utterly  beyond  the  range  of  faculties 
untutored  in  the  discernment  of  Occult  mysteries  to  imagine  the 
kind  of  life  which  man  will  ultimately  lead  before  the  zenith  of 
the  great  cycle  is  attained."     (Esoteric  Buddhism,  pp.  87  &  43.) 

"  Man  is  evolved  in  a  series  of  rounds  (progressions  round  the 
series  of  worlds),  and  seven  of  these  rounds  have  to  be  accom- 
plished before  the  destinies  of  our  system  are  worked  out.  The 
round  which  is  at  present  going  on  is  the  fourth.  '  There  are  con- 
siderations of  the  utmost  possible  interest  connected  with  precise 
knowledge  on  these  points,  because  each  round  is,  as  it  were, 
specially  allotted  to  the  predominance  of  one  of  the  Seven  Prin- 
ciples in  man,  and  in  the  regular  order  of  their  upward  gradation.' 


THE   PLANETARY   CHAIN.  181 

"  An  individual  unit,  arriving  on  a  planet  for  the  first  time  in 
the  course  of  a  round,  has  to  work  through  seven  races  with 
their  seven  sub-races  on  that  planet  before  he  passes  on  to  the 
next,  and  each  of  those  races  occupies  the  earth  for  a  long  time. 
.  .  .  We  at  present  living  on  this  earth — the  great  bulk  of 
humanity,  that  is  to  say,  for  there  are  exceptional  cases  to  be 
considered  later — are  now  going  through  the  fifth  race  of  our 
present  fourth  rcund.  And  yet  the  evolution  of  that  fifth  race 
began  about  a  million  of  years  ago.  .  .  .  Within  the  limits 
of  each  race  there  are  seven  sub-divisional  races,  and  again  within 
the  limits  of  each  sub-division  there  are  seven  branch  races. 
Through  all  these  races,  roughly  speaking,  each  individual  human 
unit  must  pass  during  his  stay  on  earth,  each  time  he  arrives  there 
on  a  round  of  progress  through  the  planetary  system."  (Esoteric 
Buddhism,  pp.  48  and  49.) 

"  It  will  readily  be  supposed  that  the  chain  of  worlds  to  which 
this  earth  belongs  are  not  all  prepared  for  a  material  existence 
exactly,  or  even  approximately,  resembling  our  own.  There 
would  be  no  meaning  in  an  organised  chain  of  worlds  which  were 
all  alike,  and  might  as  well  have  been  amalgamated  into  One. 
In  reality  the  worlds  with  which  we  are  connected  are  very 
unlike  each  other,  not  merely  in  outward  condition,  but  in  that 
supreme  characteristic,  the  proportion  in  which  spirit  and  matter 
are  mingled  in  their  constitution.  Our  own  world  presents  us 
with  conditions  in  which  spirit  and  matter  are,  on  the  whole, 
evenly  balanced  in  equilibrium.  Let  it  not  be  supposed  on  that 
account  that  it  is  very  highly  elevated  in  the  scale  of  perfection. 
On  the  contrary,  it  occupies  a  very  low  place  in  that  scale.  The 
worlds  that  are  higher  in  the  scale  are  those  in  which  spirit 
largely  predominates,  .  .  .  the  farthest  back,  as  also  the 
farthest  forward,  are  the  most  immaterial,  the  most  ethereal  of 
the  whole  series ;  and  that  this  is  in  all  ways  in  accordance  with 
the  fitness  of  things  will  appear  from  the  reflection  that  the 
farthest  forward  of  the  worlds  is  not  a  region  of  finality,  but 
the  stepping-stone  to  the  farthest  back,  as  the  month  of  December 
leads  us  back  again  to  January.  But  it  is  not  a  climax  of 
development  for  which  the  individual  monad  falls,  as  by  a  catas- 
trophe, into  the  state  from  which  he  slowly  began  to  ascend 
millions  of  years  previously.  There  is  no  descent  at  all,  but  still 
ascent  and  progress.     For  the  spiritual  entity,  which  has  worked 


182 


UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 


its  way  all  round  the  cycle  of  evolution,  at  any  one  of  the  many 
stages  of  development  into  which  the  various  existences  around 
us  may  be  grouped,  begins  its  next  cycle  at  the  next  higher  stage, 
and  is  thus  still  accomplishing  progress  as  it  passes  from  world 
Z  back  again  to  world  A.  Many  times  does  it  circle  in  this  way, 
right  round  the  system,  but  its  passage  round  must  not  be 
thought  of  merely  as  a  circular  revolution  in  an  orbit.  In  the 
scale  of  spiritual  perfection  it  is  constantly  ascending.  .  .  . 
The  process  goes  on  in  this  way,  which  may  now  be  described, 
and  which  the  reader  may  be  better  able  to  follow  if  he  con- 
structs, either  on  paper  or  in  his  own  mind,  a  diagram  consisting 
of   seven  circles  (representing   the  worlds)   arranged  in   a  ring. 


Calling  them  A  33  C  D,  &c,  it  will  be  observed  from  what  has 
been  already  stated  that  Circle  (or  Globe),  D,  stands  for  our 
earth  (it  being  the  fourth  of  the  seven).  Now  the  Kingdoms 
of  Nature  as  known  to  Occultists,  be  it  remembered,  are  seven  in 
number,  three  having  to  do  with  Astral  and  Elementary  forces, 
preceding  the  grosser  material  Kingdoms  in  the  order  of  their 
development.  Kingdom  1  evolves  on  Globe  A,  and  passes  on  to 
B,  as  Kingdom  2  begins  to  evolve  on  A.  Carry  out  this  system 
and,  of  course,  it  will  be  seen  that  Kingdom  1  is  still  evolving 


THE  SLEEP   OF  WORLDS.  183 

on  Globe  G,  while  Kingdom  7,  the  Human  Kingdom,  is  evolving 
on  Globe  A.  But  now  what  happens  as  Kingdom  7  passes  on 
from  Globe  A  to  Globe  B  ?  There  is  no  eighth  Kingdom  to 
engage  the  activities  of  Globe  A.  The  great  processes  of  evolu- 
tion have  culminated  in  the  final  tidal-wave  of  humanity,  which 
as  it  sweeps  on  leaves  a  temporary  lethargy  of  Nature  behind. 
When  the  life-wave  goes  on  to  B  in  fact,  Globe  A  passes  for  the 
time  into  a  state  of  obscuration.  This  state  is  not  one  of  decay, 
dissolution,  or  anything  that  can  be  properly  called  death.  De- 
cay itself,  though  its  aspect  is  apt  to  mislead  the  mind,  is  a 
condition  of  activity  in  a  certain  direction ;  this  consideration 
affording  a  meaning  to  a  good  deal  which  is  otherwise  meaning- 
less in  that  part  of  Hindu  Mythology  which  relates  to  the  deities 
presiding  over  destruction.  The  obscuration  of  a  world  is  a  total 
suspension  of  its  activities.  .  .  .  Enormous  periods  of  time 
are  available  for  this  slow  process  by  which  the  obscured  world 
settles  into  sleep,  for  it  will  be  seen  that  obscuration  in  each  case 
lasts  six  times  as  long  as  the  period  of  each  occupation  by  the 
human  tide-wave.  That  is  to  say,  the  process  which  is  accom- 
plished as  above  described,  in  connection  with  the  passage  of  the 
life-wave,  from  Globe  A  to  Globe  B,  is  repeated  all  along  the 
chain.  When  the  wave  passes  to  C,  B  is  left  in  obscuration  as 
well  as  A.  Then  D  receives  the  life-wave,  and  ABC  are  in 
obscuration.  When  the  wave  reaches  G  all  the  preceding  six 
worlds  are  in  obscuration.  Meanwhile  the  life-wave  passes  on  in 
a  certain  regular  progression,  the  symmetrical  character  of  which 
is  very  satisfactory  to  scientific  instincts.  The  reader  will  be 
prepared  to  pick  up  the  idea  at  once,  in  view  of  the  explanation 
already  given  of  the  way  in  which  humanity  evolves  through 
seven  great  races,  during  each  Round  period  on  a  planet — that  is 
to  say,  during  the  occupation  of  such  planet  by  the  tidal-wave 
of  life.  The  fourth  race  is  evidently  the  middle  race  of  the 
series.  As  soon  as  this  middle  point  is  turned,  and  the  evolution 
of  the  fifth  race  on  any  given  planet  begins,  the  preparation  for 
humanity  begins  on  the  next.  The  evolution  of  the  fifth  race  on 
E,  for  example,  is  commensurate  with  the  evolution,  or  rather 
with  the  revival,  of  the  Mineral  Kingdom  on  D,  and  so  on. 
That  is  to  say,  the  evolution  of  the  sixth  race  on  D  coincides 
with  the  revival  of  the  Vegetable  Kingdom  on  E,  the  seventh 
race  on  D,  with  the  revival  of  the  Animal  Kingdom  on  E,  and 


184  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

then  when  the  last  monads  of  the  seventh  race  on  D  have  passed 
into  the  subjective  state  or  world  of  effects,  the  human  period  on 
E  begins,  and  the  first  race  begins  its  development  there.     Mean- 
while the  twilight  period  of  the  world,  preceding  D,  has  been 
deepening  into  the  night  of  obscuration  in  the  same  progressive 
way,  and   obscuration  there  definitely  sets  in  when  the  human 
period  on  D  passes  its  half-way  point.     .     .     .     Recovery  for  the 
re-awakening  planet  is  a  larger  process  than  its  subsidence  into 
rest,  for  it  has  to  attain  a  higher  degree  of  perfection  against  the 
return  of  the  human  life-wave  than  that  at  which  it  was  left 
when  the  wave  last  went   onward  from  its   shore.     But   with 
every  new  beginning  Nature  is  infused  with  a  vigour  of  its  own— 
the  freshness  of  a  morning.     .     .     .    Just  as  the  chain  of  worlds, 
treated  as  a  Unity,  has  its  North  and  South,  its  spiritual  and 
material  poles,  working   from   spirituality,  down  through  mate- 
riality, up  to  spirituality  again,  so  the  Rounds  of  mankind  con- 
stitute a  similar  series,  which  the  chain  of  Globes  itself  might  be 
taken  to  symbolise.     In  the  evolution  of  man,  in  fact,  or  any  one 
plane  as  on   all,  there  is  a  descending  and  an  ascending  Arc; 
spirit,  so  to  speak,  involving  itself  into  matter,  and  matter  evolving 
itself  into  spirit.     The  lowest  or  most  material  point  in  the  cycle 
thus  becomes  the  inverted  apex  of   physical   intelligence,  which 
is  the  masked    manifestation   of    spiritual    intelligence.      Each 
Round  of  mankind  evolved  on  the  downward  Arc  (as  each  race 
of   each   Round   if   we   descend   to   the   smaller   Mirror   of    the 
Cosmos)  must  thus  be  more  physically  intelligent  than  its  pre- 
decessor, and  each  in  the  upward  Arc  must  be  invested  with  a 
more  refined  form  of  mentality,  commingled  with  greater  spiritual 
intuitiveness.     In   the   first    Round,   therefore,   we   find  man   a 
relatively  ethereal  being  compared  even  on  earth  with  the  state 
he   has  now   attined   here,   not   intellectual  but   super-spiritual. 
Like  the  animal  and  vegetable  shapes  around  him,  he  inhabits  an 
immense  but  loosely  organised  body.     In  the  second  Round  he  is 
still  gigantic  and  ethereal,  but  growing  firmer  and  more  condensed 
jn  body— a  more  physical   man,  but   still  less    intelligent   than 
spiritual.     In  the  third  Round  he  has  developed  a  perfectly  con- 
crete and  compacted  body,  at  first  the  form  rather  of  a  giant  ape 
than  of  a  true  man,  but  with  intelligence  coming  more  and  more 
into  the  ascendant.     In  the  last  half  of   the   third   Round   his 
gigantic  stature  decreases,  his  body  improves  in  texture,  and  he 


NOW",   IS   THE   TURNING-POINT.  185 

begins  to  be  a  rational  man.  In  the  fourth  Bound,  intellect,  now 
fully  developed,  achieves  enormous  progress.  The  direct  races 
with  which  the  Bound  begins  acquire  human  speech  as  we  under- 
stand it.  The  world  teems  with  the  result  of  Intellectual  activity 
and  Spiritual  decline.  At  the  half-way  point  of  the  fourth 
Bound  the  polar  point  of  the  whole  seven-world  period  is  passed.* 
From  this  point  outwards  the  spiritual  Ego  begins  its  real  struggle 
with  body  and  mind  to  manifest  its  transcendental  powers.  In 
the  fifth  Bound  the  struggle  continues,  but  the  transcendental 
faculties  are  largely  developed,  through  the  struggle  between 
these  on  the  one  hand  with  physical  intellect  and  propensity, 
which  is  fiercer  than  ever,  for  the  intellect  of  the  fifth  Bound, 
as  well  as  its  spirituality,  is  an  advance  on  that  of  the  fourth. 
In  the  sixth  Bound  humanity  attains  a  degree  of  perfection  both 
of  body  and  soul,  of  intellect  and  spirituality,  which  ordinary 
mortals  of  the  present  epoch  will  not  readily  realise  in  their 
imaginations.  The  most  supreme  combinations  of  wisdom,  good- 
ness, and  transcendental  enlightenment  which  the  world  has  ever 
seen  or  thought  of,  will  represent  the  ordinary  type  of  manhood. 
Those  faculties  which  now,— in  the  rare  efflorescence  of  a  genera- 
tion enable  some  extraordinarily  gifted  persons!  to  explore  the 
mysteries  of  Nature,  and  gather  the  knowledge  of  which  some 
crumbs  are  now  being  offered  (through  these  writings  and  in 
other   ways)  to   the  ordinary   world,— will  then  be  the  common 

*  We  are  told  that  we.  are  just  now  half-way  through  the  fifth 
race  of  the  fourth  Bound,  consequently  that  we  have  just  passed 
the  polar  point  in  the  development  of  humanity.  It  is  also 
definitely  stated,  on  the  highest  Occult  authority,  that  the  present 
race  of  humanity,  the  present  fifth  race  of  the  fourth  Bound 
period,  began  to  evolve  about  one  million  of  years  ago.     M.  C. 

•j-Thb  Mahatmas  (Great  Souls)  are  the  highest  Adepts  in 
Occultism  and  all  Theosophic  Wisdom  and  Science.  All  over  the 
world  there  have  ever  existed  Occultists,  and  Occult  fraternities, 
but  the  Brotherhood  of  Tibet,  whose  head  quarters  is  in  the  fast- 
nesses of  the  Himalayan  Mountains  is,  we  are  told,  regarded  as 
incomparably  the  highest  of  such  associations.  The  elevation 
which  constitutes  a  Mahatma  "Brother,"  or  "Master,"  as  they 
are  usually  styled,  is  only  attained  after  prolonged  and  weary 
probation,  and  anxious  ordeals  of   terrible  severity.     The  great 


186  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

appanage  of  all.  As  to  what  the  seventh  Eound  will  be  like,  the 
most  communicative  Occult  teachers  are  solemnly  silent.  Man- 
kind in  the  seventh  Round  will  be  something  altogether  too  God- 
like for  mankind  in  the  fourth  Round  to  forecast  its  attributes. 
(Esoteric  Buddhism,  110  and  117). 

As  Mr.  Sinnett  says,  the  Student  of  Esoteric  Buddhism 
will  have  to  nerve  himself  to  deal  with  estimates  that 
have  to  do  with  millions  of  years,  and  even  count  such 
millions  by  considerable  numbers.  From  the  passages 
we  have  quoted  above  we  learn  that  we  are  now  going 
through  the  fifth  race  of  our  present  fourth  Eound, 
consequently  that  we  have  only  just  passed  the  half-way 
point,  or  the  polar  point  of  the  whole  seven  rounds. 

How  much  we  should  rejoice  to  think  that  the  worst 
is  now  over,  when  we  consider  that  "  each  Eound  is 
specially  allotted  to  the  predominance  of  one  of  the 
Seven  Principles  in  Man,  in  the  regular  order  of  their 
upward  gradation."  And  alas,  how  plainly  we  may 
perceive  that  the  present  race  of  mankind  does  indeed 
belong  to  the  Fourth  Principle;  that  of  the  Kama- 
Eupa  or  Animal  Soul,  the  Will  or  Ego,  which  is 
cognate  to  Egoism,  or  Self-love,  and  consequently  to 
selfishness,  all  of  which  is  the  very  opposite  of  Divine 
love,  or  the  love  of  Humanity,  when  self  is  lost  in  the 
Universal,  or  the  human  absorbed  in  the  Divine. 


end  and  purpose  of  Adeptship  is  the  attainment  of  spiritual 
development.  Oriental  Esoteric  knowledge,  which  until  now 
(when  the  world  is  considered  ripe  for  some  of  it  to  be  divulged) 
has  been  most  jealously  guarded,  long  antedates  the  passage  through 
earth-life  of  Gotama  Buddha.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the 
Great  European  Mystic,  Swedenborg,  speaks  of  the  "  Lost  Books 
of  Jehovah,"  which,  if  search  were  made  for  them,  "  would  be 
found  in  Tibet."     M.  0. 


THE   IMMACULATE    CONCEPTION.  187 

From  this  central  point  of  the  race-period  at  which 
we  now  are,  this  Axial,  or  Turning-point  of  the  world's 
history,  the  Spiritual  Soul,  or  Sixth  Principle,  begins 
its  real  struggle  with  body  and  mind,  let  us  say  with 
the  Fourth  and  Fifth  Principles,  or  the  Animal  Will 
and  the  human  Mind  or  understanding,  and  will  gra- 
dually manifest  its  transcendental  powers,  for  it  is 
destined  eventually  to  transform  or  develope  us  from 
earthly  into  heavenly  Beings,  from  being  the  Sons  of 
man,  or  of  Earth,  to  becoming  the  Sons  of  God,  or  of 
Heaven.  Is  not  this  truly  the  Immaculate  conception 
and  the  birth  of  the  Divine  Child  in  the  Manger  or 
Stable,  the  abode  of  the  Animal  nature  ? 

It  may  be  many  millions  of  years  before  this  gestation 
and  Divine  birth  is  accomplished,  judging  from  the  time 
it  has  taken  to  develope  us  into  what  we  now  are  from 
our  starting-point — whatever  that  may  have  been — but 
we  may  at  least  console  ourselves  with  the  thought 
that  the  worst  is  over,  and  that  however  long  our 
school-days  may  have  to  last,  they  will  at  least  be 
accomplished  under  happier  circumstances,  since  the 
Fifth  Eound,  that  of  the  Fifth  Principle,  Manas  or 
Mind,  the  Understanding  of  Truth,  is  now  approach- 
ing, when  the  Spirit  of  Truth  shall  guide  us  into  all 
Truth,  in  this,  the  NEW  DISPENSATION. 

In  "  Esoteric  Buddhism  "  we  behold  a  most  elaborate 
and  scientific  explanation  of  all  the  phases  of  existence. 
In  it  the  most  ancient  doctrine  of  Transmigration,  com- 
bined with  the  most  modern  Theory  of  Evolution  is 
shown   to   account   for   all   the  physical,    mental,  and 


188  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

moral  events  and  occurrences.  The  Universe,  far  from 
being  produced  by  the  Fiat  of  an  omnipotent  Being, 
is  seen  to  be  the  result  of  eternal  growth,  decay,  and 
renewal.  In  how  far  these  ideas,  gathered  from  the 
records  of  an  "  Eternal  Kong-ion,1'  which  is  said  to  have 
been  preserved  through  the  Ages  by  the  Mahatmas 
themselves,  will  be  found  acceptable  to  Western 
Theology  we  will  not  attempt  to  say.  The  doctrine 
would  appear,  however,  well-adapted  to  be  met  favour- 
ably by  Modern   Science. 

In  all  the  Laws  of  Nature  there  is  manifested  infi- 
nite Intelligence  and  mathematical  exactitude ;  and  if 
we  will  but  carefully  trace  the  footsteps  of  Nature,  we 
shall  find  that  all  her  operations  are  carried  on  in  a  most 
thoughtful  and  loving  spirit;  yea,  the  very  essence  of 
Thought  and  Love.  The  supreme  Principle  of  Exis- 
tence can  only  be  described  to  our  finite  comprehension 
as  an  Omnipresent  Intelligence,  whose  Omnipotence  is 
ever  directed  by  Its  Infinite  Love  and  Wisdom. 

The  more  we  attempt  to  fathom  the  Laws  of  Exist- 
ence the  more  shall  we  find  them  to  be  Laws  of 
Absolute  Wisdom,  Justice  and  Love. 

COMPARISON    OF    THE    SANKHYA    PHILOSOPHY    WITH 
ESOTERIC    BUDDHISM. 

Let  us  now  revert  to  a  Theosophy  more  ancient  than 
the  present  system  of  Buddhism,  namely,  the  system  of 
Kapila  known  as  the  Sankhya  philosophy  : — 

"  Nature  (Prakriti),  the  root  (of  material  forms),  is  not  produced. 
The  Great  One  (Mahat-Buddhi  or  Intellect)  and  the  rest  (which 


THE   SANKHYA   PHILOSOPHY.  189 

spring  from  it)  are  seven  (substances),  producing  and  produced. 
Sixteen  are  productions  (only).     Soul  is  neither  producing  nor 

produced.  . 

"  From  Nature  (Prakriti)  issues  the  great  principle  (Maliat, 
intellect),  and  from  this  the  Ego  or  Consciousness;  from  this 
(consciousness)  the  whole  assemblage  of  the  sixteen  principles  or 
entities,  and  from  five  of  the  sixteen  the  five  gross  elements. 

"The  following  is  a  tabular  form  of  the  Categories  of  the 
Sankhya  system : — 

"  (1)  Prakriti  or  primordial  matter,  the  vXrj  of  the  Greek  philo- 
sophy. 

"  (2)  Maliat  or  Buddhi  (intellect). 
"(3)  Ahankara,  the  Ego  or  Consciousness. 
"  (4)  The  five  subtle  elements  (Tanmatra). 
"  (5)  The  five  grosser  elements,  ether,  air,  earth,  light  or  fire, 
and  water. 

"  (6)  The  five  senses. 
"  (7)  The  five  organs  of  action. 

"  (8)  The  Manas  (mind)  which  is  the  first  of  the  internal  organs, 
receiving  the  impressions  made  upon  the  senses.  It  ought  to  be 
numbered  with  buddhi  and  ahankara,  making  with  them  the  three 
internal  organs. 

"  (9)  The  soul  (Atman,  Purusha),  which  is  totally  distinct  from 
Prakriti  (Nature),  forms,  with  Nature  and  its  emanations  the 
twenty-five  tattzvas  (categories)  in  the  Sankhya  philosophy.  He 
who  understands  them  thoroughly  has  attained  to  the  highest 
state  of  man  in  the  present  life,  and  in  laying  aside  the  body  in 
death  shall  know  birth  no  more. 

(See  "  The  Sankhya  Karika  of  Iswara  Krishna,  an  Exposition  of 
the  System  of  Kapila,"  pp.  17,  54,  and  55.) 

The  similarity  of  "  Esoteric  Buddhism  "  and  Sankhya 
philosophy  has  induced  Western  Theosophists  to  enter 
into  a  discussion  with  the  adherents  of  Esoteric  Bud- 
dhism, and  this  controversy  is  not  yet  fully  concluded. 
It  will,  therefore,  be  interesting  to  inquire  further 
into  a  philosophy  whose  great  antiquity  and  continued 
persistence    show   it  to   be   a  natural  growth   of  the 


190  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Aryan  mind  ;  and  for  this  purpose  we  further  make 
the  following  short  extracts  concerning  it  from  John- 
son's "  Indian  Religions  "  : — 

"  Little  is  known  of  Kapila,  whose  name,  a  synonym  of  Fire, 
hovers,  like  the  names  of  other  founders  of  Hindu  Schools,  between 
mythology  and  history.  The  origin  of  his  system  cannot  be 
ascribed  to  any  special  state. 

"  The  Sankhya  is  rationalistic.  It  is  careful  to  define  the  prin- 
ciples of  a  true  dialectic  for  the  discovery  of  truth. 

"  Kapila,  after  a  Hindu  way,  was  a  Positivist.  He  did  not 
trouble  his  mind  with  seeking  a  First  Cause  at  all.  .  .  .  He 
did  not  demand  how  things  came  to  be  here,  but  what  they  are, 
and  to  what  end  they  are  here.  He  took  the  realities  he  felt  and 
saw,  referred  them  to  certain  root  principles  as  primary  and  sub- 
stantial, and  made  these  his  starting-point.  .  .  These  primary 
substauces  he  found  to  be  two  in  number  and  essentially  distinct ; 
the  one  representing  the  material  of  which  the  complex  experience 
of  actual  consciousness  is  shaped  ;  and  the  other,  its  constant  and 
inviolable  beholder,  representing  the  ideal  Essence  for  which  it  all 
exists,  and  by  virtue  of  whose  higher  presence  it  becomes  of  value. 

"  It  has  been  usual  to  translate  Prakriti  by  the  terms  '  nature  ' 
and  '  matter.'  But  it  certainly  does  not  signify  either  nature  or 
matter,  in  the  senses  now  given  by  us  to  those  terms.  Prakriti* 
means  a  primary  principle,  a  self-subsistent  original  essence ;  and 
in  this  sense  'Mula  (the  root)  Prakriti'  is  taken  by  Kapila  to 
represent  the  substratum  cf  all  experience,  except  Purusha,  or 
Soul,  which  is  the  other,  and  the  ideal  root-principle  for  which  it 
exists.  Prakriti  '  is  not  crude,  visible,  or  divisible  matter,'  but 
that  '  first  principle  which  was  taught  in  Greece  also  by  Pytha- 
goras, Plato,  and  Aristotle,'  and  which,  in  fact,  '  has  no  property 
of  body.' — [Wilson's  Kdrikd,  p.  82.]  It  is  all-pervading,  immu- 
table, one,  without  cause  or  end.  It  enfolds  and  evolves  senses, 
without  being  sense  as  distinct  from  Spirit.  It  contains  and 
evolves  mind  also ;  and  this  not  in  a  materialistic  sense,  as  a  mere 
outside  product  of  its  creative  power, — because  the  great  positive 
principle  of  Kapila  is  that,  as  there  is  no  production  of  sometliiuy 

*  From  "  pra,"  before,  and  "  kri,"  to  make  (pro  creo),  indicative 
of  pre-existence,  productive  force. 


THE   SANKHYA   PHILOSOPHY.  191 

out  of  nothing,  the  effect  already  pre-exists  in  the  cause,  and  like 
comes  from  like  only,  just  as  the  art  of  the  sculptor  can  only  pro- 
duce the  manifestation  of  the  image  that  was  already  [ideally] 
in  the  stone.  Mind,  therefore,  pre-exists  in  the  essence  of  Prakriti, 
which  consequently  cannot  he  mere  matter  as  distinct  from  mind. 
But  Prakriti  evolves  both  senses  and  mind  only  through  the  pre- 
sence and  purpose  of  '  Soul,'  which,  again,  must  not  be  confounded 
with  mind,  as  thus  evolved  in  a  secondary  instrumental  and  sense- 
entangled  form.     .     .     . 

"  From  this  first  principle  or  '  primary  root,'  this  unchanging 
essence  of  all  things,  '  mutable,  discreet,  mergent  in  their  causes 
again,'  come  what  Kapila  calls  the  '  seven  produced  and  produc- 
tive principles.'  They  are  called  vikriti  (from  vi,  differently,  and 
kri,  to  make),  indicating  that  they  are  not  external  products  made 
of  nothing,  but  modifications  rather  of  the  root  itself. 

"  These  are  (1)  '  Mahat,'  the  Great  One,  called  also  Buddhi,  or 
understanding,  meaning,  doubtless,  Miud  in  its  active  relations  and 
consequent  limitations;  whence  (2)  Ahankara,  self-consciousness 
or  egoism ;  whence  (3)  five  '  subtile  rudiments,'  which  are  the 
grounds  of  our  cognition  of  sound,  touch,  smell,  form,  and  taste. 
And  these  seven  powers  potentiate  for  us,  or,  as  Kapila  says, 
'produce,'  the  five  organs  of  sensation,  the  five  organs  of  action, 
and  the  five  gross  elements,  or  lowest  form  of  matter,  to  which  is 
added  '  manas,'  or  mind,  as  the  percipient  and  sensitive  element 
that  refers  them  to  a  single  consciousness.  These  last  are  '  pro- 
ducts, but  unproductive.'  And  the  outward  organs  of  sense  are 
called  the  gates  or  doors,  while  the  higher  internal  forces  that 
make  these  their  means  of  communication — namely,  understanding, 
self-consciousness,  and  sensibility — are  called  the  warders. 

" '  He  who  knows  these  twenty-five  principles,'  says  Kapila,  'is 
liberated,  whatever  order  of  (social)  life  he  may  have  entered.' 

"  Among  the  errors  about  the  nature  of  Soul  which  constitute 
bondage,  that  of  confounding  it  with  matter,  or  any  of  the  pro- 
ducts of  Prakriti,  is  pronouuced  by  all  Sankhyan  authorities  to 
be  the  most  radical.  '  Soul,'  says  Kapila, '  is  something  other  than 
body ;  since  what  is  combined,  and  so  discerpible,  is  for  the  sake 
of  some  other  that  is  indiscerpible.'  'Soul  is  not  material, 
because  it  is  the  experience!- ;  and  because  of  its  superintendence 
over  nature.' 

"Further:  the  principle  of  intelligent  perceptive  power  (mahat) 


192  UN1VEESAL  THEOSOPHY. 

is  capable  of  discriminating  between  Purusba  and  Prakriti ;  and 
in  so  doing  recognises  Soul  as  superior  to  both  '  nature  '  and  itself, 
in  consequence  of  its  being  intelligence  in  a  higher  sense  than 
itself.  For  Soul,  according  to  Kapila,  must  not  be  confounded  with 
mind  as  such ;  having  a  higher  form  of  knowledge,  pure,  inde- 
pendent, undisturbed  vision.  '  Soul  is  the  seer,  the  spectator,  the 
by-stander.'  Have  we  not  here  a  hint  of  intuition  in  its  distinction 
from  opinion ;  of  the  higher  reason  in  contrast  with  the  limits  of 
the  understanding  ? 

"  I  have  said  that  Kapila,  after  a  Hindu  way,  was  a  Positivist. 
But  he  certainly  was  not  a  Materialist.  The  Sankhya  has  plainly 
in  many  respects,  a  transcendental  method  and  faith.'     ,     ,     . 

"  What,  then,  is  Soul  ?     .     .     . 

"An  ideal  capability  (which)  stands  fast  in  us  a6  the  real  sub- 
stance of  ourselves,  untouched  by  the  errors  and  stains  of  life, 
unabated  by  its  discouragements,  with  serenity  beholding  them, 
as  it  were,  in  their  real  outwardness  to  its  own  essence." 

The  word  Soul  in  the  above  is  used  to  denote  the 
highest  principle  of  all,  which  we  call  Spirit,  so  that 
our  equivalents  for  Purusha  and  Prakriti  are  not  Soul 
and  Substance,  but  Spirit  and  Soul,  both  of  which  are 
above  and  before  the  astral  fluid  or  Akasa,  which  is  the 
immediate  substance  or  substratum  of  nature. 

Prakriti  is  not  matter,  but  the  potential  essence  of 
matter.  Purush  and  Prakriti  may  be  defined  to 
Western  thinkers  as  God  in  God's  self,  and  God  in 
creation.  As  Being  and  Existence,  or  as  Subsistence 
and  Existence.  In  Subsistence  God  is  One,  in  Existence 
God  is  Dual.  He  is  the  Life,  and  Sbe  is  the  Substance. 
He  is  the  Spirit,  She  is  the  Soul,  and  the  Substance  of 
all  Souls.  In  God  She  is  the  Divine  Wisdom,  thus, 
Theo-Sophia.  In  man  She  was  Eve,  and  She  is  to 
become  the  Immaculate  Woman  whose  seed  is  to  crush 
the  head  of  the  Serpent,  or  lower  principle  of  materiality. 


TAOISM.  193 

In  concluding  this  section  we  may  also  remind  the 
reader  that  the  Selections  from  the  Bhagavata  Parana, 
given  in  Chapter  V.,  purport  to  give  a  popular  and 
practical  exposition  of  that  very  Sankhya  Theosophy 
which,  in  more  recondite  and  abstract  terms,  is  set  forth 
in  Kapila's  own  words  in  the  "  Sankhya  Aphorisms  of 
Kapila,"  published  in  "  Trubner's  Oriental  Series." 

CHINESE   THEOSOPHY. 

Numerically  computed,  China  comprises  nearly  a 
third  of  the  human  race,  and  there  Theosophy  and  the 
Occult  have  been,  and  are,  so  indigenous  that,  accord- 
ing to  the  Sinologist  Balfour,  it  is  difficult  to  convince 
a  cultured  Chinaman  that  the  Western  faith  contains 
any  beauties,  or  any  truths,  that  are  not  to  be  found  in 
the  creeds  which  have  already  served  his  countrymen 
for  centuries — we  may  almost  say,  for  millenniums. 

The  strictly  Chinese  Theosophic  System  is  principally 
that  of  the  Tao-Sse  ;  for  Buddhism,  although  counting 
more  adherents,  is  a  foreign  importation,  and  the  doc- 
trine of  Confucius  principally  refers  to  secular  affairs. 
As  the  already  cited  competent  scholar  in  his  "  Ex- 
cursus to  the  Nan-Hua  "  observes : 

"  There  are  many  striking  points  of  contact  between  the  teach- 
ings of  the  Taoist  school  and  those  of  the  Greek  philosophers. 

"  Like  Pythagoras,  the  Taoist  believes  that  everything  comes 
from  One  originally ;  like  Parmenides,  that  only  One  exists — all 
things  being  but  modifications  or  appearances  of  the  same  entity. 
Like  Zeno,  he  cultivates  indifference  to  the  pains  and  pleasures  of 
the  world;  he  exhorts  men  to  live  in  harmony  with  Nature  ;  he 
affirms  that  concord  between  the  human  will  and  the  Universal 
lieason  constitutes  the  highest  form  of  virtue.     Like  Plotinos, 

O 


194  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

the  sublime  and  obscure,  he  teaches  contempt  for  the  allure- 
ments of  the  world ;  he  holds  the  doctrine  of  a  Trinity,  of  which 
the  second  proceeds  from  the  first,  and  the  third  from  the  other 
two;  like  him,  too,  he  practises  the  mysterious,  Kung-fu — the  pro- 
cess of  passing  into  ecstasy  by  sitting  in  a  peculiar  posture,  and 
inhaling  and  exhaling  the  breath  in  a  definite  and  unusual  manner. 
Nor  are  the  theories  common  to  all  sectaries  in  China  without  an 
analogue  in  Greece.  Anaxemenes  held  no  less  firmly  than  Chu- 
Fu-Tsze  that  Air  is  the  first  principle  of  Nature ;  Anaxagoras 
believed  in  the  primordial  division  of  chaos,  when  the  light  par- 
ticles floated  up  and  formed  the  sky,  and  the  heavy  matter  sank 
and  formed  the  earth  ;  and  Xenophanes  taught,  as  clearly  as  the 
author  of  the  Yih-King,  that  God  is  a  Sphere." 

It  would  be   difficult  to   decide    on   the   respective 

merits  of  Taoism  and  Buddhism.     If  the  system  of  the 

Tao-Sse   can   be    said   to    be    in    some    respects    more 

practical  and  direct,  that   of  the    Buddhists  is   more 

abstruse    and    scientific;    but   while    Buddha,    in    his 

next    succeeding    iucarnation,   as    Sankaracharya,   the 

Reformer,  excluded  the  laity  from  Esoteric  practice,  and 

regarded  a  monastic  life  as  an  absolute  necessity  for  the 

attainment  to  even  temporary  Samadhi,*  the  Tao-Sse, 

according    to  one  of  their  Divine   Classics,  the  Nan- 

Hua  of  Chuang-Tse,  translated  by  Mr.  F.  H.  Balfour, 

F.R.G.S.,  put  the  Esoteric  practice  in   a  much  more 

practical  form,  and  limited  even  the  time  of  practice 

from  a  lifetime  to  three  years.    Here  are  some  practical 

directions  from  the  Nan-Hua  itself: — 

"Put  away  all  restlessness  of  will ;  dispel  all  errors  of  the  heart ; 
discard  all  impediments  to  virtue  ;  pierce  through  all  obstructions 
to  Nature.  Riches  and  honour,  distinctions  and  dignity,  celebrity 
and  profit — these  six  things  all  unsettle  the  will.     Personal  ap- 

*  Cf.   "  Khaggavisana  Sutta,"  v.  20,    Sir    Coomara  Swami's 

version. 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF   KARMA.  195 

pearance  and  deportment,  lust  and  reason,  passions  and  thoughts — 
these  six  things  constitute  errors  of  the  heart.  Hatred  and  yearn- 
ing, joy  and  anger,  sorrow  and  delight — these  six  things  are  all 
impediments  to  virtue.  Leaving  and  accepting  office,  exacting 
from  and  conferring  upon  others,  knowledge  and  ability — these 
six  things  are  all  obstructions  to  Nature.  If  the  heart  be  not 
disturbed  by  any  of  these  things,  then  is  it  perfectly  upright ;  if 
it  be  upright,  it  will  be  calm  ;  if  calm,  then  pellucid  ;  if  pellucid, 
then  empty  ;  if  empty,  then  entirely  inactive  ;  in  which  case  there 
will  be  nothing  which  cannot  be  done. 

"  Men  who  would  preserve  their  bodies  and  lives  complete, 
should  keep  themselves  in  deep  seclusion  ;  no  retirement  is  too 
profound  for  them. 

"Among  the  junior  disciples  of  Lao  Tan  was  one  named  Keng- 
Sang  Tsu,  who  alone  had  mastered  the  philosopher's  doctrine."  .  . 

He  said  : — 

"  Preserve  your  body  (vital  force)  complete ;  guard  well  your 
life;  abjure  all  anxious  thoughts  and  schemes.  If  you  do  this 
for  three  years,  you  will  then  succeed  in  attaining  to  it" — (The 
Divine  Absolute  State). 

In  examining-  the  works  of  Confucius  we  find  that 
they  too  have  a  Theosophic  foundation.  The  "  Great 
Study,"  the  "  Tchong  Yong "  (Abiding  in  the  Centre) 
are  Esoteric  books.  The  Lun-Yu  treats  in  a  conver- 
sational form  subjects  similar  to  those  discussed  in 
the-  Banquets  of  Plato  and  Xenophon. 

The  Tao-Sse,  or  followers  of  Tao,  have  the  Tao-Te- 
King,  and  the  Kang-Y-Pien  as  their  chief  text-books. 
The  former  treating  of  Theosophy,  the  latter  of  Ethics 
in  connection  with  Eewards  and  Punishments,  and 
attempts  to  systematize  the  Laws  of  Fate  and  Destiny 
The  Karma  of  Buddhism  re-appears  in  idea — in  every 
mystic  philosophy. 

Lao-Tse  said : — 

"  The  bad  and  good  fortune  of   man    are  not  determined   in 


196  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

advance ;  man  brings  them  on  himself  by  his  conduct.  The 
recompense  of  good  and  evil  follows,  as  the  shadow  follows  the 
figure." 

This  is  essentially  the  doctrine  of  Karma,  or  Conse- 
quences, of  the  Buddhists,  which  so  clearly  shows  that 
our  every  act  lives  in  its  effects  on  subsequent  life,  and 
is  the  cause  of  our  present  suffering  or  enjoyment, 
for  the  personality  of  a  man  at  any  moment  is  the 
result  of  all  his  previous  acts,  thoughts,  and  emotions, 
the  internal  desire  is  always  forging  fresh  links  in  the 
chain  of  material  existence ;  so  true  is  it  that  "  that 
which  we  sow  we  reap."  We  are  responsible  for  all 
our  voluntary  acts,  because  we  govern  our  actions  by 
our  will,  but  we  can  neither  foresee  nor  prevent  what  we 
are  accustomed  to  call  accidents,  because  these  are  the 
consequences  of  our  Karma,  or  the  result  of  our  previous 
actions ;  thus  there  is  an  ancient  saying  among  Budd- 
hists that  Karma  comes  from  the  gods,  and  is  seen 
in  the  sevenfold  forms  of — Heredity,  Station  of  Birth, 
Length  of  Life,  Opportunities  for  acquiring  Spiritual 
Knowledge,  Disease,  Sorrows,  and  Accidents. 

A  pre-historical,  mathematical  Theosophist,  in  pro- 
ducing the  Yih-King,  left  a  book  that  puzzles  all 
Sinologists  to  no  purpose.  There  are  now  six  different 
translations  extant.  Mathematical  Theosophy,  how- 
ever, is  a  subject  far  too  advanced  for  a  merely  popular 
enquiry  like  the  present,  so  we  will  content  ourselves 
by  giving  in  this  section  a  few  chapters  from  the  Tao- 
Te-King,  a  book  that  should  be  studied  by  every 
Theosophist. 


CHINESE  THEOSOPHY.  197 

"  The  Manifestation  of  Virtue. 

"  The  Adepts  of  Antiquity  had  a  mystic  communication  with 
the  abysses.  They  were  profound  and  unknown.  As  they  remained 
unknown,  I  strive  to  make  them  known.  Careful  were  they,  like 
one  fording  a  stream  in  winter.  Cautious  were  they,  like  one  who 
dreads  his  neighbours.  Circumspect  were  they,  like  a  stranger. 
Vanishing  were  they,  like  ice  that  is  about  to  melt.  Simple  were 
they,  like  unwrought  wood.  Void  were  they,  like  a  valley.  Dim 
were  they,  like  turbid  water. 

"  Who  can  take  the  turbid  water,  and  by  stillness  make  it  clear? 
Who  by  continuing  the  quiescence  can  gradually  make  it  animated  ? 

"  He  who  keeps  to  this  Tao  desires  not  fulness.  And  being  void  he 
may  appear  imperfect,  and  yet  not  stand  in  need  of  new  perfection," 

"  Arriving  at  the  Source. 

"  Having  once  arrived  at  a  state  of  absolute  void,  it  is  possible 
to  maintain  a  perfect  quiescence.  All  beings  emanate  and  return 
to  their  origin.  When  beings  have  developed,  each  returns  to  its 
source.  To  have  returned  to  the  source  is  to  rest.  To  rest  is  to 
accomplish  destiny.  To  accomplish  destiny  is  to  be  eternal.  To 
know  the  Eternal  is  to  be  illuminated.  Not  to  know  the  Eternal 
causes  immorality  and  misery.  He  who  knows  the  Eternal  is 
catholic  ;  being  catholic,  he  is  just ;  being  just,  he  is  a  king ;  being 
a  king,  he  is  Divine ;  being  Divine,  he  is  Tao ;  being  Tao,  he  is 
enduring,  he  loses  his  body  without  danger." 

"  The  Abyss. 

"  There  is  a  Being  Ineffable !  Perfect !— existing  before  Heaven 
and  Earth.  Quiescent!  Inconceivable!  It  alone  continues  un- 
changed !  It  may  be  regarded  as  the  Mother  of  the  World. 
I  know  not  its  name ;  but  designate  it  by  '  Tao.'  Desirous 
to  describe  it,  I  say  it  is  great ;  being  great,  I  say  it  is  fugi- 
tive ;  being  fugitive,  I  say  it  is  remote ;  being  remote,  I  say  it  is 
returning.  For  Tao  is  great ;  Heaven  is  great ;  Earth  is  great ; 
the  King  is  also  great.  In  the  world  there  are  three  kinds  of 
greatness,  and  the  King  has  one  of  them.  Man's  Law  is  from  the 
Earth.  The  Earth's  Law  is  from  Heaven.  Heaven's  Law  is  from 
Tao.     And  Tao  is  its  own  Law." 


3  98  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

"  Fah-seeing. 

"  One  needs  not  go  beyond  his  own  door  to  know  the  world. 
One  needs  not  to  peep  through  the  window  to  see  the  Divine  Tao. 
The  further  one  goes  away  from  one's  self,  the  less  one  knows. 

"  Therefore  the  wise  man  knows  without  travelling,  names  with- 
out looking,  and  accomplishes  his  object  without  action." 

Whether  the  conclusion  arrived  at  by  Mr.  F.  H.  Bal- 
four is  justified,  that  Taoism  is  "  one  of  the  most  de- 
generate systems  of  belief  in  the  entire  world,"  and 
whether  this  compliment  could  not  be  returned  by  a 
Tao-Sse  when  speaking  of  some  of  our  Western  ortho- 
doxies, it  is  not  our  intention  here  to  consider.  We 
only  see  in  Taoism  a  system  of  Theosophy  adapted  to 
the  Chinese  mind ;  and  assuredly  Lao-Tse,  as  his  words 
testify,  knew  the  Divine. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  reproduce  here  a  con- 
versation concerning  Confucius,  recorded  by  the  Chinese 
Historian,  Sse-ma-tsian,  where  it  is  shown  that  Con- 
fucius had  evidently  at  that  time  not  completed  his 
Initiation.     In  the  "  Nan-Hua  "  Chuang-Tse  says  :— 

"  Confucius  lived  to  be  sixty  years  old,  and  at  sixty  years  of 
age  his  convictions  changed.  What  he  had  first  regarded  as  truth 
he  subsequently  came  to  look  upon  as  error.  Yet  I  do  not  know 
that  what  he  now  looks  upon  as  truth  he  did  not  regard  as  error 
fifty-nine  years  ! 

"  Huei  Tse  replied,  '  The  intellect  of  Confucius  was  laborious, 
and  his  knowledge  most  extensive.' 

'"These  things,'  rejoined  Chuang  Tse,  'Confucius  discarded, 
(and  embraced  the  True  Doctrine):  but  he  never  acknowledged 
having  done  so,'  "  &c. 

Confucius  may  subsequently  have  attained  to  the 
True  Tao,  as  his  works  contain  Esoteric  doctrines 
taught    only    by   advanced    Initiates.      The    following 


CHINESE   THEOSOPHY.  199 

dialogue  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  essential  difference 
between  the  two  greatest  Chinese  Theosophers  :* 

"  Confucius,  having  lived  to  the  age  of  fifty-one  years  without 
hearing  of  the  True  Way  (Tao),  went  to  a  place  called  P'ei  to  see 
Lao  Tan ;  who  said  :  '  Ah,  you  come  ?  I  hear  that  you  rank  as  a 
sage  up  north  yonder.  Have  you  attained  to  the  True  Way 
(Tao)  ? '  'I  have  not  attained  to  it,'  replied  Confucius.  '  How 
did  you  set  about  in  order  to  attain  to  it?  '  asked  Lao  Tan.  'I 
sought  it  in  rides  and  regulations,'  said  Confucius ;  '  but  five  years 
passed  without  my  getting  it.'  '  And  what  means  did  you  use 
next  ?  '  asked  Lao  Tan.  '  I  sought  for  it  in  Yin  and  Yang'  (the 
Passive  and  Active),  replied  Confucius;  '  but  twelve  years  passed 
and  I  attained  it  not.' 

" '  Yea,'  rejoined  Lao  Tan, '  if  it  were  a  way  (Tao)  that  could 
be  trodden,  no  man  would  tread  thereon  before  his  prince  ?  If  it 
were  a  road  (Tao)  to  be  walked,  would  not  a  man  journey  thereon 
with  his  kin  ?  If  it  were  a  doctrine  (Tao)  whereby  to  instruct 
others,  would  not  a  man  instruct  his  brothers  ?  If  it  were  a  rule 
(Tao)  to  be  given  to  others,  would  not  a  man  transmit  it  to  his 
sons  and  grandsons  ?  But  he  who  knows  it  not  has  it  not. 
Internally  it  has  no  principle  and  is  not  fixed,  externally  it  has  no 
rule,  and  yet  passes  not  away.  He  who  comes  forth  from  the 
internal  to  the  external  receives  not  the  external.  The  Holy  Man 
does  not  come  forth.  He  who  enters  from  the  external  has  no 
fixed  rule  for  the  internal.  If  the  Holy  Man  remains  not  con- 
cealed, he  is  praised  as  a  useful  tool ;  more  he  cannot  attain.' 

" '  Benevolence  and  rectitude  were  externals  of  the  kings  who 
are  gone.  They  could  rest  peacefully  in  one  place,  but  dwell  not 
therein  for  long.  They  had  adversaries  and  were  much  abused. 
The  perfect  men  of  old  through  Tao  arrived  at  benevolence,  and 
elected  to  abide  in  Justice.  In  their  rambles  through  the  land  they 
depended  for  their  sustenance  on  the  produce  of  the  fields  or  gardens 
with  perfect  indifference.  The  ancients  called  these  "  rambles  of 
faith,"  and  they  resulted  in  the  acquirement  of  Divinity.     To  the 

*  Cf.  the  translation  of  kiuan  5  of  the  Nan-Hua,  in  the  Appendix 
to  Strauss'  Lao-Tse's  Tao-Te-King,  with  the  Nan-Hua  translated 
by  F.  H.  Balfour,  p.  178  sqq.  The  wording  is  slightly  altered  to 
render  its  meaning  more  apparent. 


200  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

rich  who  acted  thus,  their  wealth  was  no  hindrance  :  to  the  illus- 
trious who  acted  thus,  their  fame  was  not  diminished  : — He  who 
loves  authority  must  not  resign  his  power  to  others.  If  he  is 
firm,  he  will  be  feared ;  if  he  looses  his  grasp  he  will  be  pitied, 
and  the  Whole  has  no  mirror  to  behold  itself.  He  who  does  not 
spare  will  be  the  executioner  for  the  people.  Anger  and  Kindness, 
Receiving  and  Giving,  Reproof  and  Instruction,  Life  and  Death— 
these  eight  things  are  the  instruments  of  the  Perfect.  Only  he 
who  has  accomplished  the  Great  Change,  without  perishing,  is 
able  to  use  them.  Wherefore  it  is  said  :  "  the  rectified  rectify." 
He  whose  heart  is  not  thus  created,  heaven's  door  is  closed  upon 
him.' 

"  Confucius,  seeing  Lao  Tan,  spoke  to  him  also  of  benevolence 
and  rectitude.  Lao  Tan  said:  'Winnowing  chaff  blinds  the 
eyes,  and  the  position  of  Heaven  and  Earth,  and  the  four  quarters 
of  the  world  seem  changed.  The  sting  of  mosquitos  and  gadflies 
will  prevent  a  man  from  sleeping  a  whole  night  through.  When 
benevolence  and  rectitude  thus  torment  us,  they  irritate  the  mind 
and  are  revolting  distortions.  Cause  rather  that  the  world  may 
not  lose  its  natural  simplicity,  and  you  will  establish  a  morality 
that  shall  continue,  and  introduce  a  virtue  that  shall  remain. 
What  wisdom  is  there  in  beating  a  huge  drum  to  delude  children  ? 
The  snow  goose  does  not  bathe  every  day,  and  yet  it  is  white ; 
the  crow  does  not  blacken  itself  every  day,  and  yet  it  is  black. 
These  are  natural  qualities  easily  discerned,  but  mere  external 
reputation  and  praise  are  not  true  greatness.  When  the  fountain 
is  dried  up  then  the  fishes  that  are  left  on  dry  ground  exude  a 
moisture ;  but  they  would  do  better  to  forget  themselves  in  rivers 
and  lakes.' 

"  Confucius,  returning  from  the  interview  with  Lao  Tan,  spoke 
not  for  three  days.  Thereupon  his  disciples  asked  him,  saying : 
'  Master,  as  you  have  seen  Lao  Tan,  how  would  you  describe 
him?' 

"  '  On  that  day,'  replied  Confucius,  '  I  verily  saw  the  Dragon  ! 
The  Dragon  coiled  and  was  wholly  compact,  he  uncoiled  and  was 
wholly  extended,  he  ascended  with  the  clouds  and  winds  feeding 
upon  Yin  and  Yang.  My  mouth  stood  wide  open  and  I  could 
hardly  breathe.     How  am  I  further  to  describe  Lao  Tan  ?'  " 


201 


CHAPTER    VII. 

PAGAN   THEOSOPHY. 

THE0S0PHY,  "the  Great  or  Supreme  Know- 
ledge," the  Eternal  Religion,  can  be  divided  into 
three  great  classes:  Heathen,  Semitic,  and  Christian. 
Other  Heathen  Systems  having  already  been  discussed 
in  the  Chapters  on  Hermetic  and  Oriental  Theosophy, 
the  System  we  now  intend  to  investigate  as  the  Pagan 
or  Heathen  par  excellence,  having  all  the  leading  traits 
of  Heathenism,  is  the  Theosophy  of  the  Greeks  and 
Romans. 

We  hope  our  Christian  Readers  will  permit  us  to 
affirm  the  existence  of  a  "  Heathen  "  Theosophy,  while 
on  the  other  hand  we  intend  no  slight  to  our  Heathen 
friends  when  we  assert  that  there  is  a  Christian 
Theosophy,  quite  as  true,  exact,  profound,  and  sublime 
as  any  Heathen  System;  and  as  Theosophists,  or 
Students  of  the  Esoteric  Science,  we  are  as  much 
devoted  to  the  Doctrine  of  Buddha  and  of  all  Buddhas 
as  to  the  Law  of  Christ. 

These  Divine  Masters  are  all  One  in  Doctrine.  Our 
Theosophy,  therefore,  is  as  much  Buddhistic  as  it  is 
Christian  ;  we  accept  the  Esoteric  part  of  all  Systems, 
rejecting  only  the  shells  of  Exoterism  that,  by  ages  of 
mental  and  spiritual  stagnation,  have  encrusted  Divine 
Truth  with  human  errors. 


202  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

If  we  were  to  point  out  any  leading  trait  in  each  of 
the  three  great  classes  wherein  we  have  divided  Theo- 
sophy,  we  would  say,  that  as  Divine  Love  is  the  animus 
of  all  Theosophy  or  Divine  Wisdom,  Heathen  Theosophy 
is  Love  without  Fear;  Semitic  Theosophy  expresses 
more  Fear  than  Love ;  while  Christian  Theosophy  alone 
observes  a  judicious  mean  that  is  full  of  Divine  Love 
and  Awe. 

The  great  Characteristic  of  the  Heathen  Initiate 
who  has  arrived  at  true  Soul-Science,  is  Fearlessness ; 
of  the  Semit-Awe;  illustrated  by  the  fact,  that  the 
very  Name  of  God  is  kept  a  profound  and  incommuni- 
cable secret.  The  Esoteric  Christian  only  follows  that 
path  of  safety,  or  Perfect  Way,  that  enables  him  to  live 
in  the  world  without  being  lost  in  it ;  and  to  practise 
the  virtues  of  the  ascetic  as  a  practical  saint,  without 
having:  to  retire  into  the  deserts  where  he  would  be  of 
no  use  to  his  fellow-men. 

Judging  by  the  fragments  that  have  descended  to  us 
of  the  Religious  Writings  of  the  Syrians,  Phoenicians, 
Carthaginians,  Assyrians,  and  Chaldeans,  these  people, 
although  linguistically  related  to  the  Semits,  were 
Heathens  in  Theosophy.  Their  Religious  Ideas  were 
abhorred  by  the  Hebrews,  while  the  latter  were  an 
object  of  ridicule  among  the  surrounding  nations,  with 
whose  views  they  so  widely  differed. 

The  supposition  is  almost  justified,  that  in  the 
Hebrews,  and  possibly  also  the  Persians,  we  behold 
tribes  of  ancient  Atlantis,  who  preserved  the  tradition 
of  Monotheism   and    Soul-Worship    in    greater   purity 


MONOTHEISTIC   RELIGIONS.  203 

than  the  surrounding  nations.  Although,  had  not 
Moses  and  the  Prophets  guided  the  Hebrews,  as 
Zarathustra  and  the  Magi  guided  the  Persians,  both 
the  Hebrews  and  the  Persians  would  have  lost  their 
ancient  Divine  Tradition  or  Kabbala,  and  would  have 
fallen  to  the  Worship  of  Spirits. 

Despite  its  Dualism,  the  Persian  could  also  be  con- 
sidered a  Semitic  System,  as  it  expresses  more  Awe 
than  Love  of  God.  The  evil  principle,  Ahriman,  was 
abhorred,  not  worshipped  ;  so  the  System  of  the  Magi 
was  practically  one  of  Monotheism,  like  Judaism. 

The  System  of  the  Semitic  Theosophists,  or  Kab- 
balists,  is  one  of  pure  Soul-Worship  to  the  exclusion 
of  spirit-communion.  They  worship  the  "  One"  without 
a  mediator,  and  reject  the  phenomenal  as  unworthy  of 
comparison  with  the  Divine  Being.  They  regard  God 
as  ineffable,  and  assert  that  He  can  only  be  known  by 
his  manifestations. 

The  Monotheism  of  the  ancient  Hebrews,  while 
surrounded  by  polytheistic  nations,  of  Soul-Worship 
continuing  in  the  midst  of  Demon- Worship,  could  be 
accounted  for  by  the  supposition  that  the  Hebrews  are  a 
tribe  descended  of  a  remnant  of  the  Atlantian  people ; 
and  the  terror  of  the  catastrophe  that  destroyed  their 
continent  may  have  impressed  itself  on  their  minds  so 
hereditarily,  that  their  conceptions  of  God  were  more 
inclined  to  Fear  than  Love.  It  may  also  have  been 
such  an  event  as  to  appear  like  a  Divine  Judgment,  that 
caused  the  minds  of  the  ancient  Persians  to  revolt  from 
Hinduism,  making  Devils  of  the  Hindu  gods,  and  gods 


204  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

of  those  whom  the  Hindus,  by  their  Spirit-Guides,  were 
taught  to  regard  as  Devils. 

The  Phoenicians,  although  Semites,  were  Heathens  in 
Religion  ;  while  the  Heathen  Persians  were,  by  their 
teachers,  guided  to  a  Semitic  Monotheism.  There  may 
have  been  an  interchange  of  ideas  between  the  Magi 
and  the  Schools  of  the  Prophets,  which  would  account 
for  the  two  Systems  being  so  similar  yet  so  unlike 
each  other.  Each  System  preserving  its  natural  genius 
yet  being  almost  a  counterpart  of  the  other. 

The  Religious  Philosophy  of  Greece  and  Rome, 
like  that  of  most  civilised  Pagan  nations  of  Antiquity, 
was  a  System  of  Spiritualism  blended  with  Theosophy. 
Hellas  and  Rome,  also,  had  a  Theosophy  without 
a  popular  Sacred  Book  or  Bible.  It  was  left  to  the 
isolated  Seers,  Poets,  and  Philosophers,  the  Sybils,  and 
others,  to  theosophise  on  their  own  account,  and  embel- 
lish the  current  Myths  with  Occult  Esoterism.  When 
the  Esoteric  System  of  the  Pagan  Hierarchy  was  inter- 
preted by  the  Neo-Platonists,  Paganism  itself  was  already 
dying ;  and  the  doors  of  the  Sanctuary,  so  long  j  ealously 
guarded,  were  only  thrown  open  as  the  Temple  was 
already  crumbling  into  the  dust.  The  light  of  Paganism, 
that  in  ancient  times  had  illuminated  so  vast  a  portion 
of  cultured  humanity,  flickered  and  expired.  Not 
totally,  it  is  true,  for  a  great  part  survived  in  Chris- 
tianity, and  is  still  more  renascent  in  Modern  Thought ; 
and  it  would  no  doubt  surprise  many  how  their  new 
ideas  could  be  proved  to  be  of  very  ancient  origin. 

The  Mythos,  a  Legacy  which  was  left  by  Paganism 


DUPUIS.  205 

to  successive  ages,  is  an  incomprehensible  puzzle  to 
the  moderns,  which  neither  historical  nor  astrono- 
mical interpretation  has  as  yet  satisfactorily  explained. 
The  attempts  of  modern  scholars  to  interpret  it  by 
Astronomy  give  but  a  slight  outline  of  a  part  of 
the  Occult  Science  veiled  in  Mythology.  We  do  not 
contradict  the  astronomical  interpretation,  but  only 
dispute  its  finality,  and  deny  that  the  Secret  of  Myth- 
ology was  only  astronomy.  The  problem  in  question 
can  surely  be  narrowed  to  this  one  point — which  of 
the  two  worlds  represents  the  other?  Undoubtedly 
moral  truth  was  the  first,  and  is  therefore  the  one 
symbolised.  The  symbol  came  after  the  reality,  which 
is  quite  natural. 

The  parallel  of  Dupuis  is  no  doubt  correct  in  its 
general  outline,  for  this  outline  presents  to  us  the 
struggle  between  good  and  evil.  Evil  is  the  privation 
of  God's  presence,  as  Good  is  that  presence.  The  type 
between  the  Sun  and  the  spiritual  nature  has  ever 
served  as  the  type  of  relation  between  man  and  God. 
The  departure  of  the  Sun  brings  cold  and  darkness,  or 
the  empire  of  Ahrimanes  to  man,  and  thus  is  it  a  cor- 
rect emblem  of  evil.  Man  in  approaching  God  is  at 
the  same  time  warmed  and  enlightened  at  the  source 
of  all  lio-ht  and  heat,  and  the  moment  he  removes  from 
it,  coldness  and  death  take  possession  of  him.  Thus, 
the  passing  of  the  Sun  into  our  hemisphere,  and  its 
subsequent  retiring  from  it,  may  very  well  represent 
the  feelings  and  the  actions  of  men  with  respect  to 
the  Deity,  and  it  was  no  doubt  this  Sun,  the  Sun  of 


20G  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Righteousness,  and  not  the  material  Sun,  that  received 
the  adoration  of  men  in  bygone  days. 

To  prove  the  reality  of  the  Occult  secrets  concealed  in 
Mythology  it  may  suffice  to  mention  that  with  as  much 
ingenuity  as  Dupuis,  Volney,  Higgins,  Gerald  Massey 
and  others  interpret  Mythology  astronomically,  have 
Occult  students  of  past  centuries,  as  Kircher,  Weigel, 
Pernety,  and  many  others,  explained  the  Mythos 
alchemically,  and  shown  that  the  key  to  the  Scriptures 
is  to  be  found  in  the  alchemic  secret  of  transmutation ; 
Gold  being  the  alchemic  formula  for  God,  or  Spirit. 
Although  those  interpretations  have  together  with  the 
entire  science  of  Alchemy  fallen  of  late  into  oblivion, 
there  is  no  evidence  that  the  ideas  of  modern  scholars 
will  be  better  remembered  by  posterity  than  the  theories 
of  the  past  are  remembered  by  the  present  age. 

The  ancient  Initiates  by  Gnosis  made  knowable  the 
unknown.  Attaining  to  that  true  spirituality  which 
Hermes  in  the  Smaragdine  Table  calls  "  the  glory  of 
the  entire  world  that  dissipates  darkness,"  they  arrived 
at  an  exalted  standpoint  whereon  the  Laws  of  Nature 
were  revealed  to  them.  Spiritual  Science  being  the 
Sanctuary  of  the  Physical  Sciences,  the  communication 
of  the  latter  would  even  have  been  considered  in  ancient 
times  a  violation  of  the  Divine  Mysteries,  and  had  it  not 
been  for  this  fear  of  violating  the  Mysteries,  Physical 
Sciences  would  doubtless  have  been  more  commonly 
known  and  mankind  would  by  this  time  have  attained 
to  a  far  higher  grade  of  culture. 

For  instance,  recent  discoveries    have    induced    the 


ELECTRICITY   AND   MAGNETISM.  207 

statement  that  "  Electricity  is  the  right  hand  of  God." 
Yet  this  was  evidently  known  to  the  ancients  when 
they  placed  the  lightning  in  the  right  hands  of 
Jupiter. 

"  Thou  boldest  at  Thy  service,  in  Thy  mighty  hands, 
"  The  two-edged  flaming,  immortal  thunderbolt." 

(Kleanthes'  Hymn  to  the  Supreme  God.) 

"  Canst  thou  send  lightnings  that  they  may  go,  and  say  unto 
thee,  Here  we  are  ?"     (Job  xxxviii.  35.) 

Not  only  were  the  ancients  acquainted  with  the 
existence  of  Electricity,  but  they  were  also  perfectly 
aware  that  it  was  identical  in  its  source  and  essence 
with  Magnetism,  although  diverse  in  its  conditions  of 
exercise.  Both  Hermes  and  Pythagoras  taught  this; 
Synesios  found  it  among  the  souvenirs  of  the  School 
of  Alexandria,  and  sang  it  in  his  hymns — listen  to 
this  : — 

"  One  single  source,  one  single  root  of  light 
Flashes  and  spreads  out  into  two  branches  of  splendour ; 
One  breath  circles  around  the  earth 
And  vivifies,  under  innumerable  forms, 
All  parts  of  animated  Nature." 

The  pillars  of  Hercules  represented  the  myth  of  the 
Electric  Principle  ;  or  the  dual  power  of  Electricity  and 
Magnetism  on  which  may  be  supposed  to  rest  a  world. 
The  Colossus  of  Khodes,  a  monolith  in  the  human 
form,  bore  the  same  signification.  His  feet  resting  on 
opposite  rocks  representing  these  eternally  equilibrated 
forces  of  the  Universe,  bearing  aloft  the  lighted  torch 


208  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

of  intelligence  in  his  right  hand,  and  holding  in  his 
left  the  arrow  of  action  and  movement.  The  ancient 
thinkers  were  indeed  as  giants  on  the  earth. 

Electricity  is  but  one  of  the  latent  forces  of  Nature, 
and  who  can  tell  how  many  more  there  may  be  un- 
known to  us  that  were  well  known  to  Ancient  Spiritual 
Scientists  ?  Only  those  who  pursue  the  same  Spiritual 
Method  of  the  Ancients  can  trace  the  knowledge  con- 
cealed  in  their  Occult  Allegories. 

How  much  they  excelled  the  moderns  in  Spiritual 
intelligence  is  manifest  in  this,  that  they  knew  to 
what  things  in  heaven  many  things  in  this  world  cor- 
responded, and  hence  what  they  signified.  That  the 
Ancient  Initiates  possessed  the  knowledge  of  such 
things  is  evident — take  for  example  this  instance ;  they 
described  the  origin  of  Intelligence  by  a  winged  horse, 
whom  they  called  Pegasus,  and  his  breaking  open  witli 
his  hoof  a  fountain,  at  which  were  nine  Virgins,  and 
this  upon  a  hill :  for  they  knew  that  by  a  horse  was 
signified  the  Intellectual  Principle,  which,  as  the  horse, 
will  swiftly  bear  its  rider  over  every  obstacle  to  the 
understanding  of  truths ;  by  his  Wings  the  Spiritual 
Principle,  which  as  wings  will  bear  him  upwards ;  by 
hoofs  truths  in  the  lowest  degree,  they  being  the 
basis  of  intelligence ;  by  Virgins  the  Sciences ;  by  hill 
Elevation,  and  in  the  Spiritual  Sense  Charity. 

In  the  "  Six  Books  of  Proclos  on  the  Theology  of 
Plato,"  many  important  subjects  of  the  Spiritual  Science 
of  the  Ancients  are  treated,  or  rather  suggestively 
hinted  at.     The  so-called  "  Chaldean  Oracles  "  given  in 


THEOSOPHY   THE   KEY   TO   MYTHOLOGY.  209 

"  The  Platonist,"  and  the  "  Sentences  "  selected  from 
the  "  Elements  of  Theology  of  Plato,"  appearing  in 
the  same,  will  enable  the  Eeader  to  become  ac- 
quainted with  the  Essence  of  Heathen  Theosophy  of 
the  Neo-Platonic,  or  rather,  Neo-Hermetic  school,  that 
for  centuries  combated  with  Christian  Theosophy  for 
the  Eeligious  and  Philosophic  Dominion  of  the  Western 
World.  Theosophy,  we  repeat,  is  the  key  to  Mythology. 
The  books  of  Plato,  Proclos,  Plotinos,  Porphyry,  reveal 
the  method  of  the  pagan  Hermetic  Theosophy.  The 
Platonists  were  too  late  with  their  revelation  of  the 
ancient  Mysteries  of  Paganism,  for  Christianity  was 
already  in  the  field ;  but  theirs,  nevertheless,  was 
the  true  hierarchic  method,  although  it  could  not 
become  popular  with  the  masses,  for  it  presented  itself 
under  a  philosophical  aspect  which  only  educated  per- 
sons could  understand. 

Paganism  was  a  very  exclusive  system,  offering 
nothing  but  Spiritualism  to  all  except  the  very  highest 
Initiates,  who  regarded  a  Monotheistic  Theosophy  as 
their  Great  Arcanum.  When  there  came  two  Jews, 
Jesus  and  Paul,  possessing  a  Knowledge  of  God,  and 
offering  the  Secret  of  the  Sanctuary  to  all,  "  The  people 
who  sat  in  darkness  saw  a  great  light."  Slaves  knew 
more  than  their  masters,  and  the  much-prized  Initia- 
tions to  the  Mysteries  were  rejected.  The  Eleu- 
sinian  and  the  Bacchic  Mysteries  were  theatrical 
representations  of  the  process  and  course  of  individual 
Re-birth.  Very  few  of  the  so-called  Initiates,  who 
witnessed  them,  discerned  their  true  esoteric  meaning, 

P 


210  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

through  the  conglomeration  of  material  and  spiritual 
paraphernalia.  Then,  as  now,  the  mere  knowledge  of 
Spirit-existence  was  quite  as  much  as  the  ordinary  mind 
could  grasp.  Initiation  to  these,  the  lesser  Mysteries, 
was  probably,  in  the  end,  equal  to  attending  a  modern 
seance,  and  Initiates  who  had  passed  through  the  pre- 
scribed elaborate  Eitual,  when  they  really  saiv  spirits 
at  the  so-called  Autopsia,  with  their  minds  duly  worked 
up  to  the  pitch  of  awe,  would  not  demand  higher 
knowledge.  Thus  the  institution  of  the  Mysteries  was 
intended  in  all  probability  to  guard  a  Spiritualistic 
rather  than  a  Theosophic  Secret.  It  is  evident  that 
the  greatest  and  wisest  men  of  antiquity  could  not 
have  been  taken  up  for  ages  with  mere  theatrical  mysti- 
fication. Something  was  at  the  back  of  those  Mysteries 
or  they  would  not  have  existed  so  long ;  and  although 
it  was  not  Theosophy,  it  was  the  next  best  thing — 
namely,  the  knowledge  of  Spirit-existence. 

To  become  an  Initiate  was  really  the  criterion  of  the 
worse  and  the  better  man.  The  man  of  the  crowd, 
if  he  happened  to  be  initiated,  was  satisfied,  and  sought 
not  for  more  knowledge  than  that  there  were, — 

"  Aerial  spirits,  by  great  Jove  designed, 
To  be  on  earth  the  guardians  of  mankind ; 
Invisible  to  mortal  eyes  they  go, 
And  mark  our  actions,  good  or  bad,  below. 
The  immortal  spies  with  watchful  care  preside, 
And  thrice  ten  thousand,  round  their  charges  glide. 
They  can  reward  with  glory  or  with  gold ; 
A  power  they  by  Divine  permission  hold." — Ilesiod. 

This  knowledge  of  Spirit-existence,  a  life  beyond  the 


THE  ANCIENT   MYSTERIES.  211 

grave,  was  found  sufficient  to  ensure  the  acquiescence 
of  the  Heathen  Initiate  to  the  national  cultus.  The 
popular  morality  may  not  have  come  up  to  the  ideal 
standard  aspired  to  by  Philosophers,  or  Lovers  of  the 
Wisdom-Religion,  who  often  had  to  teach  in  opposition 
to  the  Hierarchs,  as  was  the  case  with  Socrates ;  yet 
the  Initiate  of  Antiquity  was  thus  much  better  informed 
than  the  modern  materialists,  as  he  knew  those  very 
facts  which  they  ignore.  Thus  the  Lesser  Mysteries 
were  no  doubt  instituted  for  the  purpose  of  inculcating 
the  truth  of  Spirit-existence ;  but  the  Greater  Mysteries 
had  a  far  deeper  Theosophic  merit,  namely,  that  of 
imparting  a  knowledge  of  the  Divine,  and  for  those 
who  were  desirous  of  receiving  a  higher  Initiation 
there  was  extant,  until  the  decadence  of  Paganism,  a 
most  stupendous  Hierarchic  System. 

Nearly  all  ancient  Philosophers  were  not  only 
Initiates  but  also  Esoterists,  teaching  Theosophy  under 
the  veil  of  Allegory.  They  were  all  Spiritual  teachers, 
and  their  Philosophy  was  Theosophy.  Material  terms 
were  only  used  as  symbols  for  Spiritual  things. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  give  a  selection  from  the 
philosophic  writings  of  antiquity  to  illustrate  the 
Pagan  ideas  on  Theosophy,  on  account  of  the  variety 
and  the  multitude  of  the  writings,  and  the  peculiar, 
and  to  us  unfamiliar,  modes  of  expression,  which  nearly 
always  demand  an  elucidation  of  greater  length  than 
the  text  itself.  Still,  we  will  endeavour  to  exhibit 
a  few  specimens,  mere  bricks  as  it  were,  from  the 
Pagan  Temple,  and  let  Orpheus,  Hesiod,  Xenophanes, 


212  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Empedocles,  Kleanthes,  and  Synesios,  each  say  a  few 
words.  To  arrive  at  a  true  appreciation  of  Pagan 
Theosophy,  the  works  of  ancient  Philosophers  should 
be  studied,  in  the  original  language  if  possible,  or 
at  least  in  a  good  translation,  from  several  of  the  best 
of  which  we  have  culled  ours.  Modernised  summaries, 
compendiums,  and  histories  of  philosophy  are  generally 
misleading,  and  should  be  avoided.  The  words  of  Pytha- 
goras, Plato,  Aristotle,  Proclos,  Plotinos,  Jamblicos, 
and,  in  brief,  those  of  all  ancient  Initiates,  should  be 
as  familiar  to  the  Theosophist  as  the  Grospel  is  to  the 
Christian. 

Okpheus. 

"  Zeus  the  first  generated  Zeus  the  last,  the  ruler  of  thunder; 
Zeus  the  head  and  the  middle,  from  Zeus  all  are  generated. 
Zeua  generates  as  man,  and  is  also  an  immortal  maid  ; 
Zeus  is  the  root  of  the  Earth  and  of  the  star-strewn  heavens. 
Zeus  is  King  of  all  things,  originating  beginning. 
Metis  first  mother,  and  many-joyed  Eros. 
One  power,  one  creative  Spirit  is  the  great  ruler  of  all ; 
One  royal  body  encompasses  all  things, 
Fire  and  Water,  Earth,  Ether,  Night  and  Day, 
These  rest  united  in  the  great  body  of  Zeus." 

Hesiod. 

"  To  Jove  alone,  to  his  great  will  we  owe 
That  we  exist,  and  what  we  are  below 
Whether  we  blaze  among  the  sons  of  fame, 
Or  live  obscurely  and  without  a  name, 
Or  noble  or  ignoble  still  we  prove 
Our  lot  determined  by  the  will  of  Jove. 
With  ease  he  lifts  the  peasant  to  a  crown, 
With  the  same  ease  he  casts  the  monarch  down  ; 
With  ease  he  clouds  the  brightest  name  in  night, 
And  calls  the  meanest  to  the  fairest  light. 


THE   ONE   POINTED   THOUGHT.  213 

At  will  he  varies  life  through  every  state, 
Unnerves  the  strong,  and  makes  the  crooked  straight. 
Such  Jove,  who  thunders  terrible  from  high, 
Who  dwells  in  mansions  far  above  the  sky." 

Xenophanes. 

"  One  God  rules,  He  is  supreme  among  Gods  and  men ; 
Neither  in  body  like  unto  mortals,  nor  in  spirit. 
As  Being  He  is  wholly  seeing,  knowing,  and  feeling. 
Easily  ruling  the  All  by  Thought  alone  ; 
Distinct  from  mankind,  as  perfectly  rounded, 
Untouched,  rational,  yea,  wholly  pure  reason, 
Much  is  there  subject  to  the  One. 
The  All  is  Reason  and  Thought, 
But  this  One  for  certain  none  will  espy, 
Nor  shall  one  espy  what  I  teach  of  the  Gods  and  the  All. 
For  though  he  should  attain  to  the  whole  in  completion, 
Yet  not  perceiving  the  All,  he  only  acquires  opinions. 
I  too  required  the  one  pointed  thought*  again  to  return, 
For  lost  in  delusion  I  erred  many  years, 
And  became  weary  of  searching  and  seeking. 
For  wherever  my  mind  turned,  there  I  found 
The  All  resolving  itself  in  the  One  ;  as  Being  for  ever, 
And  everywhere,  is  drawn  to  its  similar  nature. 

*  "  The  one  pointed  thought "  here  alluded  to,  so  well  known  in 
Hindu  Theosophies,  is  the  head-stone  of  the  corner  of  every  true 
Mystic  Philosophy.  "  This  concentration  of  thought,  ekagrata  or 
one-pointedness,  as  the  Hindus  called  it,  is  something  to  us  almost 
unknown.  Our  minds  are  like  kaleidoscopes  of  thought  in  constant 
motion  ;  and  to  shut  our  mental  eyes  to  everything  else,  while 
dwelling  on  one  thought  only,  has  become  to  most  of  us  almost  as 
impossible  as  to  apprehend  one  musical  note  without  harmonics. 
With  the  life  we  are  leading  now,  with  telegrams,  letters,  news- 
papers, reviews,  pamphlets  and  books  ever  breaking  in  upon  us, 
it  has  become  impossible,  or  almost  impossible,  ever  to  arrive  at 
that  intensity  of  thought  which  the  Hindus  meant  by  ekagrata, 
and  the  attainment  of  which  was  to  them  the  indispensable  con- 
dition of  all  philosophical  and  religious  speculations." — (Max 
Midler,  Preface  to  the  Sacred  Books  oftlie  East.) 


214  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Bat  mortals  imagine  Gods  like  unto  themselves, 

Having  garments,  voices,  and  bodies  as  we  have. 

If  bulls  and  lions  had  hands  to  design  and  form 

Like  men,  then  horses  of  horses,  and  bulls  of  bulls, 

Would  for  themselves  make  ideal  gods  of  their  own ; 

And  like  their  own  bodies  would  be 

The  corporeal  form  of  their  idols." — (On  God  and  the  All.) 

Empedoclks. 

"  For  God  has  not  bodily  limbs  nor  corporeal  form, 

But  is  purely  Divine  thought,  ineffable  and  One, 

Penetrating  All  with  ease  at  a  glance. 

Happy  is  he  who  possesses  the  fulness  of  Divine  mind. 

Unhappy  those  who  have  attained  to  nought  but  the  clouds  of 
opinion. 

It  is  impossible  bodily  to  approach  unto  God. 

Our  eyes  cannot  see,  nor  our  hands  feel  Him, 

Those  senses  whereby  come  all  other  convictions 

Unto  the  knowledge  of  mankind."—  (On  Physical  Nature.) 
"  Friends,  townsmen,  living  in  the  towers, 

At  the  banks  of  the  golden  Agragas, 

Lovers  of  justice  and  right,  ye  hospitable  worthy  men, 

To  whom  evil  is  unknown,  ye  I  salute. 

An  immortal  God,  no  more  a  mortal  man,  I  come 

Honoured  by  all,  and  now  openly  manifested ; 

With  wreaths  and  ribbons  my  brow  is  entwined. 

When  thus  I  appeared  in  cities  to  be  initiated, 

Men  and  women  as  with  one  voice  called  me  blessed ; 

Thousands  demand  of  me  how  to  attain  lasting  salvation : 

Some  seeking  divination,  others  to  be  healed  from  disease." 

(On  Purification.) 

Eleanthes,  the  Stoic's,  Hymn  to  the  Supreme  God. 
"  Greatest  of  the  Gods — God  with  many  names,  God  ever  ruling 
and  ruling  all, 
Zeus,  origin  of  Nature,  governing  the  Universe  by  law, 
All  Hail !     For  it  is  right  for  mortals  to  address  Thee, 
Since  we  are  Thy  offspring,  and  we  alone  of  all 
That  live  and  creep  on  earth  have  the  power  of  imitative  speech, 
Therefore  will  I  praise  Thee  and  hymn  for  ever  Thy  power. 


THE  STOIC'S  hymn.  215 

The  wide  heavens,  which  surround  the  earth,  obey  Thee, 

Follow  where  Thou  wilt,  and  willingly  obey  Thy  law. 

Thou  holdest  at  Thy  service,  in  Thy  mighty  hands, 

The  two-edged  flaming  immortal  thunderbolt, 

Before  whose  flash  all  Nature  trembles. 

Thou  only  rulest  as  supreme  Thought, 

And  appearest  mingled  in  all  things  great  or  small, 

Which  by  filling  the  All  is  king  of  the  All. 

Nor  without  Thee,  O  Deity,  does  anything  happen  in  the  world, 

Neither  at  the  Celestial  pole,  nor  in  the  great  Ocean, 

Except  only  evil,  preferred  by  the  senseless  wicked. 

But  Thou  also  art  able  to  bring  to  order  that  which  is  chaotic, 

Giving  form  to  the  formless,  and  friendship  to  the  unfriendly, 

So  reducing  all  variety  to  unity, 

And  even  making  good  out  of  evil. 

Thus  throughout  Nature  is  one  eternal  law, 

From  which  only  the  wicked  seek  to  escape. 

Poor  fools  !  who  long  for  Good  and  its  happiness, 

But  will  neither  see  nor  hear  the  universal  Divine  Law, 

Which,  obeyed  with  wisdom,  gives  birth  to  a  noble  life. 

They  set  other  aims  before  them  than  Divine  beauty : 

Some  pursuing  fame,  in  unhappy  struggles, 

Whilst  others  course  unwearied  through  the  world  for  gain, 

Others  again,  devoted  to  indolence  and  sensual  pleasures, 

Experience  the  nothingness  of  these  in  their  own  being. 

But  Thou,  O  Zeus !  all-giver,  in  clouds  surrounded, 

Ruler  of  thunder  !  guard  men  from  sad  error  ! 

Father !  scatter  the  clouds  of  the  soul,  that  we  may  follow 

The  Law,  whereby  Thou  rulest  the  All  with  justice  for  ever.  ^ 

That  we  maybe  worthy  of  Thy  honour,  let  us  honour  Thee  again, 

Praising  Thy  works,  as  it  is  becoming  for  mortals. 

For  nothing  is  better  for  gods  or  men 

Than  to  praise  the  Supreme  Law  common  to  all." 


SYNESIOS. 


"All-Father  Thou 
Father,  Self -Creator, 
Before  and  without  Father, 
Thou  art  Thine  own  Son. 
One,  anterior  to  Thyself, 


Being  of  Beings 
All-Centre. 
Pre-mental  mind, 
Cosmic  Root, 
All  radiant  light 


216 


UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 


Of  the  first  creation, 

Truth  of  Reason, 

Source  of  Wisdom, 

Mind  occult 

In  thine  own  splendour, 

Eye  of  Thyself, 

Surpassing-  the  mind. 

Mind  of  many, 

Generator  of  mind, 

Origin  of  the  Gods, 

Creator  of  spirits, 

Nourisher  of  souls, 

Source  of  Sources, 

Beginning-  of  Beginnings, 

Root  of  Roots. 

Unity  of  Unities, 

Number  of  Numbers, 

Knowledge  and  knowing 

And  that  which  is  known, 

And  anterior  to  the  known. 

One  and  All, 

One  of  the  All, 

One  anterior  to  the  All, 

Life-essence  of  the  All. 

Depth  and  height, 

Thought-force, 

Man  and  Spouse, 

These  things  we  learn 

From  the  occult  mind 

Circling  uimameable  abysses. — 

Thou  art  the  creative  cause 

And  also  the  created  being. 

The  Illuminating 

And  Illuminated, 

Thou  art  hidden 

In  Thy  own  splendour. 

One  and  All, 

One  in  thy  Self 

And  through  the  all. 

Thou  art  the  Root 


Of  the  present,  the  past, 
The  future,  and  of  what  now  is. 
Father  art  Thou  and  Mother, 
Man  art  Thou  and  Spouse. 
Speech  art  Thou  and  silence, 
Nature,  and  origin  of  Nature, 
Ruler,  and  JEon  of  iEons. 
Thou  art  supreme  Justice. 
Greatest  praise  to  Thee, 
The  Creator  of  Worlds. 
Greatest  praise  to  Thee, 
Thou  Centre  of  All. 
Unity  of  divine  numbers, 
Anterior  to  ail  powers. 
Unity  of  Unities, 
Father  of  Fathers, 
Beginning  of  Beginnings, 
Source  of  Sources, 
Root  of  Roots, 

Good  of  the  Good, 
Divineness  of  the  Divine, 

World  of  the  Worlds, 

Idea  of  Ideas, 

Ineffable  Beauty, 

Occult  Life-seed, 

Father  of  iEons, 

Father  of  innumerable 

Intelligible  worlds, 

Whence  ambrosial 

Spirit  descends, 

Dissolving  the  body's  burden, 

And  a  second  world 

Again  arises. 

Blessed  One, 

I  praise  Thee  with  my  song. 

I  also  praise  Thee,  Blessed  One, 

With  my  silence  ; 

For  Thou  knowest 

Wholly  the  intention 

Of  voice  and  of  silence. 


FEAKLESS   LOVE. 


217 


Thee  I  sing,  0  Son ! 

First  born,  First  Light, 

Son  most  glorious 

Of  the  Supreme  Father, 

Blessed  One  ! 

With  the  great  Father 

I  praise  Thee. 

For  from  Thee 

And  from  Thy  Father's 

Fruitful  Will 

Combined  in  the  Beginning 

With  the  Divine  Spirit, 

Centre  of  the  Father, 

Centre  of  the  Son, 

Came  the  Mother, 

Even  the  Sister, 

Even  the  Daughter, 

Bringing  forth 

The  Occult  Root  ;— 

That  the  Son  in  the  Father 

May  be  outpoured. 

The  outpouring  itself 

Has  found  seed 

And  stands  now 

In  the  midst  of  God, 

A  God. 

For  by  the  Son 

And  by  the  Eternal  Father's 

Blessed  outpouring, 

The  Son  has  received  form, 

Unity  and  Trinity ; 

Unity  abiding  for  ever, 

And  the  Trinity  Thou, 

It  is  here  that  we  see  the  spirit  of  Paganism  as- 
suming Christian  Symbols,  but  hardly  in  the  Christian 
sense  now  accepted  as  orthodox. 

These  hymns  are  full  of  Fearless  Love,  such  as  no 
Semit  could  or  would  have  written,  for  the  essential 


Father  unknowable, 
Father  unnameable, 
Unknowable  to  Mind, 
Unnameable  by  word. 
Thou  art  the  Mind  of  Mind, 
The  Soul' of  Soul, 
The  Nature  of  Nature. 
Let  me  flee  from 
The  demon  of  matter, 
The  power  of  lust ; — 
But  give  me,  Lord  ! 
The  comforting  Friend, 
The  companion  and  Guide, 
The  holy  angel, 
The  holy  strength, 
That  also  in  this  life, 
In  the  terrestrial, 
By  praise  of  Thee 
May  be  increased 
The  Soul's  courage. 
That  also  hereafter, 
When  freed  of 
Terrestrial  fate  and  bonds, 
I  may  go  to  Thy  dwelling, 
Unto  Thy  bosom, 
From  the  source 
Whence  the  Soul 
Has  outpoured. 
Reach  me  Thy  hand, 
Call  me,  0  Blessed  One, 
Guide  the  beseeching 
Soul  out  of  matter." 


218  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

difference  between  the  Heathen,  the  Semit,  and  the 
Christian,  is,  as  we  have  already  defined:  that  the 
Heathen  loves  without  Fear  ;  the  Semit  fears  without 
Love  ;  and  the  Christian  is  full  of  Love  and  Awe.  The 
Heathens  had  formulated  a  System  which  enunciated 
the  idea,  that  everything  that  is,  is  holy. 

The  Greeks  saw  and  worshipped  nothing  higher  than 
this  life  itself,  few  had  any  hold  on,  or  hope  of  the 
next,  and  the  Apostle  Paul,  who  was  "  dying  daily  "  to 
the  outward  life,  whilst  the  inner  grew  and  lived  with 
more  vitality  every  day,  writes  to  them  in  astonish- 
ment :  "  How  say  some  among  you  there  is  no  resurrec- 
tion of  the  dead?"  Their  religion  had  degenerated 
into  the  arts,  the  love  and  the  worship  of  the  beautiful ; 
but  they  were  unsatisfied,  for  there  is  an  insatiable 
desire  above  all  external  forms  and  objects  in  man 
which  these  can  never  satisfy,  and  so  they  asked  from 
time  to  time  for  some  new  thing :  "  Who  will  show  us 
any  good  ?  "  Much  as  they  loved  the  outward  and  the 
visible,  they  could  not  rest  in  it,  for  immortal  man 
cannot  feed  his  hunger  upon  husks.  The  illimitable 
"  Unknown  God  "  remained;  to  whom  an  altar  stood  in 
Athens.  But  they  had  no  sacred  books,  and  no  pro- 
phets. Instead  of  prophets,  however,  they  had  such 
teachers  as  Socrates  and  Plato,  in  whom  the  immortal 
life  throbbed  with  most  glorious  vitality ;  and  yet,  when 
Paul  came  and  preached  at  Athens  the  resurrection  of 
the  dead,  so  little  were  they  prepared  for  it,  that  "  they 
mocked  !  " 

We  read  that  the  Parthenon  standing  on  the  summit 


VIII.  CHAPTER   OF  PROVERBS.  219 

of  Athens,  built  of  white  marble  and  surrounded  by 
columns,  was  perhaps  the  most  perfect  building  ever 
raised  by  man.  Every  part  of  its  exterior  was  adorned 
with  Phidian  Sculpture ;  and  within  stood  the  statue 
of  Pallas  Athene  herself,  in  ivory  and  gold,  by  the  same 
master  hand.  Another  statue  of  colossal  dimensions 
of  the  great  Goddess  stood  on  the  summit  of  the 
Acropolis,  and  her  golden  helmet  and  shield  flashing  in 
the  sun  could  be  seen  far  out  at  sea.  In  her  form  and 
face  purity  was  confirmed  by  wisdom.  Tranquil  serenity, 
serious  purpose,  and  clear-sighted  intellect,  were  the 
characteristics  of  the  stately  Goddess,  whose  name, 
"Athene,"  was  said  to  be  derived  from  an  old  Etru- 
scan word  signifying  mental  action — and  that  of  Pallas, 
from  having  with  her  sword  and  spear  {i.e.,  the  bright- 
ness of  her  intellect)  conquered  a  celebrated  Giant, 
whose  image  at  Troy  represented  the  Myth  of  Know- 
ledge of  the  Fiery  Soul  (i.e.,  the  lower  or  Animal  Soul). 
It  was  to  the  credit  of  the  Athenians  that  they  chose 
her  as  the  guardian  of  their  city  ;  for  how  evidently  did 
she  represent  that  Divine  Virgin  Wisdom,  whom  "  The 
Lord  possessed  in  the  beginning,  before  His  works  of 
old,"  and  who  "  was  set  up  from  everlasting."  (Pro- 
verbs viii.)  The  Divine  Wisdom  from  above,  figured 
by  the  virgin  goddess  Minerva,  who  had  issued  from 
the  Brain  of  Jove.  She  who  was  destined  eventually 
to  be  so  sweetly  represented  and  typified  by  the  Virgin 
Mother  of  the  Divine  Humanity ;  herself  a  type  of  the 
Divine  Soul  in  man,  which  alone  can  conceive  by  the 
Holy  Spirit,  and  bring  forth  the  perfect  man. 


220  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

"  Still  more  wonderful,"  says  Freeman  Clarke,  "  was 
the  Phidian  Jupiter  at  Olympia,  whose  majesty  was 
such  that  it  was  an  event  in  life  to  have  seen  it,  and 
not  to  have  seen  it  before  death  one  of  the  greatest 
of  calamities."  Thus,  if  Pallas  Athene  may  be  taken 
as  a  representation  of  the  Divine  Soul,  or  Virgin  Mo- 
ther, this  Olympian  Jupiter  may  be  said  to  represent 
the  Divine  Spirit  or  Father  of  Humanity.  How  evidently 
these  Greek  sculptors  in  creating  these  wonderful  ideals 
were  feeling  after  (rod ;  and  for  God  incarnate  in  man. 
They  were  prophets  of  the  future  development  of 
humanity,  and  strove  to  show  how  man  is  a  partaker 
of  the  Divine  Nature. 

The  causes  producing  the  dissolution  of  Paganism 
have  been  well  discerned  by  Professor  Draper  in  his 
classic  "History  of  the  Intellectual  Development  of 
Europe,"  from  which  we  give  the  following  quotation : — 

"  The  fact  that  Polytheism  furnished  a  religious  explanation  for 
every  natural  event  made  it  essentially  antagonistic  to  science. 

"  While  some  of  the  philosophers  received  in  silence  the  popular 
legends,  as  was  the  case  with  Socrates,  or,  like  Plato,  regarded  it 
as  a  patriotic  duty  to  accept  the  public  faith,  others,  like  Xeno- 
phanes,  denounced  the  whole  as  an  ancient  blunder,  converted  by 
time  into  a  national  imposture. 

"As  it  was  with  philosophers,  so  it  was  with  historians;  the 
rise  of  true  history  brought  the  same  result  as  the  rise  of  true 
philosophy.  The  feigned  facts  of  Grecian  fore-time  were  alto- 
gether outdone  in  antiquity  and  wonder  by  the  actual  history  of 
Egypt. 

"  Thus  for  many  ages  stood  affairs.  One  after  another,  his- 
torians, philosophers,  critics,  poets,  had  given  up  the  national 
faith,  and  lived  under  a  pressure  perpetually  laid  upon  them  by 
the  public  ;  adopting  generally,  as  their  most  convenient  course,  an 
outward  compliance  with  the  religious  requirements  of  the  state. 


THEN,   AS   NOW.  221 

"  It  is  altogether  erroneous  to  suppose  that  Polytheism  main- 
tained its  ground  as  a  living  force  until  the  period  of  Constantine 
and  Julian.  Its  downward  fall  commenced  at  the  time  of  the 
opening  of  the  Egyptian  ports.  Nearly  a  thousand  years  were 
required  for  a  consummation.  The  change  first  occurred  among 
the  higher  classes,  and  made  its  way  slowly  through  the  middle 
ranks  of  society.  .  .  Long,  therefore,  previous  to  the  triumph 
of  Christianity,  Paganism  must  be  considered  as  having  been 
irretrievably  ruined.  .  .  There  was  a  slow  and,  it  must  be 
emphatically  added,  a  spontaneous  decline." 

The  Heathen  Temple  was,   without  doubt,  inaugu- 
rated  by    Initiates    of  a   high    order;    but    when   the 
Theosophic  Secret,  the  Great  Arcanum,  the  Word,  or 
Logos— the  G-od  within,  was  lost,  and  nothing  remained 
but  tradition  on  the  one  side,  and  Daemons  crowding  to 
be  worshipped  in  order  to  vampirize  their  worshippers, 
on  the  other,  the  System  of  God  for  the  few  and  the 
Demons  for  the   many   ultimately  ended  in  no    God 
being   believed   in.     When   doubt,  begotten   by  igno- 
rance, sapped  the  foundations  of  the  edifice,  no  matter 
how  subtle  the  System  thought  out  by  and  for  the  few, 
it  fell ;  it  had  to  fall,  for  there  was  no  one  to  support  it. 
The  Church  of  God  is  in  the  heart  of  man  ;  but  when 
God  was  studiously  kept  estranged  from  his  Sanctuary, 
and  Dsemons  there  enshrined,  and  vampires  deified,  the 
science  of  the  few  was  insufficient  to  keep  them  safely 
on   the    rock    of  their    knowledge,    and   they    became 
submerged,  surrounded  by  a  sea  of  error  and  ignorance. 
The  old  lights  became  extinct,  and  new  beacons  were 
found.      Lights  that  verily  were   a  salvation  to  those 
who,   until    then,   were   perishing    in    the    nights  and 
oceans  of  spirit-darkness. 


222  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

The  compact  that  the  ancient  Heathen  Hierarchs 
made  with  earth-bound  spirits  (Daemons),  whom  they 
deified  in  order  to  get  their  manifestations,  was,  no 
doubt  considered  to  be  a  cheap  and  good  bargain ;  but, 
as  one  cannot  touch  pitch  without  being  defiled,  these 
could  not  exist  without  being  mimical  to  man's  eternal 
welfare,  being  in  antagonism  to  the  Divine.  When  the 
conditions  were  no  longer  offered,  there  were  no  more 
phenomena.  The  gods  became  angry  and  vanished. 
Polytheism,  that  arrangement  whereon  the  Hierarchies 
no  doubt  so  congratulated  themselves,  served  to  be- 
come the  chief  disintegrating  cause  of  decay  of  Pagan- 
ism. For  Polytheism  was  simply  the  worship  of  earth- 
bound  spirits. 

Semitic,  and  unfortunately  but  too  often  so-called 
Christian  Orthodoxy,  bars  the  way  to  Natural  Science, 
and  forbids  all  inquiry  concerning  the  origin  of  things. 
This  is  because  it  holds  strictly  to  the  letter  of  the 
Sacred  writings  (the  letter  which  killeth),  and  has  lost 
the  key  to  the  inner  or  Esoteric  meaning.  But  Heathen 
Orthodoxy  was  far  worse.  There  everything  was  deified ; 
the  Greek  worship  was  intensely  human,  and  all  that 
was  human  had  its  sanction  in  the  example  of  some 
God.  They  had  yet  to  learn  that  not  all  that  is  human 
is  Divine.  Man's  mind  was  in  a  cosmic  prison ;  every 
bar  was  a  God,  and  every  God  was  a  bar. 

Where  man-made  gods  step  in,  knowledge  ends.  The 
masses  were  forced  to  submit  to  a  deification  of  ijrno- 
ranee  and  of  sensual  passions;  for  these  too  were  deified, 
and  were  found  to  be  a  powerful  chain  upon  the  human 


"THE  LETTER  WHICH   KILLETH."  223 

being.  Theft  had  its  patron  deity  ;  and  Treachery,  and 
Cunning,  and  even  Lust  had  its  temple  of  abominable 
worship.  Instead  of  the  Intellect  being  cultivated,  and 
the  Senses  made  subservient  to  the  Intellect,  the  Senses 
were  cultivated  and  the  Iutellect  was  made  subservient 
to  the  Senses.  Purity  was  kept  a  high  Occult  Secret. 
Rational  happiness  was  unknown  to  the  masses  who 
then,  as  now,  had  chiefly  irrational  and  unreal  pleasures, 
and  tasted  life  only  in  its  very  dregs. 

The  few  who  felt  their  way  beyond  the  clouds  of 
popular  misconceptions  followed  the  policy  of  the  Ini- 
tiates to  whom  the  traditional  Theosophy  was  confided, 
and  adopted  an  Hermetic  language,  a  System  of  veiled 
and  Allegorical  expressions  to  which,  like  the  alchemists, 
they  prudently  retained  the  Key.  In  this  manner  they 
indeed  effectually  concealed  their  knowledge,  but  their 
terms  passing  out  among  the  uninitiated  who  knew  not 
the  Occult  meaning  of  these  expressions,  the  Hermetic 
language  misled  them  into  accepting  dead  things  as 
though  they  were  the  symbols  of  living  principles  which 
formed  the  Kabbalistic  Science  of  the  ancients. 

It  was  when  the  Schools  of  Philosophy  had  to  conceal 
their  knowledge,  or  what  little  they  knew,  in  Esoteric 
vocabularies,  which  for  ages  have  puzzled  and  mystified 
thinking  and  inquiring  minds,  and  these  Schools  of 
Philosophy  had  to  form  aristocratic  cliques,  in  which, 
after  years  of  probation,  a  little  Esoteric  lore  was 
imparted,  that  the  Cynics  appeared,  and  made  a 
counter-blast  with  a  rough-and-ready  Theosophy  of 
their  own,  which  would  shock  our  refined  sensibilities, 


224  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

as  it  must   have   repelled    such   cultured   ancients  as 
Plato,  Aristotle,  and  others. 

The  Cynics  were  a  remarkable  phenomenon  in  Greece. 
Here  we  find  Grecian  Yogis  aggressively  introducing 
themselves  with  the  same  doctrine  subsequently  in 
part  adopted  by  some  of  the  Stoics  and  Gnostics,  and 
which  was  treasured  by  the  Initiates  of  the  Hermetic, 
Eleusinian,  Eleatic,  Academic,  and  other  Schools  of 
Theosophy. 

"  Cynicism,''  says  Lewes,  in  his  History  of  Philosophy,  p.  100, 
"  consisted  in  the  complete  renunciation  of  all  luxury — the  subju- 
gation of  all  sensual  desires.  It  was  a  war  carried  on  by  the  Mind 
against  the  Body.  As  with  the  Ascetics  of  a  later  day,  the  basis  of 
a  pure  life  was  thought  to  be  the  annihilation  of  the  Body ;  the 
nearer  any  one  approached  to  such  a  suicide  the  nearer  he  was  to 
the  ideal  of  virtue.  The  body  was  vile,  filthy,  degraded,  and  de- 
grading ;  it  was  the  curse  of  man  ;  it  was  the  clog  upon  the  free 
development  of  Mind ;  it  was  wrestled  with,  hated,  and  despised. 
This  beautiful  Body,  so  richly  endowed  for  enjoyment,  was 
regarded  as  the  sink  of  all  iniquity." 

"  It  is  not  difficult  to  imagine  the  effect  created  by  the  Cynics 
in  the  gay,  luxurious  city  of  Athens.  There  the  climate  no  less 
than  the  prevailing  manners,  incited  every  one  to  enjoyment.  The 
Cynics  told  them  that  enjoyment  was  unworthy  of  men;  that 
there  were  higher  and  purer  things  for  man  to  seek.  To  the 
polished  elegance  of  Athenian  manners  the  Cynics  opposed  the 
most  brutal  coarseness  they  could  assume.  To  the  friendly  flat- 
teries of  conversation  they  opposed  the  bitterest  pungencies  of 
malevolent  frankness.     They  despised  all  men  ;  and  told  them  so." 

The  Cynics  never  had  a  System  or  a  School  to  speak 
of;  all  they  could  do  was  to  sneer.  Yet  even  this 
unlearned  ignorance  was  as  wise  as  the  most  learned 
ignorance.  For  external  to  the  Knowledge  of  the 
Absolute  there  is  no  Absolute  Knowledge. 


THE  LOST   KEY.  225 

Pagan  Theosophy  became  extinct  because  it  was  no 
longer  popular.  It  is  a  sure  sign  of  tbe  dissolution  of  a 
social  system  when  the  religious  feeling  is  forced  down 
to  the  very  lowest.  Thus  it  was  in  Greece  and  Rome. 
The  Hierophants  had  lost  the  key  to  their  own  Sanc- 
tuary, and  when  the  Platonists  attempted  to  revive 
Paganism  they  failed.  The  Pythagorean  Philosophy 
never  became  a  popular  system,  and  it  was  in  vain 
that  appeals  like  the  following  were  addressed  to  the 
people  : — 

"  The  Pythagorean  System  is  founded  upon  temperance,  and  love 
of  work.  Pythagoras  instead  of  making  religion  serve  to  establish 
morality,  causes  morality  to  demonstrate  religion,  and  that  that 
religion  only  is  true  which  benefits  humanity  ;  thus  the  errors  of 
impiety  and  of  superstition  are  equally  avoided.  The  object  of 
this  religious  system  is  the  love  of  all  humanity.  This  system  is  a 
special  gift  to  the  poor  and  unhappy,  to  whom  it  offers  continual 
consolation,  and  whom  it  inspires  with  infinite  courage  by  demon- 
strating to  them  that  all  happiness  lies  within  their  own  being, 
and  if  they  only  will  it  so,  they  are  not  less  happy  than  those  who 
are  apparently  more  fortunate. 

"  Without  morals  no  civil  institution  can  endure.  The  system  of 
Pythagoras  has  all  the  essentials  to  render  its  ethics  popular ;  it  is 
simple  in  its  principles  and  easy  to  follow  in  practice,  for  it  is  not 
merely  intended  for  philosophers,  who  are  few,  but  for  the 
common  people  whom  it  should  chiefly  persuade  ;  and  as  the 
masses  of  the  people  are  mostly  unhappy,  they  should  therefore 
adhere  to  a  system  which  proves  itself  the  most  useful  to  follow. 
The  Pythagorean  svstem  of  morality  is  purely  humanitarian,  and 
rests  chiefly  upon  the  bases  of  equality  and  charity ;  finally,  it  is 
independent  of  all  opinion,  as  it  is  founded  only  upon  those  ideas 
whereupon  all  rightminded  men  are  agreed,  namely,  the  innate 
sense  of  justice  and  true  morality.  He  who  will  instruct  the 
people  in  the  truths  of  the  Pythagorean  system,  will  assuredly 
greatly  benefit  the  human  race,  and  his  name  will  endure  through- 
out the  ages." — (Cleobolus.) 

Q 


226  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

The  exclusive  Esoterism  that  all  Philosophic  Schools 
adhered  to,  both  those  who  had  something  and  those 
who  had  nothing  to  conceal,  prevented  and  destroyed 
in  the  end  the  educational  object  it  attempted  to 
inaugurate.  The  aristocratic  monopoly  of  Philosophy 
caused  a  democratic  reaction  in  Cynicism,  which  subse- 
quently, as  a  system  of  thought,  became  modified  and 
ennobled  into  Stoicism. 

But  Christianity,  far  better  than  Cynicism,  became  a 
natural  sequence  to  the  reaction  from  Pagan  corruption; 
and  we  find  that  these  heathen  religions  really  formed 
a  preparatory  step  for  Christianity,  and  that  instead  of 
degenerating  towards  something  worse,  they  served  to 
prepare  the  way  for  something  better. 

The  apostle  Paul  tells  the  Athenians  that  they  are 
really  worshipping  the  true  God,  and  Paul  believed  what 
he  said  ;  he  told  them  that  all  they  needed  was  to  have 
their  understanding  enlightened.  "  The  Unknown  God 
whom  ye  ignorantly  worship,  Him  declare  I  unto  you." 
He  recognised  their  worship  as  passing  beyond  the  idols 
to  the  true  God,  "  the  Lord  of  Heaven  and  Earth,"  "  the 
God  not  dwelling  in  temples  made  with  hands,  not  far 
from  every  one  of  us,  for  in  Him  we  live,  and  move,  and 
have  our  being,  as  certain  also  of  your  oivn  poets  have 
said,  for  we  are  also  His  offspring."  Thus  quoting  their 
own  poets  in  proof  of  God's  Fatherhood.  "  Forasmuch 
then  as  we  are  the  offspring  of  God,  we  ought  not  to 
think  that  the  Godhead  is  like  unto  gold,  or  silver,  or 
stone,  graven  by  art  or  man's  device."  (Acts  xvii.) 
Christ  also  recognises  that  all  good  men  among  heathen 


THE  ROMAN   LAWS.  227 

nations  belong  to  Himself,  even  though  they  had  never 
heard  of  Him,  and  accordingly  He  said  to  the  Jews, 
"  Other  sheep  I  have,  though  not  of  this  fold."  Sheep 
"  who  knew  His  voice,  and  were  ready  to  follow  Him." 
"  Before  whom  shall  be  gathered  all  nations."  Both  of 
Jews  and  Gentiles,  or  Pagans. 

However  unhappy  it  may  have  been  for  noble  and 
glorious  beings  like  Hypatia  to  be  attached  to  the 
losing  cause,  the  old  systems  had  to  disappear.  Chris- 
tianity was  no  doubt  considered  by  the  cultured  Heathen 
a  religion  for  slaves,  but  it  had  the  virtue  of  being  new, 
and  of  causing  the  abolition  of  effete  institutions  and 
too  stationary  views. 

The  Theosophic  Ideas  of  the  Ancient  Romans. 

The  great  mission  of  the  Romans  was  to  stamp  upon 
the  minds  of  mankind  the  ideas  of  Law,  Government, 
and  Order.  The  Roman  Laws,  originating  from  inspira- 
tion, were  subsequently  the  result  of  ages  of  experience, 
and  have  entered  more  or  less  into  the  modern  jurispru- 
dence of  Europe.  Those  of  Spain,  the  noblest  and  most 
equitable  of  any  if  only  properly  administered,  are 
entirely  based  upon  the  Ancient  Roman  Laws.  The 
Roman  nation  was  one  of  the  noblest  the  world  has 
seen ;  they  were  a  rare  and  a  high-minded  people. 
Roman  greatness  was  rooted  in  the  courage  of  her  men, 
and  still  deeper  in  the  honour  of  her  women.  They 
observed  the  sanctity  of  the  domestic  ties,  and  the 
sacredness  of  home  was  watched  over  by  two  guardian 
deities  (Lares  and  Penates).     The   pure   and    Eternal 


228  TJNIVEKSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Fire  in  her  temples,  symbol  of  the  duration  of  the 
Republic,  was  tended  by  Vestals ;  thus  female  chastity 
guarded  the  Eternal  City. 

The  Romans  originally  had  no  statues  in  their 
Temples — their  early  faith  taught  access  to  God  through 
the  mind  rather  than  through  the  senses.  The  Statues 
of  the  Gods  were  first  introduced  from  Greece,  whose 
polytheistic  system  was  the  most  elaborate  and  magni- 
ficent the  human  imagination  could  conceive.  "  A  full 
river  of  influence,"  says  Cicero,  "  and  not  a  little  brook, 
has  flowed  into  Rome  out  of  Greece"  (Republic,  ii.  19). 
Iu  this  way  the  twelve  Gods  of  Olympus:  Zeus, 
Poseidon,  Apollo,  Ares,  Hephoestos,  Hermes,  Here, 
Athene,  Artemis,  Aphrodite",  Hestia,  and  Demeter  were 
naturalised  or  identified  as  Jupiter,  Neptune,  Apollo, 
Mars,  Vulcan,  Mercury,  Juno,  Minerva,  Diana,  Venus, 
Vesta,  and  Ceres.  In  the  course  of  time  there  is  said 
to  have  been  in  Rome  three  hundred  Jupiters,  which 
of  course  means  that  Jupiter  was  worshipped  under 
three  hundred  different  attributes. 

"  The  religions  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans  were  originally,  like 
their  languages,  very,  closely  connected,  as  the  names  of  some  of 
the  chief  gods  prove.  The  traces  of  agreement  would  certainly 
be  still  more  numerous  had  not  the  difference  in  national  character 
and  in  outward  circumstances,  led  each  of  the  two  religions  to 
develop  itself  for  a  considerable  time  in  exactly  opposite  directions, 
till  the  nations  came  once  more  in  contact  with  each  other,  and 
their  religions  blended  together.  The  aim  of  the  Greek  was 
towards  a  more  and  more  complete  anthropomorphism,  which 
Attic  sculpture  wrought  out  to  perfection  ;  but  to  this  the  Roman 
felt  an  instinctive  aversion.  He  was  too  little  of  an  artist,  and 
had  also  too  deep  a  reverence  for  the  higher  powers  to  represent 
them  as  beings  resembling  men.  The  powers  of  nature,  so  far  as 
they  had  not  yet  in  an  earlier  period  become  personal   deities, 


THE  CULTUS  OF  RELIGION.  229 

remained  spirits  to  his  view,  or  became  personifications  of  abstract 
ideas.  This  is  the  character  likewise  of  the  new  gods  whom  they 
created,  beings  who  only  possess  a  nebulous  existence,  rarely 
uniting  in  marriage  or  forming  amorous  connections,  and  remain- 
ing for  the  most  part  childless.  The  remains  of  the  old  Roman 
mythology  are  therefore  extremely  scanty.  But  the  ideas  which 
were  elevated  to  the  rank  of  spirits  are  innumerable.  Not  only 
has  every  man  his  Genius,  and  every  woman  her  Juno,  but  every 
deity  also,  together  with  every  being,  every  object,  every  action 
or  function,  every  moral  quality  even,  has  its  own  spirit,  which  is 
limited  to  its  own  province.  If  the  dominant  elements  in  Greek 
mythology  are  personality,  freedom,  and  the  richest  diversity,  the 
Roman  theology  is  characterised  by  the  abstract  idea,  by  necessity, 
by  the  severest  order  and  monotony.  The  difference  between  the 
two  corresponds  exactly  to  that  between  the  Hindu  and  Persian 
religions,  to  the  latter  of  which  the  character  of  the  Roman 
affords  a  complete  parallel." 

"  Much  greater  weight  was  attached  by  the  practical  Roman  to 
the  cultus  than  to  the  doctrines  of  religion.  This  was  the  one 
point  of  supreme  importance  ;  in  his  view  the  truly  devout  man 
was  he  who  punctually  performed  his  religious  obligations,  who 
was  pious  according  to  law.  There  was  a  debt  to  be  paid  to  the 
gods  which  must  be  discharged,  but  it  was  settled  if  the  letter  of 
the  contract  was  fulfilled,  and  the  symbol  was  given  in  place  of 
the  reality."  ..."  Everything  was  regulated  with  precision 
by  the  government ;  and  the  fact  that  the  highest  of  the  priests 
was  always  under  the  control  of  the  state,  prevented  the  rise  of  a 
priestly  supremacy,  the  absence  of  which  in  Greece  was  due  to 
other  causes ;  but  the  consequence  was  that  the  Roman  religion 
remained  dry  and  formal,  and  was  external  rather  than  inward. 
Even  the  purity  (castAtas),  on  which  such  great  stress  was  laid, 
was  only  sacerdotal,  and  was  attained  by  lustration,  sprinkling, 
and  fumigation ;  and  the  great  value  attached  to  prayer,  so  that  a 
single  error  had  to  be  atoned  for  as  a  neglect,  had  its  basis  in  the 
superstitious  belief  that  it  possessed  a  high  magic  power.  Such  a 
religion  was  certainly  intelligible  to  all ;  it  was  not  without  favour- 
able influence  on  political  and  social  life,  and  it  was  admirably 
adapted  to  form  a  well-organised  army  of  conquerors,  a  nation 
that  could  rule  the  world ;  but  to  spiritual  life  it  contributed 
nothing,  and  it  did  little  for  the  advancement  of   speculation, 


230  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

poetry,  or  art."  .  ..."  It  soon  became  evident  that  a  cold 
formal  state  religion  of  this  kind,  though  it  was  now  surrounded 
with  great  pomp,  and  was  raised  to  be  a  symbol  of  a  bold  political 
idea,  while  it  might  satisfy  a  few  statesmen  and  patricians,  could 
not  meet  the  wants  of  a  whole  people.  This  deficiency  was 
perceived  by  the  same  kings  who  modified  the  native  cultus, 
and  they  endeavoured  to  meet  it  by  the  introduction  of  foreign 
deities  and  usages." — Tiele,  "  Outlines  of  the  History  of  Religion" 
pars.  135,  139,  and  141. 

Amid  the  noise  of  officially-recognised  state  religion  it 
was  difficult  to  all  but  a  student  of  the  Occult  such  as 
Paul  to  observe  that  a  knowledge  of  Divine  Theosophy 
really  existed  in  Eome.  In  writing  to  the  Eomans 
he  speaks  of  the  Gentiles  having  a  knowledge  of  the 
eternal  attributes  of  God  (Eom.  i.  19),  and  seeing 
Him  in  His  works  (v.  20),  and  that  they  also  had 
"the  law  written  in  the  heart."  (Rom.  ii.  14,  15.") 
But  its  perpetuation  as  a  State  Eeligion  was  a  diffi- 
cult task,  as  can  be  seen  from  the  fact,  that  when  the 
books  of  Numa  were  accidently  unearthed  they  were 
immediately  burnt  by  order  of  the  Senate. 

Numa,  the  first  great  legislator  in  Eome,  was  probably 
the  last  of  the  Adept  Kings  that  reigned  in  ancient 
Italy.  Plutarch's  "Life  of  Numa"  would  justify  such 
a  supposition.  Again,  he  is  represented  as  giving  laws, 
not  from  a  human  heart,  but  after  secret  communion 
with  the  Superhuman.  In  accordance  with  this  we  find 
the  institutions  of  Eome  referred  to  inspiration,  and 
ever  striving  to  exhibit  on  earth  a  copy  of  the  Divine 
order  of  the  Universe,  the  law  of  the  heavenly  hierar- 
chies. The  very  word  Ee-LIGION  (a  binding,  or  rather 
re-binding,  power)  is  a  Eoman  word. 


THE    CULT   OF   VIRTUE.  231 

Livy  says :  Numa  was  a  man  most  learned  in  all 
human  and  Divine  law.  Cicero:  that  Numa  by  his 
sacred  constitutions  laid  the  foundations  of  the  great- 
ness of  the  Eoman  empire.  Tacitus  :  that  Numa  gave 
the  people  a  settled  form  of  religion  and  Divine  Law. 
Plutarch :  that  there  must  be  acknowledged  to  be 
something  Divine  in  Numa,  &c. 

Archaeological  remains  reveal  that  the  Etruscans  and 
other  ancient  Italian  nations  were  a  highly  cultured 
and  spiritually-developed  people  long  before  the  Komans 
became  a  great  nation.  All  this  suggests  that  an  Esoteric 
School  of  Theosophy  may  have  been  instituted  by  that 
king  to  rule  the  State  religion,  as  a  wheel  within  a  wheel. 
The  "Cult  of  Virtue"  to  which  Philosophers  and 
Initiates  aspired,  was  popularly  known  and  believed  to 
conduct  to  a  higher  and  more  Divine  state.  But 
only  few  could  be  induced  to  "practise  Virtue"  and 
live  the  pure  and  holy  life  inculcated  by  all  true 
Initiates  and  Philosophers,  therefore  the  lesser  Mysteries 
of  Spiritualism  were  also  here  alone  left  as  the  Pan- 
theon for  the  people. 

The  Sybilline  Oracles  are  the  only  Occult  volumes 
Ancient  Rome  has  left,  and  they  are  partly  prophetic, 
and  partly  Theosophic.  They  exhibit  strong,  though 
possibly  unimitated,  similarity  to  the  prophetic  books  of 
the  Old  Testament,  where  mundane  and  Theosophic 
subjects  often  appear  in  close  relationship.  It  is  only 
to  advanced  students  who  understand  the  reason  for 
this,  and  can  discern  the  truth  signified,  under  the  sym- 
bolical figure  employed  to  express  it,  to  whom  a  perusal 


232  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

of  these  volumes  can  be  recommended,  so  necessary  is 
it  to  have  the  key  to  unlock  the  secrets  of  the  Esoteric 
and  Occult ;  in  other  words,  to  discern  beneath  "  the 
letter  which  killeth  "  "  the  truth  which  giveth  life." 

The  early  Christian  Fathers  believed  that  God  had 
one  great  plan  for  educating  the  world,  of  which 
Christianity  was  the  final  step.  Thus,  Clement  of 
Alexandria  refused  to  consider  the  Jewish  religion  as 
the  only  Divine  preparation  for  Christianity,  but  re- 
garded the  Greek  philosophy  as  also  a  preparation  for 
Christ.  He  quotes  Plato,  and  Hesiod,  and  Sophocles, 
and  Cleanthes  the  Stoic  : 

"Nor,"  says  he,  "  must  we  keep  the  Pythagoreans  in  the  back- 
g'round,  who  say  '  God  is  one  ;  and  he  is  not,  as  some  suppose, 
outside  of  this  frame  of  things,  but  within  it ;  in  all  the  entireness 
of  his  being  he  pervades  the  whole  circle  of  existence,  surveying 
all  nature,  and  blending  in  harmonious  union  the  whole ;  the 
author  of  his  own  forces  and  works,  the  giver  of  light  in  heaven, 
and  father  of  all ;  the  mind  and  vital  power  of  the  whole  world, 
the  mover  of  all  things.' " 

Neander  gives  the  views  of  Clement  at  length,  and 
says  that  he  was  the  founder  of  the  true  view  of  history. 
(Neander's  Church  History,  vol.  i.,  p.  540.)  Tertullian 
declared  the  (Spiritual)  Soul  to  be  naturally  Christian, 
and  Socrates  was  called  by  the  Fathers  a  Christian 
before  Christ. 

The  Eoman  Cultus  has  formulated  to  a  great  extent 
the  creed  of  Christian  Ecclesiasticism.  In  Chris- 
tian Baptism  for  instance  we  have  but  the  Heathen 
Lustration  under  another  name.  Baptism  may  be 
called  an  outward  visible  sign  of  an  inward  spiritual 


ESOTERIC   CHRISTIANITY.  233 

grace,  and  Lustration  may  be  said  to  be  a  mere  super- 
stition, nevertheless  the  similarity  between  the  two,  and 
the  adaptation  of  one  ceremony  from  the  other,  appears 
to  us  to  be  almost  certain.  Exoteric  Christianity  could 
only  gain  the  masses  by  adapting  itself  to  the  popular 
demand  for  ceremonial  observances.  There  is  nothing- 
disgraceful  in  supplying  a  harmless  demand,  but  it  is 
unreasonable  to  be  blind  to  self-evident  facts  and  attribute 
miraculous  virtues  to  the  mere  outward  ceremony.  It 
requires  a  knowledge  of  Esoteric  Christianity  and  of  the 
deep  Esoteric  Truth  underlying  this  particular  cere- 
mony, to  fully  comprehend  its  true  significance. 

Modern  Eomanism  suffers  from  the  very  imper- 
fections that  destroyed  the  Old  Eoman  Cultus.  Exter- 
nals in  lieu  of  Internals,  outward  symbols  in  place  of 
inward  grace,  Cult  instead  of  Truth  are  inculcated ;  and 
unless  the  Christian  Eoman  Church  will  profit  by  the 
disastrous  experience  of  her  Heathen  predecessor,  and 
place  Theosophy,  the  Science  of  the  Eternal  Divine 
Wisdom,  in  her  Sanctuary,  instead  of  insisting  on  the 
efficacy  of  unimportant  Externals,  History  may  once 
more  repeat  itself. 


234 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SEMITIC      THEOSOPHY. 

Part  I. 

THE  KABBALA  OR  HEBREW  THEOSOPHY. 

WHILE  other  nations  were  sycophantly  bowing  to 
the  dictates  of  sense-bound,  more  generally 
known  as  earth-bound  spirits,  and  in  return  were  reap- 
ing all  the  mental  horrors  and  bodily  degradations 
resultant  upon  the  practice  of  black  magic,  the  Jews 
were  being  saved  from  these  superstitions  by  Divine 
interposition. 

Theosophy  is  a  knowledge  of  the  Divine  Wisdom. 
This  truth  we  have  often  repeated,  as  we  wish  it  to  be 
realised  that  it  is  the  foundation  stone  upon  which  the 
regenerating  and  saving  portion  of  every  true  religion  is 
based ;  it  is  therefore  all  important  that  we  keep  it  ever 
before  the  minds  of  our  readers.  Theosophy  was  most 
markedly  the  Salvation  of  the  Jews,  as  it  has  been,  and 
ever  must  be,  the  salvation,  individually  and  collec- 
tively, of  every  being  that  has  sinned  in  the  universe. 
Disguise  Theosophy  in  what  form  of  words  you  may, 
yet  where  there  is  Salvation  there  must  be  Theosophy, 
or  the  Knowledge  of  the  Divine  Wisdom,  for  without 
it  Salvation  cannot  be. 


THE   KABBALISTS.  235 

The  Kabbala  transmits  to  us  such  knowledge  as  the 
Adepts  of  those  times  chose  to  commit  to  writing. 
Our  Scriptural  allegories  are  based  on  the  Kabbala, 
which  more  recent  adepts  in  Theosophy  have  elucidated, 
and  which  are  known  to  us  moderns  as  "  The  Kabbal- 
istic  Doctrine." 

Monotheism  is  the  only  true  Theosophy,  and  Moses 
taught  the  strict  unity  of  God,  "  Hear,  0  Israel,  the 
Lord  our  God  is  ONE  Lord  "  (Deut.  vi.  4),  a  statement 
which  Jesus  calls  the  chief  of  the  Commandments 
(Mark  xii.  29,  30).  The  Jews  were  called  the  chosen 
people,  and  considered  themselves  more  especially  under 
the  Divine  protection  on  account  of  their  firm  adher- 
ence to  the  one  God,  the  God  of  Israel. 

Jewish  Theosophists,  or  Kabbalists,  as  these  are  com- 
monly called,  claim  the  Bible  to  be  an  Occult  Book 
wherein  their  Theosophic  or  Kabbalistic  system  is 
embodied  in  Allegories,  Symbols,  &c. ;  the  written  and 
oral  laws,  they  say,  are  dependent  on  and  complete  each 
other. 

In  the  ceremonial  Law  the  Jewish  Mystic  sees  Kab- 
balistic mnemonics,  and  every  ceremony  has  to  him  an 
Occult  reason. '  To  our  view  these  reasons  may  appear 
less  profound  than  their  inventors  would  desire.  Many 
a  ceremonious  performance  may  seem  trivial  to  us, 
but  those  who  know  of  no  other  Theosophy  than  that 
of  their  national  tribe,  cannot  be  expected  to  see  these 
things  quite  clearly  and  impartially,  much  less  to  com- 
prehend their  Divine  meaning. 

Of  the  inner  life  of  the  Jews  comparatively  little  is 


236  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

known,  but  it  can  be  traced  even  in  the  Bible,  that  a 
traditional  Theosophy  was  extant,  which  the  Nazarites 
and  the  schools  of  the  Prophets,  and  later,  the  Essenes 
and  Kabbalists,  and  possibly  also  the  initiated  Talmud- 
ists,  perpetuated,  but  which  the  Kabbalistic  schools  that 
followed  Akiba  and  Simon  Jochai,  consolidated  into  a 
scientific  system  in  the  books  Jezira  and  Sohar. 

The  two  chief  classics  of  the  Kabbala,  Jezira  and 
Sohar,  attributed  respectively  to  Akiba  and  Simon 
Jochai,  reveal  the  basis  of  the  Occult  Theosophy  of 
the  Hebrews.  These  works,  it  is  to  be  deplored,  are, 
however,  but  little  known  to  the  orthodox  Jews. 

The  most  ancient,  and  also  most  comprehensive,  is 
the  Sefer  Jezira,  probably  written  by  Eabbi  Akiba. 

The  Sefer  Jezira  will  be  found  translated  in  our 
"  Occult  Texts."  The  Sohar  teaches  us  that  the  true 
Tora,  or  Law  of  Moses,  is  not  in  the  literal  but  in  the 
allegorical  interpretation  of  the  Pentateuch,  and  that 
the  books  of  Moses  serve  merely  as  a  vehicle  for  the  com- 
munication of  the  Occult  divine.  (See  "  The  Book  of 
the  Secret  or  the  Mystery,"  in  "Occult  Texts") 

Among  the  Jews  various  symbols  were  apparently 
current  to  express  the  Great  Arcanum  to  Initiates. 
Philo  Judseus  in  his  treatise  "  On  the  Allegories  of  the 
Sacred  Laws,"  elucidates,  in  a  very  cautious  manner,  a 
few  of  these  subjects. 

The  Creation,  The  Garden  of  Eden,  The  Deluge, 
The  Tilling  of  the  Earth  by  Noah,  The  Confusion 
of  Languages,  the  Migration  of  Abraham,  his  two 
Wives,  and   many  more  such  subjects,  are   Hermetic 


THE  TORA,  OR  ORAL  LAW.  237 

Myths,  having  mystic  truth  as  their  foundation.  Moses 
probably  received  and  revived  the  Theosophy  of  Abra- 
ham, but  tinged  it  with  Egyptian  Hermeticism,  for  we 
must  remember  that  he  was  learned  in  all  the  wisdom 
of  the  Egyptians.  It  was  to  the  Priests  of  Egypt  to 
whom  Pythagoras  and  Plato  also  went  for  instruction. 

The  written  law  of  Moses  made  known  in  the  Bible, 
and  exoterically  accepted  by  Orthodox  Jews  and  Chris- 
tians, is  the  Letter,  which  Christ  tells  us  "  killeth."  To 
find  the  Spirit  of  this  Law,  or  that  which  "  giveth  Life" 
we  must  turn  to  the  Oral  Law  or  tradition  wherein  was 
contained  the  Divine  Kabbala,  the  Spiritual  interpreta- 
tion of  material  symbols.  It  is  this  tradition,  namely, 
the  esoteric  Law  of  Moses  which  is  the  Tora  whereof  is 
recorded  in  the  Talmud:  ''Moses  received  the  Oral 
Law  from  Sinai  and  delivered  it  to  Joshua,  and 
Joshua  delivered  it  to  the  Elders  and  the  Elders  to  the 
Prophets,  and  the  Prophets  to  the  men  of  the  great 
Synagogue."  It  must  therefore  be  well  understood  that 
the  Tora  thus  mentioned  by  the  Talmud  is  not  the 
written,  but  the  Oral  Law,  or  Kabbala,  transmitted  by 
tradition  from  generation  to  generation,  until  collected 
by  Simon  Jochai  and  preserved  in  the  Volumes  of  the 
Zohar.  The  Talmudists  verily  claim  the  Talmud  to  be 
the  Oral  Law,  but  it  is  evident  that  the  Talmud  itself 
is  a  Kabbalistic  book  intended  merely  to  be  "  a  fence 
to  the  Divine  Law  "  as  orally  transmitted. 

"  The  Talmud  (teaching)  comprises  the  Mishna  and  the  Gemara. 
The  Mishna  ('  learning,'  or  'second  law')  was,  according  to 
Jewish  tradition,  delivered  to  Moses   on   Mount   Sinai.     'Rabbi 


238  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Levi,  the  son  of  Chama,  says,  Rabbi  Simon,  the  son  of  Lakish, 
says,  what  is  that  which  is  written ;  I  will  give  thee  tables  of 
stone,  and  a  law  and  commandments  which  I  have  written, 
that  thou  mayest  teach  them  ?  *  The  Tables  are  the  Ten  Com- 
mandments ;  the  Law  is  the  written  law  ;  and  the  commandment 
is  the  Mishna  ;  '  which  I  have  written '  means  the  prophets  and 
sacred  writings ;  'that  thou  mayest  teach  them,'  means  the 
Gemara.  It  teaches  us  that  they  were  all  given  to  Moses  from 
Mount  Sinai.'  From  Moses  the  Mishna  was  transmitted  by  oral 
tradition  through  forty  '  Receivers,'  until  the  time  of  Rabbi  Judah 
the  Holy.  These  Receivers  were  qualified  by  ordination  to  hand 
it  on  from  generation  to  generation.  Abarbanel  and  Maimonides 
disagree  as  to  the  names  of  these  Receivers.  While  the  Temple 
still  stood  as  a  centre  of  unity  to  the  nation,  it  was  considered 
unlawful  to  reduce  these  traditions  to  writing.  But  when  the 
Temple  was  burned,  and  the  Jews  were  dispersed  amongst  other 
peoples,  it  was  considered  politic  to  form  them  into  a  written 
code,  which  should  serve  as  a  bond  of  union,  and  keep  alive  the 
spirit  of  patriotism.  The  Jewish  leaders  saw  the  effect  of  Con- 
stitutions and  Pandects  in  consolidating  nations — the  advantage 
of  written  laws  over  arbitrary  decisions.  Numberless  precedents 
of  case  law,  answering  to  our  common  law,  were  already  recorded : 
and  the  teachings  of  the  Hebrew  jurisconsults,  or  '  Responsa 
prudentium,'  which  were  held  to  be  binding  on  the  people,  had 
been  preserved  from  former  ages.  All  these  traditions  Rabbi 
Judah  the  Holy  undertook  to  reduce  into  one  digest.  And  this 
laborious  work  he  completed  about  a.d.  190,  or  more  than  a  cen- 
tury after  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  Titus.  Rabbi  Judah  was 
born  on  the  day  that  Rabbi  Akibah  died.  Solomon  is  said  to  have 
foretold  the  event:  'One  sun  arise th,  and  one  sun  goeth  down.' 
Akibah  was  the  setting  and  Judah  the  rising  sun.  The  Mishna 
of  Rabbi  Judah,  afterwards  revised  by  Abba  Areka,  in  Sura,  is 
the  text  of  the  Babylon  Talmud.  The  commentaries  written  on  this 
text  by  various  Rabbis  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Babylon  until 
the  close  of  the  fifth  century,  are  called  the  Gemara  (comple- 
tion) ;  and  are  published  in  twelve  folio  volumes,  called  the 
Babylon  Talmud — the  Talmud  most  esteemed  by  the  Jews." 

(Introduction  to  the  Talmud  by  Joseph  Barclay). 

*  Exod.  xxiv.  12. 


MOSES  A  THEOSOPHIST.  239 

The  Talmud  is  the  protective  fence  around  the 
written  Law,  which  in  turn  is  the  symbolical  vehicle  of 
the  Divine  Kabbala.  Thus  there  were  two  traditions, 
an  Exoteric  tradition  perpetuated  in  the  Talmud,  and 
an  Esoteric  tradition  wherein  the  Kabbala  was  trans- 
mitted. The  Exoteric  tradition  is  permeated  with 
Kabbalism,  although  the  mere  Talmudists  know  it  not. 
One  must  be  a  Theosophist  to  know  the  reason  of  the 
precepts  which  tend  towards  a  Divine  life  and  to  discern 
the  Esoteric  directions  from  Exoteric  customs  having 
no  Divine  object. 

The  Tora  is  of  course  full  of  occult  ideas,  but  it  can- 
not be  disguised  that  the  greatest  part  of  the  Ceremonial 
Law  was  simply  Ceremonial  Magic  of  a  dubious  cha- 
racter, and  may  in  part  have  been  copied  from  the 
Egyptians,  Chaldeans,  and  Magi,  with  whom  Hebrew 
Initiates,  notwithstanding  their  usual  exclusiveness, 
carried  on  an  active  though  secret  intercourse. 

It  is  not  our  province  to  deal  with  Moses  as  an 
historical  character.  It  is  well  known  that  he  was  a 
Magian  or  Adept  in  Divine  knowledge,  who  had  obtained 
access  to  the  true  mysteries  of  which  the  Egyptian 
superstitions  represented  the  degradation;  and  whose 
object  was  to  detach  from  the  world-creed  and  build 
up  apart  a  true  church  based  upon  sacred  Theosophy, 
i.e.,  Divine  Wisdom.  Hence,  instead  of  suffering  his 
followers  to  seek  after  extraneous  "  spirits  "  or  to  prac- 
tise the  acts  of  sorcery,  he  insisted  on  worship  being 
directed  exclusively  to  Jehovah,  the  one  universal 
creative  Lord,  who  as  the  God  at  once  of  Macrocosm 


240  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

and  Microcosm  is  the  central  spirit  of  man  himself; 
he  also  insisted  on  perfect  purity  of  thought,  word,  and 
act  as  the  sole  means  of  salvation.  "  His  laws  rested 
on  two  pivots,  an  absolute  Divine  Will,  and  strict 
Divine  Justice.  There  was  a  third  idea,  which  it  was 
one  of  his  great  objects  to  inculcate,  that  of  Holiness. 
"  God  is  a  holy  God,  his  law  is  a  holy  law,  the  place  of 
his  worship  is  a  holy  place,  and  the  Jewish  nation  a 
holy  people."  As  a  true  prophet  we  must  suppose  that 
his  sacrifices  consisted  not  in  the  shedding  of  innocent 
blood,  but  in  the  offering  to  God  the  "  Ram"  of  a 
sanctified  intellect,  and  the  "Lamb"  of  a  pure  spirit, 
while  in  the  same  way  the  hostile  tribes  destroyed  by 
him  were  symbolical  of  the  evil  thoughts  and  propen- 
sities of  his  own  people,  their  unbelief  and  idolatries. 
It  was  through  the  degeneration  of  the  priests  who 
followed  him  that  his  pure  and  holy  doctrine  became 
materialised  and  blood-thirsty.  The  Sacrificial  holo- 
causts so  offensive  to  our  modern  human  ideas, 
although  thus  promulgated  as  "  The  Law  of  Moses," 
were  really  the  too  literal  rendering  of  an  ignorant 
and  rapacious  Priesthood. 

At  the  period  alluded  to,  a  Sacrificial  Cultus  was  a 
universal  institution  among  all  hierarchies  without 
exception,  thus  the  Jewish  Priesthood  was  but  following 
the  prevailing  spirit  of  the  time  ;  but  let  us  not  accuse 
the  great  and  divinely  inspired  Law-giver  of  instituting 
these  abhorrent  sacrifices  of  innocent  victims.  Let  us 
not  judge  by  appearances,  or  "the  letter  which  killeth," 
and  which  certainly  would  appear  against  him  when  we 


KEEPERS  OF   THE  OEAL  LAW.  241 

remember  that  the  Book  of  Leviticus  abounds  with 
instructions  for  these  wholesale  butcheries,  and  which 
we  must  not  disguise  from  ourselves  were  interpreted 
according  to  the  Letter  by  the  very  Talmudists  who 
pretended  to  be  the  sole  keepers  of  the  Oral  Law* 

Those  among  the  Israelites  who  desired  and  aspired 
to  the  Divine  Life,  were  actually  compelled  to  excuse 
themselves,  and  bring  a  sacrifice  to  the  Jehovah  of 
priestcraft.  To  be  a  Nazarite  (one  of  the  secret 
"Brethren")  was  held  as  a  reproach  in  that  very  Tora 
which  nevertheless  is  a  strictly  Kabbalistic  book. 

If  an  authentic  history  of  the  Nazarites  could  be 
written,  it  would  be  there  that  the  true  religious  life  of 
the  Jews  would  be  found.  We  can  only  trace  the  Naza- 
rites so  far  as  to  discern  that  gradually  schools  were 
formed  by  the  people,  called  schools  of  seers  or  prophets, 
and  we  say  so  advisedly ;  for  as  these  Seers  or  Adepts 
among  the  Jews  abstained  from  the  same  wrong  things 
that  the  Nazarites  eschewed,  and  had  the  same  object  in 


*  The  Rationale  of  the  Sacrificial  Culte,  ably  discussed  in 
pp.  102—107  cf  "  The  Perfect  Way,"  points  out  that "  the  effusion 
of  physical  blood  has,  in  all  ages,  been  a  means  whereby  magicians 
have  evoked  astral  phantoms.  "  Blood  begets  phantoms,  and  its 
emanations  furnish  certain  spirits  with  the  materials  requisite  to 
fashion  their  temporary  appearances."  Paracelsus  also  asserts 
that  "  by  the  fumes  of  blood  one  is  able  to  call  forth  any  spirit," 
&c.  Thus,  as  more  blood  is  shed  in  a  day  in  the  enormous 
slaughter-houses  of  our  great  cities  than  was  in  Jerusalem  for 
years,  it  must  unavoidably  attract  these  evil  spirits  in  swarms, 
who  thus  literally  dwell  amongst  us,  and  their  malign  influence  is 
but  too  apparent  in  the  impure  and  immoral  conduct  of  those  in- 
habitants whom  they  are  able  to  infest. 

R 


242  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

view,  we  may  safely  conclude  that  the  Nazarites  were 
early  prophets  and  the  prophets  were  the  later  Naza- 
rites.* The  true  is  always  hated  by  the  false,  and  we 
can  understand  the  persecutions  the  disciples  of  Truth 
had  to  endure  from  the  Jewish  priesthood.  Indeed 
the  Bible  affords  ample  evidence  of  a  continual  struggle 
between  priest  and  prophet. 

*  "  Jesus  Christ  was  called  a  Nazarite,  not  a  Nazarene.  It  is  odd 
enough  that  our  learned  Grecians  should  not  see  that  Na£o>p<uos 
does  not  mean  Nazarene,  but  Nazarite  :  had  it  meant  Nazarene  it 
would  have  been  Na^aprjvos.  He  was  a  Nazarite  of  the  city  of 
Nazareth,  or  of  the  city  of  the  Nazarites.  At  that  place  was  the 
Monastery  of  Nazarites  or  Carmelites,  where  Pythagoras  and 
Elias   both   dwelt,   under   Carmel,   the   Vineyard   or   Garden   of 

God Nazareth,  the  town  of  Nazir  or  N«£co(/nor, 

the  flower,  was  situated  in  Carmel,  the  Vineyard  or  Garden  of 
God.  Jesus  was  a  flower ;  whence  came  the  adoration,  by  the 
Rosier ucians,  of  the  Rose  and  Cross,  which  Rose  was  Ras,  and 
this  Ras  (Knowledge,  or  Wisdom),  was  stolen  from  the  garden 

and  crucified  on  a  cross Pope  Gregory  the  Great 

invited  the  Carmelites  from  Syria  and  Egypt  to  Rome,  and 
founded  two  most  splendid  and  beautiful  monasteries  of  the  bare- 
foot and  the  calceated  orders ;  and  at  that  time  he  abolished  their 
old  rule  and  gave  them  a  new  one.  At  both  times  when  I  visited 
Rome,  I  applied  to  the  librarians  at  the  monasteries  and  endea- 
voured to  obtain  a  sight  of  their  old  rule,  by  which  they  lived 
before  the  time  of  Gregory,  which  they  acknowledged  they  pos- 
sessed, but  of  which,  after  having  been  promised  it,  they  would 
not  permit  me  to  have  the  inspection.  Within  the  cupola  of 
St.  Peter's  is  a  colossal  statue  of  the  Prophet  Elias,  under  which  is 
the  inscription,  '  Universus  Carmelitarum  Ordo  Fundatori  suo 
S.  Eliae  Prophetse  erexit  ambccxxvii.'  I  believe  if  he  were  not 
the  founder  he  regulated  the  Order.  But  its  first  regulation,  I 
think,  may  be  found  in  the  sixth  chapter  of  N  umbers,  verses  13  to 
21.  A  slight  attention  will  satisfy  any  reader  that  Moses  was 
then  regulating  an  order  brought  from  Egypt,  not  instituting  a 
new  one."     (Auacalypsis,  vol.  ii.,  p.  44.) 


PRIESTS   EVER  VERSUS   PROPHETS.  243 

Thus  in  Judaism  we  behold  another  illustration  of 
the  futility  of  man  attempting  to  limit  God  to  one 
particular  tribe  or  class.  God  is  Universal,  and 
not  a  national  tribal  God.  He  animates  all,  and 
makes  himself  known  to  all.  If  a  man  will  do  the  work 
of  God  and  impart  God  unto  all,  his  work  is  Divine, 
and  shall  endure  for  ever  ;  but  if  he  would  make  God 
do  his  will  and  attempt  to  limit  God,  his  work  is 
human,  and  shall  perish. 

The  Nazarites  and  the  Prophets  were  most  undesired 
accessions  to  the  Jewish  Hierarchy.  The  temporizing 
Samuel  alone  excepted,  who  was  more  a  Medium  than  an 
Adept,  the  Seers  stood  in  stem  opposition  to  the  Priests 
and  Levites.  Even  the  eloquent  David  speaks  out  in  his 
mystic  hymns  in  a  manner  totally  inimical  to  orthodox 
Judaism.  While  Isaiah,  Zechariah,  Ezekiel,  Daniel,  and 
most  of  the  minor  prophets  are  hardly  within  the  pale 
of  Judaism.  They  are  Hebrew  Catholics,  the  forerunners 
of  the  Essenes,  that  holy  order  which  is  supposed  to 
have  counted  Jesus  among  its  members.  The  Prophet 
is  one  who  hears  a  voice  from  heaven,  while  a  Priest  or 
Scribe  only  echoes  what  the  other  has  heard. 

God's  covenant  with  the  Patriarchs  was  neither  more 
nor  less  than  a  revelation  of  the  laws  of  conduct  re- 
quisite for  a  Divine  Life.  The  material  symbols  must 
all  be  spiritualized.  Each  of  the  Patriarchs  probably 
imparted  the  simple  Divine  knowledge  symbolically, 
Adam,*  Noah,  Abraham,  Isaac,  Jacob,  and  his  twelve 

*  There  may  have  been  untold  millions  of  human  beings  before 
Adam  fell  from  the  Divine  state  allegorically  represented  as  Eden. 


244  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

sons,  may  even  be  mythic  personages.  The  twelve  tribes, 
of  whom  ten  so  mysteriously  disappear  and  are  nowhere 
to  be  found,  may  have  had  only  mystic  or  mythic  exist- 
ence. Tacitus  (Lib.  V.  Hist.;  however,  alludes  to  the 
Exodus  of  the  Jews  from  Egypt,  but  not  so  clearly  as 
does  Moses  in  the  Pentateuch.  At  all  events,  though 
and  because  we  accept  the  Occult  Law,  we  are  not 
bound  to  hold  blindly  to  the  written  volumes  and  adore 
the  letter. 

It  is  the  Spirit  alone  that  gives  life,  that  Holy  Spirit 
which  Moses  and  the  prophets  had  in  part,  which  was 
plenary  with  Christ  and  the  Apostles,  and  abides  ever 
with  mankind.  It  is  the  spirit  of  God,  the  Divine 
voice,  or  Word,  within  us,  and  to  know  that  God  is 
within  us  is  true  Theosophy. 

The  written  Law  of  Moses  soon  degenerated  into 
empty  formalism,  and  the  Soul-life  of  the  aspiring  Jews 
sought  for  itself  a  hio-her  aim  and  end.  It  was  in  vain 
that  Solomon  built  a  visible  Temple  to  inculcate  the 
grades  and  secrets  of  the  Invisible  Soul-Life.  The  priests 
cared  not  for  the  symbols  so  long  as  they  had  a  remu- 
nerative Church,  and  the  people  could  not  understand 
Solomon's  architectural  Occultism.  The  Seers  without 
much  mystification  went  right  to  the  fountain-head, 
and  their  doctrine  was  listened  to  with  avidity.  These 
spoke  of  the  Divinely  Anointed,  the  God-man,  the  Euler 
of  all  worlds,  the  Word,  the  God  within  us. 

They  were  not  all  understood  rightly ;  hardly  in  the 
present  day  is  there  one  in  a  million  that  can  under- 
stand the  occult  meaning  of  the  words  of  a  Divine 


THE   THEOSOPHY   OF  THE  HEBREWS.  245 

Initiate.     As  it  is  now  so  it  was  then,  the  unthinking 
ever  were  the  majority. 

In  studying  Hebrew  Theosophy  we  must  thus  take 
into  consideration  that  the  Bible  and  especially  the 
Tora  is  a  Kabbalistic  book,  allegorically  written,  and 
symbolically  illustrated.  (The  system  of  the  Kabbala 
and  Esoteric  Masonry  are  identical,  and  for  this  reason 
the  Masons  call  their  temple  the  Temple  of  Solomon.) 
Moses  and  the  Prophets,  the  Nazarites,  Essenes,  Ebion- 
ites,  and  others  among  the  Jews,  as  the  Tanaim, 
Geonim,  were  Theosophists,  and  consequently  most, 
if  not  all  their  writings,  are  manifestly  or  occultly 
treatises  on  Theosophy.  In  the  treatises  of  the  later 
Jews  this  is  not  quite  so  apparent,  but  the  Theosophy 
of  the  Hebrews  is  nevertheless  not  to  be  limited  only 
to  what  now  goes  by  the  name  of  the  Kabbala,  as  all 
Judaism  is  in  a  manner  permeated  by  an  imperfect 
theosophic  spirit,  and  the  Jew  of  to-day  who  desires  to 
become  a  Theosophist,  will  find  the  same  path  is  likewise 
open  to  him  whereby  his  forefathers  have  passed  unto 
perfection.  So  also  has  the  Roman  Catholic  Church 
left  the  door  to  the  sanctuary  open,  and  they  who  wish 
to  renounce  the  world  can  do  so.  The  Protestants  alone 
have  no  institutions  for  Theosophy,  yet  from  among 
them  also  have  arisen  great  teachers  of  our  Art. 

The  Jewish  ceremonial  as  it  survives  to  the  present 
day,  ridiculous  and  childish  as  it  may  appear,  never- 
theless claims,  and  probably  has  a  Kabbalistic  base, 
Its  virtue  may  justly  be  doubted,  seeing  there  are  so 
many   beings  of  other   nations  who  have  passed  unto 


246  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

perfection  without  even  knowing  of  its  existence. 
There  are  moral,  hygienic,  and  spiritual  rules  of  con- 
duct given,  but  these  must  naturally  occur  to  the 
minds  of  all  right-thinking  individuals.  When  the 
Jews,  therefore,  would  claim  that  theirs  is  the  only 
true  Theosophy  and  all  others  are  spurious,  we  cannot, 
with  the  knowledge  we  have  of  other  systems,  admit 
that  claim. 

The  highest  thought  that  the  greatest  Jew  ever 
expressed  was  Universality.  True  Theosophy  is  catholic 
— appealing  to  all,  not  to  a  tribe  only.  Buddha  and 
Christ  speak  not  to  Hindus  and  Jews  only,  they  speak 
to  all  mankind.  The  greatest  Jew  was  a  true  man,  and 
saw  that  Theosophy  was  not  Judaism  but  Humanity ; 
and  yet  after  the  lapse  of  nigh  upon  twenty  centuries, 
true  Christianity,  the  Theosophy  of  Christ,  is  still 
almost  unknown,  and  the  world  continues  to  languish 
under  the  baneful  influence  of  Pharisaism. 

The  mystic  Tora  or  Kabbala,  is  not  the  Pentateuch, 
but  the  tradition  of  the  Logos,  or  Divine  Word,  the 
Grod  in  our  own  Being.  The  written  Law  is  by  the 
Kabbalists  assumed  to  be  a  concealed  path  to  the 
unwritten  or  occult  Law  of  Ee-birth.  This  occult  Law 
or  tradition  is  also  said  to  be  the  Guide  to  the  Divine 
Word,  the  Logos,  or  Manifestation  of  the  Absolute. 
The  Manifestation  is  not  communicable,  it  must  be 
striven  for  or  cannot  be  attained.  An  Adept  can  by 
tradition  transmit  what  he  knows,  and  what  he  ex- 
periences, but  that  is  all.  That  the  spiritual  secret 
of  the  Law  was  known  among  the  initiated  and  learned 


"THE   BRETHREN."  247 

Jews  can  be  gathered  from  the  words  of  the  Prophets 
and  also  from  their  method  of  life. 

The  question  now  arises,  if  the  Biblical  narratives  are 
historical  incidents,  how  can  they  have  a  mystic  mean- 
ing? We  do  not  hunt  for  esoteric  mysteries  in  the 
history  of  other  nations,  why  then  should  that  of  the 
Hebrews  be  thus  treated?  And  yet  according  to  the 
Kabbalists,  and  also  according  to  the  Fathers  of  the 
Christian  Church,  Origen,  Ambrose,  Jerome,  all  these 
narratives  are  certainly  allegorical. 

In  order  to  know  the  reason  why  Biblical  narration 
is  allegorical,  and  has  an  Esoteric  meaning,  we  must 
turn  to  the  few  records  we  have  of  the  Essenes,  the 
Jewish  Sect  of  which  we  know  the  least,  for  they 
always  kept,  or  have  been  kept,  as  much  as  possible 
out  of  sight.  We  are  told  both  by  Philo  and  Josephus 
that  there  were  three  principal  Sects  among  the  Jews. 
These  were  the  Sadducees,  the  Pharisees,  and  the 
Essenes.  The  two  first  are  often  mentioned  in  the 
New  Testament — the  third  never — but  instead  of  it  we 
meet  with  a  multitude  of  references  to  "  the  brethren." 
Now  a  close  and  careful  study  of  the  Scriptures  has 
convinced  some  Theosophists  amongst  us  that  the  New 
Testament  writers  were  these  very  "brethren,"  the 
Essenes ;  for  it  would  be  absurd  to  suppose  such  pro- 
foundly Spiritual  writings  could  have  proceeded  from 
the  Scribes,  Sadducees,  or  Pharisees,  who  are  ever 
mentioned  in  the  Gospels  as  "  hypocrites,"  "  serpents," 
and  a  "  generation  of  vipers." 

We    learn    from    Philo   that   the   members   of    the 


248  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

"brotherhood"  were  not  only  sworn  to  secrecy,  but 
were  also  sworn  not  to  commit  any  portion  of  their 
doctrine  to  writing,  excepting  in  allegory  and  sym- 
bolism, by  means  of  which  they  received  their  own 
instruction.  They  had  everything  in  common,  and 
were  called  "Holy,"  on  account  of  their  great  piety 
and  devotion  to  God.  We  learn  that  one  of  their 
distinctive  customs  was  to  assemble  and  listen  to 
interpretations  of  the  Hebrew  Sacred  writings  from 
the  Elders  among  them.  The  following  statement  of 
Philo  furnishes  an  important  key  to  the  nature  of  their 
own  allegorical  books : 

"And  these  explanations  of  the  Sacred  Scriptures  are  delivered 
by  mystic  expressions  in  allegories;  for  the  whole  of  the  Law 
appears  to  these  men  to  resemble  a  living  animal,  and  its  express 
Commandments  seem  to  be  the  Body,  and  the  invisible  meaning 
under  and  lying  beneath  the  plain  words  resembles  the  Soul,  in 
which  the  rational  Soul  begins  most  excellently  to  contemplate 
what  belongs  to  itself,  as  in  a  mirror,  beholding  in  these  very 
words  the  exceeding  beauty  of  the  sentiments,  and  unfolding  and 
explaining  the  symbols,  and  bringing  the  secret  meaning  to  the 
light  of  all  who  are  able,  by  the  light  of  a  slight  intimation,  to 
perceive  what  is  unseen  by  what  is  visible." 

The  immense  importance  of  this  statement  will  be 
seen  at  once  both  as  concerns  the  Law  and  the 
Gospels.     In  another  place  the  Essenes  are  said : 

"  To  take  up  the  Sacred  Scriptures  and  philosophize  concerning 
them,  investigating  the  allegories  of  their  national  philosophy, 
since  they  look  upon  their  literal  expressions  as  symbols  of  some 
secret  meaning  of  nature,  intended  to  be  conveyed  in  '  these  figura- 
tive expressions.' " 

They  are  said  also  : 

"  To  have  writings  of  ancient  men,  who,  having  been  the 
founders  of  one  sect  or  another,  have  left  behind  them  many 


"THE  TRUTH  SHALL  MAKE  YOU  FREE."    249 

memorials  of  the  allegoric  system  of  writing  and  explanation,  and 
they  imitate  the  general  fashion  of  their  sect ;  so  that  they  do 
notoccupy  themselves  solely  in  contemplation,  but  they  likewise 
compose  psalms  and  hymns  to  God  in  every  kind  of  meter  and 
melody  imaginable." 

These  extracts  from  Philo  and  Josephus  are  neces- 
sarily very  slight,  for  we  have  still  to  refer  to  other 
authorities,  all  directing  us  to  the  same  conclusion, 
viz.,  that  the  Gospel  is  the  spiritual  exposition  of  the 
Law,  and  of  one  nature  with  the  Law;  and  again,  if 
the  Gospel,  or  Godspell,  be  regarded  in  the  Letter, 
then  that  this  Letter  was  conceived  in  the  same  spirit 
of  Truth  that  moved  the  holy  men  of  old  who  wrote 
the  earlier  Scriptures.  In  the  third  chapter  of  Paul's 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  the  "  Man,"  "  Christ  Jesus,  was 
counted  worthy  of  more  glory  than  Moses,  inasmuch 
as  he  who  hath  builded  the  house  hath  more  honour 
than  the  house."  This  is  precisely  the  same  mys- 
ticism. The  "house"  is  the  Law  given  by  Moses; 
but  the  Spirit  is  the  "  Builder "  of  the  Law,  and  this 
is  the  Spirit  of  Christ.  "  The  Man  Christ  Jesus  "  was 
no  doubt  an  historical  person,  probably,  however,  not  a 
Carpenter's  Son,  except  as  Hiram,  the  Builder  of  a 
House  not  made  with  hands,  was  a  MASON.  In  like 
manner,  as  the  disciples  of  Truth  may  have  been 
fishermen  seeking  the  living  Truth  in  the  great  deep, 
the  everlasting  Ocean  of  living  Water,  the  writers  of 
the  Gospels  were  not  ordinary  men,  they  were  very 
extraordinary  men,  as  any  one  may  know  who  will 
read  Philo's  account  of  the  Therapeutse.  The  spirit 
that  guided  them  is  the    same  spirit  of  the  Hebrew 


250  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Sacred  Land ;  He  is  the  Light,  the  Eternal  Word,  the 

Holy  One  of  Israel,  Our  Lord,  The  TRUTH ;  and  He 

is  the  ever-present  Emmanuel,  or  God  with  us. 

The  teachings  of  Paul  are  full  of  this  Divine  Truth. 

He  speaks  of  the  Law  as  a  Schoolmaster  to  bring  us  to 

Christ;    and   throughout   his   Epistles   he    continually 

speaks  of  the  Law  and  of  Christ  in  conjunction,  telling 

us   that   Moses   and   all    our    Fathers   drank    of    that 

Spiritual  Rock  that  followed  them  ;  and  that  that  Rock 

was    Christ    (1   Cor.    x.).      The   third    chapter    of   the 

Galatians  is  full  of  this,  and  the  fourth  still  more  so, 

for  not  only  does  he  say : 

"  When  we  were  children  we  were  in  bondage  under  the  ele- 
ments of  the  world.  But  when  the  fulness  of  the  tune  was  come, 
God  sent  forth  his  Son,  made  of  a  woman,  made  under  the  Law, 
to  redeem  them  that  were  under  the  Law,  that  we  might  receive 
the  adoption  of  sons.  And  because  ye  are  sons,  God  hath  sent 
forth  the  spirit  of  his  Son  into  your  hearts,  crying  Abba,  Father. 
Wherefore,  thou  art  no  more  a  servant,  but  a  son ;  and  if  a  son, 
then  an  heir  of  God  through  Christ." 

But  he  tells  us   also  plainly  in  this  fourth  chapter 

that  what  is  written  of  Abraham  and  his  two  sons,  by 

the   bondwoman   and   the    freewoman,  is   an    allegory 

representing  the  two  Covenants ;  the  one  from  Mount 

Sinai  gendering  to  bondage,  which  is  Agar : 

"  For  this  Agar  is  Mount  Sinai  in  Arabia,  and  answereth  to 
Jerusalem  which  now  is,  and  is  in  bondage  with  her  children.  But 
Jerusalem  which  is  above  is  free,  which  is  the  mother  of  us  all." 

Let  us  read  part  of  the  third  chapter  of  his  Second 

Epistle  to  the  Corinthians : 

"  Forasmuch  as  ye  are  manifestly  declared  to  be  the  epistle  of 
Christ  ministered  by  us,  written  not  with  ink,  but  with  the  spirit 


"THE   SPIRIT   GIVETH   LIFE."  251 

of  the  living  God;  not  in  tables  of  stone  but  in  fleshy  tables  of 
the  heart  ,  .  .  our  sufficiency  is  of  God  ;  who  also  hath  made 
us  able  ministers  of  the  New  Testament,  not  of  the  letter  but  of 
the  spirit ;  for  the  letter  killeth,  but  the  spirit  giveth  life.  But 
if  the  ministration  of  death,  written  and  engraven  on  stones  was 
glorious,  so  that  the  children  of  Israel  could  not  steadfastly  behold 
the  face  of  Moses  for  the  glory  of  his  countenance,  which  glory 
was  to  be  done  away,  how  shall  not  the  ministration  of  the  spirit 
be  rather  glorious.  .  .  .  For  if  that  which  is  done  away  was 
glorious,  much  more  that  which  remaineth  is  glorious.  Seeing 
then  we  have  such  hope,  we  use  great  plainness  of  speech ;  and 
not  as  Moses,  who  put  a  veil  over  his  face  (i.e.,  wrote  in  symbols), 
that  the  children  of  Israel  could  not  steadfastly  look  to  the  end 
of  that  which  is  abolished.  But  their  minds  were  blinded,  for 
until  this  day  remaineth  the  same  veil  untaken  away  in  the  read- 
ing of  the  Old  Testament,  which  veil  is  done  away  in  Christ.  But 
even  unto  this  day  when  Moses  is  read,  the  veil  is  upon  their 
hearts.  Nevertheless  when  it  shall  turn  to  the  Lord,  the  veil 
shall  be  taken  away.  Nolo  the  Lord  is  that  Spirit  (not  person), 
and  where  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  there  is  liberty.  And  we  all, 
with  open  face  beholding  as  in  a  glass  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are 
changed  into  the  same  image  from  glory  to  glory,  even  as  by  the 
Spirit  of  the  Lord." 

See  also  Komans  xiii. : 

"Render  to  all  their  dues:  tribute  to  whom  tribute  is  due, 
custom  to  whom  custom,  fear  to  whom  fear,  honour  to  whom 
honour.  Owe  no  man  anything,  but  to  love  one  another ;  for  he 
that  loveth  another  hath  fulfilled  the  lata.  .  .  .  Thou  shalt  love 
thy  neighbour  as  thyself.  Love  worketh  no  ill  to  his  neighbour, 
therefore  love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the  law." 

In  Deut.  xxx.  11 — 14  we  read  : 

"  For  this  commandment  which  I  command  thee  this  day,  it  is 
not  hidden  from  thee,  neither  is  it  far  off.  It  is  not  in  heaven 
that  thou  shouldst  say,  Who  shall  go  up  for  us  to  heaven,  and 
bring  it  unto  us,  that  we  may  hear  it  and  do  it  ?  Neither  is  it 
beyond  the  sea,  that  thou  shouldst  say,  Who  shall  go  over  the 
sea  for  us,  and  bring  it  unto  us,  that  we  may  hear  and  do  it?  But 
the  word  is  very  nigh  unto  thee,  in  thy  mouth,  and  in  thy  heart, 
that  thou  mayest  do  it." 


252  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

In  the  tenth  chapter  of  Eomans  (4 — 8)  we  have 
St.  Paul's  interpretation  of  the  above  in  these  words : 

"  For  Christ  is  the  end  of  the  Law  for  righteousness  to  every- 
one that  believeth.  For  Moses  describeth  righteousness  which  is 
of  the  law,  that  the  man  which  doeth  those  things  shall  live  by 
them.  But  the  righteousness  which  is  of  faith  speaketh  on  this 
wise :  Say  not  in  thine  heart,  who  shall  ascend  into  heaven  ?  that 
is,  to  bring  down  Christ  from  above ;  or  who  shall  descend  into 
the  deep  ?  that  is,  to  bring  up  Christ  again  from  the  dead.  But 
what  saith  it  ?  The  word  is  nigh  thee,  even  in  thy  mouth,  and  in 
thy  heart ;  that  is,  the  word  of  faith  which  we  preach." 

Here,  then,  we  see  that  Christ  is  called  the  end, 
that  is,  the  object  of  the  Law ;  and  accordingly  the 
first  time  we  hear  of  Christ  teaching  in  the  Synagogue 
at.  Nazareth,  "  he  found  the  place  in  the  Prophet  Isaias 
where  it  was  written  "  : 

"  The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,  because  he  hath  anointed 
me  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  poor  (those  who  have  it  not) ;  he 
hath  sent  me  to  heal  the  broken-hearted,  to  preach  deliverance 
to  the  captives  (those  still  under  the  law),  and  recovering  of  sight 
to  the  blind  (the  spiritually  blind),  to  set  at  liberty  them  that  are 
bruised  ('  the  Truth  shall  make  you  free '),  to  preach  the  accept- 
able year  of  the  Lord.  And  he  closed  the  book,  and  he  gave  it 
again  to  the  minister,  and  sat  down ;  and  the  eyes  of  all  them  that 
were  in  the  synagogue  were  fastened  upon  him,  And  he  began  to 
say  unto  them,  This  day  is  this  Scripture  fulfilled  in  your  ears. 
And  all  bare  him  witness,  and  wondered  at  the  gracious  words 
which  proceeded  out  of  his  mouth."  (St.  Luke  iv.  17 — 122.) 

But  time  and  space  would  fail  us  to  quote  from  the 
Scriptures,  and  particularly  from  St.  Paul,  in  confirma- 
tion of  what  we  have  advanced ;  let  us,  then,  now  turn 
to  the  Fathers  of  the  Christian  Church,  and  we  shall 
find  Eusebius.  injdie_fourth  century,  dictinctly  giving. 
the  opinion  that  the   Christian   Gospels   and   Epistles 


THE  ESSENE3.  253 

ivere_some  of  the  secret  books  of  the  Essene  brother-  . 
hood.  Although  endeavouring  to  prove  that  the 
Essenes  were  early  Christians  under  another  name,  as 
though  their  rise  had  been  subsequent  to  the  advent 
of  Christ.  But  the  real  and  genuine  sources  of  in- 
formation concerning  them  are  to  be  found  in  the 
Talmudic  writings  ;  the  Mishna,  Beraitha,  and  Talmud 
speak  of  them  in  general  as  Chasidim  (Assidaioi  pious 
men),  as  Nazirim,  and  as  Chaberim  (Friends).  The 
Arabic  book  of  Maccabees  calls  the  Essenes  simply 
Assidaioi,  and  Macrisi  speaks  of  Nazirs,  Essenes,  and 
Baptists  as  all  being  Asaniun  or  Essenes.  One  fragment 
of  their  literature  is  quoted  in  the  Talmud  (Jerusch. 
Berachoth,  End)  in  the  following  words  :  "  It  is  written 
in  the  Book  of  the  Chasidim,  '  If  thou  leavest  it  (the 
Divine  Law)  for  one  day,  it  will  leave  thee  for  two.'" 
{Chambers''  Encyclopcedia.)  But  besides  these  autho- 
rities we  have  the  books  of  Philo  and  of  Josephus, 
which  fully  establish  their  great  antiquity;  and  if 
more  were  wanting,  it  is  well  known  that  the  Free- 
masons of  the  present  day  not  only  claim,  through 
their  accredited  Lecturers,  Dr.  Oliver  and  others,  that 
Freemasonry  has  come  down  from  the  Essenes,  but  they 
assert  that  the  Essenes  were  in  possession  of  what  they 
call  the  Temple  Secrets  in  the  days  of  Solomon. 

Thus  they  were  alike  the  forerunners  of  the  Jewish 
Kabbalists  and  of  the  Christian  Gnostics,  but  what  is 
more  surprising  than  all  is,  that  out  of  Essenism  has 
sprung  Islam,  and  in  this  last  development  of  its  tenets 
and  practices  are  still  preserved  many  of  its  principal 


254  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

rites  and  ceremonies.  We  read  in  the  Anacalypsis  con- 
cerning them  as  follows : 

"  The  Essenes  were  a  fraternity  of  Hermetists.  The  Cabala 
based  on  the  Laws  of  Manu  solves  the  Esoterism  of  every  religion. 
The  doctrines  of  Zoroaster,  Pythagoras,  Plato,  are  all  contained  in 
the  Jewish  Cabala.     Alone   among  all  the  Books  of   the  Bible 

Genesis  belongs  to  an  immense  antiquity We  know 

that  the  Essenes  existed  in  Syria  as  well  as  in  Egypt,  and  the 
same  system  probably  prevailed  in  both.  The  Essenes  in  each 
case  were  the  professors  of  the  highest  order  of  the  Cabala,  the 
perfecti,  the  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  of  Elias,  their 
superior.  The  Essenes  were  Carmelite  monks.  What  has  become 
of  them  P  When  did  the  Order  die  ?  But  it  did  not  die  :  it  yet 
exists  in  the  Carmelites." — ("  Anacalypsis,"  by  Godfrey  Higgins, 
vol.  ii.,  p.  275.) 

Indeed,  the  great  and  striking  similarity  between  the 
doctrines  of  the  Essenes,  of  Jesus,  and  of  Pythagoras, 
amounts  almost  to  proof  of  the  identity  of  these  systems. 
The  Essenes  were  most  certainly  a  class  of  Esoteric 
or  Hermetic  Theosophists  among  the  Jews,  who  were 
in  possession  of  the  secret  meaning  of  the  Hebrew 
sacred  books ;  as  we  have  seen,  they  regarded  "  the 
whole  of  the  Law"  as  a  Living  Creature  (no  doubt 
MAN  was  referred  to) ;  the  mere  Letter  answering  to 
the  body,  while  the  mysterious  internal  Sense  answered 
to  the  Soul.  St.  Paul  constantly  speaks  of  the 
"  Mystery  of  Christ,"  of  the  "  mystery  which  had  been 
kept  secret  since  the  world  began"  (Kom.  xvi.  25). 
He  calls  it  the  mystery  of  Christ  made  known  to  him 
by  revelation  (Ephes.  iii.  3),  which  in  other  ages 
was  not  made  known  unto  the  sons  of  men  as  it  is  now 
revealed  unto  his  holy  Apostles  and  Prophets  by  the 
Spirit.     "  To  make  all  men  see  what  is  the  fellowship 


HERMETIC   THEOSOPHISTS.  255 

of  the  mystery  which  from  the  beginning  of  the  world 
hath  been  hid  in  God,  who  created  all  things  by  Jesus 
Christ," 

These  Hermetic  Theosophists,  for  such  the  Jewish 
Sect  called  the  Essenes  undoubtedly  were,  also  had  a 
secret  mystery  which  the  brethren  were  solemnly 
sworn  not  to  divulge,  as  they  were  also  sworn  not 
to  write  their  secret  except  in  allegory  or  sym- 
bolism; and  whilst  they  maintained  its  secrecy  the 
brotherhood  lived  amicably  side  by  side  with  the 
Jewish  Church ;  it  was  when  St.  Paul,  and  others, 
had  been  added  to  their  number  from  "  without " 
(outsiders,  those  not  thoroughly  initiated  in  the  doc- 
trine), that  the  preaching  gradually  became  public,  and 
the  Society  received  a  new  name,  that  of  "  Christians," 
which  was  first  given  them  at  Antioch;  and  this  was  the 
beginning  of  the  visible  Christian  Church.  From  that 
time,  if  not  sooner,  peace  for  them  was  at  an  end,  and 
their  persecutions  began.  We  can  thus  understand 
the  allusion  to  mysteries  concealed  by  an  oath,  to  be 
found  in  the  apology  of  Tertullian,  where  this  Father 
defends  the  Christians  from  their  enemies  by  an 
argument.  "If  we  always  keep  hid,  how  are  those 
things  known  which  we  are  said  to  commit?  Nay, 
who  could  make  them  known  ?  Such  as  are  guilty  ? 
Not  so,  surely ;  for  all  mysteries  are,  of  course,  under 
an  oath  of  secrecy.  The  Samothracian,  the  Eleusinian 
Mysteries,  are  concealed  (by  an  oath),  how  much  rather 
such  as,  being  discovered,  would  now  provoke  the  jus- 
tice of  men,  and  might  expect  to  meet  with  that  of 
God  hereafter?" 


256  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

We  see  by  their  writings  that  the  early  Christian 
Fathers  had  a  knowledge  of  the  Secret,  and  it  can  hardly 
be  doubted  that  some  among  them  were  initiated  Es- 
senes,  bound  by  a  solemn  oath  not  to  disclose  the  secret 
doctrine.  Clemens  of  Alexandria  is  quoted  as  saying 
that  "the  Christian  discipline  was  called  Illumination, 
because  it  brought  to  light  the  Master  (Christ),  by 
removing  the  covering  of  the  Ark."  Meaning  the 
Veil  over  the  writings  of  Moses  alluded  to  by  St.  Paul 
(2  Cor.  iii.  14).  Origen  compares  the  Scriptures  to 
a  man,  as  Philo  tells  us  the  Essenes  did.  "  As  a  man," 
says  he,  "consists  of  a  body,  a  soul,  and  a  spirit,  so 
does  the  Sacred  Scripture,  which  has  been  mercifully 
given  for  the  Salvation  of  mankind."  In  another  place 
he  says,  "  The  Sacred  Scripture  is  like  a  man ;  for  as 
man  consists  of  a  rational  soul,  of  a  sentient,  or 
sensuous  soul,  and  of  a  body,  so,  in  like  manner,  have 
the  divine  books  a  threefold  sense,  that  is,  an  historical 
and  a  moral  sense,  and,  finally,  a  spirit  or  spiritual 
sense." 

Origen  refers  to  Jesus  as  a  teacher  of  the  spirit  of 
the  letter,  and  adds :  "  Peter  for  a  good  while  appears 
to  have  observed  the  Jewish  customs  according  to  the 
Law  of  Moses,  as  having  not  yet  learned  of  Jesus  to 
ascend  from  the  letter  to  the  spirit  of  the  Law ;  as  we 
learn  from  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  (chapter  x.  9)." 
This  distinct  reference  to  the  spirit  of  the  Law  by 
Origen  shows  him  very  clearly  to  have  been  an  Essene. 
Again,  he  says  of  the  Scriptures:  "There  are  some 
things  inserted  as  history  which  were  never  transacted, 


MYSTICAL   INTERPRETATION   OF   SCRIPTURE.        257 

and  which  it  is  impossible  should  be  transacted;  and 
other  things,  again,  that  might  possibly  be  done,  but 
were  not." 

St.  Hilary  says  :  "  There  are  many  historical  passages  J 
of  the  New  Testament  that,  if  they  are  taken  literally,  L 
are  contrary  to  sense  and  reason,  and  therefore  there 
is  a  necessity  of  a  mystical  interpretation." 

St.  Agustine  says :  "  There  are  hidden  mysteries  in 
the  works  and  miracles  of  our  Saviour,  which,  if  we 
incautiously  and  literally  interpret,  we  shall  run  into 
errors  and  make  grievous  blunders." 

"Since  the  Law  is  a  shadow  of  good  things  to  come,"  says 
Origen,  "  and  writes  sometimes  of  marriages,  and  husbands,  and 
wives,  we  are  not  to  understand  it  of  marriages  of  the  flesh,  but 
of  the  spiritual  marriage  between  Christ  and  his  Church.  As  for 
instance,  Abraham  had  two  wives,  &c.  Here  we  ought  not  to 
confine  our  thoughts  to  carnal  marriages  and  their  offsprings,  but 
to  extend  them  to  the  mysteries  here  signified.  And  there  are  a 
thousand  other  places  in  Scripture  about  marriages,  but  every 
place  should  have  a  Divine,  moral,  and  mystical  construction  put 
upon  it.  Whoever,  therefore,  reads  the  Scriptures  about  mar- 
riages, and  understands  no  more  by  them  than  carnal  marriages, 
errs,  not  knowing  the  Scriptures,  nor  the  power  of  God." 

Even  St.  Paul  says  the  same  thing  concerning  mar- 
riage, of  which  he  writes  so  often.  In  his  Epistle  to 
the  Ephesians,  chap,  v.,  he  interprets  himself  lest  his 
reader  should  not  understand  him  (verse  32):  "This  is 
a  great  mystery ;  but  I  speak  concerning  Christ  and 
the  Church." 

Origen  tells  us  that  "  the  Scriptures  are  of  little  use 
to  those  who  understand  them  as  they  are  written." 
He  says  that  "  the  source  of  many  evils  lies  in  adhering 
to  the  carnal  or  external  part  of  Scripture  ;  "  and  adds 

S 


/// 


258  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

that  "  those  who  do  so  shall  not  attain  to  the  Kingdom 
of  God."  Christ  Himself  said  to  Nicodemus  (John  iii.  3) : 
"  Except  a  man  be  born  of  water  (flesh)  and  the  Spirit, 
he  cannot  see  the  Kingdom  of  God."  "  Let  us  seek, 
therefore,"  says  Origen,  "  for  the  Spirit,  and  the  sub- 
stantial fruits  of  the  Word,  which  are  hidden  and 
mysterious." 

Origen,  St.  Augustine,  St.  Theophilus  of  Antioch, 
'St.  Cyril,  St.  Jerome,  all  Fathers  of  the  Church,  inter- 
pret the  marriage  scene  at  Cana  of  Galilee  in  a  spiritual 
sense,  as  designed  to  represent  the  union  of  the  Inner 
to  the  Outer,  which  turns  the  Water  (that  is  the  Utter) 
,into  %uine  (that  is,  Spirit).  And  this  was  most  appro- 
priately the  first  miracle  our  Lord  (the  Truth)  is 
described  as  performing. 

To  return  to  the  Old  Testament,  St.  Paul  has  ex- 
plained to  us  the  true  significance  of  the  allegory  of 
Abraham  and  his  two  wives,  in  which  the  Law  is  repre- 
sented under  the  allegory  of  a  bond-woman,  and  the 
Spirit  of  the  Law  by  the  free-woman, — which  signifies 
that  where  the  Spirit  is,  there  is  liberty ;  or  that  as 
soon  as  we  understand  the  reasonableness  of  a  Law,  the 
motive  to  obedience  is  found  in  the  reason  itself,  and 
when  truly  seen  in  ourselves,  we  are  moved  to  obedience 
by  an  internal  impulse,  it  follows  that  in  obeying  a 
Law,  we  really  obey  our  own  higher  nature, — and  this 
is  true  freedom.  "  The  Truth  shall  make  you  free." 
And  thus  only  are  we  made  free  by  the  Spirit  of  Truth 
itself. 

As   Isaac   represents  the  Spirit  of  the  Law  in  the 


THE   LAW,   AND   THE   SPIRIT   OF   THE   LAW.         259 

allegory,  he  is  said  to  figure  Christ ;  and  from  this  view 
we  may  see  that  the  true  New  Testament  is  not  the 
written  Canon,  so  called,  hut  that  it  is  for  ever  new. 
The  true  New  Testament  is  the  Spirit  of  the  Law. 

This  Law,  and  Spirit  of  the  Law,  in  Christian 
countries  is  expressed  by  including  both  Testaments 
in  one  sacred  volume  as  one  written  whole ;  and  when 
this  is  properly  understood,  it  is  seen  to  show  forth 
different  stages  of  progression  in  the  development  of 
the  Son  of  Man  from  infancy  and  youth,  to  manhood 
and  the  fulness  of  Christ— or  the  Perfect  Man,  the 
Son  of  God,  the  Infinite  Reason  which  is  the  Spirit 
of  the  Law,  and  precedes  all  written  Law,  enabling 
its  possessor  to  say,  "  I  and  my  Father  are  One." 

The  Law  can  never  become  a  thing  of  the  past. 
While  the  Son  of  Man  exists  at  every  stage  of  growth 
and  development,  God's  Eternal  Law  must  stand  over 
him  as  "a  Schoolmaster  to  lead  him  to  Christ"  (in 
the  nature  of  Commandments)  throughout  his  minority. 
When  he  shall  have  come  to  man's  estate,  the  state  of 
the  Perfect  Man — which  state  is  called  the  Son  of 
God — then  does  the  Spirit  bear  witness  in  him,  this 
Spirit  becoming  flesh,  as  in  the  "  Man,  Christ  Jesus  ;  " 
for,  as  Christ  is  one  with  God,  so  is  He  one  with  man  ; 
and  to  as  many  as  receive  this  doctrine  in  spirit  and  in 
truth,  Grod  gives  the  power  of  becoming  Sons  of  God 
(John  i.  12);  or,  as  St.  Paul  expresses  it,  "As  many  as 
are  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  they  are  the  Sons  of  God." 
Thus,  the  "  Only  Son  "  may  nevertheless  be  many,  by 
the  many  simply  being  one  in  Spirit. 


260  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

May  we  not  be  said  in  these  days  to  see  the  Son  of 
Man  coming-  in  "  the  clouds,"  for  the  written  Scrip- 
tures are  no  doubt  clouds  in  which  the  Divine  word 
is  hidden ;  then  there  are  "  clouds  of  witnesses,  men 
and  angels  by  whom  we  are  compassed  about "  (Heb. 
xii.).  Nay,  "He  is  veiled  in  our  being."  And  this  is 
a  truth  for  the  Jews  as  well  as  for  the  Christians. 

The  Jews  are  still  expecting  the  coming  of  a  personal 
Immanuel,  and  the  Christians  are  looking-  back  to  a 
'personal  Immanuel  as  having  come  in  the  past,  and 
rind  it  difficult  to  conceive  of  the  ever-living  and  ever- 
present  spirituality  of  the  Holy  One  of  Israel — the  same 
yesterday,  to-day,  and  to-morrow — as  do  the  Jews 
themselves.  The  first  think  of  a  person  who  came,  the 
latter  think  of  a  person  who  is  to  come.  The  concep- 
tion is  not  essentially  different  so  far  as  personality  is 
concerned,  but  both  Jew  and  Christian  should  endeavour 
to  realize  the  ever-living  presence  of  Christ,  the  Spirit 
of  Truth,  and  that  as  many  as  are  led  by  this  Spirit 
are  the  Sons  of  God  (Romans  viii.  14). 

Seeing  Him  only  in  recorded  history,  past  or  future, 
they  forget  that  Christ,  as  the  true  object  of  faith,  "was 
before  Abraham,"  just  as  He  is  ever  now  present  in 
the  history  of  man,  of  whom  He  is  the  Life.  Moses, 
as  the  representative  of  the  external  Law,  does  not 
reach  the  Land  of  Promise,  which  means  that  the 
Letter  does  not  carry  any  one  to  Heaven,  although  it 
is  the  Body  or  outward  form  of  the  same  Son  of  God, 
who  was  before  Abraham. 

We  must  always  bear  in  mind  that  that  which  dis- 


THE   ETERNAL    WORD.  261 

tinguishes  the  sacred  writings  from  profane  books, 
so  called,  is  not  their  historical  verity,  but  it  is  the 
spiritual  truth  enclosed  in  the  Divine  representation. 
The  historical  character  of  the  entire  record  might  be 
surrendered  without  the  loss  of  the  eternal  Word  that 
inspired  it.  When  Jesus  declared  that  "  Heaven  and 
earth  shall  pass  away,  but  my  words  shall  not  pass  away," 
He  did  not  allude  to  words  that  were  not  yet  written, 
but  to  that  Eternal  Truth  in  God,  by  whose  authority 
He  expressed  Himself  as  speaking :  "  My  doctrine  is  not 
mine,  but  His  that  sent  me."  "To  this  end  was  I  born, 
and  for  this  end  came  I  into  the  world,  that  I  should 
bear  witness  to  the  Truth."  "Every  one  that  is  of 
the  Truth  heareth  my  voice." 

Godfrey   Higgins,   in    his    "  Anacalypsis,"    says    as 

follows  : — 

"  Faber,  Nimrod,  and  Niebuhr  have  proved  that  all  ancient 
history  is  little  better  than  fable.  This  is  true.  It  is  all  mytho- 
logical. By  this  I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  there  is  not  some  truth 
in  it,  but  I  mean  to  say  that  there  is  scarcely  one  history,  perhaps 
not  one,  which  does  not  contain  more  religious  fable  than  truth. 
They  do  not  appear  to  have  been  written  for  the  same  purpose  as 
our  grave  and  serious  histories,  but  seem  to  have  been  a  species 
of  religious  novels,  mythoses  made  up  of  old  traditions.  .  .  . 
We  must  recollect  there  is  scarcely  a  name  in  very  ancient  history, 
either  sacred  or  profane,  which  was  not  an  adopted  or  second 
name,  or  a  name  given  with  a  reference  to  the  supposed  quality 
or  office  of  its  owner.  Although  Niebuhr  has  shown  that  almost 
all  early  Roman  history  is  fable,  this  does  not  prove  that  during 
the  three  or  four  hundred  years  of  Rome's  fabulous  period,  that 
there  was  no  Rome,  that  there  were  no  consuls,  no  senates,  or  no 
people.  It  is  equally  rash  to  maintain  that  there  were  no  wars 
of  Joshua  or  Judges  because  we  find  the  walls  of  Jericho  falling 
to  the  sound  of  Rams'  horns,  or  mythological  history  of  Hercules 


262  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

as  Samson,  or  of  Iphigenia  as  Jephtha's  daughter.  At  the  same 
time  that  Mr.  Faber  and  Nimrod  have  proved  the  early  Jewish 
history  to  be  in  great  part  the  same  as  the  mythology  of  the 
nations,  they  have  shown  us  from  the  history  of  this  mythology 
that  it  is  the  height  of  rashness  hence  to  conclude  that  it  is  all 
false.  It  doubtless  in  no  way  differs  from  the  history  of  other 
nations ;  like  them  it  has  much  fable,  but  doubtless  founded  upon 
truth.  Why  cannot  the  Jewish  books  be  examined — like  the  his- 
tory of  Herodotus — by  the  rules  of  common  sense  ?  " 

For  our  own  part  we  believe  the  Old  Testament  nar- 
ratives to  be  true  history  in  the  highest  sense,  inasmuch 
as  that  it  is  the  history  of  man  in  his  relations  to  his 
Creator.  For  this  reason  it  is  called  Sacred  History, 
and  the  Book  itself  is  styled  "  The  Holy  Bible."  It  is 
the  history  of  the  Soul  in  its  process  of  development 
and  in  its  progress  to  become  the  perfect  man  as  repre- 
sented to  us  in  the  second  part  of  the  same  volume, 
•styled  the  New  Testament.  In  this  sense  it  is  history, 
but  history  of  the  inward,  spiritual,  and  universal — 
although  many  of  the  narratives  may  be  based  on  the 
outward  historical  and  particular,  which  must  ever 
necessarily  serve  as  a  vehicle  for  the  inward  and 
spiritual,  as  the  Soul  itself  requires  the  vehicle  of  the 
body  for  all  its  actions  and  responsibilities.  Neverthe- 
less we  must  not  forget  that  "  the  letter  killeth,"  and 
that  to  cling  only  to  the  outward  or  historical  form  is 
to  hug  the  perishable,  it  is  also  idolatry  ;  "  it  is  the 
spirit  (or  thing  signified)  that  giveth  life."  Thus  is 
it  Sacred  history,  for  the  record  it  bears  is  of  the  dealings 
of  God  with  man,  and  of  the  shortcomings,  the  battles, 
the  struggles,  the  wanderings,  of  the  Soul,  in  and  through 
its  material  vesture  in  its  onward  and  upward  progress 


THE  MACROCOSM   AND   THE   MICROCOSM.  263 

towards  its  Creator,  who  is  represented  as  speaking  to  it 
through  its  conscience,  or  inward  Divine  consciousness. 

Thus  is  the  Bible  at  once  Sacred  and  Universal 
history.  Sacred  because  one  of  the  two  principal 
actors  in  it  is  the  Holy  One  of  Israel,  the  Lord  of  all 
the  Earth,  the  Creator  of  the  Universe,  whom  we  call 
God,  the  same  yesterday,  to-day,  and  to-morrow ;  thus 
One,  because  Universal,  therefore  all-containing,  the 
Macrocosm  in  fact,  in  whom  we  live  and  move,  and 
have  our  being;  and  the  other  character  represented 
is  Man,  originally  created  in  the  image  of  his  Maker, 
male  and  female,  because  composed  of  Spirit  and  Soul 
(the  Soul  being  feminine  is  ever  represented  by  the 
woman) ;  and,  having  drawn  his  outward  body  from  the 
humus  of  the  material  earth,  is  human  as  well  as  Divine. 
Thus  Adam  (the  earth  man)  is  also  a  Universe  in  him- 
self, inasmuch  as  he  is  the  Microcosm,  and,  like  his 
Creator,  contains  all  within  himself;  for  the  whole 
material  creation  culminates  in  him,  and  in  him  may 
be  said  to  live,  move,  and  have  its  being;  and  thus 
does  sacred  history  abound  with  records  and  com- 
parisons, and  sacrifices,  both  of  clean  and  of  unclean 
animals,  as  well  as  of  accounts  of  noisome  creeping- 
things,  for  all  have  their  being  and  their  abode  in 
unregenerate  humanity,  and  the  Bible  contains  the 
history  of  the  development  and  purification  of  this 
Lesser  Universe,  or  Microcosm,  through  the  elevation  of 
the  Anima  Bruta,  the  World,  or  Animal  Soul,  the  first 
earth-mother,  Eve,  the  outwardly  beautiful  serpent  of 
the  Old,  which   through    all  the   trials  and  struggles 


264  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

of  earthly  purification  and  discipline,  in  the  course  of 

its  development,  becomes  the  Spiritual  Soul,  the  Mary 

of  the  New  Testament,  the  Virgin  Mother  of  God  in 

Man,  as  he  may  trace  through  the  long  genealogy  of 

Jesus  who  is  called  Christ,  ending  in  an  earthly  parent. 

"  We  read  in  the  Zohar,  one  of  the  great  Kahhalistic  books, 
that  the  Serpent,  son  of  the  Sun,  was  about  to  devour  the  earth, 
when  the  sea,  the  daughter  of  the  Moon,  placed  its  foot  on  its 
head,  and  crushed  it.  It  is  on  this  account  that  Venus  is  styled 
by  the  ancients  the  Daughter  of  the  Sea,  as  Diana  was  identical 
with  the  Moon.  It  is  thus  that  the  name  of  Maria  signifies  Star 
of  the  Sea,  or  Salt  of  the  Sea,  and  it  was  in  order  to  consecrate 
this  Kabbalistic  dogma  in  the  belief  of  the  masses,  that  prophetic 
language  announced  '  the  seed  of  the  woman  shall  bruise  the  head 
of  the  serpent.'"— ("  Haute  Magic"  of  Eliphas  Levi,  p.  315.)* 


*  This  passage  may  appear  a  little  obscure  to  the  uninitiated, 
and  may  require  some  explanation.  The  Sun  was  ever  the  emblem 
of  the  male,  and  the  Moon  of  the  female  generative  principle. 
They  are  the  two  great  lights.  Water  is  also  the  emblem  of  the 
passive  or  female  principle  in  opposition  to  Fire,  the  active  prin- 
ciple. The  Sun,  light,  or  fire,  was  the  preserver  at  the  same  time 
that  he  was  the  creator  and  the  destroyer ;  but  though  he  was 
the  preserver  and  the  regenerator,  it  is  evident  that  he  alone  with- 
out an  assistant  element  in  the  form  of  rain,  or  dew,  or  moisture, 
could  regenerate  nothing,  even  though  that  element  itself  was  in- 
debted to  him  for  its  existence.  Water,  then,  was  the  agent  by 
means  of  which  everything  was  generated  and  re-generated,  hence 
it  is  adopted  as  the  outward  and  visible  sign  in  Baptism,  which 
ceremony  itself  signifies  a  new  birth  unto  righteousness.  Water 
is  thus  one  of  the  emblems  of  maternity,  or  the  Great  Mother, 
who  is  therefore  well  symbolised  by  the  Sea,  the  great  deep, 
whose  ever-flowing  tides  are  influenced  by  the  Moon.  In  the  old 
language  without  vowels  Mn  means  Moon  ;  Venus,  the  Virgin 
Mother,  rises  from  the  foam  of  the  sea,  and  Maria  the  Virgin 
Mother  (Mater),  whose  name  is  derived  from  Mare  (sea),  and 
its  bitterness,  and  whose  initial  letter,  the  centre  one  of  the 
alphabet,  is  descriptive  in  its  form  of  the  ever-restless  waves  of 


ABRAHAM  AND  ZOROASTER.  265 

The   following  extract  is  from  Vol.  I.,  page   72,  of 

"  The  Anacalypsis,"  by  Godfrey  Higgins : 

"  As  all  the  ancient  heathen  nations  had  their  mysteries  or 
secret  doctrines,  which  the  priests  carefully  kept  from  the  know- 
ledge of  the  vulgar,  and  which  they  only  communicated  to  a  select 
number  of  persons  whom  they  thought  they  could  safely  trust ; 
and  as  the  Jewish  religion  was  anciently  the  same  as  the  Persian, 
it  will  not  be  thought  extraordinary  that,  like  the  Persian,  it 
should  have  its  secret  doctrines.  So  we  find  it  had  its  Cabala, 
which,  though  guarded,  like  all  ancient  mysteries,  with  the 
most  anxious  care  and  the  most  solemn  oaths,  cannot  be  entirely 
hidden  from  the  prying  curiosity  of  the  Moderns.  In  defiance  of 
all  its  concealment  and  mischances,  enough  escapes  to  prove  that 
it  was  fundamentally  the  same  as  that  of  the  Persian  Magi ;  and 
thus  adds  one  more  proof  of  the  identity  of  the  religions  of 
Abraham  and  Zoroaster." 

The  doctrine  here  alluded  to  was  a  secret  one — more 

perfect,  the  Jews  maintain,  than  that  delivered  in  the 

the  sea,  is  always  represented  with  a  crescent-shaped  moon  in 
some  way  or  other,  generally  as  standing  upon  it,  or  upon  the 
serpent,  the  symbol  of  earthly  materiality. 

In  the  "Anacalypsis"  we  read  concerning  Maia,  the  mother  of 
Buddha  :  "  Maia  was  the  female  generative  power,  and  as  such 
the  mother  of  Buddha  or  Divine  Wisdom,  or  the  Logos.  Thus 
she  was  the  mother  of  IH2  or  of  Jesus,  and  still  a  part  of  the 
Deity."  Further  on  we  read  concerning  the  nature,  or  rather  the 
substance,  of  the  Divine  Mother  as  follows  :  "  I  am  forcibly  im- 
pressed with  the  idea  that  the  substance  which  we  call  Hydrogen, 
by'  which  is  meant  a  substance  which  is  the  base  of  fire  and  of 
water,  constituted  that  which  the  ancients  called  spiritual  fire, 
and  that  from  this  arise  the  apparent  contradictions  in  the  desig- 
nations of  water,  fire,  and  air,  as  the  origin  of  tilings — for  air,  the 
third,  gas  is  the  first  product,  perhaps,  of  the  union  of  the  two 
former.  Then  in  what  will  hydrogen  differ  from  the  To  Ov  ?  It 
is  not  water,  though  the  base  of  water;  it  is  not  five,  though  the 
base  of  fire.  It  is  not  air,  though  air  arises  from  the  union  of  its 
two  products — shall  I  say  from  the  union  of  the  two  emanations 
from  it  ?     But  here  we  may  perceive  the  corporeal  trinity  of 


266  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHT. 

(Pentateuch;  and  they  also  maintain  that  it  was  given 

(by  Grod,  on  Mount  Sinai,  to  Moses,  verbally,  and  not 

/written;  and  this  is  the  doctrine  described  in  the  fourth 

book  of  Esdras,  chapter  xiv.  6,  26,  and  45,  thus : 

"  These  Words  shalt  thou  declare,  and  these  shalt  thou  hide.  And 
when  thou  hast  done,  some  things  shalt  thou  publish,  and  some 
things  shalt  thou  show  secretly  to  the  WlSK. 

)  " .  .  .  The  Highest  spake,  saying,  The  first  that  thou  hast 
written  publish  openly,  that  the  u-orthy  and  the  unworthy  may  read 
it :  but  keep  the  seventy  last,  that  thou  mayest  deliver  them  only 
\to  such  as  be  Wise  among  the  people.  For  in  them  is  the  spring  of 
understanding,  the  fountain  of  Wisdom." 

Now,  though  the  book  of  Esdras  be  no  authority  in 
argument  with  a  Protestant  Christian,  for  any  point 
of  doctrine,  it  may  be  considered  authority  in  such  a 
case  as  this.  If  the  Jews  had  had  no  secret  doctrine, 
the  writer  would  never  have  stated  such  a  fact  in  the 
face  of  all  his  countrymen,  who  must  have  known  its 
truth  or  falsity.  No  doubt,  whatever  might  be  pre- 
tended, the  real  reason  of  the  Kabbala  being  unwritten 
was  concealment.     But  the  Jews  assert  that,  from  the 


Plato.  Whence  came  the  baptism  of  water,  fire,  and  air  ?  From 
the  First  (the  To  Ov,  Illusion)  emanated  the  base  of  hydrogen, 
whose  base  was  Maia  ;  from  Maia,  or  the  base  of  hydrogen,  ema- 
nated hydrogen,  the  base  of  fire  and  water.  These  first  consti- 
tuted the  first  Trinity.  From  these  three  in  one  emanated  the 
next  Trinity,  consisting  of  fire,  water,  air  or  gas,  gast  or  ghost,  in 
their  most  refined  or  spiritual  forms — three  in  one,  one  in  three — 
and  from  these  emanated  all  beings  in  existence  known  to  us— all 
the  beings  of  this  our  world,  perhaps  of  the  Universe,  perceptible, 
by  us.  All  this  is  ancient  doctrine  only  put  into  modern  words — 
Gas  and  Hydrogen ;  it  is  the  doctrine  of  Macrobius.  I  greatly 
suspect  that  the  electric,  the  galvanic,  the  magnetic  fluids  and 
hydrogen,  are  all  one  substance ;  that  the  first  three  are  one,  is, 


AN  OUTLiNE  OF  THE  KABBALA.        267 

promulgation  of  the  law  on  Mount  Sinai,  it  was  handed 
down  pure  as  at  first  delivered.  In  the  same  way 
they  maintain  that  their  written  law  has  come  to  us 
unadulterated,  without  a  single  error.  One  assertion 
may  be  judged  of  by  the  other.  For  of  the  tradition 
delivered  by  memory  one  question  need  only  be  asked : 
What  became  of  it  when  priests,  kings,  and  people 
were  all  such  idolators — viz.,  before  and  during  the 
early  part  of  the  reign  of  the  good  King  Josiah — that 
the  Law  was  completely  forgotten — not  even  known  to 
exist  in  the  world  ?  To  obviate  this  difficulty,  in 
part,  the  fourth  book  of  Esdras  was  probably  written. 

The  following  passage  may  serve,  at  present,  as 
an  outline  of  what  was  the  general  nature  of  the 
Kabbala : 

"  The  similarity,  or  rather  the  coincidence,  of  the  Cabalistic, 
Alexandrian,  and  Oriental  -philosophy,  will  he  sufficiently  evinced 
by  briefly  stating  the  common  tenets  in  which  these  different 
systems  agreed.  They  are  as  follows  :  '  All  things  are  derived  by 
emanation  from  one  principle,  and  this  principle  is  God.     From 


I  believe,  a  doctrine  no  longer  doubted.  Everything  in  nature 
was  supposed  to  be  microcosmic :  thus  the  second  Trinity  was  a 
microcosm  of  the  first.  And  now  we  come  to  the  most  refined  of 
all  refinements.  As  the  hypostatic  universe  was  a  microcosm  of 
the  Immense  To  O,  so  the  minutest  animalcule  imaginable  was  a 
microcosm  of  the  one  above  it ;  and  thus,  when  we  get  to  the 
least  particle  perceptible  by  sense,  or  even  in  imagination,  how 
can  we  imagine  anything  of  this  kind  but  by  a  circle,  symbolised 
by  a  snake  with  the  tail  in  its  mouth  ?  All  nature  was  a  chain  of 
trinities  ;  the  third  person  of  the  first,  was  the  first  of  the  second, 
and  so  on  ad  infinitum.  Thus  all  Nature  was  God  ;  thus  God  was 
Nature.  Thus  all  matter  at  last  was  supposed  to  be  resolved  into 
the  To  Ov,  and  thus  to  be  eternal." 


268  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Him  a  substantial  power  immediately  proceeds,  which  is  the  image 
of  God,  and  the  source  of  all  subsequent  emanations.  This  second 
principle  sends  forth,  by  the  energy  of  emanation,  other  natures 
which  are  more  or  less  perfect  according  to  their  different  degrees 
of  distance  in  the  scale  of  emanation,  from  the  First  Source  of 
existence,  and  which  constitute  different  worlds  or  orders  of  being, 
all  united  to  the  eternal  power  from  which  they  proceed.  Matter 
is  nothing  more  than  the  most  remote  effect  of  the  emanative 
energy  of  the  Deity.  The  material  world  receives  its  form  from 
the  immediate  agency  of  powers  far  beneath  the  First  Great 
Source  of  being.  Evil  is  the  necessary  effect  of  the  imperfection 
of  matter.  Human  souls  are  distant  emanations  from  Deity, 
and  after  they  are  liberated  from  their  material  vehicles,  will 
return,  through  various  stages  of  purification,  to  the  fountain 
whence  they  first  proceeded."— (Dr.  Kees'  Encyclopedia,  art. 
Cabala.) 

From  this  extract  the  reader  will  see  the  nature  of 
the  Oriental  doctrine  of  emanations,  which,  as  here 
giveri,  in  most,  though  not  in  all,  respects,  coincides 
with  the  Oriental  philosophy :  and  the  honest  transla- 
tion given  by  the  Septuagint  of  Deut.  xxxiii.  2 — 
He  shined  forth  from  Paran  with  thousands  of 
Saints,  and,  having  his  angels  on  his  right  hand, 
proves  that  the  Kabbala  was  as  old,  or  older,  than 
Moses. 

The  Ancient  Persians  believed  that  the  Supreme 
Being  was  surrounded  with  angels,  or  what  they  called 
JEons,  or  Emanations,  from  the  Divine  substance.  This 
was  also  the  opinion  of  the  Manicheans,  and  of  almost 
all  the  Gnostic  sects  of  Christians.  As  might  be 
expected,  in  the  particulars  of  this  complicated  system, 
among  the  different  professors  of  it,  a  great  variety  of 
opinions  arose ;  but  all,  at  the  bottom,  evidently  of  the 
same  nature.      These   Oriental  sects  were  very  much 


"IN   THE   BEGINNING."  269 

in  the  habit  of  using  figurative  language,  under  which 
they  concealed  their  metaphysical  doctrines  from  the 
eyes  of  the  vulgar.  This  gave  their  enemies  the  oppor- 
tunity, by  construing  them  literally,  of  representing 
them  as  wonderfully  absurd.  All  these  doctrines  were 
also  closely  connected  with  judicial  astrology. 

The  science  of  the  Absolute  does  not  rely  solely  upon 
occult  books  for  its  perpetuation,  but  upon  the  absolute 
Soul.  Books  do  not  and  cannot  impart  the  Absolute. 
All  they  can  teach  us  is  the  Law  of  Re-birth,  but  the 
operation  of  that  Law  is  within  ourselves.  Books  con- 
tain only  reflections,  the  direct  ray  is  in  the  Soul. 

If  there  were  no  other  Theosophic  book  in  existence 
than  the  Bible,  we  might,  nevertheless,  construe  the 
true  knowledge  of  God  from  the  writings  of  the  astute  V 

Hebrew  Theosophers.      "The  beginning"  (of  Divine.  S 

Life)  is  set  forth  by  Moses  in  the  Creation,  "Bereschis";^  VJ 
and  the  Spiritual  Ee-birth,  by  Ezekiel,  in  the  vision  of  the 
Chariot,  called  the  "  Mercaba."  Bereschis  and  Mercaba 
are  thus  also  twin-kernels  of  Hebrew  Kabbalism,  and  it 
is  chiefly  around  these  two  subjects,  or  phases  of  the 
same  subject,  that  allegory  and  symbol  shed  the  chaste 
light  of  Divine  Wisdom.  The  Apocalypse  of  Johannes 
is  a  prophetic  revealment  of  the  Apotheosis  of  the 
Soul  in  the  same  allegorical  manner. 

Concerning  "  The  Beginning"  we  read  in  that  rare 

Book,  the  "  Anacalypsis  "  of  Sir  Godfrey  Higgins,  as 

follows : 

"  Perhaps  in  the  languages,  of  the  world,  no  two  words  have 
been  of  greater  importance  than  the  first  two  words  in  the  book 


270  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

of  Genesis  JTttfJO  2  B-Rasit  (for  they  are  properly  two,  not  one 
word ;  and  great  difference  of  opinion  has  arisen  among-  learned 
men  respecting  the  meaning  of  them.  Grotius  renders  them,  when 
first;  Simeon,  before;  Tertullian,  in  power;  Rabbi  Bechai  and 
Castalio,  in  order  before  all;  Onkelos,the  Septuagint,  Jonathan  ben 
Uzziel,  and  the  modern  translators,  in  the  beginning. 

"  But  the  official  or  accredited  and  admitted  authority  of  the 
Jewish  religion,  the  Jerusalem  Targum,  renders  them  thus: 
By  Wisdom. 

"  It  may  be  observed  that  the  Targum  of  Jerusalem  is,  or  was 
formerly,  the  received  orthodox  authority  of  the  Jews :  the  other 
Targums  are  only  the  opinions  of  individuals,  and  in  this  rendering 
the  Jewish  Cabala  and  the  doctrine  of  the  ancient  Gnostics  are 
evident ;  and  it  is,  as  I  shall  now  show,  to  conceal  this  that  Chris- 
tians have  suppressed  its  true  meaning.  To  the  celebrated  and 
learned  Beausobre,  I  am  indebted  for  the  most  important  dis- 
covery of  the  secret  doctrine  contained  in  this  word.  He  says : 
'  The  Jews,  instead  of  translating  Berasit  by  the  words,  in  the 
beginning,  translate  it  by  the  Principle  (par  le  Principe)  active  and 
immediate  of  all  things,  God  made,  fyc,  that  is  to  say,  according 
to  the  Targum  of  Jerusalem,  By  Wisdom  (Par  la  Sagesse), 
God  made,  &c.'  * 

"  It  is  said  in  Proverbs  viii.  22,  '  Jehovah  possessed  me,'  Wisdom 
JTZ'NI  rasit  ■  Dut  not  JT#N~Q  b-rasit,  which  it  ought  to  be,  to 
justify  our  vulgar  translation,  which  is,  '  The  Lord  possessed  me 


*  "  II  y  a  encore  une  reflexion  a,  faire  sur  cette  matiere.  Elle 
roule  sur  l'explication  du  mot  Rasit,  qui  est  a  la  tete  de  la  Genese, 
et  qui,  si  Ton  croit  d'anciens  Interpretes  Juifs,  ne  signifie  par  le  com- 
mencement, mais  le  Principe  actif  et  immediat  de  toutes  choses. 
Ainsi  au  lieu  de  traduire,  au  commencement  Dieu  fit  le  Ciel  et  la 
Terre,  ils  traduisaient  Dieu  Jit  le  Ciel  et  la  Terre  Par  le  Prin- 
cipe, c'est-a-dire,  selon  l'explication  du  Targum  de  Jerusalem, 
Par  la  Sagesse  :  Maimonide  soutient,  que  cette  explication  est 
la  seule  Litterale  et  Veritable.  Elle  passe  d'abord  chez 
les  Chretiens.  On  la  trouve  non  seulement  dans  Chalcidius, 
qui  marque  qu'elle  venait  des  Hebreux,  mais  dans  Methodius 
dans  Origene,  et  dans  Clement  d'Alexandrie,  plus  ancien  que 
l'un  et  Tautre."— (Beausobre,  Hist.  Manich,  Li  v.  vi.,  chap,  i., 
p.  200.) 


"IN   WISDOM."  271 

In  the  beginning?  The  particle  3  b,  the  sign  of  the  ablative  case, 
is  wanting;  but  it  is  interpolated  in  our  translation  to  justify  the 
rendering,  because  it  would  be  nonsense  to  say  the  Lord  possessed 
me,  the  beginning. 

"  According  to  the  Jewish  Cabala  a  number  of  Sephiroths, 
being  Emanations,  issued  or  flowed  from  God — of  which  the  chief 
was  Wisdom.  In  Genesis  it  is  said,  by  Wisdom  God  created  or 
formed,  &c.  This  is  evidently  the  first  emanation,  Minerva — 
the  Goddess  of  Wisdom — emanating  or  issuing  from  the  head  of 
Jove  (or  Jah  or  Jehovah),  as  described  on  an  Etruscan  brass  plate 
in  the  Cabinet  of  Antiquities  at  Bologna.  This  is  known  to  be 
Etruscan  from  the  names  being  on  the  arms  of  the  gods  in 
Etruscan  letters,  which  proves  it  older  than  the  Romans,  or, 
probably,  than  the  Grecians  of  Homer. 

"  The  word  Rasit,  as  we  might  expect,  is  found  in  the  Arabic 
language,  and  means,  as  our  Lexicographers,  who  are  the  same 
class  of  persons  that  made  our  Hebrew  Lexicons,  tell  us,  head, 
chief,  and  is  used  as  a  term  of  honour  applied  to  great  persons :  . 
for  instance,  Aaron-al-raschid.  Al  is  the  emphatic  article.  Abd- 
al-raschid,  i.e.,  Abdallah-al-raschid,  &c. 

"  But  to  return  to  the  word  Berasit,  or,  more  properly,  the  word 
JT^NH  Rasit,  the  particle  ^  beth  beiug  separated  from  it.  A 
curious  question  has  arisen  among  Christian  philosophers,  whether 
Time  was  in  existence  before  the  creation  here  spoken  of,  or  the 
beginning,  if  it  be  so  translated.  ...  I  think  the  author  of 
Genesis  had  more  philosophy  than  to  write  about  the  beginning  of 
the  world.  I  cannot  see  why  so  much  anxiety  should  be  shown 
by  some  modern  translators  to  construe  this  word  as  meaning 
beginning.  I  see  clearly  enough  why  others  of  them  should  do  so, 
and  why  the  ancient  translators  did  it.  They  had  a  preconceived 
dogma  to  support,  their  partiality  to  which  blinded  their  judg- 
ment ;  and  of  philosophy  they  did  not  possess  much.  However, 
it  cannot  be  denied  that,  either  in  a  primary  or  secondary  sense, 
the  word  means  Wisdom  as  well  as  beginning,  and,  therefore,  its 
sense  here  must  be  gathered  by  the  context." 

"  Bereschis"  the  creation,  "Mercaba"  the  change,  the 
turning  of  the  wheel  of  Re-birth,  and  Apocalypsos  the 
consummation,  treat  essentially  one  subject  in  various 


272  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

stages  of  progression.  And  that  subject  is  the  course 
of  the  Soul  on  its  return  towards  its  Divine  Source.* 

Each  writer  treats  the  subject  from  a  different  stand- 
point. The  most  ancient  book  of  mystic  Creation  (of 
the  internal  world)  would  be  the  Sefer  Jezira  or 
Book  of  Formation,  if  that  book  is  rightly  attributed 
to  Abraham.  Be  that  as  it  may,  Moses  appears  to  have 
added  an  Hermetic  version  to  a  primitive  tradition,  pos- 
sibly inculcating  therein  his  own  views  and  experiences, 
given  in  Egyptian  and  Accadian  symbols,  the  latter 
being  probably  imparted  to  him  by  Jethro. 

The  writings  of  Ezekiel,  again,  show  Persian  ideas, 
and  modifications  from  the  Zend-Avesta,  while  in 
the    Apocalypse    we    have    the   allegorical    manner    of 


*  "  Our  book  which  we  call  Genesis,  or  the  generations,  ought  to 
be  Barasit — that  is,  Wisdom — that  is,  Veda  or  Buddha.  Thus  it 
is  called  by  the  Jews.  In  the  Veda  was  recorded  all  knowledge — 
past,  present,  and  future — the  knowledge  of  the  generations  or  re- 
generations of  the  soul,  the  knowledge  of  the  renewal  of  cycles  in 
sceculum  scecidorum,  or  cycles  of  cycles — the  esoteric  meaning 
of  sceculum  sceculorum,  or  aioov  Tavaicovwv,  aeons,  emanations  of 
Divine  Wisdom.  .  .  .  The  tree  of  knowledge  {i.e.  Wisdom) 
produced  twelve  fruits,  one  for  each  month.  (The  twelve  Neroses 
or  ages  were  believed  to  make  a  cycle  with  the  time  of  precession 
in  the  twelve  signs).  All  countries  have  the  general  mythos  of 
the  avatars  to  finish  at  the  end  of  six  thousand  years,  and  to  begin 
again,  and  be  renewed  in  sceculum  sceculorum.  A  perfect  man,  if 
such  a  one  could  be  found  in  the  flesh,  must  be  a  perfect  Buddhist, 
a  perfect  Jew,  a  perfect  Christian,  a  perfect  Mohammedan.  They 
are  all  Xprjs  or  Xprjs-ot  or  Ohrists.  ("  All  Christians  were  first 
called  Christs." — Bingham.)  And  from  the  most  remote  antiquity 
a  man  in  every  new  cycle  has  been  looked  for,  who  should  be  in  a 
peculiar  manner  Xprjs,  to  teach  glad  tidings,  divine  wisdom,  to 
mankind." — ("  Anacalypsis  "  II.,  page  251.) 


THE   KABBALA.  273 

the  Essenes  commingled  with  the  Alexandrian  Neo- 
Hermeticism.  (We  use  the  word  advisedly  in  pre- 
ference to  Neo-Platonism.) 

Thus  there  are  actually  diverse  schools  of  Theosophy 
represented  in  that  most  venerable  book  of  books,  the 
Bible,  that  is  so  popularly  known,  yet  so  little  under- 
stood. 

The  system  of  Theosophy,  called  the  Kabbala,  has 
been  divided  into  the  symbolical  and  the  real.  The 
symbolical  Kabbala,  sub-divided  into  Gematria,  Nota- 
ricon  and  Temura,  is  intended  as  an  exercise  to  con- 
centrate the  mind  upon  the  mysteries  of  numbers 
(Gematria),  letters  (Notaricon),  and  of  language 
(Temura).  Thus  compelling  the  mind  to  brood  in  an 
intellectual  world  of  its  own,  and  drawing  it  away  from 
the  gross  sensual  world  by  causing  it  to  dwell  upon  an 
infinitude  of  transpositions  and  transmutations  of  letters, 
computations  of  words,  to  each  of  which  was  attached 
some  occult  idea  and  similar  ingenious  subtilities,  of 
which  authentic  account  and  practical  instructions  are 
given  in  our  Volume,  "  Occult  Texts"  viz. :  "  A 
Rabbinical  Explanation  of  thirteen  methods  employed 
by  the  Kabbalists  to  discover  the  highest  mysteries 
of  the  Law." 

The  real  Kabbala  is  either  theoretical  or  practical. 
The  theoretical  Kabbala  treats  of  the  ten  Sephiroth, 
the  thirty-two  pathways  of  wisdom,  the  four  worlds,  the 
names  of  God,  of  angels,  of  the  celestial  Hierarchy  (or 
in  brief  of  the  Divine  Ideas)  with  their  internal  relation 
and  influence  upon  the  lower  world.     This  part  of  the 

T 


274  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

Kabbala  is  divided,  as  we  have  said,  into  Bereschis  and 
Mercaba,  treating  respectively  of  the  spiritual  creation, 
and  the  Divine  Influx,  and  taking  sequentially  the  first 
two  chapters  of  Genesis  and  the  symbolical  visions  of 
Ezekiel  as  text  for  its  esoteric  doctrine.  This  part 
treats  also  of  the  Soul,  and  the  various  good  and  evil 
spirits,  their  degrees,  offices,  &c. 

The  practical  Kabbala  teaches  Theurgy  by  an  appli- 
cation, concentration  and  exaltation  of  the  mind,  on 
the  truths  of  the  Occult  Doctrine.  One  must  be,  in  order 
to  be  able  to  do,  and  as  there  are  so  few  who  are  in  the 
Divine  state,  it  is  not  surprising  that  a  goetic  degene- 
ration has,  among  the  illiterate  modern  Kabbalists,  taken 
the  place  of  the  Divine  manifestation. 

Ao-ain  we  give  the  Principles  of  Kabbalistic  Philo- 
sophy, which  we  find  briefly  summarized,  in  the 
"  Introduction  to  Hebrew  Literature,"  as  follows  : — 

"  1.  From  nothing  nothing  can  proceed.  2.  Therefore  no  sub- 
stance that  now  exists  has  been  produced  from  nothing,  and  what- 
ever exists  is,  in  one  sense,  uncreated.  3.  All  existing  substances 
are  emanations  from  one  eternal  substance.  In  the  act  of  what  is 
commonly  called  '  Creation,'  the  Eternal  Being  drew  from  Him- 
self. 4.  Consequently  there  is  no  such  thing  as  matter ;  strictly 
speaking,  that  which  we  call  '  matter '  is  only  a  form  or  species 
under  which  spirit  gives  itself  a  manifestation.  5.  So  that  the 
Universe  is  a  revelation  of  the  Infinite;  an  immanent  effect  of  his 
ever  active  power  and  presence.  6.  But  though  all  existence  thus 
flowed  from  the  Divinity,  yet  is  the  world  different  from  the  God- 
head, as  the  effect  is  different  from  the  cause.  Nevertheless,  as 
not  separate  from,  but  abiding  immanently  in  Him,  it  is  evermore 
the  manifestation  of  Himself.  It  is  the  mantle  with  which  He 
clothes  Himself ;  or,  rather,  it  is  a  revelation  of  the  Godhead,  not 
in  His  hidden  essence,  but  in  His  visible  glory.  7.  In  giving 
existence  to  the  Universe,  the  first  act  of  the  Almighty  was  the 


THE  SEPHIROTH.  275 

production  of  a  power  or  principle  intimately  and  especially  re- 
lating to  Himself,  to  which  are  given  the  names  of  '  His  Holy 
Spirit,'  '  His  personal  Word,'  and  '  His  First-begotten  Son,'  and 
which  the  Kabbalists  personify  as  the  'Adam  Kadmon,'  the 
heavenly  or  archetypal  man,  who,  in  His  turn,  caused  to  proceed, 
by  emanation  from  Himself,  all  the  lower  orms  of  actual  existence 
in  their  several  descending  gradations. 

"  We  see  here,  in  effect,  a  philosophic  system  essentially  the 
same,  though  with  different  circumstantials,  with  that  which  has 
been  reproduced  in  modern  times  by  Spinoza  and  Hegel.  Why 
need  we  use  many  words  ?  The  principles  of  the  Kabbala  may  be 
summed  up  in  one,  and  that  one, — Pantheism. 

"  Some  of  the  later  Kabbalists  have  attempted  to  obviate  this 
conclusion.  But  if  the  verdict  be  reserved  for  common  sense  or 
logic  to  pronounce,  the  sentence  will  be  irreversible.  This  cha- 
racter of  the  system  appears  partially  in  the  Jetsira  and  more 
fully  in  the  Zohar." — (Etheridge.) 

The  Sephiroth  are  alluded  to,  and  traceable  in  the 
books  of  Enoch,  Ezekiel,  and  Daniel.  Also  in  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  three  Sephiroth,  Malchus,  Gebura  and 
Haud  are  mentioned.  "For  thine  is  the  Kingdom 
(Malchus)  the  Power  (Gebura)  and  Glory  (Haud)  for 
ever  and  aye."  The  "  thine  "  refers  to  the  Divine  Soul, 
the  Crown  (Kether),  or  the  God  within  us. 

On    these    subjects    of     Kabbalistic    doctrines    the 

eminent  Hebraist,  Etheridge,  gives  interesting  details, 

of  which  we  give  a  short  quotation,  referring  the  reader 

for  further  information,  besides  the  already  cited  books, 

to  the  Kabbala  Denudata,  and  the  Latin  Collection  of 

Pistorius. 

"  Before  all  time  the  En-Soph,  the  Unoriginated  and  Infinite 
Being,  existed  without  likeness  or  reflection,  incomprehensible, 
unknowable.  In  the  production  of  finite  existence,  by  which  he 
became  knowable,  the  first  act  was  the  evolution  of  the  Memra  or 
'Word'  (feminine),  of  whom  they  speak  as  the  primary  point  in  the 


276  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

descending  series  of  being,  and  from  whom,  in  nine  other  degrees  of 
manifestation,  emanated  those  forms  which  at  once  compose  the 
universe,  and  express  the  attributes  and  presence  of  its  eternal  Ruler. 

"  To  these  ten  forms  of  manifestation  the  Zohar  gives  the 
common  name  of  sejiroth.  This  term  some  critics  consider  to  be 
equivalent  to  the  Greek  sfairai,  or  '  spheres  ; '  but  others  deriving 
it  from  saphir,  make  it  to  denote  '  splendours,'  the  favourite  term 
with  Basnage,  and  writers  of  his  class.  But  probably  the  more 
correct  notion  is,  that  which  explains  it  as  the  plural  of  sefar,  '  a 
number ; '  the  evolution  of  numbers  out  of  an  original  unity  being 
one  of  the  dogmatic  modes  of  illustrating  the  doctrine  of  emana- 
tion by  the  Kabbalists.  In  the  book  Jetsira,  the  ten  numbers 
answer  to  the  elementary  world  and  its  categories.  The  sum  of 
them  is  the  universe  itself,  the  manifestation  of  God.  But  in  the 
Zohar  the  sejiroth  are  unfolded  with  greater  amplitude  than  in  the 
Jetsira ;  or  rather  the  things  symbolized  in  the  Jetsira  by  the  num- 
bers, are  in  the  Zohar  described  with  various  accessories,  and 
presented  under  other  names.  No  longer  indicated  by  the  naked 
numbers,  they  are  clothed,  so  to  speak,  with  the  more  imposing 
grandeur  of  moral  appellations.  Here  their  several  titles  are, 
1.  Ktthar,  '  the  crown  ; '  2.  Hachma,  '  wisdom  ; '  3.  Binah,  l  under- 
standing ; '  4.  Chesed,  '  mercy  ; '  5.  Din  (or  Gebura)  '  justice '  (or 
strength)  ;  6.  Tifereth,  '  beauty  ; '  7.  Kctsach,  '  triumph  ; '  8.  Hod, 
'  glory  ; '  9.  Yasod,  '  basis  ; '  10.  Malkuth,  l  dominion.'  These 
names  are  associated  in  Christian  theology  with  intellectual  and 
moral  realities ;  but  in  the  Kabbala  they  are  applied  as  well  to 
physical  phenomena,  because  such  phenomena  are  manifestations, 
of  the  Great  Being  in  whose  character  the  virtues  expressed  by 
this  nomenclature  are  for  ever  inherent.* 

"  The  Primordial  Essence  is  before  all.  In  His  abstract  and 
eternal  condition  He  is  utterly  incomprehensible,  and,  as  an  object 
of  the  understanding,  according  to  the  Zohar,  He  is  as  nothing ;  the 
Mystery  of  Mysteries,  the  Concealed  of  all  Concealments.  But 
He  took  a  form:  as  He  called  forth  the  all.  '  The  Ancient  of 
Ancients  is  now  seen  in  His  own  light :  that  light  is  His  holy  name.' 

"The  teu  Sefiroth  through  which  He  has  revealed  Himself, 

*  The  Sephirotic  plan  according  to  Doctor  Pancost's  work  on 
the  Kabbala,  appearing  in  our  "  Occult  Texts,'''  is  well  worthy  of 
earnest  study. 


ESOTERIC  HEBEATSM   AND   CHRISTIANITY.  277 

become  attributes  or  predicates  of  His  nature.  In  them  the 
Divine  discovers  itself  ;  and,  taken  together,  they  make  the  fullest 
of  all  manifestations  of  it.  This  revelation  of  the  Divine  attri- 
butes, the  Zohar  personifies  as  '  the  heavenly  Man,'  Adam  Ilah, 
the  'man  on  high,'  an  allusion  to  Ezekiel  i.  26;  and  Adam 
Kadmon,  the  primeval  Adam,  of  whom  the  earthly  Adam  was  an 
image,  as  being  in  himself  a  microcosm.  The  heavenly  Man,  the 
Logos,  developing  Himself  in  the  ten  Sefiroth,  is  the  absolute  form 
of  all  being." 

The  Theosophy  of  the  Hebrews  was  already  well 
developed  anterior  to  the  times  of  Christ,  and  it  was 
that  very  esoteric  doctrine  which  is  so  nearly  Christian, 
and  which,  in  fact,  is  nearest  to  Esoteric  Christianity, 
that  prepared  the  way  for  Christ.  No  one  can  read 
Philo  the  Jew,  without  being  struck  with  the  similarity 
of  his  views  with  those  of  the  early  Christian  Esoterist 
Origen ;  and  no  one  can  compare  the  sayings  of  the 
Hebrew  Fathers  without  being  compelled  to  acknow- 
ledge that  many  of  them  are  almost  identical  with  those 
enunciated  by  Jesus  and  his  Apostles.  Even  orthodox 
Judaism  has,  in  a  measure,  a  Theosophic  aspect,  but 
before  we  quote  that  venerable  authority  Maimonides, 
and  as  probably  very  few  of  our  readers  are  acquainted 
with  that  text-book  of  the  Hebrew  Kabbala— the 
Zohar, — we  would  give  as  an  example  of  Hebrew 
Kabbalism,  a  fragment  from  the  Preface  of  that  Occult 
work,  there  entitled : — 

"The  Initiation  of  Rabbi  Khija." 

"...  And  Rabbi  Khija  threw  himself  unto  the  earth,  he 
kissed  the  dust,  wept  and  said:  Earth,  earth,  how  art  thou  so 
daring;  how  canst  thou  be  so  hardy.  Every  visual  pleasure 
perisheth  with  thee— thou  devourest  and  scatterest  the  shining 
pillars  of  the  world  !    Ha  !  how  daring  !     The  holy  beacon  shining 


278  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

throughout  the  world,  the  exalted  shield,  the  Lord  of  Salvation, 
the  preserver  of  the  world  to  perish  in  thee  !  Rabbi  Simeon  Ben 
Jochai  the  splendour  of  light,  the  beacon  of  the  world  to  perish  in 
thee  !  How  ?  art  thou  for  ever  to  rule  the  world  ?— Thereon  he 
reflected  for  a  moment  and  cried :  Earth  !  earth !  do  not  exalt 
thyself,  the  pillars  of  the  world  are  not  left  to  thee,  no,  Rabbi 
Simeon  does  not  perish  in  thee  ! 

"Then  Rabbi  Khija  arose  again,  wept  and  went  forth,  and 
Rabbi  Jose  followed  him.  From  this  day  he  forthwith  fasted 
forty  days  to  prepare  himself  for  beholding  Rabbi  Simeon.  But 
they  said  unto  him :  thou  art  not  yet  worthy  to  behold  him.  He 
wept,  and  again  fasted  forty  days  more.  At  last  he  had  a  vision 
wherein  he  beheld  Rabbi  Simeon  and  his  son  Rabbi  Eleazar,  and 
they  exhausted  that  subject  of  which  Rabbi  Jose  had  spoken,  and 
many  thousands  hearkened  thereto.  And  lo  he  suddenly  beheld 
the  heavenly  hosts,  the  high  and  exalted  ones,  and  with  them 
Rabbi  Simeon  and  his  son  Rabbi  Eleazar  ascended  to  the  celestial 
school,  and  celestial  hosts  all  hastened  to  meet  them.  And  he 
beheld  that  they  became  renewed  and  transfigured  and  their 
splendours  surpassed  the  sun. 

"And  Rabbi  Simeon  began:  Rabbi  Khija  may  come  and 
beheld  what  the  blessed  Holy  One  has  prepared  to  rejoice  the 
face  of  the  perfect  in  the  future  state.  Blessed  is  he  who  without 
fear  enters  thereon  even  here  below,  and  blessed  he  who  stands 
in  this  world  firm  as  a  pillar.  And  he  beheld  as  he  entered,  that 
Rabbi  Eleazar  and  all  the  exalted  ones  that  were  there  arose  from 
their  seats.  Thereat  he  became  abashed  and  retraced  his  steps 
and  sat  down  at  the  feet  of  Rabbi  Simeon.  And  a  voice  was 
heard  calling :  '  Cast  down  thine  eyes,  lift  not  up  thy  head,  and 
look  not  about  thee.'  Thereupon  he  cast  down  his  eyes  and  beheld 
a  light  shining  in  the  distance.  But  the  voice  began  again  as 
before,  and  said  :  '  The  exalted,  the  occult  and  invisible  with  search- 
ing eyes  pass  through  all  worlds  and  consider  those  of  the  lower  world 
whose  senses  are  enchained  by  sleep.  O  awake  ye!  Who  among  you 
can  change  darkness  into  Light,  bitterness  into  sweetness,  before 
•attaining  to  this  ?  Who  among  you  daily  desires  the  light— that 
shines  at  the  moment  when  God  calls  forth  the  morning  star — 
that  he  may  adore  the  king  of  kings.  He  who  does  not  daily  look 
for  this  while  in  the  world  below  shall  have  no  part  in  the  celestial 
world.' 


THE   INITIATION   OF  RABBI   KHIJA.  279 

"Thereupon  lie  beheld  many  links  were  encircling  all  those 
high-reaching  pillars,  and  he  saw  they  had  aspirationally  ascended 
to  that  celestial  school,  some  ascending,  others  descending,  and 
above  all  mounted  the  head  of  the  heavenly  hosts  and  pronounced 
the  solemn  oath  that  had  been  imparted  to  him  in  the  hall  of  the 
mystery :  May  the  king  avenge  and  remember  the  faith  that  lies 
in  the  dust. — At  this  moment  he  shakes  the  three  hundred  and 
ninety  spheres,  and  all  therein  trembled  before  him,  and  thereat 
he  sheds  tears,  and  these  tears  fall  red-hot  like  fire  into  the  great 
sea,  and  of  these  tears  is  born  the  ruler  of  the  sea,  and  he  main- 
tains himself  and  blesses  the  name  of  the  holy  king  and  promises 
to  inhale  all  his  waters  from  the  beginning,  and  to  limit  them  in 
himself,  in  that  moment  when  all  nations  unite  with  the  holy 
people,  that  the  waters  may  be  dried  up  and  they  may  pass 
through  dry  shod.  Thereupon  a  voice  was  heard,  calling  :  '  Clear 
the  place,  clear  the  place,  the  anointed  king  appears  in  the  school 
of  Rabbi  Simeon ! ' — For  all  the  perfect  are  in  that  world  chiefs  of 
schools  and  the  schools  are  there  distinguished  accordingly,  and 
all  the  Brethren  of  each  school  ascend  from  the  school  below  to  the 
school  above.  The  anointed  then  comes  into  all  these  schools,  and 
closes  there  the  enlightening  doctrine,  that  outpours  from  the  lips  of 
the  sages.  At  this  moment  appears  the  anointed  and  he  is  crowned 
by  the  chiefs  of  the  schools  with  celestial  crowns. — Now  all  the 
Brethren  arose  from  their  seats  and  also  Rabbi  Simeon  arose,  and 
his  glory  rayed  unto  the  heights  of  the  celestial  dome.  Thereat 
said  he  :  '  Blessed  art  thou  Rabbi,  thy  exalted  docti-ine  ascends  in 
three  hundred  and  seventy  rays  of  light  and  each  ray  divides 
itself  in  six  hundred  and  thirteen  reflections  ;  they  ascend  and 
bathe  in  pure  streams  of  balm.  And  the  blessed  Holy  One  Him- 
self keeps  the  doctrine  of  thy  school  as  of  the  school  of  Hezekiah, 
king  of  Juda,  and  of  the  school  of  Achia  the  Salonite — to  me  it 
was  not  entrusted,  but  the  Lord  of  Hosts  was  destined  for  it, 
for  I  know  he  comes  into  no  other  school  but  thine.' 

"  Thereupon  Rabbi  Simeon  whispered  to  him  the  oath  that  had 
been  imparted  to  him  by  the  Lord  of  Hosts.  Thereat  the  Anointed 
was  amazed  and  cried  out,  and  the  heavens  trembled  and  the 
ocean  raged  and  the  Leviathan  feared,  and  it  seemed  as  though 
the  world  would  perish.  As  he  perceived  Rabbi  Khija  at  the 
feet  of  Simeon,  he  cried :  '  Who  invests  here  a  mortal  with  the 
garment  of  immortality  ? '  And  Rabbi  Simeon  said ;  '  It  is  Rabbi 


280  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Khija,  a  ray  of  light  from  the  beacon  of  the  Law.'  Thereupon  he 
continued:  'Then  may  he  and  his  he  accepted  in  thy  school.' 
And  Rabbi  Simeon  said:  'Let  a  time  of  probation  be  given  to  him.' 
He  went  away  profoundly  agitated  and  tears  streamed  from  his 
eyes.  With  broken  heart  and  weeping  said  Rabbi  Khija :  'Blessed 
are  the  perfect  who  have  part  in  that  world,  and  blessed  the  son 
of  Jochai  who  has  acquired  this.'  Thereat  points  the  text :  '  My 
friends  inherit  real  good  and  I  fill  their  treasures.' "  * 

We  will  now  proceed  to  give  some  selections  from 
that  Gem  of  Antiquity,  the  "  Yad  Hachazakah ;  or, 
Mishne  Torah  of  Moses  Maimonides,"  justly  styled  by 
the  Kabbis  the  Great  Eagle  of  Doctors.  In  the  first 
Book  termed,  "  Sefer  Hamada,  The  Book  of  Know- 
ledge," we  read  as  follows  : — 

"  The  foundation  of  foundations,  and  the  prop  of  wisdom  is  to 
know  that  there  exists  a  first  Being,  and  that  He  called  all  other 
beings  into  existence,  and  that  all  things  existing  from  heaven  to 
earth,  and  whatever  is  between  them,  exist  only  through  the 
essentiality  of  His  existence ;  so  that  if  we  were  to  suppose  that 
He  did  not  exist,  no  other  thing  could  exist ;  again,  were  we  to 
suppose  that  all  other  things  existing,  beside  Himself,  did  not 
exist,  He  Himself  would  still  exist,  and  would  not  cease  because 
of  their  non-existence ;  since  all  things  existing  stand  in  need  of 
Him,  but  He,  blessed  be  He  !  does  not  stand  in  need  of  them,  not 
even  of  any  one  of  them.  His  essentiality,  therefore,  is  not  like 
the  truth  of  any  one  of  ,them.  Thus  the  prophet  says :  But 
the  Eternalis  the  true  God  (Jer.  x.  10),  indicating  that  He  alone 
is  essential  truth,  and  that  there  belongs  to  no  other  being  a  truth 
like  His  truth.  The  same  is  also  expressed  in  the  law :  There  is 
none  eke  (Deut.  iv.  39),  that  is  to  say,  there  is  not  a  being,  beside 
Himself,  who  as  to  essentiality  is  like  Him. 

"  This  Being  is  the  God  of  the  Universe,  the  Sovereign  of  the 
whole  earth  ;  and  it  is  He  who  guides  the  orb  with  a  power  to 
which  there  is  neither  end  or  limit — with  a  power,  of  which  there 
is  no  interruption  ;  for  the  orb  revolves  continually,  and  it  is 
impossible  that  it  should  revolve  without  some  one  causing  it  to 

*  Proverbs  vii.  21. 


je-ho-vah,  A,  ONE.  281 

revolve ;  and  it  is  He,  blessed  be  He !  who  causes  it  to  revolve, 
without  a  hand  and  without  a  body  (i.e.,  without  physical  effort). 

"  Now  the  recognition  of  this  matter  is  an  affirmative  command- 
ment, for  it  is  said :  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God  (Exod.  xx.  2) ;  and 
every  one  who  entertains  the  opinion  that  there  is  another  God 
besides  this,  transgresses  a  negative  commandment,  for  it  is  said : 
Thou  shalt  have  no  other  Gods  before  Me  (Exod.  xx.  3);  and  he  at 
the  same  time  denies  the  radical  religious  principle,*  for  this  is 
the  great  religious  principle  upon  which  everything  depends. 

"  This  God  is  one— not  two,  nor  more  than  two,  but  absolutely 
One— whose  unity  is  not  like  the  unity  of  any  one  of  the  indi- 
viduals existing  in  the  universe— not  one  as  a  kind,  for  this  would 
include  many  individuals ;  nor  one  as  a  body,  for  this  would  be 
divisible  into  parts  and  portions;  but  a  unity  like  unto  which 
there  is  no  other  existing  in  the  universe.f 

"  Were  there  many  Deities  they  would  needs  be  bodies  and 
frames,  since  things  that  can  be  numbered,  which  are  equal  in 
their  essence,  are  distinguishable  one  from  another  only  by  the 
accidental  qualities  which  belong  to  bodies  or  frames  ;  now  were 
the  Creator  a  body  or  frame,  He  would  have  an  end  and  a  limit; 
for  it  is  impossible  that  there  should  be  a  body  which  has  not  an 
end ;  and  of  everything  that  has  an  end  and  a  limit,  its  power 
must  likewise  have  an  end  and  a  limit. 

"  But  as  to  our  God,  blessed  be  His  name  !  since  His  power  has 
no  end,  and  is  never  interrupted  (for  behold  !  the  orb  revolves 
continually)  ;  His  power  is  not  the  power  of  a  body ;  and  since 
He  is  not  a  body,  He  is  not  subject  to  any  events  incident  to  body, 
so  that  He  could  be  separated  and  divided  from  another.  There- 
fore it  is  not  possible  that  He  should  be  other  than  One  ;  and  the 
recognition  of  this  matter  is  a  positive  commandment,  for  it  is 
said  :   The  Lord  our  God  is  one  God  (Deut.  vi.  4). 

*  Talmud.  Treatise  Maccoth,  24  a. 
t  Why  does  not  the  "  Eagle  of  Doctors  "  give  us  here  a  defini- 
tion of  the  true  unity  of  God,  as  portrayed  or  symbolized  in  the 
Sacred  Triangle,  and  consisting  of  three  Divine  Principles— 
viz.,  Male,  Female,  and  Proceeding,  or  uniting?  or,  as  the  Chris- 
tian Mystics  have  it— Love,  Wisdom,  and  Truth ;  or  the  Word 
(Logos)  at  once  God,  and  the  manifestation  of  God? — M.  C. 


282  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

u  Behold !  it  is  plainly  stated  in  the  law  and  in  the  Prophets 
that  the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He !  is  not  a  body  or  frame  ;  for  it 
is  said :  That  the  Lord  He  is  God  in  heaven  above,  and  upon  the 
earth  beneath  (Deut  iv.  89) ;  but  a  body  cannot  be  in  two  places 
[at  the  same  time].  Again  it  is  said :  For  ye  sato  no  manner  of 
similitude  (Deut.  iv.  15) ;  and  it  is  also  said  :  To  whom  then  will 
ye  compare  me,  that  I  should  be  like  Him  ?  (Isaiah  xl.  25),  now  if 
He  were  a  body,  He  might  be  comparable  to  other  bodies. 

"  But  how  is  this  reconcilable  with  the  Scriptural  passages  ? 
what  means  this  which  is  written  in  the  law:  And  there  was  under 
His  feet  (Exod.  xxiv.  10);  Written  zvith  the  finger  of  God 
(Exod.  xxxi.  18);  The  hand  of  the  Lord  (Exod.  ix.  3);  The  eyes 
of  the  Lord  (Deut.  xi.  12);  The  ears  of  the  Lord  (Numb.  xi.  18); 
and  other  expressions  like  these  ?  The  answer  is  :  all  these  terms 
are  used  with  reference  to  the  intellectual  capacity  of  the  sons  of 
men,  who  can  comprehend  only  corporeal  beings ;  the  law,  there- 
fore, speaks  in  human  language,  and  all  these  are  merely  epithets, 
just  as  we  read:  Lf  L whet  my  glittering  sivord  (Deut.  xxxii.  41); 
for  has  He  then  a  sword  ?  or  does  He  slay  with  a  sword  ?  cer- 
tainly not,  this  is  only  a  parable  ;  and  thus  all  is  parabolical. 

"  As  a  proof  of  this  we  may  adduce  the  words  of  one  prophet, 
who  said,  that  he  saw  the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He  !  xohose  garment 
was  as  white  as  snow  (Dan.  vii.  9)  ;  whilst  another  saw  him  with 
red  garments  (Isaiah  lxiii.  1).  Moses  our  Teacher  himself  saw 
Him  upon  the  sea,  like  a  warrior  making  war  in  battle,  and  upon 
Sinai,  like  the  messenger  of  a  congregation  wrapped  in  prayer; 
showing  that  He  had  neither  similitude  nor  form,  but  that  all 
this  was  only  in  an  appearance  of  Prophecy,  and  in  a  vision.  But 
the  essentiality  of  the  object  the  human  intellect  cannot  compre- 
hend, nor  attain  unto,  nor  search  out ;  and  this  is  what  the  Scrip- 
ture says :  Canst  thou  dive  into  the  foundation  of  God  ?  or  canst 
thou  find  out  the  intent  or  aim  of  the  Almighty  ?  (Job.  xi.  7). 

"  What  then  was  that  which  Moses  our  Teacher  sought  to  attain 
when  he  said :  J  beseech  Thee  sheio  me  Thy  glory  (Exod.  xxxiii.  18)  ? 
He  sought  to  know  the  essentiality  of  the  existence  of  the  Holy 
One,  blessed  be  He !  to  that  degree  that  it  should  be  known  to  his 
mind  in  the  same  way  as  he  would  know  any  person  whose  coun- 
tenance he  had  seen,  and  whose  form  was  engraven  upon  his 
memory — so  that  that  man  is  distinguished  in  his  mind  from  other 
men ; — in  the  same  way  Moses  our  Teacher  sought  to  have  the 


INVOLUTION   THROUGH   EVOLUTION.  283 

essence  of  the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He !  distinguished  in  his  mind 
from  the  essences  of  other  beings ;  so  that  He  might  know  the 
essentiality  of  His  existence  just  as  it  is.  But  the  Holy  One, 
blessed  be  He !  returned  answer  to  him,  that  it  was  not  in  the 
power  of  the  intellect  of  living  man,  composed  of  body  and  soul, 
distinctly  to  attain  unto  the  truth  of  this  matter 

"  With  regard  to  this  glorious  and  awful  God — we  are  com- 
manded to  love  Him,  and  to  fear  Him,  for  it  is  said :  And  thou 
shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  (Deut.  vi.  5),  and  it  is  also  said :  Thou 
shalt  fear  the  Lord  thy  God  (Deut.  vi.  13).  2.  But  which  is  the 
way  leading  to  love  and  fear  Him  ? — At  the  time  when  one  con- 
templates His  works  and  His  wonderful  and  stupendous  creations, 
and  perceives  from  them  His  wisdom,  which  is  incomparable  and 
unbounded,  immediately  he  loves,*  praises,  and  glorifies,  and 
longs  with  great  eagerness  to  know  that  great  God,  just  as  David 
said  :  My  soul  thirtieth  for  God,  for  the  living  God  (Psalm  xlii.  2), 

"  Also  when  one  reflects  upon  these  very  things,  immediately 
he  starts  back,  and  is  afraid,  and  feels  terror, t  and  is  conscious 
that  he  is  a  creature,  small,  insignificant,  and  dark,  standing  with 
only  a  slight  and  scanty  knowledge,  before  Him  who  is  perfect  in 
knowledge,  as  David  said  :  When  L  consider  Thy  heavens,  the  ioork 
of  Thy  fingers  (Psalm  viii.  3)  ;  What  is  man  that  Thou  art  mind- 
ful of  Him  f  (Psalm  viii.  4).  Now,  with  reference  to  these  things, 
I  am  about  to  explain  some  great  principles,  taught  by  the  work 
of  the  Lord  of  the  Universe,  in  order  that  they  may  be  an  open- 
ing to  the  intelligent  man  to  love  God,  consonant  with  the  words 
of  the  sages  regarding  love :  '  That  thereby  thou  mayest  know 
Him  who  spake  [the  word],  and  the  Universe  existed.' 

"  All  the  things  which  the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He!  has  created 
in  His  Universe,  are  divisible  into  three  classes.  Some  are  crea- 
tures composed  of  matter  and  form ;  and  which  are  perpetually 
coming  into  existence,  and  perishing.  Such  are  the  bodies  of  men, 
of  beasts,  of  plants,  and  of  minerals.  Some  again  are  creatures 
composed  of  matter  and  form,  yet  they  do  not  change  from  body 
to  body,  and  from  form  to  form  like  the  former ;  but  their  form 
is  fixed  in  their  matter  for  ever,  so  that  they  are  not  liable  to 
change  like  the  others.     Such   are  the  orbs  and  the  stars  which 

*  Siphri,  Deut.  c.  vi.,  v.  G. 
t  Talmud.    Treatise  Sabbath,  31  b. 


284  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

are  in  them.  Moreover,  their  matter  is  not  like  the  matter  of 
other  things,  nor  their  form  like  other  forms.  Again,  there  are 
creatures  possessing  form,  but  no  matter  at  all.  Such  are  the 
Angels,  for  the  Angels  are  not  bodies  or  frames,  but  forms  dis- 
tinguished one  from  another. 

"  What,  then,  is  the  sense  of  the  Prophets  saying  :  That  they 
saw  an  angel  of  fire,  and  having  wings  ?  All  this  is  conceived,  in 
prophetic  vision,  and  by  way  of  allegory,  in  order  to  express  that 
he  (the  angel)  is  not  a  body,  nor  possessing  heaviness,  as  heavy 
bodies,  as  it  is  said:  For  the  Lord  thy  God  is  a  consuming  fire 
(Deut.  iv.  24),  now  since  he  is  not  a  fire,  the  expression  must  be 
taken  figuratively,  as  it  is  said :  He  mdketh  the  spirits  His  angels, 
His  ministers  ajiaming  fire  (Psalm  civ.  4). 

"  By  what  then  are  these  forms  distinguished  one  from  another, 
seeing  that  they  are  not  bodies  ?  It  is  because  they  are  not  equal 
in  their  essence,  but  one  stands  a  degree  lower  than  his  fellow  in 
succession,  so  that  each  exists  through  the  power  of  the  one 
immediately  above  him  ;  but  all  of  them  exists  through  the  power 
and  the  goodness  of  the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He  !  And  this  it  is 
to  which  Solomon  in  his  wisdom  alludes,  when  he  says :  For  He 
that  is  higher  than  the  highest  regardeth  (Eccles.  v.  7). 

"  When  we  say  :  '  Beneath  the  degree  of  his  fellow,''  we  do  not 
mean  the  degree  of  place,  as  would  be  said  of  a  man  who  sits 
higher  than  his  fellow,  but  as  it  would  be  said  of  two  wise  men 
of  whom  one  is  greater  than  the  other  in  wisdom,  that  the  former 
is  above  the  degree  of  the  latter ;  or  as  it  would  be  said,  with 
respect  to  the  cause,  that  it  is  above  the  effect. 

"  There  is  a  variety  in  the  names  of  the  angels  depending  upon 
their  degrees  ;  and  thence  they  are  called  Haiioth  Hal-Jcodesh  (the 
holy  living  creatures),  which  are  the  highest  of  all;  Ophanim 
(the  wheels);  Erellim  (the  ambassadors)  ;  HashmaUim  (those  that 
are  of  great  brightness)  ;  Seraphim  (those  that  are  of  burning 
fire)  ;  Malachim  (the  messengers) ;  Elohim  (gods,  or  those  that 
possess  great  power)  ;  Benay-Flohim  (the  sons  of  God) ;  Cherubim 
(those  who  have  the  appearance  of  little  children),  and  Ishim 
(men).*  All  these  ten  names  by  which  the  Angels  are  called,  are 
[o-iven]  in  respect  of  their  ten  degrees,  and  that  degree,  to  which 
there  is  no  degree  superior  but  the  degree  of  God,  blessed  be  He  ! 
is  the  degree  of  that  Intelligence  called  Haiioth.  On  this  account 
*  Talmud.    Treatise  Chagigah,  12  b. 


THE  UNITY  OF  THE  CREATOR.         285 

it  is  said  in  the  Prophecy:  'that  they  are  [immediately]  Tinder 
the  throne  of  glory.'  Also  the  tenth  degree  is  the  degree  of  that 
Intelligence  which  is  called  Ishim  (men),  these  being  the  Angels 
which  spoke  with  the  Prophets,  and  were  seen  by  them  in  pro- 
phetic vision ;  therefore  they  are  called  Ishim  (men),  because 
their  degree  is  next  to  the  degree  of  the  knowledge  of  the  sons 
of  men. 

"  Now  all  these  Intelligences  are  alive,  and  can  discern  the 
Creator,  and  they  know  Him  with  an  exceedingly  great  know- 
ledge ;  each  Intelligence  in  proportion  to  its  degree,  not  in  pro- 
portion to  its  size.  However,  even  the  first  degree  cannot  arrive 
at  the  essence  of  the  Creator  such  as  it  really  is;  because  the 
knowledge  even  of  the  first  degree  being  too  limited  to  arrive  at 
and  to  know  that  essence  ;  but  yet  it  attains  unto  and  knows  more 
than  that  which  the  Intelligence  beneath  it  can  attain  and  know. 
And  thus  also  every  degree,  even  to  the  tenth,  knows  the  Creator 
with  a  knowledge  which  the  power  of  the  sons  of  men,  who  are 
composed  of  matter  and  form,  cannot  attain  unto  and  know ;  none, 
however,  know  the  Creator  as  perfectly  as  He  knows  Himself. 

"  All  things  existing,  beside  the  Creator,  from  the  first  degree 
of  Intelligences  to  the  smallest  insect  which  may  be  found  in  the 
centre  of  the  earth — all  these  exist  by  the  power  of  His  truth. 
And  because  He  knows  Himself,  and  can  discern  His  own  great- 
ness and  His  glory  and  His  truth — He  knows  everything,  and 
nothing  is  concealed  from  Him. 

"  The  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He  !  perceives  His  own  essentiality, 
and  knows  it  just  as  it  really  is.  And  He  does  not  know  with  a 
knowledge  distinct  from  Himself,  as  we  know ;  because  we  and 
our  knowledge  are  not  one,  but,  as  to  the  Creator,  may  He  be 
blessed  !  He,  His  knowledge,  and  His  life  are  one,  in  every  pos- 
sible respect,  and  in  every  mode  of  Unity ;  seeing  that  if  He  were 
living  with  a  life,  and  knowing  with  a  knowledge  distinct  from 
Himself,  there  would  be  many  Deities,  viz.,  He,  His  life,  and  His 
knowledge.  But  this  is  not  the  fact,  but  on  the  contrary,  He  is 
one  in  every  possible  respect,  and  in  every  mode  of  Unity. 

"  Hence  you  may  say :  that  He  is  the  knower,  the  known, 
and  knowledge  itself,  all  at  once.  Now  this  idea  the  mouth  has 
not  the  power  of  expressing,  nor  the  ear  of  perceiving,  nor  the 
human  mind  of  perfectly  comprehending ;  and  on  this  account  it 
is  said :  By  the  lives  of  Pharaoh  (Gen.  xlii.  15),  By  the  lives  of 


286  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

thy  soul  (Sam.  i.  26,  and  in  many  other  places).  It  is  not  however 
said  By  the  lives  of  the  Lord,  but  By  the  life  of  the  Lord  (Judg. 
viii.  19,  and  in  many  other  places) ;  because  the  Creator  and  His 
life  are  not  two,  as  are  the  lives  of  living  bodies,  or  the  lives  of 
Angels.  Therefore  He  does  not  perceive  creatures  and  know  them, 
by  means  of  the  creatures,  as  we  know  them ;  but  He  knows  them, 
by  means  of  Himself  ;  so  that,  by  dint  of  His  knowing  Himself, 
He  knows  everything;  because  everything  is  supported  by  its 
existing  through  Him.  That  which  we  have  said  on  this  subject, 
in  these  two  Chapters,  is  as  a  drop  of  the  ocean  in  comparison 
with  what  ought  to  be  explained  under  this  head.  Moreover,  the 
explanation  of  all  the  radical  principles,  contained  in  these  two 
Chapters,  is  called  the  zvork  of  the  Chariot,  in  reference  to  the 
description  of  the  vision  of  the  chariot  in  the  vision  of  Ezekiel, 
chap.  1. 

"  The*  sages  of  old  have  directed,  that  no  one  shall  expound 
these  subjects  except  to  a  single  person,  who  also  must  be  wise 
and  intelligent  by  his  own  knowledge:  and  after  that,  we  may 
only  give  him  the  outlines  ;  and  convey  to  him  mere  hints  on  the 
subject;  and  he  being  intelligent  by  his  own  knowledge,  may 
become  acquainted  with  the  end  and  depth  of  the  matter. 

"  Now  these  things  are  exceedingly  profound,  and  not  every 
intellect  is  capable  of  sustaining  them,  wherefore  Solomon  in  his 
wisdom  says  respecting  them,  by  way  of  parable :  Brvju^tit 
?LtIl)USljcri)a,  The  Lambs  [are]  for  thy  clothing  (Prov.  xxvii.  26). 
So  the  sages  say  as  an  explanation  to  this  parable :  the  things  xohich 
are  the  mystery  of  the  Universe,  let  them  be  dFthtjSrjCC&a  as  a  gar- 
ment to  thee  ;  meaning,  [let  them  be  kept]  to  thyself  alone,  and  do 
not  discuss  them  before  many  people.  Thus  also  he  (Solomon) 
says  respecting  them  :  Let  them  be  only  thine  own,  and  not  strangers 
with  thee  (Prov.  v.  17).  Again  with  respect  to  them  he  says: 
Honey  and  milk  [are]  under  thy  tongue,  (Song  of  Songs,  iv.  11)  ; 
which  the  sages  of  old  explain  in  this  manner :  The  things  xohich 
are  like  honey  and  milk  ought  to  be  under  thy  tongue 

"You  can  never  see  matter  without  form,  nor  form  without 
matter,  and  it  is  only  the  understanding  of  man  which  abstractedly 
parts  the  existing  body,  and  perceives  that  it  is  composed  of  matter 
and  form  ;  and  also  perceives  that  there  are  bodies,  the  matter  of 

*  Talmud  Treatise  Chagigah,  11  b. 


THE  DIFFERENT  ORDERS   OF   INTELLIGENCES.      287 

which  is  composed  of  four  elements,  and  that  again  there  are 
bodies,  the  matter  of  which  is  simple,  and  consists  only  of  one 
matter.  And  as  to  those  Intelligences  which  have  no  matter  at  all 
— these  cannot  be  perceived  by  the  eye,  but  are  perceived  only  by 
the  mind's  eye,  in  the  same  manner  as  we  know  the  Lord  of  All, 
though  not  by  the  sight  of  the  eye. 

"  The  Soul  of  all  flesh  is  the  quality  thereof,  given  to  it  by  God ; 
moreover  the  superior  knowledge,  which  is  found  in  the  soul  of 
man,  is  the  quality  of  man,  who  is  perfect  in  his  knowledge  ;  and 
it  is  with  regard  to  this  quality  that  it  is  said  in  the  law :  Let  us 
make  man  in  our  image,  after  our  likeness  (Gen.  i.  26), 
meaning,  that  he  (man)  should  be  possessed  of  that  quality  which 
is  able  to  know  and  to  comprehend  those  Intelligences  that  have 
no  matter  like  angels,  who  have  a  form  without  matter,  and  thus 
be  similar  to  them.  This  however  does  not  apply  to  that  form 
which  may  be  perceived  by  the  eye,  as  for  instance,  the  mouth, 
the  nose,  the  cheek  bones,  or  the  other  features  of  the  body,  for 
this  is  expressed  by  Coar  shape  ;  nor  does  it  refer  to  the  life  which 
is  found  in  every  creature  possessing  animal  life,  by  which  it  eats, 
drinks,  propagates,  feels  and  reflects  ;  but  it  refers  to  that  know- 
ledge only  which  constitutes  the  quality  of  the  soul,  and  it  is  of 
the  quality  of  the  soul  that  Scripture  says  '  in  our  image, 
after  our  likeness.'  Now  this  quality  is  very  often  called 
^rphrjah  soul,  and  also  Muarl)  spirit  ;  men  therefore  ought  to 
be  very  careful  with  regard  to  these  expressions,  so  as  not  to  con- 
found them ;  and  they  must  learn  to  know  the  true  meaning  of 
every  such  expression  from  its  context. 

"  This  quality  of  the  soul  is  not  composed  of  the  elements,  so 
that  it  ever  could  be  again  decomposed  into  them ;  nor  does  it 
proceed  from  the  power  of  breath  of  life,  so  that  it  should  stand 
in  need  of  the  breath  of  life  in  the  same  manner  as  the  breath  of 
life  stands  in  need  of  the  body  ;  but  it  proceeds  from  the  Lord — 
from  Heaven ;  therefore  when  the  matter,  which  is  composed  of  the 
elements,  becomes  decomposed,  and  when  the  breath  of  life  also 
perishes  (for  this  can  exist  no  otherwise  than  with  the  body,  and 
stands  in  need  of  the  body,  in  all  its  functions),  that  quality  is 
nevertheless  not  destroyed,  because  it  does  not  in  its  functions 
stand  in  need  of  the  breath  of  life,  but  continues  to  know  and  to 
comprehend  those  Intelligences  that  are  distinct  from  all  matter, 
and  also  to  know  the  Creator  of  all  things ;  and  it  lasts  for  ever 


288  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOrHY. 

and  ever.  This  is  what  Solomon  said  in  his  wisdom :  Then  shall 
the  dust  return  to  the  earth  as  it  loas,  and  the  spirit  shall  return 
unto  God  zvho  gave  it  (Eccles.  xii.  7). 

"  All  the  things  that  we  have  said  respecting  this  matter  are 
like  a  drop  of  a  bucket;  these  things  being  profound,  but  yet  not 
so  profound  as  in  the  matter  treated  upon  in  the  first  and  second 
Chapters.  Now  the  explanation  of  these  things,  which  are  treated 
upon  in  the  third  and  fourth  Chapters,  is  called  CTojamagcinu 
$flaa£ct  33ms'l)ttl),  and  thus  the  sages  of  old  have  directed,*  that 
even  these  things  must  not  be  expounded  publicly,  and  it  is  only 
to  an  individual  that  these  tilings  may  be  made  known  and  taught. 
"  But  then  what  difference  is  there  between  the  subject  relating 
to  the  iHaajjCt  iHcrrabnlj  description  of  the  Chariot,  and  the  sub- 
ject relating  to  jMaa«>ct  33crcs'I)itI)  €a8mB&an8  ?  It  is  this, 
namely,  that  on  the  subject  relating  to  the  description  of  the 
Chariot  we  must  not  expound  even  to  one  person,t  unless  he  be 
wise  and  of  a  penetrating  intellect,  and  even  then  we  are  only  to 
convey  the  outlines  to  him;  whereas  in  subjects  relating  to 
Cnijainocjcmj)  we  may  instruct  one  single  person,  though  he  could 
not  reach  it  by  his  own  knowledge ;  moreover  we  may  make  known 
to  him  all  that  he  is  able  to  know  of  these  matters.  And  why 
may  we  not  teach  it  in  public  ?  Because  every  man  has  not  a 
mind  extensive  enough  perfectly  to  comprehend  all  the  interpre- 
tations and  explanations  requisite  for  these  matters. 

"  At  the  time  when  a  man  reflects  on  these  things,  and  knows 
all  the  creatures,  whether  they  be  angels,  orbs,  or  men,  or  the  like, 
and  sees  the  wisdom  of  the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He !  in  all  the 
things  formed  and  created,  he  increases  in  his  love  to  the  Omni- 
present, his  soul  thirsts,  and  his  flesh  longs  to  love  God,  blessed 
be  He  !  moreover  he  stands  in  awe,  and  is  terrified  \  on  account  of 
his  lowness,  his  destitution  and  his  insignificance,  when  comparing 
himself  to  one  of  those  sacred  and  great  bodies,  and  so  much  more 
when  comparing  himself  to  one  of  those  pure  Intelligences  which 
are  distinct  from  all  matter,  and  composed  of  no  matter  whatever ; 
as  then  he  finds  himself  to  be  a  vessel  full  of  shame  and  ignominy, 
destitute  and  needy. 

*  Treatise  Hagiyah,  11a. 
f  Treatise  Hagigah,  12  6. 
%  Treatise  Sabbath.  31  b. 


THE   GARDEN  OF  KNOWLEDGE.  289 

"Now  the  subject  treated  upon  in  these  four  Chapters,  as 
comprehending  these  five  *  commandments,  is  that  which  was 
called  by  the  sages  of  old  Partfrig,  The  Garden  ;  f  so  they  said : 
Four  men  have  entered  the  Garden.  Now  although  these  were 
great  men  in  Israel,  and  also  very  wise  men,  still  all  of  them  had 
not  the  power  of  knowing  and  comprehending  these  matters  to 
perfection.  I  am,  however,  of  opinion,  that  it  would  not  be  advi- 
sable to  perambulate  in  the  garden,  viz.,  to  indulge  in  metaphysical 
studies,  except  after  having  taking  substantial  food,  viz.,  having 
previously  become  fully  acquainted  with  the  knowledge  of  the  law- 
ful and  unlawful,  and  similar  practical  laws.  Now  although  these 
things  were  called  by  the  sages  minor  things,  for  behold !  the 
sages  say :  '  A  great  thing  is  the  description  of  the  Chariot,  and 
minor  things  are  discussions  like  those  of  Abajah  %  and  Havah,'  yet 
the  latter  are  entitled  to  precedence,  inasmuch  as  they  tend  to 
calm  the  mind  of  man,  and  as  they  are  also  the  great  benefit  which 
the  Holy  One,  blessed  be  He !  has  bounteously  conferred  upon  the 
habitable  globe,  to  the  end  that  they  may  inherit  the  life  of  the 
world  that  is  to  come  ;  moreover  these  every  one  may  know,  small 
and  great,  man  and  woman,  he  that  has  an  extensive  mind,  and 
he  that  has  a  limited  mind 

"  The  good  which  is  treasured  up  for  the  righteous,  consists  in  the 
life  of  the  world  that  is  to  come  ;  a  life  exempt  from  death ;  and 
a  good,  unalloyed  by  evil.  This  is,  which  is  expressed  in  the 
Divine  Law  :  That  it  may  be  ivell  luith  thee,  and  that  thou  mayest 
prolong  thy  days  (Deut.  xxii.  7).  Tradition  interprets:  That  it 
may  be  well  xoith  thee — in  that  world  which  is  altogether  good ; 
and  that  thou  mayest  prolong  thy  days — in  that  world  which  is 
prolonged  for  ever. 

"Now  the  reward  of  the  righteous,  consists  in  their  attaining 
this  bliss,  and  enjoying  this  felicity  ;  again  the  retribution  which 

*  Namely  the  first  five  Commandments,  enumerated  in  the 
Original  Work  at  the  head  of  the  Book  of  Knowledge,  and  which 
are  treated  upon  in  the  first  four  Chapters.  These  are  1st,  To 
know  that  there  is  a  God.  2dly,  Not  to  imagine  that  there  is 
another  God  beside  the  Lord.  3dly,  To  be  aware  of  His  Unity. 
4thly,  To  love  Him.  5thly,  To  stand  in  awe  of  Him. 
t  Treatise  Hagigah,  14. 
\  Treatise  Succah,  28  a. 

V 


290  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

awaits  the  wicked  is  in  their  not  attaining  eternal  life,  but  that 
they  are  to  be  cut  off  and  die.  Moreover  he  who  does  not  merit 
that  life,  is  virtually  dead,  who  is  never  to  live  again,  seeing  that 
he  is  to  be  cut  off  in  consequence  of  his  wickedness,  and  perish 
like  a  beast.  Now  this  is  the  nature  of  excision  recorded  in  the 
Divine  law,  when  it  says  :  That  Soul  shall  utterly  be  cut  of  (Numb. 
xv.  31) ;  Tradition  explains  :  to  be  cut  off,  implies,  from  this  world  ; 
shall  be  cut  off,  implies,  from  the  xvorld  that  is  to  come;  signifying, 
that  the  soul,  after  departing  from  the  body  in  this  world,  does 
not  merit  the  life  of  the  world  that  is  to  come,  but  is  to  be  entirely 
cut  off  therefrom. 

"  Whenever  the  expression  ^rpljrs'lj,  Soul,  is  here  made  use 
of,  it  does  not  refer  to  the  breath  of  life  which  the  body  requires, 
but  to  the  quality  of  the  Soul,  namely  to  that  intelligence  which 
comprehends  as  much  of  the  Creator  as  it  is  in  its  power,  and 
which  also  comprehends  those  intelligences  that  are  distinct  from 
matter,  as  well  as  all  other  things  created.  So  that  it  is  that 
quality,  the  nature  of  which  we  have  explained  in  the  fourth 
Chapter  of  the  Precepts  relating  to  the  foundation  of  the  law,  which 
in  this  instance,  goes  by  the  name  of  $cphr<jt),  Soul. 

"  That  life  (i.e.  the  life  hereafter),  because  not  subject  to  death 
(seeing  that  death  is  one  of  the  incidents  which  can  befall  the  body 
only,  and  that  no  body  exists  in  that  life),  is  called  the  treasure  of 
life,  as  it  is  said :  But  the  Soul  of  my  lord  shall  be  bound  in  the 
treasure  of  life  (1  Sam.  xxv.  29),  alluding  to  that  reward,  than 
which  there  can  be  no  greater,  and  that  bliss,  beyond  which  there 
is  no  higher.  It  is  that  state  of  blissful  life  which  all  the  prophets 
so  eagerly  desired. 

"  Various  names  were  given  by  way  of  allegory  to  that  life,  as 
for  instance,  The  mountain  of  the  Lord ;  His  holy  place ;  The  way 
of  holiness  ;  The  courts  of  the  Lord;  The  Beatify  of  the  Lord;  The 
tabernacle  of  the  Lord;  The  temple  of  the  Lord ;  Tlie  house  of 'the 
Lord,  and  the  gate  of  the  Lord.  The  sages  by  way  of  allegory 
called  that  good  which  is  prepared  for  the  righteous,  *cuttal), 
the  feast ;  but  more  generally  they  call  it :  ©lam  $?abha,  the 
ivorld  to  come 

"  That  bliss  already  described  as  awaiting  the  righteous  in  the 
life  hereafter  will  perchance  be  slighted  by  you,  imagining,  that 
the  reward  for  one's  fulfilling  the  Divine  commandments,  and  for 
being  perfect  in  the  way  of  truth,  consists  in  eating  dainty  food 


THE  LAND   OF  THE   LIVING.  291 

and  drinking  delicious  beverages,  in  being  arrayed  in  raiment  of 
fine  linen  and  embroidered  work,  in  dwelling  in  pavilions  of  ivory, 
and  in  having  for  his  use  vessels  of  silver  and  gold,  or  similar 
luxuries,  as  those  ignorant  Arabs  imagine,  who  are  plunged  in  sen- 
suality. But  now,  wise  and  intelligent  men  know  that  all  these 
things  are  idle,  vain,  and  futile ;  and  that  if  with  us,  in  this  world, 
they  are  considered  as  something  desirable,  it  is  only  because  we 
consist  of  bodies  and  frames,  and  because  all  these  things  are 
cravings  of  the  body,  so  that  the  Soul  neither  longs  after,  nor 
wishes  for  them,  but  inasmuch  as  they  are  craved  by  the  body, 
namely,  for  the  realisation  of  its  desires,  to  the  end  that  the  body 
may  be  preserved  in  a  perfect  state.  But  at  a  time  when  there 
will  be  no  body  (*.e.  no  corporal  existence),  all  these  things  must 
needs  become  vain. 

"  With  regard  however  to  that  great  bliss  which  the  Soul  is  to 
attain  in  the  world  to  come — there  is  no  possibility  of  compre- 
hending or  of  knowing  the  same  whilst  in  this  world ;  seeing  that 
here  beneath,  we  are  sensible  of  that  only  which  is  good  for  the 
body,  and  to  which  also  our  wishes  are  confined ;  but  with  respect 
to  the  celestial  bliss,  it  is  exceedingly  great,  that  all  earthly  good 
can  bear  no  comparison  with  the  same,  except  by  way  of  figure. 
So  that  truly  to  estimate  the  happiness  of  the  Soul  in  the  world  to 
come,  by  the  happiness  of  the  body  in  this  world,  as  for  instance, 
eating  or  drinking,  is  utterly  impossible  ;  that  celestial  happiness 
being  so  unsearchably  great,  that  it  can  admit  of  no  comparison 
or  simile.  This  is  what  David  expresses,  in  exclaiming  :  Oh,  hoio 
great  is  thy  goodness,  which  thou  hast  treasured  up  for  them  that 
fear  Thee,  fyc.  (Ps.  xxxi.  19). 

"  Verily,  how  fervently  did  David  long  and  pant  for  future  life ; 
for  it  is  said :  I  had  fainted,  unless  I  had  believed  to  see  the  goodness 
of  the  Lord  in  the  land  of  the  living  (Ps.  xxvii.  13).  The  sages 
of  old  have  already  informed  us,  that  with  respect  to  future  bliss, 
it  is  not  in  the  power  of  man  to  comprehend  it  unto  perfection, 
and  that  no  one  knows  its  excellency,  beauty,  and  nature,  save  the 
Holy  One,  blessed  be  He !  alone ;  moreover,  that  all  the  good 
happiness  which  the  prophets  predicted  for  Israel,  related  only  to 
bodily  matters,  such  as  the  Israelites  are  to  enjoy  in  the  days  of 
our  King  the  Messiah,  namely,  at  the  time  when  the  rulership 
shall  be  restored  to  Israel ;  but  that  with  regard  to  the  bliss  of  the 
life  of  the  world  that  is  to  come — seeing  that  this  cannot  admit  of 


292  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

comparison  or  simile — the  prophets  never  attempted  to  represent 
the  same  hy  any  simile,  lest  they  should  thereby  depreciate  it. 
This  is  what  Isaiah  said  :  Neither  hath  the  eye  seen,  O  God,  beside 
Thee,  what  He  hath  prepared  for  him  that  ivaitethfor  Him  (Isai. 
lxiv.  4)  ;  signifying  the  bliss  such  as  not  even  the  eye  of  a  prophet 
hath  beheld,  and  such  as  no  one  hath  seen  but  God  Himself,  hath 
He  prepared  for  the  man  that  waiteth  for  Him.  So  also  the  sages 
said:  All  the  prophets  predicted  only  concerning  the  events  to 
happen  at  the  days  of  the  Messiah ;  but  as  to  the  world  that  is  to 

come — NEITHER  HATH   THE   EYE   SEEN,   O   GOD,   BESIDE   THEE. 

"Now,  the  reason  why  the  sages  called  it  «9Iant  f^ahha,  the 
world  to  come,  is  not  because  it  does  not  exist  now,  so  that  we 
should  imagine  that  this  world  is  first  to  be  destroyed,  and  then 
only  the  other  world  will  come  into  existence ;  such  is  not  the  case, 
it  actually  does  exist,  as  it  is  said  :  Which  Thou  hast  treasured  up 
for  them  that  fear  Thee;  which  Thou  hast  wrought  (Ps.  xxxi.  19). 
But  the  sages  called  it  the  world  to  come,  because  that  fife  is  allotted 
to  man  subsequently  to  the  life  of  this  world,  in  which  we  are 
preserved  both  with  body  and  Soul,  and  which  is  the  first  stage  of 
human  existence." 


293 


CHAPTER  IX. 

SEMITIC   THEOSOPHY. 

Part  II. 

THE  SUFIS,  AND  MOHAMMEDAN  THEOSOPHY. 
TT  is  not  our  province  to  deal  with  the  well-known 
-■-  personal  history  of  the  great  Arabian  Prophet,  the 
founder  of  Islam,  whose  name,  Mohammed,  in  Arabic, 
signifies  The  Praised.  Nevertheless,  it  is  well  hastily 
to  resume  it,  by  recalling  to  mind  that  he  was  born  at 
Mecca  about  the  year  570,  A.D. ;  that  during  his  early 
years  he  gained  a  scanty  subsistence  as  a  shepherd 
and  as  a  camel-driver,  when  suddenly  his  fortunes 
changed,  by  his  employer,  Chadidja,  a  wealthy  widow, 
much  older  than  himself,  offering  him  her  hand  in 
marriage.  It  was  not,  however,  till  about  his  40th 
year  that  there  is  anything  really  important  to  be  told 
of  his  life. 

Paganism  had  long  ceased  to  be  a  living  faith  in  the 
minds  of  the  thoughtful,  although  the  more  ignorant 
still  clung  to  it.  Judaism  prevailed,  particularly  in  the 
northern  parts  of  Arabia,  thus  the  ancient  religion  of 
Abraham  had  spread  a  purer  knowledge  of  the  Divinity; 
and  about  this  time,  A.D.  600,  Christianity  had  also 
penetrated  into  the  Peninsula  through  Syria  and 
Abyssinia. 


294  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Mohammed,  on  whose  poetical  mind  the  stories  of 
the  Patriarchs  of  Israel,  adorned  with  all  the  legendary 
poetry  and  gorgeous  colouring  of  the  Midrash,  had 
made  a  deep  impression,  together  with  the  doctrine  of 
the  Unity  of  God  taught  by  Moses,  whom,  with  Jesus, 
he  called  the  greatest  prophet  next  to  himself;  began  to 
see  visions,  and  to  receive  divine  communications. 
The  Angel-Messenger  Gabriel  appeared  to  him,  and 
taught  him  the  true  religion,  giving  him  the  divine 
mission  to  spread  it  abroad. 

Then,  with  all  his  eloquence,  he  exhorted  the  people 
to  lead  a  pious  and  virtuous  life,  and  to  pray  to  the 
one  all-wise,  everlasting,  and  indivisible  God,  who  had 
chosen  him  as  His  Messenger  and  Prophet,  as  He  had 
chosen  the  Hebrew  prophets  before  him.  At  first  he 
made  but  few  converts,  and  these  principally  amongst 
the  lower  ranks ;  the  higher  classes  paid  little  attention 
to  him,  considering  him  a  common  "  soothsayer " 
or  a  poet  who  was  not  in  his  right  mind.  When, 
however,  the  number  of  his  adherents  began  to 
increase,  they  paid  more  attention  to  his  proceedings, 
and  rose  in  fierce  opposition  against  him :  the  persecu- 
tion he  and  his  followers  met  with  was  so  great  that 
he  had  to  hide  himself  in  a  fortified  castle  belonging  to 
his  uncle,  Abu  Talib,  for  three  years.  During  this 
time,  however,  the  new  doctrine  continued  to  spread, 
and  at  last  he  was  able  to  return ;  but  misfortune  was 
upon  him,  he  had  the  great  grief  of  losing  his  faithful 
wife,  who  had  borne  him  two  sons  and  four  daughters. 
This   loss  was   shortly   followed   by   the   death  of  his 


MEDINA,   THE   CITY    OF   THE  PROPHET.  295 

imcle ;  then  he  lost  his  fortune  and  was  reduced  to  the 
greatest  poverty ;  finally,  he  had  to  fly  for  his  life. 

At  last,  and  after  many  unheard  of  escapes  and 
adventures,  he  determined  to  seek  refuge  in  the  City 
of  Medina;  and  from  this  flight,  some  ten  or  fifteen 
years  after  he  first  assumed  the  sacred  office,  began 
his  career  of  prosperity ;  the  very  city  itself  became 
Medina  Annabi  (the  City  of  the  Prophet) ;  from  the 
first  month  of  the  next  Arabic  year  dates  the  Hegira, 
or  Mohammedan  Era.*  No  longer  a  despised  and  per- 
secuted madman,  he  was  now  the  law-giver  and  ruler 
of  the  city,  and  of  powerful  numbers.  He  formed 
alliances  with  many  of  the  Jewish  tribes,  but  he  did 
not  succeed  in  converting  them;  they  only  ridiculed 
his  pretensions  to  be  the  Messiah,  which  so  enraged 
him  that  he  became  their  bitterest  enemy  to  the  hour 
of  his  death.  He,  however,  made  alliances  with  the 
adjoining  Bedouin  tribes,  and  one  of  his  most  im- 
portant acts  soon  after  the  Hegira,  was  the  permission 
to  go  to  war  with  the  enemies  of  Islam  in  the  name  of 
God.  Crowds  of  adventurers  flocked  to  his  standard  ; 
at  first  he  met  with  many  reverses,  and  was  once  dan- 
gerously wounded,  but  the  third  year  he  was  able  to 
celebrate  the  pilgrimage  to  Mecca,  whose  inhabitants 
had  at  last  concluded  a  formal  peace  with  him. 

In    the   first   war   between   the    Christians   and    the 


*  The  whole  East  dates  its  chronolgy  from  this  flight,  or 
Hegira,  the  year  1  of  Mohammedan  Era  being  the  G22nd  Anno 
Domini  and  the  53rd  of  the  Prophet's  life. 


296  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Moslems,  the  latter  were  beaten  with  great  loss,  but 
the  allies  of  Mohammed  attacked  and  took  Mecca, 
partly  by  surprise,  with  an  army  of  10,000  men.  With 
this  conquest  the  victory  of  the  new  religion  was 
secured  in  Arabia,  although  wars  were  continued  with 
several  Arabian  tribes,  who  marched  against  him,  but 
the  creed  extended  far  and  wide.  He  prepared  for  war 
against  the  Byzantines,  but  was  unable  to  carry  out 
his  designs.  Towards  the  end  of  the  tenth  year  of 
the  Hegira  he  undertook  the  last  solemn  pilgrimage 
to  Mecca,  at  the  head  of  40,000  Muslims,  and  then, 
on  Mount  Arafat,  he  instructed  his  followers  in  all 
important  laws  and  ceremonies,  exhorting  them  to 
righteousness  and  piety. 

Soon  after  his  return  from  Mecca,  and  while  occu- 
pied with  preparations  for  an  expedition  against  Syria, 
he  fell  dangerously  ill,  through  a  poisoned  potion,  and 
finally  died  in  the  house  of  Ayeshah,  one  of  his  wives, 
of  whom  he  left  nine  at  his  death,  which  occurred  in 
the  third  month  of  the  eleventh  year  of  the  Hegira 
(8th  June,  632).  He  was  buried  in  the  night  of  the 
9th  to  10th  of  June,  in  the  very  house  where  he  died, 
and  which  afterwards  became  part  of  the  adjoining 
Mosque. 

This  is  the  very  briefest  summary  of  his  outward 
career,  which  was  full  of  the  most  romantic  adventure 
and  stirring  interest.  Space  will  not  permit  us  to 
attempt  a  survey  of  his  visionary  inner  life,  and  the 
peculiar  personal  character  and  circumstances  under 
which  his  extraordinary  mission  grew  upon  him  until 


CHARACTER   OF   MOHAMMED.  297 

he  became  the  founder  of  a  faith  to  which  now  above 
130  millions  are  said  to  adhere.  Had  he  gone  on 
as  he  began  Islam  might  have  been  a  noble  and 
elevating  religion ,  but  his  character  underwent  a 
great  change  after  the  Hegira,  and  from  being  a  kind- 
hearted  and  affectionate  man  he  became  cruel  and 
ruthless,  particularly  against  the  Jews,  when  he  found 
they  would  not  accept  him  for  their  Prophet :  so  much 
so  that  he  on  one  occasion  deliberately  ordered  the 
execution  of  seven  or  eight  hundred  Jewish  prisoners, 
who  had  surrendered  at  discretion. 

But  Mohammed  cannot  be  judged  by  the  standard 
of  other  men,  and  his  historians  agree  that,  taking  him 
all  in  all,  humanity  has  seen  few  more  earnest,  noble, 
and  sincere  prophets,  and  that,  "  however  much  the 
religion  of  Islam  may  rightly  or  wrongly  be  considered 
the  bane,  and  prime  cause  of  the  rottenness  of  eastern 
nations  in  the  present  day,  it  must  not  be  forgotten 
that  it  is  not  necessarily  Islam  which  has  caused  the 
corruption ;  as,  indeed,  its  ethics  are  for  the  most  part 
of  the  highest  order;  and  in  the  second  place,  that 
Mohammed  is  not  to  be  made  responsible  for  all  the 
errors  of  his  successors." 

The  religion  he  established  was  no  doubt  needed 
when  it  came,  for  it  was  a  protest  againt  the  tendency 
to  plurality  in  the  Godhead.  It  was  a  reaction,  a 
going  back  to  pick  up  something  that  had  been  lost. 
The  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  no  doubt  embodies  a  great 
truth,  but  it  had  been  carried  too  far ;  so  Mohammed- 
anism came  as  a  protest  against  this  tendency ;  it  was  a 


298  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

new  assertion  of  the  simple  unity  of  God :  even  the 
spirituality  of  the  Jews  was  not  quite  as  abstract  as 
that  of  the  Mohammedans,  for  it  conceived  of  God 
as  miraculously  coming  down  with  His  people  in 
prophets  and  kings,  and  mysteriously  present  in  their 
tabernacles.  Mohammedanism,  therefore,  may  rightly 
be  called  the  Unitarianism  of  the  East. 

But  in  thus  teaching  a  God  who  is  far  above  and 
removed  from  man  an  abstract  spiritual  entity,  absent 
from  Matter,  and  therefore  never  to  be  manifested  in 
humanity,  represented  on  canvas,  or  by  sacred  allegory, 
a  God  withdrawn  out  of  the  world  in  fact,  he  made 
life  itself  barren  and  empty  by  depriving  man  of  the 
very  first  of  the  Divine  Commandments — the  love  of 
God.  Islam  teaches  the  worship  of  One  God  as 
Supreme  Will,  whose  law  is  fate  and  whose  service 
is  submission.  It  sees  God,  but  not  man ;  it  teaches 
the  claims  of  God  to  the  incessant  prayers  and  sup- 
plications of  the  faithful,  but  it  does  not  admit  the 
rights  of  humanity  to  the  Love  and  Justice  of  God. 
Christianity  with  its  living,  loving,  and  ever-present 
"  Divine  Father,"  who  calls  His  creatures  not  ser- 
vants, but  friends  and  sons,  is  the  happier  religion  by 
far ;  it  has  been  said  that  the  contrast  between  it 
and  Islam  "is  that  of  movement  with  fixedness,  of 
development  with  sterility,  of  life  with  petrification;  for 
Islam  is  lifeless  and  cannot  grow,  while  Christianity  is 
living,  and  because  living,  must  advance,  therefore  must 
change,  and  was  meant  to  do  so,  as  time  developes  the 
human  mind  and  enables  it  to  see  and  penetrate  divine 


CHRISTIANITY  A  PROGRESSIVE   RELIGION.  299 

mysteries  ;  thus  '  onwards  and  forwards '  is  the  motto  of 
the  one,  while  '  stand  still '  is  the  motto  as  well  as  the 
most  essenital  condition  of  the  other.  The  Seal  and 
Secret  of  the  one  is  summed  up  in  the  sentence  'La 
Illah  ilia  Allah';  it  is  the  pantheism  of  Force  exclu- 
sively assigned  to  God,  '  Keina  Yesha'o,'  '  as  he  wills 
it,'  to  quote  the  constantly  recurring  expression  of  the 
Koran.  The  Seal  and  Secret  of  the  other  is  declared 
in  the  words  of  Jesus,  '  I  in  them,  thou  in  Me,'  and  that 
'  all  may  be  one  in  us  ' ;  thus  '  God  in  man,  is  one  with 
man  in  God.' " 

Semitic  Theosophy,  as  we  have  observed  in  Ch.  VII., 
expresses  more  fear  than  love,  and  those  Sufis  who  with 
a  fearlessness  peculiar  to  them  identify  themselves  with 
the  Deity,  although  possibly  self-initiated  into  the 
highest  mystery,  are  more  like  waifs  from  the  Pagan 
Temple  than  orthodox  worshippers  in  the  Mohammedan 
Mosque. 

Mohammedanism  is  called  Islam,  Eesignation,  or 
entire  submission  to  the  will  of  God.  In  its  theo- 
retical part  it  is  Imdn,  Faith ;  in  its  practice,  Din, 
Religion,  (this  is  Din  or  Wisdom),  which  contains  the 
ritual  and  moral  laws,  inculcating  four  chief  duties — 
prayer,  almsgiving,  fasting,  and  pilgrimage.  As  the 
Koran  superseded  the  Gospels,  so  Mohammed  super- 
seded Christ,  whom  they  consider  a  great  Prophet  and 
Apostle,  whose  birth  was  miraculous,  and  who  will 
come  again  to  establish  everywhere  the  Moslem  reli- 
gion. The  belief  in  angels  forms  a  prominent  dogma ; 
they  are  created  of  fire  and  stand  between   God   and 


300  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

man,  adoring  and  serving  the  One,  interceding  for  and 
guarding  the  other.  The  chief  angels  are  the  "  Holy 
Spirit,"  or  "  Angel  of  Eevelations " — Gabriel ;  the 
special  protector  and  guardian  of  the  Jews — Michael ; 
the  "Angel  of  Death"  —  Azrael  (Eaphael  in  the 
Apocryphal  Gospel  of  Barnabas);  the  "Angels  of  the 
Resurrection" — Israfeel,  and  Uriel;  besides  angels 
there  are  good  and  evil  genii,  the  chief  of  the  latter 
being  Iblis  (Despair).  These  Jin  are  subject  to  death; 
they  have  different  names  and  offices  (Peri  Fairies, 
Div  Giants,  Takvins  Fates,  &c),  and  are  in  all  respects 
like  the  Shedim  of  the  Jews. 

The  Koran  teaches  the  doctrine  of  Eternal  Decrees, 
or  absolute  Predestination;  it  tells  of  prophets  before 
Mohammed,  of  whom  he  is  the  successor — as  Adam, 
Noah,  Moses,  and  Jesus — of  sacred  books,  of  which  all 
that  remain  are  the  Pentateuch,  Psalms,  Gospels,  and 
Koran;  besides  these  they  notice  the  Apocryphal 
Gospel  of  St.  Barnabas,  and  the  writings  of  Daniel. 

They  believe  in  the  resurrection  of  both  soul  and 
body  in  the  final  judgment,  also  in  Purgatory,  or  an 
intermediate  state  after  death,  in  which  the  soul  awaits 
the  general  resurrection,  entering,  according  to  its 
rank,  either  immediately  into  Paradise  as  a  prophet, 
or  partaker  of  the  delight  of  an  abode  of  bliss  as  a 
martyr  (one  who  has  been  slain  while  fighting  for 
Islam),  or,  as  in  the  case  of  common  believers,  is 
supposed  to  linger  near  the  grave,  or  be  with  Adam  in 
the  lowest  heaven  !  Mohammed  could  not  learn  the 
time  of  the  general  resurrection  from  the  Angel  Gabriel, 


THE  MOHAMMEDAN  HEAVEN.  301 

it  being  a  mystery,  but  he  learnt  that  the  Day  of  Judg- 
ment will  last  from  one  to  fifty  thousand  years,  when, 
the  trial  over,  the  righteous  will  enter  Paradise  to  the 
right  hand,  and  the  wicked  will  pass  to  the  left  into 
hell;  both,  however,  have  to  go  over  the  bridge  Al 
Sirat,  laid  over  the  midst  of  hell,  finer  than  a  hair,  and 
sharper  than  the  edge  of  a  sword ;  the  righteous  will 
proceed  on  their  path  with  ease  and  swiftness,  but  the 
wicked  will  fall  down  headlong  into  hell  below,  a  place 
divided  into  seven  gradations,  respectively  assigned  to 
Mohammedans,  Jews,  Christians,  Sabeans,  Magians, 
Idolaters,  and  lowest  of  all  to  the  hypocrites,  who 
outwardly  professing  a  religion,  in  reality  had  none ; 
hut  the  great  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  hell  are 
women. 

The  poor  will  enter  Paradise  five  hundred  years. 
before  the  rich ;  there  are  about  a  hundred  degrees  of 
the  various  felicities  which  await  the  pious,  these  being 
a  wild  conglomeration  of  Jewish,  Christian,  Magian, 
and  other  fancies  on  the  subject ;  but  those  who  go  to 
heaven  find  exceedingly  sensual  delights  prepared  for 
them,  of  the  most  ravishing  nature.  There  are,  how- 
ever, higher  degrees  of  recompense,  of  a  purely  spiritual 
kind,  for  those  who  are  of  a  higher  and  more  spiritual 
nature,  and  who  on  earth  have  lived  the  inner  life  of 
the  spirit  rather  than  the  outward  life  of  the  senses. 

The  signs  of  the  approach  of  the  last  day  are  all 
taken  from  the  Talmud  and  the  Midrash  of  the  Jews, 
where  the  signs  of  the  coming  of  the  Messiah  are 
enumerated ;  these  are  the  decay  of  faith,  wars,  sedi- 


302  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

tions,  dire  disasters,  the  sun  will  rise  in  the  west,  the 
Beast  will  appear,  Constantinople  will  be  taken  by  the 
descendants  of  Israel,  Antichrist  will  come,  and  there 
will  be  a  war  with  the  Jews,  earthquakes  in  divers 
places,  and  total  darkness  caused  by  an  eclipse,  &c,  &c. 

There  is  no  recognition  in  the  Koran  of  human 
brotherhood ;  so  far  the  reverse,  that  Mohammed  made 
it  a  duty  for  Moslems  to  betray  and  kill  their  own 
brothers  when  they  were  infidels.  One  of  the  strictest 
injunctions  of  the  Koran  is  that  of  making  war  against 
all  infidels,  and  he  who  is  slain  while  fighting  for  Islam 
is  reckoned  a  martyr,  and  will  meet  with  a  rich  reward. 
Mohammedanism  is  indeed  the  religion  of  the  Sword, 
and  the  very  opposite  to  that  of  the  merciful  Buddha, 
who  taught  tenderness  and  charity,  not  only  to  man  but 
to  the  very  humblest  and  lowest  beast,  and  strictly 
forbade  the  shedding  of  blood. 

It  is  the  permanency  more  than  the  progress  of  Islam 
that  is  so  remarkable,  and  this  is  chiefly  due  to  the 
Koran,  which  forms  the  fundamental  code  not  only  of 
Mohammedan  Theology,  but  which  also  regulates  their 
civil  laws.  It  is  the  most  important  document 
Mussulmen  possess;  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  is  the 
personal  work  of  Mohammed,  and  although  not  written 
by  his  hand  *  was  certainly  written  from  his  recitations, 
and  under  his  guidance ;  and  so  carefully  has  it  been 


*  It  is  a  very  singular  circumstance  that  not  one  of  the  six 
great  teachers  of  the  Wisdom-Religion— Siddartha  or  Gotama 
Buddha,  Pythagoras,  Socrates,  Jesus,  Ammonius,  or  Mohammed — 
left  any  memorial  of  his  existence,  or  of  his  doctrine,  in  writing. 


THE   CRESCENT,  EMBLEM   OF   SOPHIA,  (WISDOM).     303 

preserved  that,  after  all  the  years  that  have  elapsed, 
there  is  still  but  One  Koran  current  among:  all  the 
widely  different  nations  who  are  followers  of  Islam,  and, 
to  quote  the  eloquent  words  of  Gibbon,  "The  lan- 
guage and  laws  of  the  Koran  were  studied  with  equal 
devotion  at  Samarcand  and  Seville,  the  Moor  and  the 
Indian  embraced  as  countrymen  and  brothers  in  the 
pilgrimage  to  Mecca,  and  the  Arabian  language  was 
adopted  as  the  popular  idiom  in  all  the  provinces  west 
of  the  Tigris." 

Nearly  thirteen  centuries  have  proved  the  perma- 
nency of  the  religion  of  the  Arabian  Prophet,  which  is 
still  professed  by  so  large  a  portion  of  the  human  race 
in  Asia,  Africa,  and  Europe ;  but  though  its  power 
has  decreased  its  bigotry  and  fanaticism  have  not 
diminished,  as  many  sad  episodes  within  the  last  cen- 
tury can  amply  prove ;  and  the  votaries  of  Islam  still 
cling  as  closely  to  their  faith  in  Turkey,  Persia,  Egypt, 
and  India,  at  the  end  of  the  nineteenth  century,  as  they 
did  when,  politically  speaking,  it  was  at  the  zenith  of 
its  power. 

"  Scarcely  a  century  had  elapsed  after  the  death  of 
Mohammed,  and  Islam  by  the  power  of  the  sword 
reigned  supreme  over  Arabia,  Syria,  Persia,  Egypt,  the 
whole  of  the  northern  coast  of  Africa,  and  even  as  far 
as  Spain ;  and  notwithstanding  the  subsequent  strifes 
and  divisions  of  the  interior  of  this  gigantic  realm, 
it  grew  and  grew  outwardly  until  the  Crescent  was 
made  to  gleam  from  the  spires  of  St.  Sophia  at  Con- 
stantinople, and  the  cry  of  '  Allah  il  Allah  ! '  resounded 


304  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

before  the  gates  of  Vienna.  From  that  time,  however, 
the  splendour  and  the  power  of  Mohammedanism  began 
to  wane,  although  there  are  counted  more  than 
130,000,000  this  day,  all  over  the  Globe,  who  profess 
Islam.  .  .  .  Broadly  speaking,  the  Mohammedans 
may  be  said  to  have  been  the  enlightened  teachers  of 
barbarous  Europe  from  the  ninth  to  the  thirteenth 
century.  It  is  from  the  glorious  days  of  the  Abbaside 
rulers  that  the  real  renaissance  of  Greek  spirit  and 
Greek  culture  is  to  be  dated.  Classical  literature 
would  have  been  irredeemably  lost  had  it  not  been  for 
the  home  it  found  in  the  Schools  of  the  Unbelievers  in 
the  dark  ages."  * 

The  transmission  of  astronomy  is  attributed  to  the 
two  families  who  have  descended  from  Abraham,  the 
children  of  Isaac,  and  of  Ishmael,  his  immediate 
descendants.  From  the  Arabs  we  have  received  the 
names  of  the  stars,  and  from  the  Hebrews  the  prophe- 
cies with  which  they  are  shown  to  correspond.  As  the 
Jews  have  faithfully  kept  the  word  of  prophecy, 
the  Arabs  have  preserved  the  names  of  the  stars  which 
so  remarkably  correspond  with  it. 

M.  Eenan  finds  a  tendency  to  Monotheism  in  the 
whole  Semetic  race,  but  Max  Muller  regards  the  true 


*  For  a  fuller  account  of  Mohammedanism  see  "  Life  of 
Mohammed/'  by  Mr.  W.  Muir;  Gibbon's  "Decline  and  Fall"; 
Milman's  "History  of  Christianity";  Clarke's  "Ten  Great 
Religions  " ;  D'Herbelot's  "  Bibliotheque  Orientale  " ;  and  "  Cham- 
bers' Encyclopasdia,"  from  which  some  parts  of  this  very  concise 
summary  have  been  taken. 


THE   CHILDREN   OF  ABRAHAM.  305 

origin  of  this  tendency  to  have  been  in  Abraham  him- 
self, "  the  friend  of  God  "  and  "  Father  of  the  Faithful." 
He  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that   both   Moses  and 
Christ,  and  subsequently  Mohammed,  preached  no  new 
God,  but  the  God  of  Abraham.     "  Thus,"  says  he,  "  the 
faith  in  the  One  living  God,  which  seemed  to  require 
the   admission   of  a   Monotheistic   instinct  grafted  in 
every  member  of  the  Semitic  family,  is  traced  back  to 
one  man."     He  adds  his  belief  that  this  faith  in  one 
Supreme    God   came  to   him   by    a  special  revelation. 
"And   if,"  continues  Freeman    Clarke,  "by  a  special 
revelation  is  meant  a  grand,  profound  insight,  an  in- 
spired vision  of  truth,  so  deep  and  so  living  as  to  make 
it  a  reality  like  that  of  the  outer  world  (to  the  material 
senses),   then    we    see   no    better    explanation    of    the 
Monotheism    of    the    Hebrews    than   this    conviction 
transmitted  from  Abraham,  through  Father  and  Son, 
from  generation  to  generation."     For  the  most  curious 
fact  about  the  Jewish  people  is  that  every  one  of  them 
is  a  child  of  Abraham,   all   look   back  to   their  great 
progenitor,  "  the  friend  of  God." 

But  if  the  Israelites  are  the  children  of  Abraham, 
so  also  are  the  Mohammedans,  only,  whereas  the  former 
are  the  descendants  of  Isaac,  the  son  of  the  freewoman, 
the  latter  are  descended  from  Ishmael,  the  son  of  the 
bondwoman ;  which  circumstance,  let  us  not  forget, 
Paul  tells  us  "is  an  allegory  representing  the  two 
Coverjants,  the  one  from  Mount  Sinai,  which  gendereth 
to  bondage,  and  answereth  to  Jerusalem  which  now  is, 
and  is  in  bondage  with  her  children.     But  Jerusalem 

X 


306  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

which  is  above  is  free  " ;  adding,  "  Now  we,  brethren,  as 
Isaac  was,  are  the  children  of  the  promise "  (Gal.  iv. 
22 — 32).  And  continuing  the  allegory  in  his  Epistle 
to  the  Hebrews  (xii.  22),  he  says :  "  But  you  are  come 
unto  Mount  Sion,  and  unto  the  city  of  the  living  God, 
the  heavenly  Jerusalem,  and  to  an  innumerable  com- 
pany of  angels,  to  the  church  of  the  first-born,  which 
are  written  in  heaven,  and  to  Jesus,  the  Mediator  of 
the  New  Covenant,"  &c,  &c.  And  accordingly  we 
read,  concerning  the  merits  or  demerits  of  Mohammed- 
anism, the  religion  of  the  descendants  of  the  Son  of 
Abraham  by  the  Bondwoman,*  that  while  inculcating 
as  its  central  idea  the  unity  of  God,  it  has  taught 
submission,  obedience,  patience,  but  it  has  fostered  a 
wilful  individualism  ;  it  has  made  social  life  lower.  Its 
governments  are  not  governments ;  its  virtues  are 
stoical ;  it  makes  life  barren  and  empty  ;  it  encourages 
a  savage  pride  and  cruelty ;  it  makes  men  tyrants  or 
slaves,  women  puppets,  religion  the  submission  to  an 
infinite  despotism,  and  that  it  is  a  hard,  cruel,  empty 
faith,  which  should  give  way  to  the  purer  forms  of  a 
higher  civilization.  (Freeman  Clarke,  "  Ten  Great 
Eeligions.") 

Mr.  Palgrave,  who  is  said  to  have  given  the  latest 
and  best  account  of  the  condition  of  Central  and 
Southern  Arabia,  sums  up  all  Mohammedan  theo- 
logy as  teaching  a  divine  unity  of  pure  Will :  man  is 


*  The  Mohammedans,  however,  maintain  that  Hagar  was  not  a 
slave  but  a  Princess. 


A  PANTHEISM   OF  FORCE.  307 

wholly  passive  and  impotent.  He  calls  the  system  "  a 
pantheism  of  force,"  God  has  no  Will  but  arbitrary  Will. 
He  is  a  tremendous,  unsympathising  autocrat,  but  is 
yet  jealous  of  His  creatures,  and  delights  in  making 
them  feel  that  they  are  His  slaves.  This,  Mr.  Palgrave 
asserts,  is  the  main  idea  of  Mohammedanism,  and  of 
the  Koran,  and  this  was  what  lay  in  the  mind  of 
Mohammed ;  "  of  this,"  he  says  : — 

"  We  have  many  authenticated  samples — the  Saheeh,  the  Com- 
mentaries of  Begdawee,  the  Mishkat-el-Mesabeek,  and  fifty 
similar  works  afford  ample  testimony  on  this  point.  .  .  . 
Thus  immeasurably  and  eternally  exalted,  above  and  dissimilar 
from  all  creatures,  which  lie  levelled  before  Him  on  one  common 
plane  of  instrumentality  and  inertness,  God  is  One  in  the  totality 
of  Omnipotent  and  Omnipresent  action,  which  acknowledges  no 
rule,  standard,  or  limit,  save  His  own  sole  and  absolute  will. 
He  communicates  nothing  to  His  creatures,  for  their  seeming 
power  and  act  ever  remain  His  alone,  and  in  return  lie  receives 
nothing  from  them ;  for  whatever  they  may  be,  that  they  are  in 
Him,  by  Him,  and  from  Him  only.  And,  secondly,  no  supe- 
riority, no  distinction,  no  pre-eminence,  can  be  lawfully  claimed 
by  one  creature  over  its  fellow,  in  the  utter  equalisation  of  their 
unexceptional  servitude  and  abasement ;  all  are  alike  tools  of  the 
one  solitary  Force,  which  employs  them  to  crush  or  to  benefit, 
to  truth  or  to  error,  to  honour  or  to  shame,  to  happiness  or 
misery,  quite  independently  of  their  individual  fitness,  deserts, 
or  advantage,  and  simply  because  He  wills  it,  and  as  He 
wills  it. 

.  .  .  That  the  notion  here  given  of  the  Deity,  monstrous 
and  blasphemous  as  it  may  appear,  is  exactly  and  literally  that 
which  the  Koran  conveys,  or  intends  to  convey,  I  at  present  take 
for  granted.  But  that  it  is  indeed  so,  no  one  who  has  attentively 
perused  and  thought  over  the  Arabic  text  (for  mere  cursory 
reading,  especially  in  a  translation,  will  not  suffice),  can  hesitate 
to  allow.  In  fact,  every  touch  in  this  odious  picture  has  been 
taken,  to  the  best  of  my  ability,  word  for  word,  or  at  least  mean- 
ing, from  the  '  Book,'  the  truest  mirror  of  the  mind  and  scope  of 


308  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

its  writer.     And  that  such  was  Mahomet's  mind  and  idea  is  fully 
confirmed  by  the  witness  tongue  of  contemporary  tradition."  * 

So  much  for  the  Covenant  which,  as  St.  Paul  tells 
us,  "  gendereth  to  bondage,  and  answereth  to  Jerusalem 
which  now  is,  and  is  in  bondage  with  her  children." 
Let  us  now  turn  to  the  Covenant  which  is  the 
"Jerusalem  from  above,"  or  from  the  children  of  the 
bondwoman  to  the  children  of  the  promise,  and  look  at 
this  picture  as  on  that. 

"  Christianity  teaches  a  Supreme  Being  who  is  pure  Spirit, 
'above  all,  through  all,  and  in  all;  from  whom,  and  through 
whom,  and  to  whom,  are  all  things.'  It  is  a  more  spiritual 
religion  than  Brahman  ism,  for  the  latter  has  passed  on  into 
Polytheism  and  idolatry,  which  Christianity  has  always  escaped. 
Yet,  while  teaching  faith  in  a  Supreme  Being,  the  foundation 
and  substance  below  all  existence,  it  recognises  Him  as  a  LIVING 
GOB.  He  is  not  absorbed  in  Himself,  nor  apart  from  His 
world,  but  a  perpetual  Providence,  a  personal  Friend  and  Father. 
He  dwells  in  eternity,  but  is  manifested  in  time."  (J.  F.  Clarke's 
"  Ten  Great  Religions.") 

And  now  let  us  see  these  two  Covenants  at  work  in 
every-day  life,  and  look  at  their  effects. 

For  this  purpose  we  select  a  familiar  and  interesting 
account  given  by  Miss  Kogers  in  her  little  book,  called 
"Domestic  Life  in  Palestine,"  published  in  1862, 
which  will  at  least  illustrate  the  character  of  the 
Mohammedan  women.  Miss  Eogers  travelled  in 
Palestine  with  her  brother,  who  was  British  Consul  at 
Damascus,  and  found  herself  obliged  to  sleep  in  the 


♦William   Gifford  Palgrave,    "A    Year's    Journey  Through 
Central  and  Eastern  Arabia,"  third  Edition. 


"OUR   FATHER   IN  HEAVEN."  309 

same  room  with  the  wives  of  the  Governor  of  Arrabeh, 
near  Naplous : — 

"  When  I  began  to  undress  the  women  watched  me  with 
curiosity ;  and  when  I  put  on  my  night-gown  they  were  exceed- 
ingly astonished,  and  exclaimed,  '  Where  are  you  going  ?  Why 
is  your  dress  white  ? '  They  made  no  change  for  sleeping,  and 
there  they  were,  in  their  bright-coloured  clothes,  ready  for  bed 
in  a  minute.  But  they  stood  round  me  till  I  said  '  Good-night,' 
and  then  all  kissed  me,  wishing  me  good  dreams.  Then  I  knelt 
down,  and  presently,  without  speaking  to  them  again,  got  into 
bed,  and  turned  my  face  to  the  wall,  thinking  over  the  strange 
day  I  had  spent.  I  tried  to  compose  myself  to  sleep,  though  I 
heard  the  women  whispering  together.  When  my  head  had 
rested  about  five  minutes  on  the  soft  red-silk  pillow  I  felt  a  hand 
stroking  my  forehead,  and  heard  a  voice  saying  very  gently, 
'  Ya  Habibi,'  i.e.,  '  0  beloved.'  But  I  would  not  answer  directly, 
as  I  did  not  wish  to  be  roused  unnecessarily.  I  waited  a  little 
while,  and  my  face  was  touched  again.  I  felt  a  kiss  on  my  fore- 
head, and  a  voice  said,  '  Miriam,  speak  to  us ;  speak,  Miriam, 
darling.'  I  could  not  resist  any  longer ;  so  I  turned  round,  and 
saw  Helweh,  Saleh  Bek's  prettiest  wife,  leaning  over  me.  I  said, 
'  What  is  it,  sweetness,  what  can  I  do  for  you  ?  '  She  answered, 
'  What  did  you  do  just  now  when  you  knelt  down  and  covered 
your  face  with  your  hands  ?  '  I  sat  up,  and  said  very  solemnly, 
'I  spoke  to  God,  Helweh.'  'What  did  you  say  to  Him?'  said 
Helweh.  I  replied, '  I  wish  to  sleep.  God  never  sleeps ;  I  have 
asked  Him  to  watch  over  me,  and  that  I  may  fall  asleep,  remem- 
bering that  He  never  sleeps,  and  wake  up  remembering  His 
presence.  I  am  very  weak.  God  is  all-powerful.  I  have  asked 
Him  to  strengthen  me  with  His  strength.'  By  this  time  all  the 
ladies  were  sitting  round  me  on  the  bed,  and  the  slaves  came  and 
stood  near.  I  told  them  I  did  not  know  their  language  well 
enough  to  explain  to  them  all  I  thought  and  said.  But  as  I  had 
learned  the  Lord's  Prayer  by  heart,  in  Arabic,  I  repeated  it  to 
them  sentence  by  sentence,  slowly.  When  I  began,  '  Our  Father, 
who  art  in  heaven,'  Helweh  directly  said,  '  You  told  me  your 
father  was  in  London.'  I  replied,  '  I  have  two  fathers,  Helweh : 
one  in  London,  who  does  not  know  that  I  am  here,  and  cannot 
know  till  I  write  and  tell  him ;  and  a  Heavenly  Father,  who  is 


310  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

here  now,  who  is  with  me  always,  and  sees  and  hears  us.  He 
is  your  Father  also.  He  teaches  us  to  know  good  from  evil,  if  we 
listen  to  Him  and  obey  Him.' 

"For  a  moment  there  was  perfect  silence.  They  all  looked 
startled,  and  as  if  they  felt  that  they  were  in  the  presence  of 
some  unseen  power.  Then  Helweh  said,  '  What  more  did  you 
say  ? '  I  continued  the  Lord's  Prayer,  and  when  I  came  to  the 
words,  '  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread,'  they  said,  '  Cannot 
you  make  bread  yourself  ? '  The  passage,  '  Forgive  us  our 
trespasses  as  we  forgive  those  that  trespass  against  us,'  is  par- 
ticularly forcible  in  the  Arabic  language ;  and  one  of  the  elder 
women,  who  was  particularly  severe  and  relentless  looking,  said, 
'  Are  you  obliged  to  say  that  every  day  ? '  as  if  she  thought 
that  sometimes  it  would  be  difficult  to  do  so.  They  said, '  Are 
you  a  Moslem?'  I  said,  'I  am  not  called  a  Moslem;  but  I  am 
your  sister,  made  by  the  same  God,  who  is  the  one  only  God,  the 
God  of  all,  my  Father  and  your  Father.'  They  asked  me  if  I 
knew  the  Koran,  and  were  surprised  to  hear  that  I  had  read  it. 
They  handed  a  rosary  to  me,  saying,  '  Do  you  know  that.'  I 
repeated  a  few  of  the  most  striking  and  comprehensive  attributes 
very  carefully  and  slowly.  Then  they  cried  out,  '  Mashallah,  the 
English  girl  is  a  true  believer ' ;  and  the  impressionable,  sensitive- 
looking  Abyssinian  slave-girls  said,  with  one  accord,  '  She  is 
indeed  an  angel.' 

"Moslems,  men  and  women,  have  the  name  of  Allah  con- 
stantly on  their  lips,  but  it  seems  to  have  become  a  mere  form. 
This  may  explain  why  they  were  so  startled  when  I  said,  '  I  was 
speaking  to  God.'  If  I  had  only  said,  '  I  was  saying  my  prayers,' 
or  '  I  was  at  my  devotions,'  it  would  not  have  impressed  them. 
Next  morning  on  awaking  I  found  the  women  from  the  neigh- 
bourhood had  come  in  '  to  hear  the  English  girl  speak  to  God,' 
and  Helweh  said,  'Now,  Miriam,  darling,  will  you  speak  to 
God  ? '  At  the  conclusion  I  asked  them  if  they  could  say  Amen, 
and  after  a  moment  of  hesitation  they  cried  out,  '  Amen,  Amen ! ' 
Then  one  said,  '  Speak  again,  my  daughter,  speak  about  the 
bread.'  So  I  repeated  the  Lord's  Prayer  with  explanations. 
"When  I  left  they  crowded  around  affectionately,  saying,  '  Return 
again,  oh,  Miriam,  beloved ! ' " 

The  Mohammedan  idea  of  God  is  that  of  an  abstract 


THE  MUEZZIN'S   CALL  TO   PRAYER.  311 

spirituality,  distant  and  incomprehensible,  far  above  the 
world,  and  above  all ;  the  Monotheism  of  the  Jews  differs 
from  this,  that  it  combines  with  the  idea  of  Will  the 
idea  of  Justice.  Kighteousness  and  justice  are  ideas  of 
God  with  which  the  Jewish  books  abound.  "  Mohammed 
teaches  a  God  above  us,  Moses  a  God  above  us  and  yet 
with  us.  Jesus  teaches  God  above  us,  God  with  us,  and 
God  in  us." 

Five  times  a  day  the  Muezzin  proclaims  the  hour  of 
prayer  from  the  minarets  in  these  words  :  "  There  is  no 
God  but  God,  Mobammed  is  his  prophet;  come  to 
prayer,"  and  immediately  every  Mussulman  prostrates 
himself  on  the  ground,  wherever  he  may  be,  with  the 
greatest  humility.  There  is  no  doubt  that  they  are 
very  punctilious  in  their  religious  duties,  and  many  of 
them  are  sincerely  pious.  They  consider  prayer  to  be 
the  Key  of  Paradise  ;  but  that  the  prayer  should  be 
efficacious  certain  religious  purifications  are  required 
as  necessary  preparations.  They  are  of  two  kinds : 
the  GhusI,  or  total  immersion  of  the  body,  is  required 
as  a  religious  ceremony  on  some  special  occasions ; 
and  the  Wadu,  a  partial  ablution  to  be  performed 
immediately  before  the  prayer.  This  is  of  primary 
importance  and  consists  of  the  washing  of  hands, 
face,  ears,  and  feet,  up  to  the  ankles ;  a  proceeding- 
accompanied  generally  at  each  stage  by  corresponding 
pious  sentences. 

It  is  admitted  that  the  Koran  was  made  up,  after  the 
death  of  Mohammed,  in  a  moment  of  confusion  and 
civil    strife,  partly   from   papers   and   partly  from  the 


312  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

memories  of  his  followers,  and  that  twenty-two  years 
afterwards  it  was  again  made  up  or  redacted  by 
Othman.  It  contains  evident  marks  of  two  religions — 
the  one  previous  to  the  flight  to  Medina,  and  the  other 
posterior  to  that  flight.  The  first  is  the  Koran  of 
Mohammed  and  the  first  four  Caliphs — the  first  four 
sincere  and  zealous  Patriarchs,  commanding  immense 
armies,  but  walking  on  foot  to  the  Mosque  to  chaunt 
the  praises  of  Grod  in  such  simple  ceremonies  as  might 
be  expected  from  a  reformer ;  the  second,  the  Koran  of 
the  conquering  and  magnificent  Saracen,  puffed  up  with 
pride  and  vanity.  Thus  the  Koran  contains  two  very 
distinct  religions :  the  first  a  system  of  pure  theism,  as 
perfect  as  the  age  could  produce,  having  the  germs  of 
purity  and  illumination,  inculcating  severe  morals  and 
stoical  submission;  the  second  teaches  a  sanguinary 
propagandism,  fraught  with  bigotry  and  intolerance. 
One  was  the  religion  of  Mohammed  the  Sophee,  the 
follower  of  Divine  Wisdom,  the  other  the  doctrine  of 
the  conquering  Caliphs. 

That  there  are  beauties  in  the  Koran  we  do  not  dis- 
pute, and  the  Mohammedans  consider  its  beauty  to  be  a 
sufficient  proof  of  its  Divine  inspiration ;  but  in  elevation 
of  thought  and  in  clearness  of  expression  it  will  not 
bear  a  comparison  with  other  sacred  writings.  "  To 
us,"  says  M.  Eenan,  "  the  Koran  appears  declamatory, 
monotonous,  tedious."  Unlike  the  Bible,  which  is  the 
inspiration  of  many  elevated  minds,  the  Koran  is  that 
of  the  mind  of  one  man  alone ;  for  this  very  reason 
it  may  certainly  lay  claim  to  uniformity  of  expression 


THE    KORAN.  313 

throughout,  but   it   is  a  mechanical  uniformity  that, 

as   M.    Eenan   truly   says,   becomes    monotonous    and 

tedious.     He  might  also  have  said   that  it  lacks  not 

only   the    variety    of  expression,    but    also   the    grand 

liberality  of  the  Hebrew  Scriptures.     It  is  narrow  and 

intolerant  as  a  whole ;  nevertheless  it  contains,  of  course, 

many  fine  passages.    Take,  for  instance,  this  description 

of  the  infidel : 

"  As  darkness  over  a  deep  sea,  billows  riding  on  billows  below, 
and  clouds  above,  one  darkness  on  another  darkness,  so  that  if  a 
man  stretches  out  his  hand  he  cannot  behold  it:  thus  is  he  to 
whom  the  light  of  God  doth  not  come." 

And  a  passage  called  "  The  folding  up  "  : 

"  When  the  sun  shall  be  folded  up,  and  the  stars  shall  fall,  and 
the  mountains  be  put  in  motion,  and  the  seas  boil,  and  the  leaves 
of  the  book  be  unrolled,  and  the  heavens  be  stripped  off  like  a  skin, 
and  hell  shall  begin  to  blaze,  and  Paradise  draw  near,  then  shall 
every  soul  know  what  it  has  done." 

The  following  is  a  metrical  account  of  the  verses,  &c, 
of  the  Koran,  taken  from  a  very  beautiful  copy,  once  the 
property  of  the  unfortunate  Tippoo  Sultan,  preserved  in 
the  public  library  at  Cambridge : 

"  The  verses  of  the  Koran,  which  is  good  and  heart-delighting, 
Are  six  thousand,  six  hundred,  and  sixty-six. 
One  thousand  of  it  command,  one  thousand  strongly  prohibit, 
One  thousand  of  it  promise,  one  thousand  of  it  threaten. 
One  thousand  of  it  read  in  choice  stories ; 
And  know,  one  thousand  of  it  to  consist  in  instructive  parables, 
Five  hundred  of  it  in  discussions  on  lawful  and  unlawful ; 
One  hundred  of  it  are  prayers  for  morning  and  evening. 
Know,  sixty-six  abrogating  and  abrogated. 
Of  such  an  one  I  have  now  told  you  the  whole." 

In  the  6,666  we  may  surely  see  the  idea  of  the  cyclic 


314  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

system.  The  first  cycle  was  6,  the  second  60,  the  third 
600,  the  next  6,000 ;  and  thus  we  see  Mohammed  so 
generally  considered  to  be  the  tenth  Avatar,  the  Om- 
Ahmed,  or  renewed  incarnation ;  the  tenth  incarnation 
of  Buddha,  or  Divine  Wisdom,  the  cyclar  desire  of  all 
nations ;  coming  as  he  did  600  years  after  Jesus,  as 
Jesus  came  600  years  after  Buddha,  and  was  himself 
succeeded  by  Grenghis  Khan.*  The  ten  incarnations 
were  the  ten  revolutions  of  the  Neros  or  the  sacred  Om. 
At  the  birth  of  Christ  eight  had  passed  as  allowed  by 
the  Brahmins,  and  testified  of  by  Virgil,  Zoroaster,  and 
the  Sybils.  That  the  world  was  to  come  to  an  end  in 
6,000  years,  that  is  to  say,  in  ten  Avatars,  Calpas,  or 
ages  of  600  years  each,  was  the  generally  received 
opinion  of  the  early  Christians,  although  they  were 
uncertain  whether  these  ages  were  to  begin  from  the 
Creation  or  the  Flood. 

In  the  time  of  Eichard  the  First,  A.D.  1190,  a  general 

*  "  It  is  a  fact  very  little  known,  and  not  hitherto  explained, 
that  the  native  Hindoo  princes  formerly  solicited  (and  even  yet,  if 
the  British  did  not  prevent  it,  would  solicit)  investiture  in  their 
dominions  hy  the  hand  of  the  Mogul  at  Delhi  (the  city  of  seven 
gates,  like  the  city  of  Thebes,  governed  by  Al-Mage,  the  Mage  or 
Mogul ;  Delhi,  city  of  The  God — II.,  D-'el-ii.),  though  he  is  a 
Mohammedan,  and  they  are  followers  of  Cristna  or  of  the  Brah- 
mins. The  reason  is  found  in  his  being  a  descendant  of  Genghis 
Khan,  who  was  believed  to  be  an  Avatar,  a  Vicramaditya,  and  as 
such  entitled  to  universal  dominion.  Mohammed  is  also  considered 
by  them  to  have  been  an  Avatar,  as  he  was  certainly  considered 
by  the  Afghans,  and  the  ancient  pilgrimages  of  Hindoos  to  Mecca 
confirm  this  theory.  The  Sopheism  of  India  and  Mohammed  were, 
no  doubt,  originally  the  same.  It  is  evident  that  the  Mogul, 
the  King  of  Siarn,  the  Emperor  of  China,  all  claim  to  be  the 


THE  CAUSE  OF  THE  CRUSADES.        315 

belief  prevailed  that  the  end  of  the  world  drew  near,  a 
belief  which  in  great  measure  caused  the  Crusades  to 
Palestine,  where  the  devotees  expected  the  Saviour 
to  appear.  The  persons  who  were  initiated  into 
the  Esoteric  religion  of  the  Vatican,  after  being 
disappointed  in  the  year  of  Christ  600,  imagined  that 
the  famous  6000  years  would  end  about  the  year  1200 
of  Christ,  when  the  Millennium  would  commence,  and 
it  was  this  which  caused  the  crusade  against  the  Mo- 
hammedan  anti-Christ  who  had  arisen  against  the  new, 
the  tenth,  and  the  last  Avatar  or  Messenger.  If  the 
ninth  age  began  with  Christ,  then,  they  argued,  the 
tenth  would  begin  with  the  year  600  and  finish  with 
the  year  1200  ;  and  then  would  be  the  manifestation  of 
the  Lord  at  Jerusalem,  which  the  devotees  wished  to  pre- 
pare for  His  reception.  This  is  attested  by  St.  Bernard 
of  Clairvaux,  and  was  foretold  by  Joachim,  Abbot  of 

descendants  of  the  eldest  son  of  the  first  Patriarch,  and  from  him 
have  a  right  to  the  empire  of  the  world.  From  this  we  may  see 
that  their  titles  of  King  of  Kings,  Sec,  &c,  are  not  examples 
of  mere  empty,  fulsome  adulation,  but  that  they  have  a  basis. 
On  this  rests  their  claim  or  title  of  Son  of  the  Sun  and  Moon, 
which  at  first  appears  to  us  so  monstrously  ridiculous.  The 
empire  of  Genghis  Khan  was  called  the  wise  government,  or  the 
government  of  toisdom.  Respecting  this  prince  see,  in  the  Ency, 
Brit.,  Art.,  Mogul,  pp.  299,  &c,  the  pedigree  of  Japbet,  the 
romantic  account  of  his  ancestors  for  400  years,  his  inaugura- 
tion by  a  prophet,  the  change  of  his  name  from  Teninjin,  and  the 
belief  of  his  subjects  that  he  was  entitled  to  possess  the  whole 
world.  This  inauguration  of  Genghis  took  place  in  the  thirteenth 
century,  when  in  Europe  the  Millennium  was  expected,  when  all 
men  were  looking  out  for  some  one  to  come.  Genghis  Khan 
marched  into  China  in  a.d.  1211." — ("  Auacalypsis"  II.,  p.  353.) 


316  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Curacio  in  Calabria,  a  most  renowned  interpreter  of 
astronomy  in  those  days.  Anti-Christ  was  to  appear  at 
Antioch,  and  the  fanatical  crusade  was  the  gathering 
together  of  the  kings  of  the  earth  to  the  battle  of 
the  great  day  of  God  Almighty.  It  seems  from  the 
accounts  that  the  possession  of  Antioch  was  made  a 
great  point,  almost  as  much  so,  indeed,  as  that  of 
Jerusalem.  It  was  among  the  first  cities  taken  by  the 
Crusaders. 

We,  who  are  living  at  the  end  of  the  second  cycle  or 
calpa  of  600  years  since  their  time,  are  again  specu- 
lating upon  the  end  of  the  world,  (age,  or  calpa),  for  all 
the  signs  of  the  times  point  to  a  great  moral  change 
about  to  come  on  the  earth,  and  some  of  us  consider 
this  change  is  actually  upon  us,  and  that  we  already 
begin  to  experience  some  of  its  effects — in  fact,  that 
it  literally  began  with  the  year  1882;  1881  being,  ac- 
cording to  many  coinciding  prophecies,  the  last  year  of 
the  old  Dispensation,  and  personally  we  have  adopted 
the  custom  of  dating  from  that  year  as  Anno  Bomince  1, 
employing  the  word  in  its  feminine  termination,  the 
New  Dispensation  having  been  foretold  to  be  of  feminine 
import,  no  less,  indeed,  than  the  advent  of  Divine 
Wisdom  or  Theo-SOPHIA,  therefore  the  age  of  making 
known  all  that  which  has  been  kept  secret  from  the 
beginning. 

Perhaps  a  more  satisfactory  explanation  of  the  femi- 
nine character  of  the  New  Dispensation  may  be  ob- 
tained from  our  brothers  of  the  Orient  {Ex  Oriente 
Lux).     In  their  doctrine  of  the  Sevenfold  Constitution 


THE    MARRIAGE   OF   THE  KING'S   SON.  317 

of  Man  we  find  that  the  Soul  is  ever  considered 
feminine.  The  first,  or  earthly  Soul,  the  Anima 
Bruta,  (the  "4th  Principle"),  is  derived  from,  and  repre- 
sented by,  the  Earth  Mother,  EVE,  but  the  Spiritual 
Soul,  the  Anima  Divina,  (the  "  6th  Principle "),  is 
literally  the  Bride  from  Heaven — MARY,  the  Virgin 
Mother  of  the  Christ  in  Man ;  and  it  is  the  Advent  of 
this  Spiritual  Soul  in  humanity  that  is  now  expected, 
and  which  will  in  due  time  favour  the  Second  Coming 
of  Christ,  as  the  Christ  Spirit  is  conceived  in,  and 
born  of  this  6th  Principle,  or  Spiritual  Soul — which  is 
the  Mother  of  Grod  in  Man.  Thus  the  New  Dispensa- 
tion will  literally  be  "  the  Manifestation  of  the 
Sons  and  Daughters  of  God." 

Certainly  the  signs  of  the  times  would  strongly  con- 
firm the  accuracy  of  the  calculations  on  which  such 
a  conviction  is  based,  for  more  than  in  any  previous  age 
may  the  present  be  described,  in  the  words  of  Daniel,* 
as  "the  time  of  the  end"  when  "many  shall  run 
to  and  fro,  and  knoivledge  shall  be  increased."  Not 
only  have  the  means  of  locomotion  seemingly  reached 
their  full-pressure  power,  and  news  is  carried  round  the 
world  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  by  means  of  electricity 
but  also  it  is  proving  itself  on  all  sides  to  be  most  espe- 
cially the  time  of  making  known,  for  all  myths  and 
allegories  are  now  being  explained  and  fully  mani- 
fested in  their  true  meaning  to  those  who  have  ears 
to  hear,  and  hearts  to  understand,  and  it  is  only  those 

*  Chapter  xii.  of  Daniel.     See  also  xxiv.  Matthew. 


318  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

who  are  still  so  much  on  the  lower  plane  of  mate- 
rialism, and  who  are  therefroe  indifferent  to  such  reve- 
lations, who  will  fail  to  partake  of  the  good  fare  now 
sent  anew  to  those  who  love  the  Lord,  and  will  therefore 
gladly  receive  the  revelations  of  "  the  Spirit  of  Truth, 
the  Comforter,"  so  distinctly  prophesied  by  Christ,  the 
latest  of  the  messengers  from  the  courts  of  our  sweet 
Universal  Mother  the  Divine  Wisdom. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  that  the  numerals  of  the  year  1881, 
summed  up  Kabbalistically  thus — 1  +8+8  +  1  =  18,  and 
divided  by  three,  give  forth  the  three  mysterious  sixes, 
or  666,  the  Apocalyptic  number  of  the  Beast,  which  may 
mean  denial,  the  spirit  of  unbelief  and  materialism,  for 
we  are  told  that  it  is  also  the  number  of  the  man.  But 
this  is  the  earth  man,  who  having  completed  his  material 
state  is  henceforward  called  by  a  new  name,  (probably 
"a  Son  of  God"),  and  expected  to  lead  a  new  life; 
and  apropos  of  this  there  is  yet  another  remarkable 
coincidence  regarding  this  date  1881  to  be  found  in 
the  seventeenth  chapter  of  Genesis,  in  which  we  read 
that  the  Lord  God  Almighty  renewed  the  covenant  with 
Abram,  thenceforward  to  be  called  by  a  "  New  Name  " 
(A-Braham  or  Son  of  God)  when  he  was  "ninety  years 
old  and  nine,"  promising  that  he  should  be  the  father 
of  many  nations,  and  calling  upon  him  to  walk  before 
him  and  be  Perfect.  The  union  of  God  and  man 
naturally  involves  the  idea  of  man's  most  perfect  state, 
when,  in  other  words,  the  son  of  man  is  born  again,  or 
regenerated,  and  becomes  a  Son  of  God. 

Now,  we  find  that  the  age  of  Abraham  at  that  remark- 


A.D.   1881.  319 

able  time  was  99,  which  multiplied  by  the  19  years  of 
the  Metonic  cycle  gives  us  again  the  eventful  date  1881, 
and  also  again,  thus  Kabbalistically  summed,  1  +  8  =  9, 
8+1  =9,  or  99.  In  fact,  these  numerals  can  be  read 
backwards  and  forwards,  or  placed  perpendicularly  and 
read  upwards  or  downwards,  for  they  will  always  give 
the  same  number,  or  date — 1881.* 

In  the  Baghavat  Gita,  Arjun  is  informed  by  Christna 
that  God  is  in  the  fire  on  the  altar,  and  that  the 
devout  with  offerings,  direct  their  worship  unto  God 
in  the  fire.  "  I  am  the  fire  !  I  am  the  victim  !  "  The 
Divinity  is  frequently  characterised  in  that  book,  as 
in  other  Sanscrit  compositions,  by  the  secret,  therefore 
not-to-be-spoken  word  Om,  that  mystic  emblem  of  the 
Deity  in  India.  The  letter  M,  the  middle  letter,  was 
held  a  sacred  mystery.  It  was  the  Omphalos,  or  AeX^w. 
It  was  the  monogram  of  Mater,  Maia,  Maria,  Mary, 
the  Eegina  Cceli.  All  the  Indian  nations  admit  their 
ignorance  of  the  etymology  or  meaning  of  their 
sacred  AUM,  they  constantly  use  it  as  OM,  which 
they  acknowledge  to  be  a  corruption,  but  they  know 
not  how.  It  seems  very  probable  that  the  AUM  may 
once  have  been  the  amq— the  Alpha  and  Omega  with 
the  addition  of  the  middle  letter  of  the  alphabet ;  at 
all  events  it  connects  well  with  the  mystic  AMO — I 

*  For  further  particulars  concerning-  this  eventful  year  the 
reader  is  referred  to  a  small  book  entitled  "  How  the  Would 
came  to  an  End  in  1881,"  published  by  Hamilton,  Adams  and 
Co. ;  and  also  to  a  pamphlet  entitled  "  1881  and  1882,"  by  the 
Countess  of  Caithness ;  to  be  obtained  at  The  Philanthropic 
Keform  Publishing  Offices,  Oxford  Mansion,  London,  W. 


320  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

love  (the  Divine  Love)  and  with  Mo-ahmed  or  Om- 
ahmed,  Om  the  desire  of  all  nations ;  whom  Jesus  was 
believed  by  the  gnostics  and  templars  to  have  foretold. 
In  the  Anacalypsis  we  read  : 

"  From  the  Mohammedans  we  can  learn  little ;  and  it  is 
probable  that  the  Turks  may  really  possess  nothing  of  the  Arabian 
knowledge  upon  these  subjects.  But  it  is  a  most  important  fact, 
that  the  Brahmins  maintain  that  Mohammed  either  was  or  pre- 
tended to  be  a  Vicramaditya  and  Avatar.  The  fact  cannot  be 
denied  that  when  the  Mohammedans  overran  India  they  did  not 
destroy  the  images  of  the  Buddhists.  The  reason  was  because  in 
the  simple,  unadorned,  uncorrupted  icon  of  Buddha  they  found 
their  own  Om,  and  Mohammed  was  believed  by  himself,  or  by  his 
followers,  to  be  the  tenth  and  last  Avatar— incarnation  of  the 
sacred  Om,  the  Amed  or  desire  of  all  nations.  On  this  account  it 
was  that  the  Afghans  and  the  mountaineers  of  Mewar  and  Malwa 
came  to  be  among  the  first  of  Mohammed's  followers. 

"  The  fact  is  Mohammedanism  was  no  new  religion,  it  was  only 
a  continuation  of  Buddhism.  Mecca,  the  sacred  city  of  Mo- 
hammed, was  well  known  to  the  ancients  by  a  name  which  had 
the  meaning  of  the  name  Mohammed.  It  was  called  Maco  or 
Moca  by  Ptolemy,  or  Moca,  the  great  or  illustrious.  Colonel 
Wilford  informs  us  that  the  Arabian  writers  unanimously  sup- 
port the  doctrine — that  the  present  Mecca  is  the  Moca  of  Ptolemy. 
The  seaport  of  this  Moca  is  the  town  or  port  of  Baddeo-regia, 
or  the  city  of  the  holy  and  royal  Buddha. 

"  Mocsha  means  eternal  bliss ;  then  the  name  will  be  place  of 
eternal  happiness.  The  indubitable  fact  that  Mecca  was  a  place 
sacred  to  the  Amed,  or  desire  of  all  nations,  before  Mohammed, 
the  camel-driver,  was  born,  opens  to  our  view  a  new  enigma,  which 
cannot  be  solved  without  supposing  an  esoteric  religion  in  Mo- 
hammedanism, as  well  as  in  all  other  religions. 

"  The  prejudices  of  modern  Christians  entirely  blind  them 
to  the  undeniable  fact  that  every  Mohammedan  is  as  really  a 
Christian  as  themselves.  And  this  is  in  perfect  keeping  with 
their  possession  of  the  magnificent  Church,  or  Mosque,  of  St.  John, 
at  Damascus,  where  his  head  is  preserved  and  so  much  venerated 
that  the  Turks  will  not  permit  even  one  of  their  own  religion  to  look 
at  it,  and  never  permit  a  Christian  to  go  into  the  church  or  mosque. 


MO-AHMED   THE   TENTH   AVATAR.  321 

"  Jesus  Christ  was  believed  by  the  followers  of  Mohammed  to 
be  a  divine  incarnation,  or  a  person  divinely  inspired,  and  to  have 
foretold  the  next  and  the  last  Avatar,  Mohammed,  to  complete 
the  ten  periods  and  the  six  millenaries,  previous  to  the  great 
millennium,  or  the  reign  of  the  Xprjsos,  or  Christ,  on  earth  for  the 
last  and  seventh  period  of  one  thousand  years.  Irenseus  and  the 
first  Christian  Fathers  said,  that  during  this  period  the  lion  was 
to  lie  down  with  the  lamb,  and  the  grapes  were  to  cry  out  to  the 
faithful  to  come  and  eat  them  ! 

"  I  think  in  the  expression  alluded  to  in  the  Koran,  if  I  mistake 
not,  there  is  a  proof  that  the  doctrine  of  the  renewal  of  the  cycle 
was  held  by  Mohammed,  or  was  thought  to  be  applicable  to  him  ; 
and  it  seems  that  the  writer  of  that  book  held  up  Mohammed  as 
a  new  incarnation.  Divine  Love,  coming  in  the  tenth  Steculum,  as 
foretold  by  the  Sybils,  by  Jesus,  and  also  by  the  prophet  Haggai 
(ii.  7) — 'and  the  desire  of  all  nations  shall  come: '  '  "7QH  HMD. 
'  From  this  root '  (says  Parkhurst)  '  the  pretended  prophet  Mo- 
hammed, or  Mahomet,  had  his  name?  I  beg  to  refer  to  what  I 
have  said  in  my  last  section  ;  there  my  reader  will  see  that  the 
end  of  the  tenth  cycle  was  foretold  by  Christian  Astrologers, 
which  caused  the  fanatical  crusaders  almost  by  millions  to  flock  to 
Jerusalem  about  the  year  1200,  the  end  of  Mohammed's  cycle. 
The  observation  of  Mr.  Faber,  that  Mohammed's  mission  began  at 
the  year  608,  is  important.  This  is  the  very  period  when  the 
tenth  Avatar  ought  to  commence,  according  to  the  system  of  the 
Neros.  If  this  be  accident  it  is  surely  a  very  extraordinary 
accident  that  among  all  the  numbers  the  identical  number  of  the 
great  Neros  should  be  fallen  on. 

"The  expression  which  the  Mohammedans  say  has  been 
expunged  from  the  Romish  Gospels  is  as  follows :  '  And  when 
Jesus,  the  Son  of  Mary,  said,  0  Children  of  Israel,  verily  I  am  the 
Apostle  of  God  sent  unto  you,  confirming  the  law  which  was 
delivered  before  me  and  bringing  good  tidings  of  an  Apostle  who 
shall  come  after  me  and  whose  name  shall  be  AHMED.'  (Chap, 
lxi.)     This  is  correctly  as  foretold  by  Haggai." 

Thus  we  see  that  it  was  not  without  foundation 
Mohammed  was  held  to  be  the  tenth  Avatar,  or 
Theosophic    Messenger    from    the    Logos    or    Divine 

Y 


322  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Wisdom.  Although  neither  mentally  or  morally  per- 
fect, he  was  certainly  Adept  enough  to  absorb  for  his 
religion  what  mystic  element  he  understood,  and  by 
his  mediumistic  inspiration  brought  a  fresh  impulse 
into  the  Occult  World,  and  infused  new  life  into  lan- 
guishing yet  undying  theosophic  systems.  The  enthu- 
siasm with  which  he  inspired  his  disciples  was  not 
entirely  expended  in  the  mere  conquest  of  other 
nations.  It  also  taught  a  number  of  his  followers 
that  conquest  which  is  greater  than  all.; — the  con- 
quest of  SELF.  It  was  the  Theosophy  of  the  few 
that  served  as  inspiration  to  the  martial  spirit  of 
the  many.  Thus  we  again  see  that  Theosophy  was 
the  originator  and  cause  of  a  great  movement. 

The  Sufis,  generally  considered  to  be  Moslem  mystics, 
have  much  of  the  primitive  Kabbala  embodied  in  their 
Theosophy.  Passing  through  Sabean  and  Magian 
channels,  a  stream  of  pre-Mohammedan  tradition  has 
been  preserved ;  and  although  their  writings  may  cite 
the  Koran,  any  other  inspired  book  would  serve  them 
as  well,  so  little  are  they  indebted  to  the  religion 
of  Mohammed;  and  it  is  evident  that  the  Sufism, 
which  is  most  numerously  represented  in  Persia,  is 
derived  from  the  ancient  religion  of  the  Magi,  and 
is  but  Magianism  under  another  name ;  for  all  these 
systems  are  essentially  and  esoterically  one.  The 
more  strictly  Mohammedan  Theosophy  must  be  sought 
among:  the  Ba-Shara  Orders  of  Dervishes.  But  as 
several  ancient  Orders  of  Pagan  Theosophy  by  merely 
changing  a  few  names  of  gods  have  survived  in  orthodox 


THE  SUFIS.  323 

Christianity  and  Islamism,  it  will  be  seen  how  little 
each  system  can  really  claim  as  its  own  if  the  leaven  of 
the  ancient  Wisdom-Keligion  were  to  be  taken  from  it. 

In  the  very  first  year  of  the  Hegira,  forty-five  men  of 
Mecca  combined  with  the  same  number  of  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Medina,  to  form  a  theosophic  order ;  making 
a  vow  to  be  faithful  to  the  doctrine  of  their  teacher, 
Mohammed,  and  to  follow  theosophic  practice  in  a 
spirit  of  mortification  and  penitence.  To  distinguish 
themselves  from  the  other  Moslems,  they  at  first  as- 
sumed the  time-honoured  name  of  Sufis.  This  title 
was,  however,  soon  applied  to  all  zealous  partisans  of 
Islam,  and  being  also  given  to  all  who  devote  them- 
selves to  isolation,  study,  and  a  contemplative  life ; 
and  as  there  were,  moreover,  Sabean,  Magian,  and 
Gnostic  Sufis  extant,  it  seems  not  to  have  answered  the 
distinctive  character  intended. 

Applying  then  unto  themselves  a  certain  saying  of 
Mohammed,  "  poverty  is  my  glory  "  (el  fakru  fakree), 
these  Theosophists,  who,  as  a  practical  illustration  of 
their  principles  held,  like  the  Essenes,  all  possessions 
in  common,  elected  to  be  known  by  the  appellation 
of  Fakeers.  Thus  the  Fakeers  date  from  Mohammed, 
but  the  Sufis  are  far  more  ancient. 

Following  the  example  of  the  school  of  Mohammed, 
Abubekr  and  Ali  then  established  similar  orders  under 
the  direction  and  spiritual  guidance  of  Mohammed. 
Being  independently  instituted,  each  of  these  orders 
had  a  different  method  of  practice,  but  all  members 
were  bound  by  a  common  vow. 


324  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

At  the  death  of  Abubekr  the  presidency  of  his  order 
was  transferred  to  Selman  Farissi,  and  that  of  Ali 
passed,  at  the  death  of  the  latter,  to  Hassan  Bassri. 
Both  these  presidents  were  consecrated  under  the  mys- 
tic name  of  Khilafeth,  signifying  vicariat,  and  indicating 
fif  the  word  has  any  mystic  meaning)  that  each  had 
brought  the  vicarious  atonement  for  himself,  that  he 
had  died  the  mystic  death  of  the  senses,  and  attained 
to  Divine  Union,  before  the  Presidency  of  the  Order 
was  entrusted  to  him.  The  theosophic  nucleus,  which 
was  the  beginning  of  Mohammedan  monasticism,  ap- 
pears to  have  been  not  the  order  formed  by  Mohammed 
himself,  that  is  to  say,  by  the  men  of  Mecca  and 
Medina.  This  seems  to  have  remained  as  a  stationary 
local  affair,  or  became  absorbed  with  its  younger  off- 
shoots ;  but  the  two  great  orders  of  Abubekr  and  Ali 
have  been  renewed  and  increased  in  many  ways  up  to 
the  present  time. 

Every  century  brought,  in  Mohammedan  states,  some 
new  theosophic  order,  and  these  were  not  evanescent 
institutions,  for  many  continue  to  exist.  Mouradjea 
D'Ohsson  enumerates  thirty-two.  They  are  divided 
into  two  great  classes,  "  Ba-Shara  "  (with  the  law),  or 
those  who  govern  their  conduct  according  to  the  prin- 
ciples of  Islam  ;  and  the  "  Be-Shara  "  (without  the  law), 
or  those  who  do  not  rule  their  lives  according  to  the 
principles  of  any  religious  creed,  although  they  call 
themselves    Mussulmans.  *      The    latter    probably   are 

*  Hughes  "Notes  on  Mohammedanism,"  p.  139,  quoted  by 
J.  W.  H.  Stobart,  "  Islam  and  its  founder." 


THE   DERVISHES.  325 

Sufis,  having  a  pre-Mohammedan  tradition.  The  thirty- 
two  orders  of  Dervishes  are :  the  Elwanis,  Edhemis, 
Bestamis,  Sacatis,  Caclris,  Eufayis,  Subherwerdis,  Ku- 
brewis,  Shazilis,  Mewlewis,  Bedawis,  Nakshibendis, 
Sadis,  Bektashis,  Khalwetis,  Zeinis,  Babayis,  Beyramis, 
Eshrefis,  Bekris,  Sunbulis,  Grulshenis  (also  called  Kus- 
henyis),  the  Ighis-Bashis,  Um-Sinawis,  Djelwetis,  Eusha- 
kis,  Shemsis,  Sinnanumis,  Niyazis,  Muradis,  Nuredimis, 
and  the  Djemalis. 

Three  of  these  orders,  the  Bestamis,  Nakshibendis, 
and  Bektashis  claim  descent  from  the  congregation  of 
Abubekr,  while  the  rest  assert  to  be  derived  from  that 
of  Ali.  They  are  mostly  named  after  the  Sheikhs 
who  founded  them,  and  a  genealogy  called  Silsileth  ul 
Ewliya-ullah,  the  genealogy  of  the  Saints  of  God,  is 
aspired  to  in  connection  with  the  establishment  of  these 
orders ;  almost  as  numerous  as  Christian  sects. 

Pir  Mohammed  Nakshibendi,  a  religious  Eeformer, 
established  an  order  bearing  his  own  name,  and  founded 
upon  the  principles  of  two  primitive  orders,  but  espe- 
cially upon  those  of  Abubekr.  It  was  more  a  meeting- 
house for  citizens  than  a  monastic  order,  although  an 
inner  circle  for  the  higher  life  was  established  within  it. 
The  members  of  the  order  met  on  Thursdays  (the  eve  of 
the  Mohammedan  Sabbath)  to  pray  in  common.  They 
were  also  bound  to  recite  separately  a  certain  number  of 
prayers  daily;  just  as  in  the  Catholic  Church. 

The  practice  of  the  Dervishes  of  dancing,  or  rather 
whirling,  and  of  swaying  the  body,  current  in  nearly 
all   Mohammedan    monasteries,  is   only   conducive   to 


326  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

arrive  at  a  mediumistic  condition  not  pertaining  to  our 
inquiry.  If  the  Mohammedan  Theosophy  has  not  the 
science  of  the  Aryan  systems,  its  intuitional  method, 
although  at  times  straying  into  mere  spiritism,  often 
arrives  at  remarkably  true  definitions. 

Many  ingenious  esoteric  explanations  are  given  by 
the  Mohammedan  Mystics  of  the  exoteric  forms  of  their 
religious  system,  as  the  following  may  serve  to  show  : — 

"  The  performing  the  circuit  of  the  Caaba,*  the  being  free  from 
wickedness  and  crime  is  Sheriat ;  but  the  performing  the  circuit  of 
the  house  of  God,  to  wit,  the  heart,  and  warring  with  the  natural 
inclination,  and  performing  obedience  to  the  angels  is  Tarikat;  to 
remain  constantly  meditating  on  Almighty  God,  to  believe  firmly 
in  the  instruction  received,  to  remove  the  veil  of  whatever  exists 
besides  God  from  the  heart,  and  to  fix  the  view  on  the  charms  of  the 
object  of  celestial  affection  are  matters  of  Hakikat ;  to  view  the 
Divine  nature  with  the  eye  of  the  heart,  to  see  him  on  every  side 
face  to  face,  in  every  mansion  with  the  light  of  understanding, 
and  to  injure  no  creature  of  the  all-just  are  matters  of  Marifat 
(cognition);  to  know  the  all-just  and  comprehend  the  mystic 
sound  of  the  beads  in  reciting  prayers  of  praise,  and  to  understand 
the  import  of  the  Divine  names  are  matters  of  Kurbat  (nearness) ; 
to  choose  the  renunciation  of  self,  and  to  do  everything  in  the 
Divine  essence,  to  exhibit  abstraction  from  superfluous  objects  and 
to  be  convinced  of  the  Divine  union  are  matters  of  Weslat 
(advent)  ;  to  lose  individuality  in  Deity  absolute  and  in  surviving 
to  become  absolute,  and  to  be  united  with  the  unity,  and  to  be 

*  The  Caaba  with  its  360  pillars  around  (as  in  the  now  Catholic 
Cathedral  at  Cordova,  in  Spain,  which  was  formerly  a  Mosque), 
representing  the  circle  or  wheel  of  the  heavens,  was  the  Temple 
of  Mohammed  (like  the  Temple  of  Solomon),  or  circle  wheel  of 
Mohammed,  or  of  Om,  the  desire  of  all  nations.  The  idea  of  wheel 
applied  to  the  revolving  planetary  bodies  is  peculiarly  appropriate. 
The  Cavah  is  the  origin  of  our  word  cave.  All  the  oldest  temples 
of  Zoroaster  and  the  Indians  were  caves,  acknowledged  to  be  in 
imitation  of  the  vault  or  circle,  or  wheel  of  heaven. 


SANTA  SOPHIA,  i.e.,  the  divine  wisdom.    327 

delivered  from  evil  is  Tauhid  (union)  ;  the  indwelling  and  being 
resided  in  the  assuming  the  attributes  of  the  Deity  absolute,  and 
renouncing  a  person's  own  attributes  are  matters  of  Sekunat 
(quiescence),  and  beyond  this  there  is  no  superior  degree." — 
(Bayezid.) 

The  writings  of  the  Sufis  are  well  worth  the  attention 
of  the  earnest  student,  for  the  true  Theosophists 
amongst  Mussulmen  must  be  sought  for  amongst  them. 
Sufism,  or  rather  Sopheism,  is  the  mystic  name  of 
Mohammedanism  recognising  communion  with  God, 
and  not  merely  submission  as  being  the  essence  of 
true  religion.  The  great  Persian  sect  of  Sufis  are 
mystical  pantheists.  It  was  a  Sufi  who  was  the 
author  of  the  saying,  "When  we  cry  in  our  prayer 
'  0  my  Father.' "  The  answer  is  in  the  prayer  itself; 
for  in  the  "  My  Father  "  lies  hidden  "  Here,  my  child." 
Again,  the  same  Sufi  exclamined,  "  How  long,  0  my 
God,  art  Thou  pleased  that  I  should  thus  remain 
between  the  myself  and  the  Thyself  ?  Take  away 
from  me  the  myself,  that  I  may  be  absorbed  into 
Thyself." 

Sufi — or  Sopheism,  as  we  prefer  to  call  it  after  the 
Holy  Sophia,  or  Divine  Wisdom,  (the  name,  by  the 
way,  of  the  Great  Mosque  of  Islam  at  Constantinople, 
which  is  most  significantly  called  "  Santa  Sophia  "), 
is  divided  into  four  stages.  In  the  first  the  initiate  is 
required  to  observe  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  religion 
for  the  sake  of  the  vulgar,  who  are  incapable  of  looking 
to  higher  matters.  In  the  second  stage,  he  is  said  to 
obtain  power  or  force,  and  may  leave  his  teacher  and 
study  by  himself;   he   is   said   to   enter   the   pale    of 


328  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Sopheism,  and  he  may  quit  forms  and  ceremonies, 
which  he  exchanges  for  spiritual  worship.  This  stage 
cannot  be  obtained  without  great  piety,  virtue,  and 
fortitude  :  for  the  mind  cannot  be  trusted  in  the 
neglect  of  usages  and  rites  necessary  to  restrain  it 
when  weak,  till  it  hath  acquired  strength  from  habits 
of  mental  devotion  grounded  on  a  proper  knowledge 
of  its  own  dignity,  and  of  the  Divine  nature.  The 
third  stage  is  that  of  Knowledge,  i.e.,  Wisdom,  and 
the  disciple  who  arrives  at  it  is  deemed  to  have 
attained  supernatural  knowledge,  in  other  words,  to  be 
inspired,  and  when  he  arrives  at  this  state  he  is 
supposed  to  be  equal  to  the  angels.  The  fourth  and 
last  stage  denotes  his  arrival  at  truth,  which  implies 
his  complete  union  with  the  Divinity, 

It  appears  that  they  "  are  invited  by  their  teachers 
to  embark  on  the  sea  of  doubt."  Sir  John  Malcolm 
further  states  that  their  doctrines  may  be  traced,  "  in 
some  shape  or  other,  in  every  region  of  the  world," 
which  no  doubt  they  may.     Again  he  says : 

"  The  Sofees  represent  themselves  as  devoted  to  the  search  of 
truth,  and  incessantly  occupied  in  adoring  the  Almighty,  an  union 
with  whom  they  desire  with  all  the  fervour  of  Divine  love.  The 
Creator,  according  to  their  belief,  is  diffused  over  all  His  creation 
He  exists  everywhere,  and  is  in  everything.  They  compare  the 
emanations  of  His  essence  to  the  rays  of  the  Sun,  which  they 
conceive  are  continually  darted  forth  and  re-absorbed ;  and  they 
believe  that  the  soul  of  man  and  the  principle  of  life  which  exists 
throughout  all  nature  are  not  from  God  but  of  God."  ("  Sir  John 
Malcolm's  History,"  page  269.) 

The  true  character  of  the  Sufis,  or   Sofees,  and   of 


SUFEISM   IS   GNOSTICISM.  329 

the  Esoteric  faith  of  pure  Mohammedisrn  may  he 
clearly  discerned  from  the  concluding  passage  of  Sir 
John   Malcolm   respecting    them  : 

"  I  have  abstained  from  any  description  of  the  various  extra- 
ordinary shapes  which  this  mystical  faith  has  taken  in  India, 
where  it  has  always  flourished,  and  where  it  has  at  times  been 
beneficial  to  uniting  the  opposite  elements  of  the  Hindoo  and 
Mohammedan  faith  (shown  in  the  case  of  the  Sikhs),  nor  have  1 
ventured  to  offer  any  remarks  on  the  similarity  between  many 
usages  arid  opinions  of  the-  Sofees  and  those  of  the  Gnostics  and 
other  Christian  sects,  as  well  as  of  some  of  the  ancient  Greek 
philosophers.  The  principle  Sofee  writers  are  familiar  with  the 
wisdom  of  Aristotle  and  Plato :  their  most  celebrated  works 
abound  with  quotations  from  the  latter.  An  account  of 
Pythagoras  if  translated  into  Persian  would  be  read  as  that 
of  a  Sofee  saint.  His  initiation  into  the  mysteries  of  the  Divine 
Nature,  his  deep  contemplation  and  abstraction,  his  miracles,  his 
passionate  love  of  music,  his  mode  of  teaching  his  disciples,  the 
persecution  he  suffered,  and  the  manner  of  his  death,  present  us 
with  a  close  parallel  to  what  is  related  of  many  eminent  Sofee 
teachers,  and  may  lead  to  a  supposition  that  there  must  be  Home- 
thing  similar  in  the  state  of  knowledge  and  of  society  where  the 
same  causes  produce  the  same  effects." 

Indeed  there  is  something  similar,  for  they  are  all 
identical,  with  a  few  trifling  alterations  produced  by 
time  and  change  of  country.  Here  in  the  Sofees,  or 
Sufis,  of  Persia  we  have  the  Esoterici  of  Zoroaster,  of 
Buddha,  of  Moses,  of  Jesus,  and  of  Mohammed.  In 
short,  Sopheism,  or  Sufeism,  is  Gnosticism,  and  if 
we  can  discover  the  one  we  shall  discover  the  other. 
Sir   William   Jones    says  of  the    Sufis : 

"  I  will  only  detain  you  with  a  few  remarks  on  that  meta- 
physical theology  which  has  been  professed  immemorially  by  a 
numerous  sect  of  Persians  and  Hindoos,  was  carried  in  part  into 


330  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Greece,  and  prevails  even  now  among  the  learned  Mussulmans, 
who  avow  it  without  reserve.  The  modern  philosophers  of  this 
persuasion  are  called  Sufis,  either  from  a  Greek  word  for  a  sage 
or  from  the  woollen  mantle  which  they  used  to  wear  in  some 
provinces  of  Persia.  Their  fundamental  tenets  are  :  that  nothing 
exists  absolutely  but  God ;  that  the  human  soul  is  an  emanation 
from  the  Divine  essence,  and  though  divided  for  a  time  from  its 
heavenly  source,  will  finally  be  reunited  with  it ;  that  the  highest 
possible  happiness  will  arise  from  its  reunion ;  and  that  the  chief 
good  of  mankind  in  this  transitory  world  consists  in  as  perfect  an 
union  with  the  Eternal  Spirit  as  the  incumbrances  of  a  mortal 
frame  will  allow :  that  for  this  purpose  they  should  break  all 
connection  (or  taalluk,  as  they  call  it ;  that  is,  hold  no  conversation 
or  talk)  with  extrinsic  objects,  and  pass  through  life  without 
attachments,  as  a  swimmer  in  the  ocean  strikes  freely  without  the 
impediment  of  clothes ;  that  they  should  be  straight  and  free  as 
the  cypress,  whose  fruit  is  hardly  perceptible,  and  not  sunk  under 
a  load  like  fruit  trees  attached  to  a  trellis ;  that  if  mere  earthly 
charms  have  power  to  influence  the  soul  the  idea  of  celestial 
beauty  must  overwhelm  it  in  ecstatic  delight ;  that  for  want  of 
apt  words  to  express  the  Divine  perfections  and  the  ardour  of 
devotion  we  must  borrow  such  expressions  as  approach  the  nearest 
to  our  ideas,  and  speak  of  beauty  and  love  in  a  transcendent  and 
mystical  sense ;  that,  like  a  reed  torn  from  its  native  bank,  like 
wax  separated  from  its  delicious  honey,  the  Son  of  Man  bewails 
its  disunion  with  melancholy  music,  and  sheds  burning  tears,  like 
the  lighted  taper  waiting  passionately  for  the  moment  of  its 
extinction,  as  a  disengagement  from  earthly  trammels  and  the 
means  of  returning  to  its  only  beloved.  Such  in  part  (for  I  omit 
the  minute  and  more  subtile  metaphysics  of  the  Sufis  which  are 
mentioned  in  the  Dabistan)  is  the  wild  and  enthusiastic  religion 
of  the  Persian  poets,  especially  of  the  sweet  Hafiz  and  the  great 
Maulair :  such  is  the  system  of  the  Vedanti  philosophers  and  best 
lyric  poets  of  India." 

The  Sufis  of  Persia  are  enthusiastically  attached 
to  poetry  aud  music,  both  of  which  doubtless  owe 
their  origin  to  religion ;  and  that  recitative  and 
chaunting  are  not  modern  Italian  inventions  any  one 


SUFIS,   SOPHISTS,    OR   THEOSOPHISTS.  331 

would  be  led  to  believe  who  had  heard  an  educated 
Hindoo  recite  a  sacred  Mantra,  the  mere  cadence  of 
which  is  soothing  as  music  on  the  waters.  But  they 
have  secrets  and  mysteries  of  every  degree  which  they 
never  reveal  to  the  profane,  and  to  reveal  which  would 
be  a  crime  of  the  deepest  turpitude.  One  of  their 
most  learned  works,  called  the  Musnavi,  or  Mesnevi, 
which  teaches  in  the  sweetest  strains  that  all  nature 
abounds  ivith  Divine  love,  was  written  by  Jelalu  D-Din 
Muhammed,  Er-Rurni,  commonly  called  the  Moollah 
of  Room.*  There  is  no  doubt  that  in  this  mystic 
name  there  is  much  more  than  meets  the  eye,  for 
instance,  the  mystic  or  secret  name  of  Rome  (the 
anagram  of  Roma)  is  Amor,  or  Divine  love.  The 
real  doctrines  of  the  Sufis  are  a  profound  secret, 
untold  by  Hafiz  or  Maulair,  but  can  be  partially 
guessed  at  by  the  true  Theosophist,  for  enough  trans- 
pires to  show  the  nature  of  the  real  uncorrupted  system. 
In  addition  to  the  Sofees,  or  Sufis,  we  have  among 
the  Indians  the  Wise  men,  called  Rassees  or  Rishis, 
these  are  evidently  taken  from  the  Hebrew  Mas  or 
Rasit  (see  previous  Chapter,  pages  269  to  271),  indeed 
their  epithet  or  quality  of  wisdom  shows  that  they  were. 
Arrian  notices  these  Rassees,  or  Sophees ;  by  the  latter 
name  he  calls  them  Sophists  or  Wise  Men  (Theoso- 
phists  in  fact)  who,  he  says,  are  few  in  number,  but  rank 
first  in  the  country  (Hist.   Ind.,  chaps,  x.,  xi.).     These 


*  See  the  Biographical  Anecdotes  related  of  this  Adept  in  the 
"Acts  op  the  Adepts,"  given  in  Part  I.,  Chapter  III.,  of  the 
Mesnevi,  Triibner's  Oriental  Series. 


332  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Sophists,  he  tells  us,  are  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
the  Temple  of  Solomon,  in  Cashmere,  and  are  called 
Rashees  ;  they '  are  described  as  follows  in  Gladwin's 
"  Ayeen  Akberry,"  Vol.  II.  155  :— 

"  The  most  respectable  people  in  this  country  are  the  Rashees, 
who,  although  they  do  not  suffer  themselves  to  be  fettered  by 
traditions,  are  doubtless  true  worshippers  of  God.  They  revile 
not  any  other  sect,  and  ask  nothing  of  any  one ;  they  plant  the 
road  with  fruit  trees  to  furnish  the  traveller  with  refreshment ; 
they  abstain  from  flesh ;  and  have  no  intercourse  with  the  other 
sex.     There  are  nearly  2,000  of  their  sect  in  Cashmere." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  these  Eishees,  or 
Eashees,  or  Wise  Men,  are  the  same  as  Sophees,  and 
are  the  Carmelites,  Nazarites,  or  Essenians,  belonging 
to  the  Temple  of  Solomon  (that  temple  which  the 
Mohammedans  destroyed),  and  the  tomb  of  Moses; 
in  fact,  Cashmere  is  all  Holy  Land. 

It  is  curious  that  the  Sopha  is  called  the  Divan 
in  eastern  countries,  used  solely  by  the  Eas  or  Prince, 
or  Divine  incarnation  of  Wisdom.  Divan  is  Div-ana, 
place  of  the  Holy  One.  The  head,  the  seat  of  wisdom, 
was  Kas ;  the  head  ruler  was  the  same ;  so  the  seat 
of  the  Eas  was  the  Sofa  or  Sopha,  place  of  wisdom 
or  divan.  It  is  probable  that  the  origin  of  the  tonsure, 
or  shaving  the  head  of  priests  with  a  razor  (from 
Eas,  to  shave  close),  bore  the  same  occult  meaning, 
and  signified  their  dedication  to  the  Eas,  or  Wisdom, 
or  Logos ;  in  other  words  to  the  study  of  divine 
Wisdom ;  in  fact,  it  is  a  custom  so  ancient  that  it  is 
borrowed  from  the   Egyptian  priests.     Juvenal  in  his 


THE  TONSURE   OF   PRIESTS.  333 

Sixth  Satire  says,  that  the  high  priest  of  Anubis, 
environed  with  a  crowd  of  other  priests  clothed  in  fine 
linen,  with  his  head  shaved,  deserves  the  first  rank 
and  surpreme  honour.  The  tonsure  of  priests  and 
monks  is  an  exact  imitation  of  that  of  the  priests  of  Isis 
(one  of  the  earthly  representatives  of  the  Great  Mother 
— the  Divine  Wisdom);  and  St.  Epiphanius  also  wit- 
nesses (Haer.  64)  that  the  priests  of  Athens  had  the 
head  shaved.  This  custom  is  however  forbidden  in 
Lev.  xxi.  5,  and  the  prohibition  is  afterwards  repeated 
in  Ezek.  xliv.  20. 

The  Sufis  of  Persia,  as  we  have  just  said,  are 
enthusiastically  attached  to  poetry  and  music,  indeed 
it  is  the  great  distinction  of  the  Sufi  that  he  loves 
to  veil  the  aspirations  of  his  spirit  after  its  Maker 
in  poetry,  which  is  often  of  the  most  exquisite  kind, 
and  so  marked  is  this  characteristic  that  no  adequate 
idea  can  be  conveyed  of  their  religious  aspirations 
without  some  reference  to  their  poets  and  without 
a  few  specimens  of  their  flights  of  mystical  elevation, 
which  sometimes  rise  to  the  truly  sublime  and  trans- 
cendental. 

It  was  a  Sufi  who  described  all  religions  as  the 
same  liquor  in  different  glasses  : 

"  All  poured  by  God  into  one  mighty  bowl, 
The  same  draught  quaffed  by  each  regenerate  soul." 

The  Sufi,  claims  a  knowledge  of  God  which  is 
immediate,  and  which  he  has  attained  by  arriving 
at  a  knowledge  of  his  own  nature,  and  of  his  affinity 


334  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

to    the  Highest.     Thus  he  needs  no  Temple   wherein 
to  worship,  and  is  a  Priest  unto  himself. 

"  He  needs  a  guide  no  longer  who  hath  found 
The  way  already,  leading  to  a  Friend  ! 
Who  stands  already  on  heaven's  topmost  dome 
Needs  not  to  search  for  ladders.     He  that  lies 
Folded  in  favour  on  the  Sultan's  breast 
Needs  not  the  letter  or  the  messenger." 

This  state  is  that  of  union  of  spirit  and  soul  with 
God,  and  is  the  occasion  of  another  Arabic  saying 
of  their  prophets :  "  Unity  is  reality,  or  the  state 
of  truth  and  perception  of  things  where  there  is 
neither  Lord  nor  servant."  Again,  they  say :  "  The 
law  is  like  a  vessel ;  the  true  pathway  is  like  the 
sea,  the  perception  and  truth  of  things  is  like  the 
shell,  and  the  knowledge  of  God  is  like  the  pearl 
therein  ;  but  he  who  wishes  to  obtain  the  pearl  must 
first  go  on  board  the  vessel." 

As  a  specimen  of  the  mystical  Pantheism  of  the 
Sufis  we  quote  the  following  extracts  from  Mahmud, 
a  Sufi  of  the  fifteenth  century  : — 

"  All  sects  but  multiply  the  I  and  thou  ; 
This  I  and  thou  belong  to  partial  being  ; 
When  I  and  thou  and  several  being  vanish, 
Then  mosque  and  church  shall  bind  thee  nevermore. 
Our  individual  life  is  but  a  phantom  ; 
Make  clear  thine  eye  and  see  Reality  ! 

"  The  path  from  me  to  God  is  truly  found 
When  pure  that  me  from  self, 
As  clearest  flame  from  smoke." 

The  following  little  Persian  poem  is  too  exquisite 
to  be  omitted : — 


THE   PERSIAN   POETS.  335 

"  Abou-ben-Adhem — may  his  tribe  increase  ! — 
Awoke  one  night  from  a  deep  dream  of  peace, 
And  saw  within  the  moonlight  in  his  room, 
Making  it  rich  and  like  a  rose  in  bloom, 
An  angel,  writing  in  a  book  of  gold. 
Exceeding  peace  had  made  Ben-Adhem  bold, 
And  to  the  presence  in  the  light  he  said, 
'  What  writest  thou  ?  '  The  vision  raised  its  head, 
And  with  a  look,  made  all  of  sweet  accord, 
Answered,  '  The  names  of  those  who  love  the  Lord.' 
'  And  is  mine  one  ?  '  said  Abou.     '  Nay,  not  so,' 
Replied  the  angel.    Abou  spoke  more  low, 
But  cheerily  still,  and  said,  '  I  pray  thee  then 
Write  me  as  one  that  loves  his  fellowmen.' 
The  angel  wrote,  and  vanished.     The  next  night 
It  came  again  with  great  awakening  light, 
And  showed  their  names  whom  love  of  God  had  blest, 
And  lo !  Ben-Adhem's  name  led  all  the  rest !  " 

"  On  two  days  it  steads  not  to  run  from  the  grave, 
The  appointed  and  the  un-appointed  day  ; 
On  the  first  neither  balm  nor  physician  can  save, 
Nor  thee  on  the  second  the  Universe  slay." 

We  conclude  with  a  Sufi  Ode  which  occurs  in  an 
Oriental  tale,  entitled  "  Bismillah  ;  or,  Happy  Days  in 
Cashmere."  The  name  of  the  poet  is  unknown,  but  the 
sentiment  expressed  in  the  verses  is  such  as  any  true 
Theosophist  would  be  ready  to  endorse  : 

"  Pants  thy  spirit  to  be  gifted 
With  a  deathless  life  ? 
Let  it  seek  to  be  uplifted 
O'er  earth's  storm  and  strife. 

"  Spurn  its  joys,  its  ties  dissever, 
Hopes  and  fears  divest ; 
Thus  aspire  to  live  for  ever, 
Be  for  ever  blest ! 


336  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

"  Faith  and  doubt  leave  far  behind  thee, 
Cease  to  love  or  hate ; 
Let  not  time's  illusions  blind  thee  ; 
Thou  shalt  time  outdate. 

"  Merge  thine  individual  being 
In  the  Eternal  love  ; 
All  this  sensuous  nature  fleeing 
For  pure  bliss  above. 

"  Earth  receives  the  seed  and  guards  it, 
Trustfully  it  dies  ; 
Then,  what  teeming  life  rewards  it 
For  self-sacrifice  ! 

"  With  green  leaf  and  clustering  blossom 
Clad,  or  golden  fruit, 
See  it  from  earth's  cheerless  bosom 
Ever  sunward  shoot ! 

"  Thus  when  self-abased,  man's  spirit 
From  each  earthly  tie 
Rises  disenthralled  to  inherit 
Immortality ! " 

Sufism  is  really  true  Theosopby,  or  that  spiritual 
intercourse  of  the  individual  with  the  universal  which 
disregards  and  disclaims  all  ordinances  and  outward 
forms.  Their  worship  is  wholly  spiritual  and  mental. 
The  Sufi  conceives  himself  and  all  nature  to  be  an 
emanation  from  the  Deity,  and  his  Soul  to  be  a 
portion  of  the  Divine  Essence.  He  endeavours  by 
intense  meditation  on  Divine  perfection  to  lift  himself 
above  earth-life,  and  by  totally  abstracting  his  thoughts 
from  the  things  of  sense  to  attain  unto  a  knowledge 
of  the  nature  of  Deity,  and  of  his  own  Soul,  and  thus 
to  become  a  possessor  of  Divine  Wisdom  or  Omni- 
science. 


CHRIST  ALWAYS   TAUGHT   IN   PARABLES.  337 

After  all,  this  is  but  what  we  have  seen  the  Yogi 
or  Hindoo  Ascetic  also  striving  for,  by  the  most  rigid 
austerities  and  mortifications.  And  it  is  the  very 
doctrine  which  St.  Paul  preaches  when  he  says,  "  Ye 
are  the  temple  of  the  Living  God"  (2  Cor.  vi.  16), 
and  again  (1  Cor.  iii.  16),  "Ye  are  the  temple  of  God, 
and  the  Spirit  of  God  dwelleth  in  you,"  reiterating 
the  same  assertion  in  many  other  of  his  epistles,  as 
for  instance,  Eph.  ii.  18  to  22,  and  iv.  9,  10;  1  Cor. 
vi.  17.  But  Plato,  and  Socrates,  and  Aristotle,  taught 
this  great  truth  long  before  Paid  preached  it  to  the 
Corinthians. 

Hammer-Purgstall,  who  from  his  command  of  books, 
knowledge  of  languages,  and  decided  taste  for  mystic 
lore,  had  every  requisite  qualification  for  the  task, 
has  written  a  voluminous  History  of  Arabian  Literature, 
wherein  he  never  misses  an  opportunity  to  make  us 
acquainted,  by  translations,  with  extracts  from  the  works 
of  the  Sufis  or  Mohammedan  mystics.  This  author 
gives  us  reason  to  believe  that  the  Koran  was  held  to 
contain  a  secret  doctrine,  and  that  Mohammedism  is, 
in  this  respect,  like  Christianity  ("  ivhich  was  in  its 
origin  a  secret  society ' "),  a  fact  which  indeed  was 
maintained  by  the  Mohammedan  writer  Avicenna. 
It  is  very  certain  that  Jesus  Christ  always  taught  in 
parables  ("and  without  a  parable  spoke  He  not  unto 
them ") ;  and  also  that  He  only  initiated  three  of 
His  own  Apostles,  viz.,  Peter,  James,  and  John. 
These  secret  doctrines  of  the  Koran  were  only  taught 
by  degrees,  or    initiations,  or  gradations,  from   lower 

z 


338  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

to  higher  ranks.  The  doctrines  of  Pythagoras,  Plato, 
and  Aristotle,  were  taught  as  logical  and  fundamental 
truths.  In  several  places  Mr.  Hammer  distinctly  admits 
that  the  secret  doctrines  of  the  Ishmaelites  existed 
at  Cairo. 

There  are  good  grounds  for  belief  of  the  Sopheistic 
character  of  the  Ishmaelites ;  and  that  however  cor- 
rupted it  may  be,  they  still  retain  a  remnant  of  the 
ancient  Gnosis.  They  still  remain  in  existence  as  a 
sect,  and  are  scattered  over  extensive  countries  as 
far  as  India ;  they  always  have  an  Imam  at  their  head, 
and  this  Imam,  according  to  the  doctrine  of  the 
Ishmaelites,  is  an  incarnate  ray  of  the  Divinity,  and 
is  supposed  to  work  miracles.  Mr.  Hammer  says, 
"Les  Ishmaelites  vont  en  pelerinage  des  bords  du 
Gange  et  de  l'lndus  pour  recevoir  a  Khekh  la  bene- 
diction de  leur  Imam,"  and  he  adds  they  are  called 
"  Souveidani,"  surely  Soufidani  or  Sophees  ;  he  adds, 
"  lis  sont  ainsi  appeles  ceux  la  du  nom  d'un  de  leurs 
anciens  Scheiks,  ceux  ci  a  cause  de  leur  veneration 
pour  le  prophet  Khiser  (Elias)  le  gardien  de  la  source 
de  vie  "  (p.  331).  Here  we  have  the  founder  of  the 
Essenes  and  of  the  Carmelites,  Elias  ! 

The  most  learned  Mussulmen  allow  that  there  is 
an  Esoteric  Mohammedism,  and  this  is  Sopheism, 
which  either  as  Buddhism  from  North  India  from  the 
Afghans,  or  as  a  survival  of  Magianism  has  remained 
unto  this  day.  The  religion  of  the  Mohammedan  Sufis 
or  Theosophists  is  nothing  but  a  continuance  of  the 
doctrine   of    Wisdom,    the    eternal    Wisdom-Eeligion, 


THE   SIGNS   OF  THE   TIMES.  339 

which  existed  thousands  of  years  before  the  time 
of  Mohammed. 

It  is  worthy  of  observation  that  the  ancient  system 
seems  to  have  been  forgotten  about  the  same  time 
in  India  and  Europe,  and  about  the  same  time  to 
run  into  all  sorts  of  complicated  machinery,  an  effect 
which  naturally  arose  from  a  system  shrouded  in  secrecy, 
before  the  art  of  writing  was  generally  known  ;  an 
effect  which  in  our  time  is  being  reversed,  for  the 
ancient  system  is  being  daily  brought  again  to  light, 
and  the  doctrine  of  Wisdom  once  more  beo-ins  to 
shine  forth  in  all  the  radiant  loveliness  of  its  Divine 
effulgence  as  the  Seals  of  Secrecy  are  opened  one 
after  the  other  by  the  art  of  writing  which  all  now 
possess. 

Thus  the  glad  tidings  are  being  spread  far  and  wide 
in  this  age  of  making  known,  and  the  prophecy  given 
to  the  hoary  Daniel  is  now  being  fulfilled  by  the  busy 
printing  press  and  the  rushing  train  :  that  "  Knowledge 
should  be  increased,  and  many  should  run  to  and  fro." 

Alas  !  that  the  signs  of  the  times  should  be  still 
further  accompanied  and  confirmed  by  the  fulfilment 
of  yet  other  predictions.  "  On  the  earth  distress  of 
nations  "  ;  "  Wars  and  rumours  of  war  " ;  "  Earthquakes 
in  divers  places";  and  "pestilence,"  in  the  shape  of 
Cholera;  with  all  the  horrors  consequent  upon  these 
tribulations  ! 

And  thus  at  the  end  of  the  predicted  cycle  the 
time,  times,  and  half  a  time,  the  Eternal  Evangel 
of  Divine  Wisdom,  the  heavenly  Sophia,  or  Theosophy, 


340  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

is  again  brought  to  remembrance,  and  even  comes  to 
us  from  that  very  India  where  it  had  been  so  mys- 
teriously forgotten  about  the  same  time  as  in  busy, 
rushing  Europe,  too  much  occupied  with  the  things 
of  time  and  the  flying  movement  of  its  hurrying 
wheels  to  pay  much  heed  to  the  higher  light,  destined 
eventually  to  aid  it  on  its  way  by  guiding  it  into 
all  truth — until  its  more  faithful  guardians,  the 
Oriental  Adepts,  hidden  away  in  the  calm  silence 
of  Himmalayan  mountain  fastnesses,  first  sent  a  gleam 
from  the  light  of  the  long-lost  Secret  Doctrines  through 
the  darkness,  which  is  quickly  growing  lighter  and 
lighter,  and  will  become  more  and  more  clear  as  it  is 
answered  from  peak  to  peak,  and  from  tower  to  tower, 
by  the  solitary  watchers,  who  are  the  first  to  hail 
its  dawn,  and  kindle  their  beacon  lights,  some  at 
Hermetic  Sources,  and  others  at  the  still  more  spiritual 
lififht  of  the  Star  Circle. 


341 


CHAPTER  X. 

CHRISTIAN    THEOSOPHY. 

rilHE  Spirit  of  Christian  Theosophy  is  Christ  Himself. 
-*-  It  is  a  Spirit  of  Simplicity  and  Love,  a  Spirit 
of  Truth,  because  combining  devotion  to  Good,  with 
that  intuitional  faith,  which  is  Knowledge — a  Light 
above   all  finite   comprehension. 

Although  Christian  Theosophy  has  as  lofty  an  ideal- 
ism as  any  Pagan  philosophy  of  Esoteric  origin,  it 
prefers  Practice  to  Theory,  and  those  are  not  the  only 
Christian  Theosophists  who  live  secluded  in  cloisters  or 
deserts.  There  are  as  great  teachers  in  Theosophy 
among  the  laity  as  among  the  clergy,  and  no  other 
system  can  show  so  many  Lay-Theosophists.  "  Be  in 
the  world  but  not  of  it ; "  for  isolation  is  not  local  but 
spiritual.  Be  and  do  good,  and  aid  and  assist  your 
fellow-beings  in  every  possible  way.  This  is  the  true 
practical  Christian  Spirit.  Added  to  this,  practise  the 
Theosophy  of  Him  who  said,  "  I  and  my  Father  are 
one."  Have  we  then  any  need  of  other  systems  to  teach 
us  the  Divine  and  Absolute  Truth  ? 

There  are  numerous  monasteries  in  the  West,  all 
founded  for  the  implied  object  of  Theosophy,  yet  how 
few  real  Theosophists  are  there  to  be  found  in  them ! 
The  great  Western  Theosophists  were  not  all  within  the 


342  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHT. 

folds  of  Mother  Church.  Many  were  hated  and  perse- 
cuted by  her  without  cause,  and  branded,  tortured,  and 
destroyed  as  Heretics.  It  is  quite  possible  that  the 
greatest  Saints  may  be  those  uncanonized  by  the 
Church. 

Theosophy,  a  knowledge  of  God,  either  real  or  as- 
sumed, was  the  originating  cause  of  nearly  each  and  all 
of  the  many  sects,  schools,  orders,  and  heresies  that  have 
more  or  less  divided  Christianity.  The  very  assumed 
Infallibility  of  the  Koman  Catholic  Church  rests  on  a 
Theosophic  assumption.* 

The  view  ever  adapts  itself  to  the  standpoint  like  a 
circumference  to  the  centre,  and  is  more  or  less  exten- 
sive and  comprehensive  as  the  standpoint  is  more  or 
less  exalted  and  true.  Each  grasps  according  to  his 
capacity ;  and  as  the  Divine  corresponds  to  the  human, 
whoever  would  be  a  true  Theosophist  and  not  a  fanatic 
counterfeit,  should  be  a  truly  human  being,  for  then 
lie  will  be  on  the  road  to  become  a  truly  Divine  being, 
when  the  Christ-Spirit  shall  be  born  in  him  of  that 
Immaculate  Virgin,  his  own  Spiritual  Soul. 

Esoteric  Christianity,  the  doctrine  of  Christ  and  the 
Apostles,  is  a  system  more  practical  than  theoretical  in 
its  saintship.  The  Buddhist,  to  attain  Nirvana,  must 
become  a  monk  or  Samana,  who  does  no  material  work 
whatever,  he  being  so  intent  upon  his  own  Salvation 

*  Adepts  assure  us  there  is  a  state  of  Absolute  Knowledge 
where  error  is  impossible.  The  Theosophic  assumption  of  Infalli- 
bility adopted  by  the  Pope  would  infer  that  as  Sovereign  Pontiff 
of  the  Christian  Church  he  is  ever  in  that  divinely  inspired  state. 


A  LIVING   CHRIST.  343 

that  he  must  leave  the  tilling1  of  the  material  earth 
to  others  who  are  not  to  be  saved  just  yet.  So 
that  if  there  were  but  two  human  beings  on  earth, 
and  one  became  desirous  to  be  saved,  the  other  would 
have  to  practise  self-denial  for  a  while  if  he  tilled  the 
ground  to  supply  the  former  with  food. 

The  Jesus  Christ  of  the  Gospels  was  the  first  who,  in 
the  West,  attempted  to  bring  all  to  a  true  knowledge  of 
God.  He  it  is  who  is  shown  to  us  as  being  "  very  God 
and  very  Man,"  or  as  having  plenary  knowledge  of  the 
Divine  ;  being  truly  human  by  being  truly  Divine.  The 
Divine  Soul-knowledge  imparted  by  Christ  was  received 
and  propagated  by  the  Apostles,  and  the  early  Chris- 
tian missionaries  communicated  the  same  Gnosis  but 
on  an  easier,  because  more  simple  and  perhaps  holier, 
stage  than  that  which  the  Buddhist  missionaries  had 
preached  centuries  before. 

Not  a  creed,  not  a  dogma,  not  a  dead  Saviour,  but  a 
living  Christ,  an  absolute  Truth,  a  positive  knowledge 
of  God,  was  the  secret  of  their  power  and  success. 

Thus  the  Apostles  and  all  early  Missionaries  were 
true  Theosophists ;  they  communicated  what  they  knew, 
not  what  they  merely  believed  to  be  true.  All  were 
true  Gnostics,  in  as  far  as  they  spoke  from  a  positive 
mystic  experience ;  and  even  as  the  Christ  was  mani- 
fested to  them  would  they  have  all  mankind  to  be. 

It  was  the  simplicity  of  the  idea — being  based  as  we 
see  upon  mystic  truth — that  made  Exoteric  Christianity 
so  popular  with  the  masses,  for  whose  requirement  and 
comprehension,  the  abstruse  Gnostic  and  occult  truths 


344  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

had  to  be  accommodated,  that  the  Christ  individuated 
Himself  in  every  child  of  God. 

Many  early  Christian  missionaries  did  not  understand 
the  doctrines  they  taught  in  their  inner  meaning.  Many 
then,  as  now,  felt  a  call  to  preach,  and  to  make  others 
believe  what  they  themselves  did  not  rightly  under- 
stand. Thus,  while  Christianity  as  an  Exoteric  and 
Orthodox  Theology  numerically  increased,  the  Eso- 
teric Christian  Theosophy,  the  knowledge  imparted 
by  Christ  and  the  Apostles,  became  more  and  more 
rare  and  occult,  and  the  Church  gaining  in  quantity 
lost  in  quality. 

Every  true  Eeligion  commenced  with  Theosophy ; 
thus  also  the  Christian.  The  knowledge  of  the  few 
became  the  belief  of  the  many.  But  in  time  the  real 
God-knowers  were  supplanted  by  those  who  pretended 
to  know,  and  Dogma  took  the  place  of  Gnosis. 

The  Apostles  were  God-knowers,  or  Theosophists,  and 
taught  Theosophy,  the  knowledge  of  God,  to  the 
benighted  Heathen.  The  modern  missionaries,  although 
they  may  have  good  intentions,  are  mostly  God-igno- 
rant men,  and  would  spread  their  own  ignorance  even 
among  such  enlightened  Heathen  as  the  Buddhists. 

How  many  converts  Christianity  made  while  animated 
by  the  Divine  Spirit !  How  few  can  it  prevail  upon  now 
with  all  its  elaborate  human  institutions !  The  one 
essential  want  of  the  present  missionaries  is  that  very 
Theosophy  or  knowledge  of  God  so  plenary  with  the 
Apostles  and  the  early  Christian  missionaries.  But 
it  is   not  true  Christianity  that  the  Heathen  is  pre- 


THEOLOGY   SEPARATE   FROM   THEOSOPHY.  345 

sented  with.  Esoteric  Christianity,  the  true  Doctrine 
of  Christ,  being  neglected  by  the  Church,  how 
can  we  expect  modern  Christian  missionaries  to  know 
and  teacli  it  ? 

When  Theology  separated  from  Theosophy,  it  in- 
creased in  quantity  but  decreased  in  value.  It  never 
could  do  away  with  all  its  Esoteric  origin ;  although  it 
substituted  Dogma  for  Gnosis,  there  still  remains  a 
minute  alloy  of  mystic  gold  mixed  with  the  masses  of 
baser  metal,  although  Theologians  know  it  not. 

It  was  far  easier  for  men  to  invent  dogmas  than  to 
live  the  life  of  purity  essential  for  the  true  Gnostic  ; 
and  when  it  was  found  that  there  were  so  very  few  to 
contradict  a  bold  assertion,  these  assertions  increased 
wonderfully  apace,  until  Religion  became  all  assertion 
and  no  proof.  Whenever  a  demand  for  knowledge  or 
a  non-orthodox  counter  assertion  arose  it  was  denounced 
as  heretical,  and  councils  of  Ecclesiastics  were  convened 
for  the  express  purpose  of  bringing  out  new  dogmas 
such  as  Christ  and  the  Apostles  never  heard  of. 

This  policy  is  well-nigh  played  out.  From  the 
beginning  were  the  words  of  Jesus  partly  misunder- 
stood ;  but  what  was  a  slight  error  in  the  first  centuries, 
which  a  moment's  Esoteric  explanation  could  clear 
away,  grew  into  gigantic  delusions  when  fostered  by 
the  mephitic  exhalations  of  ignorance  and  fanaticism. 

In  place  of  the  Gospel  of  Life  there  was  in- 
vented a  Gospel  of  Death.  Instead  of  teaching  the 
path  to  perfection,  He  who  had  laid  down  His  life  for 
the  Truth  was  made  a  bar  to  the  attainment  of  that 


346  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

Truth.  Therefore  the  Heretics  arose,  who  asserted  to 
have  a  better  knowledge  of  God  than  the  Ecclesiastics 
of  the  day.  Although  it  is  not  upon  historic  record 
that  a  great  Theosophical  principle  was  ever  fought  for 
with  war  and  bloodshed  by  the  Theosophists,  who, 
however  persecuted  they  may  be,  fight  with  other 
weapons  than  those  of  brute-force ;  we  nevertheless  can 
trace  Theosophy  to  have  been  the  primary  cause  of 
many  historical  events. 

Those  comparatively  few  men  and  women  who,  in 
the  ages  of  pseudo-orthodoxy,  dared  to  think  for  them- 
selves, were  indeed  the  cause  of  the  continuation  of 
the  Church,  which,  for  want  of  opposition,  would  have 
expired  in  plethoric  inanition.  There  were  more  Theo- 
sophists against  than  for  the  official  Church,  and  these 
really  performed  the  work  which  the  Hierarchy  pre- 
tended to  do,  namely,  that  of  guiding  the  searching 
minds  from  the  fallible  finite  phenomenal,  to  the 
absolute  and  infinite  noumenal  realms  of  existence. 
It  was  in  vain  that  the  so-called  Orthodox  teachers 
brought  their  most  powerful  arguments  to  bear  upon 
the  thinking  few.  The  convincing  logic  of  the  rack, 
the  conclusive  proof  of  the  stake,  the  brilliant  rhetoric 
of  breaking  on  the  wheel,  and  numerous  similarly 
mild  arguments  ad  hominem,  even  when  applied  with 
the  best  intentions,  had  no  other  results  than  the 
death  of  the  persecuted  still  giving  the  lie  to  the 
claims  of  the  official  Hierarchy. 

Should  it  be  objected  that  autos  defe,  the  rack  and 
tortures  of  all  kinds,  were  in  keeping  with  the  civili- 


HARDER  TO   UNLEARN   THAN  TO   LEARN.  347 

zation  of  that  period,  we  would  suggest  that,  as  all 
human  beings  have  nerves,  and  consequently  were  as 
sentient  then  as  now,  the  non-civilization  of  an  age  is 
not  an  excuse  for,  but  an  accusation  against,  that 
institution  which  pretended  to  civilize  and  to  guide 
men  to  God,  while  in  reality  its  adherents  were  not 
honest  in  their  professions,  and  hated  to  be  doubted 
and  questioned. 

It  is  sad  that  the  interests  of  the  Church  and  of  Hu- 
manity should  be  at  variance,  for  the  Church  should 
be  the  great  educator  of  the  human  race.  It  was  not 
to  the  welfare  of  humanity  that  the  most  sincere  and 
honest  thinkers  were  tortured  and  destroyed,  while  the 
insincere  and  dishonest  sat  in  places  of  honour. 

Neither  is  it  to  the  interests  of  humanity  that  igno- 
rance and  perversion  should  be  so  impressed  on  the 
plastic  mind,  that  it  demands,  even  under  favourable 
circumstances,  half  a  life-time  to  obliterate  the  effects 
of  early  miseducation. 

But  whatever  may  be  the  asserted  faults  of  the 
Christian  Church,  she  has  not  followed  the  footsteps 
of  the  ancient  Heathen  Hierarchies,  who  made 
God  their  Secret.  The  Christian  Church  has  never 
preached  the  Demon  to  mankind  and  kept  Grod  to 
herself.  If  the  Christian  priests  preach  a  delusion, 
it  is  because  they  too  are  deluded  through  having 
lost  the  Great  Arcanum  of  true  Esoteric  Christianity, 
of  which  the  Church  of  Eome,  nevertheless,  asserts  to 
have  the  sole  tradition. 

The  Church  of  Kome  has  always  been  consistent  in 


348  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

that  respect,  and  has  never  compromised,  ever  affirming 
to  be  the  only  Church  of  God,  and  that  there  was  no 
other.  That  she  could  not  always  prove  her  pretensions 
is  the  fault  of  the  men  who  had  possession  of  the 
Church,  but  not  the  fault  of  the  Church. 

The  Church  had  to  be  recruited  from  the  people ; 
and  as  there  was  no  leading  family  or  tribe  entrusted 
with  the  tradition,  the  Tbeosophic  Sanctuary  was  soon 
blocked  up  by  mere  popular  ignorance.  Dogma,  no 
doubt  in  itself  a  good  thing  when  competently  enun- 
ciated, ousted  Gnosis,  as  it  was  found  more  convenient 
to  assert  when  there  was  no  one  to  challenge  the 
assertion.  The  Esoteric  origin  that  gave  birth  to 
Exoteric  Christianity  became  gradually  forgotten  and 
at  length  unknown,  and  thus  the  shell  was  treasured 
while  the  kernel  was  neglected. 

We  attack  not  the  Church ;  on  the  contrary,  we 
explain  that  the  cruelties  committed  by  the  Inquisi- 
tion, horrible  and  totally  indefensible  as  they  were, 
must  not  be  imputed  to  the  Church,  even  if  sanctioned 
by  the  highest  in  ecclesiastic  rank  of  the  time,  but 
to  the  sinful  and  misguided  individuals  who  insti- 
tuted and  perpetrated  them,  and  who  will  doubtless 
suffer  for  ages  the  incalculable  evil  they  inflicted  upon 
the  human  race.  Such  acts  belonged  to  the  Spirit 
of  a  cruel  age,  and  not  by  any  means  to  the  inspiration 
of  the  Christian  Church,  whose  true  mission  is  one 
of  Love  and  Mercy. 

Let  us,  therefore,  not  lightly  join  in  the  common 
cry,  but  let  us  sift  the  acts  of  the    individuals   from 


THE   CI1UECH  MOST   NECESSARY.  349 

those  of  the  cause  they  represented,  and  instead  of 
giving  credence  to  the  materialistic  Panacea,  "  abolish 
the  God-idea."  We  plead  for  another  and  truer  remedy : 
"  Let  God  be  truly  known." 

It  is  a  great  and  glorious  fact  that  the  Church  could 
in  every  age  raise  up  her  myriads  who  'professed  to 
devote  their  life  to  God.  It  is  true  all  were  not  sin- 
cere in  their  profession ;  but  we  repeat,  whose  fault  was 
it, — that  of  the  Church,  or  of  the  men  who  were  in 
possession  of  the  Church  ? 

The  Church  is  a  most  important  and  necessary  con- 
gregation, and  should  be  a  concentration  of  the  unselfish 
and  spiritual  against  the  selfish  and  worldly-minded. 
As  the  Church  is  the  great  educator  of  humanity,  we 
deny  that  her  occupation  is  gone,  but  affirm  rather 
that  a  true  and  divine  Church  is  now  more  than  ever 
wanted ;  and,  therefore,  if  the  existing  Church  is  to 
be  regenerated,  all  who  claim  to  be  on  the  side  of 
Light,  against  the  powers  of  Darkness,  should  unite 
with  her.  The  Church  is  God's  window ;  but  of  what 
use  can  it  be  to  struggling  souls  if  it  is  so  obscured 
by  the  dust  of  ages,  and  hung  over  with  spiders'  webs, 
that  the  sunlight  of  to-day  (the  sunlight  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  ever  shining)  can  no  longer  penetrate  through 
that  much-encumbered  window  ?  Alas !  how  thick 
becomes  the  darkness  unless  we  are  guided  each  day 
by  the  Light  of  the  Spirit  of  Truth,  for  the  avenues 
of  the  Spirit  become  easily  clogged,  and  inspiration 
ceases. 

It  is  only  in  this  wise  that  a  true  reformation  can 


3J0  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

be  arrived  at.  Not  by  attack,  but  by  support ;  not  by 
enmity,  but  by  friendship ;  not  by  leaving  the  Church 
a  refuge  for  the  weak-minded,  but  by  the  noblest  minds 
lending  their  aid  in  the  mission  of  educating  mankind 
for  eternity. 

Ye  who  assume  to  have  a  knowledge  that  is  above 
the  cognizance  of  the  masses,  hold  not  aloof  from  the 
contest  that  is  now  being  fought  for  man's  soul,  but 
come  and  join  us,  and  let  your  presence  ennoble  the 
base,  and  enlarge  the  views  of  the  little-minded,  and 
by  your  leaven  we  shall  leaven  the  mass.  The  highest 
minds  should  become  the  allies  of  the  Theosophical 
Church  that  must  be  founded  upon  the  true  teachings 
of  Love  and  Wisdom  as  manifested  by  Christ,  that 
they  may  help  to  renew  her  Eternal  Truths.  We 
cannot  cling  to  all  Mother-Church  interpretations  with 
one  hand,  and  dwell  within  the  temple  of  Universal 
Truth  sowing  the  seeds  of  eternal  progress  with  the 
other.  True,  she  is  our  Mother,  and  therefore  we 
respect  and  revere  her ;  but  old  age  is  upon  her,  and  as 
change  is  written  upon  all  institutions,  so  she  too  must 
change  and  give  place  to  that  renewal  of  Divine  Truth 
which  will  serve  the  children's  highest  interests  better, 
for  the  Church  is  bound  to  be  a  Dispenser  of  God's 
bounty. 

Ye  who  are  loud  in  clamours  to  destroy,  have 
you  something  better  wherewith  to  replace  what  you 
would  destroy  ?  Should  the  "  God-idea,"  which  has  been 
the  consolation  to  innumerable  souls,  be  destroyed,  will 
your  "No-God"   idea    mend   matters,   or   will   it   not 


THE   "NO-GOD"   OF   THE   MATERIALIST.  351 

rather  be  the  destruction  of  the  human  race  ?  Will 
not  man,  when  he  has  lost  all  ideas  of  responsibility, 
and  is  told  that  most  infamous  untruth  that  there  is  no 
life  but  the  present,  and  no  hope,  no  beyond,  become 
an  unchained  wild  beast,  and  in  his  insane  rage  to 
enjoy  the  present,  destroy  what  he  would  enjoy,  and 
ruin  himself  spiritually  for  untold  and  untellable  ages  ? 

0  wonderful  "  No-God "  of  the  Atheists  and  Ma- 
terialists, thou  hast  no  love,  no  justice,  no  reason ; 
thou  hast  not  even  an  existence;  thou  art  nothing 
but  stone-blind  force,  and  by  thy  stone-blindness,  thy 
injustice,  thy  unreason,  and  thy  very  non-existence, 
this  wonderful  universe — as  wonderful  in  every  micro- 
scopic particle  as  in  each  solar  system — this  stu- 
pendous All,  is  incomprehensibly  sustained.  Not  by 
Reason,  but  by  Unreason ;  not  by  a  Supreme  Intelli- 
gence, but  by  a  Supreme  Unintelligence ;  not  by  an 
Absolute  Existence,  but  by  an  Absolute  Non-Existence ! 

Oh,  stupendous  monument  of  ridiculous  absurdity, 
and  unparalleled  assumption  of  wisdom !  If  it  pleases 
the  master-minds  of  this  century  to  believe  in  unbelief; 
if  non-consolation  consoles  them,  what  can  we  possibly 
say  to  such  wise  and  learned  folly  ! ! 

The  Mysterion  of  the  Jews,  the  Messiah,  was  and 
is  that  Mystic  Divine  Being  inculcated  in  allegory 
by  the  Initiates  of  all  nations.  The  Egyptians,  Hindus, 
Persians,  Greeks,  Druids,  Semits,  and  others,  had  their 
mystic  myths,  wherein  the  life  of  an  individual  hero 
(who  may  be  an  historical  or  an  ideal  being)  delineates 
the  course  of  Divine  Re-birth.     These  mythic,  or  rather 


3o2  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

mystic,  characters  were  foreshadowings  of  that  great 
and  Divine  substance  that  in  Christ  Jesus  was  plenarily 
manifested.  Thus  to  the  Apostles  and  early  Chris- 
tian Theosophers  Jesus  is  the  Messiah,  Christ,  or 
Saviour,  who  came  not  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfil  the 
Mystic  Law ;  and  the  fundamental  doctrine  of  the 
Christian  system  is  the  Divine  Incarnation,  or  Christ 
coming  in  the  flesh.     (See  Isaiah  ii.) 

In  that  very  Christ,  attainable  to  us  all,  God  becomes 
incarnate  once  and  for  ever  as  the  Divine  Law  of  Eegen- 
eration.  The  historical  and  Exoteric  Christ-Individual 
foreshadowing  the  mystic  and  Esoteric  Christ-Being. 
As  God  was  in  Jesus  so  may  the  Christ,  who  is  God, 
be  in  us,  and  the  Christ-Life  delineates  what  the  Word 
teaches — the  Law  of  Salvation  whereby  we  can  over- 
come the  perverse  Demon  within  us.  For  if  God 
is  within  us,  so  is  His  antitype  the  Demon,  and  Hell 
must  be  passed  through  before  Heaven  can  be  attained. 

To  the  Universal  Theosophist  Jesus  is  a  Christ, 
while  to  the  Christian  Theosophist  Jesus  is  the  Christ. 
The  former  asserts  that  there  have  been  many  Divine 
Incarnations ;  the  latter  affirms  only  one,  and  that  one 
to  be  Christ  Jesus,  the  representative  of  Adonai. 

All  true  Theosophists,  however,  agree  that  the  Christ 
or  Divine  Spirit  must  be  born  and  individualized  in 
every  living  Soul,  and  therefore  the  Divine  Incarnation, 
Divine  Being,  or  Christ,  would  be  one  for  all.  Quali- 
tatively one,  and  quantitatively  many,  though  at  the 
same  time  it  can  with  equal  truth  be  declared  to  be 
quantitatively  one,  and  qualitatively  various ;    or  one 


CHRIST  MUST   BE  IN  US.  353 

state  of  blessedness  or  Nirvana  for  all  beings,  although 
each  may  experience  it  differently.  Thus,  though  the 
manifestations  may  be  many,  the  Chris1>Incarnation  is 
mystically  one ;  but  that  one  is  to  be  made  manifest 
in  all  who  truly  believe,  and  live  the  Christ-life ; 
and  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  know  and 
understand  that  Christ  must  not  merely  be  for  us, 
but  that  Christ  must  be  in  us. 

As  persistently  as  the  orthodox  Exoteric  Christian 
asserts  the  Gospel  to  be  history,  have  certain  Theoso- 
phists  from  the  time  of  Origen,  if  not  before,  declared 
the  whole  relation  to  point  to  a  great  Mystic  Alle- 
gory— an  Hermetic  Myth ;  and  certainly,  upon  reading 
and  studying  attentively  Philo's  interpretation  of  the 
Hebrew  Scriptures,  and  Origen's  exposition  of  the  New 
Testament,  the  historical  foundation  of  the  Scriptures 
would  seem  to  melt  into  thin  air,  while  many  of  the 
apparent  absurdities  of  the  latter  are,  when  rightly 
interpreted,  no  more  absurd,  but  appear  in  their 
true  light  as  abstruse  Hermetic  wisdom.  It  was  the 
simplicity  of  the  idea  that  made  Exoteric  Christianity 
popular,  while  the  abstruse  Esoteric  truths  could  not 
be  accepted  by  the  masses.  "  The  Son  of  God  died 
for  my  sins,"  is  far  more  pleasing  to  an  ordinary 
mind  than  the  truth  that  he  must  die  to  his  sins  in 
order  to  become  a  true  Son  of  God. 

Jesus,  imparting  the  true  Gnosis  or  knowledge  of 
God  to  those  who  for  generations  had  been  deluded 
by  sacrificial  perversions  of  religion,  was  with  necessary 
emphasis  regarded  by  His  disciples  as  very  God   and 

AA 


354  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

very  Man — the  Divine  Light  becoming  manifested  to 
those  who  sat  in  darkness.  For  He  and  no  other  had 
shown  Himself  to  be  to  them  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and 
the  Life  ;  yea,  as  He  said,  He  was  indeed  the  Door  by 
which  they  entered  the  Divine  kingdom,  and  whereby 
they  attained  to  a  union  with  Himself  and  with  the 
Father  who  is  in  Heaven. 

To  understand  the  words  of  the  Apostles  one  must 
be  a  true  Theosophist,  and  know  what  they  knew.  For 
the  Doctrine  of  Christ,  the  Apostles,  and  early  Chris- 
tians is  Theosophy,  and  not  the  Exoteric  dogma  subse- 
quently inaugurated  in  ages  of  spiritual  darkness. 

Exoteric  Orthodox  Theology,  indebted  as  it  is  even 
for  its  very  name  to  Theosophy — for  that  alone  is  the 
only  true  Ortho-Doxy  or  Eight  Doctrine  (of  the  Word) — 
cannot  maintain  the  vastness  of  its  pretensions,  as  its 
assertion  to  be  the  only  right  way  irreconcilably  contra- 
dicts every  other  orthodoxy.  Thus  there  is  a  Brahmin, 
Moslem,  Jewish,  Protestant,  Buddhistic,  and  Koman 
Catholic  Orthodoxy,  each  of  which  asserts  to  be  the 
only  true  ortho-Orthodoxy,  but  they  all  fail  to  recognise 
that  they  are  only  branches  of  the  one  vast  tree  of 
universal  Theosophy. 

As  we  have  said,  the  Spirit  of  Christian  Theosophy 
is  Christ  Himself;  therefore  Christian  Theosophy  has 
not  only  as  lofty  an  ideal  as  any  other  Theosophy 
of  Esoteric  origin,  but  the  Christ  is  the  idea  which 
really  lies  at  the  foundation  of  the  Esoterism  of  all 
religions.  It  is  in  fact  the  foundation  stone  on  which 
all  religions  have  been  built :  "  the  head  stone  of  the 


TUE  HEAD  STONE  OF  THE  CORNER.       355 

corner  "  of  the  Human  Temple  not  made  with  hands, 
but  built  up  on  earth  as  the  Son  of  Man,  a  noble 
edifice  which  will  at  last  rise  above  the  things  of  earth 
and  be  re-united  to  the  Divine  Source  through  its 
Spiritual  Soul,  which  immaculately  conceives  the 
Christ  Spirit.  And  thus  the  Christ  individuates  Him- 
self in  every  perfected  man,  crowning  him  with  that 
perfection  that  constitutes  him  henceforth  a  Son  of 
Grod,  and  unites  him  to  his  Father  in  Heaven. 

This  "Head  Stone  of  the  Corner,"  as  Christ  was 
so  often  called,  was  represented,  as  we  know,  in  the  very 
earliest  times  of  which  we  have  any  record,  as  the 
Stone  which  the  ignorant  builders  refused,  but  which 
the  master  builder  nevertheless  placed  at  the  top  of 
the  Great  Pyramid ;  that  Pillar  of  witness  to  the  Lord 
on  the  borders  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  or  darkness,  (Isaiah 
xix.  19,  20.)  whose  prophetic  significance  in  this  the 
fulness  of  time,  and  not  a  day  sooner,  has  been 
pointed  out  to  us  by  those  who  have  very  evidently 
been  guided  to  act  as  instruments  in  the  Divine 
Kevelation.* 

*  "  The  stones  required  for  building  the  Great  Pyramid  were 
evidently,  from  the  quarry  marks  still  legible  upon  some  of  them, 
prepared  at  the  quarries  according  to  the  order  of  the  architect. 
For  the  vast  majority  of  the  stones  nothing  but  one  unvarying 
figure  was  required.  But  amongst  them,  and  different  therefrom, 
one  was  ordered  which  did  not  chime  in  with  any  of  the  Egyptian 
building  notions,  certainly  not  of  their  temples,  tombs,  or  palaces. 
....  such  a  stone  was  of  course  '  a  stone  of  stumbling,' 
and  a  '  rock  of  offence,'  to  builders  whose  heads  did  not  under- 
stand the  work  they  were  engaged  upon.  It  was  to  them  the 
pointed  stone  which  '  whosoever  shall  fall  on  shall  be  broken,7  and 


356  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

The  head-stone  of  the  corner,  thus  pointing  heaven- 
wards, like  the  Key-stone  of  the  Royal  Arch  Mason, 
symbolises  the  Christ  Spirit  in  man,  (who  is  the  Temple 
not  made  with  hands,  "  the  Temple  of  the  Living  God, 
which  Temple  ye  are")  when  that  Spirit  shall  have 
descended  upon  you  from  on  high ;  as  the  dove  descended 
on  the  Head  of  Christ  at  His  Initiation,  or  symbolic 

so  huge  a  stone  as  a  coping  for  the  vast  structure  of  the  whole 
Great°  Pyramid,  that  '  on  whomsoever  it  shall  fall  it  will  grind 
him  to  powder?  (Matt,  xxi.) 

"  From  a  practical  worker  like  St.  Paul,  we  have  even  a  most 
methodical  illustration  in  the  use  which  he  makes  of  certain 
constructive  differences  between  the  four  lower  corner-stones  and 
the  single  corner-stone  above;  constructive  differences  which, 
if  applicable  to  any  other  building  at  all,  are  only  fully  applicable 
to  the  wonderful  Great  Pyramid  ;  for  his  words  are — 

"  '  Ye  are  fellow-citizens  with  the  saints,  and  of  the  household  of 
God;  and  are  built  upon  the  fowndation  of  the  apostles  and 
prophets,  Jesus  Christ  Himself  being  the  chief  corner-stone ;  in 
whom  all  the  building  fitly  framed  together  groweth  into  an 
holy  temple  in  the  Lord?     (Ephes  ii.  19 — 22.) 

"This  same  noble  figurative  employment  of  that  particular 
topmost  stone,— viz.,  its  representation  of  the  Christ  and  His 
crowning  the  scheme  of  the  redemption  of  man — is  one  frequently 
employed  in  Holy  Scripture ;  as  in  Psalm  cxviii.  22,  in  the 
Gospels,  and  the  Epistles  (Matt.  xxi.  19.,  Mark  xii.  10.,  Luke  xx. 
17.,  Acts  iv.  11,  1  Peter  ii.  4.)  The  stone  is  there  alluded  to  not 
only  as  the  chief  corner-stone,  'elect  and  precious,'  made  'the 
head  of  the  corner'  (which  is  only  perfectly  and  pre-eminently 
true  of  the  topmost  angle  of  a  pyramid),  but  as  having  been  for 
a  long  time  'disallowed  by  the  builders,'  and  existing  only  as 
'rt  stone  of  stumbling  and  a  rock  of  offence  to  them.' 

"  The  simile  is  easily  and  perfectly  applicable  to  our  Saviour's 
appearance  on  earth  ;  yet  evidently,  from  the  very  principle  of  all 
such  figurative  allusions,  a  something  bearing  on  the  nature  of 
the  figure  made  use  of  had  been  existing  on  the  earth  before  ;  or 
it  would  never  have  been  employed. 


THE  SOUL   IS   FEMININE.  357 

Baptism  vjith  water  {and  the  Spirit  f).  This  Spirit 
is  born  in  man  when  sufficiently  developed  through 
earthly  evolution  to  attain  unto  the  Spiritual  Soul, 
or  Sixth  Principle, — the  Mary, — of  which  is  born  the 
Christ  Spirit  in  man,  who  is  finally  to  crush  the  head 
of  the  serpent,  the  symbol  of  earthly  generation  and 
materialism.  Christ  Himself  being  the  symbol  of 
the  heavenly,  or  spiritual-regeneration. 

For  the  Christ  Spirit  is  "  the  seed  of  the  woman  " 
(Soul  is  ever  understood  as  feminine,  Spirit  as  mascu- 
line), the  Child  of  Mary  ;  herself  the  mystical  represen- 
tative of  the  Heavenly  Divine  Wisdom,  She  "  who  was 
with  God  from  the  beginning,"  as  the  Eoman  Catholic 
Church  knows  full  well,  when  she  has  adopted  this 
eighth  chapter  of  Proverbs  for  the  Epistle  of  the  8th  day 
of  December,  the  Feast  of  The  Immaculate  Conception 
of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  whose  Nativity  is  celebrated  on 
the  8th  day  of  September,  nine  months  later  on. 

Theosophy   is  a  knowledge  of    the   Divine  Wisdom 

"  Now  we  know  that  the  Great  Pyramid  did  stand  on  its 
desert  hill  before  any  of  the  inspired  authors  wrote  ;  and  also, 
that  they  seem  to  have  been  spiritually  conversant  with  many 
principles  of  its  construction,  although  they  were  not  visitors  to 
the  land  of  Egypt ;  and  it  is  they  who  allude  to  some  notorious 
objections  by  the  builders  against  the  head  corner-stone,  while 
their  work  was  in  progress." — ("  Our  Inheritance  in  the  Great 
Pyramid,"  Chapter  xxiii,  page  441,  by  Prof.  Piazzi  Smyth, 
F.R.S.E.,  F.R.A.S.,  Astronomer  Royal  for  Scotland). 

t  Christ  glorified  not  Himself  to  be  made  High  Priest,  but  He 
that  said  unto  Him  :  "  Thou  art  My  Son  ;  to-day  have  I  begotten 
Thee "  (Hebrews  v.  5).  "  Thou  art  a  Priest  for  ever  after  the 
order  of  Melchizedec  (6th  verse). 


358  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Itself,  or  Herself,  (Theo-Sophia).  This  truth  we  again 
repeat,  as  we  wish  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  our 
readers  that  it  is  the  fundamental  and  regenerative  por- 
tion of  every  true  religion.  Theology  is  the  man- 
made  science,  or  system,  growing  out  of  it,  and  stand- 
ing to  it  in  the  same  relation  as  that  which  every  other 
science  stands  to  its  subject :  as,  for  instance,  natural 
philosophy  to  matter,  metaphysics  to  mind,  philology 
to  language,  etc. 

Theosophically,  then,  the  Gospels  are  the  histories  of 
an  inward  and  re-generating  Principle,  called  the  only 
begotten  Son  of  God,  which  is  the  Saviour  of  humanity, 
for  it  redeems  man  from  the  prison  house,  of  earth ; 
and  the  development  in  him  of  this  Principle  transforms 
the  Son  of  Man  into  the  Son  of  God.  Call  it  the 
Spirit  of  Truth,  or  call  it  Love,  or  Life ;  or  call  it 
Wisdom,  the  Logos,  or  the  sixth  Principle  in  man,  as  do 
the  Buddhists  ;  or  the  Key-stone  of  the  Arch,  as  do  the 
Eoyal  Arch  Masons ;  or  the  Head-stone  of  the  Corner, 
as  do  the  Scriptures  in  certain  places :  it  is  always  the 
highest  state  to  which  man  can  attain.  It  is  in 
fact  "  to  put  on  Christ." 

"  When  Jesus  came  into  the  coasts  of  Cesarea  Philippi  lie 
asked  His  disciples,  saying,  Whom  do  men  say  that  I,  the  Son  of 
Man  am  ?  And  they  said,  Some  say  that  Thou  art  John  the 
Baptist;  some,  Elias;  and  others,  Jeremias,  or  one  of  the  prophets. 
He  saith  unto  them,  But  whom  say  ye  that  I  am  ?  And  Simon 
Peter  answered  and  said,  Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the 
living  God.  And  Jesus  answered  and  said  unto  him,  Blessed  art 
thou,  Simon  Barjona:  for  flesh  and  hlood  hath  not  revealed  it 
unto  thee,  but  My  Father  which  is  in  heaven.  And  I  say  also 
unto  thee,  that  thou  art  Peter,  and  upon  this  rock  I  will  build 
My  church  (Matthew  xvi.  13). 


THE  MYSTERY   OF   CHRIST.  359 

Here  again  we  are  told  that  the  Church  is  built  on  a 
rock,  and  this  rock  the  truth,  as  contained  in  the  con- 
fession of  faith  of  Peter,  who  in  consequence  of  having 
made  it  was  then  and  there  "called  by  a  new  name," 
Petrus,  Pierre,  or  a  Stone.  Peter  was  also  called  Cephas, 
which  in  Hebrew  means  a  stone. 

For  us  this  Rock  is  the  Christ,  the  Way,  the  Truth, 
and  the  Life.  It  is  also  called  the  Door,  for  it  is  the 
only  one  that  will  open  to  us  the  courts  of  the  heavenly 
kingdom  of  our  Father.  Through  that  door  all  must 
pass,  as  we  have  seen,  both  Jew,  and  Gentile,  Buddhist, 
Pagan,  Druid,  Parsi  and  Mohammedan,  all  must  drink 
of  the  waters  of  that  Living  Rock  that  followed  them ; 
and  that  Rock  is  Christ. 

To  the  Gospel  writers  Christ  was  the  invisible  Holy 
One  of  Israel  seen  through  the  veil  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment ;  not  merely  the  Spirit  of  the  Old  Testament,  but 
Life  itself  that  was  before  Abraham,  or  as  Christ  called 
it,  the  Spirit  of  Truth  that  should  lead  us  the  way  to 
Himself,  and  guide  us  into  all  truth.  The  Spirit  of 
Truth  was  buried  then,  as  it  is  now  buried,  in  forms  and 
ceremonies ;  or  enshrined  and  entombed  in  traditions, 
or  past  histories ;  but  Christian  Theosophists  see  the 
truth  under  the  letter,  and  through  the  outward  tra- 
ditional history  of  a  past  earthly  life. 

This  was  the  secret  of  those  earlier  Theosophists  the 
Essenes,  and  was  regarded  as  a  great  mystery,  called 
the  "  Mystery  of  Christ,"  because  it  is  certainly  not  of 
a  nature  to  be  communicated  by  any  external  process, 
for  it  must  be  felt  and  lived  before  it  can  be  spiritually 


360  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

understood.  Until  then  it  can  only  be  read  in  sacred 
story,  or  gazed  at  in  pictures  on  the  wall,  or  dimly  seen 
in  some  sculptured  form  of  inspired  art.  The  members  of 
the  Secret  Brethren  speak  of  their  Secret  at  the  present 
day  amongst  themselves,  but  they  only  wrote  of  it  in  alle- 
gory and  symbolism  in  obedience  to  their  solemn  oath. 

But  there  are  very  many  who  do  not,  and  cannot, 
accept  this  ecclesiastical  view  of  the  Divine  Incarnation, 
and  with  whom  it  is  always  a  question  of  grave  anxiety, 
and  a  problem  they  fain  would,  but  find  they  cannot, 
solve.  Outside  the  churches  they  are  met  by  many  with 
the  assertion  that  Jesus  Christ  was  an  allegorical  per- 
sonage altogether,  and  that  the  Gospels  are  not  historical, 
but  mystical  relations,  not  biographical  but  allegorical ; 
and  that  under  the  short  but  intensely  interesting 
story  of  an  individual  example — they  were  intended 
to  present  and  show  forth  principles,  states,  and  pro- 
cesses which  are  spiritual  and  appeal  to  the  Soul ;  and  do 
not  therefore  deal  with  persons,  places,  times,  and  events 
on  the  physical  plane,  but  with  qualities,  processes, 
phases,  and  states,  on  the  interior  and  spiritual  plane. 

Now,  although  they  see  that  there  is  much  plausi- 
bility in  this  view  of  the  subject,  and  indeed  that  it  is 
so  true  it  is  impossible  to  deny  it,  and  therefore 
that  they  are  bound  to  retain  and  hold  fast  to  it,  yet 
it  does  not  wholly  satisfy  their  feelings  or  entirely 
seem  to  meet  their  want  of  a  personal  Saviour,  to 
whom  they  have  become  accustomed  to  cling  in  conse- 
quence of  the  early  orthodox  teaching  they  have 
received.     Thus,  to  the  Exoteric,  and  so-called  orthodox 


THE   NAEONIO   CYCLES.  361 

Christian,  the  historical  Jesus  is  the  Christ  by  whose 
vicarious  sacrifice  they  expect  to  be  saved,  if  they  will 
ONLY  believe  in  Him,  and  call  upon  Him  in  their  hour 
of  need. 

The  Exoteric  Christian  considers  Jesus  as  the  imme- 
diate Son  of  the  great  God  Himself,  the  great  Spirit, 
the  I  AM,  who  took  upon  Himself  the  nature  of  man 
at  one  particular  period  of  the  world's  history,  becoming 
incarnate  in  human  form,  in  order  to  ransom  the 
children  of  earth  from  his  Father's  wrath,  by  offering 
himself  instead,  as  a  vicarious  sacrifice. 

To  the  Christian  Theosophist  Jesus  is  a  manifesta- 
tion of  "  Adonai,"  the  Christ,  or  Christ  Spirit,  of  whom 
there  have  been  many  Divine  Incarnations  on  this 
earth,  and  He  the  fullest  and  most  perfect.  They 
believe  Him  to  be  the  guiding  and  guardian  Protector 
of  this  planet  during  His  particular  cycle,  and  that  in 
coming  to  it  He  comes  to  His  own,  not  only  to  instruct, 
but  to  give  a  fresh  impulse  at  the  end  of  certain 
periods  of  600  years,  called  Neroses,  or  Naronic 
Cycles ;  and  if  therefore  it  could  be  proved  by  those 
who  so  assert,  that  Jesus  is  only  a  mythical  and  not  an 
historical  personality,  the  whole  theory  of  the  Naronic 
Cycles  founded  on  astronomical  science  which  is  to  be 
found  in  the  doctrines  of  every  ancient  creed  and 
country  all  over  the  civilized  earth,  would  fall  to  the 
ground,  and  proved  after  millions  of  ages  to  be  but  a 
vain  delusion.* 

*  It  is  often  asserted  that  only  two  historical  mentions  can  be 
produced  in  proof  of  the  earthly  existence  of  Christ,  and  those 


362  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

After  all,  why  should  the  opponents  of  Christianity  be 
so  anxious  to  deny  the  personality  of  the  historic  Jesus, 
the  Divine  manifestation  in  the  West,  when  they  make 
no  difficulty  in  admitting  the  existence  of  Cyrus,  and 
Buddha,  and  Cristna,  and  Fo,  and  Mohammed,  and  of 
all  the  others  that  have  successively  performed  their 
Divine  Mission  of  Mercy  and  Salvation  in  the  East. 
Is  it  because  that  of  Jesus  is  proclaimed  to  have  been 
a  fuller,  a  more  plenary  and  saving  mission,  coming 
as  He  did  as  the  Mediator  of  a  New  Covenant,  to  add 
a  New  Commandment  to  the  Decalogue,  and  therefore 
to  infuse  fresh  vitality,  or  life-blood,  into  Humanity? 
Is  it  because  it  is  said  He  descended  to  the  very 
depths,  even  into  Hades,  to  preach  deliverance  to 
those  who  were  still  captives  in  that  intermediate 
state  ? — For  are  we  not  told  that  David  himself  had 
not  yet  ascended  into  the  heavens  (Acts  ii.  34),  and 
this  because  the  Christ  had  not  yet  been  born  of  him, 
or   in   him,   although   he   had   received   the    promise, 

the  very  slight  ones  contained  in  Tacitus  and  in  Josephus,  the 
latter  of  which  is  supposed  to  he  apocryphal.  To  these  we 
desire  to  add  two  others  which  we  have  come  across  in  the  course 
of  extensive  reading.  These  accidental  notices  in  two  Jewish 
works  will  be  found  unexceptionable  proof  of  His  existence ; 
unexceptionable  because,  if  it  be  not  the  evidence  of  unwilliuo' 
witnesses,  it  is  the  evidence  of  disinterested  ones.  Thus  the 
Midrashkoheleth,  or  gloss  upon  Ecclesiastes  says:  "  It  happened 
that  a  serpent  bit  R.  Eleasar  ben  Damah,  and  James,  a  man  of 
the  village  Secania,  came  to  heal  him  'in  the  name  of  Jesus  ben 
Panther.'  "  This  statement  is  likewise  to  be  found  in  the  book 
called  Abodazara,  where  the  comment  upon  it  says,"  This  James 
was  a  disciple  of  Jesus  the  Nazarene." 

Mr.  Faber  says,  "  Jesus  was  not  called  originally  Jesus  Christ, 


THE   CHRIST   SPIRIT   W  DAVID.  363 

and  "  the  ways  of  life  had  been  made  known  to 
him."  (Acts  ii.  28.) 

"  Therefore  being  a  prophet,  and  knowing  that  God  had  sworn 
with  an  oath  to  him,  that  of  the  fruit  of  his  loins,  according  to 
the  flesh,  He  would  raise  up  Christ  to  sit  on  His  throne  ;  He 
seeing  this  before,  spake  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ,  that  His 
Soul  was  not  left  in  hell  (Hades),  neither  His  flesh  did  see  corrup- 
tion."    (Acts  ii.  30,  31). 

How  different  does  this  promise  read  to  the  Theo- 
sophist,  in  the  Esoteric  sense,  as  the  Christ  who  was 
to  save  his,  David's,  own  soul  from  Hades,  when  He 
should  be  born  of  him,  according  to  the  flesh  (therefore  of 
his  own  individuality,  and  sit  on  his  throne,  as  the 
Saviour  of  his  own  Spiritual  Kingdom  ;  according  to 
"the  ways  of  Life  which  had  been  made  known  to 
him  "),  to  what  it  reads  when  taken  in  the  literal  sense, 
or  according  to  the  letter,  as  the  Jews  took  it,  when 
they  crucified  the  ONE  who  came  "  to  bear  witness  to 
the  Truth."     Nay,  as  they  take  it  now,  when  they  are 

but  Jescua  Hammassiah.  Jescua  is  the  same  as  Joshua  and 
Jesus,  and  means  Saviour ;  and  Ham  is  evidently  the  Om  of 
India  (the  Amnion),  and  Messiah  is  the  Anointed.  It  will  then 
be  the  Saviour  Om,  the  Anointed;  precisely  as  Isaiah  had  lite- 
rally foretold :  or,  reading  in  the  Hebrew  mode,  the  Anointed 
Om,  the  Saviour.  This  was  the  Name  of  Jesus  of  Bethlehem. 
His  Name  was  also  Jesus  Ben  Panther.  Jesus  was  a  very 
common  name  with  the  Jews."  In  another  place  he  says,  "  It  is 
remarkable  that  the  patronymic  of  Jesus  Christ  was  Panther ; 
and  that  Panthers  were  the  nurses  and  bringers  up  of  Bacchus. 
Panther  was  the  name  of  our  Lord's  foster  father." 

To  this  we  may  add  that  Pantheism  maintains  the  Universe  to 
be  the  outward  vesture  or  manifestation  of  God ;  and  we  know 
that  a  Pantheon  was  a  Temple  dedicated  to  all  the  Gods,  innu- 
merable as  the  spots  on  the  Panther's  skin. 


364  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

still  expecting  an  earthly  King,  to  sit  on  a  vanished 
throne.  As  if  the  promise  of  God  could  ever  concern 
the  fleeting  things  of  time  and  materiality. 

Essentially  as  Life  the  Christ  is  an  impersonal  State ; 
and  to  say  that  there  is  no  living  reality  except  as 
visibly  embodied,  would  be  to  deny  the  existence  of  the 
great  I  AM  Himself,  or  see  Him  only  in  visible  nature. 
Christ  is  the  Power  and  Wisdom  and  Goodness  of  the 
Son  made  manifest,  first  of  all  in  the  Man  Christ  Jesus, 
who  came  as  the  "  Mediator  of  the  New  Covenant  "  to 
"  bear  ivitness  to  the  Truth"*  and  ultimately  and 
everlastingly  in  all  who  truly  believe  in,  and  receive 
Him  in  themselves,  and  live  His  life,  according  to  the 
promise  made  known  to  David  as  "  the  ways  of  life" 
Thus  as  Eedeemer  and  Saviour  He  is  far  more  than  a 
mere  historical  personage,  being  a  Spiritual  Divine  and 
Eternal  Verity ;  the  only  truly  Begotten  Son  of  the 
Father ;  the  Word  of  God  (therefore  the  proceeding), 
"  begotten  before  all  worlds." 

"  All  things  were  made  by  Him  ;  and  without  Him  was  not 
anything  made  that  was  made.  In  Him  is  Life;  and  the  Life  is 
the  light  of  men.  And  the  light  shineth  in  darkness;  but  the 
darkness  comprehended  it  not.  He  was  in  the  world,  and  the 
world  was  made  by  Him,  and  the  world  knew  Him  not.  He 
came  unto  His  own,  and  His  own  received  Him  not.  But  as  many 
as  received  Him,  to  them  gave  He  power  to  become  the  Sons  of 
God,  even  to  them  that  believe  on  His  name  (nature)  :  which  were 
born,  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the  flesh,  nor  of  the  ivill  of 
man,  but  of  God."     (St.  John  i.  3  to  5  and  10  to  13.) 

*  "  Jesus  answered,  Thou  sayest  that  I  am  a  king.  To  this  end 
was  I  born,  and  for  this  cause  came  I  into  the  world,  that  I 
should  bear  witness  unto  the  truth.  Every  one  that  is  of  the 
truth  heareth  my  voice."     (John  xviii.  37.) 


THE  TRUTH  IS  ONE,  AND  ETERNAL.      365 

Christ  and  the  Gospels  are  indeed  THE  Key  to  the 
mystery  of  the  creation  of  man;  his  past,  present, 
future,  and  eternal  being.  His  nature,  why,  and  when 
created,  and  how,  and  for  what  purpose.  To  show  us 
who  and  what  God  the  everlasting,  self-existent,  and 
glorious  Being  really  is — what  His  Nature,  and  how  He 
manifests  Himself  in  Light,  Life,  Love ;  in  Wisdom, 
Truth,  Goodness,  Meekness,  Simplicity,  in  Sorrow  and 
Sympathy,  Holiness,  Tenderness,  Grace,  and  Power ; 
what  the  Word  is  that  is  Truth,  and  how  all  this 
mighty  power  in  love  and  gentleness  can  effectually 
operate  in  the  spirit  and  being  of  man.  How  man  is 
redeemed  from  the  fall,  what  that  fall  was ;  what  life 
and  death  are,  and  what  these  are  intended  and  made 
to  bring  about ;  who  and  what  is  the  principle  and 
being  of  that  which  is  called  the  devil  and  Satan ;  and 
how  all  this  seeming  antagonism  works  together  to 
make  manifest  the  hidden  power  and  wisdom  of  Deity. 
What  is  Time  and  Space ;  what  Eternity,  and  so  on. 
All  this  and  infinitely  more  Christ  the  Son  (Son  of  Man, 
and  Son  of  God)  explained,  and  made  known  to  us  in 
the  Scriptures,  not  as  read  in  the  Letter,  or  merely  as 
matter  of  history,  but  as  of  a  deep  spiritual  Esoteric 
signification. 

And  the  true  and  universal  Theosophist  clearly  sees 
that  pure  Buddhism  in  its  fundamental  teachings  in  no 
wise  differs  from  pure  Christianity,  and  that  Esoteric 
religion,  or  Theosophy,  is  the  same  throughout  all  time 
and  conditions,  because  Divine  Truth  is  ONE  and 
Eternal.      All   religions    have   the    One    Great  Secret, 


366  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

though  they  may  call  it  by  different  names,  and  that 
Secret  is  "  the  mystery  of  the  Christ"  the  "  Seed  of  the 
Woman"  (the  Spiritual  Soul)  conceived  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  therefore  truly  the  Son  of  God.  Some  have 
lost  the  key  to  this  mystery,  like  the  Masons  who  have 
lost  the  Word,  and  they  are  not  likely  to  find  it  so  long 
as  they  confine  their  Fraternity  exclusively  to  one  sex, 
that  which  represents  the  Intellect ;  for  the  word  which 
is  now  lost,  was  confided  only  to  a  woman  (perhaps 
the  Queen  of  Sheba),  namely,  to  the  Intuition  which 
is  feminine.  The  Story  of  Hiram  Abiff  is  that  of  the 
Divine  Spirit,  the  Son  of  the  Widow,  or  Spiritual  Soul, 
which  in  undeveloped  and  material  conditions  is  sepa- 
rated from  her  Divine  source,  thus  widowed ;  the  three 
fellow-craft's-men  who  slay  him  are  the  three  lower 
principles,  viz.,  the  Body,  the  Ego,  and  the  animal 
or  earthly  Soul.  It  is  the  woman  who  is  to  bruise  the 
head  of  this  serpent ;  in  other  words,  Intuition,  who  is 
to  restore  the  lost  Word. 

This  innermost  Spirit,  "  the  Mystery  of  God  kept 
secret  from  the  beginning  of  the  world,"  designated 
The  Christ,  and  generally  called  "the  Son  of  God," 
was  the  Saviour  of  Jesus,*  and  must  be  the  Saviour  of 
all  men.  It  was  the  Christ  in  Jesus  who  said  to  the 
Father  :  "  I  in  them,  and  Thou  in  Me,  that  they  all 
may  be  made  perfect  in  One ;  and  that  the  world  may 


*  "  For  in  all  things  it  behoved  Him  to  be  made  like  unto  His 
brethren."  (Hebrews  ii.  17.)  And  we  read  "He  was  made 
perfect  through  suffering"     (Hebrews  ii.  10.) 


THE   SONSHIP   OF   THE   CHRIST   SPIRIT.  367 

know  that  Thou  hast  sent  Me  and  hast  loved  them,  as 
Thou  hast  loved  Me."     (John  xvii.  23.) 

Now  this  Divine  Mystery,  the  Secret  of  the  Sonship 
of  the  "  Christ  Spirit,"  and  the  Fatherhood  of  God  "  The 
Great  Spirit "  (as  He  is  beautifully  called  by  the  North 
American  Indians),  is  not  only  held  in  all  religions, 
although  not  openly  taught,  or  taught  only  in  a  dis- 
torted form,  but  was  Esoterically  written  on  the  glowing 
pages  of  the  earliest  revelation  given  to  man,  before 
even  the  first  rude  hieroglyphs  had  been  invented  by 
him  wherewith  to  transcribe  those  good  tidings 
shadowed  forth  in  brilliant  imagery  in 

"  The  starry  scriptures  of  the  skies." 

and  the  history  of  Hercules,  (the  personification  of  the 
Spiritual  Sun,  who,  like  the  solar  orb,  performs  twelve 
labours,  one  for  each  celestial  sign,)  and  that  of  Jesus 
Christ,  is  so  close  that  the  Eev.  Mr.  Faber  has  been 
obliged  to  admit  that  Hercules  was  a  type  of  what  the 
Saviour  was  to  do  and  to  suffer.     He  says  as  follows  : 

"  On  the  Sphere  he  (Hercules)  is  represented  in  the  act  of  con- 
tending with  the  serpent,  the  head  of  which  is  placed  under  his 
foot ;  and  this  serpent,  we  are  told,  is  that  which  guarded  the  tree 
with  golden  fruit  in  the  midst  of  the  Garden  of  the  Hesperides. 
And  the  Garden  of  the  Hesperides  was  no  other  than  the  Garden 
of  Paradise.  Consequently  the  serpent  of  that  Garden,  the  head 
of  which  is  crushed  beneath  the  heel  of  Hercules,  and  which  is 
described  as  enclosing  within  its  folds  the  trunk  of  the  mysterious 
Tree  of  Life,  must  necessarily  be  a  transcript  of  that  serpent 
whose  form  was  assumed  by  the  tempter  of  our  first  parents. 
We  may  observe  the  same  ancient  tradition  in  the  Phoenician 
fable  respecting  Ophion  and  Ophiuchus." 

All   this   about  the   Garden   of    Paradise;   and  the 


368  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

serpent  of  that  garden,  and  the  Tree  of  Life,  is  still  so 
Esoteric  that  we  dare  not  at  present  unveil  it ;  nay, 
were  we  to  do  so  we  should  again  be  obliged  to  conceal, 
by  re-veiling  it  with  another  Letter ;  for  it  cannot  be 
openly  revealed,  those  who  belong  to  the  Temple  of 
Wisdom,  i.e.,  all  true  Theosophists,  have  already  seized 
the  Key — which  must  be  taken  by  the  Initiate,  for  it 
cannot  be  given ;  the  Sixth  Sense  is  here  required, 
which  is  a  spiritual  sense,  that  of  the  Intuition. 

A  less  orthodox  authority  than  the  Eev.  Mr.  Faber, 
but  one  who  has  done  very  much  to  revolutionise  men's 
minds,  Monsieur  Dupuis,  has  shown  the  life  and 
labours  of  Hercules  on  the  Celestial  Sphere  in  a 
manner  which  admits  of  no  dispute ;  and  that  Hercules 
is  the  Hericlo,  the  Saviour  of  the  Neros  600.  "  There 
can  be  no  doubt,"  says  Higgins  in  the  "  Anacalypsis," 
"  that  the  history  of  Cristna  is  the  history  of  the 
Equinoctial  Sun  in  Aries,  and  that  of  Buddha  was  the 
Equinoctial  Sun  in  Taurus ;  Buddha  was  Bacchus, 
Cristna  was  Hercules,  in  reality  one  2160  years  after 
the  other." 

But  long  before  M.  Dupuis'  time  it  was  said  by  that 
learned  Spaniard,  Alphonso  the  Great,  that  the  adven- 
tures of  Jesus  are  all  depicted  in  the  Constellations; 
and  this  agrees  with  what  Jacob  is  reported  to  have 
said,  that  the  fortunes  of  his  family  were  read  in  the 
stars ;  and  also  with  what  Isaiah  said,  that  the  heavens 
were  a  book.  This  was  really  believed  by  some  of  the 
Kabbalists  who  divided  the  stars  into  letters.  There 
is  little   doubt,  as  King  Alphonso   was   so  famous  for 


THE  NARONIC  CYCLE  OF  600  YEARS.      369 

his  learning,  that  his  speech  alluded  to  the  Messiah  of 
each  cycle,  and  that  the  Zodiacs  of  Esne  and  Dendera 
are  of  the  nature  of  perpetual  calendars  for  the  cycles 
of  600  and  666  years. 

Buddha  as  well  as  Cristna,  or  Krishna,  means  Shep- 
herd. It  is  evident,  both  of  them  being  Avatars, 
or  Sun  Messengers,  mystically  and  astrologically 
speaking,  that  their  year  was  600  years  long,  therefore 
the  birthdays  of  both  returned  on  the  same  day 
(25th  December)  every  600  years,  when  the  Phen 
or  Phoenix  was  consumed  on  the  altar  of  the 
Temple  of  the  Sun  at  Heliopolis  in  Egypt,  and  rose 
from  its  ashes  to  new  life. 

The  Sun,  Solar  fire,  or  rather,  that  higher  Principle 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Creative  Being,  that  Lord 
of  Lords,  and  Focus  of  Light,  the  Divine  Sun,  whom 
we  call  GOD,  or  GOOD,  of  whom  the  Solar  Orb  is  the 
fitting  emblem,  (dispensing  as  it  does  physical  light, 
life,  and  heat  to  the  material,  as  that  Divine  Sun  does 
to  the  Spiritual  World,)  was  considered  to  send  forth  an 
Avatar,  Messenger,  or  Saviour  every  600  years,  to 
revive  the  drooping  faith  of  humanity,  and  unveil  a 
little  more  of  the  Eternal  Truth,  in  accordance  with 
the  further  development  of  men's  minds ;  and  this  was 
called  a  New  Eevelation,  from  the  Latin  verb 
Re-velare,  to  re-veil.  At  all  events  the  advent  of  these 
Messengers  has  ever  been  the  cause  of  a  change  of 
religion,  a  New  Dispensation  in  fact ;  and  upon  one  of 
these  the  Christian  world  is  even  now  entering, 
eighteen  hundred  years  after  the  coming  of  its  founder ; 

Bi: 


370  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

therefore  the  third  Naronic  Messenger  since  Christ, 
is  now  due,  and  already  gives  signs  of  His  presence 
amongst  us.  The  two  intervening  Avatars  came  not  to 
Christian  lands  or  Christian  churches,  which  have  been 
left  pretty  much  to  their  own  devices  during  the  period, 
and  have  fought,  and  tortured,  and  burnt,  and  quarrelled 
their  way  through  it  in  the  very  edifying  and  brotherly 
way  that  the  history  of  the  last  eighteen  hundred  years 
will  record!  Time  is  it  indeed  that  the  New  Avatar 
should  come,  He  who  was  predicted  and  promised  by 
Christ,  even  "  The  Spirit  of  Truth  the  Comforter,"  who 
would  take  of  His  teachings,  and  bring  them  all  to 
our  remembrance.  Thus  the  time  of  making  known ; 
and  those  who  are  living  on  the  high  mountain  peaks, 
and  many  who  are  solitary  watchers  on  the  topmost 
towers,  already  know  of  His,  or  of  Her  approach,  for 
they  alone  see  the  brightness  of  the  glorious  dawn 
already  flooding  the  darkness  of  the  long  night  nigh 
spent,  and  which  will  disappear  before  Her  rising, 
and  have  heard  the  cock  crow  which  heralds  the 
dawn  of  the  New  Day. — "  Our  Lady  of  Light,"  Anno 
Domince ;  for  we  are  led  to  believe  that  the  New 
Dispensation  will  be  of  feminine  import,  the  coming  of 
the  Bride  from  Heaven,  or  let  us  at  once  say,  the 
Advent  of  the  Spiritual  Soul  in  humanity ;  thus  the 
manifestation  of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  God. 

Whilst  the  Sun  was  in  Taurus  the  different  incarna- 
tions under  whatever  name  they  might  be  were  all 
considered  but  as  an  incarnation  of  Buddha  or  Taurus  ; 
when    the  Sun  passed    into   Aries   they   were   in   like 


MELCHIZEDEC.  371 

manner  considered  as  incarnations  of  Cristna,  or  Aries, 
the  Lamb  of  God.  Of  the  Avatar  of  the  eighth  age 
it  is  written  (Isaiah  xlv.  1) :  "  Thus  saith  the  Lord  to 
His  Anointed  (His  Messiah),  to  Gyrus,  whose  right 
hand  I  have  holden  to  subdue  nations."  Here  it  may 
be  observed  that  if  any  doubt  the  existence  of  Joshua 
or  Abraham,  and  believe  them  to  be  entirely  allegorical, 
they  cannot  well  doubt  the  existence  of  Cyrus.  The 
eighth  period  began  about  the  Babylonian  Captivity, 
and  about  600  years  before  Christ.  The  ninth  began 
with  Jesus  Christ,  making  in  all  eight  cycles  before 
Christ. 

"  The  calculation  of  the  age  of  the  world  before  Christ, 
according  to  Eusebius,  ending  exactly  with  the  Siamese  Cycle,  is 
very  curious.  On  the  birth  of  Christ  the  Eastern  astrologers, 
who,  according  to  the  two  disputed  chapters  in  Matthew  and 
Luke,  had  calculated  his  Nativity,  came  to  Bethlehem,  or  the 
Temple  of  Ceres,  where  Adonis  or  Adonai  was  adored,  to  make 
him  the  Solar  offerings,  as  Isaiah,  according  to  the  same  disputed 
chapter,  had  foretold.  This  prophecy,  however,  literally  expresses 
that  it  alludes  to  Cyrus;  but  no  doubt  the  double  sense  is  justified 
in  one  point  of  view,  as  Isaiah's  prediction  relating  to  the 
next  coming  cycle  would  in  a  considerable  degree  apply  to 
every  new  revolving  cycle  as  it  arose." 

The  Eev.  Mr.  Faber  believed  Melchizedec  to  be  an 
Incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God.  Now  we  read  in 
Hebrews  vii.  1-3  that  this  Melchizedec,  the  Priest  of 
the  Most  High  God,  "was  without  Father,  without 
Mother,  without  descent,  having  neither  beginning  of 
days  nor  end  of  life,  but,  made  like  unto  the  Son  of 
God,  abideth  a  Priest  continually."  Other  Priests  have 
to  deal  with  the  local  and  the  temporal  aspect  of 
Spiritual  things,  whereas  the    Priests  after  the  Order 


372  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

of  Melchizedec  are  beyond  and  above,  and  they  deal 

with    the    eternal   and   unchanging    aspect    of    Truth. 

That  Melchizedec   was   without  beginning  of  days   or 

end  of  life   signifies  that  the  form  of  truth  which  is 

given  to  the  world  from  Angelic    Spheres  relates  to  the 

eternal  principles   of  right,  which  have  no  beginning 

and  no   end,  which  will  be  for  ever  and  for  ever  the 

same — the   eternal   abiding  right.     This  is  the   Order 

of  Melchizedec,  the  Order  of  the  Soul  into  which  those 

in  truly  Spiritual  life  are  introduced  who  have  outgrown 

the   necessity  of  looking   at   any  temporal   aspects  of 

truth  according  to  this  or  that  creed  in  which  they 

may  have  been  educated.    The  Rev.  Mr.  Faber  also  says : 

"  It  was  contended  that  every  extraordinary  personage,  whose 
office  was  to  reclaim  or  to  punish  mankind,  was  an  Avatar,  or 
descent  of  the  Godhead."  And  again  "  Adam  and  Enoch  and 
Noah  might  in  outward  appearance  be  different  men,  but  they 
were  really  the  self-same  Divine  persons  who  had  been  promised 
as  the  seed  of  the  woman  successively  animating  various  human 
bodies."— (Vol.  iii.,  pp.  612,  613.) 

The  Brahmins,  not  being  able  to  conceal  the  Buddhic 
doctrines  in  some  of  their  temples  without  their  entire 
destruction,  are  obliged  to  admit  a  ninth  Buddhic 
Avatar,  at  the  same  time  that  they  most  absolutely 
maintain  that  this  Buddha,  this  ninth  Avatar,  was 
an  impostor. 

"  It  is  singular  enough,"  says  Godfrey  Higgins,  in  his  "  Anaca- 
lypsis,"  "that  the  Buddha  in  the  cave  at  Ellora  is  called  the  Lord 
paramount,  the  Maha-MahaDeo,  the  Great  God.  At  this  temple 
the  Brahmin  utters  the  name  Buddha  without  hesitation,  which 
is  what  a  Brahmin  will  seldom  do.  Their  ninth  Avatar  was  a 
Buddha,  because  he  was  an  incarnation  of  Divine  Wisdom, 
perhaps  not  understood  by  modern  Brahmins.      The  Brahmins 


THE   SECOND   COMING   OF   CHRIST.  373 

.and  Buddhists  have  each  the  same  number  of  Avatars ;  and  at  the 
time  of  Jesus  Christ  they  both  say  that  eight  were  gone,  and 
that  the  ninth  then  came  among  them,  and  was  called  Salivan. 
But  then  they  allege  that  this  ninth  was  an  impostor." 

Sir  William  Jones  clearly  proved  that  Dionysius 
and  Eama  were  the  same,  and  that  the  first  Buddha 
was  Woden,  Mercury,  and  Fo.     Mr.  Faber  says  : — 

"  The  Egyptian  cosmogony,  like  the  Phoenician,  is  professedly 
of  the  Buddhic  School:  for  the  fullest  account  which  we  have  of 
it  is  contained  in  a  book  ascribed  to  Hermes  or  Thoth ;  but 
Hermes  or  Thoth  is  the  same  person  as  Taut,  who  is  said  to  have 
drawn  up  the  Phoenician  system  ;  and  Taut  again  is  the  same  as 
he  Oriental  Tat  or  Buddha."— (Vol.  i.,  p.  228.) 

No  doubt  that  what  applied  to  one  applied  to  all ; 
with  this  one  exception,  perhaps,  that  one  might  be  the 
Sun  in  Taurus  the  other  the  Sun  in  Aries.  Whilst  the 
Sun  was  in  Taurus  the  different  incarnations  under 
whatever  name  they  might  be  were  all  considered  but 
as  an  incarnation  of  Buddha  or  Taurus.  When  the 
Sun  passed  into  Aries  they  were  in  like  manner  con- 
sidered as  incarnations  of  Cristna  or  Aries,  the  Lamb  of 
God.  And  has  not  our  own  Christ,  who  is  also  called 
"  the  Lamb  of  God"  foretold  His  own  Second  Coming  ? 
We  are  assured  that  the  blood  of  Christ  is  to  cleanse  us 
from  all  sin,  and  we  know  that  "  the  blood  is  the  life ; " 
surely  then  this  mysterious  saying  must  mean,  that 
to  lead  the  Christ  life  will  save  us  from  all  sin ;  and 
this  will  also  explain  how  the  redeemed  multitude 
mentioned  in  the  Apocalypse  are  said  to  have  washed 
their  robes  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb.  Their  robes  were  their  earthly  bodies,  which  they 
no  longer  required  when  they  had  put  on  Christ,  i.e., 


374  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

when  the  Christ  Spirit  or  highest  Principle  was 
developed  in  them,  and  they  thus  partook  of  the  body 
and  blood  of  Christ.  Also  we  must  not  forget  that  "  the 
Lamb  of  God  "  is  described  as  having  been  slain  before 
the  foundation  of  the  world. 

Even  Buddha  and  Cristna  were  originally  considered 
the  same,  and  had  a  thousand  names  in  common  con- 
stantly repeated  in  their  Litanies :  a  striking  proof  of 
identity  of  origin.  But  the  enemies  of  Christianity 
would  fain  endeavour  to  invalidate  the  sacred  story  of 
the  Incarnation  of  the  Christ  Spirit,  the  ninth  Avatar, 
by  adducing  this  similarity,  not  perceiving,  in  their 
utter  ignorance  of  the  truth,  that  it  is  this  very  simi- 
larity which  is  the  greatest  proof  of  its  authenticity, 
consequently  of  its  truth,  inasmuch  that  it  corresponds 
in  all  particulars  to  the  celestial  story  told  from  the 
beginning,  and  first  recorded  on  the  imperishable  pages 
of  the  heavenly  chart  or  "  Starry  Scriptures  of  the 
Sky."  Thus  all  the  leading  characteristics  of  the 
Gospels,  their  incidental  utterances  and  doctrines,  were 
also  ascribed  to  corresponding  characters  in  India, 
Egypt,  Greece,  and  other  lands,  and  found  even  by  the 
discoverers  in  far  off  and  unknown  Mexico,  even  to  the 
effigy  of  the  Divine  Humanity  crucified  between  those 
two  thieves,  who  represent  the  material  body  and  the 
animal  soul,  the  latter  saved  at  the  eleventh  hour, 
through  the  Christ,  by  clinging  to  the  higher  or  Spiritual 
Soul,  and  thus  being  with  it  in  Paradise.  There  is  no 
doubt  these  effigies  existed  in  Mexico  anterior  to  the 
Christian  era. 


THE  AVATAR   WITTOBA.  375 

The  Cross,  besides  other  occult  meanings,  was 
used  as  a  symbol  to  denote  the  attainment  of  life 
eternal  through  the  crucifixion  of  the  body,  or 
lower  nature.  We  find  in  the  temples  of  Southern 
India  the  touching  representation  of  the  Saviour 
Wittoba  or  Ballaje,  evidently  an  Avatar  of  Cristna, 
who  is  represented  as  crucified  in  space,  and  not  fixed 
to  a  wooden  cross,  though  the  legs  and  feet  are  put 
together  in  the  usual  way,  with  nail  holes  in  the  latter, 
and  in  the  hands ;  the  glory  shines  downwards  on  the 
upraised  face,  and  is  flooded  upon  him,  as  if  from  the 
Celestial  Sun,  instead  of  emanating  from  himself  as 
does  the  Aura  with  which  the  head  of  Christ  is  gene- 
rally depicted.  The  Crown  on  the  head  of  Wittoba  is 
an  Ethiopian  or  Parthian  coronet ;  also  consisting  of 
sharp  cutting  points  as  sharp  as  thorns  ! 

Thus  the  learned  and  celebrated  divine,  Parkhurst, 
instead  of  endeavouring  to  conceal  these  facts,  as  so 
many  do,  most  wisely  and  honestly  alludes  to  them, 
and  observes  as  follows  :  "  Put  the  labours  of  Hercules 
seem  to  have  had  a  still  higher  view,  and  to  have  been 
originally  designed  as  emblematic  memorials  of  what 
the  real  Son  of  God  and  Saviour  of  the  world  was  to 
do  and  suffer  for  our  sakes ;  bringing  a  cure  for  all 
our  ills,  as  the  Orphic  hymn  speaks  of  Hercules,"  and 
he  gives  the  quotation.  Now,  had  he  been  a  Theo- 
sophist  instead  of  a  Theologist  he  would  have  had  a 
still  deeper  insight  into  the  mystery  of  the  Christ,  and 
understood  more  fully  the  true  Nature  of  the  Son  of 
God,  which  we  each  have  it  in  our  power  to  become,  if 


376  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

we  follow  in  the  Way  of  our  Great  Exemplar,  who  was 
"  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and  the  Life." 

All  that  was  written  in  the  beginning  upon  the 
heavenly  chart,  is  not  only  true  of  all  the  successive 
Avatars  who  have  appeared  on  this  earth  at  the  com- 
mencement of  every  Neros,  but  is  true  also  for  all  those 
in  each  generation  or  cycle  of  600  years  "  who  have 
believed  through  My  {their)  word,  that  they  all  may 
be  one,  as  Thou,  Father,  art  in  Me  and  I  in  Thee,  that 
they  also  may  be  one  in  us." — (John  xvii.  20,  21.) 

All  those  who  attain  to  the  Christ  state  can  only  do 
so  as  Christ  Himself  attained  to  the  New  Birth,  viz., 
by  being  "born  again  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit 
{i.e.,  of  Soul  and  Spirit),  of  which  the  account  of  His 
own  baptism  in  the  sacred  stream  was  a  type,  or 
"  outward  and  visible  sign  of  that  inward  and  spiritual 
grace."  He  then  received  the  waters  of  Baptism,  that 
symbol  of  the  New  Birth,  from  one  who  bore  the 
significative  name  of  John,  which  name  stands  for  Love, 
as  it  also  stands  for  Lone,  or  the  female  generative  prin- 
ciple, in  this  case  the  Spiritual  or  Feminine  Soul,  the 
Mother ;  while  at  the  same  time  the  Dove,  typical  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  "descended,  and  remained  upon 
Him ; "  and  then  came  the  voice,  or  Wobd,  from 
heaven,  "This  is  My  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am 
well  pleased." 

"  And  John  bare  record,  saying :  I  saw  the  Spirit  descending 
from  heaven  like  a  dove,  and  it  abode  upon  Him.  And  I  knew 
Him  not :  but  He  that  sent  me  to  baptize  with  water,  the  same 
said  unto  me,  Upon  whom  thou  shalt  see  the  Spirit  descending, 
and  remaining  on  Him,  the  same  is  He  which  baptizeth  with 


THE  EARTHLY  EVE,  AND  THE  HEAVENLY  MARY.  377 

the  Holy  Spirit.     And  I  saw,  and  bare  record  that  this  is  the  Son 
of  God."— (John  i.  32—34.) 

Jesus  came  to  show  us  the  way ;  He  was  the 
"  Mediator  of  the  New  Covenant,  of  the  church  of  the 
first-born,"  therefore  our  elder  Brother,  our  own  par- 
ticular Avatar  (that  is  to  say  of  all  those  who  accept 
Him,  and  believe  through  His  word) ;  and  we  have  but 
to  follow  Him,  to  receive  the  baptism  of  water  and 
the  Spirit  with  which  He  was  baptized,  or,  in  other 
words,  to  develop  in  ourselves  the  Spiritual  Soul  (or 
Sixth  Principle),  which  will  Immaculately  conceive  by 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  the  Divine  Seed  will  take  root  and 
germinate  in  that  pure  Virgin  Soil,  our  own  Spiritual 
Soul,  no  longer  the  earthly  Eve,  but  the  heavenly 
MARIA,  and  the  Divine  Child  will  be  born  in  that 
Stable,  or  abode  of  Animality  in  which  we  at  present 
are,  and  that  Child  will  groiv  and  increase  in  wisdom 
and  in  stature,  and  will  sit  in  the  temple  (which  temple 
we  are),  and  will  argue  with  the  doctors  (all  the 
doctrines  we  have  acquired  in  our  education  in  the 
world,  from  its  distorted  teachings),  and  will  "astonish 
thern  with  its  understanding  and  answers." — (Luke  iii. 
46  and  48.) 

But  all  who,  like  Jesus,  are  born  of  the  Christ  Spirit, 
will  also  have  to  suffer  with  Him ;  this,  however, 
they  will  be  supported  to  do  if  they  have  really  put  on 
Christ,  for  they  may  be  very  sure  of  one  thing,  and  that 
is,  that  if  He  is  in  thern  He  will  bear  a  great  deal, 
aye,  even  to  the  last  drop  in  the  cup  of  agony,  even 
to  the  crucifixion.     But  let  them  remember,  that  when 


378  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

He  was  reviled  He  reviled  not  again,  and  like  Him 
"  thou  shalt  not  strive  or  cry,  but  possess  thy  soul 
in  the  utmost  patience." 

Having  made  the  great  renunciation,  even  as  Buddha 
made  it,  of  your  self-love  and  your  earthly  personality, 
you  will  say  henceforth  to  the  Father  as  Christ  said, 
"  Thy  will  is  my  will."  You  have  exchanged  your 
earthly  personality  for  the  spiritual  Indivi-duality, 
and  you  will  be  able  to  say  even  as  Christ  said,  "  The 
Father  and  I  are  One"  "All  things  that  the  Father 
hath  are  mine."  It  was  the  Christ  in  Jesus  who  said 
to  the  Father,  "  i"  in  them  and  Thou  in  me,  that  they 
may  all  be  made  perfect  in  one,  as  Thou  Father  art 
in  me  and  I  in  Thee." — (John  xvii.  21  and  23.) 

Here  we  find  the  Two  IN  One-ness  taught  clearly 
as  can  be,  and  this  is  how  it  is  that  those  who  are  once 
awakened  to  the  Higher  Life,  the  Life  of  the  Spiritual 
Soul,  are  never  alone.  Jesus  said,  "  The  hour  cometh, 
yea  now  is,  when  ye  shall  be  scattered  every  man  to 
his  own,  and  shall  leave  me  alone  :  and  yet  I  am  not 
alone,  because  the  Father  is  with  me." — (John  xvi.  32.) 

The  appearance  of  an  exceptionably  gifted  Messenger 
or  Teacher  on  the  earth  nearly  twenty  centuries  ago  in 
Galilee  may  be  an  actual  and  an  indisputable  historical 
fact,  and  to  us  it  is  so ;  but  true  though  it  is  that  Jesus 
of  Nazareth,  (or  rather,  Jesus  the  Nazarite,)  lived  and 
wrought  among  the  Jews  of  Palestine  at  the  commence- 
ment of  His  Cycle  just  closed,  it  is  not  true  that  He, 
as  a  person,  subject  to  the  limitations  of  humanity,  was 
the  perfect  and  entire  Christ  or  Logos,  whose  universal 


THE   LOGOS  OF   PLATO,   THE   ADONAI.  379 

radiations  have  illumined  every  land  beneath  the  Sun, 
and  made  oasis  to  appear  in  the  wilderness  of  even 
utmost  barbarism,  "  that  is  the  true  light  which 
light eth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the  world."  And 
of  that  light  we  received  through  Jesus,  whose  mission 
it  was  to  bring  it  to  us. 

This  inner  light  signified  to  the  Gnostics,  at  the 
head  of  whom  stood  the  author  of  the  Fourth  Gospel, 
what  the  Logos  or  Word  meant  to  Plato,  who  mentions 
it  long  before  the  Cycle  or  Avatar  of  Christ  Jesus. 
Speaking  mystically,  the  WOED  is  the  Divine  Proceed- 
ing, or  utterance,  the  Light  of  the  Universal  Spirit  in 
every  human  being;  it  is,  as  we  have  seen,  the  Atma,  or 
Divine  Seventh  and  highest  Principle  in  the  Constitution 
of  man,  (see  plate  at  page  154,)  and  as  the  innermost 
Essence  of  being,  the  embodied  Divinity  wherever  the 
perfected  man  is  found,  it  is  truly  described  as  a  Prin- 
ciple, and  not  as  a  Person  ;  but  though  itself  impersonal, 
or  more  than  personal,  it  is  made  manifest  through 
personality ;  and  in  the  whole  range  of  human  experi- 
ence we  can  conceive  of  no  one  who  made  that  inner 
light  more  fully  manifest  than  He  who  earned  a  full 
right  to  be  called  Christ,  and  Immanuel,  because  He 
laboured  throughout  His  days  to  show  forth  to  the  world 
the  Divine  nature  of  man,  and  to  reveal  the  Fatherhood 
of  the  Eternal. 

The  Logos  is  the  Adonai  which  dwelt  with  the 
Eternal,  and  proceeded  forth  from  God  before  the 
worlds  were  formed.  Jesus  the  man  must  not  be 
confounded  with  the  Logos,  which    was    made  mani- 


380  -UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

fest  through  Him,  He  having  attained  to  the  Christ- 
hood,  or  Divine  Humanity,  when  He  received  the  Logos 
into  His  own  Spirit,  and  thus  became  the  Anointed, 
or  Chrestos.  The  Logos  is  the  Adonai,  the  Two-in- 
One ;  for  the  word  implies  duality  of  sex.  He  is  the 
immediate  proceeding  of  Love  and  Wisdom,  (the  Divine 
Father-Mother  God,)  being  the  Word  and  Voice  of 
Divine  Truth,  "by  whom  all  things  were  made." 
Adonai  is  the  manifestation  of  God  in  the  Heavens, 
Christ  is  the  manifestation  of  God  in  humanity ;  Adonai 
is  celestial,  Man  is  terrestrial,  and  the  Christ  is  their 
point  of  junction,  without  whom  they  would  not  meet, 
for  man  only  understands  God  when  he  receives  the 
Christ-Spirit  into  himself,  as  Christ  received  the  Logos 
into  His  own  Spirit,  and  thus  became  a  Son  of  God,  as 
well  as  Son  of  Man.  Man,  as  human  only,  could  not 
say  as  the  Christ  says,  "  The  Father  and  I  are  One," 
he  must  become  a  Son  of  God  before  he  can  feel  this, 
and  it  is  the  indwelling  Christ,  or  Word,  which  enables 
him  to  say  it,  for  Christ  is  the  perfected  Spiritual  Man, 
Son  of  God,  and  Son  of  Man.* 

The  Eoman  Catholic  doctrine  is  that  of  the  Nicene 
Creed,  viz.,  of  the  eternal  birth  of  the  Son  from  the 
Father,  and  the  eternal  procession  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
from    both ;    which   doctrine    the    Greek    Church    as 

*  For  the  most  complete  and  beautiful  explanation  of  the  true 
nature  of  Adonai  that  has  ever  been  penned  we  refer  the  reader 
to  the  concluding  pages  of  that  most  perfect  book  "  The  Perfect 
Way ;  or,  the  Finding  of  Christ."  It  is  too  full  to  quote  in  its 
entirety,  and  to  make  extracts  from  it  would  simply  be  to  spoil  it. 


FATHER,   MOTHER,   AND   SON.  381 

vigorously  repudiated — both  believed  equally  in  the 
Trinity,  but  the  one  denied  the  procession  of  the 
Spirit  from  both  Son  and  Father,  which  the  other 
persistently  maintained. 

Endless  disputes  would  have  been  avoided  had  this 
Holy  Trinity  been  explained  from  the  first  in  a  rational 
manner  as  being  Father,  Mother,  and  Son-Daughter,  (or 
Two-in-One),  for  such  it  really  is,  the  Son  partaking  of 
the  Divine  dual  nature,  (thus  "in  the  image  of  God,  male 
and  female  created  He  Him").  The  Ancient  Egyptians 
were  more  enlightened  in  this  respect,  and  not  having 
lost  the  Key,  as  Christian  Theologists  lost  it  when  they 
separated  from  Theosophy  and  dogma  took  the  place 
of  Gnosis,  they  were  able  to  illustrate  the  Divine 
Mysteries  on  a  more  rational  basis  than  Christian 
Theologists  either  of  Roman  or  Greek  Church  have  suc- 
ceeded in  doing,  when  they  have  presented  us  with  a 
Male  Trinity  which  would  give  the  lie  to  everything 
that  has  proceeded  from  it  in  nature ;  for  all  that  is,  is 
of  the  two  sexes,  the  positive  and  passive,  and  "  the  man 
is  not  ivithout  the  woman  in  the  Lord."  It  is  true 
they  have  endeavoured  to  repair  the  wilful  male  short- 
sightedness which  led  then  into  such  an  egregious 
error,  by  introducing  on  the  earthly  and  visible  plane 
the  figure  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mother;  but  as  by  their 
first  Masculine  Trinity  of  Parents  and  Son  they  failed 
to  show  forth  her  holy  significance  to  the  Divine 
Mother,  they  have  but  left  room  for  blasphemous 
assertions  concerning  what  would  otherwise  have  been 
accepted  as  a  self-evident,  Divine,  and  saving  truth. 


382  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

In  the  Church  the  Eternal  One,  who  is  both  Father 
and  Mother  of  the  Universe,  when  manifesting  as  Divine 
Love  is  called  the  Son,  and  when  manifesting  as  Divine 
Wisdom  is  always  referred  to  also  by  a  masculine  pro- 
noun, as  the  Holy  Ghost,  or  Spirit — though  that  of 
Universal  Mother  would  surely  be  more  applicable. 
While  these  Divine  attributes  in  the  act  of  emanation 
are  of  course  beyond  all  limits  of  personality,  it  is 
through  personality  that  the  Divine  Life  is  made  mani- 
fest to  men  on  earth  and  to  spirits  in  the  unseen 
spheres  ;  though  in  purely  celestial  realms  of  being, 
both  in  the  universe  and  in  man  (who  is  a  universe  in 
himself),  intuitive  apprehension  of  truth  does  away 
with  the  necessity  for  reliance  being  placed  upon  indi- 
vidual messengers  or  ministrants. 

The  reputed  books  of  Solomon,  such  as  Wisdom  and 
Ecclesiasticus,  are  full  of  allusions  to  the  doctrines  of 
Wisdom,  and  they  invariably  use  the  word  Wisdom 
with  the  feminine  pronoun  as  referring  to  an  un- 
explained or  mystical  doctrine  in  almost  every  page. 
This  doctrine  was  that  of  the  Emanation  of  the 
Sephiroth,  which  the  present  Jews  call  the  Ten  Eman- 
ations. 

"  Sephiroth  is  JTTIBD  Spi-uts,  and  may  mean  ten  attributes  or 
qualities,  but  it  also  means  the  doctrine  of  the  Ten  Sacred 
Numbers  or  Cycles  of  India,  or  of  Virgil ;  Spr  is  to  cypher  or 
count,  or  calculate  ;  and  Spruts  is  the  feminine  plural,  and  means 
the  calculations  or  calculated  periods.  Thus  the  Ten  Jewish 
Sephiroth  were  the  Ten  Cycles ;  and  in  honour  of  the  Trinity  the 
first  was  called  HJ"0  Ktr  Corona,  the  second  HD3n  Chkme  Sapien- 
tia,  and  the  third  71T2.  Bine  Intelligentia — Father,  Son,  and  Holy 
Ghost.      The  first   three   were   also   the   Trinitarian    Sol  —  the 


THE   TEN   SACKED   NUMBERS,   OR   SEPHIROTH.       383 

Creator,  Preserver,  and  Destroyer — and  the  other  seven  might 
be  the  earth,  moon,  and  planets.  The  Corona  or  Circulus  is  also 
called  Ensoph,  fountain  of  Wisdom,  fountain  whence  Wisdom 
flowed.  .  .  The  third  of  the  Sephiroth  is  Prudentia.  This  is 
the  Anima  Mundi,  or  Psyche  of  Plato.  I  believe  that  HJ'O  bine 
is  a  feminine  form  of  ]3  bn,  son,  and  means  daughter  of  Ensoph 
and  Sophia,  Wisdom  or  Logos.  The  Targums  often  treat  of 
a  ,,"TK"1^>Q  itfimra,  or  daughter  of  Voice,  that  is,  daughter  of  the 
Logos  :  this,  I  think  was  the  H^Zl  Bine,  not  the  Logos. 

"  The  Psalmist  says,  lxxi.  15,  He  shall  praise  the  justice  of  God, 
and  depend  upon  it  for  his  salvation,  for  he  has  not  known  the 
JTHSD  Sprut,  or  Sephiroth ;  that  is,  the  calculation  of  the 
Cycles.  The  text  is  rather  confused ;  but  this,  though  not  a 
translation,  I  think,  is  its  meaning.  But  the  Sephiroth  are  cor- 
rectly rendered  numbers.  They  are  the  same  as  the  feminine 
forms  of  the  Seraphim,  alluded  to  in  Isaiah,  vi.  2.  The  six 
wings  of  each  seraph  had  reference  to  the  six  periods  just  gone, 
in  the  time  of  Solomon.  In  verse  nine,  the  Tenth  of  some- 
thing mystical  not  understood  and  not  named,  but  which,  it  is 
said,  in  verse  13,  has  been  before,  and  shall  return,  means  the 
Tenth  Saeculum  or  Cycle.  .  .  I  need  not  remind  my  readers 
that  the  serpent  is  an  emblem  of  a  cycle  or  circle.  Serpents  are 
constantly  seen  on  Egyptian  monuments,  as  described  by  Isaiah, 
but  with  wings,  and,  in  India,  overshadowing  the  icons  of  Cristna 
or  Buddha,  in  number  three,  four,  five,  six,  seven,  eight,  or  nine, 
according  to  the  number  of  cycles  of  which  the  being  he  was 
protecting  was  the  genius.  One  of  these  winged  serpents  may 
be  seen  in  the  hand  of  the  Moses,  found  in  St.  Mary's  Abbey,  at 
York.  The  wings  are  manifest  in  the  original  icon,  but  in  the 
plate  published  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  they  cannot  be 
distinguished  !  !  !  Moses  is  there  described  as  the  Messiah  HltfO 
msh  or  genius  of  a  Zodiacal  sign,  and  that  of  the  first  sign,  as  is 
evident  from  the  horns  of  Taurus  which  he  has  upon  his  head. 
When  he  has  finished  all  his  labours,  the  book  tells  us,  he  delivered 
up  his  power  to  the  Saviour  Joshua,  and  went  to  the  top  of 
Pisgah  to  die." — ("  Anacalypsis  "  i.  784.) 

The  serpent  which  ever  accompanies  all  represen- 
tations of  the  Avatar,  Messiah,  or  Saviour  of  each  Cycle, 
and  which  we  first  meet  with  in  company  of  the  first 


384  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

pair,  who  represent  the  parents  of  the  human  race,  and 
who  is  more  particularly  attached  to  our  earth  mother, 
Eve,  in  the  earthly  Paradise  or  garden  of  delights 
(the  human  body),  we  believe  very  clearly  to  signify 
earthly  or  material  Generation,  the  necessity  for 
which  ever  ends  with  Spiritual  EE-generation,  or 
"birth  from  above,"  that  second  birth  of,  or  from, 
our  Heavenly  Mother  MARY,  that  Holy  Virgin, 
and  ever  Immaculate  Spiritual  Soul,  "our  oivn 
Sixth  Principle?  of  whom  is  born  the  Christ 
Spirit,  or  "  Son  of  God."  Thus  is  she  the  Mother  of 
God  in  Man.  And  therefore  is  she  ever  represented  as 
well  as  the  Avatar,  or  "Saviour"  of  each  succeeding 
cycle  of  the  race  from  the  prison-house  of  flesh,  as 
crushing  the  head  of  the  serpent,  who  with  his  tail  in 
his  mouth,  or  material  union,  represents  the  Circle 
of  earthly  generations  of  the  Cycle  of  his  Predecessor. 
Among  the  Ophites,  and  indeed  the  Gnostics  gene- 
rally, the  serpent  was  called  the  Megalistor  or  Great 
Builder  of  the  Universe.  With  the  tail  in  the  mouth 
serpents  were  the  material  emblems  of  the  Eternal 
Creator,  or  Renovator.  He  was  the  Megalistor  because 
he  was  the  emblem  of  the  Logos,  the  Creator  or  Renewer 
of  Circles,  or  worlds  in  Cyclic  periods.  The  serpent  is 
known  to  renew  itself  eternally  by  casting  its  old  skin 
when  decayed,  and  growing  a  new  one ;  and  this  annual 
renewal  made  it  emblematical  of  the  Sun,  or  year, 
which,  added  to  its  most  deadly  power  as  destroyer, 
assimilated  it  on  the  material  plane  with  the  Logos, 
the  Wisdom   of  the  Self-existent,  the  Cycle,  Creator, 


THE  HOLY  VIRGIN,  OR   THE  DIVINE  WISDOM.      385 

Preserver,  and  Destroyer,  on  the  heavenly  or  spiritual 
plane. 

We  often  hear  of  the  wisdom  of  the  serpent, 
and  that  it  was  called  "  more  subtle  than  any  beast  of 
the  field"  (Genesis  iii.  1.)  We  also  hear  of  the  egg 
of  the  serpent,  and  of  the  egg  of  wisdom  {i.e.,  from 
which  the  world  sprung?)  opened  by  the  horn  of  the 
bull  (evidently  the  first  Cycle  of  Taurus). 

Certainly  the  world  came  from  Wisdom  ;  the  Divine 
Mother— the  "JWQ," — or  Bereschith,  the  feminine 
Head;  translated  into  English  as  in  the  "beginning"— 
("In  the  beginning  God  created.")     The  more  correct 
reading  of  which   would   be  in  the    female.     But  the 
Creator  of  all  things  was  also  the  Destroyer  ;  and  the 
Megalistor,  the  great  Builder  of  the  Universe,  the  Magus, 
or  Naga,  or  great  Serpent ;  and  being  also  the  emblem 
of  the  Destroyer,  and  the  Destroyer  being  Divine  Wis- 
dom, it  became  the  emblem  of  Divine  Wisdom  on  the 
lower  plane,  and  thus  it  is  ever  seen  in  all  the  repre- 
sentations of  her  representative,  the  Holy  Virgin,  who, 
however,  rises  above  it,  and  crushes  it  beneath  her  feet. 
As  the  secret  doctrine  of  the  Creator,  Preserver,  and 
Destroyer,  or   Creator,  Destroyer,   and   Eenovator,    be- 
came known  in  the  middle  and  western  parts  of  Asia,  it 
began  to  be  corrupted,  and  the  absurd  idea  of  a  fallen 
angel  to  creep  in,  at  first  among  the  ignorant  vulgar 
only,  but  at  last  among  the  higher  class  of  the  ignorant 
learned,  who  ought  to  have  been  ashamed  of  harbouring 
such  ideas  of  the  good  and  all-wise  providence  of  the 
Omnipotent  and  Omniscient  Creator,  the  Divine  Father 

cc 


386  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

and  Mother.  In  Genesis  there  are  no  fallen  angels. 
All  these  came  into  the  Mosaic  religion  on  the  return 
from  Babylon.  The  Destroyer  or  Serpent  of  Genesis 
is  most  certainly  the  Eenovator  or  Preserver  of  the 
human  race  through  earthly  or  material  generation.  In 
Genesis  there  is  a  Tree  of  Knowledge  and  a  Tree  of  Life. 
This  Tree  of  Life  evidently  proves  the  meaning  of  the 
My thos  to  be,  that  Adam  would  die  at  some  time ;  that 
he  would  wear  out  unless  he  ate  of  the  fruit  of  that 
tree.  The  Serpent  (emblem  of  Earthly  Wisdom)  per- 
suaded Eve  to  taste  of  the  Tree  of  Knowledge,  and  thus 
to  renew  the  earthly  form,  etc.,  etc. 

The  Buddhist  natives  of  Tibet  hold  the  grand  Lama 
to  be  always  the  same  person,  the  same  Buddha,  only 
re-incarnated  or  renovated,  in  a  new  mundane  case  or 
body  ;  and  Jesus  Christ  was  considered  by  some  Chris- 
tians to  be  a  renewed  incarnation  of  both  Adam  and 
Noah ;  and  this  was  one  of  the  reasons  for  the  careful 
setting  forth  of  His  pedigree  in  the  New  Testament. 
Thus  he  was,  in  fact,  Adam ;  but  Adam  sinned,  and  for 
his  sin  he  was,  in  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  Crucified. 
Thus  did  they  materialise  the  spiritual  fact  that  the 
son  of  Adam,  or  man,  must  be  crucified  in  the  flesh, 
that  the  Son  of  God  may  be  lifted  up  and  (spiritually) 
draw  all  men  (the  whole  of  humanity)  up  to  Him. 

The  Christ  sphere  or  circle,  in  the  Heavens,  is  the 
sphere  of  Truth,  the  offspring  of  Love  and  Wisdom,  the 
Dual  Life,  because  fully  blended  in  celestial  being ;  and 
from  that  sphere  the  Divine  Love  and  Wisdom  is  con- 
stantly impelling  pure  and  holy  souls  to  embody  them- 


THE   CHRIST    CIRCLE.  387 

selves  for  man's  redemption.  Angels,  who  think  nothing 
of  their  own  glory,  are  continually  impelled  to  go  forth 
to  benefit  the  multitudes  on  earth  who  need  such  in- 
struction and  assistance  as  can  only  reach  them  when 
heaven  comes  down  to  earth  in  order  to  draw  earth  up 
to  Heaven ;  the  Christ  Sphere  being  composed  of  myriads 
of  souls  whose  special  work  is  to  protect  and  guide  the 
earth.  The  impediments  of  those  who  are  mediators 
between  the  lower  states  on  earth  and  the  celestial 
spheres  are  many  ;  but  once  in  a  period  or  cycle  a  Leader 
of  the  Angel  Hosts,  a  Ruler  of  the  Christ  Circle  of  Angels, 
is  born  on  earth  for  an  especial  mission,  and  the  birth  of 
such  an  one  is  in  reality  the  manifestation  of  God,  or  a 
Son  of  God,  to  the  world,  in  no  ordinary  degree. 

Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  a  soul  in  its  last  earthly 
embodiment  whose  life  was  a  model,  a  pattern  life,  of 
matchless  purity  and  devotion  to  duty.  Had  He  been 
more  than  perfect  man  He  would  have  been  too  exalted 
to  be  an  example  to  humanity.  We  utterly  fail  to  see 
how  or  why,  with  any  show  of  consistency,  those  who 
believe  in  the  successive  embodiments  of  the  human 
spirit  until  it  reaches  perfection,  (according  to  the  in- 
junction, "Be  perfect,  as  your  heavenly  Father  is 
perfect,")  can  dispute  the  fact  of  an  occasional  case 
in  point  occurring  as  an  illustration  of  the  fact  that 
the  human  spirit  in  its  final  embodiment  on  earth 
manifests  the  perfect  character,  to  ensure  which,  all 
preceding  embodiments  have  been  a  necessity. 

"  The  life  of  Jesus  was  a  progressive  life ;  He  grew  in  mental 
and  moral  stature ;  and  it  is  not,  to  our  way  of  thinking,  consistent 


388  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

with  a  scheme  of  wisdom  befitting  the  Eternal  Mind  for  any  soul 
to  be  born  on  earth  as  an  Avatar  or  Messiah,  to  undergo  pain  and 
penalty  vicariously  without  needing  himself  the  very  discipline  he 
passes  through  to  fit  him  for  celestial  life.  The  angel  of  the  earth 
does  not  need  embodiment,  and  therefore  does  not  become  incar- 
nate ;  but  through  a  chosen  and  prepared  instrumentality  the 
angel  makes  known  his  presence  to  the  world  in  special  measure. 
A  life  like  that  of  Jesus — a  life  of  humility,  exceeding  purity, 
forgivingness  of  disposition,  and  perpetual  self-abnegation — is  the 
very  life  best  calculated  to  express  the  Divine  attributes  of  the 
soul,  and  to  constitute  a  fitting  medium  for  an  angel,  or  angels, 
from  the  celestial  spheres." 

To  the  above,  the  author  might  have  added  in  proof, 
that  Jesus  was  required  to  suffer  a  series  of  temp- 
tations in  the  flesh,  which  surely  would  have  been 
unnecessary  had  He  not  personally  required  the 
discipline  of  a  final  incarnation  to  insure  His  perfec- 
tion. 

From  the  same  lecture,  delivered  by  Mr.  J.  W. 
Colville,  in  Boston,  on  a  very  remarkable  book,  entitled 
"The  Spirit  of  the  New  Testament,"  we  take  the 
liberty  of  extracting  the  following  reflections  concern- 
ing the  birth  of  Christ,  which  we  accompany  by  a 
footnote  from  the  author  of  the  book,  who  is  a  lady : 

"  The  first  point  which  is  prominently  brought  into  notice 
in  connection  with  the  life  of  Jesus  is  His  mysterious  parentage 
and  birth.  Stories  of  immaculate  and  miraculous  conceptions 
are  not  uncommon  in  the  annals  of  sacred  history.  Christians 
have  usually  looked  with  disfavour  and  contempt  upon  all  records 
except  the  Hebrew  and  their  own ;  but  to-day  comparative 
theology  is  a  popular  study,  and  the  old  terms,  heathen  and 
pagan,  are  no  longer  used  ignorantly  and  imperatively  as  of  yore. 
Who,  having  read  Edwin  Arnold's  Light  of  Asia,  can  call  Buddha 
a  heathen  ?  He  lived  before  the  days  of  Jesus,  but  so  did  Abraham 
and  all  the  patriarchs.     Every  virtue  possessed  by  them  shone 


THE  SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT.  389 

resplendently  in  the  lives  of  the  highest  type  of  Hindoo,  of  which 
Gautama  Sakya  Muni,  the  latest  of  the  Buddhas,  was  the  fairest 
flower.  This  marvellous  teacher,  who  lived  ahout  550  B.C.,  is 
said,  to  have  been  conceived,  and.  born  miraculously,  as  was  Jesus 
at  a  later  date.  A  star-beam  was  said  to  have  caused  the  concep- 
tion :  therefore  he  had  no  man,  but  a  ray  of  celestial  light,  for  his 
father.  Even  Plato  is  said  by  some  of  his  admirers  to  have  been 
born  of  a  virgin.  Thus  the  Christian  dogma  of  the  supernatural 
nature  of  Jesus  is  in  no  way  fortified  by  the  legend  of  His 
mysterious  origin  on  earth ;  as  we  must  either  conclude  that  all 
such  stories  as  these  told  of  His  parentage  are  fables,  or  else  we 
must  conclude  that  He  is  only  one  out  of  several,  and  possibly 
many,  highly-inspired  and  wondrously-developed  teachers,  who 
have  from  time  to  time  blessed  the  earth  with  revelations  from 
the  spheres  supernal.  Either  of  these  views  must  of  necessity 
destroy  the  uniqueness  of  the  career  of  this  celebrated  man,  and 
place  him  at  least  on  a  level  with  a  few  others.  It  now  behoves 
us  to  carefully  analyze  the  doctrine  and  see  how  far  the  idea  6f  a 
miraculous  birth  or  conception  is  likely  to  be  of  benefit  to  those 

endorsing   such   a   theory But  if  so-called  miracles 

have  frequently  occurred  in  the  past,  and  are  still  occurring,  or 
liable  to  occui",  and  these  reputed  miracles  come  within  the  range 
of  man's  observation ;  if  their  occurrence  has  an  effect  on  human 
life,  and  especially  if  they  are  worked  in  the  interests  of  mankind, 
they  must  surely  occur  through  the  operation  of  laws  which 
concern  and  govern  some  part,   at  least,  of  the  nature  of  man. 

.  .  .  No  subject  is  too  sacred,  none  too  delicate,  for  calm 
and  careful  investigation.  Coarse  minds  will  brutalize  all  they 
touch,  but  to  the  pure  all  things  are  pure ;  and  while  the  'pure  in 
heart  see  God,'  the  impure  always  find  the  devil.  Now  is  it  not 
in  consonance  with  reason  and  enlightened  intuition  to  suppose 
that  every  law  of  nature  is  pure  in  and  of  itself ;  and  is  it  not 
blasphemy  to  assume  that  God  is  the  author  of  every  law  of 
being,  of  all  bodily  as  well  as  mental  and  moral  functions,  and 
then  to  set  to  work  to  build  up  a  dogma  of  total  depravity,  and 
invent  an  unnatural  hypothesis  to  account  for  a  Divine  result  ? 

"Whoever  the  parents  of  Jesus  may  have  been,  and  whoever 
Jesus  may  have  been  Himself,  even  if  He  were  '  God  the  Son,  the 
Second  Person  of  the  ever-blessed  and  eternal  Trinity,'  assuming 
flesh  for  man's  redemption,  as  orthodox  Christians  teach,  may  not 


390  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

His  conception  have  been  immaculate,  and  yet  in  all  things 
natural  ?  The  Roman  Church  teaches  the  '  immaculate  conception 
of  the  blessed  Virgin  Mary,'  and  thereby  brings  before  us  a  truth 
which  Protestantism  has  not  admitted,  and  that  is,  the  possibility 
of  a  child  having  both  parents,  and  yet  coming  stainless  into  the 
world.  Joachim,  her  father,  and  Anna,  her  mother,  are  said  to 
have  been  '  saints,'  holy  people  ;  and  though  the  Church  of  Rome 
has  added  the  statement  that  the  immaculate  conception  of  their 
daughter  was  accomplished  through  a  special  operation  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  why  should  it  not  be  credited  that  the  time  has  been, 
and  will  be  again,  when  under  exceptional  circumstances  a  child 
could  be  born  without  hereditary  taint,  and  free  from  the  contam- 
inating influences  occasioned  by  thoughts,  words,  and  deeds  of 
impurity  ?  .  .  .  The  true  interpretation  of  the  word  virgin, 
as  employed  in  Isaiah  in  the  celebrated  passage,  '  Behold  a  virgin 
shall  conceive  and  bear  a  son,  and  call  his  name  -Emanu-EV  (God 
with  us),  is  not  an  open  question.  The  Hebrew  word  translated 
virgin  simply  means  a  person  distinguished  for  purity,  not  by  any 
means  necessarily  an  unmarried  woman.  What  says  the  Christian 
Testament  on  this  point  ?  Paul  says  Marriage  may  be  honour- 
able in  all,  and  when  honourable  is  no  source  of  impurity.  In  the 
Apocalypse  we  are  told  of  a  company  of  men  who  were  'virgins  ' 
because  their  lives  were  pure.  Virgin  does  not  necessarily  mean 
a  woman  at  all,  only  a  pure-minded,  pure-living  person  (Soul) ; 
thus  we  can  deduce  the  following  eminently  practical,  helpful, 
and  instructive  lesson  :  that  through  perfect  purity  of  thought 
and  will,  parents  may  attract  to  themselves  a  spirit  from  the 
celestial  spheres,  who  may  be  born  to  them  as  a  son  or  a 
daughter  in  the  ordinary  course  of  nature,  and  yet  so  developed 
morally  and  spiritually  that  their  child  shall  be  indeed  a  fulfil- 
ment of  prophecy,  and  a  saviour  of  men  in  the  highest  sense  in 
which  we  can  legitimately  use  that  expression."  * 

*  The  author  of  the  work  so  generously  referred  to  by  the 
lecturer  has  read  his  MS.  with  deep  interest.  She  would  say  that 
the  idea  to  which  this  footnote  is  appended  is  precisely  that  which 
she  desires  to  place  before  the  people.  Leaving  the  question  of 
the  birth  of  Christ  aside  for  the  present,  as  well  as  that  of  the 
mystic  legends  with  regard  to  other  seers  of  great,  but  lesser  note, 
she  believes  that  in  the  perfected  union  of  man  and  woman  reside 


"A  GREATER   THAN   SOLOMON."  391 

The  Jesus  of  the  Gospels  is  a  humble,  self-denying 
man,  who  eschewed  all  the  pomps  and  vanities  of  the 
world.  This  grand  though  lowly  figure  has  been  over- 
looked by  those  high  and  mighty  ones  who  hold  the 
Christian  Church  in  His  name,  and  who  love  the 
uppermost  seats  at  the  Festivals,  and  to  disport 
themselves  in  purple  and  fine  linen.  The  materiali- 
sation of  the  kingdom  of  Christ  must  ever  rob  that 
kingdom  of  the  spiritual  characteristics  which  alone 
make  of  it  a  heavenly  kingdom.  The  Gospel-Jesus 
has  been  almost  set  aside  and  a  Christ  manufactured 
out  of  the  ancient  mythos  which  has  well  nigh  hidden 
from  view  the  charming  figure  which  occupies  the  place 
of  honour  in  the  Gospels.  Do  not  our  hearts  burn 
within  us  as  we  read  His  wise  and  holy  teachings  ? 
If  they  were  followed,  instead  of  their  genuineness 
being  disputed,  the  religion  of  Jesus,  unchanged  and 
unadorned,  would  be  like  the  lilies  of  the  field — 
outrivalling  even  the  wisdom  of  Solomon. 

The  Jesus  of  the  Gospels  is  a  personal  manifesta- 
tion or  embodiment  on  earth  of  the  true  Christ,  the 
"  Adonai,"  in  the  heavens ;  the  Christ  Sphere  being 
composed     of    angels    whose    number    is    not    to    be 

all  the  possibilities  of  the  long-revered  "  immaculate  conception." 
Unquestionably,  woman,  rather  than  man,  must  realise  these  pro- 
found truths,  which  are  simply  part  of  spiritual  science,  for  in  her 
nature  and  consciousness,  alone  are  given  the  possibilities  and 
proofs  of  motherhood.  These  higher  laws,  difficult  as  they  are 
to  unfold  in  the  present  elementary  condition  of  life — morality, 
science,  and  knowledge  of  the  nature  and  forces  of  the  Soul — are 
of  immense  power,  and  capable  of  revolutionising  the  world 
through  radical,  vital,  and  organic  changes. 


392  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

counted  on  earth.  One  of  the  great  Souls  who  are 
at  the  centre  of  the  Celestial  Star,  which  rules  and 
shines  on  this  otherwise  forlorn  and  benighted  planet, 
assumed  a  human  form  when  the  Babe  of  Bethlehem 
was  born,  and  the  star  that  led  the  Magi  of  the  East 
to  the  ci-adle  of  the  lowly  Infant  was  both  the  Light 
of  the  Spirit  and  a  knowledge  of  the  position  of  the 
Sun,  Moon,  and  planets,  at  the  close  of  the  cycle 
and  the  beginning  of  another.  For  the  astrologers  of 
old  were  deeply  learned  in  all  interplanetary  relations, 
and  understood  the  laws  of  their  periodicity  as  well 
as  the  all-powerful  magnetic  sway  they  exercise  in 
a  system  which  is  of  common  origin ;  and  the  ancient 
Sages,  or  Magi,  were  deeply  versed  in,  or  inspired  with, 
a  knowledge  of  the  spiritual  influences  ever  guiding 
the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  Spiritual  development  of 
humanity  on  earth,  which  occurs  by  influx  from  Angelic 
Spheres  at  stated  periods  called  Cycles,  and  coincides 
with  these  planetary  manifestations,  as  day  and  night, 
or  light  and  darkness,  the  ebb  and  flow  of  tides,  and 
many  other  physical  phenomena  which  are  governed 
by  the  same  organic  laws. 

Christ  is  not  a  proper  name,  but  a  title,  indicative 
of  a  state,  and  therefore  cannot  be  applied  exclusively 
to  one  single  historical  personage,  no  matter  how 
highly  exalted  that  person  may  be  by  reason  of 
spiritual  attainment;  but  the  Christ-name  may  be 
fitly  borne  by  those  who  while  on  earth  live  in  perfect 
union  with  celestial  spheres,  and  are,  in  a  peculiar 
sense,  the  messengers  of  the  heavenly  guardians,  who, 


CHRIST   THE  ANOINTED.  393 

though  always  keeping  watch  over  humanity,  at  fre- 
quently recurring  intervals  depute  one  of  their  number 
to  inspire  an  earthly  teacher  with  a  fuller  measure 
of  Celestial  Wisdom.  The  term  Christ  simply  means 
anointed,  (in  the  Latin  it  is  Christos,  and  is  frequently 
employed  to  designate  those  who  have  been  in  a 
peculiar  measure  the  recipients  of  Divine  truth)  this 
leads  us  to  inquire  into  the  reason  why  unction 
should  be  a  symbol  of  the  Divine  inbreathing,  and 
why  the  Chrism  should  for  thousands  of  years,  in 
many  lands  and  among  many  peoples,  have  been  em- 
ployed in  rites  of  consecration. 

Oil  as  a  type  or  correspondence  of  Divine  wisdom 
was  chosen  by  the  ancients  because  of  its  lubricating 
properties  ;  thus  we  read  in  the  Psalms  of  oil  making 
the  faces  of  the  anointed  to  shine,  thereby  at  once  by 
a  purely  natural  sequence  of  ideas  leading  us  up 
to  the  thought  of  mental  and  inward  illumination. 
Oil  is  also  employed  for  making  things  work  smoothly, 
for  removing  harshness  and  unyielding  rigidity;  it, 
moreover,  has  great  soothing  and  healing  properties, 
and  at  once  suggests  to  the  mind  the  idea  of  relief 
from  pain  and  suffering.  We  could  also  cull  many 
parallel  statements  from  the  sacred  books  of  the  entire 
Orient,  and  from  many  curious  and  occult  treatises, 
to  demonstrate  the  universality  of  the  use  of  oil  in 
ordinations,  &c. ;  but  we  must  leave  it  to  the  reader 
to  fill  in  such  blanks  by  his  own  researches,  our  object 
in  introducing  the  subject  at  all  being  to  call  attention 
to  the  choice  of  correspondential  terminology.     Many 


394  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

persons  imagine  that  the  symbolism  of  the  East,  no 
matter  how  glowing  and  vivid,  is  mere  gorgeous 
fancy,  while  it  is  in  reality  a  perfect  language,  under- 
stood, written,  and  spoken  by  men  in  past  ages,  who 
had  studied  the  Esoteric  side  of  nature  so  deeply 
that  they  had  learned  how  to  trace  the  unvarying 
similitudes  which  in  the  material  world  correspond 
exactly  to  the  realities  of  the  interior  or  spiritual 
realm,  which  is  the  world  of  causation.  Thus  we 
have  already  seen  how  constantly  another  term  besides 
oil  is  referred  to  when  Christ  is  spoken  of,  and  that 
is  " blood" — Blood  being  the  life,  it  is  evidently  the 
Christ-fo/e  which  saves,  and  thus  to  live  the  Christ-life 
is  to  drink,  or  appropriate,  the  blood  of  Christ,  and 
not  the  literal  shedding  of  blood.  Added  to  these 
we  have  the  eternal  symbols  of  Bread  and  of  Wine, 
once  represented  by  the  worship  of  Bacchus  and  of 
Ceres — the  Bread  of  Life  which  can  miraculously  feed 
thousands,  and  much  remain  over;  the  water  which 
is  truly  turned  into  wine  at  the  marriage  feast  when 
Soul  and  spirit  are  united,  &c,  &c.,  too  numerous 
to  set  forth  in  this  already  overcrowded  chapter,  but 
which  can  all  be  studied  in  the  writings  of  the  inspired 
Swedenborg,  part  of  whose  mission  was  to  explain  the 
law  and  doctrine  of  Spiritual  Correspondences. 

Since  quoting  from  a  lecture,  delivered  in  Boston, 
concerning  "The  Spirit  of  the  New  Testament," 
"by  a  Woman,"  on  page  388,  we  have  come  into  a 
more  direct  knowledge  of  the  book  itself,  through 
the   courtesy  of  its    author,  and    have  been    at    once 


THE  KINGDOM  OF  THE  INNER  LIFE.  395 

struck  with  the  following  passage  on  its  very  opening 
pages : — 

".  .  .  Look  deep  enough,  and  that  which  seems  a  myth,  or 
world-wide  legend,  a  Scripture  of  the  skies,  is  'a  voice  crying  in 
the  wilderness,'  which  is  the  herald  of  some  eternal  truth,  born  in 
a  moment  of  inspiration,  and  winged  with  life  to  live  in  many 
forms  in  the  minds  of  millions.  A  great  event  is,  indeed,  vaguely 
shadowed  forth  in  many  phases  of  religion,  and  for  centuries 
before  it  occurs. 

"  Every  lesson  that  could  teach  man  how  to  conquer  self,  and 
to  conquer  matter,  was  to  be  taught.  The  kingdom,  so  eagerly 
looked  for  by  Jewish  priests  and  rabbis,  and  which  had  been  the 
hope  of  Israel  for  more  than  fifteen  hundred  years,  was  to  be 
that  of  the  interior  life — the  royalty  of  the  Spirit,  strong  in  the 
strength  of  love,  and  the  divine  law  of  its  incarnation — and  it  was 
to  crush  and  cast  out  all  selfish  expectations  of  that  time  or  any 
other.     And  this  was  the  design  : 

"  Woman  was  to  be  an  instrument  in  the  work. 

"  She  was  to  become  a  Mother  in  pure  liberty,  which  acknow- 
ledged neither  human  laws  nor  rites  of  priests. 

"  The  very  birth  of  the  Man  was  to  be  a  hushed-up  reproach. 

"  His  cradle  would  be  a  manger. 

"  A  carpenter's  workshop  would  be  the  scene  of  his  child- 
hood. 

"  His  home  would  be  among  a  despised  people,  and  in  an  un- 
cultured province. 

"  Seclusion  was  to  be  his  lot  until  manhood. 

"The  Knowledge  of  his  mission  would  be  awakened  by  a 
reformer  outside  of  the  Jewish  Church. 

"  That  reformer  would  be  a  martyr,  who  would  taste  of  prison 
and  of  death. 

"Evil  influences  would  assail  him,  though  they  should  not 
prevail. 

"  Dishonour  and  insults  were  to  attend  the  success  of  his  three 
years'  mission. 

"  He  was  to  associate  with  publicans  and  sinners,  and  women  of 
no  repute. 

"  To  outrage  orthodox  and  reverenced  beliefs. 

"  To  be  charged  with  selfishly  seeking  an  earthly  crown,  while 


396  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

absolutely  disappointing  the  self-same  persons  in  his  work  for  a 
kingdom  not  of  this  world. 

"  To  be  homeless,  doubted  by  his  own  family,  and  to  know  not 
where  to  lay  his  head. 

"  To  be  called  '  mad,'  a  '  deceiver,'  a  'Sabbath  breaker,'  a  '  blas- 
phemer,' and  one  in  league  with  evil  spirits. 

"  To  be  betrayed  as  disreputable  by  an  apparent  follower. 

"  To  be  forsaken  of  every  friend,  and  falsely  accused. 

"  To  be  disgraced  and  convicted  as  a  common  criminal,  and  to 
be  crucified  outside  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  between  two  poor 
thieves. 

"And  to  achieve  the  result  of  the  Sacrifice  in  the  eternal 
victory  of  the  Soul. 

"  After  this  it  is  almost  unnecessary  to  point  out  that  the  details 
of  the  life  of  the  Nazarene,  as  an  ideal  man,  contains  a  symbolical 
history  of  the  destiny  of  the  human  race. 

"  The  Virgin  woman  represents  the  soul  of  man. 

"  The  visit  of  the  Spirit — the  growth  of  seership  which  awakens 
her  consciousness. 

"  The  immaculate  conception — the  infusion  of  the  spiritual  into 
the  external,  vitalising  it  with  new  life. 

"  The  birth  of  the  Christ— the  spiritualisation  of  man,  or  the 
'seed  of  the  woman,'  who  conquers  the  'dragon,'  or  physical 
matter,  and  its  evils. 

"  The  voice  of  the  Baptist — the  recognition  of  the  coming 
development  of  man,  through  prophecy,  and  minds  free  from 
creeds. 

"  The  wilderness — the  lonely  warfare  of  the  spiritual  before  it 
can  enter  on  its  divine  mission. 

"  The  works  of  love  and  mercy — the  living  and  awakening  power 
of  soul. 

"  The  trial — the  arraignment  of  the  illuminated  soul  by  the 
reason. 

"  The  crucifixion — its  temporary  rejection,  and  final  struggle 
with  the  blindness  of  the  material  nature. 

"  The  manifestation  or  at-one-ment — the  union  of  the  twain,  the 
harmony  of  the  inner  and  the  outer,  the  open  proof  of  immortality 
and  of  the  way  of  life. 

"  The  ascension — the  passing  beyond  the  spheres  of  planetary 
life  and  the  eternal  reign  of  the  soul. 


THE  STAR,  OR  CHRIST   CIRCLE.  397 

"  All  nature  tells  this  beautiful  story.  The  very  husk  of  the 
seed  dissolves  as  it  bursts  from  the  dark  soil  with  its  new  germ  of 
life.  The  very  winter  heralds  its  victory.  The  death  of  the  body 
sets  free  the  spirit.  And  at  last  the  penetration  of  the  physical 
by  the  spiritual  produces  the  final  liberation  of  man." 

When  Theologians  come  to  realize  that  the  Christ 
Circle  is  a  body  of  faithful  Souls  who  have  persisted 
through  earthly  strife  in  wisdom  and  in  love,  and  that 
a  special  representative  and  medium  upon  earth  of 
this  angelic  sphere  is  only  One  through  whom  the 
Universal  Light  shines  with  excessive  clearness  and 
effulgence,  the  mysteries  of  Christianity  will  yield  to 
a  simple  Gospel  truth,  which  is,  that  the  true  light 
is  the  Divine  flame  within  the  human  breast,  and 
that  what  the  greatest  have  been  actually  is  true, 
mystically  and  prophetically,  of  us  all.  The  historic 
Jesus  is  the  external  symbol  of  humanity,  earth-born 
and  heaven-begotten,  thus  is  He  the  prophecy  of 
Universal  Manhood,  and  Divine  Sonship. 

Therefore,  and  in  the  light  of  that  Universal 
Theosophy  which  we  aspire  to,  and  so  earnestly  en- 
deavour to  set  forth,  do  we  feel  constrained  to  say, 
in  the  eloquent  words  of  a  contemporary  writer,  *  "  We 
take  our  refuge  in  Jesus  the  Christ.''-  "  In  every 
age  of  the  world  Grod  has  raised  up  extraordinary 
men,  and  imparted  to  them  a  high  degree  of  light 
from  the  living  Word.  Such  were  Moses,  Zoroaster, 
Confucius,  Plato,  and  above  all,  Gautama,  the  Buddha. 

*  "  Healing  by  Faith ;  or,  Primitive  Mind  Cure."  By  W.  F. 
Evans. 


398  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

There  was  many  a  stray  beam  of  the  Living  Light 
of  the  Logos  in  all  their  systems;  but  it  does  not 
come  in  a  form  to  be  easily  and  practically  appro- 
priated by  the  souls  of  men  in  general.  And  if  Jesus 
should  say  to  me,  as  He  did  to  the  twelve  select 
disciples,  when  many  of  His  shallow  followers  were 
leaving  Him, 'Will  you  also  go  away?'  I  should  be 
constrained  to  say,  as  all  the  world's  great  teachers 
passed  in  procession  before  the  mind,  '  Lord,  to 
whom  shall  I  go?  Thou  hast  the  words  of  Eternal 
Life.' " 

The  long  continuance  of  Christianity,  even  as  an 
Exoteric  system,  has  consolidated  various  nations,  and 
made  the  Christian  as  distinct  a  type  as  the  Semit  or 
the  Heathen.  The  Christian  is  a  positive  anti-poly- 
theist,  despite  the  misinterpreted  doctrine  of  the  Trinity, 
and,  like  the  Semit,  Divine  Worship,  to  the  exclusion 
of  the  worship  of  spirits,  is  the  Esoteric  base  of  his 
religious  ideas. 

The  Hindu,  for  instance,  to  be  a  Monotheist  must 
be  an  Initiate  ;  but  in  the  West  even  one  God  is  too 
many  for  some  minds. 

The  ages  of  Christianity  have  impressed  an  abhor- 
rence of  polytheism  which  the  Hindus  could  but  with 
difficulty  understand. 

Christianity,  as  one  of  the  factors  that  resolved  itself 
into  a  religious  system  in  the  mental  ferment  that 
agitated  the  civilized  world  nearly  two  millenniums  ago, 
being  inaugurated  by  Hebrew  Theosophists,  could  not 
help  retaining  certain  Kabbalistic  truisms  and  terms, 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL   DOCTRINE   OF   THE  LOGOS.     399 

which  subsequently  became  the  stumbling-block  of  the 
uninitiated. 

The  Theosophic  doctrine  of  the  Logos  was  not  extin- 
guished with  the  destruction  of  Paganism,  but  revived 
and  acquired  new  meaning  in  Christianity,  and  became 
the  leading  and  fundamental  truth  of  that  system. 

Every  new  system  is  made  up  of  preceding  systems, 
which  may  be  more  abstruse  or  more  simple,  but  it 
always  aims  at  an  improvement. 

Pagan  Theosophy  may  have  been  more  recondite,  but 
the  Christian  Theosophy  was  more  plain  and  simple, 
and  easy  of  comprehension  for  all  minds.  To  be  a 
Pagan  Theosophist  one  had  to  pass  through  Esoteric 
classes  and  grades  ;  but  anyone  could  freely  become  a 
good  Christian,  and  thereby  a  brother  in  Christ. 

The  large  majority  of  Pagan  Initiates  may  have 
looked  down  with  contempt  upon  the  Galileans  and 
their  Theosophy,  but  the  few  divinely-inspired  ones, 
who  gave  their  life  for  the  Truth,  carried  all  before 
them  by  their  whole-souled  devotedness  to  their  Grod, 
and  their  knowledge  of  the  Christ. 

It  was  in  vain  that  Initiates  attempted  to  revive 
Paganism  by  revealing  the  mysteries  of  their  Theo- 
sophy ;  the  spirit  of  the  age  had  become  tired  of  ancient 
institutions  and  names,  and  sighed  for  new  Truths 
which  were  more  direct  rays  from  the  Spiritual  Sun 
than  the  reflections  of  Paganism  afforded ;  and  this 
was  the  secret  of  the  success  of  Christianity. 

Gnosticism  alone  partly  survived  by  becoming  united 
with  the  Christian  system.     In  the  writings  of  Diony- 


400  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

sius,  the  Areopagite,  the  term  "  Agnosis "  is  often 
employed,  and  seems  to  have  been  in  current  use 
eighteen  centuries  before  Professor  Huxley  re-invented 
it  for  the  use  of  modern  men  of  science. 

When  we  read  the  affirmations  of  Dionysius,  an 
inspired  Theosophist,  a  man  who  knew,  asserting  all 
his  knowledge  to  be  ignorance  of  such  vastness  as  to  be 
undefinable  to  finite  understanding,  it  appears  strange 
that  men  should  ever  have  attempted  to  dogmatize 
upon  the  Deity,  and  should  have  dared  to  promise 
eternal  damnation  to  those  who  differed  from  them. 

Unlike  the  Buddhist's  absolute  non-definition  of  the 
Divine  Being,  content  to  refer  only  to  the  State  of 
Being  which  is  Divine,  without  attempting  to  account 
for  the  existence  of  the  Divine  Being  itself; — unlike 
the  Gnostic's  abstruse  system,  where  the  entire  Heathen 
Pantheon  in  its  mystic  spiritual  character  reappears 
to  serve  as  Esoteric  guide  unto  perfection,  and  to 
account  for  the  problems  of  existence  in  more  or  less 
satisfactory  manner;  unlike  the  Semit's  religion  of 
fear,  the  Heathen's  systematized  sensualism, — the  true 
Christian  alone  observes  the  Perfect  Way  of  perfection, 
avoiding  alike  false  ignorance  and  false  knowledge, 
false  fear  and  degrading  enjoyments,  by  an  adherence 
to  the  grand  simplicity  of  the  Theosophy  of  Christ 
Jesus. 

The  Theosophy  of  Christ  alone  offers  that  rest  to 
the  weary  heart  by  isolation  in  spirit,  for  which 
Buddhism  and  other  Theosophies  demand  a  total  re- 
nunciation of  all  wordly  relation.     Christianity  became 


THE  THEOSOPHY  OF   CHRIST.  401 

thus,  even  in  its  most  Exoteric  form,  the  great  civilizer 
of  humanity ;  and  what  the  West  has  gained  in  advance 
of  the  East  is  all  due  to  a  higher  moral  development. 

The  evils  that  exist  among  us  are  the  result  of 
non-Christianity  and  non-civilization,  but  not  of 
Christianity,  and  of  civilization.  It  is  not  Chris- 
tianity, but  the  not  carrying  out  the  essential  teachings 
of  Christianity,  that  is  to  blame. 

The  reason  Pythagoreanism,  Platonism,  and  Gnos- 
ticism failed  to  become  popular  was,  they  had  no  sym- 
pathy for  the  heart,  but  appealed  only  to  the  intellect. 
All  have  emotions  of  some  kind,  but  only  few  have 
a  spiritual  intellect.  -  Everyone  can  feel  with  Christ 
and  John,  but  very  few  can  think  with  Plato  and 
Plotinos.  Not  that  Christians  cannot  have  great  intel- 
lects, but  Christianity  itself  being  based  on  the  Christ 
Spirit,  the  true  Light  of  the  Soul,  which  is  above 
reason,  appeals  but  little  to  the  merely  sensual  mind. 

Christianity,  even  in  its  Esoteric  aspect,  soon  sepa- 
rated from  Gnosticism,  and  elected  to  follow  its  own 
path.  The  heart,  not  the  brain ;  intuition,  not  ratioci- 
nation ;  infinite  soul,  not  finite  mind,  became  the 
sanctuary  of  Christian  Theosophy.  Toleration  could 
have  been  reasonably  expected  from  those  who  them- 
selves, for  all  their  Orthodoxy,  could  only  define  God 
as  undefinable.  But  the  very  reverse  appears  in 
History.  A  Theology  full  of  the  most  intolerant 
dogmas  was  built  upon  this  very  Agnosticism.  Gnosis, 
or  knowledge  of  God,  became  a  heresy,  and  God,  the 
God    of  Bruno,  Galileo,  and   other  so-called  heretics, 

DD 


402  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

was  outlawed  and  excommunicated  more  than  once  by 
His  own  Church. 

It  is  not  our  intention  to  explain  the  various  con- 
tradictions which  are  to  be  met  with  between  Exoteric 
and  Esoteric  Christianity.  These  must  explain  them- 
selves, or  remain  unexplained.  All  we  can  do  is  to 
state  what  has  been. 

No  doubt  most  of  the  dogmas  of  the  Church  have 
an  Esoteric  meaning,  but  the  mere  Exoteric  acceptance 
of  all  the  dogmas  of  the  Church  cannot  lead  one  to  the 
Divine  Sanctuary,  for  then  all  nominal  Christians  would 
be  true  Theosophists,  which  is  far  from  being  the  case. 
It  is  the  very  inconsistency  that  proves  the  consistency, 
and  the  errors  of  man  establish  the  truth  of  God. 
That  there  was  a  Divine  Science  is  absolutely  mani- 
fested, but  it  could  only  perpetuate  itself  among  men 
and  women,  many  of  whom  were  fallible,  weak  crea- 
tures, and  who  consequently  appeared  to  impart  to 
the  very  Divinity  a  reflection  of  their  own  weaknesses. 
The  Church  evidently  had  a  true  tradition,  derived 
directly  from  Christ,  and  the  imperfect  expression  given 
to  it  by  man  proves  only  the  greater  reality  and  glory  of 
God.  Theosophy  is  perfect,  although  Theosophists 
may  be  imperfect;  just  as  any  science  may  be  true, 
although  its  teachers  may  not  have  completely  mastered 
it,  and  consequently  may  resort  to  curious  devices  to 
hide   their  ignorance. 

The  earliest  Christian  Theosophists,  the  Apostles,  by 
identifying  the  Divine  Incarnation  with  Christ  Jesus, 
evidently  intended  that  the  Great  Arcanum  which,  as 


THE  REFORMATION.  403 

The  Logos,  had  been  the  Secret  of  the  few,  should  be- 
come the  common  Supreme  Good ;  and  if  the  uninitiated 
majority  had  not  gradually  lost  the  true  doctrine,  the 
Theosophy  of  Christ,  and  substituted,  under  the 
guidance  of  blind  leaders,  fanciful  interpretations  of 
Occult  Texts ;  and  had  not  the  nominal  Christians 
preferred  to  build  their  Church  upon  the  sands  of  creed 
instead  of  The  Eock  Christ  the  true  Gnosis,  we  should 
now  have  in  Christianity  a  system  of  absolute  Theo- 
sophy instead  of  an  attempt  to  blend  Divine  Truth  and 
human  error. 

The  Keformation,  unlike  the  more  ancient  Heresies, 
hardly  entered  upon  theosophic  ground,  but  contented 
itself  in  contesting  theological  matters  of  little  or  no 
importance  to  man's  eternal  welfare.  It  was  but  one 
Exoterism  combating  another  Exoterism ;  but  that 
Theosophy  was  never  the  field  of  contention  is  proved 
by  its  having  rejected  some  of  the  most  important 
dogmas  of  the  original  Church,  failing  to  see  their 
Esoteric  truth.  The  fact  that  the  Keformers,  or 
Deformers,  as  Catholics  persistently  call  them,  were 
either  bigots  with  little  or  no  theosophic  and  spiritual 
knowledge,  or  tools  in  the  hands  of  worldly  persons,  who 
used  the  religious  movement  for  selfish  aggrandizement, 
gave  great  moral  power  to  Catholic  religious  orders  who 
had  some  theosophic  ideas,  either  acquired  traditionally 
or  discovered  by  individual  mystics. 

It  was  thus  that  the  Jesuits  acquired  that  otherwise 
unaccountable  Power  over  the  minds  of  men,  which 
they  have  preserved  through  various  vicissitudes  down 


404  UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 

to  the  present  day,  when  their  order  still  counts  nearly 
twelve  thousand  members.  The  Theosophy  of  the 
Jesuits  is  not  all  pretension,  but  it  was  the  secret 
mainspring  that  gave  them  power.  The  works  of 
Ignatius  Loyola,  Francis  Xavier,  Alpbonsus  Eodriguez, 
Athanasius  Kircher,  Jeremy  Drexelius,  and,  more 
recently,  of  Louis  du  Pont,  Scaramelli,  and  others,  show 
undeniable  spritual  knowledge.  Theosophy  is  there  to 
be  found ;  it  may  be  deemed  imperfect,  but  still  it  is 
an  Esoteric  system  wherein  the  reformed  section  of 
Exoteric  Christendom  was  and  is  deficient. 

It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that  there  are  unde- 
niable Adepts  in  Theosophy  in  the  Eeformed  Church, 
such  as  Sebastian  Frank,  Freher,  Gichtel,  Pordage, 
Jane  Leade,  and  above  all,  Jacob  Boehme  and  Sweden- 
borg.  These  were  self-taught  and  spontaneously  deve- 
loped, and  cannot  be  regarded  as  the  offsprings  of  the 
Eeformation;  and  the  Eeformed  Church  does  not  regard 
their  Esoterism  as  part  of  its  teachings,  but  neglects, 
and  even  deplores,  mysticism.  In  Catholicism  the 
members  of  Eeligious  Orders  are  considered  professional 
Theosophists,  (xod-knowers,  persons  who  devote  them- 
selves to  a  spiritual  life.  All  mankind  could  not  act 
in  accordance  with  their  vows ;  and  we  have  already 
pointed  out  that  isolation  is  mental,  and  not  local: 
one  can  be  a  Grod-knower  and  nevertheless  live  in  the 
world.  The  Theosophic  ideal  is  still  in  the  Catholic 
Church,  yet  it  is  not  realised  ;  but  among  the  Eeformed 
sects,  although  each  of  them  asserts  to  have  the  truth, 
and    possibly   may  have   been   instituted   by   Theoso- 


ESOTERIC   TEXTS.  405 

phists,  the  too  fond  adherence  to  the  letter  of  Scripture 
"  that  kills "  and  to  creeds,  has  generated  a  spirit  of 
intolerance  and  bigotry  totally  opposed  to  that  true 
spirit  of  Christian  Theosophy  which  we  will  endeavour 
faintly  to  illustrate  by  the  following  few  quotations 
from  Esoteric  texts  selected  almost  at  random : 

"  In  the  beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the  Word  was  with  God, 
and  the  Word  was  God.  The  same  was  in  the  beginning  with 
God.  All  things  were  made  through  him ;  and  without  him 
was  not  made  anything  that  was  made.  In  him  was  life  ;  and 
the  life  was  the  light  of  men,  and  the  light  shineth  in  the  dark- 
ness, and  the  darkness  comprehendeth  it  not He  was 

in  the  world,  and  the  world  was  made  through  him ;  yet  the  world 
knew  him  not.  He  came  unto  his  own,  yet  his  own  received  him 
not :  but  as  many  as  received  him,  to  them  gave  he  power  to 
become  the  sons  of  God,  to  them  who  believe  on  his  name ;  who 
have  been  born  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  flesh,  nor  of  the 
will  of  man,  but  of  God.  And  the  Word  was  made  flesh,  and 
dwelt  among  us,  full  of  grace  and  truth  :  and  we  beheld  his  glory, 
the  glory  as  of  an  only  begotten  from  the  Father.  .  .  .  And 
out  of  his  fulness  we  all  have  received,  even  grace  for  grace.  For 
the  Law  was  given  through  Moses,  but  grace  and  truth  came 
through  Jesus  Christ.  No  man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time  :  the 
only  begotten  Son  who  is  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  he  hath 
declared  him." — (John  i.,  Quaker  Version  of  the  N.  T.) 


"  Darkness  is  dissipated  by  Light,  and  above  all  by  a  vast  Light; 
Agnosis  is  dissipated  by  Gnosis,  and  above  all  by  a  vast  Gnosis. 

"  To  take  it  in  a  superior  non-negative  sense,  affirm,  with  abso- 
lute truth,  that  to  those  who  possess  the  real  Light  and  the 
knowledge  of  beings,  Agnosis  escapes  by  a  union  with  God ;  and 
that  his  super-eminent  obscurity  withdraws  itself  from  all  light, 
and  vanishes  under  every  Gnosis. 

"  Now,  if  in  seeing  God,  one  comprehends  what  one  sees,  God 
was  not  seen,  but  something  of  him,  a  knowable  being. 

"  For  he,  super-established  above  intelligence  and  above  sub 
stance,  it  is  because  he  is  absolutely  not  known  and  is  not — that 
he  is  super-substantially,  and  is  known  super-intellectually. 


406  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

"  And  this  Agnosis,  as  perfect  as  possible,  is  the  Gnosis  of  him 
who  is  above  all  knowable  things."— (Dionysius  the  Areopagite  ; 
1st  Epistle  to  Cajus.) 


"Divine  obscurity  is  the  inaccessible  Light  wherein  God 
abideth.  Now,  although  it  be  invisible  by  reason  of  its  super- 
eminent  clearness,  and  inaccessible  through  the  superabundant 
effusion  of  its  super-substantial  light— nevertheless  in  it  is  found 
whoever  merits  to  know  and  to  see  God,  by  the  very  fact  not  of 
seeing,  not  of  knowing,  yet  finding  one's  self  in  him  who  is  above 
sight  and  knowledge,  knowing  only  one  thing,  that  he  is  above  all 
things  apprehensible  by  the  senses  and  the  intellect,  and  crying 
with  the  prophet :  Too  wonderful  is  thy  knowledge  for  me ;  it 
surpasses  my  mind,  I  am  powerless  before  it. 

"  Thus  the  Divine  Paul  is  reputed  a  knower  of  God,  for  know- 
ing that  he  is  above  all  intellection  and  existing  Gnosis. 

"Consequently  he  proclaims  that  even  'his  ways  are  past 
tracing  out;'  'his  judgments  unsearchable;'  'his  gifts  unspeak- 
able ; '  and  '  his  peace  passeth  all  understanding.' 

"  For  he  has  found  him  who  is  above  all,  and  he  knows  super- 
intellectually  that  the  being,  creator  of  all,  is  above  all."— (Idem ; 
Epistle  to  Dorothea.) 


"  To  enjoy  Infinity,  do  not  desire  to  taste  of  finite  things.  To 
arrive  at  a  knowledge  of  Infinity,  do  not  desire  the  knowledge  of 
finite  things. 

"  To  reach  to  the  possession  of  Infinity,  desire  to  possess  no- 
thing. To  be  included  in  the  Being  of  Infinity,  desire  to  be  thy- 
self nothing  whatever. 

"  To  arrive  at  that  which  thou  dost  not  enjoy  in  the  present, 
thou  must  journey  by  a  way  which  thou  enjoyest  not. 

"  To  reach  forward  to  that  which  thou  dost  not  know  in  the 
present,  thou  must  pass  by  a  way  which  thou  knowest  not. 

"To  obtain  that  which  thou  dost  not  possess  in  the  present, 
thou  must  seek  through  means  which  thou  possessest  not. 

"To  arrive  at  being  that  which  at  present  thou  art  not,  it  is 
of  necessity  for  thee  to  tread  the  road  through  things  which  thou 
art  not. 

"  The  moment  thou  art  resting  in  a  creature,  thou  art  ceasing 
to  advance  towards  Infinity. 


MASTER   ECKHARD.  407 

"Because  in  order  to  unite  thyself  perfectly  to  Infinity,  thou 
must  surrender  finite  things  without  reserve. 

"  And  when  thou  shalt  arrive  at  the  attainment  of  Infinity, 
thou  must  rest  in  it  without  any  self-will  whatever. 

"  Because  if  thou  art  desiring  any  finite  thing  whatever,  thy 
treasure  is  not  laid  up  wholly  in  God." — (St.  John  of  the  Cross.) 

Master  Eckhard  relates :  "  I  ardently  desired  for  eight  years 
that  God  in  his  mercy  would  send  a  man  to  point  out  the  way 
of  truth  to  me.  And  as  I  was  one  day  full  of  anxious  desire 
there  came  a  voice  from  God,  saying :  '  Go  to  the  porch  of  the 
church  and  thou  shalt  find  a  man  who  can  show  thee  the  way 
of  truth.' 

"  And  I  went  and  found  a  man  there  who  was  dusty  and  foot- 
sore, and  clothed  in  rags.  I  saluted  him,  and  said :  '  God  give 
thee  a  good  day.'  Whereat  the  beggar  replied :  '  I  verily  never 
have  a  bad  day.'  Whereupon  I  said,"'  May  God  give  thee  good 
fortune.'  He  answered:  'I  never  have  bad  fortune.'  Then  I 
said:  'Mayest  thou  be  happy.'  To  which  the  beggar  replied: 
'I  never  am  unhappy.'  Thereupon  I  concluded,  'May  God  bless 
thee,  instruct  me  in  this,  for  I  do  not  understand.'  He  replied : 
1  Willingly. 

" '  Thou  sayest,  May  God  give  me  a  good  day.  To  that  I 
replied :  I  verily  never  have  a  bad  day ;  for  when  I  hunger, 
I  praise  God,  when  I  am  cold,  when  it  hails,  snows,  or  rains,  be 
the  weather  fair  or  foul — I  praise  God.  Am  I  wretched  and 
despised,  I  praise  God :  therefore  I  never  have  a  bad  day. 

"  '  Thou  sayest,  May  God  give  me  good  fortune,  and  I  tell  thee 
I  never  have  bad  fortune ;  for  I  know  to  live  with  God,  and 
know  that  whatsoever  he  does,  is  for  the  best,  and  what  God 
gives  unto  me  or  has  destined  for  me,  be  it  weal  or  woe,  bitter 
or  sweet,  I  accept  it  joyfully  from  God  as  the  very  best  thing :  and 
therefore  I  never  have  bad  fortune. 

" '  Thou  sayest  also,  May  God  make  me  happy,  and  I  tell  thee 
I  am  never  unhappy ;  for  I  desire  only  to  be  united  with  God's 
will,  and  I  have  thus  wholly  renounced  my  own  will  for  God's 
will,  that  whatever  God  wills,  I  will :  and  therefore  I  am  never 
unhappy,  for  I  desire  only  to  be  at  one  with  God's  will,  and  I 
have  utterly  surrendered  my  will  to  his  will.' 

"  Whereupon  I  demanded  of  the  man :  '  But  should  God  cast 
thee  into  Hell,  what  wouldest  thou  say  then  ? ' 


408  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

"  He  replied :  '  Cast  me  into  Hell  ?  If  he  were  to  cast  me  into 
Hell,  I  have  two  arms  to  clasp  him.  One  arm  is  true  humility, 
that  I  place  beneath  him,  and  therewith  I  am  united  with  his 
holy  humanity ;  and  with  the  right  arm  of  love  thereby  am  I 
united  with  his  holy  Divinity  and  embrace  him,  that  he  needs 
must  go  with  me  into  Hell.  Therefore  I  would  rather  be  in 
Hell,  having  God,  than  I  would  be  in  Heaven  without  God.' 

"  Thereon  I  understood,"  says  Eckhard,  "  that  true  tranquility, 
with  true  humility,  is  the  direct  Way  to  God. 

"I  demanded  further  of  the  man:  'Whence  art  thou?'  He 
answered :  '  From  God.'  I  questioned :  '  Where  hast  thou  found 
God  ? '  He  replied :  <  As  I  left  all  creatures.'  I  asked  :  '  Where 
hast  thou  left  God  ? '  'In  the  pure  heart  and  in  the  good-willed 
man.' 

"Again  I  questioned:  '  What  art  thou  ?'  He  said:  '  I  am  a 
king.'  '  Where  is  thy  kingdom  ? '  '  That  is  in  my  soul.  For  I  can 
thus  control  my  internal  and  external  senses  that  all  my  desires 
and  soul-forces  fully  obey  me.  And  this  realm  is  far  greater 
than  any  kingdom  on  earth.' 

"I  asked:  'Then  what  has  brought  thee  to  such  perfection  ?'  and 
he  replied  :  '  That  was  done  by  my  silence,  my  exalted  thoughts, 
and  mj  union  with  God.  For  I  could  no  more  rest  in  anything 
that  was  less  than  God.  Now  I  have  found  God  and  have  rest 
and  peace  for  ever  in  God.' " 


"  Though  Christ  a  thousand  times  in  Bethlehem  be  born 
But  not  within  thyself,  thy  soul  will  be  forlorn : 
The  Cross  of  Golgotha  thou  lookest  to  in  vain, 
Unless  within  thyself  it  be  set  up  again." 

From  the  German  Mystic,  Schaffer, 
who  wrote  two  centuries  ago. 

"  Let  nothing  disturb  thee  ; 
Let  nothing  alarm  thee  ; 
All  passeth  away, 
God  only  shall  stay." 

"  Who  hath  God  needeth  nothing, 
For  God  is  in  all ; 
All  things  are  in  God, 
So  in  God  thou  hast  all." 

Written  in  Spanish  on  the  Fly-leaf  of  the 
Breviary  of  Santa  Theresa. 


THE   THEOSOPHY   OF   CHRIST.  409 


THE  THEOSOPHY   OF   CHRIST. 

We  have  kept  to  the  last  the  most  simple  and 
sublime  of  all  the  texts  of  true  Christian  Theosophy, 
namely,  those  that  were  given  us  by  Christ  himself, 
in  order  that  their  sublime  eloquence  may  linger  last 
and  longest  on  the  ear,  and  that  their  True  Wisdom 
may  sink  deepest  into  the  minds  of  our  readers. 

All  those  who  call  themselves  by  the  name  of  Christ, 
be  they  Catholic,  Protestant,  or  so-called  "Orthodox" 
(of  the  Greek  Church),  confess  with  their  lips  that 
the  teachings  of  Christ  are  divine ;  in  other  words,  that 
he  has  given  them  the  Words  of  Eternal  Life;  and 
each  in  some  way  expects  to  "  be  saved''''  by  confessing 
their  belief  in  him,  and  calling  on  his  Name.  Many 
hold  that  he  died  to  appease  his  Father's  "wrath" 
against  undeveloped  humanity  in  general  (because  it 
had  not  yet  attained  spiritual  perfection) ;  therefore 
that  he  offered  himself  a  willing  sacrifice  as  an 
Atonement  for  the  shortcomings  of  animal  man,  and 
that  for  this  reason  he  is  called  "  the  Lamb  of  God 
which  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world,"  and  these 
look  upon  him  as  a  species  of  Scape-goat,  or  at  least  as 
a  substitute  for  the  sin-offering  of  the  Jews.  But  these 
have  not  studied  other  Ancient  Eeligions,  and  are  not 
learned  in  Zodiacal  Signs. 

All  seem  to  believe,  however,  that  there  is  some 
particular  and  magical  influence  in  the  shedding  of 
his  blood,  saying  that  the  blood  of  Christ  cleanses  from 
all   unrighteousness,   and    that  the   redeemed   of    the 


410  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Apocalypse  must  literally  have  washed  their  robes  and 
made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb.  They  do 
not  perceive  that  this  is  written  in  the  figurative  style 
of  Eastern  phraseology,  and  that  they  are  clinging  to 
the  dead  Letter  of  the  Word,  instead  of  searching  for 
"  the  Spirit  which  giveth  Life." 

To  understand  Ancient  Scripture,  it  is  first  necessary 
to  understand  the  Ancient  Method  of  expression,  and 
to  remember  the  country  from  which  we  received  it, 
and  in  which,  even  to  this  day,  they  have  not  learnt 
the  simplicity  of  language  that  is  daily  becoming  more 
acceptable  in  modern  centres  of  civilization. 

In  the  first  place,  "  Name"  in  Scripture,  is  always 
indicative  of  the  nature  or  quality  of  the  thing  signi- 
fied. The  name  of  Christ  signifies  the  Christ  Nature, 
and  to  be  saved  by  the  name  of  Christ  is  to  be  saved 
by  being  of  the  Christ  Nature ;  for  this  reason  he  is 
called  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life.  And  to  walk 
in  his  way,  and  keep  his  commandments,  is  to  be  of 
the  truth,  and  to  have  the  life — to  have,  in  fact,  the 
Christ  Spirit  in  us.  This  is  also  exactly  the  doctrine 
of  Esoteric  Buddhism,  only  instead  of  calling  it  "  the 
Christ,"  as  we  do,  our  Brothers  of  the  Orient  call  it 
"  the  Buddhi,"  or  Sixth  Principle  in  man. 

In  like  manner  we  know  that  the  blood  means, 
because  it  is,  the  Life.  The  blood  of  Christ  therefore, 
by  which  we  are  saved,  signifies  the  Life  of  Christ  in 
us,  and  we  must  be  partakers  of  this  blood,  or  Life, 
in  order  to  be  saved,  for  only  the  development  of  the 
Christ   Nature  in  us  can  purify  us  from  the  sins  of 


THE   TRUTH.  411 

the  lower,  or  animal  nature.  And  this  fact  is  expressed 
in  the  Apocalypse  in  true  Oriental  style,  by  the  words, 
washing  of  material  robes  and  making-  them  white,  or 
pure,  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb  (Eev.  vii.  18) ;  and 
in  Buddhist  Theosophy  by  attaining  to  the  Sixth 
Principle,  the  Spiritual  Soul. 

Faith  in  Christ  is  not,  or  should  not  be,  a  trust  in 
anything  that  refers  to  Jesus,  but  a  knowledge  of  The 
Truth.  Not  once  did  he  command  men  to  have  faith 
in  him,  but  to  believe  in  the  Truth :  he  said  before 
Pilate,  "  For  this  end  was  I  born,  for  this  end 
came  I  into  the  world  to  bear  witness  to  the  Truth." 
He  called  himself  The  Truth,  saying,  "  I  am  the 
Way,  the  Truth,  and  the  Life  "  (John  xiv.  6).  "Every 
man  who  is  of  the  Truth  heareth  my  voice " 
(John  xviii.  37).  And  one  of  the  promises  he  gives  to 
those  who  follow  his  teachings,  is :  "  Ye  shall  know 
the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free " 
(John  viii.  32 ) ;  and  another  is  the  following :  "  The 
Father  shall  give  you  another  Comforter,  that  he  may 
abide  with  you  for  ever,  even  the  Spirit  of  Truth ; 
whom  the  world  cannot  receive,  because  it  seeth  him 
not,  neither  knoweth  him :  but  ye  know  him,  for 
he  dwelleth  with  you,  and  shall  be  in  you" 
(John  xiv.  16  and  17);  and  in  the  two  following  verses 
he  adds : '  "  I  will  not  leave  you  comfortless :  I  will 
come  to  you.  Yet  a  little  while,  and  the  world  seeth 
me  no  more ;  but  ye  see  me :  because  I  live,  ye  shall 
live  also.  At  that  day  ye  shall  know  that  I  am  in  the 
Father,  and  ye  in  me,  and  I  in  you.     He  that  hath 


412  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

my  Commandments,  and  keepeth  them,  he  it  is  that 
loveth  me  :  and  he  that  loveth  me  shall  be  loved  of 
my  Father,  and  I  will  love  him,  and  will  manifest 
myself  to  him." 

These  Commandments  of  Christ — do  we  keep  them  ? 
We  who  call  ourselves  by  his  Name,  have  we  any 
right  to  do  so  ?  Are  we  really  his  followers,  or  have 
we  usurped  His  name  ?  Are  we  Christians,  or  are  we 
of  the  world  of  those  whom  he  says  cannot  receive 
the  Spirit  of  Truth  because  it  seeth  him  not  ? 

It  is  very  important  that  we  should  sometimes 
pause  and  ask  ourselves  this  most  necessary  question — 
"  Of  what  Religion  are  we  ?  "  It  is  easy  to  reply 
we  are  of  the  Religion  of  Christ — but  is  this  truly  so  ? 
have  we  really  the  right  to  bear  the  Christian  Name  ? 
It  is  true  we  were  baptized  into  His  Name ;  but  a 
mere  outward  ceremony  performed  upon  an  irrespon- 
sible little  child  does  not  make  him  a  child  of  Grod. 

We  have  just  read  that  Name  in  Scripture  always 
means  Nature ;  therefore  to  take  upon  ourselves  the 
name  of  Christ  implies  that  we  partake  of  the  Nature, 
or  Spirit,  of  Christ.     Jesus  said  : — 

"  He  that  believeth  on  me,  believeth  not  on  me,  but  on  bim 
tbat  sent  me.  And  be  tbat  seetb  me  seetb  bim  that  sent  me.  I 
am  come  a  ligbt  into  tbe  world,  tbat  whosoever  believeth  on  me 
should  not  abide  in  darkness.  And  if  any  man  hear  my  words 
and  believe  not,  I  judge  him  not :  for  I  came  not  to  judge  the 
world,  but  to  save  the  world.  He  that  rejectetb  me  and  receiveth 
not  my  words,  hath  one  that  judge th  him  :  the  word  that  I  have 
spoken,  the  same  shall  judge  him  in  the  last  day.  For  I  have  not 
spoken  of  myself,  but  the  Father  which  sent  me,  he  gave  me  a 
commandment   what   I   should  say,    and    what  I  should  speak. 


THE   FIVE   COMMANDMENTS  OF   CHRIST.  413 

And  I  know  that  his  commandment  is  life  everlasting  :  whatso- 
ever I  speak  therefore,  even  as  the  Father  said  unto  me,  so  I 
speak  "  (John  xii.  44—50). 

"  The  word  which  ye  hear  is  not  mine,  but  the  Father's  which 
sent  me.  If  a  man  love  me  he  will  keep  my  commandments,  and 
my  Father  will  love  him,  and  we  will  come  unto  him,  and  make 
our  abode  with  him  "  (John  xiv.  23,  24). 

It  is  then  necessary  to  keep  the  commandments 
given  unto  us  by  Christ,  in  order  to  become  a  child  of 
God,  and  that  "  the  Father  should  love  us,  and  come 
unto  us,  and  make  His  abode  with  us."  But  do  we 
keep  them  ?  Are  we  even  quite  sure  that  we  know 
what  these  commandments  are?  Could  we  repeat  them 
at  this  moment  by  heart,  as  we  have  learnt  to  repeat 
those  given  unto  us  through  Moses  ?  And  by  which 
are  we  shaping  our  lives — by  those  of  Moses,  or  by 
the  commandments  of  Christ,  who  put  quite  a  new 
spirit  into  them  ? 

The  Divine  Commands  are  based  on  Eternal  Laws, 
such  as  the  laws  of  honesty,  and  temperance,  and  chas- 
tity ;  in  other  words,  the  laws  of  right  and  wrong,  the 
laws  of  love  to  God  and  to  our  neighbours — to  which 
Christ  points  continually  as  "  the  fulfilling  of  the  Law," 
and  these  Divine  Precepts  he  tells  us  He  came  "not  to 
destroy  but  to  fulfil."  Indeed  we  are  expressly  told  that 
he  was  a  Priest  for  ever  after  the  Order  of  Melchisedek. 
"  The  priests  of  that  Order  being  without  beginning  of 
days  or  end  of  life  "  ;  because  they  deal  with  the  eternal 
and  unchanging  principles  of  Right,  which  have  no 
beginning  and  no  end,  which  will  be  for  ever  and  for 


414  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

ever  the  same  throughout  all  Dispensations  and  Cycles 
of  change. 

But  each  Dispensation  has  its  own  interpretation  of 
those  laws,  given  through  the  priests  of  each  particular 
Age,  or  Cycle ;  and  these  are  the  priests  after  the  Order 
of  Aaron,  who  dispense  to  humanity  the  external 
aspects  of  truth  which  are  continually  varying  accord- 
ing to  the  soul  growth  of  that  humanity,  so  true  it  is 
in  this  case  that  the  contained  must  be  determined  by 
the  exact  measure  of  the  container — for  more  it  cannot 
receive  and  hold. 

Thus  we  find  many  of  the  Commandments  of  Christ 
in  absolute  opposition  to  the  laws  of  Moses  and  Aaron. 
And  yet  we,  who  have  no  hesitation  in  calling  our- 
selves by  His  name,  still  continue  to  live  by  the  laws 
which  he  expressly  came  to  abolish,  and  pay  not  the 
slightest  attention  to  the  New  Commandments  he  came 
to  give  us,  although  we  have  been  in  the  habit  of 
reading,  or  hearing  them  occasionally  (!)  read,  in  our 
churches  during  the  long  Dispensation  now  closing. 

It  is  indeed  time  that  the  reign  of  the  Spirit  of 
Truth  should  come,  who,  Christ  has  told  us,  will 
"  guide  us  into  all  truth  " ;  "  for  he  shall  not  speak  of 
himself;  but  whatsoever  He  shall  hear  that  shall  he 
speak:  He  shall  glorify  me;  for  he  shall  receive  of 
mine,  and  shall  shew  it  to  you"  (John  xvi.  13,  14), 
and  again  in  chapter  xiv.,  "He  shall  teach  you  all 
things,  and  bring  all  things  to  your  remembrance 
whatsoever  I  have  said  unto  you." 


THE   FIVE   COMMANDMENTS   OF   CHRIST.  415 

We  believe  that  that  time  has  come,  and  that  the 
one  whom  Christ  said  should  come  is  now  here,  and  is 
already  silently  working  among  us.  In  our  chapter 
on  the  New  Dispensation  we  will  point  out  many  signs 
and  proofs  that  the  reign  of  the  "  Spirit  of  Truth,  the 
Comforter,"  has  begun,  and  that  the  time  for  "  making 
known "  has  come ;  nay,  these  very  lines  are  a  proof 
that  it  is  so,  for  are  they  not  endeavouring  to  revive 
and  bring  to  our  remembrance  the  teachings  of  Christ  ? 
And  for  this  purpose  they  will  now  set  clearly  before  the 
reader  the  Commandments  given  to  us  so  long  ago  by 
Christ  himself,  which,  had  they  been  strictly  followed 
by  those  who  call  themselves  by  his  Name,  would  long 
ere  this  have  produced  the  result  he  promised,  and  the 
Kingdom  would  have  come  for  which  we  pray,  had 
those  of  Earth  "  done  the  Lord's  will  on  Earth  as  it  is 
done  in  Heaven." 

The  new  Commandments  given  to  humanity  by 
Christ  are  Five — and  they  are  not  taught  in  Christian 
Churches — not,  at  all  events,  as  commandments, 
although  they  are  read  as  a  part  of  the  Gospel,  under 
the  name  of  "  Beatitudes,"  whatever  that  may  mean ; 
but  Christ  gave  them  most  emphatically  as  Command- 
ments, saying : — 

"  Whosoever  shall  break  one  of  these  least  commandments,  and 
shall  teach  men  so,  he  shall  be  called  the  least  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven :  but  whosoever  shall  do  and  teach  them,  the  same  shall 
be  called  great  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  For  I  say  unto  you 
that  unless  your  righteousness  shall  exceed  the  righteousness  of 
the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  ye  shall  in  no  case  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  heaven"  (Matthew  v.  19). 


416 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


1.  Ye  have  heard  that  it  was 
said  by  them  of  old  time,  thou 
shalt  not  kill,  and  whoever 
shall  kill  shall  be  in  danger  of 
the  judgment. 


2.  Ye  have  heard  that  it  was 
said  of  old  time,  thou  shalt 
not  commit  adultery. 


3.  Again,  ye  have  heard  that 
it  hath  been  said  by  them  of  old 
time,  thou  shall  not  forswear 
thyself,  but  shall  perform  unto 
the  Lord  thine  oaths. 

4.  Ye  have  heard  that  it 
hath  been  said,  An  eye  for  an 
eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth. 


5.  Ye  have  heard  that  it 
hath  been  said,  Thou  shalt  love 
thy  neighbour,  and  hate  thine 
enemy.  § 


1.  But  I  say  unto  you  that 
whosoever  is  angry  with  his 
brother  *  shall  be  in  danger  of 
the  judgment,  and  whosoever 
shall  say  to  his  brother,  Raca.t 
shall  be  in  danger  of  the 
council ;  but  whosoever  shall 
say,  Thou  Fool,  J  shall  be  in 
danger  of  hell  fire. 

2.  But  I  say  imto  you  that 
whosoever  looketh  on  a  woman 
to  lust  after  her  hath  com- 
mitted adultery  with  her 
already  in  his  heart. 

3.  But  I  say  unto  you,  Swear 
not  at  all,  but  let  your  com- 
munications be  yea,  yea ;  nay, 
nay ;  for  whatsoever  is  more 
than  these  cometh  of  evil. 

4.  But  I  say  unto  you  that 
ye  resist  not  evil,  but  whosoever 
shall  smite  thee  on  thy  right 
cheek,  turn  to  him  the  other 
also.  And  if  any  man  will  sue 
thee  at  the  law  and  take  away 
thy  coat,  let  him  have  thy 
cloak  also. 

5.  But  I  say  unto  you,  Love 
your  enemies,  bless  them  that 
curse  you,  do  good  to  them 
that   hate   you,   and    pray   for 


*  In  Luther's  Bible,  and  in  all  early  editions  of  the  Bible,  the 
words  "  without  a  cause "  are  not  to  be  foimd  ;  they  were  a  later 
addition,  but  not  an  improvement  to  the  sense,  as  of  course  every- 
one when  he  is  angry  considers  he  has  good  cause  for  his  anger. 

f  "  Baca  "  signifies,  in  Hebrew,  a  lost  person,  one  unworthy  to 
be  called  a  man. 

J  "  Thou  Fool."  Christ  forbids  us  to  give  way  to  anger,  or  to 
despise  our  fellow-men ;  we  should  honour  God  in  each  other,  for 
each  is  the  Temple  of  the  living  God. 

§  The  word  Neighbour  in  the  Hebrew  language  always 
signifies  "  a  Hebrew  " ;  also  in  the  Gospels  the  word  Neighbour 


THE   FIVE   COMMANDMENTS  OF   CHRIST.  417 

them  which  despitefully  use 
you  and  persecute  you.  That 
ye  may  he  the  children  of  your 
Father  which  is  in  heaven  :  for 
He  maketh  His  sun  to  rise  on 
the  evil  and  on  the  good,  and 
sendeth  rain  on  the  just  and  on 
the  unjust.  .  .  Be  ye  there- 
fore perfect  even  as  your 
Father  is  perfect. 

These,  then,  are  the  Five  New  Commandments  given 
unto  us  by  Christ  himself,  and  they  will  be  found  still 
more  amplified  in  the  P^ifth  Chapter  of  the  Gospel 
according  to  Matthew.  A  very  little  reflection  will 
convince  us  that  we  are  neither  "  doing  "  or  "  teaching  " 
these  Commandments,  but  that  we  are  still  living 
according  to  those  of  "  old  time"  and  that  the  so-called 
Christian  Churches  are  still  teaching  what  "  was  said 
of  old  time"  and  completely  ignoring  the  Command- 
ments of  him  who  came  to  bear  Witness  to  the  Truth : 
to  that  Truth  which  was  to  make  us  free. 

I.  Christ  forbids  us  to  be  angry  with  our  brother 
man ;  he  forbids  us  to  despise  him  and  call  him  either 
a  lost  man  or  a  fool ;  he  commands  us  to  be  at  peace 


signifies  a  fellow-countryman  (see  parable  of  Good  Samaritan, 
also  Acts  vii.  27).  Enemy,  in  like  manner,  means  a  national 
enemy  (see  Luke  i.  71 ;  Matthew  xii.  44 ;  Mark  xii.  36 ; 
Luke  xx.  43).  The  use  of  the  word  enemy  in  the  singular, 
clearly  shows  it  to  refer  to  a  national  enemy.  The  Hebrews 
were  enjoined  under  the  old  Law  to  kill  and  destroy  other 
nations,  and  to  love  their  own  people.  It  is  impossible  to  love 
our  personal  enemies,  but  we  can  love  men  of  another  nation 
even  as  those  of  our  own,  and  Christ  expressly  commands  us  to 
love  them ;  therefore  He  forbids  WAR. 

EE 


418  UNIVEESAL   THEOSOPHY. 

with  all  men,  and  to  honour  God  in  each   other ;    for 
each  one  is  the  Temple  of  the  living  God. 

II.  Christ  commands  us  to  keep  this  Temple  holy 
and  pure,  not  to  defile  it  by  sensual  and  evil  passions ; 
therefore,  to  avoid  temptation,  and  every  occasion  for 
it,  the  true  marriage  union  is  sacred  and  binding ;  for 
"  God  created  man  in  His  own  image,  male  and 
female  created  He  him ; "  and  those  whom  God  hath 
joined  let  not  man  put  asunder.  Neither  let  man 
attempt  to  unite  those  whom  God  hath  decidedly  put 
asunder. 

III.  Christ  commands  us  to  take  no  oath,  "Swear 
not  at  all."  Swear  therefore  no  allegiance,  for  it  would 
cause  us  to  break  this,  and  other  commandments,  by 
sending  us  forth  at  the  command  of  man  to  murder,  and 
make  Avar,  and  make  desolate  the  dwellings  of  those 
we  are  commanded  by  Christ  to  love.  "Swear  not," 
"  Kesist  not,"  "  Judge  not,"  "  Condemn  not."  The  com- 
mandment is  clear  and  simple:  Never  take  an  oath 
under  any  circumstances,  "  for  every  oath  is  ex- 
torted from  men  for  evil."  Most  blasphemous  indeed 
therefore  is  it  to  swear  on  the  very  Gospels  which 
forbid  it,  or  on  the  Cross  of  Christ,  who  laid  down  his 
life  upon  it  rather  than  break  one  of  these  Command- 
ments by  the  resistance  of  evil,  which  he  strictly 
commands  us  not  to  resist. 

IV.  Christ  commands  us  not  to  resist  evil.  Think 
not  to  destroy  evil  by  evil.  In  order  that  evil  should 
cease,  do  no  evil.  Eeturn  not  violence  for  violence. 
Resist  not  Evil.     Overcome  evil  with  Good. 


LOVE   IS   THE   GREAT  TRUTH.  419 

V.  Love  your  enemies.  Bless  them  that  curse  you. 
Do  good  to  them  that  hate  you.  Pray  for  them  that 
clespitefully  use  you,  that  you  may  be  the  children  of 
your  Father.  ...  Be  perfect  even  as  your  Father 
is  Perfect. 

Such  perfection  as  this  we  have  not  yet  understood ; 
we  are  only  now  beginning-  to  perceive  it  may  be  true, 
and  that  we  should  do  better  to  follow  the  command- 
ments of  Christ,  and  see  how  they  will  work,  since  we 
find  that  we  are  no  further  advanced  towards  the  attain- 
ment of  perfection,  either  for  ourselves  or  for  the  world 
around  us,  by  having  persistently  followed  the  Old  Com- 
mandments, which  Christ  came  on  purpose  to  abolish, 
giving  us  instead  these  five  New  Commandments, 
which  are  wholly  of  Love — or  Truth.  Not  only  did 
he  call  men  to  have  faith  in  him,  but  also  to  believe 
in  The  Truth — "  the  truth  shall  make  you  free." 

But  even  his  own  disciples  did  not  understand  his 
doctrine,  or  perceive  that  Love  is  the  great  Truth,  the 
fulfilling  of  the  Law,  and  the  great  Mystery  of  God. 
That  Love  would  produce  Faith,  which  would  remove 
mountains — mountains  of  hatred,  mountains  of  evil. 
And  that  Love  would  make  them  perfect — with  the 
perfection  of  the  Father.  If  all  were  animated  by  this 
love,  the  world  would  be  a  Paradise,  and  men  would  be 
Angels. 

But  from  the  time  of  his  immediate  disciples  until 
now,  the  fulness  of  time,  this  Great  Truth  has  not  been 
perceived,  much  less  understood  and  put  in  practice. 
They  clamoured  for  rewards,  and  for  the  highest  places, 


420  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

to  sit  on  his  right  hand  and  on  his  left,  and  Peter,  the 
chief  of  the  Apostles,  asks,  "What  reward  shall  we  have 
who  have  left  all  and  followed  thee  ?  "  (Matt.  xix.  27.) 
He  did  not  perceive  that  the  reward  would  be  that 
perfection  which  would  make  him  a  son  of  God,  and 
one  of  "  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven " 
(Matthew  xviii.  1 — 4).  So  far  from  understanding, 
directly  after  this  gracious  answer,  Peter  again  asks, 
"  How  oft  shall  my  brother  sin  against  me  and  I 
forgive  him  ?  till  seven  times  ? "  To  which  Jesus 
replies,  "  I  say  not  unto  thee  until  seven  times,  but 
until  seventy  times  seven." 

This  has  not  been  so  far  the  Theosophy  of  "  Chris- 
tians," but  it  is  the  Theosophy  of  Christ,  who 
carried  out  his  own  commandment,  not  to  resist  evil, 
even  to  the  death  of  the  body,  which  death  gives 
eternal  life  to  the  Soul.  There  is  that,  however,  in  the 
higher  nature  of  every  man,  which  causes  this  Theo- 
sophy to  thrill  through  his  Soul  like  the  sound  of  many 
waters  (of  purification),  through  which  is  heard  the 
long  low  echo  of  a  heavenly  voice  from  his  distant 
home,  assuring  him  of  its  Truth  ;  and  although  he 
has  not  yet  seen  it  working  that  revolution  on  earth 
which  it  is  destined  to  work  in  the  New  Dispensation, 
when  Love  which  is  "the  Spirit  of  Truth,"  and  the 
Comforter,  shall  reign  over  Hatred,  which  is  the  Spirit 
of  Falsehood  and  Evil,  yet  he  knows  in  his  heart  of 
hearts  that  it  is  the  very  highest  Theosophy,  for  in  it 
dwells  the  Love  and  the  Wisdom  of  Grod. 


"  CHRIST  "   IS   GOD,    OR   THE   LOGOS   IN  MAN.    421 


WHAT    IS   TRUE    CHRISTIANITY?* 

"Words  have  a  certain  meaning  fixed  by  their  etymology,  and 
no  amount  of  perversion  can  change  their  true  meaning.  Chris- 
tianity has  a  meaning  which  all  history  cannot  destroy.  As 
Spiritualism  means  devotion  to  spiritual  principles;  Buddhism 
devotion  to  the  doctrines  of  Buddha;  Mahometanism  devotion 
to  the  doctrines  of  Mahomet,  and  Confucianism  to  the  doctrines 
of  Confucius ;  as  does  Christianity  mean  devotion  to  the  principles 
of  Christ,  "while  devotion  to  the  principles  of  a  Church  can 
have  no  better  name  than  Churchianity;  and  I  hold  that  Chris- 
tianity and  Churchianity  are  as  far  apart  as  the  heavens  and  the 
earth. 

"  Christ-ian  or  Christian  signifies  corresponding  to  Christ  or 
resembling  Christ,  or  derived  from  Christ,  or  in  any  way  con- 
nected with  Christ.  And  if  Christ  is  nothing  but  the  proper  name 
of  a  certain  man,  then  Christian  means  simply  a  follower  of  that 
man.  But  Christ  is  not  strictly  the  name  of  a  person :  and  true 
Christianity  is  therefore  not  a  merely  personal  religion,  whatever 
the  Church  may  be. 

"  Christ  is  an  adjective  expressing  the  quality  and  charac- 
teristics of  the  inspired  teacher.  It  comes  from  the  Greek,  and 
in  Greek  it  is  not  a  proper  name,  but  an  adjective  which  may  be 
applied  according  to  merit.  Yet  it  has  been  so  universally 
applied  to  Jesus  that  many  suppose  it  to  be  his  proper  name, 
though  it  is  simply  a  title  of  honour  applied  to  him,  which 
might  also  be  applied  to  others  if  they  were  deemed  worthy. 
The  word  does  not  confine  us  to  Jesus  or  the  Church.  On  the 
contrary,  Jesus  himself  would  tell  you  to  go  forth  in  freedom 
and  find  all  the  Christs  you  can  in  history,  and  when  you  have 
found  them,  to  give  them  love  and  honour,  and  assist  their  work 
— to  go  on  the  line  of  duty  until  you  become,  if  possible,  a  Christ 
yourself. 

"  You  understand  that  Christ  is  not  a  personal 

name,   although  it  may  be  connected  with  the  name  of    Jesus; 

*  The  above  extracts  are  from  a  discourse  delivered  quite  lately 
in  Boston  by  Professor  J.  R.  Buchanan,  and  are  so  much  to  the 
point  that  we  do  not  hesitate  to  add  them  to  this  chapter,  although 
it  has  already  exceeded  the  limits  we  had  intended. 


422  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

and  hence,  the  Christian  is  not  necessarily  a  follower  of  Jesus, 
unless  he  shall  recognize  him  as  his  Christ.  That  which  truly 
constitutes  the  Christian  is  the  following  of  heavenly-inspired 
teaching — or  the  highest  teaching  of  heaven  to  mortals.  Who  are 
the  highest  teachers  is  a  distinct  question. 

"  The  word  Christ  is  a  very  noble  word.  There  is  no  grander 
title  under  heaven  by  which  we  can  assume  our  proper  position 
and  present  ourselves  before  mankind  in  the  most  dignified  and 
worthy  manner ;  and  for  one,  I  am  not  willing  to  surrender  this 
advantage.  It  has  been  a  tower  of  strength  to  the  apostate 
Church,  which  has  claimed  to  be  following  Christ  when  it  was 
really  following  Constantine,  and  drawing  its  inspirations  from 
the  barbarisms  of  Moses. 

"In  like  manner,  the  physical  process  of  anointing,  which 
carries  with  it  the  magnetism  of  him  who  anoints  and  leaves  the 
oil  to  retain  it,  corresponds  to  the  spiritual  process  of  anointing 
or  imparting  spiritual  power.  And  this  process  is  peculiar,  as  it 
differs  from  inspiration  which  may  be  inspired  to-day,  and  to- 
morrow in  the  gutter.  The  medium  may  be  grandly  eloquent, 
but  when  left  to  himself  puerile  and  unreliable.  Thus,  inspira- 
tion is  variable  and  unequal,  and  comes  to  many ;  but  the  anoint- 
ing which  makes  the  Christ  is  a  permanent  development  of  the 
godlike  elements  in  man,  possible  only  with  those  who  have  been 
born  with  the  noblest  capacities.  It  becomes  a  part  of  his  nature, 
and  never  leaves  him.  He  walks  with  God  in  all  things,  and 
becomes  a  safe  and  reliable  leader  for  humanity. 

"  In  this  we  see  that  Jesus  was  not  only  an  inspired  Medium, 
but  a  true  Christ,  or  Messiah — a  man  representing  the  divine 
elements,  and  fitted  to  call  men  up  to  the  divine  life." 

"I  know  that  a  grand  work  was  done  by  those  gifted  and 
great  spirits,  Confucius  and  Buddha ;  but  I  propose  to  show  at 
the  proper  time  that  their  work  was  incomplete,  was  not  a  full- 
orbed  Christianity  such  as  came  by  Jesus,  and  that  the  finger  of 
God  has  written  on  the  human  constitution  in  greater  amplitude 
the  same  laws  which  were  expounded  by  Jesus. 

"  To  understand  that  this  grand  religion  of  nature,  of  science, 
and  of  inspiration,  is  most  properly  to  be  called  Christianity,  and 
that  there  is  no  other  proper  name  for  it,  let  us  look  at  the 
original  word,   and   its  analogues  in   the   Greek.      Christianity 


"IMMANUEL,   OR   GOD   WITH   US."  423 

comes  from  the  Greek  word  Christos,  which  is  the  translation  of 
the  Hebrew  Messiah  (Messias  or  Mashiach).  These  words  alike 
mean  the  anointed  one.  Kings,  prophets,  and  high  priests  were 
consecrated  to  their  office  by  anointing.  The  anointed  one, 
therefore,  means  the  one  chosen,  ordained,  crowned,  or  consecrated 
to  a  high  office.  The  prophecies  of  Isaiah,  David,  and  Daniel, 
had  long  promised  the  Jews  that  their  great  Messiah  or  anointed 
one  should  come.     The  line  of  prophecy  ran  far  back. 

"  The  Jews  were  therefore  expecting  their  Messiah,  and  were 
probably  influenced  also  by  the  promise  of  Isaiah  that  a  Virgin 
should  bear  a  son  and  call  him  Immanuel.  And  a  few  faithful 
men  and  women  who  could  realize  the  spiritual  greatness  of 
Jesus,  recognized  him  as  their  Messiah  and  called  him  Jesus  the 
Christ;  and  with  those  few  followers  in  that  sink  of  iniquity  and 
violence,  where  no  man's  life  was  safe  from  the  mob  or  assasin,  he 
inspired  a  zeal  and  devotion  which  impressed  the  best  of  the 
Jewish  race;  and  afterwards  by  their  earnest  eloquence  and 
courage,  facing  death,  overturned  Paganism,  took  possession  of 
the  Roman  Empire,  and  finally  of  all  the  leading  civilized 
nations  of  the  world,  with  the  grand  inspiration  of  that  young 
carpenter  who  died  before  he  had  attained  the  prime  of  life.  I 
need  no  better  evidence  than  this  of  his  greatness  and  divine 
inspiration ;  for  the  great  men  of  history  are  those  who  make  a 
great  impression  on  mankind,  change  the  destiny  of  nations  and 
originate  new  eras. 

"  Such  was  he  whom  history  calls  Messias,  Christos,  or  Christ, 
because  he  was  what  those  words  mean ;  and  as  language  is  settled 
by  usage,  we  cannot  now  change  the  usage  of  centuries  or  cease 
to  recognize  him  as  Christ." 

"  Thus,  Chres  or  Chris  is  the  Greek  expression  for  that  which  is 
just,  good,  and  beautiful,  or  which  comes  from  heaven;  and  the 
word  Chrestos  was  so  closely  associated  with  divinity  that  it  was 
often  applied  by  the  Greeks  to  Apollo  and  other  gods.  Chrises 
or  Chriseos  signifies  anointing,  and  Christerion  the  ointment ;  and 
the  words  Chrisma  and  Chrism  are  used  for  the  oil  of  baptism, 
ordination,  and  unction,  which  was  anciently  used  all  over  the 
body  and  not  confined  to  the  head." 

"  Language  would  utterly  fail  to  depict  the  glory  of  the  Chris- 


424  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

tian  lives  of  love  in  tens  of  thousands  all  along  the  centuries, 
from  the  times  when  they  were  hunted  like  wild  heasts  in  Asia 
Minor,  and  slaughtered  in  the  valleys  of  the  Alps,  hurned  at  the 
stake  hy  the  Inquisition,  and  massacred  hy  thousands  all  over 
France.  All  along  the  fifteen  hundred  years  of  persecution  and 
darkness — persecution  inflicted  mainly  hy  the  Church,  Christian 
love  and  heroism  shine  like  stars  at  night,  and  teach  us  the 
grandeur  and  loveliness  of  human  nature  when  man  is  inspired 
by  heaven,  and  follows  in  the  pathway  of  Christ. 

"  Having  settled  the  meaning  of  Christianity,  let  us  ask  if 
Christianity  has  a  historical  record  as  well  as  Churchianity. 

"  The  record  of  Churchianity  is  known  of  all  men  as  well  as 
that  of  Tamerlane,  Genghis  Khan,  or  Napoleon  ;  for  it  is  a  record 
of  power,  splendour,  and  crime,  and  blood-sprinkled  splendours 
have  always  been  known,  studied,  and  admired  all  over  the 
world;  but  the  record  of  true  Christianity  has  not  much  on 
which  historians  love  to  dwell ;  for  it  is  a  record  of  the  humble 
virtues  unknown  to  fame — of  wives  and  mothers  living  and 
dying  for  their  children;  of  solitary  students  giving  their  lives 
for  a  Wisdom  to  which  the  world  would  not  listen ;  of  profound 
and  independent  thinkers,  like  Roger  Bacon,  living  in  peril  from 
the  barbarisms  of  the  Church;  of  brave  and  honest  men  im- 
prisoned in  the  dungeons  of  the  Church,  or  burned  in  its  fires 
before  unpitying  mobs  of  priests  ;  of  noble  souls  like  Socrates 
and  Hypatia,  overwhelmed  by  brutal  mobs  while  on  earth,  but 
shining  out  from  the  blackness  of  history  like  stars  in  the  mid- 
night sky.  It  is  a  record  of  men  and  women  who  have  dared  all 
things  in  time  of  pestilence,  when  the  plague  was  a  terror  indeed, 
ravaging  like  a  prairie  fire ;  of  patriots  who  have  stood  for  liberty 
against  imperial  tyranny  when  resistance  was  certain  death;  a 
record  of  the  hunted  and  outlawed,  hiding  in  caves,  forests,  and 
deserts ;  a  record  of  millions  slain  in  battles,  slain  in  prisons,  slain 
by  fire  because  they  dared  to  follow  the  precepts  and  example  of 
the  Christ  of  Palestine.  Oh  !  what  a  mighty  army  of  martyrs 
has  followed  the  glorious  path  of  the  great  martyr  of  Calvary. 
For,  as  it  was  in  the  beginning,  so  it  is  now ;  but,  thank  God,  1 
do  not  think  it  will  continue  one  century  longer.  The  world  of 
Mammon  is  at  war  with  the  world  of  Christ.  It  was  once  a 
deadly  war,  as  fierce  as  that  of  the  tomahawking  savage;  but 
the  war  is  nearly  over  now.      No  Quaker  will  ever  again  be  hung 


TRUE  CHRISTIANITY.  425 

in  Boston ;  no  witch  ever  burned  in  England ;  no  Bruno  burned 
in  Rome ;  no  Galileo  sent  to  the  dungeon ;  no  Servetus  burned  by 
Presbyterians ;  no  worthy  citizens  will  be  either  hung  or  burned 
for  heresy  by  the  Episcopal  Church;  no  Episcopal  Church  will 
lend  its  sanction  to  the  men  who  would  imprison  and  hang  a 
Washington  if  they  had  the  physical  power;  no  papal  Church 
will  let  loose  the  dogs  of  war  upon  an  amiable  and  peaceful  race 
in  Mexico  and  South  America;  no  wealthy  and  powerful  nation 
will  be  ruined  into  desolation,  as  Germany  was  by  the  thirty 
years'  war. 

"  These  things  can  never  be  again,  for  the  power  of  the 
political  Church  is  broken  for  ever;  crushed  and  confiscated  in 
Mexico,  robbed  of  the  papal  sovereignty  in  Europe,  and  soon  to 
be  disestablished  in  England.  The  earthly  power  that  Constantine 
established ;  the  national  Church,  the  political  Church,  the  tax- 
gathering  Church,  the  heretic-burning  Church,  is  dying — dying 
— passing  away  for  ever,  for  there  is  no  resurrection  to  a  buried 
falsehood  :  and  the  grand  commonwealth  of  Christ  is  coming  in 
its  place,  the  commonwealth  of  him  whose  realm  is  not  of  earth 
but  of  heaven ;  the  grand  original  Democrat,  among  whose 
true  followers  the  leader,  the  great  man,  the  first  in  rank,  is  but 
the  servant  of  the  people,  ready,  if  need  be,  to  wash  the  feet  of 
the  humblest  disciple;  wearing  no  crown,  carrying  no  sword, 
gathering  no  taxes,  showing  no  learned  pedantry,  making  no  long 
prayers,  shunning  no  truth,  loving  all  men,  and  ever  ready  to 
help ;  but  loving  especially  his  ascended  brethren,  who  came  from 
heaven  to  bring  that  immortal  life  and  healing  power  for  body 
and  soul,  which  is  expressed  in  unlimited  love,  the  love  that 
teems  from  his  countenance  and  tells  all  men  he  is  their  friend. 
That  is  the  mark  of  Christianity.  If  you  cannot  see  in  a  man's 
face  that  he  is  your  friend,  your  reliable  friend,  he  does  not 
belong  to  the  realm  of  Christianity;  but  he  may  belong  to  the 
Church  of  Constantine,  which  has  so  often  feasted  its  eyes  on  the 
death  agonies  of  Christians,  and  on  battle-fields  where  patriots 
were  slaughtered. 

"  How  few  ever  reflect  seriously  on  the  fact  that  Jesus  Christ 
never  founded  a  Church,  nor  gave  a  hint  for  any  plan  of  Church 
organization.  Church  organization  arose  spontaneously  among 
the  half-converted,  superstitious  heathens,  and  in  a  semi-barbarous 
society,  pervaded  in  every  generation  by  the  agitations  of  blood 


426  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

and  plunder ;  and  thus  the  foundations  of  the  Church  were  laid 
in  superstition,  violence,  and  moral  corruption.  And  at  the  end 
of  the  third  century  this  seething  mass  of  superstition,  with  its 
vast  array  of  bishops  and  priests,  appeared  to  Constantine  a 
stronger  organization  for  his  purposes  than  the  old  pagan  priest- 
hood. 

This  man  Constantine  was  a  magnificent  criminal.  He  had 
destroyed  his  three  competitors  for  the  empire ;  he  had  murdered 
his  wife,  and  his  most  promising  son,  his  brother-in-law,  and  his 
young  nephew  of  only  eleven  years.  He  was  a  profligate  and  a 
glutton  as  well  as  a  murderer ;  and  in  his  maudlin  brain  he  mixed 
up  Jesus  Christ  and  Apollo — having  Apollo  on  one  side  and  the 
name  of  Jesus  on  the  other  side  of  his  coins ;  but  when  he  leaned 
to  the  Church,  he  was  recognized  as  a  saint,  fully  endorsed  by 
St.  Jerome  and  by  Eusebius,  and  canonized  as  St.  Constantine  by 
the  Greek  Church'.  He  gave  a  start  to  the  papacy  by  giving  the 
palace  of  the  Lateran  at  Rome  to  Bishop  Sylvester  ;  and  when  he 
called  together  the  first  universal  council  of  the  Church,  the  only 
universal  council  but  one,  he  was  surrounded  by  a  mass  of  moral 
corruption  equivalent  to  his  own  character.  It  was  this  council, 
dominated  by  this  man,  which  struck  down  the  only  rational 
Christian  among  them,  the  exemplary  Arius,  who  was  born 
1500  years  too  soon  for  his  own  welfare,  and  laid  the  broad 
foundations  of  the  Church  on  permanent  and  irrepressible  hostility 
to  the  Church  of  Christ :  devoted  to  war  instead  of  peace  ;  to 
ostentation  and  tyranny  instead  of  humility ;  to  persecution  and 
hate  instead  of  love,  forgetting  every  principle  taught  by  Christ, 
and  quarrelling  with  warlike  and  ferocious  zeal  about  the  nature 
of  the  Trinity  as  the  only  theme  that  interested  them.  Effects 
are  always  like  their  causes,  and  Constantine  with  his  (Ecumeni- 
cal Council  of  Nice,  was  the  head  of  that  apostacy  which  has 
persecuted  Christianity  wherever  it  appeared,  warred  against 
science  and  held  all  Europe  stagnant  in  the  dark  ages,  when 
civilization  was  saved  by  the  Mahometan  power. 

"  But  was  Christianity  annihilated  when  Constantine  established 
Churchianity,  with  its  priestcraft  and  its  religious  wars  ?  Not  at 
all.  It  was  outlawed,  but  not  annihilated.  Far  away  from  the 
pomp  and  corruption  of  cities,  Christianity  lived  in  humble, 
faithful  souls.  The  Paulicians,  the  Albigenses,  and  Waldenses, 
sought  in  vain  to  live  in  peace  as  rational  Christians,  free  from 


THE  RECOGNIZED   CHRISTS   OF  THE   AGES.         427 

superstition,  and  the  whole  power  of  the  Church  was  brought  to 
bear  for  their  utter  extermination  by  sword  and  fire.  It  is  too 
horrible  a  narrative  to  be  recited  now.  Never  since  human 
events  have  been  recorded  by  historians  has  there  been  anything 
so  thoroughly  and  entirely  diabolical  as  the  persecutions  of 
Christians  by  the  Church,  extending  from  the  time  of  Constantine 
to  the  18th  century.  The  murder  of  Hypatia  at  Alexandria  in 
the  5th  century,  by  a  mob  of  ferocious  priests,  who  tore  her 
body  into  pieces,  is  a  single  instance  from  which  we  may  learn 
the  spirit  of  the  Church  of  Constantine.  But  the  tiger  of  the 
5th  century  has  lost  his  teeth  and  claws,  and  some  believe  that 
he  may  yet  become  a  lamb  ;  that  Spiritualism  will  complete  the 
change  that  science  and  democracy  have  begun." 

"  But  I   do   not   reject  history  because  it  is 

mingled  with  myth.  I  have  a  profound  reverence  for  Quetzal- 
coatl,  for  Krishna,  and  for  Jesus,  for  these  were  real  men,  real 
heroes,  real  Christs — fitted  to  lead  us  to  a  higher  life.  But  the 
man  of  Nazareth  is  the  one  who  comes  nearest  to  us  as  an 
inspired  teacher.  My  soul  goes  out  to  him  in  love,  and  I  hope  to 
see  the  Church  of  Christ  the  martyr,  yet  rule  the  world,  for  I 
see  the  mighty  Church  of  Constantine,  the  murderer,  is  tottering 
to  its  fall,  and  upon  its  ruins  the  good  men  of  all  nations  who 
look  to  heaven  for  guidance,  may  unite  in  the  true  Church 
Universal. 

"  That  being  the  case,  I  look  upon  the  three  great  systems  of 
Christianity,  and  the  three  great  Christs,  Jesus  of  Palestine, 
Krishna  of  India,  and  Quetzalcoatl  of  Mexico,  as  three  distinct 
evolutions  of  one  religion  on  earth,  inspired  and  sustained  from 
heaven.  For  that  which  has  been  in  one  country  is  that  which 
we  will  find  in  another.  On  different  continents  we  find  the 
same  soil,  the  same  trees,  the  same  animals,  the  same  human 
beings,  with  a  little  A'ariation,  and  siniilar  forms  of  government, 
religion,  marriage,  agriculture,  arts,  and  sciences. 

"  Christianity  in  Palestine,  Christianity  in  India,  and  Chris- 
tianity in  Mexico,  are  all  substantially  the  same  thing,  all 
inspired  from  heaven  through  a  grand  leader  or  Christ,  and  all 
running  through  human  debasement  into  the  same  forms  and 
errors,  but  perhaps  less  debased  in  that  most  ancient  Church  of 
Mexico  than  in  any  other ;  for  there  was  not  wickedness  enough 


428  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

in  the  original  Mexican  nature  to  suggest  the  idea  of  hell,  which 
has  been  the  debasing  element  in  the  Church  of  Constantine. 

"  We  thus  arrive  at  the  conclusion  that  there  is  one  great 
religion  of  all  humanity,  and  that  its  proper  name  is  Christianity ; 
that  in  all  ages  it  is  encumbered  by  superstitions,  by  ceremonies, 
and  by  the  corrupting  influence  of  politics,  wealth,  power,  selfish- 
ness, and  war  ;  and  that  when  we  revert  to  fundamental  prin- 
ciples, when  we  follow  the  principles  of  Christ  in  their  purity, 
and  open  our  souls  to  the  direct  influence  of  the  Divine  and  all 
the  hosts  of  heaven,  which  is  the  aim  of  spiritual  religion,  we 
have  relieved  ourselves  of  errors,  solved  the  problem,  and  estab- 
lished the  Universal  Church  of  Humanity." 

This  Extract  is  so  very  long  already  that  we  have 
felt  obliged  to  omit  many  paragraphs  which,  neverthe- 
less, would  have  added  greatly  to  its  interest — such  are 
the  analogies  between  those  whom  Professor  Buchanan 
calls  the  "  real  Christs  "  of  the  Ages.  The  teachings 
of  the  heavenly  Krishna,  as  given  in  his  dialogues  with 
his  disciple  Arjun  (or  John)  in  the  Bhagavat-Gita,  are, 
as  he  says,  rich  in  the  sweetest  and  most  sublime 
teachings  of  religion,  such  as  every  sincere  Christian 
must  recognize  and  reverence.  He  was  the  grandest 
moral  figure  of  ancient  times,  and  the  greatest  philo- 
sopher of  the  whole  world.  He  was  recognized  as  the 
"  Divine  Word,"  and  his  disciples  gave  him  the  name 
of  Jezeus,  which  signifies  pure  essence.  He  was  often 
styled  the  promised  of  God,  and  the  Messiah.  This 
Christ  of  India  lived  so  far  back,  that  history  cannot 
say  whether  it  was  one,  or  three  thousand  years  before 
our  own  Christ. 

The  Mexicans,  according  to  Humboldt  (US.  Ameri- 
can Researches"   Vol.  I.,  p.  249),  have  an    antiquity 


"  IN  ADAM  ALL  DIE,  IN  CHRIST  ALL  ARE  MADE  ALIVE."  429 

of  18,000  years,  and  hence  their  system  of  religion 
was  the  most  ancient  known  on  earth  When  the 
Spaniards  arrived  there,  led  by  Hernan  Cortes,  they 
found  to  their  great  surprise  images  both  of  the  Virgin 
and  child,  and  of  the  Christ  crucified  between  two 
malefactors.  The  Christ  was  not  named  Jesus  but 
Quetzalcoatl,  and  his  Mother  was  called  the  queen  of 
heaven,  and  worshipped,  as  they  themselves  worshipped 
the  Virgin  Mary.*  In  fact,  they  found  that  the  religion 
and  all  its  traditions  was  substantially  the  same  as  their 
own  Christianity,  which  would  show,  not  that  Chris- 
tianity had  been  plagiarized  either  from  India  or 
Mexico,  with  which  country  there  was  no  communica- 
tion till  fifteen  centuries  later,  but  that  this  saving 
truth,  (namely,  the  crucifixion  of  the  earthly  man  as 
necessary  for  the  salvation  of  the  heavenly  man),  has 
been  revealed  to  humanity  at  different  epochs  and  in 

*  See  Lord  Kingsborough's  fine  work  on  the  Antiquities  of 
Mexico,  particularly  Vol.  VI.  He  says  (page  100):  "The 
temptation  of  Quetzalcoatl,  the  fast  of  forty  days  ordained  by 
the  Mexican  Ritual,  the  Cup  with  which  he  was  presented  to 
drink,  the  Morning  Star,  which  he  is  designated,  the  teepatl 
or  Stone  which  was  laid  on  his  Altar,  and  called  teotecpatl,  or 
divine  Stone,  which  was  likewise  an  object  of  worship  ;  all  these 
circumstances  connected  with  Quetzalcoatl  are  very  curious 
resemblances."  Again  he  says  (page  114)  :  "  The  Mexicans  bap- 
tized their  children,  and  the  water  which  they  used  they  called 
the  water  of  regeneration."  At  the  end  of  October  they  had  a 
festival  exactly  answering  to  our  All  Saints,  and  All  Souls. 
They  call  it  the  Festival  of  Advocates,  because  each  human  being 
had  an  Advocate  to  plead  for  him  (page  101). 

Quetzalcoatl  is  represented  in  the  paintings  of  the  Codex  Bor- 
gianus  nailed  to  the  cross,  and  sometimes  even  the  two  thieves 


430  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

different  parts  of  the  world ;  it  is  the  most  ancient,  and 
therefore  will  probably  be  the  most  enduring  on  earth, 
nay,  must  be  so,  since  it  is  the  only  means  of  uniting 
earth  with  heaven,  or  of  preparing  the  Son  OF  Man  to 
become  the  Son  of  God  ;  it  is,  therefore,  substantially 
the  religion  of  all  past,  as  of  all  coming  ages. 

In  the  Foot-note  we  have  given  copious  extracts 
from  well-known  and  highly  accredited  authors,  after 
reading  which,  and  studying  the  divinely  inspired 
teachings  of  Christna  in  the  Bhagavat-Gita  who  can 
doubt  any  longer  of  the  Unity  of  these  Divine  Mes- 
sengers, and  of  the  gradual  evolution  of  the  One  Great 
Truth  they  came  to  live,  and  to  inculcate,  and  for 
which  they  died  the  self-same  death,  that  of  the 
Crucifixion  of  the  body,  or  lower  nature  (the  Son  of 
Man),  in  order  that  the  higher  should  be  lifted  up, 
and  ascend  into  heaven  as  the  Son  of  God.     This  is  the 


are  there  crucified  with  him  (page  166).  The  Immaculate  Con- 
ception is  described  in  the  Codex  Vaticanus  ;  Suckiquetzl  was  the 
Virgin  Mother  of  Quetzalcoatl.  Sochiquetzl  means  the  lifting  up 
of  Roses.  Eve  is  called  Suchiquetzl,  and  is  said  to  have  sinned 
by  plucking-  roses,  but  in  another  place  these  roses  are  called 
Fruta  del  Arbor.  A  messenger  from  heaven  announced  to  her 
that  she  should  bear  a  Son  who  shoidd  bruise  the  Serpent's  head. 
He  presents  her  with  a  rose.  The  Mohamedans  have  a  tradition 
that  Christ  was  conceived  by  the  smelling  of  a  Rose.  Lord 
Kingsborough  shows  that  Mesitli,  or  Mexico,  is  precisely  the 
same  as  the  Hebrew  word  J"Pt£?0  msih,  messiah,  or  anointed. 
This  was  the  commencement  of  an  Age,  which  was  called  The 
Aye  of  Roses.  In  India  this  is  called  the  Age  of  the  Lotus  (the 
Water  Rose).  He  was  the  Rose  of  Sharon,  that  is,  the  Rose  of 
Ishuren,  or  the  God  of  the  country  where  the  language  is  called 
the  pollen  or  the  Flower.     (See  pages  175,  176.) 


THE  SPIRITUAL  SIGNIFICANCE   OF  ASTRO-MASONRY.       431 

great  truth  written  from  all  eternity  on  the  "  Starry 
Scriptures  of  the  Sky"  or  heavenly  Planisphere  of 
every  Nation  of  Antiquity  throughout  the  world,  and 
enacted  year  by  year  by  the  apparent  course  of  the 
Life-giving  Sun,  the  Shekinah,  or  manifestation  of  the 
Logos,  or  Wisdom  to  earth,  as  if  to  remind  and  guide 
children  to  their  heavenly  inheritance. 

The  celebrated  work  of  Dupuis,  "  Vorigine  des 
Cultes"  and  the  no  less  important  "  Veritas  "  of  the 
late  Henry  Melville,  are  real  treasures  to  the  true 
Theosophist,  who  knows  the  interior  Spiritual  truth 
contained  in  the  Science  of  Astro-Masonry,  and  are 
therefore  of  far  greater  value  than  their  authors  could 
ever  have  conceived ;  for,  with  all  their  learning,  they 
were  but  outsiders,  and  appear  to  have  had  no  idea 
whatever  of  the  Esoteric  truth  contained  in  the  exact 
Science  they  have  been  the  means  of  so  ably  giving  to 
the  Theosophic  Student.  But  were  we,  like  these 
authors,  to  accept  literally  the  Allegory  pictured  on  the 
starry  skies,  without  comprehending  the  Spiritual 
significance  it  contains,  it  would  be  to  assume  that  the 
wise  men  of  old  actually  worshipped  the  sun,  moon, 
and  stars ;  but  the  ancients  never  enunciated  sacred 
ideas  except  in  allegorical  forms,  and  never  Mapped 
out  an  Allegory  without  its  veiling  a  profound 
Spiritual  meaning.  "  As  above  so  below  " ;  "  On  the 
earth  as  in  the  sides"  were  the  sentences  by  which 
the  ancient  mystics  were  accustomed  to  affirm  the 
universal  correspondence  between  the  harmonies  of  the 
natural  and  spiritual  in  every  department  of  being. 


432  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

The  Labours  of  Hercules  were  depicted  on  the 
heavenly  chart  as  emblematic  memorials  for  all  time 
of  what  the  living  Son  of  God,  or  Spiritual  Soul  in 
humanity,  was  to  do  and  to  suffer.  Osiris,  Christna, 
Wittoba,  Buddha,  Jesus,  and  all  the  so-called  Sun- 
Gods,  had  the  same  history,  and  were  all  complete 
types  of  the  Christ,  or  Saviour,  in  man.  To  view  it 
otherwise  would  be  to  accept  the  Letter  without  the 
Spirit,  the  Mystery  without  the  Meaning,  the  Body 
without  the  Soul. 

THE  CHRIS  T  is  indeed  the  central  or  spiritual  Sun 
of  human  life  ;  the  source  of  its  better  inspiration,  and 
the  genius  of  its  supreme  evolution  and  final  ascension. 

Surely  no  unprejudiced  person  can  fail  to  perceive 
that  the  symbolic  history  of  the  Sun-God,  so  generally 
engrafted  into  all  ancient  religions  for  thousands  of 
years  before  the  time  of  Jesus,  was  again  fulfilled  in 
his  life  and  death.  When  this  suffering  divinely-in- 
spired Being  enters  upon  the  Scene,  and  our  humanity 
can  look  up,  and  feel  his  kind  hands  healing  their 
sicknesses,  and  hear  his  tender  tones  of  compassion 
bringing  them  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  awful  Majesty 
of  the  Unknown  God,  translating  that  Majesty  into  the 
pitying  and  human  character  of  a  Father,  can  we 
wonder  that  he  is  recognized  as  the  manifestation  of 
the  promised  Saviour  of  the  race,  the  one  who  had  been 
allegorically  pictured  on  "  the  starry  Scriptures  of  the 
sky"  by  the  Divine  hand  of  that  beneficent  Father, 
and  whose  expected  coming  had  been  recorded  in  every 
succeeding  religious  worship  of  fallen  man  ? 


433 


CHAPTER  XT. 

The  Theosophic  Interpretation  of  the  Bible. 

"  A  LL  that  is  true  is  Spiritual ;  no  chapter  in  the 
-^*-  Bible  bears  a  physical  meaning.  For  Matter 
as  it  now  exists  shall  cease,  and  all  that  is  of  it,  but  the 
Word  of  the  Lord  shall  endure  for  ever.  And  how 
shall  it  endure  except  it  be  purely  Spiritual;  since 
when  Matter  ceases  it  would  then  be  no  longer  com- 
prehensible ?  " 

"  That  which  is  lasting  and  true  is  for  Spirit  alone." 

CONCERNING   THE 

INTERPRETATION    OF    SCRIPTURE. 

(A  Fragment.) 

Part  I. 

"  If,  therefore,  they  be  Mystic  Books,  they  ought  also 
to  have  a  Mystic  Consideration.  But  the  Fault  of 
most  Writers  lieth  in  this, — that  they  distinguish  not 
between  the  Books  of  Moses  the  Prophet,  and  those 
Books  which  are  of  an  historical  nature.  And  this  is 
the  more  surprising,  because  not  a  fezv  of  such  Critics 
have  rightly  discerned  the  Esoteric  Character,  if  not 
i?idced  the  true  Interpretation,  of  the  story  of  Eden  ; 
yet  have  they  not  applied  to  the  Remainder  of  the 
Allegory  the  same  MetJiod  which  they  found  to  fit  the 
Beginning ;    but  so  soon  as  they  are  over  the  earlier 

FF 


434  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Stanzas  of  the  Poem,  they  would  have  the  Rest  of  it  to 
be  of  another  Nature. 

"  It  is,  then,  pretty  well  established  and  accepted  of 
most  Authors,  that  the  Legend  of  Adam  and  Eve,  and 
of  the  Miraculous  Tree  and  the  Fmit  which  was  the 
Occasion  of  Death,  is,  like  the  Story  of  Eros  and 
Psyche,  and  so  many  others  of  all  Religions,  a  Parable 
with  a  hidden,  that  is,  with  a  Mystic  Meaning.  But 
so  also  is  the  Legend  which  follows  concerning  the 
Story  of  Cain  and  Abel  his  Brother ;  the  Story  of  the 
Flood ;  of  the  Ark ;  of  the  saving  of  the  clean  and 
unclean  Beasts ;  of  the  Rainbow ;  of  the  twelve  Chil- 
dren of  facob ;  and,  not  stopping  there,  of  the  whole 
Relation  concerning  the  Flight  out  of  Egypt.  For  it  is 
not  to  be  supposed  that  the  two  Sacrifices  offered  to 
God  by  the  Sons  of  Adam,  were  real  Sacrifices,  any 
more  than  it  is  to  be  supposed  that  the  Apple  which 
caused  the  Doom  of  Mankind,  was  a  real  Apple.  It 
ought  to  be  known,  indeed,  for  the  right  Understanding 
of  the  Mystical  Books,  that  in  their  Esoteric  Sense  they 
deal,  not  with  material  Things,  but  with  Spiritual 
Realities ;  and  that  as  Adam  is  not  a  Man,  nor  Eve 
a  Woman,  nor  the  Tree  a  Plant  in  its  true  Significa- 
tion, so  also  arc  not  the  Beasts  named  in  the  same 
Books  real  Beasts,  but  that  the  Mystic  Intention  of 
them  is  implied.  When,  therefore,  it  is  written  that 
Abel  took  of  the  Firstlings  of  his  Flock  to  offer  unto 
the  Lord,  it  is  signified  that  he  offered  that  which  a 
Lamb  implies,  and  which  is  the  holiest  and  highest  of 
Spiritual  Gifts.  Nor  is  Abel  himself  a  real  Person, 
but  the  Type  and  spiritual  Presentation  of  the  Race  of 
the  Prophets ;  of  whom  also  Moses  was  a  Member, 
together  with  the  Patriarchs.  Were  the  Prophets, 
then,  Shedders  of  Blood?     God  forbid !  they  dealt  not 


A   FRAGMENT   FROM   "  THE   PERFECT   WAY."        435 

with  Things  material,  but  with  spiritual  Significations. 
Their  Lambs  without  Spot,  their  White  Doves,  their 
Goats,  their  Rams,  and  other  Sacred  Creatures,  are 
so  many  Signs  and  Symbols  of  the  various  Graces 
and  Gifts  which  a  Mystic  People  should  offer  to 
Heaven.  Without  such  Sacrifices  is  no  Remission  of 
Sin.  But  when  the  Mystic  Sense  was  lost,  then 
Carnage  followed,  tlie  Prophets  ceased  out  of  the  Land, 
and  the  Priests  bore  rule  over  the  People.  Then,  when 
again  the  Voice  of  the  Prophets  arose,  they  were  con- 
strained to  speak  plainly,  and  declared  in  a  Tongue 
foreign  to  tJieir  MetJiod,  that  the  Sacrifices  of  God  are 
not  tlie  Flesh  of  Bulls,  or  the  Blood  of  Goats,  but  holy 
Vows  and  sacred  Thanksgivings,  their  Mystical 
Counterparts.  As  God  is  a  Spirit,  so  also  are  His 
Sacrifices  Spiritual.  What  Folly,  what  Lgnorance,  to 
offer  material  Flesh  and  Drink  to  pure  Power  a?id 
essential  Being!  Surely  in  vain  have  the  Prophets 
spoken,  and  in  vain  have  the  Christs  been  manifested  ! 

"  Why  will  you  have  Adam  to  be  Spirit,  and  Eve 
Matter,  since  the  Mystical  Books  deal  only  with 
Spiritual  Entities  ?  The  Tempter  himself  even  is  not 
Matter,  but  that  which  gives  Matter  tlie  Precedence. 
Adam  is,  rather,  intellectual  Force:  he  is  of  Earth. 
Eve  is  the  moral  Conscience :  she  is  the  Mother  of  the 
Living.  Intellect,  then,  is  the  Male,  and  Intuition, 
the  female  Principle.  And  the  Sons  of  Intuition, 
herself  fallen,  shall  at  last  recover  Truth  and  redeem 
all  Things.  By  her  Fault,  indeed,  is  the  moral  Con- 
science of  Humanity  made  subject  to  the  Intellectual 
Force,  and  thereby  all  Manner  of  Evil  and  Confusion 
abounds,  since  her  desire  is  unto  him,  and  he  rules  over 
her  until  now.  But  the  End  foretold  by  the  Seer  is 
7io t  far  off.     Then  shall  the  Woman  be  exalted,  clothed 


436  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

with  the  Sun,  and  carried  to  the  Throne  of  God.  A  nd 
her  Sons  shall  make  War  with  the  Dragon,  and  have 
Victory  over  him.  Intuition,  therefore,  pure  and 
Virgin,  shall  be  the  Mother  and  Redemptress  of  her 
fallen  Sons,  whom  she  bore  under  Bondage  to  her 
Husband  the  Intellectual  Force,  who  noiv  hath 
Dominion.     .     .     ." 

Part  II. 

"Moses,  therefore,  knowing  the  Mysteries  of  the 
Egyptian  Religion,  and  having  learned  of  their 
Occultists  the  Value  and  Signification  of  all  Sacred 
Birds  and  Beasts,  delivered  like  Mysteries  to  his  own 
People.  But  certain  of  t lie  Sacred  Animals  of  Egypt 
he  retained  not  in  Honour,  for  Motives  which  were 
equally  of  Mystic  Origin.  A  nd  he  taught  his  Initiated 
the  spirit  of  the  heavenly  Hieroglyphs,  and  bade  them, 
when  they  made  Festival  before  God,  to  carry  with 
them  in  Procession,  with  Music  and  with  Dancing, 
such  of  the  Sacred  Animals  as  were,  by  their  interior 
Significance,  related  to  the  Occasion.  Now,  of  these 
Beasts,  lie  chiefly  selected  Males  of  the  first  Year, 
without  Spot  or  Blemish,  to  signify  that  it  is  beyond  all 
Things  Needful  that  Man  should  dedicate  to  the  Lord 
his  Intellect  and  his  Reason,  and  this  from  the  Begin- 
ning and  without  the  least  Reserve.  And  that  he  was 
very  wise  in  teaching  this,  is  evident  from  the  History 
of  the  World  in  all  Ages,  and  particularly  in  these  last 
Days.  For  what  is  it  that  has  led  Men  to  renounce 
the  Realities  of  the  Spirit,  and  to  propagate  false 
Theories  and  corrupt  Sciences,  denying  all  Things  save 
the  Appearance,  which  can  be  apprehended  by  the  outer 
Senses,  and  making  themselves  one  with  the  Dust  of 
the   Ground  t    It  is  their  Intellect  which,  being  un- 


A  FRAGMENT  FROM  "  THE  PERFECT  WAY."   437 

sanctified,  has  led  them  astray ;  it  is  the  Force  of  the 
Mind  in  them,  which,  being  corrupt,  is  the  Cause  of 
their  own  Ruin,  and  of  that  of  their  Disciples.  As, 
then,  the  hitellect  is  apt  to  be  the  great  Traitor  against 
Heaven,  so  also  is  it  the  Force  by  which  Men,  follozviug 
their  pure  Intuition,  may  also  grasp  and  apprehend  the 
Truth.  For  wJiicJi  Reason  it  is  written  that  the 
Christs  are  subject  to  their  Mothers.  Not  that  by  any 
means  the  Intellect  is  to  be  disJionoiired ;  for  it  is  the 
Heir  of  all  Things,  if  only  it  be  truly  begotten,  and  no 
Bastard. 

"And,  besides  all  these  Symbols,  Moses  taught  the 
People  to  have,  beyond  all  Things,  an  Abhorrence  of 
Idolatry.  What,  then,  is  Idolatry,  and  what  are  False 
Gods  ? 

"  To  make  an  Idol,  is  to  materialise  Spiritual  Mys- 
teries. The  Priests,  then,  were  Idolators,  tuho,  coniing 
after  Moses,  and  committing  to  Writing  those  Things 
which  he,  by  Word  of  Mouth,  had  delivered  unto 
Israel,  replaced  the  true  Things  signified,  by  their  mate- 
rial Symbols,  and  shed  innocent  Blood  on  the  pure 
Altars  of  the  Lord. 

"  They  also  are  Idolators,  who  7inderstand  the 
Things  of  Sense  zvhere  the  Things  of  the  Spirit  are 
alone  implied,  and  who  conceal  the  true  Feattcres  of 
the  Gods  with  material  and  spurious  Presentations. 
Idolatry  is  Materialism,  the  common  and  original  Sin 
of  Men,  which  replaces  Spirit  by  Appearance,  Sub- 
stance by  Illusion,  and  leads  both  the  moral  and  intel- 
lectual Being  into  Error,  so  that  they  substitute  the 
Nether  for  the  Upper,  and  the  Depth  for  the  Height. 
It  is  that  false  Fruit  which  attracts  the  outer  Senses, 
the  Bait  of  the  Serpent  in  the  Beginning  of  the  World. 
Until  the  Mystic  Man  and  Woman  had  eaten  of  this 


438  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

Fruit,  they  knew  only  the  Things  of  the  Spirit,  and 
found  them  suffice.  But  after  their  Fall,  they  began  to 
apprehend  Matter  also,  and  gave  it  the  Preference, 
making  themselves  I  delators.  A  nd  their  Sin,  and  the 
Taint  begotten  of  that  false  Fruit,  have  corrupted  the 
Blood  of  the  whole  Race  of  Men,  from  which  Corruption 
the  Sons  of  God  would  have  redeemed  them" 

[From  a  Fragment,  forming  part  of  Appendix 
No.  I.  of  "The  Perfect  Way."] 

The  Bible  is  a  collection  of  Theosophic  writings,  that 
within  their  literal  have  also  an  occult  meaning ;  the 
interpretation  of  which  forms  one  of  the  chief  branches 
of  Christian  Theosophy. 

Man  is  instructed  universally  through  the  agency  of 
symbolic  utterances  in  the  Word.  The  Universe  itself, 
with  all  its  exquisite  living  representations,  is  but  a 
pictorial  Scripture  of  the  Infinite. 

The  door  to  all  Divine  symbolism  is  in  the  human 
breast ;  but  that  door  is  unclosed  by  the  Hand  that 
"  opens,  and  no  man  shuts,"  and  that  "  shuts,  and  no 
man  opens."  Often  the  door  is  shut,  leaving  the 
student  in  the  possession  of  a  certain  limited  know- 
ledge ;  yet  then  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the 
Cabinet  is  exhausted  of  its  contents.  The  more  we 
learn  to  see  in  the  Bible  the  history  not  of  physical  or 
personal  beings — as  Adam,  Eve,  Jesus,  etc.,  but  of  the 
human  Soul,  individual  or  collective — the  more  con- 
vinced we  must  be  of  the  inanity  of  all  other  modes  of 
interpretation.  The  materialisation  of  the  Soul  by  its 
persistent  over-inclination  to  the  things  of  the  flesh, 


THE  DIVINE   MARRIAGE  OF   SOUL  AND   SPIRIT.     439 

constitutes  Sin,  of  which  the  wages  are  death.  The 
crucifixion  of  the  flesh,  by  renunciation  of  all  things 
lowering  to  the  Soul,  makes  a  new  because  wholly 
spiritual  man,  even  "  Christ,"  and  secures  to  us  that 
gift  of  God,  Eternal  Life.  Soul  is  only  deathless  when 
it  accomplishes  its  immortal  union  with  the  Divine 
Spirit ;  this  is  what  constitutes  the  Eternal  and  Divine 
Individuality,  "  The  Father  and  I  are  one ; "  and  until 
we  become  spiritually  manifest  in  this  union,  we  have 
merely  the  personality  of  Self,  which  is  mortality. 

"  He  to  whom  Time  is  as  Eternity  and  Eternity  as 
Time  is  delivered  from  all  strife,"  writes  Jacob  Bohme. 
"  He  who  believes  will  not  make  haste,"  says  the  Lord, 
and  this  truth  is  well  illustrated  by  the  allegory  of 
Passion  and  Patience  in  Bunyan's  Pilgrim's  Progress. 

The  subject  matter  whereon  the  books  of  the  Bible 
treat  is  of  an  eternal,  not  of  a  temporal  nature,  and 
the  physical  symbols  used  have  each  and  all  a  spiritual 
meaning.  It  may  be  questioned,  What  necessity  was 
there  for  concealment,  and  why  all  this  precaution  ? 
This  the  author  of  Christ  the  Spirit  appropriately 
elucidates  as  follows,  alluding,  however,  in  this  in- 
stance, more  particularly  to  the  Gospel  narratives : 

"  It  was  undoubtedly  the  opinion  of  the  time,  how  far  just  or 
otherwise  I  cannot  say,  that  the  common  people  could  not  under- 
stand the  doctrine  of  the  Spirit,  the  essential  Truth  which  was 
taught  figuratively  and  symbolically  through  Christ ;  and  hence 
we  read  of  cautions  not  to  throw  pearls  to  swine,  and  not  to  give 
the  children's  bread  to  dogs  ;  and  we  are  expressly  told  that 
Christ  spake  '  to  the  people  '  only  in  parables. 

"  One  of  the  reasons  for  this  must  be  explained  by  the  supposi- 


440  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

tion  that  the  real  authors  or  writers  of  the  Gospels  belonged  to  a 
(masonic)  brotherhood,  the  Essenes,  sworn  to  hold  their  doctrine 
of  the  Spirit  a  secret ;  though  this  secrecy  itself  must  have  grown 
out  of  the  opinion  that,  to  the  generality  of  men,  the  Spirit  of 
Truth  is  not  only  invisible,  but  incomprehensible  ;  and  such  men, 
it  was  thought,  must  be  left  in  possession  of  their  idols,  the 
letter,  the  water,  the  flesh,  the  bread,  as  the  next  best  thing ;  the 
Spirit  (of  truth)  having  originally  generated  the  letter  through 
the  great  teachers  of  the  nation,  Moses  and  the  prophets.     .     .     . 

"  The  carpenter's  son  had  a  predecessor  in  Hiram,  the  Builder 
of  a  house  not  made  with  hands.  Christ  is  the  mysterious  life 
that  builds  the  Temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost." 

"  The  Freemasons  of  the  present  day  not  only  claim  through 
their  accredited  lecturers,  as  by  Dr.  Oliver  and  others,  that  Free- 
masonry has  come  down  from  the  Essenes,  but  they  assert  that 
the  Essenes  were  in  possession  of  what  they  call  the  Temple 
secrets  in  the  days  of  Solomon.     .     .     . 

"  There  is  no  mention  made  of  the  Essenes  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment, except  as  the  '  brethren,'  for  the  Essenes  knew  each  other 
as  brethren,  as  do  the  Freemasons  at  the  present  day,  who  claim 
a  descent  from  them. 

"  The  writers  of  the  Gospels  are  supposed  to  have  belonged 
to  a  peculiar  sect  or  society  among  the  Jews,  who  had  an  opinion 
pointing  to  a  secret  meaning,  or  spiritual  sense,  as  being  con- 
tained in  the  letter  of  the  Old  Testament.  This  was  what,  in 
their  conventional  language,  they  called  the  children's  bread 
(Matt.  xv.  26),  regarding  it  as  too  sacred  for  the  profane.  This 
secret  doctrine  was  not  to  be  throivn  to  the  '  dogs,'  as  the  profane 
were  called.  The  truths  they  saw  in  the  Scriptures  under  the 
letter,  they  also  called  pearls,  which,  as  something  '  holy,'  was 
not  to  be  cast  before  '  swine '  (Matt.  vii.  6).  The  letter  of  the 
Scripture  they  likened  to  water ;  but  its  internal  sense  was 
likened  to  wine,  the  juice  of  the  Vine,  and  was  called  the  Spirit. 

"  The  Gospels  were  written  by  Therapeutae  residing  at  Alex- 
andria. The  scene  was  laid,  with  great  propriety,  at 
Jerusalem  ;  because  that  was  the  head-quarters  of  the  worldly 
priesthood,  who  had  made  the  law  of  no  effect  by  their 
traditions ;  and  these  were  made  the  murderers  of  the  Spirit, 
personified  in  Christ  to  represent  the  doctrine  that  the  letter 
killeth ;   and  yet   the  Spirit  of    Truth  was  exhibited  as  rising 


"  CHRIST   THE  SPIRIT."  441 

again,  and  appearing  to  its  followers;  for  this  illustrates  the 
privilege  of  those  who  possess  faith  in  God's  Holy  Law  in  the 
heart — the  true  Christ  according  to  St.  Paul.     .     .     . 

"  In  the  history  or  histories  of  Christ  we  have  a  representa- 
tion, in  the  form  of  history,  or  biography,  of  the  Life,  or  Spirit, 
of  the  Hebrew  sacred  books,  such  as  it  was  conceived  to  be  by 
the  members  of  a  secret  society  or  brotherhood,  described  by 
Josephus  as  the  Essenes,  and  referred  to  also  under  this  name 
by  Philo,  who  gives,  however,  a  more  detailed  account  of  them 
as  Therapeutae,  or  physicians, — meaning  physicians  of  the  soul, 
as  the  historian  expressely  states 

"  Jesus,  however  real  a  personage  he  might  have  been,  and 
there  is  no  disposition  to  deny  the  reality  of  his  life,  within  the 
range  of  possibility,  was  made,  nevertheless,  the  basis  of  a 
mythical  history  of  the  Life  or  power  of  the  sacred  writings, 
as  understood  by  the  Essenes ;  and  in  this  allusion  to  Blood  and 
Water,  as  flowing  from  a  wound  in  the  side,  the  writer  of  the 
Gospel  indicates,  as  I  say,  his  repesentative  character ;  and  that 
he  represented  the  Spirit  and  the  Letter  of  the  Hebrew  Scrip- 
tures— here  symbolized  by  Blood  and  Water,"  etc. 

"  At  this  (the  Apostles')  period  the  written  Gospels  were  not 
publicly  known.  But,  as  we  may  readily  suppose,  the  preaching 
of  St.  Paul  forced  them  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Essenes,  and 
they  became  public  through  the  unavoidable  mixture  of  the 
converts  of  St.  Paul  with  the  genuine  Essenes;  for  they  both 
held,  in  fact,  the  same  doctrine.     .     .     . 

"  Hence,  as  the  accessions  from  '  without '  increased,  a  diluting 
process  became  inevitable.  Many  of  the  converts  from  the 
Sadducees,  Pharisees,  and  Gentiles,  could  not  understand  the 
doctrine  of  the  Spirit ;  and  as  this  class  increased,  a  division 
grew  up  among  the  followers  of  the  Truth.  The  weak  would 
have  a  real  historical  person,  just  as  the  more  weak,  even  in 
our  own  times,  must  have  images  and  relics — unable  to  worship 
God  in  Spirit  and  in  truth  (John  iv.  24).  The  real  Essenes 
remained  in  possession  of  their  secret,  while  a  nominal  portion 
of  them  received  the  name  of  Christians,  which  was  given 
to  them  at  Antioch  (Acts  xi.  29).  And  this  portion,  always 
tending  to  a  majority — till  visited  anew  by  the  Spirit  of  Truth — 
finally  superseded,  numerically,  the  original  sect ;  and  the  mythi- 
cal history  of  Jesus  began  to  be  regarded  as  veritable  history. 


442  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

"  Many  of  the  so-called  Fathers  of  the  Church,  however, 
continued  to  he  imhued  with  the  Spirit  of  Truth,  and  saw  well 
enough  that  the  Gospels  were  symbolic  books,  needing  interpre- 
tation ;  but  as  they  were  probably  members  of  the  secret  frater- 
nity, they  could  not  openly  declare  the  Truth.  These  finally 
fell  into  a  decided  minority,  and  gradually  receded  from  popular 
observation,  leaving  the  more  numerous  and  probably  noisy  new- 
comers in  possession  of  the  public  eye  and  ear. 

"  But  the  Essene  doctrine  was  not  lost.  It  has  come  down 
to  the  present  time,  and  it  never  can  be  lost ;  for  as  often  as  it 
is  buried  under  the  letter  or  the  mere  forms  of  the  Church,  it 
will  '  come  forth '  again.  Truth  cannot  die :  and  this  is,  itself, 
the  great  Truth  which  is  taught  in  the  gospel  representation 
of  the  death  and  resurrection  of  Christ— the  Spirit  of  Truth — 
murdered  by  the  Jewish  Priesthood.  This  same  Truth,  overlaid 
and  buried  in  forms  and  ceremonies  and  traditions  from  age 
to  age,  is  perpetually  rising  again  and  again,  and  teaching  the 
doctrine  of  itself.  Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass  away,  but  the 
Truth  shall  not  pass  away.  Whosoever  loves  anything  better 
than  he  loves  Truth,  does  not  love  Christ;  for  Christ  is  the 
Spirit  of  Truth. 

"  Many  of  the  early  Fathers,  in  all  probability  Essenes  them- 
selves, were  allegorists  either  upon  one  or  more,  and  some  upon 
all,  of  the  miracles  of  Jesus.  Origen  was  the  most  thorough ; 
but  St.  Augustine,  St.  Jerome,  St.  Theophylact,  St.  John  of 
Jerusalem,  St.  Hylary,  St.  Gregory  the  Great,  Eusebius,  Galli- 
canus,  St.  Theophilus  of  Antioch,  St.  Cyril  of  Alexandria, 
St.  Irencus,  and  others,  were  all  of  them  to  a  greater  or  less 
extent  allegorists." 

What  is  here  chiefly  spoken  of  the  New  Testament 
also  refers  to  the  Old.  The  Allegory  of  the  historical 
relations  of  both  Old  and  New  Testament  is  undeniable. 
The  New  Testament  could  not  be  considered  allegorical 
if  the  Old  Testament  were  not  also  full  of  allegori- 
cal relations.  The  Hebrew  Kabbalist,  who  with  more 
force  than  grace,  enunciated  the  sentence  "  Cursed  is 
he  who  reads  the  Sacred  Writings  as  though  they  were 


AN   INWARD   SENSE   IN   SCRIPTURE.  443 

books  of  tales,"  very  decidedly  affirms  the  allegorical 
mode  of  interpretation  to  be  the  only  true  one. 

The  New  Testament  assumes  the  existence  of  the  Old 
without  going  into  an  investigation  of  its  origin  or 
history;  and  thus  the  sacred  writings  are  throughout 
said  to  be  sealed  with  seven  seals,  or  composed  ex- 
pressly in  an  idiom  which  we  cannot  decipher  without 
the  key,  but  which  we  are  capable  of  comprehending 
so  soon  as  we  receive  it.  In  a  word  the  Scriptures 
can  only  be  rightly  understood  in  their  inner  or  Esoteric 
meaning. 

For  our  own  part,  we  verily  believe  that  all  the 
historical  facts  recorded  in  the  Word  may  also  be  true 
in  the  sense  of  the  Letter ;  and  that  if  that  sense  be 
taken  away,  the  Soul  of  the  Word  would  be  deprived 
of  its  body,  and  no  other  body  is  fitter  for  it  to  dwell 
in  than  that  which  has  been  given  to  it  of  old,  to  make 
it  correspond  with  the  things  in  man.  And  if  it  be 
not  applied  to  the  things  in  man,  it  is  no  better  than 
any  other  historical  narrative  in  which  the  providence 
of  God  is  always  apparent  to  properly  trained  minds. 

We  are  informed  by  Swedenborg,  that  "  in  all  the 
Letter  of  the  Word  there  is  an  inward  sense ;  even 
a  connected  chain  from  first  to  last,  contained  within 
the  Letter,  like  a  man's  soul  in  his  body.  Now,  since 
this  is  the  case,  how  would  it  be  with  a  man  if  some 
parts  of  his  body  were  taken  away,  and  other  things 
of  a  different  quality  were  put  in  the  place  thereof? 
This  is  the  case  with  those  who  lose  their  limbs,  and 
who  have  something  else  to  supply  the  wants  created 


444  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

thereby.  It  is  well  known  that  the  soul  cannot  corres- 
pond (or  communicate)  with  those  parts  which  are 
so  supplied.  It  is  the  same  in  like  manner,  by  taking 
away  parts  of  the  Letter  of  the  Word." 

"  For  the  views  here  given,"  says  Mr.  Andrew  Jukes  in  his 
Preface  to  '  Types  of  Genesis?  speaking  of  the  allegorical  inter- 
pretation of  Scripture,  "  there  is  the  authority,  not  of  one  or 
two,  but  of  many  saints  through  many  hundred  years.  And 
though  these  things  were  not  first  shewn  me  by  the  Fathers, 
but  opened  in  solitary  communings  with  the  Word  of  God, 
yet  I  am  thankful  to  see  that  I  am  in  the  same  great  circle 
and  in  the  same  spirit  with  the  Church  of  other  days.  With 
them  I  see  the  Letter,  and  within  it  what  I  call  an  inward,  an 
outward,  and  a  dispensational  application.  They  may  call  these 
moral,  allegoric,  and  anagogic  senses ;  but  the  thing  meant 
remains  the  same,  namely,  a  perception  of  the  same  work  of 
God  on  different  platforms.  For  they  saw  how  God's  work 
is  reflected  in  many  spheres,  in  the  world  within  and  without, 
and  through  extended  ages  ;  His  work  on  earth  shadowing  forth 
still  higher  forms  of  the  same  work  of  the  same  unchanging 
Lord.*  Thankful  am  I  that  brethren  gone  before  had  eyes  to 
see  and  hearts  to  apprehend  all  this.      For  what  1  owe  them, 

*  "  Readers  of  the  Fathers  know  that  these  different  senses 
or  applications  of  Scripture  were  generally  received,  and  the 
principle  of  them  apprehended  by  the  Church  in  earlier  days. 
What  I  have  called  the  inward  application,  they  call  moral 
or  tropoloyic  ;  what  I  call  the  outward  or  historic  spiritual 
fulfilment,  they  call  allegoric  ;  while  the  future  or  dispensational 
fulfilment,  they  call  anagogic,  from  avdya,  to  lead  upwards  or 
onwards,  according  to  the  well-known  lines, 

"  Litera  gesta  docet ;  quod  credas,  allegoria  ; 
Moralis,  quod  agas ;  quo  tendas  anagogia." 

"  Any  one  who  cares  to  see  the  ground  or  principle  of  this 
triple  interpretation  of  Scripture,  will  find  the  question  briefly 
but  clearly  stated  by  Thomas  Aquinas;  Summ.  Theol.  Pt.  I., 
Qu.  I.,  Art  10.  Nicholas  Lira  also,  in  the  Prologue  to  his  Notes 
on  the  Bible,  goes  fully  into  this  subject." — Jukes. 


THE  THEOSOPHIC  INTERPRETATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.     445 

too,  I  am  thankful ;  thus  proving  that  the  memhers  of  the  body, 
from  age  to  age,  are  not  independent  of  one  another.  Besides, 
some  will  not  take  truth  for  authority,  but  want  authority  for 
truth.  Such  may  hearken  to  the  witness  of  saints  of  other 
days.  The  spiritual  sense  has  indeed  a  witness  far  higher  than 
holy  men :  its  works  will  prove  from  whence  it  is :  but  as  the 
Son  of  God  received  John's  witness,  so  may  the  spiritual  sense, 
while  possessing  a  higher  testimony,  refer  to  the  witness  of  the 
burning  and  shining  lights  of  other  days.  I  have,  therefore, 
added  a  few  quotations  from  the  Fathers.  Some  may  hearken 
to  Augustine,  who  would  not  receive  truth  on  its  own  authority. 
Such,  having  first  heard  the  witness  of  men,  may  at  length 
hear  the  witness  of  Truth  itself.  But  such  lights  shew  where 
those  are  who  need  them  ;  for  the  light  of  the  heavenly  city 
and  its  inhabitants  is  the  Lamb." 

The   Theosophic   interpretation    of    sacred   writings 

assumes  a  more  occult  meaning  than  is  taught  by 
the  Letter.  This  method  which  was  also  that  of  the 
Egyptians  and  Hindus  for  the  interpretation  of  their 
sacred  books,  became  most  important  to  the  Mystic 
Hermeneutists  of  both  the  Old  and  New  Testaments. 
For  the  former,  the  Alexandrian  Jews  and  the  Essenes, 
were  great  proficients  in  this  science  in  ancient  times. 
There  also  are  works  of  Exegesis  called  Medrash 
(plural,  Medrashim),  which  chiefly  treat  on  the  alle- 
gorical interpretation  of  certain  parts  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament. As  a  magnificent  production  of  the  Theosophic 
interpretation,  we  point  to  the  works  of  Philo  Judasus ; 
but  Origen,  St.  Ambrose,  St.  Augustine,  and  other 
Fathers  of  the  Christian  Church  have  fully  equalled, 
if  not  excelled,  the  profound  insight  of  the  Alexan- 
drian Mystic. 

Acting  upon  the  principle  that  the  divinely-inspired 
scribes  of  the  Bible  wrote  more  than  they  themselves 


446  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

intended,  or  were  aware  of,  the  theosophic  interpre- 
tation was  divided  into  four  chief  methods,  indicated 
by  the  Hermeneutic  verse,  quoted  by  Mr.  Jukes; 
wherein  the  Mystic  or  Theosophist  proper,  taught  the 
highest  or  Divine  subjects  only,  the  Anagogic  inculcat- 
ing celestial  or  angelic  things,  the  Moral  or  Tropologi- 
cal  directing  to  ethical  duties,  as  means  for  internal 
experiences,  and  the  Typical  pointing  to  externals. 
"  The  Letter  treats  of  facts,  which  serve  as  allegory 
of  what  we  are  to  believe ;  morals  teach  us  how  to  act ; 
and  by  anagogy  we  learn  whereto  it  all  tends."  Thus, 
although,  with  all  due  deference  to  Mr.  Jukes,  we 
presume  to  differ  slightly  from  his  reading  of  this 
Hermeneutic  verselet,  we  are  agreed  as  to  his  method 
of  scripture  interpretation  which  he  summarizes  as 
follows  : — 

"  In  the  book  of  Genesis,  as  a  base  or  ground  for  what  is  to 
follow,  we  first  are  shewn  what  springs  from  man  ;  and  all  the 
different  forms  of  life,  which  either  by  nature  or  grace  can  grow 
out  of  the  root  of  old  Adam.  Then  we  see  that,  be  it  bad  or 
good,  which  has  come  out  of  Adam,  there  must  be  redemption ; 
so  an  elect  people  by  the  Blood  of  the  Lamb  are  saved  from 
Egypt.  This  is  Exodus.  After  redemption  is  known,  we  come 
to  the  experience  of  the  elect  as  needing  access,  and  learning 
the  way  of  it,  to  God  the  Redeemer  in  the  sanctuary.  This 
we  get  in  Leviticus.  Then  in  the  wilderness  of  this  world, 
as  pilgrims  from  Egypt,  the  house  of  bondage,  to  the  promised 
land  beyond  Jordan,  the  trials  of  the  journey  are  learnt,  from 
that  land  of  wonders  and  man's  wisdom,  to  the  land  flowing 
with  milk  and  honey.  This  is  the  book  of  Numbers.  Then 
comes  the  desire  to  exchange  the  wilderness  for  the  better  land, 
from  entering  which  for  a  season  after  redemption  is  known, 
the  elect  yet  shrink  ;  answering  to  the  desire  of  the  elect  at 
a  certain  stage  to  know  the  power  of   the  resurrection,  to  live 


THE  BOOKS   OF   THE   OLD  TESTAMENT.  447 

even  now  as  in  the  heavenly  places.  The  rules  and  precepts 
which  must  be  obeyed,  if  this  is  to  be  done,  come  next.  Deuter- 
onomy, a  second  giving  of  the  law,  a  second  cleansing,  tells 
the  way  of  progress.  After  which  Canaan  is  indeed  reached. 
We  go  over  Jordan,  we  know  practically  the  death  of  the  flesh, 
and  what  it  is  to  be  circumcised,  and  to  roll  away  the  reproach 
of  Egypt.  We  know  now  what  it  is  to  be  risen  with  Christ, 
and  to  wrestle,  not  with  flesh  and  blood,  but  with  principalities 
and  powers  in  heavenly  places.  This  is  Joshua.  Then  comes 
the  failure  of  the  elect  in  heavenly  places ;  failure  arising  from 
making  leagues  with  Canaanites  instead  of  overcoming  them. 
This  is  Judges.  After  which  the  different  forms  of  rule,  which 
the  Church  may  know,  pass  in  review  in  the  books  of  Kings ; 
from  the  first  setting  up  of  rule  in  Israel  down  to  its  extinc- 
tion, when  for  their  sin  the  rule  of  Babylon  supersedes  that 
of  the  elect.  When  this  is  known  with  all  its  shame,  we  see 
the  remnants  of  the  elect,  each  according  to  its  measure,  doing 
what  may  be  done,  if  possible,  to  restore  Israel ;  some,  like  Ezra, 
returning  to  build  the  temple,  that  is,  to  restore  the  forms  of 
true  worship;  and  some  coming  up,  like  Nehemia,  to  build  the 
city,  that  is,  to  re-establish  by  Gentile  permission  a  feeble  imita- 
tion of  the  ancient  polity ;  while  a  third  remnant  in  Esther  is 
seen  in  bonds,  but  faithful,  providentially  saved ;  though  God's 
name  (and  this  is  characteristic  of  their  state)  never  appears 
throughout  the  whole  record. 

"  This  subject  would  of  itself  fill  a  volume.  I  touch  it  here, 
not  only  to  shew  that  each  book  has  it  own  peculiar  end,  each 
being  but  the  illustration  of  some  one  truth  or  fact,  on  which 
a  revelation  from  God  was  needed  by  us ;  but  to  call  attention 
also  to  their  order  and  gradation,  answering  so  exactly  to  the 
steps  by  which  truth  is  ever  apprehended  by  us  in  the  world 
of  thought  within.  In  this  light  the  position  of  Genesis  is 
most  suggestive.  Its  purport  is  to  show  what  Adam  is,  and 
what  can  spring  out  of  him.  And  just  as  in  our  souls  the  Spirit 
of  God  first  comes  to  shew  us  ourselves,  that  so  '  coming  to  our- 
selves,' like  the  Prodigal,  we  may  then  'come  to  our  Father' 
also ;  so  does  the  Word  open  with  the  same,  with  Adam  and  his 
seed,  that  is  the  fruit  of  human  nature.  This,  as  it  is  the  ground 
of  all  that  follows,  is  not  only  an  introduction :  it  is  also  an 
abridgment  or  summary  of   all  books.     For  what  is  the  series 


448  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

but  a  revelation  of  God,  shewing  His  resources  by  tbe  very- 
wants  and  failures  of  the  creature.  Genesis,  in  shewing  us 
Adam  and  his  outcome,  man  by  grace  and  nature,  reveals  in 
embryo  the  whole  mystery  of  grace  and  nature  in  the  creature. 
It  is  thus,  an  abstract  of  the  Bible,  with  the  long  sum  of  Divine 
counsels  worked  out  and  expressed  in  God's  algebra."  * 

It  may  be  objected  that  the  Theosophie  interpretation 
excludes  the  belief  in  the  verity  of  Bible  history ;  but 
such  is  not  necessarily  the  case.  Sacred  Scripture, 
in  as  far  as  it  is  the  product  of  the  One  and  Absolute 
Being,  like  Nature,  is  unique,  and  cannot  be  compared 
to  anything  but  to  itself ;  for  there  is  nothing  like 
it.  The  withdrawal  of  purposely  obscuring  old-time 
veils,  and  the  consequent  admission  of  more  light  into 
an  old  subject  does  not  destroy,  but  revives  and  renews; 
and  such  new  light  and  re-velation,  or  development, 
becomes  absolutely  necessary  to  keep  pace  with  the 
expanding  intellect  of  humanity  and  the  progress 
of  science.  Thus,  with  the  subject  in  question,  we 
fear  so  little  that  popular  inquiry  will  injure  it,  that 
in  order  to  facilitate  the  study  even  to  those  who 
have  not  the  advantage  of  acquaintance  with  the 
writings  of  the  Fathers,  we  have,  in  treating  the 
subject  of  the  Theosophie  Interpretation  of  the  Bible, 
chiefly  quoted  so  far  from  two  modern  works,  namely, 
"Christ  the  Spirit"  and  "Types  of  Genesis,"  as  we 
consider  these  the  best  for  beginners  in  this  study. 
More  advanced  students  may  undertake  to  read  the 
commentaries  of  the  Christian  P'athers  and  Christian 
Mystics  on  various  parts  of  Scripture. 

*  Preface  to  Types  of  Genesis. 


THE  THEOSOPHIC  INTERPRETATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.     449 

The  opposition  of  the  Theosophic  to  the  merely 
literal  interpretation  became  generally  recognised,  and 
several  of  the  principal  Church  Fathers  not  only  made 
no  secret  of  it,  but  have  declared  that  the  Bible 
should  be  interpreted  only  Theosophically,  considering 
the  Sacred  (Secret)  Story,  or  History,  as  merely  a 
groundwork  for  the  representation  of  Theosophic 
Allegories.  They  knew  of  no  other  than  the  Theoso- 
phic interpretation,  and  therefore  insisted  that  the 
Bible  should  be  considered  as  a  purely  allegorical  book. 

Augustine,  Ambrose,  Origen,  Jerome,  Gregory,  Mac- 
carius,  in  brief,  as  before  enumerated,  the  greatest  and 
most  venerated  of  the  Church  Fathers,  were  known 
Theosophists,  and  even  the  Ordinary  Gloss  accepted  by 
the  Church  follows  in  many  parts  the  Theosophic 
method  for  the  interpretation  of  the  Bible. 

But  let  the  Fathers  themselves  convince  the  reader. 

Origen  says :  "  The  Scriptures  are  of  little  use  to 
those  who  understand  them  as  they  are  written.  .  .  . 
the  source  of  many  evils  lies  in  adhering  to  the  carnal 
or  external  part  of  Scripture.  .  .  .  those  who  do  so 
shall  not  obtain  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

"  Let  us  therefore,"  continues  Origen,  "  seek  for  the 
Spirit,  and  the  substantial  fruits  of  the  Word,  which  are 
hidden  and  mysterious." 

And  again  the  same  authority  declares  of  Scripture : 
"There  are  some  things  inserted  as  history  which  were 
never  transacted,  and  which  it  is  impossible  should  be 
transacted ;  and  other  things,  again,  that  might  possibly 
be  done,  but  were  not." 

GO 


450  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

St.  Hilary  says :  "  There  are  many  historical  passages 
of  the  New  Testament,  that  if  they  are  taken  literally, 
are  contrary  to  sense  and  reason  (!),  and  therefore  there 
is  of  necessity  a  mystical  interpretation." 

St.  Augustine  says :  "  There  are  hidden  mysteries  in 
the  works  and  miracles  of  our  Saviour,  which,  if  we 
incautiously  and  literally  interpret,  we  shall  run  into 
errors,  and  commit  grievous  blunders." 

St.  Jerome,  in  his  Epistle  to  Paulinos,  declares  still 
more  emphatically :  "  Hearken,  my  brother,  what  path 
you  should  follow  in  Holy  Scripture.  All  that  we  read 
in  the  divine  books  is  lustrous,  and  radiant  also  exter- 
nally ;  but  still  more  sweet  is  the  internal  part.  He 
who  would  eat  the  kernel  must  break  the  shell." 
"  Open  Thou  mine  eyes,"  says  David,  "  that  I  may 
behold  the  wondrous  things  of  Thy  law  (Psa.  cxix.  18). 
If  so  great  a  prophet  confesses  the  darkness  of  his  igno- 
rance, with  what  a  dark  night  of  ignorance,  think  you, 
must  not  we,  who  are  children,  yea,  even  babes,  be 
surrounded  ?  This  veil  lies  not  only  upon  the  face  of 
Moses,  but  also  upon  the  Evangelists  and  Apostles. 
To  the  people  our  Saviour  spoke  in  parables;  and  to 
prove  that  His  words  had  an  occult  meaning,  He  said : 
"  He  that  hath  ears  to  hear  let  him  hear."  And  there 
were  some  things  which  He  could  only  at  that  time 
make  known  to  three,  even  of  His  own  Apostles,  viz. : 
to  Peter,  James,  and  John,  and  to  these  only  by  taking 
them  up  to  a  high  place,  or  mountain  {i.e.,  leading 
them  up  to  a  state,  not  a  place,  of  Spiritual  elevation). 
If  that  which  is  written  is  not  explained  by  Him  who 


THE  THEOSOPHIC  INTERPEETATION  OF  THE  BIBLE.      451 

has  "  the  Key  of  David,  that  openeth,  and  no  man  shut- 
teth,  and  shutteth,  and  no  man  openeth,"  then  it  will  not 
be  opened  by  any  one  else ;  and  only  those  will  see  to 
whom  it  is  given  to  see  and  understand. 

We  shall  further  behold  the  throughout  mystic  inten- 
tion of  the  Fathers  in  their  interpretation  of  the  Bible 
when  we  search  to  ascertain  in  what  sense  the  various 
subjects  set  forth  in  Scripture  were  by  them  under- 
stood; and  we  shall  always  find  that  the  most  celebrated 
of  the  Fathers  invariably  preferred  the  allegorical  to  the 
historical  interpretation.  The  latter  being  merely  con- 
sidered as  a  vehicle  for  conveyance  of  mystic  ideas  and 
truths. 

The  following  texts,  given  in  the  original  Latin,  with 
a  special  English  translation,  will  still  more  fully  satisfy 
the  inquiring  Christian  mind,  and  illustrate  the  Theo- 
sophic  Interpretation  of  the  Bible,  which  the  Christian 
Fathers  adhered  to. 

On  the  Creation  St.  Augustine  writes  as  follows : — 

"  Cum  dicitur,  '  In  principio  "  When  it  is   said,    '  In   the 

fecit  Deus]  commemoratio  Filii  beginning   God  made,'  mention 

fit,    quia   principium   est;    sed  is  made  of  the  Son,  because  He 

cum  dicitur,  '  Dixit  Deus  fiat,'  is  the  beginning;  but  when  it  is 

commemoratio,     quia     verbum  said,    '  God    said,    "  Let   there 

est.      Per  principium,  insinuat  be,"'  there  is  mention  [also  of 

exordium    creaturse,    existentis  Him],  because  He  is  the  Word.* 

ab   illo:    per    verbum,   perfec-  By   the    beginning   means   the 

tionem     creaturse    ab    illo    ad  commencement  of  the  creation 

ipsimi  revocatse,  ut  formaretur  existing    from    Him ;     by    the 


*  Christ  is  the  Arche,  the  first  begotten  or  Beginning  of  the 
Creation  of  God.  "  These  things  saith  the  Amen,  the  faithful  and 
true  witness,  the  beginning  of  the  Creation  of  God ; "  (Rev.  iii.  14.) 


452  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

inhferendo   Creatori"— Aug.  de      word    the     perfection    of    the 
Gen.  ad  lit.— Lib.  I.,  ch.  4.  creature   recalled    by   Him    to 

Himself,  that  it  might  he 
formed  by  cleaving  to  the 
Creator." 

Had  he  written  with   more  knowledge,  or,  shall  we 

say,  with  more  frankness,  he  would  have  explained  that 

the  "  In  principio,"  was  in  "  the  principle  "  (in  other 

words,    in    the    feminine    principle,   i.e.,   the    Eternal 

Mother);  and  that,  the  Word,  as  it  requires  Voice  for 

expression,  is  both  Son  and  Daughter,  or  dual.* 

"Terra      nostra       antequam  "Our  earth  (earthly  part),  be- 

acciperet  formam  doctrinse  in-  fore  it  received  the  form  of  the 

visibilis  erat  et  incomposita,  et  doctrine,  was  invisible  and  un- 

ignorantias  tenebris  tegebamur.  compounded,     and     we     were 

Sed  quia  spiritus  tuus  ferebatur  covered  with   the  darkness   of 

super  aquam,  non  reliquit  mise-  ignorance.      But   because   Thy 

riam  nostram  misericordia  tua,  Spirit  was  borne  upon  the  water, 

et   dixisti,  'Fiat  lux,'  peniten-  Thy  mercy  did  not  leave  our 

tiam  agite,  appropinquavit  enim  misery,  and  Thou  saidst :    '  Let 

reo-num  ccelorum."— Aug.  Conf.  there  be  light,'  repent  ye,  for  the 

— lab.  XIII.   ch.  12.  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand." 

Augustine  thus  briefly  sums  up  the  inward  fulfilment 

of  the  work  of  the  first  three  days  :— 

"Habet    etiam    unusquisque  "Every  one  of   us   also  has 

nostrum   in    bonis   operibus   et  in  His  good  works  and  upright 

recta   vita   tanquam    distinctos  life,     as     it     were,    those    six 

istos  sex  dies,  post  quos  debet  divided  days,   after   which   he 

quietem    sperare.       Primo    die  shall  hope  for  peace.     On  the 

lucem   fidei,   quando   prius  in-  first   day,   the    light   of  faith, 

visibilibus  credit,  propter  quam  when  he   first  believes   in  the 

*  The  Jewish  Targums  often  treat  of  a  "NID^D  Mimra-Jod- 
Heva  Word  (Logos),  also  spoken  of  as  The  Bath-Kol  or  daughter-  of 
Voice,  or  daughter  of  the  Logos.  Light  is  termed  by  the  Kabbalists, 
Sephira,  or  the  Divine  Intelligence,  the  Mother  of  all  the  Sephiroth, 
while  the  Concealed  Wisdom  is  the  Father.  Light  is  the  first  be- 
gotten, and  Light  is  Life,  the  Anima  Mundi,  or  electricity  pervad- 
ing the  Universe. 


THE   FATHERS   OF   THE   CHURCH. 


45: 


fidem  Dominus  visibiliter  ap- 
parere  dignatus  est.  Secundo 
die  tanquarn  firmamentum  dis- 
cipline, quo  discernit  inter 
carnalia  et  spiritalia,  sicut  inter 
aquas  inferiores  et  superiores. 
Tertio  die,  quo  mentem  suam 
ad  ferendos  bonorum  operum 
fructus,  a  labe  et  fluctibus  ten- 
tationum  carnalium  tanquam 
aridam  terram  a  perturbationi- 
bus  maris  secernit,  ut  jam  possit 
dicere,  mente  servio  legi  Dei, 
came  autem  legi  peccati." — De 
Gen.  contra  Manich. — Lib.  I., 
cb.  25  §  43. 


invisible,  on  account  of  which 
faith  the  Lord  vouchsafed  to 
appear  [to  him]  visibly.  On 
the  second  day,  as  it  were,  the 
firmament  of  discipline,  when 
he  made  a  division  between  the 
carnal  and  the  spiritual,  as  the 
waters  were  divided  between 
the  lower  and  the  upper.  On 
the  third  day,  when  his  mind 
is  brought  to  bear  the  fruit  of 
good  works,  and  is  freed  from 
the  stain  and  waves  of  carnal 
temptation,  he  distinguishes,  as 
it  were,  the  dry  land  from  the 
perturbations  of  the  sea,  and  can 
say  :  In  mind  I  obey  the  law  of 
God,  as  in  flesh  I  obeyed  the 
law  of  sin." 


Speaking  of  the  fourth  day,  Augustine  —  always 
following  the  same  rule  of  interpretation,  and  explain- 
ing the  account  of  Creation  esoterically,  as  the  pro- 
gressive development  of  Spiritual  humanity,  and  not 
exoterically  as  Science  has  endeavoured  to  do,  as  if  it 
treated  of  the  material  earth,  or  humus,  of  which 
the  outer  body  of  humanity  is  formed — goes  on  to 
say:— 


"  ^Eterno  consilio  propriis 
temporibus  bona  ccelestia  das 
super  terram.  Quoniam  alii 
datur  per  Spiritum  sermo 
sapientise  tanquam  luminare 
majus,  propter  eos  qui  per- 
spicuee  veritatis  luce  delectan- 
tur  tanqviam  in  principio  diei ; 
alii  autem  sermo  scientiae  secun- 
dum eumdem  Spiritum,  tan- 
quam luminare  minus ;  alii 
tides,  alii  donatio  curationum, 
alii  prophetia,  alii  dijudicatio 
spirit uum,  alteri  genera  lingua- 


"  By  an  eternal  council  Thou 
dost  give  in  their  proper  sea- 
sons heavenly  blessings  upon 
earth.  For  to  one  is  given  by 
the  Spirit  the  word  of  wisdom 
to  shine,  as  it  were,  the  greater 
light,  for  the  sake  of  those  who 
take  delight  in  the  light  of 
evident  truth,  as  it  were,  for  the 
rule  of  the  day ;  but  to  another 
the  word  of  wisdom,  of  the 
same  Spirit,  to  shine,  as  it 
were,  as  the  lesser  light ;  to 
another  faith ;   to  another  the 


454 


UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 


rum ;  et  hfec  omnia  tanquam 
stellae.  Omnia  enim  hfec  ope- 
ratur  unus  atque  idem  Spiritus, 
faciens,  apparere  sidera  in 
manifestatione  ad  utilitatem. 
Sermo  autem  scientias,  qua  con- 
tinentur  omnia  sacramenta,  qufe 
variantur  temporibus  tanquam 
luna,  et  cetera?  notitite  dono- 
rum,  quae  deinceps  tanquam 
stellae  commemorata  sunt, 
quantum  differunt  ab  illo  can- 
dore  sapientise,  quo  gaudet 
prfeidctus  dies,  tantum  in  prin- 
cipio  noctis,"  &c. — Confess, — - 
Lib.  XIII.,  ch.  18  §  23. 


gift  of  healing;  to  another 
prophecy ;  to  another  the  dis- 
cerning of  spirits ;  to  another 
different  kinds  of  languages; 
and  all  these  are,  as  it  were, 
stars.  For  all  these  are,  and 
the  same  Spirit  works,  making 
the  stars  appear  manifestly  for 
utility.  But  the  word  of  wis- 
dom, in  which  are  contained 
all  the  sacraments,  that  are 
varied  in  time,  as  [is]  the 
moon,  and  the  other  communi- 
cation of  gifts,  which  are  suc- 
cessively reckoned  up,  as  it 
were,  as  stars,  inasmuch  as  they 
come  short  of  that  brightness 
of  wisdom,  in  which  the  before 
mentioned  sun  rejoices  [and] 
are  to  rule  the  night." 

Concerning  the  fifth  day,  Augustine  explains  the 
living  creatures  to  be  emotions;  and  to  this  day, 
wherever  the  primitive  language  of  symbol  yet  remains, 
the  passions  are  still  characterised  by  the  names  of 
different  birds  and  beasts.  Indeed,  we  constantly  say 
ourselves  that  some  one  is  as  brave  as  a  lion,  as  fierce  as 
a  tiger,  as  cunning  as  a  fox,  as  gentle  as  a  lamb,  as 
tender  as  a  dove,  or  as  soaring  as  an  eagle,  &c,  &c. 


"Pisces  maris  et  volatilia 
cceli  et  repentes  omnes  quae 
repunt  super  terrain.  .  .  . 
recte  intelligantur  spiritualiter 
ut  omnes  affectiones  et  motus 
animi,  quos  habemus  istis  ani- 
malibus  similes." — De  Gen.  c. 
Munich.— Ub.  I.,  ch.  20. 


"  The  fishes  of  the  sea,  and 
the  birds  of  heaven,  and  all 
creeping  things  that  creep  upon 
the  earth  .  .  .  are  rightly 
understood,  spiritually,  as  all 
the  affections  and  emotions  of 
the  soul,  which  we  have  like 
those  animals." 


Further  on,  in  the  same  book,  ch.  25,  he  says  :- 


"  Fortior      effectus       incipit 
quinto  die  operari.    .    .    .   pro- 


"  The  stronger  effect   begins 
to   operate  on    the    fifth    day 


THE   FATHERS   OF   THE   CHURCH.  455 

ducere  animarum  vivarum  rep-  .     ...    to  produce  reptiles  or 

tilia,  id  est  opera  quas  prosint  living  animals,  that   is,  works 

animis  vivis,  et  cetos  magnos,  "which   profit   souls  alive ;   and 

id  est  fortissimas  action.es,  qui-  great      whales,     that     is,     the 

bus  fluctus  saeculi  dirumpuntur,  strongest     actions     which    the 

et   volatilia  cceli,   id  est  voces  waves  of   ages  dash  to  pieces; 

coelestiaprredicantes." — See  also  and  the  birds  of  heaven,  that 

Confession. — Lib.  V.,  ch.  3,  §  4.  is,  celestial  voices  speaking  in 

praise  of  (the  Creator)." 

Thus  leading  him  to  the  dawn  of  the  sixth  day,  on 
which — having  outgrown  the  beast,  man  is  made  in 
the  image  of  God — "  In  His  own  image,  in  the  image 
of  God  created  He  him;  male  and  female  created  He 
them,  and  God  blessed  them  and  said,  Be  fruitful  and 
multiply,  and  replenish  the  earth  and  subdue  it,  and 
have  dominion  over  every  living  thing,"  etc.,  etc.;* 
which  means,  that  man  having  attained  to  the  sixth 
day  or  state,  and  outgrown  and  subdued  the  animal, 
or  earthly  soul,  attains  to  the  Spiritual  soul  and 
becomes  a  Son  of  God.  Concerning  "  Eden,"  i.e., 
garden  of  delight,  which  word  the  LXX  translates  into 
rpvcfrris,  and  the  Vulgate  renders  by  voluptatis. 

Augustine  writes  as  follows  : — 

"  Intelligamus  nostra  gaudia  "  Let  us  understand  that  our 

spiritalia   significare  omne  lig-  spiritual  joys  mean   every  tree 

num,   formosum    ad    aspectum  (that  is)  beautiful  to  the  view 

intelligent^,     et     bonum      ad  of   intelligence,    and   good    for 

escam   quse     non    corrumpitur,  food  that  is  not  corrupted,  that 

qua,  beatae  animse  pascuntur ; '  ad  blessed  souls  feed  upon :  '  to  the 

Orientem,'    '  lucem    sapientise ; '  East,'  '  the  light  of    Wisdom ' ; 

*  Be  it  observed  that  this  command  is  recorded  in  the  First 
Chapter  of  Genesis,  on  the  sixth  day,  therefore  before  the 
Separation,  and  when,  as  we  read  in  the  Nuctasieron  of  the 
Mischna,  or  Ancient  Talmud  of  the  Jews,  "  Every  fish,  fowl,  plant, 
beast,  and  man,  was  Androgyne  at  the  first  hour  "  (See  "  Occult 
Texts  "  on  the  Sephiroth). 


455 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


'  in  Eden,'  id  est,  in  deliciis 
immoi'talibus  et  intelligilibus. 
Nam  deliciae,  vel  voluptas,  vel 
epulum  hoc  verbo  significari 
dicitur,  si  ex  Hebraeo  in  Lati- 
num  vertitur." — De  Gen.  c. 
Manich." — Lib.,  II.,  cb.  9,  §  12. 


'  in  Eden,'  that  is,  in  delights 
immortal  and  intelligible.  For 
it  is  said,  that  delights,  or  plea- 
sure, or  a  feast,  are  signified 
by  this  word,  if  it  is  translated 
from  Hebrew  into  Latin,"  etc. 


The  Fall  is  thus  characteristically  treated : — 


"Etiam  nunc  in  unoquoque 
nostrum  nihil  aliud  agitur,  cum 
ad  peccatum  quisque  delabitur, 
quam  tunc  actum  est  in  illis 
tribus,  serpente,  mulier,  et 
viro." — De  Gen.  c.  Manich. — 
Lib.  II.,  ch.  14,  §  21. 


"  So  now  in  every  one  of  us 
nothing  else  is  done,  when  any 
one  falls  into  sin,  than  was 
then  done  in  those  three,  the 
serpent,  the  woman,  and  the 
man." 


Augustine  distinguishes  between  Adam  as  the  first 
or  earthly  man,  and  the  latter  or  spiritual  man  he  is 
destined  to  become  through  re-generation,  or  being  born 
of  the  divine  spirit,  as  man,  and  as  the  son  of  man, 
for  the  new  man  is  truly  the  son  of  the  old  man  in  us. 


"  Omnis  Alius  hominis  homo  : 
non  omnis  homo  Alius  hominis 
possit  intelligi.  Adam  quippe 
homo,  sed  non  filius  hominis. 
Quapropter  hinc  jam  licet  ad- 
tendere  atque  discernere,  quid 
hoc  in  loco  inter  hominem  et 
filium  hominis  distet :  ut  qui 
portant  imaginem  terreni  homi- 
nis, qui  non  est  filius  hominis, 
hominis  nomine  significentur ; 
qui  autem  portant  imaginem 
ccelestis  hominis,  filii  hominum 
potius  appellentur.  Ille  enim 
et  vetus  homo  dicitur ;  iste 
autem  novus.  Sed  novus  ex 
vetere  nascitur,  quoniam  spiri- 
talis  regeneratio  mutatione  vitae 
terrenae  inchoatur,  ed  ideo  iste 


"  Every  son  of  man  is  a  man : 
every  man  cannot  be  taken  to 
be  a  son  of  man.  Adam,  for 
example,  was  a  man,  but  not 
the  son  of  a  man.  Wherefore 
we  may  from  this  consider  and 
distinguish  in  this  place,  what 
is  the  difference  between  a  man 
and  the  son  of  a  man,  that 
they  who  bear  the  image  of 
the  earthly  man,  who  is  not  a 
son  of  man,  should  be  signified 
by  the  name  of  man ;  but  they 
who  bear  the  image  of  the 
heavenly  man,  should  rather 
be  called  the  sons  of  men. 
For  the  former  again  is  called 
the  old  old  man ;  but  the  latter 
the   new.      But  the  new  man 


THE   FATHERS   OF   THE   CHURCH. 


457 


films    hominis    nuncupatur." — 
JEnar.  in  PsaL— VIII.  §  10. 


Of  Cain  and  Abel : — 

"  Illud  igitur  quod  inter  Cain 
et  Abel  exortum  est,  inter  duas 
civitates,  Dei  et  hominiun,  ini- 
micitias  demonstravit.  Et  in 
uno  quippe  homine  caro  con- 
cupiscit  adversus  spiritum,  et 
spiritus  adversus  carnem." — 
Aug.  de  Civitat. — Lib.  XV., 
cb.  5. 


is  born  of  the  old,  because 
spiritual  regeneration  begins 
from  the  change  of  the  earthly 
life ;  and  therefore  the  latter 
is  called  the  son  of  man." 


"  That  therefore  which  arose 
between  Cain  and  Abel,  showed 
the  enmities  between  the  two 
Cities,  God  and  Man.  And  in 
one  man,  for  example,  the  flesh 
has  a  desire  for  a  thing  against 
the  spirit,  and  the  spirit  against 
the  flesh,"  etc. 


Origen  interprets  the  account  of  Creation  as  follows  :- 


"Si  enim  istas  aquas  quae 
sunt  sub  coelo  non  separavimus 
a  nobis,  id  est  peccata  et  vitia 
corporis  nostri,  arida  nostra  non 
poterit  apparere,  nee  habere 
fiduciam  procedendo  ad  lucem. 
Omnis  enim  qui  male 
agit  odit  lucem,  ed  non  venit 
ad  lucem,  ut  non  manifesta- 
rentur  opera  ejus :  quae  utique 
fiducia  non  aliter  dabitur,  nisi 
velut  aquas  abjiciamus  a  nobis." 
— Horn.  I.  in  Gen. 


"  Sicut  in  firrnamento  isto, 
quod  jam  coelum  fuerat  appel- 
latum  jubet  Deoos  fieri  lumin- 
aria,  ita  et  in  nobis  fieri  potest. 
Si  studeamus  vocari  et  etfici 
coelum,  lumenaria  habebimus 
in  nobis,  quae  illuminent  nos, 
Christum  etecclesiam  ejus.  .  .  . 
quae  sunt  autem  in  nobis  Stella?, 
id  est  in  cordis  nostri  coelo  ? 
Moyses  Stella  est  in  nobis  quae 
lucet,  et  Esaias,  et  Daniel,"  etc. 
— Idem. 


"For  if  we  have  not  sepa- 
rated the  waters  that  are  under 
the  heaven  from  ourselves,  that 
is,  the  sins  and  vices  of  our  body, 
our  dry  [land]  would  not  appear, 
and  we  have  the  confidence  of 
proceeding  to  the  light.  .  .  . 
For  every  one  who  does  badly 
hates  the  light,  and  does  not 
come  to  the  light,  so  that  its 
works  are  not  manifested ; 
which  confidence,  surely,  will 
not  be  otherwise  given,  unless, 
as  it  were,  we  cast  away  the 
waters  from  us." 

"  As  in  the  firmament,  which 
was  called  the  heaven,  God  com- 
mands there  should  be  lights  ; 
so  too  there  can  be  lights  in  us. 
If  we  desire  to  be  called  and  to 
form  a  heaven,  we  have  lights 
in  ourselves,  which  illuminate 
us,  Christ  and  His  Church. 
But  what  are  the  stars  in  us, 
that  is,  in  the  heaven  of  our 
heart  ?  Moses  is  a  star  which 
shines  in  us,  and  Isaiah  and 
Daniel,"  etc. 


458 


UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPEIY. 


"  Secundum  literam  jussu  Dei 
producuntur  ab  aquis  repentia 
et  volatilia.  Videamus  quo- 
modo  secundum  nostrum  firrna- 
mentum  coeli,  id  est  mentis 
nostrse  vel  cordis  soliditatem, 
hfec  eadein  fiant.  Arbitror 
quia  si  mens  nostra  illuminata 
fuerit  a  nostro  sole  Christo, 
jubetur  postmodum  ex  his  quoe 
in  ea  sunt  aquis  producere 
repentia  et  volatilia,  id  est 
cogitationes  bonas.  ...  Si 
sit  in  nobis  sensus  ut  etiam  si 
duo  minuta  habeamus,  hsec  ipsa 
pro  misericordia.  offerarnus  in 
dona  Dei,  iste  sensus  avis  est, 
nihil  terrenis  cogitans.  .  .  Si 
ascendat  nobis  sensus  et  cogi- 
tatio  talis,  ut  usque  ad  mortem 
pro  veritate  certemus,  avis  haec, 
a  terrenis  ad  superna  conscen- 
dens.  Similiter  etiam  de 
CEeteris,"  etc.— Idem. 


"  Si  quis  est,  qui  crescentibus 
malis,  et  inundantibus  vitiis, 
convertere  se  potest  a  rebus 
fluxis  et  pereuntibus,  et  audire 
verba  Dei,  ac  prsecepta  ccelestia, 
hie  intra  cor  suum  arcam  salu- 
tis  sedificat,  et  bibliothecam 
(ut  ita  dicam)  intra  se  divini 
consecrat  verbi.  .  .  Munda 
quidem  animalia,  memoria  in- 
tellectus,  examinatio,  etc.,  im- 
unda,  ira,  et  concupiscentia." — 
Hum.  II.  in  Gen. 


"  According  to  the  letter  [of 
Scripture]  by  the  command  of 
God,  things  that  creep  and  fly 
are  produced  from  the  waters. 
Let  us  see  how,  according  to 
our  firmament  of  heaven,  that 
is,  the  solidity  of  our  mind  and 
heart,  this  is  done.  I  think 
that  because  our  mind  is  illu- 
minated by  our  sun  Christ ;  it 
is  commanded  afterwards  to 
produce  what  creep  and  fly, 
that  is,  good  thoughts  from  tin; 
waters  that  are  in  it.  .  .  .  If 
there  be  feeling  in  us,  that 
although  we  have  two  small 
[gifts],  we  offer  these  for  mercy 
as  gifts  to  God,  the  feeling  is 
a  bird,  thinking  nothing  of  the 
earthly.  .  .  If  such  a  feel- 
ing and  thought  in  us  ascends, 
so  that  even  unto  death  we 
struggle  for  truth,  here  is  a 
bird  ascending  from  earth  to 
heaven.*  So  too  of  others,"  etc. 

"  If  there  is  any  who,  in  in- 
creasing evils  and  overflowing 
vices,  can  turn  from  current 
and  perishing  things,  and  hear 
the  words  of  God,  and  heavenly 
commandments,  he  builds  the 
ark  of  salvation  within  his 
heart,  and  makes  a  sacred 
library  (as  I  may  so  say)  with- 
in himself  of  the  Divine  word. 
.  .  .  The  clean  animals  are 
memory,  intellect,  examination, 
etc.  ;  the  unclean,  anger  and 
concupiscence,"  etc. 


*  We  learn  from  the  Science  of  Correspondences  that  Birds  and 
winged  things,  according  to  their  species,  correspond  to  the 
intellectual  things  of  each  mind.  This  is  self-evident,  as  the 
intellectual  soars — having  Spiritual  Wings. 


THE   FATHERS  OF   THE   CHURCH. 


459 


In  this  wise   does  also  Gregory  the  Great  interpret 


the  Creation  mystically: 

"  Quid  est  mare,  nisi  cor 
nostrum,  furore  turbidum,  rixis 
araarum,  elatione  superbise  tumi- 
dum,  fraude  malitise  obscurum  ; 
quod  mare,  quantum  saeviat, 
attendit  quis  quis  in  se  occultas 
cogitationum,  tentationes  intel- 
ligit.  Ecce  enim  jam  perver- 
sali  relinquimus,  jam  desideriis 
rectis  inhseremus,  jam  prava 
opera  foris  abscindimus ;  sed 
tamen  latenter  intus  ea,  cum 
qua  buc  venimus,  vitse  veteris 
procella  fatigamur." — Moral,  in 
Job.  —  Lib.  XXVIII.,  ch.  19, 
§  -3. 

"  Conclusit  ostiis  mare  ;  quia 
nisi  ab  ipso  cogitationis  pri- 
mordio  cordis  fluctus  gratia 
divina  retineret,  tentationum 
procellis  mare  steviens  terrain 
prociddubio  humanse  mentis 
obruisset :  ut  salsis  fluctibus 
perfusa  aresceret,  id  est,  per- 
niciosis  carnis,  voluptatibus  de- 
lectata  deperiret.  Solus  ergo 
Dominus  ostiis  mare  concludit, 
qui  pravis  motibus  cordis  clau- 
stra  inspirata  formidinis  objicit. 
Quia  vero  ea  quae  cernimus, 
sequi  prohibemur,  quia  a  cor- 
porearum  rerum  delectatione 
retimdimur  :  libet  etiam  ad  in- 
visibilia  oculos  mentis  attollere," 
etc. 


"What  is  tbe  sea  unless  it 
be  our  beart,  turbid  with  fury, 
bitter  from  strife,  swollen  with 
tbe  elation  of  pride,  and 
darkened  witb  tbe  vice  of 
malice ;  the  sea,  wbicb,  when 
it  greatly  rages  causes  every 
one  to  fix  bis  attention  upon 
bimself  and  understand  the 
bidden  temptations  of  bis 
thoughts.  For  lo !  we  relin- 
quish sin,  we  cling  to  righteous 
desires,  and  drive  away  from 
us  wicked  deeds ;  but,  yet  pri- 
vately within  we  are  tost  about 
by  the  storm  of  the  old  life 
with  which  we  have  come  here." 

"He  that  shut  up  the  sea 
with  gates ;  because  unless  from 
the  very  beginning  of  thought, 
the  divine  grace  had  restrained 
the  waves  of  the  heart,  a  sea 
raging  with  the  storms  of 
temptations  would,  beyond  all 
doubt,  have  overwhelmed  the 
land  of  the  human  mind,  that 
covered  with  salt  waves,  it 
would  become  dried  up,  that 
is,  would  perish,  delighted  with 
the  pernicious  pleasure  of  the 
flesh.  Therefore,  the  only  Lord 
shut  up  the  sea  with  gates 
[even  as  he]  sets  up  against 
the  wicked  emotions  of  the 
heart,  the  inspired  gates  of 
fear.  Because  in  truth  we  are 
prohibited  from  following  tbe 
things  we  see,  because  we  are 
kept  off  from  the  delight  of 
corporeal  things,  so  it  pleases 
us  to  lift  up  to  the  invisible 
tbe  eyes  of  the  mind,"  etc. 

The  Ordinary  Gloss,  which  is  but  a  summing  up 


460 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


of  the  comments  of  the  Fathers,  interprets  the  gene- 
ration from  Adam  to  Noah  mystically,  as  follows : — 


"  Interpretatio  nominum 

Imjus  generationis  mysteriurn 
signat.  Adam  interpretatur 
homo  vel  rubra  terra ;  Seth, 
positio  vel  resiu-rectio ;  Enos, 
homo ;  Cainan,  lamentatio ; 
Mahalalel,  laudans  Deum ; 
Jared,  roboratus ;  Enoch,  dedi- 
catio ;  Mathusalem,  mortis 
emissio ;  Lamech,  humiliatus ; 
Noe,  requies.  Procedens  ergo, 
homo  de  terra,  resurgens  a  pec- 
catis,  erit  homo  deflens  peccata 
pristina,  et  invocans  Deum; 
sicque  laudans  Deum,  roboratus 
Spiritu  Dei,  dedicatur  in  vitam 
seternam  ;  Atque  victor  ?nortis, 
Deo  subjectus,  requiem  possidet 
sempiternam,  quam  significat 
Noe,  qui  requies  interpretatur. 
Et  notandum  quia  in  genera- 
tione  Seth  nulla  foemina  ponitur 
nominatim,  sicut  in  generatione 
Cain  :  justorum  enim  est  omnia 
viriliter  agere,  nihil  fcemineun, 
nihil  fragile  usurpare.  Procedit 
etiam  luec  generatio  per  dena- 
rium  usque  ad  Noe,  in  quo 
prasceptorum  significatur  im- 
pletio,  sicut  per  imdenarium  in 
generatione  Cain  transgressio. 
In  generatione  injustorum  pri- 
mus Enoch  ponitur,  qui  dedi- 
catio  interpretatur,  quia  reprobi 
in  proesente  vita,  spei  sua?  ra- 
dicem  figunt.  In  generatione 
justorum  Enoch  ab  Adam  Sep- 
timus ponitur,  quia  hie  manen- 
tem  civitatem  non  quserunt,  sed 
expectationem  usque  in  finem 
temporis  extendunt,  quod  sep- 
tenaria  revolutione  terminatur, 
cum  ajternitas    octava    succes- 


"The  intei-pretation  of  the 
names  of  this  generation  points 
out  a  mystery.  Adam  is  inter- 
preted man  or  red  earth  ;  Seth, 
placing  or  resurrection ;  Enos, 
man  ;  Cainan,  lamentation  ; 
Mahalalel, praising  God;  Jared, 
justified  ;  Enoch,  dedication  ; 
Methusalem,  a  hurling  away  of 
death ;  Lamech,  humiliated ; 
Noe,  rest.  Man,  therefore, 
coming  from  earth  (and )  rising 
from  sin,  and  calling  upon  God, 
and  so  praising  God  and  forti- 
fied by  the  spirit  of  God  is 
dedicated  to  eternal  life.  But 
the  conqueror  of  death,  sub- 
jected to  God,  becomes  the  pos- 
sessor of  everlasting  life,  which 
Noe  signifies,  which  is  inter- 
preted rest.  And  it  is  to  be 
observed  that  in  the  Seth  gene- 
ration no  woman  is  mentioned 
by  name,  as  in  the  Cain  genera- 
tion ;  for  it  is  the  way  of  the 
righteous  to  do  everything  in 
a  masculine  manner,  and  prac- 
tise nothing  that  is  feminine, 
nothing  that  is  frail.  This 
generation,  too,  progresses  by 
ten  down  to  Noe,  in  which  is 
signified  the  number  of  the 
commandments,  as  the  progres- 
sion is  by  eleven  in  the  Cain 
generation.  In  the  generation 
of  the  unrighteous,  Enoch  is 
placed  first,  who  is  interpreted 
dedication,  because  the  bad  fix 
the  root  of  their  hope  in  the 
present  life.  In  the  generation 
of  the  righteous,  Enoch  is 
placed  seventh  from  Adam, 
because    they    do  not  seek  to 


THE   FATHERS  OE  THE   CHURCH. 


461 


serit ;  unde  iste  Enoch,  qui  gain  their  city  remaining  here, 
ponitur  septimus,  translatus  but  extend  their  hope  even  to 
est,"  etc.  the  end  of  time,  which  is  ter- 

minated by  the  seventh  revela- 
tion, when  eternity  will  suc- 
ceed as  the  eight,  whence 
Enoch,  who  is  placed  seventh, 
was  taken  up  (to  heaven),"  etc. 

Concerning  Noah  or  the  Kegeneration,  Ambrose, 
throughout  his  whole  comment,  De  Noe  et  Area,  gives 
the  esoteric,  or  inward,  sense  of  the  history  of  the 
Deluge,  that  has  so  perplexed  men  of  material  science 
to  explain  geographically,  or  to  account  for  historically, 
and  says:  — 


"Diluvii  species  typus  est 
purgationis  animae  nostrse.  .  .  ." 

(Noah  :)  "Quis  est '  Justus '  in 
nobis,  nisi  mentis  vigor,  qui 
intra  istam  arcam  inclusit  omne 

animantium  genus 

omnes  irrationabiles  sensus,"  &c. 

(Diluvium  est :)  "  Ebulliunt 
omnes  fontes  cupiditatum.  .  .  . 
omnibus  pariter  ingruentibus 
passionibus." 

(Cessatio:).  .  .  .  "Afflu- 
entia  erroris  cessat." 

(Corvus  est :)  "  Impudentia 
et  malitia  quae  mortuis  pascitur, 
sicut  corvus." 

(Columba  est :)  "  Simplicitas." 

(Corvus:)  "Malitia,  dilu- 
vium amat." 

(Columba :)  "  Tarde  enim 
inter  ssecularium  fluctus  cupidi- 


"  The  Deluge  is  a  type  of  the 
cleansing  of  our  soul.     .     .     ." 

(Noah  :)  "  What  is  righteous- 
ness in  us  but  strength  of  mind, 
which  shuts  up  every  kind  of 
animals  within  that  ark.  .  .  . 
all  irrational  feelings  ?  "  &c. 

(The  Flood  :)  "All  the  foun- 
tains of  the  desires  boisterously 
burst  forth.  .  .  .  All  the 
passions,  in  an  equal  degree, 
violently  rushing  out.     .     .     ." 

(Its  cessation:).  .  .  .  "The 
flowing  out  of  error  is  at  an 
end." 

(The  raven :)  "  Impudence 
and  malice,  that  feeds  upon  the 
(spiritually)  dead,  like  the 
raven." 

(The  dove  is:)  "Simplicity." 

(The  raven:)  "Malice,  that 
loves  the  Deluge." 

(The  dove  will  not  stay 
abroad    while     the    flood    re- 


462  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


tatum    portum    solet    invenire      mains  :)  "  For  simplicity  in  the 
simplicitas."  midst  of  the  waves  of  wordly 

desires  is  wont  tardily  to  find 

the  door."  * 

Concerning  Noah's  sons,  Ambrose  says : — 

"  Huic   vero   tree    filii    nati,  "  But   he   has    three    sons — 

Sem,      Cham,      Japhet,      quse  Sem,  Cham,  and  Japhet — whose 

nomina   significant    bonum,    et  names    mean    good,   bad,    and 

malum,   et   indifferens ;    ut    et  indifferent,  as  (human)  nature 

naturce    gratia,    bonitatem    ha-  seems   to   have    had   goodness, 

buisse,  et  malorum  tentamenta  not  to  have  been  without  the 

ei   nequaquam  def  uisse,   et   in-  temptations  of  evil,  and  to  have 

differntibus,    hoc      est,     velut  abounded    in    the    indifferent, 

supellectili  virtutum  abundasse  that  is,   as  it  were,  the  orna- 

videatur."  ment  of  the  virtues." 

"  Simt      enim      cogitationes  "  But  the  mind  has  contrary 

mentis  contrarife.    .    .    .    boni-      opinions.     .     .     .     (Shem    and 
tas  et  malitia  mentis."  Ham    are)  the    goodness    and 

badness  of  the  mind." 

"  Ceterium     non     tarn     hie  "  But  here  men  are   not   so 

homines    quam     mores      com-  much   comprised   as    qualities; 

prehenduntur.      .      .      .      nam  for  Cham  is  heat,  and  Chanaan 

Cham    calor,     Chanaan     com-  motion." 
motio  est." 


*  "  Man  as  the  Microcosm,  is  the  Ark  containing  all  animate 
existence  in  pairs — love  and  hate,  joy  and  sorrow,  hope  and 
fear,  &c. — symbolized  by  animals,  as  some  men  are  said  to  have  the 
disposition  of  the  lion ;  others  that  of  the  wolf ;  others  that  of  the 
fox,  the  eagle,  the  crow,  the  dove,  the  lamb,  &c.  The  Ark  floats 
helplessly  in  nature,  at  the  mercy  of  its  winds  and  waves  until 
it  reaches  the  mount,  or  Truth  of  God,  &c.  But  it  is  the  just 
man  that  is  preserved,  with  all  the  animals  subordinated  within 
him.  The  Truth  of  nature  represented  in  this  fiction,  which,  no 
doubt,  owes  its  origin  to  some  ancient  secret  society,  recom- 
mended it  to  other  similar  societies,  in  which  it  was  commemo- 
rated by  imposing  ceremonies,  accounting  for  many  mysterious 
allusions  in  ancient  writings,  which  are  referred  by  Faber  to 
what  he  calls  Arkite  ceremonies.  The  same  'Legend'  teaches 
the  immortality  of  the  soul,  or  the  preservation  of  the  '  Just,'  in 
death  symbolized  by  the  Flood." — Christ  the  Spirit,  I.,  p.  362. 


THE  FATHERS   OF  THE   CHURCH. 


463 


"  Interior  significatio  demon- 
strat  justuin  virum  tanquam 
arborern  fructuosam,  interne- 
catis  quae  escani  ejus  solebant 
arrodere,  coartare  processus 
ramorum,  velut  exsortem,  irra- 
tionabiliuin  passionuni,  solum 
remansisse  cum  suis.  '  Sui ' 
autem  simt  animi  discepta- 
tioues." 


"  '  The  inward  sense  means 
the  righteous  man '  (he  is 
speaking  of  Noah  when  come 
forth  out  of  the  Ark),  freed, 
as  it  were,  from  the  unreason- 
able passions,  to  have  been  left 
alone  with  his  sons,  as  the 
fruit  tree  (insects),  having 
killed  its  fruits  they  were 
accustomed  to  nibble  at,  and 
to  shorten  the  length  of  its 
boughs.  But  his  sons  are  the 
discussions  of  his  mind." 


Concerning  the  Tower  of  Babel  (or  self-elevation) 
St.  Augustine  expresses  himself  as  follows : — 


"  Quid  sibi  vult,  '  Venite 
et  descendentes  confundamus ' 
(quod  intelligitur  angelis  dic- 
tum), nisi  quia  per  angelos 
descendebat,  qui  in  angelis  de- 
scendentibus  erat.  Et  bene  non 
ait,  Venite,  et  descendentes 
confimdite  ;  sed  '  Confundamus 
ibi  linguam  eorum ' ;  ostendens 
ita  se  operari  per  ministros 
suos,  &c."  —  De  Civit.  —  Lib. 
XVI.,  ch.  5. 


"  That  which  he  wishes  for 
himself,  '  Come,  and  descending, 
let  us  confound'1  (which  is 
understood  as  said  to  the 
angels),  because  He  descended 
through  the  angels,  who  was 
in  the  descending  angels.  He 
does  not  say  in  effect :  '  Come, 
and  descending,  confound,'  but, 
'  Let  us  confound  there  their 
language,'  thus  showing  that 
He  worked  through  His  ser- 
vants, &c."  * 


*  "Here  Man  is  working  to  ascend  up  to  heaven.  Self-elevation 
is  the  aim ;  self-energy  the  means :  it  is  but  consistent  that  self- 
glory,  '  to  make  us  a  name,'  shoidd  be  the  motive ;  and  withal 
(let  not  this  be  forgotten),  the  reason  assigned  seemed  good ; — 
they  wished  for  unity ;  their  fear  was  '  lest  they  should  be 
scattered ' ;  therefore  they  built  their  high  tower.  We  know  too 
well  how  others  also  have  budded,  with  the  self-same  aim,  pro- 
fessing, and  perhaps  really  seeking,  Catholic  unity ;  and  the  result 
has. only  been  greater  scattering  among  those  who  were  to  be 
united.  But  when  man  builds  for  self-glory,  and  with  imitations 
of  the  true  instead  of  the  true,  the  end  may  surely  be  foretold." — 
Jukes,  Types  of  Genesis,  p.  153. 


464 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


The  Patriarchs  are  favourite  types  of  Theosophic  inter- 
pretation with  Esoteric  Christian  Bible-Hermeneutists. 

The  Gloss,  in  the  Catena  Aurea,  on  the  Genealogy 
of  Christ  in  St.  Matthew — while  explaining  Abraham, 
Isaac,  and  Jacob,  as  figuring  certain  successive  forms 
of  life  in  man,  which  end  after  many  confusions  in 
Christ  (the  image  ot  God  wrought  in  us),  interprets 
Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  as  the  lives  of  faith,  hope, 
and  charity,  respectively.     The  passage  is  as  follows : — 

"  Moraliter   autem  Abraham  "  Now,     morally,     Abraham 

nobis  virtutem  fidei  per  exem-  means  to  us  the  virtue  of  faith 

pla   Christi   significat,   cum  de  through  the  examples  of  Christ, 

eo  legatur,   '  Abraham  credidit  when  it  is  said  of  him  :  '  Abra- 


Deo,  et  reputatum  ess  ei  ad 
Justitiam.'  Isaac  siguificat 
.spein,  quia  interpretatur  risus ; 
fuit  enim,  gaudium  parentum. 
Spes  vero  similiter  est  gaudium 
nostrum,  dum  aeterna  bona 
sperare  facit,  et  de  eis  gaudere. 
Abraham  ergo  genuit  Isaac, 
quia  fides  generat  spem.  Jacob 
autem  significat  charitatem. 
Charitas  enim  amplectitur  duas 
Aitas,  activam  per  dilectionem 
proximi,  contemplativam  per 
dilectionem  Dei ;  activa  per 
Liarn,  contemplativa  per  Ra- 
chel,  significatur.  Lia  enim 
laborans  interpretatur,  quia 
activa,  in  labore  est :  Rachel 
visum  principium,  quia  per  con- 
templativam principium,  id  est 
Deus,  vid  etur." 


ham  believed  in  God,  and  it 
was  counted  to  him  for  righte- 
ousness.' Isaac  means  hope, 
because  it  is  interpreted  laugh- 
ter ;  for  he  was  the  joy  of  his 
parents.  But  hope  is  in  like 
manner  a  joy,  when  it  makes 
us  hope  for  eternal  good,  and 
rejoice  in  it.  Abraham,  there- 
fore, begot  Isaac,  because  faith 
begets  hope.  But  Jacob  means 
charity.  For  charity  enchains 
two  lives,  the  active  through 
love  of  [our]  neighbour,  and  the 
contemplative  through  love  of 
God ;  the  active  is  signified 
through  Leah,  and  the  contem- 
plative through  Rachel.  For 
Leah  is  interpreted  labouring, 
because  the  active  is  in  labour  ; 
Rachel,  the  beginning  seen, 
because,  through  contemplation 
the  beginning,  that  is,  God,  is 
seen." 

"Our  new  and  divine  Genesis  opens  in  this  wise  :  'The  book  of 
the  generation  of  Jesus  Christ.'  His  coming  is  much  more  than 
our  new  beginning ;  it  is  strictly  our  first  beginning.  It  unites  there- 
fore heaven  and  earth,  angels  and  men,  in  one  endless  human  joy. 


THE    GENEALOGY   OF   JESUS   CHRIST.  465 

"  It  has  pleased  God  to  hear  most  emphatic  testimony  that  Holy 
Jesus  was  not  simply  born  for  our  sinful  race,  but  of  the  race. 
Matthew  gives  the  line  of  His  descent  from  Abraham,  and  Luke 
the  whole  line  from  Adam.  The  Divine  Seed  of  the  woman  has 
come  down  to  fallen  humanity  through  the  bosom  of  fallen 
humanity.  The  Son  of  Mary  comes  through  Adam,  through 
Seth,  through  Noah,  through  Abraham,  through  David  and  so  on. 
Had  he  not  been  incorporate  in  the  race  from  the  beginning, 
there  would  be  no  foundation  of  truth  in  our  genealogies.  Quite 
naturally,  according  to  his  word,  he  sat  at  meat  with  publicans 
and  sinners ;  for  throughout  our  whole  history  he  had  been  with, 
and  in,  his  sinful  children. 

"Jacob  begat  twelve  sons,  the  best  natured  of  whom  was  Joseph 
the  son  of  his  old  age  ;  but  Jesus  came  not  by  Joseph's  line.  Judah 
was  a  far  grosser  nature — unchastity  being  specially  recorded 
against  him.  Jesus  comes  down  to  us  through  this  man.  From 
Judah  the  Holy  germ  flows  through  Tamar,  his  daughter-in-law 
Rahah  also  is  expressly  mentioned  as  a  channel.  Bathsheba  is 
in  the  direct  line.  The  Moabites  are  the  children  of  Lot,  by 
his  own  daughter,  and  Ruth,  who  is  a  mother  in  'the  book  of 
the  generation  of  Jesus,'  is  a  Moabitess.  Is  it  not  very  remark- 
able that  in  a  genealogy  which,  in  general,  makes  no  mention  of 
women,  the  Evangelist  should  be  so  careful  to  mention  the  names 
of  certain  disreputable  women  ?  It  is  characteristic  of  the  bold- 
ness of  inspiration  that   it   never  hesitates  to  expose  disgraceful 

facts God  wishes  us  to  note  that  the  flesh  of  Jesus  was  not 

derived  from  immaculate  parentage.  He  took  our  shame  as  well 
as  our  nature Let  no  one  think  that  these  things  are  re- 
corded that  we  may  think  less  of  sin  and  the  uncleanness  of  the 

flesh All  the  way  along  from  Adam  to  Mary,  'he  was 

numbered  with  the  transgressors,'  and  clothed  with  their  sins. 
....  In  all  their  chastisements  he  was  chastised.  He  was  nigh 
unto  them  prompting  them  to  prayer  and  repentance.  He  was 
the  pleading  '  Spirit  of  Life '  in  their  mouth  and  in  their  heart 
that  they  might  be  saved." — Mobgenrothe,  pp.  18,  19,  by  John 
Pulsford. 

St.  Augustine  says : — 

"  JEgyptus   autem,  quoniam  "  But  Egypt,  because    it   is 

interpretatur  affligens  vel  com-      interpreted    afflicting,   or    sup- 

HH 


466  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

primens,  stepe  in  imagine  poni-  pressing,   is  often  put  in    the 

tur  hujus  sseculi,  a  quo  spiritali-  idea  of  this  age,  in  which  there 

ter  recendendum  est  ne  simus  is   a   departure   from    spiritual 

jugum    ducentes   cum   infideli-  matters,  for  our  not  being  led 

bug." —  Enar.    in  Psalm    cxiii.  under  the  yoke  with  the   un- 

{E.  V.  II.,  4),  §  3.  faithful." 

"  Abram,  the  spirit  of  faith,  tried  by  the  difficulties  on  tbe 
ground  of  promise,  goes  down  to  seek  rest  in  Egypt,  that  is,  in 
the   ground   of   sense,   rightly   called   straitness ;      .     .     .     here 
comes  the  elect,  thinking  to  find  some  refuge  ;  and  here  Sarah  is 
at  once  denied  with  an  equivocation.     Women,  in  this  inward 
view,  are  certain  affections.     Sarah  is  the  affection  or  principle 
of  spiritual  truth.     In  Egypt  Sarah  is  denied:  those  affections 
which  the  spirit  of  faith  ought  to  defend  and  cherish  most  care- 
fully (for  from  them  must  spring  the  promised  fruit)  are  brought 
into  danger  of  defilement  from  earthly  things.     ...     So  does 
sense  now  seek  to  enter  into  the  things  of  faith ;  and  coidd  it  do 
so  it  woidd  at  once  violate  them." — Jukes,  Types  of  Genesis,  p.  177. 
We  are  told  that  "  the  men  in  the  Bible  always  represent  cer- 
tain minds :  and  their  wives,  the  affections,   more   vaguely   the 
principles  with  which  they  are  allied  ;  for  our  principles  are  what 
our  affections  are.     Thus,  new  principles,  or  rather  fresh  forms 
embodying   the   same   principles,  are   taken   into   union  by   the 
various  forms  of  the  Elect  Spirit  at  the  successive  stages  of  its 
development.     The  form  of    truth  answers  to  the  Spirit  which 
receives  it;  and  thus,  truth  substantially  the  same,  continually 
puts  on  fresh  appearances.     Truth  cannot  differ  from  itself ;  but 
as  the  same  Elect  Spirit  at  different  stages  takes  different  forms, 
so  the  truth  which  is  embraced  by  that  Elect  Spirit  at  different 
stages  is  seen  in  different  forms  also.     It  dies  out  in  one  form  and 
lives  in  another,  and  yet  all  the  forms  may  live  to  God.     For  as 
He  is  the  God  of  Abraham,  and  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  and  not  the 
God  of  the  dead,  but  of  the  living,  so  is  He  the  God  of   Sarah, 
and  Rebekak,   and  Rachel  also,  for  all  in  Spirit  live  to  Him. 
Sarah's  outward  form  may  die,  and   as   an   outward   form   the 
truth  she  figures  may  die  also ;    but   death   only   gives  to   the 
Spirit  greater  liberty,  so  that  her  death  sets  forth  the  greater 
spiritualizing,  even  through  the  destruction  of  its  outward  form  of 
that  truth  or  affection  which  she  represents.     And  then  another 
form  of  truth  is  found,  suited  to  the  advancing  development  of 


THE   FATHERS   OF   THE   CHURCH.  467 

the  Elect  Spirit,  that  is,  Isaac,  and  thus  the  Elect  who  as  the 
Spirit  of  faith  is  joined  to  truth  under  the  Sarah  form,  when 
Abraham  is  old,  when  faith  is  matured,  at  the  next  stage  as 
the  spirit  of  sonship  is  united  to  Rebekah,  not  another  truth,  but 
another  form  of  it." — Idem. 

In  Bossuet's  "  Discourse  on  the  Universal  History  " 
occurs  the  following  remarkable  passage,  which  shows 
that  the  celebrated  Bishop  of  Meaux  had  deeply  pene- 
trated into  the  spirit  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  : — 

"  L'Egypte  d'ou  il  faut  sortir,  "  The  Egypt  it  is  needful  to 

le  desertion  il  faut  passer,  la  come    out    of,  the    wilderness 

Babylone  dont  il  faut   rompre  which  must  be  gone  through, 

les  prisons,  pour  entrer  ou  pour  the    prisons    of    the    Babylon, 

retourner    dans    notre    patrie,  which    it    is    indispensable   to 

c'est  le  monde  avec  ses  plaisirs  break  open,  in  order  to  enter  or 

et  ses  vanity's :  c'est  la  que  nous  return  into  our  country,  is  the 

sommes     vraiment     captifs    et  world   with   its   pleasures   and 

errants,  seduits  par  le  pecliS  et  vanities :  it  is  therein  that  we 

ses    convoitises  ;   il    nous    faut  are  indeed  captive  and  wander- 

secouer  ce    jong    pour  trouver  ing,  seduced  by  sin  and  its  ir- 

dans  Jerusalem,  et  dans  la  cite  regular  desires ;  we  must  shake 

de  notre  Dieu,  la  liberty  v<§ri-  off  that  yoke  to  find  in  Jeru- 

table,  et  un  Sanctuaire  non  fait  salem,  and  in  the  City  of   our 

de   la    main    d'homme,    oil    la  God,  the  true  freedom,  and  a 

Gloire   du   Dieu    d'Israel  nous  Sanctuary    not    made   by    the 

apparoisse."  hand  of  man,  wherein  the  Glory 

of  the  God  of  Israel  appears  to 

us." 

Had  Bossuet  fully  explained  the  hint  which  he  has 
given  of  his  way  of  understanding  Holy  Scripture,  it 
would  have  been  easy  for  so  able  a  writer  to  demon- 
strate, like  another  Origen,  that  it  was  not  correct  in 
any  wise  to  take  in  a  literal  sense,  the  Creation,  the 
Paradise,  the  Fall,  the  Deluge,  the  Egypt,  the  Wilder- 
ness, the  Babylon,  and  the  Jerusalem  of  the  Bible. 
But  it  is  possible  he  may  have  considered  the  Church 


468 


UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 


in  his  time  was  not  yet  prepared  to  receive  so  great  a 
revelation,  which  would  work  a  change  in  her  religious 
tenets.  Is  she  now  in  a  more  favourable  condition  for  it  ? 
The  following  comments  on  passages  in  the  life  of 
Abraham  are  also  full  of  mystic  suggestiveness  : — 


"  Merito  quseritur,  cur  Abra- 
ham nee  die  quo  natus  est  ei 
filius,  nee  die  quo  circumcisus 
est,  sed  die  quod  ablactus  est, 
epulum  fecerit.  Quod  nisi  ad 
aliquem  spiritalem  significa- 
tionem  referatur,  nulla  solutio 
qutestionis  est,  tunc  scilicet  esse 
debere  magnum  gaudium  spiri- 
talis  setatis,  quando  f  uerit  f  actus 
bomo  novus  spiritalis,  id  est 
non  talis  qualibus  dicit  Apos- 
tolus, Lac  vobis  potum  dedi." 
— Auqustin  Qucest.  in  Gen. — 
Lib.  L,  n.  50. 

"  Duo  sunt  ergo  filii  Abrahfe, 
unuis  de  ancilla,  et  imus  de 
libera;  uterque  tamen  filius 
Abrahse,  licet  non  uterque  de 
libera.  .  .  Omnes  ergo  qui- 
dem  qui  per  fidem  veniunt  ad 
ag-nitionern  Dei  possunt,  filii 
Abrahae  dici.  Sed  in  bis  sunt 
aliqui  pro  cbaritate  adhaerentes 
Deo,  alii  pro  metu  et  timore 
futuri  judicii.  .  .  Super  bis 
cmn  depelluntur  a  lacte  fit  con- 
vivium  magnum  :  super  .  illis 
autem  non  potest  exbiberi  con- 
rivium  nee  baberis  laetitia.  .  . 
Dat  aucillse  utrem  aquae,  non 
babebat  enim  puteum  aquae 
vivae,  nee  poterat  puer  baurire 
de  puteo  aquam.  Isaac  babe- 
bat  puteos.  .  .  Ismael  autem 
de  utre  bibit  aquam.  .  .  . 
Uter  legis  est  litera,  de    qua 


"  It  is  justly  asked,  why 
Abraham,  neither  on  the  day 
when  his  son  was  born,  nor  on 
that  when  he  was  circumcised, 
but  on  the  day  when  he  was 
weaned,  made  a  feast  for  him. 
But,  unless  it  refers  to  some 
spiritual  signification,  there  is 
no  answering  the  question.  It 
must  then,  forsooth,  be  the  great 
joy  of  the  spiritual  age,  when 
the  new  spiritual  man  was 
fully  formed,  that  is,  when  be 
was  no  longer  such  as  those  of 
whom  the  Apostle  speaks :  I 
gave  milk  to  you  as  drink." 

"  Abraham  had  two  sons,  one 
by  a  slave,  and  the  other  by  a 
free  woman ;  yet,  both  are  the 
sons  of  Abraham,  though  both 
are  not  by  the  free  woman. 
All,  therefore,  who  come  by 
faith  to  a  knowledge  of  God, 
can  be  called  the  sons  of  Abra- 
ham. But  among  these  there 
are  some  who  cleave  to  God 
through  love,  and  others 
through  trembling  and  fear  of 
future  judgment.  .  .  Over 
the  latter,  when  they  have  left 
off  suckling,  there  can  be  a 
great  feast ;  but  over  the  former 
there  can  neither  be  a  feast 
given,  nor  joy  displayed.  .  .  . 
He  gives  to  the  slave  the 
leather  bottle  of  water,  for  be 
bad  not  for  her  the  well  of 
living    water ;    nor    could   her 


THE   FATHERS   OF   THE   CHURCH. 


469 


carnalis  populus  bibit.  .  .  .  child  draw  water  from  the  well, 
bibit  de  puteis  qui  profundiora  Isaac  bad  wells.  .  .  .  But 
quseque  baurit,"  &c. — Origen,  Isbmael  drank  water  from  a 
Hum.  VII.  in  Gen.  leather  bottle.      .      .      .     The 

leather  bottle  is  the  letter  of 
the  law,  from  which  worldly 
people  drink.  .  .  .  He 
drinks  from  wells  who  draws 
from  deeper  sources,"  etc. 

Abram's  conflict  to  deliver  Lot  is  interpreted  as  the 
struggle  of  the  spirit  of  faith  to  save  the  outward  man, 
which  yet  is  dear  to  it.  The  Shem  and  Ham  within 
us  are  certain  minds  growing  out  of  the  regenerate 
soul.  Ham  is  the  darkened,  rebellious  mind,  from 
which  gigantic  evils,  like  the  Kephaim  (Giants),  spring. 
These  are  put  down  by  Shem's  seed,  but  another  branch 
of  Ham's  race ;  the  kings  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  rise 
in  rebellion,  when  Lot,  the  outward  mind,  having 
departed  from  Abram,  or  faith,  is  taken  captive. 
Ambrose  thus  traces  the  inward  fulfilment  here: — 


"  Quinque  reges  quinque  sen- 
sus  corporis  nostri  sunt,  visus 
odoratus,  gustus,  tactus,  audi- 
tus.  Quator  reges  illecebrae 
corporales  atque  mundanse  sunt, 
quoniam  et  caro  hominis  et 
mundus  et  quator  constat  ele- 
mentis.  Merito  reges  dicuntur, 
quia  habet  suum  culpa  doinina- 
tum,  unde  Apostolus  ait,  '  Non 
regnet  peccatum  in  vestro 
mortali  corpore.'  Sensus  igitur 
nostri  facile  delectationibus 
ssecularibus  cedunt,  et  quadam 
earum  potestate  capiuntur. 
Corporales  enim  delectationes 
et  illecebras  hujus  sseculi  non 
vincet,   nisi   mens   quae    fuerit 


"  The  five  kings  are  the  five 
senses  of  our  body — sight,  smell- 
ing, taste,  touching,  and  hearing. 
Four  of  the  kings  are  bodily 
and  worldly  allurements,  as 
both  man's  flesh  and  the  world 
consist  of  four  elements.  De- 
servedly are  they  called  kings, 
because  every  wrong-doing  has 
its  sovereignity ;  whence  the 
Apostle  says :  '  Sin  shall  not  rule 
in  your  mortal  body.'  There- 
fore our  senses  yield  easily  to 
worldly  delights,  and  are  capti- 
vated by  their  power.  For  he 
shall  not  overcome  the  bodily 
delights  and  allurements  of 
this  age  unless  the  mind  shall 


470 


UNIVERSAL    THEOSOPHY. 


spiritalis,  ad  hserens  Deo,  et  se 
totam  a  terrenis  separans  de- 
flexio  {i.e.,  Lot),  omnis  his 
capitur;  imde  Johannes  ait, 
'  Vse  hahitantibus  in  terra.'  "■ — 
Be  Abr.— Lib.  II.,  ch.  7,  §  41. 


be  spiritual,  cleaving  to  God, 
and  separating  itself  entirely 
from  earthly  [matters].  Every 
turning  aside  (i.e.,  Lot)  is  taken 
by  these ;  whence  John  says : 
'  Woe  to  the  dwellers  on  earth.' " 


"As  to  the  numbers  here — viz.,  five  and  four — Augustine 
says,  that  Jive  always  refers  to  something  connected  with  the 
senses — Enar.  in  Psalm  xlix.  (E.  V.  50),  §  9 ;  Tract,  in 
Johan.  xv.  §  21,  and  xxiv.  §  5.  He  instances  the  five  barley 
loaves ;  the  five  husbands  of  the  woman  of  Samaria ;  the  five 
brothers  of  the  rich  man ;  and  other  fives  connected  with  the 
five  senses ;  while  four  is  always  connected  with  the  world — 
Serm  cclii.,  ch.  10;  De  diebus  Pasch.  The  mystical  serpent  of 
the  Hindoos  is  generally  represented  with  five  heads,  which  are 
said  to  signify  the  five  senses."  See  Payne  Ejiight's  Inquiry  into 
the  Symbolical  Language  of  Mythology,  p.  56. 


"  Lastly,  Keturah,  whom 
Abraham  as  an  old  man  sought 
in  marriage,  is  interpreted  by 
a  Greek  word,  6vfj.tafia,  which 
means  incense,  or  sweet  savour. 
If,  therefore,  there 
is  any  of  you  in  whom  there 
is  the  sweetness  of  mercy;  if 
any  of  you,  without  inter- 
mission, always  offers  incense 
in  praying  to  the  Lord,  and 
says :  '  My  prayer  is  directed, 
as  it  were,  like  incense  in  Thy 
sight,  and  the  lifting  up  of  my 
hands  like  an  evening  sacrifice,' 
.  .  .  that  man  has  married 
Keturah.  .  .  .  For  Scrip- 
ture figuratively  designates  the 
growth  of  the  righteous  by 
marriage,"  &c. 

On    this    subject   Mr.    Jukes   makes    the    following 
deeply  interesting  and  instructive  comments : — 

"The  stage  we  now  have  reached   is  marked  by  Abraham 
taking-  another  wife.     We  read :   '  Then  again  Abraham  took  a 


"  Denique  Cethura,  quam 
nunc  senex  Abraham  sortitur 
in  matrimonium,  6vfxiajxa,  in- 
terpret at  ur,  quod  est  incen- 
sum  vel  bonus  odor.  .  .  . 
Si  quis  ergo  vestrum  est  in  quo 
suavitas  misericordias,  si  quis 
sine  intermissione  orandc  offert 
dornino  semper  incensum,  et 
dicit,  'Dirigatur  oratio  mea 
sicut  incensum  in  conspectu 
tuo,  elevatio  manum  mearum  sa- 
crificium  vespertinum,'  .  .  .  hie 
Cethuram  duxit  uxorem.  .  .  . 
Profectus  etenim  sanctorum 
Scriptura  figuraliter  per  con- 
jugia  designat,"  &c. — Origen, 
Horn.  XI.  in  Gen. 


"TYPES   OF  GENESIS."  471 

wife,  and  her  name  was  Keturah  ;  and  she  bare  him  Zimran,  and 
Jokshan,  and  Medan,  and  Midian,  and  Ishbak,  and  Shuah.' — 
As  our  inward  life  changes  its  form  at  every  fresh  stage — from 
Adam  to  Abel,  then  from  Seth  to  Noah,  then  to  Abraham,  and 
from  him  to  Isaac  and  other  sons, — so  the  truth  embraced  at 
each  successive  stage  differs  in  form  according  to  the  varying 
form  of  the  elect  Spirit  which  embraces  it.  Sarah  is  Abraham's 
wife ;  in  other  words,  the  Spirit  of  Faith  (Abraham)  lays  hold 
of  Truth  under  the  Sarah  form,  that  is,  the  promise.  Now,  after 
Sarah's  death,  that  is,  after  the  form  in  which  we  have  first 
embraced  the  New  Covenant  as  a  form  is  dead,  for  it  yet  lives  • 
in  Spirit ; — when  we  see  that  forms  of  truth,  even  the  best,  are 
given  to  serve  us  for  a  season,  and  then  as  forms  to  pass  away  ; — 
when  this  is  not  only  believed  but  known,  and  a  new  form  of 
truth,  suited  to  the  growing  spirit  of  sonship,  is  found  and  loved 
by  it ;  then,  at  this  point  Abraham  takes  another  wife  :  that  spirit 
of  faith,  so  long  without  fruit,  which  in  its  haste  tried  law,  and 
'  when  as  good  as  dead '  begot  the  seed  of  promise  out  of  the 
barren  free-woman,  now  takes  another  form  of  truth,  by  which 
it  rapidly  produces  many  sons.  The  question  is,  What  form  of 
Truth  ?  What  principle  is  it  that  Keturah  represents  ?  .  .  . 
Keturah  is  that  practical  truth,  which  neither  laxo  nor  promise, 
neither  bond-maid  nor  free-woman,  succeeds  to  both  at  this  stage 
of  faith's  life,  when  the  truth  which  Sarah  represents  has  passed 
from  an  outward  form  into  a  higher  state.  .  .  .  How  many 
lovely  fruits  have  been  borne,  the  offspring  of  faith,  and  that 
not  by  law,  but  by  the  precious  truth  which  Keturah  represents  ! 
.  .  .  Isaac  is  not  Keturah's  son.  Sonship  is  not  of  law,  nor 
of  the  practical  truth,  which,  though  not  laws,  is  somewhat  akin 
to  it.  Sonship  will  no  more  come  of  these  than  figs  will  grow 
from  slips  of  myrtle,  or  vines  from  acorns ;  yet  Keturah's  sons,  like 
oaks  and  myrtle,  are  pleasant,  and  lovely  too  in  their  season ; 
though  they  cannot  inherit  all  Abraham's  good  things. 

"  Then  Abraham  gave  up  the  ghost  and  died,  "  the  Spirit  of 
faith,  like  that  truth  which  it  has  so  long  been  united  to,  now 
passes  away  as  an  outward  form,  from  forms,  to  live  as  a  Spirit 
with  God,  who  is  Spirit.  Isaac  now  succeeds  to  Abraham's 
place.  The  form,  in  which  the  elect  life  henceforth  shews  itself, 
is  not  faith  so  much  as  understanding,  for  the  spirit  of  sonship 
is  also  a  spirit  of  understanding.     He,  in  whom  it  lives,  not  only 


472  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

believes,  but  to  faitb  is  added  knowledge  and  intelligence,  even 
'  tbe  mind  of  Christ.'  For  when  Isaac  is  come,  we  are  no  more 
under  the  schoolmaster  (the  law)  as  servants  or  as  children  not 
knowing  a  father's  will ;  but  as  sons,  and  because  we  are  sons, 
are  led  in  the  spirit  of  sonship  into  all  knowledge,  and  spiritual 
'  understanding  in  the  acknowledgment  of  the  mystery  of  God 
the  Father  and  of  Christ'  (Col.  ii.  2). 

"  Up  to  this  point,  though  the  spirit  of  sonship  has  come,  it  has 
been  comparatively  feeble,  and  faith  has  been  the  ruling  life. 
But  now  faith  is  no  more  in  the  flesh,  but  is  changed  from  an 
earthly  form  into  a  spirit.  Isaac  therefore,  takes  Abraham's 
place ;  that  is,  faith  is  succeeded  in  our  souls  by  spiritual  under- 
standing, which,  like  Isaac,  inherits  all  Abraham's  wealth,  and  is 
the  heir  possessing  all  the  riches  of  true  faith  (Genesis  xxv.  5, 
'  And  Abraham  gave  all  that  he  had  unto  Isaac.')  I  feel  how 
little  words  can  express  the  spiritual  reality  represented  here. 
Those  only  who  know  the  blessed  fact  within,  will  be  able  really 
to  see  the  force  of  Abraham's  death  and  Isaac's  succession  to 
all  his  goods  ;  faith  now  lost  in  sight,  while  in  its  place  the  spirit 
of  understanding,  which  is  the  spirit  of  sonship,  inherits  the 
things  of  faith."  * 

The  foregoing  passages  have  been  selected  almost  at 
random  from  the  vast  storehouse  of  Christian  Occult- 
ism, and  are  not  intended  to  represent  a  decisive  exposi- 
tion of  the  many  psychic  problems  that  are  under  the 
guise  of  allegory  discussed  and  more  reveiled  than 
revealed.  Indeed,  it  would  require  the  study  of  a  life- 
time to  master  the  views  that  each  system  of  Theosophy 
holds,  or  has  held  on  the  subject  which  now  occupies 
us,    and   which    we    must,  nevertheless,   endeavour  to 

*  See  John  viii.  31,  32.  Where  our  Lord  promises  to  "  those 
who  believed  on  him,"  that  "  if  they  would  continue  in  his 
word,  they  shoidd  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  should  make 
them  free."  Compare  also  St.  Paul's  faith  in  Christ  dead  and 
risen  again  (1  Cor.  xv.  3,  4). 


EASTERN   SYMBOLOGY.  473 

present  in  a  chapter  as  concisely,  and  as  best  we  can ; 
for  it  is  the  subject  which  underlies  every  religion  of 
the  past  and  present,  the  foundation  on  which  each  has 
been  built  up,  as  a  faith  to  save.  The  task,  therefore, 
is  an  important  and  a  difficult  one,  and  however  familiar 
we  may  have  fancied  ourselves  to  be  with  the  theme, 
now  that  we  have  fairly  begun  it,  we  find  ourselves  in 
the  mental  position  of  the  great  Newton,  when  he  de- 
clared to  have  but  picked  up  a  pebble  on  the  sea  shore. 

Only  to  the  Theosophist,  however,  is  the  Bible  a 
Theosophic  book.  The  Dogmatist,  the  Rationalist,  the 
Archgeologist,  the  Historian,  and  the  Mythologist,  each 
has  attempted  to  interpret  this  venerable  volume 
according  to  his  own  view  ;  but  the  inner  and  eternal 
value  can  only  be  set  forth  by  those  who  are  on  the 
interior  and  eternal  plane. 

The  more  we  study  the  Bible  the  more  we  see  that 
the  symbolism  of  the  East  was  a  perfect  language, 
written  and  understood  by  those  who  had  learnt  or  been 
inspired  to  trace  the  unvarying  similitudes  to  the  reali- 
ties of  the  interior  or  spiritual  realm,  which  is  the  world 
of  causation ;  this  assertion  will  be  found  to  be  borne 
out  by  the  evidence  we  have  offered,  which  evidence, 
if  we  were  to  quote  yet  more  fully  from  the  writings 
of  the  Fathers  of  the  Christian  Church,  could  be  in- 
creased a  hundredfold;  but  we  have  already  devoted 
more  space  to  them  than  we  had  intended,  and  we  have 
other  sources  to  quote  from  on  this  most  important 
subject  which  must  not  be  neglected. 

Space   indeed   fails   us  to  give  quotations  from  the 


474  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Christian  Mystics  concerning  the  interior  meaning  of 
the  Creation,  Fall,  Deluge,  Egypt,  Wilderness,  Babylon, 
and  Jerusalem,  of  the  Bible,  with  the  final  Eesurrec- 
tion  and  Ascension  of  the  Spiritualized  Soul,  although 
we  are  sorely  tempted .  to  do  so,  for  all  is  so  clearly 
and  beautifully  explained  in  their  writings  that  the 
advanced  mind  opens  at  once  to  receive  their  teach- 
ings ;  it  being  so  constituted  as  to  respond  to  Divine 
Truth,  like  an  echo  resounding  through  the  long  cor- 
ridors of  a  distant  past,  awakening  its  dormant  intui- 
tions to  the  consciousness  of  its  own  Infinite  and  Divine 
Source. 

It  is  a  study  in  which  all  advanced  minds  must  take 
the  deepest  interest,  as  it  so  deeply  concerns  each  one 
personally;  and  only  the  most  light  and  frivolous  of 
mortals,  in  the  hey-day  of  youth  and  prosperity,  who 
are  too  earth-bound  to  bestow  a  thought  on  the  past 
or  to  feel  a  fear  for  the  future,  can  be  indifferent  con- 
cerning a  true  and  correct  explanation  of  the  Scriptures 
in  which  they  have  been  taught  from  their  youth,  and 
in  which  they  have  a  living  interest. 

To  the  serious  minded,  we  cannot  too  earnestly 
recommend  the  study  of  the  Christian  Mystics  as  likely 
to  afford  them  all  the  knowledge  they  have  doubtless 
often  longed  to  obtain  concerning  the  mysteries  of 
their  own  origin,  and  of  the  long  and  often  painful 
journey  through  earth-life  to  the  unknown  shore  that 
awaits  them  at  its  end. 

In  the  writings  of  Jacob  Boehme,  or  Behmen,  the 
greatest  Theosophic  Mystic  of  the  sixteenth  century, 


JACOB  BOEHME.  475 

they  will  find  clearly  set  forth  all  they  have  ever  longed 
to  know,  the  only  drawback  to  their  pleasure  being  his 
somewhat  ancient  and  verbose  style  ;  but  easy  com- 
pendiums  of  his  writings,  once  so  scarce  and  expensive, 
are  now  appearing,  which  greatly  facilitate  their  so 
necessary  study  in  this  the  fulness  of  time ;  for  the 
New  Era  that  is  dawning  will  be  better  understood  and 
appreciated  by  those  who  possess  a  knowledge  of  the 
interior  or  esoteric  meaning  of  all  that  has  gone  before ; 
and  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  have  a  right  idea  of  the 
state  from  which  the  spirit  in  man  fell,  to  be  able  to 
conceive  and  comprehend  the  state  to  which  it  is  now 
called  upon  to  return,  with  all  the  knowledges  it  has 
acquired  and  made  its  own  through  its  long  course  of 
contact  with  Matter  during  the  development  of  its  intel- 
lectual and  spiritual  faculties  on  a  material  earth ;  for 
the  regeneration  of  man  is  by  Involutional  Evolution. 
We  will  conclude  this  eulogy  of  Jacob  Boehme  with 
a  testimony  concerning  the  writings  of  our  favourite 
Mystic,  from  an  ancient  author  who  was  deeply  learned 
in  mystic  lore  and  in  the  Theosophical  Interpretation 
of  the  Scriptures  : — 

"  Whatever  the  thrice  great  HERMES  delivered  as 
Oracles  from  his  Prophetical  Tripos;  or  PYTHAGORAS 
spake  by  authority ;  or  SOCRATES  debated,  or  ARIS- 
TOTLE affirmed  ;  yea,  whatever  Divine  PLATO  prophe- 
sied, or  PLOTINUS  proved ;  this,  and  all  this,  or  a 
far  Higher  and  Profounder  Philosophy  is  {I  think) 
contained  in  the  Teutonic's  Writings.  And  if  there 
be  any  friendly  medium  zuhich  can  possibly  reconcile 


476  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

those  Ancient  Differences  between  the  Nobler  Wisdom, 
which  hath  fixed  her  Palace  in  Holy  Writ,  and  her 
stubborn  Handmaid,  Natural  Reason,  this  happy 
Marriage  of  the  Spirit  and  tlie  Soul,  this  zvonderful 
consent  of  Discord  in  one  Harmony,  we  owe  in  a  great 
measure  to  Teutonicus,  his  skill. 

"  Only  let  not  the  Non  or  Mis-understanding  of  the 
most  rational  Reader  {if  not  a  little  sublimed  above 
the  Sphere  of  Common  Reason)  be  imputed  as  a  fault 
to  this  Elevated  Philosopher,  no  more  than  'tzvas  to  the 
Divine  Plotine,  whose  highest  Notions  many,  even  of 
his  own  School  after  much  Study,  were  not  able  to 
reach  T 

Hermetic  Philosophy  is  very  little  known  at  the 
present  day.  Its  adepts  profess  to  be  in  possession  of 
a  Secret  which  they  call  the  gift  of  God.  Its  study 
has  been  prosecuted  under  many  names ;  among  which 
are  Alchemy,  Astrology,  Art,  Magic,  etc.;  but  the  few 
who  really  understand  it  are  decidedly  Mystics,  even 
if  they  prefer  to  style  themselves  Hermetic  Philo- 
sophers. 

To  begin  with  Alchemy.  It  is  no  doubt  generally 
known  that  there  are  two  classes  of  Alchemists  :  those 
who  employ  themselves  in  the  search  for  Material  Gold, 
and  those  who  seek  for  the  true  Philosopher's  Stone  by 
devout  contemplation  upon  the  nature  of  God  and 
man — upon  the  human  Soul,  and  its  capacities  for 
spiritual  knowledge,  for  happiness,  and  for  immortality. 

The  much  talked  of  Philosopher's  Stone  was  a  mere 
symbol  for  human  perfection ;  the  perfection  of  the 
Christ.     Hence  Jesus  was  often  called  the  Head  Stone 


THE  PHILOSOPHER'S   STONE.  477 

of  the  Corner,  and  likened  to  the  Stone  which  the 
ignorant  builders  refused. 

All  Alchemic  and  Hermetic  books  have  one  per- 
vading doctrine,  that  of  purification  as  a  first  step  in 
the  work  of  obtaining  the  Stone,  or  of  making  the 
Grold.  A  pure  heart  and  a  right  spirit  is  the  way  to 
the  Philosopher's  Stone,  if  it  is  not  the  Stone  itself, 
the  pearl  of  great  price,  to  obtain  which  is  not  the 
hope  of  heaven,  but  heaven  itself.  All  Hermetic 
writers  communicated  with  each  other  by  means  of 
a  conventional  language,  writing  of  Salt  Sulphur 
Mercury,  or  Mercury  Sol  and  Luna,  etc.,  through  so 
endless  a  variety  of  expressions  that  it  often  became 
necessary  to  employ  a  Dictionary  to  ascertain  their  real 
meaning ;  and  such  a  Dictionary,  published  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  is  before  us  as  we  write. 

To  understand  the  reasons  why  those  Theosophists 
concealed  their  real  meaning  from  observation  under 
these  enigmatical  modes  of  writing,  one  must  be  well 
read  in  Church  history ;  and  one's  nerves  must  often 
have  thrilled  with  horror  at  the  hideous  cruelties  and 
fiendish  persecutions  practised  on  all  whose  souls  were 
large  enough  to  dare  to  differ  from  the  teachings  of  the 
Church,  and  to  venture  to  try  to  find  the  way  to  Christ 
and  Truth,  and  Wisdom  and  Goodness,  for  themselves. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  the  Alchemists  of  the  Middle 
Ages  were  true  Hermetic  Philosophers,  and  that  their 
writings  are  to  be  judged  and  interpreted  from  the 
standpoint  of  Hermetic  philosophy ;  a  Wisdom  that 
is  again  being  revived  without  any  necessity  for   dis- 


478  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

guises  in  these  our  happier  days  of  "making  known"  ; 
and  accordingly  a  Hermetic  Society  was  publicly,  in- 
augurated in  London  on  the  Day  of  St.  George  (the 
slayer  of  the  Dragon),  May  9th,  1884,  whose  able 
President,  we  must  not  fail  to  remark  in  passing,  as  a 
further  sign  of  the  feminine  or  Bridal  Era  now  dawn- 
ing, is  a  young  and  lovely  lady,  well  known  for  her 
great  literary  and  scientific  attainments. 
In  her  opening  address  she  said  : 

"  Our  chief  and  central  aim  is  to  raise  the  level  of  the  material 
religious  ideal,  and  by  withdrawing  it  from  the  external  and 
natural  to  the  interior  and  spiritual  plane,  to  defeat  the  designs 
of  materialism  upon  the  stronghold  of  the  moral  life.  So 
long  as  religion  builds  upon  the  mere  historic  facts  and  shifting 
phenomena  of  Time,  she  builds  upon  a  sand-bank,  on  which  the 
advancing  tide  of  science  and  critical  philosophy  is  daily  en- 
croaching, and  which,  sooner  or  later,  will  be  swept  away  and 
engulfed  with  all  that  is  founded  thereon.  But  when  she  learns 
the  secret  of  Esoteric  Interpretation  (for  the  name  of  Peter,  by 
its  original  derivation,  signifies  Interpreter,  and  is  therein  one 
with  Hermes),  then,  in  sooth,  the  gates  of  Hell  shall  be  power- 
less against  her,  and  she  need  fear  no  more  the  noisy  beating  of 
the  sea  surf  on  the  shore  beneath  the  '  holy  hill.'  It  is  on  this 
Hermetic  stock  of  inward  illumination  and  spiritual  life,  called 
by  Trismegistus,  '  the  Mount  of  Regeneration,'  that  the  great 
Mystics  of  all  times  have  ever  taken  their  stand." 

This  is  a  great  truth,  and  hereon  were  founded  the 
Pythagorean  and  Neoplatonic  schools  of  the  Alexandrian 
Gnostics  ;  and  in  far  more  recent  times  the  Doctrines 
of  one  of  the  greatest  expositors  of  Scripture  that  has 
arisen  since  the  days  of  the  great  "  Teutonic  Philo- 
sopher "  before  mentioned.  We  allude  to  Emmanuel 
Swedenborg,  a   man   of  immense    learning,  on   whose 


EMMANUEL  SWEDENBOEG.  479 

truly  inspired  interpretation  of  the  inward  meaning 
of  Scripture  has  been  founded  the  so-called  "New 
Church"  composed  of  a  considerable  body  of  Christians 
spread  over  many  countries,  who  believe,  and  not 
without  foundation,  that  the  "  New  Jerusalem  "  is  about 
to  come  down  from  heaven  to  bless  the  world. 

It  is  always  at  a  time  when  religious  faith  is  at  its 
lowest  ebb,  the  very  foundation  of  the  fabric  of  estab- 
lished Eeligions  loosened,  and  clouds  of  doubt  and 
uncertainty  hanging  over  the  first  tenets  of  belief,  that 
a  new  revelation  of  Divine  and  Spiritual  truth  is 
imperiously  needed,  and  the  dawn  of  a  New  Day  arises 
to  lighten  the  darkness  and  gloom  of  night ;  thus  has 
it  ever  been  that  the  "  Evening  and  the  Morning " 
have  formed  the  day  of  each  creation  or  revelation. 

Emmanuel  Swedenborg  was  born  at  Stockholm  on 
the  29th  January,  1688.  Thus  just  two  hundred 
years  ago.  He  was  a  philosopher,  and  a  man  of  great 
Science,  whose  important  and  voluminous  writings  on 
Natural  History  and  Scientific  Subjects  still  form  the 
College  Text-Books  in  Sweden.*  Many  of  the  experi- 
ments and  observations  on  magnetism,  believed  to  be 

*  The  Secretary  of  the  English  Royal  Society  thus  speaks  of 
one  of  his  numerous  scientific  works,  entitled  Princijna  Rerum 
Naturalium,  or  "  Principles  of  Natural  Things."  "  For  the  sake  of 
such  as  understand  Latin,  we  must  not  pass  by  this  magnificent 
and  laborious  work  of  Emmanuel  Swedenborg,  in  the  second  and 
third  volume  of  which  he  has  not  only  given  the  best  account  of 
the  methods  and  newest  improvements  in  metallic  works  in  all 
places  beyond  the  seas,  but  also  in  England  and  America.  It  is 
to  be  wished  we  had  extracts  from  this  work  in  English." 


4S0  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

of  much  more  modern  date,  are  contained  in  the 
scientific  works  of  Swedenborg.  In  1744  he  published, 
at  Amsterdam,  a  work  on  the  Animal  Kingdom,  in 
which  were  contained  some  remarkable  discoveries  of 
his  own  on  Anatomy.  The  merit  of  which  also  was 
claimed  by  other  scientific  men  many  years  afterwards. 
It  was  in  the  year  1749  that  Swedenborg  published  in 
London  a  work  of  a  most  remarkable  character,  pro- 
fessing to  disclose  discoveries  far  higher  and  more 
important  than  any  of  his  former  scientific  discoveries ; 
a  work  professing  to  lay  open  to  the  world  a  new  and 
hidden  meaning  in  the  Scriptures,  quite  different  from 
the  sense  of  the  letter,  and  to  disclose  the  Kules  for 
understanding  this,  which  were  before  completely  un- 
known. And  this  not  in  a  general  manner,  or  in  the 
form  of  conjecture,  but  beginning  with  the  first  chapter 
of  Genesis,  and  taking  up  the  literal  sense  word  by 
word,  showing  that  there  is  to  each  word,  besides  the 
common  literal  meaning,  another  Spiritual  significa- 
tion within  it,  as  a  bright  sword  within  its  sheath, 
and  that  all  these  hidden  or  Spiritual  significations,  in 
any  passage  or  verse,  make,  when  put  together,  com- 
plete sense;  infinitely  deeper  and  more  instructive  than 
the  literal  sense ;  so  that  in  this  manner  each  verse  is 
shown  to  have  two  distinct  senses,  quite  different  from 
each  other,  yet  each  complete  in  itself.  This  internal 
sense  of  the  word  is  called  the  Spiritual  Sense  of 
Scriptures.     The  work  itself  is   entitled  the   Arcana 

CCELESTIA. 

And  now,  what  are  we  to  think  of  this  remarkable 


EMMANUEL  SWEDENBORG.  481 

work  containing  the  exposition  of  a  complete  internal 
or  allegorical  meaning,  not  only  of  a  few  verses,  but 
of  chapter  after  chapter,  and  showing  a  complete  and 
connected  spiritual  sense  throughout  the  whole.  This 
spiritual  sense  must  either  have  been  a  contrivance 
and  composition  of  the  author's,  or  else  it  was  a 
simple  bringing  forth  of  interior  truth,  which  had 
always  existed,  and  waited  only  the  due  time  to  be 
brought  forth,  and  the  key  given  to  the  world  and  the 
Church  by  which  to  open  and  understand  it  correctly. 

The  same  key  serves  to  unlock  chapter  after  chapter, 
not  only  of  Genesis  and  Exodus,  and  all  the  books  of 
the  Old  Testament, — completely  setting  forth  and 
explaining  the  internal  signification,  or  spiritual  sense 
of  each,  giving  a  reason  for  everything,  and  for  the 
principle  of  interpretation  itself, — but  it  equally  serves 
to  unlock  the  spiritual  sense  of  that  sealed  book,  the 
Apocalypse  of  St.  John,  or  Book  of  Eevelation,  which 
has  been  an  embarrassment  and  a  marvel  to  the  Church 
in  all  ages,  on  account  of  its  obscurity  and  its  very 
allegorical  style.  And  what  is  especially  to  be  re- 
marked is,  that  the  spiritual  sense  of  this  Book,  the 
last  of  the  New  Testament,  is  shown  to  be  founded  on 
the  same  principles,  and  opened  by  the  same  key 
which  unlocks  the  spiritual  sense  of  the  Books  of 
Genesis  and  Exodus,  the  first  chapters  of  the  Old 
Testament,  written  by  other  hands  thousands  of  years 
before ;  "  surely  a  strong  proof  that,  however  varied 
the  human  instruments  employed,  there  was  One 
Divine   Inspirer  of  the  whole."     And,  moreover,  this 

II 


482  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHT. 

rule  of  interpretation  shows  every  word  in  the  Book  of 
Eevelation  to  have  the  same  interior  signification  as  it 
has  in  the  Book  of  Genesis.  This  spiritual  sense  is  not 
of  a  fanciful  or  visionary  cast,  but  it  is  an  exposition  of 
high  and  important  religious  truths  concerning  man's 
Soul  and  his  eternal  interests,  concerning  the  nature  of 
Goodness  and  Truth,  such  as  alone  can  be  found  in  the 
Word  of  God.  And  this  rule  of  interpretation  serves 
to  bring  forth  rich  and  beautiful  Gems  of  Truth  which 
lie  hidden  and  unknown  under  the  shrouding  letter  of 
the  Word,  or  outward  natural  sense,  just  as  precious 
stones  are  hidden  for  ages  in  the  earth  till  in  the 
course  of  Providence  the  full  time  arrives  for  their 
being  discovered,  and  given  to  man  for  his  use. 

But  let  us  hear  what  Swedenborg  himself  says  con- 
cerning this  "  doctrine  of  Correspondences  "  which  was 
revealed  to  him : 

"  It  is  not  known  at  the  present  day  what  Correspondence  is. 
The  primary  cause  of  this  ignorance  is  that  man  has  removed 
himself  from  heaven  by  the  love  of  self  and  of  the  world,  and 
regards  only  those  things  which  are  of  the  world,  because  they 
gratify  the  external  senses,  and  pays  no  regard  to  spiritual  things 
which  gratify  the  internal  senses,  and  delight  the  rational  mind  ; 
wherefore  they  cast  these  things  from  them,  saying  that  they  are 
too  hi?h  to  be  objects  of  thought.  The  Ancients  did  otherwise : 
to  them  the  Science  of  Correspondences  was  the  chief  of  all 
sciences,  by  it  they  also  acquired  intelligence  and  wisdom ;  and 
those  who  were  of  the  Church  had  by  it  communication  with 
heaven,  for  the  Science  of  Correspondence  is  an  Angelic  Science. 
The  most  ancient  people  thought  from  Correspondence,  like  the 

angels  ;  therefore  also  they  spoke  with  angels But 

at  this  day  that  Science  is  so  entirely  lost,  that  it  is  not  known 
what  Correspondence  is. 

"  Now  because  without  a  perception  of  what  Correspondence 


swedenborg's  "doctrine  of  correspondences."  483 

is  nothing  can  be  known  concerning  the  spiritual  world,  nor 
concerning  its  influx  into  the  natural,  nor  even  what  the  spiritual 
principle  is  in  respect  to  the  natural ;  nor  can  anything  be  known 
concerning  the  spirit  of  man,  and  concerning  its  operation  in  the 
body,  nor  concerning  the  state  of  man  after  death ;  therefore  it 
is  to  be  told  what  is  Correspondence  and  what  is  its  quality. 

"  The  whole  natural  world  corresponds  to  the  spiritual  world 
in  every  particular;  wherefore  whatever  exists  in  the  natural 
world  from  the  spiritual,  is  said  to  be  correspondent.  It  is  to 
be  known  that  the  natural  world  exists  from  the  spiritual  world, 
altogether  as  an  effect  from  its  efficient  cause.  What  is  called 
the  natural  world  is  all  that  expanse  which  is  under  the  sun, 
and  receives  from  it  light  and  heat,  but  the  spiritual  world  is 
heaven.  In  heaven  the  sun  of  the  world  does  not  appear,  nor 
anything  from  that  sun,  still  there  is  a  sun  there,  and  light  and 
heat,  and  there  also  are  all  the  things  that  are  in  the  world,  and 
innumerable  more,  but  not  from  a  like  origin ;  for  the  things 
which  are  in  heaven  are  spiritual,  but  those  which  are  in  the 
world  are  natural.  The  sun  of  heaven  is  the  Lord ;  the  light 
there  is  Divine  Truth,  and  the  heat  there  is  Divine  Good,  which 
proceed  from  the  Lord  as  from  a  sun ;  from  that  origin  are  all 
things  that  exist  and  appear  in  the  heavens ;  and  also,  through 
the  medium  of  the  sun  of  the  world,  all  things  natural  exist  on 
earth.  It  is  to  be  observed,  however,  that  that  sun  is  not  the 
Lord  Himself,  but  from  the  Lord  ;  the  Divine  Love  and  Divine 
Wisdom  proceeding  from  Him  appears  in  that  world  as  a  sun. 

"  Because  man  is  a  heaven,  and  also  a  world  in  the  least  form 
after  the  image  of  the  greatest,*  therefore  there  is  within  him  a 
spiritual' world  and  a  natural  world.  The  interiors,  which  are  of 
his  mind,  and  which  bear  reference  to  the  understanding  and 
will,  constitute  his  spiritual  world ;  and  the  exteriors,  which  are 
of  his  body,  and  which  bear  reference  to  his  senses  and  actions, 
constitute  his  natural  world.  Whatever,  therefore,  exists  in  his 
natural  world,  that  is,  in  his  body  and  its  senses  and  actions, 
from  his  spiritual  world,  that  is,  from  his  mind  and  understand- 
ing, is  called  correspondent. 

"What  the  quality  of  Correspondence  is  may  be  seen  in  man 
from  his  face.     In  the  face  which  has  not  been  taught  to  dis- 


"  For  this  reason  man  is  called  a  Microcosm. 


484  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

semble,  all  the  affections  of  the  mind  present  themselves  visibly  in 
a  natural  form  ;  hence  the  face  is  called  the  index  of  the  mind. 
In  like  manner,  the  things  which  are  of  the  understanding  are 
sensibly  manifested  in  the  speech,  and  the  things  which  are  of  the 
will,  in  the  gestures  of  the  body.  Those  things,  therefore,  which 
are  done  in  the  body,  whether  in  the  face  or  in  the  speech,  or  in 
the  gestures,  are  called  Correspondences. 

"  There  is  a  correspondence  of  man  with  heaven,  and  from  that 
correspondence  he  subsists,  for  man  does  not  subsist  from  any 
other  source.  Heaven  is  distinguished  into  kingdoms,  one  of 
which  is  called  the  celestial,  and  the  other  the  spiritual  kingdom. 
The  celestial  kingdom  in  general  corresponds  to  the  heart,  and  to 
all  things  in  the  body  that  refer  to  the  heart ;  and  the  spiritual 
kingdom,  to  the  lungs,  and  to  all  things  in  the  body  that  refer  to 
them.  The  heart  and  the  lungs  also  constitute  two  kingdoms  in 
man  :  the  heart  reigns  there  by  the  arteries  and  veins,  and  the 
lungs  by  the  nerves  and  moving  fibres,  both  of  them  in  every  force 
and  action.  In  every  man,  in  his  spiritual  world,  which  is  called 
his  spiritual  man,  there  are  also  two  kingdoms  ;  one  of  the  will,  and 
the  other  of  the  understanding.  The  will  reigns  by  the  affections 
of  good,  and  the  understanding  by  the  affections  of  truth.  These 
kingdoms  correspond  to  the  kingdoms  of  the  heart  and  lungs  in 
the  body.  The  case  is  similar  in  the  heavens  :  the  celestial  king- 
dom is  the  will-principle  of  heaven,  in  which  kingdom  the  good 
of  love  bears  rule ;  and  the  spiritual  kingdom  is  the  intellectual 
principle  of  heaven,  and  in  that  kingdom  truth  bears  rule  :  these 
are  what  correspond  to  the  functions  of  the  heart  and  lungs  in 
man.  It  is  from  this  correspondence  that  the  heart  in  the  Word 
signifies  the  will,  and  also  the  good  of  love,  and  that  the  breath  of 
the  lungs  signifies  the  understanding  and  the  truth  of  faith  :  hence 
also  it  is  that  the  affections  are  ascribed  in  the  heart,  although  in 
reality  they  are  not  there  seated  nor  thence  derived. 

"  That  the  will  corresponds  to  the  heart  may  be  seen  from  this, 
that  all  the  affections  of  love  alter  the  motions  of  the  heart,  as 
is  evident  from  the  pulsations  of  the  arteries  which  act  in  unison 
with  the  heart.  Its  changes  and  motions,  according  to  the 
affections  of  love,  are  innumerable, — those  felt  by  the  finger  are  a 
few — as  that  it  beats  slow  or  quick,  high  or  low,  soft  or  hard, 
equal  or  unequal ;  therefore  differently  in  joy  and  sadness,  in 
tranquility  of  mind  and  in  anger,  in  intrepidity  and  in  fear,  and 


swedenborg's  "doctrine  of  correspondences."  485 

so  forth.  Since  the  motions  of  the  heart  thus  change  and  vary 
according  to  the  affections  of  a  man's  love,  therefore  many  of  the 
ancients,  and  from  them  some  of  the  moderns,  have  ascribed  the 
affections  to  the  heart,  and  have  placed  their  habitation  there. 
Hence  in  conversation  we  speak  of  a  stout  heart  and  a  timid 
heart,  a  soft  and  a  hard  heart,  a  great  and  a  small  heart,  a 
whole  and  a  broken  heart,  ....  and  similar  language  is 
used  in  the  Word  because  the  Word  is  written  by  correspon- 
dences  

"  That  there  is  a  connection  by  correspondence  between  the 
understanding  and  the  lungs  follows  from  what  has  been  said  of 
the  correspondence  of  the  will  with  the  heart.  There  are  two 
things  that  rule  in  the  spiritual  man  or  the  mind,  namely,  the 
Will  and  the  Understanding ;  and  there  are  two  things  that  rule 
in  the  natural  man  or  the  body,— the  heart  and  the  lungs;  and 
there  is  a  correspondence  of  all  things  of  the  mind  with  all 
things  of  the  body :  hence  it  follows,  that  while  the  will  corres- 
ponds to  the  heart,  the  understanding  corresponds  to  the  lungs. 
Every  one  also  may  perceive  in  himself  that  the  understanding 
corresponds  to  the  lungs  both  from  his  thought  and  his  speech. 
From  speech :  because  not  the  smallest  expression  can  proceed 
from  the  mouth  without  the  aid  of  the  lungs.  From  thought : 
because  no  one  can  think  unless  his  breathing  conspires  and 
accords ;  wherefore  when  he  thinks  tacitly  he  breathes  tacitly  ; 
if  he  thinks  deeply  he  breathes  deeply ;  he  retracts  and  relaxes, 
compresses  and  elevates  the  lungs  according  to  the  influx  of 
affection  from  love,  either  slow  or  hastily,  eagerly,  mildly,  or 
attentively :  indeed,  if  he  hold  his  breath  altogether,  he  cannot 
think  at  all. 

N.B. — It  is  a  tenet  of  angelic  wisdom,  that  unless  the  Will  and  the 
Understanding,  or  affection  and  thought,  as  also  charity  and  faith  fix 
and  clothe  themselves  in  work?  or  deeds,  when  it  is  possible,  they  axe 
only  like  airy  things  that  pass  away  like  the  breath,  or  like  forms  in 
the  air,  which  perish  :  and  that  they  first  remain  with  man,  and 
become  a  part  of  his  life,  when  man  effectuates  and  does  them.  The 
reason  is,  because  the  ultimate  is  the  complex,  continent,  and  basis  oj 
prior  things.  Faith  is  but  an  airy  form  or  phantasm  separate  from 
good  works,  and  such  also  are  charity  and  faith  without  their  exercise 
Hence  it  may  be  concluded  that  the  whole  of  charity  and  faith  is  in 
works  ;  and  that  charity  and  faith  without  works  are  like  rainbows 


486  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

about  the  sun,  which  vanish  and  are  dissipated  by  a  cloud  :  wherefore 
works  are  so  often  mentioned  in  the  Word,  and  it  is  said  we  are  to  do 
them,  and  that  our  salvation  depends  upon  them. 

"It  is  now  to  be  seen  that  all  things  of  the  earth  and  of 
the  world  are  correspondences.  All  things  of  the  earth  are  dis- 
tinguished into  three  kinds,  which  are  called  kingdoms,  namely 
the  animal  kingdom,  the  vegetable  kingdom,  and  the  mineral 
kingdom.  Those  things  which  are  in  the  animal  kingdom  are 
correspondences  in  the  first  degree,  because  they  live  ;  those  which 
are  in  the  vegetable  kingdom  are  correspondences  in  the  second 
decree,  because  they  only  grow ;  those  which  are  in  the  mineral 
kingdom  are  correspondences  in  the  third  degree,  because  they 
do  but  accrete.*  The  correspondences  in  the  animal  kingdom 
are  living  creatures  of  various  kinds,  both  those  which  walk  and 
creep  upon  the  earth,  and  those  which  fly  in  the  air. 

"  But  what  the  correspondence  of  spiritual  things  with  natural 
is  may  be  illustrated  by  examples.  The  animals  of  earth  corres- 
pond to  affections— the  gentle  and  useful  to  good  affections,  the 
fierce  and  useless  to  evil  affections.  Specifically,  cows  and  oxen 
correspond  to  the  affections  of  the  natural  mind;  sheep  and 
lambs  to  the  affections  of  the  spiritual  mind  ;  but  the  winged 
animals,  according  to  their  species,  correspond  to  the  intellectual 
things  of  each  mind.  Hence  it  is  that  various  animals,  and  also 
pigeons  and  doves,  in  the  Israelitish  Church,  which  was  a  repre- 
sentative church,  were  applied  to  holy  uses,  and  from  them  were 
made  sacrifices  and  burnt  offerings  ;  for  they  corresponded  to 
spiritual  things,  which  were  understood  in  heaven  according  to 
correspondences.  The  reason  why  animals,  according  to  their 
kinds  and  species,  are  affections,  is  because  they  live,  and 
everything  has  life  from  no  other  source  than  from  affection,  and 
according  to  it ;  hence  every  animal  has  innate  knowledge 
according  to  the  affections  of  its  life.  Man,  also,  is  similar  to 
them  as  to  his  natural  man,  and  therefore  is  compared  to  them 
in  common  discourse — as,  if  gentle,  he  is  called  a  lamb  ;  if  fierce, 
a  bear  or  a  wolf  ;  if  cunning,  a  fox  or  a  serpent,  and  so  forth. 

"  There  is  a  similar  correspondence  with  the  things  of  the 
vegetable     kingdom.       A    garden    in    general,  corresponds    to 

*  It  has  been  said  of  spirit  that  it  sleeps  in  the  mineral,  breathes 
in  the  vegetable,  dreams  in  the  animal— and  awakens  in  man. 


swedenborg's  "doctrine  of  correspondences."  487 

heaven  in  relation  to  its  intelligence  and  wisdom  ;  wherefore 
heaven  is  called  the  garden  of  God  and  Paradise.  Trees,  accord- 
ing to  their  species,  correspond  to  the  perceptions  and  knowledge 
of  good  and  truth,  from  which  are  derived  intelligence  and 
wisdom.  Hence  it  is  that  in  the  Word  trees  are  so  often  named, 
and  heaven  and  the  church  and  man  are  compared  to  them,  as 
to  the  vine,  the  olive,  the  cedar,  and  others  ;  and  the  good  works 
which  they  do  are  compared  to  fruits.  The  food  also,  which  is 
from  them,  especially  that  which  is  from  seed  raised  in  fields, 
corresponds  to  the  affections  of  good  and  truth,  hecause  these 
nourish  spiritual  life  ;  and  hence  bread  in  general  corresponds  to 
the  affections  of  all  good,  because  that,  more  than  the  rest, 
sustains  life,  and  also  because  by  bread  is  meant  all  food.  On 
account  of  this  correspondence,  also,  the  Lord  calls  Himself  the 
Bread  of  Life,  and  for  this  reason  bread  was  in  holy  use  in  the 
Israelitish  Church,  and  set  upon  the  table  in  the  tabernacle.  On 
account  of  that  correspondence,  also,  the  holiest  thing  of  Chris- 
tian worship  is  the  Holy  Supper,  in  which  there  is  given  bread 
and  wine. 

"  As  all  things  which  are  according  to  Divine  Order  correspond 
to  heaven,  so  all  things  which  are  contrary  to  Divine  Order  cor- 
respond to  hell.  The  things  which  correspond  to  heaven  have 
all  reference  to  good  and  truth ;  those  which  correspond  to  hell 
to  evil  and  falsity. 

"It  was  said  above  that  the  spiritual  world,  which  is  heaven, 
is  conjoined  to  the  natural  world  by  correspondences ;  hence  by 
means  of  correspondence  there  is  communication  with  heaven. 

If   man  were  acquainted  with  correspondence  he 

would  understand  the  Word  as  to  its  spiritual  sense,  and  thence 
it  would  be  given  him  to  know  Arcana,  nothing  of  which  he  sees 
in  the  sense  of  the  letter.  For  in  the  Word  there  is  a  literal 
sense  and  there  is  a  spiritual  sense.  The  literal  sense  consists  of 
such  things  as  are  in  the  world,  but  the  spiritual,  of  such 
things  as  are  in  heaven  ;  and  because  the  conjunction  of  heaven 
with  the  world  is  by  correspondences,  therefore  such  a  Word  has 
been  given  that  everything  in  it,  even  to  an  iota,  corresponds. 

"  The  Word  was  so  given  to  unite  heaven  and  earth,  or  angels 
with  men ;  it  is  therefore  written,  that  by  the  angels  it  may  be 
understood  spiritually  ;  while  by  man  it  is  understood  naturally  ; 
and  so  a  holy  feeling  may  flow  in  through  the  angels  by  which 


488  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

union  is  effected.  Such  is  the  Word,  both  in  the  historical  parts 
and  in  the  prophetical ;  but  the  internal  sense  appears  less  in  the 
historical  than  in  the  prophetical  parts,  because  the  historical 
parts  are  written  in  a  different  style  ;  but  tbe  expressions,  never- 
theless, are  all  significative.  The  historical  parts  were  given 
that  tbose  who  are  but  little  children  in  growth  of  knowledge, 
may  by  these  be  led  to  the  reading  of  the  Word ;  for  the  his- 
torical things  are  delightful  to  them,  and  become  fixed  in  their 
minds.  Such,  for  instance,  are  the  accounts  of  paradise,  of  the 
first  man,  of  the  tree  of  life  in  the  midst,  and  of  the  tree  of 
science,  where  was  the  serpent  that  deceived.  These  are  know- 
ledges that  contain  in  them  what  is  Divine,  and  admit  into  them 
truths  spiritual  and  celestial,  because  they  represent  these  truths. 
Such  knowledges  are  also  contained  in  the  other  historical  parts 
of  tbe  Word — as  in  what  is  said  of  the  tabernacle  and  of  the 
temple,  and  of  the  construction  of  each. 

"  The  most  ancient  manner  of  writing  was  that  of  representing 
things  by  persons,  and  by  words,  by  which  was  understood  some- 
thing altogether  different  from  what  was  expressed.  In  such 
manner,  indeed,  that  nothing  was  literally  true  just  as  it  was 
written,  but  under  these  narratives  something  allegorical  was 
understood.  Thus  they  set  forth  the  various  affections  under  the 
forms  of  gods  and  goddesses,  to  which  the  heathen  nations 
afterwards  instituted  Divine  worship ;  which  may  be  known  to 
every  scholar,  since  such  ancient  books  are  still  extant.  This 
method  of  writing  they  derived  from  the  most  ancient  people, 
who  lived  before  the  flood,  and  who  represented  to  themselves 
things  heavenly  and  Divine,  by  such  as  are  visible  on  the  earth 
and  in  the  world,  and  thus  filled  their  minds  and  souls  with 
joyous  and  delightful  perceptions.  The  most  ancient  people,  as 
they  had  communication  with  spirits  and  angels,  had  no  other 
speech  than  this,  which  was  full  of  representatives,  and  hi  every 
expression  of  which  there  was  a  Spiritual  sense.  .  .  .  Hence 
it  may  appear  how  far  man  afterwards  removed  himself  from 
heaven :  when,  at  this  day,  he  does  not  even  know  that  there  is 
in  the  Word  anything  else  than  what  appears  in  the  letter,  not 
even  that  there  is  a  spiritual  sense  ;  and  whatever  is  mentioned 
beyond  the  sense  of  the  letter  is  called  mystical,  and  rejected 
on  that  account.  Hence  also  it  is  that  communication  with 
heaven  is  at  this  day  intercepted,  insomuch  that  few  believe 


THE  SECRET  AND   MYSTERY  OF  THE   CHRIST.     489 

there  is  any  heaven,  and,  what  is  surprising,  much  fewer  amongst 
the  learned  and  erudite  than  amongst  the  simple." 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  Swedenborg,  of  all  men, 
understood  and  applied  the  declaration  of  St.  Paul, 
that  "  the  letter  killeth,  but  the  Spirit  glveth  life.'''' 
He  first  sought  the  Spirit  of  Truth  with  all  his  heart 
and  Soul,  and  was  in  due  time  rewarded  for  his  earnest 
search  by  receiving,  what  he  calls,  "  a  full  revelation  of 
the  Lord,"  and  "  the  opening  of  his  internal  sight  or 
spiritual  understanding." 

But  this  statement,  which  may  perhaps  be  difficult 
to  understand  by  those  who  have  not  studied  his 
writings  for  themselves,  we  shall  be  better  able  to  explain 
in  our  Work  on  the  New  Dispensation,  which  is  now 
near  at  hand,  and  for  which  the  writings  of  Swedenborg 
have  done  so  much,  under  God's  providence,  to  prepare 
the  way,  as  the  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  ivilderness 
prepared  the  way  for  the  coming  of  the  Lord  at  the 
commencement  of  the  Dispensation  now  closing. 

It  will  then  be  seen  that  the  whole  interior  sense, 
and  also  the  reason  for  sacred  or  secret  writings, 
ultimately  turns  on  One  Pivot,  which  assertion  may  be 
summed  up  in  the  declaration  of  Swedenborg  as  to 
his  having  received  a  full  revelation  of  the  Lord,  and 
that  its  allegorical  style  was  adopted  throughout  as  the 
means  to  contain,  whilst  at  the  same  time  it  served  to 
conceal,  this  Divine  Arcanum — viz.,  the  Secret  of  the 
Christ  or  Saviour. 

Paul  alludes  to  this  secrecy,  in  his  Epistle  to  the 
Ephesians  iii.  5,  9,  as  "  The  mystery  of  Christ  which  in 


490  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

other  ages  was  not  made  known  to  the  sons  of  men,  as 
it  is  now  revealed  unto  his  holy  apostles,"  &c,  and 
speaks  of  "  the  fellowship  of  the  mystery,  which  from 
the  beginning  of  the  world  hath  been  hid  in  God."  and 
again  of  "  the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  according  to 
the  mystery  which  was  kept  secret  since  the  world 
began"  (Romans  xvi.  25).  "Praying  that  utterance 
may  be  given  unto  me  that  I  may  open  my  mouth 
boldly  to  make  known  the  mystery  of  the  gospel " 
(Epb.  vi.  19).  "To  fulfil  the  Word  of  God  ;  even  the 
mystery  which  hath  been  hid  from  ages  and  from  gene- 
rations but  now  is  made  manifest  to  his  saints  "  (Col.  i. 
26). 

It  may  well  be  conceived  how  puerile  and  far  from 
the  mark  appears  the  recent  controversy  on  "  Genesis," 
in  the  pages  of  the  Nineteenth  Century  Magazine, 
between  Mr.  Gladstone  and  Professors  Huxley,  Reville, 
Max  Miiller,  and  Drummond,  to  those  who  have  really 
received  this  revelation  of  the  Lord  in  themselves ;  and 
even  to  those  who  are  at  all  aware  of  the  Hermetic 
Science,  and  the  mysterious  language  universally 
adopted  by  all  so-called  Alchemists  to  disguise  their 
search  for  the  Philosopher's  Stone,  and  Hermetically 
seal  up  the  secret  at  a  time  when  the  Church  was  all- 
powerful  ;  and  its  whole  power  was  brought  to  bear  for 
the  utter  extermination  of  those  who  were  believed  to 
be  earnest  seekers  for  the  truth,  which  they  were 
consequently  obliged  to  disguise  under  the  name  of 
Gold,  and  Precious  Stones,  thus  in  their  turn  making 
use  of  allegorical  expressions  to  conceal,  whilst  at  the 


THE   NINETEENTH   CENTURY   MAGAZINE.  491 

same  time  they  endeavoured  to  impart  the    truth  to 
their  fellow-seekers. 

Surely  the  distinguished  writers  of  the  articles  in 
question  are  not  even  Modern  Masons,  for  any  Entered 
Apprentice  would  have  known  more  of  the  Secrets  of 
the  Craft  than  to  take  these  writings  in  the  literal 
sense  of  the  Letter  that  killeth,  as  they  have  each  and 
all  done  whether  believers  or  unbelievers  in  Revelation ; 
not  one  of  them  appearing  in  the  least  aware  of  the 
Spiritual  character  of  the  Book  they  have  criticised  as 
a  mere  record  of  things  physical  and  historical,  without 
forming  even  a  dim  conception  of  the  great  vital  truths 
concealed  therein  from  the  vulgar  gaze,  or  suspecting 
that  in  that  Arcane  history  there  are  depths  which  they 
have  not  sounded  and  cannot  sound,  since  they  have 
passed  on  without  even  perceiving  them. 

All  #%  Masons  know  that  the  sacred  veil  of  allegory 
has  been  drawn  to  conceal  that  which  is  holy  from  the 
common  gaze :  "  Give  not  that  which  is  Holy  to  the 
Cowans"  (Dogs)  was  from  the  beginning  the  maxim 
of  the  wise  and  pure ;  as  may  be  seen  from  the  third 
chapter  of  Genesis,  the  oldest  writing  in  the  world, 
whose  interpretation  belongs  to  a  transcendental 
masonry,  beyond  even  the  33rd  Degree.  "  When  I 
find,"  says  Godfrey  Higgins,  "  learned  men  believing 
Genesis  literally,  which  the  ancients,  with  all  their 
failings,  had  too  much  sense  to  receive  except  alle- 
gorically,  I  am  tempted  to  doubt  the  reality  of  the 
improvement  of  the  human  mind." 

All  these  Bible  myths  (some  of  them  no  doubt  based 


492  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHT. 

on  historical  facts),  figure  the  truth  that  man's  higher 
self,  which  is  a  direct  emanation  of  the  Divine  prin- 
ciple, attracted  by  his  lower  or  material  nature,  falls  a 
prey  to  it.  The  great  Hebrew  doctor,  Rabbi  Mai- 
monedes,  gives  a  fixed  rule  for  the  interpretation  of  the 
Hieratic,  i.e.,  Sacred  books,  which  should  never  be  for- 
gotten by  commentators.  He  says :  "  Every  time  you 
find  in  our  books  a  tale,  the  reality  of  which  seems 
impossible,  a  story  which  is  repugnant  both  to  reason 
and  common  sense,  then  be  sure  that  tale  contains  a 
profound  allegory  veiling  a  deeply  mysterious  truth ; 
and  the  greater  the  absurdity  of  the  letter  the  deeper 
the  wisdom  of  the  Spirit."  This  is  the  key  to  both 
Bible  and  Talmud. 

But  Maimonedes  also  said :  "  Whoever  shall  discover 
the  true  meaning  of  the  six  days  of  Creation,  and 
of  the  first  chapters  of  Genesis,  shall  be  careful  not 
to  divulge  it,  or  raise  the  allegorical  veil  which  con- 
ceals the  Sacred  Truth  from  the  profane  gaze  of  those 
who  are  not  prepared  to  receive  it."  And  if  we  are 
now,  to  a  certain  extent,  acting  contrary  to  this  wise 
injunction,  it  is  that  the  Word  has  gone  forth,  the  time 
for  making  known  has  come.  The  Time,  Times,  and 
Half-A-Time,  for  which  the  Prophet  was  ordered  "to 
close  the  book  and  seal  the  sayings,"  must  be  nearly, 
if  not  quite,  completed  ;  for  the  seals  have  already  been 
removed  for  very  many.  The  signs  of  the  times  are 
also  confirmative  of  the  Advent  of  the  New  Dispen- 
sation. The  message  to  Daniel  was  :  "  But  thou,  0 
Daniel,  shut  up  the  words  and  seal  the  book,  even  to 


THE  TIME  FOR   MAKING  KNOWN  HAS   COME.      493 

the  time  of  the  end :  many  shall  run  to  and  fro,  and 
knowledge  shall  be  increased.^  Thus  with  interior 
revelation,  and  exterior  confirmation,  we  who  have  re- 
ceived the  mission  begin  to  see  it  opening  out  before 
us  day  by  day,  and  to  comprehend  the  Command  laid 
upon  us  by  the  Divine  Love  and  Wisdom,  which  is  to 
unseal  and  open  that  which  the  Prophet  had  been 
commanded  to  close  and  seal ! 


Since  writing  the  above  and  correcting  it  in  print,  we  have  had 
the  pleasure  of  seeing  that  the  recent  controversy  in  the  Nine- 
teenth Century  Magazine  to  which  we  have  alluded  has  at  least 
had  one  good  effect,  that  of  eliciting  more  satisfactory  treatment 
of  this  important  subject  from  one  who  is  well  versed  in  Hermetic 
Science,  and  who  consequently  possesses  a  profound  knowledge 
of  the  Esoteric,  or  underlying  truth. 

In  a  lecture  recently  delivered  at  one  of  the  meetings  of  the 
Hermetic  Society,  the  Hon.  Sec,  Mr.  Edward  Maitland,  read  a 
paper  concerning  Genesis,  taking  for  his  motto  the  sentence  of 
Paul — "Even  unto  this  day  when  Moses  is  read,  the  veil  is  upon 
their  hearts."  We  are  happy  to  be  able  to  give  a  concise  idea  of 
some  of  the  principal  points  of  this  lecture,  as  they  will  form  a 
valuable  completion  to  this  chapter. 

"Foremost  among  the  quarters  from  which  to  determine  the 
method  of  Scripture,  are  (1)  the  Bible  itself  ;  (2)  the  concensus  of 
competent  and  accredited  expositors  ;  and  (3)  the  argument  from 
the  nature  of  the  case.  The  first  includes  the  numerous  exhorta- 
t  ions  on  behalf  of  a  "  spirit  of  understanding  "  as  essential  to  the 
comprehension  of  Scripture,  and  warnings  against  neglecting  to 
seek  such  spirit ; — both  of  which  are  unaccountable  if  the  letter 
itself  be  the  truth  and  the  meaning  obvious.  There  are  also 
numerous  declarations  by,  among  others,  Christ  and  Paul,  assert- 
ing its  allegorical  and  mystical  character  and  reprobating  the 
acceptance  of  the  letter  that  kills  instead  of  the  spirit  which 
gives  life. 

"  Similarly  with  the  most  intelligent  of  the  Christian  Fathers, 


494  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

and  notably  all  those  of  the  second  century ;  with  the  great  Jew- 
ish commentators,  and  with  that  famous  compendium  of  HebreAV 
transcendentalism  the  Kabbala ;  as  also  with  numerous  later 
writers  of  high  authority,  such  as  Dr.  Everard,  the  translator  in 
the  seventeenth  century  of  the  chief  Hermetic  books;  and 
Emmanuel   Swedenborg. 

"  The  reasons  from  the  nature  of  the  case  why  the  literal  sense 
of  Scripture  cannot  be  the  true  one,  are,  (1)  because  religion, 
with  which  alone  a  Bible  is  properly  concerned,  is,  in  virtue  of  its 
interior  and  spiritual  character,  addressed,  not  to  the  senses,  but  to 
the  soul,  and  to  affect  this  it  must  be  one  in  nature  with  the  soul. 
And  (2)  because  that  which  is  the  object  of  religion,  namely, 
man's  salvation  from  the  limitations  of  materiality,  cannot  be 
effected  either  by  aught  that,  occurring  on  the  physical  plane,  is 
itself  material ;  or  by  aught  extraneous  to  himself ;  but  only 
by  a  process  wholly  spiritual  and  occurring  within  himself. 

"  It  is  true  that  many  men  of  learning  and  piety — including 
the  late  Dr.  Pusey — have  denounced  as  '  impious '  the  practice  of 
what  they  call  the  '  wresting  Scripture  from  its  obvious  meaning.' 
But,  as  has  just  been  shown,  this  denunciation  includes  not  only 
the  chief  Christian  Fathers  and  Jewish  Commentators,  but  Christ 
and  Paul.  The  fact  is  that,  in  their  use  of  the  term,  '  obvious,' 
the  literalists  beg  the  whole  question.  For  the  question  is :  To 
what  faculty  is  it  obvious,  to  the  outer  or  the  inner  perception  ? 
and  to  which  of  those  faculties  does  the  apprehension  of  spiritual 
things  belong?  Nothing,  certainly,  can  be  more  'obvious'  than 
the  '  impiety '  of  setting  aside  the  account  which  Holy  Writ  gives 
of  itself,  and  ascribing  to  it  falsehood,  folly,  or  immorality  on  the 
strength  of  outward  appearance,  such  as  is  the  letter.  While,  to 
mystical  apprehension,  it  is  no  less  '  obvious '  that  the  literal  sense 
cannot  be  the  one  intended. 

"  The  first  result  of  the  application  of  the  'Proem  to  Genesis' — 
to  borrow  Mr.  Gladstone's  term — of  the  mystical  canon  of  inter- 
pretation, is  the  discovery  that  it  is  not  a  proem  at  all  in  the 
strict  sense,  namely,  that  in  which  the  term  implies  something 
which  can,  without  mutilation  of  the  book,  be  detached  from  it 
and  relegated  to  the  position  of  introduction  or  preface.  For  thus 
tested,  it  proves  to  be  an  integral  part  of  the  book,  its  indis- 
pensable first  chapter.  This  is  because  the  '  proem '  represents 
in  brief  outline  the  whole  series  of  the  evolutionary  processes 


HERMETIC   SCIENCE  IS   ESOTERIC   TRUTH.  495 

which  afterwards  are  described  with  ever  increasing  elaboration 
and  complexity.  It  is  the  starting  point  and  initial  round  of 
an  upward  pointing  spiral,  which,  as  it  ascends,  expands  into 
continually  widening  circles  and,  nevertheless,  contains  the  whole 
in  itself,  as  the  seed  contains  the  plant. 

"The  supreme  theme  of  the  Bible  from  Genesis  to  the 
Apocalypse — a  theme  told  over  and  over  again  upon  this  ever 
ascending  level,  in  a  series  of  allegorical  presentations — is  the 
regeneration  of  man  by  Involutional  Evolution.  It  is,  in  other 
words,  the  Genesis  and  consummation  of  the  '  Church  of  Christ ' 
at  once  individual  and  collective  ;  the  term  church  implying  no 
particular  ecclesiastical  organism  of  body  of  believers,  but  the 
entire  order  of  genuine  seekers  after  spiritual  perfection,  what- 
ever the  name  or  form  of  their  faith,  and  whenever  or  wherever 
subsisting,  whether  on  earth  or  in  heaven.  Of  these,  and  of  these 
only,  does  the  true  '  Israel '  or  '  Church  of  Christ '  consist ;  and 
it  is  of  the  Church  that  the  Bible,  from  the  very  first  verse  of 
Genesis,  treats ;  the  exhibition  of  the  elaboration  of  the  physical 
cosmos  being,  at  most,  but  a  secondary  and  subordinate  object. 

"  On  the  plane  with  which  we  are  concerned — the  subjective 
plane — the  'proem'  deals  with  the  creation  of  man  considered  as 
an  individuation  of  consciousness,  and  therein  with  his  regenera- 
tion or  '  redemption.'  Not  of  the  first,  or  any  particular  man,  but 
of  every  man,  from  the  first  dawn  in  him  of  reason  to  his  final 
completion  in  the  Divine  image.  And  the  several  '  days '  of  this 
creation  denote  the  various  stages  or  stations  of  the  process,  the 
nature  and  number  of  which  are  according  to  the  principles  or 
potencies  instrumental  in  their  accomplishment. 

"  These  principles  or  potencies  are  those  which  in  the  Bible?  the 
Kabala,  and  the  Hermetic  books,  are  styled  variously  Elohim, 
Sephiroth,  the  Seven  Spirits  of  God,  Gods  and  Archangels.  They 
are  not  the  Persons  of  the  Trinity,  as  suggested  by  Mr.  Gladstone 
and  others ;  nor  are  they  celestial  beings  before  whom  this  Deity 
is  displaying  His  energies,  and  whom  He  invites  to  co-operate  in 
His  latest  and  greatest  work,  as  suggested  by  Professor  Re'ville. 
Nor,  again,  is  the  plural  term  employed  but  as  an  instance  of  the 
style  royal,  as  also  suggested  by  him. 

"  These  guesses  are  the  result  of  the  vicious  practice,  long  and 
widely  prevalent,  of  trying  to  get  at  the  meaning  of  Scripture  by 
the  letter  alone,  and  without  reference  to  the  system  of  thought 


496  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

which  underlies  and  controls  Scripture — the  system  called  Her- 
metic and  Kabalistic,  and  constituting  the  Gnosis.  According  to 
this  system  the  Seven  Elohim  in  question  are  the  Divine  Energies 
themselves,  and  represent  the  dynamic  or  active  mode  of  Deity,  as 
the  Trinity  represents  the  static  or  passive  mode.  The  idea  is  that 
of  a  differentiation  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  in  its  procession  from  the 
Godhead,  into  seven  Spirits,  by  a  process  corresponding  to  that 
whereby  light  becomes  distributed  into  seven  rays  in  its  emergence 
from  the  prism,  these  seven  spirits  are  held  to  comprise  all  divine 
potencies,  and  only  through  them  does  Deity  operate.  They  it  is 
who,  'moving  upon  the  face  of  the  waters'  or  substance  of 
creation,  say  '  Let  there  be  Light ' ;  and  they  also  who  say  '  Let 
us  make  man  in  our  image ' ;  and  who,  accordingly,  make  him 
'  in  the  image,  of  God,  male  and  female '  •  since  being  God,  God's 
image  is  theirs,  and  as  the  prototype  of  humanity,  that  image  is, 
like  humanity,  dual.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that,  besides  the 
generations  of  the  visible  world,  and  of  the  Church  of  Christ 
individual  and  collective,  the  '  proem '  exhibits  also  the  generation 
of  the  Gods.*  Tbis  last  occurs  by  emanation,  which  is  the 
necessary  antecedent  to  evolution ;  this  being  conceivable  only  as 
representing  a  reversion  to  an  originally  higher  condition,  since 
nothing  can  rise  above  its  own  level. 

"  On  the  plane  on  which  we  are  dealing,  therefore,  the  seven 
days  of  creation  denote  the  seven  stages  of  regeneration  whereby 
the  '  seven  spirits  of  God '  build  up  man  in  the  Divine  image,  each 
stage  corresponding  to  one  of  tbe  'seven  planets,'  of  which, 
respectively,  these  spirits  are  regarded  as  the  presiding  angels; 
tbe  seventh — or  Sabbath  of  rest  and  perfection — being  that 
wherein  all  these  rays  converge  to  form  the  Spiritual  Sun  of  his 
system.  By  the  attainment  of  this  stage  the  man  completes  the 
'planetary  chain'  within  himself,  having  passed  from  without 
inwards,  or  from  below  upwards,  from  the  condition  of  mental 
vacuity  and  obscurity,  in  which  he  is  'waste  and  void,  and  covered 
with  darkness' — the  angel  of  which  is  variously  called  Orifiel, 
Chronos,  and  Saturn, — through  all  intermediate  stations,  to  the 
sun  and  centre,  the  kingdom  of  Uriel  and  Phoebus,  the  first  of  the 
gods,  whose  throne  is  in  the  midst  of  the  heavens  of  the  man's  own 
system.     Henceforth  for  him  there  is,  as  said  in  the  Apocalypse, 

*  See  appendix  on  the  Sephiroth. 


the  SOLAE  MYTH  a  spiritual  truth.     497 

'  No  night,  for  the  Lord  God  giveth  him  light.'  The  Elohim  of 
God  are  his  own  spirits.  He  has  the  universe  in  himself  and  the 
thrones  of  all  the  gods  are  in  his  temple.  For  the  Macrocosm  has 
epitomised  itself  in  the  Microcosm.  Made  in  the  image  of  God, 
the  man  is  a  manifestation  of  God. 

"  The  doctrine  of  a  multiplicity  of  earth-lives  is  involved  in 
the  system  of  thought  concerned,  seeing  that  the  stupendous  work 
of  building  up  a  man  in  the  Divine  image  requires  a  correspond- 
ing period  for  its  accomplishment.  The  term  'Regeneration' 
epitomises  and  resumes  all  holy  writ,  Biblical  and  mythological, 
and  the  real  and  true,  because  mystical  and  spiritual,  theme  of 
that  crux  of  scholars  the  '  Solar  Myth,'  is  not  the  physical  sun, 
but  its  counterpart  the  spiritual  sun  of  the  microcosm,  man,  dis- 
closed to  him — under  the  enlightening  influence  of  the  Angel  Anael 
or  Venus  ;  for  love  is  always  the  revealer — on  the  '  fourth  day '  of 
his  spiritual  creation,  and  finally  substantialised  in  and  made  one 
with  him  when  his  '  warfare '  with  materiality  '  is  accomplished.' 
The  creation  of  man  thus  regenerate  is  the  true  subject  alike  of 
the  '  proem  to  Genesis,'  and  of  that  '  Bible  written  on  the  stars,' 
the  planisphere  of  the  Zodiac,  the  twelve  signs  of  which,  in  their 
inmost  significance  denote  the  mystical  '  twelve  labours '  of  the 
Heraclean  soul — soul  of  the  resolute  seeker  after  God, — on  its 
way  to  its  final  perfection.  To  read  the  riddles  of  the  ancients, 
we  must  plough  with  their  heifer  the  spiritual  consciousness. 

"  Doing  this  with  the  Book  of  Genesis,  and  to  Intellect  adding 
Intuition,  so  far  from  regarding  it  with  Professor  Drummond  as 
but  a  presentation  of  one  or  two  great  elementary  truths  to  the 
childhood  of  the  world,  and  for  children  by  children,  we  shall 
regard  it  as  embodying  the  results  of  the  profoimdest  wisdom, 
and  as  written  by  initiates  for  initiates. 

"  In  the  recognition  and  acceptance  of  this  method  of  intepret- 
ing  Scripture  lies  the  one  hope  for  the  rehabilitation  of  religion 
and  its  reconciliation  with  science.  For  by  exchanging  the  cur- 
rent materialistic,  and  therein  idolatrous,  presentation  of  Divine 
things  for  their  spiritual  and  true  one,  religion  will  be  at  once 
emancipated  from  the  bondage  of  the  letter  and  the  form,  and 
lifted  to  a  level  inaccessible  alike  to  the  assaults  of  scepticism 
and  the  fluctuations  of  opinion,  remaining  meanwhile  eternally 
verifiable  by,  and  satisfying  the  highest  aspirations  of,  that  to 
which  alone  it  is  addressed,  the  human  soul." 

KK 


499 


CHAPTER  XII. 

Conclusion. 

rTlHE  knowledge  or  revelation  of  God  comes  to  the 
-*■  world  in  cycles  or  waves,  and  old  systems  of 
Religion  recede  as  the  new  advance.  Down  the  river 
of  time  float  systems  upon  systems,  the  new  becoming 
merged  with  the  old  that  it  is  at  times  difficult  to 
distinguish  one  Theosophy  from  another,  as  mystic 
thought  has  but  rarely  precise  demarcations. 

Even  the  Sacred  Writings  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians 
quote  "  the  Ancients  "  with  veneration ;  proving  that  a 
primitive  Theosophy  existed  in  pre-historic  times,  to 
which  the  ethnic  system  of  the  Egyptians  was  indebted ; 
while  Brahminism,  possibly  an  unrecognised  branch  of 
Ancient  Egyptian  Theosophy,  may  be  cited  as  another 
representative  of  that  system  of  the  primitive  Wisdom- 
Religion.  Later  on  Buddhism  was  planted  on  the 
ground  of  Brahminism  similarly  as  the  Theosophy  of 
the  Tao-Sse  was  engrafted  upon  a  more  ancient  Esoteric 
tradition,  whereof  the  Yih-King  is  the  sole  remaining 
exponent.  Thus  also  is  the  Avesta  indebted  to  the 
Vedas;  the  Kabbala  has  borrowed  from  the  Avesta, 
Platonism  and  Kabbalism  are  nearly  related,  and  Christi- 
anity cannot  deny  its  mystic  and  Esoteric  origin. 

It  would  be  a  curious  historical  study  to  trace  how 


500  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

the  waves  of  Materialism  and  Mysticism  alternately 
pass  over  the  minds  of  mankind.  Now  the  Materialists 
seem  to  have  it  all  their  own  way ;  but  hardly  is  their 
last  theory  enounced  than  it  is  overthrown  by  the  facts 
of  Mysticism,  and  a  wave  of  mystic  thought  comes  and 
sweeps  away  the  dogmas  of  Materialism,  and  with  them 
many  an  hitherto  sceptical  mind. 

When  the  mystical  degenerates  to  mere  irrational 
emotionalism  and  fraudulent  obscurantism,  then  Scep- 
ticism is  a  healthy  reaction ;  but  when  Scepticism 
abuts  in  Atheism,  Materialism,  and  Anarchy,  Mysti- 
cism becomes  a  natural  revolt  of  the  Soul  against  the 
crushing  darkness  and  ignorance  of  all  things  spiritual 
that  arrogant  pseudo-scientists  would  dogmatically 
enforce. 

The  unity  in  the  variety  of  Theosophic  ideals  may 
have  been  intuit ionally  apprehended  by  advanced  think- 
ers, who  are  neither  Theosophists  nor  Initiates,  and  who 
approach  the  subject  only  from  the  plane  of  comparative 
religion. 

James  Freeman  Clarke,  in  his  "  Comparison  of  all 
Religions"  p.  60,  advances  the  theory  that  "each 
religion  has  a  type  of  its  own  to  which  it  adheres  during 
its  whole  growth  and  development." 

"In  every  faith  there  is  something  transient,  and  something 
permanent :  something  essential  and  much  that  is  accidental. 
But,  in  order  to  compare  two  or  more  systems  of  religion,  it  is 
necessary  to  be  able  to  distinguish  that  which  is  essential  from 

that  which  is  non-essential The  rule  which  may  be  laid 

down  for  determining  the  typical  character  of  each  religion  can 


TYPES  OF  ALL  RELIGIONS.  501 

be  thus  stated : — Whatever  marks  are  found  in  the  system  at  its 
origin,  and  which  continue  with  it  through  all  its  changes,  may  be 
regarded  as  belonging  to  its  idea,  and  as  part  of  its  essence."  *.  .  .  . 

The  Author  then  sums  up  these  types  as  follows : — 

"  Brahminism  is  faith  in  Spirit  as  the  only  substance — a  sub- 
stance which  gives  unity  to  all  phenomena. 

"  The  faith  of  Ancient  Egypt  was  at  the  opposite  pole  of 
thought.  It  saw  the  Divine  in  variety,  not  in  unity ;  in  body, 
not  spirit ;  in  form,  not  substance. 

"  The  Scandinavian  religion  saw  the  Divine  in  nature,  appearing 
as  force,  making  life  a  battle,  and  placing  morality  in  self-reliance- 

"  The  antagonist  system  to  this  was  that  of  Greece,  which  saw 
the  Divine  manifested,  not  in  nature  but  in  man,  having  its  essence 
in  the  beautiful,  and  its  morality  in  the  natural  human  develop- 
ment. The  system  of  Zoroaster  was  the  worship  of  free-will  in 
the  Creator  and  the  created,  and  its  morality  consisted  in  the  free 
struggle  of  right  with  wrong,  inspired  by  the  hope  of  an  ultimate 
triumph  of  good  over  evil. 

"  I  find  the  opposite  pole  to  this  in  the  system  of  Mohammed. 
Islam  means  the  worship  of  one  God  as  Supreme  Will,  whose  law 
is  fate,  and  whose  service  is  submission. 

"  Buddhism  is  the  deification  of  the  human  soul,  saved  by 
knowledge  of  the  laws  of  nature.  Buddhism  makes  morality  con- 
sist in  progress,  by  obedience  to  natural  law  as  revealed  by  Buddha. 

"The  religion  of  Confucius  is  reverence  for  the  past,  and  his 
morality  is  conformity  to  the  highest  properties  and  persons  as 
established  by  superior  persons. 

"The  essence  of  Judaism  is  the  worship  of  one  Supreme 
Spiritual  Being,  the  Maker  and  Lord  of  all  things.  Its  morality 
is  obedience  to  His  Law,  which  consists  in  loving  and  serving  God 
and  man." 

The  variety  of  religious  views  explains  itself  both 
anthropologically  and  theosophically.  The  type,  as  a 
combination  of  the  individual  and  ethnic  mind,  is  the 

*  "  This  corresponds  to  the  famous  definition  of  Catholic  Unity 
by  Vincentius  Liriuensis:  quod  ubique,  quod  semper,  quod  ab 
omnibus." 


502  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

sum-total  of  theosophic  knowledge  to  which  a  nation 
has  attained  in  the  capacity  of  its  adepts. 

The  marks  of  distinction  for  theosophic  systems  are 
mostly  Exoteric ;  the  Esoteric  part  remains  unaltered : 
Theosophy  is  One,  even  as  Truth  is  One  and  God  is  One. 

The  manifestation  of  the  Divine  Spirit  was  the  origin 
of  all  true  Keligions,  and,  in  as  far  as  the  human  mind 
was  prepared  to  assimilate  Divine  Spirit-Truth,  was  the 
religions  idea  more  or  less  divine  and  absolute,  or  more 
or  less  demonic  and  erroneous. 

The  knowledge  of  the  identity  of  the  Soul  with  God 
gave  rise  to  anthropomorphic  expressions  about  the 
Deity,  which — although  true  in  their  occult  meaning — 
when  misunderstood,  have  but  served  to  lead  man  away 
from  the  truth. 

When  men  fell  from  Soul-guidance  to  the  culte  of 
spirits,  polytheism,  blood-sacrifices,  idolatory  and  sen- 
sual perversions  were  the  result. 

Ignorance  is  the  necrosy  of  the  Soul ;  and  suffering 
under  this  disease,  men  attributed  Divine  power  to  de- 
mons ;  and  if  all  were  known,  this  insane  idea  would  be 
found  to  have  survived  even  to  this  day. 

We  have  evidence  of  a  pre-historic  Theosophy  in  the 
mystic  myths  that  have  descended  to  us  from  time 
immemorial.  These  allegories,  couched  in  Hermetic 
terms,  have  in  their  spiritual  significance  never  been 
openly  interpreted.  The  Mythographic  Age  is  possibly 
coeval  with  the  full  glory  of  Egyptian  civilization,  and 
points  still  further  back  to  the  Mythologic  age; — the 
age  of  the  gods  and  heroes. 


CYCLIC  WAVES.  503 

Revelation  appears  to  have  followed  the  order  of  the 
planets  as  given  in  the  seven  days  of  the  week,  thus : — 
The  Golden  or  Divine  Age  was  no  doubt  before  the  Fall, 
and  when  men  were  comparatively  Divine  beings.  This 
age,  as  it  is  traditionally  recorded,  was  succeeded  by  a 
Silver  or  Lunar  Age,  reflecting  the  Solar  past,  when  the 
masses  became  more  earthly,  and  Soul-Life  became 
occult,  and  the  Arcanum  of  Initiates.  The  Martial  or 
Iron  Age  then  succeeded,  when  man  degenerated  into  a 
fighting  animal,  and  heroism  became  brute  force.  The 
age  of  Philosophies  may  well  be  designated  as  the  Mer- 
curial, which  in  turn  gave  way  to  the  influence  of  Jove, 
Jahve ;  while  the  essential  characteristic  of  the  Moham- 
medan, save  its  denial  of  the  equality  of  woman,  makes 
it  so  far  from  being  a  masculine  Revelation,  rather  all  the 
more  effeminate ;  and  the  mystics  of  that  system,  resort- 
ing by  preference  of  all  other  to  erotic  symbols,  would 
show  it  to  be  ruled  by  Venus.  The  age  of  Saturn,  the 
slow,  lame  judgment  of  man,  is  even  now  giving  way 
to  a  brighter  future,  and  a  New  Golden  Age  is  dawning. 

Waves  undefined,  and  undefinable,  because  spiritual, 
pass  over  mind  and  planet.  Uncalculated  and  unsus- 
pected cycles  revolve,  and  events  occur  according  to 
occult  law,  which  we  can  only  intuitionally  guess,  but 
never  completely  understand. 

The  waves  indeed  pass,  but  they  leave  deposits  and 
traces,  and  in  a  measure  all  the  past  and  future  is 
stored  in  the  present  of  the  Eternal  Mind.  All  the 
seven  cycles  or  ages  are  even  now  among  us,  and  have 
left  their  representatives  unto  this  day,  and  we  can  find 


504  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

them  all  not  only  in  that  mirror  of  existence — the  Soul, 
but  also  in  the  world  around  us. 

We  can  only  trace  the  most  ancient  manifestations  of 
the  Absolute  in  Myths  and  in  the  Hermetic  language, 
in  which  they  are  embodied.  There  appears  to  have 
been  a  Universal  Eevelation,  prefigured  as  the  Paradisical 
or  Golden  Age,  which  was  succeeded  by  the  ages  of 
Individual  Manifestations  or  Eevelations  to  Individuals. 
Of  Hermes  (if  there  was  a  Hermes,  and  this  term  was 
not  merely  intended  for  the  mystic  Divine  Intelligencer, 
the  Divine  Soul),  we  have  some  miraculously  preserved 
books,  which  however  are  attributed  to  the  Neo-Pla- 
tonists.  Among  all  the  Papyri  not  one  treatise  on 
Egyptian  Philosophy  has  yet  been  unearthed.  Many 
are  there  both  mystical  and  occult,  but  none  written 
manifestly  in  open,  undisguised  terms. 

The  books  of  the  Brahmins,  Buddhists,  Magi,  Sufis, 
&c,  are  now  at  last  accessible  to  us,*  and  afford  many  an 
interesting  study  of  the  various  individual  Eevelations ; 
but  no  single  book,  except  it  be  the  Elements  of  Euclid, 
has  yet  been  found  to  be  one  containing  absolute  truth, 
without  an  alloy  of  error. 

If  it  were  not  for  mathematics,  we  should  have  to 
make  the  hopeless  statement  that  truth  is  only  relative, 
and  absolute  truth  is  unattainable. 

*  And  how  significative  is  this  fact,  of  our  having  reached  the 
time,  times,  and  half-a-time  when  the  Seals  affixed  by  Divine  com- 
mand by  Daniel  should  be  removed,  when  knowledge  should  be 
increased  and  the  Truth  made  known,  that  all  outward  Religions 
serve  to  contain  Esoteric  Revelations  of  the  same  Gospel — and 
that  Buddha  and  Jesus  are  necessary  to  each  other. 


VALUE  OF  PAST  EXPERIENCE.  505 

But,  although  no  other  book  contains  truth  unmixed 
with  error,  the  source  of  all  truth  is  attainable  to  us. 
We  need  not  despair  of  our  inability  to  define  the 
Infinite,  so  long  as  we  know  that  the  Infinite  exists,  that 
it  is  conscious  of  our  existence,  and  cherishes  us  as  parts 
of  its  own  being. 

No  matter  then  whether  we  designate  the  Divine  as 
"  Being  "  or  "  State  "  in  Christian  or  Buddhist  phrase- 
ology, it  must  be  experienced  in  order  to  be  known ; 
and  not  he  who  believes  but  he  who  knows  is  the  true 
Christian  or  Buddhist. 

Not  that  faith  may  be  undervalued  :  "  We  must  know 
in  order  to  believe,  and  we  must  believe  in  order  to 
understand  ; "  but  belief  by  itself  has  no  life,  it  is  merely 
the  first  round  of  the  ladder,  and  there  are  a  great 
number  of  rounds  to  ascend  before  the  Heavens  are 
reached. 

Of  what  use,  it  may  be  objected,  is  it  to  unearth 
these  old  and  forgotten  systems  ?  Our  reply  is,  that  if 
we  are  to  forget  the  experience  of  the  Past,  then  we 
may  at  once  return  to  a  state  of  barbarism,  for  we  are 
only  in  advance  of  the  Ancients  by  what  we  have  gained 
through  their  experience.  The  dead  may  bury  the  dead, 
we  would  not  reanimate  them  ;  we  leave  the  past  and  live 
in  the  present,  but  let  us  not  sink  below  the  knowledge 
of  the  "dead  and  forgotten"  systems.  Neither  may  we 
call  them  dead  which  give  life  to  two-thirds  of  the 
human  race. 

We  have  all  that  the  Ancients  had,  if  we  will  but 
study   and   make   it   ours ;    the   same  fountain   of  all 


506  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

knowledge  is  free  to  us,  yet  we  neglect  it,  and  there 
are  some  who  would  deny  its  very  existence. 

Whoever  wants  Soul-knowledge  must  go  to  his  own 
Soul  for  it.  The  Ancients  cannot  have  been  more 
favoured  than  we ;  if  they  had  Souls,  so  have  we ;  it  is 
only  the  knowledge  that  is  wanting.  "  I  AM  ALL  THAT 
IS,  WAS,  and  SHALL  be"  was  the  inscription  on  the 
Temple  of  Isis,  the  Soul,  "  and  no  mortal  ever  lifted 
my  veil."  No  mortal  truly:  for  he  who  lifts  the  veil 
dividing  the  individual  Spirit  from  the  All-Soul,  by  that 
act  becomes  immortal — as  God.  "  Have  I  not  told  you 
that  ye  are  Gods?  "  What  a  proud  saying,  yet  it  came 
from  the  humblest  of  men,  even  Jesus  the  Son  of  Mary  ! 
But  men  forsake  their  divine  kingdom  and  content 
themselves  either  to  revile,  or  to  ignore  and  deny  the 
possibility  of  the  Christ-State. 

In  the  course  of  our  investigations  of  the  Occult, 
humble  and  insufficient  as  these  may  have  been,  we 
have  arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  words  are  very 
unreal,  but  the  things  they  are  intended  to  represent 
are  the  realities.  Exoteric  Eeligion  is  threshing  the 
straw  of  words  and  neglecting  the  grain  of  the  Spirit, 
that  Esoteric  reality  which  the  words  rather  conceal 
than  convey.  No  matter  therefore  what  we  are  called, 
whether  Hindu,  Buddhist,  Sufi,  Christian,  Kabbalist, 
Theosophist,  or  Spiritualist,  let  us  be  and  let  others 
name  us ;  for  we  seek  not  distinctive  designations. 
Enough  sects  and  names  are  there  among  us,  let 
us  not  increase  their  number.  With  minds  free, 
thoughts  pure,  and  actions  true  to  God  and  humanity, 


REVELATION  OF  REVELATIONS.         507 

no  matter  whether  we  are  called  Christians  or  not, 
let  us  be  Christ-like  and  we  shall  attain  to  lasting 
salvation. 

All  Bibles,  or  so-called  Sacred  Writings,  are  in  Spirit 
derived  from  God,  the  Infinite  Divine  Spirit ;  but  hav- 
ing been  given  by  inspiration,  through  human  spirits, 
both  embodied  and  disembodied,  all  partake  in  a 
measure  of  the  imperfections  of  the  channels  through 
which  they  have  passed. 

Soul-Life  alone  is  Perfection.  All  that  comes  from 
the  astral-spheres  of  the  unregenerate  is  in  part  true 
and  in  part  false,  in  part  good  and  in  part  evil,  in  part 
Divine,  but  more  human.  For  the  Spirit-spheres  are 
but  a  continuation  of  the  imperfect  Life  of  earth,  and  a 
school  to  perfection  but  not  Perfection  itself. 

It  demands  therefore  some  discernment  to  read  theo- 
sophic  writings ;  and  those  written  by  philosophers  and 
logicians  are  preferable  until  the  mind  is  sufficiently 
advanced  to  understand  the  meaning  of  the  more 
intuitional  writer,  commonly  called  inspired,  such  as 
Prophets,  Mystics,  Sufis,  &c. 

A  Divine  Kevelation  or  Manifestation  to  an  individual 
must  also  be  considered  as  pertaining  in  the  first 
instance  to  that  individual  only.  It  may  be  accepted 
as  a  matter  of  creed  by  others,  but  it  is  not  a  Eevela- 
tion  manifested  to  their  own  Soul.  A  Kevelation  is 
generally  in  accordance  with  the  development  of  the 
individual  to  whom  it  is  revealed.  The  Divine  Mani- 
festation is  attainable  by  a  psycho-physical  process,  and 
may  be  absolute   to   the   mind   of  the   recipient,   but 


508  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

cannot  be  accepted  or  even  perceived  by  other  minds 
until  they  enter  upon  the  same  psychic  plane. 

The  view  ever  adapts  itself  to  the  standpoint,  and  a 
Revelation  which  appeared  absolute  from  a  given  stand- 
point is  so  no  more  when  the  standpoint  becomes  more 
exalted.  This  only  proves  the  development  and  growth 
of  the  ideal,  and  the  absolute  necessity  of  successive  and 
continued  Eevelations  from  the  Source  of  sources  from 
which  all  truth  is  derived. 

Ethnic  religions,  national  gods  and  creeds  are  things 
of  the  past.  Religious  Thought  aims  at  Catholicity, 
Universality,  and  Ideality ;  individual  experience  in 
preference  to  mere  belief  in  historical  personages  and 
authorities.  We  still  revere  the  great  teachers  of  the 
past,  but  we  do  not  worship  them.  They  were  human 
like  ourselves,  and  as  divine  as  they  were,  we  could 
and  should  be. 

Buddhism  and  Christianity  are  the  most  notable 
Catholic  systems,  having  a  real  Gnostic  base  whereby 
their  Truth  can  be  tested  by  individual  experience. 
Every  Gnostic  becomes  a  renewer  of  the  system  whereby 
he  attained  his  knowledge.  Christianity  and  Buddhism 
in  their  Esoteric  aspect  alone  are  truly  Catholic,  as  they 
are  based  upon  the  eternal  law  of  re-birth.  They  can 
be  tested  and  will  be  found  true.  The  historical  bases 
serving  merely  as  examples  of  Esoteric  truth.  It  is 
therefore  assumable  that  these  two  systems  have  a 
future  before  them. 

The  Buddhism  we  mean  is  the  doctrine  of  the 
Buddha ;   even  as  true  Christianity  is  the  doctrine  of 


CATHOLICITY.  509 

the  Christ.  This  doctrine  must  ever  be  Catholic,  for  it 
appeals  to  all  humanity.  The  Esoteric  system  of  the 
Tao-Sse,  of  the  Kabbalists,  Brahmins,  Sufis,  Parsees, 
may  be  as  divinely  spiritual  and  profoundly  religious, 
but  it  cannot  aim  at  popularity.  Only  for  the  philo- 
sophic few  can  these  ideas  have  any  charm ;  while  the 
leading  characteristic  of  a  Catholic  system  is  that  it  is 
a  poor  man's  religion,  embracing  Soul  truths,  sympathis- 
ing with  the  meanest  intellects,  yet  satisfying  the 
greatest  minds. 

No  religion  can  assimilate  universal  truths  except  it 
be  really  Catholic  in  the  true  sense  of  the  word.  The 
Jews  recoil  with  horror  at  the  idea  of  embodying  a 
Christian  symbol  in  their  faith ;  the  Brahmins  will  not 
allow  anyone  to  deviate  a  hair's  breadth  from  their 
orthodoxy  ;  and  even  Mohammedanism  in  its  highest 
aspect  is  but  a  childish  system :  for  a  religion  based 
upon  the  senses  cannot  be  intellectual. 

Mohammedanism  is  so  totally  opposed  to  new  truths 
that  the  Koran  forbids  all  enquiry ;  and  a  faithful  dis- 
ciple, Omar,  destroyed  the  largest  collection  of  occult 
works,  the  second  Alexandrian  library. 

The  heresy  of  one  age  is  the  orthodoxy  of  another, 
and  the  orthodoxy  of  one  age  is  the  heresy  of  another. 
The  mind  is  the  Soul's  purgatory,  and  urged  by  the 
Soul ;  the  mind  is  continually  striving  to  arrive  at 
Truth,  and  every  little  reflection  from  the  Father  of 
Light  is  considered  a  great  light  until  it  is  eclipsed 
by  another  and  greater.  But  there  are  reflections  and 
direct  rays,  and  to  the  latter  we  can  only  attain  by 


510  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

following  the  true  Theosophists,  and  those  who  know 
what  they  knew :  know  also  the  Source  and  Father  of 
all  Light  and  Truth. 

Inexact  minds  will  give  inexact  views  and  vague 
descriptions  ;  exact  and  scientific  minds — having  philo- 
sophic and  mathematical  training,  should  they  arrive  at 
Divine  Illumination — will  be  better  able  to  define  their 
experience ;  and  their  views  on  phenomena  and  their 
noumenal  correlatives  will  bear  the  test  of  Eeason.  It 
is  no  doubt  for  this  purpose  that  mathematics  were 
in  most  ancient  Esoteric  Philosophies  considered  a 
compulsory  course  of  initiation  for  neophytes. 

Absolute  Truth  is  attainable,  as  mathematics  demon- 
strate its  existence ;  but  it  is  not  in  every  one's  capacity 
to  attain  it.  This  Truth  is  occult  to  undeveloped 
minds,  and  what  is  manifest  is  nearly  always  error.* 

Wherever  the  Soul  would  take  us,  there  should  we 
follow ;  though  the  dogmatists  of  belief  and  unbelief 
may  attempt  to  terrorize  us,  the  greatest  Hell  is  igno- 
rance of  our  own  Soul.  We  are  of  Divine  origin ;  and 
following  the  Higher  Soul  is  the  only  guide  to  God. 

In  all  things  pertaining  to  the  Soul,  the  Soul  only 
can  be  the  judge,  and  no  one  has  the  right  to  decree 
what  and  how  we  are  to  think  any  more  than  any  one 
need  tell  us  what  and  how  we  are  to  feel ;  for  the  Soul, 


*  See  John  viii.  32,  38.  Where  Jesus  promises  "  to  those  Jews 
who  believed  on  him,  If  ye  continue  in  my  word,  ye  shall  know 
the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free."  Question— What 
is  truth  ?  Answer— God,  Adonai,  the  Word,  the  Christ, 
I  Am. 


TJNDEFINABLE.  511 

or    higher    conscience    owns    no    other   authority   but 
herself,  the  absolute  Soul. 

Ecstasy  is  not  a  condition  of  absolute  truth  from 
whence  assertions  can  be  received  as  infallible  dogmas. 
Such  statements  may  then  appear  to  the  mind  as  abso- 
lute, and  they  may  be  conditionally  true,  yet  not  cor- 
rect, or  correct  but  not  true.  Their  truth,  or  their 
exactitude,  depends  more  or  less  on  the  grade  of 
Illumination  and  the  capacity  of  the  Illuminated.  It  is 
possible  to  see  a  thing,  and  to  be  convinced  of  its  truth ; 
but  that  does  not  bring  it  home  to  the  minds  of  others. 

For  reason  of  the  inability  of  even  the  ablest  minds 
to  define  the  Infinite,  Buddhists  and  Christian  Gnostics 
(as  Dionysius  Areopagita)  have  contented  themselves 
in  giving  no  definitions  to  the  Absolute,  insisting  only 
that  individual  experience  was  necessary  in  this  Divine 

State  or  Being. 

Eevelation,  or  Divine  Manifestation,  is  the  sum-total 

of  the  human  and  Divine.     To  be   truly  Divine   one 

must  be  truly  human. 

It  may  be  objected :  If  the  human  is  all  error  and 

the  Divine  all  truth,  why  pursue  human  studies  at  all  ? 

The  reply  is :  That  wherever  there  is  human  thought 

the  Divine  is  latent  in  it,  and  we  must  sift  the  true 

from  the  erroneous  human  additions,  and  strengthen 

our  eyes  upon  the  reflections  before  we  can  bear  to  see 

the  All-Light. 

Theosophy  we  have  defined  as  the  knowledge  of  God, 

and  so  it  is  in  the  strict  sense;  but  to  know  God  we 

must  first  know  ourselves. 


512  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

The  human  Incarnation  conditions  the  Divine.  The 
Divine  and  human  are  so  indissolubly  united  that 
whatever  injury  the  human  being  does  to  himself  by 
sin  and  vice  he  also  inflicts  on  his  better  half,  the 
Divine  Soul  within  him. 

God  lives  ever  by  one  Law — Supreme  Good — and 
all  the  efforts  of  the  higher  or  undepraved  Soul  are 
directed  to  ray  forth  the  Good,  in  whatever  condition 
or  limitation  the  Self  may  have  placed  her. 

The  Soul  has  two  means  of  communication — the 
senses  and  the  intellect.  These  two  form  the  balance, 
by  assistance  whereof  each  Soul  passes  on  the  cord  of 
material  life  like  pearls  on  a  string.  For  matter  is  the 
magical  intention  of  God,  below  which  it  is  impossible 
for  Spirit  to  fall;  as  moths  round  a  light,  do  fallen 
spirits  crowd  around  matter.  The  Senses,  in  their 
rightful  state,  should  express  Divine  Love ;  the  Intel- 
lect, Divine  Wisdom,  absolute  Truth.  Every  human 
being  has  these  principles  by  inheritance  from  his 
Divine  Source,  although  they  may  be  so  diverted  as  to 
be  hardly  recognizable. 

Where  the  senses  are  false  to  the  original  design  of 
communicating  Divine  Love  they  degenerate  into 
animality,  to  enable  Nature  to  have  another  instru- 
ment in  an  eventual  offspring.  Where  the  intellect 
deviates  from  the  straight  line  of  Truth,  it  takes  to  the 
vicious  circle  of  negation.  It  cannot  affirm  anything 
absolute  in  opposition  to  the  absolute  Truth,  it  has  to 
content  itself  with  negation.  It  cannot  say,  "  I  see  in 
opposition  to  the  All-seeing  eye ;    I  know  contrary  to 


DEMON  EST  DEUS  INVERSUS.  513 

the  All-Truth ;  "  it  is  bound  to  say,  "  I  do  not  see ; " 
it  must  deny ;  it  cannot  affirm. 

When  the  Soul  desires  another  good  than  the  Absolute 
wherein  she  is  originally  placed,  becoming  self-willed, 
she  falls  from  the  Divine  Centre,  and  though  she  can- 
not break  through  the  Divine  circumference,  she  is  at 
variance  with  the  Divine  design,  and  being  no  more  on 
the  Divine  Plane,  existence  becomes  confused  to  her. 
It  is  only  on  the  Divine  Plane,  as  we  gradually  approach 
it,  that  existence  is  seen  as  it  really  is. 

God,  the  Good,  is  always  with  the  individual  Being, 
although  unknown  and  unowned  by  the  fallen  human 
Spirit.  The  Divine  Essence  is  latent  in  the  Soul,  guard- 
ing and  guiding  her  in  accordance  with  an  absolute 
Law — the  Law  of  Good.  The  Soul  is  what  one  makes 
of  her,  either  animal  or  Divine.  The  two  are  one  in 
different  stages  of  progression.  It  is  the  animal  Soul 
which  is  the  Divine  Soul — not  while  she  is  animalized, 
but  when  she  is  Divinized.  To  those  who  are  animalized 
it  is  the  animal  Soul ;  to  those  who  are  Divinized  it  is 
the  Divine  Soul.  Demon  est  Deus  inversus,  sicut  Deus 
est  Demon  inversus.  Would  you  be  as  God,  then 
decompose  the  Demon ;  would  you  be  a  Demon  then 
decompose  the  God. 

In  the  Macrocosmic  or  Divine  State,  God's  Will, 
to  use  an  illustration,  is  as  the  universal,  centrifugal 
force,  sustaining  the  Spiritual  All,  while  man's  self- 
will  forms  in  a  measure  centripetal  spheres  of  Indi- 
vidualized Being;  these  are  not  inharmonious  to  the 
Divine    All.       In    the   microcosmic    or   fallen    human 

LL 


514  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

state,  man's  self-will  becomes  as  the  centrifugal,  and 
God's  Will  as  the  centripetal  force.  This  state  is 
inharmonious,  in  reverse  to  the  Divine,  consequently 
only  temporal,  not  eternal. 

Where  Individual  Spirit  is  centrifugal,  Universal 
■Soul  is  centripetal ;  where  Universal  Soul  is  centrifugal, 
Individual  Spirit  becomes  centripetal.  In  uniting 
the  human  Spirit  with  Universal  Soul  it  becomes  one 
with  the  Divine  Spirit,  and  this  is  Tao,  Nirvana,  the 
Absolute,  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  the  Supreme  Good, 
our  Father  and  Mother  God. 

The  Soul  adapts  herself  to  the  Individual  Spirit  as 
this  Spirit  adapts  itself  to  the  surroundings  of  the  body, 
and  these  modify  the  manifestations  of  Thought.  Thus 
the  constitution  of  the  physical  solar  system  has  its  in- 
fluence upon  the  Soular  system  within  us  ;  for  man,  the 
Microcosm,  exactly  represents  the  Macrocosm,  or  outer 
world.  The  limit  of  his  earthly  nature  is  under  the 
dominion  of  Saturn  with  his  emblematical  binding  Belt. 
Jupiter,  Lord  of  the  mid-air,  is  the  controller  of  the 
Electric  force  or  quickening  Principle,  the  Jiva  or 
Vitality  of  the  Buddhists.  Mars,  again,  is  the  represen- 
tation of  the  Astral  body,  and  of  blind  physical  force. 
Whilst  softer  Venus  presides  over  the  passional  conscious- 
ness, and  fittingly  occupies  the  fourth  plane  at  the  centre 
of  the  cross,  or  conjunction  of  the  male  and  female,  (see 
coloured  plate  at  page  154),  from  whence  spring  the 
issues  of  life  and  death,  as  man  is  borne  upwards  or  earth- 
wards, symbolised  by  generation  and  re-generation. 

Mercury,  nearer  to  the  Sun,  the  Lord  of  Life,  acts  the 


THE  MICROCOSM  REFLECTS  THE  MACROCOSM.        515 

part  of  mediator  between  the  higher  human  Soul  above 
and  the  Astral,  passional,  and  mundane  circumference. 
Its  sphere  is  intellectual  rather  than  Spiritual,  and 
corresponds  to  the  fifth  principle,  Manas,  or  Human 
Soul,  for  on  this  fifth  plane  the  Microcosmic  animal  Soul 
becomes  fully  humanised  and  attains  its  first  responsible 
degree,  being  animated  by  the  instinctive  and  seeing 
principle.  Mercurial  knowledges  are,  however,  objective 
and  speculative ;  they  are  of  the  reasoning  mind,  not  of 
the  Spiritual  Soul ;  and  mind,  even  in  its  loftiest  mode, 
ranks  lower  than  Intuition,  which  is  the  Divine  conscious- 
ness, or  conscience  of  the  Soul,  the  moonlight  refraction 
of  the  Divine  Nature.  It  is  only  at  the  sixth  stage  that 
the  awakened  Soul  becomes  fully  Spiritualised  and 
attains  the  consummation  of  conscious  life  in  this  its 
highest  degree. 

The  early  Hermetic  and  mystic  writers  gave  evidence, 
therefore,  of  profound  occult  knowledge,  in  teaching 
that  the  Moon  (or,  as  they  considered  her,  the  sixth 
planet)  holds  dominion  over  the  province  of  the  intel- 
lect or  brain,  the  seat  of  Divine  Wisdom,  which  is  the 
distinctively  human  property  of  the  Microcosm.  Inas- 
much as  the  Moon  is  reflective  of  the  light  of  the  greater 
luminary,  the  Sun  God,  the  Lord  of  Day,  does  she 
fittingly  represent  the  Divine  Wisdom,  the  Mother,  or 
feminine  principle,  as  the  Sun  represents  the  Atma  or 
seventh  Principle,  at  once  the  head  of  the  solar  as  of 
the  Soular  system. 

The  physical  conditions  affecting  us  while  incarnate 
in  this  system  of  the  Universal,  influence  and  modulate 


516  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHT. 

the  communications  of  the  Soul  and  form  a  mental  world 
that  cannot  be  regarded  as  final  for  all  eternity.  The 
faculties  we  have  here  may  but  faintly  indicate  the 
infinite  expressions  and  combinations  of  Thought  that 
can  only  be  seen  in  the  Absolute  Soul-state.  "But 
wherever  a  being  may  be  who  is  consciously  living  in 
the  Divine  Spirit,  whether  embodied  or  disembodied, 
knowing  the  Absolute,  living  in  continual  communion 
with  God,  his  existence  is  one  of  supreme  felicity; 
whereas  those  persisting  in  the  unregenerate  state,  live 
in  darkness  and  misery  and  perish  as  the  beasts." 

Soul. 

Man  in  another  life,  according  to  Swedenborg, 
becomes  the  perfect  image  of  his  inward  thoughts  and 
intention.  Man  may  know  whether  he  is  amongst  the 
infernal  or  angelic  spirits ;  if  he  intendeth  evil  to  his 
neighbour,  thinking  nothing  but  evil  concerning  him, 
and  actually  doing  evil  when  it  is  in  his  power,  and 
finding  delight  therein,  he  is  then  amongst  the  infemals, 
and  becometh  also  himself  an  infernal  in  another  life ; 
but  if  he  intendeth  good  to  his  neighbour,  and  thinketh 
nothing  but  good  concerning  him,  and  actually  doeth 
good  when  it  is  in  his  power,  he  is  then  amongst  the 
angelic,  and  becometh  himself  also  as  an  angel  in  another 
life.  This  is  the  characteristic  mark  or  test  by  which 
everyone  may  discover  his  true  state  and  quality,  and 
according  to  which  he  ought  to  examine  himself. 
(Arc.  1680.) 

The  Spiritual  Body  is  far  more  perfect  and  expres- 


THE  SPIRITUAL  BODY.  517 

sive  than  the  physical.  Thought  forms  the  Body- 
physically  and  psychically.  The  Soul  that  builds  up 
and  animates  the  physical  clod,  when  working  in  its 
own  psychic  matter  produces  accordingly  a  far  more 
wonderful  though  possibly  a  more  simple  form.  The 
Spiritual  Body  is  built  and  grows  according  to  psychic 
law  by  our  life  and  thoughts.  As  our  thoughts  are  pure 
or  impure,  as  our  actions  are  noble  or  ignoble,  so  will 
the  Soul  express  them  in  the  Spiritual  form. 

These  are  not  vain  words  but  Truths,  teaching  us  the 
necessity  of  living  in  accordance  with  Absolute  Eeason 
and  Justice ;  for  what  we  are  in  our  thoughts  we  are  in 
the  Spirit,  and  in  the  Spirit  we  shall  be  for  ever. 
Decide  therefore,  now,  what  you  will  be ;  if  an  Angel  of 
Light,  then  strive  to  be  one,  or  else  you  may  become  a 
Demon  of  Darkness. 

The  view  taken  in  Esoteric  Buddhism  of  Devachan 
and  Avitchi,  or  the  continuance  by  good  or  evil,  is  no 
doubt  true ;  for  there  is  no  middle  state  in  Spirit, 
and  every  one  becomes  irresistibly  attracted  to  his  own 
sphere  to  which  he  has  chained  himself  by  his  own 
thoughts.  There  is  only  one  path  of  escape,  the  path 
of  the  Law  unto  Nirvana,  the  Absolute  Good. 

The  spiritual  state,  which  according  to  the  cultivated 
inclination  and  development  of  the  individual  soul,  is 
more  or  less  Divine,  or  more  or  less  Demonic,  can,  in 
more  decided  stages  of  existence,  become  in  a  measure 
all-embracing,  or  all -repelling.  In  this  mundane 
sphere,  which  may  be  designated  a  school  of  experience, 
as  it  is  a  stage  of  transition,  there  appears  to  be  no 


518  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

good  unmixed  with  evil,  nor  evil  that  in  some  measure, 
however  small,  is  not  tinged  with  good. 

As  the  body  is  built  up  of  material  food,  so  is  the 
Soul  built  up  of  its  loves ;  wherefore  we  should  be  as 
careful  of  our  love  as  of  our  food.  As  material  food 
supports  or  destroys  the  body,  so  does  the  spiritual  food, 
our  love,  and  all  we  nourish  it  with,  elevate  or  degrade 
the  Soul  to  be  a  temple  of  the  Most  High,  or  a  haunt 
for  impure  demons. 

Love  can  only  be  absolute  where  it  is  illimitable,  and 
that  is  only  possible  in  a  spiritual  sense ;  for  even  with 
the  best,  or  rather  with  the  worst  intentions,  physical 
lust  must  have  its  limits.  Therefore,  the  task  is,  to 
separate  love  from  that  which  it  is  not,  and  Love,  who 
by  the  Greek  Hermetists  was  designated  as  the  most 
ancient  of  Gods,  when  allowed  to  rule  absolutely  in 
spirit  and  in  truth,  becomes  our  very  guide,  and  Plato 
observes,  that  for  the  apprehension  of  the  Divine  "  a 
better  assistant  than  love  cannot  be  obtained." 

The  mind  is  the  product  of  the  Soul.  Strive  to  have 
a  clean,  immaculate  mind  that  neither  soils  or  can  be 
soiled :  with  such  a  mind  one  can  be  temptation  proof, 
while  without  it  even  the  elect  may  fall. 

Touch  not,  taste  not,  think  not,  that  which  is  impure, 
and  which  you  in  your  sane  mind  must  know  to  be 
impure.  Every  wrongful  act  is  carried  on  under  an 
impulse  of  insanity,  which  will  increase  and  become 
only  more  incurable  as  it  is  repeated;  for  frequency 
creates  a  habit  and  habit  becomes  a  second  nature,  and 
when  once  evil  is  as  a  natural  state  it  is  inconceivably 


THE  SPIRITUAL   GUIDE.  519 

difficult  to  return  to  that  state  of  absolute  purity  and 
reason  wherein  abideth  the  life  of  the  Divine  Soul,  the 
Spirit  of  the  Divine,  or  the  Divine  Spirit. 

What  the  volition  impresses  upon  the  involitional, 
the  latter  receives,  and,  becoming  depraved,  will  repro- 
duce and  impel  the  volition  to  continue ;  and  this  is 
the  origin  of  habit,  good  or  bad. 

All  these  things  whereof  we  write,  have  for  you  no 
existence  until  you  become  conscious,  and  they  then 
exist  in  your  soul.  When  once  one  has  had  a  mystic 
experience  it  becomes  next  to  impossible  to  make  those 
who  are  not  on  our  plane  understand  our  views ;  and 
this  was  the  chief  reason  why  Hermetic  Language  was 
universally  instituted  by  Adepts.  The  Neophyte  had  to 
place  himself  patiently  under  guidance ;  and  unless  you 
place  yourself  under  guidance  of  your  own  Higher  soul 
with  a  pure  intention  and  fervent  prayer,  neither  this 
nor  any  theosophic  book  can  afford  you  spiritual 
benefit;  for  all  these  things  have  no  existence  until 
they  are  experienced  and  known. 

As  there  are  grades  and  degrees  of  goodness,  purity, 
and  holiness  so  also  are  there  layers  and  strata  of 
wickedness,  impurity,  and  perversity.  A  sudden  con- 
version is  not  always,  as  in  the  case  of  St.  Paul,  an 
entire  conversion ;  for  we  carry  our  deeds  with  us,  and 
as  long  as  we  have  not  a  holy  horror  of  evil  our  holiness 
is  not  real.  Many  assume  to  be  in  a  state  of  grace  who 
are  not  even  on  the  way  to  grace.  In  the  unregenerate 
state  there  are  many  delusive,  self-satisfactory  stages 
which  are  directly  opposed  to  a  truly  Divine  state. 


520  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

A  Spiritual  Guide  is  absolutely  requisite  on  the  path 
to  Perfection.  This  guide  is  not  a  human  being,  nor  a 
spirit-guide,  but  the  Divine  Soul  within  us — that  is, 
our  better  half,  our  Higher  Self,  and  we  should  place 
ourselves  unreservedly  under  her  guidance.  Let  us 
give  her  a  name,  and  call  her  at  once  The  Intuition. 

The  Intuition  of  the  Soul  is  the  most  precious  of  our 
possessions.  Those  who  have  attained  to  Soul-Know- 
ledge value  that  Gnosis  above  all  mundane  things. 
Thus  Spiritual  Adepts  naturally  undervalue  an  Adept- 
ship  of  a  physical  nature,  and  even  deny  its  existence. 
Physical  Adepts  decry  Spiritual  Adeptship,  and  as  they 
have  not  yet  attained  unto  its  perception,  they  pro- 
nounce it  to  be  sophistry,  and,  reversing  the  truth, 
assert  the  physical  to  be  the  base  of  the  spiritual. 

Although  a  physical  Adept  may  ridicule  the  exist- 
ence of  Spiritual  Alchemy,  and  a  spiritual  Adept  may 
deny  the  possibility  of  a  material  Philosopher's  Stone, 
we  are  not  in  position  to  decide  in  either  direction, 
for  we  want  facts,  not  assertions.  We  must,  however, 
admit  that  the  facts  for  a  spiritual  interpretation  are 
within  the  reach  of  everyone  ;  while  those  who  seek 
the  physical  plane  have  as  yet  offered  very  little  evi- 
dence for  their  pretensions  and  belief. 

What  Mathematics  are  to  Science  is  Gnosis  to  Theo- 
sophy,  and  should  be  in  true  Eeligion  the  Divine 
Union.  These  are  but  different  expressions  for  one  and 
the  same  psychic  principle  and  occult  manifestation  of 
Absolute  Truth. 

Viewed  as   Eternity,  Infinity,  Truth,  Love,  Power, 


THE   DIRECT   PATH.  521 

Good,  and  other  Sephirotic  abstractions,  the  Absolute 
is  reflected  in  its  indivisible  attributes.  In  order  to 
know  what  the  Absolute  is,  it  should  be  either  men- 
tally conceived,  spiritually  seen,  or  psychically  expe- 
rienced ;  and  although  the  latter  may  from  a  phe- 
nomenal standpoint  be  considered  more  convincing,  the 
former  experiences  are  noumenally  not  less  valuable. 

Science,  Keligion,  Art,  and  Philosophy,  are  indirect 
paths  to  the  fountain  of  existence.  The  Theosophist 
alone,  even  above  these,  finds  the  direct  path  whereby 
he  consciously,  willingly,  and  knowingly,  returns  to  the 
one  absolute  Being,  and  by  his  re-birth  becomes  united 
and  at  one  with  (rod.  Until  experienced  by  his  essence, 
God,  the  Absolute,  can  only  be  beheld,  conceived,  and 
known,  by  his  Divine  attributes,  and  these  can  only  be 
known  by  being  reflected  within  us  ;  wherefore,  to  know 
God,  we  must  become  God-like.  As  we  ascend  to 
the  Divine,  God  becomes  more  manifest  to  us ;  and 
although  those  who  have  ascended  to  the  apex  of  their 
Being  may  reveal  the  Divine  Nature  to  us,  it  is  not 
God  who  is  more  active  at  one  time  and  less  active  at 
another,  but  that  the  cyclic  spiritual  waves  and  Divine 
manifestations  are  due  to  an  eternal  law,  showing  the 
Kingdom  of  Heaven  to  be  ever  attainable. 

God  saves  no  one,  and  condemns  no  one ;  we  save 
or  condemn  ourselves  by  our  own  conduct.  God  is 
passive,  and  allows  full  play  to  free-will.  It  is  because 
God  is  Infinite  Good  that  free-will  is  free  to  run  into 
evil,  that  we  may  err  and  repent ;  for  there  is  but  one 
good,  and  that  is  God ;  but  if  the  good  were  to  annihi- 


522  UNIVEKSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

late  all  attempts  at  evil,  it  would  be  absolute  force,  and 
there  would  be  no  good  in  it. 

The  unregenerate  will  call  that  good  which  agrees 
with  their  love,  and  evil  that  which  they  do  not  like ; 
but  such  is  not  real  good,  nor  real  evil,  for  having 
depraved  their  intuitions  they  are  not  able  to  know  the 
real  from  the  unreal.  That  which  is  absolute  Good  is 
God ;  to  be  at  one  with  the  Absolute  one  must  be 
absolutely  good.  God  loves  all  equally;  but  if  we 
close  our  hearts  against  Him  ;  and  if  we  do  not  hearken 
to,  and  learn  to  know,  Him,  how  can  we  love  Him  ? 
We  should  ever  bear  in  mind  that  Good  is  that  which 
is  in  accordance  with  our  highest  light.  If  it  is  true 
that  what  may  seem  good  to  a  man  to-day  may  seem 
evil  to-morrow — good  being  relative  as  well  as  absolute 
— it  is  our  highest  light  at  the  time  being  which  must 
ever  guide  us  higher  and  higher. 

We  would  advise  all  inquirers  into  Theosophy  to 
learn  to  know  God ;  to  search  for  Him  in  a  pure  and 
loving  spirit ;  to  search  in  truth  and  faith  ;  and  to  search 
without  fear  or  doubt.  Uproot  fear  and  doubt  from 
your  heart,  and  plant  in  their  stead  faith  and  love. 
Trust  to  God,  and  God  will  trust  you. 

Are  we  not  living,  conscious,  and  intelligent  beings ; 
and  would  the  parts  be  living  if  the  whole  were  dead  ? 
We  are  parts  of  the  living  God,  and  if  we  find  not  God 
within  us,  creation  may  speak  in  vain.  Life  is  within 
us  as  the  perfume  in  the  flower ;  life  is  eternal ;  even  the 
life  we  are  is  an  Atom  of  God. 


infinity.  523 

Infinity. 

Infinity  is  indeed  without  and  within  us,  and  we  can 
no  more  fathom  the  abyss  of  Matter  than  we  are  able 
to  sound  the  depths  of  Thought.  The  most  powerful 
telescopes  which  show  us  the  infinity  of  the  vast,  as  the 
microscopes  of  highest  power  which  reveal  to  us  the 
infinitude  of  the  minute,  do  but  aid  us  to  grope  our 
way  toward  a  faint  comprehension  of  that  phase  of 
Thought  whereof  Matter  is  but  a  phenomenal  manifes- 
tation, and  there  is  no  Instrument  invented  that  will 
help  us  to  delve  into  those  abysmal  depths  of  our  Being, 
the  world  of  Thought  within  us. 

Nothing  raises  the  mind  from  its  grovelling  senses  so 
much  as  a  contemplation  of  the  starry  heavens.  There 
at  least  we  obtain  a  glimpse  of  one  of  the  Manifesta- 
tions of  the  Infinite,  and  we  are  able  to  form  a  faint 
concept  of  Eternity  when  no  longer  bound  by  the 
fetters  of  gross  Matter.  Eternal  and  Eternally  free  in 
conscious  identity,  resting  on  the  bosom  of  the  Omnipo- 
tent, Thought  alone  is  Being,  and  Matter  ruled  by 
Force  its  obedient  slave. 

Let  us  here  accept  the  assistance  of  one  who  has 
spent  his  life  in  contemplating  the  eternal  glory  of  the 
heavens,  which  have  ever  been  eloquent  to  him  of  the 
Omnipotence  and  Omnipresence  of  God.  Let  us  en- 
deavour to  obtain  a  view  of  the  marvels  of  the  Universe 
through  the  telescope  of  the  eminent  and  celebrated 
French  Astronomer,  Camille  Flammarion,  who,  with 
his  vivid  thought  and  brilliant  pen  will  aid  us,  even 


524  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

through  a  translation,  to  scale  the  dizzy  heights,  and, 
when  we  return  with  him  to  the  earth  we  think  so  solid 
and  material,  will  convince  us  of  the  immateriality  of 
all  that  surrounds  us  upon  it. 

"  Stars  and  Atoms." 

"  Last  night,  in  the  silence  of  the  midnight  hour,  I  observed 
with  the  telescope  a  little  fixed  star  lost  in  the  multitude  of 
bright  celestial  objects,  a  pale  star  of  the  seventh  magnitude, 
separated  from  us  by  an  almost  immeasurable  distance — which, 
however,  we  are  able  to  traverse — and  my  thoughts  fixed  them- 
selves on  that  little  star,  which  is  not  even  visible  to  the  naked 
eye.  I  reflected  that  we  count  eighteen  stars  of  the  first  magni- 
tude, sixty  of  the  second,  a  hundred  and  eighty-two  of  the  third, 
five  hundred  and  thirty  of  the  fourth,  six  hundred  of  the  fifth, 
and  four  thousand  eight  hundred  of  the  sixth  (which  gives  a  sum 
total  of  about  seven  thousand  stars  visible  to  the  naked  eye) ; 
and  that  the  stars  of  the  seventh  magnitude,  to  which  belongs  the 
one  that  I  observed,  are  calculated  to  number  thirteen  thousand, 
those  of  the  eighth  magnitude  are  computed  at  forty  thousand, 
that  the  sum  total  of  stars  of  the  first  ten  magnitudes  brings  us  to 
the  number  of  five  hundred  and  sixty  thousand,  that  of  the  first 
twelve  magnitudes  gives  more  than  four  millions  of  stars,  and 
they  exceed  forty  millions  when  we  reach  the  fifteenth  magnitude. 

"  Without  losing  myself  in  the  profundity  of  infinite  perspec- 
tives, I  attached  myself  in  thought,  to  that  little  star  of  the 
seventh  magnitude  in  the  constellation  of  the  Great  Bear,  which 
never  descends  below  the  horizon  of  Paris,  and  which  we  can 
observe  every  night  in  the  year,  and  I  remembered  that  it  shines 
eighty-five  trillions  of  leagues  from  here,  a  distance  for  which  a 
flash  of  lightning,  travelling  at  the  constant  swiftness  of  a  hundred 
and  twenty  kilometres  per  hour,  would  require  not  less  than 
three  hundred  and  twenty-five  millions  of  years  to  traverse." 


"Transported  to  that  distance,  our  own  dazzling  sun  would 
have  lost  its  splendour  and  its  glory.  Not  only  would  it  not 
be  visible  to  the  naked  eye,  and  absent  in  the  brilliancy  of  the 
starry  night,  but  it  would  be  much  inferior  in  brightness  to  the 


SOLAR   DISTANCES.  525 

star  of  the  seventh  order  of  -which  I  speak,  and  could  only  be 
traced  by  the  most  minute  telescopic  research.  This  little  star, 
which  is  but  a  brilliant  point  punctured  upon  the  black  midnight 
heavens,  is,  in  reality,  an  immense  and  colossal  sun,  far  more 
considerable  than  the  one  upon  whose  rays  the  life  of  the  earth 
depends.  This,  our  sun,  is  already  three  hundred  and  eighty-four 
thousand  times  weightier  than  the  earth,  and  a  million  two 
hundred  and  eighty-five  thousand  times  more  voluminous. 
Allowing  to  the  little  star  a  weight  of  more  than  a  million 
times  that  of  our  planet,  and  a  volume  equal  to  several  millions 
of  united  earths,  we  certainly  still  remain  far  below  the  truth." 


"  These  thoughts,  occasioned  by  the  sight  of  that  little  star, 
overlooked  in  the  midst  of  the  multiude  of  its  kind,  transport  us 
into  the  presence  of  the  formidable  realities  of  the  constitution 
of  the  universe,  yet  do  not,  however,  represent  the  most  interest- 
ing aspect  of  our  contemplation.  It  is  a  singular  fact,  unknown 
to  all  ancient  philosophers,  fantastic,  and  hardly  conceivable 
even  now  to  the  thoughtful  mind  which  seeks  to  comprehend  it 
in  its  importance:  that  these  suns  of  infinity,  far  from  being 
fixed  as  they  appear  to  be  on  account  of  their  immense  distance, 
are  rushing  through  space  with  an  inconceivable  swiftness :  the 
star  in  question,  among  others,  flies  through  the  immensity  of 
space  at  the  daily  rate  of  thirty  millions  of  kilometres. 

"Yes,  seven  million  leagues  per  day!  Two  milliards  five 
hundred  and  ninety  million  leagues  per  year !  and,  nevertheless, 
in  ten  years,  in  fifty  years,  in  a  hundred  years,  this  star  appears 
to  us  not  to  have  moved  in  the  heavens  !  The  swiftness  of  a  can- 
non-ball shot  forth  from  our  most  powerful  guns  does  not  exceed 
seven  hundred  metres  per  second,  and  the  velocity  of  that  star 
is  above  three  hundred  and  twenty  thousand:  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  swiftness  of  the  star  surpasses  that  of  the  ball  in  a  pro- 
portion of  four  hundred  and  fifty-five  to  one  !  Can  the  most 
audacious  imagination  conceive  such  a  flight  ?     '.     .     . 

"  The  star  would  pass  in  five  days  and  some  hours  through  the 
distance  of  thirty-seven  million  leagues  that  separate  us  from 
the  sun,  a  distance  which  a  cannon-ball  would  take  seven  years 
to  traverse.  It  will  be  seen  that  such  a  velocity  borders  on  the 
marvellous,  and  yet  it  is  an  established  fact,  has  been  measured 


526  UNIVERSAL   THEOSOPHY. 

by  the  most  delicate  and  precise  operations,  and  cannot  be  less 
than  the  numbers  we  have  given." 

# 
*      # 

"  This  swiftness  is  a  symbol,  and  under  that  head  I  would  here 
present  it.  All  the  stars  are  animated  with  analogous  motion, 
more  or  less  rapid ;  and  not  only  the  stars — each  of  which  is  a 
sun,  and  the  majority  of  which  must  be  centres  of  planetary 
systems,  sources  of  light,  heat,  and  harmony,  anound  which 
gravitate  habitable  earths,  abodes,  actual,  past,  or  future,  for 
various  existences  of  terrestrial  beings — not  only,  I  say,  are  all 
the  stars  thus  hurled  through  the  immensity  of  space,  but  also 
all  the  planets,  all  the  satellites,  all  the  worlds,  all  the  systems* 
all  that  exists  in  creation. 

"  The  earth  rushes  around  the  sun  with  a  daily  velocity  of  six 
hundred  and  forty-three  thousand  leagues,  turning  at  the  same 
time  upon  its  own  axis  of  rotation  with  eleven  different  kinds  of 
motion,  more  light  and  mobile  than  a  child's  toy  balloon  floating 
in  the  air,  influenced  by  the  various  attractions  of  the  nearest 
stars,  a  veritable  plaything  of  the  cosmic  forces  that  carry  us  all 
along  in  the  immense  vortex.  The  moon  revolves  around  the 
earth,  disturbing  us  constantly  in  our  course,  and  making  us  sub- 
mit to  various  inflections.  The  sun  carries  us  along  with  all  its 
cortege  towards  the  constellation  of  Hercules ;  and  yet,  since  her 
existence,  the  earth  never  yet  passed  twice  over  the  same  road, 
describing  not  closed  ellipses,  but  coursing  through  space  in  inter- 
minable spirals.  The  suns  nearest  to  ours  travel  with  their 
systems  towards  various  directions.  Constellations  dislodge  them- 
selves from  age  to  age,  each  star  having  its  own  motion,  by  virtue 
of  which  the  changing  figure  of  the  heavens  incessantly  modifies 
itself :  and  thus  everything  in  perpetual  movement  flies,  circulates, 
and  precipitates  itself  with  vertiginous  velocity  towards  an  un- 
known and  never-attained  goal. 

"  This  is  not  a  romance  or  dream  of  pure  contemplation,  a  view 
outside  of  ourselves :  it  is  our  own  actual  and  unavoidable  history. 
Within  an  hour  each  one  of  us,  reader  and  writer,  rich  and  poor, 
learned  and  ignorant,  young  and  aged,  whether  we  sleep  or  wake, 
within  an  hour  each  one  of  us  has  passed  through  the  heavens  by 
an  invisible  route  of  more  than  a  hundred  thousand  kilometres, 
for  our  planet  describes  not  less  than  a  hundred  and  sixteen 
million  leagues  annually  in  its  sole  revolution  around  the  sun; 


THE  IMMATERIALITY   OF   MATTER.  527 

and  a  centenarian  will  have  traced  through  space  a  track  of  more 
than  twelve  milliard  leagues.  But  it  is  found  that  these  velocities 
are  the  very  condition  of  the  stability  of  the  universe :  the  stars, 
the  earth,  planets,  worlds,  suns,  stellar  systems,  star-clusters, 
milky-ways,  distant  universes,  all  sustain  themselves  by  the 
mutual  equilibrium  of  their  reciprocal  attraction ;  they  are  all 
placed  upon  the  void,  and  maintain  themselves  in  their  ideal  orbits, 
as  they  revolve  with  sufficient  swiftness  to  create  a  centrifugal 
force  equal  and  contrary  to  the  attraction  that  draws  them, 
in  such  wise  that  they  remain  in  unstable  but  perpetual 
equilibrium. 

"Formerly,  people  were  in  doubt,  and  we  cannot  wonder  at  it, 
about  the  firmness  of  the  foundations  of  the  world ;  for  before 
the  isolation  of  our  planet  in  space  and  its  motion  around  the 
sim  had  been  demonstrated,  it  appeared  indispensable  to  accord 
to  the  earth  an  undisturbed  basis,  and  to  fix  it  upon  infinite  roots. 
But  as  the  stars  rise,  set,  and  pass  below  the  earth,  these  founda- 
tions, without  which  the  reflective  mind,  ever  desirous  of  ascer- 
taining the  truth,  would  not  be  satisfied,  had  to  be  renounced,  as 
it  was  absolutely  impossible  to  conceive  of  a  material  pillar,  of 
ever  so  vast  dimensions,  be  it  of  the  diameter  of  the  earth,  and 
resting  in  the  infinite,  even  as  little  as  we  can  admit  the  existence 
of  a  stick  having  but  one  end.  However  deep  the  mind  may 
descend  towards  the  base  of  this  material  pillar  it  arrives  at  a 
final  point,  the  void  alone  can  be  infinite,  and  from  thence  the 
said  pillar  no  more  serves  us,  as  it  rests  itself  without  support. 
The  modern  concept  of  dynamism,  opposed  to  the  ancient  and 
vulgar  idea  of  matter,  has  to-day  a  philosophic  bearing  unpre- 
cedented in  the  entire  history  of  the  sciences.  It  teaches,  proves, 
and  convinces  us,  beyond  a  doubt,  that  the  material,  visible,  palpable 
universe  rests  on  the  invisible,  the  immaterial,  the  imponderable 
force. 

"  This  is  a  fact  against  which  the  vulgar  and  deceitful  testi- 
mony of  the  senses  will  never  again  prevail.  The  earth,  which 
was  thought  firm  at  the  base  of  creation,  is  not  supported  by  any- 
thing material,  but  by  invisible  force.  The  void  extends  below 
and  above  the  earth,  to  the  right  as  to  the  left,  and  into  infinity 
in  all  directions.  It  is  the  solar  attraction  that  supports  her — 
attraction  and  motion.  It  is  the  same  with  all  the  worlds,  with 
all  the  stars,  with  all  that  composes  the  universe,  in  the  internal 


528  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

constitution  of  bodies  as  also  in  the  sideral  all.     Let  us  dwell  for 

a  moment  on  some  details." 

* 
#      * 

"  Behold  a  strong  iron  rafter,  such  as  is  generally  employed  at 
present  in  architectural  constructions.  It  is  placed  on  the  void,  at 
a  height  of  ten  metres,  upon  two  walls,  upon  which  rest  its  two 
ends.  It  is  '  solid,'  certainly.  On  its  centre  a  weight  of  a  thou- 
sand, two  thousand,  ten  thousand  kilogrammes  has  been  placed, 
and  it  does  not  even  feel  this  enormous  weight ;  it  is  with 
difficulty  that  an  imperceptible  bending  can  be  shown  with  the 
level. 

"  For  all  that,  this  rafter  is  composed  of  molecules  which  do 
not  touch  each  other — molecules  which  are  in  perpetual  vibration, 
and  which  expand  under  the  influence  of  heat,  and  contract  under 
the  influence  of  cold.  Recently,  in  the  full  sun,  it  attained  a 
temperature  of  sixty  degrees  (Celsius) ;  last  winter  it  was  below 
zero.  In  its  first  condition  it  is  seven  millimetres  longer  than  in 
the  second,  and  its  molecules  can  by  greater  heat  be  still  more 
expanded.  Tell  me,  now,  what  constitutes  the  solidity  of  that  bar 
of  iron?  Its  material  atoms?  Certainly  not,  for  they  do  not 
touch  one  another.  The  solidity  dwells  in  the  molecular  attrac- 
tion— that  is  to  say,  in  an  immaterial  force. 

"It  has  been  calculated  that  there  are  not  less  than  eight 
sextillion  atoms,  say  eight  thousand  milliards  of  milliards  in 
the  head  of  a  pin,  and  that  these  atoms  are  separated  one 
from  another  by  distances  incomparably  greater  than  are  their 
dimensions;  these  dimensions  on  the  other  hand  reduce  them- 
selves to  the  infinitely  little.  If  one  would  count  the  number 
of  these  atoms  contained  in  a  pin's  head,  by  detaching  in  thought 
a  milliard  every  second  one  would  require  to  continue  this 
operation  during  two  hundred  and  fifty-three  thousand  years 
to  complete  the  enumeration. 

"By  studies  on  molecular  action  it  has  been  calculated  that 
in  the  most  minute  drop  of  water,  such  as  could  hang  on  to  the 
point  of  a  pin,  a  drop  invisible  to  the  naked  eye,  measuring  a 
thousandth  part  of  a  millimetre  cube,  there  are  more  than  two 
hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  millions  of  molecules. 

"Absolutely  speaking,  solid  solidity  does  not  exist.  Let  us 
take  into  our  hands  a  heavy  iron  ball.  This  ball  is  composed  of 
invisible  non-contiguous    molecules,  which  again   are    composed 


MATERIALISM   SUPER ANUATED.  529 

of  non-contiguous  atoms.  The  continuity  that  the  surface  of 
this  iron  ball  appears  to  have,  and  its  apparent  solidity,  are  thus 
pure  illusions.  For  the  mind  that  would  analyse  its  internal 
structure,  it  would  seem  as  a  vortex  of  flies,  reminding  one  of 
those  motes  that  float  in  the  sunbeam  on  a  hot  summer's  day. 

"  Studies  of  molecular  physics  have  brought  us  to  admit  that 
in  a  cube  centimetre  of  air  the  molecules  that  compose  it  do  not 
occupy  more  than  a  third  part  of  the  cube  millimetre  ;  that 
is  to  say,  the  three-thousandth  part  of  the  total  apparent  volume. 

"  All  these  molecules,  all  these  atoms,  are  in  the  same  perpetual 
motion  as  are  the  worlds  in  space  ;  and  the  structure  of  bodies 
is  organized  by  invisible  force.  In  hydrogen,  at  normal  tempera- 
ture and  pressure,  each  molecule  has  a  swiftness  of  translation, 
vibration,  and  circulation  of  two  kilometres  per  second. 

"  Every  body,  organic  or  inorganic,  air,  water,  plant,  animal, 
man,  is  thus  formed  of  molecules  in  motion. 

"  Our  very  body  is  no  more  solid  than  the  rest.  Each  globule 
of  our  blood  is  as  a  world  (and  we  have  thereof  five  millions  to  the 
cube  millimetre)  ;  all  circulating  continuously,  without  stopping 
or  resting,  in  our  arteries,  veins,  flesh,  brains ;  all  moves,  all  pre- 
cipitates itself  in  a  vital  vortex  proportionately  as  rapid  as  the 
celestial  bodies  in  space.  Molecule  by  molecule  our  brains,  our 
skull,  our  nerves,  our  entire  flesh  renews  itself  without  rest,  and 
so  rapidly  that  in  a  few  months  our  whole  body  is  entirely 
changed.  The  analysis  of  bodies,  organic  as  well  as  inorganic, 
thus  brings  us  into  the  presence  of  atomic  motion  ruled  by  forces, 
and  the  infinitely  minute  speaks  to  us  the  same  language  as  the 
infinitely  vast." 

#     * 

"  The  title  of  '  Materialist,'  borne  still  to-day  by  men  who  do 
not  see  beyond  the  vulgar  appearance  of  things,  will  soon  not 
be  otherwise  considered  by  the  thinker  than  as  a  superanuated 
expression,  and  one  without  meaning.  The  visible  universe  is 
not  at  all  what  it  appears  to  our  senses ;  and  it  is  the  invisible 
universe  that  constitutes  the  essence  and  support  of  the  creation. 
In  fact,  this  visible  universe  is  composed  of  invisible  non-contiguous 
atoms;  it  rests  on  the  void,  and  the  ruling  forces  themselves  are 
immaterial  and  invisible.  Seek  matter,  and  you  will  not  find  it ; 
it  is  a  mirage  that  recedes  in  the  ratio  as  you  advance  ;  it  is  a 
shadow  that  vanishes  each  time  you  think  to  seize  it.     It  is  not 

MM 


530  "UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

so  with  force,  the  dynamic  element ;  it  is  the  invisible  and  im- 
ponderable force  that  we  find  in  the  last  analyses,  and  it  is  force 
that  represents  the  base,  the  support  and  very  essence  of  the 
universe. 

"  In  the  profound  silence  of  night  all  moves,  borne  along  by  a 
breath  divine.  In  these  hours  of  tranquil  concentration,  do  we 
not  hear  the  voice  of  the  Infinite  ?  Night  is  the  state  of  immense 
space ;  and  we  have  the  day  during  a  half  rotation  of  the  earth, 
only  because  we  dwell  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  a  star.  Night 
fills  all,  but  it  is  not  darkness,  it  is  the  soft  light  emanating  from 
millions  of  stars.  Then  we  can  best  feel  how  all  is  in  vibration. 
The  motions  of  every  atom,  on  earth  and  in  heaven,  are  the 
mathematical  result  of  all  the  ethereal  modulations  that  affect 
it  at  the  time  from  the  abysses  of  infinite  space.  The  moon 
attracts  the  earth,  the  earth  attracts  her  sisters  the  planets ; 
these  solicit  and  call  her ;  the  stars  attract  the  sun,  and  like 
those  particles  of  dust  that  we  see  oscillate  and  vibrating  in  a 
ray  of  sunlight,  do  all  the  worlds  in  the  universe  unto  in- 
finity glide,  turn,  circulate,  fly,  vibrate,  and  palpitate  on  the 
bosom  of  the  illimitable  void.  A  geometer  dared  to  say,  that 
with  a  motion  of  the  hand  he  disturbed  the  moon  in  her  course. 
This  was  giving  an  imaginative  expression  of  the  extreme 
mobility  of  things,  and  showing  that  the  most  feeble  disturbance 
of  a  centre  of  gravity  has  its  reaction  at  a  distance.  When  the 
moon  passes  overhead,  the  whole  earth  is  drawn,  the  waters  in 
the  ocean  are  displaced,  and  each  one  of  us  weighs  somewhat 
less  than  when  the  moon  is  on  the  horizon  (the  difference  is 
about  eighteen  milligrammes).  When  Venus  passes  at  ten 
million  leagues  from  here,  when  Jupiter  passes  at  a  hundred 
and  fifty  million  leagues,  one  and  the  other  displace  the  whole 
earth  from  her  normal  position. 

"  Have  you  ever  approached  a  piece  of  iron  to  a  freely-suspended 
magnetised  needle?  What  a  marvellous  spectacle  is  this  mo- 
bility, these  palpitations,  this  misdirecting  of  the  needle,  under 
the  influence  of  an  apparently  inert  object,  and  which  acts  upon 
it  at  a  distance !  We  observe  a  compass  at  the  bottom  of  a 
hermetically-sealed  cellar :  a  regiment  of  soldiers  passes  along 
an  adjoining  row,  and  the  compass  becomes  agitated,  influenced 
at  a  distance  by  their  steel  bayonets.  Does  an  aurora  borealis 
occur  in  Sweden?    the   compass  in  Paris  feels  it     What  do  I 


MATERIALISM  SUPER ANUATED.  531 

say !  The  fluctuations  of  the  magnetic  needle  are  in  relation  with 
the  spots  and  eruptions  of  the  sun!  Modern  physics,  or  the 
natural  philosophy  of   the  present  day  is  a  proclamation  of   the 

invisible  Universe." 

* 

*     * 

"  It  is  under  this  modern  aspect  of  science  that  it  appeared  to 
me  interesting  to  contemplate  the  visible  Universe  to-day,  and 
to  invite  those  of  my  readers  to  this  contemplation  who  like  to 
dwell  sometimes  on  profound  truths.  Stars  and  atoms  place  us 
in  the  presence  of  an  harmonious  immensity,  an  immense  har- 
mony. Those  who  but  see  the  orchestra  without  hearing  any 
sounds  are  deaf.  Through  the  visible  Universe  our  mind  must 
feel  the  presence  of  an  invisible  Universe,  wherein  we  are 
placed.  All  that  we  see  is  but  an  appearance:  the  real  is  the 
invisible  force,  the  energy,  that  moves  all,  carries  all,  in  the 
infinite  and  in  the  eternal. 

"In  reality,  we  are  indeed  in  infinity  and  in  eternity.  The 
little  star  we  spoke  of  above,  the  colossal  sun  surpassing  the 
earth  by  more  than  a  million  times  its  volume,  at  such  a  distance 
that  a  ray  of  lightning  would  not  require  less  than  three  hundred 
and  twenty-five  millions  of  years  to  reach  us,  is,  notwithstanding 
all  that,  one  of  our  neighbouring  stars.  We  can  go  beyond  the 
same  distance,  go  further  still,  ever  further,  and  travel  with 
any  amount  of  swiftness,  during  any  number  of  ages,  towards 
any  direction  of  the  heavens,  without  ever  approaching  any 
termination,  ivithout  ever  advancing  a  single  step ;  the  centre  being 
everywhere,  the  circumference  nowhere,  and  even  Eternity  can- 
not suffice  to  overcome  Infinity." 

One  Spirit  fills  Immensity.  It  is  the  Spirit  of  God, 
that  nothing  limits,  nothing  divides ;  which  is  all,  in  all, 
and  everywhere.  Whose  life  is  the  life  of  the  Universe, 
and  who  controls  and  governs  all  things  by  His  indwell- 
ing presence.  Who  holds  the  mighty  suns  in  their 
courses,  and  pervades  and  vitalizes  every  atom  on  the 
earth. 

God  is  our  All;  the  All  is  not  our  God.  God  is 
everything ;  but  everything  is  not  God.     Although  we 


532  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

were  to  sum  up  all  existences,  the  total  would  not  be 
God ;  though  we  were  to  deduct  all  existences,  there 
would  be  no  diminution  to  the  fulness  of  God.  The 
Divine  Being  wears  all  things  as  a  veil,  yet  would  be 
in  unabated  glory  without  them  ;  for  the  veil  does  not 
make  the  Divine  Being,  but  the  Divine  Being  makes 
the  veil. 

The  Path. 

All  that  lives  thinks ;  all  that  thinks  lives.  All  Life 
is  Thought ;  all  Thought  is  Life.  Wherever  Thought 
is,  there  must  God  be ;  wherever  God  is,  there  must 
Thought  be.  Wherever  God  is,  there  must  He  be 
known ;  known,  yet  unknown ;  beheld,  yet  uncompre- 
hended;  for  God  is  Life,  and  Thought — Being;  and 
this  Being,  which  is  Thought,  is  the  Light  that  shines 
in  the  darkness  of  the  sensual  mind,  and  the  darkness 
comprehendeth  it  not.  God  is  not  only  Life  and 
Thought,  but  Power,  Justice,  Love ;  and  being  all  this 
in  its  absolute  potentiality,  God  only  is  absolute,  and 
to  become  absolute  we  must  become  God-like. 

Evil  and  error  are  unprincipled  perversions  of  Good 
and  Truth.  Every  conceivable  wrong  and  error  is 
possible ;  every  possible  falsehood  and  delusion  can 
have  a  term  of  existence ;  but  Truth  alone  is  Eternal, 
for  truth  alone  is  Good.  There  is  no  eternal  evil,  and 
no  principle  of  evil,  except  the  eternal  possibility  of 
evil ;  for  evil  results  only  from  a  wilful  or  ignorant 
perversion  of  Good,  and  to  know  the  Good  is  to  know 
God ;  to  know  Truth  is  to  know  the  Absolute  Wisdom 
that  with  absolute  Power  sustains  the  All  by  an  Absolute 


THE  PATH  TO  THE  ABSOLUTE.  Ooo 

Justice,  which  is  only  an  expression  of  absolute  Love. 
This  idea  has  been  well  formulated  by  a  recent  writer : 

"Absolute  Wisdom  is  Absolute  Power,  Absolute  Power  is 
Absolute  Justice,  Absolute  Justice  is  Absolute  Love.  This  is  the 
square  of  the  Absolute." 

We  can  only  approach  God  by  Thought,  Justice,  and 
Love;  this  triune  path  corresponds  to  our  Trinity  of 
Body,  Soul,  and  Spirit.  By  Thought  we  discern  good 
from  evil,  the  reasonable  from  the  unreasonable,  the 
intellectual  from  the  sensual.  Thought  has  also  built 
up  the  Body  by  laws  of  absolute  Justice  and  Love. 
The  Soul's  voice,  Intuition,  when  allowed  and  encour- 
aged to  speak,  will  teach  us  the  Law  of  Justice  to  all 
creation ;  that  the  destruction  of  animal  life  for  mere 
pastime  and  amusement  is  wrong  and  unlawful ;  that 
too  much  flesh  food  corrupts  Body  and  Soul,  and  while 
it  imparts  disease  to  the  former,  lastingly  cripples  and 
contaminates  the  latter.  After  we  have  followed  the 
path  of  Truth  and  Justice,  the  Spirit  of  Charity,  of 
Divine  Love,  the  Divine  Spirit  will  then  guide  us 
further  on  in  the  path  of  Divine  Union,  until  becoming 
at  one  with  God,  the  Divine  Being  will  become  mani- 
fested in  and  within  us. 

But  how  remote  Divine  Love  is  to  most  beings  here 
below !  When  sensual  lust  speaks  they  are  fully  alive  ; 
but  when  Divine  Love,  Love  of  the  Divine,  pleads,  they 
are  dead  unto  it. 

Absolute  Power  is  beyond  man ;  he  can  only  behold 
it  in  God,  but  he  cannot  compete  with  or  controvert 
the  one  absolute  Divine  design.     Nature  can  only  be 


534  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

improved  by  the  Art  of  the  Adepts  working  according 
to  Divine  Law  and  Knowledge  of  the  Law;  but  all 
other  attempts  to  improve  Nature  are  failures.  Neither 
embodied  nor  disembodied  being  can  become  a  perma- 
nent anti-god ;  for  even  the  most  powerful  demon,  who 
by  wrongful  use  of  his  knowledge  and  power  may  have 
enslaved  a  world  or  a  system  of  worlds  (if  such  a  thing 
were  possible),  would  nevertheless  have  his  term  and 
cannot  rule  for  ever.  Who  rules  by  force  shall  perish 
by  force,  unless  his  force  is  subject  to  the  Law  of 
absolute  Love  and  Justice  which  alone  is  Eternal. 

The  Divine  attributes  we  have  just  seen  set  forth  as  a 
quaternity ;  but  (rod  may  have  an  infinitude  of  attri- 
butes which  we  in  our  finite  state  are  incapable  of  even 
mentally  conceiving.  The  Divine  Mediator,  the  son  of 
man  (and  of  woman)  is  the  outpouring  of  God ;  but  the 
stay  of  the  Divine  with  us  is  too  brief  to  teach  us  all 
things.  The  Divine  Thought  comes  and  goes,  and  in 
it  are  all  things  comprised  as  in  a  nutshell.  Its  origin 
we  know  not,  we  call  it  Divine  ;  others  grovel  in  proto- 
plasm and  seek  its  origin  in  mud.     Like  likes  Like. 

The  Direct  way  to  God  is  Love,  for  Love  is  the 
highest  Divine  quality  we  are  capable  of  knowing. 
The  Supreme  Law  of  Divine  Justice  is  but  begotten  of 
Divine  Love;  therefore  is  love  the  fulfilling  of  the 
Law.  To  be  for  ever  united,  and  never  separated  from 
the  Divine ;  to  live  ever  in  the  Divine  Presence  and  do 
no  act  unworthy  of  being  done  with  full  consciousness 
of  Eternity ;  to  be  in  harmony  with  the  All-Father  and 
All-Mother,  and  to  work  with  all  our  being  in  accord- 


TO  WHAT  WE   CAN  ATTAIN.  535 

ance  to  the  Divine  Design  of  the  Supreme  Eeason — 
this  is  the  pathway  of  Truth,  the  Perfect  Way  to 
Divine  Union. 

Assuredly  our  Salvation  is,  and  it  is  the  aim  and  end 
we  all  are  ultimately  destined  for;  but  what  a  vast 
time  will  some  be  on  the  way  who  believe  in  unbelief, 
and  to  whom  the  vagaries  of  self-will  serve  as  the 
guiding  influence. 

There  are  the  realms  of  physical  and  human  nature, 
and  Law  that  gradually  educate  us  for  the  Divine 
and  Eternal  Inheritance ;  but  there  are  also  the  realms 
of  Spiritual  and  Divine  Nature  and  Grace,  whereby 
God  becomes  manifested  unto  and  in  us.  "  The  good 
and  contemplative  became  so  through  three  things ;  and 
these  are  Nature,  Habit,  and  Eeason."  Aristot.  Polit. 
VII.     These  three  form  the  Path  unto  Perfection. 

Our  aim  and  end  is  to  live  in  Grod,  and  be  con- 
scious parts  of  his  Divine  Being.  The  centre  of  God 
in  us  is  in  the  involitional  life  and  growth  that  in 
agnostic  verbiage  is  misnamed  "the  Unconscious." 
Yet  there  lies  latent  within  us  a  seed  of  Infinity  that 
only  wants  the  conditions  of  a  rightful  life  to  become 
manifested.  The  Divine  Wisdom  is  the  voice  of  our 
unperverted  Intuition.  The  mind  then  becomes  an 
auditor  to  the  Xenos  or  Guest  that  at  times  honours 
her  with  a  visit,  and  this  Xenos,  or  Gruest  (see  Plato's 
Symposium),  is  the  Logos,  the  Divine  Word.  The 
Symposium,  as  indeed  most  of  Plato's  genuine  writings 
when  esoterically  interpreted,  are  found  to  be  full  of 
deepest,  or  most  occult  Wisdom. 


536  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

Let  us  follow  the  Logic  of  Nature  before  we  attempt 
to  be  at  one  with  the  Divine.  Where  Nature  revolts, 
be  assured  Nature  has  Eeason  on  her  side,  and  if  you 
attempt  to  improve  her,  you  will  only  end  in  destruc- 
tion. 

From  earliest  youth,  good  and  evil  is  imparted  to  us 
in  such  mixed  doses  that  it  requires  earnest  searching 
to  separate  truth  from  error,  Divine  from  demonic. 
Solemn  platitudes  are  droned  into  our  ears,  and  we  are 
educated  to  call  them  Divine  Truths  until  Truth  itself 
becomes  hateful  to  us. 

Misused,  miseducated,  misunderstood  from  his  youth, 
man  in  turn  retaliates  on  his  fellows  his  own  experi- 
ence, and  adds  to  it  what  his  ignorance  or  viciousness 
suggests,  doing  his  best  to  make  a  Hell  upon  earth. 

In  the  unregenerate  state  man's  highest  aspiration 
is  concentred  upon  Self,  and  the  Eeligion  of  the  unre- 
generate is  one  where  selfishness  rules  supreme.  The 
Religions  hitherto  instituted  have  been  man-made 
Religions.  Man  made  his  creed,  and  forced  it  upon 
Woman,  and  that  creed  nearly  always  ignored  the  most 
noble  sentiments,  feelings,  and  aspirations  of  Woman, 
and  crushed  her  whole  being  into  the  dust. 

If  the  Religion  of  the  future  is  not  to  become  merely 
a  shadow  or  reflection  of  the  past,  but  is  to  be  a  life- 
giving  reality,  Woman,  who  mystically  represents  the 
Soul,  will  have  to  be  taken  into  the  fullest  considera- 
tion, and  her  aspirations,  far  from  being  allowed  through 
ignorance  to  be  misdirected  to  vanity  and  vexation  of 
spirit,  should,  by  Divine  Science,  be  rightly  guided  to 


THE  RELIGION   OF  THE  FUTURE.  537 

the  Eternal  reality  of  Divine  Love,  of  which  Woman  is 
a  by  far  better  medium  and  more  true  exponent  than 
Man.  And  although  in  the  Divine  State  all  beings  are 
in  a  measure  equal,  in  the  human  state  Woman  is 
naturally  nearer  to  God  than  Man.  She  is  more  intui- 
tional, and  her  intuitions  are,  on  the  average,  less  de- 
praved; and  although  her  mind,  by  millenniums  of 
masculine  brutality,  has  been  kept  in  a  less  developed 
state,  her  will  being  by  that  very  reason  less  active,  she 
has  less  to  unlearn,  is  nearer  to  the  Divine  Involitional 
Principle,  and  is  also  consequently  more  courageous 
than  Man. 

We  venture  to  assert  that  had  men  been  compelled 
ever  since  this  world's  history  began  to  submit  to  the 
disadvantages  women  have  had  to  battle  through,  they 
would  be  far  lower  in  the  scale  of  humanity  than  they 
have  forced  their  weaker  sisters  to  be. 

Why  should  the  affections  be  considered  as  diabolical 
temptations  that  are  to  be  spurned  by  those  who  strive 
for  a  Divine  Life  ?  It  is  this  fallacy,  not  to  call  it  an 
outrageous  falsehood,  that  makes  Eeligious  Systems 
untrue,  as  they  show  an  utter  disregard  for  the  natural 
feelings  implanted  in  the  human  being,  and  calculated 
to  raise  him  to  heights  supernal  when  wisely  directed. 

Nirvana,  The  End. 

God  becomes  spontaneously  manifested  when  man  is 
in  unison  with  God.  When  man  reaches  the  apex  of 
his  being,  his  Sabbath  or  7th  State,  he  sounds  the 
Divine  octave,  and  another,  the  Divine  Being,  resounds 


538  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHT. 

in  him.  Man,  to  become  a  Medium  for  the  Highest, 
must  be  the  Highest. 

Alas  !  how  have  men  lost  their  faculties  and  powers, 
and  become  degenerate,  since  they  first  turned  away 
from  God !  Communion  with  the  Highest  can  now 
only  be  accomplished  by  the  elevation  of  the  Soul,  the 
feminine  and  higher  principle  in  man,  to  its  rightful 
and  inherent  position. 

In  his  fallen  state,  or  state  of  separation,  man  is  but 
a  demon.  The  human-demonic  is  throughout  existence 
where  the  Divine  is  not,  and  the  Divine  is  where  the 
demon  is  not.  But  as  God  is  the  Soul  and  essence  of 
men,  God,  although  unknown  and  unseen,  permeates 
all.  There  is  but  one  I  Am,  and  that  is  God ;  when 
we  are  in  God,  then  only  have  we  our  real  and  eternal 
Being;  while  when  dissevered  from  God  we  are  in  an 
unreal  and  phantom  state.  By  Divine  aspiration  we 
burst  the  shell  of  the  demon  and  become  God.  Then 
may  we  say,  "The  Father  and  I  are  one."  Yea,  in 
full  identity,  and  above  the  individual  Being,  the 
Soul  becomes  consciously  merged  and  united  with  the 
manifested  Divine  Spirit.  This  is  figured  in  Scripture 
under  the  allegory  of  the  marriage  of  the  King's  son. 
The  Soul  is  then  united  to  Spirit,  and  becomes  one 
with  the  Divine  Spirit ;  but  while  the  Divine  Soul  is 
undeveloped  and  in  the  natural  or  demonic  state,  in 
which  we  see  nearly  all  mankind  around  us,  it  is  but 
the  Soul  of  the  Animal,  or  Animal  Soul,  the  Anima 
bruta,  represented  in  the  plate  in  our  chapter  on 
Esoteric  Buddhism,  by  which  each  may  clearly  ascer- 


THE   RELIGION   OF   THE  FUTURE.  539 

tain  his  own  whereabouts  on  the  steps  of  the  Divine 
ladder. 

There  are  not,  however,  as  some  seem  to  think,  two 
Souls — an  animal  Soul  and  a  Divine  Soul — the  two  are 
one  and  the  same,  but  in  two  stages  of  progression  and 
development ;  or  rather  in  three,  as  taught  in  Esoteric 
Buddhism,  for  the  Animal  Soul  must  be  humanised 
before  it  can  attain  to  the  Divine  State. 

While  the  demonic  will  and  sensual  mentality  is 
manifest  the  Divine  Soul  is  latent,  but  when  the  Divine 
Soul  is  permitted  to  develop  and  manifest  herself  in 
full  consciousness  it  is  the  Eternal  Memory  which 
reads  the  past,  present,  and  future  as  a  scroll,  and  what 
seers  and  mediums  believe  to  read  in  the  Astral  light 
they  really  behold  through  a  glimpse  of  their  own 
Soul. 

Infinity  is  internal  and  not  external;  it  is  in  the 
Soul  and  not  in  Space.  Within  us  lies  true  Infinity, 
without  is  but  the  reflection.  But  only  those  who  have 
had  a  flash  of  Soul-Power  will  know  and  comprehend 
that  at  the  moment  of  physical  death  physical  condi- 
tions also  cease  and  a  new  state  of  existence  bursts 
upon  the  renascent  Being.  Matter  then  has  no  exist- 
ence :  Spirit  is  all,  and  Soul  is  omnipotent. 

Those  who  rule  by  force  are  ruled  and  perish  by 
force ;  for  when  a  greater  force  is  brought  to  bear  upon 
them,  how  can  they  avoid  destruction  ?  Those  who 
rule  by  love,  by  love  shall  be  saved,  and  their  love 
shall  be  eternal  life,  for  their  life  is  love  eternal.  All 
evil  aims  at  the  destruction  of  life,  but  good  strives  to 


540  UNIVERSAL  THEOSOPHY. 

develop,  preserve,  and  regenerate  the  living  Soul  into 
eternal  Being. 

To  live  in  God  it  is  not  necessary  to  be  first  deprived 
of  the  physical  body,  for  the  visible  body  is  not  the 
form  we  shall  wear  in  Eternity.  There  is  an  invisible 
because  Spiritual  body  on  which  the  material  body  is 
daily  built  up,  and  an  aura  that  we  gather  around  us 
by  our  acts,  inclinations,  and  thoughts;  and  when  we 
consider  that  "  man  in  a  future  life  becomes  the  image 
of  his  thoughts,"  we  shall  find  that  the  Dragon  which 
has  to  be  slain  by  Michael  the  Euler  of  the  New  Dis- 
pensation is  the  bent  of  perverted  sensualism  which  the 
unregenerate  mind  inclines  to,  and  which  is  the  real 
hindrance  and  obstacle  to  the  higher  birth.  The  inter- 
pretation of  the  name  of  the  Angel  of  the  Sun,  Michael, 
is  this :  "  Who  is  like  unto  God;"  and  it  is  the  manifesta- 
tion of  the  God-like  being,  (like  unto  God)  that  slays  the 
Dragon,  who  is  the  Demon  of  grossness  and  materiality. 

We  hope  to  have  sufficiently  demonstrated,  in  this 
our  earnest  enquiry  into  the  Divine  Wisdom  underlying 
all  the  Eeligions  of  Humanity,  that  true  Theosophy  is 
Universal,  and  not  merely  a  momentary  and  ephemeral 
mystic  craze,  or  badge  of  a  party,  but  that  it  is  and  has 
ever  been  the  highest,  because  truest,  aspiration  of  the 
human  Soul,  and  its  Secret  or  Great  Arcanum  is  the 
Union  of  God  and  Man.  This  is  the  great  underlying 
Truth  concealed  in  all  Eeligions  under  the  outward  veil 
of  the  Letter.  This  Life-giving  Truth  is  the  First  and 
the  Last,  the  Alpha  and  Omega,  of  all  Wisdom,  who 
was,  and  is,  and  is  to  come  in  all  Humanity,  which 


NIRVANA.  541 

glorious  Truth  is  declared  aud  made  known  to  all 
nations,  in  this  the  Fulness  of  Time,  by  the  study  of 
the  Divine  Wisdom  or  Universal  Theosophy. 

"When,  after  an  earthly  pilgrimage  of  many  centuries,  the 
wandering  Jew,  prototype  of  unbelieving  man,  shall  return  at 
length  to  Jerusalem,  he  will  find  himself  in  the  midst  of  a  great 
multitude  assembled  from  every  qnarter  of  the  world,  and 
gathered  around  an  altar  on  Mount  Moriah.  He  will  look  at  the 
officiating  priest,  and  his  eyes  will  overflow  with  tears  as  he  will 
exclaim:  "TVs  He.r  and  fall  down  at  his  feet.  He  will  regard 
the  holy  offering  which  the  pontiff  raises  above  the  heads  of  the 
crowd,  and  with  a  deep  drawn  sigh  he  will  again  exclaim:  "Tis 
He!1  and  will  worship  Him  the  second  time.  He  will  look 
around  on  the  multitude  as  far  as  his  eyes  can  reach,  and  recognize 
Him  in  each  one  of  his  brother  men,  and  will  cry  with  a  sob, ' '  Tis 
He  again!  He  is  present  in  all!  'Tis  He  everywhere!  'Tis 
always  He  ! '  and  he  will  sink  down  in  the  deepest  adoration.  At 
length  he  will  look  into  the  depths  of  his  own  being,  and  then  his 
heart  will  melt  with  love  and  gratitude,  for  he  will  at  last  dis- 
cover Him  in  his  own  heart.  His  selfhood  will  have  become 
transmuted  into  that  of  the  Christ,  and  the  work  of  regeneration 
will  be  finished." 


END. 


LONDON  :     PRINTED   BY  G.    WILSON,    67A,    TURNMILL  STREET,    E.C. 


Date  Due                          1 

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