submitting any definite
questions. I experienced an intense desire for calm, peace, and mental repose,
but in the deepest part
of my being I already envisaged the subject of the final visualization that
I shall undertake for this book.
In a world in confusion, in transformation, and, more exactly, in change,
can one still admit that mysticism has its place? Humanity seems to be
prey to a growing thirst to enjoy life in its many aspects, and one can
believe that in the future it may be concerned only
with material
satisfactions. At least this is what a great many think, what the
newspapers write about, and what radio and television broadcast so much.
But this is only the appearance.
Man, it is true, is moving into a new environment, into different
circumstances. He knows a material civilization infinitely more advanced
than it was recently, and some decades have been enough for this result
to
be attained, and for humanity to evolve into this new setting. Those who
know that the Age of Aquarius has succeeded the preceding Age of Pisces
are not surprised by the changes occurring, and by the transformations
taking place now, or yet to come. They see that the next act has begun,
but they do not ignore the fact that the actors themselves always remain
the same. The play will advance toward new developments without changing
the roles. Certainly the reactions to the setting in which humanity acts
are necessarily different from the past. From the physical and
intellectual point of view, man is in a considerably higher degree.
Progressively but rapidly he has in this regard put himself in tune with
the new age.
However, the rhythm of existence to which humanity is accustoming itself
for this more advanced cycle is not balanced by the spiritual
understanding required by this rhythm. One could say that man, actually,
possesses an adult body and a child's soul. He has grown materially
without developing himself inwardly and the imbalance will persist as long
as an understanding adapted to the new age does not develop in him. Former
conceptions are outdated, and nothing has replaced them for the masses.
Everything seems to be questioned, and hasty reforms of dead structures
will not assist in a return to equilibrium. This return will only be
obtained by new structures inspired by the new age. From the past,
naturally, that which is permanent will still remain, that which
constitutes the note common to all the ages; and this permanence, this
common note, consists of the fundamental principles, diversified aspects
of the unique law, which are forever at the disposition of man to permit
him access to knowledge, to the true mastership of life. This is why
religions will disappear, or will be transformed to the point of being
unrecognizable; they are exoteric, so this maturity is natural because
they obey the law of the exterior world. On the other hand, what will not
change are the authentic mystery schools like the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC,
because they are esoteric and not subject to external influences except in
their way of transmitting, training, and initiating, which evolves with
the environment where the schools must operate, so as to better fulfill
their mission. In other words, knowledge is unalterable, but its
expression and the technique adopted for perpetuating it depends on
exterior conditions.
Precisely, it is the authentic mystery schools, and the Rosicrucian Order,
AMORC, especially, which have it in their power to lead man to true
understanding, and also to the restoration in him of the balance upset
by his maladjustment to the new age, because as I have said, only man's
interest in material satisfaction is apparent at the present time. If this
interest is, or seems, so exclusive it is because man sees engulfed with
the times everything which constituted for him a refuge, which he supposed
indestructible, and everything which appeared to him possessed of
unchangeable value. Around that which could help him (that is, around some
traditional organizations representing permanent knowledge), a real
conspiracy of silence has been set up, hindering their efforts to
facilitate man's approach to a more elevated stage by giving him the
teaching necessary to an understanding adapted to the new cycle as to all
the others. The Rosicrucian Order, AMORC, aware of its mission and its
responsibilities, has, for some decades, undertaken powerful propaganda
with the aim of breaking down this conspiracy of silence and of revealing
to man that a solid organization exists for the purpose of filling the
void with which he is suddenly confronted, and of procuring for him tools
which would help him to effectively resolve all his problems. Numbers have
responded to its call, and greater and greater in number are those who
are
responding to it as the new age progressively establishes itself. A relief
is thus being effected, and it has been foreseen. Astonishing as it may
seem, far from upsetting what existed in the past and what should, in a
different form, be continued for the benefit of the masses, this relief
breathes life into it. In that way, mysticism regains its place and helps,
for example, those who are drawn to religion to re-examine and to
understand the religion from which they have been drawn aside because of
the fluctuations which have shaken it, and which they could not
understand.
Mysticism, then - as much as ever - has its fundamental role to fulfill,
it being well-understood that the term 'mysticism' is taken in the complete
sense that the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC, gives it - that is, of knowledge
and experience - a knowledge and an experience which include every aspect
of
existence without implying any frustration or any denial of the world,
but, on the contrary, a total participation.
The question of the place of the mystic in the modern world, therefore,
deserves the greatest attention, and it is toward the Cathedral of the
Soul that I turned to be enlightened on this subject. In my private sanctuary,
I waited for the Master, and he appeared as he always does for whomever
eagerly desires his wisdom and his truth. The OM has resounded and here
he
is, he who, with the Benevolent Master, has blessed with his presence
most of these contacts and given me these messages of the Cathedral of the
Soul for
you. My consciousness now receives the word and accepts it with respect.
"Before coming to this sacred place where we are at this moment, you have
reflected for a long time on the subject into which you wished to delve
more deeply in your Cosmic Attunement, and you have written the
conclusions which you have arrived at yourself. It is a good method,
because your visualization is made easier, and you should recommend it
to those who, like yourself, are seeking more Light in a contact with the
Cathedral of the Soul. The conceptions already acquired in the mystic
quest, by being jotted down on paper as the thought occurs, will establish the
bases of effective visualization. They are thus 'put into condition'
for Attunement with the Cosmic, and their whole being will be prepared for it.
It is not an obligation, it is a recommendation, destined to facilitate
their arrival here, and to make more understandable the message that
they will receive.
"I
should like to talk to you about the modern mystic. You have emphasized
the permanence of mysticism in the course of all
the
ages and of all the Cosmic cycles. On another occasion you have learned
that in
the Age of Aquarius it will occupy a place of prime importance, and
that it will be very much more widespread among men than before. You
have
concluded from that, with reason, that in this preponderant role it
would inspire exterior manifestations of thought and religious activities
destined for the masses, for those who have not yet attained the stage
of total adherence to pure mysticism. Actually it is true that authentic
traditional organizations, such as the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC, will
become better and better known and accepted by everyone, but that does
not mean that everyone should be admitted to it. A very considerable
number
will be. The ones who are ready to be initiated are already very numerous,
and they will be
even more so over the whole surface of the Earth. However, they may
always be a minority - important as it may be - in humanity's evolution,
and by
minority I mean, naturally, an elite. This, elite will effectively
influence the profane world more than it has ever done. Being now
acknowledged, it will be listened to more, and in many cases its
explanations (in truth, its opinions) will be followed. Knowing of
the existence of schools of wisdom, whoever feels ‘ready’ will approach
their
portals without fear or reserve. Without any doubt, these schools, for
the
strongest reasons, if they have the power of the Rosicrucian Order,
AMORC, will always have to defend themselves against insidious attacks
from
shadows, but they are the channels for the dispensation of knowledge
and initiation, and nothing, on that account, will prevail against them.
The position of the modern mystic depends on this new situation. He is
not separated from men; he lives and expresses himself amongst them.
The world
is the laboratory where he experiments and applies the great principles
which his traditional studies reveal to him. The mystic tries to become
a
total being. Nothing that concerns the world is strange to him. He
is interested in the entire universe, the visible as ell as the invisible,
in
science and its efforts as well as the most diverse expressions of
philosophical and religious thought. He follows his personal way and
builds up his own understanding, but does not ignore the way followed
and
the understanding built by others - Without, however, being in
the least influenced by the world and without sitting in judgment or
seeking to
convince those who cannot be convinced
"The modern mystic always remembers that there is in every being a double
polarity - the one positive, the other negative - and that he himself
possesses it since, without this double polarity no existence would be
possible. The third point - the manifestation on the material plane
- can
only exist if the two others are present. The good qualities, the talents,
the constructive possibilities, are the positive polarity. The faults,
the
physical or intellectual limitations, the destructive tendencies, are
the negative polarity. Everyone, in fact, has faults corresponding to
his
qualities, and that is inescapable. Thus the mystic understands that
he ought not to judge. If the negative polarity of others disturbs him
or
surprises him, he knows that his own negative polarity may be just as
disturbing and surprising to others. In other words, the Cosmic being
all,
and in all, this double polarity is included in it also, and what is
designated as fault or imperfection is, in the last analysis, only a
deduction of limited reasoning, because this double polarity is at the
service of man for his evolution, for his inner development, and for
his
ultimate grasp of consciousness.
"The fundamental quality of the mystic, then, is to be himself. He does
not seek to hypnotically conceal his negative polarity in order only to
display to the eyes of the world his positive polarity. He knows that
the greatest masters themselves possess this double polarity as long as they
are incarnated, and that, in being themselves, they give to others the
greatest lesson and the finest example. In being himself, the mystic is a
complete being. He develops by using all the means placed at his disposal
in his incarnation. Meanwhile he learns to use his positive polarity for
others, and to keep to himself his negative polarity, and it is in this
that he differs from the uninitiated. The negative polarity is a
considerable help to him. It urges him to constant humility. As long as he
is on the path of evolution, he will remain conscious of the limits which
his negative polarity impose upon him, and he will be humble, because he
knows that he is man.
