Theos-Talk Archives (September 1996 Message tt00029)

This is an introduction.

An effort is being made on the Internet to increase cooperation
in study between Theosophical students, world wide. In order to
take part in this effort the DALnet IRC channel #Theosophy was
started. This channel is now in its infant stage. Cooperation from
Theosophical students to lead a topic discussion is needed,
and participation is open to all interested.

Discussions are held every Sunday. The next meeting will start
at 15:30 GMT, but thereafter the starting time will be 14:00 GMT.

For further information please write to: metastudies@treknet.is

The next topic will be: "The Path and Getting Real with
Theosophy." Lead by EBT.

For those who are interested, here follows the topic presentation
given last Sunday:

Some thoughts on The first Stanza of Voluspa.

1. In ancient times from which we have legends but not
historical records, there were in existence philosophical and
anthropological schools for those seeking the esoteric path.
Those who studied at these schools were students in "The Ancient
Wisdom Teaching." One of these schools was the Ancient Northern
School.

2. These schools presented the Teaching in different ways
according to the mentality of the peoples and the cyclic
inheritance from far past periods. The Ancient Northern School
had branches in Scandinavia and Russia, and relations with The
School in Tibet.

3. In The Northern School the teaching was mostly given orally
and instructions from texts were in brief sentences that needed
further introductions. Written text was learned by heart. The
Teaching was ethical and metaphysical but emphasis was also on
faculty training.

4. We do not have many old texts that directly connect us to The
Northern School. But one of the most important is in: "The Book
of The King." The content of that book is commonly known by the
name "Voluspa." The Teaching is also classified as "M?misspa" and
"Voluspa."

5. The word M?misspa means: The Speech of The Cosmic Spirit of
The Heavenly Man. The word Voluspa means: The speech of The
Prophetess. In this connection it is proper to mention that the
meaning of the word Prophetess is not always the same. Sometimes
the story is told and sometimes a challenge is made. It is left
to the intuition of the student to know the difference there
between.

6. Voluspa is written in 66 or 67 numbered verses. Usually each
verse has eight sentences. The Poem is also written in a
slightly different way in two other books: One by Snorri
Sturluson ( 1179 - 1241 ) who called the Wisdom Poem "Ancient
Sciences" and in another book: Hauksbuk. There are minor
differences in texts between the verses in these books.

7. In the period when Snorri Sturluson wrote, all men who were
considered wise had learned Voluspa by heart and many other
wisdom poems now lost to us. Snorri was adopted when young and
brought up in a "Scholastic Centre" where these "Ancient
Sciences" were known an taught.

8. The Book of The King begins with Mímisspá: The Commanding
Speech of The Valfather to all beings of all ranks in the High
Worlds, to prepare for a new and another descend to the three
denser worlds of personality evolution. The period of rest had
come to an end. Humanity as a whole, was at this time not in the
three worlds of person evolution.

9. Mankind had experienced a nature catastrophe in the end of
the last World Period of cyclic evolution of races in the
physical world. And on a mass scale had entered the etheric
dimension of the physical world and the next world; the Astral
World. From the Astral World men had also in periods and on a
mass scale ascended up to the lower Mental World.

10. From the lower Mental World men ascended to the higher
Mental World and then from there to the realms of the Souls. At
that point in the cyclic periods of descend and ascend; the
rebirth and death of the human race, there came a long period of
rest for the many.

11. The physical, the astral, and the lower mental worlds were
vacant of men when The Command of The Heavenly Man for descent
was given. But its etheric "presence"; the etheric substances
were imbued with the past and Humanity would have to deal with
that in the coming descent and in its next effort to ascend out
of the denser worlds.

12. It is because of this difficult task ahead that The
Valfather advises men to learn by knowing and understanding the
history of the far past ancient cycles, and instructs us to learn
a lesson from the "ancient misconduct of men." It is to this task
that He gives us insight in His far past and the constitutions of
the worlds and the subdivisions. It is for this prime reason
that The Teaching in Völuspá is given, and emphasis is laid on
ethics, understanding of the evolution and the work of the
etheric builders.

13. We are told that: The descent of Humanity to the personality
worlds took place when the sun was in "The South." And prior to
the decent; that the balance of the poles was not in order. That
the Zodiac magnet was not in order. That the physical world was
going through a revolt. And that the many etheric builders were
active.

14. Ýmir, The Cosmic Born Heavenly Man had descended with His
host to lead men to the denser worlds of forms. He manifested in
the highest subplanes of the physical world, taking on with men
the burden of all who suffer and the struggle with all who
strive. Ýmir is Mímir personified. A Cosmic Spirit personified
in human etheric form in the highest ethers of our planetary
system, The Father of Valhöll.

15. When The Giant Ýmir took hold of His Etheric Palace Valhöll;
another Cosmic born Giant from The Cosmic Forces of Chaos was
summoned by that Force to confront Him. That Giant took hold
with His host in the lowest subplanes of the threefold dense
worlds and The Battle was in hand. Men must battle with etheric
gravity and evolutionary resistance and build on a higher scale
in each new World Period.

16. The battlefield is in the threefold persons-worlds of men
and the battle is about men, their values, what they live for;
the harvest in the end of subcycles and in the end of The World
Period. The battle is between two opposite Cosmic Born Giants of
extreme power, and is about the question if; men can or can not
live by ethical principles and by the way, of wise love and
understanding. Every man and every group will be tested when
fully grown and mentally mature.

17. We are given insight in the far past Cosmic Cycles which
have their lesser reflections in the Solar Systemic periods of
descent and ascend. In these ancient cycles our Valfather has
taken part and so have we done with him. These Systemic Cycles
pattern down to many and varied lesser cycles which have a
reflection to the Cosmic period.

18. It is in the Pattern of Planetary descent and ascend that we
have the World Periods of Races, manifesting at first on the
physical plane the embryonic "primitive" race and subraces.
(This may be compared to the period when a human being, lives in
the first seven years and works trough the etheric brain cells
used in the last incarnation.) And then in the end the highest
race and subraces of culture and spiritual achievement.

19. It is in The World Periods of Races that Nations are born.
Nations are borne and descend to their Global place of location
and manifest through their inherent etheric glandular system; in
some ways similar to that of a man. Nations keep within their
etheric builders the seeds of events from ancient periods.
Nations can call on humans, and groups of humans in the higher
worlds to fulfill their destiny. Thus will The Ancient Wisdom
Schools be re-manifested.

20. There are many translations of the text from "The Book of
The King." Most are done also in an effort to get the powerful
rhythm which is in the original text. The powerful rhythm can
not be transferred in a translation. The first Stanza has eight
sentences. The translation here given is numbered, one number
for each sentence. The Icelandic text is also given.

21. - 1. Silence to all - 2. Of Holy kind - 3. Greater and
lesser - 4. Of all ranks in High Worlds - 5. I, The Father of
Valhöll will - 6 Tell you well - 7. Ancient misconduct of men 8.
As memory relates.

22. - 1. Hljóđs biđ ek allar - 2. Helgar kindir, - 3. Meiri
ok minni - 4. Mögu Heimdalar; 5. Vildu, at ek, Valföđr, - 6.
Vel fyr telja - 7. Forn spjöll fira, - 8. Ţau er fremst um man.

23. By those who classify the text in two main parts (Mímisspá
and Völuspá), the first verse and also the second verse belong to
Mímisspá; The Speech of The Heavenly Man; The command to men of
all ranks in the High Worlds is not only to those in the world of
souls, it is also to many of those who have not yet in this
Greater Cycle descended to the world of souls (and from there to
personality evolution)and dwell in the Diamond World, the world
of Spirit or Monad.

24. The events and the many factors that relate to the
misconduct of men are dealt with in the later verses classified
to Völuspá. The misconduct we are told, are mainly threefold:
Misuse of magick knowledge, greed, and perverted desires. These
misconduct eventually led to the decline of effort to culture and
corrupted civilization. Wars broke out between the two opposite
hosts of The Giants. None had victory.

25. We will now prepare to take a look at the next Stanza. In
That Stanza The Valfather tells his birth in former solar
systems. About the Nine Worlds and the Nine Subdivisions of each
world. And about the Most Subtle World. At this point we can
deplore that we do not have the detailed text of Sćmundur Fróđi.
What we have are memory notes from those who learned at the
"Scholastic Center." "Fragments from the notes of the
Headmaster."

(To be continued....)