Theos-Talk Archives (June 2005 Message tt00489)

June 24 2005

Sorry Harry for delay -- not well -- here goes:

3 a.m. ? Me too some days /nights -- newspaper articles can depress,
agreed.
Thanks for sample,

Try and see if there are some good and constructive ones, and shoot them
across. Helpful.

"Carnalized Christ" The popular religions have to hold on to that fiction
or they die. But there are enough questions, and we keep asking them.

Individual minds need to be asked logical questions often enough so that
happens sooner or later. They start ticking, and thinking. 

What causes paradoxes? In a Universe of LAW only misinformation or a lack
of information. THEOSOPHY provides full information -- we call it the
"fundamentals," and then some laugh at us, instead of trying to use them, or
even check to see if they are FUNDAMENTAL.

I would recommend (old saw): Stress the fundamentals always. Consider and
tell me if this would not help?

The mindset of a true fundamentalist is to assist everyone around him.  

It is also educative since it demands that the basic ideas of life and of
progress be known and discussed. In this way it is generous, kind and also
tolerant. 

"There is no religions higher than TRUTH." Means what ? 

It makes no demands on anyone else than ones' lower self. It is not
judgmental. It asks for the fullest expansion, and demands all that is
available.

In effect, it means we operate from the same shared planes and ideas of
knowledge -- some call it truth, others may call it virtue, or "Law." .  

It then serves to abridge lengthy explanations. 

But in no way ought it to imply that free-thought is to be limited. Nor
does it imply we ought to be continually judging others and their motives.

It should never encourage any kind of prejudice. 

What are we humans? : Thinkers ! At least at 3 levels:

1	we have memories of what has happened, [ Past ]

2	we observe now, and	[ Present ]	

3	we think of alternatives on which we will base our decisions.
[ Future ]

If we seek to put everyone into the same straight-jacket it results in
failure. That is (I believe) because THINKING has not been taught
systematically.

THEOSOPHY as I see it, points always to the ever-acting law of Karma. Karma
provides freedom for everyone and everything. We are always dealing with
immortal Monads whose independence cannot be limited. How do we make
adjustments is the real question to ask.

What then is "black and white" -- Motive. The reason why anyone does
anything. It is either selfish and isolating, or it is impersonally generous
and universally kind. I think this definition is the great stumbling-block.
We have not been trained to think in that direction. But there are good
reasons for it. 

In the survey of evolution given by THEOSOPHY it is shown that the Universe
is made up of innumerable "life-atoms." ( Monads -- consisting of
permanently united SPIRIT / MATTER / MIND minute elements) . These elements
are immortals -- they do not die but continually progress, ever moving all
together forward, as they learn through experience. Eventually, over
millions of years, each such "life-atom"/ monad becomes independent as a
"feeler," as a "thinker" and finally as a Human. 

There, as in all of us, emotion and thought co-exist closely. Our present
task is apparently to discover how to separate these two and make good use
of them. They are our tools and not our masters. On this one point most
psychologists have trouble.  

It is because of this that THEOSOPHY teaches the difference between the
Lower and Higher Self. In an ancient illustration the Higher Self was
compared to a bird sitting at the top of the Tree of Life. Below it, it
brother, a second bird lives and eats the fruits of living. The lower bird
lives and works and as it meets problems, it asks for the advice of the
Superior bird who has acquired the wisdom of experience and Perfection. 

But for us, looking at our present -- all as humans, the journey to
Perfection is now only half done. The more difficult aspect begins. The
"feeling nature" has realise that the "thinking nature" is its friend and
not its enemy. Both depend on each other. 

The rest of the effort as the Lower Mind is led upward, will have to be
actively guided by the intelligent thought and control of the Human-Monad
for itself in the company of all the rest. We are at the beginning stage of
this effort. We live in emotional, sensitive and "feeling" forms. In
effect we have created them by drawing together compatible assistants in the
form of the many "life-atoms" of lesser experience. We have become their
guides and teachers. They depend on us, and as we make choices, they alter
and adopt them.  

It is for this reason that "bad choices" have to be first identified by us,
and then avoided. We mold those "lesser experienced monads," and they,
attached to us, become the carriers of the "bad Karma" we have imposed on
them by those molds. [ And similarly, it works in the reverse way for
"good" Karma.] 

This is the reason for drawing attention to virtue as motive vs. vice as
selfishness. Every great religious reformer of whatever age has said this. 

What effect should this information have on us ? 

This means the smallest atom and the wisest Mahatma are actually differences
in degree of knowledge, function and WISDOM. The will to improve is made
active and paramount. It works only through open cooperation and selfless
interaction. We have to decide to live impersonally for all. Thus we help
and are helped in return. 

The atoms work with each other according to general laws of attraction and
repulsion that are innate to their quality. The function of all atoms and
forms is to aggregate (as skandhas) and provide vehicles for higher
intelligences to reside therein. There is compatibility between these
aggregations and the single Monad which serves as a central point for them
-- It is that which we call: "I" in us.  

It has among other duties one that is automatic -- to help and arouse in
them a higher degree of intelligence and consciousness while they are doing
their duties each in its own way. Thus improvement is cooperative and a
constant effort. 

For such an enormous Universe as ours the nature of cooperative assistance
is a vita one -- as the amalgamation and the assimilation of every Monad
with the rest is continuous.  

The lines of force and of benevolence or of opposition run all through
Nature. Which will we choose to assist? 

May I say that I have noticed that THEOSOPHY teaches:


1	The spiritual unity of all beings makes a single Universe and all
Nature -- in effect it is DEITY. We are a part of IT and IT is a part of
us.  

These two aspects of SPIRIT and MATERIAL FORMS are no doubt at polar
opposites, seemingly, yet, they are forever united.  

The third aspect of the Universe is MIND -- it is mid-way between SPIRIT and
FORMS of matter, and is able therefore, to balance and observe in them their
many kinds of interactions. The mind evolves plans of action and
development, and these, to be fair to all, have to be "lawful." [ We can
demonstrate this to ourselves by choosing any example, and carrying out its
sequence of interaction mentally to a satisfactory joint conclusion that
unites and does away with annoying, shocking or adverse "differences." ]

Both the spiritual Unit and the material Unit are immortal entities (says
THEOSOPHY ) and in universal symbology they are represented by the marriage
of SPIRIT and MATTER. Of these two are born a "son": the MIND -- and this
is able by observation and reflection to develop wisdom -- or a knowledge of
LAW and LAWS. 

We may say of Spirit that it is the "Ideal." Of Matter, we may say it
provides all the vast diversity of forms in which "Spirit" lives and acts.
Mind, the 3rd aspect of the Universe, provides the laws of cooperation and
interaction, so that the many diverse forms can co-exist. [ Anyone who has
studied a little of mathematics, chemistry, physics, engineering, biology,
music, poetry or astronomy will recognize that these living areas and
sciences could not have any value if they did not detect and define the LAWS
already established there by Nature / the Universe / or, DEITY -- of which
we are a part. ] 

Possibly, the reason we so readily accept the idea of "chaos" is we do not
fully see the many links we are part of in time and space -- of how "causes"
(or our and others' choices) lead to "exact results" and effects that work
for or against us. The difference between "good" and "bad," while sensed, is
not clear. To connect the two is often impossible for us. 

I find THEOSOPHY, as a philosophy and a science, clears this up by declaring
that any choice or action that does not take others (and their well being)
into account is selfish and usually "bad." For this reason it declares that
our motives and reactions to situations ought to be impersonal and
impartial, thus we cease from being personally "selfish," and do "good." 

2	The Universe supports the whole of living Nature by accurate and
responsive laws. These provide for on-going cooperation and living, and are
equal for all (because we are immortals -- this is a UNIVERSAL BROTHERHOOD
!) as an ideal concept.  

There is no "chaos" in that. Science, in its investigations, finds LAW and
LAWS everywhere. The Universe, and we, cannot live without them. It
declares that the basic "atoms" are eternally in motion and alive -- hence,
to them, the forever interacting of "life-atoms" (monads) is intelligent,
essential to on-going life, and meaningful.

3	The purpose of the Universe and Nature (says THEOSOPHY) is to
gradually educate all its intelligent components -- to understand these
concepts and practise them. We as humans -- as mind beings -- are in the
middle of this process. 

This may seem extraordinary, because it is so vast and all-inclusive. But
when we consider that every such component (monad) is co-existent with all
the rest, and each is as indestructible and as ancient as the whole; we are
dealing not only with ourselves (as Monads that have reached the mental
stage of evolution) but with all the rest of those intelligent monads that
compose the mineral, vegetable, animal, human and super-human divisions of
nature. 

Many who are interested in THEOSOPHY may have not yet read through The KEY
TO THEOSOPHY and noted how this unified philosophy explains this, and every
other aspect of living. Hence, the concept of chaos prevails -- even when
observation and logic show that cannot be true.  

How could any of us live for an instant if "chaos" truly prevailed? Since
we are alive and remember our past, there is at least a law of continuity.
And where does that come from? What can we do with a knowledge of it? 

Such a consideration leads to the teachings of:

1	Soul immortality,

2	reincarnation,

3	perfectibility of all Monads and humans,

4	there are Wise And Sagacious Men who remain with mankind as their
Teachers, for all there is 

5	a goal that some have designated: The SUPREME PERFECTION of WISDOM. 

6	These ideas and facts lead to an understanding of Karma -- the Law
of moral compensation, 

7	and the suggestion that we carefully and always examine our motives
before putting our decisions into action.  

No one in their right mind would invite for themselves future suffering and
pain -- so why give those any basis for existence by making selfish choices?


Best wishes,

Dallas
 


Dallas

============================================
 
-----Original Message-----
From: HTinSF
Sent: Monday, June 20, 2005 9:29 PM
To: dalval14
Subject: RE: author How did we get here ?

Hi, Dallas--
No, I haven't seen any more lake water shimmers. Although Jewell felt
one quake, I felt none at all. Most of the quake activity was north of
Santa Rosa, particularly off the coast of Eureka, my favourite place in
CA except for SF.

Since you couldn't answer my question, I get to ask you another one. In
the booklet, THE ESOTERIC CHARACTER OF THE GOSPELS by HPB, on page 3, a
quote from LUCIFER, 1887, is:

"Belief in the Bible literally, and in a carnalised Christ, will not
last a quarter of a century longer."

If she were here today, what would she say?

Don't most Catholics and almost all evangelical Protestants still take
the Bible literally and believe in a carnalised Christ, providing the
Church's strength today?
CUT