Theos-Talk Archives (November 2005 Message tt00107)

Before we think about the seven planes of Nature, their constituents 
and inhabitants, we need to think about the various forms and 
aspects of the One God. 

Why? Because these forms and aspects build, maintain and dissolve 
the universes, their solar systems, and life forms. This One-in-all 
and all-in-One aspect of God is very well known to all Hindus, 
illiterate and literate. 

Our discussions in this posting are based on the book titled 
Theosophy Explained in Questions and Answers by P. Pavri. 

Theosophy performs a comparative study of the truths of major 
religions, unites them, and presents a holistic worldview which is 
intuitive, logical and scientific. The investigations of Theosophy 
are backed by observation using advanced psychic powers and are 
mostly verifiable by people having such powers. 

The One, the Three and the Seven. Unity, Trinity and Septenary. 

All religions aver that God is One. The One Existence who is the 
centre of all life. An Omnipresent, Omnipotent, Omniscient, Eternal, 
Boundless and Immutable Principle on which all speculation is 
impossible. The One only without a Second. The Unmanifested Logos. 
The formless, impersonal God. 

He is the Paramatman of Hinduism. The Nirguna Brahman -- the Brahman 
without attributes, remaining unmanifested. 

He is the Boundless Space --Zarwane Akrane-- of Zoroastrianism. The 
Thrice-unknown Darkness of the Greek Orphic System. 

>From That all comes forth; to That all returns. That includes within 
itself all that ever has been, is and can be. He is called That 
because He is formless and unconditional. When He is formless, He 
remains as the All, the Mulaprakriti, the root-matter or Koilon out 
of which every form is shaped. 

Even though He is formless, He is not still. He is Pure 
Consciousness, Pure Motion, Pure Energy. 

Universes arise out of Him, like the waves from an ocean. Universes 
sink into Him, like the waves sink back. The wave is the form or 
manifestation of the water underneath. 

Did this One, the formless God build our Solar System? 

Yes and no. Yes because, as the Upanishad says, 'He willed: I will 
multiply.' No because, He did not do it directly. 

When He willed to multiply, out of Him came the manifested 
Brahman--the Saguna Brahman, the Personal God. 

We should understand that the manifested and unmanifested are merely 
two states of Brahman. The Saguna Brahman is not a Second, but the 
One in manifestation. Like a wave from the ocean. 

Theosophy calls the Saguna Brahman the Cosmic Logos, the Supreme 
Ruler of the universe. He is further described as the self-existing 
One, the Root and Cause of all beings, also sometimes called 
Purusha, the Supreme Spirit, the Self. 

The One builds the universe, with a portion of Himself, manifesting 
as the Supreme Spirit. 

He then unfolds Himself into a threefold form, the three great Logoi 
of cosmic evolution, the Trimurti or Trinity aspect towards the 
universe of the Manifested God. 

The seven Embodiments of His nature are then formed into the Seven 
Cosmic Planetary Logoi, who are associated with the work of the 
three Cosmic Logoi of the Universe. 

Thus, the One manifests as the Trimurti or the Trinity. The Three 
are His aspects and are not separate from Him. He is the sum-total 
and the All of the Three. They are in Him and He is in Them all. 

The aspect of Isvara (another name for the One) in which he creates 
the world is named Brahma by the Hindus, and the Holy Ghost by the 
Christians. 

That aspect in which Isvara preserves and maintains the worlds is 
named Vishnu by the Hindus, the Son by the Christians. 

The aspect in which he dissolves the worlds when they are of no 
further use is named Siva or Mahadeva by the Hindus, the Father by 
the Christians. 

There are innumerable universes, and countless solar systems in each 
universe. Each solar system is energized and controlled by a mighty 
Being called the Solar Logos or the Solar Deity. For our solar 
system, the Solar Deity is called Savitri by the Hindus. 

Next below the Solar Deity are the seven Solar Planetary Logoi or 
the Planetary Spirits. Just as the seven Cosmic Planetary Logoi 
mentioned above are the seven Embodiments of the nature of the One, 
the seven Solar Planetary Logoi are the seven expressions of the 
nature of the Solar Deity. 

These seven aspects are known as the seven Prajapatis (Lords of 
Creatures) in Hinduism; the seven Amesha Spentas (Immortal Holy 
Ones) in Zoroastrianism; the Seven Spirits before the throne of God 
in Hebrew and Christian tradition. 

The energies of these Seven control and direct all that takes place 
within the solar system. They are the rulers of the planets Vulcan, 
Venus, Earth, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. (More on these 
Seven Schemes of Evolution later). 

Each of the Seven is the Head and Ruler of hierarchies of creative 
entities who work under his direction in the building and sustaining 
of the solar system. 

The hierarchies include Devas (or Shining Ones or Angelic hosts) 
called Adityas, Vasus, Dhyan Chohans, etc. in Oriental religions, or 
Angels, Archangels, Thrones, etc. in the Christian tradition -- 
manifestations of the One, the innumerable ministers of the Supreme 
Will. 

Thus God manifests Himself under a triple form, a Trinity (the 
Regenerator, Preserver and Creator), spoken of by the Theosophist as 
the First, Second and Third Logos; the Father, Son and Holy Ghost of 
the Christian; Siva, Vishnu and Brahma of the Hindu; the Kepher, 
Binah and Chochmah of the Hebrew Kabbalist; Ahura, Mazda and 
Ahuramazda --the Life, Wisdom and the One Existence-- of the 
Zoroastrian. 

Thus God being immanent in all, all are sharers in one Life, and 
form one great Brotherhood. 

We can now turn our thoughts to the actual building of our solar 
system and the seven planes of Nature, in the next instalment. 

Tat twam asi - That Thou art. -- Chandogya Upanishad 

Regards,
saidevo
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