English
Ti would not be such a serious matter if it were merely a THE EXPANSION OF THE SELF uestion of .faulty metaphysics, for that would strl out in time. But it is far more serious thaf r the teaching inevitably leads to the accompanying teaching that all is Illusion or Maya, and that Life is but a dream — a false thing—a lie—a nightmare ; that the journey along the Path is but an illusion ; that everything is “ nothing that there is no soul; that You are God in disguise, and that He is fooling Himself in making believe that He is You; that Life is but a Divine mas¬ querade or sleight-of-hand performance ; that You are God, but that You (God) are fooling Yourself (God) in order to amuse Yourself (God). Is not this horrible? And yet it shows to what lengths the human mind will go before it will part with some pet theory of metaphysics with which it has been hypnotized. Do you think that wc have overdrawn the picture? Then read some of the teachings of these schools of the Oriental Philosophy, or listen to some of the more radical of the Western teachers preaching this philosophy. The majority of the latter lack the courage of the Hindu teachers in carrying their theories to a logical conclusion, and consequently they veil their teachings with metaphysical subtlety. But a few of them are more courageous, and come out into the open and preach their doctrine in full. Some of the modern Western teachers of this philo¬ sophy explain matters by saying that “ God is mas¬ querading as different forms of life, including Man, in order that He may gain the experience resulting there¬ from, for although He has Infinite and Absolute Wisdom and Knowledge, He lacks the experience that comes only from actually living the life of the lowly forms, and there¬ fore He descends thus in order to gain the needed experi¬ ence.” Can you imagine the Absolute, possessed of all possible Knowledge and Wisdom, feeling the need of such petty “ experience,” and living the life of the lowly forms RAJA YOGA ’ Man) in order “ to gain experience ”? To w (these vain theories of Man drive us? Anoth _^western teacher, who has absorbed the teaching of certain branched of the Oriental Philosophy, and who possesses the courage of his convictions, boldly announces that “ You, yourself, are the totality of being, and with your mind alone create, preserve and destroy the universe, which is your own mental product.” And again the last- mentioned teacher states: “ The entire universe is a baga¬ telle illustration of your own creative power, which you are now exhibiting for your own inspection.” “ By their fruits shall you knew them ” is a safe rule to apply to all teachings. The philosophy that teaches that the Universe is an illusion perpetrated by you (God) to amuse, entertain, or fool yourself (God), can have but one result, and that is the conclusion that “ everything is nothing,” and all that it is necessary to do is to sit down, fold your hands and enjoy the Divine exhibition of legerdemain that you are performing for your own enter¬ tainment, and then, when the show is over, return to your state of conscious Godhood and recall with smiles the pleasant memories of the “ conjure show ” that you created to fool yourself with during several billions of ages. That is what it amounts to, and the result is that those accepting this philosophy thrust upon them by forceful teachers, and knowing in their hearts that ‘hey are not God, but absorbing the suggestions of “ nothing¬ ness,” are driven into a state of mental apathy and nega¬ tiveness, the soul sinking into a stupor from which it may not be roused for a long period of time. We wish you to avoid confounding our teaching with this just mentioned. We wish to teach you that You are a real Being —not God Himself, but a manifestation 1 0 f Him who is the Absolute. You are a Child of the Abso- ■ lute, if you prefer the term, possessed of the Divine Heri* THE EXPANSION OF THE SELF , tn< ^ whose mission it is to unfold qualities whftfflifrei inheritances from your Parent. Do not make the'great take of confounding the Relative with the Absolute. Avoid this pitfall into which so many have fallen. Do not allow yourself to fall into the “ Slough of Despond,” and wallow in the mud of “ nothingness,” and to see no reality except in the person of some forceful teacher who taxes the place of the Absolute in your mind. But raise your head and assert your Divine Parentage, and your Heritage from the Absolute, and step out boldly on the Path, asserting the “ I.” (We must refer the Candidate back to our “Advanced Course " for our teachings regarding the Absolute and the Relative. The last three lessons of that course will throw light upon what we have just said. To repeat the teaching at this point would be to use space which is needed for the lesson before us.) And yet, while the “ I ” is not God, the Absolute, it is infinitely greater than we have imagined it to be before the light dawned upon us. It extends itself far beyond what we had conceived to be its limits. It touches the Universe at all its points, and is in the closest union with all of Life. It is in the closest touch with all that has emanated from the Absolute—all the world of Relativity. And while it faces the Relative Universe, it has its roots m the Absolute, and draws nourishment therefrom, just as does the babe in the womb obtain nourishment from the mother. It is verily a manifestation of God, and I God’s very essence is in it. Surely this is almost as) high ’ a statement as the “ I Am God ” of the teachers just mentioned—and yet how different! Let us con¬ sider the teaching in detail in this lesson, and in portions or others to follow. Let us begin with a consideration of the instruments of the Ego, and the material with which and through raja Yoga i<s Ego works. Let us realize that the phy: body or man is identical in substance witli all ota forms "of matter, and that its atoms are continually changing and being replaced, the material being drawn from the great storehouse of matter, and that there is a Oneness of matter underlying all apparent differences 01 form and substance. And then let us realize that the vital energy or Prana that man uses in his life-work is but a portion of that great universal energy which permeates everything and everywhere, the portion being used ay us at any particular moment being drawn from the universal supply, and again passing out from s into the great ocean of force or energy. And then let us realize that even the mind, which is so close to the rea Self that it is often mistaken for it — even that wond erfu thing Thought— is but a portion of the Universal Mind, the highest emanation of the Absolute beneath the plane of Spirit, and that the Mind— substance or Chitta tha we are using this moment, is not ours separately and dis¬ tinctly, but is simply a portion from the great universal supply, which is constant and unchangeable. Let us then realize that even this thing that we feel pulsing within us _ that which is so closely bound up with the Spirit as to be almost inseparable from it—that which we call Life- is but a bit of that Great Life Principle that pei- vades the Universe, and which cannot be added to, nor subtracted from. When we have realized these things, and have begun to feel our relation tin these particulars) ;o the One Great Emanation of the Absolute, then we may begin to grasp the idea of the Oneness of Spirit, and the relation of the “I” to every other ' L and the merging of the Self into the one great Self, which is not ithe extinction of Individuality, as some have supposed, •but the enlargement and extension of the Individual Consciousness until it takes in the Whole. THE EXPANSION OF THE SELF wessons X and XI of the “ Advanced Cours f . _ your attention to the Yogi teachings concefnmg - \c(sa or Matter, and showed you that all forms of what we know as Matter are but different forms of manifesta¬ tion of the principle called Akctsa, or as the Western scientists call it, “Ether.” This Ether or Akasa is the hnest, thinnest and most tenuous form of Matter, in fact, it is Matter in its ultimate or fundamental form, the different forms of what we call Matter being but manifestations of this Akasa or Ether, the apparent difference resulting from different rates of vibration, etc. We mention this fact here merely to bring clearly before your mind the fact of the Universality of Matter, to the end that you may realize that each and every particle of your physical body is but a portion of this great principle of the Universe, fresh from the great storehouse, and just about returning to it again, for the atoms of the body are constantly changing, i hat which appears as your flesh to-day may have been , pari of a plant a few days before, and may be part of i some other living thing a few days hence. Constant change is going on, and what is yours to-day was some¬ one else’s yesterday, and still another’s to-morrow. You do not own one atom of matter personally it is all a part of the common supply, the stream flowing through you and through all Life, on and on for ever. And so it is with the Vital Energy that you are using every moment of your life. You are constantly drawing' upon t le great Universal supply of Prana, then using what is given you, allowing the force to pass on to assume some other form. It is the property of all, and all you can do is to use what you need, and allow it to pass on. t lore is but one Force or Energy, and that is to be found everywhere at all times. And even the great principle. Mind-substance, is under RAJA YOGA law. It is hard for us to realize this. W 1 to think of our mental operations as distinct?