Free will - Agni Yoga

222. Free will promotes numerous contradictions. One turns it into license; another into irresponsibility, a third into the madness of conceit. Only he who has gone through the discipline of spirit can realize how stern the reality of freedom can be...

-Agni Yoga

"I will wait"

In one of His aspects, a very touching aspect, the Lord may be said to be a beggar. He yearns for our attention. The Master of the Universe, at whose glance all stars, suns, moons, and planets quiver, is running after man and saying: 'Won't you give Me your affection? Don't you love Me, the Giver, more than the things I have made for you? Won't you seek Me?

But man says: 'I am too busy now; I have work to do. I can't take time to look for You.'

And the Lord says: 'I will wait.'

-Paramahansa Yogananda

Karma is causality

"Each man, by the action of unerring karma, receives in exact measure all that is due, all that he deserves, neither more nor less. Not one benevolent or evil action, trifling as it may be, as secretly as it may be done, escapes the precisely balanced scale of karma. Karma is causality, acting in the moral as well as in the physical and other planes. Buddhists say there are no miracles in human deeds; what man has sown he will reap. "There exists no place on earth or in heaven or under the water, nor is there such place in the depths of the mountains, where evil action does not bring suffering to him who begot it." (Dhammapada.)

All yogas demand profound discipline

Supermundane III, 559. Urusvati knows that all yogas demand profound discipline. This should be stressed, because some people think that there are yogas that do not require strictly disciplined conduct. They believe that some yogas are more difficult than others, and dream about following the easiest. But all require the same degree of inner discipline.

For the yogi, there must be a great degree of tension of the psychic energy, because it builds an immunity that is so needed during the opening of the centers. The yogi has been compared to a person with flayed skin. This is a crude analogy, but not without truth. If the yogi did not develop immunity, he would not be able to endure the contact with the spatial currents. Urusvati knows that certain currents cause painful scraping and prickly sensations. One can imagine what might happen without the building of immunity!

Some will be sure to smile when We say that the main factor in the acquiring of immunity is a good thought. But one cannot become a yogi without acknowledging the power of good thoughts. Such thoughts are the best gatekeepers at the entrance to the Subtle World.

So many people imagine themselves to be yogis, yet they are filled with malice! People assume that they will experience a sudden enlightenment that will by its own power carry them over all obstacles. It is true that enlightenment can be sudden, but for this to occur a great inner tension must be steadily accumulated. It is not the crossing of the legs, but the concentration of good thought that will be effective. Voluntary, daily discipline of thought brings the best results.

We return many times to this concept of voluntariness. It is the foremost condition of discipline. The least thought about forcing destroys all achievements. Not only does the Teacher not compel, but the disciple also must not force himself. The discipline of Good is a self-generated joy. What an indestructible immunity is created through joy! The calmness of a yogi is not due to detached imperturbability, but to an inner, flaming joy. Such is the path of discipline. Some will say: How easy! But they do not know that joy is a special wisdom.

The Thinker taught, “He who has learned joy has already stepped onto the path of wisdom.”

-Agni Yoga

Service to man is service to God

The foremost activity man should engage in, is service to the fellow human beings. Instead, people are wasting their precious time worrying about either the past or the future and strive to achieve material wealth and pleasure which is all left behind once this body ends.

They totally forget the importance of service. Only the fruits of service will remain eternal. We must constantly engage ourselves in service to others. God has given us this body for that purpose only. This body is not meant to be engaged in mere eating and drinking and wasting our valuable time. We must realize the truth that God has given us this body for serving others. There is no greater act in this life: Service to man is service to God. All great men have sanctified their lives only by serving humanity. Therefore, make it your goal to start serving humanity at least from now onwards so that you live a meaningful life and attain eternal bliss while you have the gift of this body to serve.

Human body consists of several limbs. All these limbs are meant to be engaged in serving the fellowmen and not for other activities. Unfortunately, we forget this basic fact. Every limb in the human body has been granted by God for worshipping God through service.

Man builds several temples and churches. But, all these acts can give us only temporary satisfaction, not eternal joy and peace for our soul. We must develop firm faith in the truth that nothing can provide eternal joy, except service to humanity. Therefore, undertake to serve the suffering humanity. Service is not merely confined to health problems. Service means every possible help to the fellow human beings. The hands are given to you for this purpose only. The hands that serve are holier than the lips that pray. Therefore, undertake selfless service and attain glory. When you undertake good work, you enjoy peace in this life and carry it with you for life after.

God is not interested in worship by prayers. He is only interested in service to mankind. The best way to love God is to Love all and Serve all. You need not have to spend a lot of money in service. Sanctify your life by undertaking loving service. Sacrifice alone can develop noble qualities. The body is a temple and the Indweller is God, so serving humanity is serving God in true sense to achieve limitless inner peace.

All the material wealth, including our family, friends and everything that we have is God given to us, He is the provider so learn to serve Him in the best way that pleases Him. Ultimately it is only to your own benefit.


-Sai Baba

Ego is strongest on the religious path

Ego is strongest on the religious path.

People read about magnificent ideas, visions, and the lives of heroes, and they collect all this information as they collect money, without trying to understand or actualize it in their lives.

Such accumulated information becomes the source of their ego and stops their spiritual progress, which is not based on information and theology, but precisely on the process of transformation of their nature.

It is such an ego that eventually destroys the heart and turns man into a machine, who attacks others, rationalizing that others are inferior beings not on the same path as he is.


-Torkom Saraydarian

Why Meditate?

Why Meditate? Meditate because meditation improves every area and every part of your life.

Meditate because it is good for you.

Meditate because it will fulfill you.

Meditate because you need to find your purpose for this lifetime.

Meditate so you can gain the higher knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment.

Meditate so you can offer knowledge, wisdom and enlightenment to others.

Meditate so you can become compatible to your Creator.

Meditate so you may enter the inner levels of consciousness with awareness.

Meditate so that you may overcome sadness, depression, anger, greed, jealous, envy, resentment, hatred, insecurity, and low Self worth.

Meditate because it is the most fulfilling, rewarding, thing you can do. In meditation you may experience love and you will be filled with Light.

Meditate so that each day will go well for you.

Meditate so that each day you will feel and be centered and aligned.

Meditate so you will be a better husband, wife, mother, father, partner, boss, child, employee, etc.

Meditate so you will be a better friend.

Meditate so you may form deeper friendships.

Meditate so you may know God.

Meditate so you may experience the Creator.

Meditate so you will expand your consciousness.

Meditate so you will be happy.

Meditate because change is the greatest competence one can acquire.

Meditate to enable yourself to change and grow easily.



Meditate so that you can heal your self.

Meditate to youthen and re-energize every cell in the body.

Meditate to find peace within.

Meditate to use the many gifts and talents that you were given.

Meditate to help change the consciousness of the planet.

Meditate to know that you are more than the physical body and five senses.

Meditate to raise your energy and block negativity around you.

Meditate for greater clarity and focus.

Meditate so that you can feel the connection with all of life.

Meditate so that you can achieve more in your day.

Meditate to do something for yourself that only you can give yourself.


*From the book Superconscious Meditation by Daniel R. Condron

In the spirit of deep calmness

The disciples of the future will be more influential if they train themselves in the art of calmness, as in the future greater storms and greater labors are waiting on their path. Such a battle is carried on, not in hatred, not in irritation, not in panic or insanity but in the spirit of deep calmness.

- Torkom Saraydarian

Carry with you an atmosphere of quiet contemplation

Be silent yourself. That will induce silence in others. Do not fall into the habit of shouting, talking long and loud. Reduce contacts to the minimum. Carry with you an atmosphere of quiet contemplation, wherever you happen to be.

There are some who live in a perpetual hullabaloo, in a tornado of noise. Whether they are in an exhibition or a hotel or a temple, they tongues never stop. These will not proceed far on the road to reach God.

-Sai Baba

Glamors and illusions - Torkom Saraydarian

Disciples must very closely watch their glamors and illusions, as their progress depends upon the victory they achieve over glamors and illusions.

First of all, a disciple must know what a glamor is.Glamors are astral forms of our desires, which float in our aura and have certain connections with astral and etheric centers. Because of these connections, they exercise great power upon our actions, emotions, thoughts, and relationships.

There are many reasons why we must free ourselves from glamors.

Glamors:

1. Sap our psychic energy.
2. Create disturbances in our thinking.
3. Invite entities into our sphere.
4. Create disturbances in our relationships.
5. Eventually manifest as physical diseases.
6. Prevent the expansion of consciousness.
7. Do not let the mind operate with reasoning and logic.

Most our glamors are related o three centers: the base of the spine center, the sacral center, and the solar plexus. They not only control these centers, but also are nourished by the substance they provide.

The base of spine center is related to:
a. the desire for power
b. the desire of domination
c. the desire of totalitarianism
d. the desire for destruction
e. the desire for separatism

The sacral center or the sex center is related to:
a. the desire for physical contact
b. the desire for sex
c. efforts to attract people by movements of the body, voice, color, dress, make-up, perfume

The solar plexus is related to desires for:
a. possessions, greed
b. belittling criticism
c. gossip
d. malice
e. slander
f. treason
g. fighting

Now let us discuss the reasons why we should get rid of glamors.

1. Glamors sap psychic energy in order to survive and operate.

They take the psychic energy circulating in your aura. They also sap the psychic existing in the corresponding centers and deplete the organs related to the particular centers. Depletion of psychic energy eventually results in physical, moral, mental, and spiritual degeneration.

2. Glamors create disturbances in our mental sphere because the mind does not always agree with the demands of a glamor. Also, if it does agree, it brings the glamor into the mental plane and submits itself further to the demands of the glamor, even if it sees that logically it is doing wrong.

3. Glamors invite entities into the aura. Glamors are used as astral vehicles for certain earthbound entities which want to re experience the worldly life of pleasures and negative emotions. When they use your glamor, they either enter into your aura or operate your glamor to satisfy their cravings. Actually, your glamors smell and invite entities.

4. Glamors create disturbances in your relationships. Because glamors are formed by desires, they exercise a strong force to obtain the objects of desire, in spite of conditions, laws, or rules.

One can see the glamor of a person aggressively working to reach its objective. People do not always yield to such aggressive demands and fight back; people cannot always be forced or subdued.

Aggressiveness is the active manifestation of a glamor. Competition is the same, When glamors are absent, the person cooperates and shares.

5. Glamors eventually manifest as disease because of the depletion of psychic energy. If one can discover the main glamors of a person, he can clearly see in what area the disease will manifest. Sometimes the manifestation of glamors through disease is a release for a person. If he is a disciple, during the illness he can see his glamor and with the light of his mind, destroy it. Sickness often gives us a chance to put ourselves on the right track.

6. Glamors prevent the expansion of consciousness, because expansion of consciousness means annihilation of the glamor. The problem becomes worse when an entity in or with the glamor. It makes such strong demands on the mind that 90 percent of the mind operates to meet the need of the glamor, Addicts are examples of this condition.

7. Glamors not let let the mind operate with reasoning and logic.

Desire does not recognize rights other than its own, and because reasoning and logic are deadly enemies to glamor, it continually presents repulsion against them.

A glamored person does not like to hear anything against his desires. The desire blind his eyes.

Because of glamors, you lose your control upon your own mechanisms.

The glamors take over and manipulate them according to their objectives. They control your thinking, your speech, your emotional responses or reactions, and also your physical activities.

Entities are waiting to find a point of contact with the earthly life. That point of contact is a glamor in the aura of the person.

When an entity finds a corresponding desire of his own in the person, it smells the desire or the glamor and sneaks in and occupies one of the three lower centers, to them for its own satisfaction. For example, a glamor related to the sex organs makes those organs highly sensitive. The victim craves sex, and even if sex is given to him abundantly, his fire continues burning him until the organs develop problems and become useless.

Sometimes a person is glamored in such a degree that he has many entities, or a legion, in his aura, who are related to each other either by their hands and feet or by their tails...Christ met one such person who had a legion.

When glamors are abundantly in existence within your aura, you must not approach or collect the Teaching because your glamors will use it for their own nourishment and your future will become worse than your past. The Wisdom increases the power of your glamors. That is why before great Teachers impart any advanced formulas to you, they demand emotional or astral purification from you. This was the purification of the heart.

The ceremony of baptism is the symbolic ritual of the washing out of your glamors, and it is very interesting that almost all religions have corresponding ceremonies for purification.

Glamors sometimes accumulate at the doors of your sense organs and act as your translators. You hear, smell, see, taste, touch, and reach conclusions through the communication of the glamors. This keeps you out of contact with the real life going on in your environment and even within yourself.

We must note that actually these three lower centers are not sources of glamors, but their energy is used for glamors. They are very important centers and have many important tasks to fulfill in the evolution of the human being. For example, the base of spine contains the basic fire of matter which, when raised up to the spine, fuses with pranic energy and then with the fires of mind, and makes illumination possible.

The sacral center controls the whole generative process. When it is raised to the throat center, it is used for all creative processes in all fields.

The solar plexus us a great healing center. Many psychic powers are the result of the unfoldment of this center. This center is the link between the heat and lower centers. When it fuses with the heart center, it produces higher psychism, humanitarian activities, pure sensitivity, etc.
The forces of desire use the energies of these centers and nourish the glamors. Often because of this, transmutation of the lower centers is an impossibility.

Now let us discuss these three centers.

The base of spine center is related to five major glamors

- The desire for power manifests at your home, in your group, in your church, in nations, and in the world. It manifest in political, educational, philosophical, cultural, scientific, religious, and economic fields. This desire for power is charged with the energy of the base base of the spine center, This glamor very dangerous because it eventually leads the victim to total destruction.

The desire for power is like the fish which drank all the water in the lake and perished without water.

- The desire of domination resembles the desire for power, but is different. The desire for power uses armies, ammunitions, threats, fear, crimes, and violence for its power. The desire of domination uses dogmas, doctrines, ideologies, bribery, cunning, and hypocrisy, and manipulates your mind until you become a slave.

- The desire of totalitarianism is a glamor which expands in such a degree that the person wants all the people in the world to accept his thoughts, his logic, and his ideology and act the way he wants, so that they satisfy his pleasures and plans the way he wants.

The glamor demands absolute obedience in thought and in action.

The glamor of totalitarianism can bring dark years or ages upon a family, a nation, or humanity and delay their evolution for millions of years. Totalitarianism uses all channels of human endeavors to try to reach its goal.

- The desire for destruction is a very complicated glamor.

Some people bring such a glamor from their former lives, when they didn't have the possibility to exercise their revenge against those who were unrighteous to them. This glamor grows and becomes a huge desire to destroy.

Our glamors are not only self-induced or self-made, but they are also inherited from past lives or from parents and are often imposed upon us by friends or enemies. Our friends evoke or impose many desires in our heart and through their imagination they form our glamors, or give form to our glamors.

Enemies build in us destructive desires because of their antagonistic attitude and aggressiveness. Sometimes they instinctively know what to destroy, but often it is a blind glamor, activated by the environment and conditions, which motivates them.

The base of spine center gives the needed force to sustain this glamor. When it is built sufficiently, this glamor turns into the mechanism of a destructive entity. History knows such criminals in every nation.

- The desire for separation builds one of the most destructive glamors, not only within a family, but also within all humanity. This glamor acts as hatred, revenge, jealousy, isolation, pride, and ego.

If it is ensouled with an astral entity, it makes the life of the person or the nation aggressive, destructive, and totalitarian.

This glamor is very strong because it draws energy from the source of all illusions, which is separatism, in a mental or intellectual sense.

The sacral center is related to three major glamors:

- The desire for physical contact with objects or people for the satisfaction of pleasure grows and builds its glamor, which urges the person to use his five senses to feel for the sake of obtaining the object of desire.

- The desire for sex is often built by imagination or by impression received from parents and fiends. This glamor is the most bulky one in the aura of humanity today. It nourishes itself by pornography, licentiousness, and close contact with sexual objects.

We are told that millions of entities occupy such glamors in the auras of human beings and urge them to perversion, prostitution, unlawful relationships, violence, kidnapping, and rape. Not only do adults have this glamor, but also children, from around two to nine years old, who unconsciously obey the glamor which obsesses them. This glamor can be inherited or taken from the parents, or brought into this life from former incarnations.

- The desire to attract people for personal use, manipulation, and pleasure through gestures or movements of the body, through certain pitches or tones of voice, through sexy dressing and make-up, or through certain perfumes is the glamor that keeps many shops in business, If this glamor grows and dominates, it creates vanity and ego, and misuses weak people as its source of nourishment.

The solar plexus is related to seven major glamors:

- The desire for possessions and greed is a desire for land.

Money, and other objects. This glamor is called the bottomless bucket which can never be filled. It accumulates beyond the need and the capacity to use. It is an astral sickness which eventually creates many kinds of moral transgressions and crimes. It exhausts its owner and makes him incapable of using the things that he accumulates through such persistence and pain.

- The desire to criticize and belittle people is a glamor that hinders the progress of others and makes them build an inferior image of themselves.
We are not referring to constructive or instructive advice given to those who do better if they are shown how.

This glamor may express itself not only through your words but even through your looks, gestures, voice and writings, The curious thing is that this glamor can also hide itself behind flattery and bad advice coated with sugary words. You can get used to this glamor in such a degree that you never feel that all your expressions are being used by it.

- The desire to gossip eventually builds into a glamor and affects your throat and heart centers. Gossipers generally have defective digestion and heart and throat problems.

- The desire for malice, slander and treason are sometimes called "the three criminals." It is through these glamors that people destroy friendship, trust, right human relations, and cooperation and slowly isolate themselves from human relationships. When these three criminals are occupied by dark forces, they plan genocides and massive crimes without a drop of mercy or compassion. Dark forces wait for years to find such glamors, to use them as their mechanisms for destruction.

- The desire to fight eventually forms a glamor. The person feels a strong urge to fight, debate, argue, and create conflicts. If the glamor is ensouled by an entity, it turns into a real mechanism of destruction. To be able to do this, it forces the mind of the person to create all those weapons, known and unknown, which sap the precious energy, time, money, and life of humanity.

This glamor is an instinct inherited from animals, nourished by the desire for supremacy, and constructed by the human instinct of self-preservation.

This glamor will lead humanity to the final destruction, or to the final realization that people do not need to fight against each other, but rather fight against limitations that prevent human beings from reaching perfection.


HOW TO FIGHT AGAINST GLAMORS

The first and most major step is to use the light of the intellect, logic, observation, and analytical thinking.

The second step is to sublime the centers in such a degree that they do not tune in with the glamors. This can be done by using the virtue that is the exact opposite of the glamor.

Let's take, for example.
The desire for power. Immediately when we observe that this desire is turning into a glamor, we must use our creative imagination and replace it with the desire to serve all and be the servant of all, without expecting any recognition. We can sit in meditation and begin to use our creative imagination and visualize how we are free from our glamor and are becoming a servant to humanity, asking no recognition.

When we develop this virtue and enact it in actual events in our life through our creative imagination, the power of the glamor decreases and eventually the glamor is eliminated, provided that the dramatization of the virtue is gradually actualized not only in our thinking but in our life, too.

When we observe that the desire of domination is becoming a glamor, we take its opposite, which is obedience, and meditate upon it, in the meantime using our creative imagination and dramatizing it in our daily life. What we do exactly is this: We try to study the meaning of obedience, discovering its deeper layers and putting our understanding into practice.

A short time later, we will see that the desire to dominate is changing and becoming first, a desire for loving obedience to the Divine principles and laws and to those who are the representations of these laws and principles; and second, an intelligent obedience to those who are authorities or superiors in our life.

Once in the army, our captain said to a soldier who used to rebel and seek superiority: "You will never be able to be a leader until you learn how to be a soldier and how to be obedient."

Contemplation on obedience in its various phases and an effort to actualize it in your life eventually destroy the glamor of domination.

The opposite virtue of the glamor of totalitarianism is "recognition of the rights of others".

The glamor of the desire for destruction can be replaced by the desire for constructive activities.

The glamor of separatism can be replaced by the desire to synthesize and unite.

The glamor of physical contact can be replaced by a desire to contact the Soul or the virtues of someone else, using your higher senses to contact the person or even an object.

The glamor of sex can be replaced by the desire to cooperate on heart and mind levels. Many couples overcame their overactive desire for sex by doing something more creative with their partner, such as composing music, singing, painting, working for politics, studying, science or psychology. In this way they have a partner who cooperates with them in their advancing interests, and they weaken the glamor of sex.

When the desire to attract people by outer means turns into a glamor, we can replace it by the desire to attract by virtues or by higher spiritual qualities.

For example. A woman wants to attract a man, and she does everything possible to make her face, her hair, and her body attractive; but she finds out that the influence or effect of these does not last long. Then she decides to develop virtues, heart qualities, talents, intellectual qualities; and she sees that she can now attract higher quality people, enabling her to eventually marry one of them. When we attract people by outer means, the unity does not last long.

The glamor of possessions can be replaced by the desire to share, to give, and to offer. Things that come to you must be shared, if you don't want them to nourish your glamor.

The glamor of belittling criticism can be changed by developing the virtue of seeing good things in others.

The glamor of gossip can be replaced by talking about science, politics, the Teaching, heroes, and great humanitarians or leaders.

The glamor of malice can be replaced by developing goodwill.

The glamor of slander can be overcome by developing a desire to protect the one whom you are slandering.

The glamor of treason can be overcome by the developing the virtue of faithfulness and trustfulness.

The glamor of fighting can be destroyed by the virtue which we may call the desire to understand an cooperate.

Thus we can use such a technique to eliminate our glamors and replace them by virtues.

Fear is one of the main sources which force us to create glamors, because fear gradually makes us the slave of the things which we fear.

With real fearlessness we do not create unnatural means to protect ourselves, A glamor is an artificial formation, which may have three foundation:
the desire to have
the desire to know
the desire to be someone

When we have the fear of loving, of being ignorant, or of failing, we create glamors to replace them.


- Torkom Saraydarian

Man is a living mirror of all that transpires in Cosmos

Man is Infinity. When we know man we will know the Cosmos. Man is not only a replica of Cosmos, but a living mirror of all that transpires in Cosmos. In the future man will be able to use a living human form to forecast coming events on the planet and in Cosmos. Man is the most sensitive instrument ever created in the Universe...

-Torkom Saraydarian

When you desire to know God...

There is an old legend of the East where a Master and his disciple were seated beside a small lake. The disciple was asking questions that prompted an answer from the Master. Then the disciple ask the Master,"What must I do to know God?"

The Master showing unexpected physical strength picked up the disciple and completely immersed him in the lake for almost a minute. Then the Master released the struggling student. After the student caught his breath the Master ask,"While I was holding you under water what was your intense desire that drove all other thoughts out of your head?"

The student answered without hesitation,"To breathe." The Master smiled and said,"When you desire to know God with the same intensity as you desired to breathe just now, then shall you know Him."

Mechanism of Wishes

A pure wish is an impulse projected out from the Core of the human being as an answer or response to the pull of the Cosmic Magnet. When a pure wish passes through the spheres of our irritations, glamors, illusions, hatreds, and greed, it turns into a destructive force.

A pure wish is a longing for

• expansion of consciousness

• actualization of inner potentials

• freedom from the limitations of matter, time, space, and from influences of lower order

• communication with higher forces

• expression of beauty It is the wish that moves us forward. If we stop wishing, all life eventually will disappear.

We start with material wishes, but a day comes in which we feel tired of wishing and working for matter.

Then we continue our wishes on the line of emotions and use our physical and mental responses to actualize our wishes.

We also have mental wishes to know more, to understand more, to organize, to appropriate, etc. Then we have spiritual wishes such as our wishes for expansion, inclusiveness, continuity of consciousness, contact with higher laws or higher Beings, etc. On all levels it is the impulse of the wish that leads us forward or keeps us constantly busy.

Any wish on any level has a response. This response can be immediate, or it can take a few years or incarnations to reach objectification.

Whatever you want will be given to you, even if you do not really know what the effect will be on you and your life when you receive the things you wished for.

Whatever you sow you will reap. There is no escape.

One must be very careful about what he asks for or wishes.

People think that little wishes do not count.

Sometimes a little wish multiplies in the auric computer more than any big wish. This happens when it tunes in with former similar wishes. Thus, the legend says, a whisper-wish becomes a loud song or a great symphony in the hall of your future.

A wish is a powerful force. Use it carefully, and whenever you wish, make your wish on the principles of Beauty, Goodness, Righteousness, Joy, and Freedom.

Often our wishes are the response to our needs.

How careful we should be to know if our wish is a mechanism to meet our need or a trap built by our vanities.

It is important to wish according to our greatest and most lasting need. If we do not enjoy the outcome of our wishes, it is because we do not wish for exactly what we need.

Our uncontrolled wishes are responsible for the destructive action exercised upon Mother Nature. Our wishes have turned into greed, and now we have ever-increasing pollution and the grave danger it presents, plus increasing greed from an increasing population. Pollution is not only a physical health problem, but also it is a problem of mental health and spiritual direction.

Accumulated gases in the atmosphere not only prevent the healing and creative rays of the Sun and stars from reaching us, but they also distort or prevent impressions coming from higher sources. In the years to come, people will act more insanely and lose their sense of direction.

Crime will increase, and those who are coming into incarnation will have a difficult time surviving. But if the Forces of Light take action and, with the power of Their wisdom, sacrifice, and beauty, awaken people to the great danger, the danger can be avoided. With the help of the Great Ones the New Era can dawn on the earth.

Your wishes affect your future lives on higher planes. A life that makes you happy on the physical plane but will make you miserable on the astral and mental planes must be avoided or must be changed. For example, killing a man on the physical plane does not end your problems. In the astral plane you will have a worse enemy who has superiority over you because of your horrible guilt.

Lying and cheating distort your mental body and create paralysis in it. Although you may enjoy for a while the results of your cheating, when you pass to the mental plane you do not have a healthy vehicle in which to travel or function.

You may break the laws of Nature, but as you ascend to higher planes you see heavier storms confronting you as a result of the laws you have broken. Things you do wrong on this plane become enormous obstacles on your path to higher planes.

In the future, the science of living will be given to those who are going to take important roles in human life.

Practical Suggestions for Wishes

1. Change your wishes into spiritual striving. Increase your observation. Have a goal and make all your small wishes orient themselves to that main goal.

2. Develop contentment to avoid overloading your computer with various unnecessary and petty wishes.

3. Start renouncing certain wishes which either do not help or which hinder your progress toward perfection.

4. Learn the art of indifference and use it often in your relationship with others and with the outer objects of the world.

5. Accept whatever life brings you. Instead of rejecting or identifying with it, try to use it for your selfunfoldment, experience, and service. Remember that most of the things you have received are things which you wanted in various ways.

6. Never wish ill on others. Never pity them. You can help them if you want. Any ill wish harms you and the other person. Try not to make negative wishes even when you are physically ill, depressed, or emotionally upset.

7. Never wish for others if they are in a painful state or are unconscious.

8. Start developing an attitude in which you try to develop more of your inner potentials instead of wishing to have more, to collect more, to possess more.

9. Be happy with the things you have, and do not replace them if they serve their purpose. Do not waste anything. Nature will give you whatever you wish, but Nature never tolerates your wasting things. The Law of Economy is a very powerful law.

10. Meditate on the Law of Economy and see if you are economical with what you have in physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual realms. Do not forget to search for the kingdom of God.

11. Instead of wishing every minute to have something new, try to think what you can give to life.

Start to be a giver rather than a receiver. The more you give, the closer you go to the Soul of Nature.

12. Try to develop the power to examine your wishes and, if you so choose, to stop them or reverse them. This means to bring your wishes under the control of your intuitional light.

Thought & The Glory of Thinking by Torkom Saraydarian.

The Wise prefer the Good to the Pleasant

*We rush headlong in pursuit of "the pleasant", oblivious to the damage we are doing to ourselves, our societies and the world around us.

*The Wise prefer the Good to the Pleasant. The foolish, driven by fleshly desires, prefer the Pleasant to the Good.

*We are in a time when humankind chases after material things and fleeting sensual pleasures, forgetting the divine origin and aspect of the human race and of its earthly surroundings; a time when the darkness of Ignorance prevails. Babaji calls this 'The Dark Age'.

*Take only what we need; Do not waste anything!

*If we become more interested in serving others than in attaining things for ourselves we can attain a detachment that dilutes or erases the causes of sorrow and suffering in our lives.

*Real stability or security is an inner attainment; all that is exterior, material, is subject to change and loss.

*For decades the political and economic world has been sowing the seeds of competition, dominance, jealousy, hatred and disharmony and polluting and destroying the world around us. Our societies create higher aspirations for material things and the satisfaction of all human desires.

*The relentless search for 'more and better' leads inevitable to greed, jealousy, competition, hatred, aggression, and to pollution and destruction of the Earth and its atmosphere.

*There are far more enticements in modern life to leave the Path than there are to follow it.

-Babaji

The Self

The Self is the treasury within us. Our Core, which contains in Itself the entire splendor of the Universe, must come into manifestation.

Our greatest glory and honor is built in the process of actualizing our True Self. We are going to manifest the beauty which is hidden in each one of us. The percentage of our manifestation of beauty is equal to what we are, factually.

Try to radiate goodness through your thoughts, expressions, words, motives, and actions, and you will feel how real you are. Slander, envy, gossip, and treason keep you a slave in an illusionary world because they destroy the formation of your soul.

The Self is all loving, all understanding, all giving, and the more Self you are, the less people dare to manipulate your goodness.

The Self's only interest is to bloom and flower toward the Cosmic Self.

People must be good to their bodies and heart and mind. If you are doping your body, doing things against your conscience, or acting against the welfare and freedom of others, you are not good to yourself. If you are building a heavy karma for yourself by exploiting others, you are not good to yourself.

Doing goodness to yourself and others is a process of Self-actualization. In the advanced path you not only live a life of goodness, but you yourself also become an embodiment of goodness. Such was the Lord Buddha.

Some modern psychologists understand "Self-actualization" in a different way. They tell us to express our anger in violent ways, to express sex in various ways, to express our hatred and jealousy in still other various ways. These people have no idea about the Self. The Self for them is anger, hate, sex, jealousy, revenge. These are acts of Self-defeat. Trying to express your anger, sex, hate, revenge, etc., in order to get rid of them, is like trying to eliminate a cup of poison by dumping it down your throat.

The Self is beyond such vices. It is Beauty, Goodness, and Righteousness. Righteousness must be expressed throughout our life in our thoughts, words, and actions. The more righteous we are toward our body, heart, brain, wife, husband, children, neighbors, authorities, teachers, is how much righteousness we practice. Righteousness brings out the beauty and goodness that we are in our essence.

There was a mechanic who, one day, changed the oil in my car and in the meantime was talking about how righteous he was in all his relationships. After the oil was drained in a pan, he took it and dumped it under a huge tree. I moved close to him and said, "What a righteous fellow you are!"

The mechanic asked, "What is the matter?"

I asked, "How can you pour that poison on the roots of that magnificent tree?"

"Well, I must dump it somewhere," he said.

We must accept and cherish the rights not only of people but also the rights of animals, trees, and the soil. To respect and understand the rights of life-forms means to be righteous.

We must face ourselves often and check if we are trying to be really beautiful, to have goodness in our heart and righteousness in all our relationships. This leads us to Self-actualization. Every time we act ugly, with evil intention, or become unrighteous, we accumulate hindrances on our path and make it difficult to reach our future destination.

If we imagine having had five hundred incarnations and doing ten ugly things in each life, can you imagine how many obstacles we have accumulated on our path?

People say, "I am doing many things to shine out my light," but they cannot radiate light because they have built a cement wall around themselves for so many incarnations through ugliness, unrighteousness, and evil intentions.

Karma is the accumulation of those actions which make it very difficult for you to actualize your Divine Self. Every time you prevent your beauty, goodness, and righteousness from being active, you create karma.

Karma means hindrances, obstacles, walls around you. All these one day must be wiped away by your free will or by the force of karma. You will experience much pain to destroy these walls. The more you wait to destroy your obstacles, the more suffering and pain you will pass through.

The best policy in life is not to accumulate karma. The Lemurian and Atlantean civilizations did not see the consequences of the Law of Karma, and they faced a great disaster. Can our Aryan civilization escape from such destiny?

If we are beautiful, righteous, full of goodness, then then Self will rejoice, and the joy of the Self is the most healing power for our three vehicles.

-Torkom Saraydarian

The natural food for man

What is natural food for man? First, to select our natural food, our observation should be directed to the formation of the organs that aid in digestion and nutrition, the teeth and digestive canal to the natural tendency of the organs of sense which guide animals to their food and to nourishment of the young.

Observation of teeth. By observation of the teeth we find that in carnivorous animals the incisors are little developed, but the canines are of striking length, smooth and pointed, to seize the prey. The molars also are pointed; these points, however, do not meet, but fit closely side by side to separate the muscular fibers.

In herbivorous animals the incisors are strikingly developed, the canines are stunted(although occasionally developed into weapons, as in elephants), the molars are broad topped and furnished with enamel on the sides only.

In the frugivorous all the teeth are of nearly the same height, the canines are little projected, conical, and blunt (obviously not intended for seizing prey but for exertion of strength). The molars are broad-topped and furnished at the top with enamel folds to prevent waste caused by their side motion, but not pointed for chewing flesh.

In omnivorous animals such as bears, on the other hand, the incisors resemble those of the herbivorous, the canines are like those of the carnivorous, and the molars are both pointed and broad-topped to serve a twofold purpose.

Now if we observe the formation of the teeth in man we find that they do not resemble those of the carnivorous, neither do they resemble the teeth of the herbivorous or the omnivorous. They do resemble, exactly, those of the frugivorous animals, The reasonable inference, therefore, if that man is a frugivorous or fruit-eating animals(fruit comprises any part of plant life useful to man. the fruitarian diet referred to by Swami Sri Yukteswarji includes vegetables, nuts, and grains.).

Observation of the digestive canal. By observation of the digestive canal we find that the bowels of carnivorous animals are 3 to 5 times the length of their body, measuring from mouth to anus; and there stomach is almost spherical. The bowels of the herbivorous are 20 to 28 times the length of their body; and their stomach is more extended and of compound build. But the bowels of the frugivorous animals are 10 to 12 times the length of their body; their stomach is somewhat broader than that of the carnivorous and has a continuation in the duodenum serving the purpose of a second stomach.

This is exactly the formation that we find in human beings, though Anatomy says that the human bowels are 3 to 5 times the length of man's body--masking a mistake by measuring the body from the crown to the soles, instead of from the mouth to the anus. Thus we can again draw the inference that man is, in all probability, a frugivorous animal.

Chapter 3, pg(s) 63-65
The Holy Science
Swami Sri Yukteswar

Service: Beauty, Goodness, Truth

Service is the process of charging your thoughts, your emotions, your words, and your actions with the energy of Beauty, Goodness, and Truth. When your words express Beauty, Goodness and Truth, you are serving. When your actions or thoughts are charged with Beauty, Goodness, and Truth, you are serving. As you manifest the energies of Beauty, Goodness and Truth, your life becomes a living, fiery service for humanity.

-Torkom Saraydarian,
Challenge for Discipleship, p. 54

Manifesto

God of all men, God of all life, in the humanity we are dreaming of:

- Politicians are profoundly humanistic and strive to serve the common good;

- Economists manage state finances with discernment and in the interest of all;

- Scientists are spiritualistic and seek their inspiration in the Book of Nature;

- Artists are inspired and express the beauty and purity of the Divine Plan in their works;

- Physicians are motivated by love for their fellow-beings and treat both the soul and the body;

- Misery and poverty have vanished, for everyone has what he needs to live happily;

- Work is not regarded as a chore, but as a source of growth and well-being;

- Nature is considered to be the most beautiful temple of all, and animals are considered to be our brethren on the path of evolution;

- A World Government composed of the leaders of all nations, working in the interest of all humanity, has come into existence.

- Spirituality is an ideal and a way of life which spring forth from a Universal Religion, founded more upon the knowledge of divine laws than upon the belief in God;

- Human relations are founded upon love, friendship, and fraternity, so that the whole world lives in peace and harmony.

So Mote It Be!

Taken from the MANIFESTO Positio Fraternitatis Rosae Crucis published by the Rosicrucian Order AMORC and available from http://www.rosicrucian.org

Who makes the most spiritual progress?

"I once read a description of who makes the most spiritual progress:

1) The active good person
2) The active bad person
3) The passive good person
4) The passive bad person

Those of you who are familiar with the karma of commission and omission will understand why. The active bad person makes more progress than the passive good one. A little thought makes this clear. Because he has acted, he has generated karma, and it is through the teaching action of karma that he makes progress.

You never know, the passive good person might be stymied by his bad habit of procrastination, thus "no guts, no glory.""

The worship of self

"The world has seen and tired of the worship of Nature, of Reason, of Humanity; for this nineteenth century has been reserved the development of the most refined religion of all - the worship of self . . . The enslavement of his weaker brethren - "the labor of those who do not enjoy, for the enjoyment of those who do not labor" - the degradation of women - the torture of the animal world - these are the steps of the ladder by which man is ascending to his higher civilization . . . This, then, is the glorious future to which the advocate of secular education may look forward: the dawn that gilds the horizon of his hopes! And age when all forms of religious thought shall be a thing of the past: when chemistry and biology shall be the ABC of a State of education enforced on all; when vivisection shall be practiced in every college and school; and when the man of science, looking forth over a world which will then own no other sway than his, shall exult in the thought that he has made of this fair green earth, if not a heaven for man, at least a hell for animals."

-C.E. Dodgson (Lewis Carroll), 1832-1898

Purpose in meditation

In order for your spiritual work to produce results, you must always have a goal. When you pray or meditate, begin by deciding what purpose your meditation or prayer will serve. Why take this precaution? So that the psychic energies you project are not scattered, but are directed towards a precise point. By adopting this method, you will gradually become master of your thoughts and obtain results.

-Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov

Self-control is not self-torture

The reason few people seek God in earnest as do the saints is that millions believe they cannot do without evil, misery-producing pleasures. They are addicted, as is the alcoholic toward health-killing drink. But these very persons, if they were to form good habits, would say:"We cannot do without the pleasure and peace of meditation. We become miserable now if we had to mingle in our old environments."

Those who cling to their materialistic nature fail to understand why the pleasure-producing senses are inimical to the joy of the Spirit. "Why," they ask, "were the senses given to man if he is not to enjoy them?" (This query is supposed to completely "floor" the ascetic!)

The metaphysical reason for self-control is nothing but a spiritual business proposition calculated to bring the greatest happiness to man. Just as one must invest a certain sum of money in order to reap a greater gain, so the devotee forgoes indulgence in materialistic pleasures for the sake of gaining the pure joy of Spirit found in meditation.

Man is the image of God: within himself, as the tree is hidden in the seed, is the latent unmanifested bliss of the Spirit. As roasted seeds do not germinate, so when the seeds of consciousness is scorched by flames of material desires. The innate tree of Divine Happiness never has a chance to sprout.

Therefore, self-control is not self-torture, but leads instead to soul happiness. By withdrawing the mind from indulgence in lower kinds of paltry pleasures of the senses, man enters a vast kingdom of unending joy. It is the arrant chicanery of the malevolent ego that tells man otherwise.

-Paramahansa Yogananda
God Talks with Arjuna: The Bhagavad Gita

We build castles in the air hoping for endless pleasure

What is birth and death but the beginning and the ending of a stream of events in consciousness? Because of the idea of separation and limitation they are painful. Momentary relief from pain we call pleasure - and we build castles in the air hoping for endless pleasure which we call happiness. It is all misunderstanding and misuse. Wake up, go beyond, live really.

- Nisargadatta Maharaj

Training to live for the Common Good

"Training to live for the Common Good must start in childhood. Humanity would not have cruel leaders and unjust laws if from childhood, people were taught to cooperate with the concept of the Common Good. Humanity must evolve through education and enlightenment and through cultivating a sense of responsibility toward others and a deep understanding of the concept of the Common Good. The highest mark of a spiritual person is cooperation with and for the Common Good."

Self-interest and self-concern

Self-interest and self-concern are the focal points of the false. Your daily life vibrates between desire and fear. Watch it intently and you will see how the mind assumes innumerable names and shapes, like a river foaming between the boulders. Trace every action to its selfish motive and look at the motive intently till it dissolves. Discard every self-seeking motive as soon as it is seen and you need not look for truth; truth will find you.

-Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

Buddha - The cause of self-interest

Sakka asked: "What is the cause of self-interest?"

The Buddha answered: "It is perception of the world as one's object."

"How does one overcome this perception of the world as apart from oneself?"

"By acting for the increase of goodness and happiness. It is in this way that the world ceases to be one's object."


-Buddha, Digha Nikaya

Desire and fear is the feeling of not being what you are

You will recognize that you have returned to your natural state by a complete absence of all desire and fear. After all, at the root of all desire and fear is the feeling of not being what you are. Just as a dislocated joint pains only as long as it is out of shape, and is forgotten as soon as it is set right, so is all self-concern a symptom of mental distortion which disappears as soon as one is in the normal state.

-Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

Thoughts follow their parent

"....Thoughts follow their parent, good or evil. They come and find you, whether you are in astral, mental, or physical incarnation. Good thoughts return to you with flowers an fruits. Dark thoughts return to you with heavy taxation, pain and suffering."

-Torkom Saraydarian

Blood transfusion & organ transplants

Urusvati knows about the problems involved in the transfusion of blood. The physical properties of the blood are already being taken into account [presumably the types ‹‹ O, A, AB, etc], but these are primitive considerations, and two additional aspects should be mentioned. It will soon be learned that the psychic quality of blood is of particular importance, and the time will come when its karmic condition will also be taken into account. Only by attention to all three aspects will the right results be obtained."

"Mixing supplies of whole blood is proof of ignorance. From both the physical and the psychic point of view one should consider what incompatible elements have indiscriminately combined to produce a false cure instead of a real one." "We are sorry to see how indiscriminately people handle the most powerful substances. Psychologists must broaden their knowledge, for it is they who can give the needed advice to humanity. They must teach people to think more subtly, so that they are able to discern the limits that must not be crossed."

"The ethnic characteristics of blood become less evident as the nations are mixed. But a reading of the aura will reveal other, psychic differences. Karmic harmony between the donor and the recipient is necessary, therefore the transfusion of blood of close relatives may not be the best. People will need to discern the karmic connections, and in this task astrology and clairvoyance will be useful aids."

-Agni Yoga

************

thoughts of Gurus R.H.H on the subject of both blood and organs. the extracts are taken from the book "Talk Does Not Cook the Rice, a Commentary on the Teaching of Agni Yoga.

On blood:

33. Also, it's not good to give blood to someone else unless it's to someone of the same consciousness because through yoga your alchemy has changed your blood chemistry , and if you put that blood into someone of a lower consciousness, it will shock them and do a lot of damage.. Their consciousness lifts and they are not ready for it. On the other hand, if you accept blood from someone who is not as developed and is not working consciously , it will affect your whole system." (Talk. p. 22)

On organs:

33. It is not good for yogis to give their eyes or heart or various organs to medical science because this will damage the subtle body, and when you come back in the next life there will be a weakness in that area. It's part of the seed of the spirit......"It takes several lifetimes to get over something like this." You come in with all this weakness. (Ibid)

Humility

"Humility is the spiritual ability by which you can stay unhurt in spite of attacks coming to you in many forms through various sources. Humility does not resist evil, although it annihilates the root of it. True humility is the result of a possession of a great power and wisdom which does not counterattack. Instead, humility holds the hand of the aggressor until the hand feels numb, but then he smiles and lets it go to digest the lesson. Humility is being a great mountain which is not moved by winds or attacks. A man is humble because he knows it is the great Self that is the source of all wisdom and power...."

-Torkom Saraydarian

Gamble everything for love

Gamble everything for love, if you're a true human being.

If not, leave this gathering.

Half-heartedness doesn't reach into majesty. You set out to find God, but then you keep stopping for long periods at meanspirited roadhouses.

- Rumi

Decisions of the Higher Self

From T. Saraydarian's writings:

"There are many ways that you betray your Higher Self. ... All decisions made in the light of the Higher Self are pro-survival decisions. They are decisions to strive, to work for light, for unity, for beauty, to be harmless, courageous, daring, detached, and so on. Once you make a decision in the light of the Higher Self, you must obey your decision. If not, you disobey your Higher Self.

"Decisions made in the presence of the Higher Self are very important. The Higher Self looks at your actions to see to what degree you can keep your decisions or promise. Your relation with the Higher Self fades away if you do not keep your promises and carry out your decision.

"The same thing happens in your worldly relationships. If you do not keep your promises and decisions, very soon you lose your friendships."

"Always honor your promises. " "In certain monasteries they test this quality in people." And, "To promise and keep your promise means to be a noble person."

Self-conceit and bossiness are inseparable

Letters Of Helena Roerich I, 17 August 1930. The Teaching points out vices, namely, ambition, self-conceit and selfishness, suspiciousness and light-mindedness, which should not be allowed to grow up among the co-workers if they wish to build the foundation of a new step. Let us become firmly aware in our hearts that the Teacher disapproves of the tendency toward bossiness. As I have already written once before-domineeringness and true leadership are antipodes. While the former is the offspring of darkness, the latter is of the light of knowledge in the eternal striving toward perfection. First of all, bossiness is vulgar; that is why it is so easy to fall into this attitude. "Domineeringness is the main obstacle in the path of discipleship." Self-conceit and bossiness are inseparable and lead to spiritual impoverishment and destruction.

Pain is the background of all your pleasures

Every pleasure, physical or mental, needs an instrument. Both the physical and mental instruments are materials, they get tired and worn out. The pleasure they yield is necessarily limited in intensity and duration. Pain is the background of all your pleasures. You want them because you suffer. On the other hand, the very search for pleasure is the cause of pain. It is a vicious circle.

- Nisargadatta Maharaj

Wasting energy

"Human beings waste their energy every day with so many useless, petty and coarse concerns and activities. They do not see that they are in the process of losing an irreplaceable treasure. They imagine that life is eternal and inexhaustible, that they can do whatever they like and it will always be at their disposal. They are surprised, of course, when they find themselves completely exhausted. They have done everything to bring this about, yet they are astonished and complain. The least they could do is stop complaining and acknowledge: 'There, I have carried out some experiments, and I now realise where the truth lies.'

And you who receive the light of this teaching, be vigilant, do not waste your life. Protect it as the song by Master Peter Deunov says: 'Sine moi, pazi jivota: My son, protect your life, that spark and precious gift buried within you.' If you are in need of science, the one true science is simply this: know how to preserve your life so you may consecrate it to the service of God."

-Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov

Real happiness does not depend on circumstances

You are like a child with a lollypop in its mouth. You may feel happy for a moment by being totally self-centered, but it is enough to have a good look at human faces to perceive the universality of suffering. Even your own happiness is so vulnerable and short-lived, at the mercy of a bank-crash, or a stomach ulcer. It is just a moment of respite, a mere gap between two sorrows. Real happiness is not vulnerable, because it does not depend on circumstances.

-Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

Conflict of matter and spirit

Illumination, II:V:13. You have noticed that each Great Teacher has spoken about the continuity of life. One may also notice that it is just this indication which is expurgated from each teaching, because materialism must defend itself. On Earth this condition is of special importance.
It must be known that the earthly matter is very dense. On the planets of lower level than Earth the matter is very coarse; upon those higher than Earth, matter harmonized with the spirit. Hence, the Earth appears as a turning point.
There are imperfections upon higher planets, but there is not the resistance of matter. It is easier to search there without loosing one's strength in needless struggle. There matter becomes inseparable from spirit, without any opposition between them.
No one denies the value of matter, but it is inconceivable that on a locomotive the wheels and the boiler must quarrel. It seems that the better the boiler works the better it is for the wheels. But the one in charge of the wheels might think that they are the most important part of the organism and invite everyone to take a ride on the wheels, ignoring the fact that without the steam power the wheels can only roll downhill.
Fundamentally, the structure of matter and spirit contains no conflict. Why arrest the motion into the beautiful Infinite? And why pile up illusory dams near the Earth?
One may pity the retarded travelers, because these earthly stations will not serve them beyond a certain period.
Why are a hundred incarnations necessary, when with ten one may cross the threshold?
How vivid the recollection that the last Great Teacher suffered an outrageous death for what would seem to have been already long since known to humanity!

-Agni Yoga

Constant thinking makes the mind decay

Where is the need of changing anything? The mind is changing anyhow all the time. Look at your mind dispassionately; this is enough to calm it. When it is quiet, you can go beyond it. Do not keep it busy all the time. Stop it, and just be. If you give it rest, it will settle down and recover its purity and strength. Constant thinking makes it decay.

-Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

When self-interest appears, virtue hides

Anger and lust make a man squint; they
cloud the spirit so it strays from truth.
When self-interest appears, virtue hides:
a hundred veils rise between the heart
and the eye.

- Rumi

Ignorance is never an excuse

How many people complain: 'I seek the light. I pray every day, but God does not hear me. I have so many problems, I am unhappy and sick, and my life has no meaning.' Whose fault is that? If you are struggling with so many problems, it means you have attracted them. 'But this is not what I wanted, I did not know.' Whether you knew or not, you have transgressed laws and are now suffering the consequences.

Ignorance is never an excuse. If you do not respect the rules of the road, the police arrive and give you a ticket, and it is useless to say: 'But, Officer, I did not know.' He calmly continues to write the ticket and does not want to hear whether you knew or not because, as far as he is concerned, it is your duty to know. From now on, therefore, try to bring your behaviour into greater harmony with your spiritual aspirations. Since you no longer have the excuse of not knowing, when you fail to do so you will be doubly guilty and will suffer.

-Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov

On abortion - Helena Roerich

Letters Of Helena Roerich I, 19 June 1933. And now let us turn to the subject of abortion. To deal with this problem now is quite timely. There appear currently the most disgusting articles about it and some of them are written with the approval of the clergy. On this subject I shall quote some paragraphs from the Teaching:

"The spirit is connected with the embryo at the moment of conception. It begins to enter in the beginning of the fourth month when the first nerve and brain channels are being formed. The formation of the vertebral column brings in the next degree of possession of the body. Wonderful is the moment of birth, when the consciousness of the spirit flashes up brightly and then blends with matter. There are even cases when words are pronounced at birth. The final possession of the body takes place at the seventh year of a child's life." It is also said, "Even as hunger directs toward food, so the spirit is directed toward incarnation, as only matter can give the new impulses."

Therefore, it is not hard to imagine how much suffering the spirit that is ready to incarnate endures from the forced interruption of life already begun, or from the averting of an incarnation even planned by karma. What a difficult karma the ignorant and criminal parents prepare for themselves!

Letters Of Helena Roerich I, 17 April 1934. 3. You mentioned a most painful problem of today's life-the question of the legality of abortion. Of course, there are no two opinions on this subject: abortion is most definitely murder. Therefore, only in cases where the mother's life is in danger should it take place. But it is wrong to think that a woman who is guilty of abortion always attracts low spirits. The karma of the whole family should be taken into consideration. Often we can notice that in a family where one of the children is worthless the other children are not bad. Karma ties groups of people for long, long thousands of years. And often, even a high spirit has not unimpeachable, irreproachable parents. And it is significant that the dark forces are especially against the reincarnation of highly developed spirits, and they try their best to prevent the reincarnations that are dangerous for them. And, once more, it is not the purgatory of the Subtle World that prevents spirits from reincarnating, but only the crime of the parents. There is not a more powerful purgatory than the earthly life, if all the potentialities of the individuality are intensified. It is said in the Teaching, "As the one who hungers longs for food, even so, the spirit that is ready to incarnate longs for the new incarnation." Therefore, one can imagine what suffering the spirit undergoes by reason of artificial prevention. The spirit is connected with the embryo at the moment of conception, and gradually enters the body in the fourth month when the nerve and brain channels are being formed. Therefore, abortion is permissible only in exceptional cases.

Letters Of Helena Roerich I, 17 April 1934. 4. Of course, woman should not only be a giver of physical life; she has her other high duties. And for that purpose there is the most natural abstinence, which can easily be practised and the increase of the family thus regulated. This is quite possible when high interests occupy the head and the heart. Of course, I expect plenty of opposition; still, I insist on it. No doubt, in the present state of the family it is quite difficult, but already there are such families and they will increase in the future. In remote antiquity, people knew how to regulate their families by the phases of the moon. Later on this was considered black magic, but nowadays even such measures would be better than the dreadful abortions that cripple women and therefore the coming generations.

Letters Of Helena Roerich I, 17 April 1934. 7. Certainly, I approve of the fight against abortion, but how will you fight this evil? There are no laws which can either preserve or forbid anything. That is why I, personally, think that first of all you must battle by uplifting the level of consciousness of the growing generations, directing it toward the right comprehension of the human cosmic mission in general and that of motherhood in particular. Thoughts should be directed toward creative work and broad problems of the General Good on a cosmic scale. It is important to establish the world's scale. Again, we return to the same fundamental question: upbringing and education. As the Great Mind expressed it, "The source of all suffering is ignorance," which is so true; and the history of humanity, with all its dark pages of persecution of the best representatives of knowledge, proves it.