“As the spiritual student climbs the path leading to higher worlds, he becomes aware at a particular point that the cohesion of the powers of his own personality is assuming a different form from that which it possesses in the world of the physical senses. In the latter the ego brings about a uniform cooperation of the powers of the soul—primarily of thought, feeling, and will. These three soul powers are actually, under normal conditions of human life, in perpetual relation to one another. For instance, we see a particular object in the external world, and it is pleasing or displeasing to the soul; that is to say, the perception of the thing will be followed by a sense of either pleasure or displeasure. Possibly we may desire the object, or may have the impulse to alter it in some way or other; that is to say, desire and will associate themselves with perception and feeling. Now this association is due to the fact that the ego coordinates presentment (thinking), feeling, and willing, and in that way introduces order among the forces of the personality. This healthy arrangement would be interrupted should the ego prove itself powerless in this respect. If, for instance, the will went a different way from the feeling or thinking. No person would be in a healthy condition of mind who, while thinking this or that to be right, nevertheless wished to do something that was not right. …

“Now the person progressing toward higher cognition becomes aware that feeling, thinking, and willing do actually assume a certain independence. … For this reason, therefore, a person’s own ego must be strengthened, for it must introduce order among those three powers.” –Rudolf Steiner

Cohesion of the Powers

Mr. Steiner divides the Powers of Personality, as he calls them, into three: thinking, feeling, and will. He says it is normal for these powers to work together, and that is true. It makes sense that in order to have feelings about something, you must first think of it, and in order to do something, you must activate the will based on those thoughts and feelings.

Pleasing or Displeasing

I’m not sure it is true that certain objects are either pleasing or displeasing to the soul. I think it is more the mind that judges things in that way. Yet we know that there are sounds, such as music, and scents such as Frakencense that send high-level vibrations to us and those vibrations help to stimulate and develop the energy centers, which make the sevelopment of the Spirit and Soul possible. So shapes, sounds, and scents affect the Soul mostly in an indirect way.

Ego Coordinates

Steiner says the ego coordinates the powers of thought, feeling, and will so they can function together, and that may well be true. Some modern schools of spiritual development have taken the simplistic approach of claiming that the development of the Soul requires the destruction of the Ego. That is a completely false teaching.

I remember an old episode of the television series “Star Trek” where a technical problem caused Captain Kirk to be split into two. One of him was gentle and loving but incapable of making a decision. The other had Ego and could make decisions, but was afraid of everything. It was only when he was put together again that he could properly function as a Captain. This divided Kirk is described appropriately. Without ego, he couldn’t function.

Strengthen Ego

I don’t think what Mr. Steiner says about the need to strengthen the Ego is always true. While some people, often those who seek spiritual development, have weak egos that do need to be strengthened, some already have egos that are strong enough, or even too strong. The point is, we need the ego to function in the material world, and to develop ourselves in any way. But when we develop our spiritual Self, we need to put our ego under the control of the Soul so it won’t lead us away from the spiritual.

“Bless me, O God, thou the only True God. I thank thee for the preservation of me, and for all other benefits. I now commend myself, both Soul and Body, and all that thou has set me to do in my employment and calling, into thy protection. Be Thou the beginning of my conceptions, my undertakings, and alll my doings. Work Thou so in me that I may begin all things to the glory of Thy Name, and accomplish them in Thy Love for the good and service of my neighbor. Send thy Holy Angels along with me, to turn the temptation of the Devil and corrupt nature away from me. Preserve me from the malice of evil men, make all my enemies reconcilable to me, and bring my mind into Thy vineyard, that I may labor in my office and employment, and behave as Thy obedient servant therein. Bless me and ask that I am to go about and do this day, with the blessing of Thy Love and Mercy continue Thy Grace and Love in Jesus Christ upon me, and give me a mind cheerful to follow Thy leading and execute thine appointment. Let Thy Holy Spirit guide me in my beginning, and in my progress, on to my last day, and be the willing, woking, and accomplishing of all in Me. Amen.” –Jacob Boehme

When We Rise

We can pray to God, formally or informally, at any time, but the most important time to do so is first thing in the morning when we get up so as to set the theme for the entire day. This especially makes sense for us in Cosolargy, as we generally do our solar techniques at dawn. The somewhat lengthy prayer above by Boehme is a formal way to do it, but we don’t have to be so formal or lengthy. Simply saying “God bless me” is often enough, or you can be specific for whatever issues you may be having at the time, so if you are finding yourself getting angry at people, ask God to help you get rid of your anger. If you are having health problems, ask God to help with that. Most important, of course, is to ask God to help you with the process of awakening and developing your spiritual faculties.

Preservation of Me

When Boeme asks God for “the preservation of me,” he isn’t asking God to keep him as he is, for that would be pointless. He is asking God to keep him alive, not to prevent him from changing and growing.

I commend Myself

This is an important part of Boehm’s prayer. We should all commend ourselves to God. If we want God to help us, we must make it clear to ourselves that we are on His team, part of His Army of Light, and not just random people asking for God’s help while doing nothing to earn it or deserve it.

The Beginning of All My Doings

Whether part of a morning prayer, or something ongoing throughout the day, we do need to do all things in God’s name, and as God would have us do. Some Christians today are fond of saying “What would Jesus Do?” but what they often mean by that is what would my preacher do since they listen to the preacher rather than the teachings of Jesus. While we may not always know for sure, we should think about whether or not God would want us to do the things we do. We all have to make a living in this world, and that often means taking a job we don’t want and doing work we don’t want to do, but we should still try our best to do as God wants us to do.

Bring My Mind Into Your Vineyard

I think this is a fairly obvious allegory. Boehm is telling us to ask God to bring our minds into Heaven, although it isn’t actually the mind that can get a glimpse of Heaven, but the Spirit. The idea is to help to get some of that Divine Knowledge to trickle down into the physical mind as seems to happen in some cases of Near Death Experiences (NDE). This is so we can better be Guided by the Holy Spirit as Boehm says, and so that we have a greater desire to reach Heaven—the real Heaven, not the fantasized versions coming from human minds.

 “In Egypt, during the three days of darkness, the son saw not his father, nor brother, brother, nor true friend his friend, because the darkness hid them. So when Adam transgressed and fell from his former glory, and came under the power of the spirit of the world, and the veil of darkness fell upon his soul, from his time until the last Adam, they saw not the true Father in Heaven, or the good, kind Mother, the grace of the Spirit, or the sweet and desiring Brother, the Lord, or the friends and kindred, the holy Angels. And it was not only the last Adam, but even to this day, those upon whom the Sun of Righteousness has not risen, and in whom the eyes of the Soul have not been opened and enlightened by the true Light, are still under the same darkness of sin, wrought upon by the same influence of pleasures, subject to the same punishment, not yet having eyes to behold the Father.

“This is a thing which everyone ought to know, that there are eyes deeper within man than these [physical] eyes, and a hearing deeper than this hearing. As the [physical] eyes behold and recognize the face of a friend, so the [spiritual] eyes of the worthy and faithful Soul, being spiritually enlightened with the Light of God, behold and recognize the true friend.” –St. Macarius the Egyptian

Three Days of Darkness

This is a reference to one of the plagues brought upon Egypt in the time of Moses. Here is what is said about it in the Book of Exodus in the Bible:

“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness spreads over Egypt—darkness that can be felt.’  So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days.”

But the darkness over man didn’t end when that plague ended. While we are able to physically see now, the vast majority of us remain spiritually blind and deaf.

Spirit of the World

St. Macarius says that when Adam transgressed, he came under the power of the Spirit of the World, and that is true. The Spirit of the World is the one the Gnostics call the Demiurge, the false God that created the realm of matter. When Adam and Eve ate from the “Tree of Knowledge.” which was not a literal tree but the light of the physical sun, they fell into the realm of matter and came under the control of the lord of matter, the Demiurge. When that happened, they no longer “saw” God in heaven, whom Macarius here refers to as the three persons, Father, Mother, and Holy Spirit, as well as losing their connection with Christ and the Angels. In other words, they lost contact with Heaven.

Sun of Righteousness

St. Macarius then says that humans remain in darkness because the Sun of Righteousness has not risen. That was true when he wrote it, but is no longer true. The Sun of Righteousness, which is the Spiritual Sun with the Presence of God within it, does now shine upon us. But it doesn’t immediately appear at full strength. The power of the Sun of Righteousness reaches all, but only a few are able to absorb that Light and have a true awakening of Spirit because of it. The solar techniques practiced in Cosolargy help us absorb even more Light from that Sun.

Deeper Eyes and Ears

We do have deeper senses than the physical ones, which are capable of getting more than a vague notion of things spiritual. We must awaken and develop those spiritual senses to truly know the spiritual realm and to gradually expand our consciousness until it rises to the highest level of Consciousness and becomes one with the All, one with God. That we do by following the teachings of Cosolargy.

“If two persons combine in harmony their force of muscle to lift a heavy weight, they will lift it easier than one. If four people so combine, they will lift it easier than two.

“The same law and result applies to mental force. Each one of us, consciously or unconsciously, sends out daily and hourly this silent mental force—this invisible element we call thought, which affects favorably or unfavorably the persons of whom we think. It is the same force which may lift a box, a bag, or a truck. Only it may be differently applied.

“”If you have in view any enterprise or business, and you can meet at regular times two, four, six, or as many persons as heartily wish you success, and they hear your plan, and talk it over with you, always in earnest sympathy and goodwill, you are having their cooperation in making for you a silent force which will aid you more than anything else. You will then the quicker find persons who are in sympathy with your purpose. If you have a new knowledge, or a new truth, … you will, through the power of cooperative demand or prayer, be the sooner brought to the people who can aid you.” –Prentice Mulford

The Law of Synergy

Synergy is a method in which individuals or organizations pool their resources and efforts to enhance value, productivity, efficacy, and performance more than they could individually. That term may not have been used in Mulford’s time over a century ago, but it is common in modern-day business and especially in Systems Analysis. In systems analysis, they also use another expression, the Laurel and Hardy effect, to describe the opposite of synergy, when each individual is doing his own thing and not working in cooperation with others. Sadly, we have more of that than of cooperation.

Like Lifting Weights

Mulford says that it is easier for two people to lift a heavy weight, and even easier for four. He might also have said that the more people you have working on it, the more total weight they can lift. Likewise, a mental or spiritual task can be more easily accomplished by a group of people working together rather than individuals making uncoordinated efforts.

Let’s take the example my college professor used to illustrate synergy. He said that two cavemen were hunting separately and not having much luck chasing cave rabbits around. But then one noticed that one particular rabbit was simply running in circles around a large boulder while the other caveman pursued it. So he met the other caveman and they decided that one would chase the rabbit while the other simply waited on one side of the rock in a hidden spot so he could jump out and club the rabbit when it came by. The trick worked and the two cavemen used the method frequently after that and rarely went hungry.

But if the cavemen arrived at the hunting area at different hours, the trick would not work, so a coordinated effort is necessary. The same is true with mental and spiritual goals.

Law of Abundance

Many talk today about a Law of Abundance that is supposed to make it possible for anyone to get almost anything they want by simply thinking about it and believing they can get it. About 99 out of a hundred people who try this fail. The gurus of this law of abundance always put the blame on the individuals when they fail and say that they simply didn’t do it correctly, or didn’t really believe, but that is an oversimplification of the problem. A large part of it is that cooperation is not being applied. Many different people are seeking individual goals and because of that, the energy (force as Mulford would put it) of their efforts conflict with each other instead of aiding each other. So they are using the Laurel and Hardy Effect rather than that of Synergy. But when many work together for the same goal, this Law of Abundance often works, though not always. That is because there is another catch to it. The laws of the physical universe say you must work and earn what you get, so if you work hard and don’t always get what you should, the Law of Abundance, coupled with the Law of Synergy, my work, but if you don’t deserve it, you probably still won’t get it.

Spiritual Goals

In Coolargy, we learn that being part of a community is important. The ability to use the Law of Synergy (or Law of Cooperation) as a community makes it more likely that those goals will be achieved. It also gives us more protection against the dark forces that seek to prevent spiritual development.

“There is within us an immense capacity for perception, for the receiving of message from outside; and a very little consciousness which deals with them. It is as if one telegraph operator were placed in charge of a mutitude of lines: all may be in action; but he can only attend to one at a time. In popular language, there is not enough consciousness to go round. Even upon the sensual plane, no one can be aware of more than a few things at once. These fill the center of our field of consciousness: as the object on which we happen to have focussed our vision dominates our field of dight. The other matters within the field retreat to the margin. We know, dimly, that they are there; but we pay them no attention and should hardly miss them if they ceased to exist.

“Trancendental matters are, for most of us, always beyond the margin; because most of us have given up our whole consciousness to the occupation of the senses, and permitted them to construct there a universe in which we are contented to remain. Only in certain states—recollection, contemplation, ecstasy and their allied conditions—does the self contrive to turn out the usual tenants, shut the ‘gateays of the flesh,’ and let those submerged powers which are capable of picking up messages from another plane of being have their turn. Then it is the sense world which retreats beyond the margin, and another landscape that ruches in. At last, then, we began to see something of what contemplation does for its initiates.” ~Evelyn Underhill

Capacity for Perception

It is true that we have a great capacity for perception. It is also true that there are many things that exist beyond our physical perception and are completely invisible to them. But Ms. Underhill makes a mistake that was common for the time: she confuses consciousness with the conscious mind. The conscious mind is part of the physical mind, and is limited, as Underhill says. Consciousness, on the other hand, is not limited at all.

Focussed Vision

One reason our capacity for perception is limited is that we focus only on one thing or a small number of things. This makes sense to a large degree in a purely physical world, because we want to experience mostly the things that most interest us, endanger us, or are simply in our way and we need to go around them. Unfortunately, once we have learned to focus our vision and other senses in that way, we do it constantly. In so doing, we miss out on a lot of things that are, as Underhill puts it, pushed to the margins and ignored. That is one reason why Gene Savoy, Sr. taught us to practice unfocusing our eyes so we see more, not only on the physical level but to help us start seeing beyond the physical with our spiritual faculties.

Filters

In addition to focussing, we have beliefs, concepts, and ideas of what is real and what isn’t. This causes us to see things differently than others who may have different filters. One example of this is the way members of certain Churches will see the face of Jesus in every water stain, or blob of rust that vaguely resembles a human face. None of them have ever seen the actual face of Jesus, yet every time they see these vague shapes, they just know it is him.

Trancendental Matters

Underhill refers to everything spiritual when she uses the expression, “transcendental matters”. She says these matters are always being pushed “beyond the margin” of our conscious mind, and that is true. She adds that we perceive these things only when we are in “certain states,” and gives some examples. But here, we are really talking about something different than the focusing of the conscious mind. Spiritual things can only be perceived by our spiritual senses, and to do so, we must awaken and develop those senses. That is what we are doing when we practice the techniques taught in Cosolargy. Another part of it is that there are many levels of consciousness, and we are only aware of things happening at our current level, and below. We need to develop higher levels of consciousness to see more of the reality that is largely hidden from us. The Cosolargy techniques do that as well.

“Though I have said that we are one with God and this is taught us by Holy Writ, yet now I say that we must eternally remain other than God, distinct from Him. …

“And therefore I say further: that from the face of God, or from our highest feeling, a brightness shines upon the face of our inward being, which teaches us the truth of love and of all virtue: and especially are we taught in this brightness to feel God and ourselves in four ways. First, we feel God in his Grace; and when we apprehend this, we cannot remain idol. For like the sun, by its splendor and its heat, enlightens and gladdens and makes fruitful the whole world, So God does to us through His Grace. He enlightens and gladdens and makes fruitful all who desire to obey Him. If, however, we would feel God within us, and desire to have the fire of His love ever more burning within us, we must, of our own free will, help to kindle it in four ways: we must abide within ourselves, united with the fire. And we must go forth from ourselves toward all good people with loyalty and love. And we must bo beneath ourselves, betaking ourselves in all good works. And we must ascend above ourselves with the flame of this fire, through devotion, and praise, and fervent prayer, and must ever cleave to God with an upright intention and with love.” ~John of Ruysbroeck

One With God, Yet Individuals

When they are told that the goal of spiritual development is to unite with God, many people think this means that their individuality will be lost in doing do. In fact, there are some spiritual schools that teach that we lose our identity as we become one with God, comparing it to a drop of water that flows into the ocean where it mixes in and can never be separated again. But others teach that it is more like a brick being added to a brick wall. The brick is part of the wall but still retains its individuality.

A Brightness Shines

A brightness does shine on us from God, but not directly. God’s Light illuminates the Spiritual Sun and it is that Sun than shines down on us with God’s Light. And it shines on our outer being as well as our inner one. It shines on all beings, but most are unable to absorb it, so it just passes through them like neutrons. But for those who seek this Brightness of God, it awakens and nourishes the spirit and helps us develop higher levels of consciousness.

Four Ways

The Four Ways listed by Ruysbroeck may not be the only ways to keep us close to God, but they are certainly part of it. First, he says we must seek to unite “with the fire.” In other words, to be one with the Light, one with God, one with Heaven. In Cosolargy, we know that the best way to do this is to practice our solar techniques faithfully and regularly. Then we must, as Ruysbroeck puts it, “go forth from ourselves toward all good people”. In Cosolargy, We are taught to keep the teachings secret, just as was done in the mystery schools of the past, yet we can still reach out to others, inform them of what is happening, what the Awakening is all about, and invite them to join Cosolargy. Don’t be disappointed, however, if your friends and relatives are not ready to see the Light, and turn down your suggestion. The Light will come to them when they are ready, not before, but as the old saying goes, it helps to plant seeds. Third, we must, as Ruysbroeck says, go beneath ourselves to continue to labor in the world of matter. We remain part of the material world while developing our spiritual side, so we must continue to function in that world, and not withdraw from it. We function in it but avoid becoming attached to it, or to anything in the world of matter. And finally, we ascend above ourselves to “pray” or communicate with the Beings of Light and With God. This is the way to truly know God.

“Now that thou hast taken these names upon thee of good, modest, true; of emfrwn, sumfrwn, uperfrwn; take heed lest at any times by doing anything that is contrary, thou be but improperly so called, and lose thy right to these appellations. Or if thou do, return unto them again with all possible speed. And remember, that the word emfrwn notes unto thee an intent and intelligent consideration of every object that presents itself unto thee, without distraction. And the word emfrwn a ready and contented acceptation of whatsoever by the appointment of the common nature, happens unto thee. And the word sumfrwn, a super-extension, or a transcendent, and outreaching disposition of thy mind, whereby it passeth by all bodily pains and pleasures, honour and credit, death and whatsoever is of the same nature, as matters of absolute indifference, and in no wise to be stood upon by a wise man. These then if inviolably thou shalt observe, and shalt not be ambitious to be so called by others, both thou thyself shalt become a new man, and thou shalt begin a new life.” ~Marcus Aurelius

Emphrōn, Symphrōn, Hyperphrōn

Aurelius is making a little wordplay here with the last three adjectives in Greek which are emphrōn, symphrōn, and hyperphrōn. This is the translation in more modern English of that sentence.

“If you ever get to call yourself good, moral, honest, conscientious, amenable, and dignified, never exchange them for other labels or lose them. He is warning people that once they achieve such an honorable description, they take care not to lose it or violate it.

This doesn’t apply only to those attributes listed by Aurelius, but to all improvements made as part of your spiritual growth path and techniques, including the development of humility, and love for all.

Return to Them Again

Here, Aurelius is saying that if we should stray from the path of truth, justice, humility, and love, rather than quitting in frustration, we must make every attempt to get back on the path. While we shouldn’t brush it off as meaningless, we should also not give up too readily when we stray. For the vast majority of people, the path of spiritual development is often two steps forward, one step back, rather than a steady path forward. Partly, this is because the forces of darkness try so hard to pull us away from the Path of Light.

Intent and Intelligent Consideration

Here, Aurelius is telling us that one thing we can do to help prevent us from straying off The Path is to think out each thing before we do it carefully. Ask ourselves if it is what a peaceful, loving person of humility should do. If not, don’t do it. Some modern Christians would say, “Ask what would Jesus Do?” That would be good advice if they actually knew what Jesus would do, but they have made it clear that many of them have no idea what Jesus would do, only what their favorite preacher would do, and those preachers are rarely true representatives of the teachings of Jesus. By now we should all know that the true path to God and salvation is through humility and love, as well as Solar techniques, so by simply asking ourselves if the thing we are about to do or say meets those criteria, we should be heading in the right direction. Eventually, most of us develop our intuition well enough that it helps keep us from straying.

Pain, Pleasure, Death, and Indifference

Aurelius says that pain, pleasure, death, and indifference are “in no wise to be stood upon by a wise man.” So he is advising us to avoid doing anything that brings pain or death to others and to avoid being indifferent to the pains and difficulties of others, even strangers. Pleasures may seem out of place here, but there are different kinds of pleasures, and Aurelius is warning us not to take pleasure in things that are mostly physical in nature, such as overeating and sexual indulgences. It is not so much that such things are bad in themselves, but that we tend to get attached to physical pleasures and then they easily distract us away from the spiritual. The ancient spiritual teachers warned that becoming attached to physical things tends to slow down, if not stop, our spiritual progress. And it provides openings for the dark beings to attack and manipulate us. So as Marcus warns, do not be ambitious, and become a new man or woman.

The image used to illustrate this post shows Marcus Aurelius granting clemency to prisoners rather than having them put to death, so he practiced what he preached.

“The belief that nearly all diseases have their origin in the invisible nature of Man (the Astrum) is a fundamental precept of Hermetic medicine, for while hermeticists in no way disregard the physical body, they believed that man’s material constitution was an emanation from, or an objectification of, his invisible spiritual principles. A brief, but it is believed fairly comprehensive, resume of the hermetic principles of Paracelsus follows:

There is one vital substance in Nature upon which all things subsist. It is called, archeus, or vital life force, and is synonymous with the astral light or spiritual air of the ancients. In regard to this substance, Eliphas Levi has written, ‘Light, that creative agent, the vibrations of which are the movement and life of all things; Light, latent in the universal ether, radiating about absorbing centers, which, being saturated thereby, project movement and life in their turn, so forming creative currents; Light; actualized in the stars, animated in animals, humanized in human beings; Light, which vegetates all plants, glistens in metals, produces all forms of Nature and equilibrates all by the laws of universal sympathy—this is the Light which exhibits the phenomena of magnetism, divined by Paracelsus, which tinctures the blood, being released from the air as it is inhaled and discharged by the hermetic bellows of the lungs’ (The History of Magic)

“This vital energy has its origin in the spiritual body.” ~Manly P. Hall

Invisible Nature of Man

While Mr. Hall equates the “invisible nature of Man” with “the Astrum,” I find that Astrum is derived from Latin, and means a star. So he is saying, I believe, that man gets his invisible nature from the stars, or from a star, which could only mean the Sun. While that is not exactly correct, it is true that the Light referred to later in the quote does reach us through the sun, and the most spiritual frequencies of it from the Spiritual Sun.

Another note: spirits are invisible to the physical senses, but not to the spiritual ones, so awakening the spiritual senses allows us to “see” spirits on another level.

Material Nature an Emination from Spirit

In a sense, it is true that the material body is an emanation from the spirit, but not because spirits set forth to generate physical bodies. It is because, the false god, the Demiurge, created the realm of matter by altering some of the spiritual realm. As a result, we can say that everything material has some spirit within it and behind it, and it is the goal of all true spiritual development to return that which is material back to its original state as spirit.

Vital Life Force

Paracelsus calls the Vital Life Force, “archeus”. The definition I found online says that the Archeus is a term that “generally refers to the lowest and most dense aspect of the astral plane which presides over the growth and continuation of material life. In short, it is the link between matter and spirit.

When I look up Vital Life Force, I find several similar definitions that basically say it is a vital essence (or energy) that animates all living things. Wikipedia relates it to the Ayurvedic “prana” which permeates reality on all levels. The most interesting part of this definition is when they add that “prana is sometimes described as originating from the Sun and connecting the elements.” So we can say that the Vital Life Force is that which generates life, feeds and maintains life, and encourages the existence of life.

Of course, some of the more materialistic definitions laugh at the concept, such as this from The Free Dictionary: “A hypothetical force (not physical or chemical) once thought by Henri Bergson to cause the evolution and development of organisms”

Creative Vibrations of Light

There are indeed creative vibrations in light. Both physical and spiritual light generate life on one level or another. Physical light is responsible for material life. Plants are the most obvious as they live almost entirely on light and water. Animals get light directly from the sun, but also indirectly from plants that they eat. Man also gets physical light for his physical body, but humans are also capable of taking in spiritual Light from the Spiritual Sun for their spiritual Self. Even without trying, we take in a little spiritual Light, but to fully awaken and develop our Spirits, we need to take in more spiritual Light by seeking it and accepting it in Love and humility. Spiritual Light will not flow to greedy and arrogant individuals.

Phenomena of Magnetism

We know that magnetism is not a force that is found in light, but when Paracelsus said that it was, it was at a time when magnetism and electricity were considered the same thing. While the two are related, magnetism and electricity are not the same. So I think Paracelsus was saying that light is responsible for electricity. While that is not true either, there is some connection. We know that electricity can produce light under certain circumstances, and light can produce electricity at times. But It may be that Paracelsus was trying to say that Light gives us the “electricity” or “magnetism” of the Vital Life Force, so to strengthen and extend our life, we must turn to the Light.

“When exercises for intuition are practiced, they not only affect the etheric body but extend to the supersensible forces of the physical body. But it must not, of course, be imagined that effects are brought about in the physical body which are discernable to ordinary sense observation, for these effects the clairvoyant alone is able to judge, and they have nothing to do with external powers of perception. They come as a result of a ripened consciousness, when this latter is able to have intuitional experiences, even though it has divested itself of all previous inner and outer experiences. The experiences of intuition are, however, subtle, delicate, and intimate, in comparison with which the physical body, at its present stage of development, is course. For this reason, it offers a positive hindrance to the success of any exercises for attaining intuition. Nevertheless, should these be pursued with energy and perseverance, and with the required inner calm, they will ultimately be these powerful hindrances of the physical body. The student will become aware of this when he [, or she] notices how by degree, particular actions of the physical body which hitherto had taken place without his [, or her] own own volition, now come under control.” ~Rudolf Steiner

Exercises Practices

Steiner speaks of these practices as “exercises for intuition” but they can also be called exercises for spiritual development or spiritual growth. Those terms are more commonly used today but mean the same thing as it was spiritual development that Mr. Steiner was trying to teach. Of course, we students of Cosolargy are aware that exercises, or as we call them, techniques, must be practiced regularly and faithfully to achieve any significant spiritual growth.

Extend the Supersensible Forces

Steiner doesn’t explain what he means by “supersensible forces,” but I think we can say that practicing spiritual techniques not only brings energy (Light) into the energy centers of the spirit but also those of the body, so practicing these techniques can have a good effect on the body and mind as well as the spirit. Mr. Steiner says their effects are not discernable by the physical senses, and that is generally true, but there are exceptions. While beginning students may find this hard to believe, many Cosolargy students who had brown eyes when they started have seen their eye color gradually change to blue or grey (which experts say is not really grey, but a grayish shade of blue). While this color change may not seem to matter, as it doesn’t seem to be accompanied by other changes, it is, at the very least, a good indication that one is practicing the techniques properly and achieving the desired results. Other noticeable effects might be a general improvement in physical health and in mental health and attitude. Some of those improvements may be due to changing long-held beliefs that have proven untrue once you start developing higher levels of consciousness. Other may be the result of the increased energy of a positive kind brought into the body by practicing the techniques. However, it should not be assumed that practicing spiritual techniques will eliminate all illnesses, though it does happen to a few individuals.

Ripened Consciousness

Mr. Steiner says these changes come about because of a “Ripened” consciousness. While that is an unusual way to say it, it is totally appropriate. Today, we are more likely to say expanded consciousness, or reaching higher levels of consciousness. I have chosen to illustrate this article with an animated GIF of an opening Lotus blossom to represent this expansion of consciousness. It might be useful to think of that image when practicing techniques.

Hindrance By the Body

The physical body can be a hindrance to spiritual development. Gene Savoy, Sr. has noted this in some lectures when he said that it is hard to practice techniques when one has a toothache or headache. But even when you are not suffering from any obvious illness, the dense materialism that the physical body has degenerated into over many centuries does offer a hindrance to spiritual development. It can, however, still be done with patience and regular practice. We must all understand that we can’t erase centuries of degeneration with a few weeks, or even months, of spiritual techniques. We must keep at it diligently and faithfully for years.

“Up close, an atom is composed of tinier bits of matter whirling at lightning speed around a huge empty space. …

“If you zero in on these bits of subatomic matter, they are not material at all but rather mere vibrations of energy that have taken on the appearance of solidity. This discovery, that matter is a fluctuation of energy dressed up in a different guise, fueled the quantum revolution lrd by Einsten and his colleagues. …

“The quantum revolution made it inevitable that our world-view would change. Quantum physics proved that the infinite variety of objects we see around us—stars, galaxies, mountains, trees, butterflies, and amoebas—is connnected by infinite, eternal, unbounded quantum fields, a kind of invisible quilt that has all creation stitched into it. Objects that look seperate and distinct to us are in fact all sewn into the design of this vast quilt. The hard edges of any object , such as a chair or a table, are an illusion forces upon us by the limits of our sight. If we had eyes tuned to the qquantum world, we would see these edges blur and finally ment, giving way to unlimited quantum fields. …

“It is nw believed that a single superfield, called the unified field, exists; it is the ultimate reality that underlies all of nature.” ~Deepak Chopra

Looking at the Atom

As Chopra says, the atom was for centuries considered the smallest particle of matter and was fairly solid. Only the invention of more powerful microscopes made it possible to see that the atom was not solid at all, but made up of smaller particles whirling around each other. When I was in grade school and high school, this was typically depicted as a nucleus of particles with solid electrons swirling around it only a short distance away. The new quantum version has the electron a greater distance from the nucleus, and it is all fuzzy to show that it isn’t solid at all, but only appears solid when observed.

All Connected

The greater discovery of Quantum Physics is that these tiny subatomic particles are all connected to each other in some as yet unknown way. While many scientists who favor a more Newtonian view of the world insist that this interconnectedness of subatomic particles does not extend out to larger objects like trees and people. While that opinion may give them some comfort, it doesn’t make sense. If everything is made of atoms, which are made of smaller subatomic particles, and those particles are interconnected, then everything and everyone is interconnected. On a material level of existence, that interconnectedness is not apparent, but at a higher, more spiritual level it is. Dr. Chopra refers to this as a great quilt, but I don’t think that gives an accurate view. A quilt is made up of many pieces that are sewn together, yet they remain separate. The idea here is that objects are not truly separate but are joined to all other objects, directly or indirectly. And that is just on the physical level and in the universe of matter.

The Spiritual Side of Interconnectedness

This interconnectedness is even greater on a spiritual level. We only have to think a little about what spirits are. Spirit is not restricted or affected in any way by space and time. A spirit occupies all space and all time simultaneously. As a result, they are clearly all interconnected. If every spirit is infinite, then in any location, no matter how small, all spirits are there. So while physical subatomic particles/waves are connected to others in the same time and space, spirits are connected in all times and all spaces. It is the goal of spiritual development to reach that level of consciousness where we become aware of that interconnectedness and become One with the All. This doesn’t mean we lose our individuality, but it does mean that individuality is more limited than most of us believe.

Being Healthy

A final note on being healthy. The quote from Dr. Chopra comes from his book titled “Perfect Health”. In this book, he expresses the idea that disease and aging are optional. In a quantum world, we must understand that nearly every cell in our bodies is regularly replaced. It is only because we believe in it that the process allows the cells to age or develop disease. He says that if we can change our beliefs to understand that those cells can reproduce perfectly each time, no matter how old we get, we will live much longer and healthier lives. Gene Savoy, Sr. taught the same idea.