“Deep companion of the beings of light! In your mercy, give me your strength and help me with your own hand. Dress my soul, O lord, and speak to me. Help me when enemies close in. Their deceitful body would ravage and torture me. Beneficent friend, free me. My soul is crying in my body at every blow and dagger stab. My hour of life and this form in flesh is over, and all its days of turbulence. My hour tumbled about as on troubled water, pain after pain ravaging my inner place. I walked in anguish, fire at my ankles, fog a smoke in my face. Springs of darkness opened, and the giant fishes transfixed me with fear. My soul fainted before those dreadful forms, hideous to look at. Their bodies lack a human shape. These are the demons, the banished princes, transfixing me with terror. Their fury assembled like sea bodies of fire. They rose to drown me. In every neighborhood there were storm winds. Rain, the mist of all fogs, lightning and drums of thunder, shores of clouds, hail, crashing sea. The skiff rose over the crest of a wave and glided into a hidden trough. All the clamps got loose, iron rivets fell out. With the drownings the sails swallowed water, and the masts shook together in the turmoil. The rudders dropped into the sea. Those left on board turned to stone. The helmsmen and his pilots wailed bitterly at the top of their lungs.”

-Parthian Songs

Companion of the Beings of Light

The companion of the Beings of Light is God. Why the writer of this song chose to say it that way, I don’t know, but God is, of course, a companion of the Beings of Light that dwell in Heaven. The song asks God to speak to the one singing and to help when enemies close in. Enemies do not mean other people, but the beings and forces of Darkness: Devils and Demons.

My Soul is Crying

This line that ends with the singer being hit and stabbed makes us think that it is a martyr doing the singing, although it is possible that the line is allegorical. The next line makes it clear that this person is dying, and probably not of natural causes. The person properly indicates that it is just his body of flesh that is dying.

On Troubled Water

This part is definitely allegorical. Now this person is relating his dying state racked with pain as being on troubled waters. The allegory continues when he adds that “springs of darkness opened and “giant fishes transfixed me with fear.” The giant fishes represent demonic beings in frightful forms. He makes this clear a few lines later saying that: “These are the demons, the banished princes, transfixing me with terror.” That is, of course, one thing demons do. Sometimes they take forms that are frightening to us. Other times, they take forms that we like so we will listen to their lies.

There Fury Assembled

The song now seems to take a turn from describing what is happening to one dying person to the more general attacks on people by demons. The writer does stick with his allegory of being on Troubled Water, but now he talks of a ship with a number of sailors on board. First, he says there were storms and wind, lightning and thunder, hail and crashing waves. The demonic “storm” tears the ship apart drowning, or turning to stone, all of those aboard. This allegory is tricky to decipher, but here is my opinion. I think the ship and the sailors on it represent one of the many false churches that teach their members they are saved simply by belonging to the church and donating to it. In the End Times, represented here by a great storm, the demons destroy the false church, or at least the false teachings. We in Cosolargy know that all falsehood must be cleansed from the world as part of the process of returning it to its original state as a World of Light.

“People are of varying temperaments, and that course that will best suit one will not meet the requirements of another. One will seek progress and development in one direction, and another in a different way, and a third by a still different course. The Yogi Philosophy teaches that the way that seems to appeal most to a person’s general temperament and disposition is the one best adapted to his use at the present time. They divide the Path of Attainment into three paths leading up to the great main road. They call these three paths, (1) Raja Yoga, (2) Karma Yoga, and (3) Gnani Yoga; each being a path leading to the Great Road. …

“Raja Yoga is devoted to the development of the latent powers in Man and the gaining control of the mental faculties by the will—attaining mastery of the lower self—the development of the mind to the end that the soul may be aided in its unfolding. …

“Karma Yoga is the yoga of work. It is the path followed by those who delight in their work, who take a keen interest in doing things with head or hand. …

“Gnani Yoga is the Yoga of Wisdom. It is followed by those of a scientific, intellectual type, who desire to reason out, proving, experimenting, and classifiying the occult knowledge. It follows a strong path towards metaphysics. Examples are to be seen in the great philosophers. As a matter of fact, all students of the Yogi Philosophy are attracted to Gnani Yoga to some degree.”

-William Walker Atkinson

Varying Temperaments

It is true that people are of varying temperaments, and we must all start from where we are. The person who is still very materialistic may start by trying to think about and study things that are spiritual. The one who is, as Stkinson says, all wrapped up in his work and related accomplishments can start to do his work in a way that is more pleasing to God, although that will often mean that is is less pleasing to materialistic bosses and employers. The one who is scientific and needs to experiment and learn from experience is the most fortunate since this is really the beginning of the True Path. Atkinson calls this third path one of Wisdom, but I think that is an inappropriate name for it. It is more one of intellect than wisdom, and they are not the same thing.

Preliminary Steps

The important thing that Mr. Atkinson points out is that all of the three paths of beginners, which might be thought of as preliminary paths rather than true paths to enlightenment, all eventually lead one to the “Great Road,” as he calls it. Many spiritual schools and Gurus tell people that there are many paths and we must each follow our own path, yet they provide little proof of that theory. A study of all the great spiritual leaders and enlightened individuals of the past will reveal that they all followed very similar paths, although their followers have often changed the truth in the written books about them so they may seem to be different. Some anti-religious people love to point out on social media that many of the things that are written about Jesus can be found in earlier writings of the Hindus and others. This doesn’t prove that the stories about Jesus are false, although some are. It proves that all great spiritual leaders follow a similar path.

The Great Road

The most important thing that Atkinson says in the quote is that all of the paths eventually lead to the One True Path that he calls “The Great Road”. So it may be true that there are multiple paths, especially for beginners, but eventually, we must all get on the True Path to achieve real enlightenment. If you think about it, you will realize that if we are all going to be on that path eventually, it is a good idea to head to that route as soon as possible. The teachings of Cosolargy will put you on that path.

“The person who combines spiritual knowledge with the practice of the virtues is a throne and a footstool of God. A throne because of his spiritual knowledge and a footstool because of his ascetic practices. And the human intellect, purified of all material images, and occupied, or, rather adorned with the divine principles of the noetic world, is a heaven itself.

“When any philosopher – any devout philosopher – fortified with virtue and spiritual knowledge, or with ascetic practice and contemplation, sees the power of evil rising up against him through the passions like the king of the Assyrians rising up against Hezekiah, he is aware that only with God’s help can he escape. He invokes God’s mercy by crying out silently and by striving to advance still further in virtue and knowledge; and he receives as an ally, or rather as his salvation, an Angel that is one of the higher principles of Wisdom and Knowledge.

“Every passion has its origin in the corresponding sensible object. For without some object to attract the powers of the soul through the medium of the senses, no passion would ever be generated. Without food, there is no gluttony; without gold, there is no love of money, and so on.”

–St. Maximos (in The Philokalia)

Spiritual Knowledge With Practice of Virtue

I believe that what St. Maximos (or Maximus) is trying to say here is that spiritual knowledge alone doesn’t make one an enlightened person, especially if we are talking about the limited kind of spiritual knowledge that comes from books, or listening to lectures. We must put that spiritual knowledge to use and practice spiritual development techniques to truly gain anything from it.

A Throne Because of Spiritual Knowledge

St. Maximos seems to be saying that anyone who has gained spiritual knowledge is a throne of God. That is true only of those who have achieved the very advanced stage of spiritual development and have gained the high level of Knowledge known as Gnosis. They are thrones of God in an allegorical sense because they have reached the high level of consciousness that permits them to communicate directly with God, at least some of the time.

A Footstool of God

As the photo used to illustrate this post shows, footstools, and thrones are often together, a set like a modern easy chair and hassock (or ottoman). Maximos says those advanced spiritual students are like a footstool of God because of their “ascetic practices”. I think it is more accurate to say that such spiritual adepts are footstools as well as thrones because they have true humility, not thinking of themselves as better than other people because of their advanced spiritual state.

Power of Evil Rising

It is true that spiritual students must watch for the powers of Evil (or darkness) rising in them and trying to take control. Each day, usually just before going to sleep, it is recommended that the students ask themselves if they did a good job of avoiding darkness that day. Did they get angry with someone? Did they get jealous or envious? If so, they should make note of it and try to do better. Did they become attached to material goods or property? If so, they need to work on that, or possibly get rid of the item they are becoming too attached too. That doesn’t mean we can’t have property, we simply must avoid attachments. St. Maximos refers to asceticism, but that is because the book the quote comes from is a training guide for monks in the Eastern Orthodox Church.

Passions and Objects

St. Maximos goes on to tell us that passions are always related to a “sensible object”, sensible meaning from the world of the six senses, the realm of matter. He gives a few examples that make sense. It should be noted, however, that people can become passionate about something they don’t actually have, but dream of having. It may not even be something that actually exists, but something they would like to exist. It should also be noted that passion isn’t always a bad thing. We can be passionate about our spiritual development, and that is good. We can be passionate about teaching others to develop their spiritual Self, and that is good as well. So we need not avoid all passions, just the type that leads to attachment to material things.

“’How,’ says the Desciple to the Master in one of Boehme’s ‘Dialogues,’ ‘am I to seek in the center this Fountain of Light which may enlighten me throughout and bring my properties into perfect harmony? I am in Nature, as I said before, and which way shall I pass through Nature and the light thereof, so that I may come to into the supernatural and supersensual ground whence this True Light, which is the Light of Minds, doth arise; and this without the destruction of my nature, or quenching the Light of it, which is my reason?’

‘Master: Cease but from thine own activity, steadfastly fixing thine eye upon one point … For this end, gather in all thy thoughts, and by faith, press into the center laying hold upon the Word of God, which is infallible and which hath called thee. Be obedient to this call, and be silent before the Lord, sitting alone with him in thy inmost and most hidden cell, and attend His Will in the patience of hope.

So shall the Light break forth as the morning, and after the redness thereof has passed, the Sun Himself, which thou waitest for, shall arise unto thee, and under his most healing wings thou shalt greatly rejoice: ascending and descending in his bright and health-giving beams. Behold, this is the true Supersensual Ground of Life.’”

-Evelyn Underhill with an inner quote from Jacob Boehme.

Seek the Fountain of Light

The Desciple in this dialogue by Boehme knows that he should seek the fountain of light, he just doesn’t know how to do so. Still, he is ahead of many who call themselves spiritual, yet have actually done nothing to develop their spiritual faculties. This disciple at least knows of the Fountain of Light and knows that this Light brings Enlightenment, hence the name.

Bring Into Harmony

There are different things involved in being in harmony, but the primary one for most spiritual students is developing their spiritual centers in such a way that they are in harmony and work together without any one of them dominating. There are some spiritual schools that have you developing, or energizing, only the top three or four energy centers. That is fine for the more materialistic person who is overly developed in the lower centers, but a lot of those who seek out spiritual development are actually weak in those lower centers. We need to develop all of them and bring them into balance and harmony. Another way spiritual development brings us into harmony is that it makes us more loving and understanding, more peaceful and humble. This allows us to live in harmony with all people regardless of their age, sex, religion, race, or political leaning.

Without Destruction of My Nature

What the disciple is calling his nature, is what we would refer to as his individuality. Some schools teach that when we become One with The All, we lose all individuality like a drop of water that falls into an ocean. But when we become one with The All, we retain our individuality, much like a brick that becomes part of a wall. The wall is one whole, yet the bricks are still individual things.

Light of Mind

Boehme refers to the Spiritual Light as the Light of Mind. This may be the result of a poor translation or simply because Boehme had to be careful what he wrote so he wouldn’t be accused of heresy. Since Boeme received his enlightenment when sunlight was reflected onto his eyes from a metal bowl he was holding, I think he knows that this is a matter of the Spirit, not the mind.

Fix Thine Eye

The Master tells the student that he must fix his eye on one point, but he doesn’t say what that point is. In part, I think he is saying that one must concentrate on spiritual development when engaging in spiritual development techniques, but he also means to fix his eye on the sun as taught by spiritual masters so that you do not harm your eyes (NEVER stare at the sun).

“Faith is indeed as the ‘grain of mustard seed, to which, as to growth, it is compared in the New Testament. But it can grow for evil as well as good, and, if for evil, may become a tree in which every foul bird of evil omen will come and build its nest. Your evil or gloomy imagining is faith in that evil. Your fear of a disease is in the perpetuity and increase of such disease. You have a slight derangement of stomach or kidney or other organ. So, having it for one day or a few days, you begin to expect it. You think of it only as an unhealthy organ. You never in your mind see it as a sound organ. You may be then told it is in dangerous condition. You have a name possibly given to the ailment which suggests great suffering, debility, and ultimately death. All this is aiding your faith in evil. The force of other minds added to your own increases that evil. Everything tends to make you see yourself as sick, weak, and enfeebled. You have not in your own mind an imagining of the part affected as sound and healthy. None are sending you thoughts or imaginings as vigorous and healthy. The spiritual force sent to you is all for evil. You get more disease, more weakness by the same law, or force, which can, otherwise directed, bring you heath.”

-Prentice Mulford

Grain of Mustard

When Jesus said that with faith no bigger than a mustard seed, which is a very small seed, we can move mountains, that is very true, but it is just as true that if we have faith we won’t be able to do something, then we won’t be able to do it until we manage to lose that false faith. Mulford calls that kind of faith, faith in evil. Still, I would prefer to call it faith in falsehood, because I think of evil as intentional, while in most cases, as in Mulford’s example regarding health, we are not doing it intentionally.

A Tree for Every Foul Bird

What Mr. Mulford is saying here in an allegorical form is that once you have let some false faith, more is likely to follow. Evil attracts more evil.

Fear of Disease

The rest of the quote from Mulford centers on the idea of developing faith in disease. Sadly, just about all of us do this to some degree. You don’t have to be a hypochondriac to develop a faith in disease or unhealthy conditions of the body. A hypochondriac can hear someone talking about an illness on the news and they immediately think they have it and actually start developing symptoms. However, anyone can have an illness such as the stomach flu and convince themselves that it is something serious that will never go away. Or a man can have sexual problems on one day and think he has become impotent and needs to use drugs all the time if he wants to have sex. We could go through a hundred variations, but the point with all of them is that we make the situation worse by believing the illness will continue to get worse. If we learn to start thinking and telling our subconscious mind that the illness is temporary, it will get better, it is getting better every day, etc. We will usually see improvement. Unfortunately, when a belief has become firmly embedded in the subconscious, it is hard to overcome, but it can be done.

Besides Disease

Our physical health is not the only area in life where many of us tend to sabotage ourselves with false beliefs. We do it in business also. We believe that we won’t get a promotion and so fill the situation with falsehoods that hold us back. We think that we aren’t smart enough to become a doctor or a lawyer, possibly because others have told us so, therefore we never try.

Spiritual False Beliefs

The most deadly kind of evil, or falsehood, is false spiritual beliefs. Demons of darkness love to whisper ideas into our heads that fill us with false spiritual beliefs, and we often fall for it. Churches that have, for the most part, lost the way, teach many falsehoods, and millions of people believe them. Scientists will sometimes claim that there is no God, when they have no proof of that belief, and therefore, should know better. In any case, false spiritual beliefs often prevent us from developing our spiritual faculties, even when we want to. That is why an old Chinese saying says you must empty the tea cup before you can fill it with fresh tea. It means you must clear out the false beliefs before the truth can start seeping in. It isn’t easy to do, but it can be done. You don’t have to convince your subconscious that all those beliefs you have accumulated are false, you have to convince it that they may not be true.

“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

“For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples;

but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you.

“Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

“Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you;….

“Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you… and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord.

“Your gates shall always be open; day and night they shall not be shut, so that nations shall bring you their wealth.

“For the nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; those nations shall be utterly laid waste.

“I will appoint Peace as your overseer and Righteousness as your taskmaster.

“The sun shall no longer be your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you by night but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun shall no more go down, or your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.”

-Isaiah 60: 1 – 6. 11 – 12, 17. 19

Your Light has Come

Isaiah is talking about the spiritual Light of God that comes to us through the intermediary of the Spiritual Sun. We don’t know who Isaiah was talking to, but now that we are in the End Times and the time of the Sun of Righteousness, we can assume that he is talking to us.

Darkness Shall Cover the Earth

There are different kinds of darkness, physical darkness and mental darkness. We are experiencing the latter kind quite a lot these days. With wars, plagues, tornadoes and floods, etc. it seems like the world is full of darkness. We must remember, though, the old saying, “It is always darkest before the dawn.” We are seeing a lot of darkness in the world, but we are also seeing people awakening to the Light, in small numbers, but growing all the time.

The Lord’s Glory Over You

The Glory that has appeared over us is the Sun of Righteousness predicted by the prophet Malachi, among others in different faiths.

Nations come to Your Light

This hasn’t happened yet, but it is in our prophecies that our community will one day be recognized for its importance in the complete development of mankind, and political leaders, as well as business leaders, will come to us for advice and guidance.

Your Gates Will Be Open

We will be open to helping all the nations all the races, all the religions of the world to unite and live together in peace and harmony.

Your Sun Shall Not Go Down

The Sun of Righteous, being the Spiritual Sun with the addition of God’s presence in it, never goes down because it is spiritual and not subject to the limits of time and space. While it is convenient for us to think of the Spiritual Sun as being in the same location as the Physical sun, the Spiritual Sun is not limited to that location. In fact, many Cosolargy students sometimes find when doing their daily solar techniques, that as they are finishing, they find they are looking at an area some distance away from the physical sun. That is perfectly fine, as once again, the Spiritual Sun is everywhere.

“So that the name of Christ may be exalted and glorified in us, we should follow him up the mountain of our bare intelligence, even as Peter, James, and John followed him up Mount Thabor. Thabor means in our tongue an increase in light. So soon as we are like Peter in the knowledge of truth, and like James in overcoming the world, and like John in fulness of Grace possessing the virtues in righteousness; then Christ brings us up onto the mountain of our intelligence to a hidden solitude, and reveals himself to us in glory and Divine Brightness. And, in his name, his Father in Heaven opens to us the living book of His Eternal Wisdom. And the Wisdom of God enfolds our bare vision and the simplicity of our spirit in a wayless, simple fruition of all good without distinction; and here there are indeed seeing and knowing, tasting and feeling, essence and life, having and being: and all this is one in our transcendence in God. And our heavenly Father endows each of us according to the nobility of his life and his practice. Therefore, if we ever remain with Christ on Mount Thabor, we will continue to experience a growth of new Light and new Truth, for we should forever hear the voice of the Father.”

-John of Ruysbroeck

Glorified in Us

Actually, in most places where it says “Christ” in the quote above, it originally said “Jesus,” but it was obvious from the context that Ruysbroeck meant Christ, so I changed the wording for clarity. It is Christ, a spiritual Being and true Son of God who should be exalted and glorified in us. This does not mean that we should worship Jesus or even Christ. It means that we should try to awaken our own spiritual consciousness with the goal of eventually reaching the highest level called Christ Consciousness. This cannot be done instantly, or even in a week or two. It takes years of practice and gradual change to climb up the many levels of consciousness until we achieve Christ Consciousness, or, using the analogy Ruysbroeck used, it takes years to climb to the top of Mount Thabor, the mountain of Light. So to follow Jesus, Peter, James, and John up Mount Thabor means that we should gradually increase our own Spiritual Light and in doing so, develop our spiritual faculties.

Peter, James, and John

According to Ruysbroeck, Peter, James, and John, each represented certain attributes or desirable traits of a true spiritual seeker. Peter represented Knowledge. Not the knowledge gained from books, or attending a government-approved school system, but the Divine Knowledge that is only revealed to the awakened and developed Soul. James, according to Ruysbroeck, was known for “overcoming the World”. He was one of the most spiritual of the apostles and an actual brother of Jesus (Mary had more than one child). John was full of grace and the “virtues in righteousness”. Those virtues are love, peacefulness, and humility which we must all develop.

Hidden Solitude

One problem with Ruysbroeck is that he doesn’t seem to recognize the difference between intellect and consciousness, but that is not surprising for the times when little was known about the brain, mind, or consciousness. In any case, there is a “Hidden Solitude” that we can get to by practicing our spiritual development techniques regularly and conscientiously. In this hidden solitude, the true Knowledge (Gnosis) is revealed, perhaps slowly at first, but eventually in its entirety.

Transcendence in God

There is only one real transcendence and that is transcendence in God. Gaining intellectual knowledge is not transcendence. Gaining psychic knowledge and abilities is not transcendence. Those things may be steps on the path for many people, but it is only when we climb to the top of Mount Thabor and become one with God do we truly transcend. Some people fear this transcendence because false schools have spread the idea that once we become one with God and one with The All, we completely lose our individuality. They compare it to a drop of water joining the sea and becoming completely mixed, but that is not how it happens. It is more like a grain of sand dropped on a beach that is now one with the beach, yet still an individual grain of sand.

“Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

“For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you.

“Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

“Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses’ arms.

“Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice,

because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you,

“Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise

“Your sun shall no more go down, or your moon withdraw itself; for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of mourning shall be ended.

“Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever.

They are the shoot that I planted, the work of my hands, so that I might be glorified.

“You shall be called priests of the Lord, you shall be named ministers of our God; you shall enjoy the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall glory.

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

“For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.”

-Isaiah 60, 61

Your Light has Come

This is not an ordinary light that might come from a candle or a light bulb. The Light Isaiah is talking about is the Divine Light that comes to us through the Spiritual Sun. That is why he then adds that the “Glory of the Lord has risen upon you.” Being one with God means allowing that Light into you to awaken and develop your spirit until it becomes a conscious Soul.

Darkness Shall Cover the Earth

This is certainly true today. There has never been a darker, more materialistic period in history than in the last few centuries. That is why this time is the final time we have to change our path and turn ourselves and all of humanity away from the darkness of materialism and toward the Light of Spirit.

Nations Will Come to Your Light

As the Community of Light grows, it will reach a point where desperate leaders of nations, businesses, and churches will turn to us for advice and help. We will gladly give them that help as humanity must be saved as a whole, not just a few of us.

Violence Shall No More Be Heard

When people turn to God’s Light, wars and violence of all kinds will be brought to an end. So will disease, famine, floods, and other “natural” disasters that are caused largely by Man’s angry and violent thought patterns that control the world far more than most of us realize.

Your Sun Shall No More Go Down

Materialistic people, and even some who think they are spiritual don’t think this is possible, or even a good idea. They think that light cannot exist without darkness, but they are wrong. As the universe becomes more and more spiritual, we will only be looking at the Spiritual Sun, which shines down on us at all times, even now. Since it is a Spirit, it is not limited at all by time and space.

Garment of Salvation

The Garment of Salvation, the Robe of Righteousness is the Spiritual Light. As we slowly change from our current material forms into more spiritual ones, we will literally glow with that light and help spread that light to all of humanity, all of the world, and all of the universe.

Seeds in the Garden

Our small Community is the seed in God’s Garden on Earth. We must grow and become a Great Garden of Light. That is our destiny. But unlike seeds in a regular garden, we can’t wait for others to water and fertilize us. We must seek out the Water of Life and the Fertilizer of Salvation which is that Spiritual Light flowing to us from God and through the Spiritual Sun.

“The path leading to cognition of the supersensible worlds is one which all men [and women] may travel, whatever their position under the present conditions of life may be. And in speaking of such a path it must be borne in mind that, while the goal of cognition and truth is the same at all times of the earth’s development, yet the starting point for Man has varied considerably at different periods. For instance, the man of the present day who wishes to find the way into supersensible worlds, cannot start from the same point as the Eqyptian candidate for initiation of old. This is why it is impossible for modern humanity to apply, without modification, the exercises given to the candidate for initiation in Ancient Egypt. … The capacities and qualities of souls change. Those who have studied human history only superficially can note that since the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, all life conditions have changed and that opinions, feelings, and even human capacities have become different from what they were before that time. The path for the acquirement of higher knowledge must be one which is suitable for souls in the present.

“From epoch to epoch, progressive evolution leads humanity, in respect to the path of higher cognition, to ever-changing modes , just as outer life likewise changes its form. For at all times, it is necessary that perfect harmony should reign between external life and initiation.”

–Rudolf Steiner

Supersensible Worlds

What Mr. Steiner calls “Supersensible Worlds” are today known as spiritual worlds or spiritual dimensions. What name we use isn’t important, but Steiner’s term tells us something about what these worlds are. As Supersensible worlds, they are above the sensible, or material world, in terms of frequency, level of consciousness, and evolution.

Present Conditions

The present conditions of life are indeed different than what they were in Ancient Egypt during its spiritual golden age and even different from what it was during the Greek golden age of spiritual development. In one sense, things have gotten worse because people today are much more materialistic than in those ancient periods. On the other hand, we now have the Sun of Righteousness shining down on us, and that makes spiritual development easier. In any case, many things have changed and that is why the methods of spiritual development must change with the times. While they may remain the same in a general sense, the details change. Today, the idea of having to live in a monastic community to engage in spiritual development appeals to few people, so that has changed. You can now be part of a spiritual community and still have a normal life with a home, a job, a spouse, etc.

Progressive Evolution

While Steiner may be correct in a physical sense, man has actually not been evolving spiritually, but devolving over the centuries. Fortunately, that is finally changing due to the arrival of the Sun of Righteousness in the End Times of the present age, which marks the beginning of a new age of spiritual growth. We don’t know how long it will take, but man will evolve into a pure spiritual being, and death, disease, and other problems of having a physical body will be over. We will no longer have to kill and eat other physical beings to survive but will need only God’s Light to nourish and sustain us.

“Now write what you have seen, what is, and what is to take place after this. As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches…

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

“The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the origin of God’s creation: So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. ”

“For you say, ‘I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing.’ You do not realize that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire so that you may be rich, and white robes to clothe you and to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen, and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.

“I reprove and discipline those whom I love. Be earnest, therefore, and repent.

“Listen! I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come into you and eat with you, and you with me

“To the one who conquers I will give a place with me on my throne, just as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches.”

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.

“See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them;

they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them;

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more;

mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”

“Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty, I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

“Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

“Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” It has a great, high wall with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels… on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates

“ And the city was a perfect cube, and it length is as large as its breadth: the length and the breadth and the height of it are all equal.

“The angel who talked to me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width; and he measured the city with his rod, fifteen hundred miles;,its length and width and height are equal.

“The wall is built of jasper, while the city is pure gold, clear as glass. The foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every jewel; the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. And the twelve gates are twelve pearls, each of the gates is a single pearl, and the street of the city is pure gold, transparent as glass.

“I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb.”

– Revelation

The Book Of Revelation

Most of the Bible, like much scripture of other faiths, is written in allegorical language. The Book of Revelation probably more so than any other book of the Bible. In a way, John explains some of the symbology in the sections quoted above, but not entirely. He starts by saying that the seven stars and seven lamps represent the seven churches, but he doesn’t say what seven churches. Many assume it means the early Christian churches, but I think John was speaking in a more universal sense, and the seven churches are the seven major religions of the world.

Because You are Lukewarm

The allegory used here is fairly obvious. John is criticizing the church of Laodicea for not being devoted enough in their worship of God. They are like so many Christians today who call themselves Christians, yet rarely do what Jesus taught the apostles to do. They either don’t go to church as often as they should, or they go more as a social event rather than a spiritual one. Of course, real spiritual development requires more than going to church or reading scripture, and he is talking about that also.

Rich, But Poor and Naked

This is even more true today. People think they are successful because they have a lot of money, land, or other forms of material wealth. John is saying these people are really poor and naked because they have accomplished nothing on a spiritual level. Money, land, and fine clothes won’t get you into Heaven. You need to be “clothed” in God’s Light that comes only to those who practice spiritual development techniques, and do it with the proper attitude of love and humility.

God Will Be With Us

In a sense, God is with all of us now as his presence is in the Sun of Righteousness that now shines down on us, but the Light from that sun has little effect on the average person. We have to practice spiritual development techniques to absorb a significant amount of that Light and become one with God.

City with Twelve Gates

This city represents the entryway into Heaven. It is described as being of pure gold, but clear like glass. To me, that is a good description of the Spiritual Sun. Gold is often associated with the sun, and clear like glass can only mean that it is not visible but is there anyway. That only applies to the Spiritual Sun. And what about those twelve gates? Look at our Cosolargy Cross. It has twelve suns on the outer sections in four groups of three. While the version we use in Cosolargy was specifically designed for our community using the knowledge of modern math, harmony, and proportion, versions of this cross have been around for thousands of years!

Summary

We can’t go through all the allegory in one post, so suffice it to say that it should now be apparent that Revelation is about Spiritual Awakening and Spiritual Development.