Theos-Talk Archives (June 1998 Message tt00289)

June 13th

Dear Mark:

No one said that either ISIS or the S D or both together unveiled
all the secrets of nature.

HPB spoke quite carefully in her introductions advising us her
readers that they unveiled sections of what was invisible to most
of us.  Since she knew that  we would be skeptical of all this
information, she made it available in gentle steps -- but to
grasp it all without gaps, we need to become familiar with all
she wrote on behalf of the Great Brotherhood of the Wise, of
which she and the Masters of Wisdom are a part.

It is not the Names or the claims that are important, but the
knowledge that we can use and think over that is valuable.  To
make this absolutely clear, the concept of Universal Brotherhood
(starting on the level of the ONE SPIRIT )-- shows our minds that
we are already "one in that essence," but also "separate" because
of the personal and individual development of understanding ( a
"mind" encased in a physical form) so essential to the progress
of each living "ray" of that ONE, as one of its active "agents"
in manifestation.

Once we become aware of the possibility of explaining the very
mysterious occurrences that link us to the psychic world of the
Astral, we become aware of a continuing interplay.  Both
religions and sciences are at present still skeptical of the
existence of the psychic or astral plane.

[ This is an "aside" :

Religion, because they lose a vital hold over the minds of their
parishioners, and science because they cannot explain in detail
the phenomena that relate to mind and desire -- which are not
easily reproducible.

But science is getting to that understanding by positing the
"morpho-genetic field," and the bio-energic fields," "randomness
and indeterminacy and chaos Theory," etc... that tend to prove
the selectivity and intelligence of the smallest particles of
life/matter which they can contact and begin to analyze.

Using the Hubble telescope and other analytical tools from Space
and outside the distortions of our atmosphere, science has come
to see that in the vast Universe "out there" there are similar
inexplicable mysteries of existence:  such as "Black Holes,"
"Dark Matter"  (or should we call it "transparent matter" as
light and other electro-magnetic waves are  transmitted through
it ?), the "Birth of Stars,"  "Planets belonging to other Suns,"
etc...  ]  One "aside" over.

What HPB did, as I see it, is to make an introductory statement
in 1877 (in ISIS) and draw together into once compass the most
important statements that opened and unified the distributed
accounts of that "invisible world."  She used in that
presentation classical accounts and current day information and
study.  She caused a great leap forward in Scientific
investigation.

Simultaneously a "death-blow" was given to the reserved areas of
religious authority all over the world.  HPB did not write for
the Western world alone, but for all the world, and dealt not
just with our development of science, but with the moral/ethical
effects of inventions and discoveries that placed vast and
terrible powers (such as the "atomic-bomb," and "cloning" and
"gene manipulation" -- which is almost on the astral plane --
into the hands of Science.

Her real challenge to us is:  how are these powers and knowledge
going to be used humanely ?

She made it clear (but most do not believe her) that the only way
to the peaceful, total, and harmonious development of mankind was
by cooperation with Nature and not in torturing, distorting and
destroying her in whole or in part.  What I mean to say is:  that
only if we give to others weaker than ourselves their rights to
habitat and to continued existence, will we succeed in our own
personal and collective human existence.  "Green Peace," and
other ecologically active individuals and bodies, have moved the
rather exclusive nature of purely economic considerations to a
position of moderation.  These along with worry over earth and
environment pollution by Big Business and Big Government, are
symptoms of this being understood.  (At least the politicians
seem to realize that their constituents demand that they pay some
attention to humane directives in addition to wielding the
legislative power they claim that they received as a mandate from
their electorates.)

But generally, such considerations are opposed and conquered by
the power of the economic market viewed as a natural war-zone for
contending giants in "Big Business," -- to whom the gaining of
wealth far outweighs the consideration of the health, welfare and
well being of millions of people.  Witness the current plight of
the "Tobacco Industry,"  (they deliberately placed addicting
drugs in tobacco so that they would gain repeat business and
induce dependency on their products.)  "Aside" ended.

Following ISIS and its success:  the sequence of questions,
inquiries, additional contributions began -- and those were
handled in THEOSOPHIST, LUCIFER and PATH magazines up to HPB's
death in 1891.  The progress of diffusing Theosophy is important
to us, if we follow it, our comprehension widens and deepens
rapidly.

The Secret Doctrine was first advertised in THEOSOPHIST as a
projected emendation of ISIS.  HPB wrote later that it changed
into an entirely separate book.  If one reads the exchange of
letters between the Mahatmas and Sinnett, Hume and HPB, one can
follow the course of that evolution, and in addition, gain
insight into the reason for the writing of the  S D.

The S D makes it plain that there is an organization to the
evolution of the Kosmos, the Solar System, our World and finally
ourselves.  The unifying link is the MONAD  ( Atma-Buddhi - a
"ray" of the ABSOLUTE -- see SD I 570-575 ) which is the prime
cause for "forms" and "beings."  It is spiritual, but serves also
as a focal point around which the 6 "lower principles" accrete so
that by their interaction a bodily form may eventuate.  In the
great gamut of beings between Primal SPIRIT (Paramatma)  and
Primeval "root-Matter" (Mula-Prakriti) there is the link of vital
intelligence -- desire and mind  ( SD II 79-80, 103,107-110, and
this leads  to the perception of the "Two Egos" in Man  SD II
167; I 210, 295fn,105, 130, 574 )    That "form" then manifests
the level of "intelligence" and progress up the ladder of
evolution, of that entity.

Mankind (as beings endowed with the thinking faculty) represents
those "Monads" (as a group) which have reached the point (stage)
of "self-consciousness."

As a group this includes those whose "Manas (mental faculty)" has
just been awakened at the "Lighting up of Manas -- some 18
million years ago for us. ( SD I 150fn, 159, 233., 247-8,  ;  II
69, 254, 272 ) And at the extreme end of the full development of
the Mind in that group, lies the INTELLIGENCE and power of the
full ADEPT :  the MAHATMA, the BUDDHA, etc.  (i.e., Those who
become responsible for the organizing and the supervision of a
new manifestation, and who are the Great Teachers of every World
Humanity when it emerges from the equivalent of the "Animal
stage" on to the "Human stage" of the "freedom" to chose one's
own rate of evolution.)

HPB in the KEY and in the S D, and in several of her articles,
shows us the rationale for this progression.  She indicates, most
importantly, (in my esteem) that potentially all the powers of
the SPIRIT (which unites all) reside in germ in each one of us.
(SD I 572, 638-9 )

The development and the perfection of the human mind leads to
that Knowledge -- which eventually turns into Wisdom (as the mind
expands in an understanding of all the lines that unite every
part of nature to ourselves and to others ).  The path  for us to
develop to this level demands that we learn all we can about our
own powers and their development and how we can best work in
Nature around us.  This leads to a perception of active and
fundamental BROTHERHOOD.

It leads the independent and free-willed Mind/man to perceive
that he needs to so regulate himself and his "Kamic"
 desire-nature impulses ), that he makes himself into a voluntary
collaborator with Nature.

The thesis is:  "Nature already contains all this in operation."

2nd.    That we, as "scientists" and individuals, are constantly
investigating (as we experience) and testing these Laws of living

3rd.    That the laws of interaction on all planes in Nature make
for a living, a vital WHOLE.  The link between the material and
the spiritual is the psychic and the intellectual.  WE are
MIND-BEINGS.

4th    That we, as free-willed humans, can voluntarily contravene
the laws of brotherhood and life in Nature -- and that we then
generate personal Karma which may be either pleasant or
unpleasant, but, in all cases it is EDUCATIVE.

5th    That we have a moral/ethical obligation to cooperate in
the progress of all beings in our immediate surroundings, taking
it as a granted that we are presently incarnated in an
environment where our Karma desires us to work. But we may also
influence the whole world to some extent.

I hope that these supplementary comments prove of some service.
Dallas

> Date: Friday, June 12, 1998 9:54 PM
> From: "Mark Kusek" <mark@withoutwalls.com>
> Subject: Re: Paradoxes

>Sophia TenBroeck wrote:
>>
>> Paradoxes have sometimes been termed, chaos to the senses
(lower bodily
>> reason centered mind), but cosmos to the mind (intellection
centered in
>> the higher, Buddhis-Manas).  The paradox awakens intuition.
Paradoxes
>> and Poetry are used in mystical training of students.
>>
>> Look at the titles of HPB's books "Isis Unveiled"-Isis the
goddess of
>> secret wisdom-, "The Secret Doctrine"-when revealed is no
longer secret,
>> and especially "The Voice of the Silence."
                    SNIP