Theos-Talk Archives (September 2006 Message tt00010)

Friends,

I guess Mark (see below) is right in underlining the fact that visualizations are, in general, not part of recommended practices, although the question is rather complex and cannot be dealt with in too simple terms. 

But before discussing possible individual practices of meditation, it is necessary to examine our premises, the ground and foundation of  any inner search. 

Is there a personal and collective commitment to Truth universal, 
to one's own self-knowledge and self-liberation,  through the  practice 
of observation, study,  and selfless service? 

What is the quality and importance (for us) of such a commitment?


On the specific issue of meditating on Masters, I would say in  general terms that the "personalization" of Truth is more often part of the problem than part of the solution.  

The Masters clearly wrote that they prefer to be left in peace. The 1900 Letters is precisely about that. HPB wrote about the abuse of their names (and portraits) in "The Key to Theosophy".  She was most clear about this, too. 


The challenge of truth-seekers is to get in touch with their own higher selves.

Their higher selves will "know" how to get to the proper sources of Teaching and Inspiration. It is a question of "higher instincts", not of purely mental practices. 

The thing is to put one's life at the service of universal truth and Brotherhood.  The rest will come naturally, in a time framework of various lives. 

( I also believe we must always give a chance to other people to change for the better and to be different from what they appeared to be.)  


Best regards,    Carlos. 



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Cópia:

Data:Sat, 2 Sep 2006 07:30:20 -0700 (PDT)

Assunto:[Spam] Theos-World Re: Visualization

> Re: Visualizaing masters
> 
> Dan says: "Think about it!"
> 
> - I Have thought about it. It didn't 
> seem right and made me a little ill 
> the first time I saw it, and still 
> does. There is a lot of esoteric 
> material throughout Blavatsky's and 
> the MLs, and I doubt there is anything 
> else SPECIFICALLY about visualization 
> as a spiritual practice (beyond what 
> is needed in mental work in general.) 
> Those quotes you used about the 
> "minds eye," etc. are not specific. 
> Visualization over time probably 
> makes elementals, like the example 
> in David-Neel's "Mystery and Magic 
> in Tibet" where it resulted in a 
> tulpa or plaguing spook. If it was 
> an important practice it would be 
> refered to SPECIFICALLY in more 
> than one place. Repeated practice 
> of this visualization would likely 
> create an elemental. I think 
> "the Path" is largely to develop 
> self-reliance as much as possible 
> on One's Own inner self (not a 
> visualization) - the same spiritual 
> source the adepts have. Utimately, 
> you can ONLY rely on one's own 
> determinations about incongruous 
> written material, as no one has 
> direct access to real adepts.
> 
> - The ES Instruction with the 
> visualization comment in it was 
> issued AFTER HPB's death.
> 
> Things do "slip in" and slip by, 
> especially with someone who was under 
> the pressures that Judge was. I 
> assume this paragraph is in the 
> facsimile in your THE ESOTERIC PAPERS 
> OF MADAME BLAVATSKY. (pages 599-622.) 
> Was this instruction "recalled" ? 
> Someone sent me a copy of the original 
> mimeograph of Garrangues "Point Out 
> the Way," and I swear the typist 
> inserted some phoney stuff in it 
> in a few places, as out of character 
> with the rest of the book. 
> 
> Regardless, even if it is 
> something that did not slip by, and 
> Judge consciously and purposively 
> put it in the instruction, I - for 
> myself - do not agree with or accept 
> it as written, and I don't care if 
> Judge wrote it or not. I've got 
> that right I think??? I can't think 
> of any Blavatsky or Mahatma material 
> that strikes me as "wrong" as this 
> does. I get the same reaction from 
> a few other of Judge's remarks - 
> like that "you should never throw 
> anyone out of your heart", which I 
> think he got carried away on and 
> is "wrong" too. He was a chela 
> working on his own. Who knows if 
> everything was "corrected" by an 
> adept or higher chela or not? 
> We're already in a world of illusion, 
> why create more illusions by visualization. 
> People can take this one statement 
> on visualization (if not phoney) and 
> extend it into an endorsement of 
> visualization practices in general, 
> which finds no support in the literature.
> 
> I also still think that Judge's 
> private diary should not be given 
> the weight that it is. One might 
> put anything in a private notebook, 
> passing notions or experiments one 
> has discarded, etc. 
> - jake j.
> 
> ----------
> <9. Jake on Visualization, Judge's Diary & the Mahatma Letters
> 
> danielhcaldwell
> Date: Thu Aug 31, 2006 9:14 am (PDT)
> 
> 
> =======================================================
> 
> of quote BCW XII, p. 696. I still think it is a wrong
> 
> If it didn't "just slip by Judge," I think Judge is wrong.
> 
> don't like the idea of visualizing in general. When
> we are in a world of illusion, why create more illusion?
> <'Also think it is a big mistake to put too much weight
> on Judge's or anybody's personal diary. Who knows
> 
> oneself, or keys of things to think about.
> =======================================================
> 
> <"If it didn't 'just slip by Judge,'..."
> and 
> <"Also think it is a big mistake to put too much weight
> 
> what anything might mean, they are just notes to
> 
> 
> <(1) Judge saw fit to transcribe in his 1888 diary these
> quotes from KH.
> Then....
> <(2) in E.S. Instruction V published several years later, 
> Judge decides to add these quotes FOR ALL esoteric members to read
> and study.
> 
> may have "JUST slip by Judge" into this instruction?
> 
> decision to add the quotes or they would not have
> appeared in this instruction.
> <(3) Furthermore, starting in 1889 and 1890 Julia Keightley,
> a trusted associate of Judge, starts quoting and
> 
> of THE PATH. Keep in mind that THE PATH was for the
> 
> conclude that it was NO accident or NO "slip" that lead
> to the public publication of some of this material in THE PATH.
> <(4) Plus there are indications that this material from
> KH was distributed to other members of the E.S. DURING
> HPB's lifetime.
> 
> or given to members of the ES.
> 
> 
> existence of this KH material.
> etc.
> 
> KH quotes in Judge's personal private diary.
> 
> Mahatma letters, one might consider what HPB herself wrote
> in Oct. 1888:
> ==========================================================
> <...We have been asked by a correspondent why he should not "be free 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> that he has such an unerring spiritual insight as to be able to 
> 
> 
> 
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> 
> recipient is left in the dilemma of uncertainty, whether, if one 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> deception. And this leads directly to the following. All the so-
> 
> all to stand or fall together. If one is to be doubted, then all 
> 
> 
> and "forgeries," such as the ingenuous though stupid agent of 
> 
> public estimation the "scientific" acumen and standard of 
> 
> ==============================================================
> 
> as "phoney" (your term) then one might also consider Olcott's
> 
> 
> this letter was "phoney" and did NOT originate from the Mahatma.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Food for thought...
> 
> ---------------
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