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The Rosicrucian Order

MASTER MONOGRAPH IL L U M IN A T I S E C T IO N

This monograph always remains the property of the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. It is not purchased by, but loaned to. the receiving member.

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The matter contained herein is oHclnlly Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered In the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies or officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts’* as authorized by the Impenuor of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All mattery herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and arc Imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. Is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

THE CONCURRENCE This Week’s Consideration of a Famous Opinion V

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It is through purging of sin rather than the damming up of weaknesses that one is liberated from materialism and gains spiritual heights. The purification of the soul of desires was the admonition of Plotinus, the Alexandrian philosopher of the third century after Christ.

We should be right in saying that the soul becomes ill-favored through mingling and mixing with the body and through inclination toward it, and toward matter. And this is ugliness in a soul: not to be pure and unalloyed, as it is bad for gold to be mixed with soil, which if removed leaves the gold beautiful, purged of other substances, being left in its purity. In the same manner the soul purified of desires which it has because of the body with which it has come into too close association, being freed from other passions and purified of those which it has because of its embodiment, remaining in its purity, puts away all the baseness derived from its other nature. - P L O T IN U S , A .D . 205(?)-270

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

N U M B E R SEVENTY-ONE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! Continuing our study of the ancient writings described in the monograph of last week, there are a few more points that I would like to give you this week. I think they are appropriate at just this universal period when with so much restlessness throughout the world we are all trying to think of peace and harmony along with human good will. The next subject pertains to visions produced by the hymns that are sung silently or inwardly; in other words, through commu nion or prayers between the outer self and the inner self or be tween the outer self and the Cosmic or God. The first point under this subject implores us not to create false visions through the use of ornamentations in our language, nor by parades of artificial phrases nor elegance of words. It is distinctly stated that "God loves the simple unadorned beauty of thought." It says that a hymn or prayer to God or to the Cosmic should be simple so that it is godlike. Any fire or fervor that may be needed in such a hymn or prayer should be a fire or fervor within our souls and not in the words that are used. GOD LOVES The more simple the thought, the more true to our simpleSIMPLICITY ness of soul expression, the more correctly will our prayers and hymns create visions before us that are like cosmic or heavenly visions. In other words, if we are praying to God or speaking to or about any of the great Masters, we want to visualize and have a vision of them before us. Our vision should be simple and not ornamental, and in order that these visions may be simple and true, our words and thoughts must be simple and almost childlike in their pristine purity of thought. This reminds us of what Jesus said. As one of the great Masters, knowing all of these great laws so well and attempting to teach them to his disciples, he reminded them that unless one be came like a child one could not enter into the kingdom of heaven. You will remember that this created a very strange reaction in the minds of his disciples and they asked whether Jesus meant that one would have to be born again in order to get into the kingdom of heaven and thereby become a little child before daring to approach the kingdom. Jesus, of course, did not mean that they were to become like children in a physical or earthly sense but in a mental and spiritual sense. This remark is also a condemnation of all of our elaborate earthly education that tends to make all of our thinking very complex and very elaborate instead of simple. We also understand why many of the great Masters in the past have chosen to live as monks or anchorites, or as we say in the present day, go back to the simple life by living out in the open and away from advanced and complex civili-

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zation so that we can attune to nature and come closer to God and the simple things of life. All of our speculations about the Cosmic and the Masters and the soul's relationship to the universe, as well as our prayers and all of our contemplations of life's mysteries, should be along lines of simple thought, for it is in the simple truths and in the simple facts that the great mysteries of life are found. Then the next subject brings us to the law of morals. The very first statement made under this subject is certainly one of astonishing truths and yet undeniable experience. The statement is, "The body is the root of evil just as intellect is the root of v irtue." You may change the word body to flesh or physical existence and you have the same thought. Or you may change intellect into Divine Mind or Cosmic Consciousness and have the same thought. Certainly, the body, made of flesh and earthly things, is the root of evil, for all suffering, pain, evil, all sin must be in this physical part of man and all virtue must eventually reside in and be to the credit of the divine, mental, intellectual part of man. The physical body can never be virtuous because it is born of sin in a physical/ earthly sense and its virtue would be of no avail since the body must be cast aside at transition and take on cor ruption, while the spiritual part of man continues to exist. The next point under this subject is truly a very wonderful metaphysical law to contemplate. It is stated thus: "Our body is a part of generation, or the sphere of time and sense." The mere fact that all parts of the physical body are chang ing in accordance with the universal laws of nature brings the physical part of man completely under the dominion of the senses and of the physical limitations of time and space. These limita tions are unreal from a metaphysical point of view and are essen tially the field of sin. Through our senses and through our false conception of time and space, sin is able to find power to mani fest and at the same time we are able to find alibis for our sinfulness. The next point under this subject is also worthy of long speculation because it embraces a marvelous metaphysical law. Re duced to a few words the statement is to the effect that since the body of man is prone to sin or can enter into sin so easily with out knowing of its sinfulness, we are always— as spiritual beings in physical bodies— in the presence of sin. Now this means that one half or one part of us at least has a tendency toward sinfulness while another part of us has a tendency toward virtue and goodness. Some of the

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ancient philosophers attempted to teach the idea of restraining the sins of the body. This was the ancient philosophy of repres sion. Here we are taught in this wonderful writing that restrain ing or repressing is merely damming up weaknesses of the physical body without removing them. The ancient analogy of damming up a stream or restraining and repressing the flow of a stream is used very aptly here in these writings, for we know from all experience that unless there is some outlet to such a reservoir of restrained or dammed-up power there will come a breaking point when there will be an avalanche and all that has been suppressed or repressed will overtake the forces of repression and be victorious to the most bitter end. Likewise, attempting to repress or restrain the sins of the physical body is not purging the being, in a metaphys ical sense at least, for the sins are still present and are proba bly gathering power or strength to overcome the spirit at any time. This writing tells us that it is better for us to reject or eject all the weaknesses and purge them from the physical body rather than restrain them. This brings us, of course, to an analysis of what constitutes sin and why man is prone to yield to sin. It is absolutely true that sin loses its power to attract us as soon as the fascination of sin is overcome. Some years ago in writing one of our Rosi crucian pamphlets I attempted to paraphrase this very ancient Rosicrucian thought in a modern way. I heard so much being pub lished in those days about "Truth will make you free" that I could not help feeling how untrue that statement was when taken by it self. You may have all the truth in the world presented to you in book form or lesson form, but the mere knowing of that truth is not apt to make one free from all of the weaknesses and sins and other conditions of life. Something more than knowing the truth or having the truth at hand is necessary and so I added to the phrase and wrote this little proverb, "The truth will make you free when untruth has lost its power to fascinate." I remember that I was often criticized by others for this statement and yet it is true and I come across its equivalent many times in the ancient writings. SIN AND ITS Sin of any kind has the power to attract us through FASCINATION its fascination. Once that fascination is eliminated, appeased, satisfied or overcome we no longer need fear sin, even if we are in the presence of it or it is surrounding us. We notice some young people who are not easily overcome by tempta tion because many forms of temptation seem to make no appeal to them. We know that it is dangerous to put some types of young men in a bank as cashiers to handle large sums of money, be cause money of and by itself is a form of sinful power, or can be used as such, and is ever a temptation to the one who is fascinated by the glamor of betting or taking long chances in any system of gambling. Such a person

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would be tempted by the handling of large sums of money in a m an ner that other young men would not be tempted. The young man who cares nothing about gambling, who sees in money only a medium for doing something worthwhile, and realizes that it must be good money to be of any value to him, is in no wise tempted by the handling of large sums of money that do not belong to him; he may be surrounded day after day by large sums of money without the slightest temptation affecting him. The same is true of many other forms of sin. Repressing our sinful natures without eliminating the fascination of sin is in no wise purging ourselves. Undoubtedly, knowledge, study, and cul tural development eliminate more of the temptations of sin than any other factors in life. Persons who become deeply interested in certain subjects of study, or in certain hobbies of an intellec tual nature, are less apt,to be fascinated by any of the more sor did or commonplace sins of life. As they develop spiritually and mentally they do not repress their tendencies toward sin but purge themselves of the tendencies until sins have no fascination or attraction for them. So we may contemplate long and studiously on this matter of repression and suppression and bear in mind that by locking up our sinful tendencies and hiding them within us, instead of purging them from the system, we are creating something that is equivalent to one major sin which includes all the minor ones. We are defiling the soul and spirit by holding these sinful things in repression in us. We will understand, therefore, the closing statement on this subject of the ancient writings where the Oracle says, "Defile not the spirit through that which is hidden within." I think that I have given you enough to think about for this week while certain other conditions are taking place within you. I am purposely trying to give the inner self of each of you suffi cient time for certain changes which I know will take place, be cause they must take place at this period of your progress in the planes of Cosmic Consciousness prior to another advancement that is not far away. You may make of these short talks of mine very lengthy lessons worthy of weeks of study or many hours of study, or you may look upon them as short and inconsequential— as you choose. In either case the result and effect upon you, and within you, will be pre cisely what you have decided upon. I shall regret it if any one of you takes these present monographs too lightly, because accord ing to my estimation and personal desires the results which you should have are close at hand. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

Summary of This Monograph V

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Below is a summary of the important principles of this monograph. It contains the essential statements which you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete monograph, try to recall as many as you can of the important points you read. Then read this summary and see if you have forgotten any. Also refer to this summary during the ensuing week to refresh your memory.

5} Prayers to God should be simple. It is in simple truths that the mysteries of life are found. 11 “The body is the root of evil just as intellect is the root of virtue.” H “Our body is a part of generation, or the sphere of time and sense.” Physical limitations are unreal from a metaphysical point of view. H The physical body is always in the presence of sin. Repression is merely the damming up of weaknesses of the physical body without removing them. 11 As soon as the fascination of sin is overcome, sin loses its power to attract. H “Truth w ill make you free when untruth has lost its power to fascinate.” 11 “ Defile not the spirit through that which is hidden (suppressed) w ithin.” H Certain changes must take place at this period of progress in the planes of Cosmic Consciousness; they are necessary to further advancement.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT The repressing of certain desires is a common aspect of human behavior. These are not necessarily bad or harmful desires, but desires that we fear to expose because of feelings of insecurity or false pride. Yet they are things that we really would like to do. When we repress them, we do not eliminate them from our system. They stay buried, eating away at us from within, subconsciously, affecting much of what we think or do. Rather than repress these desires, we should try to provide escape valves for them. Bring them out into the open where they can be examined, tried, and tested. If they are harmful, then instead of burying them again, you can eliminate them by simply recognizing their real harmful potential, and cast them away. Examine one of your latent desires, one that you have never brought out into the open. Bring it into consciousness. Let it happen, even if on a limited basis. Then watch its effect in your life, or in the lives of others. Now you can judge whether it should be eliminated because it brought no joy, or should be pursued because of the happiness it brings you.

This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or p u rc h a se b y a n yo n e . p u rc h a se

m ay

m ake

the

seller a n d

p u rc h a se r subject to

civil

A sale or liability.

This monograph always remains the property of the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. It is not purchased by, but loaned to, the receiving member. I "cP-o 0

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R E G IS T E R E D IN U .S . U T E ’ IT O F F IC E ( A L * 0 R E G IS T E R ! O T H R O U G H O U T THE w o k l o ) P R IN T E D IN U . 5 . A .

The matter contained herein Is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies or officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem arid name of the Order are also registered In countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and It shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.


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Rational thinking cannot serve man well in the full understanding of God. It is only through T comPête absorption or at-one-ness with the consciousness of God that He may be comprehended, < The following experience by Angelus Silesius, f pseudonym for a Roman Catholic monk of the seventeenth century, describes this absorption into the deity:

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God in my nature is involved, As I in the divine; I help to make his being up, much as he does mine. much as I to God owes God to me His blissfulness and self-sufficiency. i4s

I am as rich as God, no grain of dust That is not mine too,—share with me he must. More than his love unto himself, God’s love to me hath been; If more than self I too love him, We twain are quits, I ween. - A N G E L U S S IL E S IU S (Jo h a n n e s Scheffler), 1624-1677

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

N U M B E R SEVENTY-TWO


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! In our further study of the writings of the Oracle we next come to the subject of some of the soul's abilities and functions. Under this point the first thing we note is that there is consid erable reference to the soul's intellect. We understand by this that the wisdom of the soul is something which is constantly un folding. We understand that the soul has as its foundation of intellect the knowledge and consciousness of all truth inherited from the consciousness of God. To this are added the lessons and experiences of the soul personality here on earth. During the periods between incarnations, the personality accumulates addi tional inspiration and interpretation of the great truths and is therefore prepared for new lessons and new experiences at the time of its rebirth. However, emphasis is given here in the writings of the Oracle to the fact that the intellect of the soul is the very essence of the soul, for it is life itself and is the creative power of God extended through all space in the form of soul. The Oracle refers to this essence as the superintellectuality of the s ou l . THE ESSENCE Continuing this same thought, the next subject taken OF THE SOUL up by the Oracle is regarding God as the source of this superintellectual essence. Here the Oracle says that man's rational thinking and logical reasoning cannot serve him-very well in comprehending either God or His essence. The Oracle says that this is where men have failed in the past and al ways will fail in the future in trying to comprehend God. The fact that there are no analogies possible makes it even more dif ficult. You know how difficult it would be to describe a round object like a ball to a person who had never seen any round object and who now could not see one. You realize also how difficult it would be to describe to somebody in the tropics what ice looks like or what its nature is. You may also realize how difficult it would be to describe to a person who is color-blind what the color red looks like to us. The only way in which we can describe things that cannot be seen or which are not present to be seen is by analogy or by com parison with other things that have been seen. God cannot be com pared to anything that we have ever seen or known, for such comparisons are impossible and inadequate. In one sense we might say that God is everything that everything else is not; or, in other words, the very opposite of all the material things in the universe. This, however, would only give us a negative picture or conception of God and not a positive one. The Oracle says, therefore, that we must have a superrational sense in order to understand God. The only way that this is possible is by coming into contact with the consciousness of God and developing one's consciousness to a point

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ELEVENTH D EG REE

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NUMBER SEVENTY-TWO


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where it will be co-equal with the consciousness of God and there fore cause us to feel the attunement or at-one-ness with God. The exact words of the Oracle will give you an idea of the language used by the Oracle: "You cannot grasp this comprehension of God by laying hold of it according to a certain measure of form and knowledge, for though such simple intellections may exist they lack the unitary simplicity of the intelligible, and verge into the intellect's secondary conditions, considering intelligible things from the standpoint of manifoldness." Because of the difficulty in understanding the involved phras ing at first reading, I am rewording the important paragraphs of this Oracle and putting the thoughts into my own language and into simpler form. There is another paragraph in this same section of the Oracle's writings that is simpler and more direct and which I think helps us to understand the whole matter very easily. It is expressed this way: "For as no object of knowledge can be known through or by an inferior kind of knowledge, neither can something superintellectual be grasped through intellect." In other words, we could not hope to describe a magnificent painting by using the terms and language of the slums or individ uals of the outcast sections of a city. You could not describe the beautiful thoughts of a Shakespearean passage by using the slang and vernacular of the present day. You cannot, therefore, hope to describe and picture that which is superintellectual or above the intellectual by using the commonplace ideas of intellect. We must remember that in trying to express our ideas, or a comprehension we have in mind, we are limited by thoughts of it. These thoughts of a thing are like photographic impressions of a thing. They are never as clear and true and beautiful as the original. If I look at a beautiful painting and study it and reg ister it on my mind, I will have a thought picture of it, and that thought picture will never be as clear and distinct as the origi nal. Now, if I wish to transfer that thought picture from my mind to your mind by the use of words I find that my thought picture is going to be limited by words, and that these words are like tools in the hands of a carpenter or an artist. The goodness and excellency of the work done will depend upon the tools used, and in the same way the beauty and perfection of the thought I wish to transfer from my mind to your mind will be limited by the words I use. If I must stick to the use of commonplace vernacular phrases and words, I will not be able to rise very high in the creation of a picture in your mind. In trying to describe something that is above the material or the earthly or intellectual, I am limited by words, by the tools I have to use in expressing my ideas.

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ELEVENTH DEG REE

AMORC


NUMBER SEVENTY-TWO

PAGE THREE

Furthermore, each one for himself must discover the nature of the superworld and of God, and that is why the ancient Rosicrucians always address their prayers to "God of our Hearts." In other words, they prayed to the God they could conceive of and understand and not to the conception that someone else had of God, or which someone else had painted or carved from stone. EFFORT COUNTS

I think that right here is the point where the members of this Degree can make a great step forward in their ad vancement through the planes of Cosmic Consciousness. It has always been said by the great Masters that every effort toward a noble end lifts us higher in the scheme of things. Even the more or less modern evolutionists in their somewhat materialistic ten dencies admit that it has been man's constant struggle to reach a higher goal that has resulted in lifting him a little higher in a moral, spiritual, and intellectual sense. We cannot make the slightest effort toward a higher goal without accomplishing some good even though we fail utterly in the attempt to reach the point we have set. Eventually the continued trials will bring us suc cess, for we will gradually rise and rise until reaching the goal we have set becomes an easy thing. Trying to reach up to a consciousness of God that is equal to the consciousness itself, so that we may understand God the better, is sure to result in lifting our own consciousness and our own moral and ethical standards a little higher and this will result in placing us in the next highest plane of Cosmic Consciousness. Spending the coming week, therefore, in meditation and contem plation of God in the spare moments of each day is sure to result not only in making God a little more understandable but in raising the spirit of consciousness within you and in raising you gradually toward the next plane of Cosmic Consciousness. I urge you to do this very thing throughout the next few weeks, but especially during the next seven or eight days, because I am more than anxious that the members of this class should reach a point a little higher very shortly. Therefore, give as much thought and time as you can this coming week to a contemplation of the superconsciousness and nature of God, and try to comprehend it through attunement. You will find that this attunement harmonizes you with the Divine Consciousness in a unique way. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT In this monograph we again take up the subject of communication. You have probably found recent exercises in this respect very interesting. During the following week, wait for something to happen that brings a special emotional response from you; something that makes you smile, or something that makes you very happy or pleased. Then try to relate this emotional experience to others. See if it will make them smile, or make them happy. See if you can arouse the same emotional response in others that the experience aroused in you. You will probably start out with phrases such as: “It’s hard to describe, but . . or, “I don’t know if I can actually tell you how beautiful this.. and so on.


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11 The wisdom of the soul is constantly unfolding. D The soul has as its foundation the intellect, knowledge, and consciousness of all the truth inherited from the consciousness of God; to this are added the lessons and experiences of life of the soul personality on earth. U Between incarnations, the soul personality is further prepared for new experiences at rebirth. f

Man's rational thinking cannot serve him well in comprehending God.

11 The intellect of the soul is the very essence of the soul. 11 In order to comprehend God, the consciousness within must be developed to the point of at-one-ness with the consciousness of God. H “As no object of knowledge can be known through or by an inferior kind of knowledge, neither can something superintellectual be grasped through the intellect.” 11 Every effort toward a noble end lifts us higher in the scheme of things.

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THE INSTITUTION BEHIND THE R O S IC R U C IA N O R G A N IZ A T IO N San Jose, California, U. S. A. Rosicrucian Park

"C o n se c ra te d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or p u rc h a se b y an yo n e . p u rc h a se

m ay

m ake

the

seller a n d

p u rc h a se r subject to civil


This monograph always remains the property of the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. It is not purchased by, but loaned to, the receiving member.

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The matter contained herein is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office tor the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered In countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and arc imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I

THE CONCURRENCE This Week’s Consideration of a Famous Opinion

V V V •I The regenerative process which results from the evolving of the consciousness toward Cosmic Consciousness, with its awakening of certain mental faculties and the beneficial physical effect, is described by St. Isaac of Syria, of the sixth century after Christ.

Hear now, how man becomes refined, acquires spirituality, and becomes like the invisible forces . . . . When the vision soars above things earthly, and above all troubles over earthly doings, and begins to experience revelations concerning that which is within, hidden from sight , and when it will turn its gaze upward, and experiences faith in the guidance of future ages, and the ardent desire for promised things, when it will search for hidden mysteries, then faith itself consumes this knowledge and so transforms and regenerates it that it becomes entirely spiritual. Then may the vision soar on pinions into regions incorporeal, may touch the depths of an inaccessible sea, participating in the mind Divine, and the miraculous acts of guidance in the hearts of thinking and feeling beings, discovering spiritual mysteries which become then comprehensible by the refined and simple mind. Then the inner senses are awakened to spirituality after the manner that they will be in the life immortal and incorruptible, for even here this redemption of the mind is a true symbol of the general redemption. - S T . IS A A C O F S Y R IA , V I C E N T U R Y

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEG REE

NUMBER SEVENTY-THREE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! During the past two weeks quite a few letters have been received from the members of this Degree asking a number of ques tions, and I think it would be well for us to pause awhile in our studies and give attention to these questions, because they deal with matters that are probably vital to each member of this Degree. The first question asked by a great many is: "Are the regenerative processes now going on limited solely to the spiritual, psychic, or mystical part of our bodies?" In answer, I want to emphasize again what was stated in some of the recent monographs; namely, that the regenerative processes now going on within the members of this Degree affect the physical part of the being as well as the spiritual or psychic. This does not mean, of course, that the entire body will be made over in the twinkling of an eye, but rather that all of the cells of the body will be quickened and awakened with a new form of consciousness that gradually will strengthen them and cause them to be as vi brant with health and vitality as they were during the period of youth. The effect of this will be seen in the increased constitu tional health rather than in any other way, and it may not manifest except under very trying conditions, or during a period of pro longed illness, or in the case of accidents which constitute a drain upon the vitality and strength of the body. On the other hand, this condition itself will prevent all of the ordinary and commonplace illnesses, and will retard the regular and natural progress of deterioration in the physical body which usually sets in after the fortieth or fiftieth year. LET-DOWN DELAYED

In other words, as a person approaches the fortieth to fiftieth years he has reached mid-life, and from then on the breaking-down processes in the physical body are more rapid than the building-up processes. If this were not so, old age would never be reached and transition would probably never come about in a great many cases. Now the regenerative process started by these experiments, and the whole system given to you in these higher Degrees, will delay the natural oncoming of the breaking-down processes and will probably hold them back until the sixtieth, seventieth, or seventy-fifth year. If the breaking-down processes have already begun they will be delayed until later in life, say at the sixtieth year instead of the fortieth or fiftieth year which means that the breaking-down processes will take a longer time gradually to carry out their work, and the person will live to a much older age than the normal or average age. However, aside from the purely physical or chemical effect upon the body by this regenerative process, it also gives a greater brilliancy to the mind and a more active functioning to all of the mental faculties so that

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AMORC



PAGE TWO

the person feels younger and is able to act like a much younger person than his actual years would indicate. Another effect is to ward off the undesirable and unnatural diseases to which the human flesh is generally subjected. Of course, as we get older and the natural processes of deterioration set in, various organs of the body will develop weaknesses ahead of the others and certain parts of the entire system will seem to give out while others are still good. And no two persons will break down in exactly the same way, because much will depend upon which organs have been overstrained or overused during the days of greatest activity. Such gradual breaking down, however, does not constitute real disease and does not always mean discomfort, suf fering, or pain. But such diseases as contagious ones or highly destructive ones, such as cancer, tuberculosis, and similar proc esses will not develop in the body that is regenerated or going through the regenerative period. The next question that has been asked by a great many is one that is very vague and general, but nevertheless very interesting. It is this: "What are we leading to or approaching and what will come after the Eleventh Degree?" This is a difficult question to answer because it depends a great deal upon the individual. The most that we as an organiza tion can do— or that any one of us as a teacher or guide can do— is to lead the individual member through the Tenth and Eleventh Degrees and through the regenerative processes to the dawn of a new day. What that day may hold for each individual is something that none of us can tell. I am not even sure that what that great day holds for us is cosmically decreed long in advance. I am quite sure that it is not predestined. I think it is the result of how we develop and evolve during the present days and months until we approach that new day and the Cosmic finds us strong in some things and weak in other things and properly qualified to carry on some special activity or work or something of the kind. What we would call the Twelfth Degree begins at the end of the Eleventh, but it is really not a Degree but a school or circle of those who are entitled to the Twelfth Degree and are, therefore, called Illuminated O n e s . They, too, of course, maintain strict silence regarding what Degree of study they are in or what grade of development. They simply say they are Ninth Degree members, but among themselves or in secret communications they refer to the "highest and last Degree." From time to time these members meet with the Imperator psychically, or call on him psychi c a l l y . But in regard to the Twelfth Degree monographs, we can say nothing at this time.

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The instructions that you have been receiving of late dealing with the revelation about the planes of Cosmic Consciousness have undoubtedly made it easier for you to step a little higher in your development of consciousness, and I fully believe that most of you are ready to be entering a new plane of Cosmic Consciousness very quickly. I think that by the time we are ready for our next step in the next monograph I will be able to tell you more about this. In the meantime, just go over the most essential points given in the last few monographs and hold yourself each night and morning, upon arising and then again upon retiring, as ready for any change or new phase of development that may take place while you are asleep or while you are awake. I sincerely thank all of the members who have written in about this Degree and who so enthusiastically have endorsed the teachings and benefits derived from these monographs. I wish I could come in contact personally with each and every one in this Degree, but that is an impossibility at the present time. Review ing any part of the monographs of the past two months will help in what is taking place right now, and this is more important than trying to give you some new matter or leading you along too rap idly into the fields of speculation, since you are so close to the borderline where you will spread out your wings and broaden your vision and see much differently from what you have been seeing for a long time. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

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The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish—UNTO THEE I GRANT On the question of health, we should reflect on what was said in earlier Degrees regarding the importance of positive thinking. As a person thinks, so is he. Since each cell is imbued with our consciousness, each cell is affected by what we think. Our negative thoughts, our feelings of failure or despair are immediately transferred to every cell of our bodies. Under such conditions, the cells are in no position to work harmoniously with each other, nor to vivaciously carry on their work of maintaining or rebuilding the body. They are as depressed and ineffective as you are. Keeping this in mind, watch your thoughts during the next week. Think of their effect on your body cells, and act accordingly.


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H The regeneration process has not only a beneficial physical effect but it also gives more active functioning to all of the mental faculties. f

The most that this organization can do is to lead its members through the regenerative processes to the dawn of a new day.

1f Our evolution depends upon our self-application. How we evolve during the present days until the approach of the new day determines our ability to carry on some special activity. 11 Beyond the Eleventh Degree, the members of the next Degree are called

Illuminated Ones.

H Upon arising and retiring, be receptive to any new phase of development that may take place either while you are asleep or awake.


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The matter contained herein Is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations, scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts” as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does. Ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.


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The strengthening of certain psychic centers stimulates psychic, visual, and auditory functioning, such as described by Henry David Thoreau, an American author of the nineteenth century, in his experience of illumination:

hearing get who had but ears. And sight who had but eyes before, I moments live who lived but years, And truth discern who knew but learning’s lore. I hear beyond the range of sound, I see beyond the range of sight, New earths, and skies and seas around, And in my day the sun doth pale his light.

7

- H E N R Y D A V ID T H O R E A U , 1817-1862

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ELEVENTH DEG REE

AMORC

NUMBER SEVENTY-FOUR


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! This week we are going to begin a series of a few experiments that in ancient times were called the cosmic tests. It is presumed that at this stage of your development each one of you has passed sufficiently out of the Obscure Night and into the dawn of the new day to have a certain degree of regeneration and rebirth working through your entire system. If this is true, then one of the first manifestations of this would be in connection with a change taking place in the psychic centers of your body and consciousness. Therefore, certain tests were given to the high students at this stage of their development, s'o they might test themselves and make reports. Incidentally, these tests should show also whether we are get ting ready to pass to another plane of Cosmic Consciousness. We will take one test each week from now on for a time and use it throughout the week, and then pass on to another. These tests will be very simple, and there should be no difficulty in connec tion with either the understanding of them or the use of them. THIRD EYE ACTIVITY

The test for this week is that of the so-called second sight. We are coming back to the subject of the third eye, which was highly developed among the Lemurians and the early Atlanteans, but which has gradually become dormant through our modern races of mankind. However, there is a remnant of this eye still to be found in the human body. This remnant of the third eye, as we have explained in previous monographs in the lower Degrees, is a small organ in the center of the head, which is quite large in proportion to the head before birth; but after birth the rest of the body continues to grow and enlarge while this small psychic organ remains the same size. By the time adulthood is reached, the little organ is very small in comparison with the size of the head, and from about the fortieth or fiftieth year on ward, this organ will gradually disappear if there has been no use made of it. It is seldom, however, that any thinking or really intelligent man or woman reaches the age of fifty without having occasionally had the third eye functioning; therefore, this organ does not become atrophied. The function of this eye is much like psychic seeing. On the other hand, the impressions that result from its functioning give a sensation to our consciousness much like that of intuition. In fact, it is very difficult to tell whether an impression coming from this center to our consciousness was origi nally made through seeing, hearing, feeling, or in some other manner. Careful study, however, has proved that

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NUMBER SEVENTY-FOUR


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this particular organ receives its impressions through a strange sense of seeing. It can see at great distances and can see through many opaque objects, but it also seems to be able to see objects formed of vibrations which the normal human eye cannot see at all. It is this third eye that sees the peculiar lights in a room and sees the greatest number of impressions of projections and visions. The thing for you to do this coming week is: Once or twice a day, and especially in the evening. just_before retiring and in the morning just before arising, either sit or remain lying~ in bed in a -cgfnFortable and relaxed position with your- objective eyes closed ancf your_ consciousness turned”inwardly to a point just in the cen ter of your forehead and about 5 cm back from the front of your forehead*." ~~Th'ink of there b e ing "In this place an eye^ similar to the pictures you see of the "all-seeing eye." By concentrating your jônsciousness and attention on that eye with your other*eês closed, you will begin to see objects or symboIs form T n ~ t h 'e~dark, colored space in front of your closed eyelids. These pictures and images, if watched very carefully, will evolve ijito symbolical scenes or symbolical messages and pictures that will tell a story of some kind~and depend a great deal upon your concentration to help them develop. In other words, a mere symbol may first appear in the mind's eê^ and b.y concentrating upon itT it may form itself _into other symbols, aricT^these evolve into a complete scene or pic ture. On the other hand, some of the symbols may~turn into wo r d s . forming a me ss a g e . At other times there may be just a symbol or a color of some kind, but back of it there will be the psychic impression of a message without a single word or scene of the message actually appearing in the eye. By sitting in relaxation for a few minutes each morning and evening— or even jdufihg the .middle of the day “ i f you have an opportuhity~~t6 T5e alone and quiet— you will encourage this psychic center to "function. Undoubtedly, your“development has now reached a point where this center is ready to function, and this is the purpose of these tests. You will find, after the first few days of testing, that it will be a good plan to begin your period of con centration with a definite question of some kind in mind and see what kind of answer you get from it. Do not make your question too greatly material. It is all right to have the question deal with your progress or with your plans for the future, or deal with the subject of your present happiness or future am bitions, but do not pin the question down to a certain material, mercenary, financial nature, for this is the

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NUMBER SEVENTY-FOUR

PAGE THREE

hardest thing to have answered in an understandable way, and such questions should not be brought into the experiments until later on. The best subjects to start with as questions are those dealing with philosophical or mystical problems, then later on take the more practical subjects. Do not write me a complete report of your experiments along this line until you have completed all the exercises I am going to give you on this subject. Then you may write me briefly and tell me about them. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT When contemplating your experiments with the third eye, think of the small gland as a receptor organ, which is really what all of our sense faculties are. They receive vibratory impressions from many different sources, and translate them into the sounds, sights, or odors of our sensual world. However, as the eyes or ears are limited to the vibrations of physical light or physical sound, the third eye is literally unlimited in the numbers and kinds of vibrations it can receive and translate into meaningful imagery. It receives thoughts, hunches, and sights and sounds beyond the range of the physical sense organs. With this in mind, proceed again with the exercises given.


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11 Through concentration on the “third eye,” pictures and images with possible symbolical messages may result. U By sitting in relaxation a few minutes, morning and evening, with your consciousness turned inwardly to the place of the third eye, this psychic center will be encouraged to function. t

After the first few days of testing this psychic center, it will prove helpful to begin the periods of concentration with a definite question concerning philosophic or mystical problems.


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^ One of the best examples, of more recent times, of the awakening of cosmic perception within persons may be found in the words of the nineteenth century 1 American poet, Walt Whitman:

There is yet, to whoever is eligible among us, the prophetic vision , the joy of being tossed in the brave turmoil of these tim es ... the promulgation and the path, obedient, lowly, reverent to the voice, the gesture of the god , or holy ghost, which others see not, hear not. *

*

*

*

*

Hast never come to thee an hour A sudden gleam divine, precipitating, bursting all these bubbles, fashions, wealth? These eager business aims —books, politics, arts, amours, To utter nothingness. - W A L T W H ITM A N , 1819-1892

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH D EG REE

NUMBER SEVENTY-FIVE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! This week we will add to the exercise given last week. You probably will remember that in the earlier Degrees something was said about a specific area of the brain which is involved in psy chic manifestations. You were told that a certain portion of the left lobe of the brain contains a number of centers where the re actions and interactions between the autonomic nervous system and the spinal, or brain, nervous system occur. These centers in the psychically undeveloped person are very inactive and for this reason many of the impressions or experiences of the psychic system of the human being are not transferred to the objective brain con sciousness. Undoubtedly, you already have experienced, on many occasions, in the several years that have passed since you joined our organization, a strange pulsation or peculiar sensation in the left part of the head and undoubtedly your aura shows a consider able amount of red coloring on the left side of your head, indi cating that the psychic area of the left lobe has become awakened and quickened. Now we wish to carry this awakening a little further, or per haps to its complete and ultimate degree of activity. The follow ing exercise, therefore, should be performed several times a day, if convenient, or at least once a day during the week. It combines the exercise of last week with one new feature for this week. USE OF THE FIHGERTIPS

You will recall that in the earlier Degrees much was said about the radiations of psychic energy from the fingertips of both hands, and especially from the thumb and the first and second fingers, because the median nerve terminates in these fingers. Now, during the coming week, whenever you are doing the exercise of concentrating on the "third eye" as given last week, you should p ut the fingertips of_!£P_ur left hand in contact with the so-called "temple" on tne leTFt~J3ide. _q£ your forehead-: It”Ts about on a lexeJL-with the tog_ of y o u r e a r or midway_T5etween the end o f your eyebrow and the ear and. sligh±ly above that,~ so that your fingertips are about 2 or__3_cm above the top of your ear and about 4 cm in front of yburTeaiL on the leftftand—gi:3e~.' Just use the thumb and first two fijiqers of the left h a n d , or t)ie f i r s f ^ w o fingers alorfe^ IT: that is more convenient, anct~keep the remaining fingers of Jasnd folded in against the paj-m. or at least away from contact with the head. You should put your fingers on your head in this position soon alter you are seated and begin your concentration. Hold the fingers there as long as^ you are visualizing anything or receiving any impression or hoiding~"Sny~€hbught in'your mind. “ — As soon as the exercise is completed or after two o r three minute s . you may t a k e y ^ u r fingers from -your and pause a while before repeating the exercise. You will

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ELEVENTH D EG RE E


AMORC

NU M BER SEVENTY-FIVE

PAGE TWO

notice that if you let. yooiX- fJLnqers go up a little higher on your head to a point where they are beginning to go into the hair and reaching into the real part of your scalp/ on the left-hand side of your head, that_ thexe. is a„gr_adual warmth developed between your hand'~5nd~the scalp. This ..will indicate the amount of~magnetism that“is passing between your left hand and the left side of your brain. __ Remember that the }pf-*~ lobe of the b rain is connected with the right arm. ajacL~t.he right side of the body, and the right lobe is connected with the left arm and the left side of the body; therefore, in bringing your left hand to the left side of your brain_you are really crossing the nerve flow and bringing the op posite polarities into._contact. This is precisely what is neces sary during this exercise. " Next week we will add to this exercise and explain a little more of the details concerning it. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER We wish to deviate from the contents of this monograph to dis course upon a matter vital to AMORC and its members. How does such an organization as the Rosicrucian Order sur vive? Aside from its spiritual idealism and teaching of cosmic laws and principles, the Order is a material organization and must function on the material plane. This means acquiring the necessary real property— buildings, maintenance, equipment, laboratories, library, office personnel, janitors and gardeners, printing, post age, and property taxes. These are only a portion of the Order's expenses. There are, as well, propaganda expenses such as the cost of traveling lecturers and cultural activities. These include the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, the Planetarium and Science Museum, A M O R C 's free books to public libraries throughout the world, and free educational motion-picture films. There are also necessary visits of Supreme and Grand Lodge officers to Conclaves (conven tions of Rosicrucian members) and visits to Lodges and Chapters to address assemblies of fratres and sorores. Such are essential to the integrity of the Order and its advancement throughout the world. What supports these extensive activities? The dues? No, frankly, the dues alone would not be adequate for any one of them. Why? In the first place, unfortunately,

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ELEVENTH D EG REE

AMORC

NUMBER SEVENTY-FIVE


PAGE THREE

all members are not careful to keep their obligations to the Order current. There are a large number who are from one to three months in arrears with their dues. Their delinquency imposes a debt on the Order, and the Order would be handicapped if it were solely dependent upon membership dues to support its activities. One or two month's delinquency in dues for one person seems a small amount, and it is; but multiply it by, say, two thousand, however, and it is a considerable sum. Again, many fratres and sorores overseas cannot remit their dues direct to the Grand Lodge because of foreign exchange regula tions in their countries. This necessitates the deposit of their dues in a bank in their countries. The expense of serving them— postage, printing, and a multitude of other items— must be met by the Grand Lodge here. By analogy, it is like a man not having im mediate access to his salary because it is deposited in a bank in a foreign country but still having to meet current living expenses in the country in which he is living. Is there any relief from such a situation? Only when members pay dues promptly and when the Order is occasionally permitted to withdraw funds from foreign banks. However, if all the dues were paid without delinquency or restrictions, the income would never theless still be insufficient for AMORC to meet its obligations without the help of its members in other ways. What prevents the curtailing of many necessary activities and is of particular aid to the Grand Lodge is the fact that many mem bers make donations periodically over and above their dues. These donations, small and large, are vital to the Grand Lodge; espe cially those bequests of fratres and sorores through their wills or insurance policies. Such an amount left to the Order as a bequest is of tremendous assistance. Won't you be kind enough to place such a clause in your last will and testament remembering the Supreme Grand Lodge of AMORC? As you know from its constitution, the Rosicrucian Order is a nonprofit corporation. It is so recognized legally in all the countries throughout the world in which it functions. Conse quently, you are assured that your bequest will be used exclusively to further the aims, ideals, and doctrines of our beloved Order. In some instances, members have left property to the Order. Such property has been used or sold and the proceeds devoted to the Order's ends. In the lobby of the Supreme Temple in San Jose, large bronze plaques in prominent places perpetuate the names of all those fratres and sorores throughout the world who, during the past years, have left bequests in their wills

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ELEVENTH DEG REE

AMORC

NUMBER SEVENTY-FIVE


PAGE FOUR

to AMORC. Their names are a constant reminder of their devotion to the Order and attest their genuine desire to perpetuate the Order and support its humanitarian purposes. If such is your wish, too, you may address the Supreme Treasurer at Rosicrucian Park for information as to the proper legal name of the Order and the manner in which to include a codi cil in your will mentioning AMORC.


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1f This week while concentrating on the “third eye,” you are to place the thumb and first two fingers of the left hand on the left temple above the ear. A certain portion of the left lobe of the brain contains a number of centers where reaction and interaction between the autonomic nervous system and the spinal nervous system take place. f

The exercise of holding the fingertips of the left hand to the left temple brings opposite polarities into contact.

f

Keep the fingers on the temple as long as any visualization is being done. The fingers may be lifted away from the temple during the pause before the exercise is repeated.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT When practicing the exercises dealing with the awakening of the “third eye,” keep in mind that all exercise has a limit. It is possible to overdo any exercise, and after a certain period of time, there is little more good effect accomplished by further exercising. Keep this in mind when performing any exercise. Exercises should be broken up into short periods of concerted effort. Otherwise the mind tires, and little or no effect is had. An organ can develop only so fast, even with the best attention, and it must be given the necessary rest in between. Several times a day, with a few periods of several minutes duration are normally adequate. To illustrate this, try exercising your eyes by rolling them around. Soon they will hurt and that is the time to stop. But imagine what would happen if you kept going—you could actually injure the eye muscles by continuing.


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*1 Through concentration on the various psychic centers, visual and auditory perception is awakened and whole new horizons are opened to the evolving consciousness. In the following Sufi poem, the 1 mystical aspirant is bade to close the senses against every external impression:

Put wool within the ear of flesh, for that Makes deaf the inner hearing, as with wool; If that can hear, the spirit's ear is deaf. Let sense make blind no more the spirit’s eye. Be without ear, without a sense or thought, Hark only to the voice, ‘Home, wanderer, home!’ On earth thou seest his outward , but his spirit Makes heaven its tent and all infinity. Space and Duration boundless do him service, As Eden’s rivers dwell and serve in Eden. - JA L A L - U D - D IN R U M I, 1207-1273

Temple Section

ELEVENTH D EG RE E

AMORC

NUMBER SEVENTY-SIX


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings!

Before giving you the exercise for this week, I want to say that I presume all of you know that this Degree is limited, and an exclusive one, considering the eliminations in membership that naturally took place as the class moved up from Degree to Degree. Your comments are always helpful, especially when you ask some question in regard to the points discussed; and, in such cases, I appreciate your letters, not because of the enthusiastic praise that most of them contain, but because they show how each one of you is understanding, interpreting, and benefiting by these m ono graphs. Really, most of them sound like testimonials, purposely written to praise the Eleventh Degree, and yet, I know that that is not the motive back of your comments. Although comparatively smaller than lower Degrees, this Degree has members in many countries; this means a powerful circle spread over a large territory. Out of the many, many thousands of members who have entered the Order in the past years, those of you in this Eleventh Degree represent the ultimate selection of worthy ones who have made the proper advancement. That is why you really consti tute a part of the inner circle of the true Rosicrucian organiza tion as explained in previous monographs. Now, I know that each one of you will not judge the importance or the significance of any of these weekly monographs by their size or the number of pages. It is said that one of the most signifi cant passages in the whole Christian Bible is that which happens to be the shortest sentence or paragraph, and it simply says, "Jesus wept." This is significant because it shows the human side of Jesus, shows his emotional nature affected, and brings him closer to our human comprehension. Surely there are other passages or short chapters in the Bible that are filled with great spiritual wisdom and cannot be judged by their number of words. The same is true regarding the work in the Eleventh Degree at the present time. We are reaching a point where it is not neces sary for me to go into extended explanations regarding every ex ercise, every principle, or every law that I present to you; for I know that your past training, your previous monographs, your own intellectual qualifications, and your advancement, will enable you to see instantly the real meat and kernel of every sentence I put into these monographs, and that you will be able to grasp their significance and their value without any unnecessary com ments on my part. So in the near future, you may look forward to many very short monographs. In fact, each one will be much

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NUMBER SEVENTY-SIX


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like a brief personal communication from me, telling you to do some one thing, or to think of some one thing during the coming week. It will be like a jewel taken out of its elaborate setting and handed to you in all of its personal beauty and power for your own individual use. The exercise for this week is typical of many that you may have that are just briefly explained to you, knowing that the prac tice of the exercise will reveal to you more about its goodness and value than anything that I might add in the way of explanation. EXERCISE ENLARGED

For this coming week you are to continue doing what you have been told to do for the past week, and in addi tion, at least twice a day visualize some impression, picture, or thought and instead of holding the fingers at the tem ple on the left side of the head, put the fprefinaer of each .band into the p assageways of the ears so that there is a gentle pressure from the fingertips in these' passageways" as tfiough you were trying to_j?r.eyent_any sound froin reaching the eardrums. Then, by taking a deep b reath and holding ~it for a few seconds, or as long as you can^do s o ”conveniently with youX-fingers "still in your ears, there will be a flow of vibrations from the left finger to the right fin ger and from the right finger to the left finger through theêars and through the head. The effect of this flow of vibrations will be~the q uickening and sharpening of the psychic hearing. Now, remember, this new exercise is to be done in addition to the one given last week. The one given last should be done twice a d a y , and at least half an hour should elapse between doing the one of last week and doing the new one; for instance, if you do the one of^last week at eight o'clock in the evening, you should wait until eight-thirty or nine to do the one given this week, so that each day you will do last week^s exercise twice and this week's exercise twice. In doing this week's exercise, it should be repeated three. times in succession; or rather, at each practice of the exercise, a"deep breath should be taken and then held for as long a time as comfortably, possible, then slowly exhaled. Then breathe normally while still keeping the fingers in the ears. After the passing of abb\fF~armInute, take a deep breath again, hold it as long as you can and J:hen slowly exhale. Once more breathe normally for about a minute,- keeping the fingers in the ears; then take a deep breath again and hold it once more and then slowly exhale, still keeping the fingers in the ears. After keeping the fingers in the ears about two m i n utes, they should be reraaszacU This means that at each ' practice of this new exercise, the deep breath will be taken three tLmg&a held three times, and exhaled three times, and that during the entire procedure of breathing and resting between the breaths, the fingers will remain in the ears.

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ELEVENTH D EG RE E

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NUMBER SEVENTY-SIX

PAGE THREE

In putting the tips of the fingers in the ears, remember that the right forefinger should go into the right ear, and the left forefinger into the left ear without any extreme pressure. The ears should be kept as clean from wax as possible, but you will notice after the third or fourth day of practice of this exercise that the wax is flowing a little more freely than it has in the past and that the ears will need a little more cleaning than pre viously. You should beware of using any sharp-pointed instrument in cleansing the ears of the wax, and do not put anything into the ear too deeply and risk touching the eardrum. After the third or fourth day you may hear a little humming sound in one or the other, or both ears. This will indicate that there was some important correction in the ear that had to be made and that the exercise is making it. If you do not hear any hum ming, you will know that there is not any serious condition in your ears to be corrected. Before the end of the week you will b e gin to notice that you are hearing sounds much more clearly than you have heard them in the past; and you will notice that even the ticking of your watch or clock will be clearer and louder. Then you will also begin to notice sounds that you will not be able to trace to physical causes; in other words, you will begin to hear sounds as though wind was rushing, or soft music playing, or similar sounds, indicating that you are beginning to receive im pressions from the psychic vibrations that are higher than ordinary sound vibrations. I think that as the days and weeks go by, you will be charmed with the beautiful sounds that you can hear when ever you sit down in complete relaxation. You will notice that these many psychic sounds will not disturb you or come clearly to you during the hours when you are busy and active, for there must be a certain degree of relaxation to make the psychic hearing function properly. Practice this exercise throughout the week along with the previous one, and next week we will have a slight modification of it, in addition to another one. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.-UNTO THEE I GRANT In recent weeks we have been talking about the importance of communication. Exercises were given in expressing thoughts more clearly. In this monograph, reference was made to brevity in communication: “Jesus wept.” Trying to explain feelings in as few words as possible is no mean achievement. Yet such brief expressions have impact. They are remembered. During the week ahead try expressing yourself, in appropriate situations, with as much brevity as possible. Answer questions without bringing in a lot of background and excuses. Make your expressions complete, but do not waste words. You will find your conversations inviting to others, giving them more time to respond with thoughts of their own. This exercise will also help you to build a vocabulary that will say more in fewer words.


V

V


11 The exercise for this week is for the purpose of quickening and sharpening the psychic hearing. H It should be performed in addition to the exercise given last week, and should not follow it in less than half an hour’s time. f

Not only will the physical hearing become more acute but there also will be greater psychic auditory perception resulting from this exercise.

If The forefinger of each hand is to be placed in each ear while taking a deep breath and holding it for a few seconds. This should be repeated three times in succession before removing the fingers. U After the third or fourth day you may hear a humming sound. This will indicate that there is some important correction being made by the exercise, in one or both ears.

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The matter contained herein Is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered In the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams. Illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered In countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon Its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving memln-r and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organisation authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.


V V V ^ That spiritual awakening of the psychic perceptions is not dependent upon race or creed may be seen in the following selections from Sacred Books of the Hindus, the Christians, and the Taoists:

HINDU: All things that can be perceived by the senses are called Manifest. All, however, that is unmanifest, that is beyond the ken of the senses, that can be ascertained only by the subtile senses, should be sought to be known. If there be no faith, one will never succeed in attaining to that subtile sense. Therefore, one should hold oneself in faith. -M AHABHARATA

CHRISTIAN: By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not under stand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. - T H E B IB L E

TAOIST: He who uses only the sight of his eyes is acted on by what he sees; it is the intuition of the spirit, that gives the assurance of certainty. That the sight of the eyes is not equal to that intuition of the spirit is a thing long acknowledged. And yet stupid people rely on what they see, and will have it to be the sentiment of all men;—all their success being with what is external:—is it not sad? - T H E TEXTS O F T A O IS M —K W A N GTZE

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ELEVENTH DEGREE

AMORC

N U M B E R SEVENTY-SEVEN


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! Continuing the experiments outlined in the last two talks with you, I wish to say that both of those given in these monographs were for the purpose of coordinating or balancing certain psychic conditions within you. All of the lessons of the preceding months contained knowledge that would assist in awakening and regenerating the psychic self as an entire body, but in order that certain cen ters may be quickened and enlivened to a degree that would keep them well-balanced with the rest of the psychic body, it is neces sary to consider these specialized areas and give them particular attention. The exercise of last week was not only for the purpose of helping the psychic centers of hearing but to help the pituitary body also. The vibrations directed from one ear to the other, or covering the upper portion of the head, are sure to affect every psychic center in that area. The exercise for this week is in addition to the others. The other two must be continued throughout this week, and at some time each day, either a half hour before or a half hour after the other exercises, you should put both of the forefingers on_J:_he..-.a£ck_just below and a 1 i111e behind the~~§^T‘St In o ther worHs ,^t h e _Isft foyefinder should bg ptft on thW left''slrde of the netrk'just about 2-3 cm Below the t£p~olT^he~ear_~and~about^2-3 cm back of it. There is rib precise pojntT for this contact because the area is wide enough to alTowlfor aniT^rigfft' variation in position™' The right forefinger should be put on the right side of^jthe neck in a similar manner. IrT*this case the forefingers should be pressed 'quite firmly against the neck so that they push the skin and tissue of the neck inward for a little distance. Then take a deep breath, hQld it, and then exhateT ‘Again take a de^puJwreath, hoid_:UL»- ejctkale > and "once more take a deep breath and êxhale— making tl^ree times in all. It is not necessary to have any particular thought T n your~irifncl during this exercise except to concentrate upon the passage of negative and positive vibrations from the left hand to the right and the right hand to the left, through the fingertips. EXERCISE FOR CLEAR THROAT

You will find that this exercise will help you to keep the throat clear and will affect certain glands and will also affect the blood pressure throughout the body, keeping it in a normal condition. You will feel as though you had had a good tonic treatment after each ap plication. If you can do this exercise twice a day it would be better, that is, once in the morning and once in the eve ning; however, once a day will do.

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ELEVENTH DEGREE

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NUMBER SEVENTY-SEVEN


PAGE TWO

Many interesting reports have come from members of this Degree regarding the experiences connected with the last two lessons, and we are highly pleased. We are also pleased with the reports coming from these members regarding their general activities and the im provement in their personal, material affairs. In checking up on these reports during years of business depression and turmoil, we have been interested to note that over 80 percent of the members in this Degree stated that during such times of stress they noticed no effects of the current economic abnormality in their material affairs, but had continued to improve financially and physically. In fact, the members of this Degree generally speak of a conscious ness of immunity from ordinary trials and tribulations which beset so many persons in the general field of worldly affairs. All these members seem to credit the improvement in their lives not only to their membership in the Rosicrucian Order, but to the changes that have taken place since they entered the Tenth De gree. Again let me remind you that we greatly prefer that members do not emphasize the fact that they are in a Degree beyond the Ninth, even though there are various references to the fact that there are studies which are advanced and beyond the Ninth Degree. We would prefer that the members modestly say that "I am studying beyond the Ninth Degree.” NO UNDUE EMPHASIS

Too many new members in the early Degrees slight their studies and give them only occasional attention because they look upon them as preliminary ones, and believe that they will get nothing helpful until they get into the Third or the Fifth or the Seventh Degrees. If we had only three Degrees in our studies, then the members who were approaching the Second De gree would begin to feel that they were getting into the heart of things, and would give their studies more careful attention. If we had twenty-five Degrees, such members would think that not until they had gotten above the Twelfth or Thirteenth would they be get ting into the heart of things, and therefore, the first seven or eight would be badly neglected. By allowing the members to think that there are only nine Degrees of actual study, it causes these members to settle down to a very careful analysis and study of the Degrees from the Third or Fourth onward. Members are always anx ious to reach the last Degrees, whatever they may be. Those who hear too much about the Tenth, Eleventh, and Twelfth neglect the Eighth and Ninth in their ambition to get into the Tenth. Again I say that all that you should say to anyone who asks you about your Degree of study, or where you are in the work, is that you were initiated into the Ninth Degree and that was your last Temple Initiation, or your last official Degree of study. If he asks about the Tenth Degree, you should simply say that there is nothing definite that you

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NUMBER SEVENTY-SEVEN

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can tell him about any higher Degrees than the Ninth. Certainly, you should never allow lower Degree members to see your Tenth or Eleventh Degree monographs or to know that you have any. I am very happy about the reports that have come to me from those who are sensing an inner change, but I must warn others not to look for this inner change as anything very definite at the present time. It will not begin to manifest outwardly until it is quite complete inwardly. One thing is certain, and that is that most of you are more or less immune to any ordinary illnesses or any ordinary physical effects that may be common to those around you. During the winter months, colds and similar conditions that often cause a great deal of inconvenience will have little or no effect upon you; and in the warmer months, the effects of fatigue and physical enervation will not affect you as others are affected Your sleep should be better, your nerve energy more even and with a greater reserve supply, your blood pressure should be more nor mal, and, all in all, you should feel in very good health. This is but the first outward sign of what is going on inwardly. Like wise, there should be a great sense of peace, and a further sense of cosmic protection and guidance, so that common obstacles that often upset other people as they arise, and cause them to worry or fret for a while, will have no place in your life at all. I will be glad to have you keep me informed of any special re suits that you may notice; and remember each one of you should write at least every sixty days and let me hear from you. A brief report, if only of a few words, will be greatly appreciated. Of course, if you have nothing to report no letter is necessary. In writing such letters, be sure to put at the top of the first sheet not only your name and address, but underneath it, "Eleventh De gree Report." Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou reaolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening tvhat the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT It would be interesting at thi& point to consider how each of you might have given your early Degree lessons less attention because you looked upon them as preliminary ones. Some time this week look up some of your Neophyte lessons. Read several from the Second Neophyte Degree, or Atrium. See if there are things in those lessons that you do not remember having seen before. You may amaze yourself to find that there is new material there, that it is not only a lack of memory that keeps you from recognizing these items, but the possibility that you read it with less attention the first time. We tend to skim written material when first in contact with it, looking for what to us then were certain pertinent facts which we anticipated to the exclusion of others. A re-reading of important lesson material at a later date is always a productive exercise.


V

V


1J This week another daily exercise is to be added to the two previously given. These exercises should be separated by h a lf hour intervals. 1! This exercise has a general good tonic effect. It helps keep the throat clear and the blood pressure normal. H The forefinger of each hand should be placed on the neck just behimLtbe ears. Breathe deeply, hold iL,_then exhale; do this three times. C oncentrate oh the passage of positive and negative vibrations from o n e jia n d tcTTFie jjth e ly ~* U The first sign of an inner change is an improvement in health, more even nerves, a greater reserve supply, a sense o f peace and cosmic protection and guidance. Higher Degree members are advised not to emphasize the fact that they are beyond the N inth Degree 1f Brief reports should be made at least every sixty days. At the top of each sheet, below your name and address, write “ Eleventh Degree Report.”


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The matter contained herein Is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered In the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts” as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name ol the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its reauest. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I

THE CONCURRENCE This Week’s Consideration of a Famous Opinion /

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The Chaldean Oracles have been mentioned previously as a great source of mystical wisdom which is not available to the average student. The following selection from these Oracles gives means of attaining Cosmic Attunement, or “That which is the End-of-understanding,” through turning the mind within:

Yea, there is That which is the End-of-understanding, the That which thou must understand with flower of mind. For should'st thou turn thy mind inwards on It, and understand It as understanding ‘something/ thou shalt not understand It. ... Indeed there is no need of strain in understanding This; but thou should’st have the vision of thy soul in purity, turned from aught else, so as to make thy mind, empty of all things else, attentive to that End, in order that thou mayest learn that End-ofunderstanding; for it subsists beyond the mind. -C H A L D E A N ORACLES

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

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N U M B E R SEVENTY-EIGHT


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! I think that if each of you could read the letters that have come to me from the others, you would be surprised at the similar ity of expressions. You would see at once that aside from the many individual experiences that each of you have had— which are quite different and distinct from the others— there are a number of re actions and a number of results that are identical in every case with every member. This shows a fairly uniform degree of develop ment in the members of the Eleventh Degree. I began to notice this in the last part of the Tenth Degree, and it was very pleasing, indeed. I have one letter from a frater who says that he has been reviewing the last half of the Tenth Degree and finds that there were some points he overlooked, and since realizing them now and giving them some thought and meditation, he has improved his status in the Eleventh Degree to such an extent that he is now having reactions and results that he should have. I think that there are a few hundred members in the Eleventh Degree who would be benefited by reviewing some of the Tenth Degree in their spare time, and I certainly recommend it. PROGRESS REPORTED

The last few exercises have been very helpful to the the average member in the Eleventh Degree. Nearly all report definite sensations from the exercises given during the last three weeks and already notice improvements in eyesight, hearing, intuition, and general health. I think we can proceed in the exercises now with the understanding that all the previous ones be continued for another week. This means that each of you will have three or four exercises to do each day; and I suggest that you allow fifteen minutes at least to pass between the exercises; in other words, do not try to do two or three of them in succession. If you can do one exercise early in the morning, one an hour or so later, one at noontime, and then do one early in the evening and one later in the evening, it will be better. The new exercise for this week requires the placing of the forefinger and second finger ..of .the right hand on the gland that is in tne ^center of t&g throat at the place where we commonly say t T T e r e i s a n Adam's apple. This inSTTh'S p'utting the tips of the first cfrTd'secgjicT fihsfirs f(not the ~thumbs gently on the aland in the cen ter olT the throat, and leaving the tips of the fingers there while three deep breaths are taken and held and slowly exhaled. About a full minute, or__£5fc&n two minutes, shouldPpass between the long EreaSIs^- In other words, place the fingertips on the proper point of the throat, take a deep breath, hold it as long as you can conveniently7~an
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ELEVENTH D EG REE

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NUMBER SEVENTY-EIGHT


PAGE TWO

exhale very slowly, keeping the fingertips on the same place, and wnen the breath is completely exhaled, ~remove-The- finggtTips~folt: atroilt two inimites and breathe normally. Then rep l ace HEfie^firicrefrtips'and start over again for the* second time r doing the same thing. Once aCTainuausfTfor twa.jDainutes'with no rmal breathing, and repeat for the third time. After the second or third day when you begin to feel an exhilarating and strengthening sensation in the throat, you m a y do this exercise five or six times instead of only three times^ at one sitting, always having two or three minutes^Tpe“ tween eacH~exHalation and the taking of another deep breath. I would not suggest doing it over sj.x times at any one sitting, although if you happen to have a little cold or hoarseness in the throat, you may do it six times and then wait a half-hour, and do it six times again. It is advisable that you concentrate your mind and your whole consciousness upon the thyroid gland while you are doing this exercise. You will find that a warmth will be produced in the gland, and a vibratory tonic effect that is very pleasing. Do not use the left hand, but be sure that only the fingertips of the right hand are used. Remember that this gland is connected with other glands in the body and has a very definite relationship to the emotional nature and the psychic centers, as well as a relationship to the health of the body. It may be interesting for you to know that this particular exercise this week also h as a very important bearing upon the processes o f regeneration, an3 w i 11 do more to bring a youthfuT7 ex hilarating effect to the Body than any we have had so far. It redirects some of the creating, healing, vitalizing forces of the Body, to" import a n t 'centers ~w~Here this creative power will manifest in _the building up of the strength and harmony of the body; and it will awaken other ^ e n t e rs that may have become more or less dormant in their application of tonic effects to the body. Eventually this exercise and others which you will have will strengthen the psychic body, as it may be called, and will create a very definite sense of your duality by making you conscious of the fact that y q u have tffQ-bodies, the physical and thq psychic, each independent of the o ther in^ many waysT This will help you in many valuable psychic experiences, and at the same time will have a marvelous effect upon the health and the increase of the years of life. Perhaps you may be interested in having me quote from an ancient record regarding this exercise and the others which are to follow. It appears that even the alchemists had spent many years of their lives searching for the process of transmuting base metals into gold, and had

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PAGE THREE

succeeded in discovering the law of vibrations as we know it today. They no longer found any interest in making gold because, in the first place, most of the old mystics couldn't use much gold even if they had barrels of it, for gold would not buy what they were seeking; especially it would not buy knowledge and the secret principles of nature, for this was their principal quest. Second, the gold that they produced cost them more than it was worth in actual money or buying power. So they turned their attention from the art of transmutation of matter in a metallic sense to the transmuting of the grosser elements of the physical body of man. This led them into seeking for an elixir or some product of nature, which, when taken into the body, would increase life, produce a continued condition of youthfulness, and prevent disease and old age. It was natural for them to assume that the building up of the physical body was de pendent upon the food eaten plus the action of the Cosmic upon that material food. Therefore, they began to study very minutely the nature of the chemical elements that went into the human body in the form of food. They thought that perhaps they would find among some of the food substances certain mineral elements, or in the liquids from the juices of plants and vegetation a chemical element that constituted the earthly vitality in the blood. Years were spent by these alchemists in their laboratories studying the chemi cal nature of all foods and extracting the juices from every known living plant. Unquestionably they evolved wonderful knowledge through their experiments, and the art of medicine today owes its beginning to this study of the juices and mineral elements of plants; however, modern medicine has gone too far and pinned all of its faith in these elements and has ignored the power of the mind and the cosmic power. It is interesting to note, though, that the alchemists— always seeking for truth and never being fooled by any results that seemed to be surprising— abandoned their search among the elements for the elixir after making a remarkable discovery that even modern science has not considered and does not seem even to understand. The alchemists discovered that the secret of life and the vitality and regeneration of the body did not exist in the chemical elements or juices of vegetation of themselves, but only after they were put into the human body and properly mixed in the human b o d y 1s own inner laboratory. In other words, they discovered that the finest chemical laboratory man ever thought of was inside the human body and not outside of it, and that no matter how they mixed certain elements together or mixed certain plant juices, they could not mix them and purify them in the same way that the human body did it. They found, then, by studying the secretions and blood in the human body, that somewhere in.. the^ human body there was a laboratory which manufactured a creative

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PAGE FOUR

chemical/ or a number of creative chemicals, which it put intojthe blood or sent to various~~gTSnSs', such as the thyroid, and allowed the s«f"glands to distribute this creative chemical throughout the body and in places and on occasions when needed. Immediately the alchemists began to discover ways and means of controlling that creative essence in the human body so that it could be stored up and used when necessary to invigorate the human body to build up certain parts of it without resorting to the use of medicine. Now the exercises that we are starting during this week are the exercises which these alchemists discovered. The old records tell many tales of men and women past seventy or eighty who used these exercises and became youthful looking and so strong.and healthy tTTa:t people ±trcrught they were only thirty or thirty-five yÎrs" of a g e , and who at the same time seemed to be immune to most disease s . Next week I will tell you more about this in connection with these exercises. Fraternally/ YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V


1f The purpose of this week’s exercise is the stimulation of the thyroid gland. The forefinger and second finger of the right hand are placed on the while three deep breaths are taken, held, and slowly exhaled.

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This exercise is to be added to the exercises of the previous weeks, but no two should have less than fifteen-minute intervals between them.

f

The thyroid gland is connected with other glands in the body and has a definite relationship to the emotional nature and the psychic centers, as well as the bodily health.

U So far as the ancient alchemists were concerned, the greatest alchemical laboratory was found within the human body, where various glands had important functioning.

The Weekly Application

Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT The preservation or restoration of a youthful appearance is an age-old dream. The application of the exercise in this monograph has done wonders for members who persisted in its application. Too often we try our exercises for only a short time, then give them up, either because of procrastination, or because we see no results in the few days or weeks that we applied the exercises. This is an unfortunate turn of events, for any goal that is worthwhile takes many, many applications before results are realized. In this exercise, more than any other, try to stay with it day in and day out, so that in a period of one year you and others around you actually see a marked change. When performing the exercise, it will help you to think y o u th as you center your consciousness on the gland.

THE INSTITUTION BEHIND THE R O S IC R U C IA N O R G A N IZ A T IO N Son Jose, California, U. S. A. Rosicrucian Parle

"C o n se crate d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or p u rch ose b y a nyon e . p u rc h ase

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Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.I All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and arc imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving nu-mber and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organisation authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them 10 other allied organizations or movements.

THE CONCURRENCE Week’s Consideration of a Famous Opinion V

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C]J The ancient alchemists knew that the greatest of alchemical laboratories was to be found within the hum an body. The follow ing selection from shows this alchemical regeneration possible to the devotee here on Earth, today:

Buddhism in Translations

Then every sickness vanishes, And hunger likewise disappears; These presages are seen today — Surely a Buddha thou shalt be! Then lust doth dwindle and grow weak, And hate, infatuation too; Even so today they disappear— Surely a Buddha thou shalt be! Then fear and danger are unknown; All we are freed from them today; And by this token we perceive— Surely a Buddha thou shalt be! All noisome odors drift away, And heavenly fragrance fills the air; Even so the winds now sweetness waft — Surely a Buddha thou shalt be! - B U D D H IS M IN T R A N S L A T IO N S , JA K A T A

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

AMORC

N U M B E R SEVENTY-NINE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! Continuing our talk about the alchemists and their discovery of the principles of transmutations in the human body, I want to say that during their early researches they naturally came to the conclusion that every rational and sane means should be used to conserve whatever creative forces and power there were in the human body as a part of the process of transmutation. Overexercise, or the overuse of any function of the body such as the eyes, the brain, the muscles, or the nerve energy, merely meant a depletion of this power, which might produce results in whatever work was being done by the individual, but would prevent him from directing these creative processes toward reconstruction in the human body. In other words, if a man's work and requirements in life called for the maximum amount of creative energy being put into his work he could not expect to have any of that creative power put into the processes of reconstruction in the body. The first thought, therefore, was to try to outline a code of life or way of living that would conserve energy and the vital forces in the body as much as possible. PRECEPT AND PRACTICE

I cannot help smiling at this point and I presume that you will, too, when you stop to think that these old men (for most of the alchemists were past middle age) hardly practiced any such conservation themselves, for they were notorious for burning the midnight oil and working from sunrise to sunrise and for long stretches at a time without even stopping to eat. Whenever they were not busy in their labora tories making chemical or alchemical tests they were either busy searching through ponderous, musty, old and yellowed sheepskin volumes of faded writings, or were busy with quill and vellum com piling a book of their own. They were good ones to preach conser vation! If everyone today spent the same amount of time in expending creative forces that they spent, there would be more old and wrinkled people walking around the streets today than there are. I judge this from even our own experience for most of us burn more midnight oil in working on our Rosicrucian activities than we should, and I, especially, would be a poor example to argue with anyone the value of conserving the creative forces in the human body. However, one of the early conclusions the alchemists reached proved later to be a fallacy. They concluded that one of the first steps toward conservation was to lead a life of celibacy. That seemed reasonable and rational ertStigh,but it took one generation of these old-timers to prove its fallacy. After the younger men in the Rosicrucian laboratories and research work had lived the life of celibacy for the twenty-five or thirty years, they were found to be no better equipped

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to carry on a system of reconstruction in their bodies than those men who had been living a normal and natural life. The doctrine of celibacy was, therefore, immediately altered and the new doc trine of rationalism substituted. This doctrine was one of temper ance rather than denial, suppression, repression, or negation. We of today know that temperance in .all things is far superior to either overindulgence or abnormal inciulgerice. ih'"fc‘7ie form of^ repres sion or suppression. The strange part about this is that the~idea of celibacy leaked out of the philosophy of the alchemists into the philosophy of the religious fanatics and became a religious rule for a long time, until it was again changed by church author ities and celibacy came to mean living a life singly instead of married, but no longer had any relationship to the doctrine of con servation of vital forces. The alchemists' study along this line, however, did lead to a very great change in the customs and habits of many men and women who sought to live a more abundant life and a more perfect life, and we find that these persons soon adopted the system of living along lines of temperance or conservative indulgence rather than the free life of overindulgence that had been increasing to an abnormal degree— or living a life of suppressed indulgence that might have become very popular also. It is strange how easily the mass of people are affected by rites of any kind. If you make con servation and temperance a ritual it is easily and quickly adopted. On the other hand, these same persons will swing suddenly from the ritual of conservativeness to the ritual of overindulgence through hearing some argument. The laws of morality, or principles of morality, seldom enter into these things. In other words, persons will tend toward fanatical practices that at one time appeared to be based upon a code of morals and would appear to make these per sons moral enthusiasts, while the fact of the matter is they are just as ready to be immoral or unmoral if there is some peculiar ritual or fanatical doctrine attached to it. We have an example of this peculiar trait in human nature in the horrible revelations in regard to various teachings that'were introduced into the Theosophical Society by a few of its leaders some years ago. In my opinion nothing worse has ever entered into any of the teachings of the occult field or the mystical field in many centuries. The indulgence in sex practices and sex principles advocated by some of these Theosophical leaders, as alleged in in vestigations and proceedings instituted to prosecute come of these persons, plainly shows how persons who otherwise appear to be of the highest moral standard will accept teachings and principles of a low standard merely because they are associated with some ritualistic system that purports to have divine inspiration. Whether these practices were actually in dulged in by thousands of followers of this system during

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the past years or not is something that we cannot judge positively, but the reports and evidence printed in newspapers, magazines, and pamphlets, and the fact that some of the men are alleged to have admitted their guilt and refrained from coming into this country because of alleged indictments against them, would give color to this sort of thing. Undoubtedly, the better people in the society have always regretted this incident and undoubtedly it has been the cause of breaking the organization into the many factions which now exist. We are happy that the Rosicrucian teachings have never touched upon these subjects and we certainly do not approve of any such matters being taught or advocated. I believe that in this mono graph more is being said on this subject than is said on the sub ject of sex matters anywhere in the lower Degrees. In this case the talks to you are confidential matters to the higher members who constitute the leaders of the Rosicrucian organization, and we can say among ourselves what we think of moral things without intending to injure anyone or any organization. CONSERVATION A NECESSITY

Certain it is that all of us should do more to conserve our energies and especially the creative forces in the human body which are being daily manufactured chemically and cosmically through every breath we take. Until the human body begins to break down or some of its organs begin to slow down in their functions, the chemistry of the human body and the effect of breathing produce in the human body at fifty years of age or sixty years of age just as much creative power as is produced in the human body in our youth or in our twenties. Thg.r^ is no reason-j_-±.herefore, why forty-five_^^fifty, or even sixty should Be a turning mark in the- life of the average Kum&fnSeing and make him start to look old and feel old. The only Explanation is that as we get older and neglect parts of our bodies aria"~allow some of the internal functionings to slacken, we likewise begin" to indulge in certain practices and habits that tax the ex penditure of the creative forces to their maximum. The average m^n and woman of forty-five years of age is so busily engaged mentally and physically in so many things that he or she uses up too much of the creative forces and leaves no reserve supply for reconstruction and re-creative processes. If we draw upon the creative powers as rapidly as they are being created in us, we cer tainly do not allow any of them to find their way into the process of rebuilding tissue and rebuilding cells, as in our youth. This is what we want to try to correct through the present exercises. I am not going to give you a new exercise for this week because I want you to continue the one given to you last week. I know that all of you will appreciate this new sub ject in this Degree and I know from letters now being

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received that all of you are experiencing better health and a bet ter degree of vital energy in your bodies. I expect the result to be that in another ten years each one of you will look so much younger for your age and so much more vital that everyone will be talking about it, but I also expect that in another few months, you yourself will begin to feel the difference and sense it in many different ways. Once the process of re-creation and reconstruction starts and you keep it up in your way of living and thinking, it will continue in its effect and control of the body so that in eight or ten years the change toward youthfulness will be very re markable. A healthy color to the skin, a rosy tint to the cheeks and lips, a bright look in the eyes, a steadier hand and a firmer walk, will be the first outward signs that others will notice, but there will be a sense of security and of vital, tingling health which you will notice and which will bring you great assurance and happiness. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

SELF-EXAMINATION QUESTIONS The following questions are given only as a self-examination to test your understanding of the important points in the lesson. DO NOT send your answers to the Grand Lodge. 1.

What was the error alchemists made concerning conservation of creative forces?

2.

By what two ways are the creative forces manufactured in the body?

3.

What similarity should there be in the amount of creative forces in youth and at the age of fifty or sixty?


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11 The early alchemists discovered the importance of conserving the creative forces in the human body as a part of the process of transmutation. This led to the doctrine of celibacy which was later altered to a doctrine of rationalism—temperance rather than denial. U When this doctrine of celibacy was adopted by the church authorities, it lost the original meaning of the conservation of the vital forces. 1f Sex practice, as a ritual, has entered into some cults. This is not approved by the Rosicrucian organization. 11 The purpose of the exercises recently given is to conserve the creative bodily and mental forces and energies and lead to regeneration.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT Conservation, like most things in life, must be exercised in moderation. It is possible to be too conservative, just as it is possible to be too wasteful. Neither extreme benefits society. The elements of life are meant to be used. Whenever they are used, even to their ultimate depletion, in the interests and welfare of all life, they are better being used than stored away for some possible use at a later time. There are people who never wear their finest clothes, for fear that they will soil them, or wear them out. O f what use is the finery? There are people who rarely use certain furniture for fear that it will be spoiled. Of what use, or enjoyment is that furniture? Other people deny themselves other things for the same reason. O f what value is saving if the saved thing is never used? is a far better way of deploying our resources, however limited.

Judicious use


"C o n se cra te d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" Thit m o n o g ra p h it n o t sub ject to *o l# or p u rc h a se b y o nyon e. A sole or p u rc h a se

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Interestingly enough, ancient m ystics, including the Rosicrucians, in order to convey clearly the art of thought control always symbolized the process by an archer loosing his arrows at a target. The target stands for the divine essence within us or that inner center toward which we direct our prayers. The bow itself is the soul which must be stretched as is the bowstring. Our thoughts are the arrows, our outer selves the archer. As those experienced know, target-shooting demands attention and quiet. The same attention and inner quiet are requisites of mystical practice. Without them, the arrows fall short of their mark and our thoughts fail to arrive at their goal. - K A R L W E IN F U R T E R

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH D EG RE E

NUMBER EIGHTY


PAGE ONE

INTRODUCTION As perhaps most of you know, and as has been explained previ ously, the three highest Degrees of the Order are under the direct supervision of the Imperator insofar as the teachings are con cerned. The monographs of this, the Eleventh Degree, are the per sonal preparation of our former Imperator, Dr. H. Spencer Lewis, and since they reflect his inimitable style and conversational man ner of writing, and since the subject matter of the monographs themselves, like all truth, is timeless, and is as effective today as when first discovered or proclaimed, we have not altered the content of the monographs and they go forward to you in the manner he intended when he prepared them. Of course it must be realized that it is my duty to see that all new matter extended to me from the archives of the Order abroad and intended for this Degree is added to these monographs. So you may be certain that insofar as the Rosicrucian teachings are concerned, you will be kept abreast of the latest knowledge. — IMPERATOR Beloved Members, Greetings! The letters received from members of this class certainly show that students who have reached the Eleventh Degree do constitute the very pick of our organization both in intellectual and cultural development and in mastership of life's principles. I am glad to notice that so many of you are developing facul ties and powers and abilities that you didn't have before, and that all of you seem to feel more joyous and happy. This is precisely what your development should bring to you. Every week when I come to this point of preparing a lesson for the members of this Degree it is just as though I stopped my other work and went to our Supreme Temple here and found all of you as sembled in the Lodge waiting for a lecture. Your letters received during the week are always carefully read and I go into the lodge meeting each week with the contents of the letters in my mind and I am, therefore, acquainted with your desires and wishes. It is a happy little meeting that we have and I always feel freer to talk to you members than any others because I know that you constitute the very backbone of our organization and that you have been with us long enough to know all of our ways of working and doing things and that you will understand every little angle of the work we are doing in this Eleventh Degree. There is one little hint that I want to give to each of you as a result of something that occurred in my own life. You know I am practicing all of these exercises

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NUMBER EIGH TY

PAGE TWO

with you and putting myself back into the same Degree of the work that each of you is in so as to be equal with you during these exercises and thereby easily contact you. Now, I found the other night that I had a mystical experience exactly similar to the orig inal mystical experience I had when I first contacted these higher Degrees. It seems to me that I have not said anything to you about watching for the color of violet. If in the dark you notice your room becoming tinged with a violet light, or if during the night or daytime you find a violet light or violet haze existing around the upper part of your sanctum room, you will know you are drawing to yourself a new cosmic power that will help you in your develop ment and advancement. If anyone tells you that he or she sees a violet haze forming in your aura, or you begin to see a violet haze in your room, then you may know that you are reaching a very high point and that all is going well with you. Next week keep up the same exercises which you have been using and then we shall have another thought and another idea to help us on our way. At the request of many members who have written, I am not including another exercise in this monograph because I realize now, after talking with a number of the Eleventh Degree members and making some tests with others at distant points, that a little more time is needed to bring out the strength of the development from the exercises given in the past few weeks. I wish, however, to offer this advice: Make an opportunity each morning and night to sit in medita tion for a few minutes and commune with the Cosmic and let it com mune with you. Go into a complete state of relaxation after you have performed the exercise given to you last week and remain in Cosmic Attunement or meditation for a half hour each week, espe cially in the evenings and whenever there is an opportunity for uninterrupted quietness and silence. This will prepare you by the revelations that come to you for many of the important points that are to follow in the next lessons. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE 1 GRANT Reference was made in this monograph to the fact that you and other high Degree members constitute the pick of our organization in the mastership of life’s principles. Since Rosicrucian students as a whole generally stand taller in character than other humanity around them, your present position is particu larly unique. An interesting exercise in this respect is to be observant of the people around you the next time you are in a crowd, such as on a bus, train, plane, or in a theater or arena. See how many of the people you can visualize as being Rosicruciafts. It comes with somewhat startling clarity that the number is not large. We are often wont to think that all people would be Rosicrucians if only they knew about the Order. Yet we find that it takes much more preparation, over a period of many lives, for the average person to be where you are now.


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U A violet haze or light in your Sanctum, or forming in your aura, indicates advanced psychic development. H Additional exercises at this time are being withheld so that the exercises given in the past few weeks may be allowed full time for greater development. Also, do the meditation conscientiously each morning and at night, as explained in the last paragraph, as you will need to be able to attune easily with the Cosmic in order to make satisfactory progress in the future.


"C o n se cra te d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h it not tubject to s a l * or purc h ase b y an yo n e . p u rc h a se

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The matter contained herein is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which waa registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph Is and snail remain In the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and It shall be returned to it upon Us request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

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Bhagavad Gita,

In the The disciple Arjuna asks Krishna, the Divine One, to make himself visible. Krishna displays to him “those hundred thousand thousand shapes that clothe my Mystery":

All the splendor, wonder, dread Of his vast Almighty-head . Out of countless eyes beholding, Out of countless mouths commanding, Countless mystic forms enfolding In one Form: supremely standing Countless radiant glories wearing, Countless heavenly weapons bearing, Crowned with garlands of star-clusters, Robed in garb of woven lusters, Breathing from his perfect Presence Breaths of every subtle essence Of all heavenly odors; shedding Blinding radiance; overspreading — Boundless, beautiful—all spaces With his all-regarding faces; So he showed! If there should rise Suddenly within the skies Sunburst of a thousand suns Flooding earth with beams undeemed-of Then might be that Holy One's Majesty and radiance dreamed of! - B H A G A V A D - G IT A

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AMORC

N U M B E R EIGHTY-ONE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! It is a joy to greet all of you again and have a little talk with you regarding the points and principles of this Degree. As I said before, I feel that we are all assembled in the Temple and this is a closely tiled session with a Guardian at the door to see that no one but Eleventh Degree members is admitted and there are no eavesdroppers or "cohans" as they used to be called in ancient times. Alone and protected against interruption we can have our con fidential talk; I can visualize each one of you sitting before me. I know you so well from contact with you during the many past years and from your correspondence that I think I understand your little peculiarities and individual viewpoints. It is certainly a very mixed congregation that we have in this Eleventh Degree circle. I think it covers practically every race and color of people from nearly every nation and of every religious viewpoint and represent ing a great many of the various arts and professions. You will probably be surprised to know that since the last talk was given to you I have received a number of telegrams and special delivery letters commenting upon my reference to seeing some violet color or violet haze. I have often mentioned in these monographs and in my discussions in the Forum how responsive and reactive our members are to any little suggestion that is given to them. You would have been astounded to see the reaction from that statement in my last talk with you regarding the seeing of the violet color in your room or around yourself. It would appear that most of the members in this class had noticed something of this kind, or sensed something about it and were more or less puz zled, but did not have any idea that it had anything to do with the exercises contained in this Degree and, therefore, they wrote nothing to me about it. Now that I have opened the doorway to discussion of the subject, the letters are coming in thick and fast, asking that something more be said because a great many have already noticed this violet color. It is a little too early yet for me to go into the details regarding this color to any degree to impress it upon your mind. That some of you have seen it and have noticed it indicates that the members of the class are really making excellent progress and that very shortly we are going to be at a point where some very interesting principles will be unfolded. All I can say right now is that many surprising things result from this development of the violet haze or light. I think that one of the most surprising things about it was something that annoyed me and puzzled me for

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weeks. I had had a number of peculiar experiences in my Sanctum at home when I was practicing these Eleventh Degree principles for the first time. I knew I was developing to a rather high degree, but bless you all, I did not have the benefit of such immediate contact as you have. Whenever I thought my reports were worthy of the time and trouble involved, I had to send them to far-off France and sometimes to a place in Austria. I was living in New York at the time, but even so my letters would lie in the New York Post Office for three or four days awaiting a steamer, then would take ten days or two weeks to reach southern France, and sometimes had to wait in a secretary's office for a month or two until they could be handed to one of the advanced Masters for his careful reading and a reply. Then there would be the two w e e k s ' delay in waiting for the reply to come by steamer and rail to me. Here in America each one of you can get a letter to us by air mail in three days and have an answer back in three days, or have your answer back on the seventh day, at least, and even those of you who live in other countries can now get an answer to your questions in a comparatively short time. When it is important, you can send a telegram or a cablegram and get an answer the same day. You can be sure, therefore, that I did not often ask questions. Knowing the long delay before the answer would come, I felt that in that time conditions might change and the answer would be of little value to me. AN UNUSUAL DEMONSTRATION

However, this is what I noticed. I had an interesting demonstration of an unusual amount of violet light gathering in my Sanctum for several days and on this one particular night when a great change seemed to take place in my very being, I found the room so hazy with light that I could hardly see the wall, even though I had one candle burning on the altar in my Sanctum. There was nothing in any of my lectures to explain this condition, any more than there has been in my talks with you up to the present time; so I was not sure whether the violet light had anything to do with my new exercises or not. In fact, I was not sure that this light was not being caused by the coming of some other personality who was trying to make itself known to me. I compared this great light to the coming of the Christ Consciousness into my presence, and by its sublime radiance simply filling my room with illumination and almost blind ing me. I recalled a phrase from the First Initiation when candi dates cross the threshold in the Temple and the symbolical Greater Light is shown to them in the East of the Temple. The Master says to the candidate on this occasion that he must return again to darkness and study for a time in the illumination of the lesser light and that he "must become accustomed to the lesser light so that he may not be blinded by the Greater Light when it \ / c o m e s ."

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NUMBER EIGHTY-ONE


PAGE THREE

I, therefore, went about my affairs the rest of the evening and night believing that a Greater Light was about to make itself manifest to me in my Sanctum, perhaps during the night or the next day or next week. The next morning, however, I awakened with a realization that nothing particular had occurred, and as usual I went about my affairs. I find in one of my notebooks in which I kept a record of my progress, the statement that on my way to my business office, around 8:30 or 9:00 a.m., I passed a number of business acquaintances on the street where my office was located. Although I nodded to them and said a cheery "Good morning," they did not seem to see me. I credited that to the usual results of momentary concentration of thought and mind upon some problem whereby we lose consciousness of our surroundings; and I presumed that each one of these businessmen had some profound problem that he was thinking about and, therefore, actually failed to see me. I was not hurt in this regard and forgot about the incident until noontime, when I went to the usual restaurant to eat my lunch and passed by the cashier at the door who knew me and said, "Good morn ing." After finishing my meal I came to the cashier again, trans acted my financial obligation, and passed out of the door. I noticed that the manager of the restaurant, who usually stood near the doorway to greet persons, had seen me come in but had failed to greet me with any special sign; but I presumed that he, too, had his attention for the moment on some newcomers and did not see me. As I went out the door, however, I met another man who almost ran into me without seeing me and it wasn't until he was very close and in touch with my body that he apologized and said, "Why, I didn't see you at all." This puzzled me and I turned around to see if someone else behind me might have attracted his attention and I saw the manager looking in our direction and looking fairly and squarely toward my face. I nodded good-bye to him and swung around to see my friend passing on into the restaurant and speaking to the manager. I was sure that he was telling the manager how he had just bumped into me without seeing me because both of them turned and looked toward me while they were speaking and while I was still on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. Later that afternoon my friend who had bumped into me called me on the phone to say that he was still puzzled over the incident and could not understand why he didn't see me. We discussed the matter for a while and then he told me that the manager of the restaurant had failed to see me also. I could not believe this and so I called the manager on the phone without giving my name and asked him whether he had seen Mr. H. Lewis, one of his regular customers, in his restaurant at noon time. He told me that one of his other customers had claimed to bump into me at the doorway but he had looked around in the restaurant and out on the sidewalk immediately after the incident and could not see me; he therefore doubted that Mr. Lewis had been at the restaurant at noontime.

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NUMBER EIGHTY-ONE


PAGE FOUR

You can imagine how I felt, or how you would feel, or anyone would feel, in realizing that you were walking around the streets of the city and people were failing to see you. I made inquiry in my office and asked several of my associates whether or not they had noticed me come in the door and go to my office. Of course, the question seemed peculiar to them but they thought I had some psychological test in mind. They were beginning to become accus tomed to such strange questions from me, and several admitted they had seen me cross the reception room and enter my office, while one other said he had not seen me come in although he had been sit ting in plain sight of the reception room at the very hour that I had crossed through it. OCCURRENCE RECHECKED

Realizing that there was something peculiar about my own appearance I went home that night with my plans well made to look at myself in the mirror. I took my sanctum mirror and hung it in another part of my Sanctum so that it was about level with my head and shoulders and where it would be easy for me to see myself in the mirror as I passed before it at a distance of eight or ten feet. I then softened the light in the room and relaxed for a while and then got up and walked past the mirror a number of times and could not see anything of myself, nor of my collar or necktie. Thinking the light was too soft, I lighted another candle, and then I noticed that as I passed the mirror I saw only a violet haze. Turning on the electric light in the room I noticed that there was such a haze between me and the mirror that although I could see that an object was passing I could not distinguish whether it was myself or any other person of my height. Making the room entirely dark then, I saw that my body was surrounded by a very deep haze of violet and that when my hands were close to my body I could look down and see them but when I put my hands and arms outstretched in front of me I could not see more than my elbows and beyond that my arms and hands faded out of sight because of the violet haze that seemed to envelop them. Additional tests showed that when I was in the bright light of the street the violet haze made me almost invisible. I later learned that at certain times it made me completely invisible so that I might be walking on the street and passers-by would not see me at all, nor would they see the violet haze. Now, this is similar to the cloud that you have been forming in one of the early Degrees, but there is more to it than a mere cloud effect. We are dealing with the same principle that was used by the great Masters in making themselves invisible. I am not going to say any more on this subject now because it involves some principles that we have not yet touched upon, and I want to approach the subject properly and make sure that you have the performance of certain

Temple Section

AMORC

ELEVENTH DEG REE

NUMBER EIGHTY-ONE


PAGE FIV E

exercises well perfected before you attempt to speculate upon this subject. But if you sit in the dark of your room, or sit anywhere, and see, at night or in the daytime, flashes of violet light or a violet haze coming in front of your eyes you may be sure that you are making excellent progress in your development. If you do not see it or cannot find any indication of it you should not feel that you are not making progress because you will probably be the last one to realize how much haze really is surrounding you. Others will begin to notice it, or the effects of it, before you will. Some have actually thought that the hazy effect was caused by their eyes being tired, or by the sunlight shining in their eyes or some thing of the kind. It was not until we had experiments in our laboratory at New York in 1919 that we discovered that the haze could make us invisible even on a photographic plate, and I will tell you about this in my next talk. In the meantime, I have one new exercise for you that you may use now, in place of any others that you have been using during the past week. You may occasionally go back to some of the other exer cises, if you wish, and especially if they have been giving you some help in regard to your hearing or seeing or as a tonic effect. But this new exercise should be done twice a day, once in the morn ing and once at night before retiring. Here is the new exercise: Sit down or lie down on your bed and relax as though you were getting ready to go to sleep. Then, with your eyes wide open, concentrate your attention either upward toward the ceiling or straight ahead toward one wall of your room and try to see beyond the ceiling or beyond the wall as though you were looking into space. Continue this concentrated gaze about one minute, or perhaps two minutes. Then close your eyes and take a deep breath. Then bring the fingertips of both hands together in front of you and hold your hands in this position while you hold your breath for about a half minute; then exhale slowly, still keeping your finger tips touching. After all the breath is exhaled continue to breathe normally for about five minutes but keep the fingertips still touching. After five minutes you may separate your hands and rest in a relaxed condition for a few minutes; then either go to sleep, if it is nighttime, or be up and about your activities if it is morning. In bringing the hands together so that the fingertips touch, you may do so by putting the hands in a position as shown in pictures indicating a pious attitude, as if praying. In fact, there is a very ancient mystical principle involved in that posi_____ tion which Jesus and his disciples used, and which has \ k een copied in the ritualism of the churches, and we find that many of the ancients used that same position of \/ hands whenever attuning themselves with the Cosmic either in prayer or communion.

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEG REE


AMORC

NUMBER EIGHTY-ONE

PAGE SIX

The purpose of this exercise with its one deep breath and ex halation and the touching of the fingertips, is to strengthen the aura following the exercises that you have been doing during the past few weeks. You will feel a very magnetic effect from keeping the fingertips together and should feel a surge of magnetism going down the right arm through the fingertips and up the left hand and left arm into the body again. The magnetism should pass all through the body and then start down the right arm again and through the right hand, repeating this rotary whirling until, after two or three minutes, the surge of magnetic current in this manner will be so fast in its circular travel that you will hardly notice it except to feel an electric effect from it. With some, the cur rent may be reversed by starting down the left arm and going through the left hand into the right hand and up the right arm and into the body and down into the left arm again. It has been found that with those who have the surge reversed this way there is a slight variation of the psychic area of the brain which would enable them, if necessary, to become well developed as left-handed persons or capable of writing or doing things equally as well with the left hand as with the right hand. Those who are wholly left-handed and use the left hand exclusively for writing will always find the surge of magnetism going down into the left hand and into the right hand and arm. Do not concentrate upon feeling this electric surge, and do not try to -force it or will it or do anything of this kind, but remain passive and relaxed while you are holding the breath and while you slowly exhale it. This is all for our little talk this week. I assure you that I am very pleased with the reports that are coming to me. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish .—UNTO THEE I GRANT In connection with this week’s exercise, when you feel you have achieved a degree of invisibility, try some maneuvers on your friends that will test their observations. This does not have to be conspicuous, but can be part of your regular patterns of walking about. However, now you will ask persons in the same area as yourself if they saw you walk across the room five minutes ago. Did they see you rise from a chair a few moments before? Did they see you pick up an object in the last few minutes? While you may simply be testing their powers of observation, you will find that when two or more persons failed to see what should have been an obvious move on your part, that they actually did not see you do it.


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1f Many surprising things may result from the development of the violet haze. H Dr. Lewis personally experienced the result of invisibility caused by the violet haze. 11 This violet haze is similar to the forming of the cloud which was explained In earlier the same principle which was Masters in making themselves invisible.

the

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used by the great

1f Laboratory experiments, conducted by AMORC in 1919, revealed that the violet haze could make one invisible even on photographic plates. U The purpose of this week’s exercise is to strengthen the aura. During the exercise, remain passive and relaxed without concentrating on any magnetic current.


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The matter contained herein la officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic Btudies. diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) Ail matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. Tne ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for t h e sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of tne member, and is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.


V

V

As the spiritual consciousness within us is developing, so too is our understanding of the Cosmic and its manifestations until the ultimate of knowledge is gained through Cosmic Consciousness. Kwang-Tse, the ancient Chinese philosopher, has described this evolving awareness of consciousness in the following words:

\

Therefore, the feet of man on the earth tread but on a small space, but going on to where he has not trod before, he traverses a great distance easily; so his knowledge is but small, but going on to what he does not already know, he comes to know what is meant by Heaven. He knows it as The Great Unity; The Great Mystery; The Great Illuminator; The Great Framer; The Great Boundlessness; The Great Truth; The Great Determiner. This makes his knowledge complete. As The Great Unity he comprehends it; as The Great Mystery, he unfolds it; as The Great Illuminator, he contemplates it; as The Great Framer, it is to him the Cause of all; as The Great Truth, he examines it; as The Great Determiner, he holds it fast. Thus Heaven is to him all;. . . At first he does not know it, but afterwards he comes to know it. In his inquiries, he must not set to himself any limits, and yet he cannot be without a lim it Now ascending, now descending, then slipping from the grasp, the Tao is yet a reality, unchanged now as in antiquity, and always without a defect. -KW A N G -T SE, 4th C entury B.C.

Temple Section

AMORC

ELEVENTH DEGREE

N U M B E R EIGHTY-TWO


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! The early reports coming in from those who received last week's talk indicate that very wonderful results are being obtained by the exercise given in that lesson. From these reports I also discern that it will be a good plan to do this exercise, at your convenience, for several weeks. One of the members of this Degree has asked a question which may be in the minds of a good many of you at the present time, especially now that you are reaching such a crucial point in your progress. The question is evidently intended to bring forth impor tant information and is not intended as a criticism in any sense. Here is the question: "Just what practical benefit may all of us expect through this higher development outlined in the Tenth and Eleventh Degrees?" THE WORD “PRACTICAL”

You see, of course, that the whole question hinges around that one word practical. If that word were not included in the question we could say very easily that the lessons themselves would answer the question. First of all, we find that the matter contained in the Tenth and Eleventh Degrees is much like the matter contained in the lower ones, namely, instructive. There are a certain number of men and women out of every hundred we meet who want to have knowledge, and who feel that anything is worthwhile that adds to their knowledge. There is no denying the idea that "knowledge is power" but, of course, this is only true when knowledge is utilized or applied. When knowledge is used and thus becomes part of our experiences and our mental and physical equipment to accomplish things in life, knowledge then becomes wisdom. The wise man or woman, the one who is prepared with wisdom to meet many emergencies in life, is the one who is possessed of the greatest power to attain whatever goal he or she may have in life. On the other hand, the mere process of securing knowledge is fascinating to those minds that pursue knowledge. There are types of minds that are unhappy and constantly nervous, in a sense, be cause of some knowledge which they desire and cannot secure. Un solved mysteries and unknown facts are to many people a constant source of annoyance, and there are people who cannot be happy so long as they know there is some available knowledge which they have not secured. To such persons our studies bring peace and happiness as well as wisdom and power. When we come to the really practical side of the mat ter, we find two outstanding points that must be taken into consideration. First, it is essential that we have such knowledge in order that our lives and our actions

Temple Section

ELEVENTH D EG REE

AMORC

NUMBER EIGHTY-TWO


PAGE TWO

throughout our lives may be perfectly and properly directed. If we are going to admit that some knowledge is not essential and that we can go through life and live a practical, abundant life without some forms of knowledge, then we are going to find ourselves forced to admit that much knowledge may be cast aside and that an ignorant person, or a person just living from minute to minute and hour to hour, is as successful and practical in his way of living as the one who has mastered a great deal of knowledge. In the second place, the special knowledge contained in our work enables us to live in better attunement with the Cosmic and in harmony with the universe. This means that our health will be more perfect, that we will be able to avoid many diseases and accidents, that we will be able to prevent effects from national and localized epidemics, and other forms of depression; it means that we will be able to overcome obstacles and correct those con ditions which affect other human beings but which we do not wish to have affect us. This certainly makes the work of a very prac tical nature instead of theoretical. The fact that the average person who is studying along lines similar to ours is happier, more successful, more contented, and healthier is sufficient proof that there is something in the study of our teachings, or similar teachings, that makes them of real value to human beings. I think that the foregoing remarks answer the question fairly well for a brief explanation. Of course, a real answer would be in the form of a book dealing with the essential benefits of mys tical knowledge. Now, for this week we are going to try another exercise which brings us to a closing point along one line of development with which we have been dealing for the past few months. This is not necessarily a culminating exercise but one which completes a cir cle of a group of special exercises intended for one purpose. We are again going to take into consideration the thyroid gland. We are reaching a cosmic cycle, one in which the cosmic vibrations are going to have more and more effect upon the thyroid gland of the average, normal, healthy human being. In fact, this cycle began only a few years ago, and in checking up on the matter I found that physicians all over America have had more questions asked them about the thyroid than ever before. This is caused by the fact that thousands upon thousands of men and women have been noticing during the past years that the thyroid gland— or the various parts that enter into the form of the thyroid gland in the neck, just where the so-called Adam's apple is located— has become slightly enlarged. This

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEG REE

AMORC

NUMBER EIGHTY-TWO


PAGE THREE

enlargement is so small that it has little or no effect upon the the health and is not an inconvenience in any way, but it is large enough to show when the head is thrown backward and the neck stretched smoothly. During certain phases of the Moon each month some of these thyroid glands appear to be slightly larger than at other times and sometimes for two or three months the slight en largement of the gland will disappear. Some persons have been frightened about it and others merely curious. Medical authorities tell me that this is nothing to worry about, and not until the gland becomes very large should anything be done except to have a physician examine it early in the process of development to see whether or not it is an important matter. THE THYROID AND CY C LE S

This tendency of the thyroid gland to enlarge is due to cosmic conditions and to a cosmic cycle that will probably last another thirty or forty years. In that time we hope that many thousands of men and women will take advantage of our work and prepare themselves for the benefit that is coming through this cosmic period, and at the same time take advantage of the effect that the Cosmic is having upon thyroids. The exercise I am going to give to you this week will not cause the thyroid gland to enlarge, nor will it cause it to reduce, for it has no effect upon the physical size of the thyroid whatsoever. But it will have something to do with the continued and proper functioning of the thyroid so that it will not become negligent in its normal functioning. Therefore, the fingertips of both hands should be brought to bear lightly upon the place on the neck where we usually say the Adam's apple is located. Whether you have any enlargement there or not, or whether you can feel the thyroid gland in your neck between the two cords or not is immaterial. If you have a little hollow in between the cords let your eight fingertips (not includ ing the thumbs) rest upon the hollow. Perhaps it will be more con venient, or easier to do, if only the forefinger and the second and third fingers of each hand are placed upon the neck. That will make six fingers altogether. They may lightly touch each other while they are on the neck. It does not matter just how the fin gers are placed on the neck so long as they actually touch it between the jawbone and the collarbone. While the fingers are thus making their contact with the neck you should be seated in a com fortable seat, or lying down in bed. First, take a deep breath and hold it as long as you can, and then exhale slowly. Then breathe normally for a few minutes and then once more take a deep breath and hold it as long as you can before exhaling. This should be done three times and then a rest of ten minutes should be given; after that proceed to do the breathing with the fingertips on the neck for another three times. In the interval of five or ten minutes between the two exercises


Temple Section

AMORC

ELEVENTH D EG REE

NUMBER EIGHTY-TWO

PAGE FOUR

the fingers may be removed from the neck, but they must be held there all the time that the deep breath is taken and held while the breath is exhaled. If this exercise is done each morning, once at noontime, and twice in the evening before retiring— following the outlined pro cess of breathing and fingertip touch three times during each per formance of the exercise— it will gradually cause the thyroid to function properly in accordance with cosmic law and will be one of the most invigorating and health-stimulating exercises you have had. I will appreciate your report on these exercises after you have used them about a week. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

SELF-EXAMINATION AND ANALYSIS The following suggestion is for your personal consideration, thought, and analysis: That applied knowledge makes wisdom was pointed out on page one, paragraph 3. One of the aspects of wisdom is foresight. Just as the good explorer does not fear adventures— because he has al ready prepared in detail for all possible contingencies— so the wise do not fear emergencies. Reflect on the above analogy.


7

V


11 “ Knowledge is power” only when it is utilized and applied.

H Knowledge becomes wisdom when it becomes part of our experiences and mental and physical equipment to accomplish things in life. H Two principal and practical benefits which are derived from the studies of the higher Degrees are: knowledge which properly directs our lives and actions, and knowledge which enables us to live in attunement with the Cosmic and in harmony with the universe. H In the present Cosmic cycle, the thyroid gland is more greatly affected than any others, and we who are aware of this condition should take particular care of our thyroids. K The exercise for this week is for the continued normal and proper functioning of the thyroid gland.

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The matter contained herein la officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office tor the purpose ol protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only a s an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon Its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I


V V V <1 Although from a scientific viewpoint the aura is a wholly material phenomenon, this electronic age can no longer deny that electrical impulses or vibrations do emanate from living things. We quote now from a source familiar to most of us.

The belief in the human atmosphere or Aura is apparently very old—dating back many centuries. Several distinct references to its existence were made by the ancient Egyptians , and certainly it was described by various writers, both Oriental and Occidental, several centuries B.C. In the early Hindu writings, lengthy descriptions of it will be found, while it was so well known to the mediaeval saints and mystics that they carefully distinguished four different and distinct types of aura —namely, the Nimbus, the Halo, the Aureola and the Glory. The first two of these were applied to the differing types of partial aura streaming from the head of a divine being; the aureola was applied to the radiation from the whole body (what we now call the “aura” generally), and the glory was a combination of both, viz., the aura with a distinct nimbus , either circling round or shining over the head; and it was considered important for the correct significance of Christian iconography not to use these words indiscriminately. It is hardly necessary to remind the reader that paintings of Christ, the Virgin Mary and the Infant, etc., almost invariably contain this symbolic representation—just as we find the portrait of Krishna, nursed by Devaki, portraying a golden halo round the heads of both. - H E R E W A R D C A R R IN G T O N , 1880-

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

N U M B E R EIGHTY-THREE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! We have now approached a point where most of you must be close to various very important changes taking place in your systems. I want to be a little ahead of these changes in my explanation about them, and to offer a few words of warning. HEALTH AND RADIATIONS

As your health improves, or at least as your vitality becomes harmonized with the Cosmic, and there fore strengthened, your aura will become stronger and the radiations from your body will become stronger. This brings me to the important point of advising you, perhaps for the first time in all of our studies and lessons, that the radiations from a healthy psychic and physical body combined in one perfect unit consist of something more than the mere colors that are seen in the aura. In other words, in the perfect being where the psy chic and physical are united or balanced, and there is the right degree of vitality and a proper activity on the part of the psychic centers, there will be certain radiations or emanations from the human body that are not ordinarily understood. In fact, what I am going to tell you now has been carefully concealed from the members in the lower Degrees and I am sure that none of you will feel that it is a proper subject to discuss with the members in the lower Degrees. Many of them would misunderstand just what we meant and many more would try experiments hoping to bring about some quick results and would probably delay their own progress. All of the emanations from a perfectly balanced physical body are in the form of etheric waves. I do not know what an etheric wave is and I don't think anyone else knows, but we call these waves e t h e r i c , because that implies something practically invisible and almost intangible and highly magnetic--and that is a fairly good description of these waves. Now, all matter is composed of electronic vibrations that are practically of the same nature as these emanations from the human body. In other words, the emana tions from a healthy human body are of such nature that they might easily compose a new form of matter if there were any reason for their doing so. The electricity that flows into a lamp and flows out again on its way to another lamp produces light in each lamp. The cosmic energy and vibrations that flow into a human being pro duce life and vitality in that body, and as they radiate and ema nate from the body they might produce more life or more matter. The truth is this: The emanations from a perfectly healthy body do produce a material substance and herein lies a great m y s tery. In persons where the health is breaking down and the body is rapidly losing its reconstructive power we find that the emanations carry off so much vitality that many strange effects are produced. When the body is

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I


V V V <]I Although from a scientific viewpoint the aura is a wholly material phenomenon, this electronic age can no longer deny that electrical impulses or vibrations do emanate from living things. We quote ^ now from a source familiar to most of us.

The belief in the human atmosphere or Aura is apparently very old—dating back many centuries. Several distinct references to its existence were made by the ancient Egyptians, and certainly it was described by various writers, both Oriental and Occidental, several centuries B.C. In the early Hindu writings, lengthy descriptions of it will be found, while it was so well known to the mediaeval saints and mystics that they carefully distinguished four different and distinct types of aura —namely, the Nimbus, the Halo, the Aureola and the Glory. The first two of these were applied to the differing types of partial aura streaming from the head of a divine being; the aureola was applied to the radiation from the whole body (what we now call the “aura” generally), and the glory was a combination of both, viz., the aura with a distinct nimbus, either circling round or shining over the head; and it was considered important for the correct significance of Christian iconography not to use these words indiscriminately. It is hardly necessary to remind the reader that paintings of Christ, the Virgin Mary and the Infant, etc., almost invariably contain this symbolic representation—just as we find the portrait of Krishna, nursed by Devaki, portraying a golden halo round the heads of both. —H E R E W A R D C A R R IN G T O N , 1880-

AMORC

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE



PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! We have now approached a point where most of you must be close to various very important changes taking place in your systems. I want to be a little ahead of these changes in my explanation about them, and to offer a few words of warning. HEALTH AND RADIATIONS

As your health improves, or at least as your vitality becomes harmonized with the Cosmic, and there fore strengthened, your aura will become stronger and the radiations from your body will become stronger. This brings me to the important point of advising you, perhaps for the first time in all of our studies and lessons, that the radiations from a healthy psychic and physical body combined in one perfect unit consist of something more than the mere colors that are seen in the aura. In other words, in the perfect being where the psy chic and physical are united or balanced, and there is the right degree of vitality and a proper activity on the part of the psychic centers, there will be certain radiations or emanations from the human body that are not ordinarily understood. In fact, what I am going to tell you now has been carefully concealed from the members in the lower Degrees and I am sure that none of you will feel that it is a proper subject to discuss with the members in the lower Degrees. Many of them would misunderstand just what we meant and many more would try experiments hoping to bring about some quick results and would probably delay their own progress.

All of the emanations from a perfectly balanced physical body are in the form of etheric waves. I do not know what an etheric wave is and I don't think anyone else knows, but we call these waves e t h e r i c , because that implies something practically invisible and almost intangible and highly magnetic--and that is a fairly good description of these waves. Now, all matter is composed of electronic vibrations that are practically of the same nature as these emanations from the human body. In other words, the emana tions from a healthy human body are of such nature that they might easily compose a new form of matter if there were any reason for their doing so. The electricity that flows into a lamp and flows out again on its way to another lamp produces light in each lamp. The cosmic energy and vibrations that flow into a human being pro duce life and vitality in that body, and as they radiate and ema nate from the body they might produce more life or more matter. The truth is this: The emanations from a perfectly healthy body do produce a material substance and herein lies a great m y s tery. In persons where the health is breaking down and the body is rapidly losing its reconstructive power we find that the emanations carry off so much vitality that many strange effects are produced. When the body is

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

AMORC



PAGE TWO

perfectly healthy the radiations or emanations form a magnetic flow from the human body, which Mesmer discovered many years before he became a Rosicrucian, and it was the mystery of this magnetic fluid or radiation from the human body that led him to investigate the Rosicrucian teachings about it and thus led him into the Rosicru cian organization. The average person who is well and healthy gives off these magnetic radiations during the day and during the night without depleting his own health. The reason for this is that such a person has a superabundance of magnetism and vitality. Various names have been given to this radiation or emanation from the human body. The word odic has been used many times as a name for the radiations, or for the supposed fluid, but in recent years other names have become popular with some branches of re search work. I have noticed, for a number of years, a very peculiar condi tion in connection with the bodies of persons who were dying or passing away from some disease or condition that had been gradually breaking down the entire system. Where transition or preparation for transition has been gradual, as the result of a gradual break ing down of the entire system, the emanations from the human body contain a great deal of vitality and material essence. In such cases the sheets upon the bed where the patient is lying often be come saturated with a substance that appears to be starchy and very white. It will be evenly distributed over the sheet above the body and below the body, especially just above the solar plexus and heart. This substance will accumulate gradually on the sheets un til it forms itself into a large ball or into a lump as big as an egg. I have seen this many times and physicians have remarked about it but have not been able to explain it. A few years ago it was discovered that some mediums while in a spiritistic trance were able to accumulate a similar substance on the hands, arms, or face. This substance has been analyzed and has been found to be plasmic in nature, but entirely different from anything found inside the human body. Sometimes it is hardly visi ble in the bright light but becomes visible in the dark because it seems to be partly luminous. Where it gathers in great quantities it often looks like foam except that it is more solid and heavier. At other times it will gather all over the body and on the bed clothing like a heavy foam composed of well-beaten cream. It is odorless, colorless, and from a chemical point of view is a m ys tery. It is, however, a radiation of the psychic and physical bod ies changed into material form. The healthier a person is the more the body gives off of itself. We know that the outer tissue of the body is constantly dying and is flaking off in small pieces which

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we wash away when we bathe. This is constantly renewing the outer tissue of the body and keeping it fresh and young. In old age this process ceases, for the reconstructive processes discontinue and no tissue is given off because no new tissue is formed underneath. Persons who fail to bathe properly find this dead skin accumulating on their bodies and from it come all kinds of skin diseases. In the Western world where bathing has become so popular and so well understood there are not the very large number of skin conditions. The odic vibrations from a normal healthy body, however, are always present and will affect the clothing that is worn close to the body. The vibrations reaching other persons cause various effects according to whether they are harmonized or attuned with the Cosmic or not. Now that your psychic centers are being gradually developed and the vitality of your body improved, I expect very shortly that the radiations from your body will become much stronger. This will result in the necessity for daily bathing because there will be more flaky pieces of the outer tissue to be removed and the aura will become stronger, your hands more magnetic, and your contact with people will become more acute. A TEST FOR EMANATIONS

During the coming week I want you to continue the exercise given last week in connection with the thy roid, but also take a few opportunities during the coming week to study the emanations from your body. Note when you bathe how the outer tissue is renewing itself more vigorously and more completely than in the past. Even on the skin of your face you will find a cleaner and newer tissue growing underneath these flakes. This will help to prevent wrinkles from forming and it will keep the pores clean, keep blotches and acne away, and clear up other skin conditions. If you want to study the effects of these radiations try wearing a new, clean, silk handkerchief across the abdomen under your clothing. Open the handkerchief, spread it in its full width in one single layer over the abdomen, let your clothing hold it tightly against your body for a whole day and night, and then examine the handkerchief; you will find that the pores of the silk handkerchief have become filled with a very fine, white substance. This is easily washed from the handkerchief es pecially with hot water, but it will give you an idea of the chem ical action that is taking place in your body as a result of the improved health. Later, I will talk to you more about this subject. Therefore, keep up the same treatments with the thyroid for one more week. At the same time if you have an opportunity to shake hands with or touch persons, who know of your studies, ask them if they can feel the magnetic tingling and radiations from your fingers and hands. In my next talk I will go into more details regarding this interesting subject.

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PART II I notice also in various reports coming to me that the mem bers in this Degree are beginning to realize the distinctions of the various planes of consciousness upon which they seem to be dwelling at the present time. Most of those who have written have stated that they feel from their experiences, and from meditation which seems to bring them some cosmic revelation, that they are in the third plane of consciousness. One has admitted that he is quite convinced that he is only in the second plane and under stands, therefore, why his life has been what it is. Interesting also is the fact that only one member seemed to feel that he was on the fourth plane or just entering the fourth plane. I am rather inclined to agree with him, judging from the experiences he has had, but nevertheless, he has decided within himself that if he is just beginning the fourth, he would rather go back into the third and review it. Of course, this going back into a previous plane is not possible and therefore is beyond human decision. What he can do, however, is to make the best of his present opportunities to study the work and to improve himself to such an extent that he will feel more worthy of starting upon the fourth plane. He is really an old soul in many ways, and I have suspected for a long time that this Frater was highly advanced. He may not make as much progress in the fourth plane as some of you are now making in the close of your third planes of consciousness, and therefore, most of you will probably reach up to this point at the close of your present life when you pass through transition. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

Summary of This Monograph V V V Below is a summary of the important principles of this monograph. It contains the essential statements which you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete monograph, try to recall as many as you can of the important points you read. Then read this summary and see if you have forgotten any. Also refer to this summary during the ensuing week to refresh your memory. if When the psychic and physical functionings are perfectly balanced, etheric waves emanate from the body. if Etheric waves, or odic vibrations, are always present in the healthy body. They may be tested by a silk handkerchief worn next to the abdomen. These vibrations affect others, in various ways, and according to the harmony w ith the Cosmic which the person so affected may have. The plasmic substance accumulated by some spiritistic mediums is sim ilar to these etheric vibrations, but not, as a rule scientifically understood by them. f Although chemists have failed to analyze this substance, it has been observed in hospitals upon the sheets of persons who were dying. It sometimes becomes more luminous at night. 51 Continue the thyroid exercise given last week.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT The condition of your body is normally of paramount importance to you. The more attention you give to it the more you will experience the magnetism it gives off. This vitality, as measured by the amount of magnetism you give off, will make you feel like a new person. Your whole being should be tingling with the excitement of this effulgence. The thing to watch during the next week, and after, is that the exercises and attention you are giving to your body are being repaid by the body in the way of a stronger and more sensitive physique, able to perform more of the tasks you ask of it, with less effort, and more vigor. The body should never be looked upon as an impersonal or unimportant part of you. It is very important and deserves certainly half of your concern, love, and attention. Without it, your inner self would be severely limited in its expression, unable to perform its humanitarian and idealistic goals.

THE INSTITUTION BEHIND THE R O S IC R U C IA N O R G A N IZ A T IO N San Jose, California, U. S. A. Rosicrucian Parle

"C o n se crate d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale o r p u rcho se b y anyon e . p u rc h a se

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MASTER MONOGRAPH ILLUMINATI SECTION This monograph always remains the property of the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. It is not purchased by, but loaned to, the receiving member. I 'C ^ ° O

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The matter contained herein is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies oi officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dissertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is & violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I


V V V <| In the present mechanical age, it is indeed necessary that material thinking and living give way to more spiritual growth. From the a Gnostic writing presumably written in the first two centuries after Christ, the following excerpt shows the necessity of having this matter purified by the mysteries

Sophia,

Pistis

of baptisms:

Now, therefore, when a man receiveth the mysteries of the baptisms those mysteries become a mighty fire, exceedingly fierce, wise, which burneth up sins; they enter into the soul secretly and devour all the sins which the counterfeit spirit hath implanted in it. . . . The Counterfeit spirit, the destiny, and the body may be separated into one group, and the soul and power into another. And the mystery of baptism remaineth between the two, and separateth the one from the other, in order that it may cleanse them and make them pure, that the soul and power may not be fouled in matter. - P IS T IS S O P H IA


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N U M B E R EIGHTY-FOUR

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Beloved Members, Greetings! At last we seem to have reached a very progress, for I have been virtually flooded week from members, most of whom wrote their received last week's lesson, and who seemed making excellent progress.

critical stage in our with letters the past letters before they to feel that they were

Naturally enough, they did not sense this through any outward manifestation of an unusual kind, and really, so far as psychic manifestations are concerned, these have been no greater in the last few weeks than they have in the past. But there is an inner spiritual sense of some development taking place or some enlarge ment of the self, and so many have spoken of this that I am really delighted. I know that many who have not written are having simi lar impressions, but may not have thought them important enough to write about. I also realize that a great many of you hesitate to write because you know that I have such a large mail and such heavy correspondence that you feel you are saving me many hours of unnec essary work. I deeply appreciate the consideration of the members in this Degree in this regard, but on the other hand, I do like to have your reports. THE DEVELOPING CONSCIOUSNESS

Now, we shall consider developing consciousness. Jesus spoke of this in many veiled and mystical ways, knowing full well that only his most developed Disciples would understand what he was talking about. He knew also that most of the persons in the mob audiences around him would not only fail to understand what he was trying to say, but would probably also misinterpret it. I sometimes wonder whether he really had more superstitious beliefs to contend with in his day than we have now. One thing that is sure is that the people constituting the mass mob, or constituting the mass con sciousness, were not so steeped in materialism as we are today. There may have been a greater absence of spiritual awakening and a far greater absence of psychic consciousness than we now have, but there were fewer who pinned their faith to material things, or at least held the idea that the material laws of the universe could accomplish more than the spiritual or the psychic. What do you suppose those persons would have thought of such a demonstration as all of us are familiar with today— that of placing a small box of material, mechanical devices in a room and picking up inaudible voices and music and changing them into audi bility sufficiently loud to fill a large auditorium with the speech r ■7 of a man talking many thousands of kilometers away, or X%&/ with music being played at a distant theater or audito\ / rium? It is such things as this today that are making ^ the younger people and the unthinking people very

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materialistic. They think that material science has conquered so much of the universe that, after all, there is very little left in the spiritual or psychic domains. It is true that in the time of Jesus, as well as of all of the great Masters who preceded him, there were all kinds of supersti tions to which the people were bound by tradition and by a faith that seemed to be unshakable. If we read a list of the old super stitions prevalent in Eastern countries at the dawn of Christianity and think of the people as trying to live up to these superstitious beliefs, we will see that most of them must have been afraid to do anything from the time they awakened their consciousness or opened their eyes in the morning until they went to sleep at night. Some would be afraid to cross the road from the left side to the right side; others would be afraid to walk on ground that an unholy per son had walked on; others would be afraid to look out of a window and see a star; others would be afraid to eat or drink without some special ceremony; others would be afraid to put on clothing that contained certain colors; and still others would not move without saying certain prayer words, and so on. There were superstitious beliefs about food and eating, about bathing and where to bathe, about the manner of sleeping, the manner of going in and out of a house, of traveling along the road, the kind of clothing to wear, what food to eat, the kind of animals to keep around the house, and thousands of other subjects. The man from a distant country who lived in Palestine not only had to keep up the superstitious beliefs of his own country, but in order not to antagonize the Jews and others in Palestine, he had to follow their superstitions as well. When we realize that Palestine was a cosmopolitan center for the world with over eighteen nations of people living there, and representatives of several hundred other nations or parts of nations stopping there for a while each year, we can see that it must have been a canter of confusion most of the time. Now, all of these superstitious beliefs tended to narrow the vision and the consciousness of the people. Narrow-mindedness seemed to be the standard by which a person's morals were measured in the ancient days, and we have quite a remnant of this same b e lief even today among the so-called orthodox church people. These present-day orthodox persons throw up their hands in horror at the way in which the young people of today step over and step outside of all bounds and limitations of so-called respectability. But, after all, the fact remains that in ancient times the young people and the old people committed all of the same crimes that the young people are committing today, except that in olden times the young people and the adults did things secretly, hypocritically, and behind veils and in

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protected places, instead of doing them in the open and without any decorative costume or fancy veiling to hide anything. It is a fact that the more tolerantly and the more sympathet ically we attune ourselves to the minds of all beings and to cosmic laws, the broader becomes our vision. Some references have been made pre viously to the mountain of illumination or initiation. We have said that this moun tain is only symbolical. Wherever the Bible speaks of Moses having gone up on the mountain to be illuminated and inspired, and having come down from the mountain with the new rulings and new laws for the people it is only so phrased as an allegory, and not to indicate an actual mountain material sense. As your inner, spiritual self awakens and develops, you are~Tifting your consciou&n»ss-_±o_greater heights ancT you_are actually ascending the qreat~mountain. The first thing that will happen when you are allowing~yourr“psychic self to extend and broaden is that you will rise higher and you will seem to have a broader vision, not only of the whole of life, but of life's prob lems and of the individual peculiarities of every person you meet. Human beings themselves will take on a different nature, for you will see them not as good and bad people, but as different people. The so-called sins of the world will change from sins to"different forms of goodness, merely improperly exprgB~s^d or unconventionally expressed. The greatest effect, however, will be upon you. Once you enter into the spiritual illumination and spiritual awakening, you wil]— find, all~o£~llfe becoming an~easy problem, ancT~even health .and transition ..are not so diff icul-t.jto understand . With this broadeninq_of the vision or extension of consciousness comes an i n c r e a s i n g p o w e r o f"masfer sh i p , and_an Tncreasing ability .to. fore see intuitively or otherwise the events of tomorrow and the next d a y . There also comes the ±n. mppt- all obstacles or a ll_inc idents that m ight frustrate our plans, and we are enabled^to override them or malce~or~tHem_ something entirely different. lsfow~if you will keep this in mind and concentrate~your~"tliouuhLb>~TiPon this developing consciousness instead o? expgctrtng: j^sychTc manifestations of some kind, you will see that a great change Jias been taking place in you* mind and your thinking during the p a g f rew~months. YoiPwill see that it is possible for you to have more of this jawakening and extension of con sciousness even though there were no unusual psychic

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demonstrations. As your consciousness extends, it is going to come in contact with the consciousness of others who are going through the same experiences that you are, and it is going to blend into the Cosmic Consciousness until you find yourself being a part of the general consciousness to a greater extent than you have been in the past. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V


H Material thinking understanding.

in this

mechanical age interferes w ith

spiritual

H C hrist’s messages were veiled so that only those spiritually developed could understand.

1f

The more sympathetically we attune ourselves to the minds o f all beings and to cosmic laws, the broader becomes our vision; so-called sins become different forms of goodness improperly expressed. As the inner, spiritual self develops, you are lifting your consciousness to greater heights, ascending the symbolical m ountain of illum ination.

1f Spiritual aw akening brings w ith it more abundant health, intuition, insight, and power of mastership. H Concentrate upon developing your inner consciousness rather than upon expecting unusual psychic demonstrations.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT As this monograph indicates, we get a better view of the people around us when our psychic selves extend and broaden in their scope. We become more tolerant of others, because we see more of their make-up. We can see what causes the narrow vision they sometimes have, and what causes them to have superstitious beliefs. They simply have not had an opportunity as yet to broaden their vision. We must never, however, stop the process of reflecting upon our own views and beliefs. Regardless of how high we climb the mountain of illumination, certain superstitious beliefs cling to even the best of us. Not until we have reached the pinnacle of earthly developments will we be free at last from ignorance and superstition, for only then do we see EVERYTHING in its true and whole light. Take some moments to analyze some of your present beliefs. See if any of them can be classified as being in the realm of speculation or uncertainty; as being superstitious. See how they affect your life, causing you, perhaps, to make an error in judgment or to make a wrong decision.


"C o n se crate d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale o r p u rch ase b y a n yone . p u rc h ase

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R E G IST E RE D IN U.S. P A T E N T O FF IC E PAtSO *ECISTEREO THROUGHOUT THE *0*1.01 PRittfCO U.S.A.

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§

The matter contained herein Is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only a5 an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this m on o g ra p h is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. 0. R. C. and It shall be returned to it upon its request The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, tad the imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I


V

V

*11 The monograph states that the aura of an individual is related to his psychic development and vitality. The nature of the magnetic atmosphere or aura is explained by Dr. George Starr White in his book

The Story of the Human Aura.

In other words,

no matter what form life or vital force may take, no matter what vehicle life is carried in—be it animate or inanimate—its magnetic atmosphere must be characteristic of the vehicle.

When we thoroly understand the definition of aura,... and then thoroly understand its properties, we can readily see that in this magnetic atmosphere we have an exact image which represents the product of the sum total of the development and evolution of life. - G E O R G E S T A R R W HITE, M.D. (X866-?)

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ELEVENTH DEGREE

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N U M B E R EIGHTY-FIVE


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! We now come to another interesting point in our progress of development. I know that many of you often have wondered about the passage in the Bible which describes how some of the persons kneel ing along the roadside touched the hem of the garment of Jesus and were healed or helped, and Jesus explained that it was their faith that cured them. Many have insisted that this statement on the part of Jesus was incomplete or metamorphic. We do not believe that he meant to say that just through their faith alone they were healed, and that if they had stayed at home and had similar faith in him they would have been healed. He meajit that.through their faith-they_were led to come close to him, to seek him and appeal to him, a n d t h a t through these things they received the help they needed. A very wonderful lesson on faith could be learned from these instances, but it is not my intention to deal with faith now for we have already covered that point. However, it might be well to say that our faith in our teachers, our instructions, or the system we are using is very essential, and I feel sure that the faith our members have in the higher work of the Order is respon sible for having led so many of them to great heights. The point I wanted to touch upon was that part of the incident dealing with the fact that these sick persons touched the hem or some part of the garment of Jesus. Now this garment may or may not have been worn by Jesus sufficiently long to have absorbed some of the marvelous creative vibrations emanating from his body, but it is certain that his aura was so great and so extensive, as well as so powe rful in healing vibrations /_7that the moment persons came close to Jesus of came within_that aura they were helped. This is the important point with which I want_ to_deal. THE AURA’S STRENGTH

The radiations from our auras are exactly in proportion to our own psychic development. It is very strange that in the past we have had very little help from science in regard to the human aura, although science has in its own hands many marvelous instruments that measure the human aura~. I remember that during the fi»rst National^ Conveiitluu Which I conducted in Pittsburgh in 1917 the opportunity was given to us to^coriHuct many demonstrations of our principles. In the city of Pittsburgh was a p hysician named Omar Cruikshanfr. This pKyslcian belonged to a great many'medical societies/ Scientific bodies, and recfrnedassociations^ He Rad enough initials after his name to coverÊwcT or “three'lines. H e was "consulted by other physicians as an expert in diagnosing. He~~had a* marvelous laboratory adjoining his ottices in one of the big buildings, and in the lab oratory 'there were all kinds o fTelectrical and chemical instruments arid“equipment. He,_had one large electric chair in whirttr a person could sit and have tiis electric nature tested. 1

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We soon found that a person sitting in that chair and thereby becoming highly electrified could easily have his aura measured. The moment any one of us put our hands within two, three, or four feet of him, certain electrical phenomena occurred. This clearly demonstrated how far into space his aura extended around him. One by one our members sat in the electric chair on a high glass plat form and discovered whether their auras were extending twelve inches or thirty-six inches or more away from the body. In some cases the aura was so strong that it would cause a small electric lamp to light up. Other things would occur through the strength of the aura. We realized then that this man, and others like him in various cities, had scientific instruments which clearly proved ttie existence of an aura around everything^ and especially^ around living bodies^ I f science had undertalcen” in the past to give the subject of auras the proper attention, every one of us would know more about it and would have learned this information in high school at least. ABILITY TO HEAL

Our auras are the result of our vitality and our psychic development combined. A good, strong, healthy person with little psychic development will have a strong aura, as far as vitality is concerned, but it will not extend very far away from the body. A person with h igh psychic development will have a very strong, ptHcfsing, and creative aura radiating through and from ‘the physic_ai body to a wide space around it. The psychic, creative part of this aura will be stronger than the purely phys ical vitality of it. Such persons make excellent healers or nurses and’ doctors. We have tested this fact through the work of nurses ancT physicians who belong to our organization and who have watched their work with patients in the hospotal. Very often a person with gnr-h frpat-iw power in his aura w ill cause peopr§~~~to b e “Healed by just coming in contact^with themT ft is more than likely~that many persons who came^ close to Jesus were instantly healed o f some of their chronic, conditions or weaknesses, and it must be true that on some occasions the aura of Jesus was like an electric shock to those who came in contact with it. I think that this accounts for a great many o f the mi racles performed by Jesus, ancT^Lt also accounts for many of^the~ wonderful~"cures made by our members and others in the past who have attained great psychic development . Now, beginning with this week I want you to keep up some of your recent exercises, because I want to continue building your aura to the point where it becomes so highly magnetized that you can feel the aura of your own body, which of course, is a very difficult thing to do. Try to get in touch with those who are ill and say nothing about any kind of treatment you are giving, but merely put yourself where occasionally a sick person can come in contact with you and therefore be

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benefited. Make some tests, if you can, by standing near persons who are ill; just look at them occasionally and let the power of your body go into them. Even if these persons are strangers who appear to be ill, or pale, or suffering, you will find that by standing near them or sitting near them a while you can benefit them so that they will take on a better color and seem to feel better. Next week I will deal a little more in detail with this subject and you can make other experiments. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

SELF-EXAMINATION QUESTIONS The following questions are presented merely as a self-quiz to test your understanding of the important points in the lesson. Do not send your answers to the Grand Lodge.

W

1.

Why were the persons who touched the garment of Jesus healed?

2.

How may the strength and extent of the human aura be measured scientifically?

3.

What is the difference between the aura of a strong, healthy person who has little psychic development and that of a person who is highly developed psychically?

4.

How may the aura be used to heal the sick?

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT

We m ust distin guish between fa ith based on knowledge a n d b lin d faith. B lin d fa ith can have beneficial results, but it can also lead a person into error and danger. Thus it is not a dependable faith. F a ith based on knowledge, however, is well founded a n d consistently brings beneficial results. It is based on know n facts or on know n references. A n example o f b lin d fa ith is a belief th a t if a person th in k s a n d lives positively, n o th in g can possibly h a rm him . There are no facts or authorities to support such faith. It is true th a t m a n y such persons w ill find th a t their positive liv in g keeps them from h a v in g far less problems th a n someone w ho does not live positively. B ut it does not keep problems from arising and confronting them. A n exam ple of fa ith based on knowledge is a belief th a t a person can travel a strange road a n d reach a destination in a certain a m o u n t of tim e a n d w ith a given a m o u n t of fuel, based on knowledge o f the autom obile’s characteristics, road m aps, a n d previous trips of a s im ila r kind.

Summary of This Monograph V V V Below is a su m m a ry of the im p o rta n t principles of th is m onograph. It c ontains the essential statem ents w hich you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete m o nograp h , try to recall as m a n y as you can of the im p o rta n t points you read. Then read this su m m a ry a n d see if you have forgotten any. A lso refer to this su m m a ry du rin g the ensuin g week to refresh your memory.

1} Many miraculous healings resulted from the contact with the powerful healing vibrations of the aura of Jesus. U The radiations from our aura have strength and magnetism in proportion to our psychic development. U Auras are the result of vitality and psychic development combined. Mechanical devices have been able to measure the extent and power of the vibrations of the aura. U Members of the Rosicrucian Order have been able to perform miraculous cures as the result of the development of their auras. Continue building your own aura until it becomes so highly magnetized that you can feel it yourself.

THE INSTITUTION BEHIND THE R O S IC R U C IA N O R G A N IZ A T IO N Son Jose, California, U. S. A. Rosicrucian Park

"C o n se cra te d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or p u rch ose b y o n yon e . p u rc h a se

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This monograph always remains the property of the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. It is not purchased by, but loaned to, the receiving member. <•M447>

Degree

Degree

M onograph

M onograph

86

86

11

11

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The matter contained herein Is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered In the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the “printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts” as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O- R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered In countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain In the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to It upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.


V

v

Always there has been a vanguard of thinking men and women who have paved the way for mankind’s evolutionary progress. Notable among these have been Rosicrucians. Great names abound in the traditional history of the Order, and as enlightenment and culture spread from East to West, we find Rosicrucians foremost in all fields contributing to the advancement of learning.

Owing to circumstances still unknown there appear from time to time great thinkers, who, devoting their lives to a single purpose, are able to anticipate the progress of mankind, and to produce a religion or philosophy by which important effects are eventually brought about. But if we look into history we shall clearly see that, although the origin of a new opinion may be thus due to a single man, the result which the new opinion produces will depend upon the condition of the people among whom it is propagated. If either a religion or a philosophy is too much in advance of a nation it can do no present service, but must bide its time until the minds of men are ripe for its reception. . . . Every science, every creed has had its martyrs. According to the ordinary course of affairs, a few

generations pass away, and then there comes a period when these very truths are looked upon as commonplace facts, and a little later there comes another period in which they are declared to be necessary, and even the dullest intellect wonders

ever have been denied.

how they could

—H.T. B U C K L E , 1821-1862

Temple Section

AMORC

ELEVENTH DEGREE Beloved Members,

N U M B E R EIGHTY-SIX


PAGE ONE

Greetings!

Following the schedule that I have adopted for the progression of the lessons and talks in this Degree, we are again at a point where certain fundamentals must be brought to your attention and parts of them, or phases of them, enlarged upon to meet certain conditions. This schedule, which I am following, is based upon an outline of the progress of lessons laid out by the old Rosicrucian organizations of different parts of Europe and slightly modified by the reports coming to me from our members here in the Eleventh Degr e e . SPIRIT OF PROGRESS

There is no doubt about the fact that men and women of today advance more rapidly than did their counterparts of a few generations back. I know that I would be un fair and unkind if I were to intimate in the least degree that the men and women of today, as a rule, are more intelligent, or more spiritual, than the men and women of a century ago, but there is no doubt that the men and women of today have a more progressive spirit— or shall we call it a more militant spirit— and are more ready to fight for and make greater sacrifices for the things they desire, than were the people of a few centuries earlier. People often refer to the "good old days," when somehow every thing seemed to be better. We generally tend to forgive the past, and are more concerned with the problems of the present. This is a perfectly normal turn of events, but generally does not offer a true perspective of the past. It is difficult for people to admit to the progressiveness of the present. It takes a special sort of optimism to say that things are better than they were. Pessimism is more our natural state. It is all part of our resisting change. We have an innate resistance to change. And it is in this regard that men and women are indeed more progressive today. Today there is a greater willingness to change, and less resistance to it. I remember how people resisted change just a few generations ago, during the mass movement westward, from Europe to America, then from eastern America to western America. They painted a black picture of what would lie in store for the traveler. When we planned to move from New York to San Jose, for example, we were told that everything beyond the Mississippi River was wild and woolly, and we really believed that most of California was inhab ited by Indians and wild native people, and that the principal streets of the smaller cities were dirt roads, and that the Indians and white men together rode horseback through these streets and tied their horses to the front posts of the stores, and went in to do their shopping in the manner and style often seen in the motion pictures depicting the early settlement of the West. We had an idea that if the West had any music

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

AMORC



PAGE TWO

it was a sort of undisciplined band music, and anything but sym phonic. We had been told that the architecture, the general games and pastimes and everything else of human invention was as wild and crude or primitive as we believed the scenery was. It was aston ishing to us, then, to find how progressive the West really was. Now, this spirit of progressiveness which we found as we went from East to West is caused by the fact that the people of the West generally, were people who had to have an unusual degree of pro gressiveness in their spirit to take them westward. If you can comprehend what it meant to the people of Europe who abandoned their homes and customs and habits and conveniences and comforts to make a long and tiresome journey to unknown lands to face unknown conditions and build a new empire, a new nation, you will realize that only the most progressive spirits, only the most progressive minds filled with daring and militant power and great foresight and faith, even ventured into what was then described as the New World, while the timid, the fearful, and the contented remained at home. The same thing was true regarding the journey from Eastern colonial states to the West Coast of America with the long tiresome journey by foot or in wagons, entailing many months of privation and suffering, and with all of the inconveniences and ordeals reported to the people of the East by the few who returned. Forti tude was certainly required of those who broke up their comfortable homes in the East, and sacrificed everything and burned all bridges behind them to venture on the long journey across plains and valleys and mountains to the Pacific Coast. From the blood of these progressive adventurers had risen the people of the progres sive spirit we found in these western lands. In my talks with many of the great minds of the mystics in the East, I found them freely and wholeheartedly agreeing that the great spirit of mystical adventure was spreading westward, and that people in all lands were now looking at ancient truths with more openness and less secretiveness than ever before. Soon the whole world would take on the positive aspects of this progressive point of view, and both old and new viewpoints would merge into one har monious whole, seeing the past and present in proper perspective, and greeting the future with hope and serenity. All of this does not mean that the progressiveness of the "Western spirit" and the higher intellectual development of people today bring any greater spirituality to the beings of these people, but it does mean a more rapid progress to the point of spirituality. Mystics of the past probably have evolved to as high a plane as mystics today can attain, but we find among people today those who have reached a higher

Temple Section

AMORC

ELEVENTH DEGREE



PAGE THREE

degree of spirituality in a shorter time than was required by older generations for the same degree of development. For this reason the work and teachings of our organization have been given far more rapidly to our students than was the method used by the mystics of old. It would be surprising, for instance, to these mystics to learn that men and women of forty-five years of age living in today's world have reached a point in spiritual development where they can psychically reach out to other lands and other peoples. This ability to extend the consciousness is something that the older mystics did not develop until late in life, and it would have been unusual to find a mystic then under sixty or seventy years of age who had reached the same point of mystical mastership as is now reached by our students by the age of forty or forty-five. Many of our members often think that our method of progress and development is slow. They sometimes think that there should be two or three monographs a week and that each one should be long and cover many points. We often read, in our mail, letters from those who say, "I have been a member of the Order for five years and I seem to be just beginning to have the mystical and spiritual development that I wanted and I think that this is very slow prog ress ." COMPARISON INSTRUCTIVE

These persons do not realize that in past centuries the same amount of development may have required twenty-five to forty years. But again it is due to our extreme progressiveness. We may live twenty years in every five. We cut down our life's experiences by the same ratio. We shorten our earthly existence just about half through an attempt to live all of it at one time. We live more superficially and more passively and may not delve as deeply as our forebears. We touch the great highlights and jump from mountain peak to mountain peak without descending into the valleys to understand the shadows and the restfulness of peace and meditation.

Nevertheless, in following the schedule I am using and trying to keep pace with the new spirit, I am still trying to hold back the the progression to a rate where members will progress as rapidly as their modern spirit demands and yet not faster than the psychic part of themselves will respond. We have reached a point where the exoteric features of o ur’ studies must be laid aside for a while and the esoteric features given considerable thought again. We must turn away from seeking our power and our manifestation of the power in worldly things outside ourselves to the greater powers that reside within us. In other words, we shall obey the ancient injunction and seek within instead of seeking without. We must turn our searching consciousness inward and seek what the

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE


AMORC


PAGE FOUR

mystics have always called the "inner light." In doing this we shall come to many marvelous realizations and discover what has really been taking place during our past months of development. Therefore, for the following week, continue any or all of the exercises that you have been doing and especially those which have been helpful to you and prepare to make this the last week of the exoteric work, as we return to the esoteric realms and dwell in things that are above the Earth or beyond the Earth and in the realms of the sublime and the transcendent. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V

Below is a su m m a ry of the im p o rta n t principles of this m o nograph. It c o ntains the essential statem ents w hich you should not forget. A fter you have carefully read the complete m o nograp h , try to recall as m a n y as you can of the im p o rta n t points you read. Then read this su m m a ry a n d see if you have forgotten any. A lso refer to th is su m m a ry d u rin g the e nsuin g week to refresh your memory.

11 The present lessons, in general, follow the outline of progress laid out by the ancient Rosicrucian organizations; however, they have been adapted to fit the needs of the present members. if The great spirit of mystical adventure is spreading westward from the Orient where it has its roots. f

The approach to mysticism differs greatly today from that of the past. The same methods used before are not applicable to the mind of today’s student.

if These lessons are planned so that the student will not progress more rapidly than the psychic self can respond.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT When we become concerned or impatient regarding our personal growth and the manner in which monographs take us slowly along the Path, we should look at nature and reflect on the manner in which all other things grow and evolve. It is not an instant process, and most things experience growth rates that are not even apparent to us. Still we know that there is this change going on. We know that when we plant seeds, the seeds will grow into plants. We know that if we expose any material to the elements, the elements will shape and change that material slowly but surely. By the same token, you can rest assured that every creative thought or suggestion that is planted in your subconscious will grow, and that in due time a beautiful mature manifestation will occur. Look into the areas of your own experience, and see how this process has worked with your own creations, or with your children. Experiment further with the planting of thoughts in others’ minds. Instead of expecting instant responses from them, expect rather to wait for your thoughts to grow in their consciousnesses. You may not get credit for the thought, since it grows out of the consciousness of the other person, but you do receive the ultimate benefit of the fruit born by your thought.

This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or purc h ase b y a nyo ne . p u rc h ase

m oy

m ake the

seller a n d

A sale or

p u rc h a se r subje ct to civil liability.

The Ros'icrucian Order



Degree

Degree

Monograph 87

Monograph

11

11

87

lojtfarfirua# 179 The matter contained herein is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered In the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts” as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and t»ot otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.


V

V

y-

€J |In this monograph we touch upon the modern recognition of AMORC and its various contributions our ^ mes as indicated in sources of literary reference. Obviously an organization as liberal in its thought as AMORC will always arouse the prejudice and opposition of dogmatic individuals and those societies which resent our methods of encouraging the free thought and expression of the individual. However, the following is one of the many examples of recognition of one of the Order’s activities. It is the quotation of a few paragraphs from a long article in the distinguished Sunday Edition. The article with photographs appeared shortly after the dedication of the new Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum. At this time it is unlikely that the newspaper would have copies of this edition available for distribution. However, most every newspaper retains a file of past issues to which the public may personally refer upon request. Zl

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New York Times

The stately, modern structure is said to house the most comprehensive collection of Egyptian art and artifacts on the West Coast. It replaces an overcrowded 36-year-old museum that drew about 150,000 visitors in each of the last two years. The new museum is a handsome addition to Rosicrucian Park, the world headquarters of the Rosicrucian Order. The Ord6r is a nonsectarian philosophical organization that traces its history to the reign of Thutmosis III in Egypt about 1500 B.C.

A MO R C

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

N U M B E R EIGHTY-SEVEN


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! We have just completed a series of monographs dealing with a particular train of thought, including various experiments and demonstrations. We are going to enter upon a new series of sub jects which will be of historical, mystical, and practical value to you. However, before we begin this new series, we wish to pres ent a subject that is quite distinct from all others. It really is not a doctrinal matter; nevertheless, it is one that concerns your relationship to the Order and to other persons. I think that this single interim between the past series of monographs and the new series is a good time to introduce this particular matter. Frequently it is asked why such eminent men as Benjamin Franklin, Isaac Newton. Gottfried von Laihni tz_. Claude Deb u s s v . and a host of other celebrities did not'reveal their Rosicrucian m em bership. Why it is that in most reference works such as encyclo pedias and histories— even bibliographies— there is no reference to their Rosicrucian affiliation? From such prima- facie evidence it would appear that these persons have never had any connection or association with the Rosicrucians— and that A M O R C 's reference to them is, to say the least, highly imaginary. PERSECUTION AND TYRANNY

First, it must be realized that the times in which most of these celebrities lived were not generally as liberal as now. Religious persecution and tyranny were even more prevalent. The mass mind was not so famil iar with the subjects of the Rosicrucian teachings, such as phil osophy, metaphysics, hermeticism, and the sciences. In fact, many of the subjects taught and more or less proclaimed by AMORC today would have been thought heretical by the public three centuries ago. In those days, the great philosopher, Baruch Spinoza, was thought to be a godless man I Even in more refrenL "Limes. ~Thomas Jefferson was declared to be an atheist because of his liberal views*on~the Divine and for his construction of certain Biblical terminology I Today, the educated person, on reading the writings of these men, would call them unorthodox, perhaps, but at least he would regard them as spiritually-minded. In fact, Spinoza has since been heralded as "God intoxicated." In such times and because of such conditions, the Rosicrucian Order functioned sub rosa for the most part. It did so to prevent the persecution of its members by fanatical religionists. Whereas today, with the exception of one or two countries where religious tyranny is still a powerful force, the church may vilify and attack the Rosicrucian Order, it yet lacks the power to imprison its members and to confiscate its records and membership rolls. In the past, because of persecution, membership cards or printed identifications were not issued to

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

AMORC



PAGE TWO

members as they are today. No fraternal emblems were worn. A casual inquirer would never learn who were members of the Rosicru cian Order. The buildings of the Order were likewise concealed for the same reasons. The word secret in those days, as applied to the Order, meant not just "private," as now, but actually necessary con cealment. All assemblies or conclaves of the Order were seques tered in some inconspicuous place. There were, of course, no photographs taken of the celebrities, no announcements of digni taries present, as is common today. It was not that the Order desired such a state of affairs; it was not that these eminent per sons of the past were not proud of their affiliation! They were. However, more could be accomplished by their silence than by any proclamation of their membership at that time. ROBERT FLUDD, APOLOGIST

There were exceptions, of course, to this secrecy of affiliation. One such notable ex ample was Robert F1n d d r eminent English medical doctor (1574-1637). He is known as a Rosicrucian apologist because of his defense or the Order. The unfair attacks on the Order had reached virulent proportions in malicious libel. Fludd issued works in defense of the Rosicrucians which are masterpieces. He gave his name as author and immediately became a personal target of attack. Some of the authors used pseudonyms in connection with their works. Only members of the Rosicrucian Order knew the real iden tity of such authors. Public references, as encyclopedias, would have no such information at their disposal. In these public refer ence works, it might be said: "... it is alleged that he was asso ciated with the Rosicrucian Order though there is no evidence to that effect." Still other encyclopedias will relate that a certain eminent personality was in association with a person who was known to be affiliated with the "sect" known as the Rosicrucians. An example of this indirect reference appears in an encyclopedia with regard to the founding of the Royal Society of England. It men tions names, such as that of As higgle . who w as a known alchemist— and a Rosicrucian. Unless an individual authored books on the Rosicrucian Order or on its teachings— which many did, in their own name, or through a pseudonym which was known— there was no outward indication of his Rosicrucian affiliation. Determining whether one was a Rosi crucian in centuries past cannot be done by the same standards as we use today. Because persons did not say they were Rosicrucians was not proof that they were not. To AMORC today, the indications of membership of celebrities of the past rest on four general points:

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE

AMORC



PAGE THREE

1) Personal revelation by the individual himself. 2) Works signed by a Rosicrucian symbolic name. 3) Traditional accounts from the Order itself referring to a person's affiliation. 4) Manuscripts and books containing terminology and symbols distinctly Rosicrucian. DISTINGUISHED PERSONS

We a re / °f course, proud of the distinguished persons affiliated with the Order in the past— and at the present. In themselves, however, such personalities add nothing to the personal advantages which are to be derived from membership in the Order. Who has affiliated, or who is a member now, adds no more profundity to the teachings, nor does it quicken one's consciousness and contribute to his enlight enment. If distinguished minds have contributed to the teachings, that is important by the fact of what they have discovered and taught. If they have made no direct contribution to the organiza tion, then their eminence is of no greater value to the Order or to the individual member than is any other name.

There are individuals who are constantly inquiring as to "what prominent persons have been, or are, affiliated with the Rosicru cian Order?" It is evident from their inquiries that such informa tion would be a determining factor for them as to whether or not they would become members of the Order. Psychologically, such per sons are seeking personal distinction vicariously. In other words, not having distinguished themselves or feeling unable to do so through personal effort, they "want to belong" to a group of emi nent persons. In this way— vicariously— they believe they will have eminence reflected upon themselves. We would like you to know, however, that many modern authori tative reference works— encyclopedias and dictionaries— refer to the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC, its history and its activities, in a precise and very complimentary way. We have issued a little book let entitled Recognition. You may already have found it; if not, you may obtain a free copy. This booklet contains photographic reproductions of articles appearing in the various dictionaries and encyclopedias which refer to the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC. In other words, this book reproduces exactly the articles as they appear in these reference works. Its particular value to the m e m ber is to show what our literary authorities have to say with regard to the Order other than what AMORC itself says about its activities. It does just what the book title designates; it shows recognition.

Temple Section

ELEVENTH DEGREE


AMORC


PAGE FOUR

We would like to add, too, that you may give this Recognition booklet to anyone to read. It: _is not limited to m e m b e r s . If you wish to have more than one copy, we ask you to please send a small remittance to cover mailing charges. With our next monograph we wish to depart from the subject matter of our previous study. We wish to enter more freely into a mystical subject which was introduced in the earlier Degrees. It concerns the origin and use of vowels with regard to their mysti cal and practical application to our lives. Our emotional being is the inner feeling of ourselves. The emotional self is directly related to the psychic side of man. In the emotional sense we are a feeling being as much as we are a physical or a mental one. However, the emotional feelings are quite different from the tactile, perceptive ones. The tactile sense, the one concerned with touch, has such qualities, for ex ample, as sensing hot and cold, hard and soft, rest and motion Emotion, though feeling, has none of these qualities. However, it can cause a physical reaction which does produce physical sensa tions. Nevertheless, we can feel depressed, elated, angry, happy, etc., and yet none of these feelings are related to the feeling of touch. Our emotions can be aroused internally and externally. Our thoughts can so affect us as to excite our emotions. We can recall experiences that cause us to feel happy or others that may make us feel sad or fearful. Also, what we perceive externally, that is see or hear for example, may cause an immediate emotional response. This is where the value of vowel intonations can be seen. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V


H Most eminent Rosicrucians of the past lived in times that were not generally as liberal as now. if In fact, many subjects taught and more or less proclaimed by AMORC today would have been thought heretical by the public three centuries ago. 11 Because o f such conditions, the Rosicrucian Order in centuries past flourished sub rosa. It did so to prevent persecution of its members by fanatical religionists. 11 Because of persecution, membership cards or printed identifications were not issued to members in the past as they are today. A casual inquirer would never learn who were members of the Rosicrucian Order. H Those who did w rite about the Order in a public way usually used pseudonyms. H I f a distinguished individual of the past made no direct contribution to the organization, then his eminence is of no greater value to the Order or to the individual member than is any other name. H Our emotional self is the inner feeling o f ourselves. It is truly related to the psychic side of man.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. 'Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT There are still areas of society today in which it is difficult for a member to reveal his affiliation with the Order. The range of areas stretches from countries to families. Some of you may find it hard to believe that some members still cannot disclose to other family members the fact of their membership. I f the disclosure were made, they would by The fear by these family members of new knowledge, or anything that might take their husband, wife, sister, or brother away from them, either physically or mentally, causes them to raise their defenses, and one of their primary defenses is to make the interested party feel guilty of having done wrong. Today there are still countries that ban Rosicrucians from having public meetings. There are some that officially ban the Order’s existence there. In light of this, consider again the Medifocus exercise. While it is primarly directed toward world leaders, the same process can be applied to family members or any others who are not tolerant of your membership.

literally be “turned o f f ’ some of the family.

This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or p u rch ase b y a nyon e . pu rc h a se

m ay

malte the seller a n d

p u rc h a se r subje ct to

A sale or

civil liability.

This monograph always remains the property of the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. It is not purchased by, but loaned to, the receiving member. I JtaitdZfc

D ^ r ee 11

3=

M onograph 88

S' ~ 4 h £ W

g. I

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^ Si

Degree 11

M onograph 88

lotfarfSrur# 179

§

The matter contained herein is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the “printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I


v

V

y -1-■ J

f|j As our monograph explains, man has been an emotional being far longer than he has been a rational one. How to reconcile these two influences v\,upon human behavior, or which should command the other, has long been a polemic subject of philosophers, metaphysicians, and mystics. Below we quote an excerpt on the subject from the writings of the famous philosopher, Descartes.

W I

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Our passions cannot likewise be directly excited or removed by the action of our will, but they can be so indirectly by the representation of things which are usually united to the passions which we desire to have, and which are contrary to those which we desire to set aside. Thus, in order to excite courage in oneself and remove fear, it is not sufficient to have the will to do so, but we must also apply ourselves to consider the reasons, the objects or examples which persuade us that the peril is not great; that there is always more security in defence than in flight; that we should have the glory and joy of having vanquished, while we could expect nothing but regret and shame for having fled, and so on. - R E N E D E S C A R T E S , 1596-1650

Temple Section

AMORC

ELEVENTH DEGREE

N U M B E R EIGHTY-EIGHT


PAGE ONE

Beloved Members, Greetings! Though modern psychology is concerned with the nature and function of the emotions and what induces them, the ancients also had their understanding of them. They used sound and gestures to produce desired emotional and psychic states. Mantra is an ancient word to indicate particular words, sounds, and acts used to engen der psychic states of consciousness. During the Vedic Age of ancient India, mantra was a word applied to hymns addressed to the gods. Later, the mantras acquired a special meaning of their own. Eventually, the very intonation of the mantras was considered all-powerful. This meant that certain vibratory forces were locked within the very utterances of the word, or within the intonations of the vowels of which it was composed. In the ancient Vedic lit erature is the phrase, "The universe is under the power of the gods; the gods are under the power of the mantras." MANTRAS Mantras are common in the Asian countries and particu larly among the Hindus. Nearly every Hindu religious rite, form of blessing, and even aspects of domestic ceremonies contain mantras. They are also used in adjuration, that is, the imploration of the gods and the taking of solemn oaths. Now we are going to delve deeply into the use of mantras and their vowel con tent. We hope to disclose more fully than previously the power and the efficacy of these sounds and their relationship to speech. Is there a latent power in speech? Does it lie enshrined within the human voice? Down through the centuries there has been a magical quality associated with words and utterances which have been thought to have an inherent creativity. In fact, miracles have been attributed to the mere pronouncement of words. These notions are firmly fixed in cosmology, philosophy, and history. In our times they are an accepted belief and a part of the practice of millions of persons. This conception of the efficacy of words and human utterances can be traced to the dawn of history. It is most closely related to cosmology, that is, creation of the universe and of all being. The ancient Egyptian city of Memphis, once the capital of that land, was the site of a powerful priesthood. Ptah was the god which they served. In remote ages Ptah had been the patron god of artisans and craftsmen. It was said that Ptah communicated designs to the artificers for architectural and industrial arts. However, as the centuries passed, the priests further contemplated this relationship to craftsmen. Since Ptah communicated ideas \ / for design to craftsmen, then perhaps he, too, was a y*?/ creator, they assumed. From this there then evolved the \/ idea that Ptah was a master workman; the universe was his workmanship.

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Subsequently the priests declared Ptah to be a Supreme Being. They said that all things first began in the mind of Ptah. This was the first teleological theory in the history of man. In other words, it was then that the belief in a Universal Mind as a cause in itself first arose. But the priests went even further; they declared it took Ptah's spoken word to materialize his thoughts— to bring them into existence. One of these ancient priests relates in a poem how Ptah objec tified his thoughts by means of spoken words. He said, "Ptah, the great, is the mind and tongue of the gods. . . . It (the mind) is one that bringeth forth every successful issue. . . Ptah, from whom proceeded the power of the mind and of the tongue." Cultures and civilizations quite remote from each other ex pressed similar ideas regarding the creative power of spoken words. The Sumerians considered formally spoken words, such as commands, to be definite and real things. Such words were thought to have a special power if they were uttered by a priest or deity. Words which the priests attributed to the gods Enlil and Marduk were said to be true. This meant they were an entity, a vital thing in themselves. The Sumerian word Mummu meant creative reason, that which creates all things. Here again we see reason or mind joined with the spoken word to denote power and creativity. The Babylonian priests said the god Marduk was the creator of the world, and they likewise identified him with the word M u m m u . A Sumerian temple record of 28 50 B.C. contains the phrase, "The word which he spoke shakes the heavens." Another passage referring to God says, "The word which on high shaketh the heavens— the word which beneath causes earth to tremble." THE SUMERIANS

Tê Sumerians influenced other ancient peoples, particularly the Semites. We find in a Semitic writing the phrase: "The word of Enlil rushes forth and eye beholds it not." Again referring to the god Enlil, a Semitic in scription reads: "The utterance of thy mouth is a beneficent wind, the breath of life of the lands." Comparison of the Hebrew theology with earlier writings dis closes much similarity between them. There is an obvious syncre tism, that is, a borrowing and blending. For example, a passage of one of the old Psalms written after the Exodus is similar to Babylonian theology. It reads: "By the word of Yehweh were heavens created, and by the breath of his mouth all their hosts." In the New Testament, John 1:1, there is this statement: "In the beginning was the W o r d r aQd the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Note the monadical relationship o^~ God and fiis word; they are made one and the same real-

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The Hebrew kabala is another conception of the creation of the universe by the efficacy of voice. The Sepher Yezirah, one of the books of the kabala, literally means "Book of Creatio n ." The first written reco£d--©£— the kabala dates baclc to about the sixth century. Traditionally, however, it is held that the work dates back to antiquity. The word Sepher is associated with a word which means r\umerical emanation and denotes power emanating by number. Briefly, the book e x p o u n d s t h a t the attributes' aha quality of deity are symbolized by the numbers 1 to 10. Some are male and others female. The first mimber, O n e , is said to be indivisible and in capable of multiplication. For example, 1 x 1 = 1 and 1 -4- 1 = 1. But we are told that the number 1 has a reflection of itself by which it brings about the dyad or number 2. From out of this emanation of numerals come air and 22 letters of speech. In the combining of the 22 letters into pairs all of creation came into existence. In the Sepher Yezirah it is said, "And from nothingness did, makp gnm^t-fring in all forms of speech and every ereated_th i n g ." The early Greeks of the Miletus school of philosophy said: "The cosmi r snhsi-anrp is rejsnnj wisdom, and harmo n y ." This cor responds to the qualities attributed to the ancient Babylonian word Mummu. The Stoics said that God is law working through the universe, and they called this law'~LOtrgS'. They- said LogosT is thought andZgiind" expressed in action. Logos is the soul and the word mani fest i n g ~ I n ~matter~andrTn^neuma ^ d r _Bre^'KTZ]^g!I^tice- the similarity in this to the ancient Egyptian teachings and the claims made 2000 years earlier for the god Ptah who was said to have created the universe by the transformation of thought irvgg~~speech;---The very name of God in Jewish philosophy was a sacred and in effable word not be spoken. In all the ancient cultures certain words were considered as having a divine, creative power. Certain words of purity were uttered by the Greeks before a divine service. In the New Testament, John— ^£s.us s a y s , /'The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." SPEECH

From the viewpoint of psychology and physiology, speech is a transmission of power. It is the means by which man qan noticeably influence other human beings at a distanced He can impose the vibrations ot his voice~upon theîir which j e c o m e s a medium tog him. MAh's voice, therefore, is not only action- in~ it self but it also causes 'other men ’tcT act. We think of speech as being effective principally in language, that is, as conveying an intelligence from one mind to anoth e r . At first,' however, Speech invoked the emotions"ancr~psychic responses, not intellectual response, in other human beings.

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Language arose from the imitation of sounds commonly heard. Men have imitated their own emotional interjections and utterances. They made such sounds as shouting, howling, stamping, and tearing into a language. But most important, the first speech evolved out of emotional cries and shouts. These sounds affect basic human feelings. For example, there are such natural interjections as A h , U g h , H m m , and S h . E. B. Tylor, noted ethnologist, in his work Primitive Cul t u r e , cites some interesting examples. A sudden pain that is not too severe causes a sucking-in of the breath. This in turn causes the sound Oohi We also instinctively and emotionally react at times by blowing something away. Expelling air in this way causes the sound P o o s h . Hissing is a primitive emotional interjection. Anger causes a violent expelling of air which causes a roaring sound. Surprise and astonishment cause the mouth to open and produce a short, quick inhalation of air and the common sound Ah. Emotional outbursts of enthusiasm by primitive peoples produces the loud sound Ra, which denotes the responsive vitality_of the person. M any languages incorporate combinations of these sounds, such as ---our English' word Hurrah^ “ Therefore we see that the emotional tone and the vowel tone are connected. It has been said, "An emotional tone may be defined as a vowel whose particular musical quality is that produced by the human vocal organs when adjusting to a particular state of feeling." Our feelings, our psychic and emotional responses, cause us to emit sounds and words which express them. Obviously, then, such emotional vowels produce similar emotions in other humans. Dogs also react to a human cry of pain even though no language is used. Consonants are not musical vibrations as are vowels; they are just sounds which accompany them, but in language we use them in connection with words. Although the acquisition of full speech must have been a slow growth, there is no race, no matter how primitive, of which we have knowledge, that is devoid of the ability of transmitting ideas from one to another by articulate language. E. B. Tylor says in this regard: "No matter how low the savage, he has an articulate lan guage, carried on by a whole system of sounds and meanings, which serves the speaker as a sort of catalogue of the conditions of the world he lives in, taking in every subject he thinks about and en abling him to say what he thinks about it." Have you a pet animal such as a dog or a cat, or does your neighbor have one? Have you analyzed the different cries or sounds which they emit? Such are emotional responses to their feelings. It is, in a sense, an elementary language. Man at one time formed language from such vocal

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interjections. Try to determine the particular feeling had by an animal from the sounds it vocally transmits. Do you recognize similar emotions in yourself? Would any natural interjections, cries, or sounds made by yourself have any basic similarity to tho those of the animals to which you listen? This is, shall we say, a scientific or analytical approach to a mystical subject which we are to further study. Ponder the results of your investigation in your Sanctum. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

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Below is a summary of the important principles of this monograph. It contains the essential statements which you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete monograph, try to recall as many as you can of the important points you read. Then read this summary and see if you h^ve forgotten any. Also refer to this summary during the ensuing week to refresh your memory.

U Mantra is an ancient word to indicate particular words, sounds, and acts to engender psychic states of consciousnes. 11 From the viewpoint of psychology and physiology, speech is a transmission of power. H Language arose from the imitation of sounds commonly heard. U An emotional tone may be defined as a vowel whose particular musical quality is that produced by the human vocal organs when adjusting to a particular state of feeling.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvent to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish

.—UNTO THEE I GRANT

As individuals we obviously have different sensitivities to kinds of sounds. What soothes one person might not soothe another. Sounds which are actually irritating to us may be inspiring to others. Some people like to whistle. Some like to hum. Some sing tunes. They choose a sound that pleases them, that somehow heightens their attunement with the immediate environment Millions of people immerse themselves in sounds they love, through electronic sound reproduction equipment. The use of vowel sounds, aw practiced by mystics, has many practical and psychological effects. Different vowels have different effects on people. The note on which vowels are sounded may also differ in effect for various classes of persons. The vowel AUM for example, may serve one person best when sounded on the musical “A,” while another person may respond better when it is sounded on the “C.” The vowel on any key is a powerful sound. You may try sounding this, quietly, on different keys until you find one to which you are particularly responsive, and which for you is pleasant and comfortable to sound.


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The matter contained herein is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which ■was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts” as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

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THE CONCURRENCE This Week’s Consideration of a Famous O pinion

V V V •J We take speech, language, and communication as a matter of course. It is an instrument or tool that we use constantly for the expression of our avenues of human interest and activity. We hardly ever appreciate the full significance of that tool. Since this monograph concerns speech as a means of communication and as the point for the development of language, it is appropriate that we quote from a work by Dr. J. Vendryes, Professor at the University of Paris.

An instrument and, at the same time, an auxiliary of thought, it is language which has enabled man both to understand himself and to communicate with his fellows, and this fact has made the establishment of society possible. It is difficult for us to even imagine a primitive state of affairs in which man was without this efficacious means of action. The history of humanity presupposes at the very start the existence of an organized language; there could have been no human evolution without it. - D R . J. VENDRYES

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Beloved Members, Greetings! When did speech, somewhat in the manner we have suggested, begin? There is no agreement among philologists and anthropolo gists. There are those who think that it preceded flint toolmaking, and others who think of it as being subsequent. It would seem more logical, in my opinion, that crude speech was coeval with the making of such implements. The actual creating of objects to serve man and words to express his thoughts and feelings were alike de pendent upon an intellectual capacity for employing means of extending the powers of self. When man was once able to be so conscious of his acts and to cogitate upon them, as, for example, to realize that he had picked up a stone and had thrown it as a projectile, he would then also be able to discern that he had used a certain interjection to ex press his feelings. The voluntary objectivity of the feelings and thoughts of man must, in their crudest form, have occurred at about the same period of his development. However, articulate speech is a later function of man accord ing to the assumptions of anthropologists. They assume that man attained an erect position and full use of his arms before acquir ing the faculty of speech. In the cortex, the outer layer of the brain, the portion related to speech is a much later development than any other function. In fact, this portion of the brain does not appear until shortly after birth. HAECKEL, THE NATURALIST

Haeckel, the famous naturalist, points out that the Pithecanthropus erectus (apelike man) had a brain, the development of which was sufficient presumably to support the faculty of intelligence providing for articulate speech. There is a strong probability that man existed for a considerable time as a fairly intelligent being without the power to extend his thought by means of speech. He had, of course, been able to utter cries but was unable to utilize his vocal powers intentionally to frame ideas as articulate language. Thus, that portion of the brain controlling speech would be a much later development of a highly organized being. In the study of embryology it is noted that the section of the cerebral cortex (outer brain) governing the movement of the arms occurs early in the unborn child— usually in the middle of the sixth month. The portion of the cortex devoted to speech assumes shape later. Shortly after birth this portion of the brain is still not fully developed. In fact, it is not developed until after the first year of infancy. From this, it is assumed that man first acquired the ability to stand erect and to coordinate his arms before acquiring speech.

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In other words, man was able to direct the movements of his arms and make them serve a purpose before he had sufficient intellectual development to formulate speech. Even though the most highly developed of the primates, the apes, have the rudiments of speech, like dogs they must express emotions in grimaces and gestures. Since the most primitive man does speak, that accomplishment in itself constitutes a tremendous mental gap between primates and man. Those who contend that the genus homo (Human) is an offspring of the apes will admit that man did not acquire speech until he had at least dispersed into the various races of man. Speech must have begun with vowels, for they are, as we shall see, the natural uttering of vocal sounds. The known use of vowels in speech dates back to the earliest records which we possess to day. Plutarch indicates that the ancients were much concerned with the importance of the vowels in speech and tried to explain their formation. In his Symposiaca, while referring to the vowel a and its connection with the first letter of the Greek alphabet, he has one of the characters say: "... it is the first articulate sound that is made— for the air in the mouth is formed and fashioned by the motion of the lips; now, as soon as those are opened, that sound breaks forth, being very plain and simple, not requiring or depending upon the motion of the tongue but gently breathed forth while that (the tongue) is still* And, therefore, that is the first sound that children make." FORMATION OF VOWELS

How are vowels formed? Situated in the larynx, is a pair of vibratory membranes called vocal ^cords. They gfre TocatgcT~a€r the upper end oT~tKe winclpipe, and the air- pa.ctsing through tHeirPcauses tHem to flap or vibrate. In the human voice the musical effect df~'th'S~vil5ratifig vocal cords is increased by the cavity of the mouth which acts as a sounding board. The changing shape of the mouth as we speak or sing acts to modify the quality of the sound produced. We can imitate the larynx mechanically and demonstrate its function by stretching a thin sheet of rubber over the open end of a tube, and then slit ting it into two halves. When we blow through the tube, the rubber flaps will vibrate in a way that is similar to the vibration of the vocal cords when we expel air through them in speaking or singing. Any auditory quality, regardless of pitch, depends upon harmo nious overtones accompanying the original fundamental tone. This quality depends upon the various positions of the mouth. This fact can be very easily established, as well as its importance in connection with the forming of

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vowels. Strike a Jew's harp; place its vibrating tongue in front of the mouth, and it acts as a substitute for the vibrating vocal cords. Then, by simply putting the mouth in the proper position for speaking the vowels a,e,£,o, and u, the vowel sounds are pro duced by the various positions of the cavity of the mouth. Thus we see how vowels are natural sound formations. We know the physical effect of sound on our environment. sonic boom caused by jet planes is a common example.

The

Objects that are in resonance, that is, having the same rate of vibration, can often be seen to vibrate together. If we strike one of two tuning forks that are in resonance, for instance, the other will be seen to also vibrate. Dissonant vibrations can often shatter or cause changes in the physical form of things. Fine glassware can be shattered by certain notes sung by the human voice. The human organism is a vibrating entity. Further, it has receptor organs and psychic centers that are responsive to partic ular vibratory stimuli. Such psycjiic ceiaters are, for example, the Pituitary, p i neal, and th y r o i d ~glands ■glands and bodies. When they are stimulated by certain vibrations,' their functions may be either accelerated or depressed. Particularly noticeable to early man was the effect that certain combinations of sounds had upon him emotionally and psychically. Certain words were "not mere collec tions of syllables with tone accent." They were a "chanted" speech. "The rhythmic note and tone constituted the essential element." Such words were considered voice magic because of their effect upon m a n ’s feelings and thought. The feelings produced by the vibrations of the voice "suggested power, life, and vitality." BEGINNING OF CHANTING

This was the beginning of chanting which can be traced to remote Babylonian tablets. Some of these ancient tablets show words (ideographs) used as a chant. The vowels a,e,i,o, and u were placed at the beginning, the middle, and the end of the lines of writing. It is conjectured by archeologists that the a stood for an even tone; the _i for sublime, exalted, high tones; the u for deep and thunderlike tones. On one tablet the e is placed over aa and in another the i_ over _i. There is no interpretation of these mysterious characters. In Indian philosophy there are what are known as ragas. These are melodic phrases or melodies. Legend says that five of these ragas were first uttered by the god Shiva, and the sixth by another deity. Each raga consists of several notes. In the Upanishads, ~p?art of the Vedic literature of India, the syllable AUM is the vocative symbol of the Supreme Spirit.

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It stands for three primeval qualities: A for Brahma or Creator, U for Vishnu or Preserver, and M for Shiva or Destroyer. Man learned that certain words and combinations of vowels had either a beneficial or harmful effect upon him. Thus he intoned them for their psychological and physiological effects rather than for any intellectual purpose. The ancient sages, at a very early date, must have discovered in their temple liturgies and rites the effect of the combination of certain vowels and consonants upon the psychic man. The intonations of such sounds produce vibrations that are not only transmitted into the surrounding air but pass through one's own being to stimulate the various psychic centers and to produce the beneficial effects explained in our Rosicrucian teachings. These special words found their way into the sacred writings and literature of philosophical and religious orders. Sometimes these were just the intonation of the vowels without any special thought related to them. From the different cosmogonies, the theories of creation such as we have considered, decended a legend. This legend is that at one time all the vocal power that created the universe was contained in one Word. That Word was a secret wisdom of man. It is related that man betrayed his cosmic trust and then fell from his high or privileged estate. The Word then became lost, and ever since it has been sought in various ways. In another monograph we shall discuss more fully the ideas connec ted with the Lost Word, the traditions, legends, and facts concern ing it. Many chants of Tibetan and Buddhist sects are said to incorpo rate parts of this lost word. It is but another way in w h ich man seeks to experience a harmonious relationship wittr'KTs GocT~and the Cosmic. " Aside from any psychic effect they may have, words are power ful as symbols of thought. Sir Francis Bacon said, "Men suppose their reason has command over their words; still it happens that words ixLTraturrr^xgrcise authority on reason." Both the vocative and written w ords can be dynamic, and once their“force is released they' are not~â[s1rty_c<5htr:b T I e d . “T h e r e f o r e , nothing should be more care fuTIy~seTee ted\ “ Sound has a very important impact upon our nervous systems. In fact, many sounds of which we are not aware any longer because they have become habitual are, nevertheless, detrimental to us. Some of them are many decibels, that is, units of vibra tions, beyond that to which we should ordinarily be ex posed in order to maintain good health. Loud dance music from radio or television, the loud, constant clatter of

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typewriters or other m a chines, traffic no ises and the like, can be injurious to our pTiysTcal and psychic beings over ~TgTig,~periods oI t i m e . ------------ -~ ------------ ---’ While in your Sanctum give thought to the sounds to which you are exposed each day. Consider which may have been annoying even slightly. What ones on the other hand have you found quieting and relaxing? When you have analyzed such sounds, try to determine what portion or combination of them has had the most effect upon you. In our next monograph we shall begin with a study of just what mantras are--physically, psychically, and mystically. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resoluest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT Sound vibrations originating in yourself affect both the sound-producing as well as the soundreceiving areas of only does the vibratory pattern of a vowel, for example, stimulate the body in the areas of the throat and mouth, but it stimulates brain centers through the ears and the tissue of the head. Sound produces both physiological and psychological effects, since sound vibrations themselves actually touch off sympathetic frequencies throughout the body, and the harmonics, or lack of harmonics, of the vibrations affect the feelings of a person.

the body. Not

Try this on yourself by listening to a sampling of different sounds; like a car horn, someone yelling, a recording of loud, dissonant music, a recording of soft and mellow melodies, or someone speaking quietly in normal conversation. Be aware of the physical properties of the sound vibrations and their effect on your nervous system. Exposure to them for any length of time could actually bring physical pain, or physical well-being. Then be aware of their psychological impact, whether not they make you feel pleasant, ImlaBle, frightened, at ease, or depressed?

oF

YouFsound environment can be more important than you might normally think it is. By working with it, you may find a significant area of help in some physical or psychological disturbances.


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H Speech began most probably when man was conscious that he used certain interjections to express his feelings.

11 The faculty o f speech is a much later development in the cortex (outer layer of the brain) than any other function. 1} Speech must have begun w ith vowels, for they are the natural utterings o f vocal sounds. 1f The human organism is a vibrating entity. It has receptive organisms and psychic centers that are responsive to particular vibratory stimuli.

11 Man learned that certain words and combinations of vowels had either a beneficial or harmful effect upon him.

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The matter contained herein is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts” as authorized by the Iniperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

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THE CONCURRENCE This Week’s Consideration o f a Famous Opinion V

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^ As has been stated to you, the Upanishads are ancient Vedic (Indian) treatises. They discuss in philosophical style the nature of the universe and of man. In this excellent collection of literature are numerous mantras. Below we quote from one of these mantras.

Harih, Oml May Mitra be propitious to us, and Varuna, Aryaman also, Indra, Brihaspati, and the wide-striding Vishnu. Adoration to Brahman! Adoration to thee, O Vayu (air)! Thou indeed art the visible Brahman. I shall proclaim thee alone as the visible Brahman. I shall proclaim the right. I shall proclaim the true (scil. Brahman). May it protect me! May it protect the teacher! yes, may it protect me, and may it protect the teacher! Om! Peace! peace! peace!

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Beloved Members, Greetings! In order to clarify mystical syllables and words, certain terms must be classified. The word mantra will be used as a gen eral term meaning any syllables or words used for mystical or psy chic purposes. Basically mantras may be classified in three categories: intonations, music, and incantations. These will be discussed as we proceed. First, however, it must be clear that in this sense sound refers to vocal sounds produced by human beings in the form of vowels, syllables, words, and formulas. The vocal sound may or may not be accompanied by musical instruments. MANTRAS

Mantras, like language, are essentially vocal sounds rather than written letters or images. To use RA as an example, the mantra consists of the sounds R and A which are pro duced by the vocal cords and mouth. It is this sound that is the basic element. The written letters may be considered as symbols, but they are secondary symbols dependent upon the function and meaning of the sound.

Mantras must be more than affirmations used to suggest ideas and emotions to the subconscious mind. They have a structure, function, and significance which goes beyond mere affirmations. They are not just mottoes to be repeated by rote or which are sup posed to have an automatic effect. If you will permit a personal reference, I would like to refer to an experience I had on a journey into Tibet. Our party composed a Rosicrucian Camera Expedition traveling from India through the principality of Sikkim into Tibet. We were doing a professional sound and color film for AMORC as well as taking many still photo graphs for publication in the Rosicrucian Digest and in other peri odicals. Our location in Tibet was in an area that was subse quently occupied by the Red Chinese. We were, because of our Rosicrucian association and esoteric affiliations, permitted to film inside lamaseries that were centuries old but which were still in daily use. Adjoining one of the lamaseries we visited was a school, at least so we might term it, for the instruction of the lamas. Each such body of simple lamas were under the direction and tutorship of an abbot. The abbot was a scholar well versed in the Sanskrit language and mystical philosophy as well as the local dialects. The average lama, however, was a part-time agricultural worker or simple craftsman. His education was very lim ited, contrary to popular opinion caused by the dissem ination of fictional occult literature in the Western

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world. The majority of these lamas could read, but many were il literate. They were not versed in any esoteric lore other than the Lamaistic rituals and teachings. The instruction in this school was for several hours daily. The students sat on wooden benches on each side of the structure across from each other, with an aisle down the center. At the opposite end from the entrance on a dais was seated the abbot or director. Certain mantras were read to them by him, and they in turn chanted them. To these lamas, however, these mantras were supposed to have an effect within themselves. The words were thought to have a magical quality as mere affirmations without any regard for their tonal or vocal content. They were recited again and again in a singsong manner until they were learned by rote. Subsequently, the lamas would merely come to speak the phrase or words they had learned without any regard for their vibratory content. They entirely failed to have the proper connotation of a mantra. The words were thought of solely in a supernatural, that is, in a magical sense. It must be realized, therefore, that the purpose of mantras is not to produce a trance or hypnotic state in the individual. They are meant to assist in achieving attunement and to affect cer tain aspects of the physical and psychic nature of man and his surroundings. Mantras, as we shall see, have a psychic or mystical function which precludes using them either as routine affirmations or to produce automatic effects. When, as said, they are used in the latter ways, they are not true mantras; either they were never so or they have degenerated in their use and function. This is some times true of liturgy in religious ritual. The meaning of the mantras is projected from the mind to the form which it assumes. The form (the word, for example) is simply the objective aspect until the meaning is associated with and pro jected to it. Let us take the example of the Rosy Cross. We learn the meaning of the Rosy Cross or the Temple., and we project that meaning to the cross or the Temple. The Temple is sacred only because we project those emotions and ideas to it. The thought and emotions, the projection of them, is objective and is considered as if it belongs to the form. We feel that the meaning and form are a single unit, and they are— in the mind. In other words, the form, the objective aspect, becomes the vehicle for the idea and *----- , the emotion.

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ASSUMPTION

In using and meditating on the symbol or mantra, the student assumes the meaning. It becomes part of his consciousness and experience to the point that he _is the m e a n i n g ; he assumes the meaning. This is an example of the law of assump tion which was discoursed upon in earlier monographs. The meaning is then projected again to the form. Let us use a little analogy to make this clearer. When we enter a Rosicrucian Temple or Sanctum we project the meaning of sacredness to it, but we assume that feeling again from the place. Consequently there is established a constant interaction. there fore, the mantra as a symbol is kept alive in the mind. During this process new phases of meaning arise and are made conscious, and this becomes a basic part of mystical development.

When the vowel sound AUM or the Lost Word MATHREM as given in our Rosicrucian teachings are used, the vibratory form and meaning are associated in the mind, and the meaning is projected to the form. In meditation the meaning or significance is assumed, and it affects the understanding thus making the mantra more effective. But the form and meaning, the vibratory effect and the symbolic significance are one unit composed of elements which are insepara ble and which influence each other. When a mantra or symbol degenerates, it loses some of the pro cess of projection and assumption. Hence a mantra may be kept alive and effective by meditation and proper use. Though the word God is not a mantra in the sense of its par ticular vocative or vibratory effect in the various languages, nevertheless it can become equally effective in its form or objec tive state. In other words, we project to the word God a spiritual meaning, a meaninq which represents the most profound, the most responsive and exalted psychic emotion which we can experience. It depicts to the spiritually minded the transcendent symbol of their moral sense. The word God is then an objective frame in which they have ensconced those higher thoughts and feelings of self. Sub sequently when one is saying the word or thinking of it, there is engendered within such an individual a responsive feeling corre sponding to the original significance which he projected and associated with the word. BASIC PRINCIPLES There are certain basic principles pertainIN MANTRAS ing to the mantras which should be dis cussed both as a means of reviewing some things that have already been said and by the way of stressing their importance.

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F i r s t , the mantra, like ritual and psychic experience, is not an end in itself. It is a means, an aid, and an instrument in attaining certain primarily psychic and mystical effects that have often been related in the monographs. When a mantra, ritual, or psychic experience becomes an end in itself, it sidetracks the student or the initiate from his main purpose which is attunement. It can then be a sideroad leading to pleasant experiences and feelings which, however, prevent the individual from achieving higher levels of consciousness. In fact, each accomplishment, be it mantra, psychic experi ence, evolved consciousness, greater mental and physical powers, should follow the other. Each should be a cause in relation to the next higher condition or state which is its effect. Develop ment is progressive and in a hierarchial order. One should never believe or feel that he has reached a climax. Some individuals conceive of Cosmic Consciousness as the summum bonum (the highest good) of personal experience. True, it may be the highest mystical achievement— but for what purpose? Those who attain Cosmic Consciousness have the moral obligation to apply it, to utilize it in some manner. While there is life and consciousness, no matter at what level, there is the obligation on the part of the individual to direct that consciousness to an end. It should be an end formulated or inspired by the state of con sciousness which the individual has attained. Now, secondly, when a mantra becomes an end in itself or when it is used automatically like a pushbutton, it is then used essen tially for. magical, superstitious, or semi-hypnotic effects and purposes. Such constitutes a degradation of its true nature and purpose. It is used as a sign or signal rather than a symbol, an instrument. When this happens the objective mind takes over the use of the mantra, and it loses its association with the deeper subconscious levels of meaning and with the subconscious function of the mantra. What is required then to make the mantra effective again is meditation on the sound, its vibratory effect, and sym bolical significance as well as concentration on its use. This returns the previous subconscious meaning and function to the sub conscious where they belong in order to keep the symbolical mantra alive. We wish you to kindly prepare your Sanctum as usual. Then, while seated and relaxed, recall what symbols— as forms, designs, signs, or gestures— you may have established or adapted to repre sent your innermost psychic, spiritual, or moral feelings. You have certain lofty, exalted ideas and feelings that are of your personality. What symbolizes them? When you recall these symbols, remember that they are the form,

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just the shell of the mantra. The meaning of the symbol or the mantra is projected to it by your mind, and that is the real and vital part. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V

Below is a summary of the important principles of this monograph. It contains the essential statements which you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete monograph, try to recall as many as. you can of the important points you read. Then read this summary and see if you have forgotten any. Also refer to this summary during the ensuing week to refresh your memory.

H The word m antra w ill be used as a general term m eaning any syllables or words used for mystical or psychic purposes. H Mantras, like language, are essentially vocal sounds rather than w ritten letters or images. 11 The m eaning o f the m antras is projected from the m ind to the form w hich it assumes. 11 In using and m editating on the symbol, or m antra, the student assumes the meaning. It becomes part of his consciousness and experience to the point that he is the meaning. 11 To make the m antra effective there must be m editation on the sound, its vibratory effect, and symbolic significance as well. H The form o f the m antra, that is, the word, is simply the objective aspect until the m eaning is associated and projected to it.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT The concept of a mantra is often exploited by commercial organizations. As the monograph states, there is a magic quality implied, such as is implied in a charm or amulet. The magic quality appeals to people who are looking for instant resolution to a problem or desire. How nice it would be if you could just stand in front of the new car you want, utter a mantra several times, and have the car; or if you could pass an examination at school, have harmony in the home, get advancement at work, or any such major achievements, by simply uttering a mantra. Instant mysticism is what a lot of people would like to have. Many new students of AMORC write and ask us why we don’t go faster, why the monograph materials cannot be geared to different levels of assimilation. It does not matter how many monographs you receive in a given period of time. That is not going to change the rate at which you are developing within. You can change your inner rate of development by more practice and exercise, but more external direction going to do that for you. Keep in mind that it is not so much what you are reading or Baying from without that counts in your development, but what you are thinking and doing from within.

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The matter contained herein is officially Issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge or A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and Is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

I


V V V C| What are symbols? What are they intended to convey? How do they arise? How may they be used? To a great extent these monographs you are now receiving, which are concerned with and 1 answer these questions. However, we are quoting briefly below, as a concurrence with certain ideas presented in this monograph, an excerpt from a work by an eminent professor of psychology.

vowel sounds,

mantras

In more complicated situations the important information involves materials further removed and detached from any resemblance to one's own actual contact with things. The entire situation then is conducted upon a symbolic plane. Naturally enough the situations and conditions to which the knowledge reactions are orientations may be completely theoretical and abstract problems or situations, having no direct connection with concrete events. -D R . J . R. K A N T O R , 1888-

AMORC

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Beloved Members, Greetings! Semantics is the study of the meaning of words, of the nature and function of meaning. Some semantic principles can be adapted to the meaning, that is, the significance and effect, of mantras. The power of mantras, as of any other word, lies in the fact that they are symbols used to express or convey effects, ideas, and emotions. Mantras, again like words, are formulations of the indi vidual's conception and awareness of himself and his surroundings. Each vowel sound, formula, or word has certain effects and signifi cance; by means of these man makes order out of certain aspects of his experiences, and he directs vibrations, energies, and responses by use of them. We may say that the power of mantras exists in their meaning but their function is twofold. Mantras help to make order and enable the individual to formulate order in his experience, in the impressions he receives, and the concepts in his mind. In the case of mantras, the second way in which they function is to affect the self and the n o t-self, psychically and mystically, as well as phys ically and psychologically. Mantras, those efficacious words and other sounds, are used by groups of people; these are the classes of society, the culture that creates them. At least to some degree they result from and are dependent upon the culture of the group and the ordinary lan guage it uses. Every group of people, as a nation and race or sect, influences both the language and the mantras; the individual also may influence or change the language or mantras to some ex tent. We know we form new concepts, new ideals, and to them we project, as said, certain feelings or emotional responses within ourselves. These, then, are new mantras. However, the individual, through his use of the established mantras and his language, is molded even more by them. In other words, his thoughts and emotions are conditioned by them. For example, as a Rosicrucian you have been given many new words and terms. More often they are familiar words to which you have come to attribute new meanings. The word C o s m i c , as an example, to you as a Rosicrucian is a mantra. It engenders certain beliefs, par ticular emotional feelings as you think of it, which perhaps before your membership you did not experience. The word Cosmic now has an influence upon your thinking in connection with spiritual, psy chic, and the higher emotional experiences, as well as representing \ 7 just the whole of reality in the physical sense.

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SYMBOLISM OF MANTRAS

Now let us delve into the symbolism of mantras which we have previously just referred to in a general way. The letters of AUM, for instance, are consid ered in the Upanishads to have symbolic meanings. You know, of course, that the Upanishads are a collection of profound treatises contained in Vedic literature (of ancient India) concerning the nature of the universe and of man. They are of the most ancient philosophical literature of India. One of the meanings of the letters of AUM is that they represent three stages of conscious ness: w a k i n g , sleep, and deep sleep. It is the three sounds which are symbolic of these three states.

Some intonations, no doubt, consist of words or symbols having no derivation from either living or dead language. They are sym bolic and have significance in the same way as other intonations, but their sound and meaning have not been derived from words of any language and have not been commonly used in any language. For analogy, have-you not often experienced that humming a certain tune or intoning a combination of syllables was harmonious to you— that is, it was a pleasing sound? Perhaps then you formulated a word, "coined" one, we might say, that to you represented that pleasing sound. The word you arbitrarily created perhaps had no meaning in any language, it was just a symbol, a mantra of the vibrations it included. Such is the word or intonation that constitutes your personal word as explained to you in earlier monographs. Symbols and symbolic objects and gestures may be used with mantras. For example, in Part I of the Initiation into the Third Neophyte Degree the vowel sound OOO-AH-EE is used with the gesture of raising the arms above the head. The Lost Word MATHRA is used in our Fourth Degree Initiation with the Sign of the Cross, the ladder, and perambulation which in this case is walking to the ladder and stepping on each rung. When mantras are used in a tem ple or sanctum, these and the symbolic objects in them are associ ated with the mantras as, for instance, the Rosy Cross and the Shekinah. Symbolic paintings, drawings, designs, and statues may be used for concentration purposes with mantras. The Hermetic Cross, the Rosy Cross, or Ankh (Egyptian looped cross) may be used with man tras and meditation in connection with their meaning. POLARITIES OF A SYMBOL

A symbol consists of form and meaning which are its two polarities or opposites. The form is the negative and essentially material. The meaning is positive and primarily subconscious and psychic.

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For example, the written word is a symbol. The positive aspect of it is the idea, the primary thought which it is intended to communicate. The material and negative aspect is the form, the vehicle for conveying or communicating the idea. The form or design of the Rosy Cross is the objective phase of that symbol. The meaning consists of the ideas and the emotions which are at tributed to it, that is, which the form is intended to represent and to evoke in us when we see it. The commonly accepted meaning of the Rosy Cross, you will recall, is man's physical body, de picted by the cross, with the soul personality represented by the rose in the center unfolding, evolving as it receives more illumi nation; that is, acquiring inner and outer experience while in the body. In this manner, the mantra has both form and meaning. The form consists of the physical, the sound vibrations. When, for example, we use MEH we produce the sound M and EH which are the negative element, the form. That particular sound acts to give a tonic effect to the psychic glands. That is part of the signifi cance of that vowel, its purpose. The diagram below represents this relationship. MANTRA (Symbol)

MEANING (Positive)

FORM (Negative)

The form and meaning of a symbol are associated in the mind of the individual who uses it. The main function of a mantra as well as any symbol is to transmit the meaning. For analogy, the word man represents a particular kind of being. When we say, "Man is a symbolizing animal," we are conveying information or knowledge by means of the words. Likewise, the vowel sounds RA and MA con vey a particular meaning or significance. They transmit something from one person to another, from one group to another, or simply from the individual to himself. Abstract paintings are a subjective type of art; that is, they are symbolic. They are not, of course, mantras but primarily they are the objectifying of an idea or of a psychic or emotional feel ing which the individual has had. The individual, the artist, for analogy, may have heard a symphonic orchestra in a concert. He was particularly responsive to a certain number which was played. There was a form, an idea, a

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mental picture which then becomes associated with his memory of the music. Subsequently, he, as an artist, would objectify the mental picture, that is, give it a form in painting or design. To others this abstract painting might mean nothing, as such paintings often do not, but to the artist it will always evoke the emotional feeling he had when he originally listened to the con cert. He was primarily, as said, transmitting a psychic or intel lectual state to himself by the painting he created. In other words, he was returning this feeling to himself or reviving it each time he would see the painting. On this occasion try a little experiment. Take a sheet of paper and pencil, place the paper on a desk or table. Then let your hand draw whatever design comes instantaneously into your mind. Do not think first about what you are to create. Just start to make the design guided by your own subconscious impulse. Now look at what you have created. What does it mean or suggest to you? What thought or meaning did you project into the material or objective design? You may cause it to represent what ever you feel and think it means to you. Your thought in connec tion with this is the positive polarity, and the form or design which you drew to represent it is the negative. Combined they are a kind of mantra. We would appreciate hearing from you with regard to these monographs and the special instructions now being sent to you. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V

Below is a summary of the important principles of this monograph. It contains the essential statements' which you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete monograph, try to recall as many as you can of the important points you read. Then read this summary and see if you have forgotten any. Also refer to this summary during the ensuing week to refresh your memory. f

Semantics is the study of the m eaning of words, of the nature and function o f meaning.

f

The power of mantras, as of any other word, lies in the fact that they are symbols used to express or convey effects, ideas, and emotions.

f

Each vowel sound, formula, or word has certain effects and significance; by means of these man makes order out of certain aspects of his experience.

H The Upanishads are a collection of treatises contained in the Vedic literature concerning the nature of the universe and man.

% Symbols and symbolic objects and gestures may be used w ith m antras. If A symbol consists of form and m eaning which are its two polarities or opposites. The form is negative and essentially m aterial. The m eaning is positive and prim arily subconscious and psychic.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish

.—UNTO THEE I GRANT

We have been discussing the use of certain words as mantras, in that we give special significance or meaning to them; words such as God, Cosmic, Rosy Cross, and so on. Using the triangle illustration as given in this monograph, see the word as a mantra. Contemplate its full meaning, and the possible effects it can have in your life when applied as a mantra should be applied. Remember, that just thinking or just saying does not bring you or others the effect of that concept. According to the triangle illustration, the word is the symbol. Thoughts, words, or acts of are the form. The meaning is inducing harmony, or attraction between parts. Does your use of the word or your use of the form of carry with it these meanings? When you think, act, or speak are you considering the object of your affection as well as your own feelings? This is where we often fail; to recognize that the true meaning of requires agreement or reciprocal feelings or response from an object of our otherwise there is no harmony. If we persist in our acts of toward another who is resisting them, we are not acting in accord with the meaning of and our triangle is not complete. We should thus redirect the form of to those persons or places, where its meaning is fulfilled.

love

love,

love

love,

love

love, love,

love,

love

love,

love,

love

love


"C o n se cra te d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to so la o r purc h ase b y a n yo ne . pu rc h a se

m ay

malce the

seller a n d

A sale or

p u rc h a se r subje ct to civil liability.

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Degree

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11 Monograph 92

Monograph 92

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R EG tSTER EO IN U.S. P A T E N T O F F IC E 1**150 REGISTERED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD) »»'NTtO IN o.».A.

The matter contained herein is officially issued through the Su preme Council of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the “printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies of officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts'* as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. Tne ownership of. the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and snail remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and 1s a violation of tne Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to gram the use of them to other allied organizations or movements.

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I


V V V In this monograph, in connection with the subject of mantras, we have referred to and the part it plays in the use of mantras. It seems, then, appropriate th a t we refer again to earlier comments on this subject appearing in our monographs. We quote such an excerpt below from Monograph thirty-eight of the N in th Degree.

assumption

First of all, ASSUMPTION means the exchanging of places, persons, and power. It is the most mystical of all processes, and one which must be experienced and demonstrated before you will really believe that such a thing is possible.

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Beloved Members, Greetings! As far as the symbolic significance is concerned, it is not the mantra, ritual, or symbol that does the influencing but the mind-to-mind attunement; that is, the attunement of the human mind ■with the Cosmic Mind. The mantra, ritual, or symbol is an external aid for an intellectual process. The mind by means of the mantra manifests effects. Not only is this true of symbolical signifi cance and effect, but the mental concentration and visualization used with the mantra act through the mind-to-mind attunement. No matter what its significance and effect are, the mantra must symbolize, mean, and correspond to the Divine and the Cosmic itself, in the world and in man, in order for it and man to be an agent in attunement. This is what the Upanishads mean when they say OM (or AUM) is Brahman. OM symbolizes, means, and corresponds to the Divine. To the subconscious or psychic mind the symbol and meaning are one. It is because of this essential unity, which is a kind of mystical oneness, that the symbol or mantra is what it is and has its effects. To put it more effectively, there must be a corresponding reaction between the psychic or cosmic element in man and the sym bol or mantra. If the symbol does not excite, motivate, or arouse a specific psychic feeling it has no mystical value. We do not favor amuletism, the wearing of medals and effigies depicting gods, saints, or deities. But in fact, those people who practice such a custom are making use of mantras. They believe there is an actual relationship between the object worn and the supernatural or cosmic influence which they attribute to it. This is, of course, pure magic. There is no actual bond between the article worn and the influence attributed to it. The mind of the believer has made the amulet or figurine come to represent actual psychic feelings which he has. Whenever he wears the amulet it suggests the feeling and, in contemplation of it, there is a reviv al of the original inner experience. The learned mystical philosopher realizes that such a medal lion or amulet is nothing more than a symbol. It contains no power or efficacy itself except the psychological effect of sugges tion which thereby stimulates or arouses the positive psychic quality.

\

Obviously, the more one understands what he is doing, the more effective he will be, and the better the results will be. This is equally true of the principles pertaining to man'7 tras or any other endeavor.

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Perhaps you would like to know the various ways in which man tras or sacred sounds and symbolic words can be used to advantage. We shall approach the subject from this viewpoint. There are four types of intonations: vowel sounds such as KHEI, MEH, and 00M; words such as MATHREM; formulas; and verses or sentences. Vowel sounds have been given in the rituals and exercises in the mono graphs. They are syllables consisting of one or two vowels and one or more consonants. KHEI is a vowel sound having the aspirated K, or KH sound, together with the dipthong El. 00M consists of the vowel 00 and the consonant M. A few vowel sounds such as EH have only the vowel. The word MATHREM or MATHRA is an example of the second kind of intonation. Such words consist of combinations of both vowels and consonants. The difference between a vowel sound and a word is the meaning of the word. But this meaning may be a commonly accepted one such as the meaning of the word God, or one only understood by initiates such as MATHRA. This is frequently a difficult distinc tion to make as we shall see presently. The third kind, formulas, in the mystical sense are a combina tion or series of syllables or words. The phrase God of My Heart may be used as a formula; that is, it may be used in order to achieve attunement and to affect the individual and his environ ment. Now for instance, the greeting Salutations on All Points of the T r i a n g l e , or the Latin Salutem Punctis TriangulX, or the words L i g h t , L i f e , and Love may be used as formulas in rituals, in medi tation, or during exercises. They are then intonations and a type of mantra. Your personal word which you received early in this Degree is included in one of these categories depending on whether it is a syllable, a word, or a formula. F o u r t h , any prayer, hymn, or inspirational piece can be used as a mantra; it can be intoned for mystical and psychic purposes. Its significance must be understood; it must be meditated upon. Examples of these will be given in a later monograph, but one exam ple is the prayer used in contacting the Celestial Sanctum. (Re fer to the booklet Liber 777 sent to you in the earlier Degrees.) MANTRAS— PRONUNCIATION IS BASIC

Remember, the basis of the use of mantras is pronunciation, and this should be actual physical pronunciation whenever possible. There may be times when this is not feasible— there may not be sufficient privacy. When they are not said in this way, however, they lose the power of the lower vibratory rates and naturally at least some of their functions.

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These functions may be supplemented by saying them to oneself and by concentration, but this is not the same thing as saying them out loud. Before pronunciation of a mantra as a word or phrase, or the intonation of a vowel, the meaning of the sound should be concen trated upon and projected along with the intonation. This con centration may be continued for a time after the pronunciation. In the sound and meaning we have established the negative and posi tive polarities which we explained in the previous monograph, as well as two different kinds of effects, vibratory and symbolical. Pronunciation and concentration engender some degree of at tunement. By means of the mantra the consciousness reaches beyond the material vibrations, first to the higher vibrations and then to attunement. In this state the initiate may assume Cosmic Attunement or Cosmic Consciousness. Thus the mantra is a means to an end. With practice the student learns to feel the sound physically and psychically, to assume the sound as if it were part of his own being. He learns to visualize and assume its effects and thus bring them into being. It may help also to visualize the desired effects and significance before actually pronouncing the mantra. Essentially the process of using the mantras is threefold: concentration on the vibrations and effect, pronunciation of the sound, and assuming or making them a part of oneself. USE OF Mantras, as we have said, may also be used with gestures MANTRAS or perambulations. In the Initiation in the Second Neo phyte Degree, the words Li g h t , L i f e , and Love are used with a sentence involving the symbolism of the incense and its rising smoke. In Part I of the Initiation into the Third Neophyte Degree the vowel sound OOO-AH-EE is used with the gesture of rais ing the arms above the head. The Lost Word MATHRA is used in the Fourth Degree Initiation with the Sign of the Cross. From another point of view mantras may be used in many ways: in ritual, in initiations, in meditation periods, as part of exer cises, or for healing, protection, and help. Vowel sounds, as you know, are used regularly in Rosicrucian Convocations and in the initiations which you have received to perform in your Sanctum. We suggest reviewing some of these initiations, for they should be helpful to you now that you have a greater understanding of their use. .and benefit to you. Mantras are used as an integral part of meditation periods and exercises to assist in attaining a psychic state, harmony, and attunement. An exercise for doing

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this was given in Monograph Twenty of the Ninth Degree. it again. —

Refer to

Also, RA-MA and their creative power were used in connection with the forming of a circle in the nogroo Monograph Seven. We cannot emphasize enough that you should again refer to these exercises which we have here set forth. What you are now studying isolates them and will make such exercises so much more effective for you. Without understanding a full and proper use of an exercise, the results may be negative. We could not, at the time the various exercises were introduced to you, include all the addi tional information about the elements of those exercises which you are now receiving. The extension of information must be gradually programmed. To give it all at one time, even if that were possi ble, would only result in confusion and discourage the student by literally submerging him with too much at once. Mantras, you must not forget, also have the benefit of obtain ing help, protection, and healing. MATHRA and MATHREM are used for such a purpose. Remember there is not any magical quality in the words themselves, but rather it is in their vowel or vibratory quality that a powex exists. These vibrations produce certain glandular effects which fortify one in all physical or mental cri ses. They also have an effect upon the physical or material envi ronment. You know, for analogy, that objects in a room may rattle when certain notes are played on a violin or piano because their vibratory nature is in resonance with them. This is a rather com mon experience. Therefore, in a more subtle manner other vibra tions of sound and of mantras produce psychic and emotional conditions in and around us. Such is just as much a part of natural phenomena as causing a vase to rattle on a shelf by playing certain notes on a musical instrument. You can now realize what a fundamental function mantras have in religion. They form a part of religious ceremonies, rites, and prayer or meditation. The verbal part of the ceremony may have chants, songs, or hymns which may be mantras. Prayers may also be mantras. Whether these are mantras does not depend on whether they are part of the dogma or tradition of a sect. It is likewise immaterial whether they are ancient or modern. It does, however, depend upon whether they are used for psychic and mystical pur poses, and whether such is an integral part of a ritual which is used for these purposes. However, it should be understood mantras are not necessarily confined to a religious use. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER


V

V

Below is a su m m a ry of the im p o rta n t principles of this m o nograph. It c ontains the essential statem ents w hich you should no t forget. After you have carefully read the complete m o nograp h , try to recall as m a n y as you can of the im p o rta n t p oints you read. Then read this su m m a ry a n d see if you have forgotten any. A lso refer to this su m m a ry d u rin g the e n suin g week to refresh your memory.

As far as symbolic significance is concerned, it is not the mantra, ritual, or symbol that does the influencing but the attunement of the human mind with the Cosmic Mind. 1f No matter what its significance and effect are, the mantra must correspond to the Divine and Cosmic itself, in the world and in man, for it to be an agent in attunement. 1f To the subconscious or psychic mind, the symbol and meaning are one. H The mystical philosopher knows that a medallion or amulet is nothing more than a symbol. It contains no power or efficacy except the psychological effect of suggestion to the psychic self. U There are four types of intonations: vowel sounds; words, phrases, and sentences; formulas; and prayers and hymns. f

Mantras may be used in rituals, initiations, meditation periods, exercises for healing practices, etc.

The Weekly Application Whatsoever thou resolvest to do, do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT The subject of amulets and charms has been brought up repeatedly with respect to inherent power they are thought to have. As the monograph states, their principal source of power is that which the wearer gives to them. If the wearing of a certain charm makes a person feel more confident, then the charm has acted as a catalyst in bringing about this feeling. This does not happen through any inherent force or power of the charm itself, but by the suggestion that the wearer dictates to his own inner self, sometimes classified as a superstitious action. Nevertheless, there are countless persons who improve or fortify themselves psychologically by placing their faith in the carrying of a special symbol or token. As long as they realize this, there is no particular reason why these people should not continue to do so. The danger lies only with transferring real power to the amulet, becoming dependent upon it, or the inability to act without it. Then the wearer has given the charm more power than it deserves. Each of us perhaps carries something of like meaning to us, or we engage in mini-rituals that somehow bolster our confidence through the day. It is more important at this stage to recognize these actions than to simply discard them without review. Analyze your use of anything akin to a charm and see how it affects your life.


"C o n se crate d to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian" This m o n o g ro p h is n o t subject to so le or p u rc h a se b y on yo n e . p u rc h a se

m ay

m ake the

seller a n d


civil



Degree

11

Degree

M6nograph 93

Monograph 93

11

to£arf>ruri£ 1278 -SV The matter contained herein is officially Issued through the SuCouncil of the A. M. O. R. C. under the emblem above, which was registered in the United States Patent Office for the purpose of protecting all the "printed, engraved, typewritten, and photographic copies o f officially prescribed and copyrighted monographs, dis sertations. scientific postulations, philosophical discourses, academic studies, diagrams, illustrations, and charts" as authorized by the Imperator of A. M. O. R. C. (The above emblem and name of the Order are also registered in countries throughout the world.) All matters herein contained are strictly confidential to the member receiving, and are imparted only as an incident to membership. The ownership of, the legal title, and the right of possession to this monograph is and shall remain in the Supreme Grand Lodge of A. M. O. R. C. and it shall be returned to it upon its request. The contents herein are loaned to be used for the sole and exclusive Information of the receiving member and not otherwise. Any other use or attempted use does, ipso facto, terminate all rights of the member, and is a violation of the Statutes of this Order. A. M. O. R. C. is the only organization authorized to use the Reg istered name and symbols, and the Imperator has sole right to grant the use of them to other allied organizations or movements. D re m e

3

I


V

V

Visualization is one of the requirements necessary in connection with obtaining the utmost from the use of mantras. We, therefore, in relation to this subject, quote below from the writings of Sir Francis Galton, eminent scientist.

!▼

T h e v i s u a l i z i n g f a c u l t y is a n a t u r a l g i f t , a n d , l i k e a l l n a t u r a l g i f t s , h a s a te n d e n c y to b e in h e r ite d . I n th is fa c u lty th e te n d e n c y to in h e r ita n c e is e x c e p t i o n a l l y s t r o n g , a s I h a v e a b u n d a n t e v i d e n c e t o p r o v e , e s p e c i a l ly in r e s p e c t to c e r ta in r a th e r ra r e p e c u lia r itie s , . . . w h ic h , w h e n th e y e x i s t a t a l l, a r e u s u a l l y f o u n d a m o n g t w o , t h r e e , o r m o r e b r o t h e r s a n d s is te r s , p a r e n ts , c h ild r e n , u n c le s a n d a u n ts , a n d c o u s in s . S in c e fa m ilie s d iffe r so m u c h in r e s p e c t to th is g ift, w e m a y s u p p o s e t h a t r a c e s w o u l d a l s o d i f f e r , a n d t h e r e c a n b e n o d o u b t t h a t s u c h is t h e c a s e . I h a r d l y l i k e t o r e f e r to c iv i l i z e d n a t i o n s , b e c a u s e t h e i r n a t u r a l f a c u l t i e s a r e to o m u c h m o d i f i e d b y e d u c a t i o n t o a l l o w o f t h e i r b e i n g a p p r a is e d in a n o ff- h a n d fa s h io n . -SIR FRANCIS GALTON, 1822-1911

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Beloved Members, Greetings! As previously stated, mantras can be used to produce physical effects such as concern the physical body and the physical and material world; that is, the lower vibratory rates as opposed by the higher psychic vibrations. Mantras may affect the physical body as a whole: they may be used to influence the entire physical condition of an individual. This influence may be directly on the physical nature or indirectly through the psychic body and mind. The student may use MATHRA or his personal word in this way. To be more specific, mantras may be used to affect definite parts of the body such as glands, nervous systems, etc. MEI stim ulates the psychic centers or glands. EHM quiets the nervous system. Now try EHM. Sit quietly and privately in your Sanctum. Then softly and slowly intone EHM, which is pronounced AIM, three times. Then relax with the feet and hands separated for two min utes; then repeat EHM three times. Then relax and repeat it again. In other words, do three sets of the vowel EHM with a two-minute relaxation period following each set of intonations. Note the quieting effect it has upon you. It relaxes and pro duces a feeling of tranquillity, especially noticeable if one has been tense and fatigued. Mantras naturally affect the emotions both directly and in directly. A mantra may itself help to produce peace, for instance. It may produce peace indirectly by affecting the physical body or its parts and thereby engender health and harmony. It may quiet excited emotions, allay fear and anger, for instance. Again, we mention that intonation of the vowels and mantras are an excellent aid for attunement. They release the efficacy of certain of the psychic centers which, in turn, act upon the consciousness. At tunement, mystical development, and union are partly an integration of man's psychological self, the subjective and objective, and these in turn, with the subconscious. It is an integration of man's complete nature or self. We may, to use a chemical term, state that mantras or the intoned vibrations are a catalyst of the various functions of self. PRACTICE WITH MANTRAS

To acquire the utmost benefit from mantras, there must be practice with them. Practice conditions the pronunciation and the concentration on the significance and effect. After all, practicing mantras is similar to practicing playing the piano or using a typewriter or playing chess. The individual must learn to do it, and learning conditions the muscles, thinking, and the like. We do not mean to imply that it should become automatic any more than playing the piano or playing chess become entirely

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automatic so that thinking is no longer necessary in doing it. does mean, however, that a certain part of it is learned and conditioned so that it is easier to do.

It

Many students become absorbed in impressions, symbols, and experiences during the use of the mantras or during the meditation period afterward, so that the mind is really sidetracked from its main purpose. The impressions should not be forgotten, but the main purpose, whether it is to affect a particular gland or to attain attunement, should be kept in mind and adhered to. The im pressions may be recalled and meditated upon afterward, but, during the use of the mantra, concentration upon it will deter obtaining the real effect of the mantra. At the time of pronouncing the mantra these impressions are a kind of by-product unless they con tain a message or answer which does constitute the main purpose of the use of the mantra and meditation upon it. Projection of the meaning to the form of the mantra we have explained. The symbol, as said, is the shell, the frame, until the meaning is projected to it from the mind of the user of the mantra. We repeat, the meaning is in the mind not in the form. Another type of projection to be considered is that of psychic projection; that is, psychic projection of the significance and effect on which the mind is concentrated. This not only radiates what is in the mind but it reinforces, so to speak, the vibrations of the mantras which are pronounced. We have stated that mantras may be used to change something in the student himself, or to change the relationship with his environment or with the Cosmic, or to help someone else. But in order to do these things the student must first understand existing conditions. Otherwise he will not know what it is he wants to change or affect. This seems elementary, but often one begins without fully realizing what the immediate purpose and conditions are. Second, the student must understand what he wants. It is not enough to want development, for instance; it helps considerably to know how he wants to develop, whether he wants to change his environment, or to affect psychic glands, or to direct other changes. He must know which vowel sounds affect what and from which ones he achieves the best results. VIBRATIONS OF MANTRAS

How, you may ask, is all this accomplished? The effect of the vibrations of the mantras is three fold. First, the vibrations affect other vibrations both physical and psychic; that is, no matter what the rates of vibrations are, the mind, through concentration, visualization, and so on affects external vibrations. The personal vibrations of those intoning or using the mantras

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as well as the vibrations of the surroundings affect the mantra. The vibrations of the mantra are modified by its use in the Temple, a Sanctum, or the outdoors, for instance. They are modified by the individual's state of mind and health, aura, and the like. Visualization is usually thought of as a mental image or a picture, but it may just as well be an impression, message, or idea which we desire to put into words. In either case it is a duality consisting of a percept-like image and a meaning. When we create a visualized picture we create a likeness of it in our minds. It is an image just like the perception of a book or a tree if this image has meaning to us. When we visualize words we either picture them as written or hear them mentally as if they were spoken. These are also percept like images in the mind, and they have meaning. The visualization then is a symbol composed of the image, which is the form or nega tive element and the meaning which is the positive polarity. The visualization functions through vibratory emulations and through its symbolic nature as well. Through concentration on this visualized symbol, we direct and affect either the self or the not-self, the realm in which we live, think, and work. In using a mantra, we may first visualize its sound, and second, visualize its significance and effect. Third, when it is actually pronounced we mystically and psychically estab lish its purpose and effect and endow it, so to speak, with power and direction. Using the triangle,

the visualization consists of: VISUALIZATION

IMAGE

MEANING

Through this we direct or affect both self or not-self: VISUALIZATION

SELF

NOT-SELF OR FIELD

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From a mystical point of view, this symbolizing is an inter action between the objective and subconscious or psychic mind. As long as it is a harmonious interaction it will be active and liv ing, not stagnant and dead. MANTRAS AND MUSIC

Perhaps by now you may want to know the relationship between mantras and music. Music differs from intona tions in its structure, purpose, and symbolical sig nificance. In structure, music has a vocal or instrumental accompaniment for the words or syllables, and this has a rhythmic pattern. Its structure is usually more complex than intonations, but there are overlapping areas, or areas which could be classed as either music or intonations. Many chants consist of syllables or words produced on one or more notes of the scale having a rhyth mic pattern. They may be considered as intonations of the music and relatively simple, or,as musical chants which are more complex. The purpose of music is be beautiful in the auditory and thoughts, and it affects listener psychically but not

basically esthetic? it is intended to sense. It is expressive of emotion people emotionally. It affects the in the same way as do intonations.

The significance of intonations is in their symbolism and effect. Music is symbolic but of experience and feelings, not definitely of the psychic being itself. The symbolism and effects of music are more general and abstract as a rule than that of intonations, even though both may be used to achieve harmony and attunement. Songs sometimes contain what are apparently meaningless syl lables, especially in ancient and primitive societies. Where the sacred word and profane are not easily separated, these syllables may be, in effect, mantras. Often these have a strong element of magic in their use. Whether they are magical or not may depend not on the syllable but on the user and his attitude toward it. An initiate into the mysteries may understand its nature and func tion and use it as an intonation for psychic and mystical purposes, while a non-initaite may use it as an incantation. It is important that the Rosicrucian understand the true dif ference existing between the magical use of words and the mystical use of them as mantras. Magic attempts to explain and control the phenomena of the world by means of occult knowledge and practices. In magic, man believes he can cause natural forces to act or react upon other forces to do his bidding, whatever it may be. Thus, magical incantations are erroneously supposed to control, by the powers they are conceived to have, so-called spir its, invisible beings, and hidden forces, and through them the objective world of man. Seldom is magic empirical,

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P A G E FIVE

that is, a practice based upon the actual analysis of a natural phenomena or of those attributes by which it performs its function. Magic is basically superstition arising out of primitive reasoning, and its premises are rarely demonstrable. In magical practices, the syllables and words used are thought to have an influence in themselves by an occult means. The mys tical use of mantras, on the other hand, requires an understanding and use of the physical and psychic vibratory nature of the man tras. The symbolical nature and the effect of the mind in concen tration and in visualizing the mantras must be known. The use of mantras, therefore, requires a knowledge of cer tain principles of physics, at least its basic elements in relation to sound and speech, and the essential doctrines of mysticism as well as certain principles of psychology; an understanding of the function of certain glands in the human organism is further re quired, as has been explained to you. Consequently, there is a vast distinction between magic and the mystical, scientific application of mantras and vowel sounds. However, the use of mantras can easily degenerate into magical practice if one does not undertake to understand their nature and function. In other words, such degeneration may occur by using mantras just as signs and signals, and by failing to meditate upon them. Meditating upon them keeps them alive in the psychic mind. Now, we wish you to try a little exercise. It will concern the crux ansata, or ankh. It is the Egyptian hieroglyph and sym bol which to the ancient Egyptians meant life or immortality. The form consists of a tau or T cross with a loop as shown on the right. The form is the physical characteristic and the negative aspect. The meaning which it represents, the idea behind it, is the positive. Sit in meditation for a few moments in your Sanctum. If possible, to aid in creating the proper environment which you have visualized, light the candles on your altar, and ignite your sanctum incense as well. Next meditate on the meaning of life and immortality. What, for example, does life mean to you? Is it only the biological aspect, animate matter, the function of living? Or is it a matter of the vital force being applied to your personal existence pro viding the opportunity to a worthy end as a living thing? Now, what does immortality suggest to you? Does it mean the survival of your whole being after death? Does it mean that your personality shall survive as you realize self


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P A G E SIX

here, or does it mean the existence of self in a different state of awareness? When you arrive at a personal conception of these two words, then begin to objectify them. Intone the word ANKH softly in connection with your visualization of its form, namely the looped cross. The sound as spoken is then the form or negative polarity. We have stated that the essential process of using the mantras is threefold; namely concentration, pronunciation, and assumption; that is, making them a part of oneself. In your sanctum period, when your Sanctum is prepared as usual, if possible, select the simple vowel RA. We are not going to repeat here what the intonation of this vowel is intended for. We shall presume that you are familiar with its purpose and ef fects. So first, visualize in your mind what effects you would like to experience from the use of this vowel. Next, concentrate on the vibrations of this vowel which you will later intone. Think of them radiating outward from you like ripples in a pool into which a pebble has been dropped. Concentrate also upon the idea of these radiations inwardly as you utter the vowel. Now begin the'actual intonation. Softly intone the vowel RA three times. Pause about three seconds between each intonation. Draw the A out longer than the letter R. Finally, now assume that the power of the intoned vowel is part of you. Then you will experience the effect that you have conceived for it. Fraternally, YOUR CLASS MASTER

The Weekly Application z

Whatsoever thoU resolvest to do. do it quickly. Defer not till the evening what the morning may accomplish.—UNTO THEE I GRANT

There is an element in the wearing of charms and amulets that should be briefly touched upon. While they have no power of their own, other than that given to them by the wearer, they do absorb the vibrations of the person or persons who wear them. This still does not give them any power, but these vibrations can be sensed by others who might hold the charm. This sensing of vibrations is known as vibroturgy, or psychometry. Perhaps you have held objects worn by others and immediately had feelings of one kind or another. Try doing this sometime during the week. One of the most easily sensed conditions of the original wearer is his state of health. Sometimes we receive visual or olfactory sensations as well, about the wearer’s life style and experiences. If we hold the charm of a person who is ill, we could very well feel physically sick, but it was no physical transference of an ill condition from the charm to us. It does not have that power. It is only the sense of sickness that may or may not arouse a suggestion in our psychological state, which in turn causes us to feel ill. It’s much the same thing as when a person gets sick at the sight of blood. The blood had no power in and of itself to make a person sick. It was only the suggestion it aroused in the mind of the beholder that brought on the sickness.

S u m m a ry o f T h is M o n o g r a p h V

V

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Below is a summary of the important principles of this monograph. It contains the essential statements which you should not forget. After you have carefully read the complete mono graph, try to recall as many as you can of the important points you read. Then read this summary and see if you have forgotten any. Also refer to this summary during the ensuing week to refresh your memory.

4J Mantras may be used to affect the physical body. (J To be more specific, mantras may be used to affect definite parts of the body such as the glands, nervous systems, etc. Q A mantra may itself help to produce peace. It may quiet emotions, alleviate fear and anger, for example. (J To acquire the utmost benefit from mantras, they must be practiced. (J At the time of practicing the mantra, impressions are a kind of by-product unless they contain a message or answer which does constitute the main purpose of the mantra. (f Through concentration on the visualized symbol, we direct and affect the self or the not-self, the realm in which we live, think, and work. Magic is basically superstition arising out of primitive reasoning, and its premises are rarely demonstrable. Magic is not to be compared with the mystical and signifi cant use of vowel intonations and mantras.

This m o n o g ra p h is not subject to sale or p u rc h a se by a n yo ne . p u rc h a se

m ay

m ake

the

seller a n d


A sole or

civil liability.

Amorc Degree 11 (71-93)

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