Part III Special Articles

Note: It is well for the student to carefully read and study the following articles, as they have a distinct bearing on the preceding lessons.

ABSOLUTENESS AND RELATIVITY

Absolute is defined as, “Free from restrictions, unlimited, unconditioned.” “The Unlimited and Perfect Being, God.”

Relativity is defined as, “Existence only as an object of, or in relation to, a thinking mind.” “A condition of dependence.”

The Absolute, being Unconditioned, is Infinite and All; It is that Which Is, or the Truth. It is axiomatic that the Truth, being All, cannot be separated, limited nor divided; It must be Changeless, Complete, Perfect and Uncreated.

Relativity is that which depends upon something else; and if there be such a thing as relativity, it is not a thing of itself, but only that which functions within the Absolute and depends on It.

We wish to affirm relativity without destroying Absoluteness. This can be done only by realizing that the relative is not a thing apart from, but is an experience in, the All-Comprehending Mind. The relative does not contradict the Absolute, but affirms It; and the relative alone guarantees that there is an Absolute.

The Absolute is Cause, the relative is effect; the Absolute depends upon Itself, being Self-Existent; the relative must depend upon the Absolute.

We should be careful not to deny the relative, simply because it is not absolute. To suppose that there could be an Absolute without a relative, would be to suppose that there could be an unexpressed God or First Cause; this is unthinkable and impossible. The Consciousness of God must be expressed, hence the relative. The relative is not apart from, but is in the Absolute; and, as such, it is perfectly good and necessary. Time, space, outline, form, change, movement, action and reaction, manifestation and creation, all are relative; but all are real.

Relativity subsists within existence and inherent Life is potential and latent with limitless possibilities.

The relative and the Absolute do not contradict each other.

THE PROBLEM OF EVIL

Evil will remain a problem as long as any one believes in it. This may sound rather startling until one has taken the time to think the matter through to a conclusion. Evil; of itself, is neither person, place nor thing, but is only a certain use that we make of life. We call that evil which we feel is the wrong thing to do; but our ideas of good and evil change with the unfoldment of our thought about, and belief in, life; for what was thought to be good yesterday, is to-day considered evil; and what, yesterday, was considered to be evil, is to-day called good.

Generally speaking, we may consider evil to be that which is destructive in its nature, and good to be that which is constructive

Evil, then, will disappear in the exact proportion that we cease using destructive methods; and good will appear to the degree that we embody constructive methods. To turn from evil and do good is the desire of every soul who is consecrated to the Truth; this we can do only as we cease talking about, believing in, or doing evil.

The problem of evil will continue to be a problem just as long as we believe in it. Good will appear only as we embody it. Each soul has within a sure test, a something which directs and guides it. This Something is the Spirit of God and It knows no evil.

As there is no sin but a mistake, so there is no punishment but an inevitable consequence. As long as we make mistakes we shall be sinning; and just so long, we shall automatically be punished; for the law is certain and sure. As we turn to the Good, we will stop doing evil and, therefore, stop sinning.

The problem is solved as we turn from all that hurts, all that is destructive, all that denies the Good, and turn with our whole being into the light and toward the Truth. Evil is swallowed up in the Good as we learn to live daily in the Presence of God. “I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more.” That is, it will be completely blotted out; it will cease to be.
With our whole heart, with our whole being, in sincerity and honesty, with a complete trust in the Good, yearning toward It with a soul- desire that will be satisfied, we should turn to God, as the Supreme Presence, as the Complete Life, forsaking any belief in evil; we should turn so completely to the Spirit that our souls will become illumined by the Light Eternal.

Evil will cease to be when we stop looking at it; it never really was and is but a supposition. Let us, then, turn to the Path of Light and look to the God Within. Let us say, “Thou Infinite, Indwelling God, within me, knowing no evil, teach me of Thy ways, and in Thy wisdom make me wise. Almighty God within me, direct me into the way of the All Good.” Let us turn completely from any and every belief in evil and do good. The problem will thus be solved and we shall realize that only the Good remains.

THE MEANING OF THE FALL

The story of the fall typifies race-experience as brought about through its belief in duality. Man is created perfect; that is, he starts on his journey as a perfect being, but he also starts as an individual; and this, of course, means that he starts with self-choice. Self-choice would have no real meaning unless it were backed by the power to externalize this choice and experience

the effect of it. Man has the ability to choose and to externalize his choice; for he is a real individuality.

THE GARDEN OF EDEN

The Garden of Eden typifies man’s original state of perfection before he began to have experience. The Tree of Knowledge means the Life Principle which can be used both ways. It bore the fruit of the knowledge of both kinds of experience, good and evil, freedom and limitation. Man must choose which kind of fruit he will eat. “Choose ye this day whom ye will serve.” Man makes his choice consciously but generally in ignorance. The serpent typifies the Life Principle viewed from the materialistic viewpoint; it casts man from his perfect state through his belief in duality and separation. Man chose to depart from Good, and man alone must choose to return to It. God lets him alone; for he is a free agent and may do as he wills with himself. When man decides to return to his Father’s House, he will find that his Father is still there. “Act as though I am and I will be.” “Onlook the Deity and the Deity will onlook thee.” “Be firm and ye shall be made firm.” “As though hast believed so be it done unto thee.” “Ask and it shall be given unto you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you.” God’s Creation is Perfect and we must wake to the fact and know that we are now in the Kingdom of Heaven.

SALVATION AND GRACE

As the fall of man was brought about through his own act, so the rise of man will be accomplished through his own act. God already Is. Salvation is not a thing but a Way; the way of salvation is through the realization of man’s unity with the Whole. Grace is the givingness of the Spirit to Its Creation and is not a special law, but is a specialized one. In other words, Grace Is, but we need to recognize It. It is not something that God imposed upon us, but is the logical result of the correct acceptance of life and of a correct relationship to the Spirit.

We are saved by Grace to the extent that we believe in, accept and seek to embody, the Law of Good; for the Law of Good is ever a Law of Liberty and never one of limitation. Limitation is not a thing, but is a belief. Freedom is a Divine Reality, while limitation is an illusion, a false belief.

Salvation is an act of man and not an act of God. Man damned himself and man must save himself, if he ever is saved. He will save himself to the exact degree that he stops damning himself. He will live in Heaven when he stops living in hell. He will be healed when he stops being sick. He will become rich just as soon as he stops being poor. He will become as God when he stops masquerading as the devil. He will be happy when he stops being miserable. He will be at peace when he stops becoming confused. He will be filled with joy when he stops thinking sadness. He will live when he stops dying. He will be perfect when he stops looking upon imperfection; and he will be saved when he stops damning himself. HE WILL BE ONE WHEN HE STOPS BEING TWO. MAN, MAN, MAN, MAN, MAN, MAN, MAN; “The great Thou—I—and the great I—Thou.”

THE PERFECT UNIVERSE

We must realize the Perfect Universe if we wish to embody the greatest good. If the Universe were not Perfect It could not exist for a single moment. It is self-evident that we live in a Perfect Universe; and, if so, then everything in It must also be perfect.

The Truth is Indivisible and Whole. God is Complete and Perfect. A Perfect Cause must produce a Perfect Effect. Disregarding all evidence to the contrary, the student of Truth will maintain that he lives in a Perfect Universe and among perfect people; he will regulate his thinking to meet this necessity and will refuse to believe in its opposite. At first he may appear to be weak; but as time goes on, he will prove to Itself that his position is a correct one; for that which appears imperfect will begin to slip from his experience.

To daily meditate on the Perfect Life and to daily embody the Great Ideal is the way to sure salvation; this is a royal road to freedom and is happiness to the soul of man. We cannot afford to believe in imperfection for a single instant. Let us learn to look as God must look, with a Perfect Vision; let us seek the Good and the True and believe in them with our whole heart; let us say daily to our inner selves: “Perfect God within me; Perfect Life within me, Which is God; Perfect Being within me, Which is God, come forth into expression through me and become that which I am; lead me into the paths of perfection and cause me to see only the Good.”

By this practice, the soul will become illumined and will acquaint itself with God and be at peace. “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father Which is in heaven is Perfect.”

IMAGINATION AND WILL

Coué announced a great truth when he said that imagination is superior to the will; but he did not explain the philosophy behind this truth. It is a fact that what he said is true, but we wish to analyze the fact and discover the reason back of it; for if anything is true there is always a reason for its being true.

Will is an assumption, pure and simple. We do not will to live; we live because we have life and cannot help living. The use of the will could not make us anything that we are not; for it is not possible to get out of a bag anything that the bag does not contain. We live because life is within us. Perhaps this is what Jesus meant when He said, “Which of you, by taking thought, can add one cubit to his stature?”

We did not make Life and we cannot change It, but we can use It; and the use of Life is through the imagination; because this faculty has, at its roots, the very well-spring of life and action. Imagination carries with it feeling and conviction, which mean life and action; it awakens within us all the finer forces of nature and stirs into action latent powers which otherwise would never come to the surface.

At the very root of the whole matter we find that the Creative Power of the universe does not create through will, but through imagination, imaging, feeling, and knowing. To suppose that God must will things to happen would be to suppose that God had some opposing force to contend with.

Will power may be necessary in its place, but as a creative agency it is non-existent; it is not creative but directive; and used from this standpoint it is a wonderful force; whereas, used from any other angle, it becomes destructive and will mentally weary the one using it. To feel that we have to will things to happen casts doubt into the face of Creation and presupposes that Life is not Self-Existent and Self-Propelling.

Imagination taps the very roots of Being and utilizes the same Power that brought the worlds forth from Chaos. “The worlds were framed by the word of God.” Imagination is the power of the word, while will is the directive agency, denoting the purpose for which the word is spoken.

Man reproduces the power to create and, in his own life, controls his destiny through the activity of his word. This word cannot be willed; but it can be imagined, or imaged forth, into expression.

HOW TO VISUALIZE

Visualizing means mentally seeing the things that you wish to have or to do. When you mentally see the things you desire, and see them very clearly, you are presenting Universal Mind with images of thought; and, like the creative soil of the ground, It at once tends to project them into form. If the thought image is clear it provides a good mold; if it is imperfect the mold is a poor one. This does not mean that one must set his mind or hold thought; it simply means that he must think clearly. There is no power in holding thoughts; indeed, the real secret of successful mental work is to loose thought and let Mind operate upon it.

The first thing to do is to decide what you wish to image into Mind. After having become composed in thought, begin to see the complete outcome of your desires, in mental pictures. Suppose that you wish to demonstrate a home; you should know just what kind of home you wish. Of course, if you simply thought of house you would get something, but the more definite the picture the better the results will be. In order to make the picture complete, decide just what kind of a home you wish to live in; then, in the silence of your thought, mentally look at this house; go from room to room, stopping here and there to look at some piece of furniture or at some picture on the wall. Make the whole thing real, as far as possible; enter the house, sit down and feel that you are actually living there, saying, “I am now living in this house.” You have set a word in motion through the Law which will bring a realization of your desire, unless you, yourself, neutralize the picture by doubting it. Do this every day until the house appears. Use the same process in visualizing anything.

In order that you may fully understand just what I mean, I will illustrate by drawing a mental picture which I will ask you to follow as you read these lines. Imagine that you are with me; we will suppose that I am a man about six feet tall, with light hair and complexion. We are sitting on the front porch of a house that is painted green; it is a two-story house and sits quite far back from the road; there are tall trees standing in front of the house through which the sun is shining. We can see the little shadows as they play upon the porch through the open spaces between the trees. The breeze is gently blowing and the leaves are waving back and forth. I am talking to you, saying, “Let us take a walk together.” We immediately rise from our seats, which are made of wicker, and walk down three stone steps to a gravel walk, leading to the street. As we go out through a stone gate we are suddenly met by a dog which is running along the street; he is a large, yellow dog, and is running rapidly. We watch him as he runs, barking, down the street, till he turns a corner,—and our picture is at an end. Now, if you have carefully imaged each step in the above picture, you will understand what visualizing means.

THE SEQUENCE OF THE CREATIVE ORDER

In the creation of any form it is necessary for its image to exist in Mind before it can come into realization in the external. The Law, being only a neutral force, cannot initiate anything, and cannot, of Itself, choose to create anything. It is a Doer only, not a Knower. The Word alone knows; so we may assume that each word is a law unto itself, through the One great Law of all Life.

MAN’S CREATIVE POWER MARVELOUS

Man’s creative power in his world is marvelous; for every time he thinks he sets the Law in motion. As his thought sets the Law in motion it is specializing It for some definite purpose; and in this way his word becomes the law unto the thing which he speaks. Of course man never really creates, but his use of Creative Power makes his word creative through the Medium of Mind. This should give to all a sense of freedom and a realization that there is neither competition nor monopoly. It leaves each to work out his own salvation, not with fear or even trembling, but with a calm sense of peace and assurance.

CONCENTRATION

To concentrate means to bring to a point. To concentrate the mentality means to bring the thinking to bear on one point of interest and to hold it there. Concentration has little to do with will power. Indeed, the misuse of will often renders concentration impossible.

The simplest practice for concentration is always the best. Nature always works along the lines of least resistance; and mental power is only a force of nature and should always be thought of in a natural way.

If you wish to concentrate on some particular idea or thought, bring the attention to it; then hold it there, but without effort. At first you may find that the thought wavers; do not oppose this, but mentally brush the wrong thought aside, much as you would brush a fly from the face with the hand. Be sure that you make no great mental effort, feel at ease and at peace, gently bringing the thought back to the point of attention.

Let us illustrate this by supposing that one is going to concentrate on the thought of happiness. Taking the word “happy” into the mentality, say, “I am happy”; without effort or mentally trying, just think the words, “I am happy.” In a few minutes you may find that your thought has begun to wander. Right here be sure and not bring the attention back with a bang; just say again, “I am happy,” making no effort to destroy the other thought, but returning to the starting point, “I am happy.” Make the whole thing easy and natural, and soon you will find that you can hold the attention as long as you desire.

It is always a mistake to oppose thoughts that interfere; when one begins to do this he will at once find that he is resisting something, thereby disrupting his whole meditation.

It is unnecessary to concentrate on an external object; for CONCENTRATION IS ALWAYS FROM WITHIN AND NEVER FROM WITHOUT. The only place that the mind can know is within itself.

In concentrating, lay aside all will power and resistance, letting the thought realize the words upon which you wish to concentrate. This will be found a simple but most effective method, and by far the most prolific of results.

In teaching a child to concentrate, it is well to have him take something in which he is particularly interested. As a child’s mind wanders more or less aimlessly about, it is well to have him write some thought on paper; and, looking at it, see how long he can center his interest on the mental picture that the words suggest.

THE MIRROR OF THE SUBJECTIVE

It has truly been said that Mind is a mirror. If we could realize how completely this law works, no doubt we would greatly alter our manner of thinking. It is impossible to create even the slightest thought without causing some reflex action in Mind; and the deeper the emotion the deeper will be the penetration of thought and the more complete will be the reaction.

Thought is the most subtle of all the forces which we know anything about, and but few understand what a tremendous power it has, either for good or for ill. To learn how to control one’s thought means knowing how to control one’s body and destiny.

Subjective mind can reason only deductively; consequently, it is compelled, by reason of its nature, to accept whatever thought gains entrance to it. So the mirror of Mind is, in reality, the working of the law of cause and effect through the mentality. The subjective mind, being the seat of memory, must contain all the thoughts which have ever gone into it, whether these thoughts have been conscious or not. But when a person is told that he has thoughts which he never consciously created it is a little hard to understand. He must realize, however, that constant contact with life opens the door to many impressions which were never consciously created. This fact, together with the realization that whatever falls into the subjective mind must be acted upon, answers the question.

Of course, we do not imagine that certain things are going to happen to us; but we do think certain kinds of thoughts which, brought to their logical conclusions, would produce definite effects. Remember that the subjective mind reasons deductively only; and all this becomes quite evident.

The subjective side of thought, being the creative agency within, must at once set to work to produce anything which is given it, no matter what the emotion may be. How wonderful! But this shows how very careful one should be in choosing the kind and type of emotion to be made into form; for something must happen to all the thoughts which submerge.

The subjective mind never argues nor contradicts what is put into it; the thought is at once accepted and acted upon. If one says that he is sick, it at once begins to create a sick condition; for, like a mirror, it reflects; and being creative, what it reflects it tends to create and to cast forth as a condition.

Like any other natural force, subjective mind was not created by man and he cannot change its mode of operation; but, while he may not change a natural force, he may change his manner of approach to it. Man cannot change his own inherent nature; but he can, and should, learn to make the best use of all his forces. Subjective mind will never change its own nature, but will always reflect to the thinker what he thinks into it. Man did not make this law nor can he change it; but, like any other law, once understood, it becomes an obedient servant.

The use of this law is entirely mental and is within the grasp of every one; it is so simple that all can understand; it is the law of mind in action, and this law is set in motion by correct thinking and knowing.

But how few know why they think or what they think! How few control even the slightest emotion or allow the emotions to express in a constructive manner! No doubt the time will come when a complete control of the subjective will be gained and man will then be much less limited.

But the race is made up of individuals, and the place to begin is right at home. We, who have affirmed these great laws of mind to be realities in the human experience, must so prove them in our expressions of life that the rest, looking on, may read the sign and follow the signal. It is possible to do this, and the reward is great.

At first the road may be hard and beset with many difficulties; there may be failures and discouragements; but the end is certain. We fall, only to rise again into a greater realization of life and action; and, like the pilgrim of old, to renew the journey. We shall need a backbone instead of a wishbone here as in all other places. It is not in wishing but in knowing and in doing that we shall find the reward of true merit. It behooves each one to make the effort to consciously control the processes of his thought.

This does not mean sitting around in some dark corner with the hand at the brow, impersonating Socrates or Plato; it means out in the world, in the midst of affairs, at home and abroad, wherever our work takes us. We need not leave the world; for we may engage in all of its activities without being controlled by them; we may be in the world of affairs as masters and not as slaves.

Surely this hope, held before the waiting thought, will so stimulate our endeavors that we shall go forth into life and the great game of living with a new song upon our lips and a new joy within, springing forth into the dawn of a new day.

PERSONALITY

Personality is the result of man’s experience; it is the sum total of all that he has said, done, felt, thought, hoped for and believed in; it is the result of his reactions to the events of life as they come and go. Factors to be considered in the development of personality are heredity, race- suggestion, environment, child training, education, auto-suggestion and, indeed, anything and everything that impinges upon consciousness. Therefore, we are what we are and where we are because of the nature of our accumulated consciousness.

FACTORS NECESSARY FOR A DYNAMIC PERSONALITY

It goes without saying that all people desire a dynamic, radiant personality; and it is self-evident that certain palates are essential to produce this result. The external personality really reflects the soul, and its building may be likened to a mental garden where the harvest depends upon the kind of seed that is sown. Each one chooses for himself just what kind of materials he will use and each builds according to the pattern of his own desires. “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” Just as a fine architect uses only the best materials and plans most carefully how to construct his building, so should we, in the building of personality, choose most carefully the kind of materials we wish to use.

High Character.—First of all, it should be founded upon the rock of high character, high ideals, and built for Eternity as well as for to-day.

Sincerity.—Sincerity in every human relationship is essential.

Ability.—To be a master of one thing and to daily improve.

Enthusiasm.—A keen interest in people and things at home and abroad; it has been called “The Fortune-Teller of Life.” Enthusiasm is compelling and sweeps everything before it.

Service.—Service is the keynote to success and implies constructive work; also, loyalty to your work and to all concerned in it.

Wholesomeness.—A clean-minded man with high ideals is always sought after. The reading of fine books, listening to good music and becoming acquainted with the best in art and literature will soon implant in the mentality a quality of whole-someness that is most desirable.

Success.—A consciousness of success must be developed; this can be done by creating clear pictures of success and working toward them daily. Decision and assertion are aids to this end and must not be overlooked.

Self-Confidence.—Implies peace and poise and knowing what to do in every situation.

Power and Strength.—Are also born of peace and poise.

Sense of Humor.—This is most necessary to have, as it lightens the burdens of life and makes one’s self and others happy. Without it things seem dull and drear.

This has no barb or sting and implies the ability to laugh at one’s own expense.

Good Manners.—Not servile but courteous.

Tact.—Saying or doing the right thing at the right time.

Thoroughness.—Implies system and the ability to carry things out to a definite conclusion. This quality is essential to success.

Charm.—Personal charm is that indefinable something which makes every one a friend. It is the result of genuine friendliness, sympathy, kindliness and unselfish interest in others.

Magnetism.—The result of an abundant vitality on the physical plane; of intellect and temperament on the mental plane; and of atmosphere or consciousness on the Spiritual plane.

Tenderness.—Sympathetic union with people; real compassion.

Love.—The Universal Urge to express, the Self-givingness of Spirit.

Originality.—Try to create; do not imitate; think for yourself. Read Emerson’s Essay on “Self-Reliance.”

Incentive.—Have wholesome ambitions and definite objectives which are constructive in their nature. Any ambition is wholesome which brings only good results to one’s self and all concerned.

Suitable Humility, Simplicity and Genuineness.—These attributes keep one from being over-ambitious and from being too aggressive.

Emotional Control.—Presupposes poise and self-mastery.

Spirituality.—Looking for the good in all and having faith, belief, and trust.

Health.—Is a great factor in creating a dynamic, vibrant personality.

Voice.—A clear, resonant, well-modulated tone at all times.

Dress.—Clothes reflect one’s idea of “The Eternal fitness of things.” Colors particularly have a peculiarly subtle effect on the wearer and upon those with whom he comes in contact.

Strictly speaking, personality is the use that we make of our individuality. Individuality means that which we really are; it means the point in Life where we exist and can say, I AM. Perhaps it could be defined as a point in Mind where Life recognizes Itself as some Person. Each person is an Individualized Center of God-Consciousness, a self- knowing center of Life and Action.

It follows, then, that personality is much greater than it seems to be; for it is the use of Divine Individuality and has, back of it, a limitless possibility. It is the coming forth of God, or Life, into Self-Expression.

Man’s personality is not a thing to be lightly spoken of or decried as human or ineffective. Within and behind it are boundless possibilities, and few, indeed, realize what a tremendous power it wields, either for good or for ill.

To-day we are hearing much about this power and the way to develop it; for as yet we express only in part, being unaware of the Whole. Latent forces surge to express through man; Divine impulse seek expression through him; a Cosmic Urge forever beats against the threshold of his consciousness, demanding expression; hence, all his subtle longings and unspoken thoughts.

To develop or express the self is the great need of the human race; but though feeling, sensing, inwardly knowing and realizing a greater good, man stumbles blindly along the pathway of life, expressing only in part.

Like all the other faculties of the Great Within, personality may be consciously unfolded and expressed, if we let it come through.

We all desire a powerful personality, and all may have one if they pay attention to a few fundamental facts of Being; for personality is the expression of something that already exists and simply needs to be allowed to come forth.

Any one wishing to develop a pleasing personality must first become pleasant. He must think pleasing thoughts. All animosity and vindictiveness must be swept aside if the soul is to express itself in terms of greatness.

There is no place for smallness in the full life and no place for meanness in the liberal mind. A broad-minded, tolerant attitude must be maintained toward all. This is not a goody-goody idea but a plain statement of fact.

A sense of calm and peace is essential to a well-rounded personality. The din and roar of the outer struggle for existence must not find entrance to the soul if Reality is to be expressed.

Poise and balance are the mainsprings of reality and cannot be overlooked. We are not attracted to people who are always fussed up and fretful, who are never satisfied and are always unhappy. Misery and unhappiness are unknown to the Spirit of man, and we should make them unknown to the outer man.

Sensitiveness and morbidity must be swept side as unworthy of the great Ideal. Refuse to have the feelings hurt. Friends do not wish to hurt the feelings of those whom they love, and none but friends need be admitted.

Personality is but half expressed until we realize that within we are complete. Wholeness is the keynote to perfection and self-esteem is not egotism but is self-realization. Completion is from within and not from without; and no one can add to, or take from, that which is already complete. The Soul and Spirit are already perfect and whole.

Love is the great loadstone of Life; and without this quality of Spirit, shining through Life’s action, everything becomes dull and drear. Goodness and human kindness are the handmaids of Love and Life, and cannot be separated from Reality.

Irritation, vexation and confusion go hand in hand to rob man of his birthright to peace, comfort and harmony. As children of the dust they must be brushed aside as unfit companions of the soul.

Anger and malice, revenge and animosity cannot breathe the same atmosphere as goodness and purity, and they will fall away as we climb to those heights where the Indwelling Spirit lives.

Self-confidence and courage go hand in hand with real worth and are but the declarations of man’s Wholeness. There is nothing petty or little about greatness.

Mental alertness and animation but signify that man lives in a life of everlasting interests and activities.

Honesty and sincerity show forth the fundamental principles of Being, and without them man expresses only a make-shift

of himself, a false and deluded sense of Reality. No real person can be dishonest or insincere. Truth alone shines to Eternal Day.

The complete, well-rounded, dynamic personality contains all of these qualities and attributes; and they will come forth into expression to the exact degree that we allow them to flow through us.

Personality is not false but real; it is the shining through of the Real Self,—the man God made.

Physical appearance has but little to do with those inner, subtle powers of attraction which decide what the Indwelling Ego is to attract to Itself. The Inner Man transcends all that is external and compels attention without effort. To be conscious of this Inner Self is to know the Real Man, to know the truth about personality and the power of attraction. As a rose unfolds, so the personality of man unfolds and blossoms forth into complete expression.

A few simple practices will soon develop such a powerful personality that it will become a magnet, drawing to its center with a force that cannot be denied. THESE PRACTICES BEGIN AND END WITHIN MAN; FOR HE IS THE CENTER OF HIS OWN UNIVERSE, AND NOTHING HAPPENS TO HIM UNLESS HE LETS IT.

Know that Life flows through you and cannot be hindered in Its expression. Know that the All Good is yours now. Act, think, believe, speak as though you were now all that you have ever dreamed. AND BE SURE THAT YOU BELIEVE THE SAME THING ABOUT ALL PEOPLE, FOR NONE OF US LIVES UNTO HIMSELF ALONE, BUT EACH LIVES UNTO ALL, WITHIN THE ONE LIFE.

Live constantly from this inner conviction, never stooping to anything less than the All Good; and you will soon discover that something is taking place that never took place before in your experience. DO NOT TRY TO MAKE THINGS HAPPEN; SIMPLY KNOW THAT THEY ARE HAPPENING.

Daily realize your Unity with the Whole and the Unity of the Whole with you. YOU WILL SOON DEVELOP SUCH A POWERFUL PERSONALITY THAT ALL WHO COME IN CONTACT WITH YOU WILL WISH TO REMAIN IN YOUR PRESENCE.

REPRESSION AND SUBLIMATION

THE SPIRIT OF SEX

We have discovered, from the preceding chapters, that the Universe is threefold in Its nature. It is Spirit, Soul and Body; Spirit as the active, projective, masculine factor; Soul as the receptive, creative, feminine factor; and Body, which is the result of the union of Spirit with Soul. The Spirit impregnates the Soul with Its Ideas, and the Soul gives form to these Ideas and clothes them with flesh. But this is the Trinity of Unity, a Triune Oneness; for the Three are really one.

Life is Androgynous, i.e., It contains within Itself both the masculine and the feminine factors. The male and the female of Creation come from One Principle; all come from the One and all will return to the One; all are now in the One and will forever remain in the One.

DESIRE

Back of all manifestation must be the desire to create, the urge to express; this is called the “Divine Urge.” But this Urge, operating as Law produces energy. Desire gathers energy for creative purposes and utilizes power to express itself. So dynamic is this Urge that it will cause a little seed to break open the most solid earth, in order that it may express itself in the form of a plant. It is the coming forth of Spirit into expression, the loosing of energy into action, and is apparent in all Creation.

THE SPIRIT IS EXPRESSED

The Spirit, being Absolute, is always expressed; It has no unfulfilled desires. IT IS ALWAYS SATISFIED AND HAPPY BECAUSE IT IS ALWAYS EXPRESSED. Creation is the result of the desire of Spirit to express Itself; It is the unfold-ment of the Divine Ideas, Evolution is the time and process of this unfoldment. Involution is the idea in Mind, and evolution is the coming forth of the idea into expression. Involution precedes evolution, and evolution follows involution with a mathematical precision, propelled by an Immutable Law.

That which is involved must evolve, else the Spirit would remain unexpressed. As this is unthinkable, we may set it down that evolution, or the manifestation of desire and energy, is bound to take place whenever desire sets power and energy in motion. From this law we cannot hope to escape, and it would be useless to make the attempt.

MAN REËNACTS THE DIVINE NATURE

Man, as we have discussed, reënacts the Divine Nature and makes use of the same Laws that God uses. We find in man the same androgynous nature that we find in God. This nature we call his objective and subjective faculties. His objective mentality impregnates his subjective with ideas; and in its turn, the subjective, gathering force and energy, projects these ideas into forms.

Back of every act of man is some form of desire to express. This desire, of course, is purely mental in its nature. All that man is, is his mentality, both conscious and subconscious, plus what he expresses.

The Divine Urge is strong in man and constantly causes him to seek some form of self-expression. It is Divine because It is the desire of Spirit to express Itself through him; and like all the other forces of Nature, this energy can work through man only at his bidding; consciously or unconsciously, for he is an individual and has self-choice.

This Urge or Energy is called “Libido,” which means “The emotional craving, or wish, behind all human activities, the repression of which leads to psycho-neuroses.”

CONGESTED EMOTIONS

The energy set in motion through this urge is the dynamic power of Mind, and unless it becomes expressed, it will congest and cause a conflict within the mentality.

Inhibited action produces conflicts and complexes which mentally tear and bind; and as they manifest their physical correspondents, they produce nervous disorders. It is claimed that a large percentage of diseases is caused by the suppression of some form of emotion. This does not necessarily mean the suppression of the sex emotion, but might mean any desire that remains unexpressed. Some form of desire is back of every impulse that the mind can conceive, some impulse to express life. Any unexpressed desire will eventually cause a complex. Things will stand just so much pressure and no more; when the limit is reached an explosion will follow, unless some avenue for expression is provided.

IRRITATION, AGITATION AND FEAR

People who are constantly being irritated have suppressed some desire to speak their minds. It may not appear as though this were the cause, but thought is very subtle, and only a careful study of its workings reveals the real facts. All irritation and agitation are mental in their cause, and a sense of calm and peace alone can heal them.

Fear is an intense emotion, and if bottled up, secretes poison in the system. Fear must be removed from the mentality if one is to be healed and is to function normally.

Anger, malice, vindictiveness and kindred emotions are but subtle forms of fear arising from a sense of inferiority. All of these emotions must be swept off the board if one is to gain peace, calm and poise. The union of peace, with calm and poise, alone can give birth to power; for without these attributes of reality, power is dissipated and lost in the shuffle.

IF WE WERE EXPRESSED

If we were completely expressed we would never become sick or unhappy. The average person goes through life expressed only in part and always with a sense of incompletion and dissatisfaction. Something must be done to make the individual complete if he is to remain normal and happy and really live.

EMOTION AND INTELLECT

Emotion is strong in man, and in the well-balanced person it is controlled by the intellect; but in many people there is a conflict between the emotions and the intellect; and in too many cases the emotion gains the ascendancy.

Our strongest emotions center around the ideas of fear, hate, love, sex and worship, with all of their many ramifications and meanings.

Emotion, uncontrolled, produces chaos; unexpressed it produces confusion, conflict and complex; for energy will have an outlet. Bottled up, it creates a pressure that is the cause of much damage to the physical man, and produces most of our nervous disorders. Expression is normal when the intellect decides how the emotion is going to manifest. “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.”

THE CONFLICT OF DESIRE

When an emotion conflicts with the will and becomes suppressed it returns to its subjective state, but remains active; it will come up in some other form; it will not be put down. It may remain in a subjective state for years; but eventually, unless neutralized, it will manifest. Let one go for years with some unexpressed longing and he will have created such a desire that it will have become irresistible in its inclination toward expression.

People often become seething caldrons within because of inhibited action. Energy must find an outlet.

THE EMOTION OF SEX

Human love and the affections often go hand in hand with sex desire, even when not recognized as such. An affectionate nature is generally a passionate one. Love is the most wonderful thing in the world and creates the highest form of energy known to the mind of man. It will be expressed at the level of the passions or else become transmuted into Spiritual Coin of real and lasting value. But the ideas on sex are likely to become over- emphasized in modern literature along these lines. Sex is normal in its proper sphere; if it were not, it would not be; for nature does nothing without some good and ample reason.

THE TRUE MEANING OF LOVE

The true meaning of love is a wonderful thing; for it is the desire of the soul to express itself in terms of creation. Creation is brought about only through the self-givingness of the lover to the object of his love. This is why, when we love people, we will go to the limit to help or serve them; nothing is too great, no sacrifice is enough. The true lover gives all and is unhappy in not having still more of himself to give to the object of his adoration.
Because of our emotional nature, love is generally expressed through the sex desire. But too great an expression of this desire is destructive, for it depletes the vitality and demagnetizes the one who overindulges. This is the meaning, and the whole meaning, of the story of Samson and Delilah. “He that hath an ear, let him hear.” All people look, and occasionally someone sees.

SEX NOT NECESSARY TO THE EXPRESSION OF LOVE

The sex relationship is not necessary to the expression of real love. Love is the givingness of the self, and if this givingness is complete sex will take care of itself. But energy must have some outlet. It is only when the unexpressed desire remains in the subjective that destruction follows in its wake and strews the shores of time with human derelicts. Liberty and license, freedom and bondage, heaven and hell, happiness and misery, good and bad, all, all, are tied up in human desires. Energy is energy and will be expressed or blow the top off, just as a pipe will stand only so much pressure before bursting. Millions are daily being blown up, mentally and physically, through the suppression of desires. Desire is a dynamic force and must be taken into account.

WHEN SEX BECOMES DESTRUCTIVE

Sex desire becomes destructive only when it remains an unexpressed longing. This theory is not put forth to encourage free love nor to advocate indiscriminate relationships; for neither the one nor the other is believed in by the writer. It is stated as a fact patent to any thinking person. “Libido,” may be expressed through more than one avenue; through transmutation, freeing life’s energies and lifting them into an avenue of constructive expression; or through sublimation, transfusing the essence of energy into high action and producing a magnetism that is irresistible and wonderful in its scope. The atmosphere of one thus charged is complete; for the energy then takes the form of real Love and is the highest and most powerful vibration on the physical plane.

MALE AND FEMALE

Man, coming from Unity, is both male and female, and has, within himself, both attributes of reality. In some the male predominates; in others the female. We have two distinct types in man and woman; but they are types of one fundamental principle. There is also an intermediate sex; that is, one in which the two attributes seem to be almost equally balanced. The greatest men and women of the ages have belonged to this type, for it is a more complete balance between the two which are really one. But this is too great a topic to discuss in this course of lessons.

The solution to the problem of desire is to transmute any destructive tendency into some form of action that is constructive. However, an intellectual form of expression alone will not do this, for only those things to which we may give the complete self will solve the problem. Love is the givingness of the self to the object of its adoration. We should all have something that we love to do, something that will completely express the self, something that will loose the energies of Life into action and transmute the power into creative work. We should learn to love all people and not just some people.

It is very disastrous to feel that we cannot live unless we possess some one individual, body and soul. This is not love but is an idea of possession, which often becomes an obsession. No soul is really complete until he feels compete within himself.

This does not exclude the great human relationships which mean so much to all of us; but it does take the sting out of life and does free the individual to love all, adore some, and find happiness everywhere.

To feel that love is unrequited creates a longing so intense that it tears the very heart out of life, and throws the one so feeling into a fit of despondency from which it is, indeed, hard to recover. This feeling is met in the Truth by knowing that Love is Eternal and Real and cannot be added to nor taken from.

This may seem like a hard teaching; but the problems of humanity deal largely with the human relationships and until they are harmonized, there can be no lasting happiness.

Happiness is from within, like all the other qualities of the Spirit. Within, Man is already complete and perfect; but he needs to realize this truth.

I can imagine some one saying: “This is too impersonal a teaching.” It is not impersonal at all; this does not mean that we care less for people; indeed, we shall find that for the first time in life we shall really care; but the sting will have gone.

Refuse to have the feelings hurt. Refuse yourself the pleasure and morbidity of sensitiveness. Come out of the emotional intoxication and be YOURSELF. Never allow the thought to become depressed nor morbid. Engage in some form of activity that will express the better self. Do not attempt to draw life from others; live the life that God gave you; it is ample and complete. “But,” people will say, “I believe in affinities.” If by this one means that each is only one-half of a real person and must find the other half in order to be expressed, he is mistaken. Such persons usually find a second affinity as soon as the first disappears. We all have a natural affinity for each other, since we all live in One Common Mind and in One Unified Spirit. It is all right if we wish to specialize on some particular love; but the hurt will remain unless love has a broader scope than when narrowed down to one single person.

Live, love and laugh! Let the heart be glad and free; rejoice in the thought of life and be happy. Realize God, in and through all, and unify with the Whole. Why take fragments when the Whole is here for the asking?

PSYCHO-ANALYSIS

Psycho-analysis is a system of analyzing the soul, or the subjective mentality. It is a mental process of diagnosis which seems to be technically perfect when used by those who understand it. It goes into the past and unearths the objectively forgotten emotions, brings them to light and causes them to be self-seen and so dissipated. It is based upon the theory that Nature is Perfect and when let alone will flow through man in a perfect state of health. The purpose of the analysis is to uncover the complex and heal the conflict, through removing it. It takes into account every experience that the individual has ever had, paying much attention to his early training, and more especially to his mental reactions to life.

It is a wonderful system, and in the hands of the right people, is prolific of much good. But, in the thought of the writer, it is a thing without a soul, a skeleton without flesh. It lacks the warmth, the fire and the reality of spiritual realization. It is useless to remove a mental complex, unless at the same time we place in its stead a real realization of what life means. It is useless to tear down unless, at the same time, we build up. The proper analysis of the soul, coupled with real spiritual recognition, will do wonders, however, and is well worth while.

SELF-ANALYSIS

Go through a process of self-analysis; look into your own past and carefully remove every complex. This is easily done by the one who is not afraid to look himself in the face. Find out what you are afraid of and convince the mentality that there is nothing to fear. Look the world squarely in the face; sift the mentality to its depths, removing every obstruction that inhibits the free flow of those great spiritual realizations, such as will be found in the meditations that follow these lessons.

METAPHYSICS

The right kind of mental work will go beneath the surface and destroy the subjective cause of the complex, thereby easing the conflict. It will then supply a Spiritual Realization that will open the avenues of thought to the great Whole. This alone is real and lasting.

THE ATONEMENT

Atonement is defined as reconciliation: “To make an expiation for sin or a sinner,” and “To be at one.” The definition for sin is, “To commit sin, transgress, neglect or disregard the Divine Law; to do wrong or offend.” Literally speaking, sin means missing the mark or making a mistake. “There is no sin but a mistake and no punishment but a consequence.” To assume that man could sin against God would be to suppose that a Divine Law could be broken. To suppose that Divine Law could be broken would be to assume that man has the power to destroy Divine Harmony and wreck the universe with his actions.

Man may have power to go contrary to Law, but certainly he has no power to break it. Man cannot break a law, but the law can break him if he goes contrary to it.

There is no doubt but that all of man’s troubles come from his disregard of law, through ignorance. There can be no doubt that much of his trouble will be over when he comes to understand the law, and to consciously coöperate with it.

We live in a Universe of Law and a Universe of Love. The Law of God is Perfect, and the Love of God is also Perfect. The Law of God is the way in which the Spirit works; the Love of God is the Self-Givingness of the Spirit to Its Creation. The unity of Love and Law produce a harmonious Universe and a Perfect Creation.

Man, because of his individuality and the use that he makes of it, may go contrary to both Love and Law; but so long as he does this he will suffer. This is the real meaning of sin and punishment.

Man has gone contrary to the Law of Harmony and Love, and no doubt this is the reason for all his troubles. He will be saved to the degree that he returns to a state of harmony and unity with God and with Life. He can do this only as he first comes to realize that God is Love and that he lives in a Universe of Law.

The greater lesson that can be taught to the race is the lesson of Love and of Law. The lesson of Love teaches us that Life gives and that God is Good; while the lesson of Law teaches that there is a way to freedom through real Love.

If Love is the Self-Givingness of Spirit, then that man who most completely loves, will most completely give of himself to Life. The man who loves his work gives himself to it; the one who loves his art gives himself to it. We give ourselves to our friends and to our families and to the causes which we really love. Love is always the giving of the self to something; but the idea of self-givingness is not a morbid one and should never be thought of in this light.

We have always thought of the Atonement of Jesus as the act of His giving Himself, through suffering on the cross, as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. But God surely does not need that any man shall suffer for Him, nor sacrifice himself to please Him. This would, indeed, be a limited idea of the Divine Being. God does not need an At-one-ment, since He is already at one with himself and with all Creation. It is man, not God, who needs an At-one-ment. The act of atonement must be on the part of man and not of God. Man may need salvation, but God is already conscious of Complete Life and Being.

MAN’S WHOLE TROUBLE

Man’s whole trouble lies in the fact that he believes himself to be separated from the Source of Life. He believes in duality. The At-one- ment is made to the degree that he realizes the Unity of Good. Man needs, and always has needed, to know the Truth about himself and God; and anything that helps to fill this need would be an act of atonement.

Now a man who had reached the understanding at which Jesus must have arrived would find the ordinary channels of expression inadequate to portray His concept of Life. Jesus could have had no desire to become rich; neither did He wish to be made a king, nor to receive the plaudits of the world. He wished to show to the world what the Love of God could really mean in the lives of men; He wished to show that the Self-Givingness of Spirit is complete; to prove that Life completely gives of Itself to Its Creation. This he could do only to the degree that He let God become Man through His own Individuality.

CAREFUL PREPARATION

The whole thought and attention of Jesus was given to the accomplishment of one supreme purpose: to show that God is a Living Reality in the lives of all men. He must show the Nature of the Divine Being; he must take the place of God and reveal the Love and tender care of the Creator for Its Creation. No more complete plan was ever organized in the mentality of an individual than the plan of Jesus to prove the reality of Spirit.

His thought, being psychic, that is, being able to read mental causes, told Him just what would happen if He did this. (See chapter on Prophecy in lesson on Psychic Phenomena.) He knew that he would have to suffer physical agony, and for a time, at least, be misunderstood and abused. He also knew that the lesson would prove for all time that God is Love. He knew that in the end the lesson which He was to teach would be accepted by all; and in this way He would become a Living Witness to the reality of Divine Love and Goodness.

Carefully He worked out His plan and patiently He waited for the right time to come to complete His life work; and when this time came, He unflinchingly gave of Himself to the necessity of the case. Man must come to understand God if he is ever to realize his own nature; he must come to know Spirit as a Living Reality and not as a myth.

THE VICARIOUS ATONEMENT

The Vicarious Atonement was the conscious giving of the Self to the needs of the human race—an example for all time that God is Love. Jesus perfectly understood the Law of Life and consciously chose to make an example of Himself that would cause all people to see what a real At-one- ment could mean. In order to do this, He had to take on the sins of the world; that is, He had to enter into men’s mistakes in order to rectify them; not because God demanded this, but because man needed the example.

The suffering of Jesus, as He contacted the disorders of men’s minds, was His vicarious atonement for the race. It was a wonderful example of what one man could do in proving the Unity of Good.

Any person who contacts the race-mind with the desire to lift it above its own level, will, thereby, go through a vicarious atonement. But the thought of morbidity that theology had given to the message of atonement is entirely erroneous.

It is not a morbid thing but a glorious one. Atonement could not be morbid, but must always produce a realization of Unity and of Good. The life of Jesus is not a sad story, but is the account of a Man Who so completely realized His own At-one-ment that He had realization to spare and to give to all who believe in His teaching. His life was a triumphant march from the cradle into Eternity, and not from the cradle to the grave. He swallowed the grave in victory, because of His At-one-ment. Jesus left no grave and no dead man behind Him.

The At-one-ment, then, is a glorious recognition of fulfillment and completion. The vicarious part is lost in the greater realization of Unity and of Good. Jesus is the most Triumphant Figure of all history and the only Man, of Whom we have record, Who completely knew His own Nature. All thought of sin, shame, iniquity, poverty, sickness, obscurity and death are swept away with the empty tomb. No wonder that this lesson still remains and His teachings still hold good, for Reality never changes.

THE GIVINGNESS OF SPIRIT

As the human side of Jesus gave way, more and more, to the Divine Realization, He more and more completely became Divine; that is, He more completely became God, Incarnated in and through Man. In this mystic way He took the place of God, and we may, perhaps, say that through Him God proved the Love of God. Of course this is a crude way of putting it, but it does serve to point a moral and is, perhaps, the best way that we can conceive of the greatest lesson of all history.

THE WORLD HAS LEARNED ALL THAT IT SHOULD THROUGH SUFFERING

The world has learned all that it should through suffering. God does not demand that man suffer; and man suffers simply because he is ignorant of his own nature and because he misuses his power. Jesus proved the Truth and departed this life in joy, having fulfilled His Divine Mission. The lesson has been taught and the evidence is complete. The grave has been swallowed up in the Victory of Life and Love; and the tomb is empty for all time. “Why seek ye the living among the dead?” The time has come for rejoicing and not for sorrowing; for the fulfillment of that peace which was promised. “Peace I leave with you.” There need be no more sorrowing nor crying; for Reality is now known. Life is Triumphant and Love reigns Supreme.

OUR PART IN THE ATONEMENT

The Vicarious Atonement is over, but the real At-one-ment has only begun. We are just beginning to realize what Love and Life mean. Every time we give of ourselves to others, helping them to overcome their troubles, we are performing an At-one-ment; we are proving the Unity of Good.

THE PERSONALITY OF GOD

In our metaphysical abstractions we have come to the conclusion that God, or First Cause, must be Infinite; and it is difficult to perceive how a power which is Infinite can, at the same time, be personal. Yet the soul longs for a responsive universe; and the heart yearns for a God Who responds to the human desire.

To take from the individual his idea of God as a personally responsive Intelligence, and leave him only a cold, unresponsive Law, is to rob the individual of his greatest birthright and to throw him, naked and bare, into the midst of an Eternity which holds no attraction.

To think of the Universe in terms of Law only, is to make of God only an Infinite It, a cold an bitter Principle, lacking that warmth and color which the soul craves.

This difficulty is removed when we realize that the Law of Mind is like any other law; it is a natural force, and, like all law, should be thought of from this angle. But back of, and working in and through the Law, there is a responsive Intelligence and a knowing Spirit, Which is God, the Father of all; and Who responds to all.

We will think of Mind, then, as Law, and of God as Love; we will use the Law and love the Spirit back of, and through, the Law. In this way, we will be robbed of nothing, but will see that the way to freedom is through Love and by Law.

JESUS AS A SAVIOUR

Jesus stands forth from the pages of human history as the greatest Figure of all time. His teachings contain the greatest lesson ever given to the human race; and His life and works, while on earth, provide the grandest example that was ever given to man.

In the Higher Thought no attempt is made to rob Jesus of His greatness or to refute His teachings; indeed, the Higher Thought Movement is based upon the words and the works of this, the most remarkable Personality that ever graced our planet with His presence; and, until a greater figure appears, Jesus will still remain the great Wayshower to mankind, the great Saviour of the race.

Let us not waste time, then, in theological discussions which lead nowhere; but, following the example set before us, let us also do the works which He did. “The works that I do, shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.”

SELF-EXISTENT LIFE

The most important thing that any student of the Truth can understand is the real meaning of self-existence. Whatever the nature of First Cause is, It must be Self-Existent, or else It could not be at all. It is, perhaps, hard to comprehend that there must be, and is, a Power which exists simply because It is what It Is; and yet this is the mainspring of all right metaphysical work and endeavor.

We must come to believe in, and trust, that Power of Life and Intelligence which is God, or First Cause. We must understand that we deal with First Cause whenever we think, at any, and at all, times. If we had to gather energy with which to energize the Creative Principle of Life, where should we go to get the energy with which to energize It?

We are constantly thrown back upon the fundamental proposition that Life already Is; and that we use a Power which already Is. Let us then, without doubt or fear, throw our word into that Great Receptivity and trust It to do the work.

THE SUPREME AFFIRMATION

Strange as it may seem, the human thought can affirm only; it can never deny; for, even at the moment of denial, it really affirms the presence of that which it denies.

We speak of denials and affirmations as though they were opposed to each other, but such is not the case. Fear and faith are but different ways of expressing positive beliefs about something. Fear is a positive belief that we will experience something that we do not wish to have happen, while faith is a positive belief that we will experience something that we do wish to have happen.

The nature of Being is such that real denial is impossible; for there is but One Mind in the Universe, and It is always “yea and amen.”

We are constantly affirming our way through life; and since affirmation is the only mental action possible, it behooves us to find the greatest affirmation and use it.

The Supreme Affirmation is, “I AM”; and, as such, It was given to Moses. This affirmation is constantly with us, and every time we speak we use it in some form. We must be careful to use it only as an upbuilding force.

CHRIST AND ANTICHRIST

The Spirit of Christ is the spirit of one who understands the Law and who uses It for constructive purposes only.

The spirit of Antichrist is the spirit of one who, understanding the Law, uses It for destructive purposes.

The Law, of Itself, is neither good nor bad, but is a Neutral Force, obeying all, and may be used for any purpose. But those truly instructed in the Law will never attempt to use It destructively; for they will understand that, by so doing, they would subject themselves to the very power which they have set in motion.

There is a power surrounding us which can be used either way, that is, constructively or destructively; but one instructed in the Truth will use this power only for the good of all. A most solemn warning is given to any one who would be so rash as to misuse his power.

If the thought is kept close to Good, to Love and to the Spirit, and if there is never any desire to do other than that which is constructive, there is no danger.

The Law is there to use and It is a Law of Liberty to all who constructively contact It. Anything which makes for a greater expression of life, either for the individual or for the race, and which has no element of destruction in it, is good.

We should not hesitate to use the Law for the benefit of our personal affairs or those of our friends or for any who ask our help; but we should be very careful to use It constructively.

EVOLUTION

All emerge from that One Whose Being is ever present and Whose Life, robed in numberless forms, is manifest throughout all Creation.

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ERNEST S. HOLMES

THE SCIENCE OF MIND

Creation is the logical result of the outpush of Life into self- expression. It is the coming forth of Spirit into manifestation, the externalization of an internal idea, through the objectification of a subjective image.

The One encompasses and flows through the All, spilling Itself into numberless forms and shapes. These forms and shapes, propelled by a Divine Urge which brings them into being, seek still further expression because of the dynamic power with which they are equipped.

This is the real meaning of evolution; for evolution is the result of intelligence and not its cause.

Each evolving thing has, within itself, an impulse implanted by the Divine; and since the Divine is Limitless and Perfect, It must and will, ultimately, bring all Creation to a state of perfect manifestation.

That which, to the human eye, appears as imperfect, is imperfect only because the human eye sees imperfectly or in part; i.e., the human does not see the real idea back of the external image.

There is a philosophy which states that there is a “Becoming God,” and which attempts to prove this assertion through evolution; but this philosophy is inconsistent with the ultimate nature of Reality; for, if ultimate Reality were in a state of “becoming,’ from what source would It gather Its impulse to become, and from whence would It draw Its power to express Itself?

A “becoming” or evolving God, or First Cause, is not consistent with true philosophy; while, on the other hand, an unfolding God, or First Cause, is consistent with Reality.

It is one thing to say that God is unfolding through His Idea of Himself but quite another thing to say that He is gradually becoming conscious of Himself. One is true while the other is false.

A “becoming” God implies a state of imperfection, or a state of being which does not recognize its perfection, at the very root of all being. An unfolding God implies a forever-out-pouring Spirit and a forever- manifesting Deity, or First Cause.

The unfoldment of this First Cause is what we call evolution. Since this unfold-ment is not yet complete, i.e., since the idea is still in an unfolding state, it appears as though we lived in an imperfect universe.

To a few, who have been able to see behind the veil of matter, the perfect idea has been apparent; and these few have given to the world its greatest code of law, morals and ethics. These few have been the great mystics of the race, and to them the world owes a debt which can be paid only to the degree that the world comes to understand their teachings.

Evolution is the time and the process through which an idea unfolds to a higher state of manifestation; and since ideas are Divine Realities, evolution will forever go on.