Erhalten Sie Zugang zu diesem und mehr als 300000 Büchern ab EUR 5,99 monatlich.
- Herausgeber: Books on Demand
- Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
- Serie: The Inner Dimensions of Life
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024
The Inner Dimensions of Life is a compressed yet exhaustive educational presentation of the esoteric teachings in three volumes, subtitled Esoteric Philosophy, Esoteric Psychology, and Esoteric Sociology. With a background in many years of work as a teacher in his Esoteric School, the author has gathered and edited a comprehensive and thoroughly tested curriculum, including illustrations and copious source references. Thus, the work appeals to readers who will be content with a general view, as well as those who wish to delve deeper into the subject. The second volume, Esoteric Psychology, describes the conscious mental life of human beings and its evolution. After the Introduction and an exposition of The Emotional Life, The Mental Life, and The Will Life, ensues a comprehensive chapter on the Personality. The next chapters concern the Building of the Antahkarana, Consciousness, Telepathy, Clairvoyance, and spiritual Guidance, and Dreams and Obsession. The book is rounded off with a thorough introduction to Meditation, the basic technique for spiritual development.
Sie lesen das E-Book in den Legimi-Apps auf:
Seitenzahl: 955
Das E-Book (TTS) können Sie hören im Abo „Legimi Premium” in Legimi-Apps auf:
Ähnliche
Contents
ILLUSTRATIONS
PREFACE
INTRODUCTION
Consciousness and Its Tools
The Evolution of Consciousness
The Last Chapters
THE EMOTIONAL LIFE
Introduction
The Nature of Emotions
Emotional Energy
The Original Function of the Emotional Body
Basic Emotions
Differentiation of the Basic Emotions
Other Emotions
Complex Emotions
Majestic
Dignity
Jealousy
Envy
Reticence
Vanity
Various Emotions
The Function of the Emotional Life
The Importance of Analysis
The Nature of the Astral Body
Astral Forces
The Main Forces
Exhilaration
Depression
Collective Causes
Individual Causes
Expectancy
Fear
Fear of Death
Fear of the Future
Fear of Physical Pain
Fear of Failure
Fear as a Global Problem
Fear and the 5 Basic Instincts
The Instinct of Self-Preservation
The Sexual Instinct
The Herd Instinct
The Instinct of Self-Assertion
The Instinct of Examination
The Law of Jante
The Disciplining of the Emotional Life
Socialization
Reward and Punishment
Channelling of Energy
The Esoteric Way
Background
Definition of the Situation
The Method Itself
Newer Methods
The Subconsciousness
Basic Self-Hatred
The Levels of Consciousness
The New Psychology
Psychosynthesis
Soul Therapy
The Method
The Psychological Background for Soul Therapy
The 3 Methods
The Open Method
The Will Method
The Relational Method
Other Psychotherapeutic Methods
THE MENTAL LIFE
Introduction
The Potential of the Mental Life
The Evolution of Thought
The 1
st
Phase – Formation of a Synthesis
The 2
nd
Phase – Gathering and Storage of Knowledge
The 3
rd
Phase – Coordination of the Gathered Knowledge
The 4
th
Phase – Responsiveness to Impression
The 5
th
Phase – Creativity
Mental Functions
Basic Functions
Memory
Building of Thoughtforms
Concentration
Manipulation and Arrangement
Fixation
Intermediary Functions
Creative Visualization
Analysis and Synthesis
Deduction and Induction
Correlation
Association, Sorting, and Classification
Higher Functions
Generalization and Specialization
Signalling and Labelling
Symbolization
Inspiration and Intuition
The Reality
Problems with the Mental Reality
The Nature of the Mind
The Mechanics of the Mental Life
Thoughtforms
Building of Thoughtforms
The Substance of Thoughtforms
Thoughtforms in the Service Work
Thoughtforms in Society
Creation through Internalization
Mental Phase
Astral Phase
Etheric Phase
Dense Physical Phase
Space-Time
The Projects of the Ashram
Illustration of Thoughtforms
Radiation of Vibration
Formation of a Thoughtform
Various Types of Thoughtforms
Illustrations
The Disciplining of the Mental Life
Concentration
Studies
Meditation
THE WILL LIFE
Introduction
The Appearance of the Will
Personality
Will in the Mental and Emotional Life
Will and Desire
Experience of the Will
Resistance to the Will
The Will and the Self
The Self
The Aspects of the Will
The Strong Will
The Will to Good
The Intelligent Will
Psychological Functions and Laws
Psychological Functions
Psychological Laws
1
st
Law
2
nd
Law
3
rd
Law
4
th
Law
5
th
Law
6
th
Law
7
th
Law
8
th
Law
9
th
Law
The Qualities and Stages of the Will
The Qualities of the Will
The Stages of the Will
1
st
Stage – Intention and Goal
2
nd
Stage – Deliberations
3
rd
Stage – Choice and Decision
4
th
Stage – Affirmation
5
th
Stage – Planning
6
th
Stage – Direction of Execution
The Disciplining of the Will Life
THE PERSONALITY
Introduction
The Form Aspect of the Personality
The Nature of Substance
Automatic Responses
Elemental Essence
The Disciplining of the Personality
The Dense Physical Body
The Etheric Body
The Emotional Body
The Mental Body
The Consciousness Aspect of the Personality
The Lemurian Period – Maya
The Atlantean Period – Glamour
The Origin of Glamour
1. Self-Pity
2. A Critical Attitude
3. Suspiciousness
The Indo-European Period – Illusion
Impersonality
Maya
Glamour
The Illusions of the Intellect
The Illusions of the Personality
Conclusion
The Integration of the Personality
The Personality
The Integration
Diseases of Mystics
Integration with the Subconscious
The Nature of the Subconscious
The Many Incarnations
The Focus of the Subconscious
The Evolution of the Personality
Starting Point
1. Character Building
Vegetarianism
2. Refinement of Motive
Motivation as Energy
Mental Resistance
Emotional Resistance
3. Service
Discrimination
Sense of Responsibility
Impersonality
Service as an Expression of Soul Contact
Motive
Methods
Attitude
Misunderstandings
4. Meditation
5. A Technical Study of the Science of the Centres
6. Breathing Exercises
7. The Technique of the Will
8. Application of Time
9. Arousing the Kundalini Fire
An Illustration of the Raising of the Kundalini Fire
General Misunderstanding
Meditation on the Centres
Personality Integration and the Rays
Starting Point
The Phases of Evolution
The Development of the Personality
Defects of Character
Techniques of Integration
1
st
Ray
2
nd
Ray
3
rd
Ray
4
th
Ray
5
th
Ray
6
th
Ray
7
th
Ray
The 3 Techniques
The Technique of Fusion
The Technique of Fusion for 1
st
-Ray Disciples
The Technique of Fusion for 2
nd
-Ray Disciples
The Technique of Fusion for 3
rd
-Ray Disciples
The Technique of Duality
THE BUILDING OF THE ANTAHKARANA
Introduction
The Material
Building Site and Tools
The Tools of Thought
The Process of Evolution
The Life Thread and Consciousness Thread
Unconscious Soul Contact
The Creative Thread
Conscious Soul Contact
Spiritual Consciousness
Manas
Buddhi
Atma
Occult Meditation
Intention
The Establishment of a Field of Tension
The Function of the Field of Tension
Parallels in the Personal Life
The Effect of the Field of Tension
Visualization
Imagination
Direction of Energy
Application of the Will
Projection
Response from the Higher Self
Invocation and Evocation
Stabilization
Resurrection
CONSCIOUSNESS
Introduction
The General Function of Consciousness
The Nature of Consciousness
The Esoteric Model
The 3 Energies of Consciousness
The Establishing of a Field of Consciousness
Interplay with the Surroundings
The Mechanism of Consciousness
The Mechanism before the Path of Initiation
The Centres
The Head Chakra
The Brow Chakra
The Throat Chakra
The Heart Chakra
The Solar Plexus Chakra
The Sacral Chakra
The Root Chakra
The Mechanism after the Path of Initiation
The 3 rd Eye
Memory
The Mechanism of Memory
The Distillation of the Atoms
The Review at Physical Death
Memory after the 3
rd
Initiation
The Akashic Records
TELEPATHY, CLAIRVOYANCE, AND SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE
Introduction
Contact in General
Psychic Experiences
The Evolution of the Senses
1
st
Phase
2
nd
Phase
3
rd
Phase
4
th
Phase
5
th
Phase
The World of Meaning
Symbolism
1. All Forms in the Realms of Nature
2. Symbols Known from Cultural Life
3. Archetypal Symbols
The Law of Polarity
Exercise
The Senses and Their Higher Functions
The Senses and the Planes
The Mechanism of Sensation
Telepathy
Introduction
The Telepathic Situation
Sender and Recipient Are out of Their Bodies
Sender Is out of the Body while Recipient Is Awake
Telepathy in the Waking State
Instinctual Telepathy
Astral Telepathy
Mental Telepathy
Intuitive Telepathy
Spiritual Guidance
DREAMS
Introduction
Etymological Background
Physiological Background
Psychological Background
Methods of Treatment
The Origin of Dreams
Dreams with a Physical Origin
Dreams with an Astral Origin
Dreams with a Mental Origin
Dreams with a Causal Origin
Conclusion
Experience of Dreams
The Exoteric Understanding
The Esoteric Understanding
Physical Dreams
The Brain during Sleep
Dreams Based on Etheric Impulses
Non-Physical Dreams
The Parameters of the Experiences
The Background for the Experiences
Interpretation of Dreams
The Astral Plane as a Dimension of Consciousness
Projection
Association
Symbolism
Memory at the Awakening
The Complex Nature of Dream Scenes
Selectivity
Meetings with Other People
Clear Dreams
Previous Incarnations
Predictions
Conclusion
OBSESSION
Esoteric Aspect
The Anchoring of Consciousness
Voluntary and Involuntary Obsession
Various Forms of Obsession
1. The Physical Body is Obsessed from the Astral Plane – A
2. The Physical Body is Obsessed from the Astral Plane – B
3. The Physical and Astral Bodies are Obsessed from the Mental Plane
4. A "Dark" Brother Tears out the Life Thread
5. A Newer Form of Obsession
Exoteric Aspect
Edith Fiore
The Treatment Begins
Why Souls Become Earthbound
Ignorance
Confusion
Fear and Shame
Bonds to Living Persons or Places
Dependence on Drugs, Alcohol, Smoking, Food, or Sex
Something which Hasn't Been Finished
The Effects of Obsession
Various Circumstances
Physical Symptoms
Emotional Symptoms
Mental Symptoms
Possibility of Obsession
Unintentional Obsession
Intentional Obsession
Symptoms of Obsession
Treatment
Generally
Treatment of Others
Self-Treatment
After the Treatment
MEDITATION
Introduction
Esoteric Man
The "Self" or "I"
The Dimensions of the Self
Illumination
Qualities Required for Meditation
Aspiration
Perseverance
Concentration
The Mind – an Independent Being
Visualization
Meditation
Alignment
Dedication
Meditation
Meditation with Seed Thought
Meditation without Seed Thought
Creative Meditation
The Method of Meditation
Concentration
Contemplation
Illumination
Realization and Service
Invocation and Evocation
The Creative Word
The Practical Work
Place
Time
Rhythm
Posture
Breath
Evening Review
The Review Itself
Group Meditation
Introduction
Group Consciousness
Group Meditation
Full Moon Meditation
Elements of Danger
Dangers Inherent in the Personality
The Mental Body
The Emotional Body
The Physical Body
Dangers to the Brain
Dangers to the Nervous System
Dangers to the Sexual Organs
Dangers Arising from Karma and the Surroundings
Dangers Connected with Beings on the Inner Planes
Conclusion
Illustrations1
Figure 1 – The Original Function of the Emotional Body
Figure 2 – The Basic Emotions
Figure 3 – Differentiation of the Basic Emotions – 1
Figure 4 – Differentiation of the Basic Emotions – 2
Figure 5 – Activation of a Thoughtform
Figure 6 – Growth of a Thoughtform
Figure 7 – Blocking of a Thoughtform
Figure 8 – Observation of a Thoughtform
Figure 9 – Alternative Thoughtforms
Figure 10 – The Egg of AssagioliReproduced with permission from: Nomina, Rome, Italy.
Figure 11 – Evolution of Thought
Figure 12 – The Sensory and Motoric Systems
Figure 13 – Mental Functions
Figure 14 – The Mechanics of Mental Life
Figure 15 – Reactions to a Shipwreck
Figure 16 – Response by Roulette Players
Figure 17 – Mental Perception of the Cosmic Order
Figure 18 – Logos in Man Figures 15-18 originate in Annie Besant and C. W. Leadbeater: Thought Forms.Reproduced with permission from: Quest Books/Theosophical Publishing House 306 West Geneva Road, Wheaton IL, 60189-0270, USA www.questbooks.com
Figure 19 – The Structure of Man
Figure 20 – The Stages of the Act of Will
Figure 21 – Man with 3 Overcoats Drawing by Britta Brønsted
Figure 22 – Levels of Illusion From Alice A. Bailey: Glamour, A World Problem, p. 41
Figure 23 – Development of Personality – 1
Figure 24 – Development of Personality – 2
Figure 25 – The Involution of the Monad
Figure 26 – The Evolution of the Monad
Figure 27 – Sublimation Drawing by Britta Brønsted
Figure 28 – The Energy Structure of Man
Figure 29 – The Egoic Lotus Reproduced with permission from Lucis Trust, Suite 54, 3 Whitehall Court, London SW1A 2EF, UK [email protected]
Figure 30 – Subconscious and Conscious Soul Contact
Figure 31 – Man and Solar Angel
Figure 32 – Higher Consciousness
Figure 33 – Consciousness – Caused by 3 Energies
Figure 34 – The Bodies of Man
Figure 35 – The Consciousness Thread Drawing by Britta Brønsted
Figure 36 – Physical Consciousness
Figure 37 – The Third Eye From The Opening of the Third Eye and The Third EyeReproduced with permission from Douglas Baker, www.douglasbaker.com
Figure 38 – The Senses and Their Higher Counterparts
Figure 39 – The Senses and the Planes
Figure 40 – Levels of Telepathy
Figure 41 – Spiritual Guidance
Figure 42 – The Horse-Drawn Carriage Drawing by Britta Brønsted
Figure 43 – Formation of Thoughtform
Figure 44 – Stages of Meditation
1 Due to technical limitations in the printing process in some countries colour pages may not be printed in colour. This may cause some confusion where the author refers to the colours of some particular illustration. This is notably the case with Figures 15-18 (pp. 140-143). We apologize for this inconvenience and hope that the supporting text will to some extent compensate for the possible absence of colours in the book's illustrations.
Preface
The Inner Dimensions of Life is a trilogy, that is, a series of three volumes, where each volume is complete in itself but closely linked to the others in terms of content. This is Volume 2, with the subtitle Esoteric Psychology, and it constitutes a direct sequel to Volume 1, Esoteric Philosophy. The third and last volume has the subtitle Esoteric Sociology. Even though each volume constitutes a unity in itself, readers are recommended to begin with Volume 1, because it contains the entire "technical" foundation on which all 3 volumes are based.
Volume 1 contains an introduction which applies to the present volume as well, in so far as it gives the entire background for the work, that is, particular conditions relating to the research, the sources of the material, and many other things, which it is wise to be aware of when reading this book. It also contains a comprehensive bibliography that covers all three volumes and therefore is not included in this volume.
In the foreword to the first volume I express my gratitude to the organizations and individuals who have given me permission to use their material, or contributed to the books in other ways. I repeat this acknowledgement here, but refer to the mentioned foreword as to whom these organizations and individuals are.
However, as I did in the first volume, I want to express a particular gratitude to my wife, Britta, who has made quite a few of the illustrations.
Introduction
The Inner Dimensions of Life is an esoteric work. This means that it attempts to present the esoteric teaching as it has been given to us by the sources mentioned in the introduction to Volume 1. We esotericists regard this teaching as the most profound description of the world we live in, but at the same time, we are well aware that it is far from being a complete description of that which is possible to grasp for human consciousness.
This is because the teaching has been given to a particular segment of the culturally orientated humanity, and therefore it is only complete when connected with other ways of comprehending life and consciousness. We might say that the teaching is a thoughtform which is intended to evoke a structural understanding of the "system" of the world, but naturally, such an understanding is always limited compared to the broad spectrum of experiences and their interpretation which it is possible to have within the framework of human consciousness.
This thoughtform primarily addresses the rationally thinking segment of humanity, which, via the esoteric teaching, has the opportunity to acquire a profound insight into that which could be called "divine laws". But there are many other things than laws in the world, and many of the dynamic forces which are affecting the planetary life have deliberately been omitted or are only very sparsely described in the teaching. This means that many esotericists have had a tendency to underestimate the more artistic descriptions of reality, which are necessary to make the picture complete.
A structural understanding will inevitably result in a separation between subject and object – that is, the one who looks on the world, and the world in itself. And it is exactly this division which is gradually broken down when human consciousness transcends its identification with the material forms in the 3 worlds – the mental, astral, and physical dimensions. For through this development it approaches the atmic level, where the state of consciousness can best be described as an identification with the one life.
Therefore, we may say that the esoteric teaching gives us the key to an understanding of the deeper mysteries of life, while the actual "essence" of life is only described to an insignificant degree. The whisper of the wind in the trees, the fragrance of a freshly mowed lawn, a babbling brook in the mountains, the light in the eyes of a child, or the vast transmission of devic and human energy which music represents – these, a structural presentation will never be able to capture.
This means that until the third eye2 has been fully and completely developed, and all its functions are in use, there is a need to supplement the esoteric presentation with sources which, combined with the teaching, provide a more complete access. These sources are sensory impressions of the refined aesthetics in the forms of nature and the entire artistic aspect of our culture – dance, music, opera, literature, painting, architecture, and sculpture. They will convey a dynamic understanding of the psychological forces working through the human being and give the structural understanding represented by the esoteric teaching a more complete appearance.
In the East, and particularly in Buddhism, we find in the presentation of the spiritual aspects of existence a very vivid and sensitive description of a continuum3 of life which is not divided into 7 levels, but just is. And in Islam, we find yet a third approach to the mysteries of life, differing from the cultures of the East and the West, respectively. All this is necessary if we want to be able to identify humanity as a whole with the one life, but it does not influence the position of the esoteric teaching in the least – it just shows us that to the enquiring mind there is more to life than this teaching.
2 This will be defined later.
3 Continuum: Latin, continere~hold together, i.e., a coherent whole.
Consciousness and Its Tools
With these reservations in mind we can now begin that which the esoteric teaching is most suited for, namely, a description of the workings of human consciousness – that which is called "esoteric psychology". In Volume 1 we gave the functional background for the subject, as we were describing the energy streams, centres, and bodies which are linked to the concept of "consciousness", and we learned that throughout the main part of evolution man has 4 such bodies, or vehicles, of consciousness.
Innermost, we have the causal body which is the permanent domicile of the soul. This is the unit of life and consciousness which goes through the many lives during evolution, and in that way develops towards an increasing degree of perfection. Its consciousness in the causal body can be called abstract thought plus the function of the will.
The soul incarnates in the personality which consists of 3 bodies, each of which have their particular type of consciousness. The first body of incarnation is the mental body, where the soul establishes thought activity related to the concrete conditions in life. Subsequently, he4 incarnates in the astral body, which is the home of emotions, urges, and desires. And finally, he incarnates in the etheric body, which is the energy structure that the physical cell body develops into and around. Here he establishes, in the combination of the etheric body, the brain, and the nervous system, its physical consciousness, which is a reflection of the consciousness of the inner bodies.
The soul is linked to this triadic form, the personality, via 2 energy streams, which are normally called "threads". One of them is the life thread which is anchored in the heart centre. Here it splits up into that fine network which is called the etheric or vital body. This therefore consists of flowing life energy which has attracted vibrating particles from the lower etheric subplanes and in this way acquired a more material character. Simultaneously, life energy is also transmitted to the bloodstream via the heart, and through this circulation distributed to the entire biological organism.
The other energy stream is the consciousness thread, anchored in the head. It transmits the consciousness energy of the soul to the bodies, and at the same time links these with each other, so that physical man becomes aware of the processes of the mental body in the cerebrum and the processes of the astral body in the limbic system.5The stream of consciousness is supplemented with impulses which enter through the centres, with their related chakras, and appear as more specialized states.
And finally, we should pay attention to the fact that the bodies contain devic life in 2 groups: substance itself, and the evolutionary devas which build, maintain, and inhabit the bodies, together with the human soul. This means that the bodies actually have their own instinctive consciousness, and that the soul, when incarnating in the bodies, blends its consciousness with theirs. This makes human consciousness an extremely complex and complicated thing, which is difficult to fully comprehend and therefore also to develop.
4He: For the same reasons that we call a human being in general "he", whether this be a man or a woman, we will also call the soul "he".
5 The limbic system: A set of brain structures which support a variety of functions, including emotion. The theme returns in a more detailed form in a later chapter.
The Evolution of Consciousness
Nevertheless, this developmental aspect is always the central theme, because the esoteric teaching – as we, perhaps a little provocative, said in the introduction to Volume 1 – is essentially a kind of pedagogical system of manipulation, which serves the purpose of making human beings transform themselves and the world they live in. And, as it is in the psychological part of the teaching we are informed of how to do that, the esoteric psychology really represents the central aspect of the teaching. This, the Tibetan confirms with the words:
"If esoteric teaching is eventually to be public in its presentation, it will be given out along the lines of psychology because esoteric teaching in its fullest and deepest sense concerns the consciousness aspect of man and God."6
Therefore, we will embark on our psychological studies by going through 3 areas of consciousness – emotion, thought, and will – since all processes of awareness always appear as one or more of these aspects. Like the evolution of consciousness as a whole, we start at the beginning, which is with the slowest frequencies, and all the time we keep remembering that states of consciousness are always carried by vibrating substance in a body
This means that the first 3 chapters of this book deal with these 3 areas of consciousness: the emotional life, the thought-life, and the will life, and as these subjects are seen from a developmental perspective, each chapter will consist of 2 parts. The first part is an analysis of the psychological processes and functions of the aspect in question, based on the maxim that we are unable to change something we do not know. So, if we wish to change the way in which we feel or think, we need to know how this happens.
Let us illustrate this with an example. Imagine that our TV set breaks down. In that situation, the obvious thing to do is to remove the backboard and look into the device from behind. But this rarely helps, because we do not understand what we see and are therefore unable to do anything about the problem. So, we send for a technician, and he does exactly the same thing: removes the backboard. However, for him it is extremely meaningful, because he understands everything he sees and so quickly determines what is wrong. In other words, he is able to repair the TV set because he knows it.
The second part of each chapter is a description of the methods and techniques which the esoteric teaching recommends that we use to further our evolution of consciousness. The methods are old and thoroughly tested, because they are the ones that the members of the Hierarchy have used themselves to reach their goal. It means that the methods work with "scientific" certainty, implying that if we do what we are told, in the right way, with sufficient care, for a sufficiently long time – whether this means months, years, or incarnations – the effects will inevitably occur, and at the same time, we will be able to handle the potent energies and forces which such methods always call forth.
So, when we have gone through these 3 aspects of consciousness, one at a time, we gather them into the whole they actually constitute, namely, the personality. Here, we proceed in exactly the same way: that is, first an analysis of functions, and then a description of methods and techniques. And all the time through this part of the esoteric psychology, we focus primarily on the personality, because in our daily lives we are the personality, and this is the one which needs to be changed if we want to reach the goal of spiritual development.
The personality is our form aspect, and all our problems consist in the resistance of this form to the life energy of the soul, in exactly the same way a power cord produces a certain resistance (ohm) to the electric tension (volt) of the current. Therefore, we might say that spiritual development consists in becoming better conductors of soul energy, by reducing the resistance in the form nature or bodies.
After we have dealt with the psychology of the personality, we continue with a detailed description of the development which represents the relative conclusion of this phase of human evolution: the establishing of soul contact. This contact is brought about by the building of a "bridge" across the "gap" separating the personality from the soul. Slightly more poetically, this bridge is also called the "rainbow bridge", because of its airy nature, or else the Indian term "antahkarana"1 is used.
This brings us to the point where an overview of all our information about human consciousness and its development is possible. This overview we present in a chapter with the heading, Consciousness, and here we get a complete outline of this absolutely essential and deeply fascinating theme. But at the same time, we also have new information, which has not fitted in anywhere else, and this enables us to provide a more complete picture of the subject.
6 Alice A. Bailey: The Rays and the Initiations, p. 252.
The Last Chapters
Then some chapters follow which show how human consciousness functions in different contexts. They describe the various ways in which human beings can contact the inner dimensions, and the response which may arise from such a contact. In this way, we are actually fulfilling a "promise" we gave at the beginning of the chapter From Materialism to Spirituality in Volume 1 of the trilogy.
Here we said that the esoteric teaching can explain concepts like telepathy, clairvoyance, psychometry, and many other phenomena. This is what we are going to do in these last chapters of Volume 2, and the contents of the chapters have in common that they highlight how the human being may contact and experience the inner worlds, while being at the same time fully awake in the physical dimension.
The first of these chapters is called Telepathy, Clairvoyance, and Spiritual Guidance. In this, we deal with the relationship between telepathy and psychic abilities in the shape of clairvoyance, clairaudience, and clairsentience, which means clear sight, clear hearing, and clear feeling. The response which may result from these methods of communication we can summarize under the designation, "spiritual guidance".
After this, follows a chapter about a form of contact with the inner dimensions we have all experienced numerous times, namely, dreams. Many a morning, we wake up with the impression of having been some other "place" with our entire being – apart from the dense body, of course – and I believe it is wise to take that impression seriously. For, beyond all doubt, from the esoteric perspective, sleep simply means that consciousness leaves the brain and nervous system and is present in some other dimension while the body is recovering, and that dreams in many cases are scattered memories of these visits.
Then follows a chapter about a far more uncomfortable form of contact with the inner worlds, which is called obsession. This implies that one or more beings take control of the physical body of a human being and use it for their own purposes. It is a phenomenon which is dealt with not only by esoteric psychology, but also receives increasing attention from the exoteric regression research.8 This means that we can describe the subject from an esoteric as well as an exoteric angle, because regression research gives us a lot of interesting information which fits very well into the esoteric world view.
The last chapter is about meditation. The esoteric teaching tells us that meditation is the method par excellence of spiritual development of a human being. But today, the concept has many "faces", and therefore we often find that the esoteric designation "meditation" is extended to include the word "occult" as well. Occult means "secret" or "hidden", and in this way it is implied that meditation is a technique by which we may bring hidden abilities and qualities to the front in our nature, so that they can be applied in a controlled way.
This is all due to the fact that the human being is really an "inner" spiritual being who incarnates in a number of "outer" dimensions in order to make the experiences necessary for learning to master – and ultimately also to create – these dimensions. For, we should never forget that deep down in our innermost nature there is a core of pure spiritual being, the monad, which is really a "seed" from our Logoic parent, destined to grow and develop into a being abreast of the Logos. This is the way in which cosmic space evolves to include still deeper and more comprehensive fields of evolution and service.
7Antahkarana: Sanskrit, antar~inner + karana-sense organ.
8Regression: Latin, regredi~go back. With this research method, psychologists try to uncover subconscious responses through a light hypnotic trance leading to earlier phases of consciousness.
The Emotional Life
Introduction
As we mentioned in the introduction, the first psychological subject we are going to study is the emotional life, for the simple reason that it constitutes the conscious aspect of the "next" body after the twofold physical form, the etheric body and the dense cell organism. And here we bear in mind the fact that the physical body does not have a consciousness of its own, but mere organs, the brain, and nervous system, in which to receive and reproduce the consciousness that is projected into them from the inner bodies.
For the majority of people the emotions are the most motivating factor in life and therefore also a difficult subject to approach, because many people consider the emotions to be the most valuable quality they have, and for that reason they are not too interested in taking a closer look at it. It is sort of "sacred", because here are all the precious moments of our life, and who wants to bring these forward into the clear light of day in order to take a closer look?
We are living for the emotional climaxes. As children, we were looking forward to Christmas and birthdays, simply because we were getting presents at these occasions. Later in life, the presents move "up" to a "higher" level and become things like a car, a house, or other expensive possessions, and when we mature a bit more we look forward to traveling, educating ourselves, or meeting with those we love.
So the point is not what we are looking forward to, but the fact that we are looking forward. This is beautifully illustrated by the Irish-French author Samuel Beckett in his play Waiting for Godot. Here the point is not who or what Godot is, but the fact that the two principal characters of the play are waiting for him.
Normally, we use thoughts to serve feelings, that is, we figure out how to best satisfy our desires. So, when somebody approaches this area with a searchlight, we try to anticipate what is hidden behind that searchlight. On its own, thought is relatively impersonal and quickly sees through the situation. Therefore, it returns to the emotions with a danger warning, because ahead of us a sacrifice is waiting, which is so frightening that we – that is, the personality focused in the emotions – do not dare to face it directly and therefore cut off all further analysis.
The Nature of Emotions
But here we realize that we have already used words like "emotion", "feeling", or "desire" in the book without further explanation. Therefore, before we move on with the presentation of the emotional life, we will pause for a moment to see if we can arrive at some sort of definition of these concepts. For it is the purpose of this book to attempt to get to the bottom of things in a rather brief manner.
So what, really, is an emotion? Can we penetrate into the primary character of that movement of astral substance we term "emotion"? It is the effect produced by the impact of astral force upon the sensory system of the physical body. It is how our senses translate astral forces. And the main mechanism behind many emotions is desire,9 which may be defined as the phenomenon produced when the emotional nature of a personality responds to the selfish or separative will of the individual. So, a desire is nothing but the astral force of a focused will, since force, in esoteric terms, is defined as embodied energy. Whereas energy is a potency, a sort of seed, desire is an actual force, a frequency of matter which is magnetic in nature and therefore able to attract the substance needed for an appearance.
So, we see that emotions are actually defined as physical responses to astral impacts. This is due to the fact that the physical plane is the only place where we can desire to have things, or avoid them. Here we may acquire material wealth, things like houses, cars, or clothes. We can travel the world, have a career and make our way in society, but we may also lose it all and die. In the emotional world, the astral plane, there is nothing to desire and nothing to be afraid of, for we cannot die, and therefore the concepts of emotion and desire only have meaning in relation to the physical dimension.
Because of its close relation to "will", we may perceive emotion as the driving or impelling force in our constitution. In itself it is neither good nor bad, for it is not until its use is directed by the mind and/ or soul that it takes on a definite character or attribute. It is the seat of the living electric impulses, desires, and aspirations, considered in their energetic aspect. So, maybe we can say that will and desire are the higher and lower aspects of one and the same thing.
Aspirants and disciples on the spiritual path have to get acquainted with this tremendous power in their natures, because they are approaching the largest of all the trials of the personality: the reorientation of the ancient emotional habits, which will, at some time or other, lead to the 2nd initiation. And if they wish to reorientate the emotional life, they need to know how it works in details, according to the maxim, that we are unable to change something we do not know.
Emotional Energy
Emotions, or the emotional energy, are often compared to water, because both move in waves. The wave crests are joy and happiness, while the troughs are worry and sorrow. Normally, we attempt to cut away all the troughs of the waves and be happy all the time, but that is not possible, because the crests create the troughs, and conversely, the troughs create the crests. All emotional states exist as pairs of opposites, which means that our emotional life is based on contrasts. If we have our favourite dish every day, we will soon get tired of it.
However, the problem with the emotional life is that it interferes with the meditative peace of mind required by everyone approaching the spiritual path of evolution. And here the crests of the waves are often the worst, because when we are depressed we can always bury ourselves in work, but we cannot do that when we are excited, because then we are unable to concentrate.
This means that the light moments will always be more dangerous than the dark ones, as it is in the excitement of enthusiasm we lose our alertness and do things we subsequently regret bitterly. In these moments, we may, for instance, sign a mortgage deed of several millions of dollars – an act for which we will then pay the penalty the rest of our lives. The sentry is easier to overpower in broad daylight than at night, because then he is on guard.
Figure 1
Therefore, it is necessary that we take measures against both extremes, the crests as well as the troughs. We must level the entire area and transform the emotional body into a mirror to spiritual impulses. This is the frightening sacrifice we mentioned earlier, because the emotional peaks are actually the goal and meaning of life for many people.
The Original Function of the Emotional Body
From our studies of the evolution of consciousness10 we know that two basic states exist in the emotional body. When impulses from the physical world flow into the astral body and cause harmonious vibrations, it expands in order to embrace the impulses. This is an expression of pleasure. But when the physical impulses cause disharmonious waves, the emotional body contracts to repel these, and this is an expression of pain – see Figure 1.
Thus, the emotional body is the vehicle where consciousness receives sensory impressions and experiences them as pairs of opposites, like pleasure/pain, comfortable/uncomfortable or attractive/repulsive. This we can call "sensing", because the dense physical body with sensory organs, brain, and nervous system does not interpret the impulses. It just registers them and sends them on into the astral body, where we relate to them in a qualitative way, primarily in the form of whether we like them or not. This means that it is in the emotional body we "sense" the impulses.
In this respect, one might think that a third state exists, which could be called "neutrality". But that is not the case. If we are completely neutral, it is really because our attention is directed towards something else. Therefore, sensing is always some degree of pleasure or pain – even if the state is almost imperceptible.
9 See Volume 1, pp. 171-173.
10 See Volume 1, pp. 441-481.
Basic Emotions11
This simple double function is all that the astral body contributes to sensing. It is not until mental activity meets emotional sensing that genuine feelings occur. The thought remembers pleasure and this makes us desire more pleasure, because we now know what causes the pleasure. We call this, expectancy, and it results in attraction, sympathy, or maybe even love.
But the thought also remembers pain, and in this case we develop desire to avoid more pain. That is called fear or anxiety, and leads to repulsion, antipathy, or hatred. Therefore, we can say that feelings are emotional sensing combined with mental perception, and this enables us to show a graphic presentation of what we could call "basic emotions" – see Figure 2 (next page).
Figure 2
Here we notice that expectancy and fear are equally desirous, in the same way as the poles of a magnet are equally magnetic. We can demonstrate this by placing two magnets close together, in such a way that the two plus-poles face each other. We then notice this peculiar resistance which feels a bit like an air-cushion, making it almost impossible to get the two magnets to touch each other. If we subsequently let the two minus-poles face each other we experience exactly the same, and this demonstrates that the two poles are equally magnetic.
However, the emotional state varies considerably according to what it is we desire. If, for instance, we desire food because we are hungry, we satisfy that desire by eating. By doing so the desire fades away, and the state does not develop further than a rhythmic rise and fall of desire in line with us getting hungry, eating, and thus becoming satisfied. We may also say that the food is digested and transformed into energy, which we use for our bodily activities, and that the result therefore is a total fusion of us, who desire, and that which we desire.
But what happens when we desire another human being? In that case a total fusion with that which we desire is impossible. Therefore, a more lasting state develops, which consists of the attraction caused by desire plus a permanent frustration never to be able to fully satisfy that desire. Here we have for the first time a genuine feeling, namely, that which we in everyday language call "love".
It is well known that love and its opposite, hate, may vary very quickly in a relationship, and that is due to the immensely sensitive balance between the attraction and the frustration. If the frustration reaches a certain level, the emotion turns into its opposite – keeping in mind that astral states always operate in pairs of opposites where the two poles evoke each other.
On the general emotional level love is only experienced as love, because consciousness knows its opposite, hate. Here, we already have a glimpse of the difference between what we could call ordinary, earthly, or astral love, and its spiritual counterpart, buddhic love. The latter state does not move in waves and is not based on contrasts as the earthly love is, and because of that historical figures, like the Buddha or the Christ, are able to demonstrate a permanent and unchangeable love of every living being. There are no ups and downs, only a permanent emanation of a state which in essence is based on a profound recognition and experience of the unity of humanity and therefore is called love-wisdom. We will get back to this later.
The ordinary oscillation of an emotion between its two poles can be illustrated with an example – a man is returning home, tired from work. His wife, on the other hand, is in the mood for love and she is serving his favourite dish for dinner, complete with red wine and candles on the table. After finishing dinner, she starts "circling" a bit around her husband, but he is tired and dismissive. She tries again several times, but each rejection makes her frustration not to have her desire satisfied grow. Finally, they have a quarrel, and that which in her case started as an offer of love ends in its own contrast.
This means that we are now able to define this earthly love – which does not only consist of the sexual element, but also of a tender and warm closeness. This love is composed of the desire for another human being, plus the more or less painful recognition of the inviolable individuality of the other person. You know that you can never experience complete union with the other person, but only achieve an increasing level of intimacy in the relationship – both physically and psychically. So, when the American hit goes: "I've Got You Under My Skin" this is precisely what is not possible.
Differentiation of the Basic Emotions
In the following we will only deal with proper emotions – that is, emotions between people. Here we will introduce 3 new concepts, which for some may seem heavily loaded, but in this context are to be perceived more as a polarization between two parties. These are:
Superiority
– this is a situation between two people where one of them feels that he
12
has something to give the other.
Equality
– this is a situation where one of them experiences that both have something to give to each other, and thus are able to exchange on equal terms.
Inferiority –
this is a situation where one of them feels that he is lacking something which the other person can give him.
Here it is important to notice that the situation only expresses how one party experiences it. You can easily have a situation where one party feels superior, while the other party also feels superior. Or maybe a person feels superior in some situations, whereas he feels inferior towards the same person in other situations.
For instance, let us imagine the relationship between the head of a company and one of the employees. During working hours, the employee is likely to feel inferior, simply because the employer decides whether he has a job or not, and what his salary is. He shows this via his body language by stepping aside when he meets the boss in the corridor so that he can move straight ahead. He may also unconsciously make himself a bit "smaller", that is, "crumble" a little, so that the boss appears to be the biggest. But when they meet on the badminton court after work, the relationship may be reversed, because the employee is a better badminton player.
We may actually take advantage of these bodily signals in the traffic if we are stopped by a police officer, because we have committed some violation. The worst thing we can do is to remain seated in the car and merely roll down the window a little, so that the police officer has to bend down and shout through the gap. In that case, we are sure to get a fine. If, on the other hand, we immediately jump out of the car and into the "territory" of the police officer, while attempting to appear a bit smaller, so that the policeman in his motorcycle outfit appears big and powerful, then there may be a chance of appeasing him and avoid the fine.
With these 3 concepts, we are able to divide the basic emotions. We simply combine each of the 2 basic states, attraction and repulsion, with the 3 situations – equality, inferiority, and superiority – and notice which emotions then emerge, as shown in Figure 3 (next page). What is interesting here, is how different the resulting emotional states actually are. Ordinary attraction becomes sympathy, respect, or kindness, according to how we perceive the polarization in relation to the other party. In the same way, repulsion becomes antipathy, fear, or pride, which are also very different in their essence.
As we have seen, two people can never completely fuse together, but only increase the degree of intimacy in their relationship. Therefore, we are going to introduce 3 degrees of intimacy: (1) the distant level which we can call "acquaintance", (2) a considerably closer level we call "friendship", and (3) the most intimate level which we call "marriage" or "cohabitation". Now we combine these with the two basic states, attraction and repulsion, plus our experiences of equality, inferiority, and superiority. The result is 18 different emotional states which can be seen on the chart in Figure 4, and again, we should note that they are relatively dissimilar, even though we have only added varying degrees of intimacy to the chart.
Figure 3
11 The primary source here is Bhagavan Das: The Science of the Emotions – see the bibliography in Volume 1, p. 810.
12 Throughout the book there will be many references to individuals who may be either male or female. In order not to use expressions like "she or he" or "the person concerned, in question, or referred to", we will simply say "he" as an expression of "man", whether this be a man or a woman.
Other Emotions
Complex Emotions
As it appears from our charts, not all emotions are included in this differentiation of the basic emotions. This is due to the fact that many emotions are a combination of elements from the various categories. But we do not always have a term for an emotion, because the emotional states really have two aspects: (1) a subjective aspect which is the actual emotion we experience, and (2) an objective aspect, which is the quality the emotion gives to the person experiencing it.
Majestic. Usually, we have a term for a particular emotion, for instance, love, and the objective aspect then becomes an adjective, which indicates that the individual with this emotion is "loving". But in a few cases, it is the objective aspect which has a term, for instance, in the case of a majestic human being. What does such a person feel? We don't have a particular word for that, but we have a sense that it is a combination of compassion for the weak but good people, and pride in relation to the strong but evil people. It may be a magnanimous and generous human being, but the strength and firmness are felt underneath.
Figure 4
Dignity. Exactly the same applies to the concept of dignity. We know how a dignified human being is, but we don't have a term for the actual emotion. It is a combination of two opposites, corresponding to those which characterize majestic, but behind the emotion are mental qualities, like equanimity, balance, and harmony.
Jealousy is also a complex emotion. At the outset, it consists of repulsion plus inferiority, but according to our chart above this would just be anxiety in general, and this does not quite describe the state. It is because yet another element is involved, which is a selfish desire for a person who is also desired by the person one is jealous of. Therefore, the state is actually a form of fear, but it is the fear of losing the love of the object of our affection, and at the same time also the fear of losing face when it becomes known that we have been rejected in favour of somebody else.
Envy is an emotion of a similar kind, but here repulsion and inferiority are combined with a selfish desire for something which another person also desires and already possesses. The difference between the two emotions can be said to be that in the case of envy, it is often possible for both parties to have their desires satisfied, whether the desired object is a car, a journey, or an education. But in the case of jealousy it is often so that only one person can satisfy his13 desire, because only one object is desired by both parties, like, for instance, a man, a woman, or a position in a company. However, in practice, these two emotions often merge and the terms are used at random, without very thorough discernment.
Reticence is clearly based on the conscious sense of inferiority, but our attitude is wait-and-see because no previous meetings or confrontations have taken place. As a result, two variations exist, the one being inferiority plus attraction which becomes self-consciousness, or inferiority plus repulsion, leading to shyness.
Vanity is based on desire for another emotion. We desire to be loved, and because of that we beautify ourselves in order to attract the object of our desire. But we can also desire to dominate, and that too causes us to smarten ourselves up in order to evoke envy among people and in this way keep them at a distance.
So, even though the complex emotions cannot at first be placed in our chart, they nevertheless do not add anything new to our picture of the emotional nature, because they consist of a combination of elements we know and have placed in the chart.
Various Emotions
However, it is not only human relations which arouse our emotions - art or nature can do that as well. But here the sensory element is often so dominant that actual emotions, like those we find between people, do not arise. We are in fact in the same situation as when we are hungry, eat, and become satisfied. We listen to a concert, see an exhibition, or go for a walk by the water where we witness a sunset. We absorb the impulses and they make a big impression on us, but sooner or later we reach a point of saturation. This causes us to turn our attention towards something else, without the experience having left any noticeable trace apart from, perhaps, a general sense of elation.
When we have been to a concert and are leaving the concert hall, we can often see a particular shine in the eyes of some members of the audience. Inside ourselves we nod in recognition, as they have obviously had the same great experience that we had, but there are no complicated "Freudian" tensions involved like those we can come across in human relations, unless, of course, the piece of art causes an association to a profound trauma. In that case, it is not the music, painting, dance, sculpture, or architecture which is producing the tension, but the trauma.
Exceptions from this are literature, and particularly novels, stage plays, and movies. This is because these art forms usually describe relations between humans and therefore arouse a similar gamut of emotions to those we experience in relation to other people. But the emotions are partially kept at bay by the mind, which is well aware that this is only imagination and not real events we are involved in, and we therefore rest in sweet expectation of an imaginary satisfaction. This is the reason why we become so disappointed if there is no "happy ending".
However, these circumstances do not in any way prevent us from experiencing excitement, or from shedding a tear, but the experiences never get very close to us and do not have lasting effects. We are simply being entertained, and this requires first and foremost that the emotions are engaged, but when the texts appear after the film, we may sit for a while collecting ourselves before going on to something else.
But the peculiar thing about literature, theatre, and film is that both the "good" and the "evil" images may give us enjoyment, and actually the "evil" ones often the most. This we can tell from the general selection in for example video shops.
Here are various possibilities. For instance, we may enjoy the distance to the events in a movie and sit with the coffee cup next to us and the sentence "I'm glad I'm not in his shoes" on our lips. We may also identify with the victim and enjoy the self-pity this evokes. We can enjoy the indignation, "this I would never do", or we can enjoy the idea that we are actually the hero/heroine soon to appear on the stage and rescue the victim. So, the sad images simply contrast the happy ones and in that way increase the enjoyment of these. Or like the Danish poet Hans Christian Andersen said: "People have at first an immense deal of adversity to go through, and then they will be famous".14
But the point is that nothing new has entered our picture of the emotional life. Our analysis holds good and is hard to get around. This is of great significance for the understanding we need to arrive at, if we want to approach the most difficult point of the spiritual path: the 2nd initiation. It is not difficult because of the heavy demands, for these come with all the initiations, but because the distance between the demands and the consciousness, which is supposed to meet them, seems to be bigger than in other initiations.
13 See the footnote on p. 18 about the use of "he" for "man".
14 Hans Christian Andersen: The True Story of My Life: A Sketch, First Chapter. Translated by Mary Howitt.
The Function of the Emotional Life
Now we can form an idea of the general function of the emotional life in our existence, because we have seen that it is via the emotions that we evaluate physical sensory impressions qualitatively. We decide whether we like or dislike what we experience, and having done that we start desiring that which is pleasant and fear that which is unpleasant – that is, desiring to avoid it.
In that way, the emotions work as the primary driving force behind our actions. Therefore, they are absolutely vital during most of evolution, because they protect us and motivate us to make progress and become what we, with a vague expression, call "happy". But we just have to ask ourselves how often fear has saved our lives! We are facing a predator and become afraid, and this motivates us to climb a tree, hoping that the animal does not dare venture out onto the thin branches, which can barely support us.
But in the final part of human evolution, the so-called spiritual path, the emotional nature becomes an opponent because of its selfishness and self-centredness. For, spiritual development is in essence an approach to the planetary group consciousness, and this necessitates that our entire personal viewpoint is sacrificed for the benefit of an impersonal focus on service.
Therefore, what controls the progress of the emotions is the growing mental recognition of this condition. However, this requires that the soul plays an active role in our personal life, as our existence will otherwise be controlled by the emotions and desires of the personality. But when the soul is active, it disciplines the emotions via the power of thought and raises them to their maximum level, which is aspiration for spiritual development.15
