A Rosicrucian Dilemma - Psychism and Spirituality



                     

   Psychism and Spirituality

The Rosicrucian Dilemma - Part Two

 This paper is entitled: Psychism and Spirituality – the Rosicrucian Dilemma, was first read at a Rosicrucian Conference in Bournemouth 2010. it expresses some of my personal reflections on the work of a Rosicrucian, particularly in the context of the FAMA & CONFESSIO, in which, as I understand it, the distinction between Psychism and Spirituality is essential to the accomplishment of the Great Work; by which I mean the spiritual regeneration of the soul of both the individual and of humanity.

I posted this blog some time ago on the Imagier Publishing blog, but I have been asked by some of my acquaintances to include it among this collection of papers.

 

All quotations and references are from and to Thomas Vaughan’s

English translation of the FAMA, published in 1652

 

 

Note: This address, along with PART ONE,
may also be found as an audio at Imagierplus on Youtube.

http://youtu.be/T1Ex94B0Ugc

 

Part Two - Concerning ‘Psychism’ & ‘Spirituality’

 

On the basis that a delusion, no matter how common-place or popular, is still a delusion, I think this is the right place to qualify what I mean by ‘Spirituality’ and ‘Psychism’; they are after all the main theme of this address. I think most of us would agree that they are common terms, but, do they have a common meaning?

 

The word Psychism is derived from the Greek ‘Psyche’ which is a term that was, and still is commonly used for the soul. The best description I have read concerning the Psyche is an allegorical tale concerning the evolution of the soul, told by Apuleius in his book Metamorphoses, or the Golden Ass. This ancient story tells of a beautiful princess named Psyche, whose beauty was so marvellous that Venus the goddess of love was threatened by it, and thus she sent her son Cupid to use one his fateful arrows to direct Psyche’s affection towards all that is base and worthless. 

 

However, Cupid, instead of fulfilling his mother’s wishes fell in love with Psyche, and through his divine powers transported her to his celestial palace where she became his wife. However, in fear of his mother’s anger Cupid only visited Psyche in the darkness of night and left before the dawn, thus she neither knew the name nor the identity of her lover. 

 

Cupid had warned Psyche never to seek his identity, but Psyche, persuaded by the dark mischief of her jealous sisters, who had convinced her that he was a hideous monster hiding his true form in the darkness, lit a lamp as her husband slept, to see if this was true. Unfortunately some of the hot oil fell from the lamp onto the shoulder of Cupid, who awoke and admonished and divorced Psyche, leaving her desolate. 

 

Thus begins Psyche’s long and desperate search for her beloved, all the while hunted and tormented by the goddess Venus. After many trials and tribulations, including overcoming Hades, she finally achieves immortality and is reunited with Cupid. Personally I like this story as it portrays the soul’s evolution out of the material world of the senses and the instinctive nature of human biology, into the spiritual world. 

 

However, in more prosaic terms the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes Psychism as the “Doctrine or theory of the existence of forces unexplainable by physical science in connexion with spiritistic phenomena.”[3] Not really very helpful, in my opinion. Alternatively, Madame Blavatsky, the co-founder of the Theosophical Society, defined Psychism as “A term now used to denote very loosely every kind of mental phenomena e.g. mediumship, and the higher sensitiveness, hypnotic receptivity, and inspired prophecy, simple clairvoyance in the astral light, and real divine seership.” [4]

 

Perhaps the most revealing thing about both of these definitions is that they describe Psychism in terms of phenomena and the phenomenal world, whether it be the coarse material world we perceive with our senses, or whether it be some astral/ethereal counterpart that we experience with the mind. In either case they are definitions rooted in the discursive mind born of Duality. 

 

The word Spirituality is derived from the word ‘Spirit’, which has many meanings in the English language. Reference books and dictionaries describe the word ‘Spirit’, in its non-material sense, as signifying the essential nature or principle of a place, a thing or a person, but it is also used to signify an entity such as an angel, an elemental, a ghost or a demon. But whether it refers to an object, quality or an entity the term is generally used to describe something that is essentially incorporeal or immaterial. Thus, the spiritual essence of a person, place or thing is beyond image and form. How then is it to be understood? 

 

In my experience this notion of the essence being formless is best expressed in Kabbalistic terms. Kabbalistic thought proposes that Creation emerges in four successive and increasingly material modes from a formless and invisible essence, known as Ain Soph Aur.

The first world is called Atziluth – the archetypal world. It is the world in which the Spiritual essence coalesces into the divine archetypes which are the basis of Creation.

The second world is Briah, the Creative World. This is the world in which the divine archetypes – the differentiated essence – become dynamic but have yet to take form.

The third world is Yetzirah, the Formative world, and it is in this world that the archetypes begin to take form, as in the mind of an architect or designer – albeit a subtle ethereal form that is not usually perceptible to the senses, but is perceivable to the mind.

The fourth is Assiah, the Material world, which is the world of Matter, wherein the archetypes have their most concrete form, a form perceptible to the senses. It is in this world that Adam & Eve were given tunics of skin (Gen. 3: 21). 
 
This concept of a transcendent and formless spiritual essence is also found in Neo-Platonic thought, which propose three principal modes of being,

The One is the Infinite, the Absolute, the source and ground of existence. It is Unity pure and simple.

The Divine Nous is the Divine Spirit/Mind in which exists the archetypal ideas and prototypes of creation. 

 

The world Soul is the model of creation itself. It consists of a celestial part that contemplates the Divine Nous, and a terrestrial part which is the vehicle through which the material cosmos is generated.

 

Human souls proceed from the World Soul, and as a microcosm of the World Soul consists of two or more parts, the Terrestrial part, the two lowest illustrated in this chart, comprises the realm most commonly experienced by humanity and consists of the material world of the senses and the ethereal world – most commonly known as the Astral. The highest part, the Celestial, the upper two illustrated in this chart, is capable of rising above the material and ethereal world to contemplate the Divine Nous, which constitutes the goal of many esoteric systems.

 

 

 

There are other models that demonstrate this point but the Kabbalistic and Neo-Platonic models shown here were reasonably well known to the esoteric community in the 16^th century (See Thorndyke’s History of Magic, and Experimental Science), and are sufficient to demonstrate the SPIRITUAL and the PSYCHIC being a distinction between FORM and ESSENCE. It is clear, then, that throughout history the custodians of the Tradition, whose ranks, according to the Fama must include the first three generations of ROSICRUCIANS, recognised that there is a distinction to be made between Form and Essence. And that the SPIRITUAL is concerned with Essence, and the PSYCHIC with Form. 

 

It seems to me that if there is a one thing above all else that distinguishes Essence and Form it is the concepts of UNITY and DUALITY. That which is spiritual pertaining to Essence and UNITY and that which is psychic pertaining to Form and DUALITY and all that such implies, including the infinity of worlds and creatures who inhabit them. 

 

The following illustrations of p.62 and p. 63, of the Confessio clearly demonstrates that the authors were conscious of this distinction, and that the realm of Form, was transient and of the nature of Duality.

 

 

It seems very clear to me that the main objective of the Fama was to demonstrate, albeit in a veiled manner, an understanding of the spiritual nature of the Great Work, inspiring aspirants in the opening years of the 17^th century to focus on the mysteries of the spiritual life rather than squabbling over the theological and political issues that dominated the poisonous atmosphere of religious hatred that polluted Europe throughout the 16^th & 17^th centuries. This the Fama does, using the metaphoric and allegorical language of Kabbalah and Alchemy, following the precedents established in the ancient world of using stories as allegories of the spiritual life, transmitted in such a way as to convey and protect the integrity of important spiritual ideas by embodying them in a memorable tale. 

 

Examples of such methods can be seen in the Mosaic books such as the Exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt, and Moses’ ascent of Mt. Sinai, where history and allegory are obviously combined, or in non-Christian texts such as the story of the Argonauts’ quest for the Golden Fleece. Indeed, as I understand it Apuleius devised the story of the Metamorphoses or Golden Ass as an allegory to circumvent the taboo against speaking publicly about the Sacred Mysteries of Eleusis. He even embedded in the Metamorphoses the story of Cupid and Psyche, which is itself an echo or reflection of the soul’s quest for redemption as portrayed in the Mysteries by Persephone. I think he sailed very close to the wind with that.

 

There are many other examples of the allegorical method available, Chretien De Troyes Arthurian Romances, Dante’s Paradisio, and Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress come to mind, but these are simply a few of many possible examples. However, in their own way by their very existence they all support the validity of the Fama to stand, not merely as an ancient political ‘manifesto’, a historical curiosity, but as an allegorical text full of symbols of the spiritual life. To those who think themselves Rosicrucians but have not studied the Fama, having only read and listened to ‘scholarly’ opinion concerning it, I must say with all due respect, that study it you must! It is well worth the effort, for it is dripping with enigmatic and wonderful references to the mysteries of Alchemy and Kabbalah. For example, consider the curious nature of the following passage from page 3 of the Fama:

 

It reads: “To such an intent of a general Reformation, the most godly and highly illuminated Father, our Brother, Christian Rosencreutz a German, the chief and original of our Fraternity, hath much and long time laboured, who by reason of his poverty (although descended of Noble Parents) in the fifth year of his age (of his Novitiate) was placed in a cloister, where he had learned indifferently the Greek and Latin Tongues, who ( upon his earnest desire and request) being yet in his growing years, was associated to a Brother, P.A.L. who had determined to go to the Holy Land.”

 

Now we have a choice; we either accept the literal reading of the text; that a poor five year old boy was given over to a monastery, and began learning Latin & Greek, and who sought the guidance of a more senior member, who incidentally, was prepared to take him to the Holy Land. This would make Christian Rosencreutz a monastic and a catholic, which is possible but unlikely. Alternatively, if the words are considered in metaphorical terms they suggest that Christian Rosencreutz was presented as an initiated member of an esoteric brotherhood. It is even possible that both may be true, that he was intended to be seen as both a monastic and an initiate of an esoteric brotherhood; which is not as far-fetched as it might at first appear, concerning which I refer you to the extensive work of Lynn Thorndike [History of Magic, and Experimental Science] who makes abundantly clear just how involved some members of the monastic orders were in the exploration of the esoteric. 

 

Whatever the whole truth may be it seems to me that one thing is certain – this passage is not saying is that Christian Rosencreutz was a five year old infant when he entered the cloisters, but that he was young in the Work. Furthermore, when Brother P.A.L., is considered in metaphorical terms, he may be seen as a senior member of the Order, who assisted Christian Rosencreutz on his spiritual journey to The Holy Land – which is a metaphor for the kingdom of heaven – the spiritual goal of the mystic and contemplative. 

 

That Brother P.A.L., died in Cyprus and Christian Rosencreutz continued on his journey is also suggestive. Either the author is alluding to ‘Death’ in Alchemical terms, suggesting that Christian Rosencreutz had begun the process of Spiritual Alchemy in which the death (quiescence) of the discursive mind, no matter how inspired, is absolutely necessary. In which case brother P.A.L., is being used as a device to symbolise a form of an inspired intellect [such as John the Baptist], or, he may be alluding to the fact that the teacher can only ever be a signpost and that the student must ultimately make the journey alone. Consider the following passage: “At Fez he did get acquaintance with those which are commonly called the Elementary Inhabitants, who revealed unto him many of their secrets:”

 

I don’t know about you but this passage leaves me with several questions: The first being’ what does the author mean by Elementary Inhabitants? Is he alluding to the ‘elementals’, the Sylphs, Undines, Salamanders and gnomes, or is he suggesting something else?

 

He continues: Of these of Fez he often did confess, that their Magia was not altogether pure, and also that their Cabala was defiled with their religion; but notwithstanding he knew how to make good use of the same ….” (p.6)

 

With what ‘Magia’ and ‘Cabala’ did he compare that of Fez, and how was it that one so young, if indeed he was, and I quote: “knew how to make good use of the same”? Whatever the answer may be, these are not the words that describe a youngster or novice alone a strange land.

 

More revealing is the following:

On page 11, of the Fama Christian Rosencreutz is said to have build a neat habitation, which is the Sancti Spiritus but more of that later. In this ‘habitation’ he “ruminated his voyage, and philosophy, and reduced them together in a true memorial ….” – in my understanding this is a reference to the discipline of meditation, a fundamental undertaking in the Great Work. But more interesting is what follows. Page 12 tells us that after five years he drew out of his first cloister (in itself a puzzle) three of his brethren and bound them to himself. This may mean exactly what it says, that three brothers left their monastery to form a new Order with Christian Rosencreutz, but it also suggests an alchemical allegory concerning the three essential alchemical principles of Sulphur, Mercury and Salt. 

 

Alchemy assumes the existence of three principles in all things, corresponding with the threefold division of man into body, soul and spirit. These principles are Mercury, Sulphur, and Salt. Sulphur represents the Spiritus Primus. Its nature is fire, and is understood to be an analogue of the soul. To Sulphur is attributed the Sun, the conscious self – the embodiment of will. Mercury represents the Materia Prima. Its nature is water, which in alchemy is understood to be the Spirit. This is not the spirit of Christian theology, which denotes the divine immortal element of Man, but the vital force that is carried in the air, otherwise called the ‘waters of life’. It is passive malleable and volatile; to it is attributed the Moon. Salt represents the Body, the material form resulting from the combination of Mercury and Sulphur. These three principles, acting together, constitute the nature of all things, including man.

 

Alchemy also understands the universe to be a UNITY, and that all material bodies emerged from that Unity, their component elements being different forms of one matter and, therefore convertible into one another. This theory may be seen as an analogy concerning the soul’s evolution and regeneration – an evolution from an unregenerate state symbolised by the metal Lead to a spiritually regenerate state symbolised by Gold. 

 

Gold is the symbol of regeneration, and is designated a noble metal, as is Silver; although it is thought to be less mature than gold. In the Eighteenth century, Emanuel Swedenborg, the illustrious Swedish scientist, philosopher and spiritual visionary, designated the man of Gold as “celestial”, and the man of Silver as “spiritual”. Lead, on the other hand, was regarded as a very immature and impure metal: heavy and dull, and as such was considered to be a symbol of man in an unregenerate state.

 

On a personal note, I was taught to think of Sulphur, as Primus Spiritus, corresponding with the Divine Nous, and to think of Quicksilver, as Materia Prima, corresponding to the World Soul. It is through the conjunction of them both, symbolised by the alchemical marriage of the King and Queen, that the World Soul gives form to the archetypes contained in potentia within the Divine Nous. The materialised forms of the archetypes, and all forms derived from them are represented by the element of salt. 

 

The more I look at the Fama & the Confessio the more I see an interesting structure woven ‘between the lines’ of the narrative. These core Rosicrucian texts do not simply form a mandate for Magic and Experimental Science, although many have taken it as such. As an expression of the aspirations of a tumultuous era the narrative, of the Fama is interesting on its own terms, but it also has hidden depths that veil a subtext concerning the spiritual transformation of human nature, and as such it is invaluable. As far as my understanding of such things allow, I perceive the language of the Fama to be a symbolic language of allegory and metaphor steeped in esoteric thought, part mythological, part alchemical and part Kabbalistic. 

 

But when all is said and done it is clear that a recognisable process of spiritual transformation is implicit in the text of the Fama. And it seems to me that the purpose of the text is to act as a vehicle for this process, a process that is concealed through the use of allegory and metaphor, of sign and symbol, only to be discovered by a persistent and reflective mind. This process appears in the Fama in four stages or phases:

 

1)               Apprenticeship (Elemental)

2)               Building the Sancti Spiritus

3)               Interior life (Meditation & Contemplation)

4)               Charity (six commendations)

 

 The first, The Apprenticeship, is described at the beginning of the Fama. It presents our Christian Rosencreutz on a journey of discovery in the world, but what world he is exploring is left for the reader to discover. At first glance it seems to be a quaint record of an adventure, but closer examination reveals it to be an allegory of a student learning the basic curriculum of the Work and maturing sufficiently to pass through a labyrinth of esoterica until he arrives at a place of self-knowledge and is thus able to begin the construction of the Sancti Spiritus.

 

The second, the building of The Sancti Spiritus, describes Christian Rosencreutz building a spiritual body, but only after he has understood that the world has little interest in his discoveries is he motivated to do so. Our hero learns the hard way that the world is only interested in securing control over the resources of the world of the senses, and maintaining the status quo – personal power being everything. [illus. p. 11]

 

The third, The Interior Life, describes Christian engaging in meditation, exploring his spiritual journey thus far, and reflecting upon the philosophy of the spiritual life. Mathematics is drawn to the reader’s attention as a major subject of his exploration, and I can’t help wondering just what the author of the Fama means by ‘Mathematics’. Did the author mean the ‘philosophy of Number’, or did the author mean the practise of Gematria to unravel the mysteries of scripture? I say this because the CONFESSIO states on page 49: [illus. p.49]

 

This suggests to me a Kabbalistic exegesis of Biblical texts using mathematical systems such as Gematria, Temura and Notarikon, and rightly so for such systems are profound meditative tools, capable of revealing subtle layers of meaning in the scriptures that are not obvious to the rational mind. Furthermore, the description of the ‘Vault’ of Christian Rosencreutz gives a marvellous insight to the nature of the Sancti Spiritus, a description that is also an allegorical puzzle. It has fascinated esoterically minded people for the last four hundred years or more, and has been the central feature of many esoteric orders for more than a century. However, I am inclined to accept the description of the VAULT as an elucidation of the interior world of the soul from a Biblical perspective, [See Exodus 26] an internal cosmology expressed in both Kabbalistic and Alchemical terms. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

The fourth, I call Charity. Charity, because it is concerned with the work of a Rosicrucian living in the world. At its heart is the dynamic of Love – that is to say, Charity; and it is supported by the practice of Humility – by living quietly and invisibly in the world without seeking fame, recompense, fortune or power over others. This Rule, combined with the three previous phases, establishes a quintessentially Christian model for living a spiritual life; rooted as it is in the formula established by Jesus Christ: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind and with all thy strength, and thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self. [Mark 12. 30-31] For those who have the eyes to see, this quotation is a cipher, to which I shall refer shortly.

 

Conclusion

The theme of this paper is Spirituality or Psychism – A Rosicrucian Dilemma. It is entitled thus because the dilemma for the aspiring Rosicrucian is simply this: if the Great Work is the spiritual regeneration of the soul of both our race and the individual, how much of a Rosicrucian’s time should be given to chasing the ephemera that is ‘Psychism’ and how much should be given to the seeking of the ‘Spiritual’? 

 

Put another way, what is the core objective of a Rosicrucian? Is it to discover and engage with the Essence that is the causal principle of Form or is it to explore the science of Form? This is the dilemma (Theology versus Technology)that I believe has always been central to Rosicrucianism, and I believe it is a dilemma that will continue to present itself to succeeding generations of Rosicrucians as they seek to understand the spiritual dimension of the soul.

 

It seems to be the case that many begin the Work by seeking codes and ciphers that might reveal material treasures and knowledge of great secrets, and many choose the route of magic convinced that it is the ‘Sure Way’ to attain such things, but the Rosicrucian Way, as described in the FAMA, is not the acquisition of more stuff, of more money, more power, more secret knowledge, forever seeking to become immortal and attain the power of a god. 

 

Nevertheless, there are ciphers, and there are codes, but they speak of things other than the transient. For example: the text of the FAMA alludes to three important principles. In the first instance we are directed to reflect upon CR’s aspiration to go to the Holy Land. This is an allegorical message to seek the Kingdom of God. The second rests upon building the Sancti Spiritus and entering therein. This is an allegorical reference to the Kingdom of God being ‘Within’. The third principle rests upon the first of the Six Commendations: ‘To cure the sick, and that gratis’, to which all Rosicrucians are committed. This is a reference to developing the dynamic of ‘Love’ which lies at the heart of Christian Spirituality, and is embodied in the formula cited a moment ago. Thus: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind and with all thy strength, and thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self. [Mark 12. 30-31].

 

Look at like this:

 

Viewed without prejudice this is not only a moral imperative but a cipher that introduces us to a means of entering the kingdom of God. The imperative is ‘Thou shalt love . . . .’ Now Love has many forms, but only two concern us here. The first lies in the yearning of the soul for union with God. It is a spiritual hunger for a tangible knowledge of God, This very human love for the Divine is called Eros and it is in Eros that we see the soul’s love of God reflected in the world, that is, in our love of self, family, friends, lovers, beauty; in essence it is the soul seeking God in nature. As such it is a Purifying Fire in which the soul is transformed in act of service and duty.

 

The second description of ‘Love’ is not the dynamic and compelling force of Eros but the experience of the love of God. This ‘love’ is Agape, which may be understood as God’s love for the soul experienced not through any effort of the soul, but a divine love freely bestowed upon the soul by God. In short, Eros drives the soul to ‘possess’, but Agape is a transforming Fire, that ‘possesses’ the soul. It is frequently experienced as the ‘peace that surpasses all understanding’, and once experienced it becomes the basis of unshakeable faith. It is in the labour of meditation that Eros is manifest; in the aspiration of the soul seeking divine union. But it is in the stillness of contemplation that Agape frequently takes place – ‘dwelling in the presence of God’. 

 

To ‘Love’, as Christ commands, is a powerful dynamic. It is not simply the intense articulation of feelings, but must also include the application of a developed intention, for to love requires knowledge of that which is loved, and to love the Lord thy God requires a conception of what God is and means in human terms. Thus we are encouraged to develop our concept of God, which invariably takes a considerable time, but once begun will continue to evolve, like a mysterious spiritual crystal growing in the darkness of human ignorance, and the more we continue in that alchemical process the greater will be our appreciation of the Divine. 

 

To love the Lord thy God “with all thy soul” it is necessary to have some knowledge of the soul, because just as our conception of God is initially naive, so too is our concept of the soul; thus, knowledge of the soul is a fundamental objective for all Rosicrucians. It has been described variously as non-material and immortal or as a by-product of the chemistry of matter, and definitely mortal, its existence ending with the ending of the chemistry of matter. Some describe the soul as an entity others as a vehicle; indeed, it has been and remains the subject of many opinions and definitions, but regardless of prevailing opinion we should aspire to learn how to understand and govern the soul, to do so effectively requires knowledge of its nature and dynamics, one of the chief purposes of Meditation. It is equally so with regards to the mind. To understand and direct the mind requires more than brute instinct or ‘natural intuition’, it requires an education and to that end the beginning of the Work is directed.

 

Thus, this Great Commandment may be understood to be a cipher that directs the reflective soul to learn how to love; to learn how to govern the soul; to learn how to direct the mind, and to harness the strength and power of the psyche. All of which are to be directed to the service of God and Humanity, for although the commandment begins with the words “Love the Lord thy God” it concludes with the words: “Love thy neighbour as thyself”. It is in this commandment that we discover the means of unfolding the mystery of ‘Love’ taught by Christ – a mystery that enables the soul to transcend SELF and draws it into the all-encompassing ‘Presence’ of God. 

 

Thus the dilemma is resolved in a life of service, where SELF is sublimated in a life of service to God and Humanity – this is the heart that I see beating at the centre of the FAMA and the CONFESSIO.

 

A Final Note

 

I have noticed that Rosicrucianism has frequently been appropriated to support Pagan or non-Christian interests. Many seeing them only in their connection with Alchemy, Magic and Kabbalah, and more recently, with freemasonry, yet, it is only in the context and terms of the Fama & Confessio – which are undeniable expressions of the Christian Mysteries – that Rosicrucians are defined. And it is a matter of fact that the first Rosicrucians, whoever they were, are defined therein as self-professed Christians, and it was as Christians that they engaged with these disciplines – thus influencing over the centuries the pattern and shape of esoteric endeavours in our world. But, that is, regrettably, the subject of another discussion.

Thank you.

Note: This address may be found

as an audio at Imagierplus on Youtube.

http://youtu.be/T1Ex94B0Ugc

---

[1] Sentences of Paulus. See Stephen Benko, Pagan Rome and the Early Christians (London, Batsford, 1985) p128-129

[2] The word ‘egregore’ is an uncommon word that is most frequently used today among occultists to signify entities that are magically created by an esoteric group, or, to signify the resultant though form of the group-mind of a group of like-minded people that join together for a common purpose.

The etymology of the word ‘egregore’ is unclear. According to one definition the word egregore is derived from the Latin ‘egredior’ (to go out), and ‘grex’ (a collective, such as a flock or herd). Another definition describes the word ‘egregore’ being derived from the Greek Egregoros’ (Watcher). A third derives the word ‘egregore’ from the Hebrew ‘Grigori’. The Grigori are fallen angels referred to in the Book of Enoch – Of the taking up of Enoch into the fifth Heaven. In Jewish legendary lore the Grigori are fallen angels that resemble men in appearance, but are taller than giants, and, are eternally silent; these too are called ‘watchers’. (See The Legends of the Jews Vol.1, p 130. by Ginzberg. & A Dictionary of Angels p 126-7 & 311by Gustav Davidson).

 

[3] W. Little [et al.], The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Third edition revised and edited by C.T. Onions. O.U.P., 1956.

[4] H.P. Blavatsky, The Theosophical Glossary. London, 1892,]

 

Meditation & The Silence

The following article is based upon the introduction to a series

of modules I wrote in the 1990's concerning the system of meditation
used by the brothers and sisters of the Order of Dionysis & Paul.
It was later published in book form entitled Notes on Meditation in 2011.

Time spent in the ‘Silence’ is an essential part of the Spiritual Life, a life few of any given generation are inspired to live as it means withdrawing from the world of the senses, which is no easy task. The difficulty in withdrawing from the world of the senses is in itself not a mystery; it is simply a question of motivation, because without motivation we will be unable to establish a stable presence in the interior world of the soul.

Motivation requires more than good intentions and an effort of will. It demands that our love of the divine be stronger than our love of the world, for it takes courage to enter the ‘silence’, entailing, as it does, letting go of the familiar world of the senses with all of its well known reference points.

Christ commanded any who would follow His teaching to give up all. His words: “Go, sell all that you have, give it to the poor and come, follow Me,” and “Unless you die to the world you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven” clearly establishes the importance of withdrawing from the world. However, such a task is not easy, as many who have tried and failed could testify.

It seems to be the case that of the few who do take up the spiritual life many are led to it through suffering. It might be through the stresses of living in this world, through illness or the death of a loved one, or it might be through war or famine; or perhaps through the loss of something important and or meaningful, indeed, it might well be a combination of such things. Whatever it is that acts as the catalyst, somewhere and at some point a person becomes sufficiently motivated to enter the interior world of the soul with the singular purpose of seeking and obtaining direct knowledge of the spiritual reality that is the substrate of life itself.

Self-knowledge, then, is the knowledge of the permanent spiritual nature that forms the basis of our existence; it is the “Light which lighteth the life of every man that cometh into the world”. However, for many, the idea of having a spiritual nature is little more than a vague notion clothed in a multitude of disturbing questions, a notion more often than not suppressed, even to the point of refusing to accept its existence.

Yet, in spite of such widespread negativity there exists a body of knowledge that speaks of the interior spiritual reality and its nature in a most beautiful and evocative manner. It speaks of a reality which lies beyond the realm of the senses; at the heart of which dwells the immortal essence of ‘Self’, which anyone may come to know directly. Since time immemorial this body of knowledge (the Tradition) has been passed from generation to generation, the same teaching expressed in different ways by different cultures; that each wave of incarnating souls might have access to the knowledge of their true nature.

Thus the New Testament teaches that the Kingdom of Heaven lies ‘within’ and that knowledge of it should be sought before anything else; whilst the Bhagavad-Gita commends us to retire to a solitary spot and ‘turn within’. This process of turning within is a discipline our more enlightened ancestors practised and taught along with prayer as being the only sure means of attaining direct knowledge of the spiritual reality that dwells within us all.

This discipline is embodied in the universal art of meditation. It is an art many have experimented with, and fortunately for most, the experience has been little more than a pleasant form of deep relaxation, which in itself is a great asset, but there is more to meditation than relaxation.

The word ‘Meditation’ has been in circulation for ever, so it would seem, but the question remains, what is meditation? Not so difficult a question to answer one might think, but popular opinion has become confused if not divided over this question. It clearly means different things to different people, although this has not always been the case.

Over the course of the last fifty years or so the term ‘meditation’ has come to mean two distinct things. On the one hand there is the traditional concept of meditation being an exercise in mind control directed towards self-knowledge and spiritual evolution, and on the other hand there is the modern concept of meditation being a therapeutic exercise in deep relaxation and active imagination directed towards inducing a sense of well-being, employed more often than not as an antidote to the stresses of modern living.

  

One side associates meditation with oriental religions and philosophies, where the archetypal image that presents itself to the imagination is of a Buddhist monk or Indian sadhu sitting cross-legged on a cushion or low wooden stool, eyes closed and breathing slowly; possibly chanting or repeating a mantra. The other side associates meditation with relaxation and creative visualisation, where a typical image that presents itself is that of a person relaxing in a comfortable chair, listening to ambient music and or a gentle voice describing an ‘ideal’ environment wherein the student allows the mind to wander. In recent times the most popular methods of meditation that have emerged in the modern world are themselves products of the imagination of that world. They are essentially guided imaginings deriving more from a syncretic blend of Spiritualism, Yoga, Buddhism and Shamanism, to name but a few, than from any school of traditional meditation, oriental or otherwise.

Most of these methods are derived neither from the ancient world, nor from the Far East, but emerged in Europe and its colonies; originating in the ideas and practises employed by nineteenth and early twentieth-century esoteric schools such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. This particular order is significant in that it became the archetypal model for the formation of a host of esoteric orders and movements in the English speaking world, most of which were deeply involved with the magical aspects of Western esotericism – especially with astral projection and all that such implies: and it implies a great deal where modern ideas about meditation are concerned.

Looking back a little further, it is possible to see how in the nineteenth century the emergence of these schools was an inevitable and natural expression of the interest in Hermetic and Rosicrucian thought and philosophy that emerged in seventeenth and eighteenth-century Europe. These schools were not only a focus for the theoretical, but also for the practical workings of Western esotericism.

The first half of the nineteenth century witnessed the resurgence of a form of ancestor worship in the guise of ‘spiritualism’, and the latter half of that century saw the emergence of the Theosophical Society, a movement that sought to create a universal religion based upon oriental religious ideas such as those fostered in Buddhism. This point is particularly significant because it was through the activities of this society that Hinduism and Buddhism, particularly Tibetan Buddhism, became so accessible to popular culture in the West. The high point of the Theosophical Society was the 1920’s and 1930’s. However, as was the case for many social movements of that time, the society’s growth and development was impeded by the drama of the Second World War. Curiously, as the world began its slow recovery from the effects of that dreadful war, public interest in the Theosophical Society began to fade. A paradoxical if not ironic turn of events, because it was at this time that popular interest in Hindu systems of yoga and meditation, nurtured by the Theosophical Society, began to grow in popularity.

Shamanism, on the other hand, did not emerge in popular Western culture until the late twentieth century, and then only in a romanticised form: its popularity, perhaps, being due to its association with chemically induced states of mind conducive to ‘astral projection’ and ‘channelling’; subjects that have either fascinated or horrified humanity from the earliest times. Exploring significant or interesting environments or worlds through the realm of the imagination is no new thing; it has been around a long time but the emphasis  placed upon it is certainly a modern phenomenon.

Another significant contribution to the guided imagination approach has come from the various psychodynamic processes that surfaced, particularly in America, from the mid-twentieth century onward. Although deeply influenced by the materialism of analytical psychology and behaviourism, and invariably defined in the psychological language of Freud, Jung and their successors, they are often to be found at the heart of many systems of modern spirituality and self-development.

Another dimension in modern thinking about meditation is the concept of ‘endorphins’. These small protein molecules, produced by cells in the body, work to relieve pain with sedative receptors found in the brain, spinal cord and nerve endings. They come in several forms and are many times more powerful than pharmaceutical analgesics. Endorphins are understood to relieve pain, enhance the immune system and reduce stress, but more significantly, especially from the point of view of this discussion, they induce an enhanced feeling of well-being.

There are several methods known to stimulate the body’s production of endorphins including acupuncture, shiatsu, massage, creative visualisation and a variety of relaxation techniques. Many of these methods are now promoted under the banner of meditation. Consequently, in the popular culture of the Western world, meditation has become synonymous with the practise of guided imagining directed towards evoking an experience of bliss and well­being. That notwithstanding, as valuable as such tools may be, especially in therapeutic terms, they have little in common with the objectives and disciplines of traditional meditation. The natural ‘high’ that may occur in traditional meditation, however welcome, is not in itself the main objective but a by-product of the main endeavour, which is invariably self-knowledge and or union with God.

To understand what traditional meditation actually is one must be prepared to peel away the many layers of preconceptions surrounding it in the modern world. A common opinion expressed in our secular world is that like all things in our civilisation the art of meditation has evolved in line with our growing understanding of the world – that we have outgrown the traditional approach with all of its outmoded religious connotations – and that the old must give way to the new. This opinion, and it is an opinion, is frequently presented as a 'matter of fact' in line with social evolution.

Alternatively, we may recognise, and even accept, that traditional meditation is an ancient method of self-enquiry conceived and designed to engage with the underlying reality of existence, a reality that is eternal and changeless and thus beyond biological need or the ambitions of society. Although ancient, it is a method that is still valuable today. This traditional perspective may be a radical point of view in modern terms, however, it should be noted that from a traditional and classical point of view meditation has long been understood to be a private and introspective discipline of applied thought whereby, in a chemical free state of deep relaxation, the faculties of the mind are concentrated upon a given theme or subject. In short, traditional meditation is mind control developed through thinking about a given subject.

In the precincts of the sanctuary, wherein traditional meditation evolved, the subject matter to be meditated upon was usually, although not always, derived from sacred texts. Thus in Buddhism the theme was generally taken from the various writings that constitute the Dharma and the life of the Buddha. In Vedanta the theme would be drawn from the Vedas or the Upanishads, and in the Christian world the theme would usually be drawn from the Scriptures and the life of Christ.

The simple act of thinking deeply about a given subject constitutes the core discipline of traditional meditation. The mind does not necessarily have to be focussed upon religious or spiritual themes but it should be noted that the discipline of traditional meditation did evolve within the precincts of the sanctuary and has been nurtured therein for as long any one can tell. In those environs meditating, or thinking deeply about spiritual themes, establishes the context for the student to engage with the fundamental questions of existence, such as, ‘Who am I?’ and ‘What is the purpose of life?’ It begins as an exercise in reasoning, but gradually becomes an inward journey of self-knowledge where reason, being inadequate for the task, is displaced by intuition. It is a discipline that is initially difficult to learn, but once learnt has surprising and often sublime results.

An interesting feature of the sacred texts of the world is that they have many levels of meaning embedded within them. From the earliest times symbols, metaphors and allegories were widely employed by those who created these texts. Such devices may not serve those who choose to look at them as literal or mythical accounts of the distant past but, for those who approach them with an open mind, symbols, metaphors and allegories often serve as keys to the spiritual wisdom and understanding contained therein. Spiritual teachings are often presented in the form of stories or myths; indeed, the Bible may be seen as a collection of such stories, stories that many accept as true historical accounts.

Whether historically true or not the sacred texts do conceal great spiritual truths that were clearly thought too profound for the spiritually naïve and many subtleties were employed in maintaining and safeguarding them; their composition being designed in such a way that they could be discussed and interpreted on different levels, depending on the level of understanding of the student, each giving a different or deeper insight to the story. 

Philo Judaeus, who lived in the Egyptian city of Alexandria during the first century AD, wrote extensively about the allegorical interpretation of the Scriptures. Much later, Moses de Leon, who lived during the late thirteenth century, likened the Scriptures to a nut with a shell of literal meaning on the outside and an essential or mystical meaning within. He summed up his understanding of this in the word ‘PARDeS’, which means Garden or Paradise – alluding to an illumined mind. The word is a cipher concealing an esoteric understanding of existence. Each consonant of this word refers to a method of extrapolating meaning; thus P represents the literal meaning; R represents the allegorical meaning, particularly in the moral sense; D represents the metaphorical meaning, particularly in the symbolic sense, and S stands for the mystical meaning. Arthur Edward Waite, a celebrated English mystic of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, describing the same thing, said that P equals the literal, R the symbolic, D the allegorical, and finally S equals the mystical sense.

Over the centuries different systems of traditional meditation have emerged, many of which are based on the premise that the discursive activities of the mind may be brought to a standstill by focussing the attention on one subject to the exclusion of all others, thereby revealing the true and permanent reality underpinning all things.

Although this premise is essentially true, a common mistake is made by some of those engaging in traditional meditation in assuming that one should avoid trying to think when meditating, but trying not to think is like trying not to breathe, almost impossible. The truth is, and it is a truth that has long been understood in the precincts of the sanctuary, that there is a point in the cycle of meditation when the discursive activities of the mind pause or cease, an event that may be facilitated by focussing the attention on one subject; but it is a place one arrives at, not a place one starts from. To focus on the breath is a means of stilling the biochemistry of the body, thereby slowing down the mental and emotional activity of the mind. It is the first stage of meditation and has been universally employed in this manner for as long as any can tell. To concentrate the mind on a significant concept or idea is the second stage, although both may be initiated simultaneously.

In the schools wherein spiritual development is the primary objective the focal point of concentration is usually the Scriptures, to which the wandering attention is always returned. However, this activity, no matter how rewarding it may be in terms of inspiration, is not the ultimate objective; meditation is not an endless path of cerebral activity, nor is it an endless state of emptiness. Like all things in the natural world there is a cycle of activity which the traditional schools have come to understand and to which they adhere. That natural cycle, clearly obvious in the rotation of the seasons, consists of directing the mind towards a single activity that results, eventually, in a form of realisation culminating in a period of profound stillness.

Meditation is not in itself the objective but a means of achieving the objective. For those who persevere on this path the discipline of meditation leads the student into the exalted and sublime state of Contemplation, wherein the mysteries of existence are slowly revealed to the maturing student. This is the main objective of traditional meditation.

The term ‘meditation’ has then, in recent times, come to signify two different undertakings. The first is traditional meditation, which is a method of mind control that from the earliest times has been directed towards self-knowledge and spiritual insight. The second is a modern concept of meditation, which is a therapeutic method with many variations directed towards inducing a sense of well-being as an antidote to the stresses of modern living, focussing upon the use of the imagination as a means of inducing the desired effect.

The modern concept of meditation is also applied in certain schools in the development of psychic abilities and skills, such as astral projection and clairvoyance. As such it no longer falls under the heading of meditation and arguably should go by a different name as it has little in common with meditation in general.

This is not to criticise such undertakings. I cannot speak for such schools as I am not privy to their councils, and by the same token I cannot speak against them. Nevertheless I do think it important to make a distinction between them and their very different objectives from traditional and modern therapeutic methods.

Traditional meditation, with its focus on mind control and self-knowledge, is fundamentally different from the majority of modern meditational systems which are therapeutic in nature and focussed upon creative imagination, and both of these differ from the psychically dynamic processes presented in certain schools as meditation.

If there is any confusion in making a distinction between them it must inevitably rest in the fact that although they all share certain ideas and processes in common, the objectives and the application of such processes vary greatly.

Consequently, the student who seeks union with the divine will be better served following the path of traditional meditation in whatever school they are led to. Alternatively, the student who is looking for respite from the stresses and strains of the world will be better served undertaking a modern therapeutic method involving creative imagination etc. Those who are called to the magical arts will inevitably gravitate to the school most suitable to their temperament. #brothermarcusodp

  

  

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Details: Notes on Meditation, by Allan Armstrong;
ISBN: 978-0-9558415-7-6
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