The three points made here will demonstrate to you the factual nature of the circulation of energies. All these happenings are part of a process of planetary initiation; [555] such an initiation cannot take place without important effects, both in the Hierarchy and in the human family. In old Atlantean days, it was the Masters (facing the same sixth initiation) Who “decided” to bring that ancient civilisation to an end; They therefore sacrificed the form aspect of manifestation and created a situation in which the soul of humanity was liberated from the prison in which it found itself. Today, a material catastrophe, such as the flood, has not been deemed necessary; it is believed that humanity can and will find its own way out of the world difficulties.
SECTION TWO - THE ASPIRANT AND THE MAJOR INITIATIONS
We now approach the second part of our theme, dealing with the major initiations; we will do so primarily from the standpoint of the ray energies, considering the subject from the initiate's point of view. I wonder if you realise, my brother, that this has never before been done? The teaching hitherto given out on initiation has been pictorially and symbolically presented; the understanding of the process was dependent upon right interpretation. In this materialistic age, that interpretation has been largely material in nature; emphasis has been laid upon the tangible and supposed form aspect of initiation.
I here propose a different approach, and would ask you to keep in mind some words out of the ancient Archives which are as follows:
“Energy is all there is, O Chela in the Light, but is not known. It is the cause of knowledge and its application and its comprehension lead to expanded understanding.
Through energy the worlds were made and through that energy they make progression; through energy the forms unfold and die; through energy the kingdoms manifest and disappear below the threshold of the world which ever is and which will be forever.
Through energy the Cross is mounted and from the vortex of the four uniting forces, the initiate passes through the door and is propelled into the Light—a light which grows from cycle unto cycle and is known as supernal Energy Itself.”
I shall not be able to avoid a measure of symbolic approach and I am forced to use words which will fail to express the truth. The extent of your understanding will be based upon your point in evolution, upon your attitude [557] of mind as you approach this theme, and upon the point of tension you are able to achieve.
Initiation is (in its simplest definition) an understanding of the Way, for understanding is a revealing energy which permits you to achieve. Initiation is a growth in experience and the attainment thereby of a point of tension. Holding that point of tension, the initiate sees that which lies ahead. Initiation permits a progressive entry into the mind of the creating Logos. This last definition is perhaps one of the most important I have ever given. Ponder on my words.
Initiation is a system or a scientific process whereby the septenate of energies which compose the sum total of all the existences within our planetary Life are realised and consciously used for the working out of the divine Plan. It might also be stated that initiation is a method whereby the circulation of energies is furthered by the opening or the awakening of certain planetary and human centres to the impact of their ray quality, potency and divine intention. It is this statement which lies at the heart of the teaching on Laya Yoga or the Science of the Centres.
THE RELATION OF THE SEVEN RAYS TO THE INITIATIONS
It will be obvious to you that, as energy is the basis of our entire manifested world, an initiation is a condition of consciousness wherein the fully prepared disciple utilises the available energies (at the time of initiation) to bring about changes within consciousness of a momentous and revelatory nature. Each initiation puts the initiate in a position to control certain related energies and enables him to become increasingly a trained manipulator of those energies; each initiation gives him understanding of the related energy and of its field of activity; each initiation reveals to him the quality and the type of stimulation to be evoked when brought into contact with any particular ray energy; each initiation establishes relationship between the initiate and the ray energy involved, so that gradually [558] (no matter what may be his soul ray or his personality ray) he can work with the quality and the creative aspect of all the rays, though ever retaining a greater facility to work on his own soul ray, and later with the ray of the Monad—one of the three major Rays of Aspect.
I would ask you to remember that all human beings must finally express the quality and livingness of one of the three Rays of Aspect, even if—in time and space—their souls may originally be upon one of the four Rays of Attribute. It might be useful here to enumerate the rays, and thus refresh the memory of the neophyte:
Rays of Aspect:
1. The Ray of Power, Will or Purpose
2. The Ray of Love-Wisdom
3. The Ray of Active Creative Intelligence
Rays of Attribute:
4. The Ray of Harmony through Conflict
5. The Ray of Concrete Science or Knowledge
6. The Ray of Idealism or Devotion
7. The Ray of Order or Ceremonial Magic
It is contact with the energy of the third Ray of Active Intelligence or (as it is sometimes called) the “acute energy of divine mental perception” which admits the consciousness of the initiate into the “secrets of the Mind of God”. It is the four Rays of Attribute which, in the evolutionary cycle, condition his character (or apparatus of contact) and evoke his essential quality. The three Rays of Aspect enable him to take the four higher initiations—initiations 6, 7, 8, 9—and are connected purely with Shamballa. The four Rays of Attribute, particularly as they are synthesised through the medium of the third Ray of Aspect, are related more definitely to the Hierarchy, and therefore are related to the first five initiations. The Rays of Aspect are essentially related to the life or will aspect of divinity; the Rays of Attribute are related to the consciousness aspect.
Every human being, in the earlier stages of his development (in ancient Lemuria and Atlantis, or possessing [559] today the Lemurian or Atlantean state of consciousness—and there are many such), comes into incarnation upon one of the four Rays of Attribute, because these rays are peculiarly and uniquely related to the fourth kingdom in nature, and therefore to the fourth Creative Hierarchy. During the long, long cycle of the present fifth race, the so-called Aryan race, there came a period (lying now in the far distant and forgotten past) when individuals who had attained a certain state of consciousness transferred on to one of the three Rays of Aspect, according to the predominance of the energy or the line of force which was conditioned by these rays. One of the Rays of Aspect and two of the Rays of Attribute (rays 3, 5, 7) are conditioned by the first Ray of Power of Will, whilst rays 4 and 6 are conditioned by the second Ray of Love-Wisdom. This I much earlier pointed out. A cycle of lives upon the third Ray of Creative Intelligence (as I prefer to call it) always precedes this transference. This ray experience covers a vast period of time. Except in the occult teaching and the Archives which remain in the custody of the Masters, history—as we know it and as it expresses the emergence from primitive and primeval times—does not exist. From the angle of occultism, history only covers the emergence of those cultures and civilisations which are called the fifth rootrace, only a small part of it being recognised as Aryan; the latter is simply a modern and scientific nomenclature covering a small period of modern history. The Aryan cycle covers the period of the relation between groups and nations though positing (as a necessary hypothesis) previous but unknown cycles of human living wherein primitive man roamed the earth; or positing sometimes the existence of previous civilisations which have completely disappeared, leaving behind them faint traces of ancient organised civilisations and cultural remains, plus indications of interworld relationships of which there is no positive proof; these, it is suggested, must have existed owing to the similarity of architecture, language roots, traditions and the myths of religions. [560]
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br /> During these earlier periods all human beings were conditioned by the four Rays of Attribute; both as souls and as incarnated persons they were upon one of these four rays. Towards the middle of the Atlantean cycle (untold millions of years ago) the influence of the third Ray of Active Intelligence became exceedingly potent. Certain of the advanced humanity of the period gradually found their way on to, or rather into, the stream of divine energy which we call the third ray. The possibility, therefore, of their becoming integrated personalities was for the first time recognised, and humanly recognised. Such an integration must ever precede conscious human initiation.
Forget not my earlier statement that all the Rays of Attribute are focussed in and absorbed by the third Ray of Aspect. A study of the charts which I gave and permitted to appear in A Treatise on Cosmic Fire will help you to understand this. They will prove helpful, provided that you remember always that they are only symbolic in nature and constitute attempts to indicate visually a truth.
The Atlantean race was predominantly a race wherein its leading exponents (the “flower of the race” or the “crest wave,” as it is called) expressed an active intelligence. It was intelligence which its initiates had to demonstrate, and not love-wisdom, as is the case today. This expressed itself in a mental focus, a trained mind capable of illumination, and great creative ability. In the Aryan race, which from the occult point of view can be regarded as encompassing practically the totality of history as we have it, the influence of the second Ray of Love-Wisdom is slowly becoming the dominating factor; men are rapidly finding their way on to that ray, and the number of people found upon that line of energy is already very great, though not yet as great as those upon the third ray, as it today expresses itself through one of the four Rays of Attribute. This latest of the human races (again through its foremost exponents) has to manifest the spirit of love through wisdom; the basis of this expression is an unfolding inclusiveness, a developing understanding, and a heightened spiritual perception [561] which is capable of envisaging that which lies beyond the three worlds of human evolution.
It might here be said that the one-pointed life of the focussed intellectual (that life which the higher initiates demonstrated in the Atlantean initiations) and the extensive inclusive life of the modern or Aryan initiate, is the objective held before the disciple upon the Path of Discipleship and in the Masters' ashrams. The presence in humanity today of an ardent intelligence and a growing inclusiveness is symbolised under the words “the vertical and the horizontal life”; it is therefore visually portrayed under the symbol of the Cross. I have here indicated to you, therefore, that the Cross is strictly the symbol of Aryan unfoldment. The symbol of old Atlantis was a line, indicating the vertical line of mental unfoldment and aspiration. The Christian consciousness, or the consciousness of the soul, is the perfecting and control of the mind, plus the demonstration of love in service; these are the outstanding characteristics of the Hierarchy and the essential qualities of those who form the kingdom of God.
In the coming race, which lies still far ahead and of which only initiates of degrees higher than the fifth are the expression, the Ray of Aspect which embodies the Will of God will gradually become dominant. Its symbol cannot yet be revealed. There will then come a blending of divine will energy with the developed and manifesting energies of intelligence and love. In the final race (lying untold ages ahead) there will appear a creative synthesis of all these three Rays of Aspect. Then all souls will be upon one of these three rays, and all personalities on one of the four Rays of Attribute. There will then be a perfect expression—through Humanity, the third divine planetary centre—of the livingness, the quality and the creative potency of all the rays.
These are facts which I would have you bear in mind as we consider the relation of the seven rays to initiation in this particular world period and during the cycle of treading the Paths of Discipleship and Initiation. Great [562] transitions are then made; the power to include and to love in the truly esoteric sense automatically produces changes and a basic refocussing in the life of the accepted disciple and of the initiate; these changes, transitions and reactions are brought about by the action of the ray potencies during the period of initiation; the initiate then enters into relationship with rays which are conditioning him at the time. They affect his soul-infused personality, and also the ashram with which he is affiliated. The quality and potency of an ashram is definitely affected by the admission of an initiate; he brings into it not only his own potency and ray qualities as a soul, but also the energy of the rays which produced the changes and which conditioned him during the initiatory process he has just undergone. He then moves into a new stage of conscious contact within the Ashram. This new state of perceptive spirituality permits the initiate to enter into a relation with all those who have undergone a similar initiation. He therefore becomes increasingly a constructive and creative agent in the ashram.
It is this which necessitates his careful preparation, which must be paralleled by a demonstration of his understanding of the initiatory process upon the outer plane of activity in service. He cannot be permitted to enter the life of the ashram and become the recipient of exceedingly active energies until he has proved that these energies will not be “occultly retained” by him but will become the “strength and potency” of his service among men.
We are entering now upon a somewhat close analysis of the energies of the seven rays and their effects upon the initiatory processes which face the disciple. Every initiate enters upon the period of initiatory process possessed of a certain definite energy equipment. His personality is expressing itself within the periphery of the three worlds through clearly defined ray forms and relationships. He is a personality through the integration of his mind, his emotional nature and his physical body—the energy of the latter phenomenal factor being focussed in the physical [563] brain. All of these are composed of and conditioned by the energy units of which they are constituted, and all of them “focus their intention” through the medium of the physical brain, thus enabling the personality to be a self-directed entity upon the physical plane. To this personality a fifth major energy must be added: the energy of the soul. Each of these personality expressions is composed of and governed by one of the seven ray energies, so that a great and dynamic synthesis is present which—at the time when the initiatory process is begun—is in reality a composite of five energies:
1. The energy of the soul, in itself a threefold energy.
2. The energies of the personality which is of such a potency (being a fusion of three ray energies) that it has evoked a ray which dominates the personality and is called the personality ray:
a. The energy composing the mental vehicle.
b. The energy which demonstrates as the emotional nature.
c. The energy of the physical body, focussed on the physical plane and conditioning the brain.
All this information is elementary, but I repeat it for the sake of clarity and in order that we may know what it is that we are considering. In the case of the accepted disciple who is in preparation for initiation, the term applied to this system of integrated energies is “soul-infused personality.” The fusion is necessarily not complete, but enough soul energy is present to guarantee that minimum of soul control which will make the initiatory process effective.
It might also be said that this system of integrated energies is (through the initiatory process) confronted with still higher fusions, because initiation is a process whereby successive integrations—attended by consequent expansions of consciousness—become possible. These are—in their broader significance, seven, though entailing many minor points of integration—as follows: [564]
1. Fusion of the energies of the soul-infused personality with the triple energies of the Spiritual Triad.
2. Fusion with the Monad—of which the Spiritual Triad is an expression.
3. Fusion with the world consciousness of the planetary Logos to a degree which makes the planetary
life, with all its states of consciousness and phenomena, a major confining and constricting form for the initiate.
In connection with this final fusion, it is worth while to point out that, when this stage of development is attained, it then becomes possible to enter into the “exalted state of mind” which holds the planetary Logos focussed in the consciousness of the sacrifice which He has made by means of the entire process of manifestation. As The Secret Doctrine has pointed out, this sacrifice which He has made on behalf of the untold myriad of lives which compose His body of manifestation, holds Him in physical expression until “the last weary pilgrim” has found his way home.
The extent and essential purpose of this divine sacrifice become increasingly clear to the initiate after the fifth initiation and constitute one of the prime factors which are considered by him when he faces the Initiation of Decision (the sixth initiation). At no stage of his unfoldment does he comprehend the basic purpose and (speaking occultly) the “dynamic extent” of this sacrifice, as it is implemented by the will of the planetary Logos. Nevertheless, he does respond to a mental understanding of the lowest objective aspect of this sacrifice and to the nature of the periphery, or to the imprisoning form (the sum total) in which the planetary Logos has chosen to imprison Himself. For the first time in his life experience he arrives at a comprehension of the principle of limitation. Beyond this exalted state of mental perception the initiate is not yet able to penetrate; he is limited by that sphere of activity which we call the seven planes, and which in their totality constitute the cosmic physical plane.
The Rays and the Initiations Page 60