LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. %P- - ©optjrig^i ^o.- Shelf _._R_&5 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. DIANOTHEISM A THEOLOGICAL INSPIRATION GIVING A RATIONAL THEORY OF THE SPIRITUAL UNI- VERSE, THE CAREER OF THE HUMAN SOUL AND THE MORAL OBLIGATIONS OF LIFE W. K. ROBERTS I OCT & 1B9S . ,H I * CHICAGO : H. A. Hamlin, Publisher, 423 Dearborn St. 1895 Entered according to Act of Congress in the Year 1895, by W. K. ROBERTS, In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. PREFATORY CODEX COMPENDIUM. /. Deity is impersonal — is comprehensive of and in- separable from the commo?i material and intellectual componcjits of the illimitable universe. 2. Infi?dte pri?iciples, as attributes of Deity, inter- permeate and govern the. finite in nature. j. Under fixed and eternal laws, planet worlds are evolved from the solar orbs in space, and when com- pleting their destined periods of existence are disin- tegrated and their substance matter reorga?dzed for new worlds. 4. The human soul, as an eternal factor of the universe \ is elected to an endless chain of cycles, and dur- ing each of it's cycles is afforded a?i opportu?dty for an earthly incarnation and for a period of Heavenly bliss. 5. The intellectual status of the soul upon entering the realm of spirit corresponds to that of its most exalted estate during the fleshly life. 6. The spirit has a progressive career from, bodily death till its arrival at the Pan Elysium, or terminal Heaven, whence it turns back to earth as an unconscious elemental and begins a new cycle of existences. j. An inspirational power of sensing Infinite truth subsists in every human mind, which with culture and exercise zvill gidde the intellectual destiny and ennoble and spiritualize the soul. Prefatory Codex Compendium. 8. The inspired huma?i mind is the only resource through which esoteric knowledge of the Injiirite or of the spiritual universe can be obtained. q. Man's nature, inherently pure a?id honorably in- tentioned, is liable to attaints from misguided actio?is or acquired vicious propensities, which in their effects op- press the sold a?id impair the happiness until duly atoned for by compensative righteousness. 10. Happiness is conditional upon harmony zvit/i divine law, which in turn demands the employment of the intellectual and bodily energies toward the personal well being and the renderi?ig of efficient assista?ice to INDEX. BOOK I. THE DEIFIC UNIVERSE. Chapter I. Theokosmos. Deity Inclusive of all the Powers and Elements of the Universe. Chapter II. Functional Components of the Deific Universe. BOOK II. THE MATERIAL, VITAL AND PARADISIAL ORGANIZATION OF THE UNIVERSE. Chapter I. The Interstellar Sub-Universes. Chapter II. The Paradisial System of the Sub-Universes. Chapter III. Evolution and Disruption of the Material Worlds. Chapter IV. The Character and Methods of Certain Ob- scure Forces and Elements of the Sub- Universe. BOOK III. THE IMMORTAL EGO AND ITS METHODS AND RELATIONSHIPS IN NATURE. Chapter I. Pre-Natal Existence of the Soul and its Germinative Processes. Chapter II. Inherent Relationship of Elementals to the Embodied Types and Orders. VI Index. Chapter III. Processes of Embodiment of the Elemental. Chapter IV. Importance of the Life Phase of the Anima- tive Cycle . Chapter V. Pre-Ordained and Volitional Powers of the Soul During Its Conscious Cycle. BOOK IV. spheres, conditions and experiences that appertain to the spiritual universe. Chapter I. Conditions and Experiences of the Soul in the Lower Spiritual Zone. Chapter II. Conditions and Experiences of the Soul in the Intermediate Spiritual Zone. Chapter III. Conditions and Experiences of the Scul in the Upper Spiritual Zone. Chapter IV. Conditions and Experiences of the Soul in Pan-Elysium. Chapter V. Certain Phases and Experiences of the Soul in Its Spiritual Career. Chapter VI. Soul Intercommunion Between the Material and Spiritual Planes. Chapter VII. Spirit Interest in and Capacity of Influencing Mankind. Chapter VIII. The Conditions of Election to Spiritual Lead- ership. BOOK V. RULING FACULTIES AND TRAITS OF THE SOUL DURING ITS CORPOREAL EXISTENCE. Chapter I. Relation of the Soul to Its Fleshly Body. Index. vii Chapter II. Normal and Abnormal Conditions of the Nutritional Appetites. Chapter III. Normal and Abnormal Sexuality. Chapter IV. Normal and Abnormal Combativeness. Chapter V. Capabilities of the Moral Consciousness. Chapter VI. The Faculty of Spiritual Cognition. Chapter VII. The Volitional or Will Power of the Intellect. Chapter VIII. Reactionary Portents and Possibilities of Karma. BOOK- VI. MAN AS A MORALLY RESPONSIBLE BEING. Chapter I. Essential Obligations in Life and the Rewards of Efficiently Meeting Them. Chapter II. Reactionary Effects of Propitious and of Un- propitious Thoughts Upon the Mind and Body. Chapter III. Reactionary Effects of Religious and Worthy and of Irreligious and Unworthy Methods. Chapter IV. Self Reformation and Conquest of the Pas- sions. Chapter V. The Value of Practical Direction of the Energies Early in Life, Chapter VI. The Psychical and Intellectual Endowment of Posterity. BOOK VII. intersocial relationships and institutions. Chapter I. Marriage as a Beneficent Relationship of the Sexes. viii Index. Chapter II. The Mutual Interests of Men of Every Social Estate and Occupation. Chapter III. The Change of Attitude of Citizen Toward Ruler Through Progressive Enlighten- ment. Chapter IV. The Conditions of Accord of Governmental Methods with Popular Sentiment. Chapter V. Conditions Resultant of the Prevalence in the Nation of One or the Other of Certain Dis- similar Classes of Men. Chapter VI. Popular Sentiments that May Contribute Either to the Upbuilding or to the Down- fall of a Nation. BOOK VIII. THE adjudgment of individuals by their traits and QUALIFICATIONS. Chapter I. He that is Discreet and Practical Compared with Him that is Indiscreet and Imprac- tical. Chapter II. The Morally Enlightened and the Morally Un-enlightened Compared. Chapter III. The man of Chaste Sexuality Compared with the Man of Unchaste Sexuality. Chapter IV. Traits and Methods of the True Statesman. Chapter V. Traits and Methods of the Wrongheaded and Unscrupulous Man. Chapter VI. Traits and Methods of the Sagelike Man. BOOK IX. THE HUMAN MIND IN ITS CONNECTION WITH THE REACTIONARY, COMPENSATIVE AND RETRIBUTIVE IN NATURE. Chapter I. Effects of the Presence or Absence of Moral Principles in the Mind. Index. ix Chapter II. Effects of the Presence or Absence of Relig- ious Fervor. Chapter III. Methods Essential to the Proper Successes and Joys in Life. Chapter IV. Prevalent Sins in Their Reactionary Methods and Effects. Chapter V. Atonement for Sin. Chapter VI. Preparation and Perfection of the Soul for Spiritual Existence. BOOK X. Chapter I. Chapter II. Chapter III. Chapter IV. Chapter V. Chapter VI. Chapter VII. Chapter VIII, Chapter IX. COMMANDS AND ADMONITIONS. To Sages and Leaders of the Aryan Nations. To Sages and Leaders of the Semite Nations. To Sages and Leaders of the Turanian Nations. To Sages and Leaders of the Ethiopian Nations. To the Influential Citizen on the Principles and Methods of Society and Government. To Parents and Heads of Families. To Elders and Supporters of Religious Or- ganizations. . To Religious Ministers and Teachers. To the Individual in Daily Life. BOOK XI. the Origin and development of religious principles, doctrines and creeds. Chapter I. Characteristics and Methods of the Primitive Sages. Chapter II. Religious Sages of the Past and their Achieve- ments. x Index. Chapter III. The Conformity of Religious Doctrines to Con- temporary Civilization Chapter IV. The Conflict of Exoteric Religion with Inspira- tion and Reason. Chapter V. The Conditions of Acceptibility Imposed by Popular Sentiment upon the Creed of an Enlightened Age. BOOK XII. PSALMS. . Chapter I. Glorification of the Infinite. Chapter II. Glorification of the Infinite Soul. Chapter III. Clorification of Infinite Justice. Chapter IV. Glorification of Infinite Love. Chapter V. Invocation of Infinite Love. BOOK XIII. ALLEGORY. THE TOUR OF THE STAR SPIRITS. Scene I. — Ilbarama. — Upper Spiritual Zone of the Earth. Elomiel,— Court of Ibrim. Scene II.- — A Conservatorium of Planetary History. Scene III. — First Methelian Age. The Beginning of the Present Kalpa Cycle. Scene IV. — Second Methelian Age. Nebulous Stage of the Nephelian Planets. Scene V. — Third Methelian Age. The Sun — Nephela, and its Planets. Scene VI. — Fourth Methelian Age. — Development of the Planet Earth. Scene VII. — Fifth Methelian Age. Creation of Land and Water. Scene VIII. — Sixth Methelian Age. Creation of Mountains, Seas and Rivers. hidex. xi Scene IX. — Seventh Methelian Age. Preparation of the Earth's Surface Strata. Scene X. — Eighth Methelian Age. Origin of Life on the Earth. Scene XI. — Ninth Methelian Age. Evolution of Life Forms. Scene XII. — Tenth Methelian Age. — First Megazoan Age. Glacial and Volcanic Processes. Scene XIII. — Second Megazoan Age. — The Attainment of Luxuriant Vegetation and of Huge Animal Forms. Scene XIV. — Third Megazoan Age. Improvement in the Conditions of the Earth and in the Status of its Inhabitants. Scene XV. — Fourth Megazoan Age. — First Anthropogenian Age. Origin of the Human Genera. Scene XVI. — Second Anthropogenian Age. The Struggles of Primal Man with the Elements and with Noxious and Predaceous Animals. Scene XVII. — Third Anthropogenian Age. Separation ot the Human Types from the Quadrumana. Scene XVIII. — Fourth Anthropogenian Age. — First Episte- mian Age. Development of Intellect and Reason in Primal Man. Scene XIX. — Second Epistemian Age. Development of Reli- gious Traits and Political Methods Among Men. Scene XX. — Third Epistemian Age. Migrations and War- like Encroachments of the Races. Scene XXI. — Fourth Epistemian Age. — First Anagrian Age. Racial Antagonisms and the Delineation of National Boundaries. Scene XXII. — Second Anagrian Age. Status of the Terrestrial Surface and of the Life Forms Extant. Scene XXIII.— Third Anagiian Age. The Instinctive Struggle of the Races for Domains Suitable to their Posterity. xii Itidex. Scene XXIV. — Fourth Anagrian Age. — First Agathian Age. Numerical Increase of the Intellectual Types and Elimination of the Ill-favored and Savage Elements. Scene XXV. — Second Agathian Age. The Development of Defensive and Aggressive Prowess and the Founding of National Institutions. Scene XX VI.— Third Agathian Age. The Evolution of Moral and Religious Principles Among Men. Scene XXVII.— Fourth Agathian Age. — First Ajitanian Age. The Favorable Tendencies in Material Na- ture and the Advance of Human Civilization. Scene XXVIII.— Second Ajitanian Age, The Struggles of the Progressive with the Retrogressive Ele- ments of the Races. Scene XXIX. — Third Ajitanian Age. The Development of Four Distinctive Civilizations. Scene XXX. — Fourth Ajitanian Age. — First Sajanian Age. The Attainment by the Human Races of the Status which Historic Records Disclose. Scene XXXI. — A Conservatorium of Prophecy. Races and Civilizations of the Millenial Future. Scene XXXII.— The Religion of the Millenial Epoch. Scene XXXIII. — Termination of Life on the Earth. Scene XXXIV.— The Disintegration of the Material World. Scene XXXV.— The Descent to the Material Plane. First Terrestrial Observation, Ethiopia. Scene XXXVI. — Second Observation, Arabia. Scene XXXVII. — Third Observation, Eastern Asia. Scene XXXVIII. — Fourth Observation, Europe. Scene XXXIX. — Fifth Terrestrial Observation, America. Scene XL. — Tarampa — Lower Spiritual Zone. Scene XLI. — Benimba — Intermediate Spiritual Zone. Scene XLII. — Ilbarama — Superior Spiritual Zone. Scene XLIII.— Elomiel— Court of Ibrim. Book I. The Deific Universe. CHAPTER I. THEOKOSMOS. DEITY INCLUSIVE OF ALL THE POWERS AND ELEMENTS OF THE UNIVERSE. The Deific universe embraces all in all the vast chasms of heavenly space, and within these ample domains each material body, element and entity performs certain specific functions and serves in some capacity every other body, element and entity extant in nature. The great semi-independent stel- lar groups abounding in heavenly space are as frag- mentary or detached portions of the one illimitable Deific system, and within each of these component or sub-universes is focalized the essential governing and distributive agencies for maintaining all its varied parts active and harmoniously attuned. Deity thus all inclusive hath one phase of Its body struc- ture manifest as material and spiritual worlds and another phase manifest as attenuated etherea filling the apparent vacuum of immaterial space. Certain Deific potentialities focalized about our planet world create the phenomena of the material and spiritual planes, while the grand confluence of 14 The Deific Universe. potentialities about the central regions of the component stellar universe to which it belongs create the ultimate Heaven and the Nirvana toward which the soul of man hath instinctive yearnings. As the members and organs of man's body are to the soul instruments through which its faculties may manifest and execute their functions, so are the organized suns and worlds serviceable vehicles through which the different traits and pow- ers of Deity manifest and perpetuate themselves. From each sub-universal focus potential energies flow forth ~to the outermost boundaries of the material system surrounding it; one line or stream of which rapid moving and incisive elements, may- hap, sets in process necessary revolutions within a solar orb while another is functioned to supply the subtle principles sustenant of the human intellect. Comparable to the nervous circulation of the human body, carrying intelligence to and from the mind's central focus, there are currents and strains through- out the universe by which various Infinite and finite powers vibrate and intercommunicate each part and element with all other parts and elements; thus af- fording mutually beneficent conditions and likewise a Deific cognition of all that transpires within its illimitable domains. For purposes of finite compre- hension, the Deific Universe may be resolved into seven original principles or primary elements, each of which hath certain allotted traits and functions, and the innumerable sub-divisions of these expan- sive faculties afford all the tangible and intangible, the knowable and unknowable phenomena in nature. The Dcific Universe. CHAPTER II. FUNCTIONAL COMPONENTS OF THE DEIFIC UNIVERSE. The elements and substances constituting the ponderable in nature, or that which is distinctly or remotely palpable to the human intellect, The Basic , i j 1 -r i and may be arranged and classified as the Ponderable body proper of Deity, or as a principle or in Nature. r , , • , , •, f ., faculty upon which the tangible manifest- ations of the physical world are dependent. The dense or gravitative substances of the material plane represent the humbler estate of this principle or faculty; those substances possessed of a volatile, gaseous or vaporous quality pertain to its more remote or less tangible phenomena while the organic forms of plants and animals show the marvellous results of its combination with and utilization by the other Deific faculties extant. This faculty of the Theo- kosmos is in itself inert and insensate, but when acted upon by certain other functional principles it becomes resolvable into planetary nebula, into terres- trial strata or subtle atmospheric gases or the atten- uated components of animal flesh and blood. When its essential elements are organized as solar or plane- tary bodies, placed at convenient distances from each other in the etherea of space, it hath the capa- city of an osseous framework that may be clothed about with elements vitalizing, beautifying and com- pleting the material and spiritual order in nature. The density of its elements, in comparison with other Deific faculties, enables each orb of the stellar-universe to maintain itself a focal balance of 1 6 The Dcific Universe. gravitative attraction and repulsion in the heavens while the different cyclic phases prevalent in these solar and planetary bodies induces sufficient erratic diversion of the mobile energies for continued circu- lative activity. Its elements organized as planet worlds furnish a substratum whereon and wherewith soul entities may germinate the physical body and sustain an important phase of their existence. Thus matter hath a potentiality in Deific nature as a plastic and a substantial vehicle wherewith a class of higher faculties may subsist and add their portion toward the eternal processes of the vast mechanism man terms the universe — a mechanism that hath repeated its cyclic measures throughout the aeons of the past and which will continue their repetition throughout all future time. The A restless and incisive principle obtains Fnergkai in nature whose elements have various f n , . methods of demonstration to the human Impulsive jn Nature. perceptions, whereby the one inherent power becomes subject to many names and classi- fications, according to the material menstruum or vehicle with which it is immediately concerned. According to the ordinary human perceptions, there prevails within the environs of nature an intermin- able array of forces or energies, each clearly dis- tinctive from all others ; profound inspiration, however, reveals these forces and energies as mere sub-divisions of a single specific faculty or charac- teristic of the Theokosmos. This all pervading prin- ciple demonstrates its power as magnetism, electricity or volcanic turbulence according to surrounding ma- TJie Dcific Universe. iy terials or influences and may engage itself in every conceivable activity; as in the hurling of planetary substance from a sun into space and arranging it upon an orbit sufficiently distanced from other celestial bodies, or in the minor details of planetary develop- ment or in enabling the common functions of ani- mated life. The faculty is remarkable for the obscur- ity of its motive powers, whose effects only are dis- closed to the ordinary human understanding, and it is through this mystery of their actual source and purports that these effects have frequently been made objects of worship by mankind. Primal force is thus a potentiality permeating the functional universe, generating impulse and effectively preventing inertia and so keeping orderly all the essen- tial elements and properties in nature. The Theokosmic life principle is func- vitaiand tioned to incorporate with materiality Assimilative and to develop the various physical sub- a ure. glances apparent to man as plant and animal growths. It is capable of expression only in special phases of materiality and upon a planet world that hath reached a sufficient tranquility and de- velopment of its surface formations to receive the embodied soul. When the requisite planetary con- ditions are present this faculty emerges from its in- visible phase, in response to elemental visitants from heavenly space, and grasping and assimilating matter, it fashions therefrom plant or animal bodies accord- ing to the requirements of the ego individualities concerned. In its disorganized or inactive estate, its components are disseminated throughout the atmos- 1 8 The Dcific U inverse. pheric envelope of sun or planet as an impalpable etherea, and subsisting thus temporarily serviceless and inoccuous it awaits the summons of ante-natal souls to whom it responds with the body develop- ment they require. In itself it is an unresisting and dependent principle but endowed with a responsive- ness to the elemental ego that enables procreative virility and the maturation of the body organism. Its peculiar qualities have their clearest manifesta- tion to the finite mind in the digestive and assimila- tive processes of life, when material substances are grasped and quickly transformed into the body ele- ments of plant or animal. When its services are no longer required by an ego individual, it withdraws from the body it hath sustained and reverts to the impalpable estate until attracted by other entities seeking embodiment. The The principle describable as The- impondera= okosmic spirit hath an unending or un- s^Htuai broken extension throughout the universe, in Nature. but with its elements sub-divided in such order that an illimitable host of widely varying for- mations may often be found in close association with each other or subsisting upon the same plane of activity. It is the principle from which souls in the disembodied estate construct their per- sonal forms or habilaments and likewise the numberless objects of decoration and conven- ience with which they may surround them- selves. In all its broad extents it maintains its immaterial features and never interblends with mat- ter so as to become apparent to the ordinary human The Deific Universe. 19 perception. It is susceptible of infinitely varied ex- pressions of its elements, even exceeding the diver- sified capacities of the life principle in nature; which affords thus ample facilities for beautifying the sur- roundings of every disembodied intelligence and en- tity in existence. As the vital principle is eagerly responsive to the soul approaching or sustaining em- bodiment, so is the spiritual principle eagerly responsive to the soul after its disembodiment; making itself obedient to the individual will for purposes of comfort or adornment. In its relation to the material world; it may be described as hover- ing above and repeating every terrestrial feature and employing itself to have ready molded an astral body for each entity in life, so that when the transi- tion of death takes place, there is in wait a fitting spirit envelope corresponding to the physical out- lines of the mortal form. The This function of the Theokosmic sys- Goveming j- em hath two distinct components; one Directive bekig the governing and unchanging In- in Nature. finite in nature, and the other being the subjective and constantly changing finite. In its Infinite aspects the function embraces the essen- tials of Deific will and exercises a governance over other parts and faculties of the universe, after a manner that may be likened unto the human will in its governance of the mind and body. In its finite aspects it embraces the ego entities extant in nature, that, while eternal in their inherent individualities, are subject to a routine of cyclic changes and an impetus that 20 The Deijic Universe. prevents them from attaining a fixed status either of intellect, position or abode. The Infinite com- ponent holds all nature in orderly balance, subor- dinating the finite to needful movements; the finite component constantly aspires toward and sup- plicates the Infinite and through ardent and hope- ful effort performs the services requisite to its de- partment in the material and spiritual worlds. Thus one division of the faculty becomes necessarily dependent upon the other; like unto the depen- dence of a commander upon his army for execution and the dependence of an army upon its com- mander for skilful guidance. The impersonal In- finite component constantly employs itself to supply inspiration and to fill the mental atmosphere with a consciousness of divine justice and love; though in traversing space or through contact with ma- teriality the influence it is functioned to yield may suffer deterioration in chasteness or deflection from inherent purports, so that when inspired and inter- preted by man it hath partaken of or assumed cer- tain finite characteristics. The personal finite com- ponent normally employs itself during the conscious part of its cycle in overcoming the defects in its in- tellectual growth and in mastering the obstacles and impediments its surroundings afford. The two com- ponents of this principle of the universe, with their remarkable differences in characteristics and func- tions, are ordained to intimately approach each other and to labor together for their mutual well being and in maintenance of an harmonious relationship with the aggregation of faculties constituting the One complete Deific System. The Deific Universe. 2 1 The Exac- A faculty of unerring justice obtains tive, com- j n the Deific universe which exacts from pensative , , . . . andRetribu= each element and entity and organized tive in body extant its proper meed of activity, Nature. ., • r , ^ > or contribution of beneficence to nature s domains, and, while compensating for every fulfil- ment of natural obligations, it is as surely retribu- tive for evilly directed energy or inefficiency. It permeates the material and spiritual systems of the universe as a high intellectual or ruling trait, repeat- ing in the subjective intellect of man a measure of its purports, so that the purest phases of human equity supply a fair intimation of the faculty in its divine estate. In its methods it may appear rigid and unsympathetic and as taking no consideration of circumstances or individual defects; for it re- wards and punishes apparently without distinctions, in accordance with the action itself and irrespective of actuating causes. Its fixedness of routine gives man his intuitional fear of Deity and makes him so apprehensive of his weaknesses as to engender despair of self purification and to lead to a search after some interceding power to redeem or prepare him for his spiritual future. In itself it becomes the highest conception of a threatening or unyielding surveil- lance over man; in combination with other faculties of the Deific system it displays wisdom, order and reliability in nature as against petulant and arbitrary methods. The Affec= Deity, as an all inclusive entity that tionaiand enfolds every portion and element of the Sympathetic . , r in Nature. universe, however refined or however 22 The Deific Universe. base, cannot consistently be made an object of affec- tionate worship by earthly beings, who are moreover, in themselves an essential constituent of the Deific structure. The human heart, there- fore, requires some essential function or principle of the all embracing Deity to which adoration may be directed and which is qualified to bene- ficently respond to the supplications of the soul, however deserving or undeserving the individual supplicant may be. Such an adorable principle hath been portrayed in the personalities of Krishna, Buddha, Christ and Mohamed and toward it, according to its lights, the human soul is wont to confidingly direct its praises and aspirations. As an actuality in nature this Deific principle hath the trait of a responsive and devotional affection in the great Mind of the universe, that corresponds to a responsive, devotional or parentive trait in the mind of man. It is inter- blended with and capable of exerting a percepti- ble and necessary influence over all the parts and elements of the Deific universe, in like manner as the religious or parentive affections permeate and exert a perceptible and necessary influence over the parts and functions of the human soul. It becomes virtually the savior of man's soul from the despon- dency or despair that results from transgression or the apprehension of personal defects, through inspiring him with hopeful energy, a yearning for an im- proved moral status and with a desire to aright the consequences of his wrongdoings. It hath not power to absolve from the legitimate consequences The Deific Universe. 23 of evil acts, but through an inspiring light informs the soul of its position or appeals to it, through the moral consciousness, to enter upon a course of self im- provement and reparation. Its effect is also to modify the severer portents of Deific justice toward man, when his inherent or acquired weaknesses and evil propensities threaten to overwhelm and crush his spirit. It is wont to stir the kindlier impulses and affections and to attract the mind of man toward that which is unquestionably righteous or honorably beneficent to himself or his dependents. It strives even to shield him from the natural consequences of his own misguided actions or to so enlighten his in- tellect as to lead him into the safest and most ex- peditious method of compensation and self redemp- tion. It constitutes the most refined and admirable trait of Deity and that principle in nature which is at all times accessible to man or responsive to his earnest supplications; yielding a counselling and spiritualizing influence that enables him to tran- scend the animal impulses and to maintain a righte- ous course in life. In the pursuit of its functions it flows forth from the Paradisial centres in space to the populated worlds and without disposal to arbi- trary favors, it hath a more ready approach to self- quickened and spiritually deserving minds, whose wants and capacities it discovers and supplies as free air discovers and flows into a vacuum. It responds to and fills with beneficent inspiration every spirit- ually hungering mind, eliciting therein a joy like unto that of a famine stricken land when the desired waters come upon it. Hence, Deific love becomes 24 The Deific Ufiiverse. the chiefest and most suitable object for man's re- ligious devotions; inasmuch as no other principle in nature evokes such nobility of sentiment or bends the human heart to like self abnegation and resigna- tion to the inevitable as this sublime faculty when its endemic influence is felt or its purports under- stood. Book II. The Material, Vital and Paradisial Organization of the Universe. CHAPTER I. THE INTERSTELLAR SUB-l)NIVERSES. As every atom of the inorganic world and even the most minute of vital growths sheweth perfection of design and structure, so also doth every impalp- able element and ponderous body of the stellar uni- verse show to the specially skilled or inspired intel- lect a corresponding design and fitness in nature. Throughout the distant reaches of heavenly space there maintains an analogous order and accuracy of organization to that which prevails upon the terres- trial surface or within the borders of the observable solar and planetary systems. Thus the fixed stars are to be constantly seen in the specific locality assigned to them, their planet worlds move in proper orbits and no virtually erratic or inexplicable pheno- mena is found in all the host of brilliant orbs that the shades of night make visible. In the organization of the major properties of the universe it becomes essential that within certain measured intervals in the chasms of the greater heavens there shall main- tain an allotment of the denser materiality, formed 26 Material, Vital and Paradisial Organization. as a seggregated star cluster, self sustaining, yet re- motely inter-dependent upon other such clusters, after the manner of the inter-dependence known to subsist between the closely associated suns and planets that come within the range of demonstrable mathematical admeasurement. These great star clusters are each endowed with a complicated inter- nal mechanism that maintains the body politic a permanent organism throughout the aeons of time, repelling the encroachments of adverse extraneous matter or the too near approach of other stellar aggre- gations. Each of these stellar systems is complete in its material and spiritual endowments, being intrinsi- cally a nucleus of Deific power in Its peculiar distribu- tion throughout the illimitable universe, maintaining among its higher functions a great spiritual center as a focus of outflowing and inflowing etherealized forces and entities that periodically revert to and from the materiality of the surrounding solar and planetary orbs. The internal harmony of these sub-universes demands that each solar and planetary system with- in their domains shall perpetuate itself and shall be endowed with the capacities of self-renewal and a periodical reorganization of its parts. Hence, each individual solar orb must expel matter and form planets thereof, which upon running their course and exhausting their life sustaining powers shall be in- drawn, dissolved in the solar mass and eventually expelled again to form other planets. Thus, in the complete structural order of the sub-universe, each tangible and intangible element and entity is ordain- ed to functional cycles in which it performs services Material, Vital and Paradisial Organization. 27 conducive to the perpetuity and harmony of the sys- tem as a whole ; the central or terminal Heaven be- ing the inheritance and resort at duly regulated in- tervals of all the component forces and entities in their superior or spiritualized phase of existence. CHAPTER II. THE PARADISIAL SYSTEM OF THE SUB-UNIVERSES. Within each interconnective star group subsistent in space^ there maintains a central nucleus of direct- ive powers in nature that is also a pole of converg- ence and of distribution for every impalpable and spiritual element and entity pertaining to the stellar group concerned. Within these central stellar sources there pulsates a peculiar Deific energy that gives perpetual movement and a routine of cyclic changes to the surrounding worlds ; simulating in its methods the energy of the human heart as it attracts the vital stream from every organ of the body and when having derived from and imparted to this sus- tenant stream certain essential powers, sends it forth to traverse again the same bodily organs. In their order, there are streams of germinative life flowing forth to the planet worlds, endowing them with po- tential growths that afterward reverting to the im- palpable or spiritual estate flow back to the fountain source, endowing it in turn with equally potential power and glory. The inner processes of these superior realms in nature are necessarily hidden from or are incomprehensible to uninspired man; for while 28 Material, Vital and Paradisial Organisation. upheld by laws absolutely exact and unchanging, the innumerable cycles within cycles and the varied agencies of their complete organic systems, places their interpretation beyond the skill of the human intellect that hath not had, in addition to the expe- riences of the incarnate life, a period of observation in spiritual zones. The great interstellar heart, functioned to indraw, reorganize and send forth again every mobile or circulative force and element within the sub-universal boundaries, hath a peculiar spiritual significance in that it becomes a nirvanic Heaven to each conscious entity at the terminal of its animative or embodying cycle. CHAPTER III. EVOLUTION AND DISRUPTION OF THE MATERIAL WORLDS. Attached to each fixed orb of the sub-universe is an allotment of cosmic matter, maintained either in the form of gaseous nebula or solidifying planetary masses or as tranquil, life sustaining worlds, or worlds that have run their vital course and are ap- proaching disintegration. Every orb of this char- acter, while yet a fixed and permanent factor in the stellar group, is subject to certain periodical changes in the position of its constituent materials whereby important alterations may occur in its luminous properties and in the extension of the planetary elements from its radial surface. In orderly routine each proper sun hath its planetary cycles, in the beginning of which cosmic matter is erupted and Material, Vital a?id Paradisial Organization. 29 hurled forth into space, that eventually gravitating into cohesive bodies and chosing suitable orbits be- comes in due course habitable worlds: the termina- tion of such cycles being marked by the indrawing one by one of the planet worlds and their absorp- tion in the parent mass. Thus the solar orb to which the earth owes allegiance is an established and self regulative body, resting forever in an ap- portioned region of the sub-universe, while the planet worlds and their satellites surrounding it must eventually exhaust their life sustaining utility and require annihilation that their elements may be re-organized into new planes of vital energy. CHAPTER IV. THE CHARACTER AND METHODS OF CERTAIN OBSCURE FORCES AND ELEMENTS OF THE SUB-UNIVERSE. From the Pan-Elysium or Paradisial centre of the sub-universe there radiates forth a constant stream of vital or sustenant elements and energies that continu- ing outward to the stellar limits endows each special sun and planet and living entity with orderly func- tions and capabilities. These elements and energies thus intersecting space in many swift moving cur- rents, may engage in regulating the cycles of a solar luminary or m conveying elemental soul waves to the planets prepared for their reception, or in man- ipulating the innumerable agencies of lesser moment that appertain to every animate or free moving body. Each force and entity forming these obscure 30 Material, Vital and Paradisial Organization. currents hath a given cycle, from the epoch of its outflow to the epoch of its inflow, and each cycle in its order is followed by another similar cycle and these have repetition throughout all time. Along these hidden lines in heavenly space there proceeds a soul vital stream to each habitable world, that after forming combinations with and for a time manifesting itself through materiality, turns back to Paradise enriched with properties that compensate for whatever it may have seemingly lost in its act- ivities. This stupenduous outflow and inflow is so regulated that no material world or spiritual sphere is overfilled, while the central Heaven requires no expansion to accomodate the hosts forever returning from the material planes. It is a provision in nature that may be likened unto the currents of the mortal body that flow from the heart to the extremities and from the extremities to the heart and maintain- ing withal such evenly balanced circulation that there occurs neither excess nor poverty in any organ or locality. A cyclic stream, functioned as mental nourishment, flows forth and invests the surround- ing worlds with intellectual and emotional energy and which, after being appropriated by soul entities of the material and spiritual zones and receiving from them a certain transmutation, proceeds thence inward to the fountain source, inspiring for a time intellects of the Heavenly realms with its quicken- ing and tranquilizing influence. Such subtle ele- ments flowing outward to the world systems, as Deific spent breath, become unto finite forms and en- tities an inspirational and sustaining power that Material, Vital and Paradisial Organization. 3 1 after fulfilling its appointed services is returned as a Deific inspiration, while the soul entities themselves have a coterminous cycle wherein the apparently exhausted or attenuated outflow from Paradise is always counterbalanced by the developed and en- riched inflow. Soul entities are thus intimately associated with and enveloped in these obscure streams circulating within the stellar macrocosm, delivering as they proceed certain potentialities both to the Earth and to Heaven and withal per- forming a worthy service in the Deific system — their individual rewards being in the happiness they find in their necessary activities. Book III. The Immortal Ego and its Methods and ReIation= ships in Nature. CHAPTER I. PRE-NATAL EXISTENCE OF THE SOUL AND ITS GERMINATIVE PROCESSES. During the epoch intervening between the exit of the elemental soul from Pan-Elysium and its mater- ial birth, it hath no conscious volition, but, whatever its natural order or species, it is borne onward by sub- tle repulsions and attractions with the mystic currents that pulsate through space to its destined world. On reaching the material plane it attaches itself to the body of an individual, of a high or low order of in- tellect, ordinarily in comformity with its own in- herent status, and awaits the opportunity of germin- ation. The length of its term of waiting for the consumation of embodiment hath dependence upon the measure of prosperity of its living affinities, as, if belonging to a human type there may be interfer- ence with prolific increase by war or pestilence or other calamities, or, if belonging to a breed of ani- mals that is being rapidly exterminated it may fail to secure the desired birth except through the near- The Immortal Ego. 33 est kindred of the type or breed. Thus actuated by the single design, material embodiment, the ante natal ego enters the magnetism of an affinity in the flesh and, whatever the attainments of its previous earth lives, it normally succeeds to birth among indi- viduals bearing close physical resemblances to those with whom it hath been associated during every for- mer cycle of its existence. CHAPTER II. INHERENT RELATIONSHIP OF ELEMENTALS TO THE EMBODIED TYPES AND ORDERS. Of the abundance of elementals projected from Pan-Elysium realms into the atmosphere of the mater- ial world, each type and order proceeds direct to its embodied affinities and each individual, guided by an intuitional impulse, seeks embodiment through those qualified to supply it a form suitable to its in- herent powers. A primal genera establishes its type and order of bodily structure in accordance with the demands of its inherent mentality, maintaining, how- ever, an adaptation to the age of its advent upon the material world, and those coming after it may improve or modify the established species to meet the re- quirements of any additional faculties they may possess. The structural organization of either pri- mal or later genera manifests certain special charac- teristics ; the pioneers of every type of embodied life being invariably of humble mentality and un- couth form, as befits their environments, while mem- 34 The Immortal Ego. bers of their later posterity are ennobled concurrent- ly with the improvement of material conditions sur- rounding them. Soul waves of intellectually differ- entiated entities are caused to flow toward the earth plane in every consecutive age of the life sustaining era, each wave being specially adapted to the ma- terial conditions extant on its arrival. Hence, an or- der or type that flourishes in one epoch is not in- herently qualified for embodiment in the same world at a later epoch. Whatever variation occurs in the inherent character of the elemental influx is followed by a corresponding variation in the character of the life forms it generates; any numerical diminution in the generic wave is followed by a like diminution in the members of its materialized race, while termina- tion of the elemental wave of any type of beings necessarily bring to a close the embodied existence of that type. CHAPTER III. PROCESSES OF EMBODIMENT OF THE ELEMENTAL. The elemental hath no conscious choice of worlds or epochs of time or of life orders through which it may germinate ; it is ruled by subtle forces in nature which take cognizance alike of planetary needs and of its special adaptations and which direct it unfail- ingly to an appropriate sphere of action. Its oppor- tunity of germination and transference from the un- conscious estate to the incipient phase of material life is afforded when the sexes of its affinities in the The Immortal Ego. 3 5 flesh have fruitful contact, and thenceforward to the end of its cycle in Pan-Elysium itisan intellectually progressive being. The elemental thus passes the barrier that held it in the unconscious condition through a sexual rapprochement, and, whether the germ so established be quickly destroyed or suc- ceeds from the embryo to physical maturity, the ego proceeds onward through spiritual stages to Pan- Elysium. In attaining earthly embodiment the soul contends with uncertainties that have no re- petition in any other phaseof the animative cycle; for it may have success in the processes representing gestation, normal infancy, childhood and physical maturity, or it may only succeed in the first of these, and, through loss of its body, have to pass on to the spiritual plane without other experiences in life. Un- der normal conditions the elemental thus incarnat- ing will evolve for itself an organism in accord with its inherent endowments; abnormal parentive influ- ences, however, may interrupt embryonic unfold- ment and induce deformities that will to certain ex- tents thwart the inherent powers of the soul. CHAPTER IV. IMPORTANCE OF THE LIFE PHASE OF THE ANIMATIVE CYCLE. Material birth ushers the eternal ego into con- scious existence, so that thenceforth to Pan-Elysium itpursuesa courseof intellectual unfoldment. Emerg- ing from intellectual obscuration through the ger- minative process, it enters upon the activities of 36 The Immortal Ego. physical life, unless unsuccessful in maturing a body; in which latter event it proceeds with the spiritual phases, reverting not to the elemental estate nor at- tempting re-incarnation. Though life is a compara- tively short epoch in the complete cyclic career, even if old age is attained, it hath features of great import to the individual soul; failure of embodied experience being of the nature of a misfortune that entails much arduous effort in spiritual spheres to compensate. The life stage discloses the soul's out- ermost projection from Pan-Elysium, the fulcrum from whence it turns and retraces lines it had traversed as an unconscious elemental — the retracing being dif- ferent from the going forth, in that it hath intervals of rest with pleasurable associations along the route. The soul being provisioned for a certain intellectual development during life, it follows that such individ- uals as achieve the normal term of embodied existence are advantaged to the extent of their worldly ex- perience above those of premature death. How- ever, while the attainment of old age in life by those who practice the virtues hath inestimable value to the soul, old age to the vicious may be unprofitable to the exent of their evil deeds and the base pro- pensities they have acquired. Through maintenance of the fleshly form and pursuit of the ordinary voca- tions and legitimate pleasures ot life the soul devel- opes a certain power and vigor of being and makes also such preparation for the spiritual plane as will enable its full appreciation of every source of joy there extant. While the greater proportion of souls passing the germinal process fail of physical matur- The Immortal Ego. 37 ity, many not even reaching normal birth, it is pro- vided in nature that the materially successful are sufficiently numerous to guide and instruct the ma- terially unfortunate ones of their genera in the essentials of earth wisdom and the personel graces. CHAPTER V. PRE-ORDAINED AND VOLITIONAL PQWERS OF THE SOUL DURING ITS CONSCIOUS CYCLE. In the progressive career of the soul from the material plane to Pan-Elysium, there is provision for individual happiness through the performance of an allotted order of duties and also provision for suff- ering through inefficiency in or neglect of these duties. A soul may be pre-ordained, from inherent qualities, to the leadership or to the amusement or to the humble serving of its contemporaries, and for merit- oriously fulfilling its assigned functions there entails an adequate measure of happiness. Each soul hath its special fitness in the economy of nature and a mission which no other can in detail fulfil; if pro- pitious circumstances attend its incarnation and early development it may ascertain its special fitness during life and be able to inaugurate a felicitous karma for succeeding spiritual zones. Under un- propitious incarnation or misguiding influences in youth, the soul intellect may be thrown into a false channel, leading to misfortunes in life and entailing assiduous effort in the spiritual zones in order to harmonize the bodily activities and the thoughts with the conscientious instincts. The soul may 38 The Immortal Ego. traverse every zone from earth to Pan-Elysium and ac- quire little profitable wisdom or personal excellence, maintaining itself in social ranks inferior to its pre- ordained inheritance, or it may, through orderly ap- plication of its faculties, acquire intellectual excel- lences and successfully maintain itself the associate of those who are its superiors according to pre-or- dained inheritances. Thus, some reach the terminal Heaven with wisdom below the intents of their pri- mal inheritance and realize much sorrow as a conse- quence, while others reach Heaven with wisdom ex- ceeding the intents of their primal inheritance and find much joy as a consequence. Within these lines the finite soul is an instrument of the eternal will, with no choice of its career, as broadly determined in nature, but it hath a choice of happiness or sorrow through the merit or demerit of its labors, exalting or demeaning itself within its social order or range of mentality. The soul inherently superior among its co-eternals and having by reason thereof a pre- disposition to the development of a body capaci- tated to express its qualities, is nevertheless measur- ably subject to the laws and conditions of materi- ality, especially during its germinal or embryonic stages, so that it is liable to both physical and men- tal defects. The soul inherently inferior and having a predisposition to the development of a body only capable of expressing inferior qualities, is not doomed on this account to an unworthy or unhappy career, being eligible for good or evil or joy or sor- row within its intellectual environment. It is or- dained to each individual ego to develop during The Immortal Ego. 39 every cyclic incarnation a certain measure of intel- lectual power and influence among its co-eternals but the favorable influences that may attend one in- carnation an enable conformity with this inherent design may not attend another, so that in one earthly life there is satisfaction with surrounding conditions and the personel achievements and in an- other there is dissatisfaction. The events or condi- ons of the animative cycle leave no permanent im- press upon the indigenous character of the ego, whose capacities are similar at the beginning of each of these stages of existence, and though with in- herent characteristics that aim measurably toward excellence or mediocrity, it hath at. every generative epoch a temporary subjection to material influences that may give it bodily perfections or imperfections or that may significantly affect it during the early period of life. The experiences of the lesser perma- nence during the cycle are such as pertain to the physical or animalistic man; those of the greater permanence are such as pertain to the affectional and intellectual man: which latter are qualities evolved or unfolded from the inner soul. A richly endowed individual may in life create for himself a karma of appalling disorder, that although an ex- ternal and impermanent acquisition, will follow and harrass him in his spiritual existence; while the most lowly individual, through faithful pursuit of his pre-ordained functions and abstention from illusive vices, may create a karma of self approval and con- tent that will follow and bless him^through his suc- ceeding spiritual existence. Book IV. Spheres, Conditions and Experiences that Apper= tain to the Spiritual Universe. CHAPTER I. CONDITIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF THE SOUL IN THE LOWER SPIRITUAL ZONE. Through death of the fleshy form the soul hath release from its material environment and it straight- way enters a zone wherein earthly conditions are spiritually reproduced. It finds spiritual lands and seas whose domains abound with spirit representa- tives of every species of plant and animal and of every type and condition of mankind. It finds scenic nature marked by numerous perfections not discoverable on the material plane while its com- panions likewise show super-mundane refinement and an absence of vulgar and repulsive traits. It finds surprising inventions and appliances that fill the glorified atmosphere with melodious sounds and rich perfumes and wondrous panoramic effects, and yet others of the nature of vehicles or air ships that freighted with pleasure seekers float majesti- cally over the spiritual landscape. It finds intelli- gent and ennobled spirits discussing noteworthy human achievements or addressing orderly gather- Spiritual Spheres, Conditions and Experiences. 41 ings or entertaining those seeking intellectual diver sion or recreation, while it observes also numerous places both of instruction and of worship to which the inhabitants alternately betake themselves . Close followed by the karma developed during earth life^ the soul thus enters the zone of spirit and according to attainments is impelled toward either pure and worthy thoughts and activities or toward the base and unworthy. Objects and scenes experi- enced during life have recurrence to the spiritual memory, bringing repetitions of their joyous or pathetic features, and erstwhile friends and intellec- tual affinities come forward with greetings. The features of this zone are interesting and joy giving in accordance with individual merit, or such fitness for their appreciation as results from virtues prac- tised on the material plane. Thus opportunities abound for a series of sociabilities, studies and bene- ficent labors and the soul finds itself happy, primar- ily to the extent of its past virtues and secondarily according to its efficiency in the duties of its new surroundings. CHAPTER II. CONDITIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF THE SOUL IN THE INTERMEDIATE SPIRITUAL ZONE. When the soul hath existed its allotted epoch in the first spiritual zone from earth, it is transferred, by a process analogous to physical death, to another realm wherein it finds many of its former conscious 42 Spiritual Spheres, Conditions and Experiences. relationships repeated on a new and elaborate sys- tem. It finds the souls of every aaimal type and the spiritual reproductions of plant life enhancing the interest of the scene with their presence, while of humankind, even those that pursued a disorderly or vicious course upon the earth are found to have over- come their evil tendencies and to have developed joy-giving accomplishments. The intellectually ad- vanced soul comes in contact with numerous scenes and experiences having no comparison to earthly phenomena, finding in its immediate surroundings an harmonious and philosophically pleasing struc- tural order, while the leading features of far distant regions of the material and spiritual universe are brought within its vision by skilful appliances. It discerns the relationship of all the suns of the universe to each other, as they conjointly obey the impul- sions of a central directive power, or it may follow the potential virtues that stream forth from sun to planet to their radiative source and fathom the mechanism of their production. It may now ascertain in detail the history of the material world and trace the evolution of its varied plant and ani- mal types without delving for fossil relics, as such information requires on the earth plane, while the exact records of every race and nation of men are also within easy access. For the sportive and sym- pathetic pleasures it finds ample provision; every circle of intellectual affinities occupying their allotted spheres and secure from annoyance of those toward whom they feel no social attraction. Spiritual SpJieres, Conditio?is and Experiences. 43 CHAPTER III. CONDITIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF THE SOUL IN THE UPPER SPIRITUAL ZONE. On reaching the upper spiritual zone of the Earth the soul is encompassed about by scenes and con- ditions of supernal beauty and perfection, and, hav- ing by this time, if not abnormally obtuse, become possessed of a high degree of moral purity and in- tellectual excellence, it is enabled to fully enjoy every feature of this manifestation of nature's uni- verse. If yet possessed of aspiration for some un- attained grace of person or practiced art or know- ledge of the abstruse, there are abundant facilities for its rapid progress in the line desired. If ambi- tious for special skill in the higher astronomy of the universe, it may proceed to explore and ascertain not only the material outlines of distant suns and planets but also the superincumbent halo's of their spiritual zones; or it may journey forth intellectu- ally to immeasurably distant recesses in heavenly space and view in detail the hosts of stellar uni- verses as ranged in their orderly and eternal system. In various concerns it discovers facilities for self im- provement, so that if hitherto neglectful of oppor- tunities and only through the startling magnificence of its present surroundings awakened to the need of some creditable possession, it may even thus late in the cycle proceed to earn its way to favored realms and associations and to secure specific virtues that will give joy in the terminal Heaven. In the higher sphere of the zone the soul may have acquaintance 44 Spiritual Spheres, Co?iditio?is and Experiences. with the Earth's finite Governor and with the great and worthy minds who form his counsellors, and it morever discerns the peculiar and beneficent in- fluences which these high functionaries exert upon the spiritual and the material world. CHAPTER IV. CONDITIONS AND EXPERIENCES OF THE SOUL IN PAN-ELYSIUM. In the realms of the great central world of the sub-universe the soul finds an inheritance of personel power and facilities for happiness according to the karma it hath developed for itself during the con- scious period of its cycle. It finds the soul entities of every planet world streaming into this central system, and, though embracing types and races rang- ing from those of the primal orders that have consti- tuted the inhabitants of immature planets to the more perfected intelligences of worlds of the millen- ial stage, all are perceived to maintain themselves with true angelic decorum. Every member of the constantly impouring multitudes is seen to discover its natural affinities and to instinctively approach the sphere for which it is specially adapted. The hitherto progressive soul, with a full karma of know- ledge and benevolence, is found beaming with holy ecstacy from its nearness to and constant commun- ion with the divine principles in nature. If having earned potential virtues in each preceeding zone of existence, it finds here abundant time for medita- Spiritual Spheres, Co?iditio?is and Experieiices. 45 tion upon the varied glories of the universe it hath traversed and likewise for the pursuance of what- ever pastimes its faculties may incline toward. After experiencing the merited glories of this, the ultimate Paradise, the soul passes into an appointed sphere and enters upon a state of entrancement dur- ing which the enriched mentality of its progressive cycle hath gradual dissipation. In this process it is for a period enraptured with dreamy meditations upon the joys and achievements of its past cycle, then, as if falling into a deep slumber, the memory is obliterated, the intellect obscured and as an un- conscious elemental it is finally engulfed in a vital wave that bears it with myriads of others upon a new cycle to some material world. CHAPTER V. CERTAIN PHASES AND EXPERIENCES OF THE SOUL IN ITS SPIRITUAL CAREER. If when entering upon the spiritual phase of exis- tence the soul finds itself in possession of a karma of honest energy and benevolence, it enjoys a favor- able self-estimate and contentment of mind, but, if realizing its karma base or unworthy, it experiences fear or uncertainty of mind and seeks to hide its defects from its fellow beings. On reflection upon its career in life it hath satisfaction in its deeds of virtue, which in their outward effects imbue the spiritual countenance with a joyous expression, while for its wrongdoing it hath humiliation of mind 46 Spiritual Spheres, Conditions and Experiences. and a countenance distressed and disfigured as from a virulent disease. If in life it hath been devoted to benevolent pursuits and to the acquirement of know- ledge of the truths of nature, it finds ennobled and cultured companionship and an inheritance in spheres where learning is held in high estimate, but, if in life it hath labored for naught save to gratify the common lusts or evil propensities, it finds its companionship and the conditions of its spiritua sphere short removed from those of its ex- perience on the material plane. Throughout the spiritual cycle the soul hath association with the learned and ennobled of its genera or with those of a lesser refinement or with the most lowly accord- ing to its own intellectual and moral status, for, al- though these varied classes may inhabit a common spiritual region, their contact is so regulated by nature that each hath companionship of its own quality and comparative isolation from its opposites. The soul becoming freed from the grossness and impurities of the flesh is eligible to new hopes and aspirations and refined joys; finding however, upon each succes- sive plane a resource of pleasure in the memory of its every benevolent act and instructive experience. There being no premature or accidental deaths here as upon the material plane, but a duly measured epoch allotted to each zone, the spirit, though guided for a time by the peculiar mental impetus it gained in life, hath yet such mastery of its career as to be able to employ its time wisely or unwisely tc ts own welfare or injury. A foretaste of para-nir- vana is possible in every zone of the conscious cycle, Spiritual Spheres, Conditions and Experiences. 47 but the soul may deprive itself of or limit such bliss, as it may impoverish its general inheritance in Pan- Elysium, through persistent grossness and failure to develop tranquilizing karma. During all the epochs following material birth the soul hath a constant approach toward the universal Heaven, realizing premonitory nirvana's in each zone until it enters Pan-Elysium, when begins the true or para-nirvana whose joys, though a common inheritance for man, are measured in their intensity by individual merit. Pan-Elysium brings to the soul the ideal nirvana, pre- monitions of which have engendered sublime con- ceptions and urged its worthiest energies, and the incomparable glories there prove that nature hath given naught of hope or aspiration impossible of eventual fulfilment. Thus the material plane as an outer extremity of Deific elements, and the physical estate as the inferior conscious condition of the soul, afford functions necessarily crude and joys less perfect than those of any succeeding phase of the cycle; while Pan-Elysium as an inner nucleus of Deific elements, and the soul reaching it being in its most perfect condition of intellectual unfoldment, the functions here are most refined and the joys the most perfect that the finite being can realize. CHAPTER VI. SOUL INTERCOMMUNION BETWEEN THE MATERIAL AND SPIRITUAL PLANES. Conditions subsist in nature for the intelligent contact of embodied and disembodied souls, either 48 Spiritual Spheres, Co?iditio?is a?td Experie?ices. after a process enabling thought germs of the one to approach and influence the other or after a pro- cess enabling audible or visible presence. The sym- pathetic bond of kinship or of concurrent thought may attract an intelligence from one plane of existence toward an intelligence upon another plane and un- der such rapprochement the motives of the one be- come temporarily the motives of the other ; and yet each may be unconscious of the character or person- ality of its invisible affinity. Each human mind of ar- duous purposes and pursuits attracts to its aid poten- tialities from invisible minds which enhance the possi- bilities of desired achievement, while it may in turn render a similar service to those with whom it thus communes. Such intercommunion is common to both high and low orders of intellect and the matter communicated may be either of a refined or impor- tant or base or unimportant nature. Conscious intercommunion with spirits is ordinarily restricted to individuals abnormally clairvoyant or impressional while unconscious or endemic intercommunion obtains with every condition of mind. The one phase is of necessity rarely manifested while the other interblends with the common flow of thought, which, vibrating imperceptibly through the atmos- pheric media, rebounds from one mind to another irrespective of plane or embodied or disembodied estate. Thus a soul in the flesh may be in close mental contact with a disembodied affinity and re- ceiving ideas and opinions upon some especial sub- ject, or possibly questioning intelligently while the baser consciousness is entranced or stilled in sleep, Spiritual Spheres, Conditions and Experiences. 49 and at the same time, the spirit mind concerned may be equally ignorant of the source of its peculiar interest and inspiration. While this obscure flow of thought nuclei intimately interconnects the menta 1 - ity of the two planes, it is only the few exceptionally talented or abnormally conditioned minds who have any true appreciation of the souls of any plane orzone save the one they inhabit. As nature hath ordered it, the soul embodied may not sense the spiri- tual estate nor may the soul disembodied sense the material estate ; the latter, however, hath positive knowledge and is consequently in no doubt as to material existence while the former may be ignor- ant of or may entertain grave doubts of spiritual ex- istence. Conscious intercommunion is commonly provided against by barriers that entail meagre and unsatisfactory sequences to human efforts for exact spiritual information; which discloses a proper safe- guard in nature, preventing the embodied and dis- embodied from becoming unprofitably engrossed with each other. CHAPTER VII. SPIRIT INTEREST IN AND CAPACITY OF INFLUENCING MANKIND. The soul transferred through bodily death to the spiritual plane may retain yet a solicitude for earthly concerns or for individuals; which for a time out- weighs every attraction of its immediate surround- ings and leads it to the natural channels of inter- 50 Spiritual Spheres, Co?iditions and Experiences. communication between the two worlds. Under such incentives the soul may devote its efforts to the furtherance of religious or political principles or to the moral quickening of individual minds, if bene- ficently actuated, or to the confusion of religious or political principles or the basely impulsive excita- tion of individual minds, if maleficently actuated. The philanthropic soul may even seek to bring about propitious marriages that elementals of inherent no- bility may be attracted and incarnated for leaders and teachers of some special race or nation, or it may employ itself to frustrate marrriage between the intellectually unsuited, if conceiving such interfer- ence to forestall the birth of the ingenitely vicious and inferior. It may endeavor a mental stimulus to leaders and teachers, urging them to advocate new or reformatory measures or inciting them to firmness when beset by popular impetuosities and prejudices. It may strive to influence persons indulging the passional appetites, seeking their moral or religious awakening, or it may have yearnings for nearness to those who were sympathetically allied to it in life. While its power over physical man hath such limi- tations in nature as to prevent undue or meddlesome interference in his affairs or the exercise of any wholly selfish or impropitious influence, the intel- lectual energy it exerts on his behalf is never lost, for it's thought trains impelled through space by force of will must needs act potentially upon many other minds, though possibly not successfully upon the ones they were especially directed toward. The inestimable value of proper safeguards in nature Spiritual SpJieres, Conditions and Experiences. 5 1 against direct spiritual influence is apparent when it is taken into consideration how a disembodied soul might exert a confusing or otherwise injurious influ- ence, even when actuated by no evil intent but merely through being imperfectly informed or through un- schooled faculties or a blind desire to profit its earthly kindred regardless of the effects upon others. Hence, whatever the character of spirit interest in man, the natural obstacles that interpose between the two phases of existence tend to lessen the force of all conscious or intentional influence, while that which redounds to the spirit so employ- ing its energies may be good or evil according to the motives and the manner of its activities, as a man might conceivably be affected through em- ploying himself in matters pertaining to the spiritual plane. CHAPTER VIII. THE CONDITIONS OF ELECTION TO SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP. The spirit leader or director of intellectual acti- vities invariably owes its appointment to its own in- trinsic merit and not to any earthly heritage or to arbitrary or individual favors. The conditions of its attainment of such position differ from those preva- lent on earth, in that there is neither dependence upon the will of the multitude nor upon any finite superior ; the measure of wisdom and the power of influencing and directing the thoughts and actions of others, through the reception and outflow of ideas, 52 Spiritual Spheres, Conditions and Experiences. being the essentials to spiritual leadership. With a cer- tain predestination to leadership in every animative cycle, it hath ultimate realization of its function, even though misfortunes may have hindered the unfold- ment of inherent gifts during earth life. It finds its specific rank defined by its relative merits and on no occasion encounters the unpropitious phase frequently observable among men wherein an official or ruler is inferior in the qualities of leadership to some of his subordinates or adherents. Thus, the soul ordained in nature for leadership, apprehending its normal destiny soon after its advent upon the spiritual plane, and, aware of the popular enthusiasm for in- dividuality and for efficiency in office, forthwith pro- ceeds to develop the external or expressive qualifica- tions and to evolve doctrines that will improve the methods or entice the thoughts of its fellows into healthful and profitable channels. Book V. Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Soul During its Corporeal Existence. CHAPTER I. RELATION OF THE SOUL TO THE FLESHLY BODY. The finite soul during the life phase of its cycle of activities permeates and supports a material body, which it utilizes as an instrument in the expression of its inherent powers, in the performance of essential functions in nature and in the attainment of intellec- tual strength and refinement. In the structural order of its body there is maintained a proportion of gross matter, serviceable as a tractile intermedium in its contact with material nature and also certain re- fined and subtle elements permeating and serving to connect the organic constituents with the perceptive and rational mind. Its more subtle body elements are employed to convey vital energies from the in- ner resources of the mind to the functional organs, to which they are accustomed to flow freely in con- formity with the impulsions of dominant faculties. In its intellectual manifestation, the embodied soul displays various faculties whose influences diametri- cally oppose each other, and to the relative promi- nence of these divergent principles in the mind is due the personality as distinguishable from other 54 Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. souls. Each incarnate faculty is constituted to ex- ert a certain impulsion and attraction upon the sub- tle energies of the body and to produce localized vigor, which may, under some abnormal constraint, become so acute in the function concerned as to cause it to appropriate to itself an undue share, thus unhinging the normal balance in the bodily system and inducing various faults and weaknesses. The faculties constituting the mental structure, like unto the components of the fleshly form, display both gross and refined qualities; some being intimately con- nected with physical organs and incentive of appetites or passions while others transcend physical nature and take cognizance of the purely intellectual and spiri- tual. Hence, through the sensorial faculties, the in- ner spirit transmits impulsions to and receives infor- mation from its bodily organs, in like manner as through faculties connective with the purely intellec- tual it receives inspiration from and intercommuni- cates with infinite and spiritual nature. The normal trend of the intellect, as conforming to the inherent proclivities of the ego, may be thwarted or turned aside by accidents or injuries to the body or by the overruling power of some especial faculty that has been developed beyond its legitimate bounds or through associations or teachings or habits while the mind is yet immature in its conscious volition. The traits outwardly manifested by the soul during life may in these instances fail to give a true indica- tion of the intrinsic qualities of the ego; the ment- ality acting through the flesh deviates from its intentional bearings and assumes a temporary Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. 55 character that is essentially false and superficial and between which and the inner self there is constant strife. CHAPTER II. NORMAL AND ABNORMAL CONDITIONS OF THE NUTRITIONAL APPETITES. The faculties of the soul that manifest their powers through the nutritional appetites are normally consti- tuted to urge upon the consciousness the especial needs of the bodily organs under their several influences. If by any unfavorable process these faculties have deranged their physical organism or rendered them- selves abnormal in their activity, they become dis- posed to harrass the mind with inordinate cravings, demanding that which morbidly excites physical sensation. In their ordained activity these faculties are engaged with the appropriate nourishment and sustenance of the corporeal system and in this em- ploy they react upon the consciousness with whole- some pleasures. In abnormal activities they en- gender brief and impotent sensuous excitations which are followed by bodily weaknesses and desires of evil import. Through maintenance of the normal appetites the body receives from the func- tional organs joy giving energy and the mind hath constant cheerfulness and hope. Through mainten- ance of deranged and abnormal appetites the body is filled with strange or oppressive sensations and 56 Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Sou I. the mind imbued with morbid fancies and fits of re- morse. Through gratification of the normal appe- tites there ensues a consciousness of having perform- ed legitimate duty and the mind is fit for meditative, studious or social activities. Through pandering to the abnormal appetites there ensues an accusing consciousness and the mind is unfit either for plea- surable meditation upon its own concerns or for re- lishing or inspiring in others the beneficent social joys. CHAPTER III. NORMAL AND ABNORMAL SEXUALITY. The sexual faculty displays a class of emotions and passions that incite chivalrous impulses aud self sacrificing devotion or base and morbid propensities, accordingly as the natural chastity or an acquired un- chastity is predominant in the mind. It is empowered, under moral and continent restraints, to animate and impel the mind toward heroic and admirable deeds, or, under base and uncontinent license, to morbidly inflame the various passions, to consume the vital forces of the body and to distract the attention from the common duties and obligations of life. The effects of its chaste influence are manifest in the amative and parentive affections, that impart to body and mind tranquilizing joys and a disposition to con- tentment in the practical or laborious routine of life ; its unchaste excitation is followed by eager passion- Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. 5 7 al lusts or fierce jealousies or distinctively vicious propensities. Hence, sexuality, while inherently pure and joy inspiring as a normal feature of the soul's functional system, is subject to common laws of the body organism and is liable, through diversion from legitimate purports, to unchaste or unfavorable in- centives which once engrafted in the intellectual karma may require assiduous and long sustained effort to eradicate. CHAPTER IV. NORMAL AND ABNORMAL COMBATIVENESS, The faculty that in life expresses the bellicose impulses is primarily intentioned to the defense of the individual rights and belongings, but, being sus- ceptible of disproportionate development in the mind or perversion from its legitimate intents, it may be- come incitive of grossly imprudent, aggressive or vicious thought or action. When maintained subor- dinate to morality and reason, it impels to positive and vigorous measures and to constancy in any en- terprise undertaken. Whe-n not maintained subor- dinate to morality and reason, it becomes within the mind a smoldering fire that may suddenly, and from trivial cause, break forth in unseemly fury or engen- der vengeful thought or stealthy criminality ; outrag- ing thereby the finer sympathies and inducing unwholesome agitation of various faculties and or- gans of the mind and body. Under corrective disci- 58 Ridi?ig Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. pline it imparts steadfast courage and dignity ot bearing to its possessor. Undisciplined it imparts a taciturn or fretful temper which not only irritates and exhausts the vital powers but so unhinges the intel- lect that there results faltering and cowardice when there is proper occasion for firmness or bravery. Under efficient control it allies itself with justice and benevolence and when called upon to employ force it urges no cruelty toward a thwarted or conquered opponent. When inefficiently controlled it imbues the mind with hatred and desire of revenge, as, not con- tent with subduing an opponent, it seeks his abject humiliation or destruction. Thus, when the soul in its earthly career maintains such intelligent govern- ance over its basic energies that the belligerent ele- ment instils a measured force and animation to the mind, in the defense of doctrines, rights or posses- sions, it realizes in the faculty a worthy and sustain- ing power in the life struggle. CHAPTER V. CAPACITIES OF THE MORAL CONSCIOUSNESS, The faculty expressive of moral consciousness is functioned to exert an influence that overawes the baser qualities of mind and constrains the thoughts toward virtue. In its peculiar mental surveillance it intimates an approval of the chaste and benefi- cent and a condemnation of the unchaste and injuri- ous. Its influence imbues the character with faithful Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. 59 and trustworthy traits and affords a sustaining power to the mind that enables successful resistance to evil temptings. Through its activity a barrier is provid- ed against the execution of unworthy motives, while through its inactivity license is given to evil indulgences, and fickleness and unreliableness of character come to possess no terrors for the mind. It awes the physical man into submission to the dictates of religion, and, to the inner perceptions, surrounds every object and principle in nature with purity or righteous intents. It is when its powers are dormant in the mind that the animal propensities exceed their proper bounds and every object and motive in nature takes on a base or selfish aspect. In its normal ac- tivity it affords the mind prudential or timely intui- tions enabling the employment of needful restraints upon the baser impulses, but, with its powers wea- kened or obscured, the mind is readily swayed by the sordid and passional nature so that actions damag- ing to the self esteem and to the reputation may be committed. Hence, the moral consciousness holds the office of a personal deity that makes its approval contingent upon the righteousness of the motives and activities; and accordingly as its demands are complied with or ignored there is resultant joy or sorrow in the mind. 60 Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Sow CHAPTER VI. THF FACULTY OF SPIRITUAL COGNITION. A certain power inherent in the soul enables cog- nition of the impalpable or purely spiritual in nat- ure, and this power or faculty may unfold its quali- ties in individual minds during earth life, so that there are frequent or occasional visions or impres- sions of entities, elements or conditions which are ordinarily obscured from mankind. Under the in- fluence of this faculty the inner perceptiveness transcends the common physical limits and proceeds to investigate the spiritual universe, though that which is then experienced may impress the mind as being merely an ephemeral dream or phantasy of the imagination. When, however, the phenomena it reveals hath the import of reality to the mind, the faculty may be permitted to enjoin the will to its purposes and so subdue the physical organism as to enable the soul's temporary escape from its material envelope and its entrance upon the spiritual plane. Alhough it is a faculty that is in a measure common to humanity, it hath rarely such development as to attract the serious concern of its possessor, being in most instances stirred to activity by some event shocking or disturbing the moral sense, the affec- tions, cherished habits or purposes and occasionally portending changes in the line of thought or manner of life. Like unto other powers of the mental superstructure, it may have a favorable or an un- favorable import, depending mainly upon the con- ditions of its development in the order of the intel- Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. 61 lect with which it is associated. When constitu- tionally over prominent or intentionally cultured in a mind, it may so fascinate or absorb the attention as to cause neglect of essential concerns in life, or be employed to confuse or mislead others from their worldly affairs or religious thought. In accordance wiih its normal intents, it yields the spiritual revela- tions or the insight necessary to confirm belief in reli- gion and the spiritual futurity of the race, and, under phenomenal activity it affords such convictions as incite philosophic speculations and the aspiration to instruct and lead others. In ultimate effect it serves to draw the human mind away from cravings of the flesh or too earnest absorption in purely mate- rial affairs and to direct attention to the future well- being of the soul. , CHAPTER VII. THE VOLITIONAL OR WILL POWER OF THE INTELLECT. A directive and regulative will maintains in each coherent mind, to which both the intellectual and corporeal faculties, in their normal state, ac- knowledge obedience. The will discloses no espec- ial discernment or partialty for good or for evil but is essentially a force that unites the prominent fac- ulties upon a purpose, and, being responsive alike to motives of every kind, the direction it becomes hab- ituated to take virtually decides the measure of tranquility and health the mind and body sustains. 62 Ruling Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. It is a faculty of the mind upon which great respon- sibility rests, for with it depends the subordination of the basic impulses and the direction of the ambi- tion toward attainments that bring individual pros- perity and happiness. Under favorable cultivation it is enabled to restrain and discipline the impulses and passions and to engender the stability of pur- pose or fidelity to principles which characterises every successful or estimable individual. When propi- tiously exercised, it directs the thoughts into selected channels regardless of predisposed tenden- cies, allotting to each organ and function of the body a proportioned season of activity and of re- straint, so that there is at all times an equable bal- ance of energies. Aided by chaste and religious motives it safeguards the inferior bodily functions from such activities as develop sensual and dis- orderly propensities, while it urges forward the qualities of intellect that elevate and ennoble the individual among his fellow beings. CHAPTER VIII. REACTIONARY PORTENTS AND POSSIBILITIES OF KARMA. The earthly mind, while mayhap not able to identify any single thought or idea as of its own origination, becomes nevertheless the centre of an exclusive stratum of intelligence wherein abounds all the thoughts, fancies and desires that have ever im- pressed its consciousness. These karmic impress- Ruling Faculties a?id Traits of the Embodied Soul. 63 ions, as if ranged upon given cyclic orbits, return at certain intervals and reproduce upon the memory the conditions of their first experience. Each and every soul, although having as an eternal heritage a predisposition toward certain motives and activities, is nevertheless peculiarly susceptible to the mental impressions imposed by associations and teachings during the youthful period of life, the which tend to surround the mind with a karmic destiny that may be either harmonious with or antagonistic to the in- herent disposition. A thought or incident once securing lodgement in the karmic system thus con- trives to affix a peculiar impress that reacts upon the memory whatever sentiments, emotions or passions were connected with its original inception. In re- ceiving these recurrent thoughts and incentives, the mind may have full remembrance of their former impress, or, they may appear as new inspirations or covert temptings according to their beneficent or maleficent character. The mind experiences some of these thought repetitions at distant intervals of time while others seem continuously within easy call and acting as alert and responsive servants, as if they possessed cycles of different duration-or were meas- urably dependent upon certain conditions and in- fluences to effectively impress their return. The thought currents formulated by the youthful intel- lect thus tend to a life heritage, the reversal or change of which requires new scenes and influences or a supreme effort of will. The karma having been established, obtains such control over the mind as to prevent sudden change in the habitual thought ; any 64 Riding Faculties and Traits of the Embodied Soul. reformatory effort being at once productive of dis- order among the faculties chiefly concerned. Hence, there obtains a certain dependence of the mind upon the karma it hath established, so that for the rectify- ing of vicious or dishonorable methods there needs be a struggle with each accustomed propensity or train of thought as it attempts to repeat itself, and coeval therewith the creation of new intellectual impres- sions and occupations, engendering the new and desirable karma. BoOk VI. Man as a Morally Responsible Being. CHAPTER I. ESSENTIAL OBLIGATIONS IN LIFE AND THE REWARD OF EFFICIENTLY MEETING THEM. To compensate his appointment in nature as the most noble of organized beings, man is ordained to the performance of a series of bodily exertions, to the unfolding and refinement of his intellect and to the perpetuation and improvement of his kind upon the material plane. His chief material duties are performed in the pursuit of the functional desires and intellectual ambitions ; when his developed reason discloses to him the intrinsic and legitimate purports of adding to his possessions, to giving in marriage and even to certain boisterous pleasures, then he hath per- fect assurance and joy in all his occupations and pas- times. In deriving his necessaries from the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms, man hath need to expel the morbid waters from the lowlands, to encroach his fields upon the desert wastes and to bring every mountain and plain under his dominion. In the building of habitations and in his devices for the collection and transport of his goods, he hath need to utilize the powers of every river and sea and 66 Man as a Morally Responsible Being. likewise to enjoin the aid of various subtle currents and gases of the atmosphere. His natural obliga- tions, having this perfect accord with the inherent capacities, it follows that if his order be lowly or his physique vigorous, he hath especial enjoyment in battling with the elements or in manual labors, or, if intellectually acute, he hath especial enjoyment in learning, in personal culture or in mechanical skill, while if endowed with the qualities of sagehood, he delights in searching for and expounding the esoteric or underlying principles in nature. CHAPTER II. REACTIONARY EFFECTS OF PROPITIOUS AND OF UNPROPITIOUS THOUGHT UPON THE MIND AND BODY. Through chaste and honorable thought man be- comes intellectually ennobled while his body is coursed with healthful emotions ; through unworthy or voluptuous thought he becomes intellectually imbecile while his body is filled with impurities and insatiable cravings. Through religious and intel- ligently applied thought man becomes acquainted with his superior powers and possibilities and is guided toward the development of qualities that will enhance his status with his fellow men; through irre- ligious and frivolous thought the intellect is con- fused and beclouded so that both his spiritual and his worldly interests suffer thereby. Through an orderly and considerate line of thought there is both Man as a Morally Responsible Being. 67 an assurance of functional health and a receptive- ness to religious teachings; through a disorderly and voluptuous line of thought, physically injurious vices are induced and the mind acquires an aversion or want of receptiveness to religious teachings. Through disciplined and sanctified thought the mind is conditioned for sustaining with fortitude every bereavement or cause of anxiety; through passional and sensual thought the mind is rendered weak and uncertain and fit to be easily unbalanced under agitating influences. Humanitarian or intel- lectually progressive thought attracts the inspiration of beneficent spirit principles; as one benevolent or learned mind is known to attract another of like qualifications; evil designed or vagrant thought at- tracts unregenerate spirit principles as carrion is known to attract creatures of repulsive appetite. Thus, thoughts that may be classed as benevolent and practical presage health of body and mind and form the essentials of happiness, while thoughts that may be classed as vicious and impractical pres- age bodily and mental ills — each kind being measur- ably within the province of the individual volition to entertain or avert. 68 Man as a Morally Responsible Being. CHAPTER III. \ REACTIONARY EFFECTS OF RELIGIOUS AND WORTHY AND OF IRRELIGIOUS AND UNWORTHY METHODS. Through prayerfulness and solicitude for the wel- fare of others, man finds himself in near proximity to infinite love and his heart is filled with joyous emotion. Through neglect of prayerfulness and indif- ference to the welfare of others man finds himself distant from infinite love and his heart is filled with harrowing fears or evil incentives. Through pious meditation and a considerate use of his faculties, he finds himself beneficently inspired and realizes a constant unfoldment of moral and spiritualizing power. Through unholy meditation and a base or purely selfish use of his faculties, he finds himself evilly inspired and possessed of a contempt for vir- tue and an infatuation for vice. Through conscien- tious manipulation of his emotional and passional elements, that they may fulfil their normal intents in life, he finds himself possessed of a fervid and venerative enthusiasm and in accord with infinite law. Through frequent yielding to the passional elements, so that they are diverted from their nor- mal intents in life, he finds himself lukewarm toward religion and astray from all belief in or rational conception of the infinite. Through vigilant self- surviellance and the timely restraint of every untoward or disorderly impulse of the flesh, he finds himself filled with hopeful energy and with a con- stant relish for the duties and pleasures of life. Through laxity in self-surveillance and the frequent Man as a Morally Responsible Being. 69 submission to impulses of the flesh, he finds him- self encompassed by base and insistent passions and his bodily and mental energies improfitably con- sumed. Through cultivation of forbearance and exact justice toward others and conscientious pre- meditations upon his motives and enterprises, he finds himself possessed of clearness and precision in his material concerns and of an intelligent discrim- ination between right and wrong. Through intoler- ance toward others or failure to meditate upon the possible effects of his motives or actions, he finds himself confused in his reckonings and slow to ap- prehend the distinctions between right and wrong. Through maintanance of what his higher faculties are enabled to perceive as virtuous and worthy, man may have constant satisfaction with himself and be free from regrets and every basely agitat- ing influence. Through failure to concern himself with and to practice what his higher faculties are qualified to perceive as virtuous and worthy, man may become disaffected with himself and with all his surroundings and be continuously afflicted with regrets and with insatiable desires. CHAPTER IV. SELF REFORMATION AKD CONQUEST OF THE PASSIONS. If improper indulgences have been persisted in until intellectual control is weakened and abnor- mal propensities or inclinations toward base thought 70 Man as a Morally Responsible Being. are established, then is there need of reflection up- on past actions and motives and of prayerful ap- peals to the infinite for inspiration and spiritual guidance. If the morally awakened mind finds it- self infatuated with base indulgences, delighting in the dissemination of evil knowledge or filled with enmity toward the righteous, then is there need of earnest and long continued religious effort to over- come the evil traits and to attain qualities which the highest intellectual reasoning approves of. If the incentives and impulses common to youthful in- nocence have through excesses become abnormal and immoral yearnings and the mind so infatuated with baseness that there is no joy in the society of the chaste or in acts of benevolence, then is there need of consistent - action by the governing and volitional intellect toward a complete reversal of former thoughts and habits. In the process of subduing incontinent passions and making their powers subservient to moral and religious princi- ples, there obtains a compensative strength of will that aids the mind in surmounting the common obstacles to a career of righteous and successful achievement. When the passional impulses have been rendered duly subordinate and the higher pow- ers of the intellect are made vigilant in the suppres- sion of basely incitive propensities and in enforcing a just and economic distribution and expenditure of vital energies, there follows the conditions favorable to mental and bodily health and the restoration of pleasure and interest in the duties of life. Man as a Morally Responsible Beifig. yi CHAPTER V. THE VALUE OF PRACTICAL DIRECTION OF THE ENERGIES EARLY IN LIFE. If the impulses and ambitions are held within legitimate bounds and the mind from early youth is trained in activities for which it hath an inherent adaptation, there ensues a sucession of hopes and aspirations, stimulating and urging the energies from one achievement to another throughout the term of physical life. If the energies be trained in a suit- able avocation during the years when the hopes and ambitions are in their freshness, there is likely to follow opportunities of profitable employ and the acquisition of means that will enable the maturer years to be devoted to religious thought and to the instruction of others. If the energies be early dir- ected in full harmony with the inherent genius, pro- fessional skill may be so rapidly developed as to give opportunity for leadership or possibly fame in the avocation pursued. If there has been such faith- ful adherence to esoteric capacities that talent or skill is early developed, there follows opportunities of choosing associations with which the tastes har- monize while the possible material successes will af- ford leisure for the higher culture of the intellect. With adherence to practical methods and abstinence from impure thought, the inherent zeal of youth finds no diminution through time or even great mis- fortune but continues urgent toward the chosen avo- cation, while the patriotic and religious emotions tend to become stronger as the years of life in- crease. 72 Man as a Morally Responsible Being. CHAPTER VI. THE PSYCHICAL AND INTELLECTUAL ENDOWMENT OF POSTERITY. The methods of the individual man, apart from their ordinary significance as to personal welfare, are of serious import through their possibilities of influencing the character of unborn posterity. Within the range of ante-natal influence upon posterity, there are the commonly known capacities of animal endowment that entail racial and family contour of body, and also other capacities of endow- ment, not commonly recognized, that give traits and impulses reflective of the parental mind during the period of gestation, and furthermore, capacities of selection, obvious only to psychological adepts, which determines the character of the elemental attracted for embodiment. The individual mind, paternal or ma- ternal, may at different times and under varying states of exaltation or depression, attract elementals for embodiment of widely differing qualities, so that in the one family there are children of genius and children of mediocrity, or it may attract an ego gen ; us but through unfavorable influences upon the maternal intellect during the gestative period, base tendencies are implanted that will blight or injure the possibilities of high achievements in life. Under this law mediocrity may appear in the offspring of illustrious parents, through such thought and con- duct ante-dating geniture as will attract base ele- mentals ; who seizing upon these temporary moods become embodied as children to those with whom they inherently possess no affinity. Unfavorable im- Man as a Morally Responsible Being. 73 pressions upon the maternal intellect during the ges- tation of even a superior ego, may entail to the child mental shadows or temporary evil inclinations, which are liable to be yielded to or so encouraged in youth as to develop impulses and habits of mind that will thwart the inherent ambitions and mar the happiness throughout life. Adverse parental influence may impose serious obstacles to the normal unfoldment of inherent powers, so that the mental qualities manifested in life do not indicate the true status of the soul according to its eternal heritage. In accor- dance with this law, where one gives evidence of ex- traordinary mental powers, though born of a de- generate lineage, the ego may come of a superior order to that of others of the family and the indi- vidual thus endowed is likely to have aspirations of a kind enabling the breaking through all ordinary social barriers and the attainment of a social plane congenial to the ruling ambition. While in general those with ties of earthly consanguinity are also affi- nities in the inherent qualities of soul, and the at- tachments they form in life have perpetuation through subsequent spiritual zones and portend even their physical relationships in future cycles, there may intervene ante-natal influences that in special cases reverse this order. Many who are allied as kinsmen in life may thus be widely apart spiritually, and though possibly maintaining a friendly or affec- tionate bearing toward each other, they are invari- ably destined to separation in the zones of spirit through each being attracted to individuals and sur- roundings peculiarly agreeable to the psychic heri- 74 Man as a Morally Responsible Being. tage. The worthy motives and ambitions that enable a man to maintain himself in an honored position in life, tends to attract about him elementals of a supe- rior order seeking embodiment, while like motives, though only temporarily inspiring a man of inferior status, may be sufficiently timely and propitious to give him the parentage of a genius. Thus in every civilization geniuses are known to appear in obscure families, elevating them to social prominence, while the descendants of the voluptuous opulent, through the operation of the same laws, often gravi- tate toward obscurity. Book VII. Intersocial Relationships and Institutions. CHAPTER I. MARRIAGE AS A BENEFICENT RELATIONSHIP OF THE SEXES. A legalized and permanent union of man with woman becomes to the twain a convenience and a source of happiness — to their offspring an assurance of support and instruction, and to society a declara- tion of honorable intents and of an assumption of the full purports of citizenship. Marriage to the coarser elements of society brings chastity and turns the activities from merely selfish aims to attendance upon and the support of others. To the refined and in- tellectual it brings a more stable and contented state of mind and enables the expression of tender sym- pathies and affections. Its happier auspices depend primarily upon a racial and physi- cal affinity between the pair, secondarily upon equality in the inherent endowments of soul and finally upon certain equalities in social status and concurrent religious beliefs. Obstacles and hindrances to early marriage are likely to obtain with those ambitious toward high education or professional skill, thus involving a period of celibacy fraught with self restraints that y6 Intersocial Relationships and Institutions. the personel chastity may be sustained. Marriage, as the consumation of a demand in nature and an adjustment of the mutual dependencies of the sexes upon each other, becomes with man one of his most sacred institutions and one which he finds deserving to be environed with due restrictions and impressive ceremonies, that, while preventitive of hasty and in- considerate alliances, lend to the prospective union a fervid yet venerative enthusiasm. CHAPTER II. THE MUTUAL INTERESTS OF MEN OF EVERY SOCIAL ESTATE AND OCCUPATION. Coeval with an advance in civilized methods, and the intellectual inequalities and divers occupations arising therefrom, is a mutual dependency of one order of genius or of handicraft upon another, that their combined energies may sustain the well being of the people in general. The tillers of the soil and gatherers of the products of the sea and the delvers of minerals, supply tradesmen and artisans with cer- tain necessities of life or the crude materials of com- merce and receive in exchange other crude articles or wrought implements or fabrics for art or ap- parel, while conjointly they support learned pro- fessiDnals who treat the bodily ailments or who give intellectual and spiritual instruction. Likewise those who execute the functions of government and those who manipulate the exchanges of wealth, depend Inter social Relationships and Institutions. J J for the effectiveness of their decrees and success of their enterprises upon wage laborers to whom they in turn afford stable government and regulated em- ploy. Thus one in accordance with his physical powers and lowly inclinations, comes to perform heavy manual labor and another, in accordance with his vigilant energy and prudentiality, accumulates wealth and comes to be an employer of labor while another, in accordance with his genius, facilitates the production of human necessities through dis- covery and invention or advances art or literature, or by eloquence of speech directs his fellow men to- ward profitable methods of thought and conduct. The tendency of the distinctive classes or trades to ally themselves' too closely and exclusively with their own peculiar interests comes to be modified by the influence of statesmen and teachers, whose contact with all kinds and conditions enables them to impartially consider needs of the people at large. Hence, a responsibility rests with each class and cult and craft that enjoins it to supply others with its special productions and to purchase from others, thus giving, while it derives, a sustaining power, and this responsibility reaches its more important phase with the intellectually gifted whose particular func- tion is to encourage excellence on every hand and to avert unprofitable jealousies and contentions. 7 8 Inter social Relationships a?id Institutions. CHAPTER III. THE CHANGE OF ATTITUDE OF CITIZEN TOWARD RULER THROUGH PROGRESSIVE ENLIGHTENMENT. As a people advance from barbaric to enlight- ened citizenship, their servile and morbidly expec- tant attitude toward their appointed ruler is changed to an attitude that, while losing naught of the loyal support of constituted authority, displays a greater independency of spirit and reliance upon themselves in maintaining the general welfare. From a state of debasement wherein they persistently shrink the higher responsibilities of citizenship, yet hold them- selves as convenient mercenaries, the people come to realize their greater inheritance in the nation and proceed to relieve their ruler of the burdens and dangers of despotic government by appointing statesmen legislators to his support. From a cring- ing and servile spirit and an eagerness to do the worst bidding of a despot, to concede his pleasure a sufficient warrant for any proceeding against their fellow men, the people come to possess a spirit of jus- tice and benevolence that not only restrains them from carrying out petulant or unworthy designs of their ruler but also prompts them to sit in judgement upon his actions. From a condition in which their intolerance, as vested in their ruler, is such as to per- secute men for their opinions and to hamper and levy such taxation upon the wealthy and enterpris- ing that they are wont to take their property to other countries for investment, the people come to appreciate diverse opinions and to consent to such or hitersocial Relationships and Institutions. 79 derly and just government that genius is prolific and foreign talent and wealth is attracted toward them. From a condition wherein they accept- a ruler by reason of his lineage, without regard to his abilities, and permit or encourage him to appropriate vast wealth to his personal uses, they come to seek throughout the land for competent statesmen to ad- minister the government and to fix by law their al- lowances or salaries. From a condition wherein high office might be obtained by purchase and where- in a ruler might share the profits of a nefarious traffic, the people come to be wary of those who ap- pear to seek public appointment for the emolument only and to tolerate no questionable share of profits or any unseemly methods by those they select to frame laws and to govern. From a condition where- in extreme partizans or religious enthusiasts or reckless insistants upon war or sectarian strife are the chosen legislators, they come to measure well the declared principles of a leader in their relation to the general weal, thereby protecting themselves from enactments built upon temporary sentiment and from all hasty and ill considered legislation. And thus, from a cowering and mercenary attitude wherein the people are despicable in the sight of . their ruler, they become, through their manifest in- telligence, ennobled in his estimate and their senti- ments and principles serve to guide and beneficent- ly restrain both his private conduct and his state policy. 80 Inter social Relationships and Institutions. CHAPTER IV. THE CONDITIONS OF ACCORD OF GOVERNMENTAL METHODS WITH POPULAR SENTIMENT. Where no rankling antagonisms, from divergent races or creeds or from educational inequalities, prevail among the people and independence of for- eign dominion is maintained, the principles and methods of their governmental system are invariably representative of the national character and in ac- cord with the popular enlightenment and morality. Whether in the unrefined early stages of national existence or in its more cultured epochs, the leaders and rulers are morally constrained to enact laws and to establish a government in conformity with pop- ular sentiment and the order established remains in favor with the people until found to conflict with newly developed doctrines or material interests. In the free and progressive nation occasional reforma- tory changes in the laws and regulations are likely to be demanded by the people and there is need of statesmen of discernment and magnanimity to secure equitable adjustments in order to avert agitation, disloyalty and revolution. When the people are illiterate or depraved relatively to their surround- ings and opportunities, they are likely to fail to per- ceive and to forestall pernicious class or partizan legislation, and, when the effects are upon them they become embittered against the constituted author- ities or gather in disorderly mobs to destroy the wealth their own labors have produced. If a people, either through the ill timed magnanimity of Intersocial Relationships and Institutions. 81 of their rulers or through revolutionary success, ob- tain a more advanced form of government than they are morally conditioned to appreciate or sustain, they are likely to become involved in vicious con- troversies and with misleading doctrines, that, unless statesmen of great discernment come forth to their guidance, will result in confusion and civil strife. In the early stage of national organization, the government is likely to be based upon principles so vaguely defined as to be easily swerved by the per- sonel might of the ruler and made to favor selfish in- terests or to profit one class at the expense of others. Ordinarily, in the primal phase of national existence, the arbitrary will of the stronger chieftain of the dominant tribe or horde is sufficient to hold the people in orderly subjection. Then a condition obtains wherein certain acceptedly beneficent regu- lations, taking the form of laws, have become tradit- ional and the principles of a governing system are fixed in the popular mind, with rulers from the more noteworthy or leading families of the nation. Ulti- mately there is government resulting from a count- erbalance of sectional or partizan interests, with its laws based upon historic experience and the inspira- tion of sages, and the rulers are statesmen of intel- lectual fitness whose incumbency of office is subject to popular approval. 82 Intersocial Relations /dps and Institutions. CHAPTER V. CONDITIONS RESULTANT OF THE PREVALENCE IN THE NATION OF ONE OR THE OTHER OF CERTAIN DISSIMILAR CLASSES OF MEN. The prevalence of the class of men characterized by peaceful and industrial qualities gains for the nation a repute for political stability and enterprise, so that the wealthy and talented of other lands are attracted to its cities and become contributors to their prosperity and greatness. The prevalence of the class of men characterized as turbulent and im- provident gains for the nation a repute for political intrigue and insecurity to life and property, so that its cities become impoverished through the discour- agements to commerce and the repulsion of the wealthy and talented. The prevalence of the one class makes the nation a source of intellectual and commercial profit to its neighbors; the prevalence of the other class makes the nation a source of annoy- ance and danger to its neighbors, who may even be constrained to combine against it for the safety of their own institutions. The prevalence of the one class causes the territories of the nation to be filled up and cultivated by frugal im- migrants, whose incoming even demands restric- tion by reason of their excessive numbers; the pre- valence of the other class causes the territories of the nation, however fertile, to attract only desperate and mercenary men, whose designs are upon plund- ering and bloodshed. The prevalence of the one class leads to a constant increase in the numerical Inter social Relationships and Institutions. 83 strength and wealth of the nation and its citizens be- come remarkable for their just and economical methods; the prevalence of the other class leads to a decrease in the numerical strength of the nation and the exhaustion of its wealth through the prodi- gality of officials and the support of a multitude of soldiers and pensioners, while upon the youth of the land is entailed not only burdensome taxation but also vicious prejudices and a restless and belligerent temper. The prevalence of the one class is marked by a philanthropic and peace loving sentiment, that not only endeavors the alleviation of distress within the boundaries of the nation but also institutes bene- volent missions to foreign lands; the prevalence of the other class is marked by an indifference to human suffering and a morbid desire for war, in the expectancy of grasping the lands or property of the enemy or of gaining some selfish advantage during the confusion of the conflict. The prevalence in the nation of the one class fosters the development of personel graces and the spiritualizing of the popular mind; the prevalence in the nation of the other class fosters the development of vulgar and aggressive traits and of such hungering after war that the people, when not finding a weak neighbor to harrass, will fall upon each other in civil strife. 84 Intersocial Relationships and I?istitutio?is. CHAPTER VI. POPULAR SENTIMENTS THAT MAY CONTRIBUTE EITHER TO THE UPBUILDING OR DOWNFALL OF A NATION. A sentiment which takes hold upon and agitates the popular mind, hath ordinarily a purport that ac- cording to the conditions of its expression, may con- tribute toward the prosperity and upbuilding of the nation or toward its impoverishment and retrogres- sion. A spirit of invasion which effects an affiliation of the conqueror with the conquered and a combina- tion of their intellectual resources, may prove a mo- mentous factor in the advance of civilization and in the upbuilding of national power. A spirit of in- vasion bent only upon plundering and enslavement, may prove disastrous not less to the conquered than to the conquerers, through making them bloodthirsty and contemptuous of the humbler industries. A spirit of migration, whether affecting the fugitive remnants of a people receding from their foes, or from phenomenal disasters, or stimulating an out- flow of vigorous elements from an over-populous re- gion, when directed into uninhabited territories or those of a racially allied people, may form a nucleus for the attraction of wealth or lend valuable assis- tance in the founding of new and prosperous national systems. A spirit of migration affecting the mem- bers of a nation as a device of escape from an un- favorable government, which their moral influence might reform, and which precipitates them into the territories of a people racially divergent from them and with whom they cannot affiliate, may cause the Inter social Relationships and Institutions. 85 impoverishment of the lands they desert and engen- der racial conflicts and political confusion in the lands they enter. A sentiment insisting upon the unity of all human types and leading to the removal of caste prejudices, may initiate the beneficent assi- milation of tribes, between whom certain endemic affinities exist, and thereby improve the general in- telligence and capabilities of the people. A senti- ment initating the amalgamation of tribes widely diverse in mental and physical character, may so re- duce the intellectual genius of the superior tribe and alter the physical features of the inferior that a de- based mongrel order results incapable of sustaining high civilization. Warlike ardor, when under suffi- cient restraints and only permitted expression in the cause of the oppressed or in behalf of effectively tested principles, may prove the substantial bulwark of national independence and greatness. Warlike ardor r when not subjected to proper restraints, and if permitted to degenerate into churlish aggressive- ness, may prove an important factor in corrupting a nation, by leading the people to seek their subsistence through robbery and enslavement of others rather than through their own productive energies. A sen- timent of territorial acquisition by a benevolent and progressive people, under circumstances free from the appearance of force and robbery, may enable the enlargement of the nation's commerce and enhance the opportunities of its citizens while also confering benefits upon the inhabitants of the annexed terri- tories, through giving them just and protective gov- ernment and contact with educative and ennobl- 86 Intersocial Relationships and Institutio?is. ing influences. A sentiment of territorial acquisi- tion, under circumstances favorable only to the interests of the conqueror and having no re- gard to the desires and interests of the people con- quered or annexed, may result in turbulence and misery in the territories concerned and a necessity for the continual employment of repressive force with them. A sentiment engendering a centraliza- tion of the government, when breaking up a number of petty principalities or loosely confederated pro- vinces and creating a single law making focus, while yet maintaining the equable representation of each section, class and interest, may prove an enhance- ment of the strength of the nation and a guarantee of its security from internecine strife and foreign en- croachment, while also lessening the general taxation and the burdens of state. A sentiment engendering centralization of the government, when interfering with the representative system and placing extraor- dinary or autocratic power in the hands of one man, or subjecting territories of different conditions of population and climate to the dictation of a people outside of or not concerning themselves with these localized conditions, may prove oppressive and the cause of disloyalty and rebellion. A sentiment that is conservative and venerative of established institu- tions or traditional philosophy or the inspiration of sages of the past, may prove a safeguard to the nation against reckless experiment and the scheming of partizans and adventurers. A sentiment that is unyieldingly conservative and abjectly venerative of established institutions or traditional philosophy or Inter social Relationsliips and Institutions. 87 the inspiration of sages of the past, to the disregard of recent discovery, invention and inspiration, may become obstructive to all progress and place the nation so far arrear of its contemporaries in civilized methods as to make even its cohesive existence de- pendent upon their good will or forbearance. Book VIII. The Adjudgment of Individuals by their Traits and Qualifications. CHAPTER I. HE THAT IS DISCREET AND PRACTICAL COMPARED WITH HIM THAT IS INDISCREET AND IMPRACTICAL. He that is discreet of words and manners invari- ably commands the respect of those with whom he comes in contact: the young and uncorrupted being instinctively attracted to him. He that is indiscreet of words and manners commands not even the respect of those indiscreet as himself, while the young and uncorrupted instinctively shun him. He that prac- tices forbearance and magnanimity hath assurance of many friends and few enemies and his opportun- ities in life are favored accordingly. He that is hasty and resentful hath assurance of many enemies and few friends and his opportunities in life suffer ac- cordingly. He that is skilful in his vocation, how- ever humble it may be, and economic with his earn- ings is able to sustain a measure of personel inde- pendence among his fellow men and is rarely in dis- tress for the common necessities of life. He that is unskilful in his vocation and extravagant with his earnings is at all times hopelessly dependent upon his fellow men and is frequently in such straits as to The Adjudgement of Individuals. 89 require charitable assistance. He that maintains a character for trustworthiness, for industry or for learning invariably finds people eager for his society or to engage his services. He that becomes known as untrustworthy, slothful or ignorant invariably hath difficulty in finding people to associate with him or to engage his services. He that early in life acquires learning and proficiency in a calling, thereby lays the foundation for an enriched intellect and a satis- factory means of livelihood, then in his old age he is gratified by the esteem others manifest for him. He that early in life disregards learning and proficiency in a calling, thereby elects himself to an inferior channel of thought and aspiration and an unsatisfac- tory means of livelihood; then in his old age he is saddened by the aversion which others manifest for him. He that adopts a calling consistent with his inherent capacities and conducts himself in accord- ance with his serious reasoning and the inspiration derived from religious influences, hath assurance of success in his ventures and is likely to be content with his portion in life. He that mistakes his inherent capacities through some inculcated belief or un- propitions influence or fails to employ reason in his conduct or to cultivate religious influences, thereby places himself in antagonism with natural law, as it applies to his individuality, and as a result fails in his ventures and is likely to be discontent with his por- tion in life. 90 The Adjudgment of Individuals. CHAPTER II. THE MORALLY ENLIGHTENED AND THE MORALLY UNENLIGHTENED COMPARED. Morally enlightened men hold themselves ac- countable to their own consciences, irrespective of legal or prudential considerations. Morally unen- lightened men apprehend only legal or prudential considerations when the rights and interests of others are involved, though they are acutely con- scious of the principles of justice when their own rights and interests are involved. Morally enlightened men, through not being swayed by the momen- tary passions and prejudices, are qualified to deal im- partially with individuals holding opinions differing from their own. Morally unlightened men, through being constantly swayed by their momentary im- pulses and by narrow and partizan sentiments, are not qualified for disinterested fairness, neither have they a true appreciation of political liberty, being liable to construe it into a license to rob or to perse- cute their opponents. Morally enlightened men contrive to manage their subordinates efficiently and without giving offense or exciting insubordination. Morally unenlightened men, if in command of others, are prone to arrogance and to vindictive measures, thus bringing against themselves much ill will and antagonism. Morally enlightened men have know- ledge of their own capacities and are able to calcu- late with accuracy upon desired movements or en- terprises. Morally unenlightened men are uncertain of their capacities and fearful of the consequences The Adjudgment of Individuals. 91 of desired movements or enterprises, while they are frequently distressed by omens or misgivings as to their own evil tendencies. Morally enlightened men meditate seriously before embarking upon a ven- ture, then if opposition or defeat ensues they accept it with patience and fortitude. Morally unen- lightened men are wont to proceed aimlessly with an enterprise, then if involved in disaster they be- come clamorous of their losses and are filled with a despondency that suggests relief in debaucheries. Morally enlightened men have an understanding of their rights under the law and are rarely misled or suffer injury from the aggressive or criminal. Morally unenlightened men are uncertain of their rights under the law and are often misled or injured by others and find themselves powerless to obtain re- dress. Morally enlightened men are alert to acquire property, to the extent of averting want, and to acquaint themselves with the law for its protection. Morally unenlightened men, if not improvident, are insecure in their belongings, either from injudicious impulses or from their ignorance of the law for its protection. CHAPTER III. THE MAN OF CHASTE SEXUALITY COMPARED WITH THE MAN OF UNCHASTE SEXUALITY. The man of chaste sexuality is solicitous as to the nature of the influence he exerts upon the young and confiding. The man of unchaste sexuality is in- 92 The Adjudgment of Individuals. different as to the influence he exerts or the humili- ation he may bring upon the young and confiding. The one is willing to take upon himself the burdens and responsibilities attendant upon marriage, and hath care that his decendants shall be qualified for honorable positions in life; the other hath an aver- sion to the burdens and responsibilities attendant upon marriage and is without solicitude for pos. terity. The one is given to speak of the profitable features of marriage and the pleasures derived through sustaining and fitting the young for voca- tions in life; the other prates of human depravity or of his seductive powers or of the unwisdom of mar- riage and parentage. The one manifests an aversion to lewdness and comports himself to elicit whatever inherent genius his associates may possess; the other delights in lewdness and is alert for vulgar in- sinuations, while he invariably comports himself to elicit whatever frivolity his associates may pos- sess. The one is disposed to industry and abstin- ence that he may acquire the means to support a family; the other is disposed to idleness or easy living and to such indulgences as portend his dis- qualification for marriage and parentage. The one is discreet in amatory advances, having due regard to the affections of those he may influence, as well as to sequences that he may occasion to himself; the other is eager to entrap youthful affections but does not concern himself with any injury to charac- ter or happiness his actions may lead to. The one is at all times seeking to discover the virtues of hu- manity, and is disposed to accredit every manifesta- The Adjudgment of Individuals. 93 tion of regard between the sexes as of worthy in- tent ; the other is at all times seeking the frailties of humanity and perceives in every manifestation of regard between the sexes an evidence of impropriety or intrigue. CHAPTER IV. TRAITS AND METHODS OF THE TRUE STATESMAN. The true statesman is concerned that the natural resources of the land are not grasped by avaricious individuals and that streams and mountains and highways are not made private possessions. He advocates economy with the funds of the state and the restriction of taxation to the minimum for effi- cient government. He proclaims against unnecessary offices and the appointment of the needy kinsmen of notable personages to official positions, and also against over burdening the people with soldiers and pensioners. In the selection of public servants he ad- vocates such competitive system as will secure the most capable men that the honors or the emolu- ments of the office will satisfy. If there is surplus money in the treasury, he advocates either a reduc- tion of taxation or some method of restoring it to the people, as, through the fostering of industries or the building of highways or other public benefits and conveniences. He understands the importance of international commerce and advocates such liberal concessions to foreigners as will stimulate traffic and cause his own people to extend their interests 94 The Adjudgment of Individuals. abroad. If he hath achieved such successes in war or diplomacy as to lead his fellow citizens, out of their gratitude, to urge high office upon him, he will not construe it into an opportunity to set aside any constitutional principle for the enlargement of the power of the office he may secure or for the perpetua- tion of his official career. He is magnanimous toward misguided political offenders, invariably seeking their restoration to loyal citizenship and refusing to make their error an occasion for oppressive measures. When finding dangerous antagonisms prevailing be- tween people of different classes or localities he seeks to become a mediator and to bring about such mu- tual concessions as will enable their reconciliation, and the harmonious interblending of their in- terests. CHAPTER V. TRAITS AND METHODS OF THE WRONGHEADED AND UNSCRUPULOUS MAN. In the capacity of a superior or an official, the wrongheaded and unscrupulous man is characterized by bombast and by arrogance toward those coming under his rule. He desires friendship only with the prosperous and favors legislation that will increase their prosperity and power, but is careful to avoid contact with the unfortunate or uninfluential. He seeks to awe the ignorant through parade of his office or of high sounding titles, and, when he may claim credit for a praisworthy act, he is careful to TJie Adjudgment of Individuals. 95 have it published throughout the land. He vaunts high patriotism to gain popular support, or fosters an alarm of war that he may carry out schemes con- tributing to his own glory or wealth. As a subordi- nate he is malignant and treacherous toward his seniors, laying great stress upcn their faults and losing no opportunity of adverse criticism of their methods. If unlettered he seeks to compensate for his deficiencies and to gain promotion by show of physical energy or by menial services to those high in office. If unable to exact servility from his jun- iors or subordinates and becoming aware of their dislike for him, he resorts to such vexations as will be likely to urge them to the commission of overt acts or to conduct that will retard their promotion. He is driven to artful practices in order to placate his numerous enemies and is often in dire straits to avoid public exposure. When confronted with his misdeeds and finding no means of evasion, he re- sorts to piteous appeals and to such fawning upon his superiors that they are loth to inflict a severe penalty upon him. In religious matters he jeers at the piety of those not of his own faith or sect and is active in circulating evil rumors and in designing op- pressive measures against them. While maintaining a severe or vulgar attitude toward those who differ from his own beliefs, he invariably cowers and grovels before his accepted religious ministers and is prepared and eager to carry out the most churlish designs they may countenance. He cavils at the social pleasures he is not qualified himself to appre- ciate and discovers great evil in the pastimes of his 96 The Adjudgment of Individuals^ neighbors. By reason of his own unschooled pro- pensities, he is disposed to believe others incapable of unselfish motives or of resisting the common temptations. If posing as a religious leader, he seeks to confuse all questioners with unanswerable challenges or with juggling feats or to awe them with mystic powers of healing, while his dread of close scrutiny leads him to have frequent recourse to equivocation and subterfuge. CHAPTER VI. TRAITS AND METHODS OF THE SAGE-LIKE MAN. The sage-like man, while having primarily certain intuitional gifts or endowments, nevertheless owes his material wisdom and skill of expression to con- sistent studies and meditations and to a practiced surveillance over his passional impulses. His intui- tional gifts serve to impel him toward the study and solution of problems in nature and to the selection of a philosophic system acceptable to his line of reasoning. His innate yearning for knowledge is wont to lead him into foreign lands and into contact with different races and nationalities, in which events his views are broadened and he is necessarily imbued with liberal and benevolent sentiments. He acquaints himself with the esoteric principles of religion, so that the basis of his convictions underlies the forms and ceremonies which attract the ordinary man. He views with calmness obstacles to his interests as they The Adjudg}nent of Individuals. . 97 present themselves and is not disconcerted by the failure of any cherished enterprise. His spirit yields not to cares and anxieties or to petty grievances, and when his legitimate duty is thought to have been performed, he hath satisfaction within his own mind whatever the sequences. He is characterised by order in all his activities; his private meditations, social attentions and sustaining avocation having each their regulated hours. He becomes necessar- ily exclusive when investigating abstruse problems but on ordinary occasions finds time for bodily recreation and for the interchange of sociabilities. When temporarily isolated from refined social in- fluences, his intentioned morality is sustained through abstention from suggestive thought and the direction of his mental energies upon religious or philosophic questions. While conscious of his com- mendable gifts and attainments, his bearingis devoid of affectation while his words are adapted to the learning and refinement of those with whom he is for the time being associated. He finds no pleasure in the society of the base and vulgar and is only- drawn toward them through solicitude for their im- provement. He hath no applause for slanderous or salacious gossip and when among persons thus given, he endeavors to direct attention toward sub- jects having a beneficent import or free from evil influences. His intellectual nature craves associates capable of discussing questions of state or of moral or religious philosophy, while his benevolent nature craves association with the youthful and lowly that he may impart beneficent instruction to them. Book IX. The Human Mind in its Connection with the Re= actionary, Compensative and Retribu= tive in Nature. CHAPTER I. THE EFFECTS OF THE PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF MORAL PRIN- CIPLES IN THE MIND. The presence of moral principles in the mind assures trustworthiness and a capability of resistance to evil influences. The absence of moral principles as- sures untrustworthiness and incapability of resistance to evil influences. With moral principles in the mind there ensues an orderly surveillance over the thoughts and desires, which affords security to the honor and chastity. Without moral principles in the mind there is no protective surveillance when opportunities abound for untoward thoughts and expressions. With moral principles there is likely to be an active mentality and traits that exert a purifying and im- proving influence upon human society. Without moral principles there is likely to be an inactive or slothful mentality and traits that exert a contamin- ating influence upon human society. With moral principles the individual is prone to avoid levity or Mental Contact with Reactionary Nature. 99 boisterousness of manner and invariably elicits a favorable estimate from his neighbors. Without moral principles the individual is disposed to levity and boisterousness and he comes to be regarded with .mistrust or pity or contempt by his neighbors. With moral principles the individual is urged to be- come so beneficently informed and talented that in his old age he is attractive to the young and stu- dious. Without moral principles the individual is urged to live extravagantly or riotously and to so neglect beneficent information and skill as to make him in his old age repellant to the young and stu- dious and an incumbrance to his kinsmen. With moral principles there obtains an honorable tone to the character and there is elicited from others the kind of approbation that looks to the virtues. With- out moral principles there is a doubtful tone to the character and only such approbation is elicited from others as looks to physical attractiveness or licen- tious opportunity. With the presence of moral principles the mind is endued of a potency that helps to purify the intellectual atmosphere of the community, so that others derive profit from its ac- tivities. Without the presence of moral principles there is a participation in wanton thought that helps to attaint the intellectual atmosphere of the com- munity, so that others derive injury from its activities. With moral principles the mind is readily moved to deeds of benevolence and valor and patriotism. Without moral principles the mind is readily moved to deeds of violence and criminality. With moral principles the mind is disposed to great ioo Mental Co?itact with Reactionary Nature. endeavors toward the national prosperity or the ad- vancement of human civilization in general. Without moral principles the mind is disposed wholly toward selfish interests and is unconcerned as to national prosperity or the advancement of civilization. With moral principles the inherent traits and character- istics are developed harmoniously with the soul's spiritual interests. Without moral principles various disturbing elements are permitted to enter the mind and to change the normal trend of its faculties or to urge propensities antagonistic to the soul's spiritual interests. CHAPTER II. EFFECTS OF THE PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF RELIGIOUS FERVOR. When there is religious fervor in the mind and heart of man there is likewise a consciousness of his moral obligations and spiritual interests. When there is no relgious fervor the moral obligations and spiri- tual interests are invariably neglected, and there is a disposition to give tongue to skepticism or to mockery of what may be to others sacred beliefs or ceremonies. When there is religious fervor there is also hopefulness and alertness to opportunities for noble and heroic deeds and also for the ordinary in- terests of life. When there is no religious fervor there is likely to be neither the stimulating hope and faith for great deeds nor an alertness for the ordinary interests of life. When there is religious fervor Mental Contact with Reactionary Nature. 101 there is also constant cheerfulness and energy for fresh enterprises, even after many discomfitures or failures. When there is no religious fervor there is a tendency to lukewarmness in every function in life and to a want of resource and a timidity of great effort or enterprise. When there is religious fervor there is a lively concern in the duties and occupations of daily life and a favor- able state of mind for the reception of learning and inspiration. When there is no religious fervor there is lack of concern or want of patience with the De not slow to enlarge their liber- Government, ties and political privileges, thereby forestalling agitation, disloyalty and a revolu- tionary spirit. Be cautious not to array the govern- ment against any aspiring or impetuous class or sec- tion of the people, notwithstanding their seeming perverseness, but endeavor such adjustment of the laws as will afford representation according to fit- ness or proportionate interests ; thus encouraging a sense of duty in maintaining the national repute and and bearing the burdens of state. Be slow to coun- tenance force with the politically misguided or tur- bulent, but when discovering their actual needs or grievances, proceed with the remedy ; whether it be in the nature of a more equitable adjustment of tax- ation or encouragement or regulation of industrial pursuits or the education and enlightenment of the 120 Commands and Admonitio?is. popular mind. On all occasions where there is a manifestation of class or partizan sentiment, seek thou the means of reconciliation, and in the further pursuit of this principle, let thy efforts be toward such counterbalance of the conservative and the inovative elements of the nation, that while there is due respect for constituted laws and institutions, there are yet no insurmountable obstacles to what- ever reforms its changeful or progressive conditions of society demand. 2 The ^ s an intelligent supporter of the gov- Economicai ernment, concern thyself that reasonable tion ofthe " econom y i s practised in public expendi- Govern- tures and that the people are not taxed to maintain unnecessary offices or a non-es- sential army. Take heed that the emoluments of gov- ernmental service are neither so meagre as to ex- clude efficient men nor so remunerative as to create a hungering after office or eagerness to fill the ranks of armies. Concern thyself with those having ren- dered notable services to the nation — as the veterans of its armies or its patriots or heroes in times of dis- order or oppression — recording their merits as an ex- ample to the young and providing those disqualified for self-sustenance with the means of livelihood. 3. Treat- When dealing with the erring and crim- Erringan 1 ^ ina1 ' let th >" P ur P ose be toward restor- Criminai. ation of their moral consciousness and their interest in worthy activities, and when they are under penal restraint, utilize thou the term of their imprisonment to improve them intellectually and to urge them to industrial habits. When in the Commands a nth Admonitions. 121 interest of peace and the security of the earnings of honorable men it is necessary to imprison those given to violence or pilfering or other vices, employ no vin- dictive force with them, but set thy heart upon mea- sures tending to arouse the sentiment of reform. Let there be the infliction of penalties comensurate with the offense by the constituted authorities, but take heed that they do not entail lasting injury or the sinking of all hope in life; lest thy methods be- come tyranous and evoke only hatred and evil mo- tives. Refrain from severities against the intel- lectually inferior or those of inherent evil tendencies, but consider that such have few favors from common humanity, while nature hath many afflictions in store for them because of their wanton disregard of her laws. 4. secret Consider secret social organizations Ren'ffious" 1 deserving of thy support only in times Castes. when opposition to or criticism of the established order is severely dealt with; for under ordinary circumstances, subjects that are worthy of secret discussion are worthy of public discussion, which latter method hath the merit of exciting no misgivings as to motives. Look thou upon the con- cealment of religious principles, of discovered truths in nature and of inventions beneficent to man, or their retention exclusively by a select order or caste, as defensible only when their prevails in society ex- treme degradation and a tendency to profane that which is sacred, or to employ high wrought and in- tricate knowledge to base purposes. 1 2 2 Commands and Admonitions. 5. The Consider wealth a necessity for carr^- tion U af U,a= m & out ^ ie g reat works of advanced civ- weaith. ilization, and look thou upon its accumu- lation as commendable when purposed for the sup- port and education of the young or for self-susten- ance in years of decrepitude or for investment in en- terprises favorable to the common weal. Thou shouldst discern evil in accumulated wealth when its possessors are able to stifle competition and to reap for themselves excessive profits, or when it is used to influence legislation adversely to the popular in- terests, or when it keeps men in luxurious idleness and exempts them from the beneficent ambitions and activities of life. CHAPTER VI. TO PARENTS AND HEADS OF FAMILIES. 1. Paren= Consider parentage in the light of a ^SlnHt.!!!! demand in nature, that each racial and Obligation ' in Nature, family line may be perpetuated and con- tribute its appointed share toward the strength and glory of the nations of the earth. Consider parent- age especially obligatory with the superior types and orders of men, that their noble posterity may go forth to enlighten the barbarian and to bring him material benefits through commerce and the efficient watering or reclamation of sterile and ill-conditioned lands. Consider parentage essential to a man's com- plete social status, bringing as it does, with the pro- Commands and Admonitions. 123 tection of wife and child, a certain moral' power while evoking in old age a class of joys and comforts of which the celibate is barren. 2. The Hold thou the guidance and instruc- Guidance ti on f youth as one of the greater concer tionof ns of life, and a bounden duty in so far Youth. as affects those of thine own lineal descent. Look not upon the support of the young as an in- vestment nor in the nature of charity, but as a need- ful provision for such as demand thy solicitude until the maturity of faculties give strength for self sus~ tenance. Let thy surveillance be of such quality as to protect youth from errors of appetite or passion entailing injury to bodily functions or to the moral character, so that the powers of the soul may bene- ficently unfold and all vicious and enslaving habits be averted. Let the young be taught consideration for the aged and for superiors and for officials, that they may become pleasing to others and find oppor- tunities for profitable employ and refined associa- tions. Let youth be given both practical and social training in their order and furthermore the impress of such moral and religious catechism as will coun- teract and restrain every turbulent and sensuous im- pulse. Let there be a discreet revealment of creed tenets, according to the powers of inception, that a religious faith may be acquired and views engen- gendered that will require no reconstruction in ma- turer years. Guard well the inmature affections and passions, that infatuation for the unworthy or unsuit- able may not occur, and that the sexual virtues and graces may be sustained and happiness in the con- 124 Commands a?id Admonitions. nubial relation assured. Let youth have protection from luxurious living and morbidly incitive litera- ture, that the appetites may remain simple and practical views predominate over the mystical and visionary. Refrain from surrounding youth with servile attendants, that there may not be wanting a proper regard for active vocations or the capacities of self-sustenance. Avoid likewise an over solici- tude for the material endowment of youth, holding moral and intellectual development the greater con- cern ; for the latter should be a reasonable assurance of honorable position and the means of livelihood. Take upon thyself to have thy sons instructed and qualified in all the duties of citizenship, that they may fail not in their vocations nor in obedience to the law of the land and that thy line of descent may be set in worthy channels and conditioned for the production of honorable men in succeeding gen- erations. CHAPTER VII. TO ELDERS AND SUPPORTERS OF RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS. i. Places Purpose thou thy houses of worship to. ; and'their P tne ^ ree admission of every class of Appendages, men; that rich and poor, worthy and unworthy may be drawn together in unison of spirit to offer up prayers and to receive new inspiration. Even in the great cities, where the extremes of refinement and debasement obtain, encourage thou these common gatherings and only Commands and Admonitions. 125 where the few, under deep shame, demand separate and special services shouldst thou depart from this system. Endeavor to construct thy temples about with appendages that inspire veneration and that invite the sorrowing and penitent to enter for the unburdening of their minds. Thy ceremonies may partake of musicial, scenic or dramatic features but should in each case aim at spiritually affecting the mind. Especially avoid that which amuses, or excites the passions, and also the parade of formal- ities, lest the mind be diverted from meditations proper to the occasion and the worship becomes purely exoteric and un-inspiring. Seek after no church properties, other than places of worship, nor endowments nor support from the government, but keep thine organization at all times dependent upon its members, that they may know its needs and have opportunity to manifest their attachment through frequent contributions. Build no institutions for the resort of monastic or mendicant religious orders or of any class of persons professedly devoting them- selves exclusively to religious rites; for the profit derived by the few out of such isolation from the common activities and duties of life will not compen- sate the injury sustained by the many who morally degenerate through the enforced idleness or absence of incentives which stir the ambitions and benevol- ence of men. 2 choice * n tne selection of thy religious minis- of Religious ters, give preference to those who come forward spontaneously as natural leaders and as inspired and self qualified before those 1 26 Commands and Admonitions. especially schooled for religious services, as for a vocation, without regard to inherent fitness. Let thy choice be guided by such gifts of eloquence as excite ardor and enthusiasm in others, and also give preference to those of independent spirit and originality before those characterized by subserv- iency to prevailing opinion or by the familiarity with the tenets of a given code. Demand no exact theological catechism from those elected to admin- ister religious rites nor make choice between the celibate and the married, but consider ability to instruct and to inspire emotion and serious thought in men the safest criterion of choice. 3 . on Encourage not thy ministers to take Ministerial U p n themselves titles or distinctions or Restraints. - . degrees or any appendage of influence or power other than that which the personality inspires, but demand that those who assume religious office shall prove themselves indifferent to the baubles and emoluments which ordinary men are disposed to yearn after. Allow no confessionals nor inquisitory institutions, but exact of thy ministers an acknow- ledgement of the principle that each transgressor shall meditate and commune with Divinity alone for the atonement of sin and for peacefulness of mind. Permit not thy ministers to exact fees or presents for marriages or christenings or funeral orations or for the performance of any ceremony by virtue of which fee or present the rich are given pre- ferential officiation over the poor. 4. Euiog= Allow no ceremony of canonization of ceremonials the departed soul or any attempt to for the Dead, beatify or to portray the station it is Commands and Admonitions. 127 entitled to in its spiritual career. Have no masses or other ceremonies offered up for departed souls, but be guided by the precept that the immutable laws of nature can only be influenced toward individuals through efforts of the individuals themselves. While consistent eulogies and funeral orations employing solemn and impressive features, that entail no great sacrifices upon the living, may worthily be retained in thy church system, thou shouldst at least permit no ceremonial partaking of the nature of absolving the departed soul from penalties it may be justly entitled to. Consider, therefore, as superfluous every ceremony for the dead save simple prayer and the recounting of special virtues or the manifestation of proper respects to the mortal remains of one who hath terminated the life phase of existence. In con- formity with this principle, set thyselves against the use of consecrated water or wine and the burning of- prepared paper or wood or incense or other sub- stances, and likewise against the spilling of the blood of animals and whatsoever entails profitless sacrifice and suffering in the endeavor to express sorrow and esteem. CHAPTER VIII. TO RELIGIOUS MINISTERS AND TEACHERS. 1. intei= Before attempting to discuss abstruse ificatfon U beI P rmc ipl es or to direct the minds of fore Preach= men toward religious observances, pur- sue thou such a course of studiousness 128 Commands and Admonitions. and meditation as will give thee skill in the percep- tion and in the expounding of esoteric truth and the quality of arousing inspiration and enthusiasm in others. When thou art fully assured that to preach is thy proper avocation, shrink not from beginning in lowly channels, for it may be that thou canst at- tract and instruct the common or uncultured people while yet unable to attract or to instruct the intel- lectually gifted or highly cultured. 2. Meek Hold thyselves before the people trntious re " mere ly as tne equals of ordinary men Bearing. and not as if entitled to especial ven- eration or privilege or even to be distinguished from others by peculiarities of dress or of bodily habits save such as denote orderliness and refined sensi- bilities. Assume not the possession of occult or hidden powers or the ability to commune with and to receive information from invisible or desembodied intelligences, nor attempt positive answers upon the specific features of the spiritual universe or the nature of Deity. While, however, thou art yet meek and unpretentious in outward bearing, give thyselves not to the concealment of any benevolent idea or insight of any principle in nature that thou hast per- ceived and perfected in thy meditations, but be courageous to formulate such into suitable phrases for the instruction of others. Caution Acquaint thyselves with the different in Advisory cults and sciences and be studious of Teachings, the varied phases of human thought- and belief, but be cautious in imparting to unschooled men views or theories that tend to arouse aggressive Commands and Admonitions. 129 fervor, nor lead them to forsake honorable occupa- tions to search after some metaphysical or illusive phenomena. Advocate no doctrines tending to alienate the minds of ordinary men from the practi- cal activities of life, nor religious rites that do them bodily injury, nor cause them to neglect family and social duties and responsibilities in an effort to at- tain personel holiness or a saintly estate for the soul. Encourage no morbid inquisitiveness for the occult or preternatural but urge against tampering with whatever is of the nature of hypnotism or sorcery or spirit control and especially against making a mate- rially profitable calling out of such manifestations. Take heed that in thy preaching against idolatrous practises, there is not aroused such prejudice in thy adherents as will lead to the destruction or mutilation of ancient monuments or writings, or works of art ; whether they be of religious or non-religious intent. Confine thy preachings in this respect to illustrative comparisons proving the more advanced grounds of thy creed, while yet maintaining a certain venera- tion for ancient relics, to preserve them as examples of human progression and even as a resource for those who delight to delve into the scenes and methods of past ages. 4. Behavior When subjected to abuse and con- o^FanaticaT tumely by the vicious or the fanatical Antipathy, of other faiths, endeavor to sustain a mild and forbearing spirit and such kindly demeanor as will shame the aggressors into volun- tary apologies, or cause them to place themselves so manifestly in the wrong that others will necessarily 130 Commands and Admonitions. applaud you and denounce them. Allow no of- fender to leave thy presence without an effort to pacify him or to arouse a consciousness of his error, nor fail to rebuke the wrong doer nor witness vil- lainy nor hear confessions of it without exposing it ; burdening not thy minds with secrecy concerning sins that should be made known. Enter upon no aggressive arguments against the one personel deity of Islam on the deific trinity of Christianity or the all embracing deific principle of Brahmanism and Buddhism, but allow to each faith its peculiar merits and be frank to admit its adaptation to the race and civilization that sustains it. CHAPTER IX. TO THE INDIVIDUAL IN DAILY LIFE. 1. Restraint Let not the unconsidered or vulgar °erent and = wor ds of thy neighbor irritate thee or Vindictive draw forth petulant language ; for it is impulses. mG re valorous to either ignore or to gently rebuke an incontinent reviler than to turn vindictively upon him. Whilst there is no demand in nature that evil disposed men shall rob or do thee bodily hurt without the exercise of thy powers in self defense, still, when approached in the heat of passion or even with malignant design, it is incum- bent upon thee, not only to employ thy intelligent efforts to avert the execution of another's evil de- signs but also to give opportunity for reconciliation Commands and Admonitiotis . 131 and the expression of penitence. Bear in mind that the belligerent nature undisciplined is a frequent source of sorrow and danger to its possessor ; the ability to govern it efficiently being an essential qualification to every spiritually refined or cultured intellect. Take heed that an aggresive attitude does not imply moral courage or the capacity to enforce a demand but is often indicative of cowardly weak- ness, while a gentle and yielding attitude is charac- teristic of practised self control and honorableness of motive and furthermore of the capacity to defend when necessary individual rights and principles. Bear in mind that an aggressive manner frequently leads to unseemly encounters with harsh and irre- sponsible people and that there results a lessening, both of personel security and of favorable opportunities in life, while kindliness or affability of manner affords an actual security to the person from violence, and, through the creation of friendly confidence on every hand, adds favorably to the op- portunities in life. Be vigilant to suppress vengeful impulses, whatever the circumstances tending to arouse them, and take cognizance how the aggres- sive frequently bring physical retribution upon them- selves through conflicts with those of like temper, and that nature assures a spiritual retribution in its season. 2. Leniency Be forbearing, even under weighty grie- Fauits and vances > an d entertain no sense of obli- Defects of gation on thy part to avenge injuries Others • i i ' • A 1 • received; leaving the major proportion of thy wrongs to the tribunals of the invisible 132 Commands and Ad-monitions. world for ajudication. Cultivate a considerate de- meanor, not only toward the well meaning and cour- teous, but also toward persons of the rudest sort: seeking at all times to encourage the agreable traits of men while avoiding excitation of their baser impulses. Be not eager to condemn the error of thy neighbor, nor think it thy mission to pass judgment upon him or to blatantly expose his defects, but con- tent thyself that for his wrongdoing a spiritual reckoning will eventually take place. Denounce no man because of the meagreness of his virtues but charitably accept the natural endowments and the cir- cumstances of his life as sufficient cause for his shortcomings. If serving under an exacting or morally inferior man, be not constantly arrayed against him but endeavor loyal obe- dience, even though thy heart abhor his methods. Avoid extreme hostility even toward pronounced evil doers; for aside from penalties they receive from the law, they entail upon themselves much secret agitation of mind and are in need of pity and due restraints rather than harsh treatment. Withhold impulsive criticism of thy religious or political oppo- nents ; for controversial or contemptuous language is not likely to injure their doctrines, neither will thine own beneficent precepts or principles receive any profit through heated exposition or defense. Avoid unfavorable conclusions of every one in beggarly circumstances; for some persons are rendered desti- tute through unavoidable mishaps or the incautious practise of liberality or actual philanthropy, while others through ambitious ventures may become tern- Commands and Admonitions. 133 porarily dependent. When a man is uncivil or overbearing toward thee, first examine thine own conduct to ascertain if he hath any just grievance, then, if finding no reasonable cause and thou art un- able with honor to thyself to placate him, consider him too vile for further notice and thereafter shun him. Bear in mind that those taking upon them- selves to practise tolerance and voluntary redress are safeguarded against unprofitable wrangling and seldom have need to interrogate the law or to bring their affairs before a magistrate. Discre- ^ et *ky demeanor be marked by tioninthe earnestness and candor and avoid both Demeanor flattery and vulgar discussion of the and in the weaknesses of thy neighbors. Espec- ially avoid unfavorable comments or evil imputations in the presence of the young, lest they come to be wanting in veneration for their elders, or their minds become so familiar with the unpropitious that no villainy appals them. Take heed that the professions of thy tongue do not out- weigh the designs of thy heart, for assumed virtues deceive only the unwary: the cultured and penetrat- ing mind being invariably alert to discern the actual intents. When once thou hast accredited thyself with a virtue before thy fellow men, make effort to adhere to its principles; for if detected in a practice thy words have condemned, thou art at once liable to ridicule or to the charge of insincerity. Avoid the manner of those who pry closely into the affairs of their neighbors or who are quick to imply evil motives; for it is a common fault to detect and to 134 Commands and Admonitions. condemn in others the defects peculiar to one's own character. When the bad qualities of a per- son are mentioned in thy presence, seek to have dis- closed also that which is creditable to him; for it is generally safe to believe a man better than rumor accounts him to be. 4. Main= Cultivate and maintain ' self approba- se"f al Appro= ^ lon through employing the powers of bation. mind and body in such manner as to per- ceive thy activities creditable in whatever light they may be viewed. Avoid self disparagement nor hold too lightly thine own intuition and reasoning as com- pared with that of other persons, however re- nowned; for nature hath implanted some especial virtue in each human mind which is functioned to become of utility to the individual advancement in the earthly career. Be thou assured that self appro- bation can only be sustained through honorable intents and intelligently directed energies, and furthermore, through methods that are neither sychophantic nor groveling; for nature requires only courtesy between man and man, even though the one be employer or superior and the other employe or subordinate. Cuitiva- Constantly apply thy faculties to improve tion of wis= the moral discernment, to expand the anT'Beifevo^ benevolent impulses and to increase reli- lence. gious fervor; for in each of these quali- fications the soul hath a treasured resource of happiness. Continue to nurture the pure aspirations of thy early youth and be alert againnt the acquire- ment of any vicious tendency, lest melancholy and Commands and Admo?ritio?is. 135 confusion take hold upon thy mind. While yet maintaining in legitimate exercise all the physical energies and capabilities, be thou eager for acquisi- tions of the heart and intellect, rather than for earthly glory or for lands or chattels. Let the will and reason be trained to hold in balance any faculties of over-active or insubordinate tendency and to so man- ipulate the varied energies of the body that com- plete order and harmony of soul will result. When through meditation thou hast perceived the spiritual portents of any selfish impulse, employ thy will and reason toward its mastery and proceed to evolve motives and ambitions in harmony with thy highest conceptions. Exercise, chasten and train the fac- ulties of thy animal organization but undertake not, under religious zeal or other influence, to destroy or to entirely suppress their normal powers; for nature demands the portents of them all in her economic system. If when influenced by the relig- ious nature thou shouldst possess impulses and motives of one kind and when influenced by the animal nature thou shouldst possess impulses and inclinations of another kind, it is incumbent upon thee to employ thy reason to decide which quality it is desirable to cultivate and which to suppress, that the conduct may at all times be acceptable to the moral consciousness. Cultivate also fortitude and grieve not over misfortunes; for it may be that personel losses will acquaint thee with the sorrows of thy fellow men and develop sympathies profitable to the soul. Nourish and maintain thy hopes and worthy intents and if a cherished enterprise fails of 136 Commands and Admonitions. success, make haste to start afresh upon new ven- tures. Be content with what is virtually attainable of thy desires, seeking and cultivating meanwh'le such religious precepts as nourish and sustain thy hopes of futurity. 6. Devot= Let prayerful devotions accompany thy ionai nedi= material labors, that the worldly pur- suits and ambitions may be subordinated to thy religious principles. When momentous affairs beset thee, seek the seclusion and solitude of hill or plain or seashore wherefrom thy thoughts may go forth freely upon the concerns in prospect, and thus alone with nature ascertain thy proper course of action. When in a region favorably designed by views or by combination of elements to exhilerate the faculties and to excite aspiration and hope, call up the special features of thy career and commune with Deity and in meekness of spirit accept the dictates of whatever answering inspira- tion thou dost then receive. Let thy mind continue its prayerful devotion and meditative research until the soul is imbued with spiritual ecstacy and there is a disposition to prophesy and to outline a course of activities worthy of religious adherence to in thy ordinary or uninspired condition. Let thy thoughts after this manner have frequent meditative commun- ion with the Infinite, and when thereby freed from the baser elements and transported above thy common surroundings, accept thou the bent of the inclina- tions as in verity the answer to thy questionings. 7. Penitence When conscious of having sinned against and Repara- na ture or thy fellow man, resolve quickly tion for .. rtisdeeds. upon compensative or meritorious ertort ; Commands and Admonitions. 137 for it is through such measures that thou wilt de- serve absolution. Think not that thou canst obtain absolution at thy convenience or that nature will be lenient with thee; for her laws are just and unchange- able and there are none who receive spiritual favors they have not earned. Seek atonement for thy sins speedily, lest they accumulate and become burden- some to thy memory or cause the moral conscious- ness to lose its vigilant influence in the mind. Think not with a religious ceremony or a self-chosen pen- ance to atone for a sinful act ; for although these may have their beneficial effects, it is ordained that man shall adapt his methods to the laws of nature and not that nature shall adapt her laws to the whims or the convenience of man. If a dissolute course in youth hath weakened thy powers of intellect and ob- scured the genius and ardor that once gave thee in- spiration and hope, seek first to know thy faults, then even though thou hast arrived at the middle age in life, set aright thy course and with penitential fervor strive after the esoteric virtues and the attainment of good repute among thy fellow men. If thy mis- taken methods have served to arouse the moral im- pulses and led to sincere resolutions, proceed to re- double thy exertions in whatever are perceived to be honorable pursuits, and thus merit atonement through turning the wisdom gained of thy evil experiences to thy future guidance. Take heed that a sensitive conscience, that goads the mind for every departure from right, is a most fortunate possession; for the mental suffering it incurs is fully compensated through its influence in turning the energies into worthy and profitable channels. 138 Comma?ids and Admonitions. 8 Princi= ^ e * aw hiding and in sympathy with piesandPre= legal measures, avoiding the spirit of those of Dai7°ob= y wno ai e c l amorous an d rebellious and of servance. those who are intolerant of methods and ideas adverse to their own. In forming judgment upon others, be regardful of actions r.ither than words ; for some persons are found to be fair of speech but poor in achievement and others there are whose commendable deeds excel the import of their words. Although some creatures appear to serve beauteous and noble purposes and others repulsive and base purposes, know ye that where a vocation, either noble or lowly, is a necessity in nature or in human civilization, those following it are deserving and meritorious in their order. Take heed that upon critical examination few persons are found virtuous or commendable in all respects, and that the chasm between those classed as good or bad is not so great or so clearly defined as it is currently supposed to be. Take heed that it is rarely those given to much ques- tioning and criticism, but those who display honor- able activity who achieve notable success among men, and furthermore, that self surveillance returns greater profit to the individual practising it than the meddlesome surveillance of the affairs of other per- sons. Take heed that even vulgar men may recog- nize and appreciate virtue in others, but that it requires a refined sense of justice to condemn not in others much that one is able to find excuses for in himself. In forming judgment upon men, fail not to take into consideration their surroundings and op- portunities ; for the same correctness of manner can Commands and Admonitions. 139 hardly be demanded of one whose sustaining voca- tion occupies the whole day as of one whose voca- tion occupiesbuthalf the day, or for one whose voca- tion is solitary as of one whose vocation brings him much in intellectual contact with his fellow men. As nature is wont to inflict penalties upon the exalted and the lowly relatively to their inherent powers, ordaining to the richly endowed dire consequences for acts that their intellectual inferiors may commit with impunity, thou shouldst strive in comformity with this principle, to hold thy fellow men respon- sible according to their lights and endowments. In thy meditations search nature for divine intents and apply inspirational convictions to thy special needs, but think not that the precepts found profitable to thyself are unqualifiedly profitable to every man. Cultivate faith in thy intuitions and powers of rea- soning ; for it may be that under the exaltation of thy faculties thou shalt perceive truths which only sages have ready access to. If without assurance of reward self-denial is difficult, and a belief that great personal sacrifices in the cause of righteous- ness as a rule only find their reward in spiritual realms should discourage thee, use thy reason to ascertain if there is not sufficient compensation for thy worthy efforts derived from thine own inner consciousness. Let thy daily prayer be one of praise and communion with Infinite love and not an intercession for selfish benefits, for advantages over other men or for whatsoever hath not been duly earned. Be observant of the permanence and justice of natural law and take heed that the prayerful ap- 140 Commands and Admonitions. peals of both humble and exalted men are answered in accordance with the conditions of their material sur- roundings and environments. Take heed that the aspects of the spiritual world are to the majority of men as the hues of material nature are to one born blind, and be thou accordingly neither arrogant in questioning nor positive in opposition to the views and assertions of those claiming actual knowledge of spiritual conditions simply because thine own faculties do not perceive them. Take heed that while each mind in its earthly career may have an adaptation to some especial service, whether sage- like, official or menial, the sensuous and passional nature is inherently the same in all men, though dif- ferently disclosed according to license given or sur- veillance exercised. Take heed that while disease is a manifestation of the abnormal and is frequently the result of untoward action, health of body and contentment of mind are the normal in- heritances of life and are commonly realized by those whose voluntary activities accord with nature's laws. Take heed that in the ambitious pursuit of a high purpose in life, the mind is necessarily led into a variety of beneficent activities and especially to the acquirement of economic habits and a limitation of the appetites and passions . Take heed that surveil- lance of the thoughts and impulses is the key to mental harmony and a safeguard of virtue, while the conscious possession of moral character gives frank- ness of speech and the courage to denounce what- ever appears evil or unseemly. Take heed that if conscious morality is maintained through conditions Commands and Admonitions. 141 offering great temptations or under compulsory as- sociation with those of salacious language, there ob- tains an ease in following the strictest precepts when the unfavorable surroundings and associations are not present. Take heed that if the ordinary virtues are practiced, there ensues profit of a material nature and profit of a spiritual nature ; the first of these may perchance be tardy of realization but the other is unfailing in its season. Take heed that success in life is normally the fruition of an inspired idea or purpose, while failure in general may be traced to the mind's diversion from its inspiration or the narrowing of an original intent to purely selfish ends. Have faith in the laws and portents of nature and be thou assured that no aspiration is implanted in a human breast that hath not possibilities of real- ization. Be considerate of the family relationships, encouraging lawful marriage and the support of off- spring. Know ye that for the additional cares and duties necessarily incurred in the support of a family, thou art rewarded with sentiments that ennoble the mind and experiences that will profit the soul's future estate, and that for inexcusable celibacy nature manifests her displeasure by turning faculties normally affording the chiefest pleasures of life into resources of bodily suffering and evil incentives. Lend no encouragement to predictions of national disaster through over-population, but maintain con- fidence in nature's ability to adjust the fertility ot the race to the capacities of the earth to support Be helpful to thy fellow men and charitable to those having suffered misfortune. Direct thine almsgiving 142 Commands and Admonitions. intelligently ; for those who give indiscriminately may be accounted charitable but those who devise methods for lessening the causes of poverty or who make permanent provision for the support of the maimed and unsightly are true philanthropists. Book XI. The Origin and Development of Religious Prindh ciples, Doctrines and Creeds. CHAPTER I. CHARACTERISTICS AND METHODS OF THE PRIMITIVE SAGES. When the language of any of the races or tribes of past ages had attained such capacities of expres- sion as to enable historic or traditional records, there came forward certain individuals possessed of a penchant for the occult and the egotism of leadership, who took upon themselves to dilineate methods of worship and to search out the propi- tious in nature as the basis of a moral code. These early sages interpreted natural phenomena for their rude followers, and though pursuing methods an- tagonistic in many respects to those suggested by modern reason, they nevertheless effected desirable restraints upon base passion and supplemented the prevalent awe of the supernatural with a belief in future happiness for the soul. The uncouth men of these ages were invariably clamorous for evi- dences of super-human prowess from their religious leaders, and to satisfy their demands, the sage had not only to practice austerities to evolve a religious 1 44 Origin and Development of Religion. fervor and an inspirationally quickened intellect, but also conjuring and miracle working. To effectually impress his savage brethren with any new inspiration or precept, the primitive sage must needs disguise human frailty within himself and proclaim his soul in communication with spiritual powers and further- more, lest he be pounced upon as a mere pretender, or in conformity with the demands of self susten- ance or the' enlargement of his influence, it was necessary for him to practice the magical and decep- tive arts. Even while urged by the most commend- able motives that man in these ages could entertain, the primal sage found it necessary to develop the esoteric occult through abnormal bodily conditions and the entranced and controlled intellect, and the exoteric occult through an acquired manipulative skill and, moreover, to enshroud these combined qualities with symbolisms that common and unpre- pared minds might not, through any obscure glim- merings of Deific truth, be led into hasty and pro- fane conclusions. Thus fastings and incantations and the use of drugs to subjugate the physical nature and to induce an inspirational tenor of intellect, as practiced by the sages themselves, became the rout- ine advocated for every aspirant toward high spiri- tual attainments; which austerities, however, were modified as the rudiments of a truer morality were introduced. The public teachings of the primal sage were commonly in adaptation to the demands of the ignorant and sensuous multitude and not a clear delineation of his highest spiritual perceptions ; which latter it were thought necessary to retain as Origin and Development of Religion. 145 the exclusive posession of a yogi or priestly caste until the minds of ordinary men should become so ripened and purified as not to profane the sacred truths of nature. After such manner the ancient sages came to deal with the same problems in nature and often arrived at virtually the same conclusions as have the philosophers of modern time; but their dis- coveries were either lost, or obscured with a bar- barous symbolism, because of the unprepared state of common humanity to accept clear interpretations. Hence, in the evolution of religious methods, the primitive sage was wont to subdue the physical pro- pensities and to bring about the necessary exaltation of his faculties, through self-imposed humiliations and austerities, that his prototype of modern time can dispense with through the possession of a finer body organization and qualities of mind giving facile inspiration and an easy supremacy to the righteous sympathies and emotions. CHAPTER II. RELIGIOUS SAGES OF THE PAST AND THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS. From ages beyond the limits of human history till modern time, inspired men have appeared at proper intervals giving forth their visions of na- ture's truths and efficiently redeeming theology from the corroding effects of priestly interpolation and the continuous changes in national character and language. As explorers and scientists have had to 146 Origin, and Development of Religion. laboriously penetrate material nature, to acquire exact knowledge of its component elements and its historic facts, so likewise have those of a spiritual discernment had to penetrate both the misty haze of their early religious training and the common fleshly bounds and sense the moving forces of spiritual ex- istence or trace the past and future estates of the soul. The greater achievement of the primal sage was the formulation of. the discoveries of his inspira- tional moods into efficient dogmas and their trans- mission in the traditions of his race to succeeding generations; the greater achievement of his succes- sors in the order of sagehood, hath been the redis- covery of inspired truth and the re-vitalization of religious dogmas to accord with the intellectual status of the people. Few of the sages whose inspira- tions have changed or re-vitalized established sys- tems were accorded the honors they might justly claim during earth life; which rarely gave the people time to appreciate the principles advocated; but when the value of their teachings became generally known there was invariably an effort to attribute divine appointment and to append saintly dignities to their names. No sage hath escaped opposition from the intellectually obtuse and the religiously conservative; hence only those exceptionally faithful to their inspiration and such as made rapid progress in influencing their fellow men, succeeded in earthly fame or in having their principles handed down to posterity. The sages of every age have had their limiting environments, as, under even the most favor- ing circumstances, the days of one human life did Origin and Development of Religion. 147 not suffice for the solving and depiction of the many- sided truths in nature or of human errors in detail, their consequences and remedies. The majority of the members of the ancient yogi or priestly castes, being merely proficient in exoteric formal- ities, they persistently fell into mis-interpretations of inspired truth and repeatedly led the minds of men into confusion and to the entertainment of irreligious thought; a more cultured modern priesthood have come to the assistance of the true sage and have labored to modify irregular theological precepts and to eradicate such formalities as serve only to bring religion into contempt with clear seeing and reason- ing men. The dependency of mankind upon sage- hood is apparent through the fact that whenever the truths evolved by primitive or medieval or modern sages have been obscured or lost through national calamities or degeneracy of the priest- hood or the introduction of elements ot for- eign religions, there resulted a spiritual retro- grade among the people which continued until there appeared other sages to re-discover and restore original principles and to arouse an intellectual im- petus for momentous events. CHAPTER III. THE CONFORMITY OF RELIGIOUS DOCTRINES TO CONTEMPORARY CIVILIZATION. From the time of the first vestiges of social organization among men there hath subsisted a 148 Origin and Development of Religion. moral code, which in the details of its expression sheweth a certain conformity to the measure of excellence in character and the greatness of the pre- vailing civilization. The primal religions, even where originated in different regions of the earth and among tribes between whom there was no affiliation, being drawn from a common resource, the inspiration of sages, possessed a similarity in basic principles; which similarity was continued so long as the intellectual civilization of the tribes concerned held an equal footing. Whenever one tribe or class of men gained in general enlightenment over others, its religious code correspondingly advanced, so that there became an improved or reorganized creed suitable for the progressive tribe or class while the old or unimproved system was perpetuated by the unprogressive, because still adapted to their condition of life. It hath been through the discarding of the religion of their prim- itive ancestors and adopting the tenets of a for- eign people, that some tribes and races have in- volved their theological history in confusion, while the creed of their adoption hath in many instances suffered such modification in order to satisfy the characteristics of race and langu- age that the locality arid the individuals as- sociated with its origin are rendered dif- ficult to trace. The inherent truths of nature, form- ing the basis of every religion, have been presented to men by successive sages but have invariably become deflected or obscured by misguided teachers, and the people in consequence deprived of their Origin and Development of Religion. 149 beneficent purports. Doctrines in the language of one age have ordinarily failed to inspire men of a sub- sequent age; the delineations of penalties for sin being frequently so extravagant in the older creed as to excite ridicule, or the methods of escape from merited penalties through ceremonial forms being too grotesque or arbitrary to elicit belief. With an advance in civilized methods in general, the bodily tortures and material sacrifices devised by the prim- itive shamaa as a necessary atonement and test of righteousness, invariably became modified to an assurance of spiritual rewards and penalties com- mensurate with merit. Each method hath had its special adaptation to prevailing conditions, the Deity of the barbaric mind being of necessity whimsical and arbitrary, after the manner of finite man, while the Deity of the intellectually cultured required ex- altation above passional prejudices and to be accred- ited with foreknowledge of every human capacity and motive. An ancient creed becoming obnoxious through enlightenment of the popular mind, was first deserted by the more adventurous thinkers; then skepticism and materialistic theories prevailed and the conditions ripened for the advent of a sage who might found a new system or revitalize the old. The duration of a creed system with the tribe or nation hath ordinarily depended upon the intrinsic . merit or clearness of its principles, as compared with the creeds of adjacent peoples, the rapidity of advance in general enlightenment and the timely advent of sage minds to leform and keep theology apace with material science. 150 Origin and Development of Religion. CHAPTER IV. THE CONFLICT OF EXOTERIC RELIGION WITH INSPIRATION AND REASON. Exoteric religion hath required of man the partial or complete extinguishment of his physical desires and propensities ; inspiration and reason reveals the need of mastery and governance of the desires and propensities by the intellect, not their severe re- pression or extinction. Exoteric religion hath de- manded a celibate priesthood ; inspiration and rea- son reveals that power of thought and benevolence of motive may even be enhanced in the teacher through the emotions and cares consequent to mar- riage. Exoteric religion hath advocated a self abased and a mendicant priesthood ; inspiration and reason reveals that those who pursue a squalid and contemptible mode of life are not, as a rule, fit ex- amples for the young nor qualified to give religious instruction to their fellow men. Exoteric religion hath advocated homage to various deified or canon- ized personages and reputed them to act as interme- diaries between the Infinite and man ; inspiration and reason reveals that the entire devotional service should be rendered direct to the Infinite. Exo- teric religion hath placed the souls of notable per- sons in the category of saints charged with arbitrary spiritual offices ; inspiration and reason intimates that the spiritual rank and vocation of the individual soul is effectually hidden from men and that homage paid to any finite being, however worthy, tends to estrange the human mind from the Infinite Exo- Origin and Developme?it of Religion. 1 5 1 teric religion hath taught irregular or abnormal re- incarnation of the human soul in the forms of ani- mals or men, in accordance with the whims of some petulant deity; inspiration and reason intimates one fleshly incarnation during a cycle measured by fixed laws of the universe and, moreover, that the soul hath certain eternal qualities that destines it to develop like racial potentialities and characteristic traits in each of its cycles. Exoteric religion hath asserted that because of a brief or seemingly un- profitable life on the material plane the soul should be entitled to re-incarnation ; inspiration and reason reveals that uninspired man may not determine whether a life hath been profitable or unprofitable in nature's estimate, and that no time or opportunity is repeated for those who fail to utilize the advan- tages of any phase of their animative cycle. Exo- teric religion hath designated warlike conflicts be- tween inhabitants of the spiritual realms; inspiration and reason reveals that the employment of com- bative force, as we understand it, is confined to the material plane and is due to trespass and trans- gression and the necessities of physical existence. Exoteric religion hath advocated austerities to the extent of bodily privation and affliction; inspiration and reason, while revealing the inestimable value of rigid morality and the temperate restriction of every appetite and function, reveals also the folly of im- posing self-denials and afflictions other than such as are unavoidable in worthy activities. Exoteric reli- gion hath asserted the intermarriage of gods with be- ings in the flesh; inspiration and reason discloses no 152 Origin a?id Development of Religion. contingency whereby such relations might take place between the Infinite and any form of animated life. Exoteric religion hath exalted the circumstance of the occasional intercommunion of embodied with disembodied souls, and some have advocated deriv- ing from this source all necessary information of the divine or spiritual ; inspiration and reason reveals in- tercommunion of the embodied with the disembodied as being difficult and perplexing and valuable, under ordinary circumstances, only in the confirmation it affords of a spiritual futurity for the soul of man. Exoteric religion hath attached vast importance to the forms of a man's belief and to his punctuality in the performance of ceremonies; inspiration and rea- son attaches a more serious import to the intellec- tual talents and the personal morality, in that they measure the glory and happiness in both the fleshly and the spiritual estates. Exoteric religion hath at- tached special importance to formalities in prayer and the utterance of prescribed words and phrases; inspiration and reason reveals the innermost senti- ment of the soul and not the formalities or words employed as that which finds favor with the Infinite. Exoteric religion hath attached high importance to the name by which Deity is known and wor- shipped; inspiration and reason reveals that a name or designation of Deity is important according to the sentiment of heart and mind it calls forth, as, when suggestive of the most ennobling traits conceivable to man, there is profit in its contemplation, but, if suggestive of harsh or petulant or animal-like traits, then is there no profit in its contemplation. Exoteric Origin and Development of Religion. ' 153 religion hath declared the utterance of words and commands by Deity to certain prophets or chosen men; inspiration and reason reveals that Deific power speaks through material phenomena and in- spiration and that Its purposes are not voiced in human speech, because of the impossibility of uncon- trovertable or fixed orders upon any department or component of the material world. Exoteric religion hath fostered superstitious fear through the depic- tion ot invisible demons tempting men to sin; in- spiration and reason portrays retributive potentialities in nature and delineates the many evil incentives that may afflict the human mind through an unwise application or want of control over its faculties. Exoteric religion hath depicted gods that bestow ar- bitrary favors and who decree that the majority of humankind shall be consigned to eternal torture; in- spiration and reason discloses the Infinite to exert no intentional or arbitrary influence upon individuals, but to ordain an infallible karmic system which visits retribution and reward according to deserts. Exoteric religion hath assumed certain races, tribes or sects to possess especial favor with Deity ; in- spiration and reason portrays the races, tribes and sects of humankind as being what eternal law and material circumstances have made them and therefore ineligible either to the especial favor or the enmity of Deity. Exoteric religion hath declared the greater part of human ac- tivity offensive to Deity; inspiration and reason dis- closes that no human thought or action, however misguided, can be directly offensive to Deity, be- 1 54 Origin and Development of Religion. cause of the karmic provision in nature for the even- tual compensation of every wrong by whomsoever is responsible for it. CHAPTER V. THE CONDITIONS OF ACCEPTABILITY IMPOSED BY POPULAR SENTI- MENT UPON THE CREED OF AN ENLIGHTENED AGE. The religion meeting the demands of an enlightened age must needs influence men to strive for wisdom and self ennoblement, for generous sen- timents toward the weak and unfortunate, and like- wise for emotions that refine and spiritualize the soul. It must needs expel or modify the arrogant dogmas of an older civilization and exalt the princi- ples of wisdom, justice and affection above cowering fear or abject servility to prescribed forms and ceremonies. It must needs assure a certain respon- sibility for the enlightenment and good repute of the people; making such appeals to the human heart and reason as will add to the attractiveness of law abiding and orderly conduct. It must needs quicken the human consciousness as to the right and the wrong, inspire hope in the soul's futurity and present an exalted conception of Deity. It must needs in- terpret the basic truths of nature in lofty and incon- testable terms, so that the asservations of its dogmas have no conflict with but corroborate and welcome the deductions of material science. It must needs be conditioned to advantage both the progressive Origin a? id Development of Religion. 1 5 5 and ennobled and the defective and the lowly, con- tributing to the success even of their worldly designs through instilling an aversion to untoward and vic- ious indulgences. It must needs satisfy human rea- son as to the purports of material existence and give an intelligible outline of the career and destiny of the soul: so that men placing themselves under its teachings may go through life with an assurance that they are worthy and permanent factors of the immeasurable and eternal universe. Book XII. Psalms. CHAPTER I. GLORIFICATION OF THE INFINITE. Under the tranquility wrought upon our faculties through devotional meditation, we perceive, O In- finite! many vast potential energies traversing Thy universal boundaries that are deftly hidden from the uninspired consciousness. We perceive one order of subtle elements extending forth from the central Heaven and invigorating the material world, and another order returning from the material world to the Heavenly source; and our inspiration reveals these diverse waves of impalpable energy as merely different manifestations of an unbroken cycle or endless chain of existence. We perceive that when the conditions of the world demand a new and special order of creatures, the resources of Heaven may readily supply a primal genera, impelled arduously upon its mission and endowed with capacities to develop in due course the necessary bodily functions. We perceive each essential force in nature ordained to proper seasons and so accur- ately balanced in its processes as rarely to afflict man Psalms. 1 5 7 or any portion of the material world by sudden or arbitrary impulses. We perceive how the human ego may traverse vast distances in heavenly space, going- forth toward materiality an unconscious elemental and returning thence conscious and enlight- ened, and having rendered throughout its perpetual orbit potential services in nature — the greater part of which it as little understands as a mere corpuscle of the blood of the mortal body understands its serv- ices as it traverses the venous and arterial system. We perceive in the orderly composition of Thy sub- universes, as in perpetual symmetry they rest within their assigned limits in space, a certain analogy to embodied man; for each hath an intellectual prin- ciple to incite and to govern and a material prin- ciple that supplies a basis for physical organization. We perceive, under our exalted senses, an essential medial element projecting outward from the central Heaven and pervading the worlds of the sub-uni- verse, which hath the function of an inspirational reservoir and from which finite minds derive .powers conducive to their intellectual and spiritual nourish- ment. This far reaching ethereal element appeareth to suffice both the needs of intervening spiritual zones and of material planes; forming as it were, an elastic stratum through which one order of nature approaches and partakes of the other. In function having a semblance to certain attenuated nerve fluids. or magnetisms of the human body, connecting the impalpable soul with the grosser organization of flesh and blood, this medial principle serves as a vehicle enabling supplication and response between 158 Psalms. the finite and infinite. Special nerve lines apper- taining to both finite entities and infinite faculties of the sub-universe, intersect this medial element and their effectiveness, as concerns the finite individual, is enhanced by religious or praiseworthy activites and deteriorated by irreligious or unworthy activities. We perceive that after the manner of a common plant which absorbs a rarified gas from the material atmosphere and organizes it into its body growth, our finite minds may penetrate Thy impalpable domains and derive the essentials to intellectual and spiritual unfoldment. We perceive, O Infinte! that through the interblending of thy. primal factors in different combinations there are engendered a multitude of subordinate chemical agencies and vital and spiritual elements, and that these agencies and elements come to constitute the ordinary perceptible conditions of minerals, climate and fleshly organisms and likewise the series of spiritual heavens extending from the earth plane to the great central Paradise. CHAPTER II. GLORIFICATION OF THE INFINITE SOUL. In the distant ages of the past, O Soul of the universe ! thy wisely ordained powers didst evoke from the primal sun a great nebulus stream as the basic matter of a system of planet worlds. Thou ^didst then apportion this outflow into dis- Psalms. 1 59 tantly separated bodies, endowing each with certain self- regulating and evolutionary capacities, so that the greater masses became true planets and the lesser masses their satellite moons; and all these thou didst adjust to suitable orbital move- ments in space. Then the forces and elements of the primal Earth thou didst so adjust that upon its surface there should become land and sea, with fitting con- ditions for myriads of life forms. And the turbid and hitherto unstable surface of the Earth thou didst becalm or diversify into measurably restful and volcanic areas, so that the solid formations ceased to be continually rent asunder through subterranean movements. And the dense and heated cloud stra- tum that had encompassed and endarkened the terrestrial surface for long ages, thou didst in due time dissolve and cause its superabundant gases to be deposited in useful mineral forms. Thus didst thou change the endarkened Earth surface into a peaceful world, adorned with trees and grass and watered with timely rains and flowing rivers, where- by living creatures might disport themselves and pursue their varied designs in nature. Elemental souls thou didst ordain to come upon the Earth in their season and scatter themselves forth broadcast to germinate and produce their kind in the lands and seas. After a progressive system didst thou enable in one epoch fitting conditions for the inferior plants and insects and reptile monsters and in an- other epoch an adaptation for birds and beasts of great size, which prepared the lands and waters for successively more perfect types. From the primal 160 Psalms. animalistic man thou didst evolve races successively more intelligent, who battled with and obtained supremacy over all other creatures of the Earth. And thou didst in a fitting age evolve the man of in- tellect and of veneration, who in his first experience with the basic religious impulses worshipped mate- rial objects or the phenomena about him beyond the fathom of his intellect. Then in later epochs thou didst evolve sages to give spiritual instruction to men that the enlightenment and culture of modern civilization might be attained. Thou . hast been to man in all ages a directive and governing principle, as the will is to the faculties of the human mind and body a governing and directive principle; whereby we perceive it thy function to devise, to impel and to receive expressions of thanksgiving, while it is our function to receive impulsions, to act and to give forth gratitude. In all these events and processes, O Soul of the universe! thou did'st have in view man's chiefest interests, so that when he had attained his estate as the most intelligent of thy creation, thou didst magnanimously ignore his perverse methods in thy eagerness to make of him a com- pletely enlightened and orderly being when the Earth should attain its millenial estate. CHAPTER III. GLORIFICATION OF INFINITE JUSTICE. Thou dost maintain, O Infinite Justice! an un- changing and consistent attitude toward man, not- Psalms. 161 withstanding the teachings of religions which charge themselves to give thee familiar names and to ap- pend to thee base human or animal traits. Thy eter- nal system ordains that enlightened man shall find a comfort and a solace in his religious devotions and that he shall perceive it necessary and profitable to glorify thee as his superior and directive agency. Thou hast evidently impelled certain men to abstain from the common pleasures of life, that they might the more efficiently receive and disseminate ideas or engage themselves in gleaning the inspired views of the age for the enlightenment of their worldly brethren. Thou didst seemingly impel men in past ages to build monuments and to inscribe records of their beliefs, that those who came after them might ascertain their creed and also the moving forces of their civilization. Our inspiration suggests that thou hast ordained special incentives for each suc- cessive plane wherein the soul unfolds its conscious- ness, and, as on the earth there is a relish for the labors and rewards of material life, there must needs follow in the spheres of spirit a relish for a series of intellectual and emotional offices, while even where the soul hath been sated with the experiences of its cycle and is near the culmination of its Paradisial inheritance, it finds yet a new ardor in the forthcom- ing effacement of its consciousness and its embark- ation upon another cycle of services in nature. Hence we are disposed to reject such dogmas as portray thee fickle and changeable in thy deal- ings with man; believing instead thy purposes to be permanent and not to be swerved by the actions of 1 62 Psalms. any finite power. We reject such dogmas as portray thee delighting in destructive or self-injurious sacri- fices or in offerings of animal flesh and blood; believ- ingthy favor should be won through a penitence that compensates without unnecessary self-injury or the taking of animal lives. We reject such dogmas as clothe thee with the fleshly passions or the baser qualities of men ; believing these portrayals due to the incompetency of the human mind to reflect thy qualities in the proper forms of speech. We reject such dogmas as give thee functions of sex and gen- eration ; holding instead a belief that while thou shouldst maintain a paternal attitude toward human- kind, there may be no such relationship as leads to an immaculate conception or the birth of a demi- god. We reject such dogmas as hamper progres- sive ideas, so that advanced thinkers hesitate to pub- licly express their convictions ; believing that reli- gion, as any philosophy or science, may be interpo- lated with misleading statements and become need- ful of reform. We reject such dogmas as declare that only the rarely found sage or prophet hath re- ceived divine inspiration; believing that each human mind is inspirationally connected with Infinite powers; though admitting that only those of sage- like qualities are able to consistently define certain hidden principles or from their impressions to con- * struct a theological code. We reject also, O In- finite Justice! such dogmas as describe man's posi- tion in the universe as one of abject dependence ; . believing that he does not exist merely as a con- cession from some overruling power, but that he hath Psalms. 163 eternal and inalienable rights as a permanent and serviceable factor in the economy of nature. CHAPTER IV. GLORIFICATION OF INFINITE LOVE. Thy features, O Infinite Love! denote affection, heart yearning and inestimable good will toward man. Thou art opposed to ostentation, to the dis- play of vulgarities and to every vengeful and malig- nant proceeding. Thou art manifestly sympathetic and forbearing and averse even to the strong and neces- sary measures that unqualified'Justice suggests; dis- posed to forgive when common equity demands the infliction of penalties. Like unto a true mother who would exonerate her child whatever its follies, thou art constantly attendant upon us with thy solicitude and though, peradventure, thou canst not interpose direct with any decree in nature in our behalf, we realize it within thy province to inspire the erring heart of man with the seeds of penitence and with a measure of thy kindly spirit, that it may be brought into close relationship with Infinite principles. While other Deific faculties draw forth our admira- tion and reverence, we find our hearts peculiarly softened and filled with holy ecstacy through con- templation of thy benevolent attitude toward man. Thou art verily the God sought for by the human mind throughout the dark ages of the past, when the baser elements in nature were rife and thy true 164 Psalms. character obscured with erroneous teachings. We find thee dissociated from pomp and power, a meek and unquestioning savior that despiseth not the lowliest of mortals — a Christ not of fleshly birth but an eternal factor in the universe and within access of every finite being. We perceive thee more broth- erly than parentive, attending us in our sorrows, in- viting the closest confidences and inspiring us with the incentive of good will to all men. Thou art our regenerator as well as our protector from the exactive and retributive powers in nature that would annihilate us for our misdeeds. Thou art to us an expostulatory and advisory companion through our earthly and our spiritual lives, and even when we have attained our maturity in Paradisial realms, we have assurance that thou wilt still be with us to rejoice in our purity and to join with us in the contempla- tion of the splendors there revealed to our enrap- tured souls. CHAPTER V. INVOCATION OF INFINITE LOVE. Inspire us to preserve ourselves, O Love .prin- ciple of the universe! from sinful thought, from words of evil import and from a disposition to con- tend with or to injure our fellow beings. Inspire us with a true sense of our duty toward all our fellow men, to be charitable and lenient with their short comings and if we come to hold any office of trust, Psalms. 165 that we may perform efficient service, keeping the minds of our subordinates tranquil and obedient and maintaining the public confidence. Inspire us, if we come to serve in the capacity of sages or teachers, to perform worthily our religious func- tions and to delineate theological principles that prepare those under our influence or guidance for their spiritual future. Inspire our religious fervor and spiritual insight, to the end. that we may con- quer the fleshy impulses and maintain an apprecia- tion of virtue and of religious principles. Inspire us with consideration for those who may be regarded as weaker or more basely inclined than ourselves, and when we incur the envy or misguided wrath of alien or uncultured men, enable us to refrain from animosity toward them and to display forbearance and a spirit of benevolence as occasion may demand. Strengthen our faith in thy interests and in the capacities of nature to reward righteousness and to adequately punish evil doers. Inspire us with resignation of spirit when thwarted in our desires or when misfortunes appear to beset our course in life and give us courage to begin after each defeat upon new and, if needs be, upon lowly lines. Inspire us with a consciousness of our higher obligations and of our importance as serviceable elements in nature; that we may come to rejoice in honorable and dutiful effort whatever the imme- diate consequences. Inspire us to be patient with our meagre spiritual knowledge and content us with a belief that our chief present concern is with the earth plane and that deeper penetration of the in- 1 66 Psalms. visible world, except we be sages laboring upon new doctrines, could confer no especial benefit upon us. Hearken unto these our prayers, O Infinite'Love! as thy wisdom shall see fit, in that we may consciously and efficiently fulfil our mission in the earthly estate and give our souls the most suitable preparation for the future. Book XIII. Allegory. The Tour of the Star Spirits. SCENE I. Ilbarama. — Upper Spiritual Zone of the Earth. Elomiel. — Court of the Zoraba, Ibrim. Two strange spirits enter Elomiel and are presented unto Ibrim. ist Spirit, Enoni?i ; Good will and greeting-, most worthy Zoraba! We have journeyed thither from the planet Iltromene, from near the great sun Anilam, as it appeareth in your heavens, and our purpose is to acquaint ourselves with certain special features of thy world, whose position in the planet- ary system is such in the present age as to afford a peculiar interest to students of the school to which we belong. Ibrim. My assurance, I am well pleased that scholars of distant Iltromene have seen fit to visit our fair world and I trust your discoveries here will compensate your long journey. Go forth whither- soever thou wilt within our realms and every resource of knowledge will be free to thy uses. And 1 68 Allegory. to begin with, Iltromenes', let me recommend as an assistant in thy researches and as a guide to the most favorable localities, a learned native spirit, Gebril by name, whom I have known to desire the occasion for such a tour as you propose. 2nd Spirit, Ittigur: Tis very considerate of thee, good Zoraba, to forestall thus our needs. We gladly accept the companionship of Gebril and will, moreover, place ourselves obediently under his guidance. Gebril: And I gladly accept my appointment, for, as our Zoraba hath said, it is such a mission as I have yearned after. I will request the stipulation, however, that certain features of our journeys and the views you may entertain of our world system, be so outspoken as to enable me to make ready notes in the language of men, that after your departure homeward I may inspire some one on the material plane to publish them. Enouin and Ittigur: We are agreeable to thy stipulation. Gebril: Then I will ask thee to make choice as to whether we shall begin with an investigation of the material plane and then proceed to the spiritual zones successively, or take up first our planet's his- torical records, as kept within this realm, and latterly turn our attention to the material and spiritual con- ditions now subsistent? Enouin: We are eager first to know the pro- cesses of your world's primal origin and evolution and to obtain an historical summary of the whole planetary system, as your records may delineate; for Allegory. 169 we have heard that the instruments and facilties for certain observations here are most excellent, in com- parison with those of other worlds within our quarter of the universe. After this historical retro- spect we would be pleased to proceed with the material world as it now exists and latterly with the different spiritual zones. SCENE II. A CONSERVATORIUM OF PLANETARY HISTORY. Gebril: Your readings from the chronology here will show ten Methelian ages, commencing with the time when the material elements of the Nephelian planets were first hurled forth from the parent body- through the orbital chasm they now occupy, till the present epoch when we behold a radiant central sun surrounded by noble planets, and our beloved world endowed with verdure covered lands and placid seas and with an innumerable variety of animal and spir- itual life. According to the theory portrayed before you, when Infinite nature was prepared for the evolution of the Nephelian planets, there primarily took place within the great solar mass, then as now occupying the centre of a vast chasm in the universe, a series of mighty outbursts which sent whirling through space huge volumes of gaseous and nebul- ous matter. The matter thus ejected from the over- burdened solar reservoir discloses the material basis from which our planet worlds have been constructed. 1 70 Allegory. Now by the high wrought appliances here at your command you may view in brief panorama the origin and evolution of the Earth, and if you describe, each of you in turn, while I take notes, we may all three be entertained and instructed and neither of us should become wearied or lax of interest. SCENE III. — First Methelian Age. The Beginning of the Present Kalpa Cycle. Enouin: The record sheweth great nebulous bodies moving swiftly about a central fiery mass, the primal sun, each as it pursues its impetuous gyrations through space being marked by fearful lines and whirlpools of the turbulent elements upon its borders. Within each proper nebula is the continual flashing of elec- trical currents and the resonance of deep thunders, while tempestuous streams of rarined elements course through its parts, as if seeking to prevent every actual tendency toward planetary formations. Tremendous chemical explosions reverbrate in the train of these mighty nebulae as they distribute them- selves through the Nephelian chasm, while their ele- ments are subjected to continuous change and set to new activities. Now the closing epoch of this Me- thelian age reveals each nebula of the Methelian chasm permeated by ethereal gases and vapors and stirred by mighty internal convulsions that oft times envelopes the outer stratum with a fiery radiance, and thus the solar system in its entirety becomes a re- Allegory. 171 markable celestial object, as viewed from distant re- gions of the stellar universe. Gebril: According to the theory herein divulged the same matter, or its equivalent in bulk, which is thus ejected from the solar nucleus, is employed each kalpa cycle in the creation of planet worlds that after fulfilling their functions as sustainers of life are drawn back to the permanent nucleus and their substances therein reorganized for the succeed- ing cycle. SCENE IV. — Second Methelian Age. Nebulous Stage of the Nephelian Planets. Ittigur: Certain new ethereal forces from the central regions of the sub-universe now enter the confines of the Nephelian system, communicating in their course a peculiar impetus to the encircling cos- mic bodies. These forces constitute the pioneer soul principles and their chief function appears to be to magnetize matter and to impart a certain indi- viduality to each substance, leading to the final sep- aration of the planetary masses and their arrange- ment at convenient distances from each other in space. Now the nebulae that had once filled the Nephelian chasm with ungainly masses and vast cloud jets hath been effectually resolved into co- herent groups that are becoming more condensed and symmetrical in outline. The chasm is redolent of strange energies; the great fiery masses roll onward 172 Allegory* into proper orbits and each attains to swift and re- gular movements. Now the central nucleus of the system hath become possessed of the well ordered methods of a sun, while encircling it are the incipient planets, and toward the close of this age it appeareth as if a divine impetus had been interblended with every atom of base matter, while each special en- ergy and element is set to some important duty. Under the controlling influence of the solar luminary the planets hasten to concentrate their substance matter, while obstructive meteoric or nebulous frag- ments in space are gathered up and added to the greater bodies of the system or fashioned into satel- lites for them. Gebril: While at this stage of your investiga- tions it may profit you to take note that according to the scheme here disclosed, there obtains a pivotal centre of the sub-universe, about which a grand array of solar and planet systems perform their evo- lutions; it being at the same time the directive source to which every spiritual force and entity owes allegiance. Certain powers within this great focus have thus control over all the material bodies of the sub-universe, compelling their obedience to proper attractions and repulsions, reorganizing world sys- tems then withdrawing their vital and spiritual ele- ments at appointed intervals. Allegory. 173 SCENE V. — Third Methelian Age. The Sun — Nephela and its Planets. Enoiiiu: Since the stupendous eruptions that hurled the planetary elements into space, the sun Nephela, hath gathered its components into compact mass and the chemicals of its interior mechanism now generate the radiant streams that supply- the surrounding planets with an essential energy. As the solar light becomes yet more refined and orderly in its processes, it is qualified to engender a genial climatic condition upon the planets. Nephela thus becomes a brilliant star of the firmament, adding its share toward the far reaching glory of the sub-universe, while the planets now symmetrically arranged about it, enter upon their initiatory phases of life sustaining worlds. And now reaching forth into space from the great solor orb, the planets, though still loosely constructed and unshapely in ap- pearance, are assuming by degrees the normal globular outlines, while their satellite moons begin to exert the peculiar influences assigned to them in nature. SCENE VI. — Fourth Methelian Age. DeVELOPEMENT OF THE PLANET EARTH Ittigur: The planet Earth is apparently an un- gainly body still, whose basic elements are in a plas- tic or molten state and pervaded by heat evolved through chemical activities within its mass. There 1 74 Allegory. appeareth, however, a beginning of certain orderly combinations of primal elemei.ts causing the denser substances to gravitate toward the interior while those more rarified or gaseous flow outward to the surface. Its exterior shows an attainment of the spherical in contour, and, as chemical combinations proceed, a solid stratum begins to manifest itself as the basis of future lands, and an outer envelope of vapors and gases, the basis of future waters and atmosphere. The minerals of the incipient world are yet molten, while the gases and vapors for future rivers and seas are maintained aloof from the heated surface as a dense and all pervading cloud stratum, giving the planet an apparent bulk far ex- ceeding its modern dimensions. There resounds throughout the primal world the constant hissing and roaring of active chemical agencies and seismic tremblings and mighty outbursts from the heated interior, while vivid lightnings and appalling thunders, continuously rend the enveloping atmos- pheric screen. SCENE VII. — Fifth Methelian Age. Creation of Land and Water. Enouiii: The Earth as a planetary body hath reached its great cyclic aphelion, or outermost ex- tension in the system, and is begun to be attracted inward so as to improve its climatic connection with the solar rays. Its surface crust in process of Allegory. 175 formation is frequently disturbed by the active underlying forces, while the atmospheric stratum, surcharged with much base matter ejected forth from the interior regions, still hovers aloof over the seething mineral mass. There is now perceptible a peculiar combination of atmospheric forces that greatly facilitates the enlargement of the area of solid formations. The great stratum of vapors over- shadowing the denser minerals begins to take new forms of activity and to precipitate torrential rains, creating rivers and seas wherever the terrestrial heat is not still sufficient to hurl it steaming back into the endarkened skies. Thus the aerial sphere that had hitherto sustained a far reaching stratum of sublimated elements, becomes now rapidly disburdened and its superfluous gases and extraneous mineral dust descends with the pre- valent rains and assists in cooling and solidifyingthe land surface. The atmosphere in due course becomes so relieved of its baser elements as to per- mit the sun's rays to penetrate through and at in- tervals to shine upon the land. The atmospheric turbulence increases apace, the rains descend in im- measurable torrents and cloud vapors rebound up- ward from regions still influenced by subterranean heat. Now in that which is given as the terminat- ing epoch of this age, the solid crust of the Earth is near complete and the waters rest complacently thereon. This solid formation is obscured by the waters because of its but slightly ruffled exterior which hath not yet the stability for mountainous elevations. 176 Allegory. SCENE VIII.— Sixth Methelian Age. Creation of Mountains, Seas and Rivers Ittigur: Now a solid crust hath been formed over the whole surface of the Earth and the vapors of the atmosphere have descended upon it and covered it as with one interminable sea. Volcanic outbursts are wont to frequently disturb the waters of this boundless sea, producing fiery jets and huge rushing billows, while here and there islands are heaved up but lacking firmness of base quickly sink down again beneath the waves. There appears a constant shrinkage of parts of the Earth crust, consequent upon evaporation of heated elements from the interior, which causes the waters to rush hither and thither in great agitation, and, as the cooling process advances, there is a corresponding increase in the violence of the outbursts that take place. In time mountainous elevations and yawn- ing depressions are formed amid tremors and rumbl- ings that threaten to rend the planet assunder, and this turbulence hath no abatement until the primal division of the land from the sea is effected. The atmosphere is yet attainted with extraneous gases and with smoke and dust from innumerable craters, while many seas still affected by terrestrial heat send mists and vapors upward that condense and return in an almost perpetual rain, so that rivers of tremendous size overrun the land. Separation of the land and sea hath been the noteworthy achieve- ment of the age, and as the terminating epoch draws near, continental outlines and definite ocean Allegory. 177 currents are established. The heroic methods of these ages appear essential to the creation of a proper surface stratum, giving elastic formations as a protection against excessive volcanic irruptions and likewise for the favorable blending of the Earth's mineral elements. Volcanic activity hath a decline toward the close of the age; the waters are rapidly cooled and the atmosphere is become so purified that the sunlight streams down unimpeded upon the rugged lands and tumultuous seas. SCENE IX. — Seventh Methelian Age. Preparation of the Earth's Surface Strata. Enouin: The lands of the earth present a torn and desolate appearance, with their lofty granitic hills sombre hued and lifeless and their sterile plains encroached by numerous lakes and swollen streams- The atmospheric forces are seen to attack and to disintegrate the mountain rocks while abundant rains serve to carry the resultant sands into the val- leys. The glacial epochs, whose phenomena were not hitherto remarkable owing the paucity of land above the sea level and to the volcanic heat pervading the Earth's surface, have now attained a strikingly po- tential and far reaching influence. There is seen to occur at regular periods the extreme declination of the Earth's poles in their position toward the sun, which in effect gives to one polar hemisphere a heated climate and to the other polar hemisphere a corresponding age of climatic frigidity. Hence, 1 78 Allegory. when the northern pole of the Earth hath attained the extreme outward declination, a glacial age pre- vails in the north polar hemisphere while the sou- thern pole, necessarily at the same time undergoing its extreme inward declination, finds its regions round about rejoicing in a torrid climate. Thus the Earth oscillates upon its orbit in such manner as to give one of the poles an inward declination with a warm climate for a period embracing many thou- sands of years, then follows its outward declination with a rigorous climate for a like number of years. During the epoch of extreme declination, the pole projected from the sun becomes overspread with huge glaciers from the accumulated snow and ice, which grind the primal mountain rocks into soil that the floods of a warmer age take up and dis- tribute over the earth, thereby commingling the minerals of many regions and placing^ them advan- tageously for the life forms of later time. Lofty mountain ranges are torn asunder and their debris conveyed to distant valleys and depressions, thereby rounding off the angular peaks, creating symmetrical hills and filling up gaping chasms which volcanic outbursts have made. In the equatorial zones of the Earth, not perceptibly affected by polar oscilla- tions and beyond the reach of the glaciers, the ac- tion of solar heat and of wind and rain appears suf- ficient for the necessary disintegration and leveling down of mountain rocks. After this order, as the inward declination of a pole proceeds, its glaciers vanish away, the rivers are gradually narrowed into proper channels while the sun gives forth a mea- Allegory. 179 sured light and heat. Now as the terminal period of this age rolls by, the lands of the Earth, though still barren and washed by fierce torrents and vast rivers, begin to attain a stage of development appar- ently favorable to the sustenance of the lower forms of life. SCENE X. — Eighth Methelian Age. Origin of Life on the Earth. Ittigur: In the beginning of this age the myriads of elementals, functioned to germinate the primal life forms, are seen streaming forth from the sub- universal reservoir to the material world. These elementals, upon reaching the earth plane, scatter themselves forth broadcast throughout the lands and waters and proceed instinctively to attract and assimilate necessary material elements for their bodily organisms. In the processes of embodying themselves, the elementals appertaining to the her- baceous orders or such as have functions wherewith to extract their nutrition and the substances for vital growth direct from material nature, are the pioneers in the evolution of life and following them are intel- ligent moving types as their parasites. Thus it is perceived how one order of elementals deriving or sustaining material life from surrounding inorganic elements, supplies from its growths the nutriment re- quired by another order of elementals, which deve- lop bodies functioned for free and intelligent move- l8o Allegory. ment. Varied and complex methods of physical evolution continue throughout the latter portion of this age, resulting in numerous types and races, and it is notable that the more recent generation of each kind displays an organic superiority over its prede- cessors. SCENE XL— Ninth Methelian Age. Evolution of Life Forms. Enoui?i: In the beginning of the 9th Methelian age, it is evident that the disturbances due to vol- canic energy have less frequent occurrence and that the lands of the earth possess a stability and a dura- tion from submergence not hitherto possible. Ani- mated life, though still confined to the simpler or- ganisms, multiplies rapidly and diversities in bodily structure constantly increase. Toward the middle of this age, plant and animal forms have spread over every mountain and plain and the waters have likewise received a liberal diffusion of life. Plants of strange and vigorous growth produce their kind in the equatorial valleys and the hardier mosses and grasses flourish in high latitudes, while from some of the primal forms of animated life there have been evolved strong and active creatures that disport themselves in the forests and in the great rivers and oceans. Latterly the varied growths multiply with such rapidity that vegetation and the inferior or- ganisms abound in all the lands and waters of the Allegory. 181 Earth, while in certain localities animals of pon- derous size flourish. In these ages the luxuriant vegetation and the numerous creatures of land and sea, are functioned in their natural activities to ab- sorb and reorganize the superabundant gases and subtle elements of the atmosphere and of the waters and to concrete and deposit them in useful mineral strata. With the termination of this age, the at- mospheric forces .appear to adjust themselves to the needs of plant and animal life, while mineral ele- ments continue to be combined and so deposited about the Earth's surface that civilized man in later epochs may be able to find and to utilize them. SCENE XII. — Tenth Metheltan Age. First Megazoan Age. Glacial and Volcanic Processes. Ittigur: The phenomena of the periodical glacial epochs in the high latitudes of the earth are becom- ing noteworthy in consequence of their important bearing upon the configuration of many lands and seas and their influence upon plant and animal life. The abnormal pressure of the great ice sheets appar- ently causes numerous volcanoes to burst forth upon the regions sustaining it, and concurrently therewith, certain portions of the land are wont to sink down and other portions to arise from the depths of the sea. Surface formations have not yet attained suffi- cient thickness and stability to hold them perman- 1 82 Allegory. ently above the waters, and so they periodically sink and rise again and alternate from sustaining the life peculiar to dry land to the sustenance of submarine life. The subsidence of a land into the sea depths, is seen to effect the enrichment of its soil for the sustenance of plant and animal life and to increase the variety of its mineral deposits, so that the more a land hath been submerged the more abundant are the resources which its strata contains. The sub- terranean and volcanic forces appear to manifest their greatest activity in the vicinity of a polar hem- isphere undergoing the rigors of a glacial epoch, where terrene life being already near extinct, they entail an insignificant amount of physical suffering. Moreover, the approach of the glacial epoch and likewise each subsidence and elevation connected with its phenomena, is ordinarily so gradual as to give facilities of escape or change of abode to the higher animal species, so that comparatively feu- appalling disasters to life take place. SCENE XIII. — Second Megazoan Age. The Attainment of Luxuriant Vegetation and of Huge Animal Forms. Eiiouin: A luxuriant growth of vegetation now prevails throughout every land of a favorably tem- pered climate while gigantic animals abound in the rivers and in the primeval forests. Among the monster forms of river, lake and forest, the reptilian Allegory. 183 order predominates and its uncouth myriads are ac- tive in their persecution of other more delicately or- ganized and intelligent types. Marine life is also prolific of huge and voracious forms, which appear especially functioned to absorb various abundant ele- ments of the air and water and to deposit them along with their bones; thus preparing the earth for the nobler creatures destined to succeed them. Now among the various kinds of animals inhabiting the lands of the earth at the termination of this age, there are none bearing even a remote resemblance to man, though the climatic conditions in marry regions would seemingly admit of his existence. SCENE XIV.— Third Megazoan Age. Improvement in the Conditions of the Earth and in the Status of its Inhabitants. Ittigur: Lands that were hitherto frequently sub- merged in the ocean depths have now become more durable through the continual solidifying of the Earth's interior mass and the building up of sur- face strata from aqueous and atmospheric elements. Certain equanimities have been attained in the solar and lunar influences that add favorably to the cli- mate, while apparently the declination of the Earth's poles have not the extreme tension that was observ- able in earlier ages, so that the devastation wrought by glacial epochs is of lesser consequence. As ma- terial conditions in general improve and opportuni- 1 84 Allegory. ties expand for the development of higher ani- mal types, the great reptiles are supplanted by less terrible creatures and many of the ponderous in- habitants of the forests and plains become extinct. At the termination of the age all the requisite con- ditions appear to obtain for materialization of the peculiar elemental that shall evolve the human genera. SCENE XV. — Fourth Megazoan, First Anthro- pogenian Age. Origin of the Human Genera. Enouin: An interminable stream of elementals of the human genera now descends from the heavens upon the Earth, and seeking the most favorable localities they proceed to the development of material forms. Like unto the fore-runners of other animate beings, the primal forms developed by the human genera are of crude and lowly organization, but the age being a propitious one for them, they improve and multiply rapidly, though constantly harrassed by predaceous creatures. The genera spreads forth over many regions of the Earth, in some of which they prosper and in others meet with adversities, and thenceforward during the epochs of this age they are seen to be passing through var- ious phases of their primary physical evolution. Now in addition to the human genera there hath been evolved during the age, numerous quadrum- Allegory. 185 anous species that appear as abortive attempts to reach the true human type. In these records it is intimated that the progenitors of all the races of mankind were in the primal epochs of the genera on a level with very humble creatures, and that their evolution to the estate they hold in modern time hath been the work of millions of years of unceasing progress. Instinctively actuated by their incipient qualities of intellect, these primitive beings continue to strive toward the fulfilment of their destiny, at- tracting and embodying in each successive genera- tion a progressively higher order of souls. SCENE XVI. — Second Anthropogenian Age. The Struggles of Primal Man with the Elements and with noxious and predaceous animals. Ittigur: The primeval races of mankind, although frequently decimated in localities where changes in the terrestrial surface or climatic rigors take place or where savage animals abound, continue yet progres- sive in physical evolution while their numbers in- crease upon the Earth. By slow processes man is approaching a physical form that in comparison with other creatures of this age, is highly organized, and his intelligence hath become so acute that the lower animals begin to regard him with awe and aversion. He makes the tropical forest his habitat and protects himself and his offspring from his natural enemies through superior agility and cun- 1 86 Allegory. ning. His quadrumanous affinities become especial objects of his dislike and it is through these vague antipathies that he is protected from amalgamation with creatures inherently inferior to himself, even when his associations and methods of subsistence are similar to theirs. He likewise persecutes and aids the extermination of inferior types and off- shoots of his own race, apparently through an in- stinct that the chasm between man and animal might thereby be widened and the more worthy of his kind be perpetuated. SCENE XVII. — Third Anthropogenian Age. Separation of the Human Types from the Quadrumana. Enouin: The truly destined human types have now become structurally separated trom the quad- rumana, to which they were hitherto closely allied, though in mental character they still remain instinc- tive and ferocious as a necessity in their disputes with other creatures of the forest. Racial types of the genera that live in near proximity to each other, are prevented from amalgamating by pronounced structural differences and fierce antipathies. These antipathies lead to the destruction of many primal tribes, but as the inferior in intellect are the chief sufferers, the higher interests of humankind appear to be enhanced thereby. Man in this age, hath great physical prowess and is able to prevail against his many animal foes, though his intellect is still Allegory. 187 deficient and his habits have few distinguishing features from those of the lowest quadrumanous species. Toward the close of the age he begins to show an active tendency toward artificial methods in pursuit of his food and in securing protection from the elements, and co-incident with his progression in this line there is a perceptible diminution in his animal-like qualities. It hath followed in the order of progressive evolution, with man as with the lower animals, that individuals and races of the lesser general utility in nature are eliminated, when the locality they inhabit is demanded by those of a superior organization and greater general utility. Thus it appears when two races of mankind or species of animals, pursuing like methods of subsis- tence, come to inhabit the same region, the one of inferior energy or fitness to survive is eventually eliminated in favor of its worthier competitor. SCENE XVIII. — Fourth Anthropogenian Age. First Epistemian Age. Development of Intellect and Reason in Primal Man. Ittigur: Now man hath extended his habitat throughout every favorably climated land and his tribes and races have begun to array themselves in martial order and to serve under their natural leaders. He now manifiests increased intellectuality and reason in his activities, while artificial processes 1 88 Allegory. and the rudimentary forms of speech are enlarged upon. Abortive or ill-favored offshoots, or revers- ions to the quadrumanous form, are persecuted and destroyed in such savage earnestness as make it appear that this process of eliminating the unworthy is the intuitive carrying out of certain beneficent designs in nature, as in the widening of the gulf between man and animal. The backward orders of the genera are no longer permitted to pass the transitional stage from quadrumana to bimana, being invariably cut off by the advanced types, as if to completely eradicate these humble remnants still occupying the intermediate status. Toward the termination of this age, man makes rapid intellect- ual progress and becomes skilful in the construction of habitations and of weapons and utensils. His aggressiveness appears to enlarge and being now armed with destructive weapons, he becomes much engaged in ruthless and devastating wars. SCENE XIX. — Second Epistemian Age. Development of RelIgious Traits and of Political Methods Among Men. Enouin: Man is now seen to be moved by the primal religious impulses and to institute crude meth- ods of worship of such Deific properties in nature as he apprehends the existence of. Through the inade- quacy of the language of the age to define spiritual perceptions, a misleading religious sentiment is soon evolved and spread abroad so that worship comes to Allegory. 189 be directed toward the external phenomena of nature instead of its esoteric and moving causes. Individual men, it appears, under their inherent and natural instincts would worship the esoteric in nature in the proper religious spirit were it not for imper- fectly expressed inspiration by those assuming relig- ious leadership, which cause the normal intuitions to be ignored while bold and assertive teachings swerve the mind into materialistic mazes. The more advanced races now send forth emigrant bands that proceed to establish themselves in every inhab- itable territory and island. Many of these migra- tory bands perish through entering unfavorable climates or lands populated by hostile tribes but others are successful in founding colonies and in in- itiating commercial relationships. SCENE XX. — Third Epistemian Age. Migrations and Warlike Encroachments of the Races. Ittigur: Wars between the tribes and races have become more prevalent with the advance of human knowledge and inventiveness; and their notable result appears to be the formation of geographic lines separating naturally divergent types from each other. In the earlier stages of the genera, we occas- ionally observed racially divergent tribes occupying the same territory, and throughout their subsequent evolution they continued to live in close association 190 Allegory. with each other without serious conflict, but now with their animosities augmented by religious fana- ticism, they are continually engaged in harrassing each other. The weaker type of a locality thus diversely populated is eventually forced to migrate toward the racial order to which it is by nature allied, else it is enslaved or exterminated by its antagonists. Toward the end of the age, there is found in each continent, territory and island some one of the recognized racial types that hath, through its superior energies or special adaptation to the climate, become predominant and is instinctively struggling to eliminate other types and to secure the land to its posterity. SCENE XXI. — Fourth Epistemian Age. First Anagrian Age. Racial Antagonisms and the Delineation of Na- tional Boundaries. Enouin: The different racial orders, during the ages since their primal advent upon the Earth, have kept within a certain radius of each other in their physical evolution and have, moreover, shown a tendency to approach a common intellectual status. Certain divergences in the organization of mental fac- ulties in the different racial branches of the human genera have led to an ineradicable antagonism where- 1 y they are constituted natural enemies of each other, while between the advanced and backward orders, Allegory. 191 or those occupying consecutive stations along the route of progressive enlightenment within the same race, there is at times an antagonism even fiercer than that between diverse races and which leads to desperate fratricidal contests. In the epochs of their earlier history, the races were restrained from unpropitious amalgamation chiefly through pro- nounced structural differences, but because of the tendency of all members of the genera toward certain physical and intellectual perfections, they have come so nearly in touch with the universal ideal that it seems to require the inception of national and creed fanaticisms to keep them from interblending with each other. In certain geographically exposed or indefensible regions, which happen to be fertile in natural resources, there appears to be periodical in- cursions with fierce wars and tragic defeats and oc- casionally in the conquering and enslaving of one tribe by another, In such lands it frequently hap- pens that the advantages of locality and resources are neutralized through the creation of an unstable mixed population that is readily conquered and its possessions overrun by a more impetuous and co- herent tribe coming of a truer racial lineage. Scene XXII. — Second Anagrian Age. Status of the Terrestrial Surface and of the Life Forms Extant. Ittigur: The c6ntinents of the earth have at- tained great thickness of surface strata and a conse- 192 Allegory. quent solidity that enables their endurance of aqueous and atmospheric energy for epochs of great length, in comparison with the time between the earlier up- heavals and subsidences. This increased durability of land areas gives additional advantages to man and likewise to the inferior creatures and plants in their progressive evolution, so that they unfold their powers more readily than in those ages when the Earth's surface was shorter removed from the mol- ten state. It is remarkable that among the lower animals, the earlier tendency toward huge body growths hath been changed to a tendency to diminish size and to attain a graceful molding of physique and concurrently the acquirement of a higher phase of intelligence. Scene XXIII. — Third Anagrian Age. The Instinctive Struggle of the Races for Domains Suitable to Their Posterity. Enouin: Now each race of mankind appears to be imbued with an eagerness to secure to its posterity a great extent of territory and to expel from its vici- cinity those regarded as aliens or enemies. There is to this end an eager struggle going on, the occu- pying of desirable regions by racially allied tribes and the development of centers of populations from whence their respective types may radiate forth to- ward lands yet uninhabited or that have weak or easily subjugated aborigines. A region that the Allegory. 193 modern chart shows as pertaining to western Europe sustains the primitive Aryan tribes and other regions designated Asia Minor, eastern Asia and central Africa respectively sustain the progenitors of the Semites, Turanians and Ethiopians. From these centers migratory bands wander forth and populate every accessible territory and island upon the Earth's surface. These delineated race centers are, how- ever, not recognizable as inclusive of the very region wherein the progenitors of their present populations received the primal materialization on the Earth ; which is not a matter to be wondered at because of migrations, conquests, destructive submergences of land and glacial epochs which have in turn depopu- lated vast areas or scattered their inhabitants abroad. There have, however, been some instances when epochs of devastation caused the primal inhabitants of a territory to migrate to a distant region where they perpetuated their race until in process of time the land of their origin was fit for their re-occu- pation. SCENE XXIV. — Fourth Anagrian Age. First Agathian Age. Numerical Increase of the Intellectual Types and Elimination of the Ill-favored and Savage Elements. Ittigur: As the populations of the several racial' centers increase, migratory bands are seen to pour forth into distant territories and to found new colonies and nations. These activities, being fre- 194 Allegory. quently accompanied by warlike methods, there re- sults the destruction of many weak and inferior branches of the genera but among the conquerors or survivors there is an enhancement of philosophy and the arts. Wandering bands of diverse racial origin occasionally meet on the borders of some fertile territory and engage in fierce struggles for its posses- sion. The stronger band eventually subdues the weaker and either expels or enslaves it, or amalga- mation follows modifying original physical appear- ance and traits of character and creating an inter- mediate or sub-race. Certain chastenings thus ap- plied to the colonial offshoots of a race are enacted in milder form among the parental families, where inferior or retrograde individuals are eliminated by the processes known to obtain with the incompetent or criminal class in modern time. SCENE XXV. — Second Agathian Age. The Development of Defensive and Aggressive Prowess and the Founding of National Institutions. Efioni/i : Man hath now developed such skilful means of defense against predatory animals that they cease to harrass him, but are wont to retire from his vicinity. He displays great skill in ensnaring the beasts of the forest, and through his persistent destructiveness many defenseless species are becom- ing extinct or are domesticated to his service. His Allegory. 195 occupation is now seen to be divided between the cultivation of plants adapted to his sustenance and the preparation of implements for the chase and for war. It appears as a feature in the processes of human development in this age, that those tribes having the greater range of territory and with numer- ous foes become the more formidable and expert in warlike tactics, while those racial fragments upon islands or isolated territories and wanting in preda- tory enemies perpetuate less vigorous qualities. There is now shown a gathering together of racially allied tribes upon the greater continents and the forming of the nuclei of true political organizations and an evoking of the patriotism that shapes national destiny. SCENE XXVI.— Third Agathian Age. The Evolution of Moral and Religious Principles Among Men. Ittigur: The restraining influences hitherto no- ticeable among men have been either purely instinct- ive, discretionary or superstitious, but now true reli- gious sentiments and doctrines profiting the human intellect are making their appearance. Sages have appeared in each race and nation possessed of fair and consistent views of creation and the destiny of the soul, and moreover disposed to found their doctrines upon reason and natural inspiration and to substitute voluntary penances and soul-felt contrition for the 196 Allegory. purchased mummeries of the primeval shaman Among the more advanced tribes the occupation of the conjuring shaman and healer is supplanted by priestly conservators of historic legends, ideas and beliefs and the superior members of the order are apparently earnest in the enlightenment of the people and in their redemption from barbaric senti- ments and practices. These favorable religious beliefs and methods are, however, quickly changed and true philosophy thwarted in its design by the overwhelm- ing passion extant, rendering men intellectually in- capable of embracing the exact truths of nature and filling them with rabid opposition to a chaste order of teachers. The sage and philosopher, under stress of popular fanaticism, is obliged to disguise inspired truth by symbol and metaphor and a priestly horde comes into existence interpreting this disguised theology in accordance with the superstitious whims and the passional desires of the multitude. Varied forms of worship comes to be practised, the moral tone of which is commonly gauged by the intellec- tual standard of the worshipper and religion appears in some respects connected with even greater follies and brutalities than it were in any preceding age. Allegory. 197 SCENE XXVII, -Fourth Agathian Age. First Ajitanian Age. The Favorable Tendencies in Material Nature and the Advance of Human Civilization. Enouin: Now, according to these records, the configuration of the lands and seas of the Earth and the conditions of plant and animal life have in this age attained a near resemblance to their modern estate. The eccentricities in the Earth's orbital movements that formerly caused subterranean com- motions and irregularities in the seasons, have given place to oscillations so favorably adjusted that even glacial epochs show a mere trace of the rigors that accompanied them in the distant ages of the past. The improving conditions manifest upon the Earth's surface, enables a rapid increase in numbers among humankind and such advance of civilization that thousands may exist in comfort upon lands where formerly hundreds could hardly sustain themselves. Each continent hath its peculiar races, with their great centres of population where cities are built and enlightened methods evolved, while each hath also its barbarous tribes who haunt the uncultivated forests and deserts. SCENE XXVIII.— Second Ajitanian Age. The Struggles of the Progressive with the Retro- gressive Elements of the Races. Ittigur: Two classes of men with diametrically opposite tendencies are manifest in each racial 198 Allegory. order, the one being industrial and progressive in the worthy channels of life and the other improvi- dent and vicious and persistently active in spread- ing immorality, in ravaging the land and destroying every invention and intellectual ideal that elevates and ennobles the human soul. Where the one class prevails there is peace and plenty and constant in- crease in all the achievements of civilization; where the other class prevails there is turbulence and poverty and a want of new achievements in civiliza- tion. The struggle between these two classes is very marked in this age and a locality may frequently be noted wherein a promising tribe had made excellent progress in rudimentary civilization, but which coming under the blight of a destroying horde, is transformed into a barren waste. The destroyers at times appear in the character of armed savages from the uncultivated wilderness, and at other times as morbid growths from the centres of the highest civilizations, resultant, as it were, of some malignant vice that had fastened upon the masses or of some false and dangerous philosophy or religious or political institution. The struggles between these two peculiar divisions of mankind continue so per- sistent that at the termination of the age civiliza- tion in some respects seemeth no further advanced than at its beginning. Allegory. 199 SCENE XXIX.— Third Ajitanian Age. The Development of Four Distinctive Civilizations. Enouin: This age is remarkable for the coeval development of four great civilizations, which are dis- tantly separated and denoted by a peculiar distinc- tiveness in architecture and in philosophic ideals from each other. These contemporaneous civilizations are isolated by seas and deserts and by forests in- fested with blood-thirsty savages, which makes it appear that each is an independently spontaneous evolution from the primitive and barbaric to the enlightened and civilized estate. The races sustain- ing these civilizations appear to be Aryan, Semite and Turanian and the regions they occupy are situate in southern Europe, Asia Minor, northern Africa and central America respectively. These civilizations continue to flourish until near the end of this age, when each appears to enter upon an era of decay, coeval with which, however, is the springing up of several new civilizations within regions hitherto roamed over by uncouth savages. SCENE XXX. — Fourth Ajitanian Age. istSajan- ian Age. The Attainment by the Human Races op the Status which Historic Records Disclose. Ittigur: The face of material nature is of goodly aspect, such as was never before so generally pre- valent, while man hath attained a comelier physique 200 Allegory. and a higher order of intelligence in his activities. Now in the beginning of the Sajanian age, which is seen to be contemporaneous with the beginning of the archaeological history of man, remarkable intellectual changes are taking place within the populous centres of each of the leading races. The intermediate centuries of this age are noteworthy for invasions and conquests and the interblending of races and creeds, and, while some worthy civiliza- tions are destroyed during these events, there is effected the awakening of a progressive spirit among many tribes that had hitherto been in a state of savagery and which now set themselves toward the upbuilding of substantial religious* and political systems. Latterly there is seen the rapid develop- ment of civilization among Aryan tribes of southern Europe and central Asia, among Semite tribes in Asia Minor and Egypt and among Turanian tribes in eastern Asia; each of which is sh'own to have transmitted the principal features of its language and social system to its racial representatives of modern time. And now, Gebril, that we have fol- lowed thy world's history down to its recent and ex- istent phases, we are prepared for other investiga- tions; though there are some features and theoretic suggestions connected with our experience here that we would gladly have pursued into details had our time permitted. According to the information we have derived of your records, we are led to infer that all the planets of your system are not maintain- ing coeval phases of surface development with the Earth, nor are they possessed of inhabitants enlight- Allegory. 201 ened as those we find here. We have to suppose that the more distant bodies of the system, which are visibly of greater dimensions than the Earth are yet in the excessively heated stage and that the system is of such design that all the planets are ap- proaching the sun and that each in turn when within a certain radius of the solar influence will derive a sufficiency of light and heat and in every respect find itself in condition to sustain life. In following this theory, we find the planets one by one passing through the life sustaining radius of the solar in- fluence, and still drawing inward upon their orbits, they in due course must needs approach and be absorbed in the solar mass. Hence, we shall suppose that Mercury and possibly Venus have already arrived so near the sun that life cannot at present exist upon them and that the Earth is now amidst the inhabitable solar radius, with the planet Mars just entering its outskirts, while those bodies from Jupiter outward and presenting a molten or vaporous aspect, are as yet far off the life sustaining era. Gebril: That which hath been potrayed to you is a very brief abstract of a special branch of learn- ing here, that would occupy you many years to mas- ter in detail; and so you may easily find room be- twixt the substantial threads of the veil of planet history we have dealt with in these scenes to fit in a great amount of theoretic speculation. As my pur- pose is to disclose the essentials of your visit here to inhabitants of the lower world, and as I consider it not fortuitous for mortal man to receive knowledge 202 Allegory. of the more intricate processes in nature gratis and without efficient labor on his part, I propose that we avoid all discussion that might reveal any potential fact of the universe, or at least such as would disturb or prematurely unhinge the phil- osophy that now obtains on the material plane. 1 believe it in our mutual interest now to betake our- selves to the conservatorium of prognostication and prophecy for the material world. SCENE XXXI. — Conservatorium of Prophecy. Races and Civilizations of the Millenial Future. Enouin: The prophecies herein recorded indicate that through an intelligent system of aid rendered to certain of the backward tribes of mankind, there will in process of time rise up new and unique nation- alities in regions now inhabited by lowly savages; so that many territories and islands which are in the present age obscure in the civilized world, will be- come centres of commercial prosperity and of high intellectual culture. The alien and antagonistic castes or religious orders that now set themselves to afflict the nations among whom they dwell, will in due course be judiciously removed to territories wherein the associations are such as will neutralize their antagonisms and call forth their latent patriotic and charitable instincts. The nations of the earth, however differently organized in racial qualities and customs, will wholly cease to war with each other Allegory. 203 and mild and benevolent methods will prevail; while yet the racial type of each of the great natural divi- sions of mankind will be perpetuated in its most marked and interesting aspects. Among all men, the traits generally conceded as admirable and benefi- cent will supersede the repulsive and. disorderly; fewer premature deaths will take place and the birth rate will be regulated to the sustaining powers of the land by moral and intelligent methods. Liter- ature will be refined and brought to the highest excel- lence and all that panders to the baser influences will be eliminated. Every youth in the land will be trained to the strictest virtues and educated by rapid and skilful processes, and none will be found to have reached the age of maturity without due qualifica- tion for useful and honorable pursuits. The races and nations of mankind will come to have a definite adjustment of territorial boundaries and each pecu- liar type will evolve a civilization in accordance with its inherent instincts and material environments, while between the most diverse of these races and nationalities there will be found no hatred or jealousy but mutual good will and admiration of each other. The racial variety in men and the differentiation in architecture, ceremonial forms and mode of dress will become even more pronounced than in the pre- sent era; so that the traveller from one nation to another will be filled with interest and enthusiasm through the newness and novelty of the scenes that greet his vision. 204 Allegory. SCENE XXXII. The Religion of the Millenial Epoch. Ittigur: In the perfected civilization of the future, even in the transitional ages preceding the true millenial epoch upon the earth, there will ap- pear gifted seers and sages proclaiming doctrines that are based upon inspirationally revealed truths of nature and so well delineated as to be applicable to every class and order of men. As there are skilled material philosophers, whose studies of the visible firmament or of the earth strata or of some special phenomena enable true forecasts of the movements of celestial bodies through space or de- ductions as to certain phases of the ancient world, so also there may be skilled spiritual philosophers, who under the exaltation of a class of discerning faculties are enabled to transcend physical conditions and de- rive from invisible planes the principles suitable to the spiritual guidance of ordinary men. The labors of these master minds will eventually be crowned by the establishment of a religious system of such incontestable beneficence and consistency with eso- teric and exoteric nature, that men of every intellec- tual rank and racial lineage will become its ad- herents. The divers creeds of present time will thus find a certain doctrinal basis and produce there- from an authoritative universal religion, from which there will latterly be no deviation of principles, though various ceremonial forms may still be main- tained in accordance with cherished traditions or peculiar local influences. The precepts of this uni- Allegory. 205 versal religion will embody the essential truths of the material universe and will be delineated in such well chosen terms as to appeal successfully to every intelligent mind. Every cumbersome or meaning- less formality will be eliminated from the worship of Deity and a rational, moral and beneficent code will ensue and prove an exact and unfailing guide to the human mind in its earthly career. This happily conditioned religion will efficiently equip the mind of man for the ordinary emergencies of life, fortifying the character with an acute percep- tion of moral principles and affording a sufficient restraint from every thought or action detrimental to the spiritual future of the soul. SCENE XXXIII. Termination of Life on the Earth. Enouin: All life being dependent, for embodi- ment and lineal perpetuation, upon the elemental souls that reach the earth from the central regions of the sub-universe, it comes within the orderly domain of nature to reduce the birth rate by reducingthe in- flow of these souls, and this function she invariably executes with each species when the peculiar re- sources necessary to its material sustenance are ex- hausted. In conformity with this provision.it is or- dained that when the end of the life sustaining epoch of the earth draws near, there will take place a diminution in the influx of 206 Allegory. germinating elementals from Pan-Elysium, close fol- lowed by a noticeable sterilty among various animal species, so that one by one the life orders % cease to exist on the material plane. When the process of the final elimination of life from the earth begins, humankind will be first to succumb, then the supe- rior animal types, then the humbler creatures and finally vegetation will perish and the surface of the once fertile and populous planet will be left a barren waste. The closing era of mankind's career, though necessarily fraught with certain pathetic features to observant minds, will moreover afford rare spec- tacular and scenic beauties in nature — awe inspiring and conducive to ennobling thought. While con- tinuous diminution in numbers in each race may be apparent, enlightenment and culture will yet be sus- tained through the abundant art treasures left by the colossal civilizations of the millenial ages. The in- telligent remnants of once mighty nations will dur- ing this age view with profound veneration the monu- mental relics spread over the lands of the Earth, realiz- ing that such glorious works can never be revived; and so their aspirations instead of being directed to- ward material inventions or new spiritual revela- tions, will find solace in an incomparable literature and the utilization of the abundant materials of every art and science left by their accomplished mil- lenial ancestors. And, as the end of the epoch draws near, the nations will grow weaker in numbers until a mere tribal remnant is left of each; then one by one these will find themselves sterile and come to a realization that no more germinating elementals are Allegory. 207 upon the Earth to give them posterity. These last remnants, though saddened that no posterity will come after them, will find compensating joy in the peculiar grandeur of the natural phenomena of the time and in their strangely important mission in bringing up the rear of the legions of their kind that have inhabited the noble planet Earth. SCENE XXXIV. The Disintegration of the Material World. Ittigitr: The epoch during which the Earth shall maintain its elements in compact mass and comport itself as an orderly body in space, hath exact limits in the system of the universe, so that when the Methelian ages allotted to the terrestrial functions have run their course, material dissolution will take place. In the earlier phases of its decay, the Earth's internal fires will be quenched and the. waters and vapors that now subsist as rivers, seas and cloud mists will be indrawn into its cavernous interior. Then ensues an age in which the Earth will move dead and barren upon its orbit, the mere material framework of the once prolific world, and followed still by its satellite, the moon, it will be at- tracted inward upon a constantly shortening orbit until it reaches the solar luminiary and ends its identity in his ample proportions. In like manner to the Earth, every planet of the system hath its limitations as a life sustaining and orderly moving 20 8 Allegory. body, and must eventually yield obedience to a peculiar force that contracts its orbit until it comes into a cataclysmic collision with the sun. Thus, while the sub-universal laws provide against any sudden or premature annihilation of the Earth or of any other truly organized planet, there is neverthe- less an appointed time when all shall be clashed to- gether in the great central luminary, which then losing the equilibrium sustained with its planetary supports in space, will give vent to a series of tremend- ous outbursts that will hurl the cosmic elements into distant reaches of the orbital chasm. And now Gebril, through these prophecies thy doctrine is made more clear that planetary matter was origin- ally thrown off from the sun and sent rotating through space. The matter constituting all the planets of the present system was thrown off during the one heroic period of these solar activities. This planetary matter after being distributed outward to- ward the limits of the solar influence, began to gather into compact bodies duly stationed upon orbits at certain respective distances from each other. During the earlier stages of planetary ex- istence, the centrifugal forces of the sun exceeded the centripetal so that the planetary bodies continued to move further outward into space; but eventually these two forces became equalized, either through certain changes in the rotation of the solar mass or the diminution of his radiating elements, and for a time the planets held themselves steadily at fixed distances from their governing source. Then the centripetal forces gained ascendancy over the cen- Allegory. 209 trifugal and the planets began to draw closer to the sun in their orbital movements. The continuation of this process must, therefore, eventually bring the planets one by one back into the solar mass, from whence, after being reduced to primal dust and vapor, they will again be hurled outward and formed into new planets. It is when the planets are ap- proaching the sun that they enter a radial zone fav- orable to life forms, and after passing through this zone life comes to an end. Gebril: Your derivations and deductions from our treasuries of learning have been remarkably true and explicit for minds trained upon a world so very unlike the Earth as Iltromene is known to be. Now, that we have interviewed the historic and theoretic features you desired first to acquaint yourselves with, we are prepared for the descent to the material plane. SCENE XXXV. — The Descent to the Material Plane. First Terrestrial Observation, Ethiopia. Enonin: The material world now lieth before us; a broad symmetrical expanse, with lands and waters that become more picturesque as we ap- proach them. Its excellent features are rapidly un- folding before our vision, and verily it seemeth full worthy the noble history its geniuses have recorded of it in those spiritual conservatories we have ex- 210 Allegory. plored. You have brought us, Gebril, to a wild and uncultivated region, with people having the manners of the primal ages. These people give themselves to barbaric orgies and show a want of intellectual power and an absence of moral compunction that is not in keeping with this advanced age of the Earth. Oh! we see they are beset about by ruthless enemies, the unprincipled members of a stronger race who pillage their towns and carry many of them away enshackled captives. There are yet other strangers among them for benevolent purposes and striving to implant new customs and the religion of a distant civilization. The native race, though ill- favored and humbly placed among men, appears en- dowed with the essential elements of physique and intellect to make it a substantial power upon the Earth, but at present methinks its civilization too immature to deserve our extensive critcism or pro- found study. Gebril: This land is known as central Africa and its native tribes now hold a very humble position among the nations of the Earth. These people have probably suffered greater wrongs through alien invasion than thou wouldst incline to believe possible in our modern world; it being only very recently in- deed that they were anywhere recognized as deserving the common rights of humankind. Vast numbers of this peculiar race have been dragged from their homes and sold like mere animals in dis- tant lands, and though this evil practice hath been suppressed by mutual consent among the superior nations, they are yet extensively preyed upon by a Allegory. 2 1 1 horde of brutal mongrels who infest their defense- less borders. There are indications, however, that the philanthropy of the enlightened nations will soon be intelligently directed toward these people and that they will be placed upon a new footing and im- bued with the spirit of progress. SCENE XXXVI. — Second Observation, Arabia. Ittigur: You have brought us to a land abound- ing in desert wastes, interspersed here and there with fertile tracts that are highly cultivated and filled with the habitations of a comely race. The cities here contain many stately temples dedicated to religious worship under the system of the prophet Mohamed. This is evidently a spirited and war- like people and much given to the performance of religious ceremonies, one feature of which is the ex- tensive sacrifice of domestic animals. The faces of their women are screened from common observation and they, moreover, appear to be injuriously re- stricted in their outdoor movements and associations. They appear as a people who had been great among the nations of the Earth, but, through lack of some essential quality, were distanced by others in politi- cal craft and progressive methods. Their pictur- esque mode of life, their religious pilgrimages and their impetuous ardor in any cause involving their personal liberties or their faith, fills us with a desire for their more intimate acquaintance, but their defi- 2 1 2 Allegory. ciency in advanced intellectual principles necessarily renders a longer stay with them profitless to our mission. Gebril: This land is of historic renown among men, for it is here that they generally accredit the beginning of human civilization. The present in- habitants are not prosperous, though they rejoice in a comparatively advanced theology and, as you see, they are a people of high spirit and ready wit. The Hebraic, the more intellectual branch of this people, is at present scattered about foreign lands, as a re- sult we may assume, of sectarian quarrels, and until some unusual event or patriotic impulse shall cause the return of this legion to its brethren, there is small chance of a revival of the ancient prosperity of the race. SCENE XXXVII.— Third Observation, Eastern- Asia. Enouin: Our vision now rests upon a region whose eastern borders are washed by four seas and whose fertile vales and plains give sustenance to vast numbers of human beings. The race we find extending over this great range of territory, is divided into several populous nationalities and the structure of its civilization appears diver- gent from that of any other system extant upon the Earth. Its religion appears to contain certain truly revealed principles, but as if through a prevalent Allegory. 2 1 3 spiritual lethargy, theology is degraded so that the present worship is purely exoteric and burdened with many costly and spiritually profitless ccie- monies. Within the numerically greater nation of this people the condition of woman appears deplor- able, and among the notable evils affecting her may be cited illiteracy, marriage by barter and the bind- ing and crippling of feet. The coast line is found to be invaded by a fair alien people, who while bringing political and religious influences that ought to have a revitalizing effect upon the natives, is seen nevertheless, at present to impose a consuming tax upon them through conditions of shipping and com- merce that places a disproportionate share of profits in foreign hands. The fault cannot properly be charged to the foreigner, even though he hath used warlike force in establishing his relationship here, for the internal laws of the country are such that many resources within the national domains lie fal- low while the people buy materials of foreign pro- duction. The want of efficient statesmen, and of a sen- timent among the people favorable to the breaking up of traditional customs that have become obstacles to normal progression, portends grievous sufferings for this nation, and it is evidently safe to predict that great revolutionary struggles are yet to take place within its borders. Upon the northern coast is an island nation of this race which appears to have im- bibed the spirit of the alien intruder and to have so utilized his diplomacy that international stipulations which were formally enforced by him have now be- come a mutual desire, and the profits of shipping and 2 1 4 Allegory. commerce are evenly balanced or possibly incline in favor of the native. The women of this island people appear to enjoy a sufficient measure of liberty and are consequently fairly enlightened, and pos- sessed of mannerly graces that are wanting in the women of the greater nation. Gebril: These nations form the nucleus of the Turanian race, which in point of numbers leads all the races of mankind. Their civilization is of great antiquity and the people have been loth to grasp the ideas and methods of the more advanced aliens we find upon their coasts; and considering their num- bers and vast range of territory, it is extremely for- tunate for those same aliens that their ideas and the spirit of their civilization have not been readily par- taken of. Let us now turn our faces westward and make our way across the lands of several racially mixed and weak Asiatic nationalities, and we shall soon behold the continent where the fair and intru- sive traders and missionaries we have had occasional glimpes of Ln our travels take their origin. SCENE XXXVIIL— Fouth Observation, Europe. Ittigur: We have now within our view a conti- nent of great beauty and fertility of resources and sustaining many powerful and cultured nations. Populous and most agreeably designed cities abound and there are structures and institutions that exceed Allegory. 2 1 5 in splendor any evidences of human skill we have hitherto witnessed upon the Earth. The religion predominant here appears to be strangely compli- cated, through the prevalence of numerous diverg- ent sects that display much antagonism toward each other. From its outward aspects it is a religion without an accurately defined or true philosophic base and evidently owes its origin either to crude prehistoric traditions, which have been built upon as the race improved its civilization, or it is of foreign derivation and imperfectly interpreted. The splen- dor of civilization increases toward the western limits of the continent and there are two large islands off the coast line, surrounded by a great swarm of marine craft, that are especially attractive for their extraordinary architectural achievements. A marked feature of the nations of this continent is the vast number of men engaged in military functions; there being everywhere an appearance of preparation for desperate conflict. There seemeth a remarkable distrust between the different nationalities, possibly because some are ruled by young and ambitious princes who are not sufficiently restrained by con- stitutional guarantees in regard to peace to inspire their neighbors with confidence, or that the class of men purchasable for warlike aggression is known to be dangerously abundant. Those who are not gov- ernors or soldiers evidently have excessive tasks upon them, in order to sustain and furnish with munitions the portentious horde which is thus with- held from employ productive of the necessaries of life. Judging from the general superiority of these 2i6 Allegory. people over other races we have observed, there must be good results from such enforced exertions; keen necessity probably driving men to activities that develop both a mental and a physical prowess. Perhaps in the near future these men will be actuated to proper exertions from abstract reasoning and exact knowledge of consequences or from religious instincts, whereas now they only do so from ambit- ious designs or dire necessity. These splendid mili- tary displays may react propitiously, through stir- ring the enthusiasm and loyal zeal of men and ex- citing them to heroic activities and even benevolent deeds, while yet obviously fostering savage or murd- erous instincts. In the more refined ages of the future men will, no doubt, employ their time spare from earning the material necessities in building great edifices and works of public beneficence or in intellectual culture, instead of devoting it to the ap- purtenances of war; but the present population, having the savage qualities strong within them would prob- ably expend any increased leisure in pursuit of the voluptuous and the spiritually prof- itless. The people mayhap cannot yet do profitably with lesser burdens nor properly appreciate more leisure, and so they must needs continue to support their great armies and ambitious princes until a gen- eration with more refined and benevolent instincts shall be evolved. Gebril: These nations are components of^ the great Aryan race, which in this age leads all the human types in the grandeur of civilization, and, from the capacities of its people in general, it seems Allegory. 2 1 7 destined to maintain its high station for considerable time yet to come. In order to study its profound civilization readily and effectively, I believe it advisable for us to proceed westward to another con- tinent upon which a nation has been established that is in its principal features an epitome of all you see here. The nation I make mention of was formed of colonists from these countries so that all the qualities of race and civilization which we have here before us will there be found so peculiarly interblended as to be most favorably placed for our study. SCENE XXXIX. — Fifth Terrestrial Observa- tion, America. Enonin: Now we hold within our vision a well appointed continent, the northern half of which sustains a people most proficient in the higher arts and sciences. The fair race of Europe predominates, though distributed through the nation in consider- able numbers are Turanian and Ethiopian types which are evidently held aloof or not invested with full citizenship. These alien featured people are seen to become more numerous and to be more harmon- ously affiliated with the European colonists in cer- tain smaller nations of the central and southern por- tions of the continent and the civilization these nationalities sustain is a compromise between the several racial types composing them. In the great 2i8 Allegory. nation of the north there is less of the military spirit than in Europe, though the number of people draw- ing sustenance from the governmentappears scarcely less. The striking difference between the tax con- sumers of the two continents is that those of Europe are chiefly armed soldiers, effective for immediate defensive or aggressive action, while those of America are chiefly veterans, or their dependents, of a recent civil war. Thus the peculiar characteristic of the race to take upon itself extraordinary burdens maintains in these colonists as in the parental na- tions, and assuredly the trait is laudable and will be made to serve noble purposes when the highest state of enlightenment shall have been developed on the material plane. On our nearer approach we find a strange clashing of ideas and an inordinate wrangle in the councils of the nation, as if between different sections or commercial interests, and which though appearing at times unseemly, should be taken as evidence of wondrous vitality and emotional power in the people. The religious instincts of the race are displayed here on a scale truly magnificent; towering churches abound and within them there is in general maintained a system of instructive wor- ship that confers notable benefits, although some of the ethics would hardly withstand the test of clear reas- oning. There is a commendable absence of the des- tructive sacrificial worship noticed among other races, and withal the majority of the sects appear to have attained a high order of merit in their cere- monial and benevolent institutions. Now, while the religious institutions of these people are in the Allegory. 219 main commendable, there are certain evils in the social system that are hard to reconcile with the claim of advanced civilization. Hard by us here is a home where an aged couple are lamenting a daughter who was enticed into forbidden paths by one for whom she had formed an attachment. Their sad story reveals that the daughter was dishonored and eventually became an inmate of an evil resort in the slums of the city, and, according to the cus- toms of the land, there is henceforth no respected vocation at which she will be allowed to earn a live- lihood, nor is there any apparent method whereby she may again be associated with chaste people. And here is one of these ill famed resorts, with an inmate lamenting bitterly her downfall and the life she is now compelled to lead. She bewails the loss of the natural hopes and desires, especially those of wife- hood and maternity, and the alienation of all who formerly claimed friendship with her. She bemoans that there are none to assist in remedying her condition, not even one of those eloquent preach- ers who are wont to repeat a story in the churches of a magdalen who was rescued by their religious pro- totype, the Nazarene. The position of these women is most pitiful, Gebril, and the strangest charge against them is that they are much more in fault than the men con- cerned in their degradation. It appears utterly impossible for one of these women to reform or to even partially retrieve her honor, though the men who have been associated with her are still con- sidered worthy citizens. Now to judge impulsively 220 Allegory. from mere outward signs, we are constrained to say, woe to the man who seduces and robs a woman of that which makes her attractive and estimable among her fellow beings! It seemeth premisable that he who finds a woman chaste and innocent and leaves her humiliated, dishonored and depraved, entails a grievous charge upon his soul, and who in justice should be haunted with his crime and find himself at variance with nature and the better class of men until he hath sufficiently atoned, if that were possible in life. Now, while the people of this proud nation may righteously demand purity and discretion of their women, methinks there might be more effective hindrances to men offering temptation to the unso- phisticated, and'also more palpable barriers to the en- couragement of the vice we have had an intimation of. Gebril: As for these women, it is generally sup- posed that had they possessed sufficient prudence and honor as an original heritage, they could not have been induced to enter upon a vicious career, even though they were betrayed by those in whom they had unwisely confided. Philosophers here are disposed to recognize an unsubstantial or criminal class, embracing members of both sexes, and while it is possible there are many of this class who were originally capable of honorable lives, still it is thought that the majority have the base elements strong within them as an endowment from their sav- age ancestors. These weak or vicious individuals, of either sex, are in most instances deserving of pity rather than condemnation; for it is readily Allegory. 221 perceived that they are great sufferers. Viewed in a certain light the components of human civilization in this age are a curious agglomeration of antagonisms and that which is inherently right is only predom- inant temporarily and while under the influence of some principle or combination of events that greatly stirs the souls of men. No two human minds are of the same precise measure in respect to the virtues and capabilities, for one through inherent structure of faculties may be inclined and adapted to a menial occupation, another to a vocation embracing acute mechanical skill and another to the framing of or the execution of the law; or it may be one mind is fashioned to be extravagant with its possessions, another adventurous or speculative and another miserly. One man may have true nobility of mo- tive but is feeble in the power of expressing or com- municating his sentiments; another may be mercen- ary yet is able to skilfully and cheaply disguise the trait; the result in such instances is that neither indi- vidual is correctly estimated by his fellow men. The over secretive, in their eagerness to conceal their faults or intentions, may obscure actual virtues and worthy motives; the frank and outspoken, while exposing their individual weaknesses, afford oppor- tunities to themselves and to others for the percep- tion of and remedying personal defects. The infe- rior mind when placed in control over others, takes cognizance only of their faults; the superior mind may be severe in dealing with the weak or unprinci- pled but it is alert to discover and to reward any ex- hibition of good will or honorable intents, and never 222 Allegory. causes the righteous to suffer for the unrighteous. The truly magnanimous seek to reward merit wher- ever found; the morally inferior place a mercenary interpretation upon every human action and are prone to withhold merited reward because of finding some fault or defect in the one who hath earned it. Corrupt and antagonistic minds readily condone tur- bulent or warlike measures; they hurry to support an adventurous leader, without considering the prin- ciples involved or the injury they may cause the nation at large. It seemeth a provision in nature that some men shall start wrong in life and make many grievous blunders, so that in rectifying their sins they are led to reason and to evolve true phil- osophy for the benefit of their fellows. Genius is often the gainer through being hard pressed awhile and denied its expected rewards; for too early suc- cess is likely to divert the line of thought or stultify the ambitions so that great portents and possibilities may be frustrated. In the beginning of a nation's career the principles of government are apt to be corrupt to some extent, which may be a needful pro- vision that poets and statesmen and martyrs shall appear and portray the glory of righteous law in the land or through their example excite humanitarian sentiment and reformatory impulses. If by any chance a government is founded upon absolutely pure basic principles, there will soon be amendments and noxious regulations introduced by corrupt or partizan legislators until the original constitutional intents are subverted. Then, under corrupt and. oppressive rule, there will be likely to arise here and Allegory. 223 there pure and studious minds, that ignoring pre- cedent and appealing direct to Deific inspiration, become qualified to evolve new doctrines and to in- augurate a series of progressive struggles among the people. Thus it is with the common mind of the age, not realizing when it is prosperous or con- ditioned for happiness, it proceeds to experiment with the evil side of nature until like a persistent child it finds itself in troublous straits. Now this great nation may at times act the part of the preco- cious child in setting about an incontent clamoring for new and untried methods and in not being satis- fied with the pure and simple code of the founders, who gained their political wisdom under corrupt and incompetent rule. It often happens that its recent legislators are men of small worldly experience or they are possessed of narrow or selfish motives, with a penchant for experimental legislation or the amendment of laws that should not be amended, so that the legitimate purport of their work is the restoration of the conditions of gov- ernment which their forefathers successfully re- belled against. A man of outwardly pleasing de- meanor but without inspiration and unskilled in the line of duties he is required to perform, may be elected to responsible office, defeating perhaps one who hath excellent qualities and precise knowledge of the office concerned and whose only defect is that he hath not the knack or knavery to win and main- tain the fickle affection of the populace. Or, a man is elected to office who hath never seen foreign lands or possibly hath but a vague conception of the 224 Allegory. vital interests of his own country; consequently he concerns himself with petty local affairs and is oblivious to the peculiar diplomatic vigilance essen- tial to the outer commercial or political environ- ments of the nation. Men are so constituted as not to be content with unmixed happiness; excessive prosperity begets slothfulness and sensuality, and though excessive taxation aud oppressive laws or- dinarily beget poverty and vice, they may at the same time chasten a few into religious contempla- tion and* the conditions of soul for reformatory and progressive effort. There can be no civilization in this age of our world entirely free from these evils, for according to the nature of the present race, the child and the adult is prone to idleness when not pursuing what affords some immediate or prospec- tive gratification and one kind Of activity becomes irk- some as another when followed to excess. Taken all in all, it is charity if not wisdom to conclude that in the complex and composite civilization of this land, there is much we impulsively condemn as inju- dicious, oppressive or vile that in truth is essential to the higher development and perfection of the race. Now if you are satisfied with your experiences on the material plane, we will proceed hence to the spiritual zones of our planet. Enouin: We have sufficient information of the material plane for our purposes. Let us proceed tQ the spiritual zones, Allegory. 225 SCENE XL. Tarampa, Lower Spiritual Zone. Ettigtir: Saith a spirit newly arrived from earth to an instructor: O worthy instructor! I feel the burden of a sinful career upon my soul. Teach me, I pray thee, how I shall find relief and place myself honorably with my fellow men and harmoniously with divine law. Saith the instructor: It is need- ful for thee in the beginning, to fully appreciate the extent and purport of thy misdeeds, then thou canst proceed with their rectification. Look thou upon the record of thy life as it is kept here and repeat what appeareth as thy greater errors and defects. Saith the spirit: The follies of youth are vividly re- freshed upon my memory and more unfavorable still are certain unpropitious ambitions, passions and intrigues of my maturer years. Certain strong and visibly superior faculties which were vouchsafed me by nature, I employed to grossly selfish ends, while the numerous opportunities for benevolence that en- compassed me, I failed to take heed of. The forms of many persons who suffered through my avarice and sensualities, float before my vision and seem- ingly demand compensation. And yet, while no actual sin hath escaped this fearful record, I am rejoiced to find some truly commendable motives and actions to my credit. O worthy teacher! let me quickly begin the rectification of the evil in my life that I may meditate upon and enjoy those reflected principles and activities which my conscience finds approvable. Saith the instructor: First then, be- cause of the indebtment thou hast incurred with 226 Allegory. nature, great exertions will be demanded of thee; for here, as upon the material plane, the duties of cur- rent existence will confront thee. No inhabitant of this zone hath power to absolve thee from the just penalties of thy transgressions, though all may desire thy regeneration and many will lend thee kindly assistance. Go forth now with the intent of making full reparation to all that have suffered through thy wilful actions and likewise make effort to attain such personal virtues as will enable thee to associate with the upright and accomplished. Seek out those who cherish grievances against thee and favor them until their good will is obtained, then proceed with thy debts in every department of nature. Work with consistency and with honest design, making especial effort to compensate those having sustained injuries at thy hand, and at all times keep in view thy personal improvement and preparation for the ultimate Heaven. In this phase of our cycle of existences it is found a pressing duty to rectify the errors of earth life, after which achievement we are qualified for our true spiritual consciousness and for participation in the manifold joys of our surroundings here. While those who in life departed not from natural law are to be considered fortunate and those who erred much or failed to rightly utilize, their opportunities are to be regarded as unfortunate, it is yet possible for the soul after reaching this zone to enter upon a career of reformation that if pursued with intelligence and energy, may bring it a fair measure of happiness and enable it to overtake the truly blest ones of its order and generation. Allegory. 227 Gebril: Now let us enter a skilfully constructed observatory, here at our hand, and take panoramic views of existence in this zone. Enouin: With observing instruments. Every configuration of the material world, even every in- cident of climate, of scenery and of animate life, hath its spiritual counterpart here but enhanced in point of brilliancy and general perfectiveness from the estate it maintained upon earth. Within our vision are high mountains and broad plains and the limpid waters of rivers and seas, and there are num- erous animal forms, of which the herbivorous and the predaceous orders may be observed in fearless association with each othe.r and all undisturbed by the presence of man. Here are also great cities with an architecture far excelling in magnificence any that is existent upon the material plane, and there are many institutions of learning with their comely and efficient teachers and intelligent and aspiring pupils. While the less admirable human traits and methods still abound, there maintains in sur- rounding nature such tendencies of quickening the intellect that the self perfections or reforms which upon earth cost severe and laborious struggles, have here nearly the character of pastimes or of needful diversions. The parentive instincts still maintain, and many patriarchial sires and matronly dames are to be seen exulting in their posterity and exercis- ing a certain guardainship over the youthful mem- bers of their lineage, while those childless in life are wont to seek out and care for the orphaned, aband- oned and illegitimate weaklings that are projected 228 Allegory. in here prematurely from earth. She that hath been a faithful mother finds high honors due her here; the adorning gems that mark the recognition of this function are seen to excel in their splendor many of the epaulettes of genius and of social fame earned in material life. The commingling pains and joys coincident with the parental function appear to have stamped a characteristic strength and nobility of bearing, as nature's reward for having given bodily forms and legitimate citizenship among men to wait- ing elementals.' The perfections of mankind in gen- eral may be said to be more pronounced and widely prevalent here than upon the earth plane, while the vices and defects are less glaring. Some are evi- dently striving to prolong the riotous pleasures of youth and others are still insubordinate, ignorant and uacouth but happily the arrangements here are such that these ill conditioned individuals are unable to intrude upon the domain of their more worthy bretheren. Stretching far hence into the regions of space are realms upon realms sustaining myriads of souls who have long since severed all relationship with the material plane and who are now preparing for the transfer to another zone. Gebril: Of necessity the soul elements of this zone show many divergences, extremes and angul- arities; for various are the kinds and conditions that constantly swarm over here from the material plane. Allegory. 229 SCENE XLI. Benimba, Intermediate Spiritual Zone. Ittigur. With observing imtrumeiits : The scene within our vision is of exceeding grandeur, and so wondrously varied is the expression of its features that had we not studied their basic principles on lower and simpler planes they would now appear to us fairly dazzling, magical and indescribable. The general outlines of the material world are still up- held, though the landscape hath taken on a remark- able freshness and beauty. Hill and dale are res- plendent with many hued vendure, while instead of sombre colored rocks upon the mountain summits, there are glittering crystalline formations set plenti- fully with great lustrous gems that the richest mines of earth never equalled. There are fresh green meadows and yellow tinted fields bestrewn upon valley and plain where the domesticated herbivora pursue their peaceful functions, and there are se- cluded hills and plateaux and entrammeled forests where the feral species find congenial haunts. The world hath a surprising magnitude here, because of our distance above the material surface whereby the common hemispheres are greatly enlarged, enabling every terrestrial land and sea to extend over a mighty expanse in its spiritual superstructure. The inhabitants are supplied with excellently devised homes in the cities and about the rivers, lakes or sea shores, and there are picturesque lodgments deep in the lonely forests and the mountain fastnesses as suitable resorts for recreation and rest from intellec- 230 x Allegory. tual pursuits. Cities of broad area are frequently met with and their streets abound with towering edi- fices designed like those on earth for amusement, instruction and devotion. The people invariably wear benevolent and happy countenances, having apparently outgrown their grosser selfish impulses ere reaching this zone, and their intelligent and noble bearing imparts a quickening joy to whomsoever they meet. Religious and political an- tagonisms are unknown and the mind of each .indi- vidual hath such comprehensiveness and magnani- mity that it is protected from error and from giving offense. The pastimes and duties are harmoniously interspersed and the infinite variety of concerns en- gaging even an ordinary mind give constant exhiler- ation to its faculties and a perpetual relish for exis- tence. In the higher realms of this zone there is manifest among the inhabitants a joyous expectancy of the time when they shall pass over to the superior spiritual zone, toward which they have yearnings after the manner of the devout human mind that yearns for the Heaven its religious faith hath dilineated. SCENE XLII. Ilbarama, Superior Spiritual Zone. Enoiiin. With observing instruments : In this zone every terrestrial feature appears to have attained the zenith of perfection, and according to our capabili- Allegory. 231 ties of discernment there remains naught in nature that would add to the bliss of its inhabitants. Such facts in science as relate to the innermost processes of the stately suns and planets of the sub-universe and to the infinitismal atoms that make up their ma- terial and spiritual elements, facts that are far be- yond the grasp of the earthly intellect, have here an easy and satisfactory solution. The medley host of stars visible from the material plane and of whose organization and movements men have gained as yet but vague conceptions, here offer such possibilities of research that, assisted by cunningly devised in- struments, we have views indescribably beauteous and instructive. The aggregation of stars constitut- ing the sub-universe becomes as an intricately or- ganized body in space,, and set about it in all direc- tions throughout the illimitable heavens are other bodies equally great, though some of them are placed so distant from us as to appear less significant than a mere planet that happens to be within close range. Every sub-universe, in sooth, appeareth as a mighty mechanism, the toy of some celestial giant whose moving vehicles are majestic suns and their satellites, all being so perfectly attuned as to be self perpetuating and eternal in their organization. The dense matter of a planet world is seen to be serving the purposes of life in its varied manifestations and the rarified etherea of interplanetary space is coursed by numerous magnetic and spiritual energies while it serves also as a media through which disembodied souls may transport themselves with inconceivable rapidity from one world focus to another. Our 232 Allegory. facilities for contemplating the external glory of a sun or planet are here immeasurably superior to the most excellent yet attained on earth; the power of the instruments being so acute that upon directing them toward several points in the heavens that appear to the material eye merely blank space, we discover routes that are replete with various spiritual forms and coursed by angelic bands upon in- ter-world journeys. Thus the materially visible ob- jects of the sub-universe are found to have an impor- tance as sustainers of the life stage of soul entities and also as the invigorating resources" of certain in- ter-planetary currents, while the expanse between these substantial bodies hath an importance as the media of various circulating forces and elements or as the resort of the disembodied. The qualified obser- ver here hath command of magnificent distances and a facility of penetration that may far transcend the boundaries of our sub-universe and take accurate ad- measurements of other like divisions of the greater heavens. When viewed from the spiritual estate of nature, the material world does not, with all its varied elements, seem more densely populous than many districts situate in what is to the human vision blank space; though the Earth, as a materially and spiritually inclusive body, becomes a remarkable focus of attraction for soul entities in certain phases of the animative cycle. The details of the actual glories of this zone are verily beyond descrip- tion by us in language understandable on the physical plane; let us not attempt their discussion but silently feast our minds upon them a little time, that Allegory. 233 we may in future derive from their remembrance a series of poetic extravaganzas for our brethren in Iltromene. On a noble cloud girt plateau rising be- fore us, with scenic splendors for the eye, musical harmonies for the ear and soothing odors for the nostrils, is the celestial city of Ibrim. Let us now betake ourselves there and bid adieu to the worthy Zoraba, concluding thus our observations of this wondrous zone, which we have to acknowledge is in most respects too advanced for our comprehension. SCENE XLII1. Elomiel, Court of Ibrim. Ibrim: Hail now, sons of Iltromene! Is thy mission to our planet so soon accomplished? Ittigur: We have in the brief interval since our departure hence interviewed many phases of thy noble planet and acquired considerable knowledge of human life and of the career of the soul. We found scenic outlines of the material plane reproduced, enlarged and beautified in the spiritual zones and we took note of talents and vices among men and traced their sequences from the one phase of existence to the other. Our interest in the events of our journey was continually whetted by the untiring zeal and enthusiasm of our most estimable companion, Gebril, without whom our visit must have been near fruit- less, owing to the remarkable difference in what we saw to that with which we were accustomed in our native world. From our experiences in thy domains, 234 Allegory. we feel constrained to say, thou hast a world so highly favored in its material and spiritual organi- zation, that the more we view and meditate upon its varied qualities the more is our admiration excited, while we find a resource of joy in contemplating the mystic powers in nature which designed this pleas- ing fragment of the universe. Ibrim: To meet with such earnest and aspiring souls from a distant planet affords me a peculiar pleasure and a yearning that you may take with you most correct impressions of our beloved world. This yearning for the correctness of thy impressions of us and ours prompts me to briefly discuss a few par- ticular features, that I doubt not have come within thy range of observation and of which I would that you might know the trend of our philosophy upon. Enouin: We shall be pleased indeed to listen to thy words, good Zoraba, for there were abundant phenomena that we had not time to explore to our entire satisfaction, but which we thought to retain in memory, believing that in due course we might unravel their import and thereon evolve comprehen- sive theories for our home people. Ibrim: We find that nature performs her mater- ial functions with elements and forces that in im- mediate effect often antagonize each other, but which in their final purports attain an end beneficent to the system in its entirety. Since the beginning of the Earth's evolution from the primal nebula, every organic and inorganic force and element hath in turn performed some essential function in its course of activities, profitable in some degree to every other Allegory. 235 force and clement, and through the innumerable powers thus engaged the crude conditions of early epochs have been changed to the tranquil orderthey show in modern time. In the solidifying processes of the Earth's exterior crust, powerful and locally antagonistic forces effected essential changes in the quality and configuration of the surface stratum. Bodies of land were lifted from the ocean depths to be clothed with verdure and to sustain innumerable air breathing creatures, while coeval with their eleva- tion other lands that had been leveled through the erosion of ages of exposure to atmospheric elements, were submerged to sustain ,? I to receive enrich- ment from marine life. The j.;mospheric elements, through their varied and destructive activities, were potent factors in the development of the lands of the Earth; wearing down the shapeless hill masses and mountain peaks and creating new strata and in pur- port favoring the plant and animal species. When the more vigorous agents of the Earth's evolution had made sufficient preparation, the primal element- al of plant and animal spread forth throughout the land and sea and they in turn created conditions for yet higher types. The primal animal forms were of simple or unwieldy structure and slow intelligence, but through the progression engendered by mutual forces in nature, there were evolved species more graceful in thei r outlines and capable of varied and intelligent activities. An abundant vegetation did service in absorbing the noxious gases that filled the primal atmosphere and converting them into new substances, which, besides giving sustenance to 236 Allegory. myriads of animated creatures, formed mineral deposits that have become the heritage of civilized man. And creatures of the sea, from the minute coral buildersto gigantic amphibians, inpursuingtheir normal routine of existence unwittingly performed noteworthy services, as is shown by their relics in the surface stratum of the planet. Then man, who was primarily capacitated as an ordinary animal type, eventually entered upon methods that elevated him above the mere instinctive labors, so that with precise knowledge he began to improve the face of material nature and to envelop the world with a halo of intellect and spirituality. And thus subter- ranean fires that created the hill and low land, and the forces of the atmosphere that gave them shapely- outlines and produced a soil for plant life, and creatures of the sea and plants and animals each in their turn have labored toward the achievement of definite purposes in the system of nature and not one has existed in vain. Now, if we transcend our im- mediate surroundings and go forth into the depths of heavenly space, we find in radiant streams round about a great central focus, elements embracing every hidden force of the sub-universe, while amidst the ramifications of its extensive zones are distri- buted typical souls of every world, and withal such an accumulation of splendors that a considerable period of time is necessary for the finite mind to comprehend its details. We discover that the Earth was brought from an original chaotic nebula to the perfections of an era sustenant of creatures en- dowed with an incipient intellect, that budding forth Allegory. 237 feebly at material birth, expands thenceforward throughout their cycle of consciousness in accord with their fixed racial destiny. The Kalpa cycle, of duration too vast for human comprehension, marks the outflow of incalculable forces and myrads of soul entities from Pan-Elysium, all of which must needs return in due course, and during this epoch these peculiarly related principles thus pulsating between the two sub-universal poles constitute, as it were, different functional organs of the one bodily struc- ture. And so hath the matter of the sub-universal system no increase nor decrease in quantity, neither may there be any increase or decrease in the num- ber of organized or habitable planets; for there is maintained at all times an interstructural counter- poise through the evolution of one planetary and vital system being invariably coeval with the disin- tegration of another. In the processes of the gener- ation of offspring, we discover that nature is neither blind nor extravagant in giving fertility; that she does not bring elemental souls into the atmosphere of Earth at any time in excess of the possibilities of embodiment or of life sustaining resources. In reviewing the conditions of intellectual progress, we find that in the barbaric estate man is a weakling with meagre safeguards against ravenous or venom- ous creatures or climatic rigors or the miasms of stagnant waters; in the civilized estate the creatures that do him evil are subdued, the rigors of climate are provided against and the miasms are dispelled by drainage and the confining of turbulent rivers to their proper channels. In the barbaric 238 Allegory. estate only those who employ brutal force and cun- ning obtain the respect of their neighbors or become prosperous in worldly effects; in the civilized estate laborious energy and intelligent enterprise become the essentials to material prosperity and good repute among men. In the barbaric estate there is a great expenditure of labor that yields no beneficent returns, as in religious sacrifices and the extrava- gance of misguided or incompetent rulers; in the civilized estate the forms of worship entail no waste- ful sacrifices and the rulers have not license to ap- propriate the productions of the people to unwise or selfish ends. In the barbaric estate man hath no ex- act knowledge either of his own powers or possibilities or of the material phenomena about him; in the civilized estate he becomes familiar with his bodily structure and mindful of its needs and is able to estimate his virtues comparatively with those of his neighbors, and is so informed of nature's agencies that he can account for any violent or unusual phe- nomena that he may observe to take place. Man in the barbaric estate recognizes few obliga- tions to other men and respects no law but that of physical might; in the civilized estate he hath an acute consciousness of the demands of society and finds comfort in reflecting that for every intersocial obli- gation that impinges upon himself he is compensated by some personal advantage and an increased as- surance that the wealth his toil and thrift hath pro- duced is secure for his enjoyment. In the barbaric estate his mental activities are restricted to certain ordinary channels outside of which it is considered Allegory. 239 irreligious or unlawful to essay; in the civilized estate Ins range of thought hath wide scope and every manifestation of originality or genius finds popular approval. In the barbaric estate he is subject to turbulent and uncertain passions and is wanting in confidence in himself and in his fellow beings; in the civilized estate he rejoices in an intellectual mastery of the passions and sustains a wholesome faith in himself and in the honorable intents of his fellow beings. In the barbaric estate he is harrassed with misgivings of angry gods or demons or ghostly forms, to obtain immunity from which he resorts to self torture or costly sacrifices; in the civilized estate he is aware that angry gods are not the instigators of adverse phenomena and he is disposed to a belief in the good intents of every spiritual entity having power to approach or to exert an influence upon him. The true civilization, however, is yet to come upon the earth plane; for as the precarious methods of subsistence and provision against dangers peculiar to primitive man were changed by enlightenment to the more elaborate and reliable methods peculiar to modern civilization, so will modern methods be changed by further enlight- enment to a still more elaborate and satisfactory or- der. The imperfectly defined and antagonistic creeds now maintained among men are resultant of the exceeding political turbulence prevalent during recent centuries among those nations who should take precedence in theological concerns, whereby the evolution of the true religion hath been delayed. When without clearly revealed doctrines, the mind 240 Allegory. that is conscious of its weaknesses and shamed at its frequent violation of nature's laws or mayhap of solemnly imposed vows or resolutions, is wont to implore some inferior god or saint or deified object instead of the proper ruling powers of the universe — it's vague knowledge of which hath led to the portrayal of a dread and unrelenting adjudicator of human affairs, and the ignoring of that sympathetic faculty of Deific nature which is interwoven and con- current with the finite being. With such state of theology men often believe themselves hope- lessly in disfavor with Heaven and through this misconception some are even led into a career of self abandonment, when if they knew to treat the weakness or deed simply as a temporary hindrance or misstep in a course of life that maybe righteous in intents and beneficent in general purports, the defec- tion might properly be made use of to moralize upon and through a chastened and repentant spirit to in- duce a guiding inspiration for the mind in its future proceedings. In considering individual traits, we find that while inherent genius, viewed as an eternal heritage of the ego, will often struggle through un- favorable material conditions and win the highest goal of a calling or philosophic cult, success in life is not absolutely assured to the possessor of such en- dowments; for it is demonstrablethatthe ego genius may, through adverse surroundings or mistaken methods, be unhinged, thwarted or fatally delayed while the most commonplace ego-intellect hath such posibilities of unfoldment, through propitious circumstances or aptly chosen methods, as will en- Allegory. 24 1 able it to become wealthy, of good repute or even eminent among its follows. If follies are persisted in, the moral instinct is ordained to impose upon the inner consciousness a sense of personal demerit, causing the soul to tire of a locality or zone whatever the prevailing attrac- tions; but if righteousness is adhered to there entails such joy in each zone or sphere of existence that the soul is loth to depart even though realizing that the one to which it is destined hath greater glories. It is the fate of those who lag behind in the intellectual race, through indolence or through the employment of their faculties with trivial concerns or with base indulgences, to fail not only in reaping a goodly share of true pleasure in the earthly and spiritual es- tates but also to find upon reaching Pan-Elysium that they have access only to its inferior parts; that the meagreness of their attainments compels them to view the chiefest celestial glories from afar. The soul finds as its rewards for industrial activity, the practice of benevolence and for personal chastity, a realization of the perfect joys of material and spiri- tual existence and our philosophy teaches that upon arrival at Pan-Elysium it will find itself entitled to the inner celestial glories, which may be considered the nearest approach to Deity and the ultimate of finite happiness. Hence they are fortunate, if not consciously wise, that fill their " karma with pure motives, with know- ledge and with personal excellences; for these give true happiness in every zone of the universe and prove treasures of a most desirable and unpurchas- 242 Allegory. able kind when the terminal Heaven is attained. Those who have neglected the normal duties and responsibilities for passional indulgences, find a spiri- tually impoverished and evil karma to their account that bestrews their pathway with difficulties, and when eventually Pan-Elysium is attained they are humiliated by perceiving their inferiority, in com- parison with others, in profitable possessions and accomplishments. The wilfully undeserving in every zone invariably possess sufficient intelligence, to discern that the more sublime joys are not with- held from them through Deific vengeance or as an inflicted punishment, but that the karma of their own creation imposes the unfavorable condition, from which nature can only absolve them at the ter- minal of their animative cycles by obscura- tion of their consciousness and their expulsion forth for re-birth upon another world. Opportunities are afforded in each cycle of the soul to make its own happiness or misery, through obedience to or violation of nature's law — infinite power affording the conditions — finite power employing them wisely or unwisely, profitably or unprofitably to itself. In the sum total of its experiences, the soul is en- abled to solve and understand all that pertains to finite nature, but that which it must fail to solve or understand is the Infinite or unchangeable side of nature. The soul is not absolved from an un- atoned offense through mere lapse of time, nor will evil doing, in any case, go unpunished by nature. The evil doer, sooner or later, finds himself com- pelled to compensate his misdeeds and to win the Allegory. 243 favor of nature by honest effort; the unattainted soul upon reaching the spiritual plane, may proceed with the labors and joys of its new surroundings un- disturbed by reproachful memories. The failure to achieve necessary preparation of soul in life by those efficiently endowed and circumstanced, portends ar- duous efforts in the spiritual zones toward acquire- ment of the wanting qualities, as, in benevolent attentions to other souls yet more unfortunate and especially to infantiles or those who have been wholly or in part deprived of material experience. Thus it becomes a seemingly fortunate provision that infantile and defective spirits abound on the lower spiritual plane, that those who in life were capacitated and yet failed of parentive or benevo- lent duties may find opportunity to develop these essentials to the perfected individuality. Now, fair Iltromenes! I wot thou hast enough of Earth history and of our institutions and philosophy to suffice thy mission with us. I would fain have thee stay longer, but I perceive thou art not constituted to sojourn a great time upon a planet like ours. Convey my respects to Denhassa, thy world's ruler, and may thy long journey have constant cheer both from memory of our goodly realms and from expectant yearnings toward scenes of the home land that await thy coming. Enouin : Thy words have stirred our sympathies and enkindled deep gratitude in our hearts, most admirable Zoraba! and we offer our assurance that thy sage teachings will have earnest consideration. We shall henceforth delight to reflect upon this 244 Allegory. fortunate interview with thee, and when we impart our knowledge gained through thy good offices to our bretheren, they will certainly rejoice with us and sing praises of thee and of thy excellent world. Ittigur : And thou, Gebril! efficient guide and companion in our exploits, 'tis difficult to find words adequate to express the gratitude we enter- tain for thy efforts in our behalf. Peace and love be with thy happily conditioned soul! and may the delightsome Earth thou hast such wisdom of move tranquilly and speedily onward to its mil- lenial epoch. Enouin : With our best wishes for the continued progress and prosperity of the inhabitants of these favored realms and for especial honors to come up- on those we here address, we now leave thee, Zoraba! Gebril! and glorious Earth! to begin our journey upward through the star flecked heavens. Chorus of Assembled Angels : May thy passage through space, Enouin! and Ittigur! be as the dream of a tranquil night — the vast distances between world and world seeming to thee a mere falcons flight across a terrestrial vale. May thy reception by kindred from whom thou art long separate, be such an occasion as we sometimes see in these realms when enraptured bretheren meet and the natural affections have bounteous outflow. When thou art distant from our world's radial light, may thy memories of us be yet afresh, and even when our sun, Nephela, is become as an ordinary star in thy vision may thy hearts still warm toward us. And may thy visit profit thee and thy people, and Allegory. 245 furthermore, may it happen that when the souls of our generation shall pass through the realms of our common Elysium, we shall meet thee and so rejoice and commune again together. GLOSSARY. Agathian Age. A division of the Kalpa Cycle, approximating 84,375 Earth years. Ajitanian Age. A division of the Kalpa Cycle approximating 21,093^ Earth years. Anagrian Age. A division of the Kalpa Cycle approximating 337,500 Earth years. Animative Cycle: A cycle commencing with the departure of the ego as an elemental from Pan-Elysium to Earth and ending with its return to Pan-Elysium an enlightened and perfected intelligence. Anthropogenian Age. A division of the Kalpa Cycle approxi- mating 5,400,000 Earth years. Benimba. The second or intermediate spiritual zone enve- loping the Earth. Dianotheism. Rational or logically demonstrable religion. Ego. The eternal personality of the soul. Elemental. The soul in the unconscious or ante-natal phase of its animative cycle. Elomiel. Residence of Ibrim, Zoraba of the planet Earth. Epistemian Age. A division of the Kalpa Cycle approximat- ing 1,350,000 Earth years. Ilbarama. The third or upper spiritual zone enveloping the Earth. 248 Glossary. Kalpa Cycle. A cyclic age commencing with the great peri- odical outflow of planetary matter from the sun and end- ing with the return and absorption of the same in the solar mass. Approximately 8,640,000,000 Earth years, viz.: Brahminical system 2,000 Maha Yugas, or a day and night of Brahma. Karma. An exterior or created intellectuality that may either be harmonious with or antagonistic to the real or in- herent intellectuality of the soul. Megazoan Age. A division of the Kalpa Cycle approximating 21,600,000 Earth years. Methelian Age, A division of the Kalpa Cycle approximating 86,400,000 Earth years. Nephela. A name of the sun, as distinguishing it from other such luminaries of the universe. Nirvana. Heavenly joy — a state of perfect tranquility of the soul. Pan-Elysium . The physical and Paradisial centre of a sub- universe. The focus of emanation for soul entities at the beginning of their animative cycles and of attraction from the time of their physical birth. Para-Nirvana. The perfect nirvana of Heaven— only realizable in Pan-Elysium. Pralaya. An epoch of material disorganization that obtains in a solar and planetary chasm from the terminal of one Kalpa cycle till the beginning of the next cycle. Sage. One morally glorified and intellectually capable of per- ceiving inherent truths of nature and of formulating doctrines thereon for the spiritual guidance of others. Glossary. 249 Sajanian Age. A division of the Kalpa cycle approximating 5,273 Earth years. Sub-Universe. An aggregation of inter-dependent suns and worlds which is constantly aloof from and repellant to all other material bodies of the greater or illimitable universe. Taramfia. The first or lower spiritual zone enveloping the Earth. Theokosmos. Deity inclusive of the illimitable Universe and within whose mighty organism mankind subsists as a serviceable component. Zoraba. A soul of masterful attainments. One who wields the highest political authority in the Earth's spiritual system. TIME DIVISIONS OF THE KALPA CYCLE. The Kalpa Cycle approximates 8,640,000,000 Earth years, and is equal to 100 Methelian Ages of 86,400,000 years each. 400 Megazoan Ages of 21,600,000 years each. 1,600 Anthropogenian Ages of 5,400,000 years each. 6,400 Epistemian Ages of 1,350,000 years each. 25,600 Anagrian Ages of 337,500 years each. 102,400 Agathian Ages of 84,375 years each. 409,600 Ajitanian Ages of 21,093% years each. 1,638,400 Sajanian Ages ot 5,273 years each.