Section 3

Such things as these you would not do, I
know; and for the sake of the love of God, when
opportunity offers, you will speak clearly against
them. But there is a cruelty in speech as well
as in act; and a man who says a word with the
intention to wound another is guilty of this
crime. That, too, you would not do; but some-
times a careless word does as much harm as a
malicious one. So you must be on your guard
against unintentional cruelty.

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AT THE FEET OF THE MASTER

It comes usually from thoughtlessness. A man
is so filled with greed and avarice that he never
even thinks of the suffering which he causes to
others by paying too little, or by half-starving
his wife and children. Another thinks only of his
own lust, and cares little how many souls and
bodies he ruins in satisfying it. Just to save
himself a few minutes' trouble, a man does not
pay his workmen on the proper day, thinking
nothing of the difficulties he brings upon them.
So much suffering is caused just by carelessness
— by forgetting to think how an action will
affect others. But karma never forgets, and it
takes no account of the fact that men forget. If
you wish to enter the Path, you must think of
the consequences of what you do, lest you should
be guilty of thoughtless cruelty.

Superstition is another mighty evil, and has
caused much terrible cruelty. The man who is a
slave to it despises others who are wiser, tries
to force them to do as he does. Think of the
awful slaughter produced by the superstition
that animals should be sacrificed, and by the
still more cruel superstition that man needs flesh
for food. Think of the treatment which super-
stition has meted out to the depressed classes
in our beloved India, and see in that how this
evil quality can breed heartless cruelty even
among those who know the duty of brotherhood.
Many crimes have men committed in the name

30

AT THE FEET OF THE MASTER

of the God of Love, moved by this nightmare of
superstition; be very careful therefore that no
slightest trace of it remains in you.

These three great crimes you must avoid, for
they are fatal to all progress, because they sin
against love. But not only must you thus re-
frain from evil; you must be active in doing
good. You must be so filled with the intense de-
sire of service that you are ever on the watch to
render it to all around you — not to man alone,
but even to animals and plants. You must
render it in small things every day, that the
habit may be formed, so that you may not miss
the rare opportunity when the great thing offers
itself to be done. For if you yearn to be one
with God, it is not for your own sake; it is that
you may be a channel through which His love
may flow to reach your fellowmen.

He who is on the Path exists not for himself,
but for others; he has forgotten himself, in order
that he may serve them. He is as a pen in the
hand of God, through which His thought may
flow, and find for itself an expression down here,
which without a pen it could not have. Yet at
the same time he is also a living plume of fire,
raying out upon the world the Divine Love
which fills his heart.

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AT THE FEET OF THE MASTER

The wisdom which enables you to help, the
will which directs the wisdom, the love which
inspires the will — these are your qualifications.
Will, Wisdom and Love are the three aspects
of the Logos; and you, who wish to enroll your-
selves to serve Him, must show forth these
aspects in the world.

s>#o

Waiting the word of the Master
Watching the Hidden Light
Listening to catch His Orders
In the very midst of the fight;

Seeing His slightest signal
Across the heads of the throng;
Hearing His faintest whisper
Above earth's loudest song.

32

BOOKS ON KINDRED
SUBJECTS

The Masters — Annie Besant

The Master — C. Jinarajadasa

The Masters and the Path —

C. W. Leadbeater

Superhuman Men — Annie Besant

The Spiritual Life — Annie Besant

The Voice of the Silence — H. P. Blavatsky

Light on the Path — M. Collins

Catalog Sent Upon Request

THE THEOSOPHICAL PRESS

Wheaton, Illinois