Chapter III

COSMIC RHYTHM AND THE CYCLES OF LIFE
HE foolish person tries to logically ignore the phenomenal facts of life simply be^ cause he cannot learn the theory which explains them. With all the logic at our command, we may reason out of the domain of possibihties everything that may be called a theo- retical explanation of the Cosmic rhythm which produces the various cycles of life, but we cannot with the same logic and reasonableness negate the facts which have been observed. To the same de- gree that one may claim that electricity does not exist because its source and its nature may not be known to everyone who reads, yet by its mani" f estations proves that it is a fact in the phenomenal world, so we may ignore the invisible vibrations of Cosmic rhythm and smile at the possibility of these things being divided into manifest cycles or
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periods, yet the phenomenal facts quite observable are undeniable.
There are explanations which the scientists may call theoretical, and the metaphysician will call true, which reveal the laws and principles of Cos- mic vibrations. But these explanations have no place in this book, and in fact deal with the fundamentals of the secret teachings of the Rosi- crucians which may not be set forth in any public book, or printed in any public form. Moreover, these facts would not serve any purpose at this time, and believing that this book will be perused by those of the practical type of mind who wish a system that is workable, without the need of profounds study, I will avoid any unnecessary postulations regarding the laws of the Cosmic or spiritual world.
It is sufficient to say, therefore, that all energy in the universe, of whatever nature, has but a single source, but in its emanations and radiations becomes divided into various phases of undula- tions which the Rosicrucians have called vibra- tions. These undulations have certain periodicity or periods of kinetic and static manifestations,
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THE CYCLES OF LIFE
much like the radiations from the antenna of a transmitting radio station. We may think of these various undulations as being of different wave lengths, different rates of vibrations, or different periods as we please, but the fact is that the re- sulting effects from the different waves or radia- tions account for the various forms of known and unknown energies in the universe. I wiU presume that those interested in the study of vibra- tions, so-called, realizie that vibrations may be divided into a great many octaves of manifestation, and each octave may be divided into many distinct forms of manifestation in both the spiritual and material world. Even the few octaves which cover the manifestation of sound give a wide variation of manifestation; for some of the rates within the octaves of sound may be so low as to be inaudible to the average person, and manifest only through touch, while others may be so high as to be inaud- ible but manifest in light or other mental or metaphysical ways. Ordinary electricity is un- questionably another form of the periodic range of the universal vibrations, as is the divine essence of the soul, the vital life force of the animal
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body, and the lower vibrations of vitality in plant and mineral life.
In addition to the above manifestation caused by the varying rates of vibrations of Cosmic energy we find that the energy controls and directs the rhythmic motion of all things in the universe, and I hardly need to remind my reader of the fact that motion is the fundamental principle of all material things, and that if motion were eliminated in the universe, we would see, hear, feel, and sense nothing. Matter itself is a result of the motions in the electrons, which is carried into the atoms and molecules. And the electronic motion is a result of the motion impregnated to it by the rhythmic pulsations of Cosmic energy.
As stated in a previous paragraph, everything that is in the universe is existing and manifesting in accordance with a cycle of rhythm distinctly its own, and everything that has had a beginning or a start whereby it became a distinct entity moves forward in time in accordance with a cycle of progression distinctly its own. Those who have had the pleasure of reading the more simple ex' planations of Einstein's hypothesis of relativity,
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coupled with other recent, simple explanations of the theoretical relationship of time, motion, and space, will realizie that time itself is an artificial relationship between motion and our consciousness and apprehension. When it was learned that our sight'consciousness required a minimum of one" eighth of a second to apprehend an impression, and that the impression registered upon the retina a sixteenth of a second after the sight impression had left the retina, it was found that by having the sight impression last one-sixteenth and the consciousness of it remain for one-sixteenth, we had an apprehensive period of two-sixteenths of a second, or one-eighth of a second, divided into one-sixteenth of actual physical impression and one-sixteenth of retentive impression. This was a discovery made through what might be called experimental psychology, coupled with a truly metaphysical analysis of the time element in con- scious apprehension.
Out of this metaphysical or almost mystical analysis, evolved the very practical invention of the kinetoscope which was later evolved step by step into the present-day motion-picture camera
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and projector. It is from the fundamental fact, however, that objective, worldly consciousness requires the element of time to apprehend and translate its apprehension into understandings, that we have become accustomed to associate a definite period of endurance or progression to the existence of all things. And we unconsciously establish a scale or standard of measurement of time whereby we may be conscious, relatively, of the existence of each thing in life.
It is known to the Rosicrucians who taught the principles of relativity and the fundamentals of the hypothetical conditions called time and space, long before Einstein or his predecessors, that the psychic (Consciousness of man does not require the element of time in its apprehension which is required by the objective or worldly consciousness, and, therefore, in the dream state or in any psychic state, the progression of facts evolving in the consciousness does not require the element of time for apprehension; the progression or sequence of events is disassociated from the objective standard of measurement of the time element. Thus in a dream or in a psychic state of consciousness
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THE CYCLES OF LIFE
events may occur and be apprehended by the consciousness in a flash of a second! but, when translated by the objective consciousness in a waking state, require minutes to explain and be^ come associated with a period of time of from five minutes to five hours or more. It is not uncommon for a dream that seemed to cover a relative objec tive period of an hour or more, to have actually required a negligible fraction of time to occur in the psychic state. In fact, we have no reason at all to believe that occurrences in the psychic state had any period of the time element in them what' soever, and did not progress in relation to our objective consciousness of time.
In more simple words we may say that all events and all things existing as eventful are associated by the objective consciousness with time, since they require time to be apprehended by our ob' jective minds. It is a fact that we cannot be con' scious in an analytical way of two things at the same time, and that when we are attempting to be conscious or mindful of two things coincidental in objective time, we can only be conscious of them intermittently by having each different impression
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follow in sequence, giving each its allotted fraction of a second for apprehension. Thus a man may walk along the street among many pedestrians reading a book. He may be successful in reading understanding^ every word on the page, and at the same time avoid collision with others and make the proper progressive steps, side steps, and hesi' tations necessary to complete his walk. He may think that he is conscious of his walking, and the control of his steps at the same time he is conscious of his reading, but in truth he is dividing his attentiveness alternately between the words on the page and the steps he is taking. Such alternation in conscious apprehension or realiziation may be so rapid as to seem almost coincidental. It is not the progression of events that actually requires the element of conscious time with which we are famihar, but our consciousness of the progression of events, and this is always relative and fictitious, having no foundation in Cosmic terms.
The observable progression of events is im' pressed upon the consciousness in such periods of time as constitute what is known as a definite periodicity or a definite cycle, and as stated here"
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tofore, each and every event begins a cycle of its own through which it progresses to culmination or to a finality. These cycles are called the rhythm of life when associated with our own existence as human beings, but more popularly called cycles of progression when related to our material affairs. Thus each human being has a cycle of existence that is divided into identical periods for all beings. The cycle begins at the first breath of Hfe breathed into the nostrils, and lasts for approximately one hundred and forty-four years. Very few complete this cycle of life, because of violation of natural laws or inharmonious Hving. Worldly events have two cycles, one called the major and the other the minor. The major cycle is one sun year, or approxi- mately three hundred and sixty-five days, while the minor cycle is one sun day, or approximately twenty-four hours. Other events or affairs in our lives such as ill health in the form of diseases, acci- dents, and fevers, also have cycles, varying in length according to the nature of the thing itself, just as the gestation of the human embryo or of other animal embryos have cycles of distinctive lengths as have also the gestation of seeds in the ground.
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Each cycle is divided into periods of equal length, and each of these periods produces certain definite effects upon the progression of the thing governed by the cycle. What is meant by this Vvrill be explained in the next chapter, but here the important point to bear in mind is that just as the breathing under all conditions and the beating of the heart and the functioning of other organs within the body are rhythmic, and in accordance with certain rates of periodicities which have be" come standard, and an alteration of which plainly indicates to the physician an abnormal condition, so all things in life move rhythmically, and the normal and natural rhythm for each thing in its cycle is in harmony with the Cosmic rhythms. When anything has a rhythm that is out of hap mony with the Cosmic rhythms it is abnormal or subnormal, and, therefore, in the process of de^ struction or frustration. It is by being in rhythm with the Cosmic or in tune with the infinite that man may keep his health and his affairs progressing to the highest degree and manifesting abundantly in health, happiness, prosperity, and peace.
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