CHAPTER III.

. EMEMBEBING thatstill another week was needed to finish the bound set by my friend of the Temple, I lie calm and quiet in the cool of the morning. The day- light breaks over the distant peaks. My spirit lifts itself toward the Eternal, and in aspiration I become one with the Infinite.
^' For a third time the days and the nights numbered seven. As my friend leaves my presence for the night, he says :
" * Tomorrow thou mayest see my face if — ^'The suggestion cuts me to the heart. Sup- pose I should not. It was wonderful how the strong, Spanish pride of my mentality had yield- ed itself to a most docile affection for this man, whose face I had never yet seen.
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" Why should I not see him again ? What unseen force or conditions could possibly pre- vent me ? Then came the resolution : ^ I will not be prevented* Whatever lies before me, I will meet bravely and fearlessly.'
^^The hours move on. The full moon has climbed to the zenith. Lights and shadows are thrown out with that startling contrast, peculiar to the tropical moonlight. My atten- tion is drawn to a far-off star, how, I cannot explain, but I am fascinated by it. My gaze is fixed persistently upon it. Its rays fill my whole apartment to the exclusion of all other light. As I wonder at the power thus mani- festing, the luminous matter concentrates and grows brighter. At the center, a figure shapes itself. As if I saw myself in a mirror, so becomes this to me. Striking and distinct in projection, in outline and proportion a very Apollo, it still seems pale and wan. It tears from its breast its flowing robe, and I perceive
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an ugly stab in a vital part. I start to my feet.
•**Whoartthou?'Iask.
" * I am thy higher consciousness. Thou dost stand face to &ce with thine own soul. Thou hast sore wounded me. For what thou hast done to me, art thou willing to serve another's good seven-fold, until my wound be healed ? '
" Firmly I answer, * I am willing and eager to begin.*
" * It is well. From henceforth the burden I have hitherto been forced to carry, is transferred to thy lower consciousness, where it shall be carried, until expiation is finished.'
*^ For the first time in my life, I hear, like an echo from these thrilling words, music from out the manifestation of creative thought. My burden is lighter and my sleep deepens.
"Refreshed, as the new day comes in, I awaken to all which may come. Before the
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shadows return again, my friend comes to me.
" ' It is well with thee ! ' he exclaims. * With the gladness of a great joy, I welcome thee at the outer gate of the mysteries.'
^^ He turned toward me. The veil fell away from his features, and this was the picture: A grave-yisaged, calm face, high and broad as to the forehead; piercing as to the deep-blue eyes — eyes restful and quiet now, but full of conscious power. The whole face told of a battle long since fought and won. A battle in which the rightful ruler had warred upon and overthrown the usurper. The successful termi- nation of this inevitable battle of the ages, was broadly defined with ineffable peace. Every line of his whole features was glorified by the impress of the maxim of the wise in all ages : * To know, to dare, to do, and to keep silent.' It was such a face, loving, tender, true and potent, as artists, whose clear vision perceives beyond the flesh, are wont to give the ' Perfect
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Man/ who, through suffering unparalleled, illus- trates the path, in which all who desire to attain must also walk.
^' It was not possible firom his face to judge of his age. There was no sign of withering nor shrinking in the flesh. All the lintoments were full and firm of texture, and the glow of matured youth pervaded the whole. It was a face full of expectation instead of memory, of power, not palsy. Pervading all, governing all, was the peaceful calm of invincible purpose and perfected accomplishment, a staying upon the power of the Infinite. Indeed, the perfect soul shone through the windows of the perfected body. It was an organism to which death was now the servant and not a terrifying master. It was an example of what all mankind are privileged to become if they will, perfect souls in perfect bodies. It was fully apparent that he walked constantly in the overshadowing glory of the
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^^ His benison fidLs upon me as does sleep upon a tired child. He sits with me talking of varioiis matters. Bye-and-bye, as the moon rises, he bids me farewell, saying :
" * At midnight expect me.'
" I sleep. As the long hours come, I am aroused by a light touch upon my shoulder. To me, broad awake at once, my friend says gently :
*'*Come!'
'^ Two attendants stand beside him, bearing vestments like my friend's ; these I assume. When I am clothed, he says :
"'Allow yourself once more to be blind- folded.* Thus muffled I am conducted by deyi- ous ways into the heart of the mountain temple.
" When the bandage was removed from my eyes, I found myself in a circular hall, with a flat floor, so hewn out of the solid rock that it was a perfect hemisphere. The diameter was an exact divisor of the earth's diameter. Within the circumference, was traced upon the floor, an
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ellipse. At one of the foci was a throne or royal seat. At the other an altar, hewn out in a single piece, from the original rock that had once filled the whole space. Upon this altar an unquenchable fire ever burned, sometimes leap- ing high and strong, and sometimes dwindling down into a slender tongue of flame, more like the flash of a small electric spark. It was the measure of the thought-force of the Brother- hood present. As it flamed up, swayed and concentrated itself, it was an indicator of the potency of projection of their own individuality into the astral currents of the Universe.
" These, and other details, I give from after knowledge, for I did not then perceive nor know them in all their fulness.
*'*' The hall was lighted so that all things within it were plainly perceptible, but from whence the light came could not be cognized by personal sense. On the half ellipse surrounding the throne, were fifteen seats, seven on each side
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of one placed on the pole of the major diameter. All were of elaborate pattern. Each diflFered from the others, owing to the idiosyncracy of the occupant, whose inner thoughts had fistsh- ioned them, both in device and construction. But all were similar in the impression they gave of restfulness and content; as if the builder of each had entered into the Great Peace.
" The seat at the end of the major axis was a little broader and higher, indicating deserved honor, but in no sense separateness. The seven seats on either hand equi-distant from each other, completed the sum of the three, five and seven.
"The walls and roof were bare. Composed of some kind of porphyritic rock, they were polished like a mirror. The door through which I had entered had moved noiselessly back to its place. No seam nor joining gave hint of its existence. As I looked upon the walls, I was, with all my self-control, startled. They did
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not reflect a single item of the interior, and yet shadowy outlines flitted constantly across their surface; outlines which my untrained vision failed to recognize.
^^At the moment of being unblinded, the occupants of each seat were standing, each by his particular resting place, save one at the right of the Center. They were all habited like my guide and myself. Their faces and bearing were simply indescribable. Nowhere else on earth could be found a counterpart. It was evident that the hands of each were on the latch of the Gates of Gold, simply waiting completion of labor. And the Elder Brother, no artistic thought in beau ideal has ever approached the conception of his perfection ; of the return into the original majesty and beauty of Creative Thought, before its manifestation was marred by man's interference, permitted for purpose.
^' As my vision became accustomed to the piercing clearness of the light, my guide, mak-
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ing some sign to the Elder Brother, crossed over to the vacant seat, where he stood as did the others, thus leaving me standing by myself^ at the foot of the throne.
^' The light on the altar flamed and flickered, not as if in any sense enfeebled, but as if swept over by a draught of air. In this hall no such thing was possible, and the movement must have had some other cause.
" Low, musical, but wonderfully penetrating, came words to me from the Elder Brother :
"* Stranger, stand erect! The mighty voice of our unseen brother speaks to us by you, his lawfiil messenger. Your claim from us is just, not only because you are his descendant, but because you of your own self have proved that fear does not control you. To bravery, you add natural adaptation, and the culture necessary for advancement. You have successfully endured the preliminary trials. It is not too late to draw back. If you choose, you shall go
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naiklj and quickly unto yonr own people. But, if you take one more step, you pass the threshold of the great gate, that swings ever inward, and never outward. This once passed, retreat is impossible, and advancement must be constantly made. Look to the wall on your right.'
^^ I looked. Out of the mirrored distance, I could discern the links of my own memory—^ incidents of the beginning of my faintest recoU lection, and then, in unraveling coil, all my actions, even the minutest, revealed themselves to my gaze.
^^ As the sequence reached the point of my present 9tatu%, a cloud enshadowed the whole. Out beyond the wavy outlines, a bright light shone, and the flame on the altar leaped up triumphantly.
^^ ' Thou seest the past,' continued the Elder Brother, ^ the future is thine own to make. If thou art guided by the lessons of the finished it is well. If thou wilt still, of thine own free will,
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go on to the irrevocable, advance three steps, and kneel at the foot of the throne.'
" Without hesitation, fearlessly and reverent- ly, I advanced and knelt upon the broad lower step.
^^ ^ Repeat after me, this thy new name ; for thine old one, stained with mortal folly, thou wilt here leave with thy closed past ; and then say on, as thou shalt hear/
^^As I commenced the repetition of this most solemn obligation with my new name, the right hand of the invisible occupant of the throne was laid upon my head. The light waned. The flame upon the altar grew concentered and star-like, in intensity. An overwhelming pres- ence, awful in majesty, seemed to fill the room. Behind the brotherhood standing here, in the visible, were rank upon rank of forms shadow- ing in dim but perfect outline out of the invisible.
"I cannot reveal the vows of an initiate's
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obligation otherwise than they were taken. Every word burned itself into my memory as if seared with a hot iron. At the concluding words : ' Let my oath be witnessed by you in all ages to come/ the brotherhood, as one, respond- ed : * We witness your obligation,* and out of the silence, came also a deep, reverberating echo: ^ We, also, witness your obligation.' The whole brotherhood, whether in the flesh, or out of it, were witnesses, for such is their custom. The hand was lifted from my head. A feeling of renewed strength and life flushed my veins and tingled through every nerve.
"For a second time, came to my ear, the voice of the Elder Brother, saying : ^You have entered your novitiate. For seven years, the last one of which shall be the year of the prep- aration, you will pursue your studies with our brother, to whom you were first assigned. Be obedient. Be faithful. Be studious, and we shall gladly confer that which you may desire.'
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^^ The flame upon the altar flashed up, strong, joyful and vigorous* A strain of music, &r-off but distinct, filled the vaulted chamber. A sweet, subtle perfume, reached my nostrils, and kneeling still, I lose myself in space.
" When I return to myself, I am lying on the divan in my own apartment. I wonder if it is all a dream. It was too vivid, and the obli* gation had left too strong an impression. On glancing about the apartment, the white robes of my new dress testify that I have forever renounced the old, and being bom again in pur- pose, desire and intention, am ready to enter on my novitiate.
"Presently my Guru enters. His tender salutation : ^ May the day be good to thee, my brother,' arouses within me a new and strong desire for his guidance and approval. Attend- ants bring fruit, unleavened cakes and honey, and we break fast together. After we had eaten and drank, he said :
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" * While we are under the circle of necessity it is meet that we divide the twenty-four hours into three parts : eight hours for labor, eight for meditation and study, and eight for sleep. So you may find occupation in the gardens in the morning hours, and when the day grows old^I will come to thee until the hours for rest are at hand/ So saying he withdrew.
*^ It is not necessary to go into the details of those six yearint so quiet and uneventful. In the equal balancing of physical labor, not toil, but a happy mean, and soul culture, and rest, my whole being grew, as the * flower grows upon the still lagoon.' I gave no thought to time, but enjoyed life as never before, in the truest and highest sense.
^^ One afternoon, as my Gum had finished a magnificent description of the man who perfectly embodied the creative thought, he said:
" *This night finishes six years of your novi- tiate. To-morrow morning, you will commence
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your year of preparation. We will break our &st together.' Bidding me good night, he left me.
^^ Early in the morning, he came again to me, and when our hunger was allayed by the simple and satisfying meal customary, he said :
" * Come with me to my laboratory.' Passing through a long, narrow corridor, we ascended a spiral staircase of forty-five steps, hewn into the solid rock. This brought us into a large, square room, opening upon the outside surfiice of the mountain by a dormer window, looking West. On the outside, this was high up on the perpen- dicular face of the cliff, and not discernible, as haying any connection with the artificial. On the inside, a huge block of stone, exactly bal- anced, and moving by a touch of the finger, fitted the opening, and protected from the inclemency of the weather. Seats were cut in niches around the walls, and a divan ran across the whole of one side. In the wall, opposite the
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divftn, was fitted a large, square stone of pol- ished, black marble, seven feet in length and breadth. Inscribed within the square, was a double circle of white marble. Between these two circles, were arranged in regular order, in red porphyry, the signs of the zodiac. . At the four comers, also inlaid of the red stone, were a line, a triangle, a right angle and a square.
^^ In the center of the room stood an altar, like the one in the Hall of Obligation, but smaller. Bugs covered the seats and divan. At the head of the divan, a shelved niche held a few papyrus rolls, dark with age and use. Close at hand was a large tablet of slate and a stylus of the same material. Nowhere was visible any of the usual furnishing of the ordinary laboratory, such as crucibles, flasks, furnaces or retorts.
^^ Hardly had this thought framed itself in my mind, when my Guru said : * In our explo- rations of Nature's realm, we do not study effects, believing them to be causes. We do not
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investigate the unreal and changeable, to find oat changeless law. The reflection can teach us but little about the substance of the reflection. You have been moving away from the unreal, into the knowledge of the real. Your training has hitherto been a unit, so far as it concerned the trinity of man, body, soul and spirit. But now, you must learn to know more fully, by what right the spirit claims and maintains domi- nance over all lower planes of manifestation.
" * During your year of preparation, your study will be of the real: of its laws, of the laws of mind, of our relations to those laws, which mankind, as a whole, has so studiously perverted these many years. We do not need to study books, for we may use the repository of all knowledge, even the astral light. Let us begin our day's duties by passing into the Silence.'
^^ He sat down, and bade me sit beside him. CFpon doing so, after a few moments, a train of
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thought, subtile in reasoning, condusiye in logic and unanswerable in its scope, as to the first principles of manifestation, filled my whole attention. It was told me afterwards, that it was the mental discourse of my brother and teacher. His voice at last aroused me from my abstraction. Coming back to consciousness of the outer, I noticed a single ray of sunlight rested on the altar.
"It would weary you, without cause, to recount, day by day, the occurrences of that most eventful year. Four morning hours were spent in the laboratory. Four hours devoted to the care of my allotment in common with the Brothers, in the gardens of the Temple. Here the action of mental force upon vitalized, physi- cal conditions was studied, that there might be certainty of self-confidence, in our contact with Nature. Four of the closing hours of day were given to social intercourse, whereby the feeling of brotherhood should be more firmly grounded.
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The remaining eight hours were given to rest, sleep and refreshment.
" With this general outline, I may venture to give you a few well-remembered incidents. My Ghiru said the study of Mathematics and Geome- try was devised to train the mentality in concen- tration. In language, we sought for sn\oothness of expression of our thoughts, and in philosophy, we were constantly seeking to identify ourselves with God and with the Universe.
" When he was not engaged with me, he was occupied with the Caballa, from which he declared, knowledge of everything in the Uni- verse ^could be obtained, that being at once a key and an encyclopaedia.
^^ One day, near th« time of the full moon of the first month of my tutelage, he, illustrating on his tablet with his stylus as he talked, said:
" * The problems of Geometry were invented by the Masters, to teach the relations of the unseen forces to the visible and the manifested,
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and not for physical application. In this latter use, they are necessarily wrested from their tme office and purpose. Hear the demonstration of the right-angled triangle:
'^ ^ The right angle represents the equal bal- ancing of the spiritual and physical forces, so that neither shall bring detriment to the other. The perpendicular stands for the spiritual. The horizontal or physical conditions lie continually along the same plane, never rising above it, nor can it fall below it. Should it do one or the other, it ceases to be horizontal, ceases to be perfect physical. The perpendicular rising out of the physical plane at every point of its progress, is constantly changing its position, growing upward, out of, and beyond the physi- cal environment, beneath which it does not penetrate. It meets the physical at the point of contact only. This point, in the seven prin- . ciples of man, is represented by the astral body. The spiritual in all its upward progress, and the
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physical in its stcUiis of rest and quiet, are bound together by the Infinite, Perfect One. This bond is represented by the hypotheneuse, which connects the spiritual and physical on the opposite ends of the line. The extreme points of the perpendicular and horizontal coalescing with the extreme points of the hypotheneuse, represent body, soul and spirit, which are but manifestations of the Divine power and presence. The hypotheneuse is greater than either the per- pendicular or the horizontal.
" * A square is the symbol of perfection. It has four equal sides, and four equal angles. This makes four equal perfection. That which is perfect must be real, and the real must be the Perfect One. Then the Perfect, Supreme Intelligence is represented by the square described on the hypotheneuse. The square described on the perpendicular, shows forth the perfect spiritual, while that on the horizontal stands for the perfect physical. Because mani-
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festation exists as physical, it does not foUow that it is imperfect. Consequently, the square of the hypotheneuse or Divine Perfect is equal to both the manifestations of Itself, the Perfect Spiritual and the Perfect Physical. Not until they return into itself will their equality each to each be manifest.
"* Furthermore, the Physical, Spiritual and Intelligent are the Triad which would be incom- plete if either of the elements was imperfect or wanting. If a side or angle were missing, or if one of the angles was not a right angle, then the conditions would be incomplete. All things must exist as herein named. Then the stated demonstration will also exist. By it, is clearly proven the power and unity of the One, who is, and was, and will be, through all coming cycles.' ^^ About a month after that he said to me : "*It is acknowledged by all philosophers, that no matter how our environment changes in form, no element is ever lost. , This must be
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trae, for the element is the premordial point, and is a part of the only real substance, the One, and must therefore be self-existent and indestmctible. Wise men even/have been sat- isfied with the correct enunciation of this propo- sition, not realizing the logical sequence, that all forms which have once existed, and become invisible by the operation of superior force, can, by the exercise of the creative force latent in man, agam resume their visible forms. This unused and forgotten force is man's birthright,, as the image and likeness of the One/
^^^Gan this be demonstrated to personal sense V was my question.
^' ^ Let us see. Sit quietly, and you shall have proof.' I looked at him, as he sat motion- less. Under the broad band of sunlight, stream- ing into the room, his majestic face became as immovable and fixed in its lineaments, as if carved in marble. The mighty spirit within looked straight beyond the environment, into the
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vastnees of limitleBS space. It was the concen- tration of the potent will. On the rocky floor between ns, appeared a yellowish mist, which apparently solidified until a gold Pistole lay before my astonished gaze.
^* The stem lines of my teacher's face relaxed ; the sight of the present came back, and his kind voice assured me of his return to actual pres- ence.
" *My brother,' said he, * take up that sym- bol man so loves and worships that he repudi- ates and forgets the real for which it stands. Its value is largely a matter of imputation and belief. But, because by mutual agreement, mankind could, by its use, gratify self, they have veiled their perceptions of the true gold of life, consisting in the mastery of the passions, and self-domination. As thou hast seen it come forth, so only can it be created. The dream of juggling pretenders never left the physical plane, in its search after the philosopher's stone,
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which is the will directed by wisdom and tem- pered with knowledge. The vibrations of the astral forces hold in solution the essence of all things. Out of this, can be crystsJlized, by a will in touch, or capable of harmoniously attuning its own vibrations, whatsoever has, at any past time, manifested itself to personal sense, as the formu- lation of previous thought. Thou canst meas- ure here the true value of gold, where we have neither desire nor use for it.'
Here my host paused in his narrative, and, turning his open hand toward me, displayed therein an antique gold coin. ^^ I have always, since, worn it as a talisman," he said.
As his hand had been lying perfectly still and wide open upon the cushion, since he commenced telling his story, it might seem a mystery how the coin happened to be there.
"Another month went by," he continued. " As the moon approached the full, I felt con- scious of a rapid gain in my understanding of
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the true relaticMis of my real self to the Mao* rocoBm.
^^Mj Gura had been discoursing on man*fl responsibility for his dominion over, not only himself and his fellows, but also every living organism upon the earth. He maintained that man had rule and dominion over even the wildest beasts, if he chose to cultivate and use it. Not by physical meodous, not simply by the power of the eye, so much vaunted amongst civilized people, but by the unseen, silent cur- rents, which sway all animated existence. This is proved by &e fact that the eye of a coward will not control the feeblest animal. He who C(mstrains in that manner, must be fearless and brave. It is not the eye, but the force behind it that rules.
window into the forest. In plain sight, a gaunt jaguar was crouching up trees, waiting the coming of a mountain antelope
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slowly climbing a rooky path, leading dose by the lair of its fierce, hungry enemy.
" * See, oh, my brother! * I exclaimed. * Cer- tain destruction awaits the antelope.'
"* Possibly not,' replied my Guru. *You mi^y see an illustration of my words. The antelope will not be harmed.'
^^I waited in suspense. The look of pro- jected power passed over my teacher's face. The jaguar stirred not. The antelope passed on its way unhurt, and apparently unconscious of the awful danger it had so narrowly escaped. When it had gone by, the jaguar crept down from its hiding place, and slunk out of sight.
^^ A short time after this, another incident of the same controlling power, was as fully and strikingly given. A swift messenger was needed for use. Why the usual method of dissolution and re-materidization was not employed, I do not know, as it was no business of mine, but concerned my Guru alone.
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'^ Standing within the embrasure of the rock- bound window, he looked out upon space. Watching him, as one feels the flow of an electric current, so came to my inner sense per- ception of the impelled power of will in its greatest concentration. The vibrations were strong enough to appeal to the sense of dairau- dience. First a hum, then a well defined musical sound, manifested itself. The impres-* sion was of a call that could not be resisted. The sound was peculiar and far-reaching, because the direct result of the impulsion of dominant will.
'^ A few minutes passed. Out of the bright- ness of a cloudless sky, a speck grew into a bird, and an immense, untamed condor, flying straight as an arrow shot from a bow, alighted on the rocky ledge, at the feet of my teacher.
^' He attached to the neck of the motionless monarch of the mountain air, a chain and a packet, in the same manner as carrier-pigeons are
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used. The condor having thus received his message, poised himself, his great pinions spread, and then the &r-ofif, firom whence he came, again received him into itself.
^^ ^If man had not lost the memory of the things that rightfully belong to him,' said my Guru, ^ he would never lack helpers nor mes- sengers. He has trusted to the arm of flesh and been overthrown. When will he see that the perfect spirit brings the perfect body, and the two are essential to the perfect man, who was given dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowls of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth ? It was not the dominion of physical force, either ; for that is the weakest force of the Universe. Why should he have dominion, if he were not to use it? He will not learn, and still he mourns his weakness. Weakness! His rightfol position amongst created intelligences is next to the Infinite/
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" Several days after the affair of the condor, we were discussing the real means by which one man reaches another by argument. * It is not in any sense/ said my friend, * a physical change, but a modification through a person's utterances, of soul condition, which we- name conviction. This change pertains entirely to the four principles, which make up the astral body. These in simple and in mass, are volatile and constantly striving to break away from their bondage to the physical. The link that binds the astral body to its physical expression is adaptable, but is not to be handled nor toyed with, without knowledge, lest there happen events that cannot be recalled.
" ^We can send another, wearing only his astral body, out into the astral currents. We should, however, first, be perfectly certain, that the power which sends forth is fully able to recall. Otherwise there may be sad remem- brances for us, and knowledge gained by awful
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experience, of currents twisted into cyclones, of gales and cross-currents, and , of Karma to undergo, that was not ours, until thus rashly appropriated. But my dear, younger brother, thou hast reached a point where, if thou hast desire to see for thyself the two-fold distinction of the astral and physical body, now is thy time and opportunity. Look steadfastly upon me.'
^^ Obeying his command, a strange sensation of quiet and rest crept over me, a shudder, and then a thrill, succeeded by a sense of ease and lightness, a momentary confusion, as when one passes from the darkness into the light. I was conscious of being outside of my body, which, at my side, was lying at ease, to all appearance sleeping. To my inner hearing came the voice of my preceptor :
" ^Thou hast passed, temporarily, the change which, when permanent, men call death. The difference is, that thou hast not relinquished thy right to thy body, and can re-enter at thy will,
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assisted by me. Wait, and I will call a guide for thee.'
^^ Resisting the impulse to move, my will held the Scin-Laeca, until another astral form, I rec- ognized as a' temple-dweller, joined me. ^ If thou hast desire, lay thy hand in his, and formu- late thy wish,' were the words distinctly heard. I did as I was bidden. The wish to see my birthplace in far-oflF Spain, rested heavily on my soul. At the instant, my thought became an entity to myself. I was also conscious of a swift movement Eastward.
" Suddenly we felt our way confronted by a wall of thick darkness. 'That is opposing force, acting blindly, following the simple law of projection,' said my guide, his voice ringing out in bell-like cadence, a quality which dis- tinguishes all astral utterances. ' Wait until I shall inform the Guru.'
"A moment, and his far-ofi, potent voice commanded: 'Fear not, but move forward, my
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force is sufficient for you.' No shadow of fear fell upon us, as we plunged into the midst of the darkness. Ages condensed into a second of time. Resistance made against terrible con- striction and oppression, but no thought of retreat. A passage is cleft. Brightness and light once more envelope us.
" All this time, I am conscious of the swift moving toward the East. As in a vivid dream, we stand at last in my ancestral Hall. Familiar with the surroundings, I explained various points of interest to my guide. He gravely acknowl- edged the courtesy, but when I presented him to some of the cavaliers-in-waiting, his eyes smiled, and I noticed they made no response. Now; came to my consciousness, a certain air of solemnity, such as preceeds a weighty event in the life of earth.
^ "Ascending the stairway to my father's apartments, we passed through the doorway. In a dazed sort of condition I noticed that the
96 THBEE SEVENS:
heavy, oaken doors were closed, and so remained, and the stiff, tapestried curtains, hanging low, gave no sign of our ingress, only as if stirred by a slight wind.
^^My father lay on his pallet, pallid and exhausted. His faithful attendants stood near, and also my mother. As she had been dead many years, I was again momentarily confused, but remembering my present condition, I moyed to her side, and greeted her. She affection- ately returned my greeting. In answer to my question^ why she still remained on the Abtral plane, she replied :
^^ ^ I wait for thy father before passing on to Devachan. But how is this? Are you also free?'
" I told her I was not yet liberated, only let loose for a little while.
^^Then as we talked, the extreme moment came to my father. The astral body rising from the physical, before becoming entirely free,
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discerned us conversing. The physical body, sympathizing in the transport of joy, exclaimed in its last effort :
"' Oh, my dear wife ! My son Manuel !'
" My father's astral body joined our group. Inquiries and information passed rapidly. I asked my guide if they could not return with us.
" * When their days of purification are over,' he said, * it may be possible, but thy Guru calls. Say thy farewells.'
"Parting tenderly, our ghosts separated. As we, mounting into the regions of clearer vision, moved Westward, I noticed a thread of silvery lustre, stretching far out into the dim distance. To my question:
"* What is this?'
" My companion answered :
" ^ It is the silver cord, not yet unloosed, which binds us to our bodies.'
" Suddenly a whirring, unintelligible murmur fell upon my hearing.
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^^ To my questioning, my guide made answer :
^^ ^ That is the voice of the Viewless races, to whose forms thine eyes are this day closed, by thy teacher's wisdom. Some day, no doubt, thou wilt see them, when more knowledge and experience are thine.'
^^ Hardly had he finished speaking, when we were caught in a yast cyclone, on whose outer edge we were swiftly whirled away from our direct course.
^^ ^ Lay thine hand in mine, and let thy pur- pose hold fast,' hurriedly whispered my guide. * When we have passed a semi-circumference, we shall again be drawn on our cpurse, by his wiU, who watches over us, and already perceives our danger. We are immediately over one of earth's great battles. Thou seest how the fury of thought reaches beyond the physical. Safely and quickly we reached the farther pole and were again moving in the line of direction straight ahead.
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^^ And now, we found onrselyes on the brink of a onrrent sweeping irresistibly along, which crossed our way at right angles.
"* This/ said my guide, ^ is projected force, bent on its own accomplishment, but it would hurl us into dire straits if caught in it. It has no power, however, on the silver cord of life. Wo can pass over it.*
^^ Then rising, rising far beyond all the move- ment, presently we found ourselves once more in the'familiar surroundings. Irresistibly drawn, as when one awakens from a dream, I resumed my natural condition, and the low, sweet tones of my teacher's voice fell upon my ear :
^^ ^Thou hast been much favored,' it said, ' to welcome thy father to the invisible country. I perceived the approaching event, and thus was able to gratify both thee and thy father. It is not necessary that the dead should become visi- ble for mortal converse, but the living also may become visible in distant places, and this is even
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easier. Thus they may stand on a common plane, until such time as the spirit yields up its astral body, when in company with its soul, it passes on to the condition of rest and assimi- lation.
*' * But you are weary. Retire to thy apart- ment and to-morrow I will hear thy questions. Take with thee my congratulations for thy prompt obedience, courage and fearlessness, in this new adventure.'
"On the morrow, my Guru said: *Thou canst understand by the things thou sawest, how dangerous is the astral way to him who advent- ures without knowledge, or preparation, and yet thou didst see only the ordinary incidents. If to thy sight had been revealed the invisible forms of the hostile races, which crowd all the broad domain called space ; if thou couldst have heard their wdrds of discouragement and mis- leading, perchance even thy high courage might have failed thee.
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^^^ Notwithstanding all this, there have been thoBe, who, being void of wisdom, have hastened to brave these dangers. Is it a wonder, under sach circamstances, that the thread of life should be suddenly snapped asunder, and the experi- menters themselves precipitated into a hastened doom? It is well, always, to understand the laws and customs of any country into which you contemplate journeying. It may save us some confusion in the end.
" * If thou, hereafter, shalt desire to try thy powers in this direction, look steadily at the coin in thy possession, holding it in ihe palm of thy right hand. If danger impends, or uncer- tainty confuses, think of me, as I have taught thee, and the thinking shall be the talisman of safety.'
" With closer and closer attention, and more intense eagerness, I pursued my studies, yet more diligently. I was absorbed entirely in ihe getting of understanding, for the love of it,
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regardless of what might be the result or out- come of the possession of that onderstanding. Nor was I conscious of desire.