MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-three (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) Saturn, the symbol of stability and solidity, is exalted in Libra, the sign of balance and poise. Saturn is Shabbathai, »n2@, from which comes Sabbath, the day of rest. The pans of a scale — which can repre~ sent any pair of opposites — are at rest when brought into perfect balance. Sublimation results from such a balancing. By focusing attention on an activity that is opposite to the one you want to eliminate, neutrality is achieved. In the example given earlier you focused attention on a phy~ sical activity to neutralize the pent-up energy resulting from a forced in- activity. By neutralizing on that level you were able to direct the energy into a new and higher response. That new response must be given stability and form. Saturn's exal- tation in Libra suggests that to do this, to give stability to sublimated re- sponses is the highest usage to which the Saturnine principle can be direc- ted. Once the new higher reaction becomes habitual there is a kind of rest. After the effort of active work you experience the ease of automatically re acting in the new way. Most important of all, your conscious attention is freed to use the new response form in various and enhanced ways. It is similar to the advantages of any automatically established skill, For example, once the mechanics of typing have become habitual your conscious attention is free to use the form in various types of crea- tive work. Similarly, once a constructive habit — like a joyful feeling automatically ‘arising whenever you wait — is established, your attention is free to go on from there. During such moments it is easier for you to contact and assimilate extra spiritual energies. ‘The formation of desirable habits is one meaning of the exalted Saturn, but there is something further indicated by this Zodiacal assign- ment. Here we find Saturn, the concretizing force exalted in an air sign! By itself air brings forth thoughts of evanescence, flexibility, mutability — even instability. The seeming paradox points to an important principle. In the building of constructive forms, such as those we have been discus- sing, there is a need to avoid excessive fixation, as the Alchemists would put it, Stability at its highest should be like the delicate poise of perfectly balanced scales — a resting point, an interlude of peace — but ready to move on when the impetus of a new cycle energy upsets the established equilibrium. ‘The idea presented is that even constructive responses should not be considered as final perfections. No matter how right a form of be- havior or response may seem to be at present, there will come a time when it will no longer be so for you. As an aspirant to Initiation all your Ichievements should be thought of ia this way; harmonious reconciliations — resting places — from which you will eventually enter into another cy- cle of active weighing and measuring in order to achieve another balance on a higher turn of the arc. a)sé . $$ \ i MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 53 Fe. #3 ‘A good example of how all constructive attributes should be viewea is exemplified by those associated with Libra. We find such things as good manners; refined taste; appreciation of the higher forms of art and beauty; \ love of peace; attractiveness. All will agree that these are positive and . constructive qualities, but only up to a certain point. Carried too far, held too long — they become actual errors or even evils. . When such attributes are exaggerated in importance and restricted by stereotyped ideas of what constitutes them, these basically desirable qualities become actual hindrances. You have seen the selfish and self- | Satisfied representatives of overconcern for the social graces and ameni- ties. By giving too much attention to the forms of so-called gracious living, all the warmth and caring for others that should be the underlying motiva~ I tion is lost sight of, leaving nothing but a hardened and empty shell. Since building forms of constructive response is necessary to our spiritual unfoldment, we want to avoid such errors. All our formulations should be considered as temporary equalizations that must eventually be upset, The form of stability that we strive for is thus symbolized by the perfectly balanced scales of Justice. We bring energies into equality from 4 previous painful imbalance; but we remember not to overfixate, so that we keep ourselves open to receive new impulses and work toward new per- fections. Another symbol for the same thing is the woman in Key 21, She is dancing on air! A dance has a definite form made up of rhythmic inter actions between movements, As a symbol for Saturn, planet of earth and solidity, the dancing figure points to the truth that such orderly movement is the real nature of every seemingly solid form. Another aspect of the work to be accomplished in this Path is indi- cated by the Venus rulership. Venus is a symbol of attraction, of the qua- ities that bring things together — the beautiful feelings and appearances, thoughts and ideas that draw others to us and us to others. In Key 11 there is a lot of the color red, opposite and complement of the green of Libra- Venus. Any pole of a pair of opposites always includes the other. In all attraction there is something of repulsion. To repel in physics is to drive apart or tend to do so. It is this quality in bodies or forces that keeps them in specific relationship one to the other. There is in the pair of opposites attraction and repulsion, a correlation with the Saturnine basis of form. We tend to associate repulsion with hate and other negative ideas, but as Aspirants you need to appreciate repulsion. Rightly understood as one pole of a pair of opposite-complements it can be deliberately utilized to neutralize an unwanted attraction so it can then be sublimated to express on a higher plane, Thus hate’ itself can be constructive when it is used consciously and deliberately to counteract an unwanted 'love'. This is es- pecially true in relation to physical sense attractions that have become exag- gerated and distorted. A common example is an inordinate love of sweets. For most of those who suffer from such a love it is certainly unwanted since it brings health and appearance problems. Let's use this as an example and say that you have this problem and have not been able to keep it controlled by the usual methods. (2)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 53 You already know that strong oaths of resistance only make the matter worse. As an Aspirant you should realize that unwanted attractions, such as this, are attractive and desirable only on one level. To the level of you that is influenced by the Higher Self it is definitely undesirable and unwanted! Otherwise you would not be trying to get rid of it, The first point to realize is that so far as the higher, truer Self of you is concerned, the eating of sweets is repulsive. If then we use the de- vice of denying that we like sweets, we are not lying or trying to 'kid' our- selves. The denial is a higher truth because it originates at a higher level of you than that which finds sweets attractive and desirable. It is the Yesod level of you that is attracted to sweets. Furthermore, the attraction is a distortion of the sense of taste, since it needs concen- trated, artificially formulated foods to satisfy it. Concentrated sweets are @ questionable artistic achievement of the ingenuity of man and certainly one of the less helpful and constructive ones. Attraction to them is a distorted pleasure usually bound up with a need for release from tensions of various kinds. The associations in sub- consciousness, however, need not be exposed to get rid of the compulsion. It serves no useful purpose and is more likely to be inaccurate than not. The point is that you have a habit pattern that needs eliminating, since it is harmful to your health and appearance. Furthermore, the level of you that is more directly influenced by the Higher Self is repulsed and pained by this compulsion. So, once again remember that higher levels of consciousness always have dominion over lower ones and that the dominion is brought into effect through the power of suggestion. In this case the suggestion is given by associating repellent feelings, images and ideas with the actual eating of the sweets. You make no heroic efforts to restrain the impulse when it comes. You go ahead and eat the sweets, but with every single bite you tell yourself how revolting the taste is and how much you dislike it! Actually make sounds of disgust! Think of the worst tasting medicine you were ever forced to take! Remember the feeling of nausea and try to develop it as you take another bite. It is important to exaggerate your dislike in this manner because you are working to neutralize an equally exaggerated 'like'. On that level the repulsion has to equalize it. As you put on a good act remember it is truth on a higher level than the compulsion. You are working to bring an unbalanced taste back into balance and the use of an extreme is necessary to give weight to the other side. It is best not to force the craving just so you can work on it, Wait until it rises up from subconsciousness in the usual way and then put all the intensity of imagery and feeling you can into the counteractivity. This, however, is only the neutralizing aspect of the process of Sublimation. At other times when you are not feeling the craving for con- centrated sweets you train yourself to enjoy the healthful sweets of nature. For this you use any fresh fruit. With careful attention to the sense of taste you can cultivate an awareness of subtle and delicate variations of 8)‘ 2" MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 53 \ ‘Through keen attentiveness to slight \ flavor that you have missed before. oa a on this new ex- differences in color, odor and shape you can further enhance : perience, Then you should think about the vital livingness inherent in these foods; the life that is serving you so you can more fully serve life. In this way the eating becomes a ritual of gratitude and dedication! If you will recall some earlier teachings, there is a direct relationship be- tween bodily nourishment and the performance of the Great Work. Eating becomes a means for accelerated unfoldment when it is approached in this way. By developing a real appreciation and understanding of the seemingly mundane act of eating you are making of it an offering to the service of Spirit. Even if you do not have a compulsion to overcome you should see the value in this type of imagery With such thoughts and feelings you are creating a higher form to take up the energy of a lower one. You are transforming a perverted, harmful compulsion into a ritual of gratitude and dedication to Spirit. ‘The methods outlined in this and the last lesson should give you principles that can be applied in many instances to help yourself and others. However, there are some seeming exceptions that should be noted so as to avoid confusion. Although the principle is really the same, there are in- stances where the application must be different. Addictions, such as to drugs or alcohol, first of all require medical help to eliminate the physical addiction. In these cases no amount of the addictive agent can be permitted. So in order to neutralize emotional addiction, the method must be different. ‘Anyone who has a serious drug or alcohol problem and has come to where he sincerely and of his own volition wants to be free of it will have experi- enced enough actual horrors and humiliations so that just remembering them will serve as the repellent stage. Then after using such remember- ing as a neutralizing agent the attention should be quickly directed to con- structive activities that are quite absorbing. In such cases a more active sublimation is usually in order, Creative hobbies in many fields have been found to be quite effective. As you continue your ascent through the Path of Lamed the respon- ses in yourself that need altering or eliminating seem to increase instead of decrease. This is because you are becoming more aware of what is necessary for unfoldment and consequently more exacting with the perfor- mance of your own personality. Personal responses, reactions and lines of thought that seemed quite acceptable up to now do not seem that way to you any longer. As you prepare to receive the intensified forces from Geburah you realize that all the activities of your mind, emotions and physical body must be even more disciplined and dedicated than you have thus far achieved. These alterations in your point of view and in your dedicated effort bring the personal vehicles into balanced alignment, Will-ideas from the plane of the Higher Mind are able to impress you because you are more lin tune’ with them. As these higher impressions are received by you with more and more distinctness you will be able to translate them into thought images and positive feelings that help bring the race consciousness into balance on a higher turn of the arc. (4) a4 a 4 ee 22 aut ou St moet e 2. “rat? a 28 MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 53 TECHNIQUE Prepare yourself for ascent through the Path of Lamed by perform- ing the visualization that makes you one with the Tree. It should be easier by now and clearer to your inner gaze. You should feel subtle energies flowing through you as you 'place' each Sephiroth in its appropriate position in relation to your body. Now put your attention on Kether, the luminous Crown of white light! That Crown is Thy Eternal Self! Intone Its Holy Name! (Eheyeh) And give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Eternal, Indivisible, Ineffable Being! Thy Will whirls forth the movement from which everything proceeds." Next give your attention to the pearly grey Chokmah. It is the sphere of the heavens, the stars above! It is thy Divine Father! Intone His Holy Name! (Yod Heh Vav Heh) And give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Divine Giver of Life! All that lives abides in Thee and in the perfection of Thy Wisdom and Thy Love." Give your attention next to Binah. It is the sphere of Saturn, of intel- ligence, of the limitation that is love! It is thy Divine Mother! Intone Her Holy Name! (Elohim) And give this meditation: "Thou art the Sanctifying One. From Thy boundless love come the boundaries that teach! Thus dost Thou prepare Thy beloveds to re- turn with Understanding to Thee." Next give your attention to Malkuth at your feet, It is the sphere of the Kingdom, the eternal result. It is the mystery of Earth! Intone Its Holy Name! (Adonai) And give this meditation: "Thou, Oh Lord of Earth art also the Bride Who ‘sitteth on the throne of Binah'! So, Thou art really the Divine Mother. Holy, Holy be Thy name." Put your attention on the violet Yesod. It is the sphere of purity that reflects the stars above! It is thy sure Foundation! Intone Its Holy Name! (Shaddai El Chai) And give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Mighty One of God! Thy livingne of remembrance that reflects the Eternal to me. Merge your attention into the yellow of Tiphareth. It is the sphere of Beauty, of the Ego that is One! It is the Son, it is thy Self! Intone Thy Holy Name! (Yeheshuah) And give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Dweller within my heart! Iadore Thee, I cherish Thee, yearn for Thee! Let Thy Light shine through me and prepare me to serve Thee more fully. Let me be Thy vessel and help extend ‘Thy Light till every human countenance reflects the Beauty of Thy all-embracing Love." Visualize the yellow sphere expanding outward until you are centered within it. Above you and to the right is the green Path of lamed. Visualize yourself ascending into that Path until you are centered in an aura of its vib- rating green light. Intone Lamed on the note F# and give this meditation: forms the foundation (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 53 "In the Path of Action I learn to reconcile differences and bring ah things to rest. Then, refreshed and revitalized I work again, serve again until the Perfect Day." Visualize yourself ascending into the red sphere of Geburah; intone the Divine Name Elohim Gebur and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Strength of Eternal Law! In Thy guise as the Destroyer Isee nought but Binah's love! Thou Dissolvest that which has been so that which shall be can unfold." Revisualize yourself as one with the entire Tree; intone Yeheshuah and then Amen and finish with the usual exercises. ## (6) 0 =e OLMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-four (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) Justice is the Tarot name for the 22nd Path of Lamed; and Deen, 177, Justice, is the highest name for the 5th Sephirah to which this Path ascends. Full entrance into the Grade of Greater Adept requires that you understand justice more fully and practice it with more skill. Since the highest name for the 5th Sephirah is also Justice, what you initiate in this Path you will continue to unfold as an Adeptus Major. In her combined attributions the central figure in Key 11 reveals the essentials of right judgment and the way to best unfold it. The scales and the sword identify-her with the Roman Goddess, Justitia, but she is also Venus, ruler of Libra and symbol of love. The sword represents the care- ful discerning quality that is so much a part of justice, while the scales emphasize ideas of fairness, impartiality and a veneration for truth. By itself, an impartial judgment suggests a decision that is unmoved by per- sonal preferences or feelings. Yet Venus, above all, stands for the capacity to feel with and to care. This seeming contradiction is really the first key to understanding true justice. In its highest sense an impartial judgment should be thought of as the ability to 'know what is the greatest good! in any given situation and to act upon it without any hint of blame or condemnation. Such knowing, how- ever, requires that you have something more than all the outer facts. It re- quires that you be able to identify with the situation to a certain extent and experience @ measure of its inner Reality, There must be a perceptiveness and cognition of the persons, phenomena or events involved that partakes of Truth from the plane of the Higher Mind. Now recall that Key 11 is associated with elimination and Sublimation. Before anyone can participate consciously in the level of truth and perceptive- ness that ‘knows what is the greatest good’, he must first eliminate from his personality the tendency we all have to judge hastily and evaluate everything without much real thought. Our Western Civilization has emphasized the value of the critic to such an extent that everyone gives his opinion — con- tinuously and mostly derogatorily — about life and the world. . . human nature and its ills in general, other people and their shortcomings in parti- cular. Yet we know that criticism is a form of discernment and not an evil in itself, The ability to distinguish between the relative merits of things and then choose the best is the basis of all intellectual unfoldment and of our pre- sent civilization, But the scales are out of balance now. We need to remedy an extreme by emphasizing opposite qualities that will help bring advanced intelligent humanity back into a better balance. To do this we must give our attention to feelings of praise, esteem, respect for and devotion to others and to ideals. Furthermore we must re- cognize the importance of such feelings in spiritual unfoldment. Before you can participate in the perceptiveness and quality of cognition that originates on the Higher Mental Plane you must totally eliminate ordinary criticism qQ)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 54 from your daily activities. It is like a heavy weight that keeps you from lifting your consciousness up to the plane where all minds are One. When you are receptive to that level, Justice is realized as being eternally per- fect because it is the expression of immutable Cosmic Law. Ih this endeavor control of words and deeds is not enough. By now you have some knowledge of the real potency of thoughts and feelings. The elimination of criticism must include what you allow yourself to think and feel. Derogatory thoughts and belittling evaluations of all kinds must be recognized and purged from your habitual expression. Admittedly this is not easy in our day and age. To malign others and comment extensively on the sad condition of the world and the inept way it is being run is considered sophisticated and intellectual. In fact, intellec- tualism and dissent are almost synonymous, but intellectualism will never admit you to the Higher Worlds! The Path of Lamed ascends from Tiphareth, sphere of the Sun and symbol of Rebirth! Key 19 depicts the reborn human consciousness as two children looking up with adoration and trust to that which is above them. Recall in earlier lessons on Key 19 how the importance of returning to the trust and wonder and devotion of a little child was stressed. You need to re-experience that feeling and direct it with sincerity toward that which is higher than you. If you lack the humility to recognize that there are conscious beings ahead of you, then you will also lack the strength to lift yourself to the plane of thought that partakes of Higher Mind. If you are able to feel esteem and respect for qualities in other human beings that deserve it, you will be nourishing those qualities and helping them to flourish for all humanity. By cultivating a feeling in yourself that is full of praise for others you help awaken them to their inner Divinity. Esteem and encouragement nourish the Higher Self responses — those subtle yearnings almost every- one feels at times, to be more unselfish, more loving, more trusting and noble than they seem to themselves to be. With persistent practice the withholding of adverse criticism can become just as habitual as giving it used to be. Eventually you will find yourself silently listening at times when you used to be busy judging, ana- lyzing and deciding about the merits and demerits of another human being. You simply stand before another with a silent respect, withholding all thoughts and feelings that separate and deride. You let the Divinity in an- other speak to the Divinity in you, and as you do — a new world of knowing and reality will open before your eyes. One thing to realize as we learn to withhold criticism is that we are not really qualified to comment on other people's personalities in the way we usually do. Even in ordinary law the capacity to judge with fairness and impartiality is considered quite a hard-earned skill. A judge must have unusual mental qualifications so that he is able to weigh and measure a great amount of information from every side of a situation and arrive at some over-all conclusion about it. This requires that he have considerable (2) o ap led Bo ,MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 54 knowledge from prior education and study so that he is able to correlate all that information with the basic laws and principles that he must decide are applicable to it. Wisdom is aligned with justice in this usage since real judicial acu- men, as just described, would require no small measure of it. This is in- dicated in Tarot also. Key 3, Venus, ruler of Libra, is Qabalistically as- signed to the pair of opposites, wisdom and folly, This in turn associates both wisdom and justice with creative imagination. If you would understand why another acts as he does you must be able to imagine how he feels; you must be able to put yourself in his place. It is really the same as our prac- tice of silent listening to another so that his inner nature is given an oppor- tunity to 'speak'. As its title indicates, faith is necessary to complete the work of this Path. It is faith in the essential divinity of humanity that is needed, together with the courage to remember it and consider it even when appearances seem to be saying the opposite. By remembering it in your daily encounters with other people you will begin experiencing something from them that was not apparent before. You will be encouraging the inner, truer side of their nature to express itseli, Until the inner nature is given an opportunity to 'speak', there can be no just and fair evaluation of any individual, situation or state of affairs. Now there are innumerable degrees in all spiritual perception, as you well know. Only one who has actually become a Greater Adept in the full sense of the title is able to perceive the eternal soul as a full resume of all past life experiences, What is revealed to you through this practice is a lesser but paralleling realization that gives you a 'view! from the inner side. Without this balanced perception all attempts at evaluation cannot help being prejudiced and unfair. For example, one individual may act ir- rationally and seem to have little control of himself in several areas. An- other person may appear calm, self-assured and very much in control of his emotions. On the surface the second would be considered more highly evolved. But, unless you were able to perceive inwardly, you could not really know. The erratic and seemingly unstable one might be in the very early stages of an arc of unfoldment that is higher than the more controlled individual who is in the finishing stages of a lower level of unfoldment. Thus the practice of withholding criticism is essential if you are devoted to truth. We block our own development by presuming too much. We help it by making a habit of giving praise and encouragement to every little expression from anyone and everyone that reveals even the slightest influence from the Higher Nobler Self. Another requirement along this same line is the need to broaden our ideas of the spiritually developed. Many aspirants err in considering only those who are actively engaged in esoteric work to be highly evolved. This is another erroneous judgment based on insufficient data. Any human being ‘who is dedicated to truth and justice and shows compassionate concern for his fellow man is, in some measure, receptive to the plane of the Higher Mind. That plane is not exclusively reserved for those who can give it a name! It is open to anyone to the degree that he has developed the meditative (3)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 54 state and is devoted to something that has more than personal significance, He may be taking a path in this life different from yours but equally impor- tant to the Great Work. Remember the words of the Fama Fraternitatis quoted in an earlier lesson: "Truly to whom it is permitted to behold, read and thenceforward teach himself those great characters which the Lord God hath inscribed upon the world's mechanism and which he repeats through the mutations of Empires, such an one is already ours though as yet unknown to himself." All who contribute to the betterment of the world and the unfold- ment of human consciousness receive from the Higher Mental Plane even though they may not be aware of it. As you work to perfect yourself in the practice of non-criticism, remember that extremes are never the way. There should be no thought of a blind determination to see ‘only the good'. This has little value and exposes you to exploitation by the immature personalities of the world. The point of our practice is that even while the outer imperfections and de- fects may be very painfully apparent, they are not what you are seeking since you already know about them. What you want is an experience of the inner side; a 'voice' from within. You help others most effectively when you act as an emissary for the Ego in every human heart. If you ‘listen! to the Spirit speaking through another to you, you will know the right word to help him begin to listen too. Another caution is appropriate here. Even though you are learning to be more careful before making decisions, this should not stop you from doing the best you can when it is required. Incorrect decisions are better than none at all, in many areas. We all go through a period when higher guidance is not very clearly defined and we are not yet able to experience the inner nature of things to where we are sure of it. Lamed is the ox-goad, the teacher. Incorrect decisions educate us toward making better one: Remember the significance of Saturn exalted in Libra. You make a decision that is as equitable as you are at present capable of making, but you leave yourself open to adjust and alter that decision when further developments and perceptions show it to be advisable. Put another way, you keep your consciousness poised and ready to let go of a lesser truth when a greater one begins to appear on the horizon of your consciousness. The practice we have been discussing is designed to bring needed emphasis to the side of praise, esteem and respect and to help lessen the popular penchant for incessant adverse criticism, Yet for you as an initiate this same practice can be extended and have yet more far-reaching results. With the idea firmly established that no one is qualified to judge others the way they do, you refrain from criticizing, but you listen in a special way when others criticize you. Since they are judging from insufficient evidence you should not allow yourself to be wounded or offended. Yet if you are truly perceptive and keep yourself from throwing up a protective wall of self-justification and rationalization, what others say about you can help you uncover subtle hindrances. Especially beneficial are ideas given to you by those you know love you. They may not be altogether correct, but usually they are sincere in trying to help you, Even if they are angry there can be a partial truth in what they say. (4) ee ~— on oe a ee ee ar) MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 54 The way you can gain enlightenment is to listen as objectively as Possible; listen to their evaluation of you as you would listen if they were Speaking of a stranger. You will become aware of impressions you are making that are not exactly as you imagined them to be. For example, you might find that the beneficent and wise image you have of yourself is marred, so far as others are concerned, by egotism and pride. Your desire to give of your wisdom might be considered by others as meddlesome and presump- tuous, There is something for you if you remember that the Higher Self can speak through any lips. Another human being can reflect back to you what the Higher Self within your heart wants you to know. Thus as you complete your ascent through the Path of Lamed you should have a more comprehensive idea of justice and right judgment. Furthermore, you should be eager to realize and then eliminate any persona- lity hindrances that are keeping you closed off from the Higher Mental Plane and from more conscious communion with those Inner School Adepts, Who are continuously broadcasting Their Wisdom for all who prepare themselves to hear. TECHNIQUE, With this Technique we complete our ascent through the Path of Lamed and prepare to enter fully into the Grade of Greater Adept. Visualize yourself as one with the entire Tree. Feel the subtle differences of quality, of color, of tone each Sephirah gives you as you carefully visualize it in proper position on your body. Before continuing, visualize a vibrating line of Green ascending from the yellow of Tiphareth at your heart up to the red sphere of Geburah at your right shoulder. Now put your attention on the Scintillating Kether — a glowing white crown upon your head, Intone Eheyeh and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Divine and Eternal Self! In Thy Beingness do I dwell, overshadowed by Thy Presence, centered equally in every atom of space." To the left is the Illuminating Chokmah. Intone Yod Heh Vav Heh and give this meditation: "Thou, Oh Divine Father, dost give freely of Thy treasures to all who revere Thy Name." To the right is the Sanctifying Binah — dark and yet shining like the sea at midnight. Intone Elohim and give this meditation: “Thou, Oh Divine Mother, dost fashion the ever-changing vestures that first conceal and then reveal the inner formless Light. " At your feet is the Resplendent Malkuth, a mixture and completion of all the spheres above. Intone Adonai and give this meditatior "Thou, Oh Divinity of Earth, dost provide the place of testing that prepares us for Thy Goal." Next, attempt to feel the color violet as you center your attention on the purity of Yesod encircling the area of the genitals, Intone Shaddai El Chai and give this meditation: (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 54 \ "Thou, Oh Mighty One of God, dost provide me with the strength < that keeps me reaching for the Sun." ~~ Attend now to the Mediating Tiphareth, the golden yellow sphere surrounding your heart. Now image it as expanding. . . expanding in all directions until you are centered within it. Intone Yeheshuah and give this meditation: | "Oh Thou, Divine and perfect Self! Thy Beauty shines out from every eye when I learn to really look. " | Still centered in Tiphareth visualize the Path of Lamed extending from the right. Ascend upward into it until you are centered in an aura of vibrating green. Pause to visualize yourself as the central figure in Jus- tice, holding the sword in one hand and the scales in the other — clothed | in a green cape for Venus with the cross of Tav upon your breast. Now in- tone Lamed on the note F# and give this meditation: “Thou art the Great Adjuster — ever restoring balance through ol actions that instruct; ever preparing Thy loved ones to enter the Temple of Insupportable Light." Visuatize yourself entering into a sphere of vibrating red for | Geburah. Partake of the strength to act that is there for you, Intone Elohim Gebur on the note C and give this meditation: | "Oh Thou, Strength of Higher Will! It is Thee ladore and revere as I revere Thy reflections on earth. Return to the visualization of yourself as the whole Tree. Intone Yeheshuah once again and then Amen. Finish in the usual manner. ## (6) ee gem EreMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-five (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) Entrance into Geburah, the 5th Sephirah on the Tree of Life, repre- sents a stabilized unfoldment of the qualities and powers associated with the Grade of Greater Adept. In working Chapters that follow the Western Initiatory Tradition there are no outer ceremonies to symbolize attainments beyond the Grade of Lesser Adept. This in itself is important symbolism. In Tiphareth dwells the One Ego who is also Adam Melek ... the Solar Logos ... the Divine Son. To become one with Tiphareth is to give birth to the Christ Consciousness and to realize directly that the One Ego of all humanity is the Real Self within your heart. The Grades of Initiation corresponding to Sephiroth above Tiphareth are as the maturing of the Christ Child toward eventual identification with the Indivisible Self in Kether. Since these Initiations take place on the Inner Planes, outer ceremonies are not appropriate. Once the Higher Conscious- ness is born in Tiphareth the Sephiroth above it are gradually activated and their powers transmitted through the awakened Higher Ego to the personality Sephiroth below. Actually the Central Self is not in full dominion within a human per- sonality until Its triune nature has been activated. That is, until the trian- gular interplay between the Egoic consciousness in Tiphareth, Volition in Geburah, and Memory in Chesed, is fully and freely flowing, Our present work will be devoted to a thorough comprehension of Geburah, the sphere of Egoic Will. Geburah is our source of volitional energy. It expresses through an individual who is particularly receptive to it as a tremendous strength of will, Because this will power available from Geburah is so extraordinary, it is essential that there be adequate structures built into your subtle vehicles to receive, control and utilize it in accordance with cosmic law. The work and practices prescribed for you in the Paths of Mem and Lamed prepared you to handle this increased influx of power correctly. In the Path of Mem you learned the importance of sacrificing merely personal concerns for human concerns. In the Path of Lamed you completed your pre~ paration by recognizing and then purging out any selfish responses that might distort that power. Everything you have accomplished thus far in your spiritual unfold- ment has prepared you to vigorously renew your vow of service to mankind ‘The vow represents much more than just taking an oath made up of word: it represents a transformation of your whole way of thinking about others and of your responsibility to life. The vow symbolizes a built-in control, based on this transformation, that acts like an automatic censor over what you allow yourself to think or feel or do. It keeps you from ever deviating Very far from right use of any powers made available to you by occult unfold- ment. ‘This automatic control is not an overnight accomplishment. Your QMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 55 years as a Builder of the Adytum have given you enough understanding of the universal evolutionary process and enough conviction of the truth of unity so that any real misuse of power would be almost impossible for you. Geburah is the sphere of the activity of Mars, a power we have come to identify with the dynamic energy behind actions, drives and in- stincts of all kinds — both in nature and in man. We have thought of the Mars force as being neither beneficent nor inimicable in itself, but as just power, and therefore dependent for ite quality of expression on the type of form (mental, emotional or physical) it is expressing through. As the ruler of Scorpio — sign of sex, birth and death — Mars can be constructive or destructive. As the ruler of Aries — sign of action, initiative and domination — Mars can be beneficent and accomplishing or malignant and tyrannical. Geburah, situated on the Higher Mental Plane and symbolic of Egoic Will, is to be distinguished from the force referred to as Mars, and yet both bear the same color. Only Mars and Venus have colors identical to their Sephiratic spheres of activity. This color identity between Mars and Geburah suggests that the universal volitional energy which impels to action is the same — whether the action is an ideal mental expression of Egoic Will, as in the case of a Greater Adept, or whether it is a distorted com- pulsion form that serves a lower appetite. The way it is directed, the form it activates, makes the difference in the effect of that driving, willing force. Yet the volitional energy of Geburah is part of the Egoic Triad. It is an aspect of the One Ego, the Central Self, the Christ Consciousness. It is the reservoir of Will energy for the One Ego of all humanity. All and in all, can the Mars energy that finds its sphere of activity in the Sephirah of Egoic Will really be an indif- ferent and neutral force ? ‘The 5th Sephirah has three names: Pachad, 1M, fear; Geburah, 7132, Strength or Severity; and Deen, }1, Justice. ‘They represent stages of human recognition of the volitional energy as it expresses through- out the universe. Dimly recognized in the environment by early humanity, its dynamic force inspired fear. The fear, however, awakened conscious- ness, sharpened awareness and developed mental faculties as man sought relief from the terrors that seemed to surround him. Further human development led to recognition of the regularity and dependability of the forces at work in natural phenomena; and then to the discovery of methods of use — ways to adapt and combine them which are the basis of our present civilization. The Severity title for the 5th Sephi- rah denotes this recognition of the immutable Strength of basic universal laws. In this stage Geburah is thought of as the blind strength behind natu- ral forces and biological drives that can be controlled to some extent and thereby made useful and beneficent. A further and higher grasp of the dynamic force in all things is pos- sible. It is represented by the highest name of the 5th Sephirah, Deen,}77, translated as Justice. The idea given by this word is that which we dis- cussed in the lessons on Key 11, Justice suggests intelligent weighing and (2) ™Meag, =a oeSa MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 55 measuring of a high order. Thus Deen refers to the realization (now be- coming more accepted even by academic researchers who restrict them- selves to the so-called scientific method) that there is consciousness, intel- ligence and purpose evident behind the seemingly blind processes of nature. When the orderly, systematic forces of nature are recognized as intelligent, then purpose and PLAN begin to be evident. Once intelligent Plan is realized as permeating the universal process, then justice is recog- nized as inseparable from it, Complete revelation of the ‘Will of the Father’ for this cycle of manifestation is only gradually and partially revealed to incarnate individuals as they prepare themselves to receive it. However, there can be, at quite an early stage of alignment with the 5th Sephirah, a new and unshakable confidence that absolute justice rules the universe. On whatever level you may be paralleling the unfoldment of a Greater Adept, there will be a definite heightening of your awareness of Order and of Plan, even though you will also be awakened to a complexity of things that was not evident to you before. You feel confident even though you cannot grasp the full Reality as yet that all events, beings and circum- stances have purpose and are guided by intelligent higher beings Who are Just — Who weigh and measure carefully in order to direct universal forces in ways that will best promote spiritual unfoldment in humanity. You will be convinced that this is true whether the present outer circumstances are beneficent or disastrous by our finite standards, As far as your personal life is concerned you begin to realize that seemingly dire happenings were prehaps the most effective in accelerating what really matters — your spiritual unfoldment, Recall the 5th statement of the Pattern on the Trestleboard: "I recognize the manifestation of the Undeviating Justice in all the circumstances of my life." Not only in your personal life, but in the life of your loved ones, your friends, your nation, your world! It is the recognition that whatever is being experienced by any or all of us is the expression of a striving for balance; a rectification of unbalanced interplay between cosmic forces. The rectifying process can be painful, but it is not punishment —it is adjustment! These adjustments are essential to the Divine Self, They enable the Higher Genius within you to continue un- folding toward Its true place in the universal order as a conscious mediator for the Indivisible One. To recognize and remember this balancing process helps you to dis- miss all sense of injustice in the larger picture. When you have confidence in the Cosmic Plan you are able to work with the relative injustices in this world more effectiv Higher perceptions never negate action. The im- Doriancs Gf elisdiisfiog material plans lujustiows i aesllaad aa corectial ta the incoming New Age. We are dedicated to helping promote trust and a feeling for fairness in the collective consciousness. The more justice is made evident here and now, the more effectively will humanity be able to revere it and honor it in everything that we do. The unfolding of the Divine Man through the agency of the personal man is an unfinished process, as you well know. There are misfunctions, errors and temporary structures that need to be eliminated along the way. (3)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 55 indrances as human consciousness Evolves Now cnesgies coming in necessitate the destruction of old forms . of thought and feeling and action that have become exaggerated, causing imbalances or ‘evile!, The adjustments bring us back into closer c mity with truth or the way things really are. ‘The oversctting of balance as well as the rebalancing ie part of the Plan that is guiding humanity to awareness of its Divinity; that is preparing _ it to consciously share in the universal creative process. All the impacts painful and joyful alike — of physical existence are leading us toward ful- filling our glorious destiny as conscious mediators for God in the admini- stration and perfection of Earth. Mediation is the meaning of the number 5, and through conscious alignment with the 5th Sephirah you are preparing yourself to become such a mediator. You take your place in the Hierarchical chain to receive from e I those ahead of you and transmit to those who are ready just below. Through the instrumentality of what we have come to call the Law of suggestion, in= fluences, from a higher level than you have thus far unfolded, are trans~ mitted by you, The method is your earnest endeavor to harmonise all your I thoughts and feelings and acts with the truths you receive in meditation. Thus you become an inspiration to others, Your beneficent activities act as subtle influences in the collective human consciousness, By such endea- I vors you become a true Mediator for the One Ego, helping to stir other cen- ters of Its expression away from the pain and sorrow of selfishness and error and toward that Awakening of the Self within the heart, I TECHNIQUE Merge yourself once again into the Qabalistic Tree of Life. Kether I is upon your head —a glowing, whirling brilliancy! Chokmah is touching your left cheek with its pearl-like luminosity! Binah gently caresses your right cheek, inspiring you with a great feeling of love! That Divine Triad reflects Itself in the Egoie Triad centered in I Tiphareth, surrounding your heart, and extending Itself upward into Chesed e and Geburah at your shoulders, I The personality triangle is centered in Yesod at your genitals and extends itself upward to Netzach and Hod at your hips. You stand in Malkuth, the Kingdom, the flower of the Tree. I With the Sephiroth thus envisioned put your attention on the Super- nal Triad surrounding your head and intone its three Holy Names: Eheyeh! Yod Heh Vav Heh! Elohim! Then give this meditation: | "Oh Thou, Divine Eternal One! Thou art Will, Thou art Wisdom, Thou art Understanding Love! Thou art the essence and the goal, the Self of all that is!" | Next put your attention on Malkuth. Symbolically you are dedicating yourself to help bring Divinity from above into the Kingdom. Intone the ' Divine Name for Malkuth — Adonai —and give this meditation: | "Oh Thou, Lord of Earth! Thy spher. e is the place of perfection, the fulfillment of the Supernal Goal." (4)ka oo —_ = = = = MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 55 Next focus attention on Yesod and then extend it into an awareness of the triad it forms with Netzach and Hod. Intone Yod Heh Vav Heh Tza- baoth on the note F#; intone Elohim Tzabaoth on the note D; intone Shaddai El Chai on the note A#; and then give this meditation: "Thou art the Divine Ones, Who give freely of Thy powers! Thou givest to perfect the Son as Mediator for the Indivisible One." Now put your attention on Tiphareth, the Central Presence within your heart. Intone Yeheshuah. Extend your attention upward to Geburah on the right. Intoné Elohim Gebur on the note C and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Who art the Just One. I rest myself in Thy unfailing and ever available Strength. Now envision the yellow sphere of Tiphareth expanding until you are centered within it. From that central focus pour forth light and love to all directions of space. Consciously direct it to the East, to the West, to the North, to the South — then Above and Below! Intone Yeheshuah once again and then Amen. Finish in the usual manner. — ## (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-six (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) By number symbolism Geburah is associated with mediation (in the sense of going between), a name for the number 5. The Intelligence for the 5th Sephirah is Nesharash, 93, translated as Radical and having the basic meaning of root or source. For humanity Geburah is the root of Volition, When this power is directed toward the Higher Mental Plane it unfolds spiritual organs that act as mediators, Through them you are able to receive from the plane of Divine Mind and transmit what you receive to the concrete mental plane below. In this way intuitions from Neshamah, the Divine Soul, become intelligible to your personal consciousness in Hod. What we are working toward in the sphere of Geburah is to bring these organs of spiritual perception into actual function so that you will be consciously aware on the Higher Mental Plane, Just as in the development of any new organism, something has to activate their growth. Nasher,W3, the root of Nesharash, is the Hebrew word for eagle, symbol of the subli- mated Scorpio, When this force, which is the power of will on the mental plane, is consciously directed for purposes of spiritual unfoldment, the cognitive faculties of your Higher Self are extended — the dominion of the Ego over personality becomes more pronounced. In order to direct the Mars energy toward activating this subtle struc~ tural growth, its true nature has to be discerned. There must be genuine respect and reverence for the Divine Creative power of the universe. This essence of Divinity must be remembered, no matter how painfully human misunderstanding has defiled Its name. In many different ways and through- out your many years of instruction as a Builder you have been shown how to liberate your emotions, your imagery and your thought processes from en- slavement to errors about sex and reproduction, There is no escaping the truth that such enslavement prohibits the higher use of this energy. Key 16 is a symbol of your liberation from such errors and should be before you as we proceed. The lightning flash that is causing apparent destruction is a symbol for Mezla, X12, the Holy Influence from Chokmah. The ‘influence! is the continuing flow of Chiah, 1°n, the Life-force of the Father that initiates and Permeates, with Its livingness, all that exists. That Life-force is also the Light-source shining out from every star in the heavens! It indwells every atom of the universe with the Will and Wisdom of the Indivisible One. In the Divine Name IHVH,i17?, Kether (Will) and Chokmah (Wisdom) are attributed to the letter Yod — itself a symbol of the initiating fire, of Atziluth, the highest of the Qabalistic Worlds, and of the masculine repro- ductive drive. Among the Supernals, Chokmah is the root of fire. It reflects that fire into the Egoic Triad as the volitional will-force of Geburah. Human consciousness, participating in Universal Mind, experiences the Paternal Life-force or Yod-force as the will to think, to act and to initiate ideas. This same essential Life-force — that holds Supernal Will and Wisdom in its flow — becomes the Mars reproductive energy in the formative, trans- a)’ MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 56 formable planes below. There it acts as the impetus behind the laws, the instincts and the drives that reproduce and evolve bodies in every kingdom of nature, It is this realization of the Divine and Sacred source of the reproduc- tive energy that must permeate your every thought and feeling and response. Human will is the middle or mediating expression of it and has natural do- minion over all the expressions below. It is human will — turned upward to act consciously as an instrument for the Divine Soul — that becomes the Redeemer for all the forms on earth. As the Mediator for Divinity, en- | lightened human will can destroy the distorted Yetziratic shapes built up from its own past projected errors. The pure and sacred force thus freed can give its strength to reproducing forms of truth and beauty that are in harmony with the New Age, with the Great Plan and with the goal of Ego dominion in every human heart. In Key 16 the Holy Influence is shown as the Destroyer — tearing of down forms that are no longer constructive to the incoming Age. At this stage of your unfoldment the Destroyer must be especially active within you. Over and over again you must invite the lightning of truth to expose any remaining ties with error in the depth of subconsciousness. Such feel- ings as guilt and shame in connection with sex must be erased, You must not even permit yourself to feel undue upset over the misuses of others. Overreaction gives power to the wrong side, as you well know. All these guilt and misuse patterns can be traced to the prime error of isolated separateness — shown as the lonely peak upon which the tower is built — and to the false identification with the lower vehicles which that error perpetuates. Upon it have been built up the legion of misconceptions, misuses and enslaving habit patterns that allow the lower vehicles to domi~ nate. You can free yourself from all of them by remembering, first, the false foundation upon which they are built and then — the truth! By remembering the truth your emotions and thoughts become bathed I in feelings of the sacredness of life and all its functions. For you there is a new realization of the identicalness of the reproductive drive and the cos- @ mic evolutionary drive. That realization supplies the Strength which trans- forms you into a conscious mediator for the Hierarchy of Light. It fits you to enter into the battle with courage and prowess. The battle is against all those lying patterns which have kept humanity — too long — in sorrow and enslavement to its elemental nature. I All such can be destroyed by the lightning of truth, striking over and over again! In one sense that lightning represents the concentrated effort —‘the will-force — of the Knowers of the Truth, As Their intelligent, purposeful Will multiplies itself through consistent and tireless effort, its influence gains in strength and power. In the formative, transformable levels of human consciousness, Truth gradually begins to prevail over de- lusion and the collective tower of error begins to crumble away. As it does Humanity will reveal, more and more clearly and universally, the Beauty, the Purity and the Divinity of Its True and Immortal Self. ‘These present instructions are particularly aimed at helping to link you consciously with the Knowers of the Truth so that your strength can (2)a eee MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 56 add to the concentration of will-force that mediates for Divinity. Cultiva- tion of reverence for the Divine Creative Force is part of it, There must also be sustained and consistent effort to establish mind control in medita- tion through seemingly personal exercise of will. These practices serve to lift the reproductive energy automatically, so that it begins accelerating the development of the spiritual organs of perception. During this concentrated period of practice there must also be a sort of continuous purgation going on, You strive to recognize and then expel all the conscious ideas and subconscious responses (represented by the falling figures in Key 16) that are neither reverent nor controlled. Their expulsion liberates energy and allows a deliberate build-up of strength to take place. Eventually there is sufficient concentration for the lightning to strike as never before! It is the Great Flash we speak of! It strikes a decisive blow to the tower by knocking off the false crown! After that Flash, even though you will still 'feel! as if you were a separate personality, the feeling will never again be able to delude you as it did. In the blinding light of that great moment, the Immortal, Impersonal Self is revealed. ‘This experience marks an actual occurrence. A firm linkage is ef- fected that was very tenuous and unfinished up until then. It is a linkage in subtle substance that permits receptivity from Neshamah through the Path of Cheth. It becomes possible when there is sufficient unfoldment on the Geburah-Chesed level of Higher Mind. For although Geburah reflects Chok- mah in its volitional, activating strength, it is the direct emanation of Binah — symbol of the nurturing, developing, feminine aspect of the Divine Crea- tive Force. To Binah is attributed Neshamah, the Divine Soul or Mind, source of all true intuitions. From that level of Mind you receive the secret instruc- tions which enable you to complete the Inner Holy Centers and become an active agent of Her finitizing power. As your linkage with Binah matures and strengthens, you enter into the service of the Administrative Intelligence which is concerned with unfolding the Plan of Evolution for Planet Earth. This Administering is the work of the Inner School of liberated Adepts and Masters. When the organs of Higher perception become activated in your Microcosmic World you come into conscious Communion with Them. ‘They are the Knowers of the Truth. Their conscious awareness is primarily focused on the Higher Mental Plane in order to act in unison as The Media- tor for Neshamah, transmitting Her Understanding and Love for the benefit of humanity. Key 5, The Hierophant, is related to Geburah by Tarot number. He symbolizes the Inner Voice... The One Teacher ... Intuition! The liberated Adepts are representatives of that One Teacher, They ‘translate! messages from Neshamah into thought-ideas on the Higher Mental Plane. ‘These can be received in meditation by all who succeed in aligning their consciousness with that plane. Let's recapitulate briefly in order to comprehend the full significance of the 5th Sephirah as both the reflection of Chokmah, root of fire, and the @)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 56 direct emanation of Binah, root of water. This correlates with Geburah as the sphere of Mars, a planet which rules in both fire (Aries) and water (Scorpio). Mars, symbol of the reproductive drive, rules in the area of the brain (Aries) and in the area of the genitals (Scorpio)! The same ener activates both the brain an uve sex Stivell Irie the fiery-water OF the watery-fire of the Alchemists! It is the Life-force or Yod-force of Chok- mah! It is also the form-building, finitizing force of Binah! Geburah, like all Sephiroth below the Supernals, is an expression of the union of Chokmah and Binah. As the sphere of both cosmic and per- sonal volition, Geburah is specifically the expression of that Union in its dynamic outworking through the established laws of the Cosmos and of the Microcosmos. Through one of the Invisible Paths (see diagram attached) the fire of Chokmah is reflected into Geburah, There it expresses as the Volition of Mind, The mental body thus activated by Chokmah is already prepared by Binah. Through Her instrumentality the orderly, intelligent cosmic laws — which have been worked out through countless eons — are preserved so that they can be continuously developed and extended in new cycles of active will. A Greater Adept is one Who has already awakened to awareness of the Higher Self in Tiphareth. From there He is able to ascend in conscious- ness to Geburah and enter into the Life — the Beingness — behind what appears outwardly to be a mechanical order of Nature. It is this 'becoming one with! Cosmic Lives that reveals Divine Purpose never before dreamed of! Purpose that the Greater Adept knows He can help to carry out, ‘This comprehension of Evolutionary Purpose on the level of Geburah is open only to those individualized expressions of the One Ego who have been through enough cycles of development in the lower, detailed worlds to have the basic faculties firmly developed and the 'seemingly! personal strength of will necessary for Higher Initiations. Geburah relates to the ‘awareness of the Will of the Father by the Son'. It is the perception of Kether by the offspring of Chokmah and Binah! It becomes possible as individualized awareness — developed in the lower worlds — begins to look upward toward its Source. Five is the number of the Pentagram, which is the symbol of the real MAN — taking His rightful place as Mediator for the Supernals and carrying out His sacred duties as Ruler, Redeemer and Perfecter of all that is below! TECHNIQUE Begin by visualizing yourself as one with the Sephiroth of the Tree as we have been doing. When the image is completed give your attention to the Supernal Triad surrounding your head. Intone the Holy Names — Eheyeh! Yod Heh Vav Heh! Elohim!, and give this meditation: "Qh Thou, Divine Self! Divine Life! Divine Mind! Thou art the One in Three and the Three in One! Thou art the innermost Reality, the Unity that is One with Love." (4)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 56 Give your attention next to Malkuth, the Kingdom you are destined to rule. Intone Adonai Melek and give this meditation: “Thou art the Holy Temple! Thou hast given of Thy Sacred Self that I might ascend to the Heavens and become One with every Star!" Give your attention to Yesod and then extend it to embrace the tri: angle it forms with Netzach and Hod. Intone the Divine Name: Yod Heh Vav Heh Tzabaoth Elohim Tzabaoth Shaddai El Chai; then give this meditation: “Thou art the powers of Divinity in the lower changing worlds. In Thy spheres the Christ within unfolds toward the fullness of Its un- blemished Beauty." Give your attention to Tiphareth at the heart center and intone Yeheshuah. Then extend your attention upward through the Path of Lamed Into the red sphere of Geburah on your right shoulder. Intone Elohim Gebur on the note C and give this meditation: “Oh Thou, Strength of the Creative Mother! Thou art also the fire of the Father! In Thy sphere I learn to link my use of will to the Will of the Primal One." Visualize the sphere of Tiphareth expanding outward until you are centered within it, Intone Yeheshuah once again and then pour forth strength and light and love’to all the directions of space! Finish in the usual way, ## Attached: Chart of Invisible Paths (5)Builders of the Adytum 5105 N, Figueroa St. Los Angeles, Ca, 90042 Copyright © 1974 INVISIBLE PATHS INDICATED IN RELATION TO VISIBLE PATHS INVISIBLE PATHS INDICATED IN RELATION TO SEPHIROTH THE INVISIBLE PATHS MATL - 56MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-seven (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) ‘The powers of a Greater Adept can, in one sense, be likened to a combination of the most positive attributes of Aries and Scorpio, Courage jn the face of danger, the ability to lead, and strength of will are asso- ciated with Aries. The same strength of will plus magnetic appeal and tmagical' perceptiveness are attributed to Scorpio, Combined, these qua~ lities would give tremendous influence over others, Our Initiatory work in the sphere of Geburah deliberately develops them; and, as it does, it brings with it grave responsibilities. ‘The basic principle upon which all our practical work is founded that there is a Higher Being within us who must be brought into dominion over the actions of the lower personal self. As dedicated Builders we seek always to help others who are ready to awaken to that Higher Being within, This requires that we influence them by the example of our deeds and words and the quality of our thoughts. The strength of the 5th Sephi- tah adds power to the effectiveness of this influence so long as we make certain that the power is not usurped by the lower separative self. Deen, Justice, is the highest name for the 5th Sephirah. One mean- ing of justice is exact conformity with the truth, with the way things really are. As you become more influential through occult work it is of great importance that you continuously strive for self-honesty. The capa- Eity to influence must be held as a sacred trust. It must, at all costs, be kept from degenerating into coercion or manipulation of others, This re- quires an openness with yourself that takes practice to achieve. If, for instance, you deny to yourself that you feel a certain personal exhilaration when others are obviously influenced by you, then the separative tendency would remain hidden and allowed to grow in darkness. You could, in that way, get totally deluded about your motives and the delusion would domi- nate you. ‘The Grade of Greater Adept, the 5th Sephirah, and the Mars energy are all related to the test of power. During cycles when the influx from Geburah is accelerated all aspects of your personalty complex are stimu lated by it, That influx is what enables the Real Self to rise in power and effectiveness so long as the strength you are receiving is rightly directed. You are not a Greater Adept in the full sense of the title, but there is a definite relationship to that Grade in our present work. You are in a cycle of unfoldment that correlates with it. The added strength you are receiving could cause you to experience a surge of temptation to revert to old respon sea, That surge wants to exploit the ability to influence others for the sake of the separated self. ‘The important thing is to recognize such feelings. You can deal with them so long as you allow them sufficient light. Besides Keys 16, 4 and 3 "Key 15 is related to Mars as the sign of its exaltation in Capricorn. ‘The Devil, who represents the delusion of outer appearances, is also as- signed to mirth. More than any other human faculty, mirth or humor can a)of the would | MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 57 keep self-deceptiveness from festering in darkness. The lower self is exposed by laughter! If you remember not to take your personal self- image too seriously you can acknowledge its failures, mistakes and un— lovely traits. With humor you can stand aside a little, shake your head patiently at the childish 'spectacle' of your personality's behavior, and then go back to work to improve on it again and again and again! < ‘Thus when you find yourself getting overly impressed with yourself, bring that saving humor into play and then remember the truth about the powers that animate personality. They are utterly impersonal! If your Personality is impressive or influential with other personalities it is the result of a power expressing through you, not from you! You are nothing by yourself! The more you s Smember that, the more sincerely will you be able to serve in the Hierarchical chain of Influence; an Influence that is anxious to find personality receptacles — humble enough in the true sense — to receive and transmit Power needed for the AGE now coming At this point, place the four 5's of the Minor Arcana before you. Their symbolism, reviewed briefly, will help reveal the deeper signifi- cance of human personality and give you a correspondingly deeper under- Standing of its reason for being in the total Cosmic Scheme. ‘The 5 of Wands symbolizes Geburah in the Atziluthic World of Will- Ideas. It represents the archetype, the principle behind all that expresses as volition and power-to-do. The upright pentagram into which the five Wands are formed is a symbol of Man, the Thinker. It is because we can think that human volition has dominion over the kingdoms of nature below. But that influence is not rightly exercised until the Higher Being within you is dominant over your lower elemental nature. ‘The Pentagram, by the relationship of its points, is a symbol of that dominion, as we have discussed before. Furthermore, by its num- ber proportions it is an actual representation of the relationship that exists between Nature, Man and God. In the language of occultism the pentagram proportions actually demonstrate the place of natural man in the universal scheme and his destined place as conscious administrator e for God. ‘Those proportions reveal, first of all, the right relationship that must be established between the various aspects of the personality com- plex so that it can, in turn, get into right relationship with the forces that play through the universe, The higher! in you must be in command of the ‘lower! before you can handle the powerful energies that must be ha: by a conscious Mediator for God. ee Recall from earlier studies that the pentagram lines are said to express extreme and mean proportion; a number relationship that exists throughout the universe, This refers to the series of numbers (3, 5, 8 13, 21, etc.) wherein the sum of each pair makes the next number, so that the lesser number in each pair stands in the same relation to the greater number as that greater number does to their sum or whole. ‘The pentagram line expresses this relationship doubly. (2)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 57 Let's take the lesser portion of that line as the number 3 (one side of the inner pentagon formed by the pentagram). Then the greater portion would be 5 and their sum is 8. In this relationship 3, the ‘lesser part! represents the kingdoms of nature below natural man. 5, the 'greater part', represents natural man. Their sum and the first whole is 8, the Dominical number related to Christ Consciousness. It is an apt mimber for the Hierarchy of Adepts, Who stand in the same relationship to natural man as he does to the kingdoms below. They represent the first 'whole' because what They know themselves to be is what natural man considers God or the All. Now the 8 that stands for the Hierarchy of Adepts — the ‘whole’ in the first relationship — becomes the ‘greater part! in the second relation- ship with 5, the number of natural man as the ‘lesser part'. Their sum is 13, the whole line and the number of Unity and Love! The Hierarchy of of Adepts are Mediators for the Indivisible One! They influence natural man with Their Light so he, in turn, can shed his influence, constructively, toward redeeming and perfecting all the kingdoms below. Since the pentagram and its proportions are the geometrical symbol for Geburah, we should realize that it is the volitional energy — the Mars reproductive energy — that is the active force in all these influencing re- lationships. That will-energy, focused and directed, can transform what- ever remains of deluded, negative influence over the elements into en- lightened influence that is in harmony with cosmic law and with the ultimate destiny of humanity to become conscious administrators for the perfection of Earth. The arrangement of units in the 5 of Cups expresses the significance and purpose of Man in another way. This Minor Key represents Geburah in the Creative World of Briah. There is in the arrangement of its units an indication of the method whereby human consciousness is unfolded to- wards its goal. The higher levels of the total personality complex must be awakened to, remembered, and then gradually duplicated in the lower levels. Briah is the World in which the abstract archetypes of Atziluth are clothed in their ideal perfection. Human consciousness is able to tune in on this perfection through the mind, focused in meditation. It is an attune- ment to the Higher Mental Plane of Chesed-Geburah. It becomes possible when the 'I! consciousness in Tiphareth is turned upward and held stead) The focused ego then acts as the 'go-between', allowing Briatic Meals te be duplicated in 'language! intelligible to the concrete mental level of Net- zach-Hod. ‘Again we have a dual representation. The awakened Ego receives from the Higher Mind level. It transmits what it receives to its lower per- sonal vehicles. When the concrete mind is able to perfectly duplicate the Higher mind in any given individual, that individual takes his place in the Body of Perfected Adepts. That collective Body acts as a focal point, re- ceiving influence from Cosmic levels and transmitting it to human levels so that eventually all of humanity will perform its destined function in the universal scheme. (3)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 57 There is in the 5 of Cups a hidden number 6. If you draw connecting lines between the separate Cups you would have two triangles touching points at the central Cup. The archetype of perfected man, represented by the proportions of the Pentagram, is experienced in Briah — the World of love and creativity — as identical to the number 6! Identical, that is, to Tiphareth, to Beauty, to the Son, and to the glory of the revealed Christ within! The idea that 6 and 5 both represent the perfected Adam is further emphasized by the fact that 6 is the number of the total personality com- plex which extends from Chesed to Yesod. The 5 of Cups portrays the right arrangement of that complex so that the individual 'I' consciousness knows itself as identical with the 'I' consciousness in everyone else. When this is truly realized the awakened higher Ego begins to transmit Superior energies to all its vehicles and continues to do so until the six- fold personality complex perfectly duplicates its Briatic Ideal. The 5 of Swords represents Geburah in Yetzirah, the World of Formation. Its units are arranged into a pentagram, the same as are the Wands, Since the Formative World is the 'place' where energy pat- terns are alterable and adjustable, it is here that right relationships must be established. This means that the True Atziluthic proportion must be impressed in the Yetziratic pattern world. It has to get im= pressed in the individual formative level to make an Adept. It has to get impressed in the collective formative level to perfect Humanity. These constructive impressions are being made by the work you are now doing. 'True proportions’ are established as you strive to align your responses and attitudes, your feelings and thoughts with qualities of conduct you know to be in harmony with the Higher Self. In the Formative World the will-force of Geburah, rightly directed, makes these construc tive responses ‘second nature! for you. ‘The 5 of Swords points to the need for discriminative action and the systematic cutting away of all that is selfish, egotistical and separa- tive in your attitudes, words and deeds. It is not easy at present because the collective consciousness is contrary all the way. In Divination the 5 of Swords is said to indicate problems, anxieties and failures, It is by working with these over and over again — remembering that there is al- ways strength available equal to the task — that you will finally re-form everything into the ideal proportions and relationships that establish the dominion of Spirit, decisively, over the elementary nature below. ‘The units in the 5 of Pentacles are arranged so that they duplicate the 5 of Cups. Thus they again associate the number 6 with the number 5. As symbolic of Geburah in Assiah thie Key relates to stabilized recep- tivity of the will-energy from Geburah. When the Egoic consciousness is more or less consistently in charge of your personal activities, the Briatic arrangement is in opera- tion, so to speak. That is, when the focus of attention is mainly centered in Tiphareth, Higher Mental plane energies are amplified there and then transmitted to the personal vehicles below. (4) that w ally sgunoemuo MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 57 These energies begin to complete structures and activate organs that were latent previously. The physical and etheric bodies are gradu- ally stepped up in frequency until the physical plane receiving instrument — the brain — is able to register and interpret experiences that took place on Higher Planes. Astrologically, the 5 of Pentacles is a decanate of Taurus, the sign particularly associated with persistence in the face of seemingly slow progress. In Divination this Key has to do with building and cultivation. For us, that is what is taking place. The spiritual counterparts of phy: cal organs and sense receptors are being ‘built! and it is quite impercep- tible at first. There is, indeed, a need for real tenacity in Spiritual work. To our time-bound senses it is easy enough to get discouraged with our- selves. Yet the building is going on surely and steadily for all who persist, as have all of you. TECHNIQUE Before beginning the Technique for this lesson place the four 5's before you, together with Key 16 and the Tree of Life diagram. Meditate upon them for a few moments before proceeding. Note that there is a resemblance between the arrangement of units in both the Cups and the Pentacles to the five Sephiroth from Chesed to Hod inclusive. These are said to represent the greater sphere of Egoic activity, since the central ‘}' awareness can turn upward and give attention to the Higher Mental Plane or reverse Its attention and contemplate the activities in Netzach- ‘Hod with its concern directed toward the world of name and form. With this technique we finish for now our work in the sphere of Geburah and prepare to enter a new cycle of unfoldment that will culmi- nate in Chesed and the Grade of Exempt Adept. Begin with the visualizations for the Tree of Life. See yourself merged with it so that all the ten Sephiroth are in their proper positions relative to your physical body. Now focus your attention on the Divine Triad surrounding your head; intone Its Holy Names (Eheyeh Yod Heh Vav Heh Elohim) and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Crown of Will, Flame of Wisdom, Fountain of Under standing! Thou art in me and I am in Thee, throughout the endless ages." Focus attention next on the four-colored Malkuth at your feet; intone Its Holy Name (Adonai) and give this meditatio: “Thou art the Temple of the living God! Thou art the place of labor! Thou art the Bride made glorious by Union with the Son!" Give attention next to Yesod; intone Shaddai El Chai and give this meditation: “Thou art the sure Foundation that supports me as I learn. Then Thee becometh the Magic Mirror that reveals my Self to me." Focus next on Tiphareth, the Sephirah surrounding your heart; intone Yeheshuah and give this meditation: (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 57 “Thou art the Awakened One glowing within my heart!_ The glow expands and extends Itself to merge with Thy perfect Will, Extend your consciousness from Tiphareth up the Path of Lamed to Geburah at your right shoulder. Now expand that sphere until you are centered within a globe of vibrating red light. Intone Elohim Gebur on the note C and give this meditation: "Thou art the Strength of the Creative Powers! From Thee comes the knowledge of Higher Will and the power to carry it through." Return in your visualization to Tiphareth. Expand that yellow sphere until you are centered within it! Intone Yeheshuah once again. ‘Then feel the glow of love that is filling your heart! Direct it now out- ward to all the directions of space! Send it to the East, which is before you, and to the West behind. Send it to the South at your right and to the North at your left! Now bless with your love everything below you and extend it upward to the farthest reaches of space! Intone Amen three times. Finish with the physical exercises as usual. ## (6)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-eight (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) Our first approach to Chesed and the Grade of Exempt Adept is through the 21st Path of Kaph represented in Tarot by Key 10, the Wheel of Fortune. In Hebrew, Kaph means grasp or comprehension, and Key 10, attributed to Jupiter, adds ideas of expansion and beneficence. The Path name is ypiaon | ysnn 99a, Saykel ha-khayfetz ha-meboqash. It is called both The Intelligence of Desirous Quest and The Rewarding Intelligence for Those Who Seek. It is also known as the Path of Con- ciliating Intelligence. ‘The first of these names alludes to Netzach, sphere of desire, from which this Path ascends. We begin our climb toward Chesed from a Sephirah connected with love, emotion, feeling and desire. This is in contrast to the emphasis on intellect, will, strength and justice associated with the Sephiroth and Paths that culminated in the Grade of Greater Adept. As you have probably noticed by now, your travels through the 32 Paths of the Tree require a continuous balancing. The Middle Pillar is the reconciling one. It represents consciousness which it is our purpos to develop and unfold. We accomplish this by realizing, experiencing, absorbing and then reconciling the seemingly contending forces symbolized by the two outer Pillars of the Tree. During our 'Greater Adept! cycle of unfoldment emphasis was given to qualities of strength, durability, courage, justice and discrimination. You were becoming acquainted with the strength-of-will available to you from the Higher Mental Plane. Now you need to balance your reception of the Strength aspect of Higher Mind with the reception of its Beneficence and Mercy. Jn one sense the 21st Path can be thought of as the first test of your right use of those 5th Sephirah powers. Increase in the ability to influence others must now be balanced by an equal increase in the ability to care about others! That caring begins in Netzach, the sphere of emotion and feeling, as well as of desire. It is desire force that ultimately transforms itself into the boundless love of Chesed. To be able to feel with others, to share their joys and pains and to care intensely about them is essential for us now. It is qual ties such as these that will transform the knowledge and intellectual facul- ties we developed in earlier Grades into compassionate comprehension. As we supplant our former emphasis on self-discipline and destruc~ tion of personal errors with emphasis on understanding and caring about others, we will begin to unfold that loving expansiveness which prepares us for receptivity to the Chesed aspect of Higher Mind. Only its Mercy can assure us that the Strength we developed in Geburah will be utilized in ways that are in harmony with the best interests of all mankind. Qa)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 58 the Strength of Geburah you would not be \ the Path of the Wheel of Life and Death Freedom from the The Greatest On the other hand, without ready for the Path of Kaph! It is that you are entering — as a foreshadowing at least. necessity for incarnating is the Treasure of Treasures! Fortune that there is! It indicates One who is ex- That is what Exempt Adept refers to. x She) has balanced the led- empt from the need to incarnate because He (o: ger of personal Karma. if such an Adept incarnates it is as a Master of Egmpassion, out of an overflowing of love and caring for the well-being of the whole human race. Although you are not yet prepared for the full- hess of that freedom, you are correlating it with your work in this Path. In this correlating unfoldment you have been through two Grades of Adeptship and aspire now to this Path of the Rewarding Intelligence! You have been given enough knowledge of practical procedures in previous Grades so that you should be able to recognize the importance of reward, fulfilled desires and joyful emotions to the unfolding of Higher Conscious- ness. Netzach, representing the personal emotional nature, has legiti- mate desires and requirments that not only do not conflict with spiritual unfoldment, but the denial of them can actually hold you back. ‘The final name for this Path, The Conciliating Intelligence, can help us to rightly grasp the importance of personality happiness and ful- fillment to the performance of the Great Work. Conciliation has several shades of meaning. Among them are: to gain the good will of by pleasing acts; to win over; to unite or bring together. Also, to render accordant Gr compatible; to settle apparent disputes by causing agreements that Please everybody and therefore avoid unpleasantness; thus to harmonize apparent antagonisms amicably. What should be understood from these meanings of the Path that links Netzach to Chesed is that there need not —nor should not — be any sweeping repudiation of legitimate personal desires and emotional needs. Nor should there be any undue censuring of yourself for enjoying so-called worldly pleasures and rewards. These do not in themselves keep you from remaining true to the highest aspirations of your soul. ‘The Conciliating Intelligence suggests that the matter can be settled in a way that is beneficial to the unfolding Higher Self and pleasing to your personality at the same time. In order to accomplish this, however, with- Gut the risk of falling into a trap of self-delusion and error, there must be 2 grasp of Universal Truths and a degree of Spiritual unfoldment that would be impossible for anyone who had not been through all the previous Grades and Paths of the Tree. It cannot be said too often that the purpose of everything we are doing is to bring the lower personality under Higher Self dominion. On its ‘own level the personality Triad (Netzach-Hod- Yesod in this relationship) has needs and desires that — in right measure — should not be denied. Social pleasures, restful interludes with nature or art, sense experiences that give joy to the soul, all serve to renew your physical and psychical energies. ‘They can become part of the beneficent ‘influencing! of persona- (2) © \MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 58 lity. Through them, habit patterns and automatic responses can be formed that aid in bringing the Higher Self into continuous dominion over every~ thing you do. The ideas of ‘fulfilled desire! and 'reward!' connected with this Path should help you to realize that there is just as much transforming power in pleasure and relaxation as there is in the rigid self-disciplines of the Severity side of the Tree. Pleasure has an expansive, outgoing effect on the feeling nature. When you are enjoying yourself you give pleasure to others. Feelings of beneficence and givingness grow in such an emotional environment. The Jupiterian personality type, said to be friendly, soci- able and good-natured, exemplifies the qualities we are referring to. Pleasure, however, indulged in without considering its value to the Great Work, can become a trap and a waste. That is why the Path of De- sirous Quest follows after Paths in which emphasis was given to purging out selfishness and excesses of all kinds. The symbolism of Key 10, the Wheel of the Law, implies that the work of this Path, related as it is to pleasure and desire fulfillment, is no less exacting than the work we per- formed on the other, seemingly more severe, side of the Tree. The main thing to remember is that everything we do and experience, whether it be counted by others as drudgery or pleasure, can serve the unfoldment of the Higher Self. For example, you may derive much plea- sure from beholding the beauties of nature as you perceive them through the physical senses. Yet, if you stop short at the pleasure you miss a great opportunity. ‘The feeling you experience, the swelling joy that ex- pands your heart at such times also opens you to comprehend more fully the true nature of the object before you. When your feelings are thus ex- alted, nourishment is given to the, as yet, mostly dormant centers of inner perception. Much of our instruction up to now has been directed toward helping you to realize that whatever you may see or hear or touch or taste or smell through the agency of the outer senses is only part of a vaster Reality that it is possible for you to know, Everything that exists is a living, conscious aspect of the One Universal Being! Within the Vital Soul or subconscious level of that One Being we are united. The livingness, the consciousness, the inner beingness of whatever you may be looking at begins to reveal it- self to you as the inner Centers unfold. In particular, it is the Jupiter Cen- ter that puts us in touch with that inner conscious life. Note here that this 21st Path of Kaph, and Yesod, the Sephirah to which the Vital Soul is at- tributed, share the same violet color. The method for awakening the Jupiter Center on the arc that leads to adeptship is revealed by its relationship to Key 10 to be through strict conformity to the Wheel of the Law. Right comprehension of and obedience to Cosmic Truths is essential. That is what all true spiritual teaching is aimed at instilling in you. It is only when there is sufficient grasp of Uni- versal Laws — which are identical on all planes of existence — that you are prepared to understand the Conciliating Intelligence rightly. You begin to realize how the emotions are heightened by the senses; (3)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 58 how sense pleasures which satisfy the personality can, at the same time, be unfolding the dominion of the Higher Self. For example: you find some glorious scene of nature before you. You absorb its beauty with your outer senses. Its colors, sounds and scents fill you with joy and exalt your emotions! Gratitude and ecstasy reverberate through and through you! But you do not allow yourself to get lost in that joy or to exploit it for its own sake. You have comprehended its great value to inner crea- tive work. So you circumscribe the exaltation; you limit it into a yearning quest tocomprehend, to understand more fully and to experience with the inner nature of the thing that brings you joy. It is through such an interacting balance between expansion into joy- ful feelings and then limiting into quiet, intensely sympathetic attention that desire force gives nourishment to the developing inner Centers. It is this loving, caring attention that opens, like the unfolding petals of a flower, those subtle, fragile, delicate perceptions. Through them you begin to attune your consciousness to the Universal Consciousness and tog ‘remember! all that the Universal Self has, for eons, been passing through. In earlier instructions on Key 10 you learned that comprehension of this magnitude is dependent upon your success in concentering the cyclic activity of your microcosmic life with the macrocosmic cycles or Great Rhythms of the Cosmos. One thing that is meant by this is that there should be a continuous striving on your part to conform your thoughts, feelings, responses and acts to the Great Principles and Ideals as you have thus far been able to grasp them. If you are tireless and patient in this endeavor, the amount you are able to grasp will continuously expand. ‘As it does, so will the universe you live in, because lack of comprehension is all that limits it for you now. ‘As you enter into the work of this Path of Kaph, do it wholeheartedly! Direct your firet efforts toward cultivating more than ever belore such feelings as gentleness, tenderness and compassion for all beings and creatures that come within your sphere of influence, When these feelings are blended with the Strength you received from Geburah you have the ‘formula! whereby the Inner Holy Planets are brought into harmonious alignment with their Cosmic Counterparts, Then, an inner light begins e ta'Shine and the world takes on another dimensice for you, TECHNIQUE With this lesson we will begin a visualization in which you become the Qabalistic Cross, superimposed upon the Tree. Begin your visualizing with Kether. See it as a brilliant white spher situated about four feet above your head. As you dwell upon this brilliance, intone its Holy Name! (Eheyeh) From out of that sphere of white light shining above your head visua- lize a stream descending; a stream of white light descending down through your body to a sphere situated about four feet below your feet. It is the four-colored sphere of Malkuth it descends to. Intone its Holy Name! (Adonai) ‘Thus far you have defined a stream of light flowing from Kether to (4)ys08 PUY oreo MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 58 Malkuth, You are backed into the Tree with your body situated along the Middle Pillar. Now, instead of defining all six Sephiroth on the two outer Pillars ‘as we have been doing, we will, instead, visualize the spheres of Geburah and of Chesed to represent the whole of each Pillar that carries its name. ‘Thus Geburah will represent the Pillar of Severity on the right and Chesed will represent the Pillar of Mercy on the left. The Divine Name we will Jatone, however, will be the one belonging to the Supernal Sephirah for that Pillar of the Tree. Thus, for the Pillar of Severity we will intone Elohim, the Divine Name of Binah; for the Pillar of Mercy we will intone Yod Heh Vav Heh, the Divine Name of Chokmah. Let's continue now with our visualization. Image a red sphere for Geburah about four feet out from your right side, Let its circumference parallel the area from your neck fo your elbow. (Keep your arms to your pele for this visualization.) It represents the Pillar of Severity! Intone its Holy Name! (Elohim) Now visualize a blue sphere for Chesed in a balancing position out from the left side of you. It represents the Pillar of Mercy! Intone its Holy Name! (Yod Heh Vav Heh) Visualize, now, a flow of light energy going across you and through you from the red sphere on your right to the blue sphere on your left. Qabalistic Cross! The white light of Kether is flowing from above your head to below your feet and then back up again to its source; up and down, up and down, At the same time the light energy is also flowing from the red sphere at your right to the blue sphere at your left, back and forth from right to left and from left to right ed the Cross, visualize a golden yellow ircle from just It is the sphere You are now centered within the Now that you have establish sphere for Tiphareth situated in an area that makes a ¢ below your neck to your waist, thus taking in your heart, of Beauty! Intone its Holy Name! (Yeheshuah) Now visualize the Cross in which you are centered as being trans formed into Gold! It is a Golden Cross now! Breathing rhythmically and deeply, visualize the light energy — golden-yellow now — circulating from above to below, up and down; and from right to left, back and forth — in a rhythmic golden flow. Intone Yeheshuah once again! Cross as you give this meditation: ‘Oh Thou, Divine Presence of Light! Thou art the purpose and the perfection of the Tree! Thou art the glorious golden Sun within — Beakening me, unfolding me, perfecting me — with Thy all-pervading love! Through Thee Iam at once the Redeemer and the One Who is redeemed." Now pour out the golden light of the Cross to all the directions of space! Pour it out from that Central Presence within your heart! Pour $Pecf us a flow of love and tenderness that knows no bounds or limite of orbs what or why! intone Amen and finish with the performance of the Vivsical exercises. For this study period strive to get the visualization physica! Satlined carefully formulated. We will elaborate upon it in lessons that are tocome. ## Continue the motion of the Golden 6)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Fifty-nine (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) ‘The pair of opposites assigned to the Path of Kaph is wealth and poverty. They are aspects of the principle of adequate supply which is ‘also attributed to Chesed, the 4th Sephirah. In the Pattern on the Trestle- board the fourth statement reads: "From the exhaustless riches of its Limitless Substance, I draw all things needful, both spiritual and material." Jn connection with the work of this Path we need to consider just how con- sistently we are able to think and feel and act as if this were true. In the collective consciousness of humanity there are very powerful patterns of anxiety, insecurity and fear built up around the problem of adequate supply. In order to ascend the Path of Kaph you must return to Netzach, sphere of emotion and desire, and strive to liberate your feeling nature from these manifold insecurities. Although intellectual agreement with the idea that there is ample supply for our every need is essential, it is not enough. The whole of your emotional nature must be convinced of the truth you have accepted. ‘The problem must not be oversimplified. These fear-ridden patterns — based on ancient survival needs that have been elaborated and extended by human thought and imagination for long periods of time — have created an almost insatiable desire for security in things and money. It cannot help but affect us all to some extent. Spiritual aspirants tend to ‘consider themselves free from the influence of this pair of opposites before they really are. It is not solved by merely deciding that money and things no longer concern you. To associate poverty and meager living with spiri- tual unfoldment is just as erroneous as associating it with the ability to ‘demonstrate’ wealth. What then is the way to reconciliation and freedom? Always it is deeper comprehension that frees us. When you truly grasp the source of all things in the world, the desire to avoid poverty or possess wealth will no longer arouse strong emotional reactions in you. Your desire will be looking beyond that level — transcending it! Ask yourself something like the following: "Is not the attainment of Immortal Consciousness the highest reward that Ican seek? Then if it is, would not adequate supply be what~ ever is needed to achieve that end?" This concept makes wealth and poverty equal partners in a bountiful, inexhaustible, spiritual supply. We want to develop a feeling for this thought by remembering it in connection with everything we experience. From it there springs a deep appreciation and reverence for physical existence. Has it not provided you with the means through which you became a self-conscious being? Has it not nurtured the Divine in you so that it shall, one day, express perfection on earth? When you are able to revere physical existence in this way you begin to appreciate the limitless treasures it holds for enriching the soul and the it provides for unfolding the Higher Consciousness. wealth of opportunities i It must finally come to where everything you experience in daily life is qQ)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TRE! 2 59 thought of in terms of the opportunity it provides you for developing , Higher Self qualities and for awakening the Inner Centers in a balanced and harmonious manner. = S Now, the ability to view every life experience in this way is pos~ i sible at first only in retrospect! This should alert you to the deeper meaning of one of the names for this Path — ‘The Rewarding Intelligence of Those Who Seek! Liberation from the Wheel is here associated with the deep remembrance of the Jupiter Center, Not only is this Path di- I rectly linked to Jupiter, but it descends from Chesed, sphere of the activity of Jupiter and seat of Memory on the plane of Higher Mind. Chesed, Memory, is also called the Measuring Intelligence. To reap the rewards of wisdom through remembrance there must be plan, order and purpose besides earnest desire! Wnat you remember of the Past should be measured accurately against the present, You might re- e call, for example, how strongly you once desired material possessions and then compare that with your present aspirations, It should reveal more transformations in the desire nature than you had realized and thus give you needed encouragement, If you are able to ‘stand aside! in this remembering you will begin to see how painful and joyful situations had an equal share in providing you with the treasures of enlightenment. Material poverty and material wealth are as two sides of a coin that has supplied you with the real riches of in- carnate existence. We said earlier that the realizations of some of these ‘riches! can only be appreciated in retrospect. When you are directly absorbed in an experience it is not possible to be objective enough to garner its fruits. The value of poverty and failure, for instance, cannot very well be appre- ciated while it is happening to you, It is later, through guided, purposeful remembering that such periods can be measured rightly. In the early years of my present life I knew extreme poverty, phy- sical pain and sorrow. Because I was being prepared by the Inner School for my present position as Spiritual Leader of B,O.T,A, it was necessary that the experience be more intense than anything most of you will have to know, It could be called a representation of the poverty, physical pain, feelings of hopelessness, inadequacy and insecurity that characterize the present sufferings of the whole human race. Yet, although it was unique in degree for the reasons I have given, it can serve as an example of the riches that can be derived from even the most painful outer experiences. In those early years of deprivation, I experienced the intense capa- city for suffering inherent in the human soul, From it there arose in me an equally intense determination to do something about it. I yearned to find ‘a way to soothe the suffering and sought intensely for knowledge of why and how! There followed a period of voracious reading — which included the doctrines of almost every faith. From that reading I 'recalled' for present use knowledge already grasped in past lifetimes. The whole early years! experience served to bring my previously developed qualifications into har- mony with the cyclic energies and needs of the present age. (2)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TRE! 59 What I want you to grasp in connection with the work of this Path is that the experiences would not have given me the treasures they did if I had been aware at the time that it was riches beyond compare! While I was having these experiences I was as lost in the pain and suffering as are all who endure it. It was in retrospect — after [had completed the recapitu- lation period — that the riches became available to me through a form of remembering. What was true for me is true for you, also, The early years of any lifetime recapitulate the development you have thus far unfolded and pre- pare you for further development and work in this one. If those years were filled with rapid change, many mistakes and painful repercussions — along with a driving determination to know the why of existence and of its suffering — you can be reasonably sure that you are treading the Accelerated Path. There is a relationship between the intensity of experiences and the rapidity of changing events in the early years of an incarnation and the level of evo- lutionary development that one has thus far unfolded. There is also a correlation between the practice of recalling early life experiences and the yet deeper recollection of past lives and past cycles of the Life-power's unfoldment, associated in Tarot with Jupiter and Key 10. ‘What you are now practicing is a preparation for that deeper recollection. ‘As advanced Builders of many years! standing, all of you have enough 'past! in this lifetime for ample recollection. Through orderly remembering, in the manner already indicated, you will develop the skills and discrimination necessary before recall of past incarnations is either beneficial or free from the dangers of delusion and error. You will remember into past lives when you are ripe for it and when it has value for you. To seek it for itself can lead you off the Path onto byways that delude and delay. Valuable insights can be gained right now through the law of corres~ pondence. Just as the development of the fetus in the womb recapitulates the stages of the Life-power's physiological development, so do the early years of an incarnation recapitulate, in essence, the mental, emotional and psychical developments you have thus far completed. It is an aspect of the law of cyclic unfoldment and it holds true throughout the vastness of the uni- verse, When a new cycle begins, large or small, the essence of all that has so far been developed is repeated before new development begins. ‘There are certain things you should be alert to in the practice of retrospection. Seek to perceive principles as they have worked out in your past so you will be able to apply them more constructively in the future. You might see, for instance, how expectations of failure more than fulfilled themselves; or how early feelings that you were unlovable and undeserving projected that image of you to others and prevented you from accepting love or appreciation even when they were offered. Expectations such as these — that are cramped and menial — restrict the experiences that can flow into life, Those who are born into the ghettos and slums of our cities are caught up in a vicious circle of expecting poverty and hopelessness. In the same general way that your early feelings of in- feriority limited your ability to accept love, so, too, those who are im- prisoned by poverty continue to perpetuate it until they are given an oppor- tunity to envision more bountifully. (B)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 59 Furthermore, that part of present humanity who are not victims of abject poverty are yet victims of the general fearfulness and insecurity that seems never to be satisfied no matter how much material wealth is accumulated. Part of our work is to act as ‘seed planters’ in the collec” tive consciousness by assisting in the development of images and feelings that will help alleviate all this hopelessness, insecurity and fear, What should be noted in this connection is that even though for you, as advanced aspirants, a period of poverty and deprivation might have a purpose — because it would allow you to understand the pains and needs of others whom you are destined to help — this does not hold true for most of humanity. For those too caught up in it, poverty is a definite hindrance that needs to be eliminated. For others, who are caught up in the anxiety and insecurity related to it, a new set of values is needed. Eventually, it is true, an excessive concern for material wealth can lead to a search inward, especially if it has been successful. Disappointment and despair over the transitoriness of what has been given a lifetime of attention and energy often does just that. It is an aspect of the test of riches which we will discuss more fully at another time. But notwithstand- ing this, in its present form and for most of humanity, the concern for having enough money is excessive in degree and needs to be alleviated. The insecurity, fearfulness and anxiety that is being experienced by so many is a distorted projection in the collective consciousness of old requirements that serve no constructive purpose any more. You are a part of the Hicrarchical Plan that has for one of its immediate goals the clearing away of enough of these stagnant patterns of suffering and fearful- ness to allow the New Age energies to 'get through’. As the Aquarian Age Influences are able to penetrate more extensively, they will stimulate human awareness of the unity of life and consequent feelings of compassion and caring about others. It is in this way that humanity will begin to move out of its present gross overconcern for outer values and appearances and begin to turn inward to where the real treasures of existence may be found, Realize, however, that the responses and feelings which now inhibit spiritual unfoldment were essential at an earlier stage of human develop ment. It is the perpetuating of old needs by a humanity which no longer re- quires them that is at the root of so-called present evils, For example, the experiences of fear, hunger and physical pain were necessary at an earlier stage of human evolution. They served to awaken the then dim con- sciousness of humanity to its outer environment. The extreme dullness of awareness at that time needed very strong outside impacts to make any im- pression at all. But that outer focus was to develop self-consciousness fully and for the main body of humanity it is mostly accomplished. These old needs, therefore, no longer carry the usefulness they once did and their Continuing expression becomes a definite hindrance. It is up to us to help rid the collective human consciousness of these old patterns of fearfulness and insecurity about everything, and especially about adequate supply. In this work you will be open to much guidance and the outpouring of much love. Although you begin by remembering with hu- manity in its insecurity and pain, your remembrance will expand outward as you continue — past the transitory and delusory — into the all-embracing (4)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 59 beneficence of the Real Self. That is the beneficence and love you want to give the strength of your attention to! That is the Reality you want all of mankind to yearn for and seek! For whomsoever seeks with love and compassion will surely find the limitless treasures of the Self within the heart. TECHNIQUE In the last lesson we began visualizations of the Golden Qabalistic Gross. We will continue now, combining the Cross visualization with that of our ascent through the Paths and Grades of the Tree. Prepare yourself by establishing deep and rhythmic breathing, and then visualize yourself backed into the Tree of Life (as in Lesson 49 dia- gram), with the Supernal Kether, Chokmah and Binah surrounding your head and ail the other Sephiroth in their proper places. Intone the Holy Names of the Three Supernals: Eheyeh Yod Heh Vav Heh Elohim, and give this meditation: 'Oh Thou, Eternal Indivisible One! Thy Will and Wisdom and Understanding pervade Thy universe." Turn your attention next to Malkuth; intone Adonai and give this meditation: “Thou art the Holy, Holy One! Thy Kingdom is a mirror for the wondrous light of the Crown." Give attention next to Yesod as you intone its Holy Name: Shaddai El Chai, and give this meditation: "Thou art the Foundation of nature's remembrance! Thy order guides me back to union with the Self." Put attention next on Tiphareth; intone Yeheshuah and give this meditation: "Thou art the Inner Sun! Thy light illumines everything, revealing Beauty I did not see before." From Tiphareth extend your attention up through the Path of Lamed to Geburah near your right shoulder. Intone Elohim Gebur and give this meditatio: “Thou art the Will of the Ego within my heart! Thou preparest me with Courage and Strength for all that lies ahead," Bring your attention back to the yellow sphere of Tiphareth, briefly, and then send it down to Netzach, the sphere of Desire near your left hip. Intone Yod Heh Vav Heh Tzabaoth as you visualize Netzach expanding until you feel yourself as centered within its vibrating green light. Then give this meditatio: "Thy gift to me is great indeed! Through the interlacing of joys and sorrows, Thou didst teach me to feel, to care, to sympathize ... and finally, to reach upward toward Thy boundless, limitless Love." Visualize yourself ascending into the Path of Kaph until you are cen- tered in an aura of vibrating violet light. Intone Kaph on the note A# and give this meditation: (5)nate MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 59 "Thou art the Path of Fulfillment, open to all who have learned the secret of Desire!" Now visualize yourself entering into Chesed for the first time. Intone El (Ale) on the note G# and give this meditation: "To enter Thy sphere fully is my all-consuming goal. Wouldst that the Joy Thou givest, fill every human heart." Return, now, to Tipharcth in your imagery. We want to trans- form the Tree into the Golden Qubalistic Cross, Visualize Kether as ascending until it is four fect above your head. From it image the golden Light pouring outward and descending through you until it reaches Malkuth, which is now to be visualized as four feet below you. Continue this ima- gining until you feel the light descending and returning in a rhythmic, measured flow. Next, think of the three Sephiroth of the Pillar of Severity as being represented by Geburah, which you should visualize at a point four feet out from the right side of you (see last lesson for details), From it issues a golden stream of flowing light that extends through the center of you over to Chesed, now situated four feet out from your left side and now representing the whole Pillar of Mercy. Pause until you feel the energy flowing across you from right to left and back again in a rhythmic, measured flow. Intone Yeheshuah once again as you continue visualizing the Golden Cross flowing up and down from Kether to Malkuth and back and forth from Geburah to Chesed! Then give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Eternal Self within! My eyes are beginning to see Thy Radiance; my cars are beginning to hear Thy Voice; and my heart is beginning to remember Thy Divinity! Let Thy blessings extend outward to all the directions of space!" ‘As you speak these words center your attention once more in ‘Tiphareth and pour out feelings of love and tenderness and compassion in every direction! What you have received, you thus give out to all who are in need. Finish in the usual manner. ## (6)\ MEDITATIONAL ASGENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Sixty (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) By considering Key 10 specifically as the link between the desire nature and the Grade of Exempt Adept, a new comprehension of its sym- bolism can be obtained. Desire has been preparing you for long ages. Without strong desires you would not have attracted the experiences needed to tread the Path of Kaph. In this lifetime or past ones you have desired worldly success many times and failed; you have desired it and succeeded. You have desired all manner of objects and possessions until you tired of them and felt the emp- tiness of victories made meaningless by death. The seeming futility of striving for things so transitory eventually drove you in search of knowledge; in search of some meaning and purpose to existence. By its very nature that search eventually leads to the Path of Return. Its beginnings can be represented by the Paths and Grades that lead into Tiphareth and the birth of Higher Self awareness. But, like the self-aware- ness of a very young child, awareness of the Higher Self is hazy and evanes- cent at first, It needs the nourishment of attention in order to develop and grow strong, The Paths and Sephiroth on the Severity side of the Tree pro- vide that strength. Through them, disciplines and controls are established and transformations are made that permit the Real Self to assume more and more dominion over the personality. Now we have returned to Netzach on the Mercy side of the Tree, Be~ cause much has already been accomplished, you are prepared to increase the intensity of desire without the risk of any real error, Desire is a mighty power and it is essential if you are going to ascend this Path and reap the ‘reward of those who seek'! The search is inward and the reward is remem’ bering who and what you really are! Because it requires intense yearning the first thing we need to grasp is the source of desire itself. What is it that makes you yearn for knowledge, for peace, for love, for light — for anything at all? ‘The Pillar of Mercy originates in Chokmah, the Wisdom of the Super- nal Father. "What thou seekest, truly that thou art. The treasure thou jour- neyest afar to find is the Jewel of Eternity in thy heart of hearts." You re~ member that this is truth as desire ascends through the Path of Kaph to union with Memory on the plane of Higher Mind. The Wisdom you yearn for is already known by the portion of you that dwells on that Higher Mental Plane, In essence it is the truth of unity that is recalled, While in conscious union with Higher Mind you remember with that level of mind, You experience the all-pervasiveness of Chaiah, the Life-force of Chokmah, and perceive how jndissolubly linked are all things and planes and beings. As the recollection unfolds, a glimpse of the over-all PLAN of Evolution is presented to you. Its beauty, its magnificence, its unwavering beneficence fills you with joy and ecstasy! From it a greatly expanded comprehension of the meaning of exis- fence emerges, and with it an intense yearning to help bring the joy of that comprehension to all who dwell on earth. a)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 60 It is in this way that personal desire b Universal Desire, and whatever may remain of the delusory and selfish begins to disappear. Desire is what binds us to earth while we think we are apart. Desire is what frees us from those bonds when its power 1s turned in earnest toward learning how to serve. ‘This Path is the link between Netzach on the plane of personal mind and Chesed, the ‘storehouse! of higher Mind. Besides being the Memory aspect of the Egoic Triad, Chesed is also the sphere of the Measuring. Intelligence, of Bountiful Supply, and of All-embracing Beneficence. When you remember with the One Ego you share in that One's knowledge of mea” Surement and proportion as it expresses throughout the Cosmos. The sec~ ret of measurement is the secret of form and thus of adequate supply. "God geometrizes", you have heard, but do you comprehend? This comprehension of measurement which holds the secret of ‘drawing all things needful! is linked here with unwavering beneficence for all that lives. When you become open to Chesed you share in its reception of Wisdom from Chokmah. The closest you can come to describing what you experience as the Divine Motivation behind the whole creative process ye. . . All-embracing Beneficence. This is indeed a Universe of Love! ‘As your personal motives get synchronized with That Motive you begin to receive all that is needed to finish the Great Work. You are able to comprehend principles whereby the One Life fashions forms out of the formless essence. And you are able to apply what you have grasped to bring perfection to your Microcosmic World. ‘All this comprehension is linked with the practice of beneficence. jt is an actual force . , . a substance even! It does truly prepare your Vehicles, of thought and feeling and response, to receive, comprehend and then transmit — clothed in appropriate forms — inspirations from the Hierarchy of Light. Since the Path of Kaph is open only to a Greater Adept it is evident that treading it requires much development and accumulated knowledge. You have to know enough about what you want to know to ask the questions whose answers are the 'reward of those who seek'. Let's look once again at Key 10, this time thinking of it as a representation of that reward of true comprehension which leads to liberation from the Wheel. ‘The Wheel in Key 10 is divided, from the center outward, into the four Qabalistic Worlds, Atziluth — the World of Yod, of Fire, of Will- ideas and of Divine Beings is its central point, Briah — the World of the {iret Heh, of Water, of Creation and of Archangels is the inner circle divi- ded by eight spokes. Yetzirah — the World of Vay, of Air, of Formation fnd of the Angelic Hosts is the circle containing the Alchemical symbols. ‘Ansiah —~ the World of the second Heh, of Earth, of the Elements and of the cycles of visible manifestation is the outer circle. Descending the Wheel is the Serpent fire becoming involved in form so it may rise again — with comprehension — as Man and then as More than Man until it reaches the Zenith again. Then it reigns as the (2) ootMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 60 Sphinx, Who blends the powers of nature evolved through eons of cyclings through the Wheel with the awakened Divine Spirit. Thus the Sphinx is per- fected Humanity, the Divine Mediator for God in the administration of the Universe, At the four corners are the four Sacred Creatures of the elements, the representations of the livingness that permeates all — from the inner- most Reality to the outermost, seemingly mechanical order of the Universe. Now let's relate this symbolism to the comprehension that will enable you to ascend into Chesed and the Grade of Exempt Adept. You are the Wheel! The central point is the World of the inmost Self. In Briah is Its perfected Image, the promise to be fulfilled. Thus it is symbolized as the eight-spoked wheel of the Quintessence or Fifth Es- sence; the Divine Spirit that rules in the Fifth Kingdom of perfected Huma- nity. Yetzirah depicts the hidden forces that must be brought into right Proportion and balance in order that the Image in Briah can become mani- fest in Assiah. The work of transmutation takes place, then, in Yetzirah. Ideals and inspirations you receive in meditation from Briatic sources must be organized into Yetzirah through personality transformations. Thus we find the symbol for dissolution in the Yetziratic circle. Recall that it is also the symbol for Aquarius, the sign of Man, the thinker. Dissolution combined with re~synthesis is what effects transforma- tions. Energies liberated from harmful behavior patterns must be recom- bined into constructive ones that will aid in the performance of the Great Work. Take such feelings as fearfulness and anxiety for instance. These are very prevalent in the collective consciousness, so they are easy to get caught up in. Yet you, who have learned somewhat of thought control, know that energy follows what you give your attention to. You must continuously strive to resist feeding the tensions and nervousness of anxiety and fearfulness by remembering Chesed and the inexhaustible supply that is available to your every need, That Chesed remembrance links you to the plane of Higher Mind, so it has superior suggestive influence over any subconscious ten- dency, such as anxiety, that may rise up from below. From your many years as a Builder of the Adytum you have surely fashioned a strong pattern of reaching for guidance and love and inspiration from a Superconscious source, There is no habit built up from projected delusions that can stand up against what is at once Higher and infinitely more true! All anxieties and fears fall into the category of projected delusions — leftovers from the past. You are actually pledged, as a candidate for initia~ tion, to help erase all such, So, when you reach up to Chesed and refuse to let negative feelings get a hold on you — you are helping to impress qualities and energies in the collective consciousness that will eventually blot out all the shadows that stand before the Sun. ‘The principle thing to remember in completing the work of this Path is the need to live the ideals you have thus far grasped. Living them is what (3)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 60 brings your Microcosmic 'worlds within worlds' into finer and finer align- \ ment, one to the other. As this progresses, so does your ability to re- ceive Higher Truths and remember them with the waking consciousness, Inspiration from above should not just exalt you; it should guide you into improving the quality of your daily thoughts, feelings, responses and activities. This is what brings the Alchemical principles — Mercury, Sulphur and Salt — into right proportion, one to the other. This right pro portion, in turn, enhances the dominion of Spirit over the elemental per- sonality, transforming it into the equilibrated Cross of Service. Desire provides the impetus which makes these transformations possible. Although desire, for you, must be dedicated to the fulfillment of needs that further the ends of all humanity, this does not mean that you no longer have personal desires. What you desire personally does need to be in right relationship to your level of unfoldment and your grasp of inner knowledge. Once you comprehend the formative power of human consciousness — especially when focused by desire — you have more responsibility in the way you use it. Right measurement is the key. What may be development for an- other could be the opposite for you. Selfish material ambition may lead into spiritual aspiration for one who has not yet entered the Path, but for one who has, such ambition would be a grave error. Yet, if you comprehend rightly, you should realize that personal desires need not, nor should not, be eliminated or ‘killed out'. The right Girection of desire makes it expand beyond the merely personal, It gives it a new dimension, a significance that is universal also, The happiness of a constructive desire, fulfilled, emanates feelings that are helpful to Gthers. Impressions are made in the collective level that lift its cons~ Giousness. You help extend light in the darkness through all such outpour- ing of the bountifulness and beneficence of Chesed. For instance, you might desire a vacation in the mountains so that all your senses can be exalted by nature's beauties and wonders. If your desire to satisfy personal pleasure has in it love and tenderness for all the creatures of nature, then your love assists in their evolution by way of the joy you feel through them. A fulfillment of desire that is satisfying you personally has also been comprehended as having a significance that goes beyond you. More than this, your loving attention given to any of nature's forms hhenomena enables its inner reality to make an impression on you. Sach impressions aid in activating the Inner Holy Planets. You begin to ‘gee into’ things when a desire to experience their pleasures is joined with a loving quest. or pI ‘Thus joy and fulfillment are never in error when you strive to per~ ceive not just their personal, but also their universal, significance. The faifillment of any desire that you take time to relate to its universal signi- ficance would never be at the expense of another or even interfere with what you might consider their best interests. (4) eae @MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 60 No one but a Master of Wisdom can look into the soul of another and know its deepest needs. The most beneficent desire you can have for loved ones is that they expérience whatever is needed to lead them further along the Path to Self awakening. This is not always easy. Someone you love dearly may need sorrow to unfold. Yet to desire in this way for be- loveds is an equilibration of Severity and Mercy in the highest, truest sense. TECHNIQUE With this visualization we will complete our ascent through the Path of Kaph, the first one that leads into Chesed and the Grade of Exempt Adept. Begin by imaging yourself as one with the whole Tree! Breathing deeply and rhythmically in and out, with your attention now on the Supernal, Sephiroth surrounding your head, chant their Holy Names (Eheyeh Yod Heh Yav Heh Elohim) and give this meditation: ‘Thou art the Eternal Source of light and life and love! Thou art the inmost essence of us all." Focus attention on Malkuth; intone its Holy Name (Adonai) and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Divinity of Earth! Thy inner Holy Being is one with The Eternal Source." Bring attention up to Yesod; intone its Holy Name (Shaddai El Chai) and give this meditation: "Thou art the foundation of livingness; the base of strength from which I reach up to the stars." Give attention to Tiphareth; intone its Holy Name (Yeheshuah) and give this meditation: ‘Thou art the Word within my soul, the Sacred Word of Divine Origin." Put attention on Geburah; intone its Holy Name (Elohim Gebur) and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Strength of the Creative Ones! Thou givest Thy power to all who know and obey Thy ever perfect law." Put attention on Netzach; intone its Holy Name (Yod Heh Vav Heh Tzabaoth), Now visualize its green sphere expanding, expanding until you are centered within it; then give this meditation: "Qh Thou, luminous sphere of desire! Thou preparest me to seek the Truth that leads to liberation." Visualize yourself ascending upward from the green sphere in which you were centered into an aura of violet light for the Path of Kaph. Intone Kaph on the note A¥ and give this meditation: ‘Thou hast gifted me with the treasure of comprehension; the grasp of Truth that shall one day set me free." Now visualize yourself entering into the blue sphere of Chesed. Jntone El on the note G# and give this meditation: (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 60 ‘Thou art the remembrance of the Self within my heart. Throug) ‘Thee I experience the benevolence that embraces all the worlds." Return to the visualization of yourself as one with the whole Tree. With attention once again centered in Tiphareth, visualize the Golden Qabalistic Cross as outlined in the last two lessons, When it is in full motion in your imagery, intone Yeheshuah once again and give this medi- ation: ‘Thou, Oh Central Presence, hast revealed Thy true nature to me. Thou art the threefold receptacle of Supernal Will, Wisdom and Love." Finish in the usual manner. ## (6)aaa ee Fee se SK NSS ST TSS MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Sixty-one (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) The second Path leading into Chesed from a Sephirah below is the 20th Path of the letter Yod. As the link between Tiphareth and Chesed it unites the qualities and powers developed in the Grade of Lesser Adept to those of Exempt Adept. In the Path of Kaph, which we have just completed, we linked the idealisms and sympathies we developed in the Grade of Phi- losophus to their Higher Plane counterparts in Chesed. Now we return to Tiphareth to link Egoic level awareness with Egoic level remembrance. The ‘Glimpse of Glory! received in Tiphareth through Union with the Ego needs to be extended into a more definite influence over your every daily act, In order for this to take place the 'Glory! must be remembered — not so much actively as pervasively, as an underneath coloring that tinges all, To the accomplishment of this extended influence of Light, our work in this Path will be dedicated. The letter Yod, to which this Path is attributed, is called the letter of the Father, Chokmah; but it is also assigned to Kether, Will. In the ‘Tetragrammaton, i179, the tip of Yod is assigned to Will, while the rest of the letter represents Wisdom. This dual attribution is indicated in other ways also, The Path of Yod is called the Intelligence of Will, while in its Tarot symbol, Key 9, the Hermit wears a grey robe to identify Him with Wisdom. On the Pillar of Mercy, Kether and Chokmah flow into Chesed, so that they are the source of Egoic level remembrance. It is through that remembrance that you experience identity with the One Will and share in that One's eternal outpouring of Wisdom. Yet the same Will- Wisdom is associated with the 20th Path which ascends into Chesed from a Sephirah below it. What is indicated is that a correlating aspect of this remembrance must be accomplished in the Path of Yod as a preparation for Conscious remembrance in Chesed. What it is that has to be accomplished to ascend into Chesed is in- dicated by further relationships to the Path of Yod. Although Yod represents Kether, primarily it is the letter of the Father, Chokmah. To Chokmah is attributed Chaiah, 11°17, the Life-force that flows into all the Sephiroth below. This flow of Wisdom is called Mezlah, 71D, the Holy Influence. It indwells every atom of the Universe, pervading all with the Will and Wisdom that whirled forth at the beginning of this whole cycle of the Life- Power's mani- festation. This means that every atom of the Universe is impressed with the essence of that Divine Will- Wisdom! ‘The same idea arises in reference to Yod as a Hebrew letter. It is the root or Father of all the other letters, a part of each one of them. It is the flame of all-pervading fire! Among the Worlds, Yod is attributed to Atziluth, the originating principle level or World of Will-ideas. Thus it is a symbol of the One Fire, the indwelling active principle in everything. ‘There is not a point in space where the Presence of the Father is absent. a)Mate. Prese in. MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 61 \ The number of Mezlah, 8710, the Holy Influence, is 78. This is also the number of lechem, 0n?, bread, and of MD, melekh, a Hebrew word for salt, which also has meanings of subsistence, maintenance, pre- servation. These last two Hebrew words are related to nutrition and its function of preserving and maintaining lif 7. with the Astrological assignment to Key 9. It is Virgo, the mutable ear sign attributed physiologically to the organs of assimilation. born of a Virgin, was shown to mean House of Bread and refer, Alchemi- cally, to the place where an essential aspect of the Great Work is per~ formed. Virgo is ruled by Mercury and is also the place of its exaltation. Since Mercury is self-consciousness, this exaltation suggests that cons- cious direction of the process going on in the Virgo region is necessary in the Alchemical work. more efficient, so that assimilation of nutrients is more complete and more finely selective. The Life-force of Chokmah is in all things! Com- plete assimilation of intelligently selected food can supercharge the body with that Life-force and also with extremely fine related forces that are not ordinarily released. out the body, and the various organs and cell groups select the supplies they need to maintain their life. When the bloodstream becomes charged with extra Life-force or Yod force and with its finer forces that are usually left unextracted, your vehicles become correspondingly more refined, process and the Chesed level identity with the Universal Will- Wisdom. Recall now, from those earlier instructions, that the assimilation of this extra Life-force and its more subtle energies was essential to the forma- tion of what could be called the physiological base upon which conscious participation in Superconscious Wisdom could be experienced. finely wrought structures so you can be ‘touched! by high frequency ener- personal vehicles capable of responding to energies that up to now were too fine for it to assimilate, so they passed right on through. Corres- pondingly, the self-conscious mind was unable to remember the related Wisdom experience. It could not hold on to it except as a fleeting impres- sion that quickly faded away. Call to mind, before proceeding, that even physical science has recognized energies with vibratory frequencies so infinitely fine and tenuous that they pass right through the earth, making no impression at all. to make enough of an impression for you to remember, there must be Wisdom frequencies that correlate built into your body. It is the 'earth! Wisdom material, derived from food, of which we speak. Through cons- cious attention — discriminately and intelligently given— that Wisdom Here is the Qabalistic link In earlier lessons on Key 9, Bethlehem, the place where Christ is With self-conscious direction the process can become infinitely Taken into the bloodstream, the nutrients are circulated through- Keep in mind that there is a connection between this Alchemical It is a matter of building in more delicate sensitivities and more Through this process of refinement you gradually build yourself Therefore, if superconscious Wisdom frequencies are to be able (2) ce ee oe oe oe a es oe ee es esPeierer Od sy srl MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 61 material is assimilated. Its presence enables you to tune in on and also Preserve Cosmic Higher Wisdom frequencies so they can be registered, temembered and formulated into idea-images intelligible to the self- conscious level of mind, The exaltation of Mercury in an Earth sign suggests the same thing in another way. As a principle, Mercury is the ‘Illumination Material’ — the highest of the three Alchemical principles. Its increased incorporation into the material of your personality vehicles refines them to where they are able to register finer impressions. In one relationship the Hermit represents the Inner School Adepts, Who, having attained to liberation as individualized Rays of the One Sun, hold out the Light of Their Wisdom, continuously, to guide the way for all who are toiling up the Path. Your work in the 20th Path is devoted to prac- tices that will prepare you to tune in on the ‘wave-length! from which the Hierarchy of Light is continuously broadcasting Superconscious Wisdom. ‘The practices are designed to effect refinements in your body, but it must be understood that the physical refinements are the result of pre~ vious mental, emotional and vital body refinements. They represent the end result. It is worse than useless to attempt physical sensitizing through conscious attention to assimilating extra Life-force unless the mental- feeling body of Hod-Netzach and the habit body of Yesod are already well advanced in their refinement. That is why ascent through this Path is well along the way of ad- vancement. It comes after much mental and emotional control have been accomplished in earlier Grades, and much purification and transformation of the habit mind also, These earlier practices, through interaction and the natural law of suggestion, have already brought your body to a high de- gree of refinement. The work of this Path is really more of a uniting pro- cess. It synchronizes the refinements already accomplished in the several vehicles of personality so that the physical representation of Higher Wisdom — the brain — is adjusted into right alignment with the others, This align- ment allows spiritual insights already experienced in the Egoic level to be realized and remembered by the Mercurial self-conscious level of mind, Your preparation for synchronization in the Path of Yod can be compared to unfoldment of the highest Virgo qualities. As an advanced aspirant of many years you have shown persistence in the search for knowl- edge and patience in the thoughtful pondering of what that knowledge means in daily life. This Virgo trait of thoughtful pondering builds knowledge into the mental body— assimilates it— so it becomes a base to attract yet more knowledge. You build a base upon which increasingly more abstract reaches of knowledge can be grasped and translated into relatively concrete ideas that have a meaning here and now on the physical plane. Your years as a Builder have also undoubtedly convinced you that service to life is the only valid reason for desiring knowledge of hidden forces. Without that conviction such knowledge could lead to increased per- sonal egotism or a desire to know more than others for the purpose of ad- vantage over them. The realization of unity, so reiterated throughout all your years as a Builder, has certainly dispelled any such separative motives (3)this; MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 61 from your consciousness. The discriminative faculty should enable you to detect and acknowledge any remaining seeds along this line and continue to work at eradicating them entirely. In order to complete the work of this Path we must give attention to certain specific physiological functions and be able, at the same time, to view them as integral parts of the vast organism that is the universe. In this perception, your work in the Path of Kaph, which we have just com- pleted, should help you to make the enlightening comparisons. ‘The synchronization, or alignment of your higher vehicles with the physical vehicle, is partly a matter of learning how to include the physcial body in your feelings of gratitude and devotion to Spirit. Aspirants are in- clined to think of 'this! body too much as something material and properly to be mostly ignored. This is especially true at a certain stage of unfold- ment. The separation or distinction between the body and its occupant is necessary at one stage of unfoldment, but, now, the Spiritual Essence that is your body needs to be realized so that the work of alignment can proceed. There is real beauty in the processes and functions of the physical body. Not one but is a wonder of intelligence and order and fine measure- ment! The body is indeed a sacred and Holy Temple which we should re- vere for the miracle of miracles that itis! It is a gift of the Ages — a sacred instrument through which the evolution of conscious awareness can proceed. Before continuing in our ascent through the Path of Yod, I would like you to pause during this period and ponder the beauty and miracle of your Temple — to marvel over the exquisite precision of its workings, to ponder it with gratefuiness and love. The gratitude is for the devoted ser- vice that your body performs for you continuously all through the day — often in the face of neglect, abuse, gross misconceptions about it and with evils accredited to it for which it is not at all responsible. ‘The misconceptions and evils attributed to our bodies are part of the projected delusion in the collective consciousness. Part of our ser viee to humanity is to aid in the liberation of the body consciousness from these errors that have been projected upon it. We want to learn to feel ratitude for the gift of these Temples which perform all the complex fanctions of physical existence and leave our conscious attention free to unfold toward Union with the Indivisible One. TECHNIQUE In the visualization for this period we will continue our ascent toward the Grade of Exempt Adept by treading the Path of Yod. Begin by imaging yourself as merged into the Tree with the ten Sephiroth each in its proper place relative to your body. Give attention to the Crown of Kether upon your head and to the spheres of Chokmah and Binah touching your left and right cheeks. Intone the Three Holy Supernal Names: Eheyeh Yod Heh Vav Heh Elohim, and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Divine Triangle of God! Thou art the Breath and Fire and Flowing Love that indwells all that is!" (4) oo ae ee ee ee eeMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 61 Give attention next to Malkuth at your feet; intone Adonai and give this meditation: "Thou art the sacred dwelling-place of Divinity, Oh Holy One of Earth!" Give attention to the sphere of Yesod at your genitals; intone Shadd: El Chai and give this meditation: "Thou art the essence of Purity which naught can defile. Through clear vision of thy true nature the King is restored to the Throne." Focus attention on Tiphareth, the yellow sphere surrounding your heart, Intone Yeheshuah and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Divine Ego within! Thou dost flower into full Beauty through a heart that is filled with love." Put attention on the red sphere of Geburah at your right shoulder; intone Elohim Gebur and give this meditation: "Thou providest all the Strength required to those who obey Thy law." Return attention to Tiphareth and visualize its yellow sphere as ex- panding until you are centered within it. Intone Yeheshuah and say: “Thou hast prepared me with Thy love to traverse the Path of Yod, the Path of the Father." Visualize yourself ascending into an aura of vibrating yellow-green light. Bring the image of The Hermit before your mental vision; intone Yod (Yode) and give this meditation: "Thou art the fire in all things! Thou art the Father, Who dwellest in Earth as well as in Heaven!" Visualize yourself entering into the blue sphere of Chesed. Intone Elon the note G# and give this meditation: "In Thy sphere Ihear Words of Supernal Will and Wisdom. Thy love bestows on me the gift of remembering. " Return now to the visualization of yourself as one with the Tree. Focus attention in Tiphareth as you set into motion the movements of the Golden Qabalistic Cross. Image it in all its beauty as flowing up and down from Kether to Malkuth and back and forth from Chesed to Geburah. Intone Yeheshuah once again and then finish in the usual manner, ## (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Sixty-two (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) In the Qabalistic method of Initiation that we follow, ascent through the 20th Path represents successful linkage between the 'I' consciousness in Tiphareth and the storehouse of Higher Wisdom in Chesed, It is through this opened Path that you are able to share in the continuous meditations of the Hierarchy of Adepts. Their Light becomes perceptible to your inwardly opened senses. That is the link . . . your inwardly opened senses. It is really the same thing as active functioning of the Inner Holy Planets, an endeavor we have been working toward all these many years. The Planet that completes the linkage is Mercury, With its awakening from latency you begin to re~ gister Higher Plane ‘events! in the physical brain. They have to be regis- tered before they are available for recall by the self-conscious level of mind. ‘The Mercury center is physiologically associated with the Pineal Gland in the brain, When this rudimentary organ is actively functioning it is able to unite with the frequencies of electrical activity that transmit Higher Wisdom. This is one aspect of the function assigned to Key 9, which is coition. ‘The Wisdom frequencies are extremely fine, and yet very powerful. Fortunately they make no impression on an unprepared brain unless unwise practices have accelerated its activity in an unbalanced manner, Until all the vehicles of individuality are, for the most part, synchronized in their degree of preparation, response to these powerful energies is premature and can do great damage. The Pineal Gland or Mercury Center is what has also been called: The Third Eye, The Organ of Spiritual Vision, The Secret Place of the Most High, In Zion, Adytum, and many other names also. You have been working on its completion throughout your years as a Builder. The prac- tices associated with the Virgo Stage of Alchemical transmutation — in which Mercury is the active principle — are particularly important in the portion of Inner Vision awakening assigned to the Path of Yod. ‘The Virgo stage of the Great Work is called Dissolution. It refers to the conscious introduction of practices designed to improve the assimi- lative process and make it more complete, more efficient and more dis- criminatingly refined, Assimilation, it should be carefully considered, refers to what is taken into the subtle bodies as well as into the physical one. The first requirement is selectiveness (a positive Virgo attribute, incidentally). In the case of physical assimilation it is a matter of selecting foods that intelligent research has shown to be important in maintaining the health of the body. The necessary materials have to be available before they can be assimilated. Psychic assimilation has to become extremely discriminating. a)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 62 Occult work increases your sensitivity to the subjective side of all that surrounds you. Through the gradually opening inner sensorium, you D8 come very sensitive to the feelings and responses of other living beings. You must become very selective in what you permit yourself to accept 0” allow to influence you. Within that ocean of subjective unity are influences which reflect the beneficence of Chesed. By cultivating and accepting these as your influence you come into rapport with the Plane from which they are reflected. You are put 'in touch’ with the Higher Mental Plane. It is significant here to ponder the relationship between Chesed and Yesod, Yesod, the sphere of the Moon, is violet, the color of Jupiter, whose sphere is in Chesed; while Chesed is blue, the color assigned to the Moon. They both represent Memory. An essential part of the Great Work is to clear Yesod so it will reflect, undistorted, the Wisdom held in its Higher Plane counterpart. Actually, before either physical or psychic assimilation can be sufficiently selective, right mental assimilation must precede them. We have been carrying out this portion of the Work for years. As an advanced Builder your studies and related practices have served to construct within you a base of right knowledge that is both extensive and selective. This base of right knowledge is the mental body equivalent to the base of twisdom material! extracted by right methods from food. Both provide the refined ‘earth! frequencies which must be present in order to attract and assimilate the related Wisdom frequencies being broadcast from Higher Planes Dissolution, in reference to this mental preparation, refers to the process whereby we refine the quality of this base of knowledge. Much of the information everyone is exposed to as a human being is tainted with error. It has to be dissolved down to its principle level so that the truth which is in it can be extracted and then re-assimilated in a more unadul- terated form. Your many years of study have served to bring this mental process of Dissolution and re-assimilation to a relatively high degree of efficiency. St, in turn, has had an effect upon the parallelling psychic and physical processes. It has had a refining effect on them. Through the workings of the law of suggestion, mental enlightenment has brought your astral and physical bodies to a corresponding degree of enlightenment. It has pre~ pared them for the more conscious and demanding aspects of the work now at hand; the work whose proposed object is the opening of the Organ of Spiritual Vision. Put in another way, we could say that before the actual practice is undertaken in which you consciously take charge of physical assimilation and in which you are more than just vaguely aware of the subtle influences that surround you, much preliminary transmutation has already taken place. The work of the Path of Yod, linked as it is with Key 9 and Virgo, repre- gents an advanced level of the Dissolution Stage. In it you begin, quite knowingly and deliberately, assembling the materials that are needed in order to activate the Organ through which contact with the Adepts can take place. (2)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 62 Actually, the influence you contact is that of the Chasidim or Com- Passionate Ones. These titles are comparable to that of Exempt Adept and refer to Those whose presiding state of awareness ‘resides! in Chesed. Through the opened Path of Yod, influence from that level of MIND is re~ ceived by the image-making faculty in Tiphareth, Your first experiences are in the form of thought-images that illumine the mind, Recall that the function attributed to Key 9 is coition and that the sense of touch is also assigned to this Key. The literal meaning of coition is 'to come together’. It is used to designate conjunction in general, such as between heavenly bodies, but its most usual use is in reference to the coming together in sexual union; a union that has for its purpose the birth of a new organism. You have heard that the energy which impels to sexual union and is responsible for the ecstatic sensual pleasures of that union is the same energy that brings the ecstasy of Union with Divinity. More than this, re- call from earlier instructions (Qabalistic Doctrines on Sexual Polarity course) that in an ideal marriage relationship the physical union can help bring you to the experience of the Higher Union. That ideal type of union requires deep love and mutual veneration between the mates. It also requires the right mental and emotional attitudes towards sex in general. In the cultivation of purer, more reverential asso- ciations with the idea of union between the sexes lies a necessary phase of the volatilization and subsequent re-assimilation related to the Dissolution Stage of the Great Work, Until you have become sufficiently free from feelings of shame and guilt — as well as from the equally erroneous clinical or ‘natural bodily function’ attitude which invites promiscuity — the energy is not free to soar like the Eagle! Purged of wrong mental and emotional associations, the physical expression is purged also and the energy is freed of the hindrances which block its ascent through the Path of Yod. Note that Tiphareth is yellow, the color of Mercury. As the Higher Self comes into dominion, the Mercury Center begins to open. Recall that any Sephirah is feminine or receptive in relation to a Sephirah above it. Tiphareth, representing personal self-awareness, is receptive to Chesed through the opened Path of Yod. In its turn the opened Path of Yod repre- sents completion of the Dissolution Stage, in which the personality vehicles have been duly refined and purged of all obstructions to the downflow from Chesed. When everything is ready the vibratory frequencies of Chesed — which 'preserve! the Wisdom of Chokmah — are able to unite with the fre~ quencies of the physical brain, The Union activates the image-making faculty into producing thought-forms which reflect that Wisdom, providing there is a base of knowledge present to be acted upon, Discriminative assimilation of knowledge is what provides the base for the production of thought-forms fathered by Wisdom, That is why intel- lectual preparation is so insisted upon in the Great Work. The acquisition of knowledge plus well developed faculties of reason, logic and discrimina- QB)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 62 ations experienced in You would not be able lane of name and tion are essentials, Without them the spiritual vibr Union with Chesed could not be ‘turned into earth’. to translate them into methods and ideas helpful to this P) form. ‘Thus we find Yod, the letter of Supernal Will and Wisdom and of the Archetypal World of Divinity, associated with the earthy mental sign, Virgo. Practical intelligence is the substance upon which Wisdom can impress Its treasures, Without it, Spiritual experiences are possible through intense devotion, but they will be unproductive of Light for ‘this world’, The blissful experiences of the mystics of old were full of love and good intentions, but because they lacked practical intelligence their love was often a curse. At any rate, the mystical approach, based on in- tense emotional devotion but devoid of practical intelligence, belongs to an earlier age of Initiation and can only lead to error in this Cycle. It should be realized that the capacity to unite with the level of MIND which transmits Higher Wisdom, and retain impressions of it, is very gradually unfolded. Recall instructions on Key 18, attributed to Pisces, the opposite-complement of Virgo and Key 9. On the Tree of Life, Key 18 is the Corporeal Intelligence and has to do with the gradual trans- formation of the body consciousness. It refers to the consciousness of your mental-emotional and astral-etheric bodies as well as your physical body. Until the refinements are equalized and the alignments completed between these bodies, your reception of Wisdom will not be altogether satisfactory. What you should realize is that genuine Superconscious experiences are not easy to distinguish, at first, from the results of careful mental pondering. Indeed, the higher experiences are extensions of persistence in thought development. At any rate, even though what you receive seems to you to be no more than the product of ordinary thinking, if you emerge from it with something known that you did not know before, then it is a form of spiritual enlightenment and perhaps more significant than you rea~ lize at present, ‘The important ingredient is persistence and a feeling of gratitude for what you have received — whatever the source. Continue in this way, patiently gathering knowledge from your lessons and assimilating it thoroughly by utilizing reason, logic, analysis and correspondence as far as they will take you, Then in the quiescence of meditation, reverently submit your conclusions and ask to have them completed by Union with a Higher Source. If you are patient in this process, sooner or later something begins to occur. In the early stages of union with the plane of Higher Mind, the 'different! impressions you receive are very delicate. You are aware of having been touched by something lovely but the details fade away as you seek to remember. If you persist, yet more occurs. Along with the new perceptions you receive about the question you are asking, a wondrous feeling arises within you. It is a pervasive feeling that is most closely described as being similar to the way you felt when you were very much in love and totally engrossed in adoration and ecstasy over your beloved. (4) - FMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 62 This wonderful pervading feeling, in which you feel yourself to be immersed, is an indication that you are beginning to receive from the all- embracing beneficence of Chesed, As it permeates you with its flowing waves of love you feel that you must send it out from you. There is some- thing in it that must be shared, that must be given. When experiences such as this begin to occur you can know that the pattern of linkage with the Higher Mental Plane is becoming more de- finite and distinct. You have opened the Path of the Father and received benedictions from the Compassionate Ones. Through that Union will come the yet higher Union with the Father in Chokmah and with the Indivisible One. TECHNIQUE, In this practice we will symbolically tread the 20th Path once again. First, however, let's reaffirm our preparedness for it by imaging our- selves as one with the Tree. Begin by visualizing each of the 10 Sephiroth in proper relationship to your body, as we have been doing. When this image is established give your attention to the Supernal Triad surrounding your head. Intone the three Divine Names: Eheyeh Yod Heh Vav Heh Elohim and give this medi- tation: ‘Oh Infinite Divine One, itis Thee Iadore! Thou hast blessed me with Thy Life and let me share in Thy Mind. Thou art All in All to me!" Give your attention now to the sphere of Malkuth, the Kingdom in which you stand. Intone Adonai and give this meditation: "Thou art the flowering of Spirit! Thou hast sheltered me and given me sustenance. I give Thee reverence, Oh Thou, Lord of Earth!" Bring your attention up to Yesod, the violet sphere that surrounds your genitals. Intone Shaddai El Chai and give this meditation: “Thou art the Vital Breath of Life, Whose Strength pervades all the Kingdoms! Thy remembrance forms the Foundation from which I ascend to remember the Self." Give attention next to the yellow sphere of Tiphareth which encom- passes your heart. Intone Yeheshuah and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Sun of Beauty and of Love. Thou art the rightful Ruler within me. Thou preparest me for immortality." From Tiphareth send your attention up the Path of Lamed to focus in Geburah, the red sphere that is touching your right shoulder. Intone Elohim Gebur and give this meditation: “Thou art the discernible Law! Thy workings reveal to those who seek the purpose of Primal Will." Return your attention to Tiphareth and visualize its sphere expanding until you are centered within it, Intone Yeheshuah again and give this medi- tation: "Thou, Oh Central Presence, hast prepared me to ascend the Path of Yod. Even more, Thou art with me all the Way." (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 62 Envision yourself ascending into a yellow-green aura, emblematic of the Path of Yod, Intone Yod on the note F and give this meditation: "Thou art the Path of the Father wherein the fires meet. Thou unitest Earth to Heaven in perfect harmony. " Visualize yourself entering into the blue sphere of Chesed, Intone Elon the note G# and give this meditation: "Oh Thou, Who dost pour out blessings eternally, let me be a messenger of Thy Love." Return to the visualization of yourself backed into the Tree of Life and then begin the motions of the Golden Qabalistic Cross, as before. Its central point is Tiphareth, When the motions are flowing freely up and down, back and forth — intone Yeheshuah once again and then Amen. Finish in the usual manner, ## (6)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Sixty-three (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) ‘The Hermit portrays a Master of Wisdom or liberated Adept, His lantern is emblematic of the guidance offered by Those Who Know to those who seek. He is ancient in appearance to indicate that the guidance He offers is the fruit of much experience, much living, many live: ‘A six-pointed star is the source of the light streaming from His lantern, The star is formed by the interlacing of a triangle of fire with a triangle of water, It is symbolic of the merging of opposite forces, par- ticularly the merging of Chokmah and Binah since Thy represent the Pri: mal roots of these two elements. At the dawn of a cycle of manifestation Chokmah and Binah emanate as poles of the Indivisible Kether. The Life-force of Chokmah is unpro- ductive except in conjunction with the substance of Binah. Likewise, the substance of the Mother is an abstraction until merged with the Father. It is knowledge of this Union which is being offered by the Hermit; a Union through which the manifest Universe comes into being. Adeptship, as symbolized by the Hermit, refers to a state of de- velopment in which Union is known as a fullness of reconciled opposites. There are several seeming contradictions related to Key 9 which hint at this idea. Through the letter Yod it is a symbol of the Father; while Virgo, its astrological sign, associates it with the feminine principle. Virgo is ruled by Mercury, the discriminating, separating planet; yet to this Key the function of coition or union is attributed. The concept is given of a knowing unity; of a consciousness of union that is only possible after tho- rough comprehension of distinctions has been gained. The Alchemical process and bodily area attributed to Key 9 suggest the same basic principle in another way. Dissolution is definitely separa~ tive, while Assimilation synthesizes. There is a correlation between the duality of these two processes and the whole of evolution. Generic Humanity descends from unconscious unity into manifestation in order to develop dis tinct self-consciousness so it can return to unity and be aware of it. You have heard that Initiatory work is but an accelerated version of evolution. No law is set aside. Through practices that correspond to Dissolution, knowledge of formative principles is obtained. By consciously cooperating with these principles the Alchemist is able to adjust the rela tionship between certain energies that play through personality. He aligns them with their universal counterparts in such a way that he begins to re- ceive glimpses of the all-encompassing Whole. Such practices, followed with consistency and dedication, eventually culminate in the state of com- pletion portrayed by the Hermit. ‘The Mastery which He symbolizes should be realized as resulting from His ability to express qualities and wield powers which are present as potentials in every human being. Initiation can be compared to the way qQ)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 63 plants are caused to bloom early in the controlled atmosphere of a green~ house. Through careful observation and testing, the principles of plant Browth and development are recognized. Then the nutrients and conditions which such observation show to be important are provided in an abundant and sustained manner. No law is set aside in their quickening. Rather, are the laws of plant unfoldment followed more perfectly than is possible in unaided nature. Ina similar way the laws which govern human unfoldment can be recognized and then cooperated with. You should be able to see a corres~ Pondence between what has just been written and the Alchemical process attributed to Virgo, in which conscious attention is given to the assimila- tion of nutrients for every vehicle of personality. Let's return to the six-pointed star and develop the associations we have with it more fully. Its presence in the Hermit's lantern suggests that it is a symbol of both the means and of the end. Through understand- ing of Union we return to the Union that liberates. The six-pointed Hexagram is called the Star of the Macrocosm, since it portrays the Primal Union which creates and sustains the Uni~ verse. It is also attributed to Tiphareth, the Son or Microcosm, through the number 6. Note in Key 9 that the six-pointed star is centered in a lantern that is hexagonal in shape. If you take the star as symbolic of Tiphareth, then the Hexagon in which it is centered would represent the six-fold Ruach or Human Spirit. We have referred to it also as the total personality-complex composed of the Sephiroth from Chesed to Yesod. Tiphareth, as the Ego awareness, is central in the six-principled Man. In an earlier lesson (Lesson 48) this Hexagon of the Human Spirit was discussed, Its full functioning was shown to be represented by estab- lishing the Da'ath point on the Tree of Life, That is a point halfway up the Path of Gimel where the Invisible Path which links Chokmah to Gebu- rah crosses the Invisible Path which links Binah to Chesed. Da'ath, re- call, is never considered to be a separate Sephirah. Let's enumerate some of the things we have learned about Da'ath, It is very pertinent to the work of this Path, as you will see: (1) It is a Hebrew word meaning knowledge. In Qabalistic writings it is attributed to the Union of Chokmah and Binah, so that it refers to the knowledge of Union offered by the Hermit, It is knowledge exemplified by the Biblical phrase, "Adam knew Eve and she conceived." (2) It is attributed to Tiphareth as the Son or offspring of that Union. It is further said to be Tiphareth. Through the let- ter Vav, Tiphareth is the single Sephirah used to indicate the total Human Spirit or Ruach as the synthesis of all universal forces both above and below. It represents the Microcosm or 'Universe in little', Since Da'ath is parti- cularly attributed to Tiphareth as the offspring of Divinity, it represents a Human being in whom the Ego awareness has become conscious of the Union that gave it birth. (2) Se eS gnMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 63 (3) Da'ath is attributed to Yesod, the Foundation. Indeed, we found it to be part of the Hebrew name for the 2-9 Grade Baal ha-Da'ath, Master of Knowledge. Of this attribution “Father and Mother are perpetually con- joined in Yesod but concealed under the mystery of Da'ath. It is the forces active in Yesod that need to be carefully distinguished one from the other; that need to be subjected to Dissolution and consciously re-assimilated. It is know!- edge pertaining to Yesod that provides the base from which Tiphareth can ascend to the Supernal Da'ath. Yesod is the 9th Sephirah so it is related to The Hermit by number. It is also related by function since Reproduction is assigned to Yesod and Coition is assigned to Key 9. The Hexagonal Lantern containing a star, which the Hermit holds out, indicates what the knowledge is He has and wants to share, It is knowledge of the hidden forces of Yesod and their right direction that He offers; knowledge of the means whereby the Mer- cury Center or Organ of Spiritual Vision is awakened. When that Center is awakened it means you have succeeded in rais- ing the frequency of your personality, as an instrument, to where union with the frequency of Higher Wisdom is possible. The Mercury Center is the 'Holy of Holies', the 'Secret Place of the Most High', the 'Inner Temple’. It has been compared to a womb in which Wisdom can be received and de- veloped, The practices and functions attributed to Key 9 and this Path of Yod represent the means through which it is prepared for this reception by assimilation of the requisite knowledge. Yod, the Life-force of the Father, is in all things. It begins to ac- cumulate within you— in preparation for the opening of the Third Eye — when you first begin to aspire to spiritual knowledge. Since energy always follows attention, studious dedication to the acquisition of spiritual knowl- edge energizes and strengthens your mental body (Netzach-Hod). Steady practice of what you learn through such study transforms the attitudes and responses of your automatic consciousness (Yesod). The suggestive influ- ence of such transformed responses has a refining effect on your physical body (Malkuth), A primarily mental focus attracts extra energy to the physical ve- hicle of thought — the brain. It tends to raise the vibratory rate of its tmaterial! and to complete certain of its functions. This mental focus, combined with the practice of true beneficence, is what enables you to remember with Chesed on the plane of Higher Mind. Look at The Hermit again! Like a crown upon His head there is a blue Yod. It is the letter of Supernal Will and Wisdom. Its blue color is symbolic of Memory, of Chesed and of the Waters of Mem. ‘The Crown of Yod is placed upon the Hermit's head in such a way that it coincides with the Mercury Center, the Center of reception for Higher Wisdom, It is this symbol, above all, that identifies the Hermit as an Exempt Adept and a Master of Compassion. The blue Yod Crown re- Yeala what it is that distinguishes such an Adept from an ordinary human QB)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 63 being. He has succeeded in uniting His instrument of memory with Chesed, the receiver of Will and Wisdom from above. The blue color suggests Water and Key 12. It reminds us of the quiet, controlled mental body, portrayed by the Hanged Man, which is essential to the reception of Wisdom in meditation. The blue color relates also to the Path of the Uniting Intelligence and to the High Priestess who represents it. Upon that Path, at the point where Mother and Father meet, the Union takes place. The High Pries~ tess is the Recorder. She is the ‘storehouse of knowledge! that is adequate to take the shape of Wisdom, to shape itself to Yod! Itis, then, right knowledge, related to Yesod, to reproduction and to Key 9, that prepares you. Dissolution is part of it in order to get rid of erroneous mental forms and their replicas below. Assimilation builds in the true knowledge and the bodily forces related to it. This completes the Hexagon of the Human Spirit and permits Tiphareth to ascend to Union in Da'ath. The experience makes you a conscious Mediator for the Supernal Triad. You know that you are—at one and the same time — the Offspring of Chokmah and Binah and the direct Image of the Indivisible Self. The Hermit with His blue Yod Crown is, thus, a symbol of a Human Spirit who has completed what all Humanity is destined to complete even- tually. He is, at once, the Indivisible Self in Kether; the Masters and Adepts who know and serve that Self; and the Self within every human heart even before the personal ego knows. It is that Self who holds out the Light of Truth continuously — waiting and watching and guarding — until each fragment of Its Being looks upward and begins to see! TECHNIQUE This is the final technique in which emphasis is placed on ascent through the Path of Yod and on the consequent establishing of harmonious interaction between the spheres of Tiphareth and Chesed. Begin with deep, rhythmical breathing. Do not neglect this part of the practice as it helps you get into harmony with the cosmic rhythms. Now visualize yourself backed into the Tree of Life in the manner we have outlined in earlier lessons. As soon as the image is fully established, focus attention on the Supernal Triangle that surrounds your head. Intone the Divine Names — Eheyeh Yod Heh Vav Heh Elohim —and give this meditation: "Thou, Oh Divine Self, art One and Alone! Thou dwellest within me. Thou guidest me all the Way." Next, attend to the sphere of Malkuth. Intone Adonai and give this meditation: "Thou art the Temple of Holiness. The One Life perfects Thee as a Place of Glory for the Sun within my heart." (4) ee h LU CllMEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 63 Bring your attention up to Yesod. Intone Shaddai El Chai and give this meditation: "Thou art the Purified One! Thou holdest the fruits of experience that preparest me for Union with the Self. Focus attention on Tiphareth, This time, in order to give empha- sis to certain linkages, we will intone the full Divine Name attributed to Tiphareth. We will intone it on the one note E. It is Yod Heh Vav Heh Eloah va-Datath (Yod Heh VavHeh ayalowah vahdahth). Intone it and then give this meditation that recites its meaning: "Thou, Oh Ego within my heart, are 'That which was, which is, which shall be — Strength and Knowledge’. " Visualize Tiphareth expanding until you are centered within it. Then image yourself ascending into the Path of Yod, which is an aura of yellow-green light, Intone Yod on the note F and give this meditation: "Thou art the Path of Linkage! Through Thee I consciously remember in unison with the Compassionate Ones." Visualize yourself entering into the sphere of Chesed. Intone El on the note G# and give this meditation: "Thou art the receptacle of Wisdom! That which is experienced in Sacred Union is remembered in Thee." Return to the image of yourself backed into the Tree of Life. Focus attention on Tiphareth. This time intone Yeheshuah and then envision the Golden Qabalistic Cross flowing up and down and back and forth. Complete the practice by chanting Amen and performing the physical exercises. ## (5)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE OF LIVINGNESS Lesson Sixty-four (from the transcripts of class lectures by Ann Davies) ‘The 19th Path of the letter Teth links the Grade of Greater Adept in Geburah to the Grade of Exempt Adept in Chesed. It is the third and final Path leading into the third and highest Grade of the Second Order. ‘As a Path of Wisdom it is called the Intelligence of the Secret of Works, or the Intelligence of the Secret of all Spiritual Activities. Note that it is the second of the three Reciprocal Paths which link the two outer Pillars of the Tree. It is, moreover, the middle or mediating Reciprocal Path positioned on the Tree so that it coincides with the Higher Mental Plane. By treading it you close the Egoic Triangle. That is, you complete the interacting flow between the three Sephiroth of the Central Self. As they begin to vibrate in unison, you become a Conscious Mediator for the Supernals in all that takes place below. The Secret attributed to this Path is revealed when familiar things take on a new significance. In the 20th Path, which we have just completed, the Inner Eye begins to open. It reveals a ‘world’ that was invisible before. Commonplace events and phenomena — so familiar you had almost ceased to notice them — seem to come alive! Universal principles and laws, which up to now you merely had knowledge about, become a direct experi- ence. Key 8, Strength, is our Tarot symbol. By recalling some of its attributions we prepare ourselves not only to 'see! that inner world, but to see it illumined by Light from the awakened Higher Mind. Astrologically, Strength is assigned to Leo, a fire sign ruled by the Sun. The yellow color of this Key and Path link it to Tiphareth, the dwelling- place of the Ego and the Sphere of the Sun, Planetarily, yellow is attributed to Mercury, portrayed in Tarot by the Magician, The Mer- cury influence is indicated also by the horizontal figure 8 over the head of the Woman, In Key | the same symbol is over the head of the Magician, Mercurial and Solar symbols are blended in Key 8. This brings to mind the color interchange between them and their spheres of activity on the Tree, In connection with our present work recall that it is Solar influ- ence that develops the Mercurial intellect in Hod, and it is the developed Mercurial mentality that enables the Solar Consciousness of Tiphareth to awaken into active expression, The figure 8 refers to the magical power of focused attention which can bring down Superconscious energy. It is positioned over the head of a Woman who resembles the Empress and Venus. It is She who must receive that energy if it is to be comprehended with any relationship to everyday existence. Who is She? She is you prepared with knowledge and purified by love. As the awakening inner sensorium begins to reveal the vital soul of things, She is able to relate the soul image to its Higher Truth. She is the Q)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 64 \ linking agency who gives form to abstract superconsciousness and light to revealed subconsciousness. She takes the Higher Light received in meai- tation and duplicates it in roses, She fashions it into a figuae 8 of cult” vated, positive human responses and qualities that express the Truth re- ceived from on High. When these responses have become second nature for you, then you are ready to control the Lion of Key 8. He ‘does Her bidding because all that lives — and everything lives — responds to illu mined, intelligent love ‘The Red Lion is one symbol for the dynamic vital soul inherent in every Kingdom of Nature. By its color it is shown to be identical to the Mars reproductive energy active both in the Path of Peh and in the Sephi- rah Yesod. Peh is parallel to Teth. It links Hod to Netzach on the perso~ nal consciousness level just as Teth links Geburah to Chesed on a higher plane. Yesod is violet, the color which blends the red and blue of Geburah and Chesed. Let's discuss the relationship between the Paths of Teth and Peh first. The letter Teth stands for the serpent force which is essentially the same as the dynamic Mars. The position of the Path of Teth on the Tree indicates that herein the force has been lifted up to activity on the Higher Mental Plane. In the Path of Peh below, Mars — in its Aries as- pect as energizer of the vehicle of thought — reciprocates between Intel- lect and Desire. It acts as the agency through which desires effect thinking and thinking effects desires. ‘This same energy is the reciprocating agency between Geburah and Chesed on the Higher Mental Plane. The difference is revealed by the color of the 19th Path. Herein the Higher Self has been awakened... the Ego of Tiphareth is actively in dominion. It is only after the Higher Self is in charge that the three Sephiroth of the Egoic Triad can be brought into the perfect interaction which represents full entry into the Grade of Ex- empt Adept. ‘The Lion is also a symbol for the force active in Yesod, the vital soul which we share with all of life. It has its forms on the Astral Plane which become visible to the awakened inner senses. If the impressions Und patterns of that plane are to be rightly comprehended their Higher Source must be known, As its violet color indicates, Yesod blends the red of Geburah with the blue of Chesed; the fire of Cosmic Volitional Energy with the water of Cosmic Memory. ‘This Higher Source of Yesod patterns is perceived from the ex- perience in the Path of Teth. There, the same blend of forces is active, but ona higher plane. The Lion is tamed by the Woman because She un- derstands his true nature. From the vantage point of Higher Mind the Foundation is perceived rightly. That vantage point puts you in harmony with the Ruling Intelligences behind all the vital forces of nature. You ex- perience with the Archangelic Beings who inform the elemental lives. Because of this linkage you are able to interpret correctly; you are able to distinguish astral forms that are true to their Higher Plane Source from those that distort it. (2) ide itG 1 I I eloF ipa 03 at en ee ee a aS ee MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 64 What links you to the Archangels is that you have succeeded in identifying Them as aspects of yourself. The Path of Teth, situated as it is on the Higher Mental Plane, represents a degree of perception pos~ sible only to a highly developed Human Ego. Before you are qualified to tread this Path you must have been through all the Grades and Paths which precede it, What is necessary, in order to experience the Cosmic Forces that play through you, is a kind of distinguishing. This is hinted at by the Mercurial influence in Key 8, always suggestive of discrimination in some way or other. It is, however, a high level distinguishing since it is taking Place on a High Plane. The Egoic Self of you, which in Tiphareth suc- ceeded in experiencing Its Unity with all Humanity, needs now to experi- ence the Triune quality of the Central Self. In this Path you experience the 'I' consciousness within you as the mediating, reciprocating agency between Geburah and Chesed. The Ego of Tiphareth, the Solar Consciousness, has ascended to the Path of Teth in order to perceive its Cosmic connections. Your very identity is experi- enced as resulting from the focus into a point of three streams of energy which emanate from the Supernals, You realize that what seems like se~ parate individuality eventuates from the coming together of, and subsequent interaction between, Cosmic Forces. In this experience the three streams are perceived as originating what seems to be personal willing, thinking and feeling. These functions are related to the Volition of Geburah, the image or thought-forming fac- ulty of Tiphareth, and the Beneficence of Chesed. It is this distinguishing that makes possible a more perfect adjustment, alignment and interaction between the three Sephiroth of the Indwelling Ego. It is this perfecting, in turn, which enables the Three to become such a Unified One that the Ego unites with Yekhidah, the Indivisible One. In the Microcosmic work which perfects the 'bodies' of Adeptship, the Woman portrays right use of the Law She represents. It is known to you as the Law of Suggestion. Through its enlightened use you prepare the six principles of Ruach, the Total Human Spirit, for the ascent of the Serpent force, This ascent is gradual and graded, as is all else in the Initiatory process. Eventually, in the Path of Teth, it stabilizes the per- fected interaction between the Sephiroth of the Egoic Triad. The Law of Suggestion refers to the principle whereby more highly developed levels or centers of the Universal Consciousness have natural dominion over lesser developed levels or centers of that same all-pervad- ing Consciousness. It is a statement of the Hierarchical Chain of Influence to which everything belongs and which is always and continuously in opera- tion. Through right use of this principle you can finish the Great Work and become a knowing Administrator of Cosmic Law and a conscious Trans- mitter of Cosmic Love. From your years of Spiritual training you have learned to seek in- fluence from levels of awareness above you. Remember the words from the Emerald Tabled: "It ascends from earth to heaven and descends again (3)MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 64 to earth..." The serpent force ascends first. There has to be a preli- minary refocusing of attention away from too much preoccupation with material plane matters before any inspiration can be received. Thus at- tention has to 'ascend! before it can begin to 'descend'. For you this has already taken place. Through meditational and study practices you have become receptive to the Hierarchical descent. Meditation, and the devotional attitude it requires, act as a powerful sug- gestion that helps you to receive influence from above. The influence thus received is itself a form of suggestion. You receive from levels that have dominion over your self-conscious range. What is received must be transmitted 'downward! and that means it has to be practiced. By practicing what is received from the Higher Mental Plane you transmit it to the Lower Mental Plane. There, through the interacting Path of Peh, Netzach and Hod are influenced. And, since Peh represents Yesod, the interaction tends to transform the personality Triad into an image and likeness of the Egoic Triad. The first vehicle that must be influenced by the Higher Plane sug- gestions, then, is the Mental body of Netzach-Hod. You want your thoughts and emotions to express, as much as possible, the Ideals you receive in meditation. It takes persevering, conscious effort to complete this work. At first it Seems difficult to be expected to always think and feel in the most idealistically selfless, controlled and loving ways. And, at first, it is difficult. You will not succeed all the time. In the stage where you are suggesting to the Netzach- Hod level, you have to keep remembering to do it with conscious attention and per- Severing effort. It takes courage, determination and faith to keep trying in spite of many failures and missings of the mark. The qualities neces~ sary, it should be noted, are representative of positive Leo traits The Woman in Key 8 is a product of Art. The Great Art, in fact. Continuous conscious effort to align your thoughts and feelings with the highest Ideals you have thus far been able to comprehend gradually be- comes habitual, That is, your persistent efforts transform by suggestion the automatic level of consciousness. It becomes a habit for you to think and act and feel in ways inspired by the Higher Self. The patterns for such behavior get impressed in your inlet of the Astral substance. Human subconsciousness always has dominion over less developed expressions of that same level. When your habitual responses are pat- terned after Truth received from above, then there is nothing on the Vital Soul level that can possibly harm you or delude you. Your vital soul body has become so clear of errors that it shines with luminosity from above. Instead of being influenced by Astral delusions you act as a light source and help to destroy those shadowy lies that enslave humanity. From the insight into the secrets of formation which are now open to you, you are able to complete the Incorruptible Body of the perfected Exempt Adept. (4) TEC Path1 wa -nex MEDITATIONAL ASCENT ON THE TREE: 64 TECHNIQUE. ‘This is our first ritual in which emphasis is given to treading the Path of Teth. Establish the image of yourself backed into the Tree of Life before proceeding. Remember to regulate your breathing so that it is quiet and rhythmic and deep. Think about the Supernal Triad which envelops your head and intone Its Holy Names, Eheyeh Yod Heh Vav Heh Elohim, and give this meditation: "Thou, Oh Eternal and Supernal Self, art the source of all that lives. Thou givest me strength to will, to think, to feel! Thou enfoldest me in Thy Love, which is greatest of all." Place your attention on the sphere of Malkuth. Intone Adonai and give this meditation: “Thou art the womb of learning! Without Thee I could not know the Glory of the Self." Focus attention on the violet sphere of Yesod, the sphere of the Vital Soul of livingness. Intone Shaddai El Chai and give this meditation: "My eyes begin to see, my ears to hear and my heart to remember the Incomparable Beauty Thou art destined to reflect. Focus attention on Tiphareth, the globe of vibrating yellow light surrounding and permeating your heart. Intone Yeheshuah and give this meditation: "Thou hast awakened within me a love that encompasses all the Worlds." Focus attention on the red sphere of Geburah. Intone Elohim Gebur and give this meditation: 'Oh Thou, Strength of the Creative Powers! Thou leadest me into the Path of interacting fire! Thou givest me Thy Strength to fulfill my destiny. " Visualize Geburah expanding until you are centered within a globe of vibrating red Light. Then image yourself entering into the Path of Teth. See yourself centered in an aura of brilliant yellow light. Intone Teth (Tayth) on the note E and give this meditation: "Thou art the fire that shines out from every Sun. Thou art the Inner fire that links me to every One." Visualize yourself entering into the sphere of Chesed. Intone El on the note G# and give this meditation: a ‘Thou art the sphere of the Waters of Love. It is Thy love that perfects the Triad of the Heart." Return to the image of yourself backed into the Tree of Life. Focus attention on Tiphareth. Intone Yeheshuah once again and then envision the Golden Qabalistic Cross flowing up and down and back and forth as outlined before. Intone Amen and finish in the usual manner. + (5)