[cover: 24 Books of Esoteric Philosophy by Alice Bailey.]
[The content of this article was extracted from Alice Bailey's books after atomatically searching the text: “Cosmic Evil".]
<13> (Esoteric Healing, pp. 9-11.)
"... The Basic Causes of Disease
This is the problem with which all medical practice down the ages has wrestled. In our present mechanistic age we have wandered far to the surface of things and away from the partially true point of view of earlier centuries which traced disease back of the "evil humours" bred and festering in the inner subjective life of the patient. In the evolution of knowledge on every hand we are now on the surface of things (note I do not use the word "superficial"), and the hour has struck in which knowledge can again re-enter the realm of the subjective and transmute itself into wisdom. There is today a dawning recognition on the part of the best minds in the medical and allied professions, that in the subjective and hidden attitudes of the mind and of the emotional nature, and in the life of inhibited or excessive sex expression, must be sought the causes of all disease.
From the beginning of our studies, I would like to point out that the ultimate cause of disease, even if known to me, would fail to be comprehended by you. The cause lies back in the history of the distant past of our planet, in the career (occultly understood) of the planetary Life, and that it has its roots in what is largely designated "cosmic evil." This is a perfectly meaningless phrase, but one that is symbolically descriptive of a condition in consciousness which is that of certain of the "imperfect Gods." Given the initial premise that Deity itself is working towards a perfection past our comprehension, it may be inferred that there may exist for the Gods Themselves and for GOD (as the LIFE of the solar system), certain limitations and certain areas or states of consciousness which still await mastering. These limitations and relative imperfections may cause definite effects in Their bodies of manifestation—the various planets as expressions of Lives, and the solar system as the expression of a LIFE. Given also the hypothesis that these outer bodies of divinity, the planets, are the forms through which certain Deities express Themselves, it may be a true and logical deduction that all lives and forms within those bodies may be necessarily subject also to these limitations, and to the imperfections growing out of these unconquered areas of consciousness and these states of awareness, hitherto unrealised by the Deities, incarnated in planetary and solar form. Given the postulate that every form is a part of a still greater form, and that we do indeed "live and move and have our being" within the body of God (as St. Paul expresses it) we, as integral parts of the fourth kingdom in nature, share in this general limitation and imperfection.
More than this general premise is beyond our powers to grasp and to express, for the general mental equipment of the average aspirant and disciple is inadequate to the task. Such terms as "cosmic evil, divine imperfection, limited areas of consciousness, the freedom of pure spirit, divine mind," which are so freely bandied about by the mystical and occult thinkers of the time: What do they really mean?
The affirmations of many schools of healing as to ultimate divine perfection, and the formulation of their beliefs in the real freedom of humanity from ordinary ills of the flesh, are they not frequently high sounding phrases, embodying an ideal, and based often on selfish desire? Do they not constitute utterly meaningless sentences in their mystical implications? How can it be otherwise, when only the perfected man has any real idea of what constitutes divinity?
It is surely better for us to admit that it is not possible for man to understand the deep-seated causes of that which can be seen emerging in the evolution of form life. Is it not wise to face the issue and the facts, as they exist for our present realisation, and understand that just as man can enter more intelligently into the mind of God than can the lesser mind of the animal, so there may exist other and greater Minds, functioning in other and higher kingdoms in nature which will surely see life more truly and more accurately than does mankind? It is possible, is it not, that the objective of evolution (as outlined and emphasised by man) may (in the last analysis) be only that partial fragment of a greater objective than he, with his finite understanding, can grasp. The whole intent, as it lies hid in the mind of God, may be very different to what man may conceive today, and cosmic evil and cosmic good, reduced to terminologies, may lose their significance altogether, and are only to be seen through the glamour and the illusion with which man surrounds all things. The best minds of this age are only just beginning to see the first dim ray of light which is piercing this glamour, and serving first of all to reveal the fact of illusion. Through the light thus cast, the following truth may stand revealed to those who have the expectant attitude and the open mind: Deity itself is on the road towards perfection. The implications of that statement are many. ..."
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<14> (Esoteric Healing, pp. 235-236.)
"... It is around these basic ideas that the world war (1914-1945) was fought. We call the unlawful possession of other people's land, territories, goods and chattels, aggression; but this is the same thing in principle as stealing, theft and rape. Today these evils are not only individual sins and faults, but can be national characteristics; the world war has brought the whole problem to the surface of the human consciousness and the ancient Atlantean struggle is being bitterly waged, with the probability that this time the Great White Lodge will triumph. That was not the case in the earlier conflict. Then the war was ended by the intervention of the planetary Logos Himself, and that ancient civilisation went down into the deeps and was engulfed in water—the symbol of purity, sanitation and universality, and therefore appropriate as an ending for what one of the Masters has called "a tubercularly oriented race." Death by drowning and death by obscure physical means which I am not at liberty to describe have both been tried in the effort to salvage humanity. Today, death by fire is the applied technique, and it promises to be successful. In contradistinction to the great Lemurian and Atlantean crises, humanity is now far more mentally alert, the causes of the trouble are recognised, motives are seen more clearly, and the will-to-good and to change past evil conditions is stronger than ever before. What is beginning to manifest now in the public consciousness is something utterly good and new.
The subjective reasons given to account for the appearance of these two most ancient racial diseases may well appear to the non-esotericist as possible but not probable and as fanciful and too general in nature. This cannot be helped. These two groups of diseases are of such exceedingly ancient origin that I have called them inherent in the planetary life itself and the heritage of all humanity, for in all, the breaking of certain laws will bring about these diseases. If I cared to do so, I could take you still further back into the realm of cosmic evil as it prevails in our solar system and affects the planetary Logos, Who is still numbered among "the imperfect Gods." The outer form of the planet through which He expresses Himself is impregnated to a certain depth with the seeds and germs of these two diseases; as immunity is built up, however, as methods of cure are developed, as preventive medicine comes into its own, and as man himself arrives at increasing mental and soul control of the animal and desire natures, these forms of human suffering will disappear, and (no matter what statistics may say) they are disappearing among the more controlled areas of the human family. As the life of God (expressing itself as individual divinity and universal divinity) pulsates more powerfully through the kingdoms of nature, these two penalties of evil-doing will inevitably no longer be required and will disappear for three reasons:
1. The orientation of humanity towards the light is steadily changing and "light dispels all evil." The light of knowledge and the recognition of causes will bring about those carefully planned conditions which will make the syphilitic diseases and tuberculosis things of the past.
2. The centres below the diaphragm will be subjected to a cleansing, lifting process; the life of the sacral centre will be controlled and the energy usually focussed there will be expended in creative living, through the medium of the throat centre; the solar plexus centre will have its energy lifted to the heart, and the trend of human selfishness will then die out.
3. Complete cures, implemented by science, will bring about a gradual fading out of contagion. ..."
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<15> (The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, pp. 292-293.)
"... Divine Intervention.
In considering the subject of Avatars I would like to point out that (from the standpoint of mankind at his present point in evolution) Avatars are of two kinds, as might be expected when the consciousness of humanity is subject to the control of the pairs of opposites. These two are:
1. Those Avatars Who are the embodiment of the Angel of the Presence, whether that Presence is the soul in man, the planetary Logos, some extra-planetary Entity, some Cosmic Being, or an Expression of Cosmic Good.
2. Those Avatars who are embodiments of the Dweller on the Threshold, whether that Dweller is the human Dweller on the Threshold, planetary Forces of Materialism, or some Aspect of Cosmic Evil.
Let me attempt to make this analogy a little clearer. Just as in the case of individual man there comes a point in his life experience when the Angel of the Presence is sensed, known, seen and recognised as the revealer of divinity, so in the history of the race of men, the same great illumination may come. Revelation confronts the aspirant. Revelation confronts humanity. God is known within the human heart. God is known by mankind. This recognition of divinity in its varying aspects is naturally a progressive one—each stage and each life bringing its own revelation of the beauty of divinity and the glory of light more truly and clearly before the disciple. Similarly, there come cycles wherein the Dweller on the Threshold appears and confronts the aspirant, challenging his purpose and progress and blocking the door which leads to expanded life and liberation. The Dweller challenges the freedom of the human soul. So it is also in the life of a nation, a race, and humanity as a whole. ..."
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<16> (The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, pp. 297-298.)
"... 1. Racial Avatars. These Appearances are evoked by the genius and destiny of a race. The typical man (in quality and consciousness, not necessarily physically) foreshadows the nature of some race. Such a man was Abraham Lincoln, coming forth from the very soul of a people, and introducing and transmitting racial quality—a quality to be worked out later as the race unfolds. Coming forth correspondingly from the realm of cosmic evil, and responsible for the focus of materialism upon the planet today was Bismarck. Both men came forth within the same one hundred years, thus demonstrating the balance in nature and the constant interplay of the pairs of opposites. They are both types of the most powerful Avatars which humanity itself has as yet produced. They emerge along the lines of government, of the first ray and in the department of the Manu, and are very sensitive to Shamballa force. Such Avatars frequently emerge at the founding of a nation. This is true of both Bismarck and Lincoln. ..."
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<17> (The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, pp. 433-435.)
"... The leader of the conflict against evil in high places is the Christ, the Head of the Hierarchy. What is the attitude of the Christ at this time? In all reverence, and as one of His humblest friends and personal workers, I am permitted to tell you a little of His position as He nears the great event in May of this year. He knows Himself to be the inner spiritual Commander of the Armies of the Lord. His is the responsibility of awakening the souls of men to their presented opportunity and to the need of bringing to an end this ancient conflict between the Lords of Evil and the Messengers of Light. His has been the problem of teaching humanity that, in order to demonstrate true love and to provide scope and opportunity for a civilisation in which love, brotherhood and right human relations are governing factors, those essential steps must be taken which will accomplish this.
He said when He was on earth two thousand years ago, "I came not to bring peace, but a sword." The sword of the spirit is wielded by the Hierarchy, and by its means cosmic evil is arrested; the sword of discrimination is wielded by the initiates and the disciples of the world, and by its means the distinction between good and evil, with a consequent presentation of free choice between the two, has been laid before humanity, and the lines of demarcation have been made abundantly clear in this world war. It had been the hope of the Christ and the longing of all the Masters that men would see clearly and make free and right choice, so that—without physical plane warfare—they would bring about the needed changes and the ending of wrong conditions. But the conflict descended on to the physical plane and the sword of material war (symbolically speaking) was taken up by humanity.
Forget not (particularly those of you who are outraged by physical conflict through your pacifist inclinations) that, in the West, it was Germany which first of all took the sword in hand, marching into Poland and bringing misery, devastation and cruelty to a smaller and much weaker nation, thus forcing France and Great Britain to fulfil their pledged obligations to that little nation and to declare war upon the aggressor. It was Japan who brought war into the Eastern hemisphere. The Forces of Light were left with no alternative but to fight in defense of freedom.
Prior to the war, the Hierarchy did what it could to change the trend of human living and thinking, awakening the consciences of the intelligent, stimulating the activity of the humanitarians and impressing the minds of Their disciples in order to arouse goodwill, a driving desire for right human relations and peaceful conditions. But the movement was not strong enough; the sword appeared on earth and mankind was plunged into war.
Since then the work of impressing the minds of the world disciples and of those whom they can influence has been along the lines of clarifying the issues, making plain that for which we fight, and arousing men and women to take such action as will, once and for all, end the possibility of a similar world cataclysm. ..."
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<18> (The Externalisation of the Hierarchy, pp. 686-690.)
"... The majority of the Masters and initiates, in Their turn, also relinquish much in order to work exoterically among men. They subject Themselves voluntarily to an active stimulation from the senior "contacting minority" but relinquish the "joy of Shamballic contact". Temporarily, the training which the majority have been receiving in "cosmic orientation," in the use of the will-to-be (a meaningless phrase to you), and in the "bliss of receptivity to the will-to-good of Sanat Kumara" is given up. The entire attitude of the group of Masters, initiates and disciples who are to be responsible for the externalisation of the Hierarchy and for the preparation for the reappearance of the Christ is focussed upon the expert use of the Science of Contact. This time, the science is used upon a wide and telepathic scale, with the souls of men, and upon the technique of expressing spiritually the nature of "isolated unity" in the cities, jungles and the massed inhabited areas of the earth. This involves, as you can well imagine, the use of an expert ability to remain untouched by the evil rampant upon the physical plane, and yet to remain in complete sympathetic and understanding contact with all humanity and with all events that affect humanity. It was prophecy which impelled the Christ to say, when last in public appearance among men, that His disciples were "in the world and yet not of the world"; Christ depicted in simple yet profoundly revealing terms the life of the Members of His Ashrams (the entire Hierarchy) when again He would walk with Them in the plain sight of humanity. He pictured Them as one with the Father (the Council of Life in Shamballa), and yet as one with Him (as the hierarchical Head), and as one also with all that breathes and that inhabits form. I advise all disciples who seek to cooperate with the impending activity of the Hierarchy to study with care the seventeenth chapter of the Gospel of St. John; this was written by that disciple of love, under the influence of the energy emanating from the buddhic vehicle of the Christ, which is also—as you have been told—identical with the buddhic vehicle of the Buddha. The identity of the two vehicles is symbolic of the entire teaching anent "isolated unity" and divine participation, which the Masters in Their Ashrams are teaching Their disciples of all grades, these days, as the first step toward the externalisation of Their activities.
An intensive training process, therefore, is being carried out in every ashram and along identical lines, resulting in the "isolation," occultly understood, of certain Masters and initiates. They have been thus isolated in order that They may work more readily and easily with Shamballa; They can thus form a dynamic and galvanic storehouse of energy (the energy of the divine Will) and thus make it available for the use of the other Members of the Hierarchy, as They stand in "isolated unity" upon the highways of Earth, and thus are "in the world and yet not of the world". The learning of this lesson calls into activity the sacrificial will of both the hierarchical groups; this remains the binding cord between Them and that aspect of the antahkarana along which energy can flow in a new and electric fashion from Shamballa, via the hierarchical minority referred to above, and into the large group of Masters and initiates and disciples to whom is committed the task of consolidation. All this constitutes—for the Members of the Hierarchy—a definite process of testing out and of trial, prior to and preparatory to some of the higher initiations.
Again, the Members of the Hierarchy are not only sensitive to impression from the two other planetary centres (Shamballa and Humanity), but They are acutely aware of the Forces of Evil which are fighting furiously against the externalisation of the spiritual work. The energy which cosmic evil generates is active along three main channels:
1. From the centre of cosmic evil upon the cosmic astral plane. Of this centre you can know nothing,and its emanations and its magnetic aura can only be understood and recognised or interpreted by the senior Masters and by initiates of still higher rank. As the potency of the astral plane (which is so familiar to us all) weakens, and glamour and illusion are negated by a rapid spiritualising of humanity, the power of cosmic evil will correspondingly weaken and the Forces of Evil will be unable to reach the planet with their present easy effort. It is against the impact of this emanating evil that the Hierarchy stands in protection of humanity. Hitherto it has been the task of Shamballa, working through the Hierarchy, to protect humanity from the "intention to destroy" of the cosmic Forces of Evil, but—in the coming cycle and as a result of the triumph of the Forces of Light in the world war—the potency of Shamballa can be combined with that of the "protecting Agents of Light."
2. From the Black Lodge which is the externalisation of the centre of cosmic evil on Earth. Just as theWhite Lodge is the representative or correspondence of the cosmic centre of light upon Sirius (the true Great White Lodge), so the Black Lodge is also representative of ancient and cosmic evil. The Black Lodge is also far more advanced in externalisation than is the White Lodge, because materialism and matter are, for it, the line of least resistance. The Black Lodge is therefore far more firmly anchored upon the physical plane than is the Hierarchy. It requires a much greater effort for the White Lodge to "clothe itself in matter and work and walk on material levels" than for the Black Lodge. Owing, however, to the spiritual growth of mankind and to the steady, even if slow, orientation of mankind to the spiritual Hierarchy, the time has come when the Hierarchy can materialise and meet the enemy of good upon an even footing; the Hierarchy need not be further handicapped by working in substance whilst the Forces of Evil work both in substance and in matter. Once the reappearance of the Christ and of the Hierarchy is an accomplished fact, these Forces of Evil face sure defeat. The reason for this is that the trend of human living and thought is turning steadily towards the subjective spiritual values, even if these values are interpreted in terms of material well-being at present and of better living conditions for all—with peace and security also for all. The Black Lodge or the planetary centre of evil works almost entirely upon the astral plane, and is impressed directly and guided in detail from the cosmic astral plane.
3. From the negative or purely material forces of the planet, which are not necessarily either good orbad but which have been used instinctually and oft unconsciously by humanity for purely material ends, and are therefore basically anti-spiritual and subject to the influence of human desire—a desire oriented towards selfishness, and therefore towards separateness. This form of evil is being combated today by the New Group of World Servers. Of this battle you know something because every thinking man and woman is immediately implicated.
I have spoken of the evil present in the planet in very simple terms, and there are phases of it to which I have not referred; the interlocking and inter-penetrating of the grades of evil are far more numerous and intricate than you surmise.
In summing up, I would say that the present reorientation of the Hierarchy, in relation both to Shamballa and to Humanity, ushers in the cycle of complete defeat of cosmic evil upon our planet, leaving only an isolated and weakened Black Lodge to die a slow death; this permits the purification of human desire to such an extent that "matter will be redeemed by the sacrificial will of Those Who know, by the will-to-good of Those Who are, and by the goodwill of those sons of men who have turned their faces to the light and who in turn reflect that light." ..."
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<19> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 144-145.)
"... It should be carefully borne in mind that evil (cosmic evil or the source of planetary evil) is much closer to Shamballa than it is to Humanity. The Great Lives there move entirely free from glamour; Their vision is one of extreme simplicity; They are concerned only with the great and simple duality of spirit and matter, and not with the many forms which the fusion of these two brings into being. The domination of spirit (and its reflection, soul) by matter is what constitutes evil and this is true whether the statement is applied to the development of the individual or of the group. The "Lights which carry out the will of God" move free from the spell of evil. The Light in which They move safeguards Them, and Their Own innate and inherent radiance repels evil. But They "move alongside the evil to which all lesser forms are prone"; They are part of a great observing Group which "moves forward in time and space"; its members watch the great war and conflict proceed on Earth between the Forces of Light and the Forces of Evil. They have let loose upon Earth the Forces of Light, whilst the Forces of Evil are inherent in substance itself—of which all the many forms of life are constructed. ..."
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<20> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 201-202.)
"... When we can identify the Sound and are no longer "moved" by the O.M., then the initiate becomes a Christ in expression and makes His appearance, either in physical form or upon the planes of what to us might be called the "areas of non-appearance." He can then contain and utilise the energies of which the Spiritual Triad is the custodian and which are the expression of the will and purpose of God. Though the initiate may not be a part of the planetary government, and though he may not be a member of the Council at Shamballa (for only a limited number of initiates are so placed), he nevertheless has the right to move on identical levels and to prepare himself for those higher evolutionary processes which will give him entrance to the cosmic astral plane. This will enable him to "see through" and to recognise "cosmic glamour," and will give him the hidden key to the world of feeling and of sentiency of which our feeling-response and our emotional and intuitional sensitivity are but the dim and distorted reflections. This is a factor of some importance to have in mind if a right sense of proportion is to be developed. The initiate has learnt on earth that the astral plane is in fact non- existent—at least for those of the higher degrees of initiation. This knowledge constitutes the first step towards the comprehension of the secret of negation, towards a true understanding of the basis of the ever-existent pairs of opposites, and towards the knowledge which lies behind the significance of negation. The above sentence is in all probability of little meaning to you, but it nevertheless contains a truth for which the trials, experiences and initiations of planetary existence prepare the initiate. They endow him with those qualities which will enable him to contact cosmic evil and yet remain untouched, eventually to play his part in bringing the Black Lodge and its Brotherhood to an unholy finish. The roots of the Black Lodge are on the cosmic astral plane, as the roots of the White Lodge and its Brotherhood are on the cosmic mental plane; this is, in reality, only for the time being and in order to see certain organised activities upon the star Sirius perfected and carried to a consummation. This has oft been hinted in my writings. ..."
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<21> (Rays and The Initiations, p. 400.)
"... The unfoldment of the will has much to do with Their decision. It must not be thought that Those Masters Who are on the first, third and fifth rays, for instance, follow the Path numerically the same; such is not the case; nor that Those Who are predominantly on the second line of energy find the cosmic astral plane Their goal. Such again is not the case. Their response and decision is based on a realisation of cosmic need—a need of which you can know nothing, any more than it is possible for you to comprehend the nature of cosmic evil.
As to the detail of the work of Those Who choose—until released—to stay on Earth and work in or with the Hierarchy, is there more that I can tell you? You know much anent this subject for I have given much—far more than has ever been given before. I have not dealt with the work of the Hierarchy in relation to evolutions other than the human, for two reasons:
Your unfoldment is still such that you do not and cannot yet include or register the consciousness or nature of the subhuman kingdoms.
The work done by the Hierarchy in those kingdoms is largely carried forward via humanity and modern scientific development. ..."
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<22> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 695-696.)
"... I have hinted earlier to you that this fourth or Renunciation Initiation is closely linked with the sixth initiation and with the ninth. The sixth initiation is only possible when the initiate has definitely made the needed renunciations; the reward is that he is then permitted to make a perfectly free choice and thus demonstrate his essential and gained freedom. The ninth initiation (that of the Refusal) has in it no element of renunciation. It is not a refusal to hold, for the initiate is at the point where he asks and holds nothing for the separated self. At that final planetary initiation the Master is brought face to face with what might be called cosmic evil, with that reservoir of evil which cyclically overflows the world, and also with the massed group of masters of the Black Lodge. He refuses recognition. This I will deal with later when we take up that particular initiation. ..."
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<23> (Rays and The Initiations, p. 716.)
"... 2. It will be apparent to you, therefore, that this energy is the agent for the revelation of the divine purpose. It may surprise you that this is regarded as presenting a problem to the Hierarchy, but if this power—impersonal and potent—should fall into the hands of the Black Lodge, the results would be disastrous indeed. Most of the members of this centre of cosmic evil are upon the first ray itself, and some of the divine purpose is known to a few of them, for—in their due place and in the initiatory regime—they too are initiates of high degree, but dedicated to selfishness and separativeness. Their particular form of selfishness is far worse than anything which you can imagine, because they are completely detached and divorced from all contact with the energy to which we give the name of love. They have cut themselves off from the spiritual Hierarchy, through Whom the love of the planetary Logos reaches the forms in the three worlds and all that is contained therein. These evil but powerful beings know well the uses of the will, but only in its destructive aspect. ..."
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<24> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 721-722.)
"... It is of interest to have in mind also that at this sixth initiation a great moment of basically historic interest occurs. All the Masters Who are initiates of the sixth degree meet in conclave and together, and before making Their final decision (which will probably remove Them from the Path of Earth Service), decide what measures They propose the Hierarchy should take which will drastically and permanently affect the planet on which They have lived and for which They have worked. You will notice that I have here called Them "initiates of the sixth degree," bringing to your minds the fact that before a man takes an initiation of any degree, He is already an initiate of that degree. They in Their totality—at any given time—are the group which makes final decision anent human affairs. It was a decision made by this group of initiates during the ancient Atlantean civilisation which brought it to an end; the decision which They will make now will produce great changes in our modern civilisation. The Masters, however, do not "take this initiation" whenever They are ready to "make decision." The opportunity comes to the Hierarchy every forty-nine years, and the year 1952 will see a group of these higher initiates choose the Path of Their future livingness and Being, but They will do so only after setting in motion certain energy forces which will creatively change matters on Earth. They thereby prove two things: Their grasp of world need and Their recognition of man's freewill to make decision. The last initiation of this kind was therefore held in 1903. Those prepared to pass through this initiation were faced with the fact of the emerging forces of cosmic evil; They had then to decide in what manner They should bring aid to humanity and what situation They should bring about so that mankind would be forced to recognise conditions and also make free choice and decision. What They decided to do led to the world war, to a demonstrated cleavage between right and wrong, between imprisonment and freedom, and which, in 1952 will lead to a decision—the outcome of which is hidden in the consciousness of Those Who will at that time, make it. (Written in 1949.) ..."
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<25> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 726-727.)
"... It might be said that They act like a lens through which the living light flows which makes the revelation possible, and They also fulfill the need of acting as a protecting factor. This protection is needed because at this initiation the initiate is shown not only the eternal good underlying planetary purpose, but he is allowed "to see that which is hidden behind the fast sealed door and be in touch with cosmic evil for it can no longer hurt him." He needs nevertheless the protection of Those with Whom he has fitted himself to associate. What the planetary purpose is I know not; when I say that part of the purpose is to liberate light and love into a wider universe and to free the solar system from the attacks of cosmic evil, I am stating a truth, but a truth which remains as yet meaningless to those who have not been put in touch with the completed purpose; it remains a mystery, for the true nature of light, the mystery of electricity, the constitution of the good, the beautiful and the true, the origin of evil, the nature and purpose of the Black Lodge, the place which that Lodge plays within the divine scheme of being, are all unknown to you in their essential significance. Remember that when a Member of the Hierarchy uses the word essential, He does not mean (as you oft do) that which is needed or necessary; He is referring to the inmost essence which is found at the heart of all things— both the good and the evil. Therefore, when I say to you also that at this eighth initiation the nature and the purpose of duality is revealed to the initiate, it is again meaningless. ..."
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<26> (Rays and The Initiations, p. 732.)
"... The fear of death is one of the great abnormalities or distortions of divine truth for which the Lords of Cosmic Evil are responsible. When in early Atlantean times they emerged from the place where they had been confined, and forced temporarily the retirement of the Great White Lodge to subjective levels, their first great act of distortion was to implant in human beings fear, beginning with the fear of death. From that time on, men have laid the emphasis upon death and not life, and have been ridden by fear all their days. ..."
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<27> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 735-737.)
"... There is one aspect of initiation which is apt to be overlooked. Every initiation is a process of energy transmission from a higher centre of energy to a lower; every initiation charges the initiate with electrical force, and this charging and re-charging is related to what H.P.B. calls "the mystery of electricity " These transmissions of energy enhance the magnetic-attractive force of the initiate, and at the same time are eliminative in their effects. In this fact lies a great planetary truth and the key to the science of planetary redemption. When the spiritual and the electrical charging of the three major centres on the planet—Shamballa, the Hierarchy and Humanity—has reached a high stage of receptive efficiency, a certain cosmic Avatar will "become conscious of the vibratory quality of the little point of light within the solar sphere" and will then "turn His gaze and send His force unto that point of light, and cosmic evil will be driven out and find no more a place on Earth."
Two more initiations remain to be considered, but so high is their potency and so mysterious their working that I find myself unable to deal with them in any way. They are:
Initiation VIII. The Great Transition
Initiation IX. The Refusal
It will of course be apparent that the Transition referred to is related to the sixth Initiation of Decision, when the Master decides which of the seven Paths He will follow to His destined place. I know not what the Great Refusal involves. One thing only I know: It indicates the Initiate's last contact with what we understand as cosmic evil, manifesting on this planet and in relation to the planet. He is accorded this last contact, but such a contact is not based upon anything analogous to evil within Him, but is based upon the "planetary appeal for liberation." This appeal is so strong that the Initiate— because His heart is on fire with love—is tempted to go back upon His decision and stay upon the planet with Those World Saviours Who have chosen the Path of Earth Service. This He may not do, and in the sight of the assembled Initiates He makes His refusal and "does His whole duty as He journeys to the sacred Feet of the ONE WHO stands at the end of His chosen Path."
Again, we come up against the outstanding planetary characteristic which has been presented to us under many differing words, i.e., the sensitivity which in some form or another distinguishes each initiation. We know it also as attraction, the sensitivity which moves outward until it attracts and draws to itself those forms of being which the initiate can instruct or aid; we know it also as the overall activity conferring that spiritual sensory perception which makes the initiate aware—in a universal sense—of all that concerns the sphere of influence of the Will of God. This demonstrates particularly at the eighth Initiation of Transition. In the ninth Initiation of Refusal, this heightened spiritual perception is presented to us under the word "Existence," for existence is a livingness coupled with awareness which "finds its own place and the spiritual house of its Being which is the true home of all Beings, but of this—our planetary forms know naught." This the initiate has at last learnt to find, after the struggle with evil in himself, after the struggle with materialism and with evil in the human family, and after his struggle to aid in the "closing of the door where evil dwells" and his refusal to make any contact (even with good intention) with cosmic evil.
The planetary Lodge of Masters has absorbed Him and, at the final initiation, the Great Lodge on Sirius has recognised Him, and with the Black Lodge of Adepts He will have nothing to do. He will mitigate its evil effects and will struggle to offset its results, but He knows that the final overcoming of cosmic physical evil must be undertaken by Existences much further advanced than even the Members of the Council Chamber at Shamballa; certain solar Entities and certain great Lives from Sirius are dealing with the problem. ..."
♦
<28> (Rays and The Initiations, pp. 753-754.)
"... But humanity has not chosen to exert itself in this redemptive activity, and for thousands of years has been controlled by that which is material; it has thus constructed the "broad and easy way" which leads to the place where another kind of evil dwells—an evil which is not indigenous to our planet, an evil with which it was never intended that men should deal. For untold aeons, the Hierarchy has stood like a shield, guarding humanity. But with the coming of a greatly increased mental development, with the repudiation of the Hierarchy by the bulk of humanity, and by the prostitution of religion to material ends and narrow theological and mental tenets, the Hierarchy has been forced (much against its will) to withdraw some measure of its protecting power (though not all of it, fortunately for mankind). The way to the door where evil dwells was unimpeded, and humanity opened wide the door. The entrance for what might be regarded as cosmic evil was first opened in the decadent days of the Roman Empire (which was one reason why the Christ chose to manifest in those days), was opened wider under the corrupt regime of the Kings of France and, in our own day, has been opened still wider by evil men in every land.
Remember that the evil to which I refer here is not necessarily the foul and vile things about which people speak with bated breath. These are largely curable and the processes of incarnation eventually purify them. The true nature of cosmic evil finds its major expression in wrong thinking, false values and the supreme evil of materialistic selfishness and the sense of isolated separativeness. These (to speak again in symbols) are the weights which keep the door of evil open and which precipitated upon the world the horrors of war, with all its attendant disasters.
The realisation of what was happening did more temporarily to unify the world and heal the cleavages among nations than any other thing. The nations of the world allied themselves with the Forces of Light to a very large extent, and little by little, cosmic evil was forced back and the door which "conceals the place of endless death and hides the countenances of the Lords of wicked pride and hateful lust" was partially closed, but not entirely shut; its final closing and sealing is not yet accomplished. ..."
