Dog Time and A Bird in the Hand 

In the early 1990s I was driving to a meeting with a friend of mine. Tom was about twenty years my senior and had been a Jesuit in his youth. He left the clergy, married, had two children, and worked for the state. It was early evening and we were heading north into Southeastern Massachusetts when we stopped for coffee. The meeting was a regular event, as both of us were co-founders of the group, a small gathering of people interested in esotericism who actively explored its more operative aspects. The group was in part an extension of a small circle I had formed earlier, The Rhode Island Society for Esoteric Studies (RISES), established Sunday afternoon, October 28, 1990, in the basement of Pyramid Bookstore, Thayer Street, Providence, Rhode Island. RISES was active for several years with a mailing list of over 100 names and an average of five to ten people in attendance for meetings. Eventually part of RISES was absorbed into the newly established Providence Organizational Group, later the Providence Pronaos (established 1992; closed 2009) of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC. Part of it went on to become the magical group mentioned above. Several of us were members of both groups; while RISES ceased to exist as an independent entity after a brief span of two years, its mission, if you will, was completed: it helped give birth to two new and relatively healthy groups.

 

Now, as we sat in the car heading off to meet with our magical friends and conspirators, Tom said to me, “I am on dog time.”

 

“What is dog time?” I replied.

 

“Dog time is either 'now' or 'not now.' Dog time is very immediate,” he answered.

 

“OK. So this is some kind of Zen koan thing?”

 

“Sort of...” he said, and went back to paying attention to the road as he sipped his travel mug.

 

“Dog Time,” as I understand it, is what some call “being in the present moment” or paying attention to what is happening RIGHT NOW.

 

By paying attention, we get to know what is really going on—not what we think is happening or would like to have happen, but what is actually occurring around and to us. This is a wonderful place to be, and so few people “do” it—it is, after all, another way of describing that elusive state of mind we mystically refer to as “enlightenment.”

 

Several days ago my wife was working her required “Weekend Duty” at the gymnasium located on the campus of the private boarding school where she teaches science. In the office there is a small white board with the “Quote of the Week” written on it in erasable ink. This one read: “It is amazing what you can accomplish just by paying attention,” and was attributed to Keanu Reeves. While I do not know, nor care, if Mr. Reeves actually said this, it is a significant point. Paying attention, being in the moment, or Dog Time, is what it is all about.

The Time is Now

Now is all we have. You have heard this before and I am saying it to you again—spend some “now time” with it until it sinks in. Once it does you will stop pissing away the only truly non-renewable natural resource you have—your life. What we do RIGHT NOW decides what we will experience in the near and distant future. This then becomes the pattern of our life and why habits can be both destructive and helpful. We have to carefully choose what it is we are doing so as to be better able to mentally project the possible outcomes of our actions. Will they make us happy? Will they benefit us and our family? Will they provide avenues or direct means that help others, known and unknown to us? Yet, with the whirlwind of contemporary urban living, taking even a few minutes out to consider the consequences of our actions can appear to be a daunting task. However, it is essential that we learn to slow down, deliberate, and act with greater awareness of the possible outcomes. Former British Prime Minister Disraeli is attributed with saying, “Define your terms, gentlemen; it saves a lot of argument.” To this we could also add what I tell my sons is the most common phrase said by teenage boys to parents, teachers, police, judges, and emergency room nurses and doctors: “It seemed like a good idea at the time.” Yes it did, and no it wasn't...

I was recently contacted by a client who wanted to resolve several important issues. Our discussion drifted into the area of a donation she had made to establish a complimentary and alternative health care program and facility at her local hospital. The hospital staff was very enthusiastic and welcomed the idea; her $1 million donation was earmarked for facility construction. But then things got a little sticky. The good news was, she was paying attention. She noticed that the initial plan was not being carried out as agreed upon and was able to remedy the problem. Did it work out exactly as envisioned? No, it didn't. Did it work out well for her and get support for complimentary and alternative health care in her area? Yes, it did. Yet all of it hinged on her paying attention: paying attention to the needs of the community, to her own ability to help, to the program once it was initiated, and to possible solutions, and then again to what level and for how long she wanted to be involved. This completed the circle, this completed the task.

 

Is it possible to have high levels of attention all of the time? In theory, yes; in practice, it can be difficult. That is why we have a mind and nervous system that develops habits. Relaxation and self-honesty are the key.

Self-honesty is often more difficult than paying attention (or “mindfulness,” as it is often called). Self-honesty requires that we actually take time to know and understand our thoughts, their root causes, and the words and actions they create. Many people are in denial of their mortality as well as the essential uncertainty of life. This creates an attitude of procrastination, or putting things off to a later date—a date that often never arrives, or does not deliver the dream as promised. Procrastination is not delayed gratification for something greater; it is often the expression of reckless self-indulgence—an emotional attachment to the moment, coupled with denial about the consequences of not directing one's attention elsewhere. An example everyone can relate to is that of studying for a test or writing a paper. How often did you or someone you know spend time entertaining themselves when they should have been studying? Then, the “all nighter” is pulled, “cramming” is in full effect, and—as the adrenaline and coffee flow like water through a tap—anxiety increases to a near-paralyzing degree. Some skim by, others get lucky, but most of us find that preparation requires forethought and planning: in other words, a consideration of the consequences of our actions, and their impact on our life—our career, our income, and our general health and happiness. This is healthy self-discipline: delayed gratification for something bigger and better than what the moment in front of us has to offer.

This habit of procrastination expresses itself in many ways, one of them being our actions to help others or do something we have always wanted to do. In a previous article entitled “Karma Yoga 2.0,” we discussed how the good will and altruism of people is often manipulated and abused by spiritual movements and organizations. Part of this is in getting members to commit themselves beyond what is healthy for the individual to the cause. This almost exclusively involves volunteering, fundraising, and outright financial contributions—to which the member often has no real say on how the money will be used. This is unacceptable, but can only be stopped by the individual on an individual basis. Each of us must pay attention to what we are doing, why we are doing it, and what the outcomes could be. If everything matches with our personal as well as organizational desires then all is good. If they do not then we need a means of addressing our concerns. This is easier done while we are alive than when we are dead. Which leads me to our final point:

The Intangible “When...,” or, A Bird in the Hand...

I hear a lot of people tell me, “When I... I will....” You get the picture. “When” never comes, and “will” never happens.

If you want to write a book, a song, learn an instrument, help beautify your neighborhood, or take a leadership role in your church, community organization, or esoteric group, do it now. Now is all you have. While your degree of commitment may be less than ideal, it will still be a commitment, and therefore working towards your ideal day by day. All books are written in pieces—a few minutes or an hour a day at the keyboard. All community involvement is done in small activities; the same is true with leadership roles—they take about an extra one to two hours a week, with some even half that amount of time.

 

A book can be written in about fifteen to thirty minutes a day, every day, and be done in a year. Now, over the last year I have spoken to six people about writing a book. Only one has completed it. Why? Importance. To the one who completed it, writing a book was important. To the others it was just an idea, a wish, a dream, but not a desire. Find a desire and fulfill it. In doing so, fulfill yourself and expand your potential.

 

If you are unable to find the time, then make a financial donation. Again, any amount is a good amount. It is your decision as to how much it will be, where it will go, and what it will be used to accomplish. In the last fifteen years I have been promised by no less than six different people significant financial support—in excess of six figures—for the Institute for Hermetic Studies. On not one occasion were any of these promises fulfilled. Several of them were dependent on “improved conditions” of the would-be donor, others on the receiving of financial settlements, and several as part of their estate at the time of their death. Now, the intentions were and are still good, but the actions are worthless. I told each of them, “Thank you. However, it would be better to donate what you can now, and help me use it the way you envision—so that you and others can enjoy it—rather than wait until you are dead.” The same goes with promises to take action “when things improve.” I told my aspiring patrons, “Donate $100 or $1,000 or anything in between to the Institute, or to the Louis Claude de St. Martin Fund. Do it monthly or quarterly rather than in a single check. That will go much farther now and provide more benefit than two or three times that amount in the distant future that may never arrive. Imperfect now is better than a perfect time that never is, was, nor can be.”

Some do it—most do not. Why? Because they dream of being a “big donor” rather than of being, here and now, a real, honest supporter and patron of the ideals they claim to hold so dear. A little goes a long way, and then runs out. Life is the same: it is one moment at a time, and then it runs out. Find something, anything you are genuinely passionate about and do it or support it. This will lead you to other things that will, like this “first act of creation,” spur you to additional ways of expanding your self-expression and self-consciousness, while aiding and assisting others in their journey on the Path of Return.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Inner-Way-Prayer-Spiritual-Practice/dp/1502883937/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1428176138&sr=8-3&keywords=mark+stavish

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Karma Yoga 2.0

As many of you are aware, there are four forms of traditional yoga: Jhana, Bhakti, Raja, and Karma, that form the foundation for the various yogic practices. These four areas of practice the means of practice that we can use to achieve union with our ideal, and thereby, spiritual awakening. Jhana Yoga is realization through study that reveals to us wisdom. Bhakti Yoga is realization through devotion to an ideal, be it in the form of the teacher (hence the practice of Guru Yoga) as well as an ideal, giving rise to many of the missionary forms of religious and spiritual practice. Raja Yoga is a methodical study of the mind as well as karma, or “cause and effect”. It is directly experiential and aimed at the very essence of being like a laser beam. While Jhana Yoga uses our intellect as the tool for awakening, Bhakti yoga uses our emotions, with Raja Yoga using the nature of mind itself, Karma Yoga uses the body and its effects as the tool and the path.

Karma Yoga is described as the “yoga of work”. This means that the person undertaking Karma Yoga consciously undertakes a task as a means of furthering their illumination, and that of others, even though the fruits from that labor will be very material in their expression. For example, it is very common for attendees at a Buddhist retreat center to pay their daily fees for room, board, and teachings, and still undertake a variety of chores to maintain the facility. Cutting grass, helping prepare meals, building maintenance, and cleaning the temple are all aspects of Karma Yoga. Some will even list it on their retreat schedules as such.

However, for those who cannot attend these kinds of events, but still wish to support their teacher, lodge, or school in some fashion, what can they do? Technology has made volunteering easier, particularly in the area of creating publications, videos, and educational tools. Reliable international shipping is also a powerful tool for the creation, transportation, and utilization of various ritual tools, works of art, and highly rare and valuable specialty items connected to the Work. Thus, it is very easy for someone in Thailand to send me, in the eastern United States of America, several pounds of antimony for alchemical work, or someone in Europe to send rare esoteric texts. Modern technology has freed us from the need to be physically present, or within a few hours distance, to be of assistance to the spiritual teachers, groups, and movements that are of assistance to us on our Path of Return.

This ease is not without its own problems however, the principle one being that 'ease of contact' is also 'superficiality of contact'. Or as the saying goes, “Easy come, easy go”. It is not uncommon for esoteric relationships to be more like serial dating than courtships. Everything is hot and heavy in the beginning, and then as reality sets in, the need to keep the emotional and sexual intensity at an all-time high kicks in, and off the student goes, to a new lover, a new teacher, school, or path.

For those who do stay and develop a meaningful, healthy, and mature relationship with their teachers and fellow students, the path becomes very much like marriage with its ups and downs, but for the most part, both parties are in it until the end. This means that both parties are demonstrating respect for what each others roles are in the relationship. While clearly not one of equals – at least not for a while – each knows that the other brings something meaningful and needed to other party.

Yet the needs must be proportional the roles and responsibilities.

If the teacher needs to teach, more than the student needs to learn, then the relationship is doomed from the start. Then, the student does not have a mature individual as a spiritual friend, guide, and drill instructor, but instead, an individual who so desperately needs the approval of others that the only way they can find it is through the highly subjective world of appearing knowledgeable about 'spirituality'. I know this sounds harsh, but that is the way it is. For the first few years, the student must desire the company of the teacher, a company that can be at times very demanding and even torturous, more than the teacher needs whatever it is the student brings to them. For in the beginning, all the student can bring is their body, their wealth, and the promise or potential of it being forged into a tool of awakening.

In one of her writings on Tibetan Buddhism, Janet Gyatso stated, “Lamas need adoring students.”

I think this is very true, and it can also be said for many involved in Western esoteric movements as well. It provides a fresh impetus to the teachings and motivation to the teacher. Students who are too enamored with their teacher are really unable to understand this, as they cannot see through their own projections long enough to gimps the truth. At some point, too many teachers are unwilling to remove the glamor, to pull back the curtain so reality can be glimpsed as it has a proven track record of negatively impacting the year end financial statements. Instead, students find their attention and energies being overtly and excessively directed towards building and construction projects, outreach, and of course the proselytizing and fund raising activities that accompany them.

This is not to condemn planning, growth, and maintenance programs, but to point out that these are but one-quarter of the work, and devotion to the ideal, the teacher, and teachings represented is but one-quarter of the work. The remaining half of our work is personal study and practice. It is this half that is really most critical as it is in theory the reason we are attracted to spiritual work to begin with. Only when combined, do these four qualities or means of practice, give a balance and harmony to one's individual growth while simultaneously supporting the teacher, group, or lodge.

How Much Is Enough?

Two hours a week in volunteer work is about 2 ½ weeks of volunteer time a year. One hour a week would be half of that. So, if you are leading a study group, preparing for one or two events a year, or assisting in on-going maintenance, this would easily absorb that time. Thus, one can say their karma yoga duties are fulfilled. If one is contributing a sum of money equal to one or two weeks of earnings (after taxes is fine) that would also be a fulfillment of one's sense of karma yoga. At an income of $50,000 per year, that would be a donation of approximately $600 and $1,200 per year, or $50 to $100 per month over and above whatever one's annual dues or affiliation costs. Of course, one is free to figure out whatever percentage for donating they like, this was used to illustrate the point.

This then leads us to the important point of how do we know if we are overextending ourselves?

1. Is your involvement effecting your ability to pay your bills?
2. Is your involvement encouraging you to do more so that you can express and become more in your personal life, or is it all aimed at the teacher or group?
3. Is the group encouraging involvement to the detriment of your personal practice?
4. Is the ideal of self-sacrifice held out over self-expression of our talents and deepest potential?
5. Do you enjoy what you are doing for the group?
6. Do you volunteer because you want to help and support, or out of a sense of pressure or the desire to be recognized as being special?
7. What you would do with your time and resources if you were not supporting the teacher, group, or lodge?

While not exhaustive, the above questions are meant to focus our attention on the “why” of our group involvement and support rather than the “how”. In the end, the 'how' is about the sustainability of the organization. This sustainability is either through direct cash donations, money raised through recruitment or fund raising, and savings on cash expenditures from members donating their services.

So, while we are not asking you to put a price tag on everything you do, we are asking you to recognize the cost of your involvement so that you can make healthy and positive choices that move your spiritual practice forward and not side-track or even derail it.

This also means you need to know what you get in return for your efforts.

Does this get you some sense of importance?

Easier access to the Lama or Guru?

Promotion in the ranks?

What is the actual benefit or lessons learned, that you receive from volunteering for your organization or movement of choice?

Be careful about false promises, such as special initiations, wealth rituals or practices, audiences with dignitaries, a new funny hat, or a better seat at the table. The worst of lies however, is when we are told that our work and sacrifice will be witnessed by the Unseen Masters, the Unknown Superiors, and we will be rewarded by them at some future date and time. Such are bribes aimed at increasing one's sense of self-importance rather than genuine signs of spiritual awakening. The two can go together, but it is rare and difficult to find them paired. In short, we must work and volunteer because we want to, and not because we feel we must or need to participate in such a manner.

This also means we need to take a good hard look at our relationship to the teacher, the teachings, and community to which we are a member. It does not exist for us alone, and if we treat it as a commodity, that is fine, but then do not be surprised if in return you are not allowed entrance without having bought your ticket. 

So, look at your involvement with your teachers, teachings, and community of practitioners and ask yourself if you have a healthy or unhealthy relationship with them? Are you pulling your own weight and ensuring the health and continuity of the movement for future generations? Is your idealism and altruism being abused under the guise of self-sacrifice and service to the greater good? Or as one fellow likes to remind me, is the phrase and idealism of karma yoga being used as a euphemism for “indentured servitude”?

As was stated in Light on the Path - A Study Guide for Qabala, Alchemy & Astrology, no one ever tells a volunteer when to stop, so remember that it is alright to say “No” when asked to do something. Volunteering of one's time, talent, and treasure must be done freely, otherwise it is coercion and conscription and whatever good that can be achieved by it is already limited. Encourage, but do not force, or pressure others to help in whatever way they can. This way, each will find their right place at “the Table of the Lord”.

http://www.amazon.com/Light-Path-Qabala-Alchemy-Astrology/dp/1502405733/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1427308723&sr=1-1&keywords=mark+stavish   

Are You Certifiable? Buyer Beware in the Spiritual Marketplace

 

One of the most common topics of discussion that has arisen over the last four or five years is the explosion in various programs offering certifications in various esoteric, spiritual, and holistic practices. It seems that telling your potential client base that you are “Certified” is increasingly common and taken by both consumers and would be teachers as a testimony to competency. However, this simply is not true in most instances, and many of these certificates are not worth the time it took to print them. For example, I am familiar with several women locally teaching meditation classes. Last year they had no interest in meditation or any spiritual discipline at all. Now, after taking their six-week they are a “Certified Meditation Instructor”. Take it for what it is worth. Yes, they can talk you through the practice, but knowing them as I do, I would not count on them for the needed instruction – instruction based in experience – for when the crises hits. In fact, in discussions with them I have been told that meditation and spiritual practice “should be crises free”. I kid you not.

There is also the current “certified yoga instructor” machinery out there. Churning out “instructors” who have never heard of pranayama, know the basics of meditation, or understand the limits of human physiology across the life-span. Thus, injuries happen, both of the physical kind and the psychological as psychic centers are awakened when stress is released, and suddenly, you have someone crying in the middle of your yoga studio, having neurotic ideation, or even what can be diagnosed as psychotic episodes because the instructor was incompetent. Intentionally incompetent? I doubt it? They probably believed the sales pitch they were given and passed on to their students. But “the path to hell is paved with good intentions”, and good intentions do not protect one from being stupid or injured as a result. What does it mean to be certified? What does it mean this person actually knows and is capable of imparting to me or others? 

The same is true in astrology. I have read numerous predictions by “certified financial and business astrologers” who were incapable of giving a single piece of advice in their column or blog other than to purchase financial products off of them. Mundane astrology is difficult. It requires a specific chart for a specific location. Thus, generalities about eclipses, such as our upcoming one on March 20^th, are like most generalities – worthless for being anything other than a generality. The effect of the eclipse will be stronger in those areas where it is strongest, weakest where it is weakest, and a non-event where it does not occur. To understand things in detail requires details, like comparing two or more charts, and not general commentary. The same is true with natal charts.

 

This leads me to answer publicly a question I have often been asked, and that is, “How many students have you initiated over the years?” I have lead or participated in many initiations, but those number of students who I have initiated by my own authority is few. By doing so I was stating that they have the heart and mind to teach others either individually or in the formal setting of a temple, and can act as a 'friend and guide' to those who come to them. They are not perfect, nor in possession of great mystic powers, they are simply solid people who can be relied upon to help others on the Path of Return. If they do not know the answer they know how to find it. They are, reliable. How many have I said this about? Over the last fifteen years it has been a total of six men and women.

 

In Light on the Path – A Study Guide for Qabala, Alchemy & Astrology there is a section that briefly addresses this notion of 'certification' and learning support being offered by the Institute for Hermetic Studies. It is a total of one paragraph in length. The reason is simple: the Institute for Hermetic Studies would very much like your trust and support in allowing us to be your “authority of choice” in these matters. We very much would like to have a small army of certified students and instructors across the globe who can be counted on to provide solid, reliable, and helpful instruction in the Hermetic Arts and Sciences. However, this is not the primary or even secondary mission of the Institute or purpose for writing Light on the Path. In fact, it is quite the opposite. In Light on the Path an outline of study for four or more years was provided, complete with extensive questions and tests for students and group leaders so they can self-assess themselves. You see, we want people to read and use Light on the Path as their guide of choice for both independent and small group practice. What does this have to do with certification? Very simple. If someone is certified by the Institute for Hermetic Studies they are being tested on everything that is in that book. So, you know what they are supposed to know. Now, if you want to be quizzed by us and sent a certificate that verifies your knowledge in those areas listed in Light on the Path we can arrange for that to be done. However, if you don't that is fine as well. In the end, what matters is that you study and practice an effective path, and, that you know what questions to ask of those who would jockey for your trust and dollars in the guise of your spiritual guide. In Light on the Path some answers to these questions have been provided to assist you in refining your journey – and hopefully that of others - on the Path of Return.

http://www.amazon.com/Light-Path-Qabala-Alchemy-Astrology/dp/1502405733/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1425654927&sr=8-1&keywords=mark+stavish

Knowing When To Stop 

 

The following comments below have been previous posted separately and are being placed together as they address the same activity – the use and abuse of idealism in spiritual groups and how to avoid becoming a victim of it.

 

Far too many religious, spiritual, esoteric, humanitarian, and 'altruistic' organizations and movements are little more than Leviathans that live of the life blood of their true believers and spit out their remains into the waste heap of the qlippoth when they are done digesting them. This is the 'egregore' phenomena that Jean Dubuis warned about. Organizations need to be a means to Illumination, not an end in and of themselves if they are to be true to their ideals. Look for the gap between what is said and what is done. If it is small, or can be crossed in a single step you are very lucky. If the gap requires a stretch to cross, then be alert. If the gap cannot be crossed without building a bridge then wear a parachute for when that bridge of faith you have built collapses, or find another Path.

 

Often connected to this abuse of students in what I like to call, “Utopia Myopia”.

Simple put, those who can do great things do them.

 

Those who cannot do great things but wish to, seek to serve a great person. 

Those who want to serve a great person but cannot do so directly seek to serve a great cause. 

Herein lies the Path to Perdition, or as they say, "The path to Hell is paved with good intentions." 

The volunteer is often the 'true believer' and rarely is the volunteer told when to stop and get on with their life, as volunteering for the cause is their life. In fact,... it is more important than life itself. This kind of myopic thinking is often found in spiritual movements, and the greater the idealism, the grander the vision, the more destructive the actions of those who 'serve' it. They often loose sight that all spiritual vehicles are just schools, and it is important that students graduate with real life skills and not just get 'passed through' or 'stay forever'. Many seek to work for or live at spiritual centers, thinking that this is the solution to all of their problems. There they will find people of a 'higher calling' who are without ambition, and seek only to 'serve' whatever the cause happens to be. Of course it rarely works out this way, and he utopian heaven on earth slowly turns into a living hell, or at least a purgatory, wherein their foolish idealism is stripped from them like the sin it is [remember, sin means to miss the point], and they either return to the world wiser than before, or fall victim to a trap of their own making. Walking the fine line between idealism and practicality must not be an excuse for crass manipulation of people. The ability to walk this line is the sign of a good teacher - be they recognized as one or not - or a good student. Pay attention! Be Awake! The goal should be to "know thyself and you will know the gods" first and foremost. Everything after that is about the corporation, be that good, bad, or indifferent.

 

In Light on the Path – A Study Guide for Alchemy, Qabala & Astrology there is a section of advice on the establishing and running of study groups and independent lodges. Here are two point relevent to the upcoming year.

7. Learn When to Say “No”
It is rare for a group or organizational leader to tell a volunteer to stop. In fact, what often happens is those seeking identity and meaning in their lives become involved in volunteer activities and then let it consume them. Their personal lives, careers, family and even health can break-down through an over abundance of enthusiasm for “the cause” - whatever that cause maybe. Leaders need to pay careful attention to not taking on too much and to delegate duties, and they also need to look out for members to be sure that too much is not being expected of them in return. Go slow, take it easy, check your results, and “make haste slowly” to avoid burnout.

8. Preparing for the Path of the Hermit

No one comes to the Path for the best of reasons, all come, in one form or another, for what they can get from it – power, health, self-confidence, a purpose to their life – and each in turn must learn how to serve and assist others if they are to achieve their goal. Anyone who has participated in an esoteric group, regardless of what it may be, will often tell you that the experiences they had – good, bad or indifferent – were among some of the most important experiences of their life. Intense relationships are formed in the cauldron of ritual. Personal demons are brought to the surface to be exorcised and integrated as latent and potential powers and abilities are recognized and manifested. It is easy to make one's lodge, circle, or group the center point of one's life – and as we have show, to the detriment rather than benefit of the equally important but more mundane aspect of daily living. 

For those who serve as leaders it is easy to become dishearten, cynical and jaded – yet it is enthusiasm, encouragement, and joy that we must constantly cultivate in ourselves and in others. To avoid over identification with one's group and role in that group, it is important to train each member for their inevitable separation from the organization. This separation may be temporary or permanent (such as relocation or death) but it will happen, and for the individual and group to benefit from this separation, it must be planned for and done successfully.

 

To this end, any member who has been in the group for seven years should take a sabbatical of their choice in their eighth year. They may attend group meetings, but are forbidden to participate in any active role. This is a year of rest and reflection. They may choose not to attend, but will be welcomed back when their year is over. Members who have been active for ten or twelve years are to take the year off from group activities and are to avoid any contact with group members. They are to undertake a magical retreat during this period. This Path of the Hermit will prepare them for being of greater service to their fellow Travelers when they return. 

 

Of course other possibilities exist and it is up to each group, its leadership and members, to decide who best to meet everyone's needs as they travel the Path of Return together. In this way, the seeds planted now will continue to grow and bear fruit not just for this generation, but for generations to come.”

Please consider the points above and in future posts we will examine additional ones from the material found in Light on the Path. 

http://www.amazon.com/Light-Path-Qabala-Alchemy-Astrology/dp/1502405733/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1424526995&sr=8-4&keywords=light+on+the+path

Spiritual Study Groups: Are the Inmates Running the Asylum?

 

When we speak of spiritual growth or unfoldment what we are really discussing is our degree of understanding our own mind. Why this is important is because when we are talking about 'enlightenment' or 'illumination' what we are really pointing to is our own degree of mental clarity or mental health. This is important to understand because there can be no genuine enlightenment and there not be a corresponding degree of mental health or wholeness. This does not mean that spiritual practices cannot be traumatic, in fact, they should be. The trauma is not a result of the practice, but of the practice pointing out to us where our neurotic tendencies and habits reside and how they are activated. By knowing this we can dissolve or deactivate them and thereby remove a block to our relaxed and natural state of mind we call enlightenment. If your path is too smooth you are doing something wrong. If your path is too rocky then you are doing something wrong. If your path has its peaks and valley, along with stretches of calm plateaus, then you are probably doing something correctly. 

This is also the very reason why there can be no such thing as collective enlightenment. Each person must work with their own mind and its contents. Others can help us, and we can help others, but our help is limited by our own actual degree of mental health and wholeness. All too often we find people who find something that is good for them – at least for the moment – who then want to share it, or rather force it upon the world. This need for collectivism is itself a neurotic function of the individual's failure to grasp the limitations of their own actual degree of inner awakening. While it is important to work with a group so that we can see our strengths and weaknesses manifest with others who may be in a position to help us, it is important to realize that the group is not the work, nor the result of it. The spiritual community, as far as human beings are concerned, is a workshop of ideas. Not all workshops produce the same quality of goods. So, pick your friends carefully, and your spiritual friends even more carefully. If the 'inmates are running the asylum' then you must seriously question the quality of spiritual instruction and awakening that can take place for you within that group.

 

Remember, in the end it is all about your understanding of yourself, and your ability to actualize fully and completely your own inner potential. Spiritual practice is a solitary path taken by individuals who may or may not chose to walk and work together for a period of time and mutual support (this is what churches, schools, lodges, and orders are for), but it is not a collective enterprise wherein all members are considered equal regardless of their degree of active participation in their own inner life. Each of us will reap what we sow, and not reap the work or rewards of the other. It can be no other way, otherwise there would be no need for spiritual instruction and practice, as the singular enlightenment of one would be the de facto enlightenment of us all. 

For more information on how to organize a spiritual study and practice group see:

 

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What We Conceive of Ourselves as Being

You see, this is the key. All of our successes and failures come down to what we conceive of ourselves as being. In the Gospel Jesus say, 'I and my Father are one.' It is written in the Hermetica, 'Think of a thing and you are it'. Agrippa states in his Three Books of Occult Philosophy, 'If a man thinks of fire he is fire, if he thinks of war he is war.' All of the Tibetan Lamas regardless of them being Bon or Buddhist, Nyingma or of the New School sects, state that the purpose of visualization of the deities, and more importantly of ourselves as the deities, is to awaken ourselves to these qualities that already exist within us. Yes, they are already within us. We simply need to recognize them and get out of our own way – get around our false notions and thinking. The Bible states that God tells us, 'I am closer to you than the space between your breaths.' Jesus says to his disciples, 'These things which I do so shall you do and even greater.' In the end, it is all about self-image, or more accurately, self-perception.

 

 

It is a weak self-perception that draws people to magic to begin with. They feel a lack or an fulfillment within themselves and believe that there is a secret power in the cosmos that can help them achieve it. To some degree this is true. But instead of having confidence in themselves, they project it out onto something else – their magic wand, the egregore of the order they belong to, their teacher, or the notion of the barbarous words of power in a manuscript of unknown origin. This is the dangerous part, and I paraphrase the librarian and Watcher Rupert Giles, who said in an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, “All magic is borrowed power.

 

 

If we depend upon sigils, signs, and Divine Names to evoke, manifest, and control the forces and intelligences that themselves we conceive of as external to us, then we are damned if there is a mistake or error in the process. The angel will at least have some compassion for us, even if we do not recognize it as so. The demon however will have only contempt at our weakness. The rest will show varying degrees of indifference, annoyance, or support, but again – based on their perception of us, which is ultimately based on our own self-image. This is why we perform Assumption of the Godform. As we see ourselves, truly and deeply, so do the host of inhabitant in the invisible.

 

 

If the power for that transformation comes from within, then we are invincible. If the power for it comes from without, then we are dependent on it no less than we are on the farmer for our food and the truck driver to deliver it. Just as there is a chain of beings who deliver us our potatoes, so too there is a chain of beings who deliver us our occult powers if we rely on anything outside of ourselves – outside of our own mind and its natural abilities.

 

 

When we do offering prayers we are doing them to bring harmony between our self and the host of beings that exist in the visible and invisible realms so that they will assist us in our work and be helped by it as well, or at least be indifferent and not hinder us. We may not think of it as so, but think of how many people are involved in a single occult ritual. Think of all of the people needed for you to acquire a simple crystal sphere, or a beeswax candle! At least half-a-dozen, maybe more. But do you ever think of them? The bee keeper, the candle maker, the distributor, the person who fill the order, and maybe another who packs it, or takes it for shipping, and then the people who bring it to your doorstep or to the store where you buy it. How about all of the support people needed to allow each one of these people to do their job? You get the picture. You are not alone in the universe, but continue to think, feel, and act as if you are, and that others are only there for when you need them to do something for YOU. We call that selfishness, and that is the root of all failure. Even criminals must think of the benefits of their criminal acts for all involved. How much less does the average occultist think of their relationship to the vast host of beings in the visible and invisible?

 

So to assist in this we perform offerings. This does have a very real effect on our relationships to the 'others' we seek meaningful and healthy relationships with, as well as effects our own psychic body, its psychic centers, channels of force, and energies that course through them. Each of these centers is a not only a gateway, but also a world in us in miniature (a microcosm if you will) wherein these beings exist. This is why the debate about objective and subjective nature of these beings is infantile and foolish, born out of a lack of experience with the cosmos AS IT IS. These intelligences are both - and our perception and experience depends on our understanding of the forces and intelligences we are dealing with. If you want it to consider your experience to be purely subjective and psychological that is possible, BUT, there will be a subtle ripple to the objective equivalent. If you want to consider your experience to be purely objective you may, BUT, these forces will still be reflected in your own consciousness, and hence, the so-called Sling Shot Effect Dr. Lisiewski wrote so much about. Your mind is the mirror upon which you experience life – be it your high school sweet heart, an angel, demon, or a saint.

 

 

For this reason, you must first learn to understand the nature of your own mind before undertaking communication with non-physical beings. Think of how poorly the average pet owner misunderstands their animals, and as a result, mistreats it. How much more difficult is it to clearly and effectively communicate with beings in an other dimension wherein our own mind is the pivot point? To smooth this pathway and to develop a healthy relationship based on mutual respect and understanding of the differing needs and values, offerings are essential. Just as you would train your dog or employee through positive reinforcement, so too do you develop your relationships with the inhabitants of the invisible.

 

 

The process of offerings is simple, but like so many things people may easily fail as well. They become either too strict or too lax, rather than understanding the purpose – to create an environment of mutual benefit, and thus, harmony. To this end, we give the best we can, both in terms of physical objects, and those visualized. We connect with the inhabitants of the realms through these sense objects as well as our visualizations. How? Through our own psychic centers that correspond to their domain. What we hold back from them, in effect, we are holding back from ourselves. So, like in anything, do your best, give your best, and be kind to yourself and others. Always think of yourself as the giver of “all good things” to all of the realms of creation, and not as a beggar looking for a handout or a conman offering a bribe. No, remember, your self concept is the foundation. You are the enlightened monarch that bestows boons and to whom others willingly assist. That is the key to successful offerings, which should be the first step in any ritual act.

 

 

Now, in addition, the role of offerings also opens us up to these interior worlds in our dream states, and therefor prepares us for the experience of death. Offerings done simply as a gesture will reverberate negatively on us, so it is not sufficient to think that elaborate rituals offerings of costly items with intense visualizations are sufficient, they are not, if we fail to carry the lesson into daily practice. 1. This entails goodwill towards others, but not foolishness. 2. Working to express our best qualities and encouraging others to do so as well. 3. Eliminating the friction of competitiveness by recognizing the cycles of existence and life. Winning and loosing are like night and day, both are essential to life as most beings know it. 4. Be content. This is the notion of imperturbability so aptly expressed by Kipling in his poem, “If”. 5. Treat animals with respect and kindness, particularly those whom you rely upon for your food. 6. Give alms to those who suffer and experience want. 7. Support and provide for spiritual teachings to free people from ignorance, the root cause of all suffering in all of the cosmic realms.

 

 

Now note that each of these points can easily relate to each of the classes of being and their worlds, as well as psychic centers if you so desire. Number One is the mind of the Illumination, the foundation from which we work. Number Two is the realm of the gods or archetypes. Number Three is angelic realms, the nature of the Archons, the cycles of life itself. Number Four is human existence. Number Five is the animal kingdom. Number Six is the realm of ghosts and the suffering dead. Number Seven is the hell realms and the demonic beings who exist there.

 

 

At the end of your offerings give a teaching from your heart to all who are present. This is the basis for many of the practices in the past in soup kitchen and shelters wherein the attendees would hear a sermon before or during their stay. Even the demons are redeemable, as Christ descended into hell to teach and thereby liberate, or save, the “precarious spirits”. Do this and the demons will more readily serve you – if you are worthy – or at the least, not obstruct your work or that of others.

 

 

If this is done, and we support our rituals and visualizations with genuine acts, then we will neither hope for heaven, nor fear hell at the time of death, and will experience the Illumination of our true nature directly and confidently just as it is. We will experience duality and illumination for what they are - states of mind, perceptions, and not concrete realities. The Archons will have been defeated, and Sophia reunited with her bridegroom.

 

 

Now that you have the theory, next time we examine the practice and cover the details of making offerings.

 

Until then, we leave you once again with the words of Hermes and St. Isaac the Syrian to contemplate.

 

“19. Consider this yourself. Command your soul to go anywhere, and it will be there quicker than your command... Order it to fly up to heaven and it will need no wings, nor will anything impede it... And if you wish to break through all this and to contemplate what is beyond (if there is anything beyond the cosmos), it is in your power.

20. See what power you have and what speed! You can do all these things and yet God cannot? Reflect on God in this way as having all within Himself as ideas: the cosmos, Himself, the whole. If you do not make yourself equal to God you cannot understand Him. Like is understood by like. Grow to immeasurable size. Be free from every body, transcend all time. Become eternity and thus you will understand God. Suppose nothing to be impossible for yourself. Consider yourself immortal and able to understand everything: all arts, sciences and the nature of every living creature. Become higher that all heights and lower than all depths. Sense as one within yourself the entire creation: fire, water, the dry and the moist. Conceive yourself to be in all places at the same time: in the earth, the sea, in heaven; that you are not yet born, that you are within the womb, that you are young, old, dead; that you are beyond death. Conceive all things at once: time, places, actions, qualities and quantities; then you can understand God.

21. But if you lock up your soul in your body, abase it and say: ‘I understand nothing; I can do nothing; I am afraid … What have you to do with God? … For the greatest evil is to ignore what belongs to God. To be able to know and to will and to hope is the straight and easy way appropriate to each that will lead to the Supreme Good. When you take this road this Good will meet you everywhere and will be experienced everywhere, even where and when you do not expect it; when awake, asleep, in a ship, on the road, by night, by day, when speaking and when silent, for there is nothing which it is not.

 

22. Now do you say that God is invisible? Be careful. Who is more manifest than He? He has made all things for this reason: that through them you should see Him. This is the goodness (to agathon) of God; this is His excellence: that He is made manifest through all. Though you cannot see what is bodiless, Nous is seen in the act of contemplation, God in the act of creation.... Reflect on all other things in the same way within yourself and you will not be led astray.” - Corpus Hermetica

 

"What is a merciful heart? It is a heart on fire for the whole of creation, for humanity, for the birds, forthe animals, for demons, and for all that exists. By the recollection of them the eyes of a merciful person pour forth tears in abundance. By the strong and vehement mercy that grips such a person’s heart, and by such great compassion, the heart is humbled and one cannot bear to hear or to see any injury or slight sorrow in any in creation. For this reason, such a person offers up tearful prayer continually even for irrational beasts, for the enemies of the truth, and for those who harm her or him, that they be protected and receive mercy. And in like manner such a person prays for the family of reptiles because of the great compassion that burns without measure in a heart that is in the likeness of God.

God is not One who requites evil, but who sets evil right. Paradise is the love of God, wherein is the enjoyment of all blessedness. The person who lives in love reaps the fruit of life from God, and while yet in this world, even now breathes the air of the resurrection.

 

In love did God bring the world into existence; in love is God going to bring it to that wondrous

transformed state, and in love will the world be swallowed up in the great mystery of the One who has

performed all these things; in love will the whole course of the governance of creation be finally

comprised.

 

When is a person sure of having arrived at purity?

When that person considers all human beings are good, and no created thing appears impure or defiled.

Then a person is truly pure in heart."