Roger Schreiver Posted August 24, 2005 Posted August 24, 2005 People are more and more inclined, nowadays, to give priority to the economic dimension and it seems, at first sight, that they are right to do so. It is obvious that if you haven't got enough money to pay for food and lodging things can be very complicated. But, in reality, the economy is not everything, for it depends on factors of a higher order. You might say that the economic aspect is the dead aspect: it cannot move or do anything by itself; it decide to move it from here to there and, depending on whether the decision is inspired by wisdom or by folly, the results will be totally different. When the head that decides on a move is ill, it is the economy itself that is wrecked. And then you have discontent, strikes and revolutions. It is a pity that human beings have let themselves become so deeply immersed in matter that they forget that it is not matter that is the most important but the factors that influence it. Suppose that you have an immense amount of money and weapons and you feel very strong and secure. The only trouble is that you are also very stupid and, when someone who is more intelligent than you comes along, he can wipe you out, because he has an element at his command that is superior to everything you have. Yes, intelligence often triumphs over material means. Every occurence on the physical plane depends on phenomena that occur on a much higher plane, on the plane of thoughts and sentiments. I remember talking, one day, to somebody who held a very high position in the political sphere in France, and he said that capital was the moving power behind society. But i replied, 'No. Just think for a moment: what moves capital from one place to another? Ideas. It is ideas that take precedence; it is ideas that control and displace capital, that fashion the world.' But human beings look no further than outward appearances. They see only the material aspects: capital, the lack or the abundance of raw materials, etc. They fail to see that all that is controlled and organized by human intelligence and will, which are spiritual elements. They seem to think that these are two seperate worlds. As long as men fail to see the invisible element that influences and acts on the material dimension, whether for good or for evil, they will never understand reality. The truth is that nothing of an economic, technical or industrial nature can function all by itself. When you want to describe the human body, you use a series of plates illustrating its different system: the skeleton, the circulatory system, the muscles, the nervous system, etc. None of these plates represents the whole human being, only one aspect of the whole, and people do not realize that there are yet other systems still unknown to established science. For example, no one ever mentions the auric system with its currents of light and colour, and yet it is the auric system that controls the nervous system, just as the nervous system controls the circulatory, respiratory and other systems. Science has not yet studied every dimension of human beings. Let's take an example from the field of medicine. One of the major landmarks in medical science was the discovery of the endocrine glands which secrete hormones. Nowadays, in fact, people believe that virtually everything depends on these glands, but this is not the case, for the fact that these glands sometimes secrete too much or too little means that they themselves are subject to other factors. Just as the endocrine glands influence the overall health of the organism, they in turn are influenced by other, subtler factors originating in a person's thoughts, emotions, soul or spirit. The day will come when medical science will study this question. It will also study the question of how the sun afflects these glands. By attaching prime importance to the economic dimension (raw materials, capital, commercial outlets, imports and exports and so on), human beings demonstrate that they have confined their attention to the three most material systems: the skeleton, the muscles and the blood. They have not got as far as the nervous system yet - not to mention the auric system! It is understandable that, when they focus all their energies on economic growth and on getting rich, it is to the detriment of certain rules, laws and virtues which correspond to the higher systems. This is why political leaders, who are principally concerned with the economy, are leading the whole of humanity to a state of decadence. If you are determined to be stronger and richer than your neighbour you will be obliged to do things which are not always perfectly honest. It is inevitable. Whilst opulence is on the increase, therefore, respect for the divine laws is diminishing, and it is this that will lead to disaster for humanity. I know that people cannot accept what I am saying because they cannot see it. They are blind to the fact that to succeed on the economic level one is obliged continually to commit dishonest, criminal acts. It is the same in politics and espionage: anything goes! The excuse is that it is for the sake of one's country. Yes, but what about the other countries? When men are led to destroy moral principles it is always because their economic interests are at stake, and when you give these interests priority, all your noblest qualities are wiped out and replaced by egoism, violence and deceit and the complete absence of scruples. The economic dimension of life is certainly indispensable, I have no argument with that; but it must be kept under control and made to obey other necessities; other, higher powers. Otherwise man's highest aspirations will be trampled underfoot for the sake of a few egoists who want to be rich. It is time men began to think about this and to understand clearly that it is the Divine World that must be given priority, and that everything else must be at its service. The fact is that human beings have mistaken the means for the end. They know that there is always a goal to be aimed at, and that there are various means for reaching that goal. What they don't see is that they are using all the most glorious faculties and talents that Heaven has given them as means in the pursuit of a terribly mundane, inglorious goal. They are ready to use their noblest qualities in order to gratify their basest appetites! They even expect the Lord Himself to aid and abet their licentousness and their folly. And are they aware of all this? Not a bit of it! They never take the time to wonder what they are like or what they are looking for. No, it takes a spiritual Master to come and question them: 'Wait, my friend: look where you're going! Straight to Hell! And the means you are using? The Lord and His Angels, science, art and religion... Yes, you are using all these things to help you along the road to Hell!' Material, economic life is the only thing that counts for most people and they are so ignorant and underdeveloped on the higher planes, that they are constantly anxious and ill without understanding the reason. Then, of course, they put the blame on others - the neighbours, society, the government and the Lord Himself. They don't understand that their problems come from a lack in themselves, that they haven't got the ability to see things clearly nor the strength and goodwill to remedy the situation. Oh, no; it is always other people who are to blame for not having given them this or that. The truth is that, even if they were given what they demand, nothing much would change because, when someone is too stupid and inwardly limited, he is incapable of taking advantage of what is given: instead of getting better, he gets worse. Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov
Roger Schreiver Posted October 9, 2005 Author Posted October 9, 2005 (edited) We have often seen that a man doesn't become nobler and more radiant or more divine when his desires are all satisfied; on the contrary, he becomes more and more of an animal because he has more possibilities for self-degradation. Poverty at least kept a rein on his appetites! But as soon as he succeeds in improving his material circumstances, the road to Hell lies open before him. I am not saying that men must be held down in a state of poverty; not at all. What I am saying is that it is dangerous to give material facilities to those who have never learned self-control and who attach more importance to the material than to the spiritual life, for this only encourages them in habits of sloth, weakness and crime. An Initiate who already knows where the gratification of this or that desire would lead him, what it would arouse in him and the lengths to which it could drive him, refuses to indulge his desires if he sees that they would be an obstacle to his spiritual advancement. Let's take an example from everyday life: an ignorant, spineless young man falls in love and marries a girl who is ravishingly beautiful. At first sight this is magnificent, but as he has never worked to cultivate his powers of comprehension, self-control or nobility of character, all his baser instincts - suspicion, jealousy and cruelty - begin to get the upper hand and he never knows a minute's peace. He is forever watching his wife and anyone who comes near her; he is convinced that she is being unfaithful to him, and one day, in a fit of jealous rage, he murders her and the man he suspects of being her lover, and lands in prison. Socrates was much wiser: he looked for the ugliest and most disagreeable woman in Greece because he knew that he wouldn't have anything to worry about. From time to time, of course, he had to put up with some domestic storms, when she screamed at him or threw a bucket of dirty water on his head, but all that was purely external. Inwardly, he was at peace. But would any of you choose to marry a Xanthippe? Oh no; you'd rather marry a beauty queen and suffer torments all your life. So, once again, I repeat: if you don't understand human nature and are bent on giving people what they ask for, the Lord knows whether it will be for their good or whether you are not preparing coals of fire that will pour down on theirs heads! Why not educate human beings, instead, and teach them to analyse what they are seeking and demanding so as to see whether it is really what is best and most constructive for them? Time and again, things that seemed, at first, to constitute a step forward, an advantage or improvement, have turned out to be extremely damaging...all because everybody relied on first appearances. It is true that material and industrial progress makes a positive contribution to life. It is amazing how many aliances people have in their homes: heating systems, vacuum cleaners, washing machines and dish washers, televisions, telephones, etc. But why, when they have got everything, are human beings more disconted, rebellious and unhealthy than ever? What is even more astonishing is that, in spite of this obvious failure, people still continue to look for happiness in the same direction. They refuse to understand that, if they want to be happy, they must seek somthing quite different. They must seek love, wisdom and truth and be a little less sure that gadgets and comfort will give them all they want. The only things an easy, comfortable life can give you are sloth, selfishness and weakness; and the sad thing is that this is what people want: idleness and pleasure; to do nothing and have everything! And what to advise? I advise you to have both: have all the material facilities you want and, at the same time, keep working, night and day, so as to avoid becoming stiff in mind and body. You will say that I have already talked to you about this. That is true; I have. But has it done any good? Have you made up your minds to act on my advice? No, not yet. You, too, are so preoccupied by material things and by your pleasures that you have no time to open your hearts to the divine world and ask for sublime entities to come and work within you. This is very serious, very regrettable: if you refuse to understand you will have to suffer, and no one will be able to save you. Only you can save yourself by means of light and love. Analyse the use you make of your time and energy, therefore, and ask yourself what occupies the bulk of your attention. You will see that the divine world does not take up much room in your life - although this is the only thing capable of purifying, enlightening and resuscitating you - and that you devote almost all your time and energy to the material world which can only give you a few moments of joy before becoming a burden, a prison, an instrument of destruction. In a previous lecture I told you that human beings were inhabited by two forces, two contradictory tendencies which I represented to you as the two symbols, Erebus and Ionah. In Genesis, Erebus is the crow and Ionah the dove sent out by Noah to see if the waters of the Flood had subsided. These two forces - the forces of inertia and motion, of expansion and contraction, of life and death - are in constant conflict within man, and depending on which force gains the upper hand, man is either active, dynamic and strong, or weak, spineless and irresolute. Ionah manifests itself principally during the periods of childhood, adolescence and adulthood. When it begins to diminish, Erebus begins to manifest itself and man gradually weakens and dies. If men knew the law of love, wisdom and truth, if they kept in close contact with Heaven, they would be able to encourage and sustain Ionah even when its strength begins to be limited by opposing forces. But human beings are so estranged from spiritual realities that, even when its strenght begins to be limited by opposing forces. But human beings are so estranged from spiritual realities that, even from a very early age, they reinforce the influence of Erebus within them. At eighteen or twenty, they're already old and decrepit, their vigour undermined by the inferior thoughts and feelings that they continually entertain. Human beings want to stay young, they are always looking for ways to prolong their life, but they don't know how to set about it: they take pills or get injections of glandular extracts, but these methods are not effective. The most effective methods are spiritual. I have seen this time and again. only the day before yesterday, a very old woman came and listened to my lecture: to start with, her face was sad and without light but, gradually, as she listened, a light began to glow and intensify within her until she was completely transformed. How can anyone fail to recognize that the spiritual life is capable of transforming human beings? I know that you have all seen such things, too. This means that you must try to give more and more encouragement to good thoughts and feelings and good impulses within yourself, because their effects are extremely beneficial not only for your psychic life but also on the physical plane. In other words, if man lives a truly spiritual life in light, love and peace, he can prolong the life of Ionah. Of course, however great your knowledge and goodwill, you cannot expect to be totally transformed in this incarnation: the progress a human being can hope to accomplish in his lifetime is more or less determined before birth. So, although it is possible to improve to a certain extent in this life, any really substantial improvements will take effect only in this life, any really substantial improvements will take effect only in your next incarnation. In your next incarnation, Heaven will take into account all the good intentions and desires you have today and, overlooking what you were in the past, will grant you a magnificent destiny. Your present life reflects your past incarnations. Depending on the life you had led previously, the Twenty-Four Elders decreed the kind of body and the kind of physical and intellectual capacities you should have. Today, thanks to the purer and more harmonious life you are living in the Teaching, and thanks to your prayer and meditations, you can improve a certain number of things, but it is very difficult to remedy everything. You can do everything for the future, but not for the present. Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov Take the example of someone who is very rich: if he doesn't use his money to do good, if he is content to enjoy the pleasures of mediocre way of life, in his next incarnation he will be penniless tramp and spend his days drinking with his fellow tramps. He will not even know that he was once very rich and is poor today because he didn't use his money to do anything for anyone else. So many human beings come into the world in a truly woeful state and never know why. Neither psychology nor medical science, neither psychoanalysis nor the science of education - nor even religion - has ever shed much light on this question. Only Initiatic Science is capable of shedding any light on the question. It sometimes happens, therefore, that the emanations and radiations of our psychic life manifest their effects even on the physical plane and, if only for a few moments, a man can be truly transfigured. He soon resumes his normal appearance but, if he works consciously to renew and revive these marvellous states, he will be building a body of indescribable splendour for his next incarnation. Before you undertake anything, therefore, whatever it may be, begin by saying to yourself, 'I am looking for light; I' am looking for love and strength. Shall I find them if I do this?' and, thanks to this Initiatic Science, you will immediately be given the answer. Otherwise, you will plunge headlong into activities that will end by killing you. You will be like all those tycoons who want to be king of the oil or steel or any other industry: many of them fall ill or end by committing suicide. The weight of their responsibilities and the excessive amount of work they do in the attempt to satisfy their greed and their obsessive need to swallow up the whole world end by destroying them. Their nervous system cannot support the strain: they get insomnia, ruin their health and lose all their zest for life. Before setting out to possess the world, you must study every angle of the situation and see what the consequences will be. I know very well that no one will accept or understand or be guided by what I say in this area, either. People know what they know! They cling to their pet ambitious and lusts, and there is nothing anyone can do about it. Who will agree with me? All the paupers of this world; all those who are poor and idle. Yes, they will be on my side, but will they have understood what I am saying? Just try giving them some material advantages, try improving their lot and you will soon see whether they have understood or not! They will go to even greater lenghts of folly and wickedness than the others. If poor people are always cursing the rich, it is because they want to be rich too, and as they are not, all they can do is rail against those who are. But give them some money and you will see. Do I speak disparagingly of the rich? Never. I speak out against their lack of understanding, that's true; but I love the rich. I love the rich. I love them so much, in fact, that if they gave me all their millions for the embellishment of the Brotherhood, I would hug them with all my heart! Well, however that may be... never trust people who are always denigrating someone: it means that they would like to have what he has or to do what he does. Yes, my analysis is terrible. Never lay yourselves open to my analysis. There is still much to say about this question of economy! When a society is too preoccupied by its economic interests, it leads to an imbalance in the life of the community and all kinds of difficulties which, with a little wisdom, might have been foreseen. Suppose a country wants to export as much as possible because it is extremely profitable to do so: one thing leads to another and, before long, they are selling arms and fighter planes to countries whose constant wars endanger the peace and safety of the entire planet. The people in some of these countries can barely read and write and yet they are allowed to buy the most sophisticated weaponry! Of course, that is one way to earn a lot of money, but the price to be paid in other ways will be exorbitant. In God's name, how can people be so blind? This is just one example of how economics can spell ruin for many countries. Yes, my dear brothers and sisters, I fully agree that nothing is more important than the economy. But there is one thing that human beings have failed to understand, and that is that if they want to solve the problem they must study it in the world above and not below, for what is below is only a reflection of what is above. Nature alone really understands economics; only she knows how things must be organized so that not a single atom is lost. Every speck of dust, every scrap of refuse is utilised. Look what happens to all the rubbish and detritus that is thrown away by human beings: the earth absorbs it and sends it down to its underground factories to be recycled and transformed into food for the vegetation on the surface. Nothing is wasted; nothing is discarded. But human beings, who are so out of touch with the intelligence of the earth, are constantly by the disposal of radioactive and other toxic wastes which cannot be destroyed! They have to be stored away underground but they constitute a terrible threat to mankind. What understanding of economics can anyone have if he inwardly vandalizes everything, if he squanders and dissipates everything because of his passions and desires and his disordered thoughts and feelings? You will tell me that you don't see any connection. But of course there is a connection; these are not two separate, disconnected realms. And this is why those who are responsible for the economy of a country must not decide the issues on the physical plane before they have learned the essentials: how man is designed and put together; how he is linked to the universe; how the universe is hierarchically organized, and how all human organization must adhere to a divine model, a Heavenly idea. They won't find any of these things in books about economics, but once they understand them, all that they do and all the decisions they make will be perfect. Human beings are so designed that they always count on the support of someone or something. A woman counts on her husband, a man counts on his wife, children count on their partents. Also, everybody counts on money, circumstances, the weather, and so on. In itself, this is not bad, but what is bad is that people have got into the habit of always counting on something external. Are you ill? There are plenty of doctors and pharmatists. Are you ignorant? You can always ask a professor - or a clairvoyant - to tell you the future. Have you damaged your car? There are plenty of repair shops. Are you bored? There are cinemas, bars, night clubs for your entertainment, etc., etc. Life is so well organized to provide human beings with whatever they need that they have become very negligent: they know that they can always find something or somebody to get them out of a fix. They can go skiing and risk their lives on the slopes: if they break a leg they can always go to hospital and get a plaster cast. If they are working at the top of a ladder, why bother to make sure that it can't slip: if they fall off, someone will pick them up and take care of them. Why be careful not to stain their clothes? There are so many cleaning fluids on the market these days! And, if they go for a walk in the forest and throw away a lighted cigarette, why get all upset if it starts a forest fire? The firemen will come and put it out! Because of this attitude, people's power of attention and their perspicacity, dexterity, wisdom and intelligence are constantly diminishing. They see no reason to cultivate these qualities when society offers so many ways of remedying their mistakes. Technicians and researchers are all working to help humanity, but the fact of the matter is that they are not helping, for people are losing their personal initiative and becoming steadily lazier and less capable of doing things for themselves. They probably know more than they used to, but they are also much more careless and lackadaisical. I am not saying that we should put a stop to material progress; what I am saying is that we should also continue to work inwardly so as to grow in attentiveness, prudence and selfcontrol. Because, if you break or dent something, for instance, even through there are ways of repairing the damage, it will always bear the mark; it will never be perfect again. How much better it would be not to break it in the first place! Then, too, we have to remember that there is always a possibility of events occuring that would deprive us of all our comforts and facilities. Look at what happened with world supplies of oil, for instance: only a few years ago it was produced and consumed and wasted without restraint because people thought that it would always be there for the asking. And now? Progress is wonderful; it makes life so much easier! Believe me, I am not against progress; on the contrary. In fact, I could mention several things that nobody has any suspicion of today and that science will discover in the future. But, for the time being, the most important thing for you is to know and accept the truths that are capable of transforming you and to improve your inner life before improving your external circumstances. Initiatic Science tells us that, however great the benefits that come from outside ourselves, they will never fulfil us, for fulfilment can only be found in one's own efforts, in efforts of the will, the intelligence and the imagination. In any case, you all know this: you all know that you find real satisfaction only in what you achieve for yourselves; you can never get the same joy and happiness from externals that are acquired without effort, even money. Yes, everyone knows this and yet everyone continues to look outside themselves for what they need. This is why their problems are never solved. However much you possess, however much other people give you, you must never abandon your own inner work; keep working until the very last minute. No, I'm not against progress, but material progress is not true progress. Material progress is certainly to be encouraged but you must never rely on it. See it as something magnificent, as something that opens up immense possibilities, but don't work. What work? The only true work: spiritual work. So, as I say, it is fantastic to have so many tools and products to remedy our accidents and mistakes; nowadays, everything can be patched up, glued together, cleaned or mended. But the trouble is that nobody attaches any importance to the other aspect, to the care and attention that would lead to less breakages. No, nobody bothers about that; why should they? As I have said, the pharmacies, hospitals, garages, laundries and dry cleaners are there to remedy all the accidents and mistakes committed by human beings. Mankind continues to make progress in external things, therefore, but the situation on the inner level is deplorable. And then people talk about the economy! True economy is to use things with care and reason; anything else is wasteful. Do young people know anything about economy? They squander all their strength and energy in mad schemes and the pursuit of sensations, and that is anything but economical. I am, perhaps, the only person in the world who understands economics correctly. People discuss the economy and study economic science and I know nothing of all that; but I do know that economy is not what people think it is. Do you want to practise true economics? Do you want to be very rich, to acquire a fortune in order to help others? In that case you must become more attentive, enlightened and reasonable; you must learn selfmastery. This is the only true economics. But no one expects to find economics in these things, and the most extravagant and ruinous spending is caused by economists because they have never studied true economics. People are in the process of ruining themselves spiritually, morally, intellectually and even materially, because no one understands the true nature of economics. Let me give you an example: suppose you are talking to your boss or a business associate and, through carelessness, you say something that makes him very angry. All because of a lack of attention you are dismissed or your associate breaks off relations, and you find yourself with all kinds of legal and financial problems. You say that you can sort things out again; that may be true but, even then, it will involve a lot of trouble and expense. So, one day, you are going to have to understand that you must be very careful and very reasonable so as not to complicate things, at least within yourself. There will always be disorder and conflict on the external level and there's not much you can do about it. It is not so easy to restore order in the world. But you can make sure that harmony, order, peace and light prevail in all that you yourself do. If you work in this way for years, you will see the results: all your problems will sort themselves out, even on the material plane, because everyone will like and respect you and be eager to render you service and help you. Yes, all your economic problems can be solved if you apply a little wisdom. If you really want to live a magnificent life you must make up your mind today and begin at once to be more attentive. Of course, it would be better for some of you if you had started sooner because it is when you are still young that what you do and say must be marvellous and harmonious and beneficial. That is true economics! Human beings have invented all kinds of conveniences to give themselves the favourable conditions they need in order to cultivate their faculties and talents, but there is one point that they have consistently overlooked, and that is the question of attention. There are several different kinds of attention. The kind that is most familiar to us is the deep and sustained mental application we need in order to do our work properly, listen to a lecture or read a book. But there is another kind of attention, which we can call self-observation, consciousness or analysis, and which consists in being aware, at every moment of the day - and even of the night - of what is going on within oneself, of the influences and impulses that move one. It is this kind of attention that is still not sufficiently developed. It is easy to pay attention to one's physical gestures; anyone who works in a factory or a laboratory learns to do so, otherwise he might well lose a hand or a leg. But the kind of inner attention and vigilance advocated by the Initiates is almost unknown, and this lack is often at the origin of much suffering and many accidents and mishaps: people are unaware of what is going on within them. The Gospels tell us, 'Be vigilant, because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.' Don't worry! You will meet neither lion nor Devil on the physical plane; the danger is lying in wait for you in your inner life. That is where all kinds of lusts, desires, ambitions and passions prowl about and, if you are neither enlightened nor vigilant, they will devour you. Why do parents never think of fostering vigilance in their children? They should start to do so even when they are very young, for this lack of self-observation and analysis, this inattention to what goes on in one's inner sanctum is at the root of a great deal of suffering. This is why I tell you that the beginning of true economics is somewhere where you have never thought to look for it: in attention. It is staggering to see the number of means and products that exist to mend or renovate things that have been damaged, broken or stained - and not only inanimate objects, but human beings as well. It's amazing: one half of the world population works at repairing the damage done by the other half. Well, this is something that economists should give more thoughts to, the fact that people rely too much on external means and tell themselves, 'Why bother to take care when there are so many technicians and workers capable of mending whatever I break, including myself?' The more conveniences people have the less they develop the faculty of attention, and this is what destroys an economy: too much has to be spent on repairs. Of course, I know very well that this is not the economists' point of view. Not only have they never envisaged the problem in this way, but their philosophy is diametrically opposed. They say that we must produce more and more goods and, in order to keep stocks rolling, people must buy as much as possible. They urge people to consume, therefore, and not only to consume but to waste. The more goods they buy the better it will be. If they are careless and wreck their car or break a major appliance in their home, so much the better: they will have to buy new ones. If they live irresponsibly and ruin their health, that, too, is all to the good: they will be contributing to a thriving pharmaceutical industry. Naturally, in this way, the commercial and financial affairs of certain individuals and countries will prosper but, for mankind as a whole, for its physical and psychological health and well-being, this conception of economics is ruinous, catastrophic. True economics, therefore, will not be found where most people look for it. True economics consists, in fact, in not wasting, in not wasting the forces, qualities and energies that Heaven hs given us. True economics begins with wisdom, moderation and attention. There are swarms of economists in the world today; impossible to get away from them! But mankind will never find happiness by following their philosophy because they see nothing but the material aspect of life an its problems. First and foremost, economics must begin on a higher level, the level of intelligence, in the thoughts, words and looks of human beings, in the way they live an behave. For it is not enough to avoid falling and injuring oneself or breaking something; you must also avoid transgressing the laws of the invisible world. It often happens that, without in the least realizing it, a person triggers certain mechanics, disturbs certain entities or breaks certain laws on the psychic plane and, when this happens, he has to suffer the consequences and pay the penalty. One sometimes meets people who are always very attentative on the physical plane and yet they fall ill. This is because, through their thoughts, feelings or desires, they have triggered a reaction from hostile forces. And now they are in bed and are going to have to spend a lot of time and money to be cured. There are a lot of people who are considered to be first-rate economists. They may be first-rate in the theory of economics, yes; but just look at how they live! Look at all the excesses they indulge in, at all the waste in their lives. From the point of view of Initiatic Science, economics begins with the way we live. This is what I want to emphasize, therefore, the necessity for this inner attention, this constant awareness that allows you to see what is going on within yourself at every moment of the day or night and to recognize the currents and influence that pass through you. Personally, I have practised this wakefulness for so long that I know exactly what is going on within me at any given moment. I have trained myself to become fully conscious and, as I can recognize the origin and nature of every idea, thought or feeling, I am in a position to take the necessary precautions. You must learn to be attentive. I have often asked someone, 'What are you thinking about?' and heard the reply, 'I don't know'. He doen's know because he has never looked into himself, and that means that any currents, any filth, any mental images, however frightful, are free to come and go at leisure and he won't even notice. How can he hope to create a glorious future for himself in these conditions? It is possible to use your thoughts to create the future, but not if you are so utterly inattentative and unconscious. This is why children should begin their education by learning to be attentative. In every family, school and university, young people must be taught to be attentative. As for you, the very first quality that you must acquire, now that you are in the Brotherhood, is the quality of attention. Why do you think I have tried to get you into the habit of eating in silence, without making noise with your knives and forks (seven hundred people eating together and not a sound to be heard!)? In order to help you to cultivate this faculty of vigilance; in order to teach you to control every single gesture, to use your knife and fork and cut up your food without making a sound. If you want to acquire self-mastery, begin by practising at meals. If you can learn to move all the objects on the table without knocking them against each other, you will find that this harmony will be reflected in everything you do during the rest of the day. Yes, simply because you practised while you were eating! Then, not only will you make the effort not to make a noise, but you will begin to focus your attention on your food. From the first mouthful you will be filled with wonder: what strength, what energy and vitality God has put into that mouthful of food! If you can learn to eat in this state of attention and harmony, you will be capable of undertaking all kinds of activities, all day long, without getting tired. Once again, this evening, we find ourselves in the presence of one of life's greatest mysteries: fire. Why do I say that it is one of the greatest mysteries? Fire shows us that, without sacrifice, life cannot go on. When you light a fire, all the black, twisted branches start to burn and are transformed into energy, light and heat. This is why you must make up your minds to light a fire within yourselves, so as to burn up all your refuse and transform it into light and warmth. As long as you think of sacrifice as a deprivation, an impoverishment, it means that you haven't understood the first thing about it. True sacrifice is a transformation of old, worn out, impure elements into light and heat, that is to say, into love and wisdom. For heat is simply divine love and light is divine wisdom. This evening you must ask the Angel of Fire to come and burn up all the rubbish and all the old, ugly things accumulated within you, and transform them into love and wisdom. He is perfectly capable of doing it. Of all the four elements, fire is the most powerful. To be sure, earth, water and air are also powerful, but less so than fire: nothing can stand up to fire. And the divine fire, the sacred fire of God will soon burn up all the enemies of the Kingdom of God, all the enemies of light, the enemies of the Universal White Brotherhood. This has already been drecreed and, sooner or later, you will witness it: they will all be consumed by fire, exterminated, wiped out, because the Kingdom of God must be established on earth. Actually, as we are told by Holy Scripture, the battle will not be between men but between spirits: the good spirits will wage war against the evil spirits. The enemies we have to fight are not men but the influences and entities that dwell in men and combat light. The instant a man is released form the hold he changes. It is not rival armies of human beings, therefore, that will combat each other, but influences, forces and currents. This is the war of the future and, as foretold in the Apocalypse, the Dragon, the collective symbol of all the disorders and hatreds of mankind, will be defeated. As you watch this fire and see how beautyful and powerful it is, ask it to come and burn in your hearts and souls. It is not dangerous. It will not destroy you; on the contrary, it will vivify you. I have already talked to you about the different sorts of fire: subterranean fire, physical fire, the fire of Hell, etc. Also the fire of the stars and the sun's fire, the truest, purest and most vivifying fire of all; that which we try to attract and invite into us every morning at sunrise. The aura is also a fire, a fire which, if it is sufficiently powerful and bright, protects a person from evil spirits. Not all human beings have an aura capable of protecting them; it is often too weak and dull and, in this case, all kinds of noxious beings and elements can slip through it. The aura of the great Initiates, on the other hand, can be several miles wide and has the power to console, sooth encourage, enlighten and heal. And now, let's concentrate on the fire and send it a great deal of love and a great deal of respect and veneration. The fire is alive. It knows us; it knows who we are and the degree of evolution we have reached. If you knew how to consult it, it could enlighten you about many things. Before beginning their ceremonies, Magi and Initiates light candles or lamps. This tradition comes from a very ancient science which taught that fire was indispensable to realization. A remnant of the same tradition continues in the practice of lighting candles in church. This is why I asked you to write down your requests and give them to the Angel of Fire. All those little pieces of paper have been burned but your prayers have been transcribed and recorded on high by the servants of the Angel of Fire. If you are capable of working in accordance with the wishes expressed in your prayers, they will be granted for, when fire has a hand in anything, the results are always outstanding. When you are assailed by certain inner difficulties, it you have a sensation of sadness or distress, for instance, or if you are discouraged or sorely tempted, write down a prayer for strength and peace of mind, light a candle and ask the Angel of Fire to consume your distress in his fire, and he will do so. When you don't know about this sacred Science, you have to drag yourselves through life, unable to break out of the vicious circle of distress and tears. fire is there to help us but, apart from the Initiates, who ever thinks of using it in their spiritual life? Now that it is time for you to go home you must take care to hold on to the warmth, the sacred fire, that you have received here. People are rarely conscious of these things: when you go home after spending several weeks here, you don't think about protecting all this warmth and light, this fire, which is basic to all true spiritual evolution and fulfilment. From now on, remember to preserve this heat, to keep it alive for a long time in your heart and soul. This is true economy: to preserve the heart's warmth, to economize it so that it not only stays within you for a long time, for the rest of your life, but so that it grows and is amplified. You know how to economize money, material objects or time, but you don't know how to economize the one thing that is vital, this warmth. No, I'm afraid you are still a long way off! Within a few days you will have dissipated all this warmth and will be shivering with cold again. If you know how to look at fire, if you know what thoughts and what love you should have as you look at it, it will reveal the greatest mysteries to you: how to preserve the warmth and light you have received. Let's stay here for a few more minutes and meditate on true economics. Edited October 9, 2005 by Roger Schreiver
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