THE ARCANE FORMULAS/PART 7

 

LESSON 7.

MASTERING THE OPPOSITES.

The manifestation  of  Ego-hood  by  the  individual  who has  learned the  Secret of  the  Excluded Middle—who  has  learned to  Will  to Will—  evidences itself  in a  variety  of  forms and  phases.  In  the Mastery  of  The Opposites,  however, we find one  of  its  most  important  phases,  and one  which  also  influences other  forms.  The  individual  who wishes  to mould his  mind by  his  newly awakened  Will,  and thus  acquire  Poise  and Balance,  must  first  learn the  art of  mastering  the Opposites in  the instinctive and  emotional  regions of  his mental  being.  In acquiring  this  art  he  also does  much in the  direction of gaining  Poise  and Balance,  and in neutralizing  Rhythm.

We have seen  in  The  Arcane Teaching  that  "every  quality,  attribute or condition  has its opposite"  We have seen  how these Pairs  of  Opposites are, in  reality,  but  the different and  contrasting  poles of  the same thing.  Just as Heat  and Cold are  the  same  thing—just  as  Hard and Soft  are  the  same thing—  so  Love and  Hate are seen  to  be but  the  contrasting  poles of  the same thing.  And,  in  the  same  way,  and from  the  same  reason,  all  contrasting emotions,  states  and feelings  are  but  the  opposite  poles  of  a  fundamental emotion which depends  upon the  Will  for  its  expression and outward activities.

All  activity  proceeds  from  and  through the  Will.  The  Will  is  involved in all action.  There  can be  no action  without  Will.  Through the  stimulus  and incentive  of  desire,  feeling  and emotion,  the  Will  is  called and directed into activity.  But  the Will  itself  must  not  be identified  with  the desire,  feeling  or emotion which inspires it  to  action.  Just  as the  water in  a  glass may  be colored  by  a  chemical  dissolved in it,  and yet  in itself  remain as  much pure water  as  it  was  in  the  beginning,  so is  the  Will  colored and  apparently changed by  the  influence  of  the  emotion or  feeling  operative  in and through it.  The  Will  is  clear  and colorless  like  the  water—its  emotional  color  being not  of  itself.  The Will  experiences the  color of  the  emotion  or feeling,  but never is  the latter.  The Will  is always the vehicle for the emotion  or feeling—its  vital  energy  so to  speak.  The  Will  is  the  body  of  action,  which clothes itself  in the  garb  of  emotion and feeling  in order  to make  itself  manifest.

To the  ordinary  person,  it  would be  an impossibility  to divorce  feeling  and emotion from  the  Will—for  if  that  were attempted  there  would  be nothing left  apparent  or manifest  in  any  way.  The residuum  would  be like the abstract  conception  of  motionless,  cold,  unmoved,  pure  intellect, independent  of  any  object  of  thought.  To such persons  pure  will  is  merely  a name corresponding  to nothing  in their  experience.  This  because  in such persons  the  Will  is unconscious  of  itself.  When the  Ego-Consciousness  is attained—when the  "I" knows  that  itself  and the  Will  are  identical,  then  the Will becomes  conscious  of  itself.  In  this latter state,  instead  of  its consciousness  remaining  centred on the  emotional  and feeling  plane—the instinctive  plane  of  the  mind—it  is  raised  up  to  its rightful  seat,  upon  the throne of  the Real  Self,  and  it  assumes the sceptre of  power and  authority which really  belongs  to it.

When the  Ego-Consciousness  is acquired  to  a  certain  degree,  the "I” realizing  that  it  is  in  its  inmost  nature  nothing  more  or  less  than  Will,  sees that  the  Opposites  of  Emotion and Feeling  are  but  things  belonging  to,  but not  of  itself,  things  objective to  its  subjective Self.  It  sees  them  as but garments  which  it  may  put  on  and  off,  as it  suits its fancies or interest.  It sees  them  as but  the several  masks of  character which  it  may  place before its  face,  and then take  off  and  exchange  for another,  as may  seem  best  or desirable.

From the  moment  when this  realization comes  to the  individual,  even in the faintest  degree,  then that  individual  has  begun to  move  toward Freedom, and has  started on the  road to the  Mastery of  The  Opposites.

Contrast  the  condition of  the  man who is  still  hypnotized with the  belief  that his  emotions  and feelings  are  himself—that  he  is  the  character  he  is  playing, with its  emotions  and feelings  and incidents  of  personality,  on the  one  hand; and on the  other  hand,  the  individual  who realizes  that  he,  himself,  is  Will  in his real  nature,  and  that  the character assumed  by him, together with its incidental qualities,  feelings  and emotions,  is  but  an objective  something which he  may  put  on or  off,  destroy  or  change,  as  he  may see  fit.  Can you not see that  there  is  a  difference as wide  as the poles in  the  contrasting being  of  these two  men?  Can  you  not  see that  one is  the Master of  the Opposites,  and the other the obedient Slave?

The Liberated Ego—the  Emancipated  Self—knows its  real  nature,  knows that  it  is  no emotional  creature  bent  now  this  way  and then that  way by the power of  inherited  or acquired  feeling—knows that  it  is  the Lord  of  its  own being,  capable of  using  emotion  as a  means of  expression  when  it  suits itself,  and  likewise  repressing  it  when  it  is best to  do  so;  of  using  or discarding  feeling  when it  suits  its  purpose.  Nay,  more—capable of  changing  the feeling  or emotion  from  one of  its  poles to  the other— changing  love  to hate,  like  to dislike,  pain to pleasure,  sorrow  to  joy— backward and forward,  at  will,  and solely  because  it  Wills  to do it,  and it  suits its  Will  so to do.  When the  Ego realizes  that  it  is  the  Lord of  itself,  instead of a  subordinate  and slave to its feelings and emotions, or personal traits and characteristics,  then  alone is it  Free.  It  then  feels the spirit  of  the "Kasidah":

 

"Do what  thy  manhood bids  thee  do,  from  none  but  self  expect  applause;

He noblest  lives  and noblest  dies  who makes  and keeps  his  self-made  laws.

All  other  Life  is  living  Death,  a  world where  none  but  Phantoms  dwell,

A breath,  a  wind,  a  sound,  a  voice,  a  tinkling  of  the  camel-bell."

 

The  following  exercise  will  tend to bring  about  a  heightened realization in consciousness of  the Mastery  of  the Opposites.  It  is adapted  from  an ancient  Arcane  Formula,  modern figures-of-speech  being  used.

 

EXERCISE. Let  the Neophyte place  himself  in a  condition and position  of  rest,  calm  and repose.  Let  him  meditate upon  the real  nature of  the "I".  Let  him  cast  off  the illusion of  the  personal  self,  and  its attributes,  as indicated  in  previous exercises.  Then  let  him  imagine himself  as rising  above the lower planes of personality  toward the  higher  planes  of  Ego-hood—as  in a  balloon which is rising  above the surface of  the earth  into  the higher regions of  purer rarified air.  Let  him  then throw  overboard from  the  mental  balloon all  the  likes  and dislikes;  loves  and hates;  prejudices  for  and against  anything  and everything whatsoever, either good or bad;  in short  the  entire  collection of  inherited or acquired feelings  and emotions  which have  formed the  garment  or  body of personality  for  so long.  As  the  mental  balloon rises  higher  and higher  let  him throw  off  even the  more  subtle  feelings  and emotions,  until  finally he  finds himself  divested  of  every  iota  of  personal  character  he  ever  possessed,  and his  Ego is  as  naked as  a  new-born babe.  Then,  after  a  few  trials  of  this exercise,  will  come  to him  a  new  sense  of  power  and might—a  new realization of  his  real  nature  in Will.  Then will  he  realize  that  the  Pairs  of Opposites  of  the  Personality are  but  masks  and clothing  of  the  character  he has  been playing.  Then will  he  feel  like  the  Hindu  god when he  emerged from  the  body of  the  pig  whose  personality  he  had assumed.  Then he  may gradually  return  to  the earth  and  resume the garments he  has thrown  off— but  as a  Master and  Owner,  not  as a  Slave to  them  as heretofore.  This exercise  will  quicken the  perception of  Ego-hood,  and will  aid in the  Mastery of  the Opposites.

The  following  exercise  will  also be  found very useful  in the  same  direction.

 

EXERCISE. Let  the  Neophyte  place  himself  in a  position and condition  of  calm,  restful repose,  and then meditate  upon the  fact  that  contrasting  and opposing feelings  and emotions  are  in reality  but  the  opposite  poles  of  the  same thing.  Let  him,  in imagination,  try the  experiment  of  changing  the  polarity  of some emotion—of  inducing  the state of  love where hate has been dominant,  or  vice  versa.  Let  him  shift  the  polarity  of  his  feelings  and emotions  at  will,  backward and forward.  He  will  thus  discover  that  the feelings  and emotions  are  far  from  being  fixed and constant,  as  he  had supposed,  but are capable of  being  shifted  about  at  Will.  This exercise  will result  in giving  the  individual  a  wonderful  power  over  his  feelings  and emotion,  and preventing  them  from  dominating  or  ruling  him.  By  shifting the  polarity  one  may  change  a  painful  feeling  or  emotion into its  opposite. Distressing  feelings  may  be  changed in polarity,  or  balanced  with their opposites,  and much pain be  obviated.  It  is  not  necessary always  to shift entirely  to  the opposite pole of  the emotion  or feeling—many  adepts merely  change the  polarity  to  the opposite  in  a  sufficient degree  to  establish a  balance  and thus  create  a  condition and state  of  poise  and  equilibrium, which results  in peace  of  mind—which  quiets  the  stormy sea  of  passion, emotion or  feeling.  This  condition of  Poise  and Balance  is  the  true  state  of the  advanced occultist.  Equally  balanced between the  Pairs  of  Opposites one  finds  a  peace  unknown to those  who polarize in  either  extreme.  When one fully  realizes that  he is  Master of  the Opposites,  and  may  shift  the polarity  of  emotion and feeling  at  Will,  then he  himself  is  able  to establish the condition most conducive to his satisfaction and happiness.  Such  a  one is  well  on  the  road to Mastership.

NEXT CHAPTER 

Neutralizing Rhythm.