THE KYBALION/PART 7
CHAPTER VII
"THE ALL" IN ALL
"While All is in THE
ALL, it is equally true that THE
ALL is in ALL. To him who truly understands this
truth hath come great knowledge."—The Kybalion.
How
often have the majority of people heard repeated the statement that their Deity
(called by many names) was "All in All" and how little have they
suspected the inner occult truth concealed by these carelessly uttered words?
The commonly used expression is a survival of the ancient Hermetic Maxim quoted
above. As the Kybalion says: "To him who truly understands this truth,
hath come great knowledge." And, this being so, let us seek this truth,
the understanding of which means so much. In this statement of truth—this
Hermetic Maxim—is concealed one of the greatest philosophical, scientific and
religious truths.
We
have given you the Hermetic Teaching regarding the Mental Nature of the
Universe—the truth that "the Universe is Mental—held in the Mind of THE
ALL." As the Kybalion says, in the passage quoted above: "All is in
THE ALL." But note also the co-related statement, that: "It is
equally true that THE ALL is in ALL." This apparently contradictory statement
is reconcilable under the Law of Paradox. It is, moreover, an exact Hermetic
statement of the relations existing between THE ALL and its Mental Universe. We
have seen how "All is in THE ALL"—now let us examine the other aspect
of the subject.
The
Hermetic Teachings are to the effect that THE ALL is Imminent in
("remaining within; inherent; abiding within") its Universe, and in
every part, particle, unit, or combination, within the Universe. This statement
is usually illustrated by the Teachers by a reference to the Principle of
Correspondence. The Teacher instructs the student to form a Mental Image of
something, a person, an idea, something having a mental form, the favorite
example being that of the author or dramatist forming an idea of his characters;
or a painter or sculptor forming an image of an ideal that he wishes to express
by his art. In each case, the student will find that while the image has its
existence, and being, solely within his own mind, yet he, the student, author,
dramatist, painter, or sculptor, is, in a sense, immanent in; remaining within;
or abiding within, the mental image also. In other words, the entire virtue,
life, spirit, of reality in the mental image is derived from the "immanent
mind" of the thinker. Consider this for a moment, until the idea is
grasped.
To
take a modern example, let us say that Othello, Iago, Hamlet, Lear, Richard
III, existed merely in the mind of Shakespeare, at the time of their conception
or creation. And yet, Shakespeare also existed within each of these characters,
giving them their vitality, spirit, and action. Whose is the "spirit"
of the characters that we know as Micawber, Oliver Twist, Uriah Heep—is it
Dickens, or have each of these characters a personal spirit, independent of
their creator? Have the Venus of Medici, the Sistine Madonna, the Apollo
Belvidere, spirits and reality of their own, or do they represent the spiritual
and mental power of their creators? The Law of Paradox explains that both
propositions are true, viewed from the proper viewpoints. Micawber is both
Micawber, and yet Dickens. And, again, while Micawber may be said to be
Dickens, yet Dickens is not identical with Micawber. Man, like Micawber, may
exclaim: "The Spirit of my Creator is inherent within me— and yet I am not
HE!" How different this from the shocking half-truth so vociferously
announced by certain of the half-wise, who fill the air with their raucous
cries of: "I am God!" Imagine poor Micawber, or the sneaky Uriah
Heep, crying: "I Am Dickens"; or some of the lowly clods in one of
Shakespeare's plays, eloquently announcing that: "I Am Shakespeare!"
THE ALL is in the earthworm, and yet the earth-worm is far from being THE ALL.
And still the wonder remains, that though the earth-worm exists merely as a lowly
thing, created and having its being solely within the Mind of THE ALL—yet THE
ALL is immanent in the earthworm, and in the particles that go to make up the
earth-worm. Can there be any greater mystery than this of "All in THE ALL;
and THE ALL in All?"
The
student will, of course, realize that the illustrations given above are
necessarily imperfect and inadequate, for they represent the creation of mental
images in finite minds, while the Universe is a creation of Infinite Mind—and
the difference between the two poles separates them. And yet it is merely a
matter of degree—the same Principle is in operation—the Principle of
Correspondence manifests in each—"As above, so Below; as Below, so
above."
And,
in the degree that Man realizes the existence of the Indwelling Spirit immanent
within his being, so will he rise in the spiritual scale of life. This is what
spiritual development means—the recognition, realization, and manifestation of
the Spirit within us. Try to remember this last definition—that of spiritual
development. It contains the Truth of True Religion.
There
are many planes of Being—many sub-planes of Life—many degrees of existence in
the Universe. And all depend upon the advancement of beings in the scale, of
which scale the lowest point is the grossest matter, the highest being
separated only by the thinnest division from the SPIRIT of THE ALL. And, upward
and onward along this Scale of Life, everything is moving. All are on the Path,
whose end is THE ALL. All progress is a Returning Home. All is Upward and Onward,
in spite of all seemingly contradictory appearances. Such is the message of the
Illumined.
The
Hermetic Teachings concerning the process of the Mental Creation of the
Universe, are that at the beginning of the Creative Cycle, THE ALL, in its
aspect of Being, projects its Will toward its aspect of "Becoming"
and the process of creation begins. It is taught that the process consists of
the lowering of Vibration until a very low degree of vibratory energy is
reached, at which point the grossest possible form of Matter is manifested.
This process is called the stage of Involution, in which THE ALL becomes
"involved," or "wrapped up," in its creation. This process
is believed by the Hermetists to have a Correspondence to the mental process of
an artist, writer, or inventor, who becomes so wrapped up in his mental
creation as to almost forget his own existence and who, for the time being,
almost "lives in his creation," If instead of "wrapped" we
use the word "rapt," perhaps we will give a better idea of what is
meant.
This
Involuntary stage of Creation is sometimes called the "Outpouring" of
the Divine Energy, just as the Evolutionary state is called the
"Indrawing." The extreme pole of the Creative process is considered
to be the furthest removed from THE ALL, while the beginning of the
Evolutionary stage is regarded as the beginning of the return swing of the
pendulum of Rhythm—a "coming home" idea being held in all of the
Hermetic Teachings.
The
Teachings are that during the "Outpouring," the vibrations become
lower and lower until finally the urge ceases, and the return swing begins. But
there is this difference, that while in the "Outpouring" the creative
forces manifest compactly and as a whole, yet from the beginning of the
Evolutionary or "Indrawing" stage, there is manifested the Law of
Individualization—that is, the tendency to separate into Units of Force, so
that finally that which left THE ALL as unindividualized energy returns to its
source as countless highly developed Units of Life, having risen higher and
higher in the scale by means of Physical, Mental and Spiritual Evolution.
The
ancient Hermetists use the word "Meditation" in describing the
process of the mental creation of the Universe in the Mind of THE ALL, the word
"Contemplation" also being frequently employed. But the idea intended
seems to be that of the employment of the Divine Attention.
"Attention" is a word derived from the Latin root, meaning "to
reach out; to stretch out," and so the act of Attention is really a mental
"reaching out; extension" of mental energy, so that the underlying
idea is readily understood when we examine into the real meaning of
"Attention."
The
Hermetic Teachings regarding the process of Evolution are that, THE ALL, having
meditated upon the beginning of the Creation—having thus established the
material foundations of the Universe—having thought it into existence—then
gradually awakens or rouses from its Meditation and in so doing starts into
manifestation the process of Evolution, on the material mental and spiritual
planes, successively and in order. Thus the upward movement begins—and all
begins to move Spiritward. Matter becomes less gross; the Units spring into
being; the combinations begin to form; Life appears and manifests in higher and
higher forms; and Mind becomes more and more in evidence—the vibrations
constantly becoming higher. In short, the entire process of Evolution, in all
of its phases, begins, and proceeds according to the established "Laws of
the Indrawing" process. All of this occupies aeons upon aeons of Man's
time, each aeon containing countless millions of years, but yet the Illumined
inform us that the entire creation, including Involution and Evolution, of an
Universe, is but "as the twinkle of the eye" to THE ALL. At the end
of countless cycles of aeons of time, THE ALL withdraws its Attention—its
Contemplation and Meditation—of the Universe, for the Great Work is
finished—and All is withdrawn into THE ALL from which it emerged. But Mystery
of Mysteries—the Spirit of each soul is not annihilated, but is infinitely
expanded—the Created and the Creator are merged. Such is the report of the
Illumined!
The
above illustration of the "meditation," and subsequent
"awakening from meditation," of THE ALL, is of course but an attempt
of the teachers to describe the Infinite process by a finite example. And, yet:
"As Below, so Above." The difference is merely in degree. And just as
THE ALL arouses itself from the meditation upon the Universe, so does Man (in
time) cease from manifesting upon the Material Plane, and withdraws himself
more and more into the Indwelling Spirit, which is indeed "The Divine
Ego."
There
is one more matter of which we desire to speak in this lesson, and that comes
very near to an invasion of the Metaphysical field of speculation, although our
purpose is merely to show the futility of such speculation. We allude to the
question which inevitably comes to the mind of all thinkers who have ventured
to seek the Truth. The question is: "WHY does THE ALL create Universes"
The question may be asked in different forms, but the above is the gist of the
inquiry.
Men
have striven hard to answer this question, but still there is no answer worthy
of the name. Some have imagined that THE ALL had something to gain by it, but
this is absurd, for what could THE ALL gain that it did not already possess?
Others have sought the answer in the idea that THE ALL "wished something
to love" and others that it created for pleasure, or amusement; or because
it "was lonely" or to manifest its power;—all puerile explanations
and ideas, belonging to the childish period of thought.
Others
have sought to explain the mystery by assuming that THE ALL found itself
"compelled" to create, by reason of its own "internal
nature"—its "creative instinct." This idea is in advance of the
others, but its weak point lies in the idea of THE ALL being
"compelled" by anything, internal or external. If its "internal
nature," or "creative instinct," compelled it to do anything,
then the "internal nature" or "creative instinct" would be
the Absolute, instead of THE ALL, and so accordingly that part of the
proposition falls. And, yet, THE ALL does create and manifest, and seems to
find some kind of satisfaction in so doing. And it is difficult to escape the
conclusion that in some infinite degree it must have what would correspond to
an "inner nature," or "creative instinct," in man, with
correspondingly infinite Desire and Will. It could not act unless it Willed to
Act; and it would not Will to Act, unless it Desired to Act and it would not
Desire to Act unless it obtained some Satisfaction thereby. And all of these
things would belong to an "Inner Nature," and might be postulated as
existing according to the Law of Correspondence. But, still, we prefer to think
of THE ALL as acting entirely FREE from any influence, internal as well as
external. That is the problem which lies at the root of difficulty—and the
difficulty that lies at the root of the problem.
Strictly
speaking, there cannot be said to be any "Reason" whatsoever for THE
ALL to act, for a "reason" implies a "cause," and THE ALL
is above Cause and Effect, except when it Wills to become a Cause, at which
time the Principle is set into motion. So, you see, the matter is Unthinkable,
just as THE ALL is Unknowable. Just as we say THE ALL merely "IS"—so
we are compelled to say that "THE ALL ACTS BECAUSE IT ACTS." At the
last, THE ALL is All Reason in Itself; All Law in Itself; All Action in
Itself—and it may be said, truthfully, that THE ALL is Its Own Reason; its own
Law; its own Act—or still further, that THE ALL; Its Reason; Its Act; is Law;
are ONE, all being names for the same thing. In the opinion of those who are
giving you these present lessons, the answer is locked up in the INNER SELF of
THE ALL, along with its Secret of Being. The Law of Correspondence, in our
opinion, reaches only to that aspect of THE ALL, which may be spoken of as
"The Aspect of BECOMING." Back of that Aspect is "The Aspect of
BEING" in which all Laws are lost in LAW; all Principles merge into PRINCIPLE—and
THE ALL; PRINCIPLE; and BEING; are IDENTICAL, ONE AND THE SAME. Therefore,
Metaphysical speculation on this point is futile. We go into the matter here,
merely to show that we recognize the question, and also the absurdity of the
ordinary answers of metaphysics and theology.
In
conclusion, it may be of interest to our students to learn that while some of
the ancient, and modern, Hermetic Teachers have rather inclined in the
direction of applying the Principle of Correspondence to the question, with the
result of the "Inner Nature" conclusion,—still the legends have it
that HERMES, the Great, when asked this question by his advanced students,
answered them by PRESSING HIS LIPS TIGHTLY TOGETHER and saying not a word,
indicating that there WAS NO ANSWER. But, then, he may have intended to apply
the axiom of his philosophy, that: "The lips of Wisdom are closed, except
to the ears of Understanding," believing that even his advanced students
did not possess the Understanding which entitled them to the Teaching. At any
rate, if Hermes possessed the Secret, he failed to impart it, and so far as the
world is concerned THE LIPS OF HERMES ARE CLOSED regarding it. And where the
Great Hermes hesitated to speak, what mortal may dare to teach?
But,
remember, that whatever be the answer to this problem, if indeed there be an
answer the truth remains that: "While All is in THE ALL, it is equally
true that THE ALL is in All." The Teaching on this point is emphatic. And,
we may add the concluding words of the quotation: "To him who truly
understands this truth, hath come great knowledge."
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