VRIL/PART 2
LESSON II
VRIL IN ORGANIC LIFE
Vril, in the third sense of the term, or the
third phase of its manifestation or existence, is the life-force or
vital-energy of all organic forms of life -of all living creatures. From the
single cell or moneron in the slime of the ocean-bed, or the lowly quasi-organic
forms of green sediment or deposits on rocks and old trees, to the highest
forms of animal and man life, Vril is ever present and operative. Just as
protoplasm is the peculiar phase of matter which serves as the body of living
organisms, so is this phase or form of Vril the peculiar force or energy which
always accompanies organic life. In fact it is the distinctive property or
attribute of organic life. When science is forced to decide whether or not a
thing is "living" in the ordinary sense of the term, it is the
possession or non-possession of this form of Vril which serves to decide the
matter and make the distinction. It is this third phase of manifestation of
Vril which forms the subject matter of our present consideration in this book.
Vril, in its third phase of manifestation, is the energy which performs the
functions of life in the living organism. It is the power by which the living
creature carries on the processes of digestion, assimilation, excretion,
nourishment, repair, and elimination. It is the power by which it moves its
body by conscious will, and by which the subconscious movements of the cells
and organs of the body are performed. Vril causes the heart to beat, and the
arteries and veins to carry and propel the blood in its outward and inward
course. It causes the intestines and other canals to manifest their peculiar
peristaltic action. It is the power by which the will moves the hand and
fingers, and by means of which these words are written. We are accustomed to
thinking that the will causes these movements, and so it does, but only
indirectly. The will is a mental phase; it chooses to make the movement, after
which it releases or projects the Vril along the channels of the nerves to the
muscles. The muscles then contract, and the movement is effected. The will is
like the operator managing one of the great cranes in a modern steel works, who
touching a button here, and a lever there, swings the mighty instrument in any
direction, causing it to descend upon a great mass of steel, lift it up, and
swing it to any desired point. But the man and the machinery could never cause
the crane to do this work if there was not available the power (electricity or
steam) subject to the control and direction of the operator. Vril in the human
body is like electricity in the trolley car -it is that “which makes things
go."
While Vril is distributed all over the human body
-even the tiniest cell having its share- it is found principally in the two
great nervous systems, and is stored up in the great reservoirs of the brain,
the spinal-cord, and the various plexi or ganglia of the nervous system. For
the purposes of simple conception and easy thinking, we may regard this phase
of Vril as the “nervous fluid," or nerve-force, of physiology, remembering
always, however, that it is no more a " fluid" than is magnetism or
electricity, and that it is not a mechanical force. It is much nearer to
mind-power than it is to ordinary physical force, and yet it is different from
either. Its place is between mind-power and physical force, while somewhat
resembling both. All attempts to identify Vril with mind-power or physical
force must fail, for it is a thing of itself -a distinct manifestation of
nature or that which lies behind nature.
There is manifested in some quarters a
disposition to consider "vital force" or "vitality" as a
distinct entity or "soul" which energizes the physical body, and the
same disposition may be manifested by students in their consideration of the
third phase of Vril. This is an error, and all the best authorities positively
condemn it as such. For instance, Huxley, in speaking of the principle of
"vitality," says: “Considered apart from the phenomena of
consciousness, the phenomena of life are all dependent upon the working of the
same physical and chemical forces as those which are active in the rest of the
world. It may be convenient to use the terms 'vitality,' and 'vital force' to
denote the causes of certain great groups of natural operations, as we employ the
names of 'electricity' and 'electrical force', to denote others, but it ceases
to be proper to do so if such a name implies the absurd assumption that either
'electricity' or 'vitality' are entities playing the part of efficient causes
of electrical or vital phenomena."
In the same way, it is erroneous to consider Vril
as an entity or soul, directly and immediately causing the activities and
movements of the body. Vril is not the soul, spirit, or mind, of the person any
more than it is his physical body, but is a mighty natural force operating upon
the body under the control of the conscious or subconscious mental faculties.
Its activities manifest in and by means of the physical bodily forms and
structure, it is true, but they are inspired and directed by the mind,
conscious or subconscious. The physical form may and does carry its charge of
Vril, but does not produce the latter. Vril energizes and moves the physical structure,
but does not cause it. In a similar manner, while VriI is active in every
process of thought, it is not produced by thought; and while it energizes
thought processes, it does not produce thought in the sense of causing it. Mind
(in the ordinary sense); Vril, either as a principle or in its manifestation;
and Matter, either as a principle or in manifestation; are the three coordinate
manifested principles of the Infinite, and depend upon each other for their
activities. This is the teaching not only of modern science, also of the
ancient Arcane sages.
In the previous volumes of this series devoted to
the Arcane Teaching, we have seen that Matter exists in forms far more tenuous,
subtle, and fine than any known to the senses of man; and also in forms far
more gross than the imagination of man can picture. In the same teaching we may
see that, even more subtle than the finest forms of matter mentioned, there
exist etheric substances infinitely rare, tenuous and refined. The same is true
regarding the teaching concerning Vril. Not only do we see Vril manifesting in
the inner movements of the ions, atoms, and molecules of matter, and again in
its finer phases of animal and human life, but the teaching is that there are
forms and manifestations of Vril so much higher than the latter that the
ordinary human mind would be unable to conceive of them. But the principle of
Vril is ever the same, in high or low manifestation. Much that is called
"psychic phenomena" is explainable only by a knowledge of the
existence, principles and laws of Vril, as set forth in the Arcane Teachings.
Even the ordinary processes of thought are performed by the aid of Vril in a
manner not as yet understood by ordinary men, or even by the physical
scientists. It remains for the occultist to state and understand the finer
forces of nature, as manifest in the processes which we call "thought."
Many of us confuse the idea of
"thought" with that of "mind," but the occultist and
scientist know better than this. Mind, in it-self, is a great principle the
exact nature of which cannot be grasped by the ordinary mind. Thought, on the
contrary, is a manifestation of mind, assisted by Vril. The material scientist
who perceives the operation of Vril in the processes of thought, and who
recognizes the relationship between these processes and that of the physical
world, is right so far as he goes, for the activities of Vril are employed
therein, just as they are in many physical and chemical processes for reasons
which we have already stated. But he makes a wrong induction who holds that, by
reason thereof, thought is merely "a secretion of matter," or "a
by-product of matter." He fails to realize that Mind is the original cause
of thought, and that it employs Vril in its thought processes just as it
employs the fine matter of the brain-cells in these processes. It is only when
we recognize the co-existence and co-ordination of Mind, Vril, and Matter, that
we are able to perceive the real underlying causes of the phenomena of thought.
Physical science is also in error when it
attempts to limit the activities of "vital-force" or
"nerve-force" (which are but names for the activities of one phase of
VriI) to the particular human body in which it is generated or stored. Science
loses the opportunity to satisfactorily account for much perplexing phenomena,
by insisting upon this antiquated and narrow conception. That which is
generally termed "psychic phenomena" is explainable only when the fact
of the "long-distance" effect of Vril is perceived and admitted.
Likewise, many of the metaphysicians and pseudo-occultists are in error when
they attempt to account for certain psychic phenomena by the hypothesis of
"mind action" alone. The mind cannot produce effect at a distance
without the employment of the power of Vril any more than the
wireless-telegraph operator can produce his long-distance effects by his own
will unaided by the power employed in his wonderful instruments. The
physiologist who leaves VriI out of his calculations is no more at sea than is
the modern metaphysician or "mental scientist" who omits it from his
theories, explanations, and experiments. Without the power of Vril there could
be none of the phenomena of mentalism, made so popular by the new schools of
mental science and the great revival of interest in ancient occultism which has
distinguished the present generation. The mental scientist who understands the
nature and methods of employment of Vril, is enabled to double his successes. He
uses VriI, of course, unconsciously and unknowingly, in all of his experiments
and work -but he wastes more energy than he uses. It is only when he
understands the nature of VriI, and the methods of its employment in his mental
science work, that he can hope to project his mental power effectively and
efficiently. Yet so carried away with their metaphysical theories are some of
these practitioners, that they iterate and reiterate "all is mind."
and deny even the existence of such a principle as VriI.
Those who assert that "thoughts are
things" are right so far as they go -but they do not go far enough. A
thought cannot be generated without VriI. Neither can it be projected to a
distance without a peculiar employment of the force of Vril. The earnest belief
and active faith of many practitioners of mental science causes them to
unconsciously energize their thought with Vril, spite of their denials of its
existence. If they would lay aside some of their prejudices, and investigate
the subject of Vril, they could and would be enabled so to energize their
thought that their power and success would be redoubled. The narrow
metaphysician is as much in error as is the narrow materialist. It is only when
the triangle of being -Mind, VriI, and Matter- is recognized, that one's full
powers and energies may be manifested.
Comments
Post a Comment