When you hoe a garden you have to overturn the soil to bring life and nutrients into it. That’s what happens on the spiritual path. You undergo a churning up.
Robert: Welcome to Inner Sight. Inner sight is simply seeing that which is always present but not yet fully recognized. You have within you the ability to see yourself and the world around you in a new way with new eyes. So, stay with us and together we’ll look at the world and ourselves with inner sight. Today’s topic is spiritual law — part four. If we’re into the idea of spiritual evolvement and reaching the highest potential of our spiritual self, I suppose one of the useful ideas might be what we figuratively call the rules of the road. What’s the best mode of behavior as far as being on that path of spiritual enlightenment? What briefly and succinctly, are these rules of the road? They are not imposed by an arbitrary board of directors such as a group or teachers but are the outcome of the conditions to be found upon the path itself. They carry the warrant of a man’s own soul and are the result of the experience of millions of travellers upon that path and the six rules of the path that we figuratively allude to as the rules of the road and the rules of the path are from an ancient spiritual text and are written in the language of ancient times. One rule is the following: The Road is trodden in the full light of day, thrown upon the Path by Those Who know and lead. Naught can then be hidden, and at each turn upon that Road a man must face himself. I’d like to have Sarah and Dale elaborate on that further, because I think that everybody has a lot of questions about what that means.
Sarah: Well, it’s one of the essential discoveries of anyone who treads the path that he cannot hide who he really is. I’ve known people who have had a series of dreams when they’ve begun to develop spiritually; to make a real effort through meditation and spiritual study; to develop and expand their spiritual consciousness. They go through a series of dreams in which they are exposed for who they really are, in the sense of their degraded condition as human beings. Well, that’s probably an overreaction to simply awakening to the fact that one has a long way to go towards perfection and that on the road, on the path, we have to be willing to be seen for who we are. We have to remember that who we are is not even known to our own selves. We don’t really know who we are. We know our basic personality that we think expresses who we are, but how many of us can really say that we know who we are as souls, much less that we know someone else as the soul that that person really is. We don’t know. We are in the process of unfolding our true colours and on the road we have to be willing to discover this and to be seen in our completed wonderfulness. (laughter)
Dale: So many people think of themselves and their wonderfulness that they miss the point of who they really are. That wonderfulness can often stand in the way. If we get caught up in that kind of glamour, then we’ll never discover just who we are, and that’s really the task we have when it says a person has to face himself and face the true self. That takes a lot of doing. I think it’s a painful process, but that’s really what one has to do, and to be very honest with oneself and recognize these glamours and these illusions that everybody has and try to substitute something better for them.
Sarah: Personally, I don’t like to think of this process of spiritual development as something that humiliates or degrades our sense of our humanity and of our spiritual worth. That’s not it. True humility is an adjusted sense of right proportion, the books of Alice Bailey say. In other words, it’s learning to see oneself within the context of the whole of humanity. That lessens the power of the selfish ego but it doesn’t degrade one. It doesn’t make one worthless, it simply integrates one into the whole of the human species and into the whole of life. So, the fact that we have to give up hiding who we might think we really are simply means that we reveal our true spiritual make up. We reveal and discover our soul, and we could think of that as something good and positive and not just painful.
Robert: So, it’s not really revealing it so much to other people as probably the most significant part of it is to reveal it to ourselves, perhaps even to admit something like I was wrong, which seems to be not only hard for me to say, but for a lot of people to really look honestly at oneself and say, hey, this was not good. I did something that was really a violation to other people.
Sarah: Well, on the spiritual path, yes. You come into touch with all the wrongs you have done, but you also come into a recognition of all that’s possible within you, awaiting evocation and possible within others. So, it’s both. Positive and negative in the sense of what comes up. It’s like in the spring, when you hoe a garden you have to overturn the soil to bring life and nutrients into it. That’s what happens on the spiritual path. You undergo a churning up and there’s material in the subconscious that might come into the conscious mind, through dreams or whatever that might be painful, but there’s also the whole content of the higher self, the higher planes, that’s awaiting expression through you that also has to be revealed and we can only hope that that day will come sooner rather than later.
Robert: Yeah, which really piques my interest in the sense that what you’re saying reminds me of the essence of what Christ said, and that was you too, can be as I am—the hope that we can reach that potential too, maybe, some day—the hope for humanity. Another one of the rules has to do with this: Upon the road, the hidden stands revealed. Each sees and knows the villainy of each. And yet there is, with that great revelation, no turning back, no spurning of each other, and no shakiness upon the Road. The Road goes forward into day. That to me has a lot of cryptic messages and maybe you can enlighten us about that.
Sarah: Again, it touches on the fact that we cannot hide who we are. We cannot hope that we are covering up and concealing something on this spiritual path. We can’t hide our past. We can’t hide our true character. Whatever is within us is going to come out in display through the stress and the challenge of the spiritual path.
Dale: Yes, everything will be revealed eventually and we have to literally remove the veils that hide all of the negative parts of us and the villainy. It’s an interesting word, the villainy of each, and it says that the villainy like self-interest or selfishness would be an example of villainy or the tendency to criticize. It’s these negative characteristics that have to be dealt with and what they reveal.
Sarah: It doesn’t tell what the word villain really means: someone who is rather low and unevolved.
Dale: Yes, doesn’t Alice give an interesting definition of that term villainy?
Sarah: Well, she said that in old times it meant a tiller of the soil, someone who was not very highly evolved. A peasant, I suppose you could say, a field worker. So, the villainy of each means that all of us have within us, I guess, this rather unevolved unglamorous run-of-the-mill humanness that comes up for display, and that is the source of so much of our weakness and our errors. It’s present in all of us because we’re not perfected beings. Each sees and knows the villainy of each.
Dale: And other people tend to see the villainy in you before you do, so that’s one of the hard parts too.
Sarah: Yes, but it’s not that we are criminals and horrible beings. The word doesn’t imply that. It just means that we’re works in progress with a long way to go and on the path we have to accept that none of us is perfect, that we are all striving toward a goal that we haven’t yet reached, but that tolerance is needed, a sense of compassion, a sense of acceptance and forbearance. The rule says there is with that great revelation, there is no turning back, no spurning of each other, and no shakiness upon the road. We have to be in it for the long haul, and we have to be in it as faithful companions no matter what happens with our spiritual partners, our spiritual brothers. We have to support and sustain each other when we stumble and fall. That’s part of the path.
Robert: I think when we’re on the path of self discovery, it’s of course very difficult to face oneself and to look deep within ourselves and say, I am wrong. I need improvement in this particular area. I think also with that Rule, am I correct that we shouldn’t really be too hard on ourselves when we discover an unpleasant truth about our lack of evolvement or something, or that we’re in denial. Don’t get caught up on it. Don’t berate or beat ourselves up. Just say well, let me work on this; we’re under construction, and let me move on to evolve.
Sarah: Yes, the ego can be so offended that it in fact becomes possessed by what it has witnessed in the sense of a weakness or an error. That too is a kind of glamour, and it’s the sin of pride—we can’t forgive ourselves. Well, we have to, and we have to forgive others.
Robert: Yeah, that’s very true. I guess it’s so easy to get caught up in it once we make the discovery about our own wrongdoing. The idea is to move on, continue on the path towards evolvement and try to do something about it along the way. But definitely move on. Don’t beat ourselves up.
Robert: The Rules of the Road is the theme of spiritual law, part four, and one of the rules is this: Upon that Road, one wanders not alone. There is no rush, no hurry. And yet there is no time to lose. Each Pilgrim, knowing this, presses his footsteps forward, and finds himself surrounded by his fellowmen. Some move ahead; he follows after. Some move behind; he sets the pace. He travels not alone. This rule of the road reminds me of the book Pilgrim’s Progress. How can you explain this particular thought further?
Sarah: I think it’s probably fairly self-explanatory and maybe we should move forward to some of the other rules. This one basically just says we don’t travel alone; we move in a group and adjust our pace accordingly. I don’t think it’s nearly as obscure as, say, the fourth rule.
Robert: Well, let’s just move on with this and we have another rule here. Three things the Pilgrim must avoid, the wearing of a hood, the veil which hides his face from others, the carrying of a water pot which only holds enough for his own wants, and the shouldering of a staff without a crook to hold. That certainly is cryptic and needs explanation.
Sarah: Now we’re into metaphor; yes, it’s interesting. The three things that the Pilgrim, the Wanderer on the path, has to avoid are the wearing of a hood—in other words, hiding himself and who he truly is from others, the veil that hides his face—we have to be seen for who we are. Second, carrying a water pot that holds only enough for his own wants. He has to share. He has to give all that he has and share it freely; and shouldering a staff without a crook to hold—well, that makes me think of those pictures of Jesus in Sunday school with the lamb in his arms and the shepherd’s crook. What do you think it means?
Dale: Yes, I think there’s symbolism there that the shepherd’s crook is used to actually dislodge a sheep that may be caught in a thicket or in a crevice somewhere.
Sarah: How do you know these things?
Dale: Well, I was a shepherd in previous life, you see, useful experience that comes from long experience out in the fields. (laughter) But it’s also symbolic of the server, the one on the path who uses the crook to hold and to dislodge other servers or other people that get caught up in the thickets of life, you might say.
Sarah: Not letting somebody wander off down some bypath.
Dale: Yeah, symbolically the disciple on the path can help dislodge those that are going astray.
Sarah: I suppose you’d have to say that they have to first realize they’ve gone astray before you can interfere, because people have the freedom to choose their path and their experience, and to follow whatever goals they think are appropriate. But then when they find that they’ve gone off the path and gone astray, then one can step in and help them get back on the higher way.
Dale: Yes, and it says the wearing of the hood that veils the face: we should not do that because one should let one’s light shine so you don’t wear the hood to cover your face or to cover up your countenance. Just by being yourself, allowing the soul energy to pour through you, that radiates out into the community, to the other people on the path.
Sarah: I suppose it’s my own paranoia that thinks that that means hiding who we really are, when in fact you’re saying let people see who you really are as a soul. Let it shine through. Let your radiance shine.
Dale: It reminds me, I think it was Saint Francis of Assisi, who went out to serve with his disciples, and all they did was walk down through the main street of the town and the disciples asked Saint Francis, when are we going to serve? And he said we are, simply by being there, and the presence, the radiation of his presence was a great service.
Robert: Another Rule of the Road that has to do with being on the path and serving humanity is this one, and it certainly needs explanation: Each Pilgrim on the Road must carry with him what he needs: a pot of fire, to warm his fellowmen; a lamp, to cast its rays upon his heart and show his fellow men the nature of his hidden life; a purse of gold, which he scatters not upon the Road but shares with others; a sealed vase wherein he carries all his aspiration to cast before the feet of Him Who waits to greet him at the gate—a sealed vase. I guess this has a lot of symbolism—maybe you can scratch the surface of that symbolism for us.
Sarah: Well, I can try. The pot of fire to warm one’s fellowmen, I would think, is the compassionate heart, the sympathetic, compassionate response to human need and suffering. We can’t be cold and isolated from others on the on the spiritual path. The purse of gold, which he scatters not upon the road but shares with others, would be all of one’s resources and talents: you can’t waste them. There’s that parable from the Bible about the man who squandered his talents—that’s breaking a law, too. But if you have those talents, use them with others in a wise way that serves them. Don’t hoard your talents. Don’t deny them but use them in service. The reference to the sealed vase wherein he carries all his aspiration to cast before the feet of Him Who waits to greet him at the gate—a sealed vase—is interesting. I don’t know. What do you think?
Dale: It’s the seal, I think maybe it has to seal away that which is so sacred.
Sarah: Cast not your pearls before swine?
Dale: Maybe, and you cast it before the feet of Him Who waits to greet you at the gate. In other words, that once you reach the gate of heaven, let’s say, that’s where you reveal the vase; it’s for that person.
Sarah: You’re really struggling with this, aren’t you?
Dale: Well, I haven’t got that far.
Sarah: Yes, me too, I’m struggling with it too, because on the one hand we’re supposed to share what we have. We’re supposed to share our spiritual gifts, not hoard them, not hide them from others, but on the other hand, keep that which is most precious, most spiritually potent—preserve it I suppose—and dedicate it at the feet of the one who can acknowledge and discern its worth. I think a lot of aspirants tend to strew their spiritual treasures at the feet of people who don’t understand, and that becomes very disillusioning for them. They feel rebuffed. They feel unappreciated. They feel that their little glimmers of understanding are mocked and laughed at, and it can be very deadly to the spiritual aspiration.
Dale: Yes, one has to protect some of this knowledge—as you just mentioned, casting one’s pearls before swine—one has to be very careful about that.
Sarah: In other words, discrimination is needed for when to share. When is someone ready to hear what you might be able to share and when should it be preserved from the eyes and ears of those who wouldn’t understand. There are a lot of pitfalls in learning this lesson of discrimination, of how to share wisely, and that’s why this is a Rule of the Road.
Robert: Well, I think this final Rule of the Road is a little bit more obvious and easier to understand, but I’d like you to comment on it also: The Pilgrim, as he walks upon the Road, must have the open ear, the giving hand, the silent tongue, the chastened heart. the golden voice, the rapid foot, and the open eye which sees the light. He knows he travels not alone. Can you comment on that one?
Sarah: Well, the open ear would be the capacity to listen, to hear what others are really trying to say, to be receptive to them. The giving hand: one who is generous and helps others. The silent tongue is that tremendous test of the path, right speech, learning how to speak appropriately, learning to be silent when necessary, not misusing speech. The chastened heart: humility, compassion. The Golden voice: right speech; once one has learned silence then one can use right speech.
Dale: And the rapid foot: one must make progress. One can’t just tread water in one place; one has to keep moving.
Sarah: Sometime we should have a little talk on spiritual speed. That’s an interesting topic—the need to move forward. The open eye which sees the light, I think, is a reference to the intuition, which exists within all human beings in potential, but which needs development and awakening. And as we learn to rely on that spiritual intuition through the open eye, which is the third eye, then we become more and more in touch with the plan and more actively cooperating.
Robert: He knows he travels not alone—that’s a reminder not to get too caught up in who we are and too impressed with ourselves, that there are others who are travelling the same path…
Sarah: Many, many, many others.
Robert: OK.
Sarah: And many who have gone ahead of us.
Robert: As we make spiritual progress not to get too impressed with ourselves.
Sarah: No, we’re late. We’re all late comers.
Robert: That’s about all the time we have for our discussion today. You’ve been listening to Inner Sight and now we would like to close with a world prayer called the Great Invocation. It’s a call for light and love and goodwill to flow into the world and into our hearts. Let’s listen for a moment to these powerful words.
Sarah: Closes the program by reciting the adapted version of the Great Invocation.
(This is an edited transcript of a recorded radio program called “Inner Sight.” This conversation was recorded between the host, Robert Anderson, and the then President and Vice-President of Lucis Trust, Sarah and Dale McKechnie.)
(Transcribed and edited by Carla McLeod)
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