Letters on Occult Meditation

by Alice A Bailey

  These are the four most important mantrams as regards individual evolution and development, and are well-known to all those who train pupils for initiation. But by themselves, even if discovered by the unready, they could accomplish little, for their use must be accompanied by the power that comes from the application of the Rod of Initiation. This Rod, through its surmounting diamond, focuses the three fires in the same way that a burning glass reacts to the sun, and causes a conflagration.

  I have here given you a lot of information in very few words. The matter is much condensed. It has a special significance for the man who nears the Path of Initiation. Ponder carefully on this which is imparted, for, by brooding upon it in the silence of the heart, light may come, and the inner fire glow with greater heat.

  Other mantrams connected with fire can be further enumerated. There are two groups that are contacted by the use of certain rhythmic sounds. [188]

  The fire elementals and their various hosts in the bowels of the earth, on the surface of the earth, and in the air above the earth.

  The devas of the mental plane, who are essentially the devas of fire.

  With the mantrams affecting the elementals of fire there is nought to be said or imparted. They are, in many ways, the most dangerous and the most powerful of the elementals who attend to the earth economy. For one thing, they far outnumber all the other elementals, and are found on every plane from the highest to the lowest. The elementals of water or earth are found only in certain localities or spheres in the solar system, whilst the next most numerous elementals are those of air.

  Mantrams calling them, controlling and dismissing them, were in common use among the Atlanteans. The dangers aroused, and the menace stalking the land through the indiscriminate use of elementals, so disturbed the accurate working of the logoic plans, and so displeased the Guides of the race that the knowledge was withdrawn. The Atlantean root race passed away through disasters by water, by floods, by submergings; when you remember that water is the natural enemy of fire, and that the two groups of elementals have no point of at-one-ment at this stage, you may be able to understand an interesting point about the Atlantean cataclysms.

  Mantrams calling the fire devas are equally well guarded, not only because of the dangers involved but because of the obstructions in time that are caused when these devas are heedlessly called and held by mantric charm from pursuing their necessary vocations. Under these two groups of mantric forms will be found many lesser groups which work specifically with different bands of elementals and devas. [189]

  We have here enumerated six groups of mantrams connected with fire. There are still a few more which I might briefly enumerate.

  Purificatory mantrams that awaken a fire that purifies, and burns on one of the three lower planes. This is effected through the activity of elementals, controlled by fire devas, and under the direct guidance of an initiate or disciple for some specific purificatory end. The end may be to cleanse some one of the bodies or to purify a locality, a house or a temple.

  Mantrams that call down fire for the magnetisation of talismans, of stones and of sacred spots.

  Mantrams that bring about healing through the occult use of flame.

  The mantrams used:—

  a—By the Manu, in manipulating that which is necessary in the moving of continents, and the submerging of lands.

  b—By the Bodhisattva, in stimulating the inner flame in each human being.

  c—By the Mahachohan, in His work with the intelligence, or the fifth principle.

  All these mantric forms and many others exist......The first step towards the attainment of these mantrams is the acquirement of the faculty of occult meditation, for it is not the sounding of the words alone that bring about the desired end but the mental concentration that visualises the results to be attained. This must be accompanied by the will that causes those results to be dominated by the one who chants the sounds. These mantric forms are dangerous and useless apart from the concentrated mental equilibrium of the man, and his power to control and vitalise. [190]

  August 21, 1920.

  We come now to the last division of our sixth letter.

  4 - The use of Form collectively.

  I propose to take this up under three heads which for purposes of clarity we will call:—

  l—The use of sound collectively in a meditation form.

  2—The use of rhythm collectively in meditation.

  3—Special occasions on which these forms are used.

  ......We have rather exhaustively considered in this series of letters individual meditation and have taken up the subject from many and varied angles. In all our handling of the matter only enough has been communicated to arouse the interest of the student and to incite him to greater effort, closer study, and deeper investigation. Only that which is understood and grasped as a fact in experience by the inner consciousness avails aught in the hard path of occult development. Theories and mental concepts avail not. They but increase responsibility. Only when these theories are put to the test, and are consequently known to be facts in nature, and only when mental concepts are brought down and demonstrated on the physical plane in practical experience, can the student be in a position to point the way to other searchers, and to hold out a helping hand to those following behind. To say: “I hear” may prove helpful and encouraging; to add to that the words “I believe” may carry added assurance, but to sound forth a trumpet note and say “I know” is the thing needed in this one of the darkest hours of the Kali Yuga. The knowers are as yet few. Yet to know is fully possible and is subject only to the diligence, the sincerity, and the capacity of the pupil on the path to stand firm in suffering. [191]

  Now having some dim idea of the results to be achieved, and the methods to be employed in individual meditation, and having enlarged a little on the use of forms by individuals, we can now take up the consideration of the matter from the collective standpoints.

  Some of the most important things to note about the collective use of forms are that it has a universal vogue, is very effective, and can also be very dangerous. The collective worshipping of the Deity and the performance of religious rites in unison is so much a part of the public life of all peoples that its raison d'etre, and the results achieved, are apt to be overlooked. Every religion—Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, Mohammedan, down to the distorted fetish worship of the most degraded race—has emphasised the value and efficiency of a united attempt to contact the Divine. Results are inevitably achieved, ranging all the way from the calm and peaceful feeling that rests upon the participant in the Christian mysteries, to the frenzy and gyrations of the wildest dervish or the most benighted Zulu. The difference lies in the ability of the worshipper to assimilate force, and in his capacity to hold and carry it. These points are decided by his place on the ladder of evolution, and by the emotional and mental control of which he may be possessed.

  The first postulate to remember in considering the collective use of form in meditation is that those forms, in employing sound and rhythm, should open up a funnel of communication between those taking part in them and the Intelligences or Powers they are seeking to approach. By the means of this funnel which penetrates from the physical to the emotional, or still higher to one or other of the mental levels, the Intelligences or Powers are enabled to pour forth illuminating light or power of some kind or other into those who thus approach Them. The funnel [192] forms a channel whereby the contact can be made. The whole process is purely scientific and is based on vibration, and on a knowledge of dynamics. It is dependent upon the accurate formation, through occult knowledge, of a vacuum. The occult statement that “Nature abhors a vacuum” is entirely true. When through the correct intoning of certain sounds, this vacuum or empty funnel between the higher and the lower is formed, force or power of some manifestation of fohatic energy pours into the funnel under the inevitable working of the law, and, via that funnel, reaches its objective.

  It is on the misuse of this knowledge
that much of what we call black art or evil magic is based. By means of invocation and forms the Dark Brothers (or those who tamper with what you ignorantly term the powers of evil) tap forces connected with dark intelligences in high places. Thus they set in motion happenings on the physical plane that have their origination in the dark mysterious caves of cosmic evil as found within our solar system. Equally so, it is possible to tap the still greater forces of light and good and to make application of them on the side of evolution.

  The use of sound collectively in meditation forms.

  We will now take up the matter specifically from the standpoint of sound. In the study of the Sacred Word and its use we found that it had a triple effect, destructive, constructive and personal,—if I might so express it—or acting directly in a stimulating sense on the centres of the body. These three effects may be seen in the use of all sound collectively and by a large body of persons. We might enumerate still further for the sake of clarity a fourth effect, that of the creation of a funnel. This fourth effect is but a synthesis of the others in actuality, for adjustments [193] in the matter of the three lower planes have to be made in this creation of a funnel of communication. Those adjustments result first of all in the destruction of obstructing matter, and then in the construction of a funnel for use. This is very definitely effected through the instrumentality of the centres. This latter point is of fundamental interest, and holds hid the secret of the most potent use of sound. That use is its projection in mental matter by means of one or other of the major centres. The effects achieved by a group of persons who have the power to work on mental levels, and to employ simultaneously one of the major centres (either entirely the head centre or one of the other major centres in connection with its corresponding head centre) can be unbelievably powerful. It is well for the race that as yet that power is not theirs. Only when united purity of motive and an unselfish adherence to the good of all can be found, will this power be permitted to return to the common knowledge of men. As yet it is practically impossible to get a sufficient number of people at the same stage of evolution, at the same point on the ladder, employing the same centre and responding to the same ray vibration to meet in unison, and sound together the same note or mantram. They must also be animated by pure love, and work intelligently for the spiritual uplift of all.

  Part of the power of the Hierarchy is based on Their ability to do just this very thing. As evolution progresses, and the matter is more fully comprehended, meditation groups will change from their present status, which is that of bands of earnest aspirants seeking illumination, to bands of workers constructively and intelligently working together for certain ends. You have in the Christian Bible the remnant of a tale which has descended to us from Atlantean days. In those days the use of sound on physical [194] and emotional levels was understood and practised, being utilised for selfish ends in most of the cases. You read that at the sound of trumpets, sounded a certain number of times after a rhythmical circuit of the walls of Jericho those walls collapsed. This was made possible by the occult knowledge of the leaders of the people who—being versed in the science of sound and having studied its destructive and creative effects,—knew just the moment to apply that science and effect the desired end.

  These sounds can be grouped under three heads:—

  The united sounding of the Sacred Word.

  This is one of the most usual methods, and the most direct way of forming a funnel for the transmission of power. If it is so effective in the case of the individual, as has been again and again demonstrated, surely its united use will be tremendously effective, and even dangerously potent. It is the loss of the use of this Word that has crippled and hindered the efficiency of all the present exoteric faiths, but this loss has been deliberately brought about owing to the dangers incident to the low point of evolution of the human hierarchy. When the use of this word is restored collectively, and when congregations of men can sound it correctly on the right note and in the right cadence or rhythm, then the downflow of force from above (the quality of that force depending on key and tone) will be such that the vivification of the microcosm will affect the surrounding country and environment. It will cause corresponding stimulation in all the kingdoms of nature, for the human kingdom forms a link between the higher and the lower, and, in conjunction with the deva kingdom, provides a meeting ground for the forces of life.

  These effects upon the different centres will be definitely felt on one or other plane in the three worlds. Let [195] me illustrate, for clarity is desired. I must warn you however to bear in mind that no importance must be attached to the order specified here. The time is not ripe for the opening up of accurate information on this matter.

  We will presume that a congregation of people is desirous of linking up with that channel of force that works through the emotions, and so stimulates to greater aspiration and love. In united silence they will stand until, at a given word from the leader, each unit in the group will deliberately withdraw his consciousness into the heart centre, and then from that heart centre (keeping the consciousness steadily there) he will drive forth the sound of the Sacred Word, pitched in the key to which the majority of the group respond. This key will be ascertained by the clairvoyant group leader reviewing rapidly the auras gathered before him. This sound will create the necessary funnel, and the result will be an immense temporary extension of the peripheries of the emotional bodies of the participants, and an intense vitalisation of their heart centres. By means of this the people will be enabled to reach heights and receive blessings otherwise not separately possible. You can for yourself think out other conditions. The use of the imagination in these matters is of real importance and develops a connection between that faculty and its higher counterpart, the intuition. Students of meditation must learn to imagine more.

  The united sounding of certain mantrams which will be employed for specific purposes. Instances of such purposes are:—

  a. The purification of a city.

  b. The magnetisation of grounds that are to be employed as healing centres. [196]

  c. The clarification of the minds of the congregation in order that they may be able to receive the higher illumination.

  d. The healing of people gathered together for that purpose.

  e. The controlling of the forces of nature so that physical plane occurrences may be brought about.

  f. The initiating of people into the Lesser Mysteries.

  In this paragraph, as you rightly think, lies material that enlarged would fill a volume. It is part of that white magic that again will be restored to the race and by means of which a glory and a civilisation will be attained that was hinted at in Atlantean days, and is one of the dreams of the visionaries of the race.

  Mantrams or words sounded forth collectively by which the deva, or angel kingdom, will be communicated with. These are a peculiar set of mantrams connected with the Mahachohan's department and I will take them up more specifically later......

  August 22, 1920.

  The use of Rhythm Collectively in Meditation.

  Rhythm might be expressed as that cadenced movement which automatically sways those who employ it into line with certain of Nature's forces. It is that directed action, followed in unison by a body of people, which results in certain alignments and effects upon one or other of the bodies or on all. It has for its objects therefore:

  a. The swinging of a body, or a concourse of bodies, into the radius of action of a stream of force.

  b. It causes an adjustment of the matter of one of the various bodies or of all the bodies that go to the make-up of the personnel of a group. [197]

  c. It blends—under certain geometrical balances and arrangements—the auras of the differentiated units in a group, and causes these auras to form one united group aura, thereby permitting of the rhythmic flow of force in certain specified directions, for certain specified ends.

  This has been well understood right down the ages, even though the methods, procedur
e and results have not been scientifically comprehended or tabulated, except by various occult and esoteric bodies. In the old, so-called pagan rites the value of rhythm was well understood and even David, the psalmist of Israel, danced before the Lord. The swaying of the body to a certain tempo, and the swinging of the framework of the physical vehicle in various directions, subject at times to the musical sound of instruments, has a peculiar and definite effect upon the matter of the two subtler vehicles. By this rhythmic movement:

  1. The force that is tapped and put in touch with the causal.

  This is one of the main objects of the true rhythmic movement, distortions of which come down to us through the centuries, and have their apotheosis in the low type of modern dance. In the modern dance is found the corruptest manifestation of rhythmic movement, and the main effect of the rhythm is the direction of the force tapped by its means to the emotional vehicle, and to the lowest type of matter in that vehicle. This results on the physical [198] plane in a most undesirable stimulation of the sex organs. In the true use of rhythmic movement the effect is to align the three lower vehicles with the causal vehicle, and this lining up—when coupled with intensest aspiration and ardent desire—results in a downflow of force from above. This causes a vivification of the three major centres and a definite illumination.

  When an entire concourse of people is thus animated by a single high desire, when their auras blend and form one united channel for the downflow, the effect is tremendously intensified and can be world-wide in its radius. You have an instance of this in the wonderful Wesak festival, kept so universally in India to this day, when the Hierarchy forms itself into a channel for the transmission of power and blessing from the levels on which the Buddha may be found. He acts as a focal point for that power, and—passing it through His Aura—pours it out over mankind by means of the channel provided by the assembled Lords, Masters, graded initiates and disciples. This channel is formed by the use of sound and rhythm simultaneously employed. By the chanting of a certain mantram by means of the slow, measured movements that accompany that chanting, the funnel is formed that reaches upwards to the desired locality. The geometrical figures formed in the matter of the plane higher than the physical (which are the result of the geometrical movement of the concourse gathered in that Himalayan centre) form themselves into wonderful avenues of approach to the centre of blessing for the inhabitants, deva or otherwise, from any particular plane. For those who can clairvoyantly view the scene, the beauty of the geometrical forms is unbelievable, and that beauty is enhanced by the radiant auras of the Great Ones Who are gathered there. [199]