5. The permanent atoms are not heart-shaped as portrayed in certain books. A certain number of atoms are of that type but they are not the permanent atoms which are more definitely spheroidal and are slightly flattened at the top, where the correspondence to the polar depression may be found, and equally flattened at the under surface.
6. The arrangement of the spirillae within the permanent atoms varies on each plane and the ones most frequently described are those of the physical plane. The arrangement of these tiny force vortices and their internal economy on each plane is one of the secrets of initiation and may not be revealed. One hint only may be given to guide the student: The astral permanent atom has its internal streams of force arranged so that the spirals do approach quite closely the conformation of a heart, though the pointed end is eliminated. The buddhic permanent atom has its spirillae arranged so as to form approximately a figure eight with a central stream bisecting the double spiral.
7. The closer the approach to reality the simpler will be found the arrangement of the spirilla. These streams of force show a septenary arrangement in the [532] lower three permanent atoms of man, while the higher three contain but three spirillae—the major three.
8. It should be noted that there are but six permanent atoms connected with human evolution, while a Heavenly Man has but five, and even then only one in the solar system. (The mystery of a planet and its central life has not yet been revealed. It is connected with another manifestation of which as yet nought is known.)
9. It should be remembered that we are dealing with a physical incarnation of these great Entities and that Their permanent atoms, with the exception of the physical, are extra-systemic.
10. The causal body of the Heavenly Men is upon the third subplane of the cosmic mental plane, while that of the solar Logos and those of the three Persons of the logoic Trinity are upon the first subplane.
11. The permanent atoms of men are upon the atomic subplane of each plane, with the one exception of the mental unit. Those of the animal groups are upon the second subplane; those of the vegetable groups are upon the third subplane; those of the mineral groups are upon the fourth subplane. There is, therefore, a close analogy between these focal points of force of the group—human or otherwise—and a chain, a globe, and a round, and in their due application comes enlightenment. The sumtotal of the permanent atoms of any particular kingdom form the streams of force or spirillae in the greater atoms of solar entities or of lunar entities, while the sumtotal of the permanent atoms of man in the spiritual kingdom (the three triadal atoms, atma-buddhi-manas) form the spiral streams of force within certain centres.
12. As the permanent atoms become radioactive in due course of evolution, the result within the centre is a marked increase of vibration.
13. The permanent atoms concern solar entities when they are found on or above the higher mental. They [533] concern lunar entities on the lower mental, the astral and the physical planes.
14. It should be noted that in this solar system the following entities manifest through:
I. One permanent atom . . . the physical.
1. A solar Logos.
2. The three major Rays, or Lords of Aspect.
3. The seven Heavenly Men.
4. The forty-nine Regents of the planetary chains.
II. Two permanent atoms . . . the physical and the astral.
1. The seven Lords of the globes in every chain.
2. The forty-nine Root Manus.
3. The seventy-seven Embodiers of form—a group of solar Lords Who are concerned with form building, working primarily on the first ray.
4. Certain of the Avatars, Who are selected by the Logos to carry a certain type of force at stated intervals and thus further the evolution of the psyche.
III. Three permanent atoms . . . physical, astral, and mental.
1. The Lords of the third Kingdom, the animal. They are seven Entities whose bodies are made up of animal souls just as the Heavenly Men embody for man the Buddhic principle, so these lords embody for the animal kingdom the manasic principle, which is the goal of the evolutionary process for them.
2. Certain great entities who embody a whole range of existences upon five of the planets, of which the earth is not one, but who in due course of time will come to be recognised as having a powerful effect upon man on the earth, via the three Buddhas of Activity. A hint as to this esoteric influence comes to man in the close connection existing between the Earth and Mercury. As yet it is not possible to enlarge further.
3. The entities who are the sumtotal of those group souls who contain definite permanent triads. Nine triads constitute the body of one of these entities.
1V. Through four permanent atoms . . . physical, astral, mental and buddhic.
1. Eight groups of solar Entities Who form the subjective life of the seven centres in the body of Brahma, viewing Him as a separate cosmic Entity, [534] dissociated from His two brothers. They are the seven Sons of Fohat, with the eighth Son included, and They are the final differentiation of the forty-nine fires, prior to Their union with the fire of Eros. Thus is it expressed by H. P. B. (S.D.,I, 139,144)
2. That Entity Who works through the FORM of a planetary occult Hierarchy, using it as His body of manifestation, and regarding it as the centre through which His force can flow. It should be remembered that all such groups on every planet form a vehicle for the life of a great Individual Who gives to that Hierarchy its distinctive colouring and its unique keynote.
3. A number of solar Deities Who are the radiators of solar magnetism, and the life of form.
4. A peculiar group of Beings connected with a certain constellation and the lesser Dragon, who have their habitat on Neptune and work with the sixth principle in the solar system. They take physical form, animated by purified desire, controlled by mind, and are the dispensers of love-wisdom by means of certain of the “Halls of Wisdom” on the various planets. The words “Halls of Wisdom” in their esoteric significance describe a stage of consciousness not a location.
V. Through five permanent atoms . . . physical, astral, mental, buddhic and atmic.
1. The Lords of certain subplanes who work under the Raja-Lord of a plane and who are themselves vibration and activity.
2. The lesser Heavenly Men on the buddhic level, Who reflect Their higher prototypes on the second plane of the system.
3. The entities who are the sum-total of group consciousness on egoic levels, remembering that these groups are differentiated and are formed of aggregates of seven, until there are formed forty-nine groups of seven egoic vehicles forming one group which is the body of this lesser solar Deity. There is a multiplicity of these groups of forty-nine. This has been somewhat stated before when it has been [535] announced that a Master with His particular band of disciples and initiates form a group or force centre. These groups have their permanent atoms as do all lives seeking objective expression.
4. The entities who are the sumtotal of the vegetable kingdom in its diversity of manifestation in different globes, chains and schemes.
VI. Through six permanent atoms . . . physical, astral, two mental, buddhic and atmic.
MAN.
All that is here stated is an enlargement of the data given about the “Army of the Voice,” (S.D., I, 121) and an endeavour to show that many diverse lives (all embodying lesser lives, or embodied in greater ones themselves) are to be found within the various schemes. We have dealt only with those likewise which are superhuman or human, with those who have been or are MEN. We have not dealt with the subhuman, or with the lunar lords or lesser pitris, for their day is not yet, and they progress as the tide of evolution progresses, unconsciously and not self-consciously. We have dealt with these entities and their permanent atoms in connection with their manifestation in a solar system, and have not carried it beyond the solar ring-pass-not. All the permanent atoms concern physical matter and manifestation. The highest permanent atom of man, the atmic, is, after all, an atom of the third cosmic e
ther, and this should be pondered upon and studied. We have considered these various personalities (and the word ‘personality’ is chosen deliberately, for what are They but personalities, or Beings, in physical incarnation?) from the standpoint of Their lowest force point first. We have discussed the permanent atom as a point of contact with the force of a plane, of a planet, of a chain, of a scheme, or of a system. This should ever be borne in mind.
It is to be recognised that much that is written above [536] may seem incomprehensible, but when scientists come to understand and regulate force, that which is written here will become plainer; it will be seen that we have dealt with the positive force in all negative forms above, and including the human kingdom.
III. THE EGOIC LOTUS
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We must now deal with the subject of the causal body on its own plane from the point of view of FIRE. We have studied it briefly from the more ordinary angle, and in materialistic terms, considering it as a vehicle of rarefied substance, containing within itself the seventh principle of each of the two lower sheaths of the microcosm, and the mental unit. This latter is that which embodies the first aspect in manifestation, and which is analogous to the first logoic aspect—one that in this solar system does not come to full demonstration.
I would like to point out here that in studying the solar system as the physical manifestation of a solar Logos, we are investigating:
a. The physical permanent atom of a solar Logos as contained within the logoic causal body on its own plane.
b. The seven types of force, or the seven logoic spirillae within that permanent atom. This, if realised, [537] gives a new outlook upon the subject of plane vibration.
c. The close correspondence between the planes and the seven spirillae in the permanent atom of a solar Logos.
We have touched upon these spirillae and their function very briefly, and can now approach the question of the egoic Ray and the fire of mind from the subjective point of view, or in terms of fire.
1. Centres or Wheels of Energy.
a. Centres of force. We shall again reach the clarity of vision desirable if we study the subject of monadic development from the angle of vision of the human unit. It has been taught in many occult text books that man has seven centres of force (or ten, according to some calculations); that three of these centres are paramount, and eventually synthesise the other four, or absorb their force or energy. This produces their eventual obscuration, or their passing out of manifestation; they occultly ‘die.’ This is paralleled in the logoic centres, the planetary schemes, which also in due course of time pass into obscuration, and transmit their energy to the major three schemes. The three main centres in the Microcosm are the Head, the Heart and the Throat.
1. The Head centre The Monad Will Spirit.
2. The Heart centre The Ego Love Consciousness.
3. The Throat centre The Personality Activity Matter.
It will, therefore, be apparent that just as in man these centres are related to the threefold spiritual man in his total development, so the three types of centres—microcosmic or macrocosmic—come gradually more and more under the vitalising power of one of the three aspects of the Logos. These centres are recognised also as focal points of active force, manifesting to the vision [538] of the clairvoyant as fiery wheels or the flaming petals of a lotus.
b. The causal body . . . monadic heart centre. In studying the egoic body it should be remembered that the causal body is the correspondence in the monadic manifestation to the heart centre. It is a flaming wheel of fire within the monadic auric egg, which embraces the five planes of monadic manifestation; it is also seen as the twelve-petalled Lotus. Of these twelve petals, the innermost three are unrevealed, or are embryonic, and hence the causal body is frequently considered as a nine-petalled Lotus, or as a wheel of fire with only nine spokes or whorls. This is essentially true as regards the evolutionary process, but when a man has succeeded in awakening or unfolding the nine petals, or in arousing the fire of the nine spokes or whorls (which is practically consummated at the three major Initiations) the inner three are revealed. They respond to the monadic vibration, to the aspect of pure Spirit; it is the stimulation or revelation of these inner petals, by the One Initiator at the third and fourth Initiations which brings about the final conflagration and the blazing up of the causal body with the subsequent liberation of the central positive Life or Fire. 2. The Twelve-Petalled Egoic Lotus
Solar Fire is dual. It is the fire of matter or substance and the fire of mind blended. This makes man the six-pointed Star of Light, for each of these fires is triple. The fire of mind is also in essence dual, bringing in another triplicity, thus making the nine. When a man has awakened the nine fires, and has unfolded the nine petals, and when he has received the stimulus which is imparted at initiation, through being brought into conscious contact with the electric spark of his own particular Heavenly Man, they all blend and merge. The [539] inner three which complete the twelve, and which are concerned with the final, and essentially spiritual stages, of his evolution, are really related more intimately to the evolution of the Heavenly Man, and are connected with the stimulus which He receives Himself in contacting the logoic electric spark, or the pure Spirit aspect of the Logos.
It should here be noted that this ninefold development is hinted at in the Secret Doctrine in the various places where H. P. B. deals with the Kumaras (S. D., II, 257.) or the Heavenly Men, of Whom the microcosm is a reflection. She calls Them the Lords of Knowledge, the Lords of Love and the Lords of Sacrifice. Each of Them is a nine-petalled Lotus in the logoic body. They are the flaming Wheels, and in Their various names, as found in the Secret Doctrine, may be discovered the clue to the mystery. Let us realise this clearly, nevertheless, as regards the microcosm, and later extend the idea to the Heavenly Men. Let us picture the nine-petalled egoic lotus, the heart centre in the monadic consciousness, unfolding each of its petals in groups of three upon the three subplanes of the higher mental. Their unfoldment is worked out through the evolutionary process, undergone on the three planes in the three worlds, or within the three Halls of Ignorance, of Learning, and of Wisdom.
a. First Group of Petals—Knowledge Petals:
1. The Petal of Knowledge for the physical plane. Through the breaking of the Law and the ensuing suffering the price of ignorance is paid and knowledge is achieved. This unfoldment is brought about through physical plane experience.
2. The Petal of Love for the physical plane. Unfolds through physical relationships, and the gradual growth of love from love of self to love of others. [540]
3. The Petal of Sacrifice for the physical plane. This unfoldment is brought about through the driving force of circumstances, and not of free will. It is the offering up of the physical body upon the altar of desire—low desire to begin with, but aspiration towards the end, though still desire. As man in the early stages of his evolution is polarised on the physical, much of this is undergone unconsciously and without any realisation of what is being consummated, but the result in the causal body is seen in a twofold increase of heat or of activity:
The physical permanent atom becomes radioactive or a radiant point of fire.
The lower three petals become vibrant and begin to unfold until fully developed.
b. Second Group of Petals—Love Petals:
1. The Petal of Knowledge, for the astral plane; unfoldment is brought about by the conscious balancing of the pairs of opposites, and the gradual utilisation of the Law of Attraction and Repulsion. The man passes out of the Hall of Ignorance where, from the egoic point of view, he works blindly and begins to appreciate the effects of his physical plane life; by a realisation of his essential duality he begins to comprehend causes.
2. The Petal of Love for the astral plane; unfoldment is brought about through the process of gradually transmuting the love of the subjective nature or of the Self within. This has a dual effect and works through on to the physical plane in many lives of turmoil, of endeav
our and of failure as a man strives to turn his attention to the love of the Real.
3. The Petal of Sacrifice for the astral plane; unfoldment is brought about by the attitude of man as he [541] consciously endeavours to give up his own desires for the sake of his group. His motive is still somewhat a blind one, and still coloured by the desire for a return of that which he gives and for love from those he seeks to serve, but it is of a much higher order than the blind sacrifice to which a man is driven by circumstances as is the case in the earlier unfoldment. As this threefold enlightenment or unfoldment proceeds, again a dual result is seen:
The astral permanent atom comes into full activity and radiance, as regards five of its spirillae, and the two atoms of the physical and the astral planes are equally vibrant.
The three petals of the central ring of the egoic lotus come also into full unfoldment, and the heart centre of the Monad is seen as a wheel of fire with six of its spokes in full display of energy and rapidly rotating.
c. Third Group of Petals—Sacrifice Petals:
1. The Petal of Knowledge for the mental plane; its unfoldment marks the period wherein the man consciously utilizes all that he has gained or is gaining under the law for the definite benefit of humanity.
Each of the groups of petals is distinguished by a predominant colouring; Knowledge, on the physical plane, with the colouring of the other two subsidiary; Love, on the astral plane, with the light of sacrifice weaker in tone than the other two, which practically show forth in equal brilliancy. On the mental plane, the light of sacrifice comes to its full display, and all that is seen is coloured by that light.
2. The Petal of Love on the mental plane is unfolded [542] through the conscious steady application of all the powers of the soul to the service of humanity with no thought of return nor any desire for reward for the immense sacrifice involved.
A Treatise on Cosmic Fire Page 46
