THE LOOM OF CREATION
by Dennis Milner and Edward Smart
Chapter VIII – The Contemporary Situation
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The pattern of the past has been that man has experienced himself as existing on earth, brought there by forces and powers which he has variously designated as gods, God or Nature and that gradually he has learned to go forward on his own account. Now he has developed some ability to work out of his own resources, but he has no sense of direction. It is thus timely that objective mysticism has now appeared in the world to make a contribution to this end. Contemporary human experiences and the impulses of the younger generations show, on the one hand, a turning inwards and a seeking for direct inner experience, as opposed to reliance on traditional teachings, faiths or dogma; on the other, they show a seeking for a realistic religion or metaphysics which will embrace these and the normal experiences of existence. Objective mysticism provides such a generalised metaphysical view of the human situation; but man has to work out his existence by finding his way forward in specific circumstances on earth. If the viewpoint of objective mysticism is valid, and if it is to make a contribution to the development of mankind, then it must provide new insights into the contemporary situation and suggest directions for new advances and for harmonious progress. We therefore try now to examine some of the features of contemporary Western Civilisation in terms of objective mysticism. In particular we consider phenomena that are not explicable from the contemporary scientific viewpoint, but which, in the light of objective mysticism, become comprehensible and, when evaluated, will throw new light on the human situation.
Evolution takes place in epochs, and the period of the past three hundred or so years has been concerned with the development of man’s ability to think, particularly about the material world. As a result modern science and technology has arisen. This has provided Western man with a degree of independence and with material affluence and well being. At present we are in a period when the main impulses of the past epoch have become well established, but the outstanding features of the emerging epoch have yet to become clear. New advances come from men experiencing, responding to, and working out new types of stimuli. These stimuli originate from Nature, or the spiritual world, and men experience them as new and inexplicable phenomena that they are called upon to investigate, or as new ‘ideas’ or ‘impulses’ which come to them as ‘intuitions’. For about the past century there has been a growing increase in the number of phenomena and stimuli which, when evaluated by the scientific-objective approach, will give greater conscious awareness of the spiritual basis of human existence.
Stimuli For Mankind To Evolve
Particularly outstanding in this respect is the growing volume of evidence for postmortem existence, i.e., for the continued existence of the human soul and spirit after the death of the physical body. It would seem that many discarnate beings are making an effort to prove their continued existence, and in some cases very novel ways are being designed to impress mankind with the reality of post-mortem ‘Life’. For example, it would appear that a group of discarnate composers have banded together and have found a medium on earth through whom they can transmit music which they have composed discarnately [ref. 64]. Because it would be impossible for any one person to compose a wide variety of music having the characteristics of a number of famous composers, it is thereby intended to provide indisputable evidence of the composers’ post-mortem existence.
Much of the material apparently emanating from discarnate beings is designed primarily to prove the continued existence of the soul and spirit after death, and to give some account of the conditions that are then experienced. However, additionally, there is considerable material emanating from ‘Guides’ or ‘Teachers’, the expressed purpose of which is to aid mankind in finding its way forward. The literature of this type that we have studied generally expresses views that are in accord with the exposition we have given of the viewpoint of objective mysticism. These different accounts, given from many different angles, have in fact often helped us in our efforts to grasp this viewpoint. However, most such teachings are nowhere near as clear and comprehensive as the accounts of the objective mystics, and often they do not relate to the totality of circumstances of incarnate existence. It would seem that it is only while living in a body, which is built to experience the balance of spiritual and etheric forces as they are at the earth’s periphery, that man can come to a truly valid understanding of the nature and significance of his earth existence.
There is, however, one important common thread that runs through many communications arising from such sources (and also through objective mysticism). It is to the effect that, in learning to develop as an effective being in the material world, western man has lost sight of the larger issues of existence, and of the fact that he is primarily a spiritual and not a material, being. This has come about because humanity, as the prodigal sons, has been cut off from its spiritual origins, and has been stimulated to develop for itself the potentials that have been built into men to become independent beings in the material world. Through this development western man has acquired considerable power, and the question now is, ‘to what ends are men going to direct this power?’. Again and again in the literature emanating from the vantage point of the spiritual world it is stated that mankind is now at a highly crucial point of evolution, whereby if men misuse their power it could bring about a disasterous retardation of evolution. For this reason, it is claimed, a great deal of effort is being made by the spiritual world to provide evidence for its existence and for the spiritual nature of man. It is for this purpose that psychic and spiritual phenomena have been increasingly entering into earth existence, and, it is claimed, will continue increasingly to do so in the future.
We have already discussed earlier in this book some of the other important psychic and spiritual phenomena which take place and which throw considerable light on the nature of human existence. The separation of consciousness (the parting of the astral body and Ego from the physical and etheric bodies) in astral projection, and evidence for pre-existence and reincarnation, are immediately interpretable in terms of, and support the concepts of, objective mysticism. Some people’s experience of powers of clairvoyance (and/or clairaudience) likewise stimulate an expansion of awareness of the spiritual and etheric powers of man, and also gives some direct perception of the forces and Beings at work in existence.
There are a number of other human experiences that are comprehensible in terms of objective mysticism, but which are otherwise difficult to understand. According to this viewpoint man is a spiritual Ego which exists in a spiritual world outside of space and time, but which is able to experience and act in space and time, i.e. the physical world, by means of the astral, etheric and physical bodies. When a man thinks and then acts, his thought activity, in the spiritual world, passes through the chain of astral-etheric physical bodies to produce an action, the manifestation of his thought, in the material world. Likewise an experience in the material world passes back up through this chain to the attention of the Ego. Thus man exists and interacts over several levels. A simple example of these interactions is telepathic communication. Within the spiritual world Egos are in contact with each other where channels of spiritual sympathy, interest or understanding exist. In a typical telepathy experiment a ‘sender’ observes with his material senses an object in the material world; this becomes information for his Ego in the spiritual world which the Ego transmits through a spiritual channel to the ‘receiver’, with whom he has established a spiritual bond. The receiver then brings the information back down into the material world, for example, by using his bodies to produce a drawing of the object. Ties or channels in the spiritual world are particularly strong where a strong spiritual bond exists, e.g. between a mother and her children, husband and wife etc., so that many reported cases of telepathy have occurred where some powerful event, e.g. death or danger, becomes known through such a channel.
Channels can also apparently exist from an object to a person in whose possession it has been. Thus there are people, known as psychometrists, who, given an object belonging to someone they have not known, can from this object report a great deal of information about the owner.
The etheric/physical body complex is the means by which the Ego makes a connection with, and manifests its being in, the material world. There is much evidence to show that it is possible for other Egos or entities to intervene in, or indeed to take control of, the etheric-physical bodies from their normal possessor. The simplest example is in hypnosis, where it is possible for the hypnotist to command, or will, the physical behaviour of the hypnotised subject. Many mediums voluntarily go into a trance state in which they allow their bodies to be used by discarnate Egos, or guides, who then make use of the powers associated with them for their own purposes. A partial relinquishing of one’s powers to ‘other entities’ occurs in the use of ouija boards when the indicator comes under external control. In ‘automatic writing’ the writer gives over control of his writing abilities to ‘other entities.’ There is substantial evidence to suggest that permanent or semi-permanent partial occupation of the etheric and physical bodies by other entities can take place, giving rise to the phenomenon of ‘possession’, with a complete change in personality. The evidence suggests that this usually occurs by Egos/souls from people who have ‘died’, who are not aware of their state and of post-mortem existence, and who remain ‘earthbound’ and try to return into a physical body. It is for this reason that indiscriminate use of ouija boards is dangerous for it is possible for adverse forces to take control.
While discarnate entities are in control of etheric/physical bodies it is possible for them to use these bodies to produce phenomena in accord with laws of Nature of which they are aware, but which are as yet unknown to man. Thus there are many records of manifestations and materialisations in ectoplasm drawn from the body of mediums. The movement of heavy objects such as tables has been made to take place and poltergeist phenomena to occur. Another phenomenon that has been reported many times as occurring at seances is the materialisation of apports, i.e. of objects dematerialised from elsewhere and then rematerialised at the seance. According to objective mysticism a material object is the externalisation by the Spiritual Hierarchies of spiritual energy as force or ‘substance’ in the world ether. In principle, a sufficiently highly evolved Ego that understood the relevant laws should be able to revert an object to its spiritual energy state and then convert it back to the material. A few people are able to externalise a force which will move an object at a distance (psychokinesis), and scientists have been able to detect a field of force emanating from the body when this occurs. Further evidence for an external manifestation of energy comes from the ability of a few people to ‘think’ an image onto a photographic plate (thoughtography).
While these phenomena point to an ability of the human being to convey unknown forces into the material world in unknown ways (yet which could be explicable in terms of etheric forces), there is substantially more evidence for the reverse process of people being able to convey awareness of unknown forces from the material world up into the spiritual world of comprehension. The outstanding example of this phenomenon is dowsing for water, while there is also appreciable evidence for the use of the same ability for the detection of minerals and lost objects
A subject which is intimately concerned with the functioning of the Ego, soul, etheric and physical bodies and which is very important for the well-being of mankind is that of health and healing. On the one hand our etheric/physical bodies are maintained in healthy functioning order by the etheric force activity of the Spiritual Hierarchies. On the other hand by the activity of our Ego or astral body, we use up the powers of these bodies, and often the lives we lead are out of harmony with the aims and forces of Nature. This is particularly so in the present era when man is struggling, by trial and error, to free himself from control by Nature and to assert himself as an independent being to a greater extent than ever before. There is a group of unorthodox healing phenomena which at first sight appears very strange, but which is explicable in terms of the concepts of objective mysticism.
We are all ‘channels’ for the etheric force activity of the Spiritual Hierarchies who maintain and restore our bodies, particularly during sleep, but it would appear that some people are particularly good channels, to the extent that they can provide healing power for others. In one form of this type of healing, the healer places his hands on, or close to, the affected regions and when it is successful the patient reports an almost immediate cure or improvement. In the case of something externally visible, such as a goitre [Fig 38], observers can actually see it diminish, dematerialise, or disperse during treatment. A further feature of ‘spiritual healing’, as it is often called, is that cures can sometimes be effected over considerable distances, without any direct contact between healer and patient. The patient simply writes to the healer and the healer concentrates on channeling the forces behind the scenes of existence to further the well-being of the patient.
It is not known what processes are invoked during healing under these conditions. Patients often report an experience of heat or of coldness, but comparatively little scientific attention has been devoted to this subject considering its importance, although recently researchers in the Soviet Union claim to have detected metabolic changes taking place during healing treatment. The healers themselves are generally only aware of the fact that they are able to act as healing channels and are not conscious of what actually takes place. In some cases they claim that they are channels for the activity of discarnate doctors who, in their discarnate existence, become aware of the etheric force activity underlying the healthy functioning of the human body and apply their new knowledge by using the healers as channels. Sometimes it is claimed that ‘etheric operations’ are carried out on the etheric force body and as a result the new etheric force configuration then slowly brings about healthy functioning of the physical body. There is one well documented example [ref. 116] where the healer works in a total trance state, apparently under the control of a doctor who died comparatively recently, in 1937. The doctor concerned has, under these conditions, been able to converse with incarnate acquaintances and give evidence of his identity and professional knowledge.
Particularly outstanding examples of clearly observable healing phenomena involving unknown forces and mechanisms come from a group of healers in the Philippines. Among other medical and scientific people who have studied these healers, a European medical practitioner, Sigrun Seutemann, has made particularly extensive investigations*. To date Sigrun Seutemann has taken more than 700 Europeans for treatment. She reports that three types of healing appear to be used. One is ‘magnetic healing’ from the healer’s hands, in which patients report feeling something warm (warmth etheric force?) and something like ‘soft electricity’ (light etheric force?). In a second type of healing a ‘physical operation’ is carried out on the body: the healer emanates a force from his hands which opens the body [fig. 39 p. 1 29]. He then removes growths or tissue material and reseals the body with further emanations, to leave a barely visible scar or none at all. This type of ‘operation’ takes only a few minutes. In the third type of healing substance from the body is ‘materialised’ on its surface. Sometimes this has the appearance of body tissue, which is removed in toto, or an offending part of it is removed [fig. 40 p. 1 30]; any remaining material is dematerialised again. In some operations a combination of the ‘physical’ and the ‘materialisation’ processes take place [fig. 4 1]. These Philippine healers are unsophisticated people with simple, but strong Christian beliefs; none of them has any clear awareness or understanding of the forces which are involved. The common feature which these, and all other healers, claim to be absolutely essential if they are to be successful at their work is an utter dedication in their healing to serve as channels for higher powers and forces beyond their comprehension.
Once again these happenings, inexplicable at first sight, yet for which there is substantial evidence, become comprehensible in terms of the concept of man as a spiritual Ego. The Ego exists in a world of Spiritual Beings outside of space and time, with spiritually induced actions brought about in the material world through the etheric forces. To judge by the growth of the literature relating to psychic/spiritual experiences there is an expanding occurrence and recognition of such phenomena. They arise because Nature is stimulating man to come to greater awareness of his existence, so that it is beyond human decision as to whether or not man should go into these matters. The important point is that man adopts an attitude whereby he learns to understand them and uses the powers which they provide in a way that carries his evolution forward in harmony with the aims of Nature. If man does not do this then, as the experiences of ‘strange’ phenomena become more widespread, they will develop in non-understood and therefore uncontrolled ways. People who encounter them will be liable to problems of mental and emotional instability, while their indiscriminate pursuit will lead to the growth of degenerate occult practices.
* A report by Sigrun Seutemann, summarising her experiences with the Philippine healer Tony Agpaoa is given in this book, pages 249 to 251 .
Man’s Advancing Search For Understanding
The pattern of human evolution is this. Nature gives to men, or imposes on them, phenomena and experiences, in an effort to stimulate an expansion of their powers and of their awareness. As a result of these experiences men become aware of further potentials within themselves and within the materials and phenomena of their environment. They then cultivate these potentials and qualities and advance to the stage of becoming ‘craftsmen’ in them. That is, they develop a ‘feel’ for the phenomena and qualities that are involved. At this stage men arrive at a ritual, or a way of going about things, which works well if those carrying it out have developed the relevant skills. But they do not ‘know’ what they are doing. That is, they have not yet become aware of the factors, forces and laws of Nature that are involved. The next stage in an expansion of awareness, and in gaining control of the situation is, by experimentation and study, to examine the processes that are taking place. Men then try to define the important factors that are operating, and try to perceive the interactions and relationships between these factors, thereby determining the laws of Nature that are at work. It is by these stages of progress that men have achieved much greater awareness of the nature of the material world and have attained to the developments of the technological and scientific revolution. The same objective-scientific approach is also applied to elucidate the phenomena of biology, psychology, sociology etc., etc.
In the previous section we have considered some of the contemporary phenomena and stimuli which, when they have been evaluated, will carry man’s understanding of himself and of the nature of his existence a stage further forward. At present these phenomena and stimuli come to men primarily as pure experience, with very little accompanying awareness of what is taking place. But investigations into these experiences, and a search for some understanding of them, have been steadily developing for the past few decades. These developments are taking place in three areas; firstly, in a search for greater self-awareness, secondly, in an attempt to come to a greater understanding of the forces associated with the human being and, thirdly, in seeking to gain greater understanding of the forces at work in nature.
Increased Self-Awareness
The stimulus to increasing self-awareness arises because the immediate primary objective of Nature is to develop free and independent beings who will, out of their own resources, be able to make an effective contribution to evolution. There is thus a strong and continuing trend in Western society towards greater freedom and development of the individual. (The so-called ‘permissive society’ we interpret not as meaning that society condones all behaviour, but that it recognises that individuals are responsible for, and have to work out, their own destinies). At the same time there is a strong impulse and demand by the younger generations to be increasingly responsible for themselves.
As a result of these impulses there has been a steady change during this century from standards imposed from without, i.e. by Church, social pressures etc., to a position where the behaviour of individuals is determined by standards from within. The trend in modern society for the realisation of the individual is also expressed in the attitude to education. Education is now much less a question of imposing on children what is thought good for them, and much more a matter of guiding them to develop their potentials. At the adult level, depth psychologists are formulating a ‘creative psychology’, i.e. a psychology which shows men how they can make the most of themselves. However, as the traditional standards die out people become devoid of the stability which these offered. Then, until they have developed the understanding and ability to work out of themselves, problems of instability become widespread. People experience external pressures from society, and inner mental and emotional forces, and without understanding of these experiences they have no basis by which they can find a stable path through their lives. The need to understand the inner nature of man and social behaviour have become pressing problems, so that the subjects of psychology and sociology have developed, and continue to do so rapidly, during this century.
Nature has created the individual as the basic unit of human existence and as men evolve and become more individualised the pressures grow for society to be based on the realisation of the individual. The traditional social and family units are therefore breaking down and people form groups around common interests and outlooks. These groups then feel they have something to contribute to the evolution of man and strive to make this contribution. In this way we are evolving towards an ‘open society’ in which the activity of people is determined not by the demands of some higher governing authority, but by the impulses and abilities of individuals to realise their innate potentials and thereby to contribute to the evolution of man. When authorities try to plan and organise society then, to the extent that these plans conflict with the aims of Nature, they are bound to come to grief. If, however, individuals sought to find their own positive way forward, and make a positive contribution to human evolution, and encourage those to whom they have a responsibility to do likewise, then, since Nature implants positive impulses to bring about human progress in all necessary directions, an harmonious and balanced society would automatically come into being.
There is a growing feeling that material affluence, which has been the primary objective of the scientific/technological era, is not an end in itself and that man has now to turn his attention to the ‘quality of life’. Despite the fact that a great deal of attention is still directed to man’s material and economic problems these are no longer the basic issues and man’s paramount problems are really of a spiritual nature. Man has now developed the scientific and technological knowledge and expertise which could enable him to generate a high standard of material well- being and these abilities continue to grow. But there are spiritual hindrances to the efficient use of this knowledge. Thus the essential problems now are related to how men can work together in harmony, so that technological abilities are used effectively, and so that a large proportion of effort no longer has to be devoted to military requirements; how, also, the wealth generated can be equitably distributed, and how men can find self-realisation in carrying out these tasks. These are spiritual problems and continuing attention to the economic and material aspects of life will never solve them, whereas if they were solved in terms of spiritual development the economic and material symptoms would disappear.
However, with the emphasis on the material aspects of existence the ‘inner spiritual life’ of Western man has suffered comparative neglect and as a result is relatively impoverished. The psychedelic drugs have appeared attractive in that they rapidly open the way to a richer inner experience, but they have the danger of destroying clarity of thought. Meditation combined with clear evaluation of the inner experiences so obtained would seem to offer a more sound approach to inner development. But some meditational paths, while giving rise to highly pleasurable spiritual experiences, in fact lead away from ‘The Way, The Truth and The Life’, which is the path forward for earth existence. For this reason it is necessary constantly to evaluate spiritual experiences with the clear thinking that has been Western man’s hard won contribution to human evolution.
The scientific era has certainly lead to the development of greatly increased, but materially directed, spiritual creativity and independence in Western man. However, in so doing Western man has lost sight of his spiritual origins and has become immersed in materialism. In the East there has been a tendency towards the opposite pole of human development. An outstanding person in this respect appears to be Sai Baba, a contemporary Indian Saint (ref. 24 1). Sai Baba is solely concerned with the love and service of his fellow men. He heals the sick and, in some cases, a touch of his robe is sufficient for healing to occur; he appears to have raised to life a man apparently dead for three days; he materialises food to feed his multitudinous devotees and he performs other ‘signs and wonders’. Sai Baba’s teachings to his devotees are that they should follow the three yoga pathways to enlightenment, gyana (knowledge), bhakti (devotion) and karma (action), that is, the three paths of thinking, feeling and willing. However, in his teachings Sai Baba also encourages his devotees to renounce egoism and materialism and to seek purity and union with the God-head so that they no longer have to continue to incarnate on earth. It would seem that in this way Sai Baba is teaching a rejection of the prodigal son path, with experience gained through successive incarnations in different earth conditions as its basis, and is advocating a return to one-ness with the God-head or Father-Son stream.
According to Western objective mysticism the goal of human evolution is for man to attain to both Ego based independence and to creative Love and Devotion so as to attain to the level of co-creator with the God-head.
Forces Associated With The Human Being
According to objective mysticism the human physical body is interpenetrated and surrounded by a ‘body’ of etheric force activity which brings about its form and functioning. This etheric body and etheric functioning was built up progressively during the various stages of evolution. Firstly there developed a plant-like response to the ebb and flow of the etheric forces in the environment. Then those entities which had developed this response took this property into themselves, so that it became an inner function. Thus, for example, nutrition and ‘breathing’, instead of being a direct and immediate exchange with the environment, as with plants, came under the control of inner organs. At the same time the response to light of the plant-like stage of evolution gave rise to the development of organs for the perception of light, and to a nervous system which would give awareness of this perception. The nervous system was also developed to give awareness of the state of the inner organs. In this way ‘vehicles’ were developed which, to begin with, functioned automatically in accord with their built-in etheric force structure. Then, as the human Egos incarnated in and utilised these vehicles, they gradually took over control of their functioning.
The etheric functioning of the physical body has thus been brought about by exercising inner control over what was at first a simple response to external change. This has occurred several times, at several stages of development, so that the etheric force body of the human being comprises a number of centres of such control of etheric force activity (usually known by the Eastern terminology as chakras). Running from them is an interpenetrating network of channels of etheric force. The chakras control the currents of etheric force which flow through the human body. These have shaped the physical substances into organs and have brought about the systems of flow and functioning the body is made up. The Spiritual Hierarchies have thereby exerted their spiritual qualities in the world to shape and form etheric bodies which cause physical substance to function in accord with this etheric force activity. These bodies then provide vehicles for the development of the spiritual qualities of the human Ego as it incarnates on earth. In this way it becomes possible for the spiritual qualities of thinking, feeling and willing, in their various aspects, through the relevant etheric force activity, to come to manifestation in and through the physical body of the human being. Thus the etheric force centres of the chakras can be regarded as the connecting points between the spiritual/etheric qualities of the spiritual world and the physical functioning of the human body [fig. 42). While the chakras determine the general flow of etheric force, which brings about the general functioning of the physical body, they are regarded specifically as giving rise to the endocrine glands and the functioning by which these glands exert control over the processes of the body [fig. 43].
It is through the functioning of the etheric forces that the spiritual being of man exerts its effects on and through the physical body, so that as individuals we are all the time acting and interacting throughout our different bodies. Malfunctioning at one level influences the workings of the other levels, as in psychosomatic disorders, whereby mental and emotional problems find a reflection in the malfunctioning, or illness, of the physical body. Equally, malfunctioning of the etheric or physical bodies which serve as the instruments of the soul and Ego, is reflected in emotional and mental problems. Such illnesses will often respond to either a psychological (spiritual) treatment in which the inner problems are resolved, or a physical, or etheric, treatment which restores the harmonious functioning of the physical and/or etheric bodies.
There are four etheric forces, the warmth, light, chemical and life etheric forces. The activity of these forces is largely beyond the control of man and is carried out by the Spiritual Hierarchies. However, as Ego-man takes over control of his bodies, then, through his own spiritual activity, he activates the relevant etheric forces and produces an effect on his body. The type of effect he can have can be perceived by referring back to fig. 20 [p. 52 & 77] which illustrates the four temperaments. A man with excessively strong will over-activates the warmth etheric force, so that he tends to have an ‘erupting’ countenance (the choleric temperament, fig 20). A person excessively responsive to sensations activates the light etheric forces and his countenance tends to be dominated by pointed, triangular (curtailed raying-out) features. A person of phlegmatic temperament is dominated by the chemical etheric force and his countenance is inclined to be round and passive like a liquid drop. In the melancholic temperament the life etheric force is dominant, so the he is more individualised, i.e., he is more cut off from the living inter-flow of the etheric forces and he has a mineralised or ‘crystallised’, ‘squared off’ countenance .
Disease comes about as disharmony in the body arising from hereditary, environmental or psychosomatic factors. Various attempts have been made to evaluate the psychosomatic factors. According to objective mysticism a man of choleric temperament, who excessively activates the warmth etheric force, will be prone to over activity of inflammatory diseases and a person who excessively activates the light etheric force (sanguine temperament) to nervous diseases. The phlegmatic, who does not activate these forces very much, will be prone to dull wittedness. The melancholic, being more cut off from the living interaction of the etheric forces and under the influence of the negative life etheric force will be prone to solidifying, hardening, sclerotic diseases.
A subject related to those which we are considering here, which has been receiving attention in the western world recently, is that of acupuncture. This is an ancient system, long practised in China, and now used to some extent in the Soviet Union and in the West. In acupuncture certain points of the body are regarded as possessing special relationships to the inner organs. Treatment of the inner organs is given by inserting needles in, burning small amounts of powdered leaves on, or simply by applying pressure to the acupuncture points. The insertion of needles or the application of pressure is also used to produce local anaesthesia. This allows major operations to out with the patient otherwise fully conscious and functioning normally. The acupuncture points used in such surgery are usually quite remote from the area of operation. For example, local anaesthesia for removal of a cerebral tumour was obtained by inserting needles in the thumb, arm and between the eyes [ref. 310]. These phenomena are difficult to explain in terms of the principles of western science. The traditional Chinese explanation for the basis of treatment by acupuncture is that the body possesses a vital energy or ch’i, which circulates through a system of channels. (These do not coincide with any nerve or other system recognised by western science). The state of a person’s ch’i is determined by his yin-yang, i.e. his relationship to the energies of the Universe, and a state of harmony (tao) is sought. Illness is due to imbalance in this energy exchange. By inserting needles the acupuncturist affects the ch’i of the body, dispersing it or stimulating it to restore equilibrium.
In terms of the viewpoint of objective mysticism this philosophy and treatment is concerned with the distribution and flow of the etheric forces which bring about the functioning of the physical body. The Spiritual Hierarchies have organised a system of etheric energy flow and activity throughout the human body but man, through his own spiritual-etheric nature, interferes with this flow. If a man lives an harmonious and creative life, according to his level of development, these energies circulate freely through him. But if he possesses inhibitions or frustrations which limit, or block, the energy flow, then the energy can build up inside him. He may experience this as a feeling of being ‘pent up’, or the excess energy may bring about a malfunctioning of the physical system. The skilled acupuncturist can then, through ‘puncturing’ the energy systems at the right point, release this excess pressure and he can generally rebalance the energy flows of the system. It is the flow of etheric energy that brings about the functioning of the physical body and when the energy flow is rebalanced the functioning of the physical body slowly changes to take up the restored balance. Consciousness is an awareness by the Ego/ego, through the astral body, of the activity of the etheric body, so that when the excess etheric pressure is released by the patient experiences, or is conscious of, a greater harmony and relaxation. In a similar way, by balancing, channeling, and removing excess etheric energies during operations, the patient does not become conscious of etheric imbalance, or pain, and experiences instead comparative harmony.
Experiments which support the concept of an etheric body having an existence independent of the physical body were carried out by Eeman [ref. 267]. Eeman investigated the force field around the human body by coupling up pieces of copper gauze placed adjacent to various parts of the body. As a result he allocated ‘polarities’ to different parts of the body and found that his subjects could detect when areas of opposing polarity had been connected, through a relaxation of nervous tension. Areas of the same polarity connected together produced an increase in this tension, which in some cases became unbearable. Eeman found that with subjects with amputated legs, when connections were made to where the leg would have been, the subjects experienced distinct reactions. This is feasible if the etheric form or plan of the limb still exists, as the etheric body is the medium of consciousness or sensation.
The human etheric body is stated to be asymmetric, thus giving rise to the asymmetric distribution of organs and metabolic functioning within the body. Thus the physical body possesses a different ‘etheric charge’ on one side compared with the other. As a result, when the fingers of the left and right hands are brought into close proximity there is an etheric flow between them. This can be demonstrated by interposing a light paper cylinder between the fingers, then as the flow takes place the cylinder revolves (for details of this experiment see Appendix p. 271 )
It has been pointed out previously that a significant number of people possess the ability to perceive an ‘aura’ of activity around the human being. An important part of this aura is the etheric force activity associated with the human body, and it is perception of malfunctioning in this etheric force field which gives immediate awareness of a diseased condition. There have been some attempts to register this aura, or to make its perception independent of special human faculties. One approach to extending perception of the aura is based on the work of Kilner [ref. 215 ] in which viewing screens of different colours, or viewing through solutions of various dyes, is claimed to enhance perception.
At present considerable effort is being devoted to what has come to be known as Kirlian photography which is sometimes claimed to register some part of the aura. This technique is based on a discovery made by a husband and wife team, the Kirlians, in the Soviet Union some twenty years ago. When a high frequency field is applied to an object in contact with a photographic plate registrations are obtained. A Kirlian type picture of a leaf is shown in fig. 44 *. The leaf shows an ‘aura’ around it and bright patterns of activity over its surface. There is some debate as to whether this ‘aura’ is simply a corona or similar discharge of a type well known to physicists, or whether it is in fact a manifestation of the aura observed by clairvoyants. However, an interesting feature is that when a human finger is ‘photographed’ in this way the ‘aura’ obtained is dependent upon the psychological and physical condition of the person concerned [fig. 45 pp. 131-2].
The viewpoint of objective mysticism would be that what is being registered is the light etheric force. Science has so far investigated this force as it is associated with the mineral world and in this form has evaluated it as what we call electricity. But this is only one, curtailed, aspect of the light etheric force. The basic function of this force is that it exists to bring about perception and consciousness in the human being. Thus a complete evaluation of its activity must be based on consciousness, with electricity being recognised as only one aspect of its functioning. On this basis attempts to use concepts drawn from the mineral world to explain phenomena of higher levels of evolution will always leave a gap. Such concepts will describe those aspects which the higher level has in common with the lower level of evolution, but will not describe the aspects which make it a higher level. In the case of Kirlian photography electrical laws may well apply, but they do not in themselves contain, and are not therefore able to explain, consciousness, and how electrical phenomena relate to consciousness. A similar situation exists in neuro-physiology, where researches have thrown great light on the electrical and chemical processes that take place in the brain and that accompany such phenomena of consciousness as thinking, memorising, dreaming etc. But how electrical and chemical activities in brain cells are translated into these functions is not known, again because concepts derived from the mineral world cannot, in themselves, explain the features of a higher level of evolution.
* For an account of Kirlian and corona discharge photography, and of the techniques and circuits which can be used to obtain these results, see the report on this subject by Michael Watson on pages 283 to 310 in this book.
Wherever there is light etheric force activity one aspect of it should be detectable as electrical behaviour. Burr [ref. 268] has found, by researches carried out over many years, that there are electro-magnetic fields associated with all living matter, from slime moulds up to man, which he calls L-fields (Life-fields). In trees the L-field shows a diurnal rhythm and a lunar rhythm; it varies with sunspot activity and varies with the atmospheric and geophysical electrical activity of its environment. The L-fields of seeds are related to their subsequent growth characteristics and the growth and decay of the plant is accompanied by the development and decay of the L-field. In man the characteristics of the L-field are related to the temperament and to the emotional and physical state, while there are rhythmical variations in our L-fields which relate to how we feel. Ovulation in the female is accompanied by a marked change in the L-field. Wounds cause a change in the L-field and healing can be followed through the subsequent restoration of the field. Malignancy in the ovary has been revealed by L-field measurements before any clinical sign could be observed. Burr concludes that the pattern and organisation of biological systems come about because they possess and are controlled by L-fields. However, L-fields as conceived by Burr are electro-magnetic and there are no principles of biological form and function in electro-magnetism. From the viewpoint of objective mysticism form and function are brought about by the interaction of the four etheric forces, of which the light etheric force is one; of this latter force, electricity is one aspect.
It has been mentioned previously in this book that it would appear possible for a healer to heal a patient at a distance. How this occurs is not known, although in terms of objective mysticism it is comprehensible that it should happen. Another method of healing which proceeds along somewhat similar lines is that practiced by Radionics. The healer in this case requires a specimen, such as a blood spot or a few hairs from the patient. The response of this specimen is then checked against the response of a set of standards which the analyst has compiled, to make a diagnosis of the situation. At the same time the specimen creates a channel between the healer and the patient, so that having diagnosed the condition, the healer is then able to transmit back to the patient the necessary ‘healing vibrations’, or treatment. Because part of the diagnostic and healing process is related to equipment and instrumentation, this part is, and has been, subjected to a certain amount of experimental investigation. So far, however, what takes place has not been clearly established. On the one hand the psychic/spiritual qualities of the operator would appear to play a significant role while, on the other hand, there would appear to be specific potentially definable and controllable forces at work.
Forces In Nature
During the last epoch ofWestern Civilization, man’s studies of existence have been characterised by two approaches. One, that of the humanities and arts, has been concerned with the inner, spiritual, aspects of existence, while the other, the scientific, has been concerned with the substantial or material aspects. These have tended to develop virtually independently of each other in what has come to be known as the two cultures. According to the viewpoint of objective mysticism, a third aspect exists, lying between the spiritual and the material, namely that of the etheric forces, through which the spiritual becomes manifest as the material. For a complete understanding of existence a three- fold spiritual etheric/material approach is necessary.
Clearly the scientific approach had first to be applied to the immediate material world which confronts the senses of man. But before modern science there existed metaphysical systems which to some extent incorporated awareness of forces underlying the material world. It is claimed that the Egyptians conceived of such forces, or ‘neters’. The Greeks certainly field that there were forces of this nature. This viewpoint was most extensively developed by the Stoics who held that a ‘pneuma’ or ‘breath’ pervaded the whole cosmos and conferred on it properties of life and soul. As it existed in the human soul pneuma was ‘psyche’ and in plants ‘physis’. The pneuma of a body was regarded as being in constant exchange with the pneuma in the cosmos. The alchemists held the same view and it was the search for this pneuma, or the ‘spirit’ or ‘essence’ in things, that lead them in their experiments to try to drive it out and capture it. As a result what they did in fact distill out were volatile substances, and we retain the fruits of their investigations and their terminology in ‘spirit’ (alcohol), ‘spirits of salts’ (hydrochloric acid) and in the ‘essences’ of plants, fruits etc. which are widely used for flavouring and medicinal purposes. This viewpoint was still held at the time of Newton who considered that ‘a most subtle spirit pervades and lies hid in all gross bodies’ and he used it to explain action at a distance, ‘by the force and action of which the particles of a body mutually attract one another’. With the development of objective science, in which only that for which there is clear evidence is accepted, these issues were abandoned as vague and mystical.
The etheric force viewpoint holds that there are four forces which bring about, shape and regulate the functioning of all substances. There are some experiments which seem to show clearly the behaviour of such shaping forces. According to objective mysticism plant growth is brought about by the action of etheric forces which thereby become incorporated in the plant. When the plant is consumed as food, or medicine, or rots away as compost, these forces are freed and can contribute to the forming and functioning of the organism, in which they then become incorporated.
There is a simple method whereby these shaping forces of plants can be freed and made manifest, called capillary dynamolysis. Some of the sap from the plant is diluted and placed in a dish which supports a filter paper; the diluted sap in the dish then passes up through a ‘wick’ and spreads out into the filter paper. A suitable chemical is added to the liquid base, and the filter paper is treated, so that the behaviour of the spreading liquid becomes visible. It would be expected that the liquid would simply spread out in a circles, with the various constituents travelling smaller or greater distances in a fixed time. However, it turns out that complex patterns are formed [fig. 46, p. 181]. There is some evidence that plants of the same species produce patterns of similar type, and that the pattern is very much affected by the type of fertilizer applied to the ground in which the plant is grown.
Another method of investigating shaping, organising forces is by adding a few drops of the plant, sap, or other biological preparation to a solution, e.g. a 5-10% copper chloride solution, which is then caused to crystallise under standard conditions. The crystallisation pattern then takes on a characteristic form related to the nature of the additive [fig. 47]. This techniqe can also be used to give information about the state of the health of a person, by adding a few drops of their blood to the crystallising solution.
A method has been developed, based on shape forming processes, for investigating the ‘quality’ of water. A drop of distilled water is allowed to fall into a shallow dish containing the water which is being examined, and to which a small amount of glycerine has been added to improve the perception of the behaviour of the falling drop. As the falling drop spreads out the pattern which it forms has been found to be related in some way to the ‘quality’ of the water. For example, river water above a large town has been found to exhibit a very different pattern from that obtained from water taken from the river after it has flowed past the town [fig 48.].
While these various types ofexperiments are concerned with the shaping aspects of Nature, which are brought about by the etheric formative forces, there is as yet no basis for their interpretation. We would suggest an interpretation along the lines of that applied to leaf forms
(p. 111). On this basis the form of the spreading water drops would be interpreted as showing a combination of light ether, raying-out, and chemical ether, circular disc-forming characteristics. The pure water above the town then shows a marked light ether influence, whereas the water discharged from the town is dominated by chemical ether activity. The capillary dynamolysis pattern of fig. 46, p. 181 can also be interpreted in terms of a balance between the raying-out light ether and the chemical ether circular-disc forming characteristics. The crystallisation forms of fig. 47 are clearly modifications of what is basically a raying-out light ether pattern.
A particularly important aspect of shaping and functioning forces lies in the medical field of homoeopathy. Disease comes about as the result of the malfunctioning of the human being, and whereas much medical practice is based on the treatment ofthe malfunction, the homoeopathic doctor strives to ascertain and rectify the basic cause of the malfunction. The homoeopathic doctor uses medicines that are very highly diluted. In terms ofthe atomic approach to matter, in some cases not even a single molecule of the substance would remain. That such dilutions of material can be effective finds an explanation through objective mysticism. According to this view substantial matter exists as a result of the activity of etheric formative forces. These condense the basic world substance into the substantial states which we encounter, and in so doing the forces become incorporated in matter. When matter is highly diluted these forces are then released, and since they are the same forces that act naturally to bring about the harmonious activity of the living world, they can, when correctly applied, be very efficacious in treating malfunctioning systems.
There is one particularly outstanding experiment concerned with the etheric force body, in this case of a leaf, which although not well substantiated, must be mentioned because of its significance. Objective mysticism states that a plant (or any living entity) exists initially as spiritual idea or spiritual energy. This energy then forms a body of etheric force in the world ether. Cosmic etheric flow acts on substance to cause it to take up the form of the etheric force body. Thus, though the human eye sees only a seed, the plant which will arise from the seed exists already in the etheric world. When the seasonal etheric flux takes place substance is flowed into the already existing etheric force body and the plant takes on its predestined form. On this basis, if a suitable experimental technique could be developed it would be possible to register the form of the plant in the world ether, even though the plant did not exist materially. Scientists in the Soviet Union working with Kirlian photography claim to have registered the complete form of a leaf when up to 10% of it had been cut away [ref. 282], lending support to this principle. The experimental conditions under which this result was obtained have not been made known and without this information attempts to reproduce it by workers in the U.S.A. have so far been unsuccessful.
As the earth traverses its path through the heavens it changes its position relative to the Sun, Moon, planets and the cosmos in general. A key feature of objective mysticism says that this movement causes changes in the etheric influence which the Sun, Moon, planets etc., exert on the earth [fig. 3 1, p. 109]. At the earth’s surface this is experienced as a series of rhythmic fluctuations in the etheric force fields. It is to these rhythmic fluctuations that living entities have responded, causing their rhythms of life and behaviour. The life cycles of plants, which are still at the state of direct response to external change, should be a direct manifestation of the rhythmic fluctuations of etheric force activity in the environment. The mineral world, having remained further behind in evolution, but nevertheless representing various stages on the way to developing response behaviour, should show some lesser change. Animals and man have, to a greater or lesser extent, come under independent inner control, and are thus more divorced from immediate changes in the etheric environment. However the rhythms of life and behaviour in animals and man were first induced by these changes, before they came to some extent under inner control, and therefore it might be expected that the behaviour of animals and man would show some vestigial relationship to such rhythms.
In contemporary science considerable evidence is accumulating for rhythmic fluctuations in phenomena at all the levels of evolution. These often show a correlation with the movement of the earth in relation to the Sun, Moon and planets. Additionally, it is increasingly being found that various emanations or radiations from the Sun, Moon, planets and other bodies of the cosmos impinge on the earth. It has, for example, been found that even the earth’s magnetic field is influenced by the position of the Sun, Moon and planets. The capillary dynamolysis experiments and the crystallisation experiments already described show a response to planetary influence. Thus a series of 70,000 capillary dynamolysis tests carried out over twelve years with mistletoe sap showed a correlation with the Moon’s path across the heavens [ref. 286]. Other capillary dynamolysis tests with solutions ofmetal salts have shown a correlation of the patterns obtained with the position of the planet with which the metal has a traditional connection. It has been found in delicate chemical precipitation experiments that the speed of precipitation varies with ‘cosmic conditions’, and in particular with solar eruptions and sunspot cycles.
While the Sun obviously exerts the dominant influence on cyclic activity, the Moon has also been found to have a significant effect. There is, of course, the rhythm of the tides, attributable to the Moon’s gravitational field (life etheric force field). It has also been found that rainfall can be correlated with the lunar cycle. The behaviour of the brown seaweed Dictyota also shows a lunar influence. This seaweed produces sexual sori in a regular fortnightly rhythm corresponding to the interval between two Spring tides. However, when kept in a tank of seawater it continues this cycle despite the absence of tides. Furthermore, seaweed grown from the spores of that growing in tanks shows the same rhythmical behaviour. The behaviour of a number of sea creatures has a lunar relationship. For example, oysters in the sea feed according to a tidal rhythm, but they continue this rhythm when kept in a tank. Furthermore, when transported to tanks a considerable distance away they have been found to change to a lunar rhythm relating to their new environment.
Rhythms are also being found in the life and metabolism of man. For example, the body temperature, rate of heart beat and urine production follow a 24 hour, or near 24 hour, circadian, rhythm. More babies tend to be born around 4 o’clock in the morning; there is also a fluctuation in the number of births with the lunar cycle. There is a lunar effect on the extent of bleeding in surgical operations. More outstandingly, a correlation has been found between the time of birth and future success in various professions. Michael Gauquelin, who has looked into these matters for many years [ref. 292] has found from an examination of data relating to 25,000 people that future scientists and physicians are often born after the rise and culmination of Mars, whereas writers, painters and musicians seldom are.
Objective mysticism sees all physical activity as brought about by etheric forces. These surge to and fro in innumerable rhythms, causing the forms and functions which we observe in the living world of plants, animals and men, and also the meteorological and geological phenomena of the mineral world. It is possible to simulate some of the ways in which rhythmical fluctuations can shape and form substance by applying vibrations to powders and liquids [figs, 49 to 52].
Electromagnetic phenomena have been found to be very important in the behaviour of the mineral world and the earth’s electromagnetic fields have been found to fluctuate in the same cyclic way that some living phenomena vary. Scientists have also found that living activity can be influenced by electro-magnetic fields. This has led to suggestions that it is the electromagnetic changes in the earth and its environment that bring about the changes in living behaviour. However, from the etheric force viewpoint this would not be so. Behind the scenes of Nature are the activities of the etheric forces. These act in the plant world for example, to bring about the growth of all plants, trees and vegetation which we observe to take place. At the same time the etheric forces bring about the fluctuations in the earth’s electromagnetic fields. These, however, are much smaller effects, taking place in the comparatively inert mineral world, and they are not the cause of life activity in plants, animals and man.
Because the mineral world is essentially ‘dead’, i.e., largely cut off from the living interplay of the cosmic etheric forces, it responds very little to this interplay. Thus ‘instruments’ made from the mineral world are not the most suitable for the registration of the activity of the environmental etheric forces. If, however, the effect of changes in the etheric structure of the environment on the mineral world are to be detected, then the best approach is to use ‘growing’ or dynamic systems, that are changing very slowly so that only small energy changes are involved and any external influences then become perceptible. It is for this reason that such changes have shown up in crystallisation and capillary dynamolysis patterns which form slowly over a considerable period of time. Delicate chemical precipitation experiments have also registered similar changes [refs. 292 and 294].
The activity of the etheric forces can be better perceived in their effect on living organisms. However, much of the activity of the animal world has come under inner, feeling, control and that of man under feeling and thinking control, so that they do not directly manifest the etheric activity of the environment. The organism that most reflects the behaviour of the environmental etheric forces is the plant, since its life cycle is in effect a direct response to this behaviour. Different plants do, however, respond differently and this difference is the reason for the existence of different plants. Nevertheless investigators are now finding that a plant can be used as a detector of changes in the etheric force field in its environment. The response of the plant is then monitored by a ‘mineral world’ instrument which, for example, measures changes in current flow or resistance. As well as responding to atmospheric environmental etheric changes the plant will also respond to changes brought about by other related activities. An outstanding piece of work in this respect was carried out by Backster [ref. 298], who connected a lie detector (polygraph) to a plant and found that it registered when he thought of damaging it, even before such an event took place. In further experiments Backster found that the plant registered when live shrimps were plunged into boiling water in an adjacent room. Backster has carried out many other similar experiments and other investigators have confirmed and taken up this work. The results from these researches, and other, earlier work, show that plants can respond to human and animal emotional states and to electrical, magnetic and sound activity [ref. 299]. All of these are associated with, or brought about by, etheric force activity. Not everyone can obtain a personal response from a plant, however. It would seem that some ‘affinity’ is needed, but where this can be established the plant will respond to the emotional life of the person concerned even if they are separated by distances of many miles [ref. 299].
In bringing about the life cycles of plants, animals and men the etheric forces enter into combination with substance. Not only do they alter the form and function of the substance, but they also alter the substance itself. Thus, for example, Kervran [ref. 313] and other workers have found clear evidence for the transmutation of sodium into potassium and sodium into magnesium in human beings, silica into calcium in plants, as well as a number of other transmutations. Examples are also given [ref. 313] where year after year plant crops contain more of some elements than are obtainable from the soil and added fertiliser and thus show a creation or transmutation of substance. Branfield [ref. 315], from surveying the geological structure of the earth, has been led to the conclusion that some biological creation or transmutation of elements must take place. He quotes, for example, large deposits of limestone from decayed organisms where there was no original source of limestone for them to ingest, and coal deposits from vegetation where there was no original carbon. Branfield also suggests that siliceous rocks are of biological origin, being hardened silica gel deposits laid down by primeval algae and sponges. It is as though ‘waves of creation’ have passed through the earth, resulting in the formation of organisms and through these organisms, of substances. Objective mysticism says the world has been created in just this way – by vast surges and rhythms in the etheric forces. Hauschka [ref. 314] investigated the dry weight of seedlings grown in distilled water and found that there was a rhythmical gain and loss in weight that was in phase with the lunar cycle. Again, according to objective mysticism, the Moon is responsible for a major secondary rhythm in the etheric force field of the earth.
The respective roles which transmutation and creation have played in the past and continue to play in the present are not clear. Kervran proposes that his observations may be explained in terms of transmutation where the totality of sub-atomic units (nucleons) is the same before and after, but they are rearranged so as to produce transmutation of elements. In terms of the concepts of objective mysticism substances comprise an internal balance of ‘congealed’ etheric forces in equilibrium with the etheric forces of their environment. When ingested in living organisms substances come under the influence of the etheric body, or etheric force fields, of the organisms. These constitute a very different etheric environment from the mineral world. We shall have to consider in further detail the viewpoint of objective mysticism on the structure of atoms, and on the effect that etheric force fields have on this structure, in connection with our experimental investigation in Part III.
Objective Mysticism and Science
If the viewpoint ofobjective mysticism is compared with that of established science, then the following limited but nevertheless useful analogy might be applied. It is of the building of an institute, in which one knew nothing of the underlying purpose (in fact a ‘school’), or of the existence of the architects and planners, or of the workmen and machinery (forces) constructing the building, but could only see the materials involved. Science perceives the flow of materials: this is the plan in action, the observation of which provides the basic facts. All ideas of what the plan is about, or how it came into being, must conform to these facts. By studying the phenomena of the material world science has become greatly aware of the nature of substances and of their behaviour in the different kingdoms of Nature. From observation of the plan in action it is possible to deduce some awareness of the forces underlying the material world. Thus science recognises gravity, electromagnetic forces, inherent energies and energy changes as expressed for example in thermodynamics and genetic codes that contain the plans of form and function in the living world. The behavioural sciences seek patterns of animal and human behaviour. But, confined to the facts, materialist or behavioural sciences have no means of determining how or why the basic energies, forces or patterns of behaviour come into being. To deduce such knowledge from the facts alone would require an intelligence of such a high level that it was comparable with, and could therefore understand, that which has created our world system.
People who are mystically oriented are able to raise their levels of consciousness to transcend normal sense experience and thereby to become aware of forces and Beings lying behind the manifestations of the material world. But because these forces and Beings are of a much higher order than human powers of comprehension, man can easily lose his way in subjective experience and vague, confused, or erroneous concepts. In objective mysticism the power of modern thinking is applied to mystical experience to bring forth concepts that are more clearly expressed than hitherto. The viewpoint that emerges is that substances are not primary, as is often assumed in science, but that Nature has constructed the world to achieve a planned objective. It is the objective and the plan by which it is to be realised that are primary. The plan requires the construction of a number of ‘systems’. Thus, continuing the analogy of the building of the institute, one can view it as four systems: ( 1 ) the main individualised structure raised up out of the heterogeneous materials of the world (life ether effect); (2) a heating system to create warmth for living activity (warmth ether); (3) a water and fluid disposal system to make life processes possible (chemical ether); and (4) an electrical lighting system to give awareness (light ether). While it is only inasmuch as these systems become manifest as substance that they become actuality, as opposed to plans in the architects’ minds, nevertheless substance is only one aspect of systems which possess form and function. These systems are themselves designed to bring about the objectives in the architects’ minds. If objective mysticism is taken as a basis it should be possible to generate an understanding of existence which perceives substances, and their forms and functions, in relation to the purpose and plans of the architects.
We would thus suggest that a primary feature of the emerging epoch of evolution will be a developing understanding of the material world in relation to the forces and purpose that bring it into being. Central to this development will be a growing understanding of the role of the etheric forces. This will bridge the spiritual (the humanities) and the material (the sciences). It will also provide understanding of phenomena at present regarded as inexplicable and will open up new areas for exploration and lead to the development of new powers and forces. We have ourselves sought to make a contribution to this development and we report on this in the next section.