B vember

-
-
-
-
-
STUDENTS
LESSON
BI NDER
Accommodates a year's
monographs. I s durable
and attractive. Has a
handy reference index.
Price $1.00 ea.
Only $2.50 for
a lot of three.
The Secret of Success
The fundamental law of success is order. Systemati c
arrangement of your thoughts, your plans and your acts,
assures you against lost time. T he greatest genius is at a
disadvantage i f he is compelled to search for his imple-
ments, pen, or brush when inspired. T he student is equally
stri ving against odds i f his monographs or lessons are
haphazardly filed, requiri ng a shuffling of pages, a sorting
of manuscripts, each time a point, princi pl e, law, or fact
is sought. There is no greater torment than the tantal izi ng
thought that you possess the needed informati on, but just
cannot locate it. There is no wisdom so useless as that just
beyond recall. W hy not begin today to file your mono-
graphs methodically? W e have prepared a specially made,
serviceable and attractive lesson binder for this purpose.
T hi s special binder will accommodate a year's monographs.
I t is very attracti ve, and stamped in gold with the symbol
and name of the Order. I t contains an index form for in
dexing the subjects of your monographs for quick refer
ence, and is made of durabl e material.
T h e R O S I C R U C I A N SU P P L Y B U R E A U
R O S 1 C R U C I A N P A R K SA N J O S E C A L I F O R N I A
A N C I E N T SP L E N D O R
Of ancient Roman conquest, government, cruelty and depravity, we read and hear much. Paralleling their extension of material might and power was their
keen appreciation of the beautiful as expressed in painting, sculpturing, and exquisite architecture; but of this we see and hear little. Though the Romans con
tributed no new design or important idea to the Greek art and culture which they inherited, their love of it and their faithful reproduction of its examples made
it possible for Western Europe to have the advantage of it during a time of decadence when there were no artists capable of creating anything to equal it.
The above is a photograph of a painting which hangs in a Roman art gallery, depicting the reconstruction of the once magnificent Roman Forum. If this
Forum existed today, in the same condition, it would be a great tribute to any modem architect, sculptor, or builder.
(Courtesy of The Rosicrucian Digest.)
Wi th Your Thi nki ng!
' 'RY I T SO M ET I M E. Concentrate intently
upon another person seated in a room with
you, without his noticing it. Observe him grad-
ual l y become restless and finally turn and look in
your direction. Simple yet it is a positive dem-
onstration that thought generates a mental energy
which can be projected from your mind to the
consciousness of another. Do you realize how
much of your success and happiness in l ife de-
pends upon your influencing others? I s it not
important to you to have others understand your
point of view to be receptive to your proposals?
How many times have you wished there were
some way you could impress another favorably
get across to him or her your ideas? T hat
thoughts can be transmi tted, received, and under-
stood by others is now scientifically demonstrable.
The tales of miraculous accomplishments of mind
by the anci ents are now known to be factnot
fable. The method whereby these things can be
intentionally, not accidentall y, accomplished has
been a secret l ong cherished by the Rosi cruci ans
one of the schools of anci ent wisdom existing
throughout the world. T o thousands everywhere,
for centuries, the Rosi cruci ans have privatel y
taught this nearly- lost art of the practical use
of mind power.
T h i s Free B ook P oi n ts O u t th e W ay
The Rosicrucians (not a religious organization)
invite you to explore the powers of your mind. Their
sensible, simple suggestions have caused intelligent men
and women to soar to new heights of accomplishment.
They will show you how to use your natural forces
and talents to do things you now think are beyond
your ability. Use the coupon below and send for a
copy of the fascinating sealed free book, The Secret
Heritage, which explains how you may receive this
unique wisdom and benefit by its application to your
daily affairs.
The ROSI CRUCI A NS
( A M O R C )
Scribe S. P. C.
Ro si c r uc i a n Or o i 'R, AMORC
Rosierucian Park, San Jose, Calif.
Kindly send me a free copy of the
book, The Secret Heritage." 1am
interested in learning how I may re
ceive instructions about the full use
of my natural powers.
Name............................................... .
Address...............................................
(The Rosicrucians are NOT a
religious organization.)
fiQEEESznnti
Batm-wint
ROSICRUCIAN
DIGEST
COVERS THE WORLD
THE OFFICIAL INTERNATIONAL ROSICRUCIAN MAGA
ZINE OF THE WORLD-WIDE ROSICRUCIAN ORDER
Vol. XV. NOVEMBER, 1937 No. 10
Ancient Splendor (Frontispiece) 361
The Thought of the Month: "Self- Destruction" 364
Along Civilization's Trail: Strife in the Holy Land.. 368
Pages from the Past: Thomas Carlyle 374
God and Nature 375
Cathedral Contacts: The Cathedral on the Sea 376
Why Will War Never End? 378
Summaries of Science: Earth Made to
Order for Him? 381
Building a Personal Philosophy: Part II 383
Common Misconceptions 387
Sanctum Musings: Self- Mastership 390
Popular Fallacies About the Pyramids 394
Cosmic Consciousness (Illustration) 397
Subscription to The Rosicruoian Digest. Three Dollars per
year. Single copies twenty-five cents each.
Entered as Second Class Master at the Post Office at San
J ose, California, under the Act of August 24th, 1912.
Changes of address must reach us by the tenth of the month
preceding date of issue.
Statements made in this publication are not the official ex
pressions of the organization or its officers unless stated to
be official communications.
Published Monthly by the Supreme Council of
THE ROSICRUCIAN ORDERAMORC
ROSICRUCIAN PARK SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA
T
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
T H E
THOUGHT OF THE MONTH
"SELF- DESTRUCTION"
V E R Y oc c u l t i st
an d st u d en t of
u n i v er sal l aw s
knows that one of
the sur est w ays of
d est r o y i n g one's
future possi bi l i ti es
and bri ngi ng an
ni hi l ati on and suf
feri ng and sorrow
to an i ndi vi dual , a
group of i ndi vi d
ual s, or a nati on
of i ndi vi dual s, is
for that i ndi vi dual or group or nati on to
i mpose upon humani ty any restri cti ons
or l i mi tati ons to the uni versal l aw of the
free exerci se of human ri ghts and spi r
i tual devel opment.
E ver y i ndi vi dual has the Cosmi c,
uni versal . God- gi ven ri ght to l ive and
enjoy the bl essi ngs of l i fe and to i nter
pret and comprehend the spi ri tual l aw s
of the uni verse and attune hi msel f wi th
them and wi th God. Such ri ghts and
pri vi l eges i ncl ude, of course, the further
ri ght to worshi p God in the l i ght of
such i nterpretati on and comprehensi on
and to gi ve the soul of each i ndi vi dual
an opportuni ty to expand and unfol d
and to i ndul ge in such pr acti ces, cus
toms, habi ts and i ndul gences as bri ng
peace and happi ness to the soul , i l l umi
nati on and contentment to the mi nd,
nouri shment and heal th to the body.
W hen any i ndi vi dual r egar dl ess of
any cl ai ms to temporal or spi ri tual au
thor i tyattempts to restri ct or restrai n
such ri ghts and pri vi l eges of any human
bei ng or group of human bei ngs, he
bri ngs upon hi msel f and upon the
w orl dl y f actor s and condi ti ons under
hi s control , not the wrath of God or
the wrath of the Cosmi c, but the i nevi t
abl e operati on of l aw s whi ch he has set
into moti on, resul ti ng in a stay of al l
pr ogr ess, a r etrogressi on of al l devel op
ment, and ul ti mate destructi on and
cal ami ty.
L ooki ng back through the hi story of
the ages, it is an easy matter to trace
the mani festati on of thi s fact in the i n
di vi dual record of nati ons or of coun
tri es of peopl es where an attempt has
been made to restri ct rel i gi ous and spi r
i tual w orshi p and devel opment. E vi
dentl y, one sur e w ay for a ki ng or a
queen, a rul er or a potentate, to bri ng
anni hi l ati on or r etrogressi on, defeat and
l oss of pr esti ge and power to the nati on
under hi s control and di recti on, has
been to i nterfere wi th these rel i gi ous
ri ghts and pr i vi l eges and to restrai n or
restri ct the other God- gi ven bl essi ngs
of l i fe. N ot a si ngl e nation whi ch has
i ndul ged in such restri cti ons in the past
centuri es has avoi ded such cal ami ty,
and has been abl e to retri eve i ts power
and revi ve i ts exi stence onl y by aban
doni ng the unfortune and unfai r re
stri cti ons and restori ng to i ts peopl e the
pri vi l eges whi ch it had taken aw ay
from them.
T oday we find throughout the worl d
many notabl e, astoni shi ng and r egr et
tabl e exampl es of the fai l ure to real i ze
the operati on of the Cosmi c l aw s in thi s
r egar d.
I n par ts of E ur ope today, var i ous na
ti ons of peopl es and r aces devoted to
the practice of certain religious rights
or the i ndul gence in certai n spi ri tual
pri vi l eges, are havi ng these pri vi l eges
restri cted or compl etel y r estrai ned, and
Three hundred sixty-four
thei r mi nds and soul s tormented by evi
dences of i ntol erance and rel i gi ous and
raci al persecuti on. T h e fate of these
countri es i s i nevi tabl e. T h ey may seem
to pr osper and succeed, and to bui l d up
or create new power, new energy, new
materi al i ntegri ty for a ti me, but the
handwri ti ng on the wal l i s perfectl y
pl ai n, and the C osmi c L aw i s al w ays
ful fi l l ed.
T ak e, for exampl e, the sufferi ng that
i s bei ng pl aced upon the J ew s in var i ous
par ts of E ur ope and A si a, fi rst, because
of thei r raci al i nheri tance, and secondl y
because of thei r rel i gi ous preferences.
T h e hi story of the J ew s i s fr aught wi th
the most outstandi ng exampl es of re
l i gi ous and raci al persecuti on that the
w orl d has ever known. T oday they ar e
practi cal l y a race wi thout a country and
wi thout a fl ag. C entur y af ter century
they have been chased or forced to
move from l and to l and, from di stri ct to
di stri ct, wi th al l of thei r di vi ne ri ghts
and pri vi l eges whol l y i gnored, and wi th
a form of hatred cr eated agai n st them
that i s as unw arranted, as undeserved,
and as unworthy of the di gni ti es of the
human consci ousness as anythi ng that
the w orl d has ever w i tnessed. T h e con
stant poi nti ng out of the si ns and errors
of some of the J ew s, as bei ng typi cal of
al l of them, the expl oi tati on of the
w eak nesses of some in thei r race as be
i ng uni versal among al l of them, i s as
unr easonabl e and i l l ogi cal as any form
of pr opagan da that the human mi nd has
been ask ed to accept.
T h at there ar e errors in the l i ves of
J ew s, that some of them ar e si nful or
decei tful or gi ven to busi ness and pol i
ti cal pr acti ces that ar e questi onabl e, i s
undoubtedl y true. But ar e these l i vi ng
exampl es of si n and error, decei t and
fr aud, any more numerous among those
of the J ew i sh race than among those of
the Genti l e, or any more numerous
among the J ew s than among the M o
hammedans, the Buddhi sts, the Roman
C athol i cs, the P r otestants, or even the
heathens? A nd a careful study of the
hi story of the J ew s pl ai nl y r eveal s to
the unbi ased, unprejudi ced mi nd that
the atti tude of many nati ons and many
rel i gi ons tow ard the J ew s has forced
them, as a matter of sel f- protecti on and
sel f- pr eser vati on, as i ndi vi dual s and as
a race, to anti ci pate al l the tri ckery, al l
Three hundred sixty-five
the decei t, al l the fr aud, and al l the
means of i nsi di ous persecuti on on the
par t of other r aces and other rel i gi ons,
and to meet thi s wi th counter- decei t,
counter - fraud, and counter - error s. T h e
natural i nsti nct devel oped from the
God- gi ven ri ght to l i ve and enj oy the
pri vi l ege of l i fe and to fi ght for that
whi ch i s an i nal i enabl e ri ght, i s acknow l
edged by l aw to be a per fectl y proper
and l egal defense for many i nfracti ons
of the human code of l i fe. A l though our
general courts of l aw and our codes of
l i fe forbi d murder or the taki ng of an
other per sons l i fe, we do condone it and
for gi ve it when it i s moti vated by sel f-
preser vati on and commi tted as the l ast
resor t in the pr ocess of sel f- defense.
W h en a l ar ge nati on of peopl es who
have contri buted so gr eatl y to the suc
cess and happi ness of ci vi l i zati on, to the
devel opment of i ts ar t and l i terature, to
the creati on of ci ti es and towns, to the
fosteri ng of spi ri tual i deal s, to the de
fense of ci vi l i zati on i tsel f, i s constantl y
subj ected to the machi nati ons of the
secr et acti vi ti es, publ i c restri cti ons, pol i
ti cal persecuti ons, and the def eat of i ts
natural ri ghts, it i s bound to devel op in
the hearts and mi nds of such a nati on
of peopl es the determi nati on to survi ve
and to conquer and at l east pr eserve i t
sel f by any means or methods that wi l l
prove effi ci ent. I n other w or ds, the at
ti tude of those who bri ng persecuti on
upon such a race or cl ass of peopl e i s a
chal l enge to them and not onl y an i n
vi tati on but a di rect cause for such re-
tal i ant or sel f- protecti ve and counter
acti vi ti es as the nati on may deci de upon.
I f the J ew s at any ti me in the past
hi story, or at the pr esent ti me in any
country or any par t of the w orl d, are
i nsi di ousl y and secr etl y pl anni ng to
strengthen thei r nati on, or i f i ndi vi dual
J ew s or gr oups of J ew s ar e pri vatel y
and systemati cal l y attempti ng to gai n
gr eater temporal , fi nanci al or rel i gi ous
power, they ar e onl y doi ng w hat the
r est of the w orl d h as forced them to do
and has made it necessar y for them
to do.
A f ter al l , the C hr i sti ans, too, at var i
ous ti mes have suffered horri bl e per se
cuti ons, and it i s doubtful i f the J ew s or
the Roman C athol i cs, the Buddhi sts or
the M ohammedans, or any or gani zed
group of heathens, so- cal l ed, have ever
resor ted to the secret, hi dden, under
cover campai gns of sel f- protecti on and
retal i ati on that the C hr i sti ans resor ted
to in past centuri es; and even today
there ar e par ts of the w orl d where the
C hr i sti ans have to r esor t to every
method of pol i ti cal di pl omacy, human
decepti on, and actual w ar far e to pre
serve thei r ri ghts and pri vi l eges. W i th
out any i ntenti on of bei ng speci fi cal l y
cri ti cal or i rreverenti al in my l ove for
the i deal s of Chri sti ani ty, I must admi t
-and so must you that more horri bl e
w ar s and forms of persecuti on have at
ti mes been conducted by, suppor ted by,
and i ndul ged in by C hri sti an denomi na
ti ons, than by any other rel i gi ous sect,
except possi bl y some of the ol der ori en
tal or so- cal l ed heathen sects.
But the Roman C athol i cs, too, have
had thei r sh ar e and sti l l have i t of
rel i gi ous persecuti on and unfai r r estrai nt
and restri cti on. Even in our enl i ghtened
country of A meri ca, and in other en
l i ghtened countri es, there i s at thi s very
hour a conti nuati on of the age- ol d con
test between Roman Cathol i ci sm and
other rel i gi ons or other sects of the
Chr i sti an rel i gi on. I n every pol i ti cal
campai gn, in every nati on- wi de move
ment of a pol i ti cal , fi nanci al or soci al
nature, i ndi vi dual s and groups of i n
di vi dual s ar e sure to i nject the rel i gi ous
questi on, and i f it i s not the J ew s who
ar e pai nted as a horri bl e exampl e of
seeker s for pol i ti cal and soci al control ,
it i s the Roman C athol i cs. Y et here
agai n we fi nd not merel y a nati on of
peopl e, but nati ons of peopl es, al l of
one C hri sti an, sectar i an rel i gi on, who
have contri buted magni fi centl y to the
ar t and l i terature, the archi tecture and
the fi ne ar ts, the spi ri tual and the physi
cal devel opment of ci vi l i zati on, for
whi ch al l nati ons and al l rel i gi ons
shoul d be appreci ati ve and never forget
them.
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
A nd in par ts of the N ear E ast we
fi nd the A r abs and other nati ons or
di vi si ons of nati ons bei ng persecuted
and r el i gi ousl y tormented because of a
di sti ncti on in soci al cl ass or rel i gi ous
cl ass.
W h i l e the r eports from Ger many re
gar di ng the persecuti on of the J ew s and
certai n other rel i gi ous, soci al , ethi cal or
moral movements ar e undoubtedl y ex
agger ated in our modern new spaper s,
and in pr opagan da bookl ets and pam
phl ets, the fact does remai n that the
J ew s in Germany, and other cl asses of
i ndi vi dual s, have been tormented to the
poi nt of sufferi ng the fi res of hel l be
cause of the di ctates of one man or a
smal l group of men, based upon thei r
personal opi ni ons and pr ej udi ces. A l l
the w orl d woul d l i ke to see the German
nati on and the German country come
back to i ts own former pol i ti cal strength
and soci al happi ness and human i n
tegri ty. T h e qui ck manner in whi ch
A meri ca and the other nati ons whi ch
were at w ar wi th Germany duri ng the
peri od from 1914 to 1918 l ai d asi de
thei r temporary enmi ty and extended
the hand of fel l owshi p and good wi l l to
Germany, proved that nei ther rel i gi on
nor raci al di sti ncti ons had any pl ace in
the fundamental cause of the w ar.
T oday the German ci ti zen or the
German- A meri can ci ti zen has a ki ndl y
and brotherl y pl ace in the hear ts of
A meri cans and most of the ci vi l i zed
worl d. But G er manys grow th and de
vel opment to a poi nt and pl ace in the
worl d whi ch she occupi ed previ ousl y, or
to a gr eater pl ace, i s bei ng fr ustr ated,
surel y and defi ni tel y, and not too sl ow
l y, by the pr esent unfortunate and un
fai r restri cti ons and r estr ai nts pl aced
not onl y upon the J ew s but upon many
other gr oups and di vi si ons of her
peopl e. T h i s atti tude on the par t of the
Ger man government i s gr adual l y spel l
i ng doom and def eat to the nati on as a
whol e, and it i s more for thi s reason
that thousands upon thousands of G er
mans, both J ew s and Genti l es and
Roman C ath ol i cs ar e evacuati ng G er
many and goi ng to other par ts of the
worl d, than j ust because of the per secu
ti ons of the J ew s al one.
W e bel i eve that R ussi a, approachi ng
the dar k ness of the O bscur e N i ght out
of whi ch it coul d never have come
i nto a Gol den D aw n, real i zed that it
had taken the one sure w ay to defeat
al l of i ts ambi ti ons and to destr oy i ts
pr osper i ty and power, and therefore
wi thdrew some of i ts rel i gi ous restri c
ti ons and has shown some l i ttl e degree
of tol erati on in recent months toward
those whom it formerl y persecuted and
prosecuted for di fferences of opi ni on.
But neverthel ess, R ussi a created for i t
Three hundred sixty-six
sel f, in the pr ocess of destr oyi ng church
es, templ es, synagogues, and cathedral s,
and in restri cti ng rel i gi ous freedom, a
K armi c condi ti on for whi ch it must
make compensati on some day, and unti l
that compensati on i s made, R ussi a can
never become the great power that even
i ts most ambi ti ous l eader s and di rectors
ar e stri vi ng to create. F or thi s reason,
R ussi a must expect throughout i ts n a
ti on and in al l of i ts pol i ti cal acti vi ti es,
the same degree of sufferi ng and sor
row, in the near future, as it has put
upon i ts peopl e in the recent past. T h e
scal es must be bal anced, and adj ust
ment made, before R ussi a or any
other countr y can be reborn and begi n
anew a constr ucti ve and happy l i fe.
W e may pr ay for uni versal peace,
and we may stri ve to i nvent every pol i
ti cal and soci al scheme to bri ng about a
cl oser under standi ng of the pol i ti cal i s
sues and the economi c probl ems of the
di fferent countri es, in the bel i ef that i f
these thi ngs ar e sol ved or accompl i shed
in contentment and mutual agreement
we wi l l el i mi nate the cause of w ar . But
it i s usel ess to pr ay to G od to bri ng
peace i nto the heart of man whi l e man
conti nues to be i ntol erant of the qual i ty
of bl ood and the nature of rel i gi on in
the bodi es and soul s of other i n
di vi dual s. From the ti me of the earl i est
persecuti ons of the pri esthood in E gypt,
up to thi s very hour, rel i gi ous i ntol er
ance and raci al i ncompati bi l i ty have
been the two outstandi ng causes of
more w ar, more l oss of human l i fe, more
destructi on of property, more rui nati on
of countri es, and more restr ai nt in the
pr ogr ess and devel opment of ci vi l i za
ti on, than any other two factor s, despi te
the argument of economi sts and soci al
i sts who cl ai m that the l abor i ng condi
ti ons and the pow er of capi tal ar e the
pri nci pal causes of human sufferi ng and
unhappi ness.
T h er e can be no peace, pol i ti cal l y,
soci al l y, mental l y, or spi ri tual l y, unti l
the human brotherhood of man i s estab
l i shed upon the basi s of equal ri ghts,
equal pr i vi l eges, and equal bl essi n gs to
al l of G od's chi l dren. I n the eyes of
G od, there i s no di sti ncti on between
J ew and Genti l e, Roman C athol i c and
P r otestant, M ohammedan or Buddhi st
or even the heathen. A l l ar e created in
the i mage of God, and in some stage of
the sel f- same pr ocess of human and
spi ri tual evol uti on. U nti l we, the el e
ments of thi s uni versal K i ngdom of
God, have the same tol erance, the same
l ove, the same mercy, and mani fest it
tow ard one another as G od mani fests it
tow ard us, there can be no uni versal
peace. A nd any nati on or di ctator of a
nati on, rul er or ki ng, who i s unmi ndful
of thi s l aw, or vi ol ates thi s pri nci pl e, i s
bri ngi ng i nevi tabl e doom and di saster
to hi msel f and to hi s peopl e. I t i s the
one sure w ay of "sel f - destr ucti on.
V V V
N E W E N G L A N D R O SI C R U C I A N B R O A D C A ST
Our members and friends in New England will be pleased to learn that beginning
with Tuesday, October 26, at 8:30 p. m., Eastern Standard Time, we will broadcast
a series of interesting programs over Radio Station W A A B in Boston, Massachusetts,
which operates on a frequency of 1410 kilocycles. These broadcasts, which will be
heard each week on the same day and hour, are linked together under the title, "The
Mysteries of Life. Each program is a complete discourse on one of the problems
which men and women confront in their daily lives and tells how it can be overcome.
In addition to being instructive, these programs are highly entertaining, and are aug
mented by a splendid musical arrangement.
To encourage the continuance of such broadcasts, we ask each of you not only to
listen yourself, but have as many friends and acquaintances as possiblewho have
not already had Rosicrucian literature or who are not thoroughly familiar with what
Rosicrucianism islisten with you or in their own homes. Let us help to bring these
discourses of enlightenment to thousands of persons. The broadcasts, of course, are
strictly non-sectarian and therefore can be enjoyed by every listener who is interested
in the higher and more important things of life. So that you will not forget, enter the
above date and the hour of the first broadcast on your calendar or in your memo book.
j
Three hundred sixty-seven
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
Along Civilizations Trail
By R a l p h M. L ew i s, K. R. C.
Editors Note:This is the eighth episode of a narrative by the Supreme Secretary relating the
experiences he and his party had in visiting mystic shrines and places in Europe and the ancient
world.
STRIFE IN THE HOLY LAND
si ons onl y because they ar e not possi bl e
of actual i ty under exi sti ng ci rcum
stances? T h e i l l usi on exi sts not in thei r
worthi ness but in the bel i ef that they
are possi bl e of attai nment in our own
lifetimes.
T h e E gypti an pr ess substanti ated the
di re w ar ni ng of the r ai l r oad r epr esenta
ti ves. A r ti cl es tol d of troop movements
in P al esti ne, of the concentrati on of
armed for ces in J er usal em, of pi l l agi ng
and A r ab atr oci ti es. A s we rode through
the ni ght, l ooki ng up at the dar k bl ue
canopy over head wi th i ts sci nti l l ati ng
speck s, the tal es of w ar and bl oodshed
seemed f antasti c and di stant, l i ke a
horri bl e dream when one aw ak ens in a
room bathed in warm, cour age- gi vi ng
sunl i ght. T h e pr ess exagger ates,"
w as our sel f- encour agi ng thought as we
settl ed down for a monotonous r ai l w ay
jour ney of a ni ght and a day.
K an tar a at l ast! W e rose sti ffl y after
our jour ney of sever al hours, shook the
deser t dust from our cl othi ng, feel i ng
much as the N omad must feel who
pushes hi s w ay acr oss the deser t w astes
on the back of a camel . H er e w as re
l i ef; we were to ferry acr oss the cel e
br ated Suez C anal , poi nt of i nternati on
al contr oversy. T h e cool ness of the
w ater w oul d be r efreshi ng. W e
F r ater s Brow er and Shi bl ey and I
j uggl ed our l uggage through the open
compartment w i ndows to j abberi ng,
Three hundred sixty-eight
A R in J erusal em!
T h e l and where
t h e P r i n c e o f
P e a c e h ad e x
pounded H i s mes
sage of hope for
humani ty w as now
r i dden by r i ot s
and burni ng wi th
the fl ames of hat
red! N ear l y twen
ty centuri es ago,
f r om t he same
l and, w en t forth
the doctri ne that a brotherhood of man,
and good wi l l on earth tow ard al l ,
woul d be the hi ghest mani festati on of
the di vi ne in mans nature. T oday the
authori ti es in C ai r o w arned us that we
woul d enter P al esti ne and J erusal em at
our own ri sk, for the popul ace were
al i gned agai n st each other. R aci al and
rel i gi ous pr ej udi ces had sw ept al l bar
ri ers of reason and tradi ti on aw ay.
W e thought, as we determi nedl y
si gned paper s rel easi ng the authori ti es
from responsi bi l i ty for any possi bl e in-'
jur y to our per sons in P al esti ne, that it
i s remarkabl e how wel l rel i gi on h as sur
vi ved in the face of thi s bl unt real i ty,
promi si ng peace, l ove and compassi on
in a worl d where on every si de real i ty
por tr ays envy, greed, jeal ousy, and
stri fe. Sti l l the i l l usi on goes on. But
then, ar e not many worthy i deal s i l l u-
fezzed, nati ve porters who eager l y
seized it and fought among themselves
for the pri vi l ege of carryi ng the pi eces
and earni ng a smal l fee in compensati on.
A queer spectacl e greeted our si ght
as we trai l ed behi nd our porters. T h e
Suez at thi s poi nt w as exceedi ngl y nar
row and uni mpressi ve. I ts wi dth seemed
to us not greater than many of the pri n
ci pal i rri gati on canal s of W ester n
U ni ted States. E xcept for three l ow-
w attage fl ood l i ghts mounted on sl ender,
obl i quel y fastened pol es, whi ch cast
smal l ci rcl es of a yel l ow haze on the
sl uggi shl y movi ng w ater , the canal w as
i nky bl ack and free from even the out
l ine of any cr aft. P ar adi n g down a
ri ckety pl ank ramp, we w al ked on boar d
the "ferry. T h e f er r y w as like a con
ti nuati on of the ramp; the fl oori ng con
si sted of rough pl anks, f astened wi th
hand- w rought nai l s, protrudi ng in many
pl aces, over whi ch passen ger s stumbl ed.
T h e onl y suppor t on ei ther si de w as a
rai l i ng, much l i ke a crude fence but hav
i ng onl y a top bar . T h e fer r y had
nei ther prow nor stern. I t w as, in fact,
but a r af t some thi rty- fi ve feet in l ength
and twenty- fi ve feet in wi dth. T h e pas
senger s crow ded agai n st the r ai l i ngs to
permi t the l umberi ng truck the center.
W h i l e humani ty and vehi cl es were
bei ng compr essed i nto the smal l ar ea,
we l ooked at our fel l ow passen ger s.
W e fel t conspi cuous; our gar b w as so
stri ctl y W ester n . N ot another of the
perspi ri ng group w as atti r ed in a l i ke
manner. O n my ri ght stood a sw ar thy
nati ve woman, wi th shi ny br ass ear r i ngs
and vol umi nous ski rt of bri l l i ant hues.
A str i ped shaw l dr aped her head and
par tl y sh aded her dar ti ng eyes. O n my
l eft w as a Bedoui n, A r ab N omad, w ear
i ng l eather san dal s each wi th i ts sup
porti ng thong ti ghtl y draw n between
the l ar ge and next toes of hi s br oad
feet. C over i ng hi s gaunt frame w as an
aw ni ng- l i ke l i nen robe, and hangi ng
from hi s bl ack rope bel t w as a di rk, the
scabbar d of whi ch w as i nl ai d wi th
mother- of- pearl , causi ng i t to shi mmer
wi th refl ected l i ght. H e, and many of hi s
ki nd who crow ded us, w ere appar ent
l y obl i vi ous to our presence. T h ey dwel t
on thoughts not agr eeabl e, for thei r
f aces w ere di stor ted by scow l s. N one
too pl easant company, I thought as I
Three hundred sixty-nine
recol l ected tal es of hatred whi ch the
A r abs were sai d to har bor for us O cci
dental s at thi s ti me.
T h e pl easi ng cool ness of the ai r w as
mi ti gated by the r avenous mosqui toes,
and the perni ci ous sti cky bl ack fl ies.
W e fel t further uncomfortabl e, for we
were aw ar e that w e were now becomi ng
objects of excepti onal curi osi ty to
sever al .
I t w as but a matter of moments be
fore we had cr ossed the Suez and were
aboar d the sl eeper whi ch w as to take us
i nto P al esti ne. A s I l ay l i steni ng to the
hi gh- pi tched shr i ek r ather than whi stl e
of our engi ne as we sped acr oss the
P eni nsul a of Si nai , I thought of i ts
anci ent copper mi nes. F or centuri es
these gr eat mi nes had pr ovi ded the
phar aohs wi th the metal so badl y need
ed for i mpl ements and w eapons al i ke.
A l l the peopl es of the then- known
w orl d bar ter ed for thi s E gypti an cop
per. N o one knows how and when ore
w as fi rst di scovered, but i t i s thought to
have been fi rst found on thi s peni nsul a
in the di m past. Some prehi stori c
E gypti an per haps a l ate stone- age
tr avel er found one morni ng, gl i steni ng
in the sti l l - warm ash es of hi s fi re, one
or more beads of metal whi ch had gone
through the pr ocess of smel ti ng in the
roar i ng fl ames of the ni ght before. R e
peated fi ndi ngs of these beads in the
remnants of the fi re on thi s peni nsul a
caused him and hi s compani ons to ex
peri ment wi th heati ng the l oose surface
stone. Such experi mentati on r esul ted in
eventual l y l earni ng how to crudel y ex
tr act the metal from the ore. W i th that
si mpl e di scovery, the w orl d advanced
tremendousl y. N ew accompl i shments
were possi bl e, for the age of metal had
arri ved!
W e rose ear l y to greet the r i si ng sun
ti nti ng the di stant E aster n hi l l s a del i
cate sh ade of pi nk. T h e l and w as deso
l ate, l i ke our Bad L ands of N ev ada
tabl e- l i ke, har d packed wi th tufts of
par ched vegetati on, wi th a spri nkl i ng of
round pebbl es, a l i ttl e l ar ger than com
merci al gr avel . N ot a si gn of l i fe w as
appar ent. T h i s vi sta di d not compl ement
our gl amor ous concept of w hat the H ol y
L and shoul d be. T h e uni nteresti ng vi ew
turned our attenti on to our readi ng mat
ter, by whi ch we hoped to br eak the
monotony of the ri de.
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
O ur attenti on someti me l ater w as
draw n from our books to the outsi de
agai n by a sudden sl ow i ng of the tr ai n's
speed to a craw l . T h e hi l l s w ere now
cl oser ver y near, in f act and on both
si des of us. W e were travel i ng through
a nar row val l ey. T h e fl oor of the val l ey
w as cover ed by shor t gr ass stubbl e, sti l l
browni sh in hue. T h er e befor e us w as
w hat we had expected to see in P al es
ti ne a fl ock of sheep and herd of goats
bei ng dri ven by a noddi ng Semeti c,
ri di ng astr i de a smal l , trotti ng burro.
T h e bar e feet of the shepherd near l y
dr agged in the dust; i t l ooked as though,
i f he stood upri ght, feet on the ground,
the burro coul d have passed easi l y be
tween hi s str addl ed l egs. A s w e l ooked,
more fl ocks came i nto evi dence, some
descendi ng from near by hi l l s. A l l
seemed to be convergi ng.
So sl ow l y had w e been travel i ng for
sever al mi nutes, that the hal t of the
trai n w as har dl y noti ceabl e. H er e w as
the fi rst stop w e had made duri ng the
day. W e l eft our compartment to crow d
in the ai sl e of the car, and l eaned far
out of the l owered w i ndow s. P ar al l el
wi th the track, for about the l ength of
two car s, stretched a boar d pl atform,
open to the sky. A hundred yar ds back
of it were ei ght or ten tents, somew hat
squatti er than our A meri can I ndi an
tepees and l ess gr aceful , of a bl ack ma
teri al whi ch we l ater l earned w as tan
ned goatski n. A l i gned in front were
smal l chi l dren in the customary tatter ed
cl othi ng of the E ast, some par tl y naked;
but unl i ke the chi l dren of the E gypti an
fel l ahs, these w ere qui et, and al most
moti onl ess. N ear them were gr oups of
adul ts, ei ther astr i de burros or si tti ng
on thei r haunches.
L oud voi ces and the cl atter of heavy
boots on the pl atform caused us to turn
our heads in the di recti on of the r ear of
the trai n. T h er e were two sol di er s
Bri ti sh tommi es. T h ey w ore the r egul a
ti on tropi cal uni form of the Bri ti sh
sol di er khaki shor ts and shi rt, hi gh
socks, trench shoes, and tan cork hel
met. E ach had, sl ung acr oss hi s back,
an automati c ri fl e wi th bayonet afftxed.
T h e men themsel ves par ti cul ar l y at
tracted our attenti on. T h ey w ere, in
fact, boys; nei ther of the l ads w as over
ni neteen at the utmost fr esh- faced,
bri ght eyed, the ki nd of youthful , i n
tel l i gent face you see in a col l ege spor ts
event and l i ttl e expect to fi nd in a mi l i
tar y expedi ti on of thi s ki nd.
A n i nci dent occurred in the few mi n
utes of our stay whi ch caused us to l ose
admi rati on for them and thei r superi ors.
P er haps it w as excepti onal ; at l east, we
hoped so. A n A r ab l ad, about si xteen
or seventeen, saunter ed over to the
pl atform, wi th r agged turban, l egs and
feet bare. U pon hi s appr oach, the
young tommi es stopped thei r banteri ng
and w atched hi m. A s soon as he step
ped upon the pl atform they were upon
hi m. E ach gr abbi ng one of hi s arms,
they pul l ed him in opposi te di recti ons,
then shoved him so vi ol entl y tow ard
each other that he nearl y fel l . H e w as
fi nal l y pushed off the pl atform. O ne
then str uck him wi th hi s open hand
acr oss the head, as he vai nl y tri ed to
protect head and shoul der s wi th hi s
arms. R etreati ng, he never once offered
r esi stance. T h e other ran af ter hi m,
ki cki ng him as he fl ed. W e were
astounded. W h y thi s brutal i ty? T h e
A r ab boy had sai d or done nothi ng.
A ssumi ng that hi s presence w as a men
ace to the trai n because of danger of
sabotage, coul d they not have ordered
him aw ay, enforci ng thei r or der s wi th
the presence of thei r w eapons? W as
G r eat Bri tai n countenanci ng such con
duct on the par t of her troops? O r were
these, as thei r youth i ndi cated, j ust raw
troops unj ustl y di spl ayi ng thei r new
authori ty and mi ght? Such acti ons,
w hatever thei r cause, w oul d onl y breed
further hatr ed and di ffi cul ty in P al es
ti ne for Bri tai n, we thought.
W e rode on in si l ence for nearl y an
other hour at a snai l - l i ke speed. T h e
next stop w as at L y da a l ar ger pl at
form, crow ded as the previ ous one, hav
i ng a par ti al rai n- shed down the center.
T h e hi l l s had cl osed in on us. L yda w as
a juncti on poi nt; our trai n w as to go to
H ai f a and the sea; we must change here
for J erusal em. N o porters cl amored at
the w i ndow s for our baggage. A f ter
qui te some l abor, we unl oaded our as
sortment of twenty- one pi eces, i ncl ud
i ng the del i cate ci nema equi pment, i nto
a pi l e on the pl atform. O ur J erusal em
trai n had not yet arri ved. W e l ooked
about us. W e were in an armed camp,
i t woul d seem. O ne end of the narrow,
rough shed w as suppor ted by addi ti onal
Three hundred seventy
posts, and on top of it, behi nd a ram
par t of sand bags, a machi ne gun w as
mounted, and behi nd it sat two al ert
tommi esabout the same age as those
we had previ ousl y seen. From thei r
posi ti on they commanded ful l vi ew of
the rocky cl i ffs whi ch frow ned down
upon us. and they were al ert, w atchi ng
for A r ab sni per s that had been h ar as
si ng the r ai l r oad crew s. T h e pl atform
w as crowded wi th troops carryi ng ful l
equi pment, w ai ti ng as we w ere for the
trai n to J erusal em. A drone overhead
caused us to l ook upw ard. T h er e a l one
pl ane a scout ci rcl ed hi gh over the
depot and adj acent hi l l s, r eady to si gnal
the troops bel ow of any A r ab move
ment in thei r di recti on. W e scanned the
cl efts in the scar r ed hi l l s. T h er e w as no
l i fe vi si bl e; yet we had the uneasy feel
i ng that eyes from the dar k sh adow s of
the hi l l si des w atched our movements,
per haps si ghti ng at us al ong r i fl es they
hesi tated to fi re at the moment.
T h e P i erci ng shri ek of the dumpy
engi ne, pul l i ng ri ckety wooden car s to
w ar d us, w as a wel come rel i ef. O ur
par ty w as separ ated; w e were al l for
tunate to fi nd space on boar d. T h i s w as
a troop trai n, and passen ger s of whi ch
we were the onl y on es were i nci dental ,
and thei r comfort not consi dered. T h e
troops were al l in good humor; they
had j ust ar r i ved on the tr anspor t from
E ngl an d, and w ere on thei r w ay from
H ai f a to var i ous zones in the troubl e
ar ea in the vi ci ni ty of J er usal em and
Bethl ehem. N one w as over twenty- one,
or so i t seemed, wi th the excepti on of
the offi cers. W e l earned that the youth
ful ness of the troops w as due to the fact
that E ngl an d has found that men over
twenty- fi ve year s of age do not, unl ess
they have l i ved for some l ength of ti me
in the tropi cs, r eadi l y adj ust themsel ves
to extremes in temperature.
I n the ai sl es outsi de of the compar t
ments in each car w ere stati oned four
men, ri fl es r eady and at r est on wi ndow
bar s, as they peered i nto the hi l l s for
si gns of A r ab hosti l i ti es tow ar d the
trai n. O n a shar p bend I saw , through
our open wi ndow (through whi ch dust
and ci nders pour ed) a gasol i ne truck
travel i ng on the r ai l s about a hundred
feet in advance of our engi ne. O n it
w as mounted a rather heavy- cal i br e ma
chi ne gun, and three armed tommi es
Three hundred seventy-one
stood by. T h i s, we l earned, r an in ad
vance of the trai n to w ar d off attack s on
i t and to si ght any damaged r ai l s or
br i dges i ntended to derai l the trai n,
whi ch had been the recent practi ce in
these canyons.
T h e vi ci ousness of the rocky hi l l s
through whi ch we w ere wi ndi ng w as
fi nal l y broken by patches of vegetati on.
W e were neari ng J er usal em. T h e sl op
i ng si des of the hi l l s were now terraced
every ten or twel ve feet, wi th three- foot
w al l s made of i r r egul ar stones pl ucked
from the surroundi ng sur face. Betw een
each wal l and the one above w as a thi n
veneer of soi l ; in these ri ms of soi l grew
the gr apes of P al esti ne, and much of
the gr ai n and truck whi ch the H ol y
L and depended upon. I n Bi bl i cal ti mes
the peasan t of P al esti ne found the thi n
coati ng of soi l on the rocky cl i ffs har d
l y suffi ci ent for hi s actual needs; cen
turi es of r ai nfal l had w ashed near l y al l
the remai ni ng soi l aw ay. T h e l and in
thi s vi ci ni ty w oul d have been compl ete
l y i mpoveri shed but for these stone re-
tai ni ng- w al l s bui l t as a l ast protecti ve
measure. H ar dy Hebrew women turned
from thei r task of hand- cul ti vati on to
star e at the trai n of si ngi ng armed men
that passed. W e w ondered as we l ook
ed at thei r sol emn, w eather- beaten, dul l
faces, whether they saw in these troops
new hope or further di saster for thei r
l and and race.
W e sw ung suddenl y from the open
country i nto the yar ds of J er usal ems
onl y depot. C r ow ds on the pl atform
cheered the troops who detrai ned wi th
the l i ght- hearted spi ri t of a crow d of
Sun day excur si oni sts. O ur onl y con
veyance w as an ol d pri vate car; the
A r ab taxi dri vers were on stri ke as were
al l other A r ab empl oyees. T h e J ew s
dar ed not suppl ant them or operate
thei r competi ti ve enterpri ses for fear of
A r ab r epr i sal s, whi ch meant bl oodshed
for both si des. I n consequence, al l
shops, factor i es, mi l l s, bank s, and i n
dustr i al pl aces were cl osed and had
been for months. H unger and di sease
were r ampant, and tensi on w as grow i ng
str onger . O utbur sts were frequent, l oss
of l i fe consi derabl e.
A s we sped at fi fty mi l es an hour
al ong one of the mai n thor oughfar es
wi th a young H ebrew at the wheel , who
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
furti vel y gl anced tow ar d the boar ded
shop w i ndow s on hi s l eft and ri ght, we
studi ed the bui l di ngs as best we coul d.
T h ei r fronts were pl aster ed and w hi te
w ashed, whi ch made them gl eam in the
hot after noon sun. T h ey rose to a
hei ght of two or three stor i es. M an y
had dome- l i ke r oof s and mi naret- l i ke
tow ers, reveal i ng the M oor i sh and B y
zanti ne i nfl uence. O ther s had r ed h and
made ti l e and w rought- i ron bal coni es,
upon whi ch ordi nar i l y doors opened
but whi ch were now boar ded cl osed.
T h i s str eet w as macadami zed, but si de
str eets, of whi ch we had but fl eeti ng
gl i mpses, w ere cobbl e- stoned, narrow,
crude.
O ur desti nati on, one of the most
promi nent hotel s in J erusal em, w as
gr ati fyi ngl y modern. A f ter an excep
ti onal l y appeti zi ng and wel l ser ved
meal , we reti red. Sever al ti mes I w as
aw akened duri ng the ni ght by rumbl i ng,
i ndi sti nct voi ces and the thud of feet
bel ow in the corri dors and upon the
str eet beneath my wi ndow. F ati gue
overcame curi osi ty, and I woul d l apse
agai n i nto sl eep. I n the morni ng we
di scovered that ni ght had brought about
a star tl i ng tr ansformati on of our hostel
ry. I t had been converted i nto a mi l i
tar y headquar ter s for the hi gh staf f of
the Bri ti sh P al esti ne expedi ti onary
force. U ni formed army messenger s
were runni ng up the br oad stai r case
bear i ng si de arms. H i ghranki ng offi cers
stood or sat in gr oups in the main foyer,
tal ki ng in l ow voi ces. A l l the rooms
were occupi ed by the mi l i tary staff, and
w oul d be, wi th the excepti on of those
hel d by our par ty. A n i ndi cati on of the
ser i ousness of events w as the l ow san d
bag rampar t on the si dew al k i mmedi ate
l y in front of the mai n entrance, behi nd
whi ch a sentr y patrol l ed. W e w ere al
l owed free exi t and entry, but must r e
turn before 8:00 p. m. or be bar r ed from
entry. E ach ti me we desi red admi t
tance, we had to secure the permi ssi on
of the armed sentry.
T ur ni ng the corner to cr oss the str eet
to secure the ser vi ces of a gui de w hose
name had been gi ven us, we saw di rect
l y beneath the bal cony of our rooms two
armored trucks bear i ng one- pound can
nons and regul ati on machi ne guns.
T h ese were ri ot car s whi ch patr ol l ed the
str eets at ni ght and rushed to ar eas of
di stur bance unti l the ar r i val of the i n
fantr y. A state of w ar trul y exi sted,
W i l l w e be al l ow ed to film even the
hi stori c and mysti cal pl aces under such
condi ti ons?" ask ed F r ater Brow er, put
ti ng i nto w or ds my own thoughts.
P r obabl y not, w as my pessi mi sti c
repl y.
By appoi ntment, a r epresentati ve of
the offi ce of the A meri can E xpr ess
C ompany met us, and af ter greeti ng us
he sai d, O ur offi ce i s cl osed and al l
or di nar y busi ness i s suspended. I t i s a
speci al concessi on that I meet you here.
I cannot assur e you any success in your
enterpri se, for the H i gh Bri ti sh C om
mi ssi oner of J er usal em has decl ar ed the
ci ty under marti al l aw .
Sh al l we seek to obtai n permi ssi on
to take our ci nema pi ctur es? I ask ed.
Such channel s of authori ty do not
exi st at pr esent, he sai d. I w oul d su g
gest that you proceed as usual unl ess
order ed to cease by the mi l i tary au
thor i ti es.
I suddenl y became aw ar e of someone
standi ng cl ose behi nd me. Somew hat
star tl ed, I turned qui ckl y to l ook i nto
the face of an A r ab, bow i ng gr aci ousl y
to me. H e w as atti r ed natti l y in a busi
ness sui t such as any young A meri can
or E ngl i shman mi ght w ear . T h e onl y
touch of the O r i ental in hi s atti r e w as
hi s tarboush ( f ez) . H e w as a young
man of thi rty- fi ve. P ar ti cul ar l y i mpres
si ve w ere hi s l ar ge, expr essi ve eyes and
hi s excepti onal l y fai r ski n for one of hi s
race. T h e extent of hi s l avi sh bow and
hi s geni al smi l e caused me i nvol untari l y
to bow sl i ghtl y in return. N oti ci ng our
confusi on, the A meri can E xpr ess r epr e
sentati ve stepped for w ar d and i ntro
duced us; he w as to be our gui de. W e
shal l cal l him Sul e. whi ch i s not hi s
true name. N ot a pl easant prospect, I
contempl ated; an A r ab gui de, and we
A mer i cans the next to bei ng E ngl i sh
in the mi nds of most of the peopl es of
the l evant, and the Engl i sh were f ar
from bei ng in favor wi th the A r abs at
that ti me.
M y musi ng w as i nterrupted by hi s
questi on, Shal l we proceed on our
j ourney at once?
Befor e I coul d repl y, the A meri can
E xpr ess representati ve w as bi ddi ng us
farew el l and hasti l y reti ri ng. T ur ni ng
to Sul e, I answ er ed wi th a questi on,
Three hundred seventy-two
Shal l we take our ci nema equi pment
wi th us now, or j ust our sti l l camer as?
L et us i nvesti gate the si tes now.
T her efor e, take your sti l l camer as; to
morrow, the ci nema, he sai d in hi s
charmi ng accent.
I n l ess than h al f an hour we were off.
Sul e had engaged two r obust A r ab
porters to car r y our G r aphl ex, tri pod,
pl ates, and other par apher nal i a. N o
automobi l es bei ng avai l abl e, w e w al ked,
feel i ng qui te uncomfortabl e in the hot
sun. T h e heat di scour aged unnecessar y
conversati on. O ur comments w ere in
monosyl l abl es.
W e stopped befor e one of J er usal em's
hi stori cal and massi ve tri pl e gates now
but a gr eat stone ar chw ay through
whi ch pedestr i ans and pack burros al i ke
tread. Ever yw her e shop w i ndow s were
boar ded, creati ng a depr essi ng atmos
phere, i mpressi ng one wi th the f act that
danger l urked near at hand or w as ex
pected momentari l y. N ati ves stood i dl y,
l eani ng agai n st shop fronts or bui l di ngs.
T o us they al l seemed to be A r abs,
sol emn, unexpr essi ve, star i ng i nto space.
Some sl ow l y turned thei r heads and
l ooked af ter us. B eggar boys ran up to
us hol di ng out di rty hands, chatteri ng
in A r abi c, some profferi ng cak es for
sal e in fi l thy str aw bask ets whi ch had
been si tti ng on the curbs of the gutter,
and over whi ch fl i es hovered, many al
r eady cover i ng the w ar es. T h e whol e
scene w as, however, pi cturesque: the
remai ni ng porti ons of the once gr eat
w al l s of K i ng D avi d's templ e; the al l ey
l i ke str eets; the r oofs of houses on
ei ther si de, l eani ng unti l they nearl y
touched, as though suppor ti ng each
other in thei r age of near- col l apse.
Bur r os w ere the onl y means of convey
ance, w al ki ng pati entl y, thei r ear s fl ap
pi ng, fl i es buzzi ng about thei r heads,
tr udgi ng under sw ayi ng, cruel burdens.
T h e commerci al l i fe of the ci ty, how
ever, w as obvi ousl y par al yzed, and
there were no touri sts, no outsi der s but
oursel ves.
(To be continued)
V V V
SPECIAL NOTICE TO ALL HIGH DEGREE MEMBERS
AND TO THE HIERARCHY
You are invited to participate in an international, mystical, spiritual, birthday party on
the occasion of the anniversary of the Imerpators birthday on next Thanksgiving Day
(November 25). Arrangements have been made with Frater Michaud of England for a
mystical ceremony to be conducted in the famous London rendezvous. (For a description
of this beautiful rendezvous see pages 24, 25, and 26 of the August, 1937, issue of the
Rosicrucian Forum.) Members are invited to retire to their sanctums, or some other place
of quiet and peace, a few minutes before the hour that this ceremony is to start in London
in cooperation with the Imperator in California. The ceremony will begin at 11:00 P. M.
Greenwich Time, or London Standard Time, on Thanksgiving Day, November 25. In
the United States this will be equivalent to 3:00 P. M. on the afternoon of the same day
Pacific Standard Time; to 4:00 P. M. Mountain Standard Time; to 5:00 P. M. Central
Standard Time; to 6:00 P. M. Eastern Standard Time. The time in Canada, Mexico, and
other parts of the world which will be equivalent to 11:00 P. M. Greenwich Time, can
be determined by a little investigation, using 11:00 P. M. Greenwich Time as a basis.
The ceremony will last fifteen minutes. It will start with the burning of mystical in
cense, and the playing on the violin by Frater Michaud, with piano accompaniment, of
the British National Anthem. This will be followed by our beautiful theme song, "Ah,
Sweet Mystery of Life. The third selection on the violin will remain unnamed, but will
be especially selected for this occasion. Both the Imperator and Frater Michaud will at
tempt during the fifteen minutes of the ceremony to project this music and incense and
the entire vibrations of the ceremony to our higher members, or those who can attune
themselves with this period. This will constitute the largest international psychic audi
ence that we have ever arranged, and the officers of our foreign jurisdictions will co
operate. Any reports regarding this ceremony are to be sent very briefly to the Secretary
to the Imperator at Rosicrucian Park, San Jose, California, with the words, "Birthday
Ceremony" written at the top of the sheet of letter paper.
i
<
<
*
<
<
<
<
<
i
<
i
<
i
<
i
<
*
i
<
<
<
i
<
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
i
<
<
<
i
i
<
i
<
i
<
<
i
<
. i
Three hundred seventy-three
ywww w yr w w w w w w w w w ^vw'i rw ^r 'w y r wwwww^'wwwwwwvwr ' w w w w ^yr 'V'Tr-'
THOMAS CARLYLE
Each month we will present excerpts from the writings of famous thinkers and teachers
of the past. These will give our readers an opportunity of knowing their lives through the
E
resentatlon of those writings which typify their thoughts. Occasionally such writings will
e presented through the translation or interpretation of other eminent authors of the past.
This month we present Thomas Carlyle, the Scottish essayist, critic and historian.
Carlyle was born at Ecclefechan in 1795. After completing his education at Edinburgh
which he entered at fourteenhe spent several years as tutor and schoolmaster, meanwhile
having entered himself as a Student of Divinity. However, after two years of preparation
for the ministry of the K irk of Scotland, to which his father had destined him, Carlyle de
cided that he was unsuited to the calling. During the following two years, which he spent
as a private tutor, he began his literary work.
Two years after his marriage to J ane Welsh monetary difficulties forced them to move
to a dreary country estate belonging to J ane's mother. During the six years which they
spent there Carlyle performed most of his best literary work, including Sartor Resartus.
Finally they moved to London and took a house in Chelsea where they spent the remainder
of their lives. His first work written here was The French Revolution (a fourth of the
ms3. of which was accidentally burned and had to be rewritten). This was not a financial
success, but the series of lectures which he delivered in the next few years, the books
which followed (including the popular Cromwell"), the controversial L atter-Day Pam
phlets, and his new position as a figure in Society, started his fortunes on an upward
trend. This continued during the twelve years he spent writing "Frederick the Great and
he was thus enabled to refuse Disraeli's offer of an honorary order and pension. He lin
gered for eight years after his important literary work was finished, passing on at the
age of eighty-five.
The following quotations on Nature and Heroism are taken from Carlyle's essay on
Mohammed and Mohammedanism.
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
W I L L al l o w a
t h i n g to str uggl e
for i t sel f i n thi s
w o r l d , wi th any
sw or d o r tongue
or i mpl emen t i t
h as, or can l ay
hol d of. W e wi l l
l et i t preach, and
pamphl eteer, an d
fi ght, an d to th e
uttermost besti r i t
sel f, and do, beak
and cl aw s, w hat
soever i s in it; ver y sur e that it wi l l , in
the l ong- run, conquer nothi ng whi ch
does not deser ve to be conquered.
W h at i s better than i tsel f, i t cannot put
aw ay, but onl y w hat i s worse. I n thi s
gr eat Duel , N atur e her sel f i s umpi re,
and can do no w r ong: the thi ng whi ch
i s deepest- r ooted in N atur e, w hat we
cal l truest, that thi ng and not the other
wi l l be found gr ow i ng at l ast.
H er e how ever , we ar e to remember
w hat an umpi re N atur e i s; w hat a
gr eatn ess, composure of depth and tol
erance there i s in her. Y ou take w heat
to cast i nto the E ar th 's bosom: your
w heat may be mi xed wi th chaff, chop
ped str aw , bar n- sw eepi ngs, dust and al l
i magi nabl e rubbi sh; no matter: you cast
i t i nto the ki nd j ust E ar th ; she grow s
the w heat, the whol e rubbi sh she
si l entl y absor bs, shr ouds it in, says
nothi ng of the rubbi sh. T h e yel l ow
w heat i s gr ow i ng there; the good E ar th
i s si l ent about al l the r est, has si l entl y
turned al l the r est to some benefi t too,
and makes no compl ai nt about it! So
everyw here in N atur e! She i s true and
not a l i e; and yet so gr eat, and j ust, and
motherl y in her truth. She requi res of a
thi ng onl y that i t be genui ne of heart;
Three hundred seventy-four
she wi l l protect i t i f so; wi l l not, i f not
so. T h er e i s a soul of truth in al l the
thi ngs she ever gave harbor to. A l as, i s
not thi s the hi story of al l hi ghest T r uth
that comes or ever came i nto the worl d?
T h e body of them al l i s i mperfecti on, an
el ement of l i ght in dar k ness: to us they
have to come embodi ed in mere L ogi c,
in some merel y scientificT heorem of the
U ni ver se; whi ch cannot be compl ete;
whi ch cannot but be found, one day,
i ncompl ete, erroneous, and so di e and
di sappear . T h e body of al l T r uth di es;
and yet in al l , I say, there i s a soul
whi ch never di es; whi ch in new and
ever- nobl er embodi ment l i ves i mmortal
as man hi msel f! I t i s the w ay wi th N a
ture. T h e genui ne essence of T r uth
never di es. T h at i t be genui ne, a voi ce
from the gr eat D eep of N atur e, there i s
the poi nt at N atur es judgment seat.
W h at we cal l pure or i mpure, i s not
wi th her the fi nal questi on. N ot how
much chaff i s in you; but whether you
have any w heat. P ure? I mi ght say to
many a man: Y es, you ar e pure; pure
enough; but you ar e chaff, i nsi ncere
hypothesi s, hear say, formal i ty; you
never w ere in contact wi th the gr eat
heart of the U ni ver se at al l ; you ar e
pr oper l y nei ther pure nor i mpure; you
ar e nothi ng, N atur e has no busi ness
wi th you.
I t i s a cal umny on men to say that
they ar e roused to heroi c acti on by ease,
hope of pl easur e, recompense,- sugar
pl ums of any ki nd, in thi s w or l d or the
next! I n the meanest mortal there l i es
somethi ng nobl er. T h e poor sw ear i ng
sol di er, hi red to be shot, h as hi s honor
of a sol di er , di fferent from dr i l l - r egul a
ti ons and the shi l l i ng a day. I t i s not to
taste sw eet thi ngs, but to do nobl e and
true thi ngs, and vi ndi cate hi msel f under
G ods H eaven as a god- made M an,
that the poor est son of A dam di ml y
l ongs. Show him the w ay of doi ng that,
the dul l est daydr udge ki ndl es i nto a
hero. T h ey w rong man gr eatl y who say
he i s to be seduced by ease. Di ffi cul ty,
abnegati on, martyrdom, death ar e the
allurements that act on the heart of
man. K i ndl e the i nner geni al l i fe of
hi m, you have a fl ame that bur ns up al l
l ower consi derati ons. N ot happi ness,
but somethi ng hi gher: one sees thi s
even in the fri vol ous cl asses, wi th thei r
poi nt of honor and the l i ke. N ot by
fl atteri ng our appeti tes: no, by aw ak en
i ng the H eroi c that sl umbers in every
heart, can any Rel i gi on gai n fol l owers.
V V V
God and Nature
By Ci a ni s V . T o r t i g, F. R. C.
H ave you heard the T each er answ er when the Seek er questi ons in the Chamber s
of the M i nd?
W h at i s the di fference between G od and N atur e? ask s the Seek er wi thi n.
A nd the teacher soun dl essl y answ er s:
G od i s the I nfi ni te, sour cel ess P ow er, M i nd, and E n er gy from whi ch al l thi ngs
spr i ng. N atur e i s a ser i es of emanati ons or mani festati ons of G od formi ng nat
ural L aw s' whi ch ar e more near l y wi thi n the scope of mans comprehensi on; and
whi ch he may sense i f he f ai l s to comprehend.
G od i s the U ni ver se. N atur e i s a set of i nstruments wi th whi ch the student
attempts to measure or cl assi f y the U ni ver se.
God is the gr eat M athemati ci an. N atur e i s the set of tabl es of mul ti pl i cati on,
etc., whi ch H e gi ves hi s chi l dren that th ey may take the fi rst steps tow ar d a com
prehensi on of hi s reasoni ng.
G od i s a K i ng. N atur e i s a l i st of man dates sent to the subj ects who may never
see H i m.
G od i s the F i r st I nventor. N atur e i s a set of br i ef vei l ed notes whi ch H e has
l eft, and through whi ch we try to under s tand some of H i s si mpl est i nventi ons.
T h ese ar e the thi ngs the T each er r eveal s to the Seek er when they w al k together
al ong the paths of the mi nd.
Three hundred seventy-five
The "Cathedral of the Soul Is a Cosmic meeting place for all minds of the
most advanced and highly developed spiritual members and workers of the
Roslcrudan Fraternity. It Is a focal point of Cosmic radiations and thought
waves from which radiate vibrations of health, peace, happiness, and Inner
awakening. Various periods of the day are set aside when many thousands
of minds are attuned with the Cathedral of the Soul, and others attuning with
the Cathedral at this time will receive the benefit of the vibrations. Those who
are not members of the organization may share in the unusual benefits as well
as those who are members. The book called "Liber 777 describes the periods
for various contacts with the Cathedral. Copies will be sent to persons who
are not members by addressing their request for this book to Friar S. P. C., care
of AMORC Temple, San Jose, California, enclosing three cents In postage
stamps. (Please state whether member or notthis is important.)
1
3!
THE CATHEDRAL ON THE SEA
N O U R r et u r n
from E ur ope thi s
spr i ng, w e found
that on the l ar ge
ocean l i ner there
w as a pl ace set
apar t in the center
o f th e sh i p f or
w hat w as cal l ed a
ch apel ." I t w as
l i k e a sep ar at e
bui l di ng or templ e,
two stor i es hi gh,
w i t h a b al c o n y
The and wi th a ground fl oor seati ng capaci ty
Rosicrucian for sever al hundred i ndi vi dual s, wi th
Digest fi xed pew s or seats, a magni fi cent al tar ,
November stai n ed- gl ass w i ndow s, and al l of the
1937 appur tenances and appoi ntments of a
beauti ful church. C er tai n of the ap
poi ntments made it ver y evi dent that the
chapel coul d r eadi l y and conveni entl y
be used for R oman Cathol i c servi ces,
and in fact, every morni ng there w as
R oman C athol i c mass conducted in al l
of the beauti ful and symbol i cal ri tual of
the R oman Church, wi th a properl y
gow ned pr i est and al tar boys. A nd on
Sun day morni ng there w as a speci al
mass at a l i ttl e l ater hour. I found that
at these Roman C athol i c ser vi ces many
P r otestants and even some J ew s par ti ci
pated in the hol i ness of the hour and
the spi ri tual vi brati ons of the pl ace by
si tti ng qui etl y in the bal cony, not onl y
observi ng the ceremony bei ng conduct
ed on the ground fl oor and at the al tar ,
but actual l y enjoyi ng the rel i gi ous
vi brati ons.
Three hundred seventy-six
But throughout the day and in the
eveni ng, wi th all of the many joyous,
amusi ng, i nstructi ve and other forms of
entertai nment and pasti me that ar e pos
si bl e on a l ar ge shi p wi th i ts gymnasi um,
outdoor swi mmi ng pool , shooti ng gal
l ery, deck games, dances, movi ng pi c
tures and other thi ngs, there w ere i n
di vi dual s and gr oups of i ndi vi dual s who
qui etl y sl i pped i nto thi s chapel and r e
mai ned there in pr ayer and medi tati on
for from ten mi nutes to a hal f hour. O n
such occasi ons the al tar appoi ntments
w ere cl osed up and there w as nothi ng
of a speci al nature vi si bl e in the church
to gi ve i t the di sti ncti on of a Roman
Cathol i c, P r otestant, or even of a J ew
i sh templ e. I t became, in fact, in the
hearts and mi nds of those who par ti ci
pated in these si l ent, pr i vate per i ods of
spi r i tual attunement, a C ath edr al of the
Soul on the H i gh Seas.
A nd there i s somethi ng about the
hours spent on the H i gh Seas that
br i ngs str ongl y to the heart and very
defi ni tel y to the mi nd of man the f act
that there i s a G od, and that the soul
hungers for communi on wi th thi s G od
and for an opportuni ty to expr ess ap
preci ati on and thankful ness for al l that
l i fe gi ves us. W h en one i s out in the
center of the gr eat ocean one seems to
feel more than at any other ti me, not
the smal l ness of man, not the uni mport
ance of man, but the gr eatn ess of man's
soul . T h er e seems to be a near ness of
the heavens and of the spi r i tual real m
and of the Cosmi c K i ngdom. M an
seems to feel and hear a cry from above,
pl eadi ng wi th him and ur gi ng hi m to
sacri fi ce a few mi nutes of hi s physi cal
and mental happi ness to i ndul ge in
communi on and spi ri tual medi tati on.
A nd the chapel on the boat becomes
non- sectari an and cr eedl ess. I t i s a
pl ace to worshi p G od wi thout di sti nc
ti on of dogma or sectar i an i deal s. I n it
one for gets al l other rel i gi ous thoughts
except that here i s an opportuni ty in
si l ence and i mpressi ve spi ri tual vi br a
ti ons to l et the soul l i ft i tsel f up and be
one wi th G od and H i s Di vi ne C on
sci ousness. M an y who went i nto that
chapel duri ng the voyage of the shi p
for pri vate, si l ent pr ayer , sel dom go
around the comer to enter any church
in thei r own nei ghborhoods. Some fel t
i mpel l ed to make a deci si on that af ter
r eachi ng thei r home ci ti es or tow ns they
w oul d vi si t some church r egul ar l y and
i ndul ge more frequentl y in thi s one
practi ce that br i ngs more peace, more
happi ness, more contentment and power
to the soul and body, than any one
other thi ng.
Y ou, too, can have a C athedr al of the
Soul in your home, as in your church, or
as on the H i gh Seas. I f you do not
know the subl i me and transcendental
pl easur e and happi ness of such spi ri tual
i ndul gence as thi s, be sur e to read the
l i ttl e bookl et we offer, enti tl ed L i ber
777, and br i ng i nto your l i fe the one
thi ng that may be most l acki ng, the one
thi ng that may mean more to you now
and in the future, and to your chi l dren
and your home l i fe, and even to your
busi ness, than any of the other gr eat
panaceas that ar e offered by the worl d.
m
m
m
m
m
m
m
m
m
m

ROSICRUCIAN CHRISTMAS GREETING CARDS

It is not more costly to give a distinctive Christmas folder. Therefore, why not send
one that is unique, allegorical, and mystical in its message? We have prepared some
very attractive Christmas folders. Though they are not distinctly Rosicrucian, yet
they have that subde mystical phraseology and symbolism which can be appreciated
by those who understand such things, and will be equally as attractive to those who
do not. They are of two colors, and embossed in gold, and are worded appropriately.
They also contain an attractive, inconspicuous symbol of the Order. There is an en
velope to match each Christmas folder. They can be had at the reasonable price of
6 for 80, or $1.30 for one dozen. We pay postage on the shipment to you. Orders
for less than six cannot be accepted. Order NOW and have your order given prompt
attention. Do not wait until the Christmas congestion of the mails. Address the
Rosicrucian Supply Bureau, San Jose, California.

&

m
m
Three hundred seventy-seven
The
Rosier ucian
Digest
November
1937
Why Will War Never End?
By Co l o n el R. L. Bu sh , F. R. C.
H E ti tl e of thi s ar
t i cl e may seem
p essi mi st i c and,
per haps, di spl eas
i ng. O p t i mi st s,
paci fi sts, and other
si n cer e advocates
of peace, may ob
ject, and ask the
r eason for thi s di s-
c o u r agi n g vi ew,
w h en t h ey have
p l an s r ead y t o
bri ng peace to al l .
But i nstead of di scussi ng the fi tness of
the ti tl e, l et us take a gener al gl ance
over the race l i fe of man from the be
gi nni ng, and see w hy there have been
w ar s, and w hat l aw s have oper ated to
bri ng them about. Befor e star ti ng the
sur vey, l et us recogni ze the exi stence of
the gr eat cosmi c l aw s of Evol uti on,
Sel f- pr eser vati on and the Sur vi val of
the F i ttest. T h ese l aw s ar e uni versal ,
appl yi ng to every form of l i fe from the
l ow est to the hi ghest. U nder them the
str uggl e for exi stence h as gone on si nce
the begi nni ng, and i t wi l l conti nue to
the end.
W h en w e fi rst l earn of M an, in the
dusk precedi ng the daw n of hi story, we
fi nd him l i vi ng l i ke an ani mal , among
the ani mal s, pr eyi ng upon them for
food and cl othi ng, and l i vi ng in caves
or other natural shel ter. T h e l aw of
sel f- pr eser vati on kept him constantl y
seeki ng, and fi ghti ng for, food and other
necessi ti es. H e l i ved i n a constant
str uggl e wi th w eather, savage beasts,
and r i val tri bes of manki nd. G ood
hunti ng gr ounds were vi tal necessi ti es,
and many battl es w ere fought over
them. W h en game became scar ce, new
l ocal i ti es had to be found to ensure an
adequate food suppl y. A n d i f the new
l and w as occupi ed, w ar fol l ow ed to de
termi ne who shoul d hol d it.
A s man gr adual l y r ose above the
l evel of the beast, l earni ng many thi ngs
the use of w eapons, tool s, fi re, etc.
he sti l l l i ved under the same l aw s and
hi s confl i cts conti nued. A s he advanced
in i ntel l i gence and abi l i ty, hi s mode of
l i fe became more settl ed. H e l earned
somethi ng of agr i cul tur e to change and
i ncr ease hi s food suppl y. H e domesti
cated ani mal s, and had hi s fl ocks and
herds, i nstead of hunti ng hi s meat. H e
bui l t houses, and made var i ous arti cl es
for use and comfort. H i s needs grew
wi th the possi bi l i ti es of suppl y, and,
l earni ng that other gr oups in var i ous
pl aces had thi ngs he needed metal s,
cl oth, foods, spi ces, and al l manner of
desi r abl e pr oducts, he establ i shed a sy s
tem of bar ter . A nd the resul ti ng tr ade-
routes i ntroduced a new cause for war.
So val uabl e were the car goes of the
car avans and shi ps tr aver si ng these
tr ade routes, that they became pri zes to
be taken by anyone who had the power.
G r eat w as the ri val ry for the possessi on
or control of these l i nes of suppl y. I f
we sear ch car eful l y i nto the underl yi ng
causes of w ar , i gnori ng the often tri vi al
causes gi ven by hi stor i ans, we fi nd
that i n the back gr ound, often unrecog
ni zed, i s thi s questi on of trade- r outes.
Three hundred seventy-eight
C ovetousness, j eal ousy and hatr ed ar e
among the passi ons they arouse, l eadi ng
to constant str i fe.
T h e general pri nci pl e of acti on in
these problems is best expressed by the
fami l i ar coupl et:
L et hi m take who has the power,
A nd l et hi m keep who can.
A nother frui tful cause for w ar i s
found in the mi grati ons throughout hi s
tory. T h ese may be due to desi r e for
adventure, to greed for gol d or power,
to di spl acement by str onger r aces, or to
cl i mati c changes. W hen, in the course
of the ages, a change of cl i mate di mi n
i shes the food suppl y, man must move
to a more favor abl e l ocal i ty. T h i s move
wi l l be r esented by the i nhabi tants of the
new pl ace, and w ar wi l l fol l ow unti l the
w eaker race i s dri ven out, or absor bed.
M i gr ati ons, such as were forced by
the extensi on of the A r cti c i ce- cap over
par ts of N or th A meri ca, resul ted in a
gener al shi fti ng of popul ati on, accom
pani ed by conti nual w ar s. T h e gr eat
movement of the A r yan r aces from the
central pl ateau of A si a i nto I ndi a,
P er si a, E ur ope, and A meri ca, has been
the cause of mi l l enni ums of str uggl e,
and the end i s not yet.
A s the ki ngdoms of earth ar e appor
ti oned among the nati ons accor di ng to
thei r strength, and abi l i ty to get and to
hol d, there i s a l ul l in the confl i ct, and
l i fe goes on in compar ati ve peace for a
ti me. But, one day, a vi gor ous, prol i fi c
peopl e fi nds i ts boundar i es too cramped,
i ts food suppl y i nadequate for i ts
crow ded peopl e, and some r eadj ustment
i s i mperati ve. I f a nei ghbori ng l ess-
pr ogr essi ve nati on has more l and than it
can, or wi l l , use, the cr ow ded peopl e
wi l l pr obabl y ar gue that they ar e en
ti tl ed to suppl y thei r needs oy taki ng
w hat i s not bei ng used. M er e occu
pancy, wi thout use, they say, does not
j usti f y hol di ng l and needed by others.
W e have an i nstance of thi s in our
I ndi an troubl es. T h e w eak r ed r ace had
vast terri tory whi ch w as used onl y for
hunti ng, and a l i ttl e pri mi ti ve agr i cul
ture. T h e l and necessar y to suppor t one
I ndi an fami l y w oul d provi de for a hun
dred whi te ones. T h e l atter needed such
l and, and they w ere abl e and wi l l i ng to
use i t to i ts ful l capaci ty. U nder such
condi ti ons, the l aw s of Suppl y and D e
mand brought the i nevi tabl e r esu l t ,-
Three hundred seventy-nine
and the w eak had to yi el d to the str ong.
M an y tr eati es were made wi th the I n
di ans to pr otect thei r r i ghts, but the
government coul d not enforce them.
T h e peopl e were l and- hungr y, so they
went in, and took i t in spi te of treati es.
U n j ust? Y es, no doubt it i s, from the
l i mi ted poi nt of vi ew of the l oser. But
behi nd i t ar e the raci al trends and the
fundamental l aw s of nature that over
ri de al l man- made l aw s.
W e can fi nd a paral l el to thi s in
Geol ogy. C onsi der condi ti ons found in
the cool i ng, shri nki ng str ata of the
ear th s cr ust. D ue to var i ous causes,
str esses among the str ata appear , and
gr ow unti l the breaki ng poi nt i s reach
ed. T h en w e have ear thquakes, erup
ti ons, and var i ous cal ami ti es i nci dental
to the pr ocess of r eadjustment. A f ter
thi s there i s usual l y qui et for a ti me,
unti l new str ai ns devel op and a new
cycl e begi ns.
A si mi l ar condi ti on exi sts among the
nati ons confi ned wi thi n boundar i es too
nar r ow for thei r needs. T h ey exper i
ence str esses due to shor tage of food,
excess popul ati on, unempl oyment, and
so on, unti l the str ai n becomes unbear
abl e, and a cri si s comes, expand or
per i sh whi ch means w ar.
T h i s has happened many ti mes in the
past, and i t i s happeni ng today, not
abl y in J apan, I tal y, and Germany.
T h ese nati ons ar e cal l ed I mperi al i sti c,
and ar e accused of vi ol ati ng treati es,
and of endangeri ng the peace of the
worl d. A l l of whi ch i s no doubt true.
But there may be somethi ng to be sai d
in defense, not of thei r methods but
moti ve. A car eful anal ysi s of condi ti ons
mi ght, and probabl y woul d, di scl ose the
acti on of some of these for ces beyond
human control .
R emedi es avai l abl e in former ti mes,
such as movi ng to new, unoccupi ed, or
l ess cr ow ded l ands har dl y appl y today,
wi th most of the habi tabl e l and al r eady
di vi ded among the nati ons. So when
the str esses of growth become too gr eat,
w hat wi l l happen? Some sol uti on must
be found. But where?
L aw s and treati es ar e pow erl ess to
control such forces. W e cannot sup
pr ess natur al tendenci es by l aw. C ount
l ess l aw s have been enacted agai n st
cri me, but cri me goes steadi l y on, per
haps w or se than ever befor e. W e tri ed
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
to control the nati onal thi rst by l aw, but
it coul d not be done.
M an di d not make the Cosmi c l aw s
that underl i e the condi ti ons whi ch pr o
duce w ar , and he cannot change or sup
pr ess them. H e can onl y adapt hi msel f
to them, r eal i zi ng that they ar e w orki ng
together for good. H e can, and must,
do al l in hi s pow er to l essen the horr or
and destructi on of w ar when i t comes,
whi l e he uses every possi bl e means to
w ar d peaceful adj ustments to rel i eve
the tensi on befor e the crash.
T h e hi stor y of M an i s a stor y of
storm and str ess. Y et i t i s l ess so than
in the ol d d ay s;and maybe V i r gi l w as
in par t a seer , when, l ooki ng for w ar d
to a di ml y seen, far- off ti me, he san g:
T hen shal l the har sh ages grow mi l d,
w ar s bei ng put asi de. Y et we have no
r eason to bel i eve that the str uggl e on
earth i s to cease whol l y. A s sai d before,
it wi l l go on among pl ants and ani mal s.
A nd w hy shoul d man be an excepti on
to uni versal l aw ?
W h at does i t al l mean? I s it that the
str uggl e i s the preordai ned l aw of l i fe?
I s i t onl y by thi s r ugged path that we
may attai n the hi ghest excel l ence? M an
must l i ve hi s l i fe on earth under the i n
exor abl e condi ti ons of these l aw s. A nd
as he hol ds to hi s fai th in an over- rul i ng
and al l - w i se G od, he must bel i eve that
somehow i t i s better so, and that the
battl e and the str ess ar e steppi ng- stones
to a hi gher type of bei ng. T h i s much
shoul d be cl ear, that the str uggl e of
the ages i s the w orkshop in whi ch i s the
maki ng of M an.
T h e el i mi nati on of w ar can be ac
compl i shed onl y by the sl ow pr ocess of
educati on and devel opment. W e cannot
change our char acter s over ni ght. I n
hi s book, T h e D aw n of Consci ence,
P r of . Br easted str esses the urgent need,
in thi s country, of character above al l
el se. W h at he cal l s the A ge of C h ar
acter began sever al thousand year s ago,
and i t i s onl y j ust star ted. W e need to
di rect the educati on of youth wi th
speci al emphasi s on the devel opment of
char acter , honesty, honor, sense of duty,
respect for l aw, consi derati on for the
ri ghts of others, and so on. L et us have
l ess of W h at do I get out of i t? , and
more of L or d, w hat w oul dst T h ou
have me to do?
T h e trai ni ng of the i ndi vi dual must
begi n at home. Br easted say s, T h er e
i s one supreme human rel ati onshi p, that
whi ch has cr eated the home, and made
the fami l y fi resi de the sour ce out of
whi ch mans hi ghest qual i ti es have
grow n up to transform the w orl d. A s
hi stori cal fact, i t i s to the fami l y l i fe
that we owe the gr eatest debt whi ch
mi nd of man can concei ve.
I n such homes wi l l gr ow up mi nds
w hose i nfl uence wi l l spr ead l i ke the
l eaven that w as hi d in the measur es of
meal unti l the whol e w as l eavened.
A few fami l i es wi l l form a group wi th
a pow er that wi l l be fel t in the com
muni ty. A s these gr oups i ncr ease in
numbers and power, they wi l l form
centers of thought force from whi ch
wi l l go out the creati ve mi nd- power
w hose i nfl uence wi l l be enormous.
A s R osi cr uci ans we have l earned how
to use the creati ve pow er of the mi nd,
and we know the effect of the rei n
forced ener gy of the mass- mi nd when
pr oper l y di rected. O ur i nfl uence as an
or gani zati on and as i ndi vi dual s shoul d
be di rected to thi s end, not by tryi ng to
change the Cosmi c l aw s, but by di rect
i ng and changi ng the form of thei r
mani festati on. A nd, some day, the
w orl d wi l l more ful l y recogni ze the true
Brotherhood of M an, and wi l l be more
vi tal l y i nterested in appl yi ng to al l
M ank i nd the Gol den Rul e, and the
di vi ne i njuncti on to l ove our nei ghbors
as our sel ves.
A s Br easted say s, T h e pr ocess of
human advance i s sti l l goi ng on. T h e
possi bi l i ti es of i ts future ar e unlimited.
. . . . J ust as the l i ght of char acter once
daw ned in a dar k ness whi ch had never
known such a l i ght befor e, so there i s
no r eason to doubt the growth of that
l i ght to i l l umi ne r eal ms of bei ng that
sti l l l i e al l unreal i zed in the unfathomed
ages tow ar d whi ch our l i mi ted vi si on of
today l ook s out, but does not see.
I t wi l l tak e l ong to reach thi s happy
state; it may be centuri es; i t may be
eons. But i f the seed be car eful l y and
pr ayer f ul l y sow n and tended, in due
ti me w e shal l r eap i f we fai nt not.
T ho* the toi l and the str i fe ar e heavy,
A nd sor e, si nce the w orl d began;
A nd the str ess, and the battl i ng cease
not,
Y et, the end i s T h e M ak i n g of M an .
Three hundred eighty
Each hour of the day flnda the men of science cloistered unostentatiously in
laboratories, investigating nature's mysteries and extending the boundaries of
knowledge. The world at large, although profiting by their labors, oftentimes is
deprived of the pleasure of reviewing their work, since general periodicals and
publications announce only those sensational discoveries which appeal to the
popular imagination.
I t is with pleasure, therefore, that we afTord our readers a monthly summary
of some of these scientific researches, and briefly relate them to the Rosicruclan
philosophy and doctrines. To the Science J ournal, unless otherwise specified,
we give full credit for all matter which appears in quotations.
Earth Made to Order for Him?
T I S not st r an ge
that anci ent man
b el i ev ed he had
found in the pr i n
ci pal ph en om en a
of earth and the
C o smo s, p r o o f
t h at al l t h i n gs
w er e cr eated f o r
hi s speci al benefi t,
and that the earth
al o n e w as to be
t en an t ed by hi s
ki nd. T h e l aw of
l i fe, sel f- pr eser vati on, w h i c h c au ses
every protopl asm, each mi nute cel l ,
every l i vi ng thi ng, to repel i nfl uences
whi ch woul d bri ng about i ts exti ncti on,
i s r esponsi bl e for thi s egoti sti cal vi ew.
T h i s i nsti ncti ve ur ge to l i ve, when
anal yzed by a r easoni ng bei ng, en
gender s the concept that exi stence i t
sel f, and the desi r e to conti nue to exi st,
gi ves one the right to do so. T h i s con
cl usi on fol l ow s such ar guments as, I
have not ask ed for l i fe, but havi ng it, I
have a ri ght to pr eser ve i t and enj oy i t.'
M an, of course, obser ved in other
l i vi ng thi ngs, mammal s, bi r ds, repti l es
and fi sh, the reacti on to thi s same urge,
and that each l i vi ng thi ng fought for
domi nati on. But concomi tant wi th man's
actual supr emacy over the mammal s,
w as the devel opment of the i ntel l ect by
whi ch he coul d appr eci ate the facul ty
by whi ch he made hi s conquest. By
compari son, he w as abl e to di scern that
he al one possessed thi s uni que attri bute
to such a degree. T h i s gave him super
i ori ty then, not al one in accompl i shment,
but in bei ng endowed wi th the means
by whi ch the accompl i shment w as made
possi bl e. O ur bel i efs shape the nature
of our i nqui ri es, and many ti mes unfor
tunatel y col or the truth. I n each mani
festati on of nature man sought onl y
that whi ch woul d confi rm hi s convi cti on
of hi s speci al i mportance in the uni verse.
T o j usti f y hi msel f, hi s ear l y cosmol ogi
cal theori es depi cted the earth on whi ch
he l i ved as ei ther the center of the uni
ver se, or the l ar gest of al l of the Cosmi c
bodi es, because it w as hi s habi tat.
F or centuri es these concepts defi ed
sci enti fi c fi ndi ngs to the contr ary, and
even many metaphysi cal abstr acti ons,
because of the strength of the suppor t
they recei ved from rel i gi on. W i th the
i nevi tabl e fal l of dogmati sm, and the
advance of rati onal i sm, mans opi ni on
depr eci ated the pl ace of the earth i n the
C osmi c scheme. I t took a back seat in
i ts r i ghtful or der wi th the r est of the
pl anets. T h at l i fe, l i ke al l other mani -
Three hundred eighty-one
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
festati ons, w as par t of a uni versal , C os
mic order, w as gener al l y accepted.
Fur ther , the theory that the earth
al one w as sel ected by Di vi ne D ecr ee as
the theatre of mans acti vi ti es, w as de
nounced as theol ogi cal supposi ti on, un
suppor ted by any exampl e to be found
in nature. J ust as certai n chemi cal com
pounds of whi ch natur es forms ar e
composed, coul d successf ul l y be pr o
duced in the test tube of the l abor ator y,
so al so i t w as thought that l i fe coul d be
produced w herever the condi ti ons i t re
qui res exi sted. M an w as no excepti on.
I f the other pl anets affor ded condi ti ons
l i ke those of the earth whi ch i t w as
thought as fi rst they must then, and
gi ven ti me, man coul d al so exi st there.
T h e f act that it w as eventual l y real i zed
that the other bodi es in space di d not
have condi ti ons whi ch dupl i cated ours,
and that a human on them coul d not be
as we ar e, di d not di scour age these
thi nkers and specul ator s. T h ei r repl y
to such fi ndi ngs w as, M ust man el se
where exactl y resembl e the man of earth
in form? M ay not l i fe el sew here- as
do l i vi ng thi ngs on ear th have adapted
i tsel f to an enti rel y di fferent envi ron
ment? M ay not man el sewhere be an
i ntel l i gence equal to ours, yet physi
ol ogi cal l y di fferent?
T h e fact that our earth man under no
ci rcumstances coul d tol erate the ex
tremes of cl i mati c and atmospheri c con
di ti ons of the other pl anets, does not
mean that l i fe whi ch may have come to
those gl obes in the heavens eons ago,
di d not devel op physi cal and or gani c
char acter i sti cs to r esi st the gr adual
changes i t confronted. I t i s the i ntel l i
gence of a human, they contend, whi ch
di sti ngui shes hi m as such, as much as
hi s physi cal structure. C onsequentl y,
human i ntel l i gence mi ght dwel l on the
pl anets and be confi ned in a form un
l i ke anythi ng earth man has ever seen.
W i thi n the l ast century, sci ence has
scoffed at these vi ew s and at l i fe in any
form exi sti ng outsi de of the favor abl e
envi ronment of earth. L i fe, bi ol ogi cal l y
speak i ng, i s in need of certai n factor s,
whether it i s in the compl ex form of
man, or the si mpl e amoeba. I f these ar e
absent, the mysteri ous l i fe force di sap
pear s. W e now appar entl y have com
pl eted the cycl e of bel i ef that the uni
ver se i s i nhabi ted by humans. W e have
returned agai n to the theory that the
earth al one shel ter s man, al though we
sti l l cl i ng f ast to the bel i ef that possi bl y
si mpl e bacter i a may exi st on some of
the pl anets. I nstead of rel i gi on now
fosteri ng thi s vi ew of the i mportance of
earth to man, as in the past, at thi s ti me
i t i s sponsor ed by sci ence. O n the other
hand, i f i t is true that the earth al one
possesses l i fe, thi s uni que si tuati on wi l l
then upset some very rati onal meta
physi cal theori es to the contr ary. I s it
possi bl e that i ntel l i gences can exi st
wi thout form, and wi thout a l i fe energy,
as we know it, and that they mi ght re
si de on our nei ghbori ng pl anets?
T h at sci ence i s gi vi ng thi s hi ghl y i n
tri gui ng and specul ati ve subj ect thought,
i s i ndi cated by P r of essor N evi l V i ncent
Si dgw i ck s addr ess befor e the Sci ence
A ssoci ati on recentl y. P r of essor Si dg-
wi ck i s of the U ni ver si ty of O xf or d
facul ty. H e decl ar ed that out of the
possi bl e bi l l i on- degree r ange of temper
ature whi ch can exi st from the col dest
depths of i nter stel l ar space to the cen
ters of fl ami ng star s, chemi cal mol ecul es
and therefore l i f e can exi st onl y be
tween 6,000 degr ees absol ute, temper a
tures l i ke those of the sur f ace of the
sun, and the temper ature of l i qui d ai r at
100 degr ees above absol ute zero. A ctu
al l y, 6,000 degr ee temper atures ar e
twi ce as hot as el ectri c ar cs, made by
man, and f ar above those temper atures
that can suppor t l i fe. G r eatest temper a
ture restri cti on of l i fe i s the necessi ty
that or gani sms have to have some l i qui d
to act as a l ubri cant. W ater i s that
l ubri cant, so l i fe can not exi st where the
temper ature i s consi stentl y bel ow i ts
freezi ng poi nt or hotter than i ts boi l i ng
poi nt, a r ange of 100 degr ees C enti
gr ade. O ther restri cti ons on l i fe ar e that
i t must occur on the sur f aces of pl anets
i f r adi ant ener gy i s to be uti l i zed. A l so
i t wi l l have to occur on a pl anet of j ust
the ri ght si ze. I f the pl anet i s too smal l ,
l i ke the moon, al l i ts atmosphere wi l l fl y
aw ay i nto space; i f the pl anet i s too
heavy i t keeps too much of i ts atmos
phere. T h e thi ck cl ouds prevent the
pl anet from getti ng the r adi ant energy
from i ts par ent star and it i s too col d to
permi t l i fe. O f the pl anets of the sol ar
(Concluded on Page 389)
Three hundred eighty-two
Building a Personal Philosophy
By T h e Su pr eme Sec r et a r y
Pa r t I I .
O W we advance to
w hat i s the ex
ternal . H ow sepa
r ate i s man from
the w o r l d about
hi m the w orl d of
thi ngs, the w orl d
of hi s ever yday?
I s man absol utel y
separ ate and apar t
from i t? W e know
sci ence has proven
that the chemi cal
i n g r e d i e n t s of
man's body ar e found and do exi st in
other thi ngs about us; so w e have an af
fi ni ty wi th the physi cal w or l d i n sof ar as
our bodi es ar e concerned, and w e know
they ar e not uni que and di sti nct in the
sense that they contai n pr oper ti es and
qual i ti es not to be found el sew here in
the exter nal worl d. T hen, i f our bodi es
ar e exactl y the same as many other el e
ments or contai n el ements exactl y the
same as may be found in the w orl d
about us, how i s i t that w e defi ne thi s
w orl d of thi ngs as not bei ng our bodi es?
I n other w or ds, i f there ar e certai n
chemi cal el ements that have exi stence
the same as our bodi es, w hy do we not
al so cal l them our bodi es? I s i t not be
cause of the fact that through some
str an ge attri bute or functi on of our n a
ture, we ar e abl e to percei ve through
sensati on, these thi ngs of the w or l d on
the one hand and ourselves on tke
other?
W e fi nd, therefore, there i s a dual i ty
of percepti on. T her e may be a same
ness i nsofar as the el ements of our body
ar e concerned and the el ements of the
thi ngs around us, but we do havea r eal
i zati on or comprehensi on of the l atter
as not bei ng a par t of us. T hen, i f that
i s so, ar e we separ atel y cr eated that i s,
ar e we a spontaneous creati on that came
i nto exi stence as man? D o we wi sh to
bel i eve that, or do we wi sh to bel i eve
that there ar e two ki nds of matter, ani
mate and i nani mate. O ne form of mat
ter, the ani mate i s so desi gnated because
i t seems to have certai n qual i ti es or
functi ons whi ch the i nani mate matter
does not have. D o w e pr efer to bel i eve
that man i s a more compl ex form of l i v
i ng thi ngs or of ani mate matter? W e
fi nd si mpl e cel l s and mari ne or gani sms
exi sti ng si de by si de wi th man. D oes
that mean that these cel l s and si mpl e
or gani sms have through ages evol ved
i nto man, and that the pr ocess of evol v
i ng i nto man i s sti l l goi ng on ar ound us
constantl y? T h i s we must answ er to
our sel ves.
Sh al l we rather take the vi ew that the
anci ent Stoi cs took? M i nd, they sai d, i s
the cause of al l , mi nd per meates al l
thi ngs, and the functi ons of man ar e
not di sti nctl y separ ate in the uni verse
from the functi ons of a l owl y rock or a
bl ade of gr ass. T h e functi ons of ever y
thi ng ar e the resul t of the same i ntel l i
gence, the same pneuma, as they cal l ed
i t, but mani fest di fferentl y accor di ng to
Three hundred eighty-three
the scal e of thei r devel opment. I n i n
ani mate matter, rocks, stones and sand,
and in the el ements, atoms and mol e
cul es, thi s pneuma, thi s i ntel l i gence,
mani fests as certai n l aw s or as the
or der of matter whi ch becomes known to
us as the phenomena of magnetism, co
hesion and adhesion. A nd in the more
compl ex forms of matter, in l i vi ng
thi ngs, in man for exampl e, thi s same
order, thi s same i ntel l i gence mani fests
as mi nd and as i ntel l i gence.
A r e we to bel i eve then, that mans
facul ti es ar e not uni que, but have come
to hi m from the thi ngs out of whi ch he
has evol ved? Sh al l we accept the evo
l uti onary pri nci pl es of A r i stotl e? Shal l
we say that al l l i vi ng thi ngs have soul ,
but that the soul of each l ower thi ng be
comes the attr i butes of the body of the
next hi gher thi ng in the scal e? A r i stotl e
sai d that pl ants have soul s, that the soul
of a pl ant i s i ts functi ons of nutrition
and reproduction, that the soul of an
ani mal i s i ts functi ons of locomotion, the
abi l i ty to move i tsel f at wi l l , and sensa
tion. But the ani mal h as not l ost i ts
l ower soul , the pl ant soul , for i t too
h as th e functi ons o f nutri ti on an d
reproducti on.
T h en w hat of man? A r i stotl e say s in
man ar e found al l of the soul s of the
l ower l i vi ng thi ngs in other w or ds,
their functions. I n man they become i n
stead of soul merel y the functi ons of hi s
body, for man has the functi ons of the
pl ant, nutri ti on and reproducti on, the
functi ons of the ani mal , sensati on and
l ocomoti on, but he has hi s own uni que
functi on or soul , say s A r i stotl e, and
that i s reason. So w e must consi der
these thi ngs car eful l y when we thi nk of
the exter nal w orl d, and our rel ati on to
i t in formi ng our per sonal phi l osophy.
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
N ow , as to man himself, the third
poi nt of our tri une state. I s he i m
mortal ? W e can qui ckl y say yes, but
most of us w oul d say so onl y because of
custom, habi t and tradi ti on, because for
centuri es w e have been taught by r e
l i gi ous i nsti tuti ons and soci eti es and by
phi l osophi cal di scour ses that man h as a
soul , and we have come to accept the
bel i ef that he has. We must not, i f we
ar e to be fai r to our sel ves, establ i sh a
personal phi l osophy based on tradi ti on
al and customary bel i efs but r ather re
sor t onl y to our per sonal experi ences,
r easoni ng and anal ysi s. So w e say,
W h at of man coul d be i mmortal ?
Str an ge, the more w e thi nk about it.
the more we have to agr ee wi th P l ato
and say that l i fe i tsel f i s i mmortal , for
l i fe i mmortal i zes i tsel f through r epr o
ducti on, through per petuati ng the genus
or ki nd and as w e bri ng forth offspri ng
and perpetuate our ki nd, we ar e im
mortal i zi ng l i fe. A l though we as i n
di vi dual s may di e, yet our ki nd con
ti nues, because of reproducti on, and
thus we have i mmortal i zed l i fe. But
most of the r el i gi ous and phi l osophi cal
doctri nes concerned wi th i mmortal i ty
ar e not r eferri ng to l i fe i tsel f, or to the
body, but to the i ndi vi dual . T h ey refer
to sel f and what of self?
Sel f i s that real i zati on that you ar e
separ ate and apar t from any other be
i ng. I t i s that str an ge k now l edge of sel f
exi stence. I t i s that facul ty that you
have when you ar e al one in a dar k
rooimwhen you cannot see, or even i f
it were al so i mpossi bl e for you to hear,
taste, feel or smel l of aw ar eness of
your sel f. T her ef or e, i s that know l edge
of sel f per petuated? D oes i t conti nue
to exi st af ter the body? T h at i s the
probl em of i mmortal i ty. Epi cur us, the
anci ent G r eek phi l osopher sai d that
where we are, death is not. H e meant
by that that when w e ar e consci ous of
our sel ves, death does not exi st at that
ti me to us, or w e w oul d not have that
consci ousness of sel f . H e al so sai d
where death is we are not. I n other
w or ds, w here death exi sts, there i s no
consci ousness or no know l edge of sel f.
W h at we w ant to know then, i n consi d
eri ng i mmortal i ty i s, when death does
come, ar e we not? I n other w or ds, does
sel f al so di e, or i s i t i mmortal i zed?
P resumi ng now that you have gi ven
sati sf actor y answ er s to the questi ons,
w hat i s the nature of man, the nature of
the exter nal w orl d and your rel ati onshi p
to it, and the cause of al l , you sti l l are
faced wi th the questi on, W h at i s the
fi nal end; why l i fe; why man? W e can
not be dul l or stupi d enough to conti nue
j ust to accept l i fe wi thout knowi ng why
we ar e accepti ng it, to dr i ft al ong wi th
the ti mes, wi thout knowi ng w hy we
conti nue to dr i ft and be sati sfi ed to do
so. I t w oul d be l i ke the man who ap
Three hundred eighty-four
proached the ti cket sel l er at a r ai l r oad
depot wi ndow and stated, I w ant a
rai l r oad ti cket. A nd when he w as
ask ed where to, he sai d, I dont know;
I j ust w ant to travel and I do not know
where, how or why, I j ust w ant to go.
I t w as an i di oti c answ er, but there ar e
many who ar e l i vi ng l i ves that ar e just
as i di oti c. T h ey have been gi ven a l i fe
whi ch they di d not ask for, and ar e per
fectl y content to accept i t and to go
al ong wi th it, wi thout havi ng any
know l edge of w hat i t i s and w hy they
l i ve at al l .
T o get the ful l est enjoyment out of
l i fe, one must feel that he has been
gi ven l i fe to ser ve a certai n end, to ac
compl i sh somethi ng, that he i s an i mpl e
ment or tool . C er tai nl y no one w oul d
tramp al ong the r oad car r yi ng an axe,
a heavy, tw o- bl aded axe, j ust because i t
had been gi ven to hi m, wi thout fi rst
knowi ng i ts pur pose or functi on and
second, whether he coul d use i t, and
thi rd, whether he w anted i t; yet many
ar e car r yi ng l i f es vi ci ssi tudes, the bur
den of i ts many unfavor abl e experi ences
in the same w ay, wi thout know i ng why,
wi thout even tryi ng to form some opi n
ion as to why. I t i s thi s tr ampi ng al ong
wi th the axe on the shoul der, in other
w or ds dr i fti ng in a non- under standabl e
state, that causes unnecessar y mi sfor
tune and gr i ef.
W e must concl ude, as di d most of the
anci ent phi l osopher s and as do the l ead
ers of many of our modern school s of
thought, that the end and pur pose of
l i fe as f ar as man i s concerned, i s
thorough happiness, and happi ness can
onl y be i nterpreted as pl easur e; but un
for tunatel y too many per sons i nterpret
that pl easur e as meani ng physi cal pl eas
ure stri ctl y, the grati fi cati on of physi cal
senses. P hysi cal pl easur es ar e i l l usi on-
ar y, transi ent they ar e negative.
P hysi cal pl easur es ar e not pl easur es
whi ch ar e sought for in thei r own ri ght.
A t fi rst hand, thi s does not seem true,
but it i s correct. P hysi cal pl easur es ar e
those whi ch can onl y ar i se from the do
i ng aw ay wi th some i rri tati on, desi re,
appeti te or annoyance. P hysi cal pl eas
ures ar e provoked, and ar i se when we
return from an abnormal to a normal
state or condi ti on.
P hysi cal pl easur es or negative ones,
Epi cur us sai d, ar e l i ke those that come
Three hundred eighty-five
from the scr atchi ng of an i tch. Y ou
fi rst must have the itch befor e you can
have the pl easur e of scr atchi ng it. T h ey
ar e not l asti ng, and the l onger the itch
i s scr atched, the l ess the pl easur e, and
the onl y w ay you can i ncr ease the i n
tensi ty of such a pl easur e i s to make the
i tch quite severe and the morefrequent
l y you scr atch, the l ess the i tch returns,
and, therefore, the l ess the pl easure.
T h at i s w hy w e fi nd so many per sons
wi th j aded appeti tes, who fi nd l i fe dul l
and monotonous. T h ey have scratched
ever y i tch they have and there ar e no
more physi cal pl easur es l eft. L i fe be
comes dul l and i nsi pi d.
P l easur es whi ch ar e sought for thei r
own sak es, not to remove an itch or i r
ri tati on or a cravi ng or desi re, never
grow dul l . T h ose pl easur es ar e the
positive pl easur es of the mi nd. I f we
create in the mi nd an i deal , somethi ng
we w ant to accompl i sh, set a goal ,
whatever i t may be, in musi c, art, the
bui l di ng up of a busi ness or an i nsti tu
ti on, or the bui l di ng up of our fami l y, or
the bri ngi ng i nto the w orl d of chi l dren
whom we wi sh to be an asset to human
i ty those pl easur es ar e never di mmed
because as we appr oach the i deal , the
i deal gr adual l y changes and tr anscends
i ts former sel f . Such i deal s ar e al w ays
j ust a step above us, and thus w e ar e al
w ays draw n to them. W e al w ays gain
pl easur e in tryi ng to real i ze an i deal be
cause w e never qui te catch up wi th it.
T h us the mental pl easur es ar e the best.
P l ato sai d that the onl y w ay man can
tel l whi ch pl easur es ar e the best, those
of the body or those of the mi nd, i s by
i ndul gi ng in both. A schol ar or student,
he stated, has know l edge of both. H e
natur al l y has know l edge of the physi cal
pl easur es, because he i s a human bei ng,
but he h as al so know l edge of the pl eas
ur es of the mi nd. T h us he i s the best
j udge. A man who has experi enced onl y
the physi cal pl easur es cannot be a j udge
because he has not experi enced those of
the mi nd. T h us we must say that our
fi nal end in l i fe seems to be to become
thor oughl y consci ous of our sur r ound
i ngs, thor oughl y fami l i ar wi th them and
tryi ng to harmoni ze our exi stence wi th
the or der of the uni verse. W e shoul d
try to under stand our duty and obl i ga
ti on to soci ety and to our fel l owman.
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
W e wi l l then gai n pl easur e from our ac
compl i shments, from our creati ve acti vi
ti es, and fi nd real happi ness, whi ch i s
the gr eatest thi ng l i fe can afford us.
T h er e ar e certai n danger s, however,
in the establ i shment of a per sonal phi l o
sophy. Be sur e that the phi l osophy you
adopt is yours per sonal l y then bel i eve
in it and be convi nced that you ar e ri ght.
A l ong these l i nes I woul d l i ke to state
an experi ence I recentl y had. A young
man who i s qui te phi l osophi cal l y mi nded
and h as a very excel l ent mi nd and
spl endi d pow ers of r easoni ng, w as pr e
par i ng for a phi l osophy exami nati on in
one of the uni versi ti es in thi s vi ci ni ty.
O n sever al occasi ons for a few w eeks
befor e the exami nati on, we had l ong
di scussi ons whi ch I thoroughl y enjoyed.
O ne ni ght j ust about three or four days
befor e he w as actual l y to take hi s ex
ami nati on, he came to me and stated,
W el l , I have fi l l ed one of the r equi re
ments of the exami nati on. I have pr e
par ed a thesi s on my personal phi l oso
phy. I w ant to r ead it to you." I n hi s
thesi s he expl ai ned w hat he thought
w as the cause of the uni verse, w hat he
thought real i ty consi sted of, whether
real i ty w as i nfi ni te or fi nite, whether
man w oul d ever come to percei ve more
of the uni verse than he now percei ves,
r ather than merel y combi ni ng and r e
combi ni ng the experi ences he has. I t
w as ver y cogent, but af ter he fi ni shed
r eadi ng i t to me, he stated, Y ou know,
I al so w onder whether it coul d be thi s.
T hen he w oul d take certai n par agr aph s
out of hi s thesi s and say, N ow thi s I
bel i eve coul d al so be consi dered in thi s
l i ght. T hen he went on anal yzi ng hi s
thesi s substi tuti ng other opi ni ons and
concl usi ons.
H e submi tted the thesi s to the pr o
f essor of hi s cl ass, and a few days l ater
saw me and stated, W el l , I got a B
and I thought I woul d get an 'A '. I
ask ed hi m w hy he recei ved onl y a B
and he sai d, W el l , the pr of essor stated
that it w as not my per sonal phi l osophy
and that i f i t had been, no matter
whether anyone el se agr eed wi th i t or
not, he w oul d have gi ven me an 'A ' be
cause my l ogi c w as absol utel y sound
and therefore, my phi l osophy woul d
per haps be as sound as any other stu
dents. H ow ever , he conti nued, at the
concl usi on of my thesi s I went on to
state that I thought certai n par ts of my
argument coul d be changed, or other
ar guments gi ven, and therefore the pr o
f essor stated that i t w as not my true
phi l osophy, as l ong as I w as abl e to
cri ti ci ze it and fi nd l oophol es in it, or
offer a substi tuti on of i deas.
W h at the pr of essor sai d i s true. Y our
phi l osophy must be r epresentati ve of
your compl ete thought on a subj ect. N o
i dea i s your sol e, compl ete i dea on any
thi ng, i f you can have another on the
same subj ect. T her efor e, be convi nced
that your phi l osophy, w hatever it may
be, r epr esents your compl ete thought on
the subj ect and your onl y thought on it.
A l so bew ar e of i ntol erance. Some
ti mes when we ar e convi nced that we
ar e ri ght, we ar e so str ong in our con
vi cti ons and fai th that we suppr ess our
reason, and wi l l not l i sten to the ar gu
ments of others and wi l l not even ac
cept the f acts whi ch wi l l refute our
opi ni ons. T h at i s i ntol erance. I ntol er
ance does not usual l y ar i se from mal i ce
or the wi sh to oppose another, but it
does usual l y ar i se from over - zeal ous-
ness, over- enthusi asm to the poi nt where
we no l onger ar e open mi nded.
Remember that al though your phi l os
ophy i s an i ndi vi dual thi ng, born out of
your own mi nd, r eason and experi ences,
i t i s best that, befor e you set about to
establ i sh it, you make a thor ough study
of the previ ous l eadi ng thought. Y ou
ar e apt to fi nd that w hat you hol d as an
ori gi nal thought of your own, sound and
r easonabl e, w as expounded two thou
san d year s ago by a gr eat thi nker, and
found, per haps in the l ast two hundred
year s, wi th the devel opment of sci ence
and gr eater vi si on, to be f al se: and the
shatter i ng of your i l l usi on i s apt to have
a ver y ser i ous effect on your l i fe.
I f you make even a cur sor y study of
the phi l osophi es and the devel opment
of thought in the past, you wi l l not
make such a mi stake. Y ou wi l l begi n
where they l eft off. F or i nstance, i f you
di d not study geogr aph y and hi story
today, you woul d be apt to bel i eve j ust
as many of the anci ents di d, as you
l ooked out to sea and saw the hori zon,
that i t w as an edge of the earth and i f
man appr oached too cl osel y, he woul d
be apt to fal l off; and such r easoni ng on
your par t woul d so affect your future
acti vi ty and conduct that you mi ght di s
Three hundred eighty-six
cover your mi stake too l ate in l i fe to
take advan tage of the truth about the
shape of our earth. So you study geo
gr aphy and l earn that the earth i s not
fl at, and that we cannot fal l off of an
edge. H avi ng that know l edge to star t
wi th, you bui l d from there on. So keep
these few thoughts in mi nd when you
begi n to bui l d a per sonal phi l osophy of
l i fe.
V V V
Common Misconceptions
By T h o r Kj i ma l eh t o , Sovereign Grand Master
H R O U G H O U T
my twenty year s
in the O r der I have
d i sc o v er ed that
one of the chi ef
o b st ac l es to the
p r o gr ess of t he
student i s a mi s
under standi ng of
the spi ri t and pur
pose of our O r der .
O ur students have
been c o n n ec t ed
wi th every type of
mysti c and occul t or gani zati on. T h ey
have read wi del y in the l i terature of the
subject. M an y have not had suffi ci ent
sci enti fi c trai ni ng to know w hat consti
tutes pr oof and w hat consti tutes a fact
or a fal l acy. T h ey have accepted what
they have read in i nspi rati onal maga
zi nes, and w hat they have hear d from
i nspi rati onal l ectures, in the same un
cri ti cal w ay in whi ch they formerl y ap
proached rel i gi ous dogma. T h ey enter
the O r der, in many cases, wi th a wrong
poi nt of vi ew and wi th many mi sconcep
ti ons, as to fundamental pri nci pl es,
whi ch cannot be cl ear ed up unti l the
enti re course of study i s compl eted.
M er el y to master the ni ne gr ades of
study i ntel l ectual l y i s i nsuffi ci ent. O nl y
par t of the work has been accompl i shed.
F i r st of al l , the concepts must be tr an s
l ated i nto terms of dai l y l i vi ng. O f
w hat use ar e rul es of gr ammar unl ess
they actual l y hel p you to speak and
wri te correctl y? O f w hat use i s it to
master the steps of an experi ment in
chemi stry or physi cs unl ess you can
actual l y demonstrate it in the l abor a
tory? Both in sci ence and in the ar ts
the i ntel l ectual master y of i deas i s but
Three hundred eighty-seven
the fi rst step. I t i s not enough for a
di eti ti an to know food val ues and food
combi nati ons. H e or she must know how
to pr epar e food. I t i s not enough for
the vi ol i ni st to know the hi story of
musi c, the l i ves of gr eat musi ci ans, and
the l aw s of harmony. H e must actual l y
know how to pl ay the vi ol i n.
T h e master y of an art, or sci ence, de
mands seri ous i nterest, concentrated at
tenti on, and a terri fi c amount of dr udg
ery. T h e drudger y, however, i s not
wi thout i ts compensati on. T her e i s a
sol i d sati sfacti on in hol di ng your sel f to
a gi ven task, in gr adual l y correl ati ng
theory and practi ce, in sl ow l y attai ni ng
ski l l in a techni que that you w ant to
master.
T h e ti me el ement, too, i s i mportant.
T h e fi rst year of any study, whether
sci ence, l anguage, art, or mathemati cs,
i s purel y i ntroductory and el ementary.
T h e succeedi ng year s gi ve added knowl
edge and a certai n amount of ski l l . But
it i s the student who has compl eted the
course of study, who i s in a posi ti on to
test the pri nci pl es in every possi bl e com
bi nati on of ci rcumstances, who can do
creati ve w ork. T o pl ay wi th i deas, to
tr y new combi nati ons, to do creati ve
work, means that the pri nci pl es have
been thor oughl y absor bed and the tech
ni que has become second nature. T h e
ar ti st on the vi ol i n can pl ay wi th i nspi r
ed i nterpretati on because he has com
pl etel y mastered both the score and the
i nstrument.
P eopl e ar e aw ar e of the fact that it
tak es ti me to master a musi cal i nstru
ment or a forei gn l anguage, but they are
not yet aw ar e of the fact that the same
thi ng hol ds true of a new w ay of thi nk
i ng and l i vi ng. I t i s not enough to l i sten
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
to i nspi rati onal speak er s, i t i s not enough
to read i nspi rati onal magazi nes and
books, it i s not enough even to study the
R osi cruci an l essons. Y ou must l earn by
doi ng. Y ou must l earn how pri nci pl es
work out by observi ng the consequences
of your own acti ons and those of your
fel l ow men. Y ou must be pati ent. Y ou
must adopt the l ong- r ange vi ew and
know that consequences ar e certai n
even though not i mmedi ate.
T h e amount of mi si nformati on in oc
cul t and mysti c l i terature i s unbel i ev
abl e. T h e aver age student h as absol ute
l y no w ay of di sti ngui shi ng between f act
and fancy. T h e w ri ters of occul t fi cti on
have ei ther not known where fact ends
and fancy begi ns, or have not been abl e
to make evi dent to the r eader the def
i ni te l i ne of demarcati on. W h i l e we
real i ze the good that i nspi rati onal or
gani zati ons everywhere ar e accompl i sh
i ng by teachi ng peopl e a new outl ook
on l i fe, we feel that the O r der shoul d
state pl ai nl y and bl untl y w hat i t accepts
and w hat it cannot accept of the occul t
and mysti c i deas afl oat today. O ne of
these i deas i s about the M aster s.
Masters
Sever al occul t or gani zati ons have ad
vanced pecul i ar theori es about spi ri tual
M aster s who di rected every human be
i ng, and human affai r s in general .
O ther s have cl ai med that a M aster had
been born in the fl esh a second M es
si ah. T h e M essi ah in questi on, who had
been adver ti sed for several year s and
for w hose suppor t thousands of dol l ars
had been col l ected, emphati cal l y deni ed
such M aster shi p and furthermore di s
cl ai med any know l edge of books pub
l i shed and ci rcul ated under hi s name as
author.
W e have read of gr oups organi zed
for the speci al pur pose of goi ng to
I ndi a whi ch seems to be the pl ay
ground of the M aster s, both in and out
of the fl esh, notw i thstandi ng i ts mi ser
abl e soci al and economi c condi ti on and
of the w onders done by these M aster s
for the benefi t of the i nvesti gator s. O ur
objecti on to such tal es i s that M aster s
and A vatar s l i ke J esus and Buddha
woul d not demonstrate in the physi cal
body and speak to a few i nqui si ti ve
persons for the sol e pur pose of con
vi nci ng them of the possi bi l i ty of the
l i fe hereafter. Furthermore, we demand
pr oof that such happeni ngs ar e more
than mere dreams.
T h e truth of the matter i s that there
ar e mi ni steri ng spi r i ts sent forth to do
ser vi ce as the Bi bl e says, but onl y very
sel dom and in extreme cases do these
M aster s contact humans. A t no ti me i s
the i ndi vi dual free wi l l i nterfered wi th,
and such contacts occur onl y in the
psychi c sphere.
Planes
Y ou al so hear and read much of di f
ferent pl anes, such as the astr al pl ane,
the psychi c pl ane, the spi ri tual pl ane,
and an i ndefi ni te number of pl anes.
Some school s and wri ters tr y to create
the i mpressi on that there are a number
of pl anes between the earth and the
spi r i tual ki ngdom on whi ch per sons can
dwel l consci ousl y from ti me to ti me, and
car r y on many forms of psychi c expr es
si ons. I n real i ty, there ar e onl y two
cl assi fi cati ons, the earth pl ane and the
Cosmic pl ane. T h ey ar e not real l y
pl anes upon whi ch the soul of man,
whi l e in the body, can l i ve, or to whi ch
the soul of man journeys af ter transi ti on
and carri es on a l ong peri od of exi st
ence, but they ar e si mpl y di vi si ons of
spi ri tual unfol dment, and therefore en
ti rel y di fferent from the ki nd of pl anes
that these other or gani zati ons tal k
about. P r obabl y a better word woul d
be secti ons to descri be the di vi si ons
of the C osmi c C onsci ousness and the
Di vi ne C onsci ousness of the spi ri tual
ki ngdom.
Bodies
W e now come to the thi rd mi scon
cepti on, namel y: bodi es. W e hear of
astr al body, psychi c body, atomi c body,
and spi ri t body; and you natur al l y won
der, as I have, how many bodi es are
there to a human bei ng? T h e O r der
does not r ecogni ze more than one body
the physi cal body and a state of be
i ng whi ch i s not materi al and l i mi ted
whi ch we cal l Soul . Y ou must real i ze
that when we speak of the soul of man
or the soul of the uni verse, we do not
refer to the psychi c body of any i n
di vi dual person, but when we speak of
the psychi c body of man we mean to i n
cl ude al l the di vi ne essences and spi r
i tual i ty whi ch ar e attri buted to the soul .
T h e soul or the psychi c man consi sts of
Three hundred eighty-eight
vi brati ons onl y as a musi cal chord, the
essence of whi ch may at ti mes assume a
counter part of the materi al bei ng.
I f you have a cl ear and defi ni te
understandi ng of the meani ng of ma
terial and immaterial i t wi ll be very
much easi er for you to separ ate the
w heat from the chaff in your r eadi ngs.
By materi al we must concei ve some
thi ng concrete whi ch i s l i mi ted, havi ng
form- exi stence. By i mmateri al we r eal
i ze somethi ng that i s unl i mi ted and i n
defi ni te, havi ng no form and not l i mi ted
by space or ti me. J ust a bei ng, an exi st
ence, somethi ng that si mpl y i s, l i ke a
musi cal composi ti on, an opera, a song,
etc. A song, or a composi ti on l i ke
N ear er M y God, to T h ee exi sts i nde
pendent of ti me and pl ace, and can onl y
be real i zed and recogni zed by us when
we have the medi um for expr essi on, as
a musi cal i nstrument.
T h e body i s materi al ; the Soul i s im
materi al , and l i mi ted onl y by the body.
I n other w or ds, the i nstrument or the
vessel l i mi ts the i mmateri al force the
Soul . A s soon as you concei ve of any
thi ng that i s di fferent from somethi ng
el se it becomes defi ni te, concrete, and
must be materi al .
W i thi n our own bei ng there i s a l ar ge
degree of the consci ousness of God and
the Di vi ne E ssence that i s di stri buted
throughout the uni verse. T h i s fact does
not make you God, or a G od. anymore
than a drop of w ater can be consi dered
as the ocean.
T oo many on the path have the i dea
that the gr eat goal of our quest l i es in
some str ange mysti c condi ti on that i s
outsi de of oursel ves. T h ey feel that un
l ess they l i ft themsel ves up from thi s
earth pl ane there i s no possi bi l i ty of
comi ng i nto attunement wi th an i magi n
ar y Cosmi c pl ane. T h i s i s a ser i ous mi s
take. I t is al l wi thi n you. So many have
an i dea that a Rosi cruci an shoul d spend
the l ar gest par t of hi s day thi nki ng,
medi tati ng, practi ci ng exerci ses and l i v
i ng a pecul i ar l i fe of sol i tude, and doi ng
al l ki nds of hocus- pocus. T hese i deas
ar e deri ved from the E ast and brought
out by w ri ters and speak er s who say
that unl ess we si t al l day on a boar d of
nai l s or broken gl ass, or si t fol ded up
wi th cr i ss- cr oss l i mbs in a corner and
thi nk of nothi ng el se than the w hatness
of the nothi ng we wi l l never be happy.
N ow a per fectl y natural , normal ,
heal thy, happy R osi cruci an i s one who
gi ves j ust as much attenti on every day
to hi s duti es, hi s obl i gati ons, the neces
si ti es and pl easur es of l i fe, hi s busi ness,
hi s soci al affai r s, hi s promoti on of edu
cati on, and other constructi ve thi ngs of
l i fe, as he gi ves to hi s own personal
studi es. F i r st and foremost, above
everythi ng el se, come proper eati ng,
proper dri nki ng, and proper sl eepi ng.
But the body al so needs exerci se like
wal ki ng and breathi ng. Y ou cannot be
heal thy si tti ng cr oss- l egged in the cor
ner of your sanctum wi th i ncense burn
i ng and the ai r foul for hours. A few
mi nutes of proper i ncense burni ng i s
suffi ci ent duri ng medi tati on, but you
al so need fresh ai r and pl enty of it.
G ood heal thy ai r from outdoors wi th
sun shi ni ng i s i mportant to proper ad
justment of the body. A nd then agai n,
the spi ri t and soul of an i ndi vi dual
shoul d have as much l aughter and sun
shi ne in it as it has seri ous thoughts,
pr ayer , and medi tati on. A good heal thy
l augh and i nnocent fun contri bute as
much to the harmony and poi se of the
body, mi nd, and the soul , as anythi ng
el se that can be done. T her e i s absol ute
l y no harm in attendi ng concerts, mov
i ng pi ctures, dances, par ti es and other
thi ngs that pl ease the mi nd and change
the trend of thoughts and hel p us to get
a bal anced contact wi th other peopl e.
N or i s it necessar y for the mysti c to
practi ce every day al l of the exer ci ses
that have been taught him. O nce more
I say K eep your feet on the gr ound.
Be practi cal and reasonabl e.
V V V
SU M M A R I E S O F SC I E N C E
(Continued from Page 382)
system P r of essor Si dgw i ck poi nted out
that T h e moon i s much too smal l for
l i fe to be possi bl e; M er cur y i s pr obabl y
too smal l and too hot; J upi ter and the
outer pl anets too col d. T h e onl y pl aces
in the sol ar system where l i fe i s pos
si bl e seem to be the earth and our two
nei ghbors, M ar s and V en us.
Three hundred eighty-nine
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
SANCTUM MUSINGS
MASTERSHIP
By Et h el C. Bo r d en , F. R. C.
H E s u b j e c t o f
M aster shi p P er
so n al M aster shi p
i s al most an i n
ex h au st i b l e one:
W h a t consti tutes
M aster shi p, h ow
to attai n it, and
w hat i s very i m
portant, w h at
M aster shi p i s not.
I ndeed, much can
be sai d about it.
M aster s and M as
tershi p ar e two subj ects whi ch ar e
gr eatl y mi sunderstood. T h e w or ds them
sel ves ar e often mi sused and abused.
W e shal l not undertake to di scuss the
M aster s or the under standi ng per
haps we mi ght better say, mi sunder
stan di n g that many have concerni ng
the possi bi l i ty of contacti ng the M aster s
or comi ng under thei r di rect gui dance,
but shal l confi ne our sel ves to P ersonal
M aster sh i p.
I bel i eve the aver age hi gh school stu
dent, and many a chi l d of grammar
school age, has a better under standi ng
of the w ord M aster sh i p than most
adul ts. But these same school chi l dren
may grow up i nto adul ts who wi l l al so
have the w rong i dea of M aster sh i p
w hat consti tutes P er sonal M aster shi p.
A s adul ts, many of us have l ost si ght of
w hat we l earned duri ng our school days
about masteri ng var i ous subj ects. D ur
i ng those school days we l earned that
the onl y w ay to master mathemati cal
probl ems w as to fi rst l earn the rul es
pertai ni ng to mathemati cs and then
appl y those rul es to the pr obl ems to
keep ever l asti ngl y at it unti l no probl em
in mathemati cs mi ght be pr esented to us
whi ch we coul d not sol ve.
T o become a master musi ci an one
must l earn al l about the rul es pertai ni ng
to harmony as wel l as the best methods
of obtai ni ng the techni que of musi cal
expr essi on. W e know that the same
thi ng appl i es to the mastershi p of any
of the ar ts and sci ences.
I n thi nki ng of P er sonal M aster shi p
in the l ar ger sense, we mi ght say that
L I F E i s a school through whi ch each
i ndi vi dual must pass in order to l earn
the rul es, the fundamental pri nci pl es of
l i vi ng through dai l y personal exper i
ence, pl us an appl i cati on of the knowl
edge and understandi ng gai ned by sy s
temati c study, observati on, and actual
contact wi th condi ti ons and l i fe as it i s
l i ved by others.
M any acqui re the fal se i dea that to
attai n P er sonal M aster shi p it i s neces
sar y to reti re to some secl uded pl ace.
T h ey l ong to gi ve up the w orl d and
w orl dl y contacts and enter some mona
ster y or l i ve al one in the mountai ns or
w oods. T h ey w ant to hi de aw ay from
thi ngs of the fl esh where they may
never meet temptati on, where they may
be al one to commune wi th nature and
Three hundred ninety
medi tate by the hour, thi nki ng that in
that w ay they may attai n M aster shi p.
M aster sh i p of what?
T o run aw ay from L i f es probl ems
and temptati ons; to cut one's sel f off
from al l soci al contact; to avoi d al l so-
cal l ed evi l and w orl dl y thi ngs, i s not
masteri ng them.
T h e gr eatest M aster of al l , J esus the
Chr i st, whom we know to have attai ned
compl ete mastershi p and i l l umi nati on,
di d not run aw ay from l i fe. H e spent
many year s of H i s l i fe in the ver y thi ck
of thi ngs. H e took par t in many soci al
gather i ngs and w as subj ected to al l the
temptati ons and probl ems of l i fe that
assai l us today, for af ter al l , human ex
peri ence has been more or l ess the same
throughout the ages. J esus attai ned
per sonal mastershi p by over comi ng
conqueri ng the temptati ons and tri al s of
l i fe and by appl yi ng w hat he had l ear n
ed through study and attunement wi th
U ni ver sal M i nd not by hi di ng aw ay
in some mountai n r etreat or secr et
monastery. I t i s al so under stood of
course, that thi s gr eat M aster had spent
many previ ous cycl es in evol vi ng and
perfecti ng the Soul P er sonal i ty.
O ne who has never been tempted to
become i ntoxi cated, for i nstance, and
then r esi sted and overcome that tempta
ti on, cannot boast of havi ng master ed
drunkenness. But he who has tasted the
cup, has found it pl easi ng to the senses,
and has been tempted to drai n it to the
dr egs, but knew the di re effect of drunk
enness, because of previ ous experi ence
per haps, or through obser vati on saw
the danger s of i ndul gence, and put it
asi deovercame the desi re, resisted the
temptati on that one has to a degr ee
attai ned master shi p mastershi p of sel f.
I f you have had an unpl easant di s
posi ti on, a qui ck temper; or i f you have
had an i nferi ori ty compl ex or have been
extremel y sel fi sh and fel t superi or to
your fel l owman, but have overcome
these per sonal char acter i sti cs; i f af ter
careful sel f anal ysi s, or through exper i
ence you have di scover ed these or other
undesi r abl e qual i ti es in your per sonal i ty
and have corrected them you al so have
attai ned mastershi p to a degree.
I f you have found your l i fe handi
capped because of i l l ness or a cri ppl ed
condi ti on, whi ch appar entl y i s due to no
Three hundred ninety-one
faul t of your s as far as the present
cycl e i s concerned, but have br avel y
faced the si tuati on, doi ng everythi ng in
your power to fi nd the cause of the
physi cal handi cap, and in spi te of it
have mai ntai ned a hopeful , cheerful at
ti tude, thereby gai ni ng pati ence and a
sw eetness and mel l owness of soul and
spi ri t that r adi ates i tsel f to al l who
come in contact wi th y ou you have i n
deed attai ned a fine degr ee of master
shi p! T r ul y one of the fi rst r equi si tes
of compl ete mastershi p i s: T O B E
M A ST E R O F O N E SE L F .
T h ose who have come through year s
of str uggl e for a bar e exi stence, year s
fi l l ed wi th l ack and in many cases even
di re want, but have kept thei r heads,
cour ageousl y faci ng the future, wi th ab
sol ute confi dence in the creati ve forces
back of the uni verse; real i zi ng that
everythi ng i s subj ect to change, that no
matter w hat the condi ti on may be, it
wi l l change M U ST change; those who
have a firm bel i ef in G od and H i s di vi ne
l aw s and pri nci pl es knowi ng that these
l aw s ar e j ust, and that they ar e not here
by acci dent in the posi ti on or condi ti on
whi ch may exi st, but that there i s a
gr eat pl an governi ng the uni verse and
that the l aw of C ause and Effect i s ever
operati ng, knowi ng al so that they have
i mportant par ts in the P l an; those who
have done al l these thi ngs, or any par t
of them, ar e attai ni ng M aster shi p.
I f you can l i ve one day at a ti me, al
w ays rememberi ng to gi ve thanks to
G od and H i s Cosmi c l aw s for your
bl essi ngs, bei ng not undul y concerned
about the future, not permi tti ng your
sel f to be fearful of w hat the future may
bri ng, you ar e wel l on your w ay tow ard
M aster sh i p. T h i s does not mean that
we shoul d do nothi ng about i mprovi ng
our condi ti ons or that we shoul d not
pl an constructi vel y for the future, but
at the same ti me we shoul d perform the
task that we fi nd at hand graci ousl y,
j ust as though we knew i t were to be
our l ast opportuni ty in thi s l i fe.
A l l through the R osi cruci an mono
gr aphs and l i terature you ar e ur ged and
i nstructed how to cr eate and attr act to
your sel f your i deal s and desi r es. W e do
not cl ai m that Rosi cruci ani sm i s the onl y
school or path by whi ch one may attai n
P er sonal M aster shi p. Some have been
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
abl e to overcome the probl em of suppl y
or ill heal th through studyi ng and fol
l owi ng the teachi ngs of one of the popu
l ar churches of the day. O ther s have
overcome the fear of death or have
found peace of mi nd and contentment
through fol l owi ng the rul es l ai d down
by some other church or school of
P hi l osophy.
O n the other hand the M aster J esus
sai d But rather seek ye fi rst the K i ng
dom of G od and al l these thi ngs shal l
be added unto you." T h e H ol y Scr i p
tures al so tel l us that T h e K i ngdom of
G od i s wi thi n.
M an y have l ost si ght of, or do not
even know of, thi s i nner ki ngdom. B e
cause of year s, and no doubt in some
i n stances centuri es, of faul ty objecti ve
trai ni ng, and l i vi ng enti rel y in the ob
jecti ve, the pow ers of the K i ngdom
W i thi n have become dormant and per
haps al l but dead. Befor e one can at
tai n per sonal mastershi p it i s necessar y
to aw aken thi s i nner sel f; to become at
tuned wi th the K i ngdom of G od W i th
in; to consci enti ousl y commune wi th the
G od of our H ear ts.
Si nce we so thoroughl y bel i eve that
there i s no such thi ng as a l ost soul ,
that each soul segment i s defi ni tel y
evol vi ng or unfol di ng and that eventual
l y each shal l reach perfecti on, compl ete
M aster shi p, it fol l ows that even though
one were to make no consci ous effort
tow ard i mprovement tow ard P er sonal
M aster sh i p in any gi ven cycl e of exi st
ence, the very fact that one has l i f e
must meet certai n experi ences in l i fe,
i mpl i es the acqui si ti on of know l edge
and under standi ng, to a degree, through
these experi ences. T h e accumul ated
know l edge, the degr ee of mastershi p at
tai ned by previ ous per sonal i ti es in our
past l i ves, l i es there, wi thi n our sel ves, in
thi s present cycl e of exi stence. A l l of
thi s stor ed- up know l edge has become
par t of our Soul F or ce and it remai ns
onl y for us to permi t that Soul F or ce to
br eak through and mani fest i tsel f in our
present personal i ti es. T h e bar r i er s that
confi ne thi s force may be broken down
by a consci ous effort on our par t to de
vel op the pr esent personal i ty. T h i s can
best be done by for getti ng sel f; l osi ng
the outer, objecti ve sel f in ser vi ce for
other s by maki ng a defi ni te effort not
onl y to cul ti vate or devel op a strong,
useful per sonal i ty in thi s cycl e, but al so
to permi t the accompl i shments of pr evi
ous per sonal i ti es to shi ne forth and
make themsel ves of use to manki nd in
thi s l i fe.
R i ght here we mi ght enter i nto a di s
cussi on of the aw akeni ng of Cosmi c
C onsci ousness, but that i s a subj ect for
a l engthy di scour se i tsel f. Suffi ce it to
say that the aw akeni ng of C osmi c C on
sci ousness may be i ndi cated by a sud
den urge or desi re to take up the study
of one of the A r ts or Sci ences, but be
cause of the busi ness of l i vi ng or envi r
onment, you have not had the oppor
tuni ty to i ndul ge. O n the other hand
the subj ect may have had no i nterest for
you up to the pr esent moment. T h i s
ur ge may i ndi cate the aw akeni ng of a
tal ent whi ch some previ ous per sonal i ty
of your soul has per fected to some de
gree. Y ou shoul d, by al l means, do
w hat you can to add to the stor ed up
know l edge or experi ence al r eady at
tai ned. D o not al l ow your sel f to be
bound or l i mi ted by T i me or Space.
R eal i ze that you have eterni ty in whi ch
to per fect al l the possi bi l i ti es of your
soul and that i f you do not succeed in
accompl i shi ng your dreams enti rel y in
thi s l i fe, you wi l l have eons of ti me in
whi ch to do it.
Some may feel that thi s i dea may
tend to destr oy ambi ti on or l essen ones
effor ts to attai n now. N ot at al l . but on
the contr ary, the absence of anxi ety;
the real i zati on that nothi ng i s ever l ost,
and freedom from the fear of not h av
i ng enough timein whi ch to accompl i sh
our desi r es and ambi ti ons, enabl es us to
accompl i sh a gr eat deal more wi th l ess
w ear and tear caused by anxi ety and
strai n.
T h ose who ar e j ust begi nni ng to fol
l ow the R osi cruci an P ath or to fol l ow
some defi ni te systemati c outl i ne of
pr ogr ess tow ar d P er sonal M aster sh i p
I ur ge to keep ever l asti ngl y at it. D o
not w aste ti me in i dl e dreams of what
M aster sh i p may bri ng or enabl e you to
accompl i sh, but thi nk rather of the ac
compl i shments whi ch wi l l bri ng M as
tershi p. A nd remember, that whatever
the degr ee of P er sonal M aster shi p you
may attai n in thi s cycl e, it wi l l be car
ri ed wi th you and wi l l be added to the
Soul F or ce evol ved in your previ ous
l i ves by previ ous personal i ti es, r eady to
Three hundred ninety-two
be draw n upon and r adi ated in your
next cycl e of l i fe.
T h i s Soul F or ce, thi s T echni que of
the M aster , wi l l be used by the U nseen
M aster s for the good of H umani ty, i f
you wi l l pl ace your sel f in thei r hands
and do everythi ng in your pow er to
make your sel f worthy to be used as an
i nstrument for good. Some of our
F r atr es and Sor or es know that in the
advanced degr ees of the O r der you ar e
tol d how you may choose and gr eatl y
i nfl uence your next i ncarnati on. W h at
a w ondrous thi ng i s G od's creati on
cal l ed M an!
H ow gr ateful we shoul d be that we
ar e l i vi ng in a ti me and country where
thi s systemati c i nstructi on, avai l abl e
through the Rosi cruci an O r der , may be
recei ved so freel y and openl y; that we
may have thi s assi stance in aw akeni ng
and contacti ng the l atent tal ents and
pow ers, the Soul F or ce al r eady de
vel oped that K i ngdom W i thi n and
thus fi nal l y attai n compl ete P ersonal
M aster shi p!
V V V
READ THE RO SI C RUC I A N FORUM
How It All Began . . .
C R O SS- R O A D SH R I N E S
f f l l y f 'O D E R N cr oss- r oads and hi ghw ay shri nes to be found in vari ous
secti ons of the w orl d owe thei r ori gi n to the anci ent Roman
bel i ef that cr oss- r oads were the speci al r esor ts of demons. T h e Roman
peasant, to i nsure protecti on of hi s crop, made a pr ocessi on around
hi s l and, pr ayi ng to M ar s to subdue the demons of r avage, storm, and
drought. T h e demons, dri ven from the ti l l ed l and, were thought then
to hover about the cr oss- r oads, avengi ng themsel ves upon al l travel ers
and par ti cul ar l y i nfecti ng them wi th fever. A l l the sur r oundi ngs of
the cr oss- r oads were bel i eved to be affected
by thei r super natur al pow ers as wel l .
Roman sol di er s woul d boi l f r ogs be
l i eved to make them i mmune to the
effi cacy of the demons at a
cr ossw ay post. P l i ny, anci ent
hi stori an, wrote that travel ers
who were confused or who
l ost thei r w ay at cr oss
r oads were under the
spel l of these evi l
demons.
Three hundred ninety-three
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
Popular Fallacies About the Pyramids
SOME COMMENTS ON A RECENT ARTI CLE DEALING
WITH THIS SUBJECT
By T h e I mper a t o r
N T H E l i ttl e mag
azi ne cal l ed Sci
ence Digest lor the
mon th o f J u l y ,
there appear ed a
bri ef arti cl e deal
i ng wi th the popu
l ar fal l aci es about
the P yr ami ds,r ep
r esen t ed to be
f r om a l ec t u r e
gi ven at the U ni
ver si ty of C h i ca
go by D r. G eor g
Stei ndor f of the U ni ver si ty of L ei pzi g.
Because of the popul ari ty of thi s l i ttl e
magazi ne and i ts handy form for r ead
i ng, thi s par ti cul ar arti cl e about the
P yr ami ds wi l l no doubt attr act the at
tenti on of many thousands of per sons
who have become vi tal l y i nterested in
the mystery of the G r eat P yrami d. U n
doubtedl y many of our members and
r eader s of The Rosicrucian Digest have
seen the arti cl e and read it, or heard
about it, and for thi s reason I wi sh to make
some comments on the statements made
by D r. G eor g Stei ndor f and set our
r eader s str ai ght in r egar d to the facts.
I n the fi rst pl ace, no one shoul d be
sur pr i sed that every few months through
out the past year s, and even in the pr es
ent ti me, some arti cl e has appear ed in
the popul ar magazi nes or new spaper s
denyi ng the mysteri ous attr i butes, con
di ti ons, and featur es of the G r eat P yr a
mid. F or var i ous good r easons in the
past centuri es it w as deemed proper
and essenti al by government offi ci al s
and sci enti sts, as wel l as by many of the
mysti cs of E gypt, to deny that there
w as any mystery about the P yrami d,
and to deny that it w as anythi ng other
than a common buri al tomb, and wi th no
other speci al qual i ti es except i ts si ze and
uni que entrancew ay. T h e pur pose of
these deni al s and the r eason for tryi ng to
prevent the popul ace of the w orl d from
becomi ng acquai nted wi th the real facts,
w as pr obabl y to save the P yr ami d i tsel f
from conti nued i ntrusi on and conti nued
i nterference wi th secr et i nvesti gati ons
that were bei ng carri ed on. But these
r easons no l onger exi st and it woul d
seem to be usel ess in these modern
ti mes to conti nue the deni al s and to pr e
tend that there ar e no mysteri es asso
ci ated wi th the so- cal l ed P yrami d of
C heops.
T ak i n g the statements made by Dr.
Stei ndor f in hi s l ecture, and anal yzi ng
them in the l i ght of w hat w as cl ai med
for the P yr ami d for many centuri es, and
w hat has been found in modern ti mes,
i t woul d seem that ei ther D r. Stei ndor f
i s i gnorant of the real facts, or i s once
more attempti ng to add hi s testi mony
to that of those who have tri ed to pre
vent the truth from bei ng known.
H e says, fi rst of al l , that the so- cal l ed
secr ets and mystery and mysti cal el e
ments and qual i ti es that have been as
si gned to the G r eat P yrami d "ar e wi th
out the sl i ghtest foundati on. T h at i s a
Three hundred ninety-four
very br oad statement for anyone to
make. T r adi ti ons and w i despr ead re
ports, and the many hundreds of tr eati s
es that have been wri tten about the
mysteri ous el ements of the P yrami d
must have some foundati on in some
thi ng, somewhere. T o say that so much
as has been wri tten and i l l ustrated
about the G r eat P yrami d, has no foun
dati on at al l , i mmedi atel y chal l enges the
i ntel l i gence of mi l l i ons of per sons who
have vi si ted the envi rons of the P yrami d
and who per haps may have seen noth
i ng more than the outsi de of it. A nd as
for those many hundreds of thousands
who have made cl oser exami nati ons,
and the many hundreds who have been
i nsi de of it, they know at once that the
statements made by D r . Stei ndor f ar e
not correct.
H e r efer s to the many theoreti cal
guesses and wei rd tradi ti onal expl ana
ti ons that were made by the C hr i sti ans
in the M i ddl e A ges, and by ear l y
vi si tors to the tomb, and ri ghtl y ex
pl ai ns that al l of thei r fantasti c assump
ti ons were erroneous. But to w ant us to
assume or bel i eve that because these ex
pl anati ons and mysteri ous stor i es of the
M i ddl e A ges ar e now known to be ab
surd, we shoul d consi der al l of the more
modern expl anati ons as absur d al so, i s
ri di cul ous. D ur i ng the M i ddl e A ges the
P yrami d w as not expl ored on the i n
si de, and measurements had not been
taken, nor di d we have the hi stori cal
r ecords and other f acts whi ch w e now
possess. I t i s becauseof our know l edge
of the i nsi de of the P yr ami d that we
know how w rong w ere the ear l y
C hr i sti ans and others in offeri ng thei r
many wei rd expl anati ons for the pur
pose of the P yr ami d and i ts nature.
But the fact that as far back as we can
trace in thi s hi story of the mystery of
the P yrami d it has been consi dered
somethi ng more or di fferent than one of
the many ki ngl y tombs, i ndi cates that
there has al w ays been somethi ng about
the P yr ami d that di sti ngui shes it from
the other and smal l er pyr ami ds and
from the many tombs.
O f course, many of the pyr ami ds had
been bui l t for the pur pose of contai ni ng
the mummy or body of a ki ng or pri nce,
and many other ki nds of tombs had
been bui l t for that purpose. But si nce
al l of these others have been car eful l y
Three hundred ninety-five
expl ored and exami ned and measured
and photogr aphed, we now know as
a posi ti ve fact that the G r eat P yrami d
of C heops i s unl i ke any of the others,
even in i ts exteri or, as wel l as i ts i n
teri or. N ot a si ngl e other ki ngl y tomb
in E gypt, ei ther of an underground na
ture or pyrami d form above the ground,
i s l i ke the G r eat P yrami d in i ts con
structi on, and par ti cul ar l y in i ts i nteri or
arrangement. T h er e ar e so many f ea
tures in the form of passagew ays,
str an ge chambers, and decorati ve and
archi tectural attri butes to be found in
the G r eat P yrami d that ar e unl i ke any
thi ng el se to be found in the tombs of
E gypt, or per haps el sewhere in the
worl d, that one natur al l y ask s, W h y
w as the P yrami d of C heops or the
G r eat P yrami d bui l t so di fferentl y?
T h i s poi nt i s enti rel y i gnored by D r .
Stei ndor f, and hi s arti cl e assumes that
there i s no di fference from other ki ngl y
tombs, and that al l of those who thi nk
it i s di fferent ar e si mpl y mi staken.
O f course, it i s true that thousands of
per sons may vi si t the envi rons and l oca
ti on of the G r eat P yrami d, and then see
the other smal l er pyr ami ds in E gypt,
and l ooki ng at them casual l y i nstead of
through the eyes of an archi tect, mysti c,
or phi l osopher, come to the concl usi on
that a pyrami d i s a pyrami d, and al l ar e
al i ke and al l of them ar e tombs. T h e
archi tect vi si ti ng E gy pt r eadi l y di scov
ers the di fference in styl e and constr uc
ti on. T h e bui l der fami l i ar wi th constr uc
ti on pri nci pl es noti ces those di fferences
that di sti ngui sh the G r eat P yr ami d from
the others, and whi ch i nvol ve sci enti fi c
and engi neeri ng probl ems that ar e al
most beyond comprehensi on. T h e mys
tic and the phi l osopher af ter vi si ti ng the
i nteri or of the G r eat P yr ami d ar e i m
pr essed i mmedi atel y wi th the symbol
i sm, arrangement of the passagew ays,
number of chambers, and thei r decor a
ti ons and archi tectural featur es. P er
haps D r. Stei ndor f has vi ewed the py
rami d sol el y through the eyes of outer
appear ances wi thout anal yzi ng it from
any par ti cul ar vi ewpoi nt.
D r . Stei ndor f i gnores al so the fact
that, al though onl y in recent year s have
excavati ons reveal ed the fact that there
were templ es and passagew ay s under
ground adj oi ni ng and l eadi ng to the
P yrami d, and that these have been cal l
ed unexpected and astoni shi ng di scov
eri es, the mysti cal l i terature for many
ages has procl ai med and stated posi ti ve
l y that such underground templ es and
passagew ay s di d exi st. A nd thi s mys
ti cal l i terature gave excel l ent descr i p
ti ons of w hat these underground pas
sagew ays and templ es contai ned, and
how they were ar r anged symbol i cal l y,
and had al coves in whi ch symbol i cal
fi gures were pl aced. Recent excavati ons
have proved al l of thi s to be true, and
these recent excavati ons have forced
many of the expl or er s to admi t that
they onl y add to the mystery of the
P yrami d for no such underground pas
sagew ays, al coves, and adjoi ni ng cham
ber s and templ es have ever been found
in connecti on wi th other tombs of the
ki ngs, nor w ere they a necessar y par t
of any tomb, and coul d not have been
used in connecti on wi th any funeral
ceremony.
T h ose of us who recentl y vi si ted the
G r eat P yrami d and vi si ted the adj oi n
i ng templ es that have recentl y been ex
cavated, and saw some of the symbol i cal
statues and fi gures taken from the al
coves al ong those passagew ays, and
ascended i nto the P yrami d and vi si ted
every room, chamber, and passagew ay
from bel ow the base of the P yrami d
to the center of the P yrami d, know
posi ti vel y that al l of the mysteri ous
symbol i sm of the an c i en t mysti c
brotherhoods w as very defi ni tel y car
ri ed out and excel l entl y represented
in a manner to reveal the nature and
purpose of the P yr ami ds to those who
coul d understand and conceal it from
those who coul d not understand it. C er
tai n it i s that the group of men and
women on our recent Rosi cruci an T our
who were especi al l y el ected and per
mi tted to vi si t the i nteri or of the P yrami d
on a speci al occasi on, coul d not and wi l l
not accept D r. Stei n dor f s concl usi ons.
I t i s sti l l forbi dden to descri be every
thi ng that i s to be found i nsi de of that
P yr ami d. But one vi si t under the proper
guar di anshi p and gui dance by any
member of our or gani zati on, or a si mi l ar
mysti cal or gani zati on, wi l l convi nce the
obser ver that the G r eat P yrami d i s not
l i ke any of the other tombs or buri al
pl aces in E gypt, and that it has featur es
in the w ay of chambers, passagew ays,
al coves, and decorati ons that have no
bear i ng upon the systems used for the
preser vati on of a body or the buri al of
a body, or for the ri tual i sti c ceremony
that w as al w ays associ ated wi th the
mere buri al of a ki ng or pri ncel y poten
tate. So do not be decei ved by D r.
Stei n dor f 's deni al s and affi rmati ve
statements. Even af ter our members of
the touri ng par ty had vi si ted the P y r a
mi ds and knew w hat w as i nsi de, they
were tol d by offi ci al s and others in
E gy pt that there i s nothi ng mysteri ous
wi thi n the P yr ami d, and that they
shoul d refr ai n from expl ai ni ng w hat
they had seen, or w hat they knew. T h us
the ol d statements r egar di ng the P y r a
mi d whi ch deni ed i ts mysteri ous nature,
ar e constantl y bei ng r ei terated offi ci al l y
in E gy pt for the pur pose of decei vi ng
the publ i c. T h e real nati ves of E gypt,
the real rul ers and descendants of the
pure bl ood of E gy pt ar e astoni shed at
thi s atti tude, and they ar e proud of the
P yr ami d as they ar e j ustl y proud of
every par t of E gypt, and ar e onl y a-
w ai ti ng the day when the truth about
E gy pt shal l be establ i shed and these
fool i sh deni al s and erroneous statements
shal l be di sconti nued.
READ THE RO SI C RUC I A N FORUM
The
Rosicrucian
Digest
November
1937
A N E W F E A T U R E
Beginning in this issue of "The Rosicrucian Digest, you will find a new feature en
titled "HOW I T ALL BEGAN." Each month in this new department you will find an
illustrated, concise explanation of how one of our prevalent customs came into existence.
The history and origin of our daily practices and rites is unknown to most of us, and
proves to be exceptionally interesting.
Many things which we solemnly do today had their beginnings in ludicrous incidents
of the past. Others were born out of superstition and ignorance.
We hope you will find this monthly feature entertaining as well as instructive.
Three hundred ninety-six
C O SM I C C O N SC I O U SN E SS
The above photographic reproduction of a medieval master's painting, now in Rome, depicts the in
spired knowledge and inner guidanceCosmic Consciousnessthat comes to one who devotes a time to
meditation and attunement with the Divine Intelligence permeating the universe. One does not need to
retire to a mountain fastness or a grotto or cave to be alone with self; oneness with the Infinite comes with
a freedom from worldly interests, thoughts and distractions. This state can be attained in the comfort
and privacy of ones own home. The so-called creative ideas and masterful accomplishments of progres
sive men and women of today are founded upon that inspiration that comes to them as an influx of In
finite wdsdomwhen their objective consciousnesses are made properly receptive.
(Courtesy of The Rosierucian Digest.)
SECRET DOCTRINES
OF J ESUS
Cl message that neOel leached the people !
D
OES the Bible actually contain the unadulterated words of
Jesus theChrist? Do you know that from325A. D. until
1870A. D twenty ecclesiastical or church council meetingswere
held, in which man alonedecided upon thecontext of theBible
what it should contain? Self-appointed judges in thefour Lateran
Councils expurgated and changed the sacred writings to please
themselves. The great Master's personal doctrines, of theutmost,
vital importanceto every man and woman, wereburied in unex
plained passages and parables. "The Secret Doctrines of Jesus." by
Dr. H. Spencer Lewis, eminent author of "The Mystical Life of
Jesus." for the first time reveals these hidden truths. Startling,
fascinating, thisnew book should bein every thinkers hands. It is
beautifully bound, illustrated, of largesize, and theprice, including
postage, isonly $2.50 per copy.
ROSICRUCIAN SUPPLY BUREAU
Rosicrudan Park, San Jose, California
*
T H E P U R P O SE S O F
T H E ROSI CRUCI A N ORDER
Member of
FUDOSI
(Federation Uni-
verselles des
Ordres et
Societes
Tnitiatiques)
The Rosicrucian Order, existing in all civilized lands, is a non-sectarian,
fraternal body of men and women devoted to the investigation, study, and
practical application of natural and spiritual laws. The purpose of the organi
zation is to enable all to live in harmony with the creative, constructive.
Cosmic forces for the attainment of health, happiness, and Peace.
The Order is internationally known as AMORC (an abbreviation), and the
AMORC in America, and all other lands, constitutes the only form of Rosi
crucian activities united in one body having representation in the interna
tional federation. The AMORC does not sell its teachings, but gives them
freely to all affiliated members, together with many other benefits.
I nquirers seeking to know the history, purposes, and practical benefits
that they may receive from Rosicrucian association, are invited to send for
the free book, "The Secret Heritage. Address, Friar S. P. C., care of
AMORC TEMPLE
Rosicrucian Park, San Jose, California, U. S. A.
(Cable Address: "AMORCO Radio Station W6HTB)
Officials of the J\[orth and South American Jurisdiction
This Jurisdiction includes all countries of North, Central and South America and all land under
the protection of the United States of America.
H. SPENCER LEWIS. F. R. C.. Ph. D.
RALPH M. LEWIS. F. R. C....................
THOR KIIMALEHTO. F. R. C........
HARVEY MILES. F. R. C........................
HARRY L. SHIBLEY . F. R. C...............
MERRI TT GORDON. F. R. C.................
............................I mperator
...........Supreme Secretary-
Sovereign Grand Master
..............Grand Treasurer
Director of Publications
.Regional Grand Master
SP A N I SH - A M E R I C A N D I V I SI O N
ARMANDO FONT DE LA JARA, F.R.C.. Deputy Grand Master: CECI L A. POOLE. F.R.C.,
Secretary-General. Direct inquiries regarding this division to the Secretary-General, Rosicrucian
Park, San Jose, California, U. S. A.
Junior Order of Torch Bearers (sponsored by AMORC). For complete information as to its aims
and benefits address General Secretary. Grand Chapter, Rosicrucian Park, San J ose, California.
The following principal branches are District Headquarters of AMORC
Los Angeles, California:
Hermes Lodge, AMORC Temple. Mr. Paul
Deputy, Master. Reading Room and Inquiry
office open daily, 10 a. m. to 5 p. m. and
7:30 p. m. to 9 p. m. except Sundays. 148 N.
Gramercy Place.
New York City, New York:
New York Chapter, Rooms 35-36. 711 8th
Ave., cor. 8th Ave. and 45th Street. Mr.
Joseph Weed, Master: Martha L. Mullins,
Secretary. Inquiry and reading rooms open
week days and Sundays, 1to 8 p. m.
Booker T. Washington Chapter. Dr. Horace
I. Hamlett. Master, 491 Classon Avenue.
Brooklyn: Ida F. Johnson. Secretary, 286
McDonough St.. Brooklyn. Meetings every
second and fourth Sunday at 8 p. m Y. M.
C. A. Chapel. 180 W. 135th Street. Inquirers
call: Prospect 9-1079.
Detroit, Michigan:
Thebes Chapter No. 336. Mrs. Pearl Anna
Tifft, Master: Mr. Ernest Cheyne, Secre
tary. Meetings at the Detroit Federation
of Womens Clubs, 4811 2nd Avenue, every
Tuesday, 8 p. m. Inquirers call dial phone
Townsend 6-2967.
San Francisco, California:
Francis Bacon Lodge, 1655 Polk Street:
Mr. Elmer Lee Brown, Master. Mystical
convocations for all members every 2nd and
4th Monday, 8 p. m. Office and reading
room open Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday,
7 to 9 p.m.
Reading, Pennsylvania:
Reading Chapter. Mr. Geo. Osman. Master:
Mr. R. K. Gumpf, Secretary. Meeting every
1st and 3rd Friday, 8:00 p. m., Washington
Hall, 904 Washington Street.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
Benjamin Franklin Chapter of AMORC:
Mr. H. Baker Churchill, Master; Mr. George
M. Stewart, Secretary, 617 Arch Street.
Meetings for all members every second and
fourth Sunday, 7:30 p. m. at the Universal
Peace Institute, 219 S. Broad Street, 2nd
floor (over Horn & Hardart's).
Birmingham, Alabama:
Birmingham Chapter. Convocation for all
grades, each Friday night, 7:30 p. m Lodge
room, Tutwilder Hotel. Mr. Edgar D. Finch.
Master, 1129 S. 16th Ave., or C. C. Berry,
Secretary, 721 S. 85th Street.
Pittsburg, Pennsylvania:
Penn. First Lodge. Mary S. Green, Master;
610 Arch Street.
Boston, Massachusetts:
The Marie Clemens Lodge. Mr. Pierpont F.
De Lesdernier, Master: Temple and reading
Rooms, 739 Boylston St., Telephone Ken-
more 9398.
Chicago, Illinois:
Chicago Chapter No. 9. Fred D. Wedge,
Master: Miss Sue Lister, Secretary. Tele
phone Randolph 9848. Reading Room open
afternoons and evenings. Sundays 2 to 5
only. Lakeview Bldg., 116 S. Michigan Ave..
Rooms 408-9-10. Lecture sessions for ALL
members every Tuesday night, 8:00 p. m.
Chicago (Colored) Chapter No. 10. Dr.
Katie B. Howard, Master: Nehemiah Dennis,
Secretary. Meetings every Wednesday night
at 8 o'clock, Y. M. C. A., 3763 So. Wabash
Avenue.
(Directory Continued on Next Page)
Washington, D. C.:
Thomas Jefferson Chapter. Richard D. Ames,
Master. Meetings Confederate Memorial
Hall, 1322 Vermont Ave. N. W., every Fri
day evening, 8:00 p. m. Secretary, Mrs.
Gladys Short, 901 Butternut St.
Seattle, Washington:
AMORC Chapter 586. Mr. C. R. Cleaver,
Master; Mr. Geo. Peterson, Secretary. 311-14
Lowman Bldg., between 1st and 2nd Aves.,
on Cherry Street. Reading room open week
days 11 a. m. to 4:30 p. m. Visitors welcome.
Chapter meetings each Monday. 8:00 p. m.
Portland, Oregon:
Portland Rose Chapter. Mrs. Emma Strick
land, Master; Phone Ga. 8445. Information
Tues. evening, 7 to 9, 405 Orpheum Bldg.
Chapter meets Thursday 8.00 p. m. at 714
S. W. 11th Ave.
Newark, New Jersey:
H. Spencer Lewis Chapter. John Wieder-
kehr. Master. Meeting every Monday, 8:15
p. m., 37 Washington St.
St. Louis, Missouri:
St., Louis Chapter. Douglas M. Bryden
Master. Melbourne Hotel, Grand Avenue
and Lindell Blvd. Meetings first and third
Tuesday of each month, 8 p. m.
Other Chartered Chapters and Lodges of the Rosicrucian Order (AMORC) will be found in
most large cities and towns of North America. Address of local representatives given on request.
P R I N C I P A L C A N A D I A N B R A N C H E S
Victoria, British Columbia:
Victoria Lodge. Mr. George A. Melville,
Master. Inquiry Office and Reading Room,
725 Courtney Street. Librarian, Mr. C. C.
Bird, Phone G3757.
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada:
Charles Dana Dean Chapter. Mr. Ronald S.
Scarth. Master, 834 Grosvenor Avenue.
Session for all members every Sunday at
2:45 p. m., 204 Kensington Building.
Edmonton, Alberta:
Mr. T. Goss, Master. 9533 Jasper Ave. E.
Toronto, Ontario, Canada:
Mr. E. Charlton, Master. Sessions 1st and
3rd Sundays of the month, 7:00 p. m., No. 10
Lansdowne Ave.
Vancouver, British Columbia:
Canadian Grand Lodge, AMORC. Mr. E.
A. Burnett, Master; Miss Mabylee Deacon,
Secretary, AMORC Temple, 878 Hornby
Street.
A F E W O F T H E F O R E I G N J U R I SD I C T I O N S
Scandinavian Countries:
The AMORC Grand Lodge of Denmark.
Mr. Arthur Sundstrup, Grand Master; Carli
Andersen, S. R. C., Grand Secretary. Mano-
gade 13th Strand, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Sweden:
Grand Lodge "Rosenkorset." Anton Svan-
lund, F. R. C., Grand Master. Jerusalems-
gatan, 6, Malmo.
Holland:
De Rozekruisers Orde; Groot-Lodge der
Nederlanden. J. Coops, Gr. Sect., Hunze-
straat 141, Amsterdam.
France:
Dr. Hans Gruter. Grand Master. Mile.
Jeanne Guesdon. Secretary. 56 Rue Gam-
betta, Villeneuve Saint Georges (Seine &
Oise).
Switzerland:
AMORC, Grand Lodge, 21 Ave. Dapples,
Lausanne; Dr. Ed. Bertholet, F. R. C., Grand
Master, 6 Blvd. Chamblandes, Pully-Lau-
sanne; Pierre Genillard, Grand Secty., Surlac
B, Mont Choisi, Lausanne.
China:
The United Grand Lodge of China. P. O.
Box 513, Shanghai, China.
New Zealand
Auckland Chapter AMORC. Mr. J. O.
Anderson. Master, 317 Victoria Arcade
Bldg., Shortland St., City Auckland.
England:
The AMORC Grand Lodge of Great Britain.
Mr. Raymund Andrea, F. R. C., Grand
Master, 34 Baywater Ave.. Westbury Park,
Bristol 6.
Dutch and East Indies:
Dr. W. Th. van Stokkum. Grand Master;
W. J. Visser, Secretary-General. Karang-
tempel 10 Semarang, Java.
Egypt:
The Grand Orient of AMORC. House of the
Temple, M. A. Ramayvelim, F. R. C., Grand
Secretary, 26, Avenue Ismalia, Heliopolis.
Cairo Information Bureau de la Rose Croix.
J. Sapporta. Secretary. 27 Rue Salimon
Pacha, Cairo.
Africa:
The Grand Lodge of the Gold Coast,
AMORC. Mr. Wiliam Okai, Grand Master.
P. O. Box 424 Accra. Gold Coast, West
Africa.
The addresses of other foreign Grand Lodges
and secretaries will be furnished on application.
THE R OS I CR UC I A N P RESS, LTD. P R I N T E D I N U . S . A .
of the DEVIL
A
SATANI C PLAYGROUND! A twisted,
tangled mass of stone, like the jagged
fangs of some fiendish creature of imagina-
tion dark, foreboding. Hewn out of the
scowling walls, but not by the hands of man,
were cathedrals, castles, and weird edifices.
Ghastly sighs and uncanny cries rent the air.
Were souls of men imprisoned here? Was this
a Hades upon earth? Did demons incarnate
dwell here?
Legends recount these strange tales of this Village
of the Devil. Its mention struck terror in the hearts
of the natives. This strangest of all mystical places
was investigated by a prominent mystic. His findings
are startlinghis revelations a fascinating, true tale.
F R E E . . .
His intriguing experience is yours without cost
in manuscript form. To every new six months sub
scriber to The Rosicrucian Digest, it will be mailed
at once. You need only send your six months' sub
scription at the usual rate of only $1.50 to the
address below, and you will receive in addition to
the six issues of this magazine, this special discourse,
The Village of the Devil.
T he ROSI CRUCI A N DI GEST
Ro si cr uci an Par k, San J o se, Cal i f o r ni a
<rRgsicnician Library
The following books are a few of several recommended because of the special knowledge they
contain, not to be found in our teachings and not available elsewhere. Catalogue of all publica
tions free upon request.
Volume n. ROSI CRUCI AN PRI NCI PL ES FOR THE HOME AND BUSI NESS.
A very practical book dealing with the solution of health, financial, and business problems in the home and
office, well printed and bound in red silk, stamped with gold. Price. $2.25 per copy, postpaid.
Volume m. THE MY STI CAL L I FE OF J ESUS.
A rare account of the Cosmic preparation, birth, secret studies, mission, crucifixion, and later life of the
Great Master, from the records of the Essene and Rosicrucian Brotherhoods. A book that is demanded in
foreign lands as the most talked about revelation of J esus ever made. Over 300 pages, beautifully illustrated,
bound in purple silk, stamped in gold. Price, $2.50 per copy, postpaid.
Volume V. "UNTO THEE I GRANT . . .
A strange book prepared from a secret manuscript found in the monastery of Tibet. I t is filled with the
most sublime teachings of the ancient Masters of the Far East. The book has had many editions. Well printed
with attractive cover. Price, $1.25 per copy, postpaid.
Volume VI. A THOUSAND Y EARS OF Y ESTERDAY S.
A beautiful story of reincarnation and mystic lessons. This unusual book has been translated and sold in
many languages and universally endorsed. Well printed and bound with attractive cover. Price, $1.00 per copy,
postpaid.
Volume VI I . SEL F MASTERY AND FA TE, WI TH THE CY CL ES OF L I FE.
A new and astounding system of determining your fortunate and unfortunate hours, weeks, months, and
years throughout your life. No mathematics required. Better than any system of numerology or astrology.
Bound in silk, stamped in gold. Price, $2.25 per copy, postpaid.
Volume VI I I . THE ROSI CRUCI AN MANUAL .
Most complete outline of the rules, regulations and operations of lodges and student work of the Order with
many interesting articles, biographies, explanations, and complete dictionary of Rosicrucian terms and words.
Very completely illustrated. A necessity to every student who wishes to progress rapidly, and a guide to aii
seekers. Well printed and bound in silk, stamped with gold. Price, $2.35 per copy, postpaid.
Volume XI. MANSI ONS OF THE SOUL, THE COSMIC CONCEPTI ON.
The complete doctrines of reincarnation explained. This book makes reincarnation easily understood. Well
illustrated, bound in silk, stamped in gold, extra large. Price, $2.35 per copy, postpaid.
Volume X I I . L EMURI ATHE L OST CONTI NENT OF THE PA CI FI C.
The revelation of an ancient and long forgotten Mystic civilization. Fascinating and intriguing. Learn how
these people came to be swept from the earth. Know of their vast knowledge, much of which is lost to man
kind today. Well printed and bound, illustrated with charts and maps. Price. $2.30 per copy, postpaid.
Volume XIV. THE SY MBOLI C PROPHECY OF THE GREAT PY RAMI D.
The mystery and prophecy of the Great Pyramid revealed. The latest and best book on this intriguing
subject. Price, $2.25 per copy, postpaid.
Send ill orders for books, with remittance, direct to ROSI CRUCI AN SUPPLY BUREAU, Rosicrucian Park, San Jose, California.
THE INSTITUTION BEHIND THIS ANNOUNCEMENT