Man the master. By the mastery of self, a distinct form of consciousness
is evolved, which some would call divine. It is distinguished from that ordinary
human consciousness, which craves personal advantages and gratifications on the one hand, and
is involved in remorse and soil on the other. The divine consciousness concerns itself
with humanity and the universe, with eternal verities, with righteousness, wisdom,
and truth, and not with pleasures, protection and preservation of the personality.
Not that personal pleasure is destroyed, but that it is no longer craved in
sought. It no longer takes a foremost place. It is purified, and
it is received as the effect of right thought and action, and is no
longer an end in itself. In the divine consciousness is neither sin nor sorrow.
Even the sense of sin has passed away, and the true order and
purpose of life being revealed, no cause is found for lamentation. Jesus called
the state of consciousness quote the Kingdom of Heaven unquote. Buddha named it quote
nirvana unquote, and loud Serve's term for it was quote Tao unquote. Emerson
refers to it as quote the over soul unquote, and doctor Bucky calls it
quote cosmic consciousness unquote in his valuable work bearing that title. The ordinary human
consciousness is self consciousness. Self, the personality is placed before everything else.
There are ceaseless anxieties and fears concerning the self. Its possible loss is thought
to be the most grievous calamity, and its eternal preservation the most important thing
in the universe. In divine consciousness, all this has passed away. Self
has disappeared. Therefore they can be no more fears and anxieties concerning the self.
And things are considered and known as they are, and not as they
afford pleasure or cause pain to self, not as self wishes them to be
for its own temporal or eternal happiness. The self conscious man is subject to
desire. The divinely conscious man is master of desire. The former considers what
is pleasant or unpleasant. The latter acts from the righteous law without reference to
pleasure or pain. The race is passing through self consciousness to divine consciousness,
through the slavery of self with its sense of sin and shame, to the
freedom of truth, with its sense of purity and power. The great Teachers
and saviors of the race have already attained in former existences. They have already
passed through all forms of self consciousness, and now, having subjugated self,
have become divinely conscious. They have reached the summit of evolution on this earth,
and have no further need to be born in the self conscious form.
They are masters of life. Having conquered self, they have acquired the supreme
knowledge. Some of them are worshiped as God because they manifest a wisdom and
consciousness which is quite distinct from the normal or self consciousness of humanity, and
which is therefore regarded with and shrouded by incomprehensible mystery. Yet in this divine
consciousness there is no mystery, but, on the contrary, a transparent simplicity,
which becomes apparent when the confusions of self are dispersed, the abiding gentleness,
the sublime wisdom, the perfect calm of the great teachers, qualities which
appear supernatural when viewed from the self consciousness state, are seen to be simple
and natural when the first glimmering of divine consciousness dawns in the mind. And
such divine consciousness does not appear until a high degree of morality is attained by
the self conscious man. Man becomes divinely conscious, divinely wise, divinely gentle,
and strong in the measure that he subdues and dominates within those passions by
which humanity is subdued and dominated. Man becomes divinely conscious, divinely wise,
divinely gentle, and strong in the measure that he subdues and dominates within those
passions by which he may subdued and dominated. The divine master is one who
has attained mastery of his self. The abiding nobility, beneficent characteristics, and
unobtrusive virtue which mark off the spiritually enlightened man from others are the fruits of
self conquest, the logical outcome of a long struggle to master and comprehend those
mental forces which self conscious man blindly obeys without understanding. Self conscious man is
a slave to self obeying self centered inclinations. He is in submission to his
passions and to the sorrows and pains which allegiance to those passions inflict upon him.
He is conscious of sin and sorrow, but sees no way out of
these conditions, and so he invents theologies which he substitutes for effort, and
which, while affording him fitful comfort through uncertain hope, leave him the easy
victim of sin and the willing prey of sorrow. Divinely conscious man is the
master of self. He obeys truth and not self. He curbs and directs
his inclinations, and is conscious of a growing of a sin and sorrow.
He sees that there is a way out of these conditions by the path of
self mastery. He needs no theologies to aid him, but exerts himself in
right doing, and is gladdened by a sense of victory and increasing purity and
power. When his mastery is complete, he has no inclinations but those which
accord with truth. He has then become the conqueror of sin, and is
no longer subject to sorrow. Enlightened, wise, and even more peaceful and
happy is he who has subjected, overcome, and cast out the turbulent self
that reigned within. The Tempests of sorrow do not chill him. The cares
and troubles which beset man pass him by, and no evil thing overtakes him.
Secure in divine virtue, no enemy can over throw him, no foe
can do him harm. Kind and peaceful, no person, power nor place
can rob him of repose. There is no enemy but self, no darkness
but ignorance, no suffering but that which springs from the insubordinate elements of one's
on nature. No man is truly wise who is involved in likes and dislikes,
wishes and regrets, desires and disappointments, sins and sorrow. All these
conditions belong to the self conscious states, and are indications of folly, weakness,
and subjection. He is truly wise, who, in the midst of
worldly duties is all, is calm, all is gentle, all is patient.
He accepts things as they are, and does not wish nor grieve,
desire nor regret. These things belong to the divinely conscious state, the dominion
of truth, and are indications of enlightenment, strength, and mastery. He
who does not desire riches, fame or pleasures, who enjoys what he has,
he does not lament when it is taken from him, he is indeed
wise. He who desires riches, fame and pleasure, who is discontented with
what he has, yet laments when it is taken from him, he is
indeed foolish. Man is fitted for conquest, but the conquest of territory will
not avail. He must resort to the conquest of self. The conquest of
territory renders a man at temporal ruler, but the conquest of self makes him
an eternal conqueror. Man is destined for mastery, not the master of his
fellow men by force, but the master of his own nature by self control.
The mastery of his fellow men by force is the crown of egotism,
but the mastery of self by self control is the crown of humility. He
is man, the master who has shaken off the service of self for the
service of truth, who has established himself in the eternal verities. He is
crowned not only with perfect manhood, but with divine wisdom. He has overcome
the disturbances of the mind and the shocks of life. He is superior to
all circumstances. He is the calm spectator, but no longer the helpless tool
of events, nor more sinning, weeping, repenting mortal. He is pure,
rejoicing, upright, immortal. He perceives the course of things with a
glad and peaceful heart, A divine conqueror, master of life and death,