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Speaker 1: First steps in the higher life, Seeing that the path

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of virtue is the path of knowledge, and that before

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the all embracing principles of truth can be comprehended, perfection

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in the more lowly steps must be acquired. How then,

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shall a disciple of truth begin? How shall one who

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aspires to the writing of his mind and the purification

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of his heart, that heart which is the fountain and

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repository of all the issues of life, learn the lessons

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of virtue? How does he thus build himself up in

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the strength of knowledge, destroying ignorance and the ills of life?

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What are the lessons the first steps? How are they learned?

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How are they practiced? How are they mastered and understood?

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The first lessons consist in overcoming those wrong mental conditions

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which are most easily eradicated, and which are the common

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barriers to spiritual progress, as well as in practicing the

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simple domestic and social virtues. The reader will be better

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aided if I group and classify the first ten steps

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in three lessons as follows. Vices of the body to

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be overcome and eradicated. First lesson discipline of the body

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first step idleness laziness or indolence. Second step self indulgence

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or gluttony. Second lesson discipline of speech, third step slander,

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fourth step gossip and idle conversation. Fifth step abusive and

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unkind speech. Sixth step frivolity or irreverent speech. Seventh step critical,

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captious or fault finding speech. Third lesson discipline of tendencies.

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Eighth step unselfish performance of duty. Ninth step unswerving rectitude

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or moral integrity. Tenth step unlimited forgiveness. The two vices

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of the body and the five of the tongue are

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so called because they are manifested in the body and tongue. Also,

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by so definitely classifying them, the mind of the reader

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will be better helped. But it must be clearly understood

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that these vices arise primarily in the mind and are

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wrong conditions of the heart worked out in the body

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and the tongue. The existence of such chaotic conditions is

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an indication that the mind is altogether unenlightened as to

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the real meaning and purpose of life, and their eradication

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is the beginning of a virtuous, steadfast, and enlighten life.

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But how shall these vices be overcome and eradicated by

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first and at once checking and controlling their outward manifestations,

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and by suppressing the wrong act, this will stimulate the

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mind to watchfulness and reflection, until by repeated practice it

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will come to perceive and understand the dark, wrong, and

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erroneous conditions of mind out of which such acts spring.

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It will then abandon them entirely. It will be seen

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that the first step in the discipline of the mind

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is the overcoming of indolence or laziness. This is the

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easiest step, and until it is perfectly accomplished, the other

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steps cannot be taken. The clinging to indolence constitutes a

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complete barrier to the path of truth. Indolence consists in

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giving the body more ease and sleep than it requires,

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in procrastinating, and in shirking neglecting those things which should

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receive immediate attention. This condition of laziness must be overcome

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by rousing up the body at an early hour, giving

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it just the amount of sleep it requires for complete recuperation,

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and by doing promptly and vigorously every task, every duty,

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no matter how small, as it comes along. On no

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account should food or drink be taken in bed, and

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to lie in bed after one has awakened. Indulging in

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ease and reverie is a habit fatal to promptness and

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resolution of character and of purity of mind. Nor should

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one attempt to do his thinking at such a time. Strong,

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pure and true thinking is impossible under such circumstances. A

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man should go to bed to sleep, not to think.

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He should get up to think and work, not to sleep.

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The next step is the overcoming of self indulgence or gluttony.

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The gluttonous he who eats for animal gratification only without

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considering the true end and object of eating. He eats

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more than his body requires, and is greedy after sweet

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things and rich dishes. Such undisciplined desire can only be

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overcome by reducing the quantity of food eaten and the

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number of meals per day, and by resorting to a

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simple and uninvolved diet. Regular hours should be set apart

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for meals, and eating at other times should be rigidly avoided.

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Supper should be abolished, as they are altogether unnecessary and

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promote heavy sleep and cloudiness of mind. The pursuit of

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such a method of discipline will rapidly bring the once

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ungoverned appetite under control, and as the sensual sin of

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self indulgence is taken out of the mind, the right

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selection of foods will be instinctively and infallibly a adapted

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to the purified mental condition. It should be well borne

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in the mind that a change of heart is the

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needful thing, and that any change of diet which does

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not promote this end is futile. When one eats for enjoyment,

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he is gluttonous. The heart must be purified of sensual

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craving and glustatory lust. When the body is well controlled

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and firmly guided, When that which is to be done

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is done vigorously, when no task or duty is delayed,

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when early rising has become a delight, When frugality, simplicity, temperance,

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and abstinence are firmly established. When one is contented with

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the food which is put before him, no matter how

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scanty and plain, and the craving for gustatory pleasure is

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at an end, then the first two steps in the

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higher life are accomplished. Then is the first great lesson

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in truthfuls earned thus is established in the heart, the

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foundation of a poised, self governed, virtuous life. The next

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lesson is the lesson of virtuous speech, in which there

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are five orderly steps. The first of these is overcoming

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the habit of slanderous speech. Slander consists of inventing or

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repeating unkind and evil reports about others, in exposing and

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magnifying the faults of others or of absent friends, and

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in introducing unworthy insinuations. The elements of thoughtlessness, cruelty, insincerity,

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and untruthfulness enter into every slanderous act. He who aims

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at the living of the right life will commence to

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check the cruel word of slander before it has gone

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forth from his lips. He will then check and eliminate

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the insincere thought which gave rise to it. He will

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watch which that he does not vilify or defame anyone.

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He will refrain from disparaging, defaming, and condemning the absent

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friend whose face he has so recently smiled into or kissed,

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or whose hand he has shaken. He will not say

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of another that which he dare not say to his face. Thus,

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coming at last to think sacredly of the character and

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reputation of others, he will destroy those wrong conditions of

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mind which gave rise to slander. The next step is

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the overcoming of gossip and idle conversation. Idle speech consists

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in talking about the private affairs of others, in talking

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merely to pass away the time, and engaging an aimless

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and irrelevant conversation. Such an ungoverned condition of speech is

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the outcome of an irregulated mind. The man of virtue

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will bridle his tongue and thus learn how rightly to

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govern the mind. He will not let his tongue run

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idly and foolishly, but will make his speech strong and pure,

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and will either talk with a purpose or remain silent.

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Abusive and unkind speech is the next vice to be overcome.

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The man who abuses and accuses others has himself wandered

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far from the right way to hurl hard words and

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names of others is to sink deeply into folly. When

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a man is inclined to abuse, curse, and condemn others,

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let him restrain his tongue and look within himself. The

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virtuous man refrains from all abusive language and quarreling. He

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employs only words that are useful, necessary, pure and true.

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The sixth step is the overcoming of levity, or a

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revelant speech, light and frivolous talking, the repeating of crude jokes,

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the telling of Bulger's stories having no other purpose than

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to raise an empty laugh, offensive familiarity, and the employment

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of contemptuous and disrespectful words when speaking to or of others,

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and particularly of one's elders and those who rank as

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one's teachers, guardians, or superiors. All of this will be

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put away by the lover of virtue and truth upon

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the altar of irreverence. Absent friends and companions are immolated

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for the passing excitement of a momentary laugh, and all

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the sanctity of life is sacrificed to the zest for ridicule.

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When the respect towards others and the giving of reverence

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where reverence is due are abandoned. Virtue is abandoned when

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modesty significance in dignity are eliminated from speech and behavior.

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Truth is lost yea, even its entrance gate is hidden

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away and forgotten. Irreverence is degrading even in the young.

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But when it accompanies gray hairs and appears in the

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demeanor of the preacher, this is indeed a piteous spectacle.

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And when this can be imitated and followed after, then

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are the blind leading the blind? Then have elders, preachers

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and people lost their way? The virtuous will be of

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earnest and reverent speech. He will think and speak of

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the absence as he thinks and speaks of the dead,

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tenderly and sacredly. He will put away all thoughtlessness, and

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watch that he does not sacrifice his dignity to gratify

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a passing impulse of frivolity and superficiality. His humor will

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be pure and innocent, his voice will be subdued and musical,

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and his soul will be filled with grace and sweetness

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as he succeeds in conducting himself as becomes a man

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of truth. The last step in the second lesson is

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the overcoming of criticism or fault finding speech. This vice

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of the tongue consists in magnifying and harping on small

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or apparent faults, in foolish quibbling and hair splitting, and

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in pursuing vain arguments based upon groundless suppositions, beliefs, and opinions.

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Life is short and real, and sins, sorrow, and pain

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are not remedied by carping and contention. The man who

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is ever on the watch to catch at the words

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of others in order to contradict and dispute them, has

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yet to reach the higher way of holiness, the truer

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life of self surrender. The man who is ever on

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the alert to check his own words in order to

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soften and purify them, will find the higher way in

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the truer life. He will conserve his energies, maintain composure

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of mind, and preserve within himself the spirit of truth.

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When the tongue is well controlled and wisely subdued, when

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selfish impulses and unworthy thoughts no longer rush to the

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tongue demanding utterance. When the speech has become harmless, pure, gentle, gracious,

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and purposeful, and no word is uttered but in sincerity

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and honesty, then are the five steps to virtuous speech accomplished.

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Then is the second great lesson in truth learned and mastered.

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And now some will ask, but why all this discipline

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of the body and restraint of the tongue. Surely the

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higher life can be realized and known without such strenuous labor,

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such incessant effort and watchfulness. No, it cannot. In the spiritual,

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as the material nothing is done without labor and the

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higher cannot be known until the law is fulfilled. Can

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a man make a table before he has learned to

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handle a tool and drive a nail? And can a

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man fashion his mind in accordance with truth before he

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has overcome the slavery of his body. As the intricate

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subtleties of language cannot be understood and wielded before the

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alphabet and the simplest words are mastered, neither can the

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deep subtleties of the mind be understood and purified before

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the abc of right conduct is perfectly acquired. As for

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the labor involved, does not the youth joyfully and patiently

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submit himself to seven years apprenticeship in order to master

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a craft? And does he not day by day carefully

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and faithfully carry out every detail of his master's instructions,

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looking forward to a time when perfected through obedience and practice,

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he shall himself become a master. Where is the man

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who sincere aims at excellence in music, painting, literature, or

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any trade, business, or profession, who is not willing to

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give his whole life to the acquirement of that particular perfection.

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Shall labor then be considered where the very highest excellence

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is concerned the excellence of truth. He who says, the

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path which you have pointed out is too difficult. I

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must have truth without labor, salvation without effort. That man

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will not find his way out of the confusions and

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sufferings of selfhood. He will not find the calm, well

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fortified mind, and wisely ordered life. His love is for

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ease and enjoyment, and not for truth. He who, deep

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in his heart adores truth and aspires to know it,

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will consider no labor too great to be undertaken, but

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will adopt it joyfully and pursue it patiently. By perseverance

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in practice, he will come to the knowledge of truth.

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The necessity for this preliminary discipline of the body and

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tongue will be more clearly perceived when it is fully

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understood that all these wrong outward conditions are merely the

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expressions of the wrong conditions of the heart. An indolent

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body means an indolent mind, An ill regulated tongue reveals

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an ill regulated mind, and the process of remedying the

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manifested condition is really a method of rectifying the inward state. Moreover,

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the overcoming of these conditions is only a small part

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of what is really involved in the process. The ceasing

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from evil leads to and is inseparably connected with the

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practice of good. While a man is overcoming laziness and

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self indulgence, he is really cultivating and developing the virtues

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of abstinence, temperance, punctuality, and self denial. He is acquiring

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the strength, energy, and resolve which are indispensable to the

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successful accomplishment of the higher tasks. While he is overcoming

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the vices of speech, he is developing the virtues of truthfulness, sincerity, reverence, kindliness,

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and self control, and is gaining that mental steadiness and

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fixedness of purpose, without which the more remote subtleties of

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the mind cannot be regulated, and the higher stages of

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conduct and enlightenment cannot be reached. Also, as he has

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to do right, his knowledge deepens and his insight is intensified.

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Just as a child's heart is glad when a school

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task is mastered, so with each victory achieved, the man

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of virtue experiences a bliss which the seeker, after pleasure

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and excitement, can never know. And now we come to

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the third lesson in the higher life, which consists of

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practicing and mastering in one's daily life. Three great fundamental virtues.

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One unselfish performance of duty, two unswerving rectitude, moral integrity,

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three unlimited forgiveness. Having prepared the mind by overcoming the

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more surface and chaotic conditions mentioned in the first two lessons,

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the striver, after virtue and truth, is now ready to

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enter upon greater and more difficult tasks and to control

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and purify the deeper motives of the heart. Without the

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right performance of duty, the higher virtues cannot be known,

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and truth cannot be apprehended. Duty is generally regarded as

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an irksome labour, a compulsory something which must be toiled

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through or in some way avoided. This way of regarding

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duty proceeds from a selfish condition of mind and a

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wrong understanding of life. All duty should be regarded as

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sacred and its faithful and unselfish performance one of the

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leading rules of conduct. All personal and selfish considerations should

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be extracted and cast away from the doing of one's duty,

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and when this is done, duty ceases to be irksome

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and becomes joyful. Duty is only irksome to him who

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craves some selfish enjoyment or benefit for himself. Let the

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man who is chafing under the irksomeness of his duty,

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look to himself, and he will find that his wearisomeness

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proceeds not from the duty itself, but from his selfish

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desire to escape it. He who neglects duty, be a

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great or small, or of a public or private nature,

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neglects virtue. When duty becomes a thing of love, and

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when every particular duty is done accurately, faithfully, and as passionately,

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there is much subtle selfishness removed from the heart, and

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a great step is taken toward the heights of truth.

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The virtuous man concentrates his mind on the perfect doing

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of his own duty, and does not interfere with the

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duty of another. The ninth step is the practice of

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unswerving rectitude, or moral integrity. This virtue must be firmly

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established in the mind, and so enter into every detail

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of a man's life. All dishonesty, deception, trickery, and misrepresentation

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must be forever put away, and the heart purged of

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every vestige of insincerity and deception. The least digression from

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the path of rectitude or righteousness is a deviation from virtue.

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There must be no extravagance and exaggeration of speech, but

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the simple truth should be stated. Engaging in deception, no

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matter matter how apparently insignificant, for boastful pride or with

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the hope of personal advantage, is a state of delusion

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which one should make efforts to dispel. It is demanded

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of the man of virtue that he shall not only

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practice the most rigid honesty in thought, word, indeed, but

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that he shall be exact in his statements, omitting and

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adding nothing to the actual truth. In thus shaping his

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mind to the principle of rectitude or moral integrity, he

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will gradually come to deal with people and things in

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a just and impartial spirit, considering equity before himself, and

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viewing all things with freedom from personal bias, passion, and prejudice.

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When the virtue of rectitude is fully practiced and comprehended,

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so that all temptation to untruthfulness and insincerity has ceased,

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then is the heart made purer and nobler than is.

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Character strengthened and knowledge enlarged, and life takes on a

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new meaning and a new power. Thus is the ninth

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step accomplished. The tenth step is the practice of unlimited forgiveness.

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This consists in overcoming the sense of injury which springs

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from vanity, selfishness, and pride, and in exercising disinterested charity

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and large heartedness towards all spite, retaliation, and revenge are

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so utterly ignoble, so base, so small and foolish as

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to be altogether unworthy of being noticed or harbored. No

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one who fosters such conditions in his heart can lift

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himself above folly and suffering and guide his life aright.

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Only by casting them away and ceasing to be moved

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by them can a man's eyes be open to the

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true way of life. Only by developing a forgiving and

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charitable spirit can he hope to approach and perceive the

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strength and beauty of a well ordered life. In the

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heart of the strongly virtuous man, no feeling of personal

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injury can arise. He has put away all retaliation and

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has no enemies. If other men should regard themselves as

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his enemies, he will regard them kindly, understanding their ignorance

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and making full allowance for it. When this state of

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heart is arrived at, then the tense step in the

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discipline of one's self seeking inclinations is accomplished, then the

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third great lesson in virtue knowledge is learned and mastered.

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Having thus laid down the first ten steps and three

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lessons in right doing and right knowing, I leave those

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of my readers who are prepared for them to learn

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and master them in their everyday life. There is, of

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course a still higher discipline of the body, a more

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far reaching discipline of the tongue, and greater and more

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all embracing virtues to acquire and understand before the highest

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state of bliss and knowledge can be grasped. But it

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is not my purpose to deal with them. Here. I

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have expounded only the first and easiest lessons on the

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higher path, and by the time these are thoroughly mastered,

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the reader will have become so purified, strengthened, and enlightened

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that he will not be left in the dark as

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to his future progress. Those of my readers who have

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completed these three lessons will already have perceived beyond and

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above the high altitudes of truth and the narrow, imprecipitous

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track which leads to them, and will choose whether they

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shall proceed. The straight path which I have laid down

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can be pursued by all with greater profit to themselves

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and to the world. And even those who do not

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aspire to the attainment of truth will develop greater intellectual

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and moral strength, finer judgment, and deeper peace of mind

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by perfecting themselves in this path. Nor will their material

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prosperity suffer by this change of heart. Nay, it will

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be rendered truer, purer, and more enduring. For if there

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is one who is capable of succeeding and fitted to achieve,

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it is the man who has abandoned the petty weaknesses

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and every day vices of his kind, who is strong

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enough to rule his body and mind, and who pursues

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with fixed resolve the path of unswerving integrity and sterling virtue.