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Speaker 1: Perfect freedom. There is no bondage in the heavenly life.

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There is perfect freedom. This is its great glory. This

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supreme freedom is gained only by obedience. He who obeys

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the highest cooperates with the highest, and so masters every

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force within himself and every condition without. A man may

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choose the lower and neglect the higher, but the higher

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is never overcome by the lower. Herein lies the revelation

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of freedom. Let a man choose the higher and abandon

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the lower. He shall then establish himself as an overcomer,

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and shall realize perfect freedom. To give the reins to

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inclination is the only slavery. To conquer one's self is

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the only freedom. The slave to self loves his chains

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and will not have one of them broken, for fear

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he would be depriving himself of some cherished delay. He

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clings to his gratifications and vanities, regarding freedom from them

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as an empty and undesirable condition. He thus defeats and

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enslaves himself by self. Enlightenment is perfect freedom found whilst

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a man remains ignorant of himself, of his desires, of

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his emotions and thoughts, and of the inward causes which

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mold his life and destiny. Having neither control nor understanding

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of himself, he will remain in bondage to passion, sorrow, suffering,

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and fluctuating fortune. The land of perfect freedom lies through

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the gate of knowledge. All outward oppression is but the

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shadow and effect of the real oppression within. For ages,

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the oppressed have cried for liberty, and a thousand man

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made statutes have failed to give it to them. They

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can give it only to themselves. They shall find it

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only in obedience to the divine statutes which are inscribed

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upon their hearts. Let them resort to the inward freedom,

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and the shadow of oppression shall no more darken the earth.

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Let men cease to oppress themselves, and no man will

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oppress his brother. Men legislate for an outward freedom, yet

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continue to render such freedom impossible of achievement by fostering

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an inward condition of enslavement. They thus pursue a shadow

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without and ignore the substance within. Man will be free

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when he is freed from self. All outward forms of

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bondage and oppression will cease to be when man ceases

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to be the willing bond slave of passion, error, and ignorance.

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Freedom is to the free. Whilst men cling to weakness,

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they cannot have strength. Whilst they love darkness, they can

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receive no light. So long as they prefer bondage, they

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can enjoy no liberty. Strength, light, and freedom are ready

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now and can be had by all who love them,

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who aspire to them. Freedom does not reside in co

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operative aggression, for this will always produce reactively co operative defense, warfare, hatred,

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party strife, and the destruction of liberty. Freedom resides in

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individual self conquest. The emancipation of humanity is frustrated and

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withheld by the self enslavement of the unit. You who

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cry to Man and God for liberty, liberate yourself. The

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heavenly freedom is freedom from passion, from cravings, from opinions,

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from the tyranny of the flesh and the tyranny of

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the intellect. This first, and then all outward freedom as

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effect to cause the freedom that begins within and extends outwardly,

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until that embraces the whole man. Is an emancipation so complete,

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all embracing, and perfect as to leave no galling fetter unbroken.

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Free your soul from all sin, and you shall walk

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a freed and fearless man. In the midst of a

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world of fearful slaves, and seeing you many slaves shall

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take heart and join you in your glorious freedom. He

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who says, my worldly duties are irksome to me, I

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will leave them and go into solitude, where I shall

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be as free as the air, and thinks to gain

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freedom thus will find only a harder slavery. The tree

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of freedom is rooted in duty, and he who would

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pluck its sweet fruits must discover joy and duty. Glad hearted, calm,

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and ready for all tasks. Is he who is freed

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from self irksomeness and weariness cannot enter his heart and

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his divine strength like every burden, so that its weight

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is not felt. He does not run away from duty

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with his chains about him, but breaks them and stands free.

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Make yourself pure, make yourself proof against weakness, temptation, and sin.

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For only in your own heart and mind shall you

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find perfect freedom, for which the whole world sighs and

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seeks in vain