Theos-Talk Archives (September 1994 Message tl00011)

This is from Eldon Tucker

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Bill Parette:

    We all have an interest that ties in with Theosophy, but
take different approaches to it. Some of us may embrace it as
a religious philosophy, and seek to make it a part of our
lives. Others may consider it as an intellectual exercise, or
an interesting historical or mythological phenomena to be
observed and classified along with the product of Steiner,
Bailey, Kirshnamurti, and others.
    Those of us who embrace Theosophy as real, and feel
strongly attracted to it as a spiritual path, want to embrace
it as an integral part of our lives. We do not analyze it from
without, but take it fully into our lives and use it to take
us to far-distant places within.
    There are many exoteric systems of thought popular in
modern society. Some have been formulated by men of genius,
men with some truly grand ideas. But they fall short in their
efforts. The result of their works is uneven, lacking in
areas, with blind-spots. This is because they have not gone to
the Source, and received training, in some form, from those
who know, the true Scholars of humanity.
    One such genius, who produced a religious-psychological
system of thought, was C.G. Jung. He falls short, though, by
making everything psycho-centric, in resolving everything in
terms of the human personality. He could not break free of his
Christian bias, and openly embrace even the basic doctrines of
the Wisdom-Religion like reincarnation and karma. Those things
that he could not allow himself to think about were related to
in a mystical sense, and treated as unknowable or mysteries.
    Consider the idea of "synchronicity." It basically says
that things tend to happen at the same time, things that
should go together. These events may not have a physical-plane
relationship, one to the other, where we can see some cause
behind them, producing both events. There is an implied causal
connection, but the idea is only timidly put forward as a
"meaningful coincidence". Compare this to non-Christian ideas
of karma, other planes of existence, and the interrelatedness
of life leading to the cocreating of the world. There is a lot
missing, even as compared to other exoteric philosophies in
the world. But for people with a heavy Christian bias, the
philosophy of Jung provides a step in the right direction,
even if we'd call it but a small step.
    With "The Secret Doctrine," we have some of our most
weighty materials to ponder. Does it need translation? It may
depend upon the individual if introductory and intermediate
works need be studied first. My introduction to Theosophy, as
a teenager, involved reading most of Leadbeater's and Besant's
books. At that time I found "The Secret Doctrine" a bit too
difficult to understand. Later, I started studying the works
of G. de Purucker, and found that I had a much deeper
understanding of Theosophy. I now feel comfortable with "The
Secret Doctrine," but personally find Teachings of equal depth
in Purucker's books. (He picks some of the deeper points, and
elaborates them, providing the reader with an easier access to
some of the deeper Truths. This is different, though, from
expressing in different words some of the simpler ideas to
provide new students with yet another introduction to the
Philosophy.)
    There are some people that seek after phenomena and
powers. This comes from a desire for power, to control others,
and for ego gratification. Their consciousness is still
strongly centered in the personality, and the motivation is to
strengthen that personality, to make it more powerful, to
center the consciousness even stronger in it. This is the
opposite of what we strive for, though, in treading the
spiritual Path.
    We do not seek after powers. There is the saying: "Seek
ye first the Kingdom of Heaven, and all will be added to Ye."
We follow that approach. When the consciousness becomes firmly
rooted in the spiritual, the motivation in life is to live for
others, and the personal self is forgotten, the highest in us
is able to come through. And when this happens, the
circumstances in our lives change. Our personalities gradually
reorganize along the lines of the higher influences, and we
acquire those powers necessary to fulfill our lives *without
seeking them.* The outer man exists to express the inner man.
We nurture the flowering of the inner man, and the outer
naturally, of its own accord, changes accordingly.