rosicrucian digest, december 1935

8/10/2019 Rosicrucian Digest, December 1935

1/44


2/44

THIS MONTHS SUGGESTION

The Secret of SuccessI The fundamental law of success is order. Systematic arrange-,

ment of your thoughts, your plans and your acts, assures you

against lost time. The greatest genius is at a disadvantage if he

is compelled to search for his implements, pen, or brush when

inspired. The student is equally striving against odds, if hismonographs or lessons are haphazardly filed, requiring a shuffling

of pages, a sorting of manuscripts, each time a point, principle,

law, or fact is sought. There is no greater torment than the

tantalizing thought that you possess the needed information, but

just cannot locate it. There is no wisdom so useless as that just

beyond recall. Why not begin today to file your monographs

methodically? We have prepared a specially made, serviceable

and attractive lesson binder for this purpose. This special binder

will accommodate a years monographs. It is very attractive, and

stamped in gold with the symbol and name of the Order. It con

tains an index form for indexing the subjects of your monographs

for quick reference, and is made of durable material.

S T U D E N T S

LESSON

BI N DER

Accommodates a yeats

mono graphs . Is durable

and attractive. H as a

handy reference index.

Price $1 .00 e a .

O n l y #2.50

f o fa lot of three-

R O S I C R U C I A N S U P P L Y B U R E A US A N J O S E , C A L I F O R N I A U . S . A


3/44

uifje Cternal CfjnstmasT

HE golden words of the ancient illumined ones disclose that to no age, race, creed or sect

belongs the divine virtue of spiritual insight. Cosmic Illumination has never been circum -

scribed. Its spark exists within the bosom of all humanity, awaiting the time when it may Be

fanned into a flame that will light the way for millions struggling in darkness. The bud


4/44

S C R I B E S . P. C .

T h e R o si c ru c ia n s ( A M O R C )

R c s i c r u c i a n P a r k , S a n J o s e , C a l i f o r n i a

G e n t l e me n :

1 am desirous of receiving the SealedBook offered, which will tell me how Imay acquire the unusual knowledge pos'sesaed by the Rcs i cruc i an s . I un d er 'stand it will be sent to me without costor obligation,

Name.

Addieaa.

Does

FearBlock Your

Does the unknown future stand before youlike a dread specter? Do the uncertainties of

tomorrow bewilder you? Has the fear of newtrials and tests halted you in your tracks, kept you

from reaching the mountain top of your hopes? Fearis a subconscious feeling of helplessness that comes from

the ebbing of confidence. Each time you fail to master a

problem of life, and your self-reliance is shaken, fear gainsa stronger grip upon your mind. Stop looking to left and rightfor a word, a hand, or a mysterious influence to push you to the

top. You can renew your confidence and lift the leaden weight fromyour heart if you let the Rosicrucians help you.

The Rosicrucians can bring about a transformation of your thinking, instil within you new hope and inspiration, not by some magicalprocess or strange method but by intelligently directing the application of your mental powers and developing your will and intuition.

S E C UR E T HI S F R E E S E AL E D B OOKW e have noth ing to offer to those who have resigned

themselves to Fate, who are satisfied to drift, or who arejus t seekin g a job . Ours is a message of startli ng helpful

ness to the ambitious man and woman who seeks a lifebeyond the commonplace, to whom life mee.ns happiness,knowledge, and personal power.

To those willing to prepare themselves, willing to read,think, and use the power of thought, a book of unusual importance explaining what the Rosicrucians can do is offeredwithout cost or obligation. If you are not satisfied withyour life, and willing to bring changes into it by beginningwith yourself first, we say, use the coupon opposite, today.

TheROSICRUCIANS

U S E T H I S G I F T C O U P O N

[ A M O R C ]S A N J O S E , C A L I F O R N IA


5/44

ROSICRUCIAN

DIGESTCOVERS THE WORLDTHE O FFI C I A L, I N TER N A TI ON A L R OS I C BU C I A N MA GA -Z IN E O F T H E W O B 1 D W 1 D E B OS IC BU C IA N O B D E B

Vol. XIII DE CEMB ER , 1935 No. II

C O N T E N T S Page

The Eternal Christmas (Frontispiece).......... ............. 401

The Thought of the Month: Is Peace Hopeless?.... 404

The Magic of Bells .......... ,...................................... 406

Cathedral Contacts ............................. _ .....v. 410

"The Sphere of Nature's Mysteries''.......................

412Summaries of Science ... 417

Ancient Symbolism ....... ...................... .................. 421

Sanctum Musings: Francis Bacon and the

Rosicrucians .............................................. ......... 422

Pages from the Past ............ ................... ......... 427

Pilate's Report to Tiberius Caesar.. ................... 430

Nirvana The Heavenly S tate (Illustration). ___ 437

Subscription to The Rosicrucian Digest, Three Dollars peryear. Single copies twenty-five cents each.

Entered as Second Class Matter at the Post Office at SanJo se , Ca lifornia , unde r Act of August 24th, 1912.

Changes of address must reach us by the tenth of themonth preceding date of issue.

Pu b l i s h ed Mon th ly b y th e S u p reme C ou n c i l o f

THE RO S IC RU C IA N O RDER A M O RC

BOS I C BU C I A N FA KK S A N JOS E, C A LI FOR N I A

r j r m r


6/44

T h e

Rosicrucian

Digest

D ecember

1935

CCO RDIN G to religion's traditions,nineteen hundredand t h i r t y - f i v eyears ago moreor less accordingto various calen

dars the greatPeacemaker wasbom. The mostbeautiful ideal Heheld before the

_______________world was that ofuniversal peace.

Just twenty years ago on the 4thday of December Henry Ford sailedfrom New York with a special charteredboat and a number of delegates and agreat hope that they would be able toplead with European powers for peace.It was the world's most modern andmost fanciful peace expedition, but it

failed in its mission just as "did Jesusthe Christ in His desire to establish andmaintain peace on earth.

W e are prone to think that much ofthe cause for war, and certainly most ofthe horrifying and horrible possibilitiesof war, are a result of civilization. W eoften feel that with the development ofnationalism, national interests, moderneconomic systems, the advancement ofmachinery and science, warfare has actually become a child of civilization andthat as our modern interests, ideas, andindividualistic conceptions of life evolveand become more complex, war will be

come more and more certain.But the truth of the matter is that

when Jesus the Christ came to this sadold world as a Saviour of men and amessenger of peace approximately nineteen hundred and thirty-five years ago,

warfare was so rife and the world filledwith such destruction of life that Jesusin His ministry felt it necessary to placegreat emphasis upon peace and uponthe necessity of loving our neighbors aswe love ourselves. If we study thepreachments of Jesus and analyze them,

we must come to the conclusion thatJesus was saddened by the lack ofbrotherliness, the hatred, enmity, jealousy, and other destructive emotions expressed by man toward mankind. If westudy and trace the history of the worldbackward from the time of His birth,we find that from the dawn of creationman has battled in ignorance not onlyagainst the elements of nature and thegood impulses within his own consciousness, but he has battled against hisbrother, placing a low price upon lifeand giving little consideration to thehuman ties that should have bound all

of mankind into one glorious nation.That Jesus failed to bring about universal peace is only a further proof thatthe animalistic tendencies of unculturedand cultured human nature are still inclined toward war and warfare. W eshould not be surprised, therefore, thatHenry Ford, with all of his ideals andhopes, should have met with failure inhis peace expedition which started onDecember 4, 1915.

This month throughout the Christianworld the birth of Jesus the Christ, thegreat Peacemaker and Saviour of man,is celebrated on the 25th. It is a time

and occasion for joyous celebration andfor serious meditation and reflection aswell.

W hat if Jesus had never been born?Shall we assume that if He had not beenborn and no divine messenger of so-


7/44

called Christian philosophy had come toman personally to preach, the beautifulpoints of the Christian creed wouldnever have been revealed to man? Shall

we assume that if Jesus had not beenborn the world would have continuedevolving in its religious, philosophicalthought in lines and paths having theirfoundation in s o - c a l l e d paganism,heathenism, and the Jewish religion?Or would the decalogue or Ten Commandments which Moses gave to theworld have eventually served, evolvingcivilization as a sufficient foundation fora proper guide in life? Is it not trueor are we sadly mistaken in believingthat just as the birth of Jesus marks aturning point, a pivot in the popularcalendar, so His birth. His life. His

ministry, mark a turning point in theevolution of civilization?

It may be true that man has adoptedin only a limited way the ideals taughtby Jesus, and it may be true that thefollowers of Christ and the Christianreligion represent only a small portionof the population of the world; but is itnot equally true that Christianity as areligious, moral, and ethical code, as ahuman philosophy, as a workable guidein our daily lives, is closely associatedwith the highest advancement of civilization in most of the progressive coun

tries of the world? True, Christian nations, while chanting or singing theChristian songs and adoring Jesus theChrist as their Saviour and leader, stillindulge in war and still violate even thefundamental principles of brotherly love.But can we successfully and logicallyseparate the greatest advancement andachievements in civilization among themost progressive nations, from thegrowth and development, the understanding and acceptance of Christianphilosophy?

It is true that in the Orient and elsewhere where the Christian religion has

never been well-established or a dominating influence, civilization has advanced also. It is doubtful if the Christian religion and its doctrines couldhave become a dominating influence inthose countries because of the natureand tendencies of the people. Their

own religions, gradually evolving tohigher and broader standards, havepropably served them better. But in theWestern World and among the most

progressive nations, the fundamentalprinciples of Christianity pristineChristianism has unquestionablyproved itself to be the necessary savingand inspiring philosophy to further theindividual and national evolution. Onthe other hand, the beautiful thoughtsand noble doctrines of the Jewish faithas laid down by their patriarchs andunfolded by their learned Rabbis hasaided another large portion of the worldto attain great heights in culture andspirituality.

All of these things should be giventhought during the Christmas and holiday season, for while we are rejoicingin the opportunity which the holidaysafford for the expression of mutualgood-will, we should be thankful thatthe Cosmic has made possible the inspiring revelations from the consciousness of God to the heart and mind ofman through the messengers who haveserved man in the past.

As we all come to learn of our Divineheritage and come to fully understandwhat is meant by the Fatherhood ofGod and the Brotherhood of Man, wewill come to think alike more often and

to be in greater agreement and harmonyin our thinking and acting and the inevitable result will be universal peace.But until we do understand alike, thinkalike, and act alike, until we do harmonize in understanding, all of the essentialfactors of human existence on earth,there is no hope for that universal peacefor which we pray. The spirit of intolerance must be laid aside. The importance of national and political discussionsmust be brought to an end throughlooking upon these things as secondaryto the fact that we are children of Lightin the Kingdom of God with one great

Supreme Father and with universal desires, ambitions, and requirements thatare identical. W e will love each otherthe more when we understand eachother better and through such understanding and love will the Kingdom ofGod on earth be brought into realization.

V V V


8/44

The Magic of Wells

T h eRosicrucian

D i gest

D ecember

1935

As Portrayed by a Member in England

ByF r a t e r P e r c y Pi g o t t , F. R. C.

V V V

S t h e r e any t h i ngthat man has evermade, either ofmetal, or wood, ore v e n p r e c i o u sstones, that will invoke such a wealthof visions as thoseproduced by bells?A s w o r d m a yspeak of strife ore v e n s e r v i ce , a

r i n g of union orperhaps eternity,the pointing hands of a clock remind usof the ceaseless passing of time, a keymay speak of mystery or perhaps theunfolding thereof. These, however, atmost, have power to remind us of butone or two of lifes depths and tragedies. But bells, or at ^cast the ringing of bells, are almost as prolific asource of serging emotions as the wordswith which poets enchant us.

W e hear the sound of th e rockbound bell, lashed on a foggy night bythe foam of the incoming tide. Hark

how it responds to the rising storm. Itis enjoying its chilly bath as a batherdoes his in July. Its incessant, irregular,shoalshoal shoalshoal causes usto suppress a dread for we know thedangers of submerged reefs; or perhaps

we shudder as we sense its cold, mist-enshrouded solitude. Contrast this withthe sudden flinging of the village pealacross peaceful pastures a n d fields ofwaving corn. Upon their summons whocan fail to pause and pray? And whoseprayer, while enveloped in their loudmelody, can be other than a prayer of

joy?Listen again to the bell of the homely

muffin man as he pushes his wares overthe uneven paving of one of t h e less

prosperous suburban streets of an English town at dusk. Its tinkling is as irregular and spasmodic as the fog bell,but it is less Joud. It is then we see avision of domestic rest, with the manifold worries of the greater world excluded by lowered blinds, the flame onthe hearth, the gently singing kettle, thesimple meal, the coiled and sleeping cat.'Then there is the passing bell, tolling soheavily and so slowly. Some life isended and there is a sacred sadness inthe hope which has fled. W e in Eng land become subdued when we hear it.W e stop our neighbours and whisper

one to another, It must be for so andso; he has gone. Again we momentarily pray. But our prayer is now a reverent appeal for light and for guidancefor one who has left us. Had we notoften laughed or wept together, toiled

Four Hundred Six


9/44

or played together? Or perhaps we hadbeen at strife. Or was it one whom wemerely frequently met in our walksabroad? No matter. The prolonged,heavy clanging of the bell mournfully,continuously, solemnly repeats gonegone gone gone. Th e utter irrevocability of the event is expressed in itsdeep twang. W e are near to a greatmystery. W e formulate no words. Yetwe pray. W e cannot help but pray. Oursubdued thoughts, our unuttered regrets are a prayer. "Grant him thypeace, O Lord. May light perpetualshine on him.

Yet again consider a peal of cathedralbells ringing from out of their tower ona hill top, say during a thunder storm.

The loud, threatening crack of thundermomentarily muffles their music. It isSatans host angered with their liquidnotes so serene and divine. Baffled, thethunder growls and departs. Th e bellsring on, calmly, tunefully, melodiously.Again the lightning flashes, the thunderpeals; and still those bells, unconcernedand unafraid, ring out to the wild cloudsuntil the music of their melody subduesthe storm. Th e art of man has beenmatched against the elemental forces ofGod and the magic of mans music hasprevailed. Curfew invokes a vision ofpast centuries, of feudal tenure, of serfs

and barons a n d arrogant monarchswhose wills w e r e unchallengeable, ofthe close of day when we must retire torest for it is the Kings command. Thenthere is the tocsin, sudden and sharpand loud; the very word makes us startalarmed and cry, W hats wrong? Contrast this with the peaceful jingle of themusical cattle bells in Switzerland, thosebells of which the cows themselves growso fond that they refuse their food andpine if they are removed f r o m theirnecks, and learn therefrom of the variedimagery which can be produced by theringing of a bell.

Authorities tell us there were no bellsprior to the fourth century of our era.There was no word in our language forthem. How impoverished must havebeen the lives of those remote forefathers of ours, no books and no bells.

One of the glories of England is herwealth of village churches. Thousandsand thousands of piously consecrated,picturesque, medieval, sacred assem

bling places, whose ever open porch receives, without distinction, the laboureror his landlord. Th ey generally standon a little hillock and from age to age,

as a continual reminder to all who liveand sleep within the churchs shadowor seek her all protecting power, theyhave raised their towers heavenward.Yet should we have had those significantand steadfast heaven pointing towers,had it not been for the coming of thebell and its need for a dwelling place?

Bells have played their part in theunfolding of history and the mouldingof mankind. If they have summoneduncounted thousands of devout Christians to the peace which follows prayer,they have also, on occasions, soundedthe signal for revolt and human slaughter. It was on St. Bartholomews day in1571 when the ringing of bells usheredin the massacre of a hundred thousandunoffending Huguenots.

It is believed by the aged and simplethat a large town is submerged beneaththe waters of Crumlyn Lake. Th ere aretimes they say, when, for instance, theevening is s u c h that its quiet is disturbed by a falling twig, when they canhear the fairies ringing the bells of thedisused towers. And similarly at Lan-gorse Pool in Breconshire, where legendtells us a large cathedral lies buried, you

can still hear, on holy days, t h e faintchime of the bells. Unholy hands onceremoved a bell from th e tower of St.Davids Cathedral and endeavoured toconvey it away to sea. For their sinsthey were shipwrecked. And now thereare sea-faring folk on the coast of Pembrokeshire in Wales who say they knowof the approach of a storm, for its advent is heralded by the ringing of thisbell in its watery grave. To this taskhave the sacrilegious robbers been condemned until the crack of doom. Th efisherfolk of St. Ouens on the island ofJersey also know that if they attempt,

however warily, to prevail against thewaves, when they can hear on the windthe subdued sound of a bell, disturbedin its weedy home, i t s measured tonewill prove their funeral knell and thewhite foam of the waves will form theirwinding sheet. So they stay at home.

The bells of Lincoln cathedral havebeen known to ring without the aid ofmortal hands. This was the case when


10/44

the child martyr Hugh w a s buried.Lincoln, indeed, h a s many beautifulmemories of bells. W he n o n e of theearliest and most saintly of her bishopswas released f r o m the charge of hisdiocese the bells which welcomed himin heaven w e r e distinctly heard onearth.

On the occasion of the accession ofGeorge III a group of lusty youth metin Lancells Tow er in Cornwall. Theyhad gathered t h e r e to ring a peal towelcome their new King. W ith banterand jest, with bared arms and smilingfaces they grasped each his rope. Th ebells swayed, in rhythmic, measuredtime each tongue in turn hammered themetal and the message of the coming ofthe King was carried even to the shipsat sea. Again t h e y met in the sametower. Again t h e y bared their arms.Each pulled t h e same rope, each hadthe same colleague to the right and tothe left of him. Again the bells clangedin turn and spread abroad their messageof joy. But the faces of t h e ringerswere now furrowed, the smile was subdued. Instead of banter and jest theyexchanged memories, s o m e of whichwere not unmixed w i t h regrets. Th earms that were bared for the same taskwere not so sinewy as of yore. Fo r thesame ringers who rang the bells in Lan-cells Tower w h e n George III wascrowned, rang them again to celebratehis jubilee. W hen George IV ascendedthere w e r e one or two vacant placeswhich were filled f r o m outside. Onesolitary survivor rang for William IV.

Between the slopes of t h e Lincolnshire wolds an d the chalky shores ofthe Humber sleeps an old world town,still little disturbed by the traffic of ourhighroads. The red tiles and slopinggables of a few large houses, the nameof the chief inn a n d also of the mainstreet betoken a burst of prosperitysomewhere a b o u t the time of theGeorges. Indeed the bars which still insome measure protect the windows ofone of these Georgean houses w e r eoriginally put there by the local banker

T h e as some additional protection for hisRosicrucian 9 ^ reserves. He closed his doors dur

ing the financial troubles which followed the Napoleonic wars. Possibly this is

D e c e m b e r the only touch of life and growth this1935 quiet old town has ever known. No

town of its size could be more immunefrom modem bustle. A motorist arriving must hunt some time before findinga petrol filling station and when foundhe will have to hunt again for an attendant. Its restfulness is becoming toits age, for t h e town is as old as thehistory of England. Th e Danes made

incursions here, they founded the townand they named it. W hen the inhabitants forsook the hammer of Thor andreverenced instead the sign of the crossthey built a very fine church. Here on acertain evening every winter the vicarmay be found preaching, often to an invisible congregation. And t h i s is theromantic story from which so strange acustom has arisen.

A woman, years ago, was returninghomewards on foot. She had reachedthe top of the hill where the fire blazedwhen the Atmada was sighted which

overlooks the red roofed houses below.The remaining distance was not greatbeing but one milestone, and the roadwas broad and good. But it was winterand the heavy clouds hung low so thatdusk, and e v e n darkness, descendedbefore its time. Snow fell, silently,densely, slowly, t h e n thicker, faster,heavier than before. Soon earth and airand sky became one element composedof thousands and countless thousandsof white snowflakes. The poor womancould see nought but snow. She knewnot where she was or whether to turnto the right or left, whether she faced

north or south. Snow, snow, there wasnothing but snow; no sound or sign toguide. So silent was it that she, listening f o r aid, heard th e flakes, hardlyseparable from the tumbling skies, asthey joined t h e i r companions on thewhite earth below. Fear encompassedthe solitary traveller. She must perishfor she knew not which way to turn andthere w a s none at hand to lead. Sheprayed, passionately, earnestly, fervently; yet doubtfully, for were not the daysof miracles long past and only a miraclecould save. Yet her prayer had barelyhad time to reach the ears of Him who

hears all sounds w h e n she heard thechurch bells ringing. Their musicalclashing, clanging, clamouring was lessimpeded by the snow laden air than iswind by wire netting. As, guided bytheir loud, continuous ringing, she safe-


11/44

ly traced her footsteps homewards, sherealized that God still hears all prayersthat are uttered, but He is too sensibleto depute an archangel to descend fromstarry heights to guide, when he can doit more easily by the ringing of a bell.Years later, departing from this worldof fears bom of want of faith, she bequeathed a legacy for the preaching ofa sermon each anniversary of the dayupon which God manifested his presence and his power and delivered herfrom her fear. The only reason whythe sermon is now preached to an invisible congregation is becausewell, itis difficult enough t h e s e days to getfolk to church even on Sundays.

Ye t the bravest of all bells a r e theNew Year bells, which it is still customary to ring in England on NewYea rs eve. Not then from some solitary tower, nor subdued by the weightof the sea, nor faint from distant fairyland, but just as t h e rolling earth has

carried us from the old to the new, fromthe things that were to the things thatwill be, from village to village, f r o mhamlet to hamlet, from county bourn tocounty bourn they fling forth their joyand flood the whole land with theirloud, jubilant, triumphant gladness.

W hy should they be so glad? Didwe not suffer and weep last year just thesame as in all previous years? Did wenot struggle with sickness and povertyand even still worse things? Do we notsuffer, and weep and even quarrel everyyear as it passes? W h y are all thosebells so glad?

Ah! Tha t is why they are so brave.They are dauntless. W e h a v e neverbeen free from pain it is true. But we

know we are journeying to joy, to anunfathomable peace. W e did not reachour goal last year. But we believe weshall do so this. And that is why thosebells ring out with such great gladness.

R E A D T H E R O S I C R U C I A N F O R U M

V V V

I?........ ............. ......................................................... .................................... .....................................0

BE ON YOUR GUARD

All members as well as all officers of our organization are warned again that a

number of persons are traveling across the United States and into Canada lecturing and

holding private classes and charging fees for private instruction and claiming that their

work and their plans are indorsed by A MO RC . In many instances these pretenders have

succeeded in winning the assistance financial and otherwiseof some of our members

and have robbed many of our members of large sums of money and have secured local

indorsements through the claim that their teachings and offerings are approved by

AMORC and the private classes sponsored by AMORC.

Th e only lecturers ever sponsored by A M OR C are our own field lecturers whose

tour and activities are announced from time to time in this magazine. If you do not

see the name of any lecturer indorsed in this magazine at any time, you may be sure

that such persons do not have our indorsement. The AMORC does not encourage nor

support private lecturers who hold private classes and charge fees.

Special attention is called to a lecturer in Canada who claims that his lectures and

lessons are approved by us. Such is not the case. Always demand the right to see a

person's membership card and, if necessary, telegraph us collect and verify any claims

that seem doubtful.

S U P R E M E S E C R E T A R Y .

i j" ............................ .............. ......... ................. ..................................m................................................


12/44

T h eRosicrucian

D i gest

D ecem ber

1935

The "Cathedral of the Soul Is a Cosmic meeting place for all minds of themost advanced and highly developed spiritual members and workers of theRosicrucian Fra ternity. It Is a focal point of Cosmic radiations and thoughtwaves from which radiate vibrations of health, peace, happiness, and innerawakening. Vario us periods of the day are set aside when many thousandsof minds are attuned with the Cathedral of the Soul, and others attuning withthe Cathedral at this time will receive the benefit of the vibrations. Those whoare not members of the organization may share in the unusual benefit as wellas those who are members. The book called Liber 777" describes the periodsfor various conta cts with the Cathedral. Copies will be sent to persons whoare not members by addressing their request for this book to Friar S. P. C., careof AMORC Temple, San Jose, California, enclosing three cents In postagestamps. (Plese state whether m ember or notthis is important.)

ANOTHER SPECIAL CATHEDRAL PERIOD

N Christmas evening, December25, it will be appropriate indeedfor all of ourCathedral members and friendsto come togetherspi r i tual ly andmentally and meet

in ecstasy and sublime communion inthe Cathedral ofthe Soul.

Rather than attempting any specialperiod for Christmas Eve preceding

Christmas Day, we believe it will bemore appropriate as well as more convenient for our members to join with theImperator of our Order in a specialCathedral service at 6:00 p. m. PacificStandard Time on Christmas Day. Thiswill be equivalent to 7:00 oclock Mountain Time, 8:00 oclock Central Standard Time, and 9:00 oclock EasternStandard Time, and of course, it will be

earlier or later in the day in other partsof the world.For ten minutes the Imperator will

hold himself in meditation, concentration, and attunement so that between 6:00and 6:10 P. M. all who a r e attuning


13/44

with the Cathedral in any part of theworld may contact the Imperator in theCathedral and sense the beautiful music,special ritual, and health giving vibra

tions of the great invisible temple whichwe call the Cathedral of the Soul.

This special service w i l l be one ofbenediction and holy blessing becauseof our attunement with God and Godsprinciples, and it will be one of mutualgood will toward all in contact who are

with the others exchanging vibrationsof health and happiness. Be sure to tellall members whom you may contactabout this special period and let us make

this the greatest sacred period of theyear. To those who are strangers andhave never had a correct understandingof what the Cathedral of the Soul reallyis, we invite them to send for Liber 777in time to join with us on this specialChristmas occasion.

V V V

EGYPTIAN TOUR POSTPONED

Important No t i c e t o A l l o f Our Mem bers and Fr iends

Because a number of the steamship linesall of them in some way associated with

British holding companies or B ritish interestshave decided that it is n ot to the best

interests of all concerned to risk taking their vessels into the Mediterranean Sea at any

time during the unsettled political affairs, we have decided to postpone our wonderful

tour to thirty Mediterranean ports and through the land of Egypt, until February of 1937.

This means that the entire tour as planned by us will be postponed for one year.

W e have already decided to add a few additional features and in many other ways

compensate for the delay in carrying out our trip due to the decisions of the steamship

companies.

W e have been petitioned by a great many members to consider a postponement

on account of the greater ease of mind and happiness that will come to the members

taking the tour if they know that it is being made in times of peace rather than in timesof diplomatic or political disagreement.

All who are registered to go on the trip and who have paid deposits or made partial

payments on their tickets will receive interest on their money at the rate of 6 per cent

during the time the money is being held on deposit or up to Janu ary 1, 1937 . New

reservations for this trip have been coming to us each week and now they will undoubtedly

come abundantly. All who register for the trip up to April 1 of 1936 will be permitted

to share in this tour at the previously announced rate and all who have already registered

and paid deposits will enjoy the same rate. All who register after April 1, 1936, will be

required to pay an additional sum because of the increase in steamship and tourist rates

that have already been announced for next year. The rate for our Egyptian tour is

already one of the lowest ever fixed for such an inclusive, extended and highly specialized

tour. Becaus e of the great increase in touring rates and especially in steamship rates due

to the increased travel next year, the AMORC rate will be considered an extraordinary

offering.

A special letter will be sent to all who have registered or paid deposits. Do not

allow the postponement of the trip to dampen your enthusiasm, for we are all highly

elated over the greater possibilities of an enlarged tour in 1937. Te ll your friends about

the opportunity that they still have until April 1, 1936, of joining with this tour at a

remarkably reduced rate.

Address your communications to Egyptian Tour Secretary, care of AMORC, Rosi-

crucian Park, San Jose, California.

\nrvrvj


14/44

The Sphere o f Natures Mysteries99OCCULT STUDY AS AN APPROACH TO MANS

EVOLUTION

By T h e S c r o l le r

T h e

Ros ic rudan

D igest

D ecember

1935

S T R A N G E p er-s o n a l i n c i d e n tc lose ly re latedw i th N a t u r e sm ani festa t i on sprompted the writing of this essay,and I thought thatthe reader wouldbe interested toknow whereof andw h e r e as i t o c curred.

Being an Aquarian, and Antiquarian also introspective I absorb much from rare or unusual pictures, photographs, and bookswhich aid in building a bridge from Pastto Present. So one evening, before retiring, I had been looking over the photoof Socrates prison, published in theRosicrudan Digest. Mans inhumanityto Man, was the thought that held mein meditation. I retired, however, witha peaceful mind, because I had earlierin the evening tossed some crumbs ofbread to a beautiful bird.

About five a. m. the following morn

ing, I was awakened by what seemedto me a peculiar sound, but sweet andvibrant. As I chanced to gaze out thewindow from my bed, I beheld a bird,apparently the same one to whom I hadgiven the crumbs th e past evening.

Upon this assumption, I hastily tossedsome more food out the door. The birdcame and ate again, but this time myvision centered upon its gorgeous attireof multiple color against the backgroundof Natures foliage. Somehow t h a tbeautiful red, blue, and gold breast ofclose design charmed me, causing me toreflect on my thoughts of the previousevening. This bird flew up to a nearbybough, and, as if in a voice of gratitude,let out what seemed to me these words,"writit, writit. Thus the title and

subtitle of this essay.The study of all the manifestations of

natural mystery w i t h which mysticshave concerned themselves would stillbeinteresting, even, if we remained at theend, wondering at the unseen energiesworking behind the scene; but, fortunately, occult study leads to much morethan a vague conviction expressed by afamiliar phase, that recognizes more inheaven and earth than is in commonplace philosophy. Certain it is, thatacknowledgment is the first step towardbetter understanding of our place inNature, hence the importance of people

realizing the true character of all normaland abnormal phenomena. T h e lastthird century of science has been ratherunfavorable to the appreciation of suchphenomena, a n d no true mystic complains, because the growth of science


15/44

has been highly important in educatingthe human mind to think with exactitude. A new era is here, the mentalpowers thus acquired must be gradually

turned to deeper aspects of Nature, besides those which have to do solely withforces of a physical nature. From thestudy of superphysical mysteries, whenthese have fairly forced themselves onthe attention, the highly-trained faculties of the mind, evolved by the exercises of the past century, will discoveramong Natures mysteries the clue tothe comprehension, n o t only of factsthat have seemed unexplainable, butalso of the deeper mystery which remains in the background that of natural law which regulates the developmentof the human mind itself.

Nothing is more persistently formedupon our thoughts, as we observe thephenomena of the higher spiritual processes, than that of persons able torecognize places and people at a distance from their sleeping bodies, whichproves the fact that consciousness is notas extreme materialists would endeavorto maintain, a function of the physicalbrain. All who have had the opportunity of observing the beautiful processesof psychic vision and thought transmission, will appreciate th e fundamental truth that human consciousnessmust h a v e its seat in something distinctly separable from the body, notonly w h e n death puts an end to thefunctions of the brain, but during life.During ones waking hours, the brain isintimately related with ones thinkingfaculty, but it must be regarded only asan instrument on which the real thinkeris playing not as the thinker itself.

Almost every religion w h e n talkingabout the soul has vaguely implied this,but people who s e e k to understand astatement before they grant it their belief become discontented with the ideaof a disembodied consciousness which

has, so to speak, no house in which todwell. The study of occult science certainly quiets non-believers, because ithas discovered other orders of matterbesides those that can be seen andtouched by the five senses an d otherphysical mechanisms of the body, andit has become familiar with facts thatall human beings are endowed by Nature with a vessel for consciousness, or

bodies constructed of a higher order ofmatter. To the appropriate senses ofpeople more completely developed thanmost of us, th e initiates in particular,

these higher vehicles are fully visible,and it is in them, not in the physicalbody, that consciousness is t r u l yblended.

During the waking state these highervehicles are intimately blended with thevehicle, or the body, specifically appropriate to the plan of Universal existence. Truly, then, it is this blending process that constitutes ones waking state.Usually, every one who approaches andconsiders such thoughts as these for thefirst time, will suppose that it is onlythe abnormal cases of a few giftedpeople that the higher functions of consciousness can take flight, so to speak,from the body without risk of life andreturn f r o m distant visitations. Thetruth is, every human being quits his orher body during sleep. Getting out ofit is the act of going to sleep. Physiologists have quite accurately detectedphysical changes that take place concurrently in the brain, but have erroneously concluded that these changesconstitute sleep. It will be convenient touse a technical term here, and to concentrate your attention of the vehicle ofconsciousness which it describes; therefore, we will talk of that in which theconsciousness of every human being insleep goes out of the body as "theCosmo-psychic body, to u s e occultdiction.

One may inquire how it is that all donot remember flights of the Cosmo-psychical body. The mystic is not at allat a loss by the question, any more thana physical training teacher would be, ifasked why one person can with a rope,climb hand over hand, while anothercannot raise his weight? The muscles ofthe one are developed, the other undeveloped. The higher faculties of man

are the sole product of evolution, likethe physical framework, but of muchslower growth. Most races are far, asyet, from having achieved perfection ofform, even of the physical body, thoughthe foundation of the perfect physicalform has been fairly well mapped out.But the higher capabilities are not sofar advanced either, except in a fewcases; that is to say, in ratio to the total


16/44

T h eRos ic rudan

D igest

D ecember

1935

population of the world. Every one whounderstands the matter can do a greatdeal to stimulate growth. It would beno exaggeration at this time to say thatthey can only grow when people understand the matter, and strive to help theevolutionary law, but at present, as therace has b e e n developed so far, the

Cosmo-psychic body is no more competent to enjoy and work in harmony inthe sphere of Nature in which it hasabsolute existence, t h a n the physicalbody of a day old baby would be ableto make use of a fountain pen.

At one stage or another of all suchinquiry, people will be sure to feel thatit is all very unfair to those who areborn among the undeveloped, not provided by the law of evolution or Providence with psychic bodies capable ofconscious flights through higher regionsof Nature. W hy are we set to accomplish our little run through earthly existence at a period of the worlds cyclicgrowth, when it seems we are only halfable to enjoy the opportunities this sameworld will offer to our more rightly-endowed successors? Th is cry is only,in another form, the same that has sooften arisen from the hardly-used bulkof humanity in reference to the inequalities of well-being a m o n g thechildren of men in the physical world.Is it not unfair that one should be bornrich and another poor, one healthy andanother diseased, one in t h e midst ofconditions that lead to a life of honor

and distinction, another in environmentthat surely leads to a life of crime andpenal treatment? The question bringsus to the very heart of the magnificentspiritual and physical discoveries whichthe mystic has unveiled through studyand experiment in occult phenomena,for our reverence, admiration, and consolation in a world of trial and tribulation.

To less informed generations thanour own, religion has vaguely answeredthese pitiful appeals by giving assurancethat somehow, in another world, allsuch apparent injustice would be reme

died. There the poor and the downtrodden would be compensated with boundless happiness; there the rich man willbe denied entrance to "the kingdom ofHeaven. Sometimes the rich man hasobjected that this system would be as

unfair as the other, if he is to be kepteternally in an inferior state hereafter, merely because he had a bettertime than his neighbor for a few yearson earth; but, meanwhile he consoledhimself by never really believing thestory, while the sufferer has clung toone-half of it, with touching fidelity. In

truth, mystics do not desire to disputethe principle that in states of spiritualhappiness succeeding in this life and enduring for very long periods of time,the victims of the world's inequality willfind such ample compensation for temporary hardships that these will seemvery unimportant in th e retrospect.Mystics do, however, in reference toHeaven, place a very definite complexion on the conditions of the afterlife, w h i c h unintelligible before areplainly in harmony with and upon as c i e n t i f i c view of Nature. Grandmother's idea of Heaven a n d Hell is

totally illogical and absurd.Mysticism shows us that even on this

earth, in time justice will be vindicatedin every case, for every man and womannow living is merely going through onecycle of earthly existence. He or shewill come back again and live here again,and then again and again through along series of lives; always the samesoul, but never the same body as eachphysical form is destroyed at transition;the same center of consciousness in allthe different bodies it may come to inhabit as the cycles of reincarnation comeand go. W ill it not be s e e n how themind is prepared to comprehend thisidea by the fact, already discussed, thatthe soul consciousness which is the manin any given life, is not a function of thebody going on at the time but somethingquite separable from and independentthereof? Anything worth keeping is notdestroyed when the one life ends. Thedying person, as hundreds of observations prove to those who can see psychically, is very often unable to realizethat he is dead. He feels just the sameas before, until he gradually begins toperceive that he has come into posses

sion of new faculties t h a t he did notpossess before. He is simply on thethreshold of a new life, and the experiences are variegated and prolongedbeyond any thing that ordinary imagination can suggest. But, eventually,


17/44

after ages have elapsed, the man, so tospeak, dies out of the spiritual conditionand becomes once more immersed in avehicle of physical plane consciousness;

that is to say, he is born again on earth,perhaps in quite different surroundingsfrom those of h i s last life, and passesthrough another cycle of earthly existence.

The profound truth, which, on reflection. will be seen at once to answermost of the riddles of the good earth,is known to occult study as the Doctrine of Reincarnation. It has been explained in mystical writings again andagain in full detail, during the last 3000years. However, it is difficult to eradicate gross misconceptions of the subjectfrom the public mind. One who styleshimself a critic of Oriental ideas, andEgyptian mysteries, in a volume ofrubbish scoffs at the reincarnationidea, because he says it is impossible toimagine a human being becoming animal. Your author is at a loss to understand why the publisher was so ignorantas to waste paper and labor. Certain itis, he did not k n o w the way of thecross, nor the symbol of the rose.Every writer of n o t e on reincarnationhas been careful to explain that the old-world idea of Transmigration whichembodied the idea of a relapse into

animal incarnations, was a mere caricature of the t r u e doctrine, put out bywriters who had not or could not fullyexplain it in ancient times. However,those who knew w e r e constrained todisguise it, b e c a u s e of Ecclesiastical"damnation or political extinction.The law of reincarnation is not a provision for retrogression in the plan ofcreation. On the contrary, it conducesto progressive evolution. Is not everynew life a new cycle for the soul to advance our moral and intellectual development? Isnt it to all intents and purposes through the efforts of s u c h i n

dividual lives that progress is possible?I will not go fully into this branch of thesubject, for I can do no more at presentthan sketch the outlines of t h e greattruth. It is important, however, to recognize that although there can be noretrogression in successive rebirths asregards the Kingdom of Nature, oncea man always a man. In some distantfuture something still better may be pos

sible, but until then the environment ofeach life in turn will be the accurate expression of the first souls desire throughspiritual evolution.

Accordingly, the w a y in which theopportunities, whatever they were, greator small, of which the previous life wasafforded, so is the character of the nextlife designed. In precise words, everyone gets, in his or her next life just thesame full measure of treatment that heor she has earned in the previous life,and this is the way the Law of Reincarnation with its exacting companion, theLaw of Karma, determines the conditionof every new incarnation. Th ese twocompanion laws provide for a perfect,

just, and fair treatment of every humanspecie."

Without repetition of a double pronoun, let us call the soul it. Its actionin life each time it reappears on earth,its bodily health, the happiness or unhappiness it encounters in its relationship with other incarnate souls, are allresults of its Karma or action in the lastor other by-gone lives. Be it always remembered that different souls are of alldifferent ages. Many of those aroundus, as we walk through a city street orin the hills, have begun as human beings millions of years before others;and, to the eyes of one trained in psychic phenomena, the great masses of thepoor population, with a very minutepercentage of exceptions due to peculiarKarma, are the younger members of thewhole human family, doing, for a time,the ground work. W e have all beenthrough the same mill in by-gone ages,even if we are promoted to other sortsof work in the current life. For all thosewho are honestly and courageously doing whatever work has been set forthem, this time by Natures decree asordained by God, promotion in HisGarden is as certain in the future as thegrowth of a healthy seed into a productive plant. Beautiful, then, is the law ofeternal motion, whether of evolution orinvolution. Beautiful is the law whichbestows on every incarnated being theeternal agni, like the Light in the Darkness.

Another point of immense interest tobe remembered is that, in the long run,the soul has an equal experience of bothsexes. Complexities of the law which it


18/44

T h eRosicrucian

Digest

D ecember

1935

is impossible to discuss here, but knownto many, determines in each case, as itis entering into a new life, whether itshall be male or female life. Let it notbe supposed for an instance that the oneis superior to the other as an opportunity of accomplishing e v o l u t i o n a r ygrowth. Both kinds must be experienced

by the soul, in order that it may be prepared for ulterior destinies of perfection. Hence the divine purpose of marriage in the beginning or creation. Thefamiliar phrase, marriages are made inHeaven, fails to state w h e r e theKingdom of Heaven is. However, ithas its Kingdom in Man and implies aSpiritual Affinity. Granted, then, that

plants and chemicals have their Affinities, and animals, too, of which Man isa member, but different, in that he is

conscious of his trinity body, soul,spirit.

Should this essay a w a k e n peopleeverywhere, and start their thoughtsgerminating along lines of investigation and discoveries which they are asyet unable to foresee, t h e n the Advanced Guard of th e human race in

every civilized land stands as always tojoin them in any critical period of worldevolution. Th e beneficent results forconditions of the future depends uponeach of us, in turn, to the e x t e n t inwhich we come into conscious relationship with the Cosmo-cyclic forces, andt h e application of Natures mysteries,for the education of mankind. Let uskeep the Ancient fortress so strong inspirit, t h a t the servitors of Darknessshall not pass to extinguish the flame oftruth."

V V V


0 .......... ......... ........ '.................................... ...... ............. ..................... ......... -El

| OUR IM PERATOR IS ON A JO URN EY

1 Our members are advised that our Imperator, Dr. H. Spence r Lewis, will be away

= from his office and sanctum from the last week of November to the end of December.

: Members should not, therefore, address letters to him that require his personal answer

| or direct any mail to him unless it can await his return and attention some time inI January. Reports or other matter for his files may be directed to his secretary and these

= things will be given careful preservation.

S............. ............... ............. ........................................................................................................................................, . . . . . , , . .0

E .... ............... .................... ................... ............ ....................... ............. ........ ........ .................... gj

NOTICE TO ALL MEMBERS, ESPECIALLY COLOMBES

On the fifteenth day of December our Colombe Emeritus for North America, Soror

= Zina Fletcher, who was born into our organization and has been Colombe from the

| first hour of her earthly life, is to be married. For years she has been the Supreme

| Colombe, assisting and helping all of the Colombes throughout the North American

| jurisdiction, and now her important position will have to pass on to another, while

| all of us rejoice in the happiness that awaits her. No more official correspondence= pertaining to the work of the Colombes should be directed to Zina hereafter, but to

| "Supreme Colombe Emeritus, care of AM OR C Temple, Rosicrucian Park, San Jose,

| California.Itfl....................... ...................................................... ........................ ....


19/44

Each hour of the day finds the men of science cloistered in laboratories withoutostentation, investigating natures mysteries and extending the boundaries ofknowledge. The world at large, although profiting by tbeir labors, oftentimes

is deprived of the pleasure of reviewing their work, since general periodicalsand publications announce only those sensational discoveries which appeal tothe popular imagination.

It is with pleasure, therefore, that we afford our readers a monthly summaryof some of these scientific researches, and briefly relate them to the Rosicrucianphilosophy and doctrines. To the Science Journal, unless otherwise specified,we give full credit for all matter which appears in quotations.

The Missing Link Is Still Missing

N T H R O P O L O -G I S T S , z o o l o gists, and evolutionists, who have

built up a theoretical sequence forliving forms, arestartled and dismayed to have thehypothetical orderdisarranged bythe sudden introduction of what isknown as the

Eoanthropus Dawsoni of the early Pli-estocene age. Th is radically differenttype of fossil man has to be accountedfor, or the line of descent must again bealtered. Science is divided against it

self. Some stand for the preservationof the traditional order considering thenew fossil but a hybrid. Others consider it a distinct genus. At least, thecontroversy is extremely interesting, butnot flattering, nor does it confirm theopinion of those humans w h o like tothink of the human kind as having beenspontaneously created, just as we findit today. You will find t h e following

excerpt from a lecture by ProfessorErnest A. Hooton of Harvard University highly enlightening:

In the past two decades the special

ists who deal with fossil man have befenconfronted w i t h a n ever-increasingnumber of geologically ancient skeletalremains, each succeeding one apparently adding to an existing confusion. Atthe beginning of the century the tale offossil man was brief an d apparentlyfairly intelligible. A series of finds inWestern Europe had revealed the bonyremains and the stone implements of arace of men who inhabited caves duringthe last glacial advance. The se Nean-derthaloids w e r e short, bull-necked,barrel-chested individuals, w i t h manyfeatures of the bones of the trunk and

of the extremities suggesting an affinitywith the great apes l e s s remote thanthat of modern man. The most strikingfeatures w e r e , however, those of theskull. Th e long and narrow brain-caseswere of moderate size or even large, butflattened down and low; their orbits weresurmounted with huge bony browridges,behind which the forehead retreated inan ignominious fashion. The jaws were

w w i

V L i :


20/44

T h eRosicrucian

D i gest

D ecember

1935

protrusive to t h e verge of snoutiness;the chin receded practically to a vanishing point; th e teeth were massive butwithout canine projection; the pulp cavities of the molars were enlarged, as inanimals which chew the cud. Theseapish men seemed to fulfill the requirements of an early ancestral human type

which had not yet sloughed off many ofits anthropoid attributes. Th ey w e r esucceeded in t h e upper strata of theEuropean caves, representing t h e lastglacial retreat, by several morphologically modern types of man. In 1907 asand pit n e a r the university town ofHeidelberg yielded a massive human

jaw which looked like a plausible progenitor of t h e Neanderthaloid race.This mandible was referred to the firstor second interglacial period, manyscores of thousands of years before theflourishing of the Neanderthalers. Alsoin 1892 a Dutch scientist had unearthed

a most extraordinary humanoid fossil inthe island of Java, apparently datingfrom the beginning of t h e Pleistoceneperiod or the end of the Pliocene. Th isspecimen consisted of a very apish skullcap, too large for any existing anthropoid ape and too small for any man except an idiot, a few ambiguous teethand a thigh-bone which certainly belonged to an e r e c t biped. This thingwas christened Pithecanthropus erectus,the erect ape-man, and was generallyconceded to be natures finest effort inproduction of a missing link. Withoutunduly stretching phylogenetic possi

bilities, one might conceive of Pithecanthropus as a late survivor of a s t o c kwhich had already crossed the thresholdof humanity, having achieved e r e c tposture and biped gait, without as yethaving attained a full quota of brain.It was further possible to suppose thatsome Pithecanthropidae w i t h superiorgenes had produced the higher Heidelberg type, which again, stimulated bythe Kultur of the Pleistocene, ultimatelyevolved the Neanderthalers. These last,in the throes of species parturition, wereheld by some to h a v e given birth to

modern man, apparently themselves expiring with the effort. These were theshort and simple annals of the poorHominidae. It is true that certain recalcitrant Thomases h a d interposeddoubts, calling attention to various

skeletal finds which suggest that morphologically modern m an existed inEurope even before the advent of theNeanderthalers, an d asserting t h a tPithecanthropus was a paleontologicalmonster fortuitously assembled f r o mspare parts of men, apes and micro-cephalic idiots.

However, about the time t h a t thepoliticians were stirring up a world war,an inquisitive amateur geologist trespassed u p o n a small gravel pit in aSussex lane near Piltdown Common anddisinterred some skull fragments whichwere subsequently named EoanthropusDawsoni, but might better h a v e beencalled Pandora. Th e brain-case of thisearly English female, although of extraordinary thickness, w a s of essentiallymodern configuration and of capacioussize, lacking low forehead an d greatbrow-ridges, whereas th e half of the

mandible discovered was chinless andalmost indistinguishable from that of achimpanzee. There was also includedin the Piltdown remains a tusk-like pro

jecting canine tooth. Hence, if the associated remains were assigned to oneindividual, it was necessary to supposethat at the beginning of the Pleistoceneperiod there existed a type of man witha modern brain-case and a projecting,chinless, ape-like jaw. Such a beingcould not be fitted into the line ofdescent which includes Pithecanthropus,Heidelberg man, and the Neanderthalrace, since all these fossils were prob

ably provided with large brow-ridgesand receding foreheads. Some authorities attempted to solve the problem bysupposing that the brain-case and themandible belonged to two different individualsone a man and the other achimpanzee. But this supposition involved an incredible stretching of thelong arm of coincidence. Although itwas rejected by the majority, few seemed to possess the imagination to graspthe implications of t h i s radically dis-harmonic type of fossil man, and to deduce from it the logical conclusions asto human descent. Almost alone, Sir

Arthur Keith committed himself unhesitatingly and definitely to the theorythat human evolution has been a multiple and a symmetrical process, involvingthe differentiation of a number of distinct genera an d species of ma n, of


21/44

which Pithecanthropus, Heidelberg andthe Neanderthaloid g r o u p representlines which are not directly ancestral toHomo sapiens. According to this view,Piltdown man (Eoanthropus Dawsoni)represents a survival into th e EarlyPleistocene of a Pliocene form whichhad already developed modern brainsize, but had not as yet undergone thereduction of the jaws and the refinement of the dentition characteristic ofmorphologically modern man.

Emotions and Digestion

All sensations of which we, as humans, are aware, a r e of two distinctclasses. Th ey are either pleasurable orirritable. Basically, they engender with

in us either one of two genera] emotional states. If t h e sensations a r e of apleasurable nature, the general emotional state is a receptive mood to the causesof the sensations. Th is mood is indicated by a combination of emotionswhich manifest as laughter, mirth, andaffection. On the other hand, if the sensations are irritating, the mood is repellent. There is a desire to oppose thecause or causes of the sensations, andthis m a y be emotionally expressed asanger, melancholy, jealousy, etc. But inaddition, there is, for example, the emotion of curiosity, the result of the in

stinct of wonder. It is not directly related to a pleasing or displeasing sensation. Strange sounds, for example, eventhough startling, will compel us to investigate them, although perhaps cautiously. In fact, anything that is foreign to us, particularly if it has action,d r a w s us to investigate its nature.W hy ? It is because the experience ofthe unusual has a neutral effect on us,insofar as the sensations we have of itare concerned. W e instinctively seekto relegate t h i s new experience to astate of pleasure or irritation. In otherwords, when something occurs, which

we perceive as entirely new to us, webecome so fascinated that we examineit to t h e best of o u r experience and

judgment to determine whether it is tobe thereafter feared or sought after, asto whether it is beautiful and to be desired, or ugly and to be avoided. W emight say that our progress in life andthe wilful change on o u r part of ourenvironment, depends mainly on this

emotion of curiosity. If it did not exist,we would accept the environment intowhich birth precipitates us. All thingsor conditions about us, which were

pleasing, would be accepted and sought those displeasing avoided. W e wouldnever attempt to enlarge our environment, or add to what we think the best.All human advancement would cease ifthis emotion of curiosity ceased.

Emotions may be provoked by thingswe see, hear, taste, smell and feel; thatis, these external sensations arouse theemotions. Yet emotions can be internally provoked, as well. W e can workourselves into an emotional stress bythought alone, by recollection of experiences or imagined ones. Emotions develop internal stimuli, a nervous energy

that compels bodily action. The nerveimpulses cause contraction and expansion of the muscles, a n d the nerveenergy is normally dissipated in th ephysical reaction which follows. Th usintense grief brings relief in crying, theresult of an excitation of the tear ducts,and th e contraction of th e facialmuscles. An individual w h o compelshimself or herself to be immobile, so asto appear impervious to grief, has nooutlet for the abnormal energy developed by the emotion, and this surplusemotion is disastrous in its effect on hisor her nervous system.

Modern science has found fallacies inthe philosophy of stoicism. Emotionsare not as the ancient stoics declared,weaknesses of the flesh, they are servants of the mind. Th e emotions shouldnot be given free reign, but the emotional nature of m a n should also n o t bedenied nor any attempt made to completely abolish it. Many diseases havetheir cause in emotional repression.

The following is a recent sciencearticle on t h e findings of an eminentphysician of the Yale University Schoolof Medicine, which confirms these com

ments:Curing a severe and sometimes fataldisorder of the digestive tract as if bymagic when the patients were relievedof worry was reported by Dr. Albert J.Sullivan, of Yale University School ofMedicine, to t h e American GastroEnterological Association. These patients had previously been treated by allknown medical means without any last


22/44

T h eRos ic rudan

D i gest

D ecember

1935

ing improvement. The ailment is knownmedically as ulcerative colitis. Emotional factors cause about three-quarters ofall cases, Dr. Sullivan believes. Victimsof the disorder, Dr. Sullivan found, appear to have m a n y characteristics incommon. Nearly all are between 20 and30 years old. Th ey have high intellect

ual capacity, are neat to t h e point offussiness and are emotionally tense.Outwardly calm, t h e y are unable tothrow off t h e effects o f an emotionalepisode as most people do. One patientdescribed this common trait of the groupby saying, When I get into a quarrelor some unpleasant thing comes up, Istew over it for three or four days. Thedigestive disorder always starts withina few days of the emotional upset. Thismakes it comparatively easy to get atthe root of t h e trouble without longpsychiatric examination, as the physician needs only to discuss with the pa

tient his state of feelings for the fewdays preceding t h e attack. Most patients recover completely as s o o n asthey have talked freely to t h e doctorabout their emotional difficulties. Oneor two who refused to talk about howthey felt, or to admit that this couldhave anything to do with their physicalillness, failed to recover from the condition. Emotion acting through certainnerve centers in the brain stimulatespart of the digestive tract to such activity that it begins to digest its own surface, Dr. Sullivan suggested as an explanation of the nervous a n d mentalcause of the disease. Once this digestiveself-cannibalism has happened, diseasegerms can easily invade the digestivetissues and ulcers then form.

Posture an Attitude of Mind

Indolence and mental apathy eventually reflect in our carriage and posture,and if persisted in, produce permanentphysical deformities. No one has everwitnessed a physically normal individualwith an alert, active mind, shuffling inhis walk, with sunken chest and should

ers slumped. The enthusiasm of mindstimulates the senses, vitalizes the cellsand tenses t h e muscles sufficently sothere seems to be a spring to each action. Th ere is, in other words, a coordination between the mind and body.

The mind drives the body, at least insofar as all actions, and voluntary acts areconcerned. Relaxation of the mindbythis we do not mean change of thought,but rather the discontinuing of onedominant ideal immediately results ina corresponding detrimental effect onthe body. It will be noticed in such

cases, t h a t the action of the body ismainly involuntary. It becomes a mereinstinctive adjustment to environment.Th e action becomes listless. It is necessary, whether at work or play to formand hold a dominant ideal. Ideals impelus to action. Th ey draw us to them.W e find pleasure in a realization ofthem. W e plan our lives and actions inaccordance with a definite end, and westrive continually to t h a t end. Ofcourse, we should hold only such idealsas are possible of attainment in a reasonable length of time, and t h a t can be

realized by degrees, and thus keep ourenthusiasm active. Once y o u permityour mental life to become merely automatic, to drift with time watch out.Your bodily actions will be retarded,you will become lethargic and yourphysical health will be jeopardized.

Life should be a series of ideals, noneof which should be too general. Eachideal should be like a step upward.W hen you have reached t h e pointwhere you realize it, another should liejust beyond, beckoning you on. Neverreach a state in your mental life when

you are thoroughly and completely satisfied with yourself. In this regard, letus quote a recent science news article,giving the opinion in this matter of Dr.Armitage Whitman.

"Calling posture an attitude of mind,Dr. Armitage Whitman, of New YorkCity, pointed out that the greatest emphasis must be placed on mental attitude in treating even such conditions ascurvature of the spine. Th e patientshould be treated first and the diseasesecond, in his opinion. In some cases of

curvature, definite permanent improvement may be obtained in direct ratio tothe patients intelligence. Curvature ofthe spine is the result of mans assumingthe upright position and the consequentstruggle against th e force of gravity.


23/44

Placing the patient on his back thereforeremoves t h i s important factor in thecause of the condition and is one of themethods of treatment he recommended.

No back is so crooked that it can not be

improved by effort. Severe methods ofcorrection of curvatures would be unnecessary if t h e importance of themental attitude were m o r e generally

understood.

V V V


This series of articles dealing with symbolism will be published later on in a small pamphlet

or book . M emb ers need not mutilate their magazines, therefore, by cutting these articles out and

pr es er vi ng th em in a sc ra pb oo k .

xnnn/j

V S '

ANCIENT SYMBOLISM

Man, when conscious of an eternal truth, has ever symbolized it 00 that thehuman consciousness could forever have realization of it. Nations, languag es andcustoms have changed, hut these ancient designs continue to illuminate mankindwith their mystic ligh t. For those who are seeking light, each month we willreproduce a aymhol or symbols, with their ancient meaning.

FLOWERS

A ^ v T / r / Flowers have always had a spiritualw significance and have been used for cen-

turies as a mystical symbol. Philosophers

NL A and mystics have referred to the bud-

ding of man's soul, the flowering of hisI mind, the blooming of the consciousness

man fl wer has also been likened

V \(/yw a unf brief span of man's life. W eV^\\ l I / _/7l clu f e below Biblical references wherein

'f/J& ~ y the analogy of the flower has been used.

" As for man, his days are as grass;

V XJ as a flower of the field so he flourisheth."For the wind passeth over it, and it

I s is gone; and the place thereof shall

know it no more." Psalms ciii : 15, 16.

"They are like grass which groweth up.

"In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; ----

in the evening it is cut down, and withereth." x,

Psalms xc: 5, 6.


24/44

FRANCIS BACON AND THE ROSICRUCIANS

Interesting Facts Not Generally Known to the Public

V V V

O M E months ago periods in the future. In other words, itwe announced in a was predetermined that not until mancasual way, with- had reached a certain point in his evo-out desiring to at- lution, and the world had reached a cer-tract undue atten- tain point in its progress, should t h etion, that the pass- knowledge contained in these old manning of the summer scripts be released. Th e world has beenof 1934 and the startled f r o m time to time by the an-occurrences of cer- nouncement that certain ancient docu-

ta in astronomical ments have suddenly been discovered,phenomena which translated, and offered to thinking menmarked the end of and women everywhere. Th e public didtwo definite cycles not know and did not even care too f R o s i c r u c i a n knowthat these old documents were

periodicity would permit us to open and not really newly discovered but hadreveal to our members certain Rosicru- been known to exist for m a n y years,cian documents written in past centuries and were carefully held in seclusion andand marked as for the future. security until t h e right time for their

Each year in the past several hundred revelation,years has seen certain musty old docu- W e now have before us for the nextments released from the hidden archives cycle of Rosicrucian activity a largeof the Rosicrucians in Europe, Egypt, selection of marvelous manuscripts con-and India, and the important facts containing advance knowledge in all scien-tained in them given to the Rosicrucians tific fields, wonderful revelations re-

j' f le of the world at certain crucial periods of garding Cosmic laws a n d principles,n worldly history. Nearly all of the great and many interesting historical recordsKostcructan j^jasters Qf the Order in the past have regarding personages of the past. FromDigest written and carefully prepared valued time to time s o m e of these surprisingD e c e m b e r prophecies and scientific knowledge that matters will be published in this maga-1935 was to remain sealed until certain cyclic zine for our members a n d friends to


25/44

read and make public, while other secretmatters will be added to our monographs helping us to revise them an dmodify them.

W e have stated very often that ourmonographs a n d general secret teachings are being revised from year to yearand, in fact, improved f r o m month tomonth. Th at is one of the reasons whythe secret teachings of the Rosicrucianscould never be put in any book form forpermanent use like th e text books inother colleges or universities. Each andevery book that has ever been put forthon the market for public sale claimingto contain t h e secret teachings of theRosicrucians has b e e n false and misleading. Th ere are two or three pub

lishing houses in the United States likethe one in Southern California t h a tclaims that its Rosicrucian teachings areto be found in books which it sells tothe public and even allows to be placedin the public library. W e w e r e surprised, for instance, to read an announcement recently on the back coverof a Fellowship magazine to the effectthat its publishers in Southern California were offering for sale outright,general public sale like any other bookor piece of merchandise the secrefteachings of t h e Rosicrucians, or t h eteachings of the Rosicrucian fraternity.

Such a statement is misleading and thepublic is rapidly discovering t h a t theclaims of t h e publishers to h a v e thesecret teachings and to have privatelessons in the teachings and then offerthe same teachings in book f o r m forpublic sale is ridiculous and absurd. Ithas never been done, AN D N E V E RW IL L B E D ON E, because the GreatMasters will not allow a book containing the real teachings of the Rosicrucians to go into print a n d circulation.Many years ago we made that statement and said that if anyone were to attempt to put the secret teachings of the

Rosicrucian fraternity i n t o a printedbook for public sale, the ink would disappear off the pages, or the pages wouldrot, or the books would suddenly consume themselves in flames, or somethingelse would happen. Each time anyonein the past has attempted to photographand republish for public sale any privatemanuscript of the Rosicrucians, something has mysteriously happened to it.

Our members in t h e higher gradesnow realize and frankly state that theysee very plainly why it would be contrary to Cosmic law and dangerous tothe public at large for t h e real secretteachings of t h e Rosicrucians ever tohave a general public sale in book formor otherwise. In the first place, thelessons cannot and dare not be sold, andin the second place, t h e y cannot anddare not be printed for general publicdistribution. W e h a v e never sold asingle copy of the monographs. Evenmembers who have lost copies throughfire or h a v e accidentally destroyed acopy in some way and have wanted aduplicate, have never been allowed topay for it. W e will not furnish duplicates in any but a rare case, and whenwe do so such a duplicate never has aprice upon it.

The publishers in Southern California to whom we h a v e referred claimthey do not sell their teachings, but thatthey are given for voluntary donations.But all of their literature tells a differentstory. Your voluntary donation merelycovers your membership in their "Fellowship. In order to study their teachings they state definitely and positivelyin letters, advertisements, and interviews, that their students must buy thebooks containing the teachings. W ith

out t h e books the little leaflets as aguide to reading which are sent to allof their members a r e of no valuewhatever. Thu s the system of trying tosell teachings under the plan of voluntary donations is merely a subterfuge.The Cosmic would make short order ofsuch a method if it were not for the factthat the books do not contain the realteachings of the Rosicrucians, but merely the personal opinion and philosophyof some modern student who had acquired his knowledge through one whowas not the head of any of the schoolsor colleges of the Rosicrucian fraternity.

Among the many new manuscriptsthat have been released for this cycleare those t h a t contain very marvelousteachings as new matter to be added toour monographs. Right now and for thepast year our Sixth Degree h a s beenundergoing a complete revision. Thisrevision is not complete a n d probablywill not be completed for some monthsto come. In making this revision of this


26/44

T h eRosicrucian

Digest

D ecember

1935

important degree we have kept for reference the hundreds of letters with theircomments and questions sent to us bythe most sincere student members of thepast years. Every important questionor problem pertaining to the Sixth Degree work has been carefully consultedin revising the Sixth Degree in order toanticipate every possible question andevery difficulty that the student mighthave. In addition to that the experiences of thousands of workers in regardto the results of the Sixth Degree workhave been kept in mind and many surprising results that have been obtainedby the advanced workers in this degreehave been incorporated in the revisionof the monographs.

Few of our members realize that theSixth Degree work, like the work of allthe other degrees, h a s its foundationlaid in a very old manuscript that waswritten during the lifetime of Bacon andwhich was then the most up-to-date revision of the Sixth Degree teachings ofthe past. This old manuscript is in ourpossession and it is dated 1623 with indisputable evidence of its authenticityand authority. It contains the mostmarvelous diagrams and illustrations ofthe human body and of each and everypart of the human body that we haveever seen in connection with the studyof the mystical nature of mans anatomyand physiology and the economy oflife. Nearly each page of the manuscript is watermarked w i t h the samewatermarks t h a t appeared in Baconsbooks and the Shakespeare folios. Eventhe pituitary and pineal glands areshown in the section of the book thatdeals with the psychic centers.

W e a r e prone to think that thedisease known as appendicitis is something new and that the exact locationand purpose of the appendix is something that has only recently been discovered. Yet in this old yellow andmusty manuscript of 1623 there are excellent illustrations of the intestines andeven of the appendix, with a descriptionof its purpose, t h e manner in which

disease may attack it, a n d how thesediseases may be cured by the Rosicrucian methods. W e often hear that theeminent mystical physician, Harvey, wasthe first to give us a complete understanding of the circulation of the blood

in the human body and of the real nature of the circulatory system in all ofits details. W e are told this was givento the world by Harvey in the 19th century, yet in this old Sixth Degree manuscript we find the complete circulatorysystem of the human body pictured andevery part of the heart explained and

the circulation of the blood taken intoconsideration in connection with diseaseand the cure of disease.

Members of the staff and their associates who h a v e been interested inwatching the revision of the Sixth Degree work have recently examined thisold manuscript of 1623 and are astounded at its contents. Even t h e musicalnotes of the musical scale and their ratesof vibrations and their relation to diseaseand health a n d to harmonics a n d toCosmic music, are fully explained andillustrated, and even the nature of theCosmic rays and their effect upon healthas recently discovered by Americanand European scientists is touched uponin detail. W e feel sure that when ourchapters and lodges learn of the newSixth Degree, they will be pleased.Members who have passed through theSixth Degree and beyond will not benefit so greatly by this revision because inall of the supplementary literature andarticles in the Forum in the past fewyears many of the important additionsto the Sixth Degree have been dealtwith and, of course, the members abovethe Sixth Degree have various higherand more esoteric methods to use thanthose contained in the Sixth Degree.

One of the interesting historical features of some of these newly releasedmanuscripts from Europe, however, relates to some of the eminent men whowere connected with the Order in andaround 1623 and, of course, we are always happy to read of the activities ofthese past masters in t h e Rosicrucianfraternity. Those who know very littleabout the true history of the RosicrucianOrder have made many strange claimsfor it and continue to repeat absurditiesthat are amusing to all except those who

are deeply concerned. Th e Fellowship" in Southern California, for instance, t h a t publishes the so-calledteachings of the Rosicrucians in bookform, has claimed for y e a r s thatChristian Rosenkreuz was the found


27/44

er and organizer of the Rosicrudan fraternity, and that when the Order startedin Germany between 1604 and 1614, itwas the beginning of t h e Rosicrucian

organization on earth in a material andorganized form and that some yearsthereafter it spread to England, etc.They know absolutely nothing aboutand say nothing about the previousexistence of the Order and do not seemto know that the term Christian Rosen-kreuz was not the name of a Germanindividual w h o created the Order inGermany in 1610 or 1614, but the symbolical name of a mystical personality.

Although the history of the Order aspublished by us in our books distinctlystates that the Rosicrucian organizationas a fraternity and a brotherhood exist

ed for centuries before th e revival inGermany in the beginning of the 17thcentury, and although we h a v e statedthat Sir Francis Bacon, as Imperator ofthe Order for one cycle in Europe, wasthe instigator of the revival in certaincountries and was the successor of previous Imperators, both the Fellowshipin Southern California and Mr, Clymerin Pennsylvania, who also publishessome books which he claims to be Rosicrucian and which are nothing of thekind, claim Bacon h a d nothing to dowith the Rosicrucian Order, was not itsImperator, and that the Order was not

known in any part of the world beforeit was announced in Germany between1610 and 1614. In the new manuscriptswhich we have had sent to us is onecontaining a statement by Bacon himself as an announcement to the reader.W e reproduce that statement here, verbatim, except for the respelling of somenames or words which in the originalare spelled in the old English style:

I should here except some Cynicks,Menippus, Diogenes, t h a t ThebanCrates; or to descend to t h e s e rimes,that omniscious, only wise fraternity of

the Rosy Cross, those great Theologues,Politicians, Philosophers, Physicians,Philogers, Artists, etc., of whom St.Bridget, Abbas Joacchimus, Leicenber-gius and such divine spirits, have prophesied and made promise to the world,if at least there be any such .. . . But ourAlchemists, methinks, and Rosie Crossmen afford most rarities and are fullerof experiments: t h e y can make gold,

separate and alter metals, extract oils,salts, lees, and do more strange worksthan Geber, Lullius, Bacon, or any oft h o s e Ancients......... Let Paracelsus,

Omercetan, Crollius, and the brethrenof the Rosy Cross defend themselves,as they may.

Appended to another manuscript is alist of the Rosicrucians t h a t attendeds p e c i a l gatherings, ritualistic ceremonies, or Rosicrucian anniversaries inone of the largest of the English chapters of the Rosicrucian Fraternity. Thenames signed to t h i s official rool arefollowed by the individual seals a n dmarks of each member, indicating theposition each held in the organization,and the whole document itself is sealedwith the Rosicrucian emblems and with

the watermarks that appear in laterRosicrucian papers and in the Shakespeare folios. This important documenthas been photographed and copies of itare filed with some of t h e largestmuseums of Europe where it has beenauthenticated a n d established as correct beyond any doubt. It indicates thenumber of persons who have from timeto time been important officers in theEnglish jurisdiction of the RosicrucianOrder.

Among the highest officers whosenames appear on it is that of FrancisBacon as Imperator, Michael Maier asMaster of the local chapter, RobertFludd as Councilor at Large, and various foreign legates of th e Order.Herewith are given a few of the bestknown names attached to th e list:George Wither, Henry Thomas, Earlof Surrey, Marquess of Winchester,Earle of Oxford, Sir Philip Sidney, SirWalter Raleigh. Benjamin Johnson, SirEdward Dyer, Sir John Harrington,Edmund Spenser, Thomas Watson,Thomas Hudson, Henry Locke, Christopher Marlow, Thomas Nash, GeorgePeele, Robert Green, Robert Wilmot,Richard Barnfield, George Whetstone,

John Lyly, John Marshall. ThomasHeywood, John Barclay, a n d manyothers.

There is one other interesting historical incident that I feel sure will pleaseall of our members. As has been statedabove, Mr. Clymer and a few otherself-appointed authorities of Rosicrucian history claim t h a t Bacon had no


28/44

connection with the Order, and that itstarted in Germany and w a s never inEngland until long after the establishment of the Order in Germany in 1614.

According to a very old documentand historical record that has been authenticated and verified at the BritishMuseum records, all those who claim

that the Rosy Cross organization neverexisted in England prior to 1614 whenit was established in Germany, and mostcertainly not prior to 1610, have beenvery unacquainted with the records thatstill exist. It appears t h a t on the 6thday of January, 1604, the Queen ofEngland held a masque ball at theWhite Hall and that Inigo Jones wasasked to design the costumes for thegentlemen to wear at that ball. Allrecords show that Inigo Jones was notonly a friend of Bacon but of Ben Jon-son and others who were associatedwith the secret group of philosophers in

England. He was interested in architecture, interior decorating, an d otherbranches of the fine arts. Just why theQueen asked him to make designs forthe costumes for the men to wear at themasque ball is not known, but the recorddoes state the following: Among othersketches ma d e by Mr. Jones for thegentlemen was one over which he wrotein his own handwriting the words, "ARosicros. According to t h e records,

Jones had been drawing his designssince December of the preceding year,1603. Since the ball was to occur onthe 6th of January, 1604, and the designs for costumes had to be distributedseveral weeks in advance to permit ofthe making of the costumes, they weresubm

rosicrucian digest, december 1935

Documents