All throughout life we see the number seven. Seven notes, seven colors of the rainbow, seven days of the week
You get the idea.
In esoteric teachings seven is continued as we have seven chakras, seven planes of existence, seven bodies of manifestation on the seven planes.
From Carolyn Myss: The seven sacraments are baptism, communion, confirmation, marriage, confession, ordination and extreme unction. And symbolically, they represent different stages of spiritual development, in that order.
For example, baptism represents the tribal stage, the first chakra: the family accepts responsibility for the child - our journey is to mature to the point where we accept the life we have been given, and live with gratitude for it.
The third chakra represents lessons related to the ego, self-esteem; the sacrament is confirmation, in which you affirm your honor code and become a warrior. This is a very important stage in your development: you must have personal honor and responsibility. There was a time when society was managed by honor; we have very little these days. Kids grow up without respect for their parents, and that may be why they join gangs, so they have some kind of honor code, as negative as it may be.
The fourth sacrament is marriage, the heart chakra. The first marriage and love must be for yourself.
Perhaps the most important is the seventh sacrament: extreme unction or last rites, you don't carry your dead (your past) around with you. You add to that the Ten Sefirot in the Judaic Tree of Life, which are strikingly comparable to the seven chakras and seven sacraments and you have a Divine blueprint for power.
Energy anatomy is learning how to intuitively sense when there is an energy imbalance in the stages of development, or a mismanagement of power, and then taking steps to correct that imbalance before it becomes an illness.
The seven planes are as follows:
1. The dense physical made up of solids liquids and gases.
2. The energetic or etheric made up of four ethers
3. The astral plane of sensation and feeling
4.The Buddic plane of intuition and love
5. The Nirvanic plane of Samadhi
6.The Monadic plane where our Spirit resides
7. The Godhead or the plane of abstract reality.
We have seven bodies corresponding to each of the seven planes.
We will concern ourselves with the first three as that is the primary arena of activity for humanity.
THE SEVEN RAYS
Ray I Will or Power Plane of divinity.
Ray II Love-Wisdom Plane of the monad.
Ray III Active Intelligence Plane of spirit, atma.
Ray IV Harmony Plane of the intuition.
Ray V Concrete Knowledge Mental Plane.
Ray VI Devotion, Idealism Astral Plane.
Ray VII Ceremonial Order Physical
~*~~*~~*
THE ETHERIC BODY
The etheric body has been described as a network, permeated with fire, or as a web, animated with golden light. It is spoken of in the Bible as the "golden bowl." It is a composition of that matter of the physical plane which we call etheric, and its shape is brought about by the fine interlacing strands of this matter being built by the action of the lesser Builders into the form or mould upon which later the dense physical body can be moulded. Under the Law of Attraction, the denser matter of the physical plane is made to cohere to this vitalised form, and is gradually built up around it, and within it, until the interpenetration is so complete that the two forms make but one unit; the pranic emanations of the etheric body itself play upon the dense physical body in the same manner as the pranic emanations of the sun play upon the etheric body. It is all one vast system of transmission and of interdependence within the system. All receive in order to give, and to pass on to that which is lesser or not so evolved. Upon every plane this process can be seen.
The organ of reception is the spleen through its etheric counterpart. After distribution over the entire body via the etheric network it demonstrates in surface radiation as the health aura. ~ From Cosmic Fire ~ Alice Bailey
The Etheric Body
The etheric body is a subtle energy field that both penetrates into and extends outside the body. Blue in color and outlining the shape of the body so completely, the etheric body has long been thought of as the physical body's double. The etheric field has a definite structure of lines of force (an energy matrix), upon which the physical body is shaped and anchored. The physical tissues exist as such, only due to the vital field of the etheric supporting them. In other words, the etheric is created prior to, and is not a result of, the physical body.
The word etheric comes from the Middle English ether, a state between energy and matter. The etheric body is composed of tiny energy lines, like a sparkling web of light beams. Constructed of fiery threads and filled with electricity, the etheric field is in constant motion. Having the same shape as the physical body, including the anatomical parts and organs, this silvery blue corona extends from one quarter inch to two inches beyond the physical body and pulsates about 15-20 cycles per minute.
The etheric field is under the domain of Gemini and the planet Mercury. While it protects and provides the pattern for the physical body, the etheric field also collects stimuli from the external world and passes it into our internal world, and vice versa. It also passes stimuli from our inner worlds into the outer world, thus acting as a messenger (Mercury). The etheric body is the linking and communicative field between higher frequencies (emotional, mental, Soul, intuitive, monadic, etc.) and the lower frequencies of the physical body, including the glands, nervous system and organs. Health and illness originate in the etheric. Nutritional, environmental, emotional and mental elements within our field affect our spiritual balance as well as our cellular patterns.
It is through this process that we affect and change other dimensions as they, in turn, equally affect and change us.
PHYSICAL SUB-PLANES
1. First ether. Atomic plane
2. Second ether. Sub-atomic
3. Third ether. Super-etheric
4. Fourth ether. Super-gaseous
DENSE PHYSICAL
5. Gaseous. Sub-etheric
6. Liquid
7. Earthly. Dense
PLANES OF HUMANITY
Mental. Fire. Cosmic gaseous.
Astral. Emotional plane. Water. Cosmic liquid.
Physical plane. Earth. Cosmic dense.
~*~~*~~*
The astral plane is basically the plane of duality. The plane we visit each night while the dense physical sleeps. Here we have the basis for most all of our conflict in life. Do I - don't I will - I won't I. pain - pleasure joy - sorrow. Back and forth the pendulum swings, faster and faster ~ life time after life time until we learn the lessons of duality and are able to find the middle path the Buddha spoke of.
THE ASTRAL
(EMOTIONAL) BODY
taken from PONDER ON THIS
Alice Bailey
(1) The refining of the emotional body.
The emotional body is simply a great reflector. It takes color and movement from its surroundings. It receives the impress of every passing desire. It contacts every whim and fancy in its environment; every current sets it in motion; every sound causes it to vibrate, unless the aspirant inhibits such a state of affairs, and trains it to receive and register only those impressions which come from the intuitional level via the Higher Self, and therefore via [Page 24] the atomic subplane. The aim of the aspirant should be to so train the emotional body that it will become still and clear as a mirror, so that it may reflect perfectly. . . . What words should describe the emotional body? The words: still, serene, unruffled, quiet, at rest, limpid and clear.… How should this be accomplished? In several ways, some at the direction of the aspirant, and some at the direction of the Master.
a. By the constant watching of all desires, motives and wishes, that cross the horizon daily, and by the subsequent emphasising of all those that are of a high order, and by inhibition of the lower.
b. By a constant daily attempt to contact the Higher Self, and to reflect His
wishes in the life… .
c. By definite periods daily directed to the stilling of the emotional body. . . . Each aspirant must discover for himself wherein he yields most easily to violent vibrations, such as fear, worry, personality desire of any kind, personality love of anything or anyone, discouragement, over- sensitiveness to public opinion; then he must overcome that vibration, by imposing on it a new rhythm, definitely eliminating and constructing.
d. By work done on the emotional body at night, under the direction of more advanced egos, working under the guidance of a Master.
(2) When illusion and glamour have both been overcome, the astral body fades out in the human consciousness. There is no desire left for the separated self. Kama-manas disappears, and man is then regarded as consisting essentially of soul - mind - brain, within the body nature. This is a great mystery, and its significance can only be understood when a man has controlled his personality, and eliminated all aspects of glamour and of illusion. This is accomplished by accomplishing. This mastery is achieved by mastering. This elimination of desire is brought about by conscious eliminating. Get therefore to work, my brothers, and clarification of the problem must inevitably ensue.
~*~~*~~*~
ASTRAL PHENOMENA
In the training to be given during the next few decades, the unfoldment of astral vision and hearing, will be entirely ruled out, or (if it exists) will eventually have to be overcome. The true disciple has endeavored to] center himself on the mental plane, with the object in view of transferring his consciousness higher still, into the wider and inclusive awareness of the soul.
His aim is to include the higher, and there is no need for him, at this stage, to regain that astral facility which was the possession, as you well know, of the little evolved races of the earth, and of many of the higher animals. Later on, when adeptship has been reached, he can function on the astral plane should he so choose, but it should be remembered that the Master works with the soul aspect of humanity (and of all forms), and does not work with their astral bodies. This has been oft forgotten by teachers both in the East and the West.
. . . May I say therefore, to students that their main objective is to become aware of the soul, to cultivate soul consciousness, and to learn to live and work as souls.
~*~~*~~*~
ASTRAL PLANE
(1) One of the most vital things every aspirant has to do, is to learn to understand the astral plane, to comprehend its nature, and to learn both to stand free from it and then to work on it. . . . The moment a man can "see" on the astral plane, and can achieve equilibrium and hold steady in the midst of its vibrating forces, that moment he is ready for initiation. . . .
The appearance of the astral plane when first definitely seen by the "opened eye" of the aspirant, is one of dense fog, confusion, changing forms, interpenetrating and intermingling colours, and is of such a kaleidoscopic appearance that the hopelessness of the enterprise seems overwhelming. It is not light, or starry clear. It is apparently impenetrable disorder, for it is the meeting ground of forces.. ..
. . . The astral plane is the plane of illusion, of glamour, and of a distorted presentation of reality. The reason for this is that every individual in the world is busy working in astral matter, and the potency of human desire and of world desire produces that constant "outpicturing" and form building which leads to the most concrete effects of astral matter. . . . Add to these forms that persistent and steadily growing scenario we call the "akashic records", which concern the emotional history of the past, add the activities of the discarnate lives which are passing through the astral plane, either out of or towards incarnation, add the potent desire, purified and intelligent, [Page 26]of all superhuman Lives, including those of the occult planetary Hierarchy, and the sum total of forces present, is stupendous. All play upon, around and through every human being, and according to the calibre of his physical body, and the condition of his centers will be his response. Through this illusory panorama, the aspirant has to make his way, finding the clue or thread which will lead him out of the maze, and holding fast to each tiny fragment of reality as it presents itself to him, learning to distinguish truth from glamour, the permanent from the impermanent, and the certainty from the unreal. .
No glamour, no illusion can long hold the man who has set himself the task of treading the razor-edged Path which leads through the wilderness, through the thick-set forest, through the deep waters of sorrow and distress, through the valley of sacrifice and over the mountains of vision to the gate of Deliverance. He may travel sometimes in the dark (and the illusion of darkness is very real); he may travel sometimes in a light so dazzling and bewildering that he can scarcely see the way ahead; he may know what it is to falter on the Path, and to drop under the fatigue of service and of strife; he may be temporarily sidetracked and wander down the by-paths of ambition, of self-interest and of material enchantment, but the lapse will be but brief.
(2) There is no astral plane except in the consciousness of the fourth kingdom in nature, for man is "under illusion" in a sense different to the conscious awareness of any other kingdom – subhuman or superhuman.
I despair in making my meaning clear. How can one who is subject to the illusions of the senses, as are all human creatures, conceive of the state of consciousness of those who have freed themselves from the illusions of the astral plane, or realize the state of awareness of those forms of life which have not yet developed astral consciousness? It is the dual nature of the mind which causes this illusion. . . .
Yet it is this very illusion which renders up to man eventually the secret password into the Kingdom of God, and brings about his release. It is this Maya itself which serves to guide him into truth and knowledge; it is on the plane of the astral that the heresy of separateness has to be overcome. . . . The secret science of the Master of Wisdom is the secret of how to dissipate the fogs and mist and darkness and gloom, which are produced by the union of the fires in the early stages. The secret of the Master is the discovery that there is no astral plane; he finds that the astral plane is a figment of the imagination and has been created through the uncontrolled use of the creative imagination, and the misuse of the magical powers. .
(3) I have said elsewhere, that there is no such thing as the astral plane or the astral body. Just as the physical body is made up of matter which is not regarded as a principle, so the astral body – as far as the mind nature is concerned – is in the same category. This is a difficult matter for you to grasp, because desire and emotion are so real and so devastatingly important. But – speaking literally – from the angle of the mental plane, the astral body is a "figment of the imagination"; it is not a principle. The massed use of the imagination in the service of desire, has nevertheless constructed an illusory glamorous world, the world of the astral plane. During physical incarnation, and when man is not upon the Path of Discipleship, the astral plane is very real, with a vitality and a life all its own. After the first death (the death of the physical body) it still remains equally real. But its potency slowly dies out; the mental man comes to realise his own true state of consciousness (whether developed or undeveloped), and the second death becomes possible and takes place. This phase covers the Process of Elimination.
(4) Even though there is no astral plane, from the standpoint of the Master, yet thousands of millions recognize it, and labor in its delusive sphere, and are there aided by the initiated disciple, working from the higher corresponding levels.
~*~~*~~*~
You get the idea.
In esoteric teachings seven is continued as we have seven chakras, seven planes of existence, seven bodies of manifestation on the seven planes.
From Carolyn Myss: The seven sacraments are baptism, communion, confirmation, marriage, confession, ordination and extreme unction. And symbolically, they represent different stages of spiritual development, in that order.
For example, baptism represents the tribal stage, the first chakra: the family accepts responsibility for the child - our journey is to mature to the point where we accept the life we have been given, and live with gratitude for it.
The third chakra represents lessons related to the ego, self-esteem; the sacrament is confirmation, in which you affirm your honor code and become a warrior. This is a very important stage in your development: you must have personal honor and responsibility. There was a time when society was managed by honor; we have very little these days. Kids grow up without respect for their parents, and that may be why they join gangs, so they have some kind of honor code, as negative as it may be.
The fourth sacrament is marriage, the heart chakra. The first marriage and love must be for yourself.
Perhaps the most important is the seventh sacrament: extreme unction or last rites, you don't carry your dead (your past) around with you. You add to that the Ten Sefirot in the Judaic Tree of Life, which are strikingly comparable to the seven chakras and seven sacraments and you have a Divine blueprint for power.
Energy anatomy is learning how to intuitively sense when there is an energy imbalance in the stages of development, or a mismanagement of power, and then taking steps to correct that imbalance before it becomes an illness.
The seven planes are as follows:
1. The dense physical made up of solids liquids and gases.
2. The energetic or etheric made up of four ethers
3. The astral plane of sensation and feeling
4.The Buddic plane of intuition and love
5. The Nirvanic plane of Samadhi
6.The Monadic plane where our Spirit resides
7. The Godhead or the plane of abstract reality.
We have seven bodies corresponding to each of the seven planes.
We will concern ourselves with the first three as that is the primary arena of activity for humanity.
THE SEVEN RAYS
Ray I Will or Power Plane of divinity.
Ray II Love-Wisdom Plane of the monad.
Ray III Active Intelligence Plane of spirit, atma.
Ray IV Harmony Plane of the intuition.
Ray V Concrete Knowledge Mental Plane.
Ray VI Devotion, Idealism Astral Plane.
Ray VII Ceremonial Order Physical
~*~~*~~*
THE ETHERIC BODY
The etheric body has been described as a network, permeated with fire, or as a web, animated with golden light. It is spoken of in the Bible as the "golden bowl." It is a composition of that matter of the physical plane which we call etheric, and its shape is brought about by the fine interlacing strands of this matter being built by the action of the lesser Builders into the form or mould upon which later the dense physical body can be moulded. Under the Law of Attraction, the denser matter of the physical plane is made to cohere to this vitalised form, and is gradually built up around it, and within it, until the interpenetration is so complete that the two forms make but one unit; the pranic emanations of the etheric body itself play upon the dense physical body in the same manner as the pranic emanations of the sun play upon the etheric body. It is all one vast system of transmission and of interdependence within the system. All receive in order to give, and to pass on to that which is lesser or not so evolved. Upon every plane this process can be seen.
The organ of reception is the spleen through its etheric counterpart. After distribution over the entire body via the etheric network it demonstrates in surface radiation as the health aura. ~ From Cosmic Fire ~ Alice Bailey
The Etheric Body
The etheric body is a subtle energy field that both penetrates into and extends outside the body. Blue in color and outlining the shape of the body so completely, the etheric body has long been thought of as the physical body's double. The etheric field has a definite structure of lines of force (an energy matrix), upon which the physical body is shaped and anchored. The physical tissues exist as such, only due to the vital field of the etheric supporting them. In other words, the etheric is created prior to, and is not a result of, the physical body.
The word etheric comes from the Middle English ether, a state between energy and matter. The etheric body is composed of tiny energy lines, like a sparkling web of light beams. Constructed of fiery threads and filled with electricity, the etheric field is in constant motion. Having the same shape as the physical body, including the anatomical parts and organs, this silvery blue corona extends from one quarter inch to two inches beyond the physical body and pulsates about 15-20 cycles per minute.
The etheric field is under the domain of Gemini and the planet Mercury. While it protects and provides the pattern for the physical body, the etheric field also collects stimuli from the external world and passes it into our internal world, and vice versa. It also passes stimuli from our inner worlds into the outer world, thus acting as a messenger (Mercury). The etheric body is the linking and communicative field between higher frequencies (emotional, mental, Soul, intuitive, monadic, etc.) and the lower frequencies of the physical body, including the glands, nervous system and organs. Health and illness originate in the etheric. Nutritional, environmental, emotional and mental elements within our field affect our spiritual balance as well as our cellular patterns.
It is through this process that we affect and change other dimensions as they, in turn, equally affect and change us.
PHYSICAL SUB-PLANES
1. First ether. Atomic plane
2. Second ether. Sub-atomic
3. Third ether. Super-etheric
4. Fourth ether. Super-gaseous
DENSE PHYSICAL
5. Gaseous. Sub-etheric
6. Liquid
7. Earthly. Dense
PLANES OF HUMANITY
Mental. Fire. Cosmic gaseous.
Astral. Emotional plane. Water. Cosmic liquid.
Physical plane. Earth. Cosmic dense.
~*~~*~~*
The astral plane is basically the plane of duality. The plane we visit each night while the dense physical sleeps. Here we have the basis for most all of our conflict in life. Do I - don't I will - I won't I. pain - pleasure joy - sorrow. Back and forth the pendulum swings, faster and faster ~ life time after life time until we learn the lessons of duality and are able to find the middle path the Buddha spoke of.
THE ASTRAL
(EMOTIONAL) BODY
taken from PONDER ON THIS
Alice Bailey
(1) The refining of the emotional body.
The emotional body is simply a great reflector. It takes color and movement from its surroundings. It receives the impress of every passing desire. It contacts every whim and fancy in its environment; every current sets it in motion; every sound causes it to vibrate, unless the aspirant inhibits such a state of affairs, and trains it to receive and register only those impressions which come from the intuitional level via the Higher Self, and therefore via [Page 24] the atomic subplane. The aim of the aspirant should be to so train the emotional body that it will become still and clear as a mirror, so that it may reflect perfectly. . . . What words should describe the emotional body? The words: still, serene, unruffled, quiet, at rest, limpid and clear.… How should this be accomplished? In several ways, some at the direction of the aspirant, and some at the direction of the Master.
a. By the constant watching of all desires, motives and wishes, that cross the horizon daily, and by the subsequent emphasising of all those that are of a high order, and by inhibition of the lower.
b. By a constant daily attempt to contact the Higher Self, and to reflect His
wishes in the life… .
c. By definite periods daily directed to the stilling of the emotional body. . . . Each aspirant must discover for himself wherein he yields most easily to violent vibrations, such as fear, worry, personality desire of any kind, personality love of anything or anyone, discouragement, over- sensitiveness to public opinion; then he must overcome that vibration, by imposing on it a new rhythm, definitely eliminating and constructing.
d. By work done on the emotional body at night, under the direction of more advanced egos, working under the guidance of a Master.
(2) When illusion and glamour have both been overcome, the astral body fades out in the human consciousness. There is no desire left for the separated self. Kama-manas disappears, and man is then regarded as consisting essentially of soul - mind - brain, within the body nature. This is a great mystery, and its significance can only be understood when a man has controlled his personality, and eliminated all aspects of glamour and of illusion. This is accomplished by accomplishing. This mastery is achieved by mastering. This elimination of desire is brought about by conscious eliminating. Get therefore to work, my brothers, and clarification of the problem must inevitably ensue.
~*~~*~~*~
ASTRAL PHENOMENA
In the training to be given during the next few decades, the unfoldment of astral vision and hearing, will be entirely ruled out, or (if it exists) will eventually have to be overcome. The true disciple has endeavored to] center himself on the mental plane, with the object in view of transferring his consciousness higher still, into the wider and inclusive awareness of the soul.
His aim is to include the higher, and there is no need for him, at this stage, to regain that astral facility which was the possession, as you well know, of the little evolved races of the earth, and of many of the higher animals. Later on, when adeptship has been reached, he can function on the astral plane should he so choose, but it should be remembered that the Master works with the soul aspect of humanity (and of all forms), and does not work with their astral bodies. This has been oft forgotten by teachers both in the East and the West.
. . . May I say therefore, to students that their main objective is to become aware of the soul, to cultivate soul consciousness, and to learn to live and work as souls.
~*~~*~~*~
ASTRAL PLANE
(1) One of the most vital things every aspirant has to do, is to learn to understand the astral plane, to comprehend its nature, and to learn both to stand free from it and then to work on it. . . . The moment a man can "see" on the astral plane, and can achieve equilibrium and hold steady in the midst of its vibrating forces, that moment he is ready for initiation. . . .
The appearance of the astral plane when first definitely seen by the "opened eye" of the aspirant, is one of dense fog, confusion, changing forms, interpenetrating and intermingling colours, and is of such a kaleidoscopic appearance that the hopelessness of the enterprise seems overwhelming. It is not light, or starry clear. It is apparently impenetrable disorder, for it is the meeting ground of forces.. ..
. . . The astral plane is the plane of illusion, of glamour, and of a distorted presentation of reality. The reason for this is that every individual in the world is busy working in astral matter, and the potency of human desire and of world desire produces that constant "outpicturing" and form building which leads to the most concrete effects of astral matter. . . . Add to these forms that persistent and steadily growing scenario we call the "akashic records", which concern the emotional history of the past, add the activities of the discarnate lives which are passing through the astral plane, either out of or towards incarnation, add the potent desire, purified and intelligent, [Page 26]of all superhuman Lives, including those of the occult planetary Hierarchy, and the sum total of forces present, is stupendous. All play upon, around and through every human being, and according to the calibre of his physical body, and the condition of his centers will be his response. Through this illusory panorama, the aspirant has to make his way, finding the clue or thread which will lead him out of the maze, and holding fast to each tiny fragment of reality as it presents itself to him, learning to distinguish truth from glamour, the permanent from the impermanent, and the certainty from the unreal. .
No glamour, no illusion can long hold the man who has set himself the task of treading the razor-edged Path which leads through the wilderness, through the thick-set forest, through the deep waters of sorrow and distress, through the valley of sacrifice and over the mountains of vision to the gate of Deliverance. He may travel sometimes in the dark (and the illusion of darkness is very real); he may travel sometimes in a light so dazzling and bewildering that he can scarcely see the way ahead; he may know what it is to falter on the Path, and to drop under the fatigue of service and of strife; he may be temporarily sidetracked and wander down the by-paths of ambition, of self-interest and of material enchantment, but the lapse will be but brief.
(2) There is no astral plane except in the consciousness of the fourth kingdom in nature, for man is "under illusion" in a sense different to the conscious awareness of any other kingdom – subhuman or superhuman.
I despair in making my meaning clear. How can one who is subject to the illusions of the senses, as are all human creatures, conceive of the state of consciousness of those who have freed themselves from the illusions of the astral plane, or realize the state of awareness of those forms of life which have not yet developed astral consciousness? It is the dual nature of the mind which causes this illusion. . . .
Yet it is this very illusion which renders up to man eventually the secret password into the Kingdom of God, and brings about his release. It is this Maya itself which serves to guide him into truth and knowledge; it is on the plane of the astral that the heresy of separateness has to be overcome. . . . The secret science of the Master of Wisdom is the secret of how to dissipate the fogs and mist and darkness and gloom, which are produced by the union of the fires in the early stages. The secret of the Master is the discovery that there is no astral plane; he finds that the astral plane is a figment of the imagination and has been created through the uncontrolled use of the creative imagination, and the misuse of the magical powers. .
(3) I have said elsewhere, that there is no such thing as the astral plane or the astral body. Just as the physical body is made up of matter which is not regarded as a principle, so the astral body – as far as the mind nature is concerned – is in the same category. This is a difficult matter for you to grasp, because desire and emotion are so real and so devastatingly important. But – speaking literally – from the angle of the mental plane, the astral body is a "figment of the imagination"; it is not a principle. The massed use of the imagination in the service of desire, has nevertheless constructed an illusory glamorous world, the world of the astral plane. During physical incarnation, and when man is not upon the Path of Discipleship, the astral plane is very real, with a vitality and a life all its own. After the first death (the death of the physical body) it still remains equally real. But its potency slowly dies out; the mental man comes to realise his own true state of consciousness (whether developed or undeveloped), and the second death becomes possible and takes place. This phase covers the Process of Elimination.
(4) Even though there is no astral plane, from the standpoint of the Master, yet thousands of millions recognize it, and labor in its delusive sphere, and are there aided by the initiated disciple, working from the higher corresponding levels.
~*~~*~~*~
The Mental Body
The mental body is not the plane of thought as many might presume. It is the plane of pure knowing. Knowing beyond reasoning.
The mental body is the third aspect of the personality triad. It is, like the other planes, divided into "higher and lower planes." This term applies to frequency only and not superior or inferior qualities. Hence we have the lower concrete mind and the higher abstract mind. In reality, the mental plane is the first cosmic plane considered to be a permanent plane.
From
A TREATISE ON COSMIC FIRE
Alice Bailey
Man, the Thinker, the Knower, the manasic principle in the center of the many spheres which form his bodies, manipulates electrical force in three departments (the physical, astral and mental bodies) through seven centres which are the focal points of force, and of its intelligent dispersal throughout his little system to the myriads of lesser atoms, which are the cells in these spheres.
A Heavenly Man equally, and in a wider sense, the Thinker and Knower, the manasic or mind principle plus the buddhic or Christ principle, manipulates electrical force through three principal vehicles or globes in atmic, buddhic, and manasic matter, dispersing it from thence to the myriads of cells which correspond to the deva and human units.
A solar Logos in a still wider sense is the permeating universal Mind, the manasic principle, plus the buddhic and the will principle, working in three major schemes, by means of seven centres of force, and through the myriads of groups which are the cells in His body, in the same way as human beings are the cells in the body of a Heavenly Man.
The cosmic Logos of our system works similarly through three major systems (of which ours is not one), utilising seven solar systems (of which ours is one), for the distribution of His force and having myriads of sevenfold groups as the cells of His body.
b. Will and ordered purpose. Thus all that we can really predicate anent the origin of manas is that it is the unified will-activity, or the purposeful expression of the realised Identity of some great Self which colours the life and swings into intelligent co-operation all the lesser units included in its sphere of influence. Each of us, in illustration, is the thinking purposeful Entity who acts as the manasic principle, and the spring of action, to all the units included in our three bodies. Each of us sways them to our will; we act, and by acting, force co-operation as we see fit. The Logos does the same on a larger scale. In this thought lies light on the question of karma, of free-will and of responsibility. Manas is, really WILL working itself out on the physical plane, and the truth of this will be seen when it is realised that all our planes form the cosmic physical plane, whereon an Entity, inconceivably greater than our Logos, is working out a set purpose through the Logos, through us, through all Spirit-substance that is included within His sphere of radiatory activity.Certain problems of real interest are prone to enter our minds, but they serve only to develop abstract thought [354] and to expand the consciousness, for they are as yet insoluble and will remain so. Some of them might be enumerated as follows:
1. Who is the cosmic Entity in Whose scheme our Logos plays his little part?
2. What is the nature of the great purpose He is working out?
3. Which centre in His body is represented by our solar system?
4. What is the nature of the incarnation He is now undergoing?
5. What are the ten systems—the three and the seven—of which our solar system is one? Must we look for the major three within the seven, or extraneously?
6. What is the coloring or basic quality of this cosmic Entity?
7. Is the colouring of the fourth cosmic ether (the buddhic plane), blue, or is it violet to correspond with our fourth physical ether? Why is buddhi exoterically regarded as yellow in color?
8. Which are the primary three centres in the body of our solar Logos and which the minor four?
9. What is the karma of the different schemes?
10. What is the over-balancing karma of the Logos Himself as it affects the ten schemes within His system?
The mental body is not the plane of thought as many might presume. It is the plane of pure knowing. Knowing beyond reasoning.
The mental body is the third aspect of the personality triad. It is, like the other planes, divided into "higher and lower planes." This term applies to frequency only and not superior or inferior qualities. Hence we have the lower concrete mind and the higher abstract mind. In reality, the mental plane is the first cosmic plane considered to be a permanent plane.
From
A TREATISE ON COSMIC FIRE
Alice Bailey
Man, the Thinker, the Knower, the manasic principle in the center of the many spheres which form his bodies, manipulates electrical force in three departments (the physical, astral and mental bodies) through seven centres which are the focal points of force, and of its intelligent dispersal throughout his little system to the myriads of lesser atoms, which are the cells in these spheres.
A Heavenly Man equally, and in a wider sense, the Thinker and Knower, the manasic or mind principle plus the buddhic or Christ principle, manipulates electrical force through three principal vehicles or globes in atmic, buddhic, and manasic matter, dispersing it from thence to the myriads of cells which correspond to the deva and human units.
A solar Logos in a still wider sense is the permeating universal Mind, the manasic principle, plus the buddhic and the will principle, working in three major schemes, by means of seven centres of force, and through the myriads of groups which are the cells in His body, in the same way as human beings are the cells in the body of a Heavenly Man.
The cosmic Logos of our system works similarly through three major systems (of which ours is not one), utilising seven solar systems (of which ours is one), for the distribution of His force and having myriads of sevenfold groups as the cells of His body.
b. Will and ordered purpose. Thus all that we can really predicate anent the origin of manas is that it is the unified will-activity, or the purposeful expression of the realised Identity of some great Self which colours the life and swings into intelligent co-operation all the lesser units included in its sphere of influence. Each of us, in illustration, is the thinking purposeful Entity who acts as the manasic principle, and the spring of action, to all the units included in our three bodies. Each of us sways them to our will; we act, and by acting, force co-operation as we see fit. The Logos does the same on a larger scale. In this thought lies light on the question of karma, of free-will and of responsibility. Manas is, really WILL working itself out on the physical plane, and the truth of this will be seen when it is realised that all our planes form the cosmic physical plane, whereon an Entity, inconceivably greater than our Logos, is working out a set purpose through the Logos, through us, through all Spirit-substance that is included within His sphere of radiatory activity.Certain problems of real interest are prone to enter our minds, but they serve only to develop abstract thought [354] and to expand the consciousness, for they are as yet insoluble and will remain so. Some of them might be enumerated as follows:
1. Who is the cosmic Entity in Whose scheme our Logos plays his little part?
2. What is the nature of the great purpose He is working out?
3. Which centre in His body is represented by our solar system?
4. What is the nature of the incarnation He is now undergoing?
5. What are the ten systems—the three and the seven—of which our solar system is one? Must we look for the major three within the seven, or extraneously?
6. What is the coloring or basic quality of this cosmic Entity?
7. Is the colouring of the fourth cosmic ether (the buddhic plane), blue, or is it violet to correspond with our fourth physical ether? Why is buddhi exoterically regarded as yellow in color?
8. Which are the primary three centres in the body of our solar Logos and which the minor four?
9. What is the karma of the different schemes?
10. What is the over-balancing karma of the Logos Himself as it affects the ten schemes within His system?
