Audio Book – Chapter 2 – SPIRITUAL GROWTH AND MEDITATION

CHAPTER 2 – SPIRITUAL GROWTH AND MEDITATION

Click To Play Next Audio Chapter – Chapter 3 – The Acts Of The Masters

Click to return to Audio Book Main Menu

Audio Transcription:

Stairway To Freedom

Chapter 2

Spiritual Growth And Meditation

The concept behind a belief in a deity is one that is being contrasted with a pseudo-scientific analysis of the creation of life and matter. There have been, from time to time, groups of intelligent yet ignorant people who have intellectually manipulated the evidence presented to their faculties with a view to determining with finality the reason as to why and how matter came into being. The arguments put forward by those people are convincing to those content to limit their investigations to the visible and near visible. They arrive at hypotheses by a method of deduction containing errors of limitation and misunderstanding.

It is not possible to view the world through a telescope nor yet a microscope and observe all of creation. Instruments do not exist that can quantify the immensity of creation in all its forms of manifestation. Those who are prepared to ignore what they cannot see, touch, or measure will be forever limited to a false concept of creation. However, their methods of investigation are basically sound and will in time lead them or others to the conclusions that matter and life exist outside of their abilities to quantify.

In a true investigation of God’s kingdom, for the power of God does indeed exist, man is fully equipped with all that is necessary to view, quantify, and understand the true limits of creation. He’s equipped with a brain, a mind, and a soul. Those three instruments will, if used correctly, open every door to every corner of creation. Learning to use those instruments is even more difficult than learning to use even the most complex of scientific apparatus for the key to investigation of truth is letting go of self.

Man is conditioned, since birth by an acquisitive society, to measure progress by amassing around himself possessions, qualifications, and wealth which are regarded as a measure of his stature. Education concentrates on development of intellect and awards prizes to those most successful. Man is heading, with ever greater momentum, away from truth and reality. A process of reversal is necessary before a true investigation of life may begin. It is necessary that possessions are regarded as props to comfort and not rewards for success achieved. Academic qualifications and respect of one’s intellectual abilities must be seen to be the empty rewards for description of a life of illusion.

It is necessary to become as a child again to enter the kingdom of Heaven. Do you think that God would take any perverse pleasure in concealing His universe from man? He created man and man comes fully equipped to realise all that is. Once one appreciates that nothing at all, in a material sense, is required then one can question in which direction one should proceed to unlock the doors of the mysteries. One may always be assured that in every investigation involving a voyage of discovery into God’s kingdom that the answers to any questions, the solution to any problem is already at hand. The tools used to uncover these answers are there and so it is merely necessary for the investigator to apply himself in order for all to be revealed.

The process to be gone through is always and ever the same – meditation on God. That simple act, if assiduously performed, will in time provide all answers to all problems throughout all time. It must at all times be borne in mind that all of history, all the mysteries of the world are able to be contacted and appreciated by every student when the development of simplicity in faith permits it. Let us, therefore, be content to view life from the level that we find ourselves and instead of devoting time and effort to the intellectual pursuits that will ultimately prove futile, instead devote our energies to unfolding the powers of God latent in us and the wonders of the world will be revealed in glory.

There is a time and a place for all things to occur relating to the infinite complexity of material change and organisation. Those who would aspire to understand each and every aspect of life would do well to liken their travels to the voyager into unknown territories. He should prepare himself as best he may by planning each step in advance and ensuring that he has obtained the necessary equipment and information to ensure success. If preparation is not thorough, success is not assured, and the journey will be hazardous and may end in failure. It is beholden upon each individual traveller to prepare himself and ensure that he is fully able to succeed before he commences.

Anything left undone, anything left to chance, will jeopardise the mission. The traveller must not rely on any other person to assist him or support him. He may well travel in a group but he makes the journey himself by his own efforts. No one will carry him if he stumbles. The others will be occupied in helping themselves. The advice given to any disciple of God is to ensure thorough preparation in every respect and then the journey will not end in failure.

A task for the disciple is to discover what he requires for the journey. Humans basically are complete in themselves for their voyage towards the Maker but because personality plays its part in clouding the light of purity and simplicity, it is necessary to study aspects of personality from the point of view of investigating strengths and weaknesses. Personality defects should be brought to the fore, examined, and steps taken to correct them because they will act as stumbling blocks to progress at some stage. The process of correcting a personality defect simply requires that the fault is identified and a prayer sent to God for that fault to be rectified. Subsequently, each time the fault arises in daily life, it should be brought to the attention of personality, note made of it, and it should be pushed to one side. Eventually, the fault will disappear through lack of nourishment by personality.

It is important that the disciple does not identify with the faulty emotion being considered. It is not a part of soul and as such has no value. The effect must be viewed and shelved, leaving soul and mind unruffled. Gradually, imperfections will leach away, leaving the soul shiny, pure, and whole, unfettered by any shortcomings or disabilities. Then may the journey be commenced. However, it will be noticed that in the degree that personality faults are removed, so the end of the journey comes closer. The student in fact does not travel at all. The path and the goal are one. Personality and its emotions cloud the path and cloud the goal. The goal awaits those who can remove the stains of useless pride, ego, and doubt.

An examination each day during meditation of personality aspects will quickly and correctly reveal those not aligned with the path of perfection and will gradually enable them to be disposed of. The joys of expanded vision will be the rewards of he who can overcome his emotions, and health and happiness will accompany him who achieves genuine success.

Taking into account the various factors relating to the voyage of discovery into the mysteries of life, one should come to the conclusion that matter, time, and space are interrelated and interpenetrate one another. If this is true, then it leads to the conclusion that it should be possible to investigate areas outside of the here and now. For this to become a viable reality, it not only has to be true in principle but accepted by the would-be investigators and also knowledge gained relating to the procedures necessary for the acts to be elucidated. It must be possible, for genuine investigation of the past, present, and future, for limitations of time and space to be overcome resulting in a super human form of contact stretching in several directions simultaneously, if necessary. Thus, if we can accept that the laws of physics concerning these subjects are not totally able to circumscribe reality, we begin to open doors into strange new realities which bear little relationship of limitation to that previously experienced. For, the truth is, that man is God-like, should he realise it, and the kingdom of God is his to explore freely and without limitation once he has accepted God as his father and will allow God and not his own personality to prescribe the limits of his abilities.

It would be pleasant to describe techniques and exercises, mantra and prayers, to open doors into the wider forms of life but, unfortunately, there are none. Neither are there secret societies, clubs, and organisations holding the key nor yet can any stone, colour, perfume, or flame open the door. The path to this newfound freedom is always and ever the same for all people in all aspects of life throughout all time. Spiritual growth is the key. Only by following the precepts given in this publication, which has been repeated throughout the centuries by every prophet and will remain unaltered, can the way be made smooth.

All men discarnate and incarnate have equal opportunity to tread the path and, for those willing so to do, peace and happiness passing all understanding, awaits them. For those unwilling to make the effort, the door will remain closed for it cannot be opened by the will of man. Such is the divine nature of man that he can and should allow the Godhead to shine through him, releasing all his suppressed and latent powers and allowing him to realise his full potential as man made in the image of God. It is, therefore, beholden upon the genuine seeker to pursue the path to God with fervour and in peace in anticipation of the great day when the power of God begins to shine from his soul, irradiating his physical and spiritual bodies with soul power which is unlimited spirit of God. Then may the student rise to become one with the Master.

Let it be understood that life, matter, and spirituality are not concepts that can be fully quantified using just intellect alone. The stumbling block is that matter, for example, a multidimensional substance stretching beyond purely physical bounds into areas that can only be appreciated by those of expanded vision and so, to gain anything like a complete picture, it would be necessary to make statements concerning matter to include data garnished from areas much further afield than the Earth field alone.

However, the situation may be inverted in that a person of expanded vision would, per se, be in a position to make logical and meaningful remarks relating to matter on a number of planes which would include standard statements drawn from the limited laws of physics governing matter here on Earth plane. Such statements would not only include remarks concerning mass, size, shape, and quantity but would include data relating to growth, feeling, and potential. It may seem unrealistic to take, for example, a piece of wood and consider it as a living organism but that is exactly what it is. Even when it has been cut from a living tree, dried, and prepared for use, it still has a potential for emotion and development.

Such factors would be difficult to appreciate by anyone not able to tune into cosmic knowledge but, to those so endowed, it is obvious that all matter glows with life on several planes and the word death has absolutely no meaning here. An exercise relating to developing the ability to expand consciousness might be to take an inanimate object and, by holding it in the hand and by trying to contemplate on it, it should be possible to link with its vibrancy on higher planes of existence, thus demonstrating the beginnings of expanded consciousness. Concepts, questions of interest and moment concerned with developing opinion related with the spiritual planes are resolved only by those who have firsthand experience of those planes. Anything else must be conjecture and should not be confused with fact.

Therefore, it is necessary for any student of the occult, for such is a term we may use to describe the hidden mysteries and is in no way limited to evil, to become familiar with the planes of existence relevant to his immediate and future progress in order that he can fully relate to the laws governing those planes, with a view to mastering the techniques required for manipulation of matter and form for the benefit of others to the glory of God, in order to further the upward flow of spiritual energy which will benefit all man. The techniques required are of no relevance to those unable to reach into the relative spheres and so it would be unwise, foolish, and dangerous for the novice to practice. Those of a sufficiently advanced state of development may begin to explore these new territories and begin to put into practice those techniques relevant to that plane. Then, one may expect results to be achieved which will bring great delight to the experimenter and to those less enlightened.

We now elucidate graphically the techniques to be followed by the student wishing to operate in what is termed the astral body. This body, like all the permanent or more durable bodies than the physical frame, is composed of matter of much finer substance than is found on the Earth plane and is not limited by shape to follow the outlines of the Earth form, the human body. It is roughly ovoid in shape but may change its appearance according to the thoughts, feelings, and desires flowing throughout the heart and mind of the individual. It irradiates colour of various hues and of relative purity. It can glow with brilliance and beauty in a pure soul and can be reduced in intensity and form to a dismal shape and shade in an evil eminence.

This astral body is as real as the physical form, indeed more real, and will outlive the human form by a great deal. All living objects and entities have an astral form and, as everything is alive in one sense, it follows that all things, even a grain of sand, has an astral form. It also follows that the degree in which that astral form is able to manifest itself is dependent upon its spiritual growth and that, therefore, the astral form round a grain of sand is of lesser intensity than that surrounding an advanced soul. That does not imply that a grain of sand is any less than a human. Both have a place in the kingdom of God and, in God’s eyes, all are equal.

However, man is normally the most advanced of God’s creatures walking the Earth and one expects that man should exude a more vibrant form of radiation in the astral world than would a grain of sand. Therefore, man finds when he is able to transfer his active consciousness into his astral vehicle that he appears to be floating in space. He is, in fact, in an area where the astral forms of all things surround him. If something exudes little light, it appears almost nonexistent and, therefore, there is the disconcerting experience of not having solid matter like the ground, trees, houses, etcetera, for him to relate to. He has, of course, no need of any of these. Gravity does not exist. Temperature plays no part. He eats not. He sleeps not. He requires no shelter from adverse weather conditions. He is a body of light living in a world of light which is his true state and his true home.

Many, however, cannot accept this strange concept and require to have their feet placed upon a form of terra firma. So they create with their imaginations a form of Earthly existence with houses, furniture, trees, libraries, and all they need whilst incarnate. There is nothing wrong in this. It brings them comfort and an ability to identify with their perceived reality. It is, however, not reality. It is imagination brought into the fore. Eventually, they will grow to realise that nothing is necessary for them to experience life in the astral realms. Then they will allow their possessions to disappear and appreciate the joy of standing in God instead of being blinded by illusion.

It is possible and indeed necessary for the student to familiarise himself with the technique for entering the astral realms. As with all spiritual work, until the student is ready, the doors remain closed to him. He will only be able to raise himself into this world when he has developed his own astral vehicle to the point that it is able to support his consciousness. The actual technique of entering the astral plane is very simple. By meditating on God, power is transferred into all the bodies of light surrounding an individual and the astral vehicle will become strengthened to the point where it will support a transference of consciousness to that vehicle.

The student should, from time to time, during his meditation, test the readiness of his astral body to accept him by attempting to pass into that realm by imagining, for example, walking through a door or by using a similar technique. He will discover the method most suitable for himself with experience. What he experiences in those realms will depend on many things. It is a strange world compared to the Earth plane because there is nothing solid upon which one can make datum points of progress. Therefore, initially, it will seem strange and no two people will experience the same thing. Actually, that is true also on the Earth plane but that concept is clouded by the view of reality that apparently solid material creates.

With all solidarity gone, the student will find himself quite literally all at sea. However, he should, at all times, remember that he is not alone and that his helpers, guides, and spiritual masters are never far away. They can be called upon to give assistance at a moment’s notice. Also, the student is free to return to his Earth consciousness, should he wish. He will do so automatically after a time anyway because he would be unable to sustain himself in that level for more than a few minutes. It must be reiterated that such work is not for those who have not a firm foundation of sensitivity and is definitely not recommended for anyone who has reason to doubt that he is able firmly to operate in an Earthly condition with satisfaction.

The technique outlined above would be dangerous to anyone taking drugs of any description or alcohol or for anyone who has reason to suspect that he is schizophrenic or has an hallucinatory illness. In fact, he would not achieve the desired result at all. The astral world is open only to those who have earned the right by spiritual development. Anyone else would be deluding themselves and to those in the categories mentioned above, the result could be damage to the psyche and have a completely negative result.

Some people are able to develop a form of astral projection in which they are able to detach their consciousness from within their body and project either voluntarily or involuntarily at a distance but nevertheless are still firmly on the Earth plane. This phenomenon is caused by an astral form close to the body and is normally associated in close conjunction with the body which is able to disassociate itself and is able to wander about, containing the consciousness of the individual. This phenomenon, whilst perfectly normal, is rare and is a useful technique for exploring the lower astral world. It is not a means of entering the true astral realms of light.

The lower astral world is closely related to the physical world and is virtually identical. The forms of all Earthly things are visible and such astral forms can sometimes be discerned by the naked eye. However, gravity, heat, and related matters have no relevance in that realm. Such a state is often confused by those able to exploit it to the actual Earth because there is virtually no difference. However, it is not so. It is the lowest of the astral spheres. There is some danger of meeting lower astral thought forms, often unpleasant, on this plane and it would perhaps be better left for those who are designed by nature and by God to be denizens of that area. The student should concentrate on exploring the higher astral worlds of light and beauty.

Let us, therefore, proceed to define the technique for true meditation on God. Only by so doing is the student able to expand his consciousness and his soul to free him from the trammels of Maya. There are many techniques described by exponents of a variety of philosophies for enabling one to reach perfection. “All roads lead to Rome,” it has been stated and we may rest assured that all forms of meditation will open the gates to the kingdom of Heaven. Some techniques urge the student to ignore the gifts of the spirit that may become available as a result of progress achieved and some forms of contemplation seek to immerse the student in the joys of meditation to the detriment of progress.

It is therefore necessary for the student to choose a course of meditation and contemplation which will not only open the gates of Heaven as quickly as can be safely achieved but that will also permit him to unfold the gifts from God that result for the benefit of his fellow man sick through lack of contact with God. The technique of meditation recommended is thus dependent upon the student placing himself in a position to benefit according to the warnings and recommendations outlined earlier.

Assuming that due relevance has been paid to those admonitions then it is recommended that the student place himself in a room on his own with the door shut. A room remote from traffic or neighbour interference is necessary during early stages. Later, the student will be able to ignore any extraneous noise. He should sit comfortably, warm, and quietly close his eyes. After allowing his metabolism to settle for a few moments, he should invoke God’s blessing and protection. Then, he should focus his attention upon an imaginary spot of light in front of him, holding that spot of light stationary in his imagination as best he may and recognising that spot of light as the power of God, as God himself.

Initially, it is difficult but will have to become a technique accomplished at some stage in his existence so it is better to master it now. The spot of light should be held for a few minutes initially. As the student progresses, he may hold it for longer periods of time but he should not strain. When he feels that he has meditated sufficiently then he may withdraw his attention, say a benediction to God, and resume his normal existence. This apparently simple exercise will bring great blessings and advancement to the student and is a technique that he may continue to use after he has removed his consciousness from the Earth and has finally entered his true home, the spiritual world.

That is the end of Chapter 2.

Click To Play Next Audio Chapter – Chapter 3 – The Acts Of The Masters

Click to return to Audio Book Main Menu