G. de P. — Are there any questions this evening?
Student — Could you tell us something about the doctrine of the anupapadaka? [aupapaduka. See Encyclopedic Theosophical Glossary; the term is corrected throughout.]
G. de P. — This is a Sanskrit word which means "parentless." A more literal rendering of this compound word is "one who does not follow," or "one who is not a unit in a serial order," or, "one who does not follow a predecessor"; and is a term applied directly to one class of avataras. In one sense of the word all avataras are aupapaduka. They come without preparatory predecessors, karmic or otherwise. They do their work and then they vanish. Each avatara does not come as one in a series of beings. Consequently they are called parentless, aupapaduka, because being just the contrary in this respect of the regular karmical serial succession of teachers following one after the other, handing on the light from hand to hand — which is the regular case.
The two classes of avataras are, first, the human avataras such as were Jesus and Sankaracharya; and second, the divine avataras — a very mystical fact and doctrine indeed, which would take too long to explain tonight.
I can say this perhaps, in order to give you some idea at least of what this second class of avataras is, the divine avataras: there exists in the spiritual realms a kind of divine imbodiment, acting like and equivalent to in those spiritual realms what the human avataras are among men on earth. I mean that the gods occasionally receive superdivine visitations among themselves, that there are superdivine gods who appear in the realms of the gods very much as the avataras appear among us humans. Both cases of avataras are called aupapaduka, parentless, but this technical Sanskrit word applies with particular force to these god-avataras.
It is this very mystical and recondite and difficult doctrine of the avataras which was at the root of the teaching regarding the virgin-birth of Jesus — having no "father," in other words parentless. This idea is to be accepted or understood in the literal meaning of having no spiritual predecessor from whom the light was received in regular serial order — no guru who named the successor to take the post in his turn, and in his turn again hand on the light. Do you get the idea?
Many Voices — Yes.
G. de P. — Such, briefly, is the meaning of the word aupapaduka. It exemplifies a very beautiful doctrine, beautiful because so suggestive, and yet it is a difficult doctrine, very difficult indeed. I don't pretend to understand everything about the divine class of avataras. I have been taught the general idea, and I have made my own deductions, and have thought a great deal about the doctrine. I would not even try to give all the details because I myself don't know them.
Student — I would like to ask if the maha-manvantara refers to the period of the life of the solar system.
G. de P. — That is a very pertinent question. The phrase maha-manvantara is also a Sanskrit compound and means "great manvantara." When used without qualifying adjective, it can apply to a number of things — to the entire life of the solar system; or, to the entire seven rounds of the planetary chain; or, to the entire life-cycle of our own home-universe, which means everything comprised within the bounds of the Milky Way. It is the qualifying adjective which describes what kind of great manvantara a writer may be alluding to; and it is a lack of remembering this simple rule that has caused so much confusion about this word among students.
Student — You once said that the dhyan-chohan from a preceding maha-manvantara, after a period of paranirvana, entered this manvantara as an unself-conscious god-spark, and being the fruitage of that past manvantara is what we call our inner god. Now we have also learned elsewhere that in a complete cycle of any planetary chain all the egos are elevated one plane higher.
G. de P. — One cosmic plane.
Student — One cosmic plane?
G. de P. — Yes.
Student — So this is my question. I was wondering whether there are as many planetary reimbodiments as are necessary to raise all the egos — well I hardly know how to express it —
G. de P. — The monads.
Student — The monads. In other words, to produce an inner god from the very beginning. And if that is true, whether that solar system which produces that inner god is the parent-star of that inner god. I suppose it would be seven or ten reimbodiments of planetary chains which would make that solar cycle, solar manvantara. Do I make myself clear?
G. de P. — I think so. The maha-manvantara that you refer to, if I remember aright the passage that you speak of, is an entire solar manvantara. The solar system would not, however, be the parent-star.
The idea is this: The planes, or hierarchical system, of our universe comprise seven manifested and three unmanifest planes. As each planetary chain in its new imbodiment takes place on the next higher or cosmic plane, in order to raise an unself-conscious god-spark to self-conscious divinity there must therefore be seven reimbodiments of any planetary chain in the solar manvantara.
Student — Then is that sun the parent-star of that inner god?
G. de P. — No. The matter of the parent-star is contained in a still more recondite doctrine. The reference to the maha-manvantara is a reference to the sun of a solar system. Please think very closely, and I believe that you will easily yourself see the answer to your question, because what you have stated in asking your question shows me that you yourself have the key to it in your own mind.
Student — Regarding your teaching concerning rebirth and the male seed cast into the female field, you seem to say that it is the male germ from which grows the child-to-be when that germ enters the fertile female germ or field. But I am puzzled by two quotations I find in HPB's instructions, which read as follows:
. . . no sooner is the Devachanic state of reward ended, than the Ego is indissolubly united with (or rather follows in the track of) the new Astral Form. Both are Karmically propelled towards the family or woman from whom is to be born the animal child chosen by Karma to become the vehicle of the Ego which has just awakened from the Devachanic state. Then the new Astral Form, composed partly of the pure Akasic Essence of the Auric "Egg," and partly of the terrestrial elements of the punishable sins and misdeeds of the last Personality, is drawn into the woman. Once there, Nature models the foetus of flesh around the Astral, out of the growing materials of the male seed in the female soil.
G. de P. — That is the key.
Student — And again I find the following:
The Auric Egg furnishes the basis of the new Linga-Sarira and the Tanhic Elementals form it within the Auric Envelope, the continuity being thus preserved; it lies dormant in the foetal state, during the Devachan of the entity to whom it belongs, and enters, in due course, a woman's womb. It is first in the womb, and then comes the germ that fructifies it, from the male parent.
These two quotations from HPB seem to state that the reincarnating ego is connected directly with the female germ-cell or ovum, and that the male germ-cell is merely the vitalizing or fructifying element, thus causing the female germ-cell to grow into the child-to-be. You seem to state just the contrary: that it is the male germ-cell which contains the lowest part of the reincarnating ego, but that this male germ-cell cannot grow into the child-to-be until it enters or joins with the female germ-cell or ovum, which HPB and you both call the female field.
Is there a contradiction in these two teachings, or have I misunderstood? I should be very glad for a clearer answer.
G. de P. — Let me say first that there is no contradiction at all — there could not be, because both HPB's and my teachings are one. The questioner has, I think, allowed the psychological force of words and phrases to sway the understanding. It seems to me that the two quotations from HPB are clear enough.
The new astral form, in order to grow into the animal child-to-be, enters the body of the maternal parent, and from the paternal parent goes the vital germ, out of the growing materials of which is produced the entity which is born. It is obvious that the human child, in our present stage of evolutionary growth, does not come from one parent. Two parents are required. In past ages of the history of the human race, one single human being brought forth progeny; and in the future evolutionary history of the human race, one single human being will again bring forth progeny, because the two vital polar opposites, the positive and the negative so called, will be united in a single human individual.
It does seem to me that instead of thinking there are contradictions in the teachings, and instead of trying to find these contradictions, and puzzling over them, it would be better to keep a problem which any one of you may have in the mind and brood in thought upon it. However, it may be that this companion has indeed done that and has been unable to arrive at a reconciliation of the two statements. Let me try therefore to make the matter more clear.
When a human being dies — and let me skip all explanation of the intermediary kama-lokic period — as soon as it enters its devachanic rest, it does so enclosed in the appropriate layers of its own auric egg, in its own auric or akasic envelope. Now this auric egg or akasic egg, so far as size goes, is usually exceedingly small judging by human standards. It may be no larger than a pin-point, but in comparison with an atom, for instance, even this is an enormous sphere of scintillating light. It may be much larger. You must not suppose that the auric egg has to depend upon size in order to function, or to have energy, or to be the chamber or field of consciousness. Consciousness per se is dimensionless. It exists in the smallest of the small, and it exists in the greatest of the great. Dimension, bulk, size, all pertain to the material worlds.
As soon as the devachani begins its period of rest and repose, the auric egg in which it dwells, or in which it is enshrined by karmic necessity, automatically from karmic impulses begins to build within itself the fetal beginnings of the linga-sarira of the human entity-to-be in its next rebirth. This is done by what HPB calls the tanhic elementals — the elementals of appetite, and emotion, and thought — working automatically upon the substances of a portion of the auric envelope enshrining the devachani. This new linga-sarira within the auric egg or auric envelope remains in the germ-state until the full period of the devachan in question is ended. In other words, the linga-sarira has a fetal existence in the auric egg during the entire period of the devachan. I trust that this idea is clear.
Now then, let us suppose that the devachan is coming to its end. The devachanic unity begins to be drawn earthwards again. It is karmically attracted in all its parts, both as an ego and as an auric egg to the mother, with whom it has certain karmic links, psychomagnetic links. Now please listen carefully, because we are dealing with questions not of material existence here; and you won't easily understand if you think of such material things as extension, and bulk and size and place, and time. We are dealing with matters of consciousness in all its ranges from physical consciousness to egoic consciousness.
Existing as the human race does today, as men and women, there are certain attractions between these two halves of the human race. Certain women are attracted to certain men; certain men are attracted to certain women; and there is mutual interchange between any two human beings thus attracted — even if only by mental attraction — which induces an outflow and an inflow, and a flow backwards and forwards, of life-atoms on all planes: mental planes, astral planes, emotional planes, and the physical plane. Such an interchange of life-atoms, if the friendship between the man and the woman is of long duration, allows, as is obvious, a very great interchange of life-atoms between the two. If their association is very short, the interchange of life-atoms is correspondingly small, but it is sufficient.
The life-atoms, remember, are infinitesimal entities. A man and a woman meet, for instance, and shake hands. At that instant there is an interchange not merely of one or two life-atoms, but of hundreds of thousands, between the two who thus meet. I may add in passing that the long association of a married couple brings about what everybody must have noticed that husband and wife grow to look like each other.
Now then, suppose that the man and the woman have associated on the physical plane, a reincarnating ego, or more than one, will be attracted to both — if, mark you, there are karmic links between such attracted reincarnating ego or egos and the father and the mother-to-be. The new astral form of such an attracted reincarnating ego enters the woman's body as the vital aura of the life-atom containing such reincarnating ego. A higher part of the substantial energy of such reincarnating ego meanwhile enters the father's body also as a life-atom, but on a different plane. The mother's body receives the linga-sarira, now passing from the fetal state it had in the auric egg of the devachani into a more advanced stage of growth.
The fetal linga-sarira, existent in the auric envelope of the reincarnating entity, associates itself with the ovum, and similarly is the case as concerns the man. Union takes place between father and mother and then the two life-atoms simply conjoin or associate, because they are psychomagnetically intensely attracted together in the woman's body. Thenceforth the fetal linga-sarira, the new astral form, begins to grow and to develop into the child which is finally born. The woman receives the lower element or new linga-sarira; but the seed of individuality, the seed of the egoic part of the reincarnating entity, is that life-atom which has entered the man's body.
So there is the matter in brief; and if you will closely examine the two citations from HPB, you will see that she speaks a great deal more plainly about the subject than I have ever spoken.
Are there any other questions?
Student — There is one thing that still puzzles me about the avatara doctrine. I don't understand where the physical body comes from that the avatara uses as a vehicle, that is, where those atoms that are in the physical body come from. I understand that after the period in devachan, the reincarnating ego attracts to itself the atoms which its physical body had in the former life.
G. de P. — Quite right.
Student — And thus it comes to physical birth again. But in the case of the avatara, there was no former physical life, so where did his particular physical life-atoms come from?
G. de P. — That indeed is quite a question. As a matter of fact, I have wondered sometimes if someone would ask me just this question that has now been asked. The questioner has stated the facts.
Now I will tell you how that happens, and to do so I shall have to go a little deeper into the avatara mystery. An avatara has no previous physical or human karma, and also has no physical or human karma after the avatara disappears from the scenes of earth-life. Consequently in either case there is no karma at all. There is of course the spiritual karma which allows this act of white magic to take place, for an avatara is indeed an act of supreme white magic in the sense of bringing a divine energy into existence in the physical world.
An avatara consists of three separate and temporarily unified elements: (1) its highest portion is a projection from a divinity, manifesting through (2) a supremely grand human psychological vehicle or intermediate part commonly called soul. For it is the soul part of a mahatma of the highest class, usually of a buddha, and in the cases of avataras during the last million years actually has been the psychological apparatus which in its last human existence was the soul of Gautama the Buddha. Then, (3) of a very pure human body.
Now, how are these three connected? What brings them together? That, I believe, is the root of your question, is it not?
Student — Partly that. But also I do not see what the origin of that physical body is, of its life-atoms.
G. de P. — That is part of the answer, as you will see. Now then, to produce a human body in the present state of human existence the cooperation of two human elements is necessary. There must be a human father and a human mother in the manner I have already described. Hearken now, carefully.
The human seed, which in the ordinary course of events would produce a human being, is in the case of an avatara overshadowed or entered, if you like, by the grand psychological apparatus or soul of a buddha. You will perhaps say then that this means that there are two souls in that body. This suggested question is a pertinent one. But the supposed fact does not exist, because what you would call the natural soul has been set aside — not driven out, that is too harsh a phrase — but set aside by this act of white magic. The buddha's psychological apparatus is so strong, so tremendous in its power, that it assumes full and complete control of the growing embryo, and thus sets aside what you would call the natural reincarnating soul that otherwise would have become a man.
When the body is thus borrowed, it actually amounts in a certain sense to a reincarnation of the buddha, or of the mahatma — in this case of the buddha. The reincarnating entity, who has been set aside, is very carefully guarded and taken care of until it is again led to enter another incarnation fully as appropriate and proper as the one which nature's unaided forces were in the way of bringing about. There is thus no injury done to the ego set aside. In fact, the life-atoms that have been thus borrowed for the purpose of the avatara and belonging to the dispossessed ego, receive such a tremendous spiritual and intellectual impress from the reincarnating, or rather from the psychological, apparatus of the buddha, that their karmic benefits are very great. Thus no harm has been done to the ego temporarily set aside, and no injury has been wrought either upon it or upon such of its physical life-atoms as were already in the embryo.
Sometimes, instead of being a case of setting aside, the same general procedure takes place when the embryo otherwise would simply have died. Instead of allowing the death of the embryo to occur, that embryo at the moment of its "death" is revivified by the overshadowing or entering of the psychological apparatus of the buddha. In fact, the whole process in either the one or the other case is not uncommon among initiates of a high grade who seek an early reincarnation, or a new body, in order to continue their sublime work among men, and without the devachanic interlude. Thus the embryo grows and develops and finally is born as a little child.
There is, then, the body composed of the life-atoms which have been borrowed for the purpose by the overshadowing intermediate part of the buddha. The soul of the buddha enlivens and invigorates and watches over the borrowed body — borrowed as an embryo, please understand — until the child attains adulthood or nearly adulthood. The overshadowing soul of the buddha watches over and stimulates and strengthens this body, prepares it, quickens the best part of its vital energies, until the time comes, which changes according to each case, when the young person has reached a point in development where the brain can begin to receive the fuller incarnation of the spiritual and intellectual energies of the soul of the buddha.
Somewhat later there occurs the great mystery. It happens usually when the borrowed body has reached its physical majority, physical adulthood. Then the soul of the buddha, thus overshadowing this borrowed body, by a tremendous effort of spiritual energy rises through the ether and links itself with the waiting divinity, and from that instant, which usually takes place in initiation at the time of the winter solstice, the avatara exists — and is thenceforward a complete entity: (1) manifesting divinity, (2) the buddha-soul, (3) the pure and trained physical vehicle.
Thus then, after that, the divinity works through the psychological apparatus of the buddha which steps down through itself into the brain of the man — the grand man — the divine powers, impulses, principles, from above-within or within-above, and you have the avatara, call it by whatever name you may choose.
Here then is the answer to the question: the body with its life-atoms is provided for the avatara.
How can one explain a doctrine like the avatara doctrine when lecturing in public to an average audience? I have tried in the Temple again and again and again to give hints of this wonderful teaching, and have always despaired of being able to do so. I look at the faces of the audiences there. Here and there I catch a faint responding gleam of understanding, but on so many faces I see indeed interest, I see indeed a real attempt to understand — but alas, usually vacancy, showing that they have not got the thought. How can it be otherwise? They have not been trained. This illustrates again very clearly how unwise it is to give out profound teachings to the public which has not been trained to receive and to understand them.
I wondered if the buddha in any past lives had had life-atoms stored up which belonged to his human existences; and my thought was that in the case of an avatara, there was that source of physical life-atoms to draw from.
G. de P. — Yes, there is that source also. That source is always drawn from. It cannot be avoided, because the psychological apparatus of the buddha, no matter where it is, as soon as it touches the human sphere instinctively draws towards itself the life-atoms that formerly belonged to it. You have uttered a very profound thought.
Student — I may say that I had precisely the same idea. I had thought about this and I thought that the supreme act of magic in producing the avatara was to draw on the storehouse of nature, where were stored the purified atoms that had been so raised by the use of the buddha in former incarnations.
G. de P. — Just so, so far as the life-atoms are concerned.
Student — And I should like to ask if there is any limit to the processes of white magic in producing spiritual beings that are needed at cyclic periods? It would seem to me that we are just at the beginning of the knowledge of this higher psychology.
G. de P. — Very true indeed. I would not venture to answer that question now, nor to place definite bounds to such an answer. To say how far the power of spiritual magic extends would be very risky. The power of spiritual magic is enormous, unbelievable. Nevertheless there are bounds, because even the Masters are human beings. There is a boundary beyond which not even their grand power can go.
Let me point out one thing, however, which these questions have brought out. There comes a time in the growth of the physical body which enshrines the avatara when the life-atoms of that body belonging to the natural ego which was set aside, and assembled in the beginning by that natural ego, are practically evaporated, if you understand me, have gone to their respective places, and they have been superseded by the life-atoms which belonged to former incarnations of the buddha himself. So you see during the main part of the avatara's existence practically all the life-atoms of the lower part of the constitution including the physical body are those that the buddha had in former lives. Do you understand?
Student — Yes.
G. de P. — The atoms of the body are changing constantly. It is commonly said in our theosophical books that they change every seven years or so. I have no doubt that is true. I have always thought it a little unwise to say that the term is exactly seven years, because circumstances sometimes alter cases, in fact always alter cases; but I think the rule is generally correct.
Student — You have told us of the fact that after the death of the physical body on this earth, the monad goes through its peregrinations from planet to planet, and to the sun and then back again; but in regard to that, a question came to my mind as to how the monad can go in its peregrinations from the fourth or fifth round of one planet to the seventh round of another planet which in itself is therefore so much more advanced in a way, such as Venus is, for instance?
G. de P. — The monad is a spiritual entity which, in past manvantaras, has been through all the planes of experience of material existence. The different planets in their seven stages or rounds are all far behind the spiritual perfection, relatively speaking, of the peregrinating monad. And the small differences — and they are small in the vision of the monadic essence — which exist between a planet like the earth in its fourth round, and a planet like Venus in its last or seventh round, are to the monads practically insignificant, if you understand me.
Student — Yes, I think so. Well, I have two other thoughts. One is: why then, if the monad is so advanced, does it have to go so far back to some of these very coarse and very material planes?
G. de P. — That is a pertinent question. For this reason, that the monad is a creative center continually giving birth throughout eternity to child-monads. These child-monads, when first issuing forth from the bosom of the parent-monad, or from the monadic essence, are in their first stages of the long evolutionary journey towards divinity. They are unself-conscious god-sparks, but they are bound to the monad, and the monad is bound to them. The attractions are mutual, and the attraction of an unself-conscious god-spark born from a monad, in its way, is just as strong as is the attraction of a very evolved human being. Do you understand the answer?
Student — Well, I think I do. Is the idea then that it is the different offsprings of this monad which go to these different planes?
G. de P. — Not altogether. A monad also is drawn to the different mansions. "In my Father's house are many mansions," Jesus is reported to have said. The monad is drawn to the different planets and to the sun because of karmic attractions which draw it thither. On and in each such globe it has a chance to imbody from its bosom, to give birth to a waiting child-monad which is going to get its planetary or globe experiences in the planet to which it goes. Do you understand?
Student — I think I do.
G. de P. — Just in the same way, we children of the monads, but also children of earth, attract each one our own monad to our fourth globe; and when we die we are then withdrawn into the bosom of the monad. We return into the monadic essence and there have our devachanic rest and sleep. Then the monad goes to some other globe, and sends forth from itself, or gives birth to other children there.
The monad is like the sun continually sending forth its rays. One such ray is a human being, a human soul, a human monad. Another such ray is a being or soul or entity connected with Venus. Another such ray is a child-monad connected with Mars, or with Saturn, or with Jupiter, or with Mercury, or even with the Sun. Do you understand?
Student — Yes, thank you. Venus being in the seventh round will comparatively soon become taken into the sun. You told me once not to use the word absorbed. I don't know what other word to use. What then will take its place for the monads to go to, say, from one of the other planets?
G. de P. — I have often wondered why that question has not been asked before. In the first place, it is a mistake to say that Venus is drawn into the sun. That sublime consummation of the destiny of the planets of the solar system does not take place until the very end of the solar manvantara; but when Venus has ended its seventh and last round, all the life-essences, the hosts of monads, composing the Venus-chain, go into their nirvana. Do you understand me?
Student — Yes.
G. de P. — They go into what you might call the laya-center of the planetary chain of Venus. Now then, what will be the substitute for the present planet Venus, when the present planet Venus has become dead? I regret to say that I cannot answer that question now. You will forgive me, I am sure.
Student — My question refers to the same subject. Are we to understand that between one incarnation and the next of a human entity, the other entities associated with that monad to which that human entity belongs, would have passed through their planetary existence: that is to say that probably there would be four or five incarnations or as many as the peregrination involved, between the one incarnation on earth and another one?
G. de P. — That is correct, exactly right; but instead of incarnations I would suggest the word imbodiments in this case.
Student — If I may be permitted — this is on quite a different subject?
G. de P. — Just a moment. Are there any more questions on the present theme?
Student — In the case spoken of, in some instances this reincarnation must take place very quickly, because those who have lived a very short time reincarnate early. They have a very short devachan. Is the case the same?
G. de P. — The case is exactly the same. When you remember that the average span of human life today is fifteen years, you will realize that on the whole there is time enough. On the contrary, suppose that a man lives for eighty or eighty-five or more years on earth. The rule is that his devachanic experience will be one hundred times the length of his life on earth. Consequently the next reincarnation on earth will not take place before some eight thousand or eighty-five hundred years have passed.
Student — Then these imbodiments on these other planets are not reincarnations such as we have on earth?
G. de P. — It depends upon circumstances whether you can call them reincarnations or not. It depends upon the kind of bodies that the other entities have on other planets. On earth we have bodies of flesh, and reincarnation is the correct term to use because it means reinfleshing. But the bodies of some of the other monadic children on other planets are not imbodiments in encasements of flesh. Such encasements may be of airy character and they may be of some quite other substance.
Student — I understand. But are they reimbodying egos?
G. de P. — Certainly they are.
Student — Then they have to come and go just the same as we do.
G. de P. — Certainly. They have a beginning, a culmination, and a death.
Student — It would seem from that idea, that when we are incarnated on earth, other entities belonging to our monadic essence are in devachan?
G. de P. — That is generally correct.
Student — Is there any interacting influence between these during an incarnation on earth?
G. de P. — There is a constant spiritual connection, of course. When the monad ends its evolution at the end of a solar maha-manvantara, it is on its way in far future time to becoming a sun. Its various "children," which previously had been its various kinds or types of egos, will be the family of that future sun in its own solar system, being as closely connected with it as a sun, as we now, as a family of egos, are connected with it because we all belong to the one monadic essence. Is the answer responsive to your question?
Student — Well, I had wanted to know a little more of something about what is going on at present. There must be some way by which we, even when incarnated on earth, are reached or affected by these other selves of ours?
G. de P. — They are not other selves of us. They are other selves existing in the full integrity of their individuality just as we are, but closely linked with us by spiritual bonds because we are all born from the same monadic essence. Each one of us is a spiritual life-atom of that monadic essence, just as the life-atoms of the physical body are each one distinct, individualized, different, from every other life-atom of the physical body. Yet all are the children of the entity which we call the man. Do you understand?
Student — Yes. Shall we ever be conscious?
G. de P. — Of our relationship?
Student — Yes.
G. de P. — Certainly. In future times, very conscious.
Student — Is it initiation which she is asking about?
G. de P. — It is one of the fruits of initiation. Initiation will bring to us human beings a fuller consciousness of our intimate relationship with these other egos. You might in a sense call them parts of us, but that is rather a figure of speech. There are entities so close to us that they are like twin-souls. The phrase is wrong, but doubtless you understand me. Other sparks of the same fire, life of the same life.
Student — Are not all things in the solar universe interblended, the same as all things on earth?
G. de P. — Exactly.
Student — We are related, are we not, on what we call the inner globes; so there is really a question of recognition of that through initiation into the cosmic state of things?
G. de P. — I think I understand you. If I do, the answer is yes. Please remember that every entity in the solar system is spiritually connected with every other entity in the solar system — spiritually connected. But there are various kinds of relationships in the solar system. There are the most intimate relationships which concern the various egos which all spring forth as children from the heart of a single monadic essence. Then there are those relationships, not quite so intimate, which belong to the different planets. There are other relationships, still less intimate, which belong to the other families existing in the solar system. And so it is with human beings. The children born in one family possess the most intimate relationship, and then the cousins and the aunts and the uncles, and then the second cousins, and finally the more distant relationships, and yet all belong to the human race; and the human race again is but one hierarchy or grand family connected with many other similar grand families.
The gods, for instance, are of many classes, some very closely related; others more distantly related.
Student — I would like to ask for some information about the Great Pyramid. Was it built by mechanical means or by means of what we may call magic — by music and vibrations?
G. de P. — No. It was builded by mechanical means, but magic in the higher sense of the word had a great deal to do with it. Great initiates were the architects of the Great Pyramid of Cheops, which is the one you allude to especially, I believe. Human hands cut the stones and put them into place, but magical wisdom directed the work of those human hands. I will tell you that the Pyramid of Cheops was a temple of initiation, as some others of the pyramids were, but not all.
I never shall forget the feeling that I had when KT and I stood in that wonderful initiation chamber in the heart of the Great Pyramid of Cheops, and there saw the sarcophagus, as they call it, in which the neophytes of ancient times had lain.
The very air was vibrant with mystic memories of the past. That visit was an initiation in a way — merely to go into that chamber and to think and to stand silent and to feel.
Now, I will answer one or two more questions.
Student — I have a question — but I do believe you have answered it. It is concerning the life-atoms of the human body. Is there any equalization or rejection of life-atoms from one life to another? Or does the human ego bring with it the same life-atoms from the beginning of the present round and add to their number all the time?
G. de P. — The last inference is correct. The highest life-atoms of the human constitution which, you will remember, exists on seven (and really ten) planes, are they which first issued forth from the heart of the human monad, in the beginning of the planetary manvantara. But every monad by its very nature is a creative entity, and throughout all the time of evolution it is continually bringing forth new atoms from its bosom, from the womb of its own being, and each such new atom when it first comes forth takes its proper place in the constitution. There are life-atoms of a divine type; life-atoms of a spiritual type; life-atoms belonging to the intellectual planes, to the kamic planes; life-atoms belonging to the astral, vital and finally to the physical plane. Do you understand me?
Student — Yes, certainly. May I then ask a second question too? Can any of these life-atoms who are the children of certain individual monads be used by another monad?
G. de P. — Yes. That takes place constantly, and it is an example of what I have often spoken of as an interblending, interworking, interaction, of all things that are. The life-atoms of my body, for instance, are constantly streaming forth into the circumambient atmosphere, and enter your body and the bodies of the other companions here. And every one of you is doing the same thing exactly. Then after a while, after they have peregrinated, they come back to me again, and yours return to you again, and pass a certain time with me, or yours with you, and then again go forth. In exactly the same way — now hearken carefully — do we as human life-atoms of father sun pass from planet to planet and to the sun and back again.
Student — I want to ask if you will give us some more explanation concerning the sishtas? How are they chosen? And also, are not the sishtas a whole round behind their family when the life-wave returns to the globe whereon they have waited, and if so, how is this adjusted?
G. de P. — Yours is a very difficult question to answer, for the reason that it is not allowed to go too deeply into this matter. I can tell you however that the word sishtas is a Sanskrit word, here used in the plural, which means "residuals" or "remainders," signifying in this case those who remain behind on a globe after the life-wave has passed to the next globe of the planetary chain. These sishtas are always the highest, the most evolved, of the life-wave, so that when the same life-wave returns to that same globe the sishtas are practically ready to receive the new impulses from the returning life-wave. Thus they may be called the seeds of life. Do you understand me? They begin the new planetary manvantara of the succeeding seven root-races. The sishtas are not chosen in the usual sense of the word, unless you use the word chosen with the meaning of beings who themselves, to a certain degree, choose to undertake this function.
Their function is, in one sense, and among the highest of them, an act of magnificent self-renunciation. They are the greatest of the human race — taking the human race on our globe as an example — who deliberately choose to remain behind, who forego their own opportunities in that planetary round for further personal advancement, in order that when the less evolved monads, human monads, come back with the returning life-wave in the next round, the residuals, those who remained behind, shall be ready to be the seeds of the first root-race in that new round. Thus they provide the bodies and the psychological apparatus of such first root-race in that new round. The same function of the sishtas applies, but without the grand feature of self-renunciation, in the cases of the other races of entities, such as the beasts and the plant kingdom and the mineral kingdom.
Student — I have been thinking of A. P. Sinnett's book referring to the interior of the earth. Has he any real foundation for his ideas, and can you tell us something about the inner composition of the earth?
G. de P. — I have not read the book, or passage, that you speak of. What is the name of the book?
Student — I do not remember the title of the book, but it states that there are seven spherical bodies inside each other; that the earth is hollow; and that inside the first is another similar one, and so on to seven — somewhat like those Russian eggs, one egg containing another egg; and that these spherical bodies are rotating more or less independently of each other.
G. de P. — I do not know where Mr. Sinnett got this idea. It is not the teaching that I have received. The interior of the earth is not hollow. There are indeed great hollows or caves, but so there are on the outer surface of the earth. The core of the earth is under the entire control of the lowest or third kingdom of the elementals. I don't know that I can describe this state of things to you. In any case the earth is not a hollow sphere. The interior of the earth is material, but it is material in a state of which we on the surface of the earth have little or perhaps no idea. This interior is not liquid, and it is not gaseous, and yet it partakes of the nature of both. I don't know anything in ordinary human experience that would give me the words with which to describe it.
At any rate, if you will remember that there are three kingdoms of elementals of which the third is the lowest and the nearest to the mineral world, you may get some adumbration of the state of the earth's interior. Perhaps it might be correct to say that the heart or core of the earth is concreted electricity. I don't know if you understand me, although I am trying to give you the best picture I can. I don't know how to describe it definitely in terms that are familiar to you. At any rate, it is this concrete electrical core which contains, or is the locus of, the great bands or bonds of attraction which hold us to the other planets and to the sun.
It has just struck me to say that if you will think of what the modern physical chemists call the nucleus of an atom you may get some idea of what I mean.
I think it is almost time to close, unless someone has a question which would be lost if not asked now.
Student — When we die I understand that the reincarnating ego goes to the bosom of the monad. And I also understand that it follows the monad on its way to the other planets. But if this is so we must have several entities sleeping in our bosom now — or rather in the monad's bosom now.
G. de P. — Hardly. We humans don't have these monads that you refer to sleeping in our bosom.
Student — No, I don't mean that. I mean the entities which are imbodied in — I don't know how to express my meaning!
G. de P. — Can you say it in Swedish and then perhaps one of the other companions will translate it — but your English is excellent.
Student — I mean that — I think Miss C---- can express it, because I think she understands what I mean.
G. de P. — Miss C---- do you understand the question?
Miss C----: I believe she is thinking that the monadic essence in its incarnations on the other planets has, as she expressed it, a reincarnating ego for each of those planets, and therefore there must be sleeping in the bosom of the monad, of which we are an expression on this our present plane of existence, the various reincarnating entities which imbody themselves on other planets.
G. de P. — Yes, that is perfectly right, except that you should not say incarnations on other planets. You should say imbodiments, for reasons that I have already explained to you. I think also that this question has already been answered. Each one of us human beings is the child of a monad. Each one of us human beings has its own parent-monad; but as each such parent-monad is a creative entity, it produces other entities in addition to the human entity. In other words, any divine-spiritual monad being a creative entity has many children, produces many child-monads. Each such divine-spiritual monad, therefore, in addition to having a human child-monad which reincarnates on this earth, has also a Venus child-monad — seven Venus-children, as a matter of fact, one for each of the globes of Venus. In an exactly similar way one for each of the globes of earth; and again for the globes of the planet Mars, and similarly for the globes of Saturn and for Jupiter, and so forth. Do you now understand?
Student — Yes, I understand.
Student — I would like to ask a question. It will be too late to ask it at our next meeting. On next Tuesday there will be a total eclipse of the sun, and although it is not visible here, I would like to know whether we are likely to observe any climatic effects which would be unobserved by the astronomers not looking for them. It is visible near Australia, and it is a very important eclipse.
G. de P. — I don't think so. But often and perhaps usually the magnetic phenomena which accompany an eclipse of the sun extend far beyond the path of the shadow. An eclipse of the moon is also a very important event, especially for those parts of the earth which are just opposite the moon at the time. Do you understand me? Remember that eclipses of both kinds, whether of sun or of moon, produce enormous psychomagnetic movements on the earth, rushings of entities to the earth or to the moon. I cannot say more upon that matter here.