====== The Inner Life ====== == THE HERALD OF THE NEW AGE | JANUARY 1937 == ---- ==== DEVELOPING THE SPIRITUAL FACULTIES ==== === III === WITH the realization that the Mind of God enfolds us and every other of God’s creatures, we feel that we are indeed all children of One Father; that we are all bound together and held in His Consciousness, and that this kinship extends even to the smallest and most insignificant thing of which we are aware. We then are all dwelling in the One Mind of God, the Cosmic Being, or whatever men choose to call the wonderful Spiritual Sea of Consciousness which includes us and surrounds us, and of which our consciousness is an integral part, just as the smallest twigs are parts of the mightiest tree. Yes, we and all things live, move and have our being in this Ocean of Consciousness, which is therefore all about us and with which we are always connected and from which we can never be separated. Each of our little minds and all things in the Universe are constantly receiving from and sending out vibrations into this Ocean of Consciousness, and these vibrations can be seen, heard, or felt by those who can sufficiently identify themselves with this Great Mind, which is not only our mind but is the vitalizing life and essence of every man on earth and of everything in the Universe. And this Great Mind transmits these vibrations more quickly than electricity. Time and space do not exist for It. It thinks, and every mind center in the Universe attuned to It receives Its thought. Likewise when any one of its mind centers thinks, every other center attuned to it receives its thought. Conscious attunement alone is necessary. It offers no impediment to mind centers in which Love, Goodwill and Unselfishness rule. Anything that is meant for the good of others works in harmony with the Spirit of God, and therefore nothing can hinder or stop its reaching those who are open to receive it. Do you believe all of the above? Do you wish to prove it? Then compose yourself in some quiet place and close your eyes. Create in your mind a strong desire to see the face of some friend. At first, let it be some one near and dear to you. Dwell upon one feature at a time, until in your mind it becomes plain to you. The picture will not be just like the physical sight of your friend. It will be a mental picture—sometimes as one sees in twilight, sometimes more plainly; but if you persevere, all the features will gradually be clearly seen, and you may notice a difference in the arrangement of the hair or the expression of the face, which might not have been there the last time you saw your loved one, but is due to present circumstances. At first what you “see” will seem like a faint impression in your mind. But if you focus your attention upon that impression and hold it before your mental sight, it will quickly grow stronger and clearer. This, however, will take practice and persistence, but will prove more than worth the effort as you will soon learn. Should you become tired or nervous, stop for the time, and turn your attention to other things. By practice you will become proficient in seeing anyone upon whom you concentrate your attention. You may see where they are, and what they are doing; how they are dressed, and the conditions of their life. Above all, guard against curiosity. Do not try to see anything about anyone that you would not wish to be seen about yourself. Let your friend be mentally as sacred to you as exquisite courtesy would make his physical body and affairs to your physical sight. Later on you will find in this practice that “With whatsoever measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you, pressed down and overflowing.” Unworthy motives cannot bring anything but disaster upon such misuse of the Spirit. Hearing will usually develop along with spiritual sight. Concentration is the secret of it all, along with persistence and a determination to succeed no matter how difficult it seems at first. A pure heart, a pure mind, and pure motives will do the rest. Quiet surroundings and a prayerful attitude of mind have been found to be of great help by those who have succeeded in demonstrating these faculties. Here is another good practice. Listen to one who is speaking over the radio. Follow up his voice as you would a stream of water, until you reach his mouth. Upon reaching it, explore his face, feature by feature. In this way you can learn to see mentally persons who have never previously entered the field of your physical sight. Thinking along with the speaker will help in the visualization. Another way is to stand mentally before the person you wish to see, and look into his face as if he were present in the body. Thus you can touch his hand, and sense his mental condition. Do this with a flower and try gently to smell its fragrance. Stand mentally in a rose-garden, and touch the roses, looking into their hearts. You may discover many interesting things you did not know about them. If you are not a close and accurate observer of faces, flowers, etc., cultivate careful powers of observation. It is important that you visualize correctly. The above is only to indicate a few things you may do with your mental or soul power. As you progress, you will acquire knowledge of many other things that will fill your life with constant joy and happiness. Each soul must find for itself the things which are to come into its knowledge. The experience of each individual in the end will be found marvellously similar to that of every other individual. There will come a time when you will only have to think of a person or thing in order to see it. Now there are many other ways which have been used to attain these powers. But here you have been given a method which will never cause you to suffer, and which you will find increasingly fascinating. There will be no fatigue or strain of the optic nerves, no special dieting, except that you should be temperate in all things, and therefore there will be no terrible reactions to overwhelm you at the height of your success in life. The right use of the Spiritual faculties will bring health, happiness and prosperity in this life, and nothing to regret in the lives to come.—D. V. S. ————o———— ONLY he who can live a perfectly open, candid life with no motive disguised, no action cloaked, and no thought concealed, may ever hope to reach the very heart of Nature’s Wisdom and comprehend it.—Selected. ---- {{ :editorial:193701_586.jpg |}} ---- {{ :editorial:193701_587.jpg |}} ---- {{ :editorial:193701_588.jpg |}} ---- //← [[the_face_of_god|previous]] // | [[:the_inner_life_vol._5|The Inner Life 1937]] | // [[do_we_have_to_eat|next]] → //