The Inner Life

I READ with great interest the articles in some of the earlier issues of THE INNER LIFE Magazine on development of the Spiritual Faculties. One night I lay meditating upon our withdrawing to the Inner Realms in consciousness during sleep; upon the different kinds of sleep described in The Secret Doctrine, and the range of possibilities that might occur in those realms during sleep, together with the revelation that has come that one may enter that Inner Consciousness at will.

There recurred to me the speech of a Theosophical friend of mine, one of the most radiant human beings I have ever met. She had said that she could endure whatever might be brought to her in the daytime, for she knew at night she could be free, absolutely free, to travel where she willed in the Inner Realms. I smiled in my then ignorance of such things, for I admit that, while I love this friend dearly, then I privately thought she was a bit “off” on such subjects.

My thought traveled rapidly back over the road by which I had arrived at my present knowledge, and then suddenly I saw myself about to enter those realms. I say about to enter, for there seemed to be a short, dark space to traverse which I had never taken note of before; perhaps it would be better to say the space was lighted but dimmed by dark, uncouth shapes, and I hesitated.

In the distance I saw a number of white-robed figures and each had what seemed a blue two-edged sword that appeared to be a part of the robe. I felt that the dark shapes must be my own miscreations and I said, “I am not afraid of them; I want to come.” Immediately the Brothers in White turned and made a space for me to pass through by holding up these two-edged swords whose edges I understood to be Truth and Love. When I had passed through, I saw that they were not swords but something like a banner or shield that were a part of their vestments—a blue triangle on a white circle with “L” in the center of the Triangle.

A little way beyond was the beautiful Temple I have seen before, but this time its walls seemed to swing open and there stood the Master. When I approached He took my right hand, and said, “Come with Me.” As we walked He smiled and said, “In My Father’s house are many mansions, as I have told you.” Then He pointed to a beautiful white building; the vibration of Home seemed to flow from this place and I stood awed in admiration before it, till I heard Him say, “This is yours, but first there is work that you must do with and for Me. Come.”

Then I saw at the right of this Home an enormous Airship made all of Light, larger than any ocean liner I have ever seen, and there were Seven Great Beings around it waiting; one more majestic than the rest was evidently the Pilot of the Ship. We entered and this Ship of Light began to sail over the earth. At first I was conscious only of the Great Radiant Light all around us; then I felt it penetrating and filling me and the hosts of others on the ship, and then pouring forth from me as I had noted It streaming forth in Rays from all the rest. We sailed on and on; not a word was said, yet there was an ecstasy of divine communion. Many questions occurred to me, but before I could formulate them, the answer came. To me it was an experiencing and a knowing of the Soundless Sound in the great Silence.

I seemed to know that we were flying over the United States but apparently was not interested in what particular part; then I began to look down and saw crowds of people. Some were actively fighting; others were pushing each other about ruthlessly as though trying to get ahead and beyond the crowd; still others were crying, while some looked sad, beaten and hopeless. Only a few out of the many paid any attention to the Ship which was pouring such brilliant rays earthward that it seemed as though it should appear to those below as on fire. The Ship began to spiral downwards, coming very close to earth, then to rise again. But we stopped at many places. I was impressed at the time with the fact that the Ship never landed on the earth but hovered over the roofs of buildings, and we entered each place from above.

Before describing what happened at such places, I want to record a very interesting point in connection with the Ship at times coming so close to earth. In many places there were larger groups than in others who were turning their faces upward toward the Ship of Light, and in those sections the earth appeared to be lifted up to meet the Ship. The first time I noted this I was amazed, and then I saw a smile of great joy on the faces of all aboard the Ship, and distinctly felt that we all with one accord and in unison were saying, “And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Me.”

To return to the occurrences, there was a similarity about each place we entered and the procedure was much the same; always there was a large hall where we came down into from above, with a raised platform at one end, to the right of which was a small room which was entered through a short corridor off the stage or platform. In this room (at each place) I saw myself seated at a desk on which was a typewriter and a gold pen. The self at the desk then seemed to merge with the Self that came from above, and to walk out on the platform, at the rear of which were tables piled high with small blue packages the size and shape of The Impersonal Life. The space below the platform was always filled with people, the main difference at each place being the type of people who made up the audience.

Since there were two places where there was a distinct difference in what happened (though the difference seemed merely to emphasize the essential of all the rest) I will describe them in particular. While I was not especially interested in knowing the earth name of any of the places where we stopped, at one time as I looked down I asked if we were not over Louisiana. I have never been in Louisiana, but the nature of the country I saw suggested that to me. We had come very close to earth here, for it was a very poor district and the buildings were low, rambling, shambling structures. As I asked my question one of the Brothers nodded, “Yes,” in answer; then raised a trumpet to His lips and blew; the tone was clear and powerful yet sweet.

As we let ourselves down I noticed that the people in the hall were all looking toward the platform at a young woman standing there. There was something very familiar about the woman, but I didn’t at first place her mentally. She was dressed in white, but there was a strange band about her head and around her body over her heart, that appeared to bind her so she felt it. She held close to her a copy of The Way Out Course of Study, and seemed to be talking about it. Then I noticed that there was another person on the platform who had a large number of The Way Out booklets in her hands; she stepped down among the people and began distributing them. Some just took them and held them in their hands; others opened and began to read eagerly, looking up at the speaker on the platform now and then; quite a few turned the pages idly, put the books down and made a move as though to leave.

Then I saw that I was sitting in the little room off the stage, as I had sat in the other places, and I seemed to know what was happening, for without making a physical move, I sent to the young woman speaking out from one of the blue packages mentioned above, and it opened up and seemingly its contents descended upon her and fell all about her like a Radiance, striking from her the bands on her head and heart, so her robe flowed wide and free, and she shone as though enveloped in a great Light. Those about to leave came back and took their seats, and as she talked the floor of the hall rose to meet the height of the platform.

At the last place I remember, when I emerged from the little room to the platform, I saw that I was in an immense hall this time, and at the opposite end was a similar platform though not quite so high, and on it was a figure also clothed in white, but it was a grimy, bedraggled sort of white. This person was evidently selling something to those who entered, something that was gold in color and looked very attractive. Each one had to give him something like money in order to receive one.

In this place I had two helpers, for I saw two people step down from the platform on which I stood giving out the blue packages that resembled The Impersonal Life in shape and size, except that now I saw their back edges were open. When the people in the audience received the blue packages, they began to eat from them and to call to one another and say how good it was. Then those who had purchased the gold-colored packages tried to open them; some could not get them open; when some were opened and the people tried to put what was in them into their mouths, they could not bite into it; some who did eat a little made wry faces and began to spit it out and then to throw the whole package on the floor; and next all began to reach out for the blue packages which were being given to all as fast as possible.

It seemed that there were many compartments in the blue packages and though all were tasting freely each package remained full. In a few minutes as everyone present began to be absorbed in the packages, the floor of this hall also rose to a level with the platform and a great table appeared in the midst with a place for each one. The table was beautifully set and each one was bidden to take his place bringing the blue package with him. There was an exquisitely shaped goblet at each place filled with a sparkling liquid like a nectar or elixir. The table was presided over by the Master and the Seven Great Beings, who were now recognized by all present. The feast was the Bread of Spirit and the Water of Life.

There is another thing which I believe is significant, and that is that each time we left one of these halls and re-entered the Ship, it was turned so that momentarily at least we were back where we could see the Temple and the Mansion that had been shown me.

I was brought back to my home here, the Ship seemingly on a level with my window, so that I stepped out of it on a Ray of Light and entered my room. The Master said as I left the Ship, “You have charged this place with My Light, and you may now go in and out as you will.”

My little room seemed ablaze with a Radiance as I re-entered my body consciousness. Among many other wonderful things I learned from this experience, to me it was a picture lesson of what has lately come to me in outer form in the message of the little book, The Teacher. Of course it was likewise an exemplification of much that has been taught in The Impersonal Life, The Way Out and the Lesson Papers.

While the Louisiana incident was an inner revelation explaining a definite outer situation that was then in evidence, its real import is applicable to every outer presentation of Truth being made to our brothers of humanity. I have a niece in Louisiana whom I have never seen but to whom I have been presenting the truths in The Way Out through correspondence. It is a joy to note the way she is responding and unfolding and giving them out to others, but I can see that she is held back (the bands on head and heart) by a confusion in her outer mind due to wrong teachings that constitute a fear of letting go entirely to the new concepts that are coming to her.

In my letters to her I have constantly to remind her that what I am giving to her is not from me, her Aunt, and tell her that she must watch for confirmation from within before accepting. She and her husband have had hard struggle financially, but their affairs are brightening considerably of late. She writes that she can find little time for meditation but that as she goes about her work she thinks things out as best she can. I had been wondering if she was ready for The Impersonal Life message, but now I know from what I saw in the vision that she is ready.—M. F. R.