Spiritual
Disciplines
The Mysteries:
The Mysteries, from the Greek word
muo meaning “the closed mouth”, comprise secret teachings, often at the heart of religion but sometimes
separate from the outer form. In ancient times they were observances,
generally kept secret from the profane and uninitiated, in which were taught by dramatic representation and
other methods, the origin of things, the nature of the human spirit, its relation to the body, and the method
of its purification and restoration to higher life.
Mr. Hodson’s
investigations indicated to him that The Mysteries extended back into prehistory very much further than is
generally understood (prior even to pre-dynastic Egypt, into Atlantean and Lemurian times). These systems
were inherited and adapted by later civilizations that are well known to our historical record such as the
Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Greek and Roman. Aspects of the Mysteries were also picked up by various
religions and secret rites. In the Western World the bulk of the Mystery inheritance was deposited within
Freemasonry.
The Mysteries were
divided into two main divisions – the Lesser and the Greater Mysteries. Variations of the Lesser Mysteries are
all that are currently practiced on earth today, the Greater Mysteries are now only conferred on the higher
planes of consciousness. In order not to encourage vanity and pride, emphasis in the Lesser Mystery teachings is
on preparatory moral and ethical precepts and altruistic service. Although training in certain types
of psychic sensitivity are freely available outside of the Mysteries - and even marketed on the Internet!,
the actual development of the god-like powers of the higher siddhis are definitely not accessible to
people who are not graduates of the Lesser Mysteries and have progressed some way into the Greater Mysteries.
This may sound strange to some and in every generation there are people who think they are perfectly ready
for the higher training, unfortunately many have to eat the bitter pill and experience what can go wrong, before
they find that they were in error. In the impatience of the times in which we are living, not
everyone can understand that it is the person's spiritual Master who decides when the pupil is ready,
and indeed the Master's help is needed to see that the awakening process occurs in a wholesome
manner. Also, should problems arise He knows how they can be guarded against and overcome. If no such
direction is forthcoming it means that the pupil is not yet ready and needs to concentrate on such fundamentals
as the purification of his/her personality, character building and activities of service. Strangely enough all
the essential instructions regarding preparation have long been before us, but we have not seen them
clearly. Often these
teachings appear in symbol and allegory within religion and mystery rites such as Freemasonry. This is
supplemented by sacramental assistance inherent in the validity of the mystery ceremonial which involves hidden
Adeptic and Angelic co-operation. When sufficient mastery of character and personality has been gained and some
adverse karma neutralized by impersonal service (the preparation may extend over several earth lifetimes), a
fully qualified spiritual teacher mysteriously enters the life of the neophyte, either physically or more
commonly these days superphysically. Such an Adept Teacher known as A Master of The Wisdom, supplies specialized
forms of yoga and teaches all that is necessary about the awakening process and life planning that is needed for
further progress. After this process has been underway for some time and good progress made, at this stage only,
are instructions given on how to awaken the higher god-like faculties or siddhis. The desirable position being
that first of all the person becomes self-realized or God-realized, by which is meant that they have realized in
consciousness that there is no separate division between the divine spark in him/herself and the universal God
from whence this spark comes. This is the greatest safeguard against misusing potent faculties for selfish gain,
but unfortunately a risk is always there and occasionally people have fallen from great spiritual
heights.
The Theosophical
Society, Freemasonry and World Religions are all part of the preparatory process and could be considered as part
of The Lesser Mysteries of the present day although no form of altruistic activity could be said to be entirely
unrelated to the spiritual journey.
As mentioned, after
one’s interior spiritual teacher is found, an intensive course of preparation for entry into The Greater
Mysteries becomes possible. This will lead the initiate to paths of greater service and eventual liberation from
the wheel of rebirth. Entry to this advanced training is marked by the process known as Discipleship – which in
Mr. Hodson’s opinion was not confined to the followers of Jesus 2000 years ago - but was the most ancient of
institutions which continues right down to the present day. Disciples are trained for initiation in The Greater
Mysteries. When the 5th Initiation is eventually taken, the person is freed from all limitations of the human
kingdom, after which, opportunities of post-human evolution open up.
Retrospective examinations of lectures, writings and especially much of what became
available after Mr. Hodson’s death in The Trilogy, leads us
to believe that he, himself, had made considerable progress as an initiate in the Greater Mysteries, and was
therefore speaking from direct insight and experience rather than tradition only. During his lifetime he never
made any claims of his true status, which was really as a spokesman for the Adept Brotherhood. Instead he left
it entirely to people’s intuition to activate their interest. In any case it would have been no good to tell
people directly of his inner authority, in these areas one can only move forward from the highest principles
from within oneself. Here, as elsewhere, the old saying holds true, “A word to the wise is sufficient”.
The Place of Ceremonies in the Spiritual Life:
A word of clarification needs to be entered here in view of the fact that many people have managed to confuse
themselves to the extent of thinking that ceremonies are unnecessary on the spiritual journey. If these
ceremonies were empty and devoid of inner meaning, inspiration and benediction perhaps that may be true,
but the sort of ceremonies that we are talking about were given to humanity from the very highest level.
First of all they symbolize degrees of spiritual evolution and attainment that the conscious mind is not yet
fully able to grasp; as it were coming events cast their shadow before them. Secondly, they are used as a
mechanism of conferring blessings upon individuals and groups by one or other members of the Inner Government of
the World who use devic or angelic assistance to achieve their results, and thirdly by participating fully in
the ceremony the human being gains skills in action and gradually acquires abilities to control the physical,
astral and mental components of their nature as a prelude to the spiritual-soul talking flight, which in the
ancient world occurred in a transitory way during the ceremony of initiation. Mr. Hodson, in many of his
writings, demystified the whole subject and educated us in the appropriate inner meaning of ceremonies from the
extensive clairvoyant research he did into the subject ( e.g. the occult significance of Freemasonry and
the inner side of church worship).
Yoga:
Yoga means yoke or union. It
is a science of self-culture and mental discipline that
removes or transmutes the negative side of human nature and leaves behind the enhanced God-self able to function
through transformed vehicles of consciousness and vivified brain cells.
Mr. Hodson verified
from his own interior experience the effectiveness of the Science of Yoga in uplifting and expanding human
consciousness. His mission in
regard to aspiring people that he met in his travels around the world was to fan that interior interest, so that
eventually they could qualify themselves to become disciples of a Master of the Wisdom. He knew that this
is where the real training occurs and especially when the Greater Mysteries are entered, which alone permit the
higher insights and god-like faculties to be brought forth. This process, which is called “The Path Ideal” or
the “Path Life”, short-circuits and prevents so many problems that come from trying to go it alone. In fact, Mr.
Hodson believed that it is impossible to go it alone beyond a certain level. He sometimes mentioned in his
talks and writings the statement of the Lord Gautama Buddha, that at a certain stage in their
development everyone needs a kalyanamitra - a Pali word which means "an elder in evolution that befriends
one".
To aspirants who chose
to follow the line of development known as Yoga, especially in the Western World, where retreat to a yogic
ashram is not always a viable or realistic option, as for example due to family responsibilities, Mr.
Hodson suggested that they make their own homes into a yogic ashrams. Success in the spiritual life, whether it
be through the Mysteries or by Yoga, has a great deal to do with maturity and application as well as individual
temperament. Since aspirants tend to re-contact inner traditions from life to life on earth, no effort in a
positive direction is ever really lost. Students may sometimes wander far searching in the ways of the world,
but ultimately over time they come back to their spiritual home and at a certain stage a spiritual breakthrough
occurs. If the aspirant has come to this fortunate breakthrough position, sometimes a relatively minor stimulus
can produce illumination, at least to some extent. The practice of meditational yoga without a decent sort of
moral and ethical base is a waste of time and may actually be harmful. In other words it is not possible to do
hurtful things to others in one part of one’s life and expect the soul to be able to take flight, due allowance
and exception for this being made in genuine wars of defence for protection of others and fair administration of
the legal system, where sometimes force has to be used for the greater good (c.f. the dilemma of Arjuna at the
battle of Kurukshetra in The
Bhagavad Gita).
Mr Hodson’s own recommended Yoga:
To be quite frank
on the subject, Mr. Hodson had effectively mastered meditation himself and had actually outgrown the need for
any set form. Sometimes he used a single intonation of the pranava or Om to transfer his consciousness to the
inner planes, but he didn’t even need to do this. However, he highly recommended to others a form which he had
used during his rise called A
Yoga of Light, which had been gifted to him by the great Indian yogi, Sri Ramana Maharshi, as being
especially suitable for Westerners. This yoga is available in booklet form with a helpful commentary. The form can
also be found online at this theosophical site:
http://www.tssydney.org.au/article5.html
from whence it is recommended that you learn the actual words
which are slightly different and fuller than the recorded version of Mr. Hodson leading the meditation below,
although the audio gives a great deal of impact, being as it is in Mr. Hodson's own voice. Also, I
thought it was a good idea to precede it by another audio clip which has some very basic advice. More
advice on meditation was given by Mr. Hodson in his many lectures, especially in a seven part course on
meditation that he gave in various parts of the world. However, the instructions here should be sufficient to
start a student on a very constructive path of development.
As mentioned above the form of A
Yoga of Light has to be memorized before it can be used, but that is not very difficult to do. My
own experience after using it for many years is that it does not necessarily have any immediately dramatic
results, but if you keep on steadily - even 5 or 10 minutes a day - it will help to open pathways in your
consciousness and then later on, presumably at the Master’s choosing, you will find that you have mysteriously
developed some form of conscious communication with the inner worlds related to your own psyche. It is advisable
not to be too precious or too purist about your expectations for yoga, of course to fully realize God or the
God-Self within is the ultimate goal, but on the way to that goal, manifestation through your own particular
keynote and genius occurs, and you are wise if you can build on that and not repudiate it as is the tendency in
certain traditions. If you want to you could experiment with this yoga and expand parts of it, as I have myself,
using the following additional information that Mr. Hodson supplied from his inner plane
investigations:
“To the permissible aspiration for psychic awareness and cell-enfiring yoga leave room
for the yogic experience of One-ness, affirming “I am That One, That One am I”. As the yogi develops, he or
she continuously gains wider and wider and so less and less personal ranges of experience, or deeper and
deeper realisations of the fact that the idea of “others”, of oneself as a separate entity are erroneous.
They have been necessary and what might be called imprisonment within them essential to successful passage
through phases of human life and mental experience from personal to impersonal – ever more and more so. There
is no such thing in the Universe as One Spiritual Being – miscalled Self – as separate from any other. No
such Entity exists; for there is only a Vast Unitary Identity, a ONE, a UNIT, but not separate because there
is nothing else in existence from which to be separated. Like all Sun-Rays and other radiances physical and
superphysical emanating from the Sun, each human “Ray” (Monad-Ego as you will) is an indivisible part of the
Sun or Source.
In the quietude of your own mind as you meditate, dwell upon this extraordinary and wondrous
Truth that ONLY ONE EXISTS and there are not any others anywhere. Then affirm in your meditative
consciousness and seek ever to know “I am that all inclusive ONE, THAT am I.”
Clarity, exactitude, energy, power are the important factors continually to be
applied.
Place your consciousness in the middle of your head. Try and hold it there and then whilst your
consciousness is in or near that position, repeat contemplatively and yogically the aphorisms on
ONENESS enclosed.3 Then experiment with periods, states of
consciousness, of stillness, of quiet unrestrained receptiveness. Allow the intensive effort – aspect
of your yoga to quieten down. Sink into mental silence in intuitive aspiration. Then contemplate the ONE
ALONE in quietude.
Don’t mind experimenting and don’t mind if no marked results follow immediately. Just
continue quietly and without any sudden expectations, with this guidance and the great truth revealed,
and (do not misunderstand) with a certain contentment, peace, like entering the front door of one’s home and
chanting “peace, peace, peace.”
3
1. There is only one Vast Unitary
Identity, a ONE, A UNIT.
2. All are like SUN-RAYS and other radiances emanating from the
SUN.
3. Each human “RAY” (Monad-Ego) is an indivisible
part of the Sun or SOURCE.
4. The extraordinary and wondrous TRUTH that ONLY ONE EXISTS and there are not any others
anywhere. Seek ever to know and affirm: “I AM THAT ALL INCLUSIVE ONE, THAT AM
I.”
ENTER INTO this knowledge of ONLY ONE-NESS: I AM THAT ONE, THAT ONE AM I.”
Experience this SUNRISE and NOON-DAY-SUN within mind, heart and brain.
Practice the silence in a state of intuitive perceptiveness, know LIFE IS
ONE.
The Glory of Oneness
Let exaltation fill your mind as you contemplate this splendour, glory, truth that Only One
exists I am that One That am I.”
Although it may be hard to initially understand the magnitude of higher sense perceptions
and the level of attainment which Mr. Hodson reached, it all had its origin in this yoga of
One-ness. And if a person is truly on the yogic line of development there is no more direct form of guided
meditation than A Yoga of Light.
"Please turn on your speakers"
(1) Simple Guidelines on
Meditation:
(2) A Yoga of Light
Mr. Hodson knew and had access to some of the most accomplished yogis on the planet – of
course it goes without saying that the greatest of the yogis were all fellow initiates connected with the Inner
Government of the World. Just read this incredible out of the body experience that Mr. Hodson had into the
famed, almost mythical yogis, of Mt. Kailasa in Tibet and you pretty well get the idea that anything that he
needed to focus his consciousness on was very easily accessible to him:
“14 January 1959
I remember being
amongst the snowy heights of the Himalayas last night. My friend and I visited, amongst other peaks, Mt.
Kailasa, having floated very easily side by side in the mental body but retaining the vision of the physical
planets. When thus travelling, we saw the edges of our auras kept contact, and through this we were able to
keep perfect mental communication. The auric contact can be felt somewhat like holding hands
physically.
We went up
a long valley to the foot of Kailasa, which is shaped roughly like a great curve or half-circle with a peak at
the summit when approached from that side. We saw certain caves in which hermits lived amidst the snow and
ice, far above the world and all its affairs and cares. There was a group of such sages presided over by a
Senior. Their bodies were mostly only just alive and very slightly conscious, although we
realized they could and do become physically awake at will. There was one Who had long black hair, black
eyebrows, beard and moustache. He was a Being of very great power, an Adept with an enormously vibrant,
brilliant and far-reaching aura, virtually embracing the whole mountainside. They were not normally
approachable, being withdrawn to an extraordinary degree from the rupa planes and apparently living out their lives in a kind of physical
hibernation under this Great One, Who was much more physically awake and active than most of the others.
Their bodies were warm in spite of the extremely low temperature and it seemed that they live perpetually
amidst snow and ice.
I think that
they were in grades because there was one who didn’t appear to be so evolved as some of the others, although
sufficiently developed to keep his body warm and to sustain Samadhi. His hair was very matted and he looked dirty, but I realized these
effects were due to prolonged Samadhi, during which the hair had
grown and the body become coated with dried material exuded from the skin as waste toxins and perspiration.
He was physically unconscious and insensible and sat facing the mouth of his cave some few yards back. The
interior was rather dark and there was some jutting rock which gave the appearance of shelves or seats. There
was a kind of terrace outside which really was part of the pathway of ascent. Physical people such as
pilgrims may pass and see him quite immovable but alive. He was in one of the yoga postures – I think the
lotus asana.
Higher up the
mountain, where no one could physically reside, lived the more developed men, including the great Adept. He
looked as if clothed in a freshly washed and ironed white linen garment, and His body shone physically with a
white radiance extending some inches from the skin. He was able to be in Samadhi and physically alert and awake at the same time, and His eyes and
consciousness seemed to be turned towards India as if He were responsible for it and ministering to it all
the time. He was definitely one of the Adept Members of the Great White Brotherhood and of very high rank.
His face was something like the mosaic pictures of Christ in Byzantine churches, powerful yet benign. We both
noticed the strange fact of the perfect freshness and cleanliness of body and clothing and the fragrance
which emanated from it. I think it was sandalwood, though sweeter, as if attar of roses had been added. He
was on a raised platform or dais made of wood and about six inches high, being just large enough to hold His
body, which remained motionless, though His eyes moved and were remarkably brilliant. One received an
impression of timelessness and of being near to eternal truths in the presence of the sages of Mt.
Kailasa.
I couldn’t tear
myself away from this region and the Rishi of Kailasa for a long
time. I could see his heart chakram and marvelled at it as well as
the other force-centres of His body. But especially wonderful was the heart. Very privately, I incline to the
view that this is the real ancient Rishi Agastya of the Hindu scriptures and that any other physical being
living in India would be a representative official under Him. I think the body lives without food, or at any
rate without eating. If food is taken, it would be made by Kriyashakti or transported from somewhere else occultly. I was impressed by
the sense of complete liberation, not only of the Monad-Ego, but even of the body itself, from all
necessities and restrictions of any kind, individual power being virtually absolute.
Finally, I
withdraw down the valley again, floating lightly and easily and feeling awe-inspired by my experience. I
followed the valley down to a river and to earth’s greenery again.
I am impressed
by the perfect psychic purity of the regions visited at such high altitude. Though I was unconscious of it, I
knew that the cold was intense and it seemed as if this very low temperature had an occult and psychic
sterilizing effect. On Kailasa itself, the purity was absolutely apart from the powerful spiritualizing
influence of the yogis and their great Senior.
I see that the
truly spiritual life of India is, in reality, highly organized and, I think, under this Great One of Kailasa. The true
gnanis, the high yogis, and the heads of mutts and similar
organisations are all linked with the Regent of India, though some of them may not be aware of it. The
Shankarachyra of Conjeeveram (Kanchi) knows about it, as do several others4. It is wise
when travelling about India always to keep one’s eyes open for those who display true nobility of bearing and
appearance and, if so moved, to approach them.
I remember that
I was very solemn as I floated rather slowly down the valley from Kailasa, feeling that I had been richly
blessed and the recipient of a great privilege. I paused on the way down, where the face of a glacier was
melting, and watched the change of condition and density of the substances. I saw that the change from ice to
water occurred in many steps from hard ice to soft ice and so on.
My own freedom
of movement was fairly complete, and I was free also from the pressure of time, as if time in the
superphysical bodies were extended and depended far more upon consciousness than physical time, which is so
unalterably fixed. There was no sense of being limited because of the enforced return to the
body….”
Light of the Sanctuary – the Occult Diary of Geoffrey
Hodson, pp185-187
4Mr. Hodson had a privileged interview with this great
yogic sage – the 68th Shankarachyra of Conjeeveram or Kanchi. Like Mr. Hodson, he also had the
higher sense perceptions in excellent working order and was able to tell him when he asked, the location of
the Rishi Agastya, which Mr. Hodson then verified in the out of the body experience quoted
above.
Another important yogi that
Mr. Hodson met in South India was Shiva Swami, I have included images of the visit made to this holy man's
ashram in the Gallery. There are implication in The Diary from one of the Masters
of the Wisdom of the spiritual greatness of this yogi, who had similar abilities to Mr. Hodson himself, which
is probably why they made an immediate bond as brothers in the spiritual life.
As mentioned, Mr.
Hodson had mastered the meditation process and on several occasions when I was having private
discussions with him I saw him put himself into immediate yogic consciousness by merely intoning the pranava
or Om. This put him in contact with the causal (higher mental) or buddhic (intuitional) levels and whilst
there it was possible to ask him questions, and he sustained a sufficient link within his brain consciousness
to be able to answer them, although you could tell from the unearthly nature of his voice that he was seeing
and hearing things at a much more glorious and inspired level than you would be able to access on earth. He
also had a remarkable ability to find out what the unique needs of a person were from a meditational point of
view, partly by talking to their immortal spiritual soul or Ego and partly by looking at their past
lives. He also believed in the efficacy of other forms of yoga and sometimes overviewed them in his
talks and recommended them to individuals if he found a match with their needs. In my own case he explained that the Chinese system of
yoga had made a big contribution to my growth in past lives and recommended it to me. Some years later when I
took up Taoist Yoga and Zen studies I found that without very much effort, I was able to
experience aspects of a certain universal expansion of consciousness quite easily at that time, presumably
due to past-life experience in Chinese yoga that Mr. Hodson had so accurately pinpointed for
me.
Mr. Hodson also
pointed out that even in something as spiritualizing as yoga there is still room for common sense and wisdom in
application. One very aberrated young man once came to consult him and it transpired that he had been practicing
all seven forms of yoga for seven hours a day, which had a very disorientating effect upon him. Mr. Hodson
recommended that one finds the form of yoga suitable for oneself and steadily perseveres with it until progress
is made. Of course the great advantage, if a person is able to comprehend the significance and follow the Path
Ideal, is that eventually one of the Masters of the Wisdom will take you under his wing as it were, and
individualize your yoga by giving specific recommendations which are uniquely suitable for you. Also, members of
the angelic hosts (the devas) are involved in this process, especially those which reached adeptship in the
human kingdom and then transferred over to the devic kingdom. Some of these great beings specialize in the area
of spiritual awakening and work in conjunction with the Inner Government of the World. Thus, The Path, is very
much connected with success in Yoga, and the aspirant would be well advised to note that fact and be
discriminating in embracing advice from other teachers who suggest that it can be dispensed
with.
Whether one comes to the
jumping off point of occult knowledge by any of the traditional disciplines (the main ones being The Mysteries
and Yoga) or just by an evolutionary expansion of all those qualities in a human being that make for the good
and the true, eventually the time comes to essay the awakening of the kundalini force, which is usually
precipitated by instructions from your Master with the assistance of a specialized kundalini angel or deva. This
is a most dangerous procedure and the reason it is applicable to so few of us at the present time is described
in general terms by Mr. Hodson in the statement already quoted in Clairvoyant observations under Disease and
Healing viz. most people are not ready to forego the pleasures of the world.
There is no effective
solution for lack of readiness other than to say that through a sort of spiritual evolution of consciousness our
perspective eventually changes over time. In this respect one of the greatest statements ever written on the
subject is found in another of Mr.Hodson’s books, the source being a dictation to him from The Master Kuthumi
(who in a former life was the great mathematician and illumined spiritual teacher Pythagoras, an initiate of
nine of the Mystery Schools of the Ancient World, and one of the greatest ever spiritual influences to the
world):
“Arise all you who would attain. Send up your cry for light
and enter fearlessly upon the upward Way. It is for you. It calls you. It is your destiny to succeed. Aid awaits
you. Your Teacher is near you, watching. Look not back but forward and you will see His face. Earth’s Supermen
wait upon earth’s men, ready to assist each one who answers the call and with sincerity and whole-heartedness
gives himself entirely to the Quest of light and power and truth, aspiring ardently to become a servant and a
saviour of the world.
“Is worldly life still so attractive that it binds you to
the world? Is earthly light so beautiful that it blinds you to heavenly beauty? Are you so wedded to the world
that severance therefrom is as yet impossible? If so, then your time has not yet come. But if all fails around
you and life seems a hollow mockery, and worldly gain and power a sham, then your time has come. Arise and seek
that which alone endures and is real – the spiritual life with its crown of spiritual power and a sense of
serene bliss that nothing in existence can evermore disturb.
“Not lightly, but with deep sincerity, let your resolve be
made. Balance for yourself the two alternatives and make your choice between the worldly life, with its fleeting
joys and temporary gains, and the spiritual life with its everlasting bliss and peace. That choice between
impotence to meet your own and other’s need and omnipotence to conquer self and lead others to like victory
should not be difficult. Make it and come to join the ranks of those whose choice long ago was made and who
steadfastly persisted until the end in triumph over self and mergence with the One Self of
All.”
The Pathway to
Perfection, G.Hodson,TPH,
Adyar, 1954. pp x-xi
In his travels around the
world Mr. Hodson had been privileged to observe occasional incidences of sudden awakenings and noticed that
these usually tended to happen to more morally elevated people. But, since suddenly illumined people, let alone
reincarnated yogis and Great Initiates are relatively rare, Mr. Hodson recommended the slow, systematic and
steady application to the procedures of the spiritual life, with full confidence that when one’s Master sees it
helpful to bring on the awakening process this will be done without delay.
Some of Mr Hodson’s
books which may appeal to those interested in The Path Ideal of Yoga and The Mysteries are: A Yoga of Light (booklet) 1954,
The Call to the Heights (guidance on the pathway to self
illumination), 1976, Meditations on The Occult Life,
1968, The Pathway to Perfection, 1973, The Inner Side of Church Worship, 1930, At The Sign of the Square and Compasses 1976, The Occult Philosophy Concealed within Freemasonry, 1985. The mature
essence of Mr. Hodson’s thought on Yoga and the Mysteries is found in his posthumous work The Yogic Ascent to Spiritual Heights, 1991 as well as the two other
books of The Trilogy (see Booklist).
Bill Keidan
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