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First Lesson on Sympathy
When one enters the Circles of Sympathy one is less stern of judgment and less sure of what constitutes right and wrong. Not that one is less severe in what one imposes on one’s self, but one refuses to judge the actions of another as one ordinarily does. To judge according to the least intention of wrongdoing and the best effort of well doing is beyond the human judgment. And as one progresses in this work one learns the limitations of sound judgment where the intentions and motives of another are concerned, for, not knowing the secrets of his heart nor the real environment, one can not tell the driving force that governs his actions. For the law of cause and effect governs both the mental and physical, and only the spiritual can dominate and modify it as one goes through life and learns his lesson of love and obedience, and so, until one can tell how much the spark of spirit glows, one can never know just what may be another’s real condition of mind and soul.
For a man to try to see spiritual truth while his spark of spirit lies dormant is like a physically blind man trying to see form and color. Only as the spark is fanned by work and prayer into a flame can the real apprehension of spiritual truth be obtained. To work in the sunshine of God’s love, watering the seed of truth with prayer until it sprouts and lives in the heart and daily life, is to be of the Circles of Understanding, and to carry this sunshine into the lives of all near you who are struggling under the burden of unbelief and doubt, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. For no truth is fully yours until it has been shared with others and has grown in this way into a part of your daily life. Only then is it so assimilated by the mind and soul that it can be entirely absorbed by the radiance of the spirit, and as man becomes more and more selfless his radiance can be more and more clearly seen by us, and in this way we are able to judge of his spiritual progress.
To be selfless does not imply a loss of personality. One the contrary it raises personality to the Nth degree, but it means that one is able to entirely submerge the ego and is utterly willing to sacrifice in order to help others—to sacrifice time, strength, and pleasure to those who have not found the way to eternal life.
To know that all of life and joy is there for you while others have no chance to share therein if you neglect your work is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. To work wherever your place is in life because you are everywhere surrounded by God’s children is to be of the Circles of Knowledge, and to work in every way you can to help each one who is near you, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. Rich or poor, young or old, all are on the same search, and the pity of it is that so few find the simple straight road that lies so clearly ahead of each obedient child. To point the path, to raise the fallen to a sense of self-respect, to live gladly each day of service to humanity, this is the work of one in the Circles of Sympathy.
Nothing so utterly cuts away the self-respect of the soul as materialism. No physical sin is as dangerous as a love of money or things. Whoever will not share all that he has with his brother is outside the pale of spiritual life for as long as he has that selfishness in his soul, and this applies equally to material, intellectual and spiritual life, but the foundation stones are laid in material life, for that is the first place where we gain knowledge.
When man has learned how to share he will have acquired much wisdom. To share in the way that will help without spoiling will take much thought and a real sympathy. It is easy to give but it is difficult to so give that the gift will not hurt the one who receives, and this can only be done by wise and prayerful thought.
To hold all material things as a trust from your loving Father to be used to help all with whom you come in contact, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. To hold all intellectual achievements as a means of stimulating and interesting others, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. And over and above all to keep one’s spiritual light as a source of comfort and joy to others, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy.
When man has learned that the real joy of life is in sharing all that he has with others, we will be able to teach him as we desire. To be able to work as one should in the world one must have spiritual guidance, and those who turn away from this teaching and scoff at spirits are only turning their backs on the living truth that would give them much happiness there and later here. Today man is sufficiently developed to know the full truth which has always been known to the initiates since man began his life on earth, and when he learns the real value of this work that he is meant to do, he will wish that he had been more open-minded. To know that only his won stupidity and his desire for the material things of life on earth have stood between him and the wonderful advantages God meant for him, will be a great blow to his vanity.
To realize that he was given every opportunity over and over again and that he deliberately shut his eyes to the chances he was given, will be a revelation to him of his exceeding blindness. To know that day by day he turned his back on the great things of life for things of no real importance, will show him of how little worth and judgment he really is, and yet, in spite of the fact that he is of little value, all things great are designed for him and for his pleasure by his loving Father, and all that is asked in return is that he should follow his higher nature and willingly turn to the Father of all and try to do His will there on earth. When he begins to understand this and to work with his full strength, following the light that is shown, he will be of the Circles of Sympathy, and when he is once fully of these Circles, he will be alive to the great need of awakening all those who sleep.
Even if he only arrests their attention for a moment, the seed is sown, and even if they sink back into indifference and sleep, they have gone one step in the right direction, so no effort is lost which does not antagonize. Knowing the tremendous importance of this truth to every living soul, those who are of the Circles of Sympathy give their best effort to helping each one who needs help in any way. No one can tell the result of what he does, for when he gives material help he often opens the doors to further and spiritual help afterwards.
To always be on the watch for wise opportunities to sow that seed which will be of greatest benefit to those who struggle there on earth, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy.
This is the first lesson on Sympathy.
Love.
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Second Lesson on Sympathy
To be of those who are in the world with all their heart and with all their sympathy and yet are able to hold their won spiritual light, means work and study and learning self-control, for only in this way can one hold one’s sympathy through frivolity, weakness and even degradation.
To look through the outside covering, whatever it may be, for the spark of the spirit, and to try to fan it into actual flame, and to feel that no human being no matter how apparently worthless, is to be allowed to die without an effort being made to arouse him to his real place in God’s plan for each one to whom he has given life and power forever, is to be of these Circles.
Life and power are indestructible and can never be obliterated. They emanate directly from God and must be as He is eternal. But as in His wisdom God has given complete freedom to man to decide the use he chooses to make of his powers, so he can turn them from constructive to destructive forces. When man goes on the wrong path, he transforms the energy that has been given him into energy that can be used against the powers for good, and as we have explained before in these teachings, all energy must come to the light, that is, come under God’s spiritual laws as obedient forces, and here is the reason for the tremendous importance of man’s life on earth.
To be of these Circles we must keep very close to the heart of all with whom we come in contact. No least antagonism must ever be allowed to enter and no time must be wasted in following the things of the lower nature that only antagonize, and all of life must be an effort to learn the lesson of understanding love.
To be of these Circles of Sympathy no petty animosity nor trivial hurt feeling may enter in. Nothing done to you by another must disturb your serenity of soul nor the love borne for that individual. Complete detachment from thought of self and complete understanding and sympathy with the frailties of those who have not yet this inner light, must be in your soul and mind at all times.
This is the second lesson on Sympathy.
Love.
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Third Lesson on Sympathy
When man lives in close sympathy with all about him, and when he has so learned self-control that at all times and under all circumstances he can be master of himself and his moods, he will be of great power, and each day that he practices this control adds to his power. As he works among those who seek the light he will be able to give more and more fully of the truth he is learning, and each day’s progress will teach him more of these spiritual laws.
Only through his wisdom and his apprehension of this spiritual light can he learn how to transform physical energy into spiritual power, and when through his hard and constant effort he has learned how to do this, he will begin to be of those Circles of healing and love which we call the Circles of Love.
But before he can be really of full power he must learn how to be master of each one of the other and earlier Circles, and until he is complete master of Will, he cannot be fully of the Circles of Knowledge. This however does not prevent his knowledge of the work of theses other Circles nor his participation in that work, and all the work that he does himself adds to his power to comprehend the full truth.
As his comprehension deepens his radiance grows and his power of understanding will becomes more acute, and as this spiritual power increases he will be more and more fully in the light. Physical power is acted on and often weakened by the light rays, but spiritual power is of this power one must be consciously guided by spiritual guides. Only though their instruction can it grow in intensity, for only though their guidance can it be so wisely used that it is not dissipate by the use made of it.
All spiritual power is given for work in God’s world, to be used in helping others and in showing the way to the light and love of God. It can only be wisely used in this work, for it otherwise used it becomes destructive force, and this is what the story of Satan tells.
To have been of the great spiritual powers and to have fallen from all power to be only of the destructive forces of the universe, knowing that ultimate defeat lies before them and therefore struggling with desperate energy to delay the inevitable end, is the story of all who ally themselves with evil powers, and Lucifer or Satan, who was the greatest of the angels, is truly the leader of these forces of darkness.
All the periods of spiritual development have been succeeded by wave of unbelief in the truth of the teachings, and one after another of the true stories, given by inspiration to men, have been discarded as figment of their fancy. Man in the arrogance of his little knowledge really thinks he could have planned a better universe and pushes aside all evidence that does not suit his belief of the moment for the world as he conceives it, and so he has discarded many bits of truth which would be guides to him in his search for knowledge if he were not so blinded by material things. As his eyes open to the real truth he will go back and pick up many of these bits to make up his whole belief in the things that have been given by inspiration, and each day will add to his knowledge of God’s exceeding wisdom which has been evidenced in the freedom He has given to man.
To have created a universe that was free from struggle would have been to have made puppets without character, for only by struggle and effort can character be built on earth, and to man is given the opportunity to ally himself with powers that are limitless in their work for creation, by the must, in order to so ally himself, willingly turn to God, ready to obediently follow wherever the guides point the way, and only when he consciously works with his guides can he be sure of that way. Then he can make no mistake in his path through following his own inclination or what others desire for him.
Yet these guides, though they are always ready to help when man’s heart is open to them, will not interfere with his daily life and struggle, because that experience is for his development, and through this daily and hourly struggle his power will grow. But as he turns to God in prayer, strength and wisdom are given him and more and more light comes into his life, and this light leads him into the path of that peace which passes understanding.
This is the third lesson on Sympathy.
Love.
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Fourth Lesson on Sympathy
All truth that the wisest and most learned of men can acquire on earth is only the beginning of knowledge. Life goes on for all eternity and all of life is a development of power of mind and heart and spirit.
Just as the alphabet is the beginning of learning to read, so the beginning of spiritual power is shown in the willingness to turn to God and follow what He wills, and this can only be done by each one for himself to His Father. As long as he thus freely gives himself his spirit grows and all possibilities lie open before him, and this open door to all power can never be closed except by his own desire. Only when his spirit becomes arrogant and no longer obedient will he lose his guides, and there is never any time when he cannot turn again of his own will to God. But as this knowledge grows, the knowledge of the importance of his work grows too, and the effect of disobedience will be more clearly seen. Therefore his punishment for that disobedience will be the greater.
To deliberately choose to be of the evil powers who can never know real happiness is hardly conceivable, yet this may happen to one whose foundation is not built on humbleness of spirit and a real obedience. Therefore to purge one’s heart and spirit of all arrogance is one of the first steps to complete success. No elation over the power gained must be allowed one’s self, only happiness in the privilege of being allowed to do this work.
To keep this attitude of mind in all times and under all conditions whether of good or evil appearances, judged from the standpoint of those who judge with earthly judgment, take self-control. To feel no whit superior to those who have not this light from lack of opportunity or from other reasons, will take all that one has of self-control and dodesty of spirit. Each time a feeling of elation at one’s won light enter, one’s light is dimmed. Only the elation that comes from having helped another can be allowed, and that is rather the happiness of being privileged to do this work.
To so work that day after day one can point to one helped there and another here, while each day brings new understanding of spiritual laws, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy, and as sympathy grows and love develops more and more, one’s spirit becomes that of a little child who knows that all good comes to him from the father who loves and guards him, for until the follower of divine love blossoms in the heart which has become as the heart of a happy loving little child, one cannot fully enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Utter selflessness, entire sympathy, perfect love is the sum of human perfection to which we must aspire, and only when we have started on this path do we begin to come into our rightful inheritance. Then our sympathy goes out to all in the world, no matter what or where, and in the expression of that sympathy we take our full place in these Circles. When no one is too degraded and no one too lowly to enter into our hearts, then we are of the Circles of Sympathy.
This is the fourth lesson on Sympathy.
Love.
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Fifth Lesson on Sympathy
When man turns with his whole heart and mind to doing God’s work in the world, he will find new avenues of activity on every side. Everywhere he can learn new spiritual truths for which before he had vision and everywhere he will find those who need help to start on the way while they are yet in the world.
To be responsible for the failure of another to do his part because you failed to give him that light which you hold for him, is a great responsibility. When you see the mistakes and failures which are due to your negligence, you will be appalled at the many opportunities which you have failed to seize. Not that your mistakes can make the lives of others not worth while, but that your mistakes may delay them there on earth since you are the guardian of God’s light for those with whom you come in contact. When you fail to share and diffuse that light you fail not only in your duty to God, but also in your duty to your brother and, most of all, to yourself, for sympathy would always share and help and when sympathy does not enter in there must be selfishness, and selfishness is a deadly sin.
There is no such thing as a vacuum in nature and the way to get rid of evil is to cultivate good, for two forces cannot occupy the same space at the same time.
Those of the Circles of Sympathy are always watching for the chance to help and are never blind to suffering. As their light grows their understanding of humanity grows, and the intuition by which they read men’s hearts develops, and they are able to see things to which others are utterly blind.
Only to those whose spiritual understanding is of high order will the light be given, and through this ability to read men’s hearts they will be able to help as they should in no wise do without this power, and only when they have this power are they fully in the Circles of Sympathy, and only when all selfishness is eradicated from their hearts can they have this power to its full extent.
To gain complete control of their will they must carefully watch each word and every thought, and only in this way can they reach to spiritual heights in strength of purpose. Yet the reward is so far beyond man’s conception that there is no compensation for its loss. Each victory gained over self brings more strength for the next step and firmer purpose, while each failure brings weakened will.
Every day, every hour, every minute counts, and the great victory is to the steadfast of purpose. Carry your light on high and work steadily, praying constantly, and fail not!
This is the fifth lesson on Sympathy.
Love.
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Sixth Lesson on Sympathy
To fail to work while on earth is to fail to be of one’s Circles and that is to fail to be of full power on earth and after. As lost time is never completely made up, so lost opportunity brings the sad punishment of lessened spiritual power and of a lower degree in the Circles to which one belongs. Only when one fully grasps one’s inner light and works to the best of one’s inner light and works to the best of one’s ability there on earth can he continue in the Circles to which he was born.
As his spirit is a spark of God’s spirit and as his body is a product of his father and his mother, so his soul is the result of the fusion of their moral qualities, but through these qualities may place him high in the Circles, he can only maintain that place by his won effort.
Study, work, steadfast purpose, and living the life on earth that can be lived according to God’s laws, are necessary to keep his place, and only when he does this will he fully enter into the Circles which are his heritage. To each one is given this opportunity time after time, though many are not aware of the significance of their choice, but the choice is always given over and over again, and the door of spiritual life stands open for all who will even peep therein.
To realize this and to work to the limit of one’s strength that others may reap the benefit of one’s work is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. To desire the spiritual life for everyone around us that they may enter into their full heritage, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy. To leave no stone unturned that will waken them to the great meaning of life, and no sacrifice of time or strength unmade which will help them, is to be of the Circles of Sympathy, and when one is fully of these Circles, one’s heart is filled with the great love of all mankind that carries one into the Circles of Love.
This is the sixth lesson on Sympathy.
Love.
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