rosicrucian digest, july 1957

8/12/2019 Rosicrucian Digest, July 1957

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O S I C R U C I A N

1957

J U L Y

30c per copy

A Pr op he t

of the T im e sWill c ivi l izat ion

ecline?

V A V

Your Sonsand DaughtersWhere parents have

ailed.

v A V

Religious

Practices

f Early Egyptxploitation of theuman mind.

V A Ve a U c iu t y :

M y s t ic is m

S c i e n c e

T h e A r ts

V A V

t c x t T f to n t A . :

ood, Body-

Chemistry,

nd H ea lth

V A V

Out of the East

DIGEST


2/44

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TR/WMNCEof the*011The ancients attr ibuted direct ly to divine source everything w

to the hu man senses seemed p erfect the perfum e of f lowers, the sw

smell ing early morning air , the tang of the sea, the mysterious scen

stran ge herbs. Th ese ple asing odors were associated with the d

being o f the gods. Even the soul was thought to have a f ragran ce o

own far sup erior to anything e lse which man could ever smell. In

sacred temples, herbalists would mix secret potions and compound

incenses which were thought to approach the divine f ragrance of the s

It was believed that an inhalation of the scented fumes would lift

soul to greate r heights. It is known that rar e incenses will aid in

ducing harmony of the senses , and for th is reason, the Rosicrucians h

h ad e s p e c i a l l y p r e p a r e d an incense that is soothing and most helpful

meditat ion purposes .Rosicrucian incense is of India M oss Rose scent . I t is long-bur

ha lf a brickette is suf fic ient for the av erage sanctum period.

R O S I C R U C I A N S U P P L Y B U R E AS a n J o s e , C a l i f o r n i a

( E A C H M O NT H T H I S P A G E I S D E V O T ED T O T H E E X H I B IT I O N O F S T U D E N T S U P P L I E S . )


3/44

DR. H. SPENCER LEWIS

The above photograph of the late Imperator of AMORC commemorates the anni

versary of his transition w hich occurred August 2, 1939. He was the founder of thesecond cycle of the Rosicrucian Order AMORC in the New World A simple com


4/44

How di d t he A nci en ts

l ear n L i f es grea t secret s?

Amazing Was Their Knowledge

of Life and of Natures Laws

7 J WHENCE came the kn owledge and power that

VV gave the ancients such complete mastery? In

countless ways they were forty centuries ahead oftheir t ime. Their understanding of basic truths, so

long ago, st il l baff les modern men o f sc ience. W ere

their secret teachings lost? Destroyed? Suppressed?

Advanced thinkers know that truth cannot change,

that true knowledge is never really lost . Long

before the dawn of our so-called c ivilizat ion, the

wisest of the wise found ways to meet and study

their priceless knowledge. Secret brotherhoods

were formed to perpetuate their marvelous work.

. . . And out of such early origin there grew what

is now the Rosicrucians, known throughout the

w orld a s A M O R C .Slowly down the corridors of t ime the Rosicrucians

have added students in every coun ty, in every state

and in every land. W here ver there are men and

women who are not content merely to exist fromday to day wherever there are humans imbued

with the sound belief that man was gifted with a

mind for use, for understanding, for thinking

there you will f ind Rosicrucians. They belong to

every race and every creed, r ich and poor alike.

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ROSICRUCIAN DIGESTC O V E R S T H E W O R L D

T H E O F F I C I A L M A G A Z I N E O F T HE W O R L D - W I D E R O S I C R U C I A N O R D E R

Vo l. X X X V J U LY , 1957 No . 7

Dr. H. Spencer Lewis (Frontispiece)............................................ 241

Though t o f the Mon th : Religious Practices of Early Egypt... 244

C an Yo u Exp la in Th is?........... ............................................................................. 247

Your Sons and Daughters......... 248

In M e m o r i a m................. ................. ................ .......................... ......... 251

C a thed ra l Con tac ts : Wealth is Yours............ ...... ...... ........ 252

A P rophe t o f the T imes....... ............................................................................. . .256

Biolog ical Effects of A tom ic Rad iation 260

The My stic T em p era m en t................................................................- ............... 264

Light, Li fe, and Love (filler)............... ............................................... .. ...............266

Did Eg yp tian Princess H aun t British Museum?. 268

A Me ditat ion of Chuang- Tzu (filler)............ .................................. ........... 270

T em ple Ec hoes ................................................ ............. .................................... 271

O n F reed om 's T hre sho ld.................................- .................. ................. ... 273

W o rld- W ide D irec to ry ........................................................................... .......... 276

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and women devoted to the investigation, study, and practical application of natural and spirituallaws. Th e purpose of the organization is to enable all to live in harmony with the creative, constructive Cosmic forces for the attainmen t of health, happiness, and peace. The O rder is internationally known as "AMORC" (an abbreviation), and the A.M.O.R.C. in America and all otherlands constitutes the only form of Rosicrucian activities united in one body. Th e A.M.O.R.C. doesnot sel l its teachings. It gives them freely to aff iliated members t oge the r with many other benefits .For complete information about the benefits and advantages of Rosicrucian association, write aletter to the address below, and ask for the free book. The Mastery of I-ife. Address ScribeS. P. C., Rosicrucian Order, AMO RC, San Jose, California, U. S. A. (Cable Address: AMORCO )

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This article is the second and final one in a series onAncient Priesthoods, by Ralph M. Lewis. E d i t o r

followed with a rite of fumigationis, the burn ing of incense. A fteannointing, the priest arrayedimage of the god in various ornam

This custom, too, with some modtion, is perpetuated today in moreligions in connection with imagsacred personages. Part of the cerenecessitated the opening of the shthe ceremonious bearing out ostatues, and then replacing theminscription alluding to this relatesthe priest was performing the monies for him with two arms.

W ha t transpired in each sacerevent was recorded by the priest-of the temple. It was incum bent this scribe to keep all important

ords. Likew ise officiating wer electors, readers or orators; the liturgists who directed the chanting osacred words; and then, finallym ortuary priests. The latter haresponsibility of seeing that kasoul, w'as duly prepared for the Ju dgm en t H all of Osiris. T h eyformed ceremonies in the temple;these mortuary priests accompaniebody to the tomb where the lastwere performed. According to thords of these scribes, the oldest tor shrine for which the deity is rep

is Neit during the reign of MThe earliest sanctuary specifically

tioned is that of Horns, of the Dynasty.

I t v r v n u v f u r l * ri e n tn

Thousands of priests were enfor the sacerdotal and therapeutities. In the ma in, they devoted

T h eR osier uc ian

Digest

Ju ly

1 9 5 7

n religious matters, the

IEgyptian priest was fi rst m a n , c h i e f t a i n i no t h e r w o r d s , a r e p r e

sentative of god. H isfunctions as such werenum erous and traditional.He was an attendant of

______ the god in a phy sicalsense. He fed the god, takin g to theimage the symbolic sacred food which helay before it. If this seems exceedinglyprimitive, recall where similar symbolic rites are performed in our modern churches. Th e priest w'as likewiserequired to dress and bathe the imageof the god. Thou gh the priests prim aryduty was to the deity, his secondary

duties were to mank ind. Tie was thephysician and counselor of men, anintermediary between the divine realmand the earth.

In the Book of the Dead and othersacred writings, the temple is referredto as the house of god. a term still inuse in our mod ern civilization. Th epriests, consequently, were looked uponas domestic servants in this house ofgod. Tom bs w ere referred to as theHouse of Ka, k a being the Egyptianword for soul . In other words, the tombwas a place where the soul dwelt until

its journey into the neth er world. Th emortuary priest w'as the servant of ka tha t is, a soul servant.

It was likewise the duty of the priestto sprinkle the god w ith w ater. Thissimulated bathing, to which we havereferred. Th is ceremon y was derivedfrom the custom of the servant bathinghis master. Th e asperging was then


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entire time to the obligations of theiroffice. T he y contributed little to thematerial and economic welfare of thestate. In a sense, the y were parasites.They had to be supported from templerevenues. A ncien t inscriptions reveal

that the priests income was from twoprincipal sources of the temple estates.A ll those who entered the temples wereobliged to m ake offerings. A p ortion ofthis income went directly to the priesthood. T he second source of revenu e,as for example in Thebes, came fromthe lands belonging to the god, Amun.The revenue from these sources wasdivided into 100 equal port ions .Twenty portions, or one-fifth, was received by the chief prophet; one portionwent to each of the eighty priests serving under him. Th ese were received asan annual stipend.

There were many advantages andspecial privileges which made the profession of priest in ancient Egypt, asnow, a preferred one. Herodotus, theGreek historian, relates: they consumenone of their own property and are atno expense for anything, but every daybread is baked for them of sacred corn,and a plentiful supply of beef and ofgooses flesh is assigned to each, andalso a portion of wine made from thegrape. Th ey were not allowed to eat

fish and beans. T he priests were likewise granted immunity from taxes andimposts. A t differen t periods of Eg yp tshistory, however, the temples wereliable for imposts and had to furnishgovernment officials with supplies.

W e have copies of the Ro yal Decreesgranting immunity to the temple of thegod, Mm, at Koptos, in Upper Egypt.The chief prophet and subordinates,prophets of Min in Koptos . . . al l serfsof the activity of the House of M in,the acolytes, the followers and watch

of Min , the people of the workhouse,and the two architects of this templethey who are there m y m ajesty doesnot permit that they be put upon anyactivities of the king, whether herds ofcattle, herds of donkey (herds of smallcattle) . . . an y time labor, or anyforced labor to be credited in the Houseof M in in the course of etern ity.

Such concessions by the state of thephylae, or staff of the temple, as oftendone, was a political maneuver intended to win the support of the powerful

riesthoods. M ost of the priesthoodsec am e e n o r m o u s ly w e a l th y . T h e

priesthood of Am on of Ka m ak is anexample. In fact , during the Em pirePeriod, this priesthood became top-heavy with priests and temp le property.

In the period of Rameses IV, the annual incomes to the Temples throughtaxes were enormous a para llel tocertain conditions in our modem times.The temple taxes came under twoheadings, the first of which were theagr icu l tural taxes , the inc om e w asmeasured in grain the grain of thetaxes of farm ers. Other income wasmeasured in units of silver, silver inproperty and in labor of people givenfor the divine offerings.

A knowledge of the extent of the

property holdings may be gained fromthe following: The temples owned 169towns, 9 of them in Syria; over 500gardens, vineyards, and orchards; morethan 50 shipyards and 82 ships; nearlya ha lf m illion cattle, etc. Fu rther advantages of the priesthood were the riteof asylum, and exem ption from poll tax.

T e a c h i n g s O u t e r a n d I n n e r

The priesthood of Egypt were thelearned class. If a ny otner class ofsociety desired knowledge, they wereobliged to acquire it from the priests

under conditions wh ich the latter established. T h e my stery schools, schools ofreligious drama and initiation into secret gnosis, were not composed exclusively of the priesthood. Oth er selectedpersons were chosen to receive the preserved, sacred wisdom. T h e ethics ofthe priesthood were not all the same.Some manifested a greater disciplinethan others. Som e also expounded agreater wisdom than others. Th ere werepriesthoods who had two presentationsof doctrines. One set of doctrines was

expounded for the people at large whoattended the temples as today; thisparticular presentation was for the mul

titude. Such doctrines were imm ersed

in sacerdotal superstition and principally had an emotional appeal. T he y con

stituted the exo t e r i c , or outer teachings.

There were also the esoter i c , or inner

teachings. T h e latter included the secret revelations, the profound knowl

edge of the sciences and the arts of thetime. Such were extended only to mem


8/44

bers of the priesthood and to choseninitiates.

Later the priests of Ptah at Memphis, and those of Re at Heliopolis, werep h ilo so p h er s and theo log ians .T he references at Memphis to the utterancesof Ptah, that the gods spoken wordgoing forth objectified his thoughts, are

most illuminating. Such concepts werethe basis of the later doctrine of thelogos. Th e principles of d e m o c r a c y alsoappear in what were known as theCoffin Texts, that is, inscriptions foundin the sarcopha gi, or coffins. A series ofthese relate to the utterances of the sun-god, as for example, I have made thefour winds t h a t e v e r y m a n m i g h t b r e a t h e t h e r e o f l i k e h i s b r o t h e r duringhis time. And again, I have madee v e r y m a n l i k e h i s b r o t h e r , and I haveforbidden that they do evil (but) it wastheir hearts which undid that which I

had said.Herodotus relates that the priesthood

were ins t r u cto rs in d ivination andastrology. T h e Egyp tians likewise discovered to which of the gods eachmonth and day is sacred; and foundhow from the day of a mans birthwhat he will meet with in the courseof his life, and how he will end hisdays, and what sort of man he will be Herodotus further relates that thepriests practiced me dicine. Ea ch priest-physician was a specialist, and treats

a single disorder, and no m ore; thusthe country swarms with medical practitioners

The duties of the priests and theirknowledge was not confined to temporalmatters and this world. T he ir responsibility also concerned ka (the soul) andits trials and tribulations in the nextworld. I n the a n c i e n t works known asB o o k o f O p e n i n g o f t h e M o u t h , andB o o k o f t h e L it u r g y o f F u n e r a r y O f fe r -ings, rituals and spells are enumeratedwhich were believed to have the effectof enabling the deceased to breathe,

think, speak, and walk in snite of thefact that his body was bound in funerary sw addlings. T h e second bookabove mentioned had the object ofmaintaining the life of the deceased inthe next world. Th e k h e r i h e b , duringsuch ceremonies for the dead, presentedto the statues of the deceased such offerings as m eat, drink, unguents, and wear-ing apparel. Th e kheri heb was a chief

priest. Lite ra lly translated, themeans the holder of the papyruor book. His knowledge wasgreat. It is related of him th at hlearned in W hite and Black M

P er s o n a l L i f e a n d P o w e r

The personal customs and dre

the priesthood impart an interhuman touch to their otherwise esacerd otal office. Herodotus informpriests shave the whole body, other day, that no lice or other imthings may adhere to them whenwere engaged in the service ogods. The priests were dressed enin linen. Th eir shoes were opapyrus plant and it was not lawfthem to wear shoes of any otheterial. T he y w ere obliged to batheevery day in cold water and twicenight besides which the y obser

to speak, thousands of ceremoThe priests personally inspect foods and bless them as do the dox Hebrew s of today. I f the ais pronounced clean in all these vapoints, the priest marks him by twa piece of papyrus round his hornattaching thereto some sealingwhich he then stamps with his ring.

The Egyptian priesthood, as those since the ir time, o ften abusedpower by exploiting the faith, th

norance, and the fears of the pThe Book of the Dead, a collectif u n era r y li tu rg ies, m en t i o n s mc h a r m s sold by the priesthood tpeople to protect them . Th e phood was pandering to the chimagination of the simple peoplewere obliged to purchase and these charms or amulets upon person. Th e people demanded seand were sold these charms, beinsured that by wearing them they be ensconced in the protective inflof the particular deities they sy

ized. T h e peoples confidence affthe priests opportunity to exploitfor gain Th ey invented mormore new spells to sell to the credbuyers.

Th e influence of the priesthood,have related, extended over the community and into the next wIt w as believed and the priestcouraged the ideathat they ha


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power of veto afte r death. T he priestscould prevent one from being buriedin the tomb (the House of Ka) andcould instead consign his name to lasting infamy . In other words, if theyso desired, the priests could refuse the

last sacrament, a fearful thought to thesimple Egyptian peoples.

The power of the priesthood as apolitical influence led Thutmose III tomake the High Priest of Amun thePrimate of all priesthood of Egypt.This office was the chief sacerdotal office of the state. Jam es He nry Breasted,noted Egyptologist and historian, calledit the Amunite papacy. The pharaohswere robbed of income by the effectivegrip of the High Priest of Amun uponthe civil affairs and finances of the

state. Th e priesthood man aged the finances for its own affairs and withheldrevenues from the pharaoh. Ev entually,this resulted in a state within a state,an ulcerous condition. T he state wasgradually impoverished by the priesthood and degenerated into a s ta t e ch u r ch .

Here, with few exceptions, were men

who traditionally were servants of thedivine but who used the faith of the

people to gradually enslave their minds,to keep them in poverty and dependent

on the morsels of knowledge which theycast before them. Th e priesthood creat

ed for themselves a preferred class atthe expense of social progress on thepretext of assuring the security of the

soul of the individual in the next life.

V A V

Bibliography:

HerodotusPlutarch

A nci en t Egyp t's R el ig io n by Jaroslav CemyThe Bu rden o f Egypt by John A. Wilson

Rel ig ion o f Anc ient Egypt by S. A. Mercer

From Fet ish to God by E. A. Wallis Budge

T h e D a w n o f E g y p t by James H. Breasted

Rel ig ion o f Anc ient Egyptby Georg Steindorff

Rel ig ion o f the Anc ient Egypt ians

by A. Wiedmann

V A V

dan


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^L/ouz a n d [j )aucj(i.%B y D r . H . S p e n c e r L e w is , F . R . G .

This reprint from one of the writings of Dr. Lewis has not previously

appeared in this publication.

g r e a t many of us overlook the fact that children have ambitions. Ofcourse, we think that itis futile to talk to children of six, seven, oreight years of age, ore v e n w h e n t h e y a r etwelve or fourteen years

of age, and ask them in a serious wayas to the ir am bitions for the future. It

is thought that the child mind is notcapable of judging accurately in thisregard, but I have found that the average child between the ages of eightand fourteen is always interested indiscussing its possible future in termsof greatness, goodness, outstanding success, and personal power. Eve n theaverage boy or girl who is not readyor is unqualified to say what line ofvocation or avocation may appeal tohim in the future is nevertheless readyto assert that he wants to be an outstanding chara cter one who will be

admired and respected by others.

Here is where parents can make astrong appeal to the imagination andinne r ambitions of their child. To explain to a child that by following certain lines of study or thinking it canassure itself of better health, of mastership in its studies without great effort,ana also bring into its future life thelove, admiration, and respect of adults,always makes an appeal to the childmind. W hen in addition to this sort ofargument, the child is told how special

studies will enable him to be an outstanding character among other children and will make the teachers atschool and the pupils around him respect and admire him, the child mindinstantly builds up an ideal of personalpower that appeals to the imaginationand to his unborn capabilities.

It is possible to begin with childreneven as young as one ye ar of age. Weshould keep in mind, first of all, that

the psychic faculties of a child arely developed, and, second, that earliest years of child life the maistic viewpoint of life has not aplished its damaging work. In fachild mind is naturally impresspsychic influences, and it is safe that between the ages of one anthe average boy or girl sees morhears more of an interesting andnating n ature through its psychic

ties than it sees or hears throumaterial, objective fa cu lties . Tyoung child, the world is at leastpsychic and half-material, and toyoung minds, the psychic world as real and just as natural and nas the objective world is to most a

This is why young childreeasily interested in fairy stories astories that contain what some cal l the wildest dreams of fancy .not difficult to tell a story of fvisible fairies and slightly transppersons moving about in space, fantastic or beautiful worlds and for the child often sees such slvisible or transp aren t characters flabout in space, and has beautiful vof fairylands of which we, in ouryears, know nothing unless wehave redeveloped ana reawakenepsychic faculties.

M any children who seem to bin silence and deep reverie whplay are really in attunement some psychic condit ions, whicha r e o b s e r v i n g a n d s t u d y i n g ,

possibly analyzing. T he first shock that comes to these childregradual realization that the around them, and especialty theients, do not see or hear the same tthat they see and hear. Th e ne xtis when the children begin to spethe strange and beautiful thingshear and see, and their parents oradults tell them that they are misand that such things do not exist


11/44

hat it is only the imagination at work.Here, the child is confronted with

elieving what the parents say, andhereby becomes convinced that for someeason or other its own little mind haseen creating false and nonexisting

hings, or the child must believe thathe parents are greatly mistaken, andhat his own little mind is correct.

D en y i n g t h e F o u r t h D i m e n s i on

Now we know enough of child psyhology to realize that the average childevelops an amazing and wonderful

aith in the integrity, learning, andnusual abilities of its parents. Fo r a

ong period of child life, the averagehild looks upon its parents as thoughhey were gods of wisdom and power.

is shocking to such a child to evernd its parents deceiving him, wilfully

ying to him, or doing anything that mean or sordid, or anything thatorders upon deception. It is onlyatural then that when the parents tell

heir children that the fairies and inisible or ethereal things they haveeen do not exist, the child mind willccept the word of the parents as lawnd will begin to doubt its own impresons.

As I have said, this is a great shock

o the child mind, which has beenradually building up a faith in thethereal things it has been seeing andearing. Now it is confronted with the

enormous task of shattering the worldof psychic things to pieces, negating it,destroying it, and wiping it out of theconsciousness. It is ju st as though we,as adults, were called upon to destroyor to deny and wipe out of our con

sciousness half of the material world inwhich we have placed so much faith.When we, as adults, come to study thepsychic laws and learn the real lawsof nature, we do not have to eliminatefrom our consciousness many of thematerial tilings in which we haveplaced our faith, but generally wemerely have to translate them into theirproper terms without actually destroying them altogether. The child mind, onthe other hand, has to completelyeliminate and thereby destroy the psy

chic world, which has become so realto it.

W he n the child is old enough to playwith many other children in the streetsor in the parks, he also receives manyjo lt s th ro ugh hearin g oth er ch ildre ndeny the existence of things in whichhe has placed his faith. And when itcomes time for him to go to school, heis again surrounded on all sides by theacceptance of the materialistic worldand the denial of the psychic.

W e know from our own experiences

that as we deny the existence of psychicimpressions, and gradually discontinueour attunement with psychic impressions, we lose the keen functioning ofour psychic faculties; they graduallybecome dormant until they cease tofunction altogether. Th is is w hy we, asadults, have such a difficulty later inlife in reawakening these faculties andin developing a psychic attunem ent thatis equal to what we had as children.

C h i l d h o o d R ea l i t i e s

Therefore, parents should begin withtheir young children to encourage themin the seeing and hearing of psychicimpressions. I know of cnildren whowere placed in their little beds in adarkened room early in their lives withthe statement that they should have nofear of darkness or of the nighttime,because there were not only guardianangels who protected little children, butalso other angels and other Cosmic beings who would be visible to them atnight as in the daytime. Th is wa s s a id

to some children a f t e r t h e y h a d b e g u n


12/44

to express v i s ions of some of these psychic personalities.

I found that these children enjoyedlying in the dark for a while just beforegoing to sleep and allowing the Cosmicto fill the bedroom with colored lightsand beautiful visions. One of thesechildren told me often how a little fairy

came and danced on the floor of herbedroom at night and taught her howto dance; and, after a year of this, thelittle girl used to rise from the bed attimes, and imitate some of the dancingsteps which the little fairy demonstrated.

I found afterwards tha t these childrendeveloped unusual psychic faculties. Onone occasion when one of them haddisobeyed the parents and was aboutto approach an open fireplace alone andat a risk of setting fire to his nightclothes, a large strong arm reached outfrom space and pushed him gentlyaway from the fireplace. Th e childrealized that it had been in danger andaccepted this incident as a serious warning.

The child has now grown to youngmanhood and has not forgotten thatincident. It is interesting to hear thisyoung man speak of his psychic experiences as a child and as a youthwith the same faith in their reality ashe speaks of his experiences with them aterial world. N aturally, he has other

characteristics m anifesting in a personalpower and magnetism, and an abilityto master his studies and his school-work that make an impression upon allwho come in contact with him, evenwhen they know nothing of his psychicexperience. T he same is true of theyoung woman who w as at one t ime thelittle girl taking dancing lessons froma so-called faiiy.

W he n a child grows up to lookthese things in a natural way, itnot become fanatical about themwould be the case if an attemptmade to impress these things upomind of a young m an or a young an late in his or her teens. Thnot talk about these things with o

unless others show by their converthat they, too, are sincerely interand have the same firm convicSuch psychic attunement unqueably assures better health for the develops his intuitive faculties to adegree, makes it easier for him to his lessons, and to foresee eventconditions around h is own life, aas to interpret rapidly the nature problems with which he comes intact.

M an y religious principles are taught to children. Th en w henare old enough to be more intein religion, they are not easily lebeliefs that are fictitious and parbitrary from an orthodox poview. Th e laws of Karm a, just icepassion, truth, love, universal toleuniversal peace, and health are sthings to teach to the child mind. will bring to the child mind a pof a loving God, kind and mercifustead of a God that is jealous times angry and revengeful. Th emind can easily conceive of a s

explanation of the laws of Karmju st ic e. I t ac ce pts th ese expla natibeing far more logical and reasothan the explanations of hell, firedamnation.

Here is a great work for parentin this work unquestionably lies thvation of the future generations anbuilding of a better and greater nof people in every land.

V A V

T h e

R o s i c r u c i a n W ha t is comm only known as m oral behavior is the human attempt to p

D i g e s t such a course of m ental and physical conduct as will induce or arouse f

J u ly symp athetic to the realization had of the inner Self.1957 Vali


13/44

3 n jfflemoriam

r e a t i v i t y is o n e o f t h e m o s t n o t a b l e a t t ri b u t e s w h i ch m a n c a n

possess. It comes from the Divin e Mind , and is not a thing

tha t in itself can be learned. It can be developed through a learn

ing of skills, but the creativity must have its origin within man.

That creativity is Divine is easily shown, for is not God, or the

Divine Consciousness, the greatest creator? All things, whether

of a Divine nature or of the material plane, are products of

creativity. One of the highest praises wh ich can be given a man

is to say, He is a creator. T o be able to create, be it art, litera

ture, or science, is to approach imm ortality. Th e degree of validity

of that which is created is the determinant as to whether this

immortality is being achieved.

Dr. H. Spencer Lewis, late Imperator of the Rosicrucian Order,

was truly a creator; he is indeed to be counted among the ranks

of the imm ortals a great m ystic, artist, scientist, philosopher.

The products of his creativity in these fields will remain a part

of mans heritage long after we of this generation have passed

from the scene. His w ork in the philosophical and metaphysical

realm especially was enlightened to the point of Mastership, as

those who knew him can w ell attest. W he n he passed throughtransition, he had re-established in its present cycle the Rosicru

cian Order, AMORC, and had brought the original, authentic

Rosicrucian teachings to many thousands, through his ability to

present these natural laws in a manner which is understandable

to nearly everybody.

Dr. Lewis passed through his higher initiation on August 2,

1939; and, at his request, his earthly remains after cremation

were interred beneath a simple pyramidal monument in the

Egyptian Shrine in Rosicrucian Park.

As befits one of his standing, the occurrence of his transition isremembered by a simple ceremony performed by the AMORC

officers in the Shrin e on the annive rsary of his passing. W e ask all

members, who are able, to join with us at that time by entering

into a one-minute period of silent med itation. T h e hour is 4:1 5

p.m. Pacif ic Day light Saving Tim e, on Friday , August 2. Select

the time in your locality corresponding to this hour, and m a r k i t

o n y o u r c a l e n d a r n o w .


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The Cathedral of the Soul is a Cosmic meeting place for all minds of themost highly developed and spiritually advanced members and workers of the

Rosicrucian fraternity . It is the focal point of Cosmic radiations and thoughtwaves from which radiate vibrations of health, peace, happiness, and innerawakening. Var ious periods of the day are set aside when m an y thousandsof minds are attuned with the Cathedral of the Soul, and others attuning withthe Cathedral at the time w ill receive the benefit of the vibrations. Those whoare not members of the organization may share in the unusual benefits as wellas those who are members. Th e book called Li b e r 777 describes the periodsfor various contacts with the Cathed ral. Copies wi ll be sent to persons whoare not members if they address their requests for this book to Scribe S. P. C.,care of AMORC Temple, San Jose, California, enclosing three cents in postagestamps. (Please state whether member or notthis is important .)

WEALTH IS YOURS

By C e c i l A. P o o l e , Supreme Secretary

roductive o

h e title of this articlemight indicate some concern with the subject ofEconomics, or it mightseem to hold the key topersonal gain and fortuneby proposing a new psychological approach to aliving which would be

wealth and attainm ent,

f you are seeking information in eitherof these fields, you will be disappointedin the material to be presented here.This theme does not concern hypothetical material achievements attain-

R o s i c r u c i a n a^ e under certain circumstances ; i tconcerns that which everyone can obtain if he or she has a desire to do so.

The word w e a l t h usually re fers todayto the accumulation of material posses

T h e

D i g e s t

Ju ly

1957

sions. M ost often these are interin term s of money. Th ere probabnever been a living being who hat some time wished for more mpossessions or more money. Indivin the ir own reasoning, assume thattainment of such possessions relieve them of all their problemactually every intelligent person that anything that we may w

hope for in the material world wbe the solution to any of ourproblems. Th ere are no more individuals merely because of thsession of material things. Th eju st as m any happy peop le w hovery little insofar as the materialis concerned.

I remember a stoiy that illuthe point. It is probably an old


15/44

hich has been fitted into many applitions and classifications. T he storyncerns an individual, probably a busi

essman, who thought almost constantof wealth insofar that he gave mosthis time and thought to the hope of

hieving this wealth. T he sound ofe alarm clock one morning as usualad brought him to consciousness. Ase lay l is te n in g to its echoes, theought came to him that he was facedith another day, another routine day.would be necessary for him to per

rm various personal activities withnly one purpose in m ind that ofriving at the office where he worked

nd going through the routine of theays experience, much of which hed not like. Th en , at the same time, thought if he could only be relievedthat responsibility, the responsibilitynecessarily making a living. Th is

ought was not very original becausemost everyone has had the same idea

one time or another.

However, as this man thought abouts problems and what he might do if suddenly became rich, he dozedain. In th at light sleep, as is commonith all of us, he had a vivid dream.e dreamed that he had a million dolrs. He got out of bed to info rm his

ife, to say that they would not have toork anymore, that they would notve to want for anything. And on thatppy note, he got ready for a day ofsure.

Going into the kitchen he decidedhave a cup of coffee and was some

hat surprised that the electric powerhis stove did not respond and pro

ce heat. Fu rtherm ore, he noticedat his clocks were stopped, that theectric current had obviously been disnnected. He picked up the telephone

protest and could get no responseom the instrument. H e decided thatwould go down the street to a store

d get something for breakfast or stopa lunch counter and find somethingeat. As he left his home he noticed

e traffic was un usua lly light. Th ereas very little movement and very lit activity at a time of day whentivity was usually at its height.hen he reached a nearby shoppingnter, he found all the stores closed.ere was no activity. H e became

ore perplexed as he saw more and

more evidences of more and more people apparently doing nothing.

Finally, he approached another individual who too was wandering aroundtrying to orient himself, and then together they met with others and all

began asking one another for an explanation of the unusual events. W hywas no activity taking place, no storesopen, no business? Fin ally the y founda man who said that he knew the answer. H e explained, Hav ent youheard the news? Eve ryone this m orning has a million dollars; consequently,no one is working. No one is doinganything. P ro d u ct io n has stopped.Services of all kinds have ceased. Everyone thinks that he is going to live inleisure and is starting immediately.

At that point, the man in our storyawoke, but the impact of his dreammade him aware that a million dollars,or the possession of any material objector group of material objects, was hardlythe solution to the problems which inlife he found irritating.

The value of life is in life itself andthe interplay of one life with another.This value is sometimes called servic e .If all services ceased, then the materialworld would cease to function and ceaseto be a school or a training ground in

which we gain experiences that are tobuild our character and to evolve oursoul. Th e w ealth that m an seeks is nota type of wealth that puts all men onan equal basis insofar as material possessions are concerned; it is the wealththat gives peace of mind and the security in knowing that, regardless of thevarying situations taking place in thema terial world, man has an opportunityto survive beyond the restricting forcesof the material world which may irritate as well as give pleasure. If , as inthe dream, everyone had a million dollars, then a million dollars would be oflittle value.

So it is w ith all physical tilings. Amaterial value has only a relative valueas have all things a relative nature ifthey are related to a physical world.A dollar is only w orth a dollar if it canbe exch anged for some othe r possession.When material things no longer existor no longer are something we want,then the dollar or any other medium ofexchan ge ceases to have value. M an yindividuals have personally experienced


16/44

this fact. If an individual has a diseasethat at least today is not known to becurable, or if one suffers from a physical deformity which cannot be modifiedand with which he must live regardlessof his attitude toward it, such an individual is fully aware of the fact thatmaterial values subside in terms of our

ability to secure relief from pain andsuffering.

Money or no other mater ial valuewill buy happiness or relief from thosefactors which are not in themselvesamenable to the mater ial . M any individuals who suffer have gained a pointof view, a philosophy of life, a peaceof mind far exceeding that of those whomay control the destiny of nations andthe finances of a great economic system.

Th e w ealth that is yours is the wealththat makes it possible for you to callupon the values that are not measuredrelative to the physical world, but havevalue relative to a transcendent systemof existence that exists now and goeson even after m aterial values fall by thewayside. M an y values in the m aterialworld are not only relative to the worlditself, but cease to exist with the changing times and the wants and needs ofindividuals. The re was a time, for example, when a thing of great valuewould be the possession of a horse andcarr iage . To day most of us would not

find a great value in a horse evenwere given to us. In fact, it woua liability.

All material possessions fluctuasofar as value ma y be concerned.value, real wealth, is the awareneself, the realization that within something of more importance a

more significance than anythingsurvives in our material environThis inner self, this segment of lwhat we are given to evolve, to edand to bring into its fullest flowTo appreciate that fact, not mererefer to it , but to fully live as we we should when we appreciate a is to put our complete confidencour aim in living toward the achment of those factors which wilvide for us a full realization of life is and fit us to play any parmay be ours in the life that lies whether it is in the material worwhether it is elsewhere in a worldtranscends this one.

W ealth, then, is realization, a zation that service in that maworld is of more value than any

m ent of the m aterial world. W ea

a realization that happiness, the

faction and fulfillment of life, lithe awareness of self as an evo

entity going on into eternity.

V A V

IMPORTANT EVENT IN BRITAIN

T h e

Ros ic ruc ian

Digest

Ju ly

1957

The late summer of 1957 holds promise of a rare gathering of Rosicrucian membe

and dignitaries. On ly once in years is such an occasion in evidence! Th e Lond

Rally, to be held August 31 and September 1, will feature a program of films, lecture

special initiations, forums, and many activities of a fraternal nature.

Honored guests will include the Imperator, Ralph M. Lewis; Grand Masters an

Grand Secretaries from England, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, France, Germany, an

Holland; and numerous other dignitaries of AMORC from various jurisdictions.Dont miss this great opportunity! Make plans now to attend. W rite fo r full part

ulars to the Rally Chairman:

Mr. Robert E. Daniels

59 Edith Grove

Chelsea, London S.W . 10

England


17/44

( f y iic C 0 0 @ u C tu n e

Toda ys boy or girl is tomorrows citizen. In h im or her m ust be pre

served that spirit of l iberty, of tolerance and humaneness, upon which

the future of civilization depends. T he Child Culture Institute, in three

distinctive courses of study, has shown thousands of progressive parents

simple and sure methods for developing these qualities in their children.

Be fo re B i r t h

Perhaps you are an expectant parent. Do you realize that there are things you can

do and think that may have a beneficial influence upon your prospective child? If the

mothers diet, improper clothes, and insufficient sleep affect the unborn child, then what

effect does worry, f e a r and a n ger have upon it? W ha t should or should not be curbedin the parent to cultivate creative abilities in the child? Th e ab ility to avoid harmful

habits and awaken latent talents, impels the parent

to consider seriously the important period be fore the

child is bom. Learn the facts about PR EN AT AL

INFLUENCE.

F rom B i r t h to 3 Yea rs

It is not enough that you be possessed of that all-

consuming instinctive love for your children. It is

not sufficient that you devote time and expend money

for their physical needs. Something o f grea ter im-

port an ce is requ ir ed o f m od ern par en ts . In the

formative childhood years, character must be builtthrough the unfolding of the inherent personalityby developing conscience and quick

ening spiritual sensitivity. Thousands of parents are shocked in later years b y the

conduct of grown sons and daughters. In th em th ey see revealed their own neglect of

the development of their childs moral and psychical qualities. This deficiency a Child

Culture course helps to prevent.

F rom 3 t o 6 Yea rs

The Golden Age of Pericles in Ancient

Greece taught the creation of a pleasant

environment to appeal to the sense of beau

ty in the parents. The right start was and

still is an important factor in the birth and

development of your child. If you neglectto help him establish good habits, he may

mold himself into a form from which he

ma y never escape. The Child Culture In

stitute offers a FREE explanatory booklet

for the enlightenment of prospective parents,

or those with young children. You owe it

to you r child to inquire. Address:

CHILD CULTURE INSTITUTE Rosicruc ian Park, San Jose , Ca l i f .

/NVLTUU-j


18/44

A Prophet o f the T imes

By R a y m u n d A n d r e a , Grand Master, AMORC o f Great Britain

T h e

Ros ic ruc ian

Digest

July

1957

n interesting fact aboutdistinguished men is thatoften they have been led

to their lifework by a so-called chance event. W eknow that the event isnot a chance but destiny,an indication of the direction of karmic influ

e n ce a nd o f i ts f u l f i l l m e n t . O u rRosicrucian studies enable us to realizethat the events of our life are preparedduring the far backward reaches oftime by none other than ourselves; thatwe have been both the architect and thebuilder of the selves we are; that weare confronted here and now with akind of balance sheet of credits anddebits as we have drawn it up on allthe levels of life experience. It now isfor us to wisely adjust so that we ultimately will harmonize completely withthe Cosmic intention and purpose.

In saying, as we do, that we aresuffering this or that condition underthe influen ce of wrorld karm a, we shouldnot overlook the fact that world karmais the collective karma of individualsand that we ourselves may have s o m e responsibility for it. M ost of us, lookingat the world picture today, have a feeling of incompetency, if not of helplessness, in the face of the rapidly movingevents in it. In early history , life tooappeared to be little more than a seriesof wars, a rise and decline of races,cultures which came to fruition andover which we could have rejoiced hadthey not vanished as if they had neverbeen.

Yet these histories covering suchportant periods are in themselvesepisodes of the ir time. In th e ey

the witnesses and writers of themevents loomed so largely, the traand uniqueness fastened their attenso entirely, that all the good and ithe world seemed to be concentrinto a few years. All that they had built up towards an edifice of fuand everlasting greatness, the hand of not understandable fate down and scattered to the four wiOnly the literary records remain aminders of their one time greatne

W e use these teachers of wisdoenlighten and interpret our own lbut forget that much of what wrote was in just such a time asown, wh en the foundations of statespeoples were moving to the ir enddeed, that very fact drew from under stress and inspiration the wotruth w e cherish. W e have lost theart of entering into the m ind and sothese powers and peoples that were. T he d ignity of those empirmen, their grand effort of life winspired and fashioned the very wof truth we know, the chronicle ogreat ones who saw and lived this twe forget.

The same thing is happening tobut we are too localized in visiosee it in proper perspective: races wfoundations are weakening, their on survival slackening; others, smand bled of their dignity and powesuperior forces. W e know of alldire effects arising fr o m such situat


19/44

and yet with a characteristic feeling ofself-security we believe it could neverhappen to us. W e can claim no exemption on any ground whatever, neither of pre-eminent goodness, nor ofrighteousness or superior knowledge, of

scientific adroitness or magical manipulation, or of any natural position on theface of the earth. Fa te, which we understand as karma, is silent and inexorable. It chooses its time to weighnations, principalities, and powers inthe balance with no less certitude thanin the lives of individuals.

If that fact had dominated the mindsof past historians, when all they lovedand had laboured for was swept awayunder their hand, they would have hadthe same facts to relate but they would

perforce have lifted their eyes from thethen present scene, and in looking backward and forward their grief and bitterness would have been mollified by theuniversal pageant of the ir vision. Butthe changes they witnessed were sodevastating that the range and depthof their genius was focused and magnified within the brief intervals of personal experience. How mu ch indeed dothe youth of today in school and collegerealize of the tragedy and pathos palpitating behind the stern narratives of

the passing away of peoples and civilizations, in many respects greater thanour own, and who have taught us someof the greatest truths of life?

A L i f ew o r k

These reflections have arisen fromm y rereading that rem arkable historicaland prophetic survey by Oswald Speng-ler, D e c l i n e o f t h e W e s t . I have referred to the strange way in whichmany distinguished men have been ledto their lifework by a chance event, ahappening very often giving no indication of that lifework. It was the eventof the Agadir which set Spengler uponhis unique task. In 1911 a Europeaninternational crisis was brought aboutwhen the German government sent agunboat to Agadir in southwest Morocco, to ensure German economic interestsin Morocco. Th ere were prolonged negotiations between the two countries,and Germ any ultim ately agreed to forego her claims in exchange for certainportions of French Congo ceded to her.

W e m ay wonder why so relatively

unimportant a matter should have beenthe keynote to Spenglers inspiration.It m ay w ell have been neither the rightnor the wrong of it, but simply that somuch was made of the happening bythe parties concerned in contrast with

the vast pageant of historical truthwhich was coming to birth in the historians mind. It m ay be that he wasso disagreeably impressed by this controversy that he experienced one ofthose inexplicable psychic impulses tounfold a panorama of historical truthabout nations and peoples which wouldgive the W est and the Ea st somethingreally impo rtant to think about. Andhe succeeded.

Spenglers first volume appeared inGermany in 1918; the second, in 1922.

The work made a profound impressionupon the keen and deep-thinking German mind, as it did in America whenfour years later the first volume translated was made available to the English-speaking world by American publishers.Little notice however was accorded thebook in Britain: while in Germanycomm entators upon it abounded. Th eywere swift to recognize genius. But original minds like Nietzsche and Spengler receive scant praise in Britain.An effort was made to treat the book

with indifference. A ny suggestion, forinstance, that civilization in the Westcould possibly decline was ridiculedand, in Britain, simply could not happen. Bu t mu ch has happened since1926, and the decline has been augmented.

Thinkers of note in Germany andAmerica acclaimed Spengler and hiswork. Th is historical scientist who sawworld history as a whole, its meaningand direction, gave to its past epochstheir necessary and meaningful existence in the world picture, and saw noless clearly the decline of those of thepresent and the future. Th e wealth oflearning and observation in this work,which includes the whole world dramaof space and time, is unique in historical literature. For Spengler approaches his subject and deals with itfrom the vantage point of an ascensionof consciousness, from a plateau ofvision which links past, present, andfuture into a comprehensive whole,thereby teaching us to be inclusive andspecific, not including all and overlook


20/44

ing m uch in general terms. Spenglershows mastery of historical perspective.Phases of history w hich historians havedismissed as worthy but of briefestmention, or have ignored altogether, hebrought to l ife with a singular emphasis as of personal knowledge: peoplesand cultures of which we should have

known nothing had not the l ight of hisgenius restored them to us.

Spengler introduces in quick succession s o m e s t a r t l i n g p r o p o s i t i o n swhich no one who is open-minded andhas a ny respect for self-re-education canfail to appreciate. Bu t it mu st be prefaced that a certain preparedness ofmind is required in the reader. Aclosed and self-sufficient mentality willdoubtless be repelled by this work.Even such a mind, if i t is of any commendable calibre, will not fail to perceive its originality, but it will prove

so destructive of existing and cherishedlandmarks as to be impatiently dismissed. It challenges established opinion, and that is a cardinal sin no matterwho the genius m ay be. An open-minded reader will gain an unexpected andvaluable occult service. T he book canclarify his judgment. W ith increasingclearness of vision and broad-minded

ju dgm ent a hos t of in div id ual pr ob lemswill fall into their place and cease, orat least modify their tyranny.

Here are two or three typical instances of the kind of disturbing tremors

Spengler initiates throughout his work:The ground of West Europe is treated as a

steady pole, a unique patch chosen on thesurface of the sphere for no better reason, itseems, than because we live on itand grea thistories of millennial duration and mighty faraway Cultures are made to revolve aroundthis pole in all modesty. It is a quaintly conceived system of sun and planets! W e selecta single bit of ground as the natural centre ofthe historical system, and make it the centralsun. From it all the events of history receivetheir real light, from it their importance isjudged in per sp ec tive. But it is in our ownWest-European conceit alone that this phantomworld history, which a breath of scepticismwould dissipate, is acted out. , . .

It is self-evident that for the Cultures of theWest the existence of Athens, Florence or Parisis more important than that of Lo-Yang orPataliputra. But is it permissible to found ascheme of world-history on estimates of sucha sort? If so, then the Chinese historian isquite entitled to frame a world-history inwhich the Crusades, the Renaissance, Caesar,and Frederick the Great are passed over insilence as insignifican t. How, fr om th e m or -

pho lo g ic a l po in t o f v ie w , should our 18th

Century be more important than any of the sixty centuries that preceded it? not ridiculous to oppose a modern historyfew centuries, and that history to all inlocalized in West Europe, to an ancienttory which covers as many millenniadentally dumping into that ancient histhe whole mass of the pre-hellenic culunprobed and unordered, as mere appematter? Thi s is no exaggeration. Do w

for the sake of keeping the hoary schemepose of Egypt, and Babyloneach as anvidual and self-contained history quite in the balance to our so-called world-hifrom Charlemagne to the World-War andbeyond itas a p re lu d e to classical hisDo we not relegate the vast complexIndian and Chinese culture to foot-notes,a gesture of embarrassment? As for the Acan cultures, do we not, on the groundthey do not fit in (w ith what? ), entirenore them?. . . .

It is this that is lacking to the Wethinker, the very thinker in whom we mhave expected to find it insight into thetorically relative character of his data, ware expressions of one specif ic existence

o n e o n l y ; knowledge of the necessary of their validity; the conviction that hisshakable truths and eternal views are sitrue for him and eternal for his world-the duty of looking beyond them to findwhat the men of other Cultures have equal certainty evolved out of themselves.and nothing else will impart completenethe philosophy of the future, and only thran understanding of the living world shaunderstand the symbolism of history.

Those statements are a modestrevolutionary prelude to nearlthousand pages of keen observation profound truth. T o review such a wadequately would require a volum

itself, and a com petent reviewer. we can touch upon some of its hlights. Fo r I hold that the very that Spenglers work has apparebeen neglected tells greatly in favour. T h e work of men of exordinary insight and outspokennessdom becomes fully recognized rightly appraised until centuries atheir death. Th ey are charged wimessage which is out of tune withpulse of the day . It is dismissed wa gesture of superiority which man understanding mind almost des

of human ity. Spengler had his sof misunderstanding and belittlemfrom prejudiced and jealous contemraries. B u t he finished his work departed in 1936 at the age of

Spengler contends that every culhas i t s own civilization, and that sis the inevitable d e s t i n y of the cultHe contends that civilizations are


21/44

most external and artificial states ofwhich a species of developed humanityis capable. Bu t, contra ry to our ownidea that a civilization can and shouldcontinue to unknown and unbelievableattainments, he takes the reverse view:that civilizations are a conclusion, thething-become succeeding the thing-be-coming, death following life, rigidityfollowing expansion, intellectual ageand the stone-built, petrifying world-city following mother-earth and thespiritual childiiood of D oric an d Gothic.They are an end, irrevocable, yet byinward necessity reached again andagain.

W hen we come to Spengler we haveto be prepared for some very startlingassertions. He takes a swift and decisive

leap beyond the limited horizon of thehistorians we know. One of the mostvaluable services he can render us isto shake us free from the static viewswe hold of nationalism, whether it beour own or that of any other nation.In Britain we have a traditional national isolationism which, however much ithas been rudely disturbed during thiscentury, is as strong as ever it was.Deeply rooted in us and nurturedthrough several centuries, our views ofhistory and civilization are preciselythose w hich Spen gler challenges. Hewrote:

I hope to show that without exception allgreat creations and forms in religion, art,politics, social life, economy and science appear, fulfil themselves, and die down con-temporaneously in all the Cultures; that theinner structure of one corresponds strictly withthat of all the others; that there is not a singlephenomenon of deep physiognomic importancein the record of one for which we could notfind a counterpart in the record of everyother; and that this counterpart is to be foundunder a characteristic form and in a perfectlydefinite chronolo gical position. A t the sametime, if we are to grasp such homologies offacts, we shall need to have a far deeper in

sight and a far more critical attitude towardsthe visible foreground of things than historianshave hitherto been wont to display; whoamongst them, for instance, would have allowed himself to dream that the counterpartof Protestantism was to be found in the Di-onysiac movement, and that English Puritanismwas for the West what Islam was for theArabian world.

This is as provocative as it is enlightening. Its acceptan ce requires an openmind; yet, it is only preliminary. Butthen, he sets out to show that this isexac tly so. Ar e we likely to listen tohim, to put the history books aside for

a moment and examine the evidence?or shall we stil l play the Kant andregard the man of vision as a halfcrazed Beethoven? In Spenglers words:A man like Kant must always feelhimself as superior to a Beethoven asthe adult is to the child, but this willnot prevent a Beethoven from regarding the Critique of Pure Reason as apitiable sort of philosophy. W ell, dustyK an t l ies in state on the library shelves:the glorious harmonies of Beethovencontinue to inspire millions.

Spenglers work is one of the mostdifficult to quote with any feeling ofassurance that one is doing justice tothe author, and at the same time isbeing sufficiently informative to thereader. Th e author gives the feeling of

supreme mastery of his subject, a feeling of extensive and inclusive vision.

A celebrated writer once said that heconstantly wondered whence Poe gothis l iterary style. It was entirely hisown. Th e same may be said of Spengler. In th e section on M usic andPlastic (chapters Th e arts of formand Act ana portrai t) , music, painting, and architecture are given suchunusual associations and applications,as to remind us of Da Vinci, the m asterof all form. His style is adapted per

fectly to the subject. Indeed, he is considered to have mastered some fifteensciences and assimilated the whole historical process. H e seems to be livingamong the masters of these arts as acontemporary, with a complete knowledge of their works living am ong themand yet above them, looking down fromheightened vision and revealing valuesthey themselves never saw.

Dare I quote a passage of despairfrom Act and portrait in connectionwith which certain aspects of the decline impressed Sp engler so profoundly?If it is true we should not ne afraid ofit. He re it is:

The modern artist is a workman, not a creator. He sets unbroken spectrum-colours sideby side. Th e subtle script, the dance of brushstrokes, give way to crude commonplaces, pilings and mixings and daubings of points,squares, broad inorgan ic masses. Th e white-washers brush and the trowel appear in thepainters equipment; the oil-priming of thecanvas is brought into the scheme of executionand in places left bare. It is risky art, meticulous, cold, diseasedan art for over-developednerves, but scientific to the last degree, ener-

(Continued on page 266)


22/44

^ E ^ io t o c jia a t f z jjz a t f i.

oj~ d / f t o m i c f i yacl i at ion

Excerpts from a report to the public of a study made by the National

Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, Washington, D.C.

T h e

Ros ic ruc ian

D igest

July

1957

fHENEVER atomic energy isre leased , there are released with i t ce r t a ininvisible but p o w erf u lradiations. It has beenknown for many yearsthat when these radiations strike living thingsth ey c a u s e im p o r t a n t

changes lhat are often harm ful. It isalso known that the changes may notbe limited to the plant or animal whichreceives the radiation, but may bepassed on to succeeding generations.However, the details of the action, howmuch radiation will produce a givenresult, how much can be done to counteract the deleterious effects, these arelargely unsolved problems.

Th ere has always been some radiationin the environment. Radium and otherradioactive elements in the ground to

gether with cosmic rays from outerspace produce a natural backgroundover all parts of the earth. How ever, asatomic activity is stepped up throughout the world, the a m o u n t of radiationin our surroundings may be substantially increased. Th is could have profound effects on all forms of life. Butt h er e h a s b een d i s t u r b i n g l y l i t t l einformation about just what the effectsm ay be.

E f f ec t s o n H u m a n s

The inheritance mechanism is by far

the most sensitive to radiation of anybiological system.

Any radiat ion which reaches the reproductive ce lls ca u ses m u tat io n s(changes in the material governingheredity) that are passed on to succeeding generations.

Human gene mutations which produce observable effects are believed tobe universally harmful.

Everyone is subjected to the nabackground radiation which causeunavoidable quantity of so-called staneous mu tations. A nyth ing that radiation to this naturally occubackground rate causes further mtions, and is genetically harmful.

There is 110 minimum amounradiation which must be exceededfore mutations occur. A ny amohowever small, that reaches the reductive cells can cause a correspondly small num ber of mutations. more radiation, the more mutation

Th e harm is cumulative. Th e gedamage done by radiation builds uthe radiation is received, and depon the total accumulated gonad received by people from their own ception to the conception of theirchild.

So far as individuals are concer

not all mutant genes or combinatof mutant genes are equally harmA few may cause very serious hacaps, many others may produce msmaller harm, or even no appadamage.

But from the point of view oftotal and eventual damage to the epopulation , every m u tat io n cauroughly the same amoun t of harm . is b e c a u s e m u t a n t g e n e s c a n onlyappear when the inheritance linw hich they are carried dies outca s e s o f s e v e r e a n d o b v i o u s d a m a g emay happen in the first generatioother cases, it may require hundregenerations.

Thus, for the general population,in the long run, a little radiation lot. of people is as harmful as a lradiation to a few, since the total nber of mutant genes can be the samthe two cases.

It is difficult to arrive at a fi


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showing how much genetic harm radiation can do. One m easure is the amountof radiation, above the natural background, which would produce as manymutations again as occur spontaneously.It is estimated that this amount is 30

to 80 roentgens.(The roentgen is a unit of radiation.

To give an idea of its value, the averagedental X-ray delivers five roentgens tothe patients jaw, but only five thousandths of a roentgen of stray radiationto more remote parts of the body suchas the gonads.)

E n v i r o n m e n t a n d F o o d S u p p l y

Radiation in the general environmenthas not yet become a serious problem.In a few decades, however, radioactive

waste products from atomic powerplants wi ll re p re se n t an enormouspotential source of contamination. Howmuch of this radioactivity will actuallyreach the population depends on howsuccessfully it can be kept out of thegreat network ocean and air currents,food and water supplies which connect man to his surroundings.

At present test explosions of atomicweapons are the only significant sourceof radiation in the general environm ent,above the natural background.

Meteorologists have found no evidence th a t a to m ic explosions havechanged the weather or climate. Nordo they believe that continued weaponstests, at the same rate and in the sameareas as in the past, would have suchan effect.

Radiation from explosions passes intothe atmosphere and much of it eventually returns to the ground as fall-out.

Fall-out divides into three classes:(1) close-inmaterial that comes down

within a few hundred miles of the explosion and within 10 to 20 hours, (2)intermed iate m aterial that descends ina few weeks after the explosion, (3)delayed m aterial that remains in theair for months or years.

Close-in fall-out from test explosionsaf fec ts only restr ic ted , uninhabi tedregions.

R ec om m e n d a t i o n s

In the light of these findings thestudy committees have made a numberof recommend ations. Those of thegenetics committee apply most directlyto all of us. Th ey are:

(I ) Records should be kept for everyindividual, showing his total accumulated lifetime exposure to

radiation.(II ) Th e medical use of X-ray s should

be reduced as much as is consistent with medical necessity.

(II I) Th e average exposure of thepopulations reproductive cells toradiation above the natural background should be limited to 10roentgens f rom conception toage 30.

(IV ) Th e 10 roentgen l imit should beperiodically with a view to keeping the reproductive cell exposure at the lowest practicablelevel.

(V ) Individual persons should not receive a total accumulated dose tothe reproductive cells of morethan 50 roentgens up to age 30years, and not more than 50roentgens additional up to age40. (Abo ut half of all U. S. children are born to parents under30; nine-tenths to parents under 40.)

T h e N a t u r e o f M l a d i a t i on

Broadly speaking, radiation is a wayin which energy moves from one placeto another. Thu s, the energy releasedwhen a stone is dropped into waterradiates awa y in circula r waves. Soundenergy radiates from a speakers mouthto a listeners ear; light and heat energyradiate from the sun to the earth. Ele ctrons, radiating from a hot wire, provide the energy that forms the picturein a television set. In th e first fourexamples the rad ia t io n consists of


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waves water w aves , sou nd waves,light waves, heat waves. In the last[heat], the radiation is a stream ofminute particles.

Here we are concerned with atomicradiation. It also transports energy ,carrying it away from over-energeticatoms. X-ray s, the most fam iliar ex

ample, are waves, like light waves, onlyvery much shorter. T o give some ideaof the scale, a water wave or a soundwave may be inches or feet long; alight wave is about a hundred thousandth of an inch long; a medium-shortX-ray, about a billionth of an inch.Another group of atomic radiations,called g a m m a ra y s , are l ike X-rays,but are usua lly still shorter. Th eirwave length goes down to about a 10-billionth of an inch.

One of the major discoveries of modem physics is that the shorter the wave

length of any wave radiation, the m o r e energy each unit of it carries. Hence,X-rays and gamma rays are enormously more energetic than light. Theypenetrate much farther into all kindsof matter, and they produce muchlarger effects.

In addition to waves, atoms are nowknown to radiate a great variety ofparticles. Th ese are all unim aginablytiny (measured in 100-trillionths of aninch), unimaginably light, and knownto us only indirectly through their effects. Some of the more importantparticles are:

Elec t rons . Th e lightest particles, carrying a negative electric charge. Radiation electrons are sometimes calledbe ta r ays .

Protons . About 2,000 t imes as heavyas electrons and positively charged.

N e u t r o n s . Lik e protons, but uncharged.

A lp h a p a r tic les . Each one is an assemblage of two protons and two neutrons.

W h a t R a d i a t i o n A r e W e E x p o s ed t o?

Wherever one goes over the surfaceof the earth, there is always a smallamount of radiation, more in someplaces than in others. It is called background radiation. It comes from twosources. One is the na tura lly radioactive substances uranium , radium, andso on that are found in rocks and the

so il . Of cours e , the pe r cen tage o f ractive deposits varies widely from pto place. T h e other is cosmic radiaCosmic rays are absorbed as they downward through the atmospherethat background radiation from source is greater the higher one goe

There are naturally-occurring ra

active atoms within living plants animals, as well as in the earth. Tevery living thing is exposed to its radiation as well as that from theternal background.

Over and above the background, tare the various forms of man-mradiation to reckon with. A t this pin industrially advanced countriesfar the most important are medicaldental X rays. Th e average U. S.zen now receives roughly the samount of radiation, over his wbody, from X ra y and fluoroscopic

amination as from the natural bground.

Ano ther source of radiation a msource so far is fall-out from atexplosions. Ev ery bomb or dethat is set off throws into the air a hcloud of radioactive particles, somwhich are carried g reat distances bywinds of the upper air, and settlegradually over the whole earth.

At the present time, atomic reacare not a factor in the gen eral radipicture. Bu t when large numbernuclear power plants are in operathe output of radioactive fission pucts will be enormous. T he ingenand care used in the management release of these wastes will determhow much of their radiation passes the general environment.

S h o r t e n i n g o f L i t e

There is considerable evidence, from animal experiments and humortality statistics, that exposuremoderate levels of radiation shorlife expec tancy . (Radiologists dieyears earlier, on the average, physicians having no known conw ith radiation.) Th is results not from specific diseases, like cancer leukemia, that can be caused by ration, but also from more general,fuse effects. Radiation appears to limmunity, damage connective tiand, in general, to lead to premaaging. Doses up to about 100 roentg


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when spread over years have not beenhown to shorten hum an life. On thether hand, we cannot yet say thathere is a minimum amount below

which the effect does not take place.f very large numbers of people were

xposed to a gradually accumulatedose of 100 roentgens or even less, their

ife expectancy might well be loweredy a minor but statistically observablemount.

R a d i a t i o n D i s e a s e

W e w ill not go into the detailedme dical findings here. In gene ral wemay say that the type and severity of

athologica l ef fec ts depend on themount of radiation received at oneime and on the percentage of the total

ody exposed. It has been learned thathielding a part of the body any part reduces the dam age in greater pro

ortion than might be expected fromhe percent of the body-mass protected.

The reason for this is not yet known.Very large single doses (say more

han 800 roentgens) which strike all ormost of the body inevitably cause death.Less than lethal doses produce a variety

f effects. T h e most prom inent imm eiate ones are blood and intestinal disrders; leukemia and cancer are amonghe chief delayed effects. T he skin isery sensitive to radiation. Peop le acidentally exposed to close-in fall-outrom weapons tests have developed

marked external symptoms, includinglcers and loss of hair, although theotal radiation they received was notnough to do serious internal damage.

Unless the dose is heavy, skin effectsre temporary.

The panel concludes that radiationn ju ry is difficult to treat. Som e suc

cess has been achieved with antibiotics(to prevent secondary infection) andblood transfusions. Ce rtain substanceshave been discovered which, if takenimmediately before receiving radiation,

five some protection against its effects,

ut such treatment is not yet in anysense practical.

R a d i a t i o n i n t h e E n v i r o n m e n t

Now we must look into the verytangled problem of how the radiationgets to the people. It is a long wayfrom Eniwetok to Chicago or Bombay.A power station in Oslo or Moscow is afar remove from Johannesburg. Ye t allthese places are in the same ocean ofair; all are surrounded by the interconnecting oceans of water. English

grass has been sprinkled with strontium90 from Nevada. And English cowshave eaten it. Plank ton in the N orthSea has very likely taken up some ofthe radioactivity being dumped therefrom a British atomic reactor. W heredid the ocean currents then carry thisplankton? W ha t f ish fed on i t? W hoate the fish?

C o n c l u s i o n

It is clear that the safe and rationalgrowth of a nuclear power industry involves more than designing individualplants. Th e presence of a single largeinstallation will be felt, in various ways,over a wide region. Obviously, it willnot do to let nuclear plants spring upa d l ib over the earth. T h e developmentof atomic energy is a matter for careful, integrated planning. A large partof the information that is needea tomake intelligent plans is not yet athand. Th ere is not m uch time left toacquire it.

THE C DEGREE INDEX

To all C Degree members who have received monographs p ri or to Ju n e, 1955:

We have still in stock a limited number of C Degree indexes, G-38, covering the

first 100 monographs. W hen they are gone there will be no reprints. These are of

inestimable value to members who review and do study research. These indexes were

originally prepared for that purpose.

Even though you may not want an index immediately, remember, you may in thefuture. So order your copy now to assure yourself of this valuable help $1.25 each.

G r a n d S e c r e t a r y


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T h e

Rosicruc ian

Digest

July

1957

* Z 7 / t ^UzmjizianzzntBy C a r l T h o m a s

Pe o p l e who are drawninstinctively to the

more intangible aspectsof life can be describedas being spiritually restless. Th ey have an un quenchable th ir s t tolearn the more subtlemeanings of life. Th eyoften feel a dissatisfaction with existing conditions.

The individual whohas m ys tica l ins igh t ca n vNjnever be satisfied witht h e m o d e r n t h o u g h t 'jjwhich speaks of a Univ er s a l o r d er i n o n ebreath and in the nextbreath denies the existence of a purpose behind the order. A truemystic, the spirituallyawakened person, chooses to accept thepurpose. H e is able to unde rstand themiracle of life as he contemplates the

beauty of a rose, just as the physicistwho studies the latest thesis on neutronresea rch sees there absolute truth . Toeither one of these persons, the far starsin all directions form an infinite circumference that permits the expandingof consciousness to bridge eternity andembrace all spatial reality.

The mystic knows he is the centerof an observable universe, because thatis the obvious conclusion to be drawnfrom his ceaseless effort for knowledgeand understanding. W here ver he turns,down whichever path he directs hisinquiry, he comes face to face with thefact of a Cosmic imity.

Perhaps the most distinguishing traitof the truly mystical temperament isan abiding faith. Fa ith in a spiritualdestiny and purpose builds an inspirational bridge across the gulf created bythe distorting values of the materialworld. Troubles and irritations will notautomatically vanish in such an aura of

faith; but the mysenabled to rise athem and see lovehope where othethere is o nly frustrand despair. Th e that grows in the su a ll y a w a k e n e d sciousness is a dynquality that sustainotherwise vague dof a creative way o

The re are t imes each individual, mor not, experienceemotional and spicrisis which appeabe insurmountableis moved to cr y outhe injustice of hisition. His faith sto have failed comly and to have bee

masked as the product of wishful ting. H e feels tha t he has been siout as the object of far more abuse

a neighbor who has escaped unscain the same circumstances.

During such periods of test thdividual may turn to logic as the tion to his difficulties. Th is often bhim to the conclusion that in spihis vaunted faith and somewhat attitude he is a helpless victim oenvironment. T h e revered m yliterature does little to help him beoriented. Endless references to the er of directed thinking and indemotion have become meaninglesslife has become a seething turmodiscord in spite of everything he to do, in spite of every attempt at thought. W ha t he has read about coming and transmuting has becomockery, for he has not yet reachepoint where he knows h o w it cadone.

The Creator exists independentany human knowledge about it ;this fact suggests a way to get a w


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able perspective during moments ofstress. A good pla ce for the individualto begin is to imagine that he has neverheard of a force above and beyond thephy sical world. In th at event he wouldbe the same individual in every respect.

His personality, with its foibles andcrises, would be the same.

W hen he thinks this through to itsconclusion he inevitably comes to thepoint where he must ask himself whichis more disturbing, the conflict that israging in the world within himself orthe one that is raging in the worldaround him? Has he unknow ingly become more and more subservient to hisknowledge, instead of more and moreits master? Th is is something that canand does happen. Unless the re is a

constant self-examination, respect forCosmic force degenerates into a form ofspiritual slavery. T he think ing personperiodically asks himself whether hisdeepening respect for knowledge hasnot become a separative adoration.

Each individual is an embryonic god,possessing by implication all the attributes of his Creator. T h e vast, im partial Cosmic force is not somethingapart from h im, not something externalto him. As Em erson has observed, Th esoul contains the event that shall befall it , for the event is only the ac

tualization of its thoughts.All of the definitions of faith are in

agreement on the one point that themachinations of the intellect tend todestroy the effectiveness of faith. Thosetimes in the life of the individual whenfaith s e e m s to disappear coincide withperiods when cold logic, with the doubtsand fears it creates, seems to be mostactive.

Experience will teach the puzzledstudent mystic that there is only onesolution to this impa sse. He m ust stop

trying to be so intellectually mature;he must stop trying to reason his way

through the difficulty; stop resisting thepromptings of the Cosmic. Th ere is alesson hidden in the difficulty that hemust learn if he is to continue toevolve, and he will continue to be confronted w ith th e d ifficulty unt il he stops

resisting.Experience has taught him that there

are problems he cannot handle all byhimself with any g u ara n te e of a satisfactory solution. li e does not hesitateto admit his failures, and above all hehas discarded the idea that there is anystigma attached to such admissions.

The mystics respect for the ubiquitous Cosmic force leads him to the mostimportant single step he will take. Thatstep is an unreserved surrender to thepromptings that will come to him from

time to time. He is reminded that heis one of the cogs on the Wheel of Life,not the unfailing power that keeps theW heel turning. He has been made tounderstand that a harmonious and successful so lut i on o f h i s worldly affairswill be forthcoming if he heeds thevoice of the God of his heart.

This act of surrender will reveal tothe individual that as he heeds thesepromptings each succeeding step of hisprogress w ill be made clear. Such revelation will be a constant reminderthat there is a Purpose behind what hehas been tempted to believe is a mechanistic orderliness of the universe, andhe will be able to s e e tha t th i s P urpose is good and suprem ely wise. At thatpoint his faith will be strengthened toa degree where he knows, beyond therestricted ability of words to describe,

that he is an object of affection and

care. He w ill recall the feeling he oncehad that he was the most abused of allcreatures, and when he sees someone

who cherishes that conviction he willknow a tremendous yearning to point

out the way.

V A V

To progress, m an must remake him self; and he cannot remake him self without

suffering, for h e is both th e m arble and the sculptor. Ea ch individual mu st rise

or sink to the level for which he is fitted by the quality of his tissues and of

his mind. D r . R o b e r t o H e r d o c i a


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a n d Jlo u z

Drawing by G e o r g e W . S t r a t t a n ' ' Exposition by A. S t y l u s

Inhe rent in all the theories and speculations of philosophy, w ith th eir i sm

o log ies , is the one prim e factor G o d I s.

Beneath all the complexities and ram

tions of science, there is one First Caus

final unsolved riddle. Th is cause dissol

self into G o d I s.

Deep within the allegories and symb

all religions is one basic religion, one

mental truth G o d I s .

The se three principles philosophy (L

science (L ife ) , rel igion (L ov e) form the

phases of one Universal Principle which s

into manifestation from the invisible cen

the invisible Universe.T R I P L I C I T Y

A V

A PROPHET OF THE TIMES

(Continued from page 259)

T h e

Rosicruc ian

Digest

Ju ly

1957

getic in everything that relates to the conquestof techn

rosicrucian digest, july 1957

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