Cosmic Consciousness written by Ali Nomad
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16 COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS
The Man-God Whom We Await
by
ALI NOMAD
1915
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
THE NEW BIRTH; WHAT IT IS; INSTANCES DESCRIBED
The religions and philosophies of the Orient and the Occident compared;
their chief difference; The mistaken idea of death. Cosmic Consciousness
not common in the Orient. Why? What the earnest disciple strives for. The
Real and the unreal. Buddha's agonized yearnings; why he was moved by them
with such irresistible power; the ultimate victory. The identity of The
Absolute; The Oriental teachings; "The Spiritual Maxims of Brother
Lawrence;" The seemingly miraculous power of the Oriental initiate; does
he really "talk" to birds and animals? How they learn to know and read "the
heart of the world." The inner temples throughout Japan. The strange
experience of a Zen (a Holy Order of Japan), student-priest in attaining
_mukti_. The key to Realization. An address by Manikyavasayar, one of the
great Tamil saints of Southern India. The Hindu conception of Cosmic
Consciousness. The Japanese idea of the state. The Buddhist "Life-saving"
monasteries; how the priests extend their consciousness to immeasurable
distances at will. The last incarnation of God in India. His marvelous
insight. The urge of the spiritual yearning for the "Voice of the Mother."
His twelve years of struggle. His final illumination. The unutterable bliss
pictured in his own words. What the Persian mystics allusion to "union with
the Beloved" signifies; its exoteric and its esoteric meaning. The "Way of
the Gods." The chief difference between the message of Jesus and that of
other holy men. The famous "Song of Solomon" and the different
interpretations; a new version. A French writer's evident glimpses of the
new birth. Man's relation to the universe.
CHAPTER II.
MAN'S RELATION TO GOD AND TO HIS FELLOW-MEN
The great riddle and a new solution. The persistence of the ideal of
Perfected Man; Has it any basis in history? The superlative faculty of
spiritual sight as depicted by artists, painters and sculptors. Symbols of
consciousness. The way in which the higher consciousness expresses itself.
Certain peculiar traits which distinguish those destined to the influx. The
abode of the gods; The conditioned promise of godhood in Man. What is
Nirvana? The Vedantan idea. The Christian idea. Did Jesus teach the kingdom
of God on earth? Is there a basis for belief in physical immortality? A
new explanation. The perilous paths. Those who "will see God." Evolution
of consciousness from prehistoric man to the highest developed beings.
CHAPTER III
AREAS OF CONSCIOUSNESS
The Divine spark. Consciousness the essence of everything. Axioms of
universal Occultism. The great central light. The teachings of Oriental
seers regarding the ultimate goal. Different stages of mankind. Births in
consciousness. Physical consciousness: its limitations. Mental
consciousness: the jungles of the mind. Soul consciousness; whither it
leads. The irresistible urge. Why we obey it. Sayings of ancient
manuscripts. Perfecting Light. The disciple's test. Awakening of the divine
man. Is he now on earth? What is meant by the awakening of the inner Self.
Is the _atman_ asleep? The doctrine of illusion; its relation to Cosmic
Consciousness.
CHAPTER IV
SELF-NESS AND SELFLESSNESS
The Dark Ages. The esoteric meaning of religious practices. The penetrating
power of spiritual insight. The mystery of conversion. The paradox of
Self-attainment and the necessity for selflessness. The Oriental teachings
regarding the Self. The wisdom of the Illumined Master. The test of fitness
for Nirvana. What caused Buddha the greatest anxiety? Experiences of
Oriental sages and their testimony. What correlation exists between
Buddha's desire and the attainment of Cosmic Consciousness among
Occidental disciples.
CHAPTER V
INSTANCES OF ILLUMINATION AND ITS AFTER EFFECTS
The wonderful brilliancy of Illumination. Dr. Bucke's description of the
Cosmic Light; his opinion regarding the possibility of becoming more
general. Peculiar methods of producing spiritual ecstacy, as described by
Lord Tennyson and others. The Power and Presence of God, as a reality. The
dissolution of race barriers. The effacement of the sense of sin among the
Illuminati. What is meant by the phrase "naked and unashamed." Will such a
state ever exist on the earth? Efforts of those who have experienced Cosmic
Consciousness to express the experience; the strange similarity found in
all attempts. Is there any evidence that Cosmic Consciousness is possible
to all?
CHAPTER VI
EXAMPLES OF COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS, WHO HAVE FOUNDED NEW SYSTEMS OF RELIGION
The simple religion of early Japan. The inner or secret shrine: its
esoteric and its exoteric office. The Mystic Brotherhoods. Why the esoteric
meanings have always been veiled. The great teachers and the uniformity of
their instructions. Philosophy as taught by Vivekananda. The fundamental
doctrine of Buddhism. Have the present-day Buddhists lost the key? Is
religion necessary to Illumination? The fruits of Cosmic Consciousness.
CHAPTER VII
MOSES, THE LAW-GIVER
The salient features of the Law as given by Moses to his people. Had the
ancient Hebrews any knowledge of Illumination and its results? The symbol
of liberation. Its esoteric meaning.
CHAPTER VIII
GAUTAMA--THE COMPASSIONATE
Prenatal conditions influencing Buddha. His strange temperament. His
peculiar trances and their effect upon him. Why Buddha endured such
terrible struggles; is suffering necessary to Cosmic Consciousness? From
what was Buddha finally liberated? The simplicity of Buddha's commandments
in the light of Cosmic Consciousness. The fundamental truths taught by
Buddha and all other sages. Buddha's own words regarding death and Nirvana.
Last words to his disciples. How the teachings of Buddha compare with the
vision of Cosmic Consciousness. His method of development of spiritual
consciousness.
CHAPTER IX
JESUS OF NAZARETH
The astonishing similarity found in all religious precepts; the
distinguishing feature of the teachings as delivered by Jesus. His repeated
allusion to "the light within." The great commandment he gave to his
disciples. Love the basis of the teachings of all Illumined minds. The
"Second Coming of Christ." The signs of the times.
CHAPTER X
PAUL OF TARSUS
His undoubted experience of illumination and its effects. Was Paul changed
by "conversion," or what was the wonderful power that altered his whole
life? Why Paul sought seclusion after his illumination. Characteristics of
all Illumined ones. The desire for simplicity. Paul's incomparable
description of "the Love that never faileth." The safe guide to
illumination. The "first fruits of the spirit," as prophesied by Paul.
CHAPTER XI
MOHAMMED
Mohammed a predestined Leader. Condition of Arabia at his birth. Prophecies
of a Messiah. His peculiar psychic temperament; his frequent attacks of
catalepsy; his sufferings because of doubt; his never-ceasing urge toward a
final revelation. His changed state after the revelation on Mt. Hara. His
unswerving belief in his mission; his devotion to Truth; His simplicity and
humility. His claim to Cosmic Consciousness.
CHAPTER XII
EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
Swedenborg's early life. His sudden change from materialism. The difficulty
of clear enunciation. His unfailing belief in the divinity of his
revelations. How they compare with experiences of others. The frequent
reception of the Light. The blessing of Cosmic Consciousness.
CHAPTER XIII
MODERN EXAMPLES OF INTELLECTUAL COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS: EMERSON; TOLSTOI;
BALZAC
The way to Illumination through intellectual cultivation; Emerson a notable
example; The Cosmic note in his essays and conversations. Emerson's
religious nature. His familiarity with Oriental philosophy; his remarkable
discrimination; the peculiar penetrating quality of his intellect. His
never failing assurance of unity with the Divine. His belief in a spiritual
life. Did Emerson predict a Millenium? His writings as they reflect light
upon his attainment of Cosmic Consciousness.
LEO TOLSTOI--RUSSIAN PHILOSOPHER
Tolstoi the strangest and most unusual figure of the Nineteenth Century;
His almost unbearable sufferings; his avowed materialism; his horror of
death; The prevailing gloom of his writings and to what due. Incidents in
his life previous to his illumination. The remarkable and radical change
made by his experience. To what was due Tolstoi's great struggle and
suffering? Why the great philosopher sought to die in a hut. His idea not
one of penance. The signal change in his life after illumination. What he
says of this.
HONORE DE BALZAC
Balzac's classification as of the psychic temperament. His amazing power of
magnetic attraction. His feminine refinement in dress. His power of
inspiration gave him his place in French literature. The dominant motive of
all his writings. His unshakable conviction of immortality. His power to
function on both planes of consciousness. The lesson to be drawn from
Seraphita. Balzac's evident intention, and why veiled. The inevitable
conclusion to be drawn from the Symbolical character.
CHAPTER XIV
ILLUMINATION AS EXPRESSED IN THE POETICAL TEMPERAMENT
Poetry the language of Cosmic Consciousness. Unconscious instruments of the
Cosmic law. The true poet and the maker of rhymes. The mission and scope of
the poetical temperament. How "temperament" affects expression. No royal
road to Illumination. Teaching of Oriental mysticism. Whitman's
extraordinary experience. His idea of "Perfections." Lord Tennyson's two
distinct states of consciousness; his early boyhood and strange
experiences. Facts about his illumination. The after effects. Tennyson's
vision of the future. Wordsworth, the poet of Nature. How he attained and
lost spiritual illumination. How he again received the great Light. The
evidences of two states of consciousness. Outline of his illumination.
Noguchi--a most remarkable instance of Illumination in early youth; Lines
expressive of an exalted state of consciousness; how it resulted in later
life. The strange case of William Sharp and "Fiona Macleod:" a perfect
example of dual consciousness; the distinguishing features of the self and
the Self; the fine line of demarcation. How the writer succeeded in living
two distinct lives and the result. Remarkable contribution to literature. A
puzzling instance of phases of consciousness.
CHAPTER XV
METHODS OF ATTAINMENT: THE WAY OF ILLUMINATION
The four Oriental methods of liberation. The goal of the soul's pilgrimage.
Strange theory advanced. Revolutionary results that follow. How to perceive
the actuality of the higher Self. Gaining immortality "In the flesh;" What
Revelation has promised and its substantiation in modern Science. The prize
and the price. Some valuable Yoga exercises to induce spiritual ecstacy.
What "union with God" really means. The "Brahmic Bliss" of the Upanashads.
The new race; its powers and privileges. "The man-god whom we await" as
described by Emerson.
THE SELF AND SYMBOL
Thou most Divine! above all women
Above all men in consciousness.
Thou in thy nearness to me
Hast shown me paths of love.
Yea; walks that lead from hell
To the great light; where life and love
Do ever reign.
Thou hast taught to me a patience
To behold whatever state;
However beautiful and joyful; however ugly and sorrowful.
To know that these are--all!--but
The glimmerings of the greater life--
Expressions of the infinite.
According to the finality of that moment
Now to come; in the eternal now, which thou
Sweet Presence, hast awakened me to--
I see the light--the way.
An everlasting illumination
That takes me to the gate; the open door
To the house of God.
There I find most priceless jewels;
The key to all the ways,
That lead from _Om_ to thee.
A mistake--an off-turn from the apparent road of right
Is but the bruising of thy temple,
Calling thy Self--thy soul--
The God within; showing thee,
The _nita_ of it all; which is but the half of me.
And as thy consciousness of the two
The _nita_ and the _ita_, comes to thee
A three is formed--the trinity is found.
Through thee the Deity hast spoken
Uniting the two in the one;
Revealing the illusion of mortality
The message of _Om_ to the Illumined.
--Ali Nomad.
ARGUMENT
Man is essentially a spiritual being.
The source of this spiritual Omniscience we may not, in our finite
intelligence, fully cognize, because full cognition would preclude the
possibility of finite expression.
The destiny of man is perfection.
Man perfected becomes a god.
"Only the gods are immortal," we are told.
Let us consider what this means, supposing it to be an axiom of truth.
Mortality is subject to change and death. Mortality is the manifest--the
stage upon which "man in his life plays many parts."
Immortality, is what the word says it is--godhood re-cognized in the
mortal. "Im" or, "Om"--the more general term--stands for the Changeless.
Birthless. Deathless. Unnamable Power that holds the worlds in space, and
puts intelligence into man.
Biologists, even though they were to succeed in reproducing life by
chemical processes from so-called "lifeless" (sterilized) _matter_, making
so high a form of manifestation as man himself, yet could never name _the
power by which they accomplished it_.
Always there must remain the Unknownable--the Absolute.
"Om," therefore, is the word we use to express this Omniscient, Omnipotent
and Omnipresent power.
The term "mortal" we have already defined. The compound immortal, applied
to individual man, stands for one who has made his "at-one-ment" with Om,
and who has, while still in the mortal body, re-cognized himself as one
with Om.
This is what it means to escape the "second death," to which the merely
mortal consciousness is subject.
This is the goal of every human life; this is the essence, the _substance_
of all religious systems and all philosophies.
The only chance for disputation among theologians and philosophers, lies in
the way of accomplishing this at-one-ment. There is not the slightest
opportunity for a difference of opinion as what they wish to accomplish.
Admitting then, that the goal of every soul is the same--immortality--(the
mortal consciousness cognizing itself as Om), we come to a consideration of
the evidence we may find in support of this axiom. This evidence we do
_not_ find satisfactory, in spirit communication; in psychic experiences;
in hypnotic phenomena; and astral trips; important, and reliable as these
many psychic research phenomena are.
These are not satisfactory or convincing evidences of our at-one-ment with
Om, because they do not preclude the probability of the "second death;" but
on the contrary, they verify it.
However, aside from all these psychic phenomena, there is a phase of human
experience, much more rare but becoming somewhat general, that transcends
phenomena of every kind.
The western world has given to these experiences the term "cosmic
consciousness," which term is self explanatory.
The Orientals have long known of this goal of the soul, and they have terms
to express this, varying with the many types of the Oriental mind, but all
meaning the same thing. This meaning, from our Occidental viewpoint, is
best translated in the term liberation, signifying to be set free from the
limitations of sense, and of self-consciousness, and to have glimpsed the
larger area of consciousness, that takes in the very cosmos.
This experience is accompanied by a great light, whether this light is
manifested as spiritual, or as intellectual power, determines its
expression.
The object of this book is to call attention to some of the more pronounced
instances of this Illumination, and to classify them, according as they
have been expressed through religions enthusiasm; poetical fervor; or great
intellectual power.
But we have also one other argument to make, and this we present with a
conviction of its _truth_, while conceding that it must remain a _theory_,
until proven, each individual, man or woman, for himself and herself. The
postulate is this: immortality (i.e. godhood) is bi-sexual. No male person
can by any possibility become an immortal god, in, of and by himself; no
female person can be complete without the "other half" that makes the ONE.
Each and every SOUL, therefore, has its spiritual counterpart--its "other
half," with which it unites on the spiritual plane, when the time comes for
attainment of immortality.
Sex is an eternal verity. The entire Cosmos is bi-sexual. Everything in the
visible universe; in the manifest, is the result of this universal
principle. "As above so below," is a safe rule, as far as the IDEA goes.
This hypothesis does not preclude _perfection_ above, of that which we find
below, but any radical reversion or repudiation of nature is inconceivable.
"Male and female created he them." This being true, male and female must
they return to the source from which they sprung, completing the circle,
and gaining what?
_Consciousness of godhood; of completeness in counterpartal union. Not
absorption_ of consciousness, but _union_, which is quite a different
idea.
Out of this counterpartal union a race of gods will be born, and these
_supermen_, shall "inherit the earth" making it a "fit dwelling place for
the gods."
This earth is now being made fit. This fact may seem a far distant hope if
we do not judge with the eyes of the seer, but its proof lies in the
emancipation of woman. Its evidences are many and varied, but the awakening
of woman is the _cause_.
This awakening of woman constitutes the first rays of the dawn--that
long-looked for Millenium, which many of us have regarded as a mere figure
of speech, instead of as a literal truth.
The argument is not that there has been no individual awakening until the
present time; but that never before in the finite history of the world has
there been such a general awakening, and as it is self evident that
conditions will reflect the idea of the majority, the fact that woman is
being given her rightful place in the sense-conscious life, proves that the
earth will be a fit dwelling place for a higher order of beings than have
hitherto constituted the majority.
The numerous instances of Illumination, or cosmic consciousness which are
forcing attention at the present time, prove that there is a
_race-awakening_ to a realization of our unity with Om.
Another point which we trust these pages will make clear is this: So-called
"revelation" is neither a personal "discovery," nor any special act of a
divine power. "God spake thus and so to me," is a phrase which the
self-conscious initiate employs, _because he has lost sight of the_ cosmic
light, or because he finds it expedient to use that phraseology in
delivering the message of cosmic consciousness.
If we will substitute the term "_initiation_," for the term "_revelation_,"
we will have a clearer idea of the truth.
Perhaps some of our readers will feel that the terms mean the same, but for
the most part, those who have employed the word "revelation," have used it
as implying that the plan of the cosmos was unfinished, and that the
Creator, having found some person suitable to convey the latest decision
to mankind, natural laws had been suspended and the revelation made.
It is to correct this view, that we emphasize the distinction between the
two words.
The cosmos is complete. "As it was in the beginning, it is now and ever
shall be, worlds without end."
A circle is without beginning or end. We, in our individual consciousness
may traverse this circle, but our failure to realize its completeness does
not change the fact that it is finished.
We can not add to the universal consciousness; nor take away therefrom.
But we can extend our own area of consciousness from the narrow limits of
the personal self, into the heights and depths of the atman and who shall
set limitations to the power of the atman, the higher Self, when it has
attained at-one-ment with Om?
It is not the purpose of this book to trace the spiritual ascent of man
further than to point out the wide gulf between the degrees of
consciousness manifested in the lower animals and that of human
consciousness; again tracing in the human, the ever-widening area of his
cognition of the personal self, and its needs, to the awakening of the soul
and its needs; which needs include the welfare of all living things as an
absolute necessity to individual happiness.
Altruism, therefore, is not a virtue. It is a means of
self-preservation--without this degree of initiation into the boundless
area of universal, or cosmic consciousness, we may not escape the karmic
law.
The revelations, therefore, upon which are founded the numerous religious
systems, are comparable with the many and various degrees of initiation
into THAT WHICH IS.
They represent the degree which the initiate has taken in the lodge.
It may be argued that this fact of individual initiation into the
ever-present truth of Being, as into a lodge, offers no proof that this
earth is to ultimately become a heaven. It may be that this planet is the
outer-most lodge room and that there will never be a sufficient number of
initiates to make the earth a fit dwelling place for a higher order of
beings than now inhabit it. This may, indeed, be true. But all evidence
tends toward the hope that even the planet itself will come under the
regenerating power of Illumination.
All prophecies embody this promise; all that we know of what materialists
call "evolution" and occultists might well name "uncovering of
consciousness," points to a time when "God's will," "shall be done on earth
as it is in heaven."
All who have attained to cosmic consciousness in whatever degree, have
prophecied a _time_, when this blessing would descend upon every one; but
the difficulty in adequately explaining this great gift seems also to have
been the burden of their cry.
Jesus sought repeatedly to describe to his hearers the wonders of the
cosmic sense, but realized that he was too far in advance of the cyclic
end; but even as at that time, a number of disciples were capable of
receiving the Illumination, so to-day, a larger number are capable of
attainment. If this number is great enough to bring about the
regeneration--the perfecting--of the earth conditions, then it _must be
accomplished_.
We believe that it is. We make the claim that the Millenium _has dawned_;
and although it may be many years before the light of the morning breaks
into the full light of the day, yet the rays of the dawn are dispelling the
world's long night.
In his powerful and prophetic story "In the Days of the Comet," H.G. Wells,
tells of a _great change_ that comes over the world following an
atmospheric phenomenon in which a "green vapor" is generated in the clouds
and falls upon the earth with instantaneous effect.
As this peculiar vapor descends, it has the effect of putting every one to
sleep; this sleep continues for three days and when people finally awake,
their interior nature has undergone a complete change.
Where before they "saw dimly," they now see clearly; the petty differences
and quarrels are perceived in their true perspective. Instead of place, and
power, and influence, and wealth, being all-important goals of ambition as
before the change, every one now strives to be of service to the world.
Love and kindness become greater factors than commercial expediency and
business success.
In many respects, Wells' description of the great change and its effect
upon people, corresponds with the effect of Illumination.
The sense of entering into the very heart of things; of growing plants; the
birds and the little wood animals; the intense sympathy and understanding
of life described by him, sounds like the effect of cosmic consciousness,
as related by nearly all who have attained it.
How the world's activities are resumed after the change, and under what
vastly different incentives people work, form a part of the story, which is
written as fiction, but which contains the seed of a great truth.
This truth is expressed in science, as human achievement, and in religion
as fulfilled prophecy, but the truth is the same.
Both religion and science point to a _time_ when this earth will know
freedom from strife and suffering. Even the elements which have hitherto
been regarded as beyond the boundaries of man's will, may be completely
controlled; not _may be_, but _will be_. Manual labor will cease. National
Eugenic societies will put a stop to war, when they come to the inevitable
conclusion, that no race can by any possibility be improved, while the most
perfect physical species are reserved for armies.
Awakening woman will refuse--indeed they are now refusing--to bear children
to be shot down in warfare, and crushed under the juggernaut of commercial
competition.
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