SUMMARY:

As more and more clients present with issues, it is becoming increasingly important that counsellors take into account the Spiritual and/or Religious needs of the client.  This can be achieved by undertaking to do a ‘Spiritual Needs Assessment’ Profile, listening to what a client may be saying though maybe in a veiled fashion, or by exploring with the client about their needs and their future hopes.  The use of open-ended questions is a good way to begin this exploration.

To assist counsellors with this, the following paper looks at some definitions concerning the term, ‘Spirituality,’ and seeks to address the issue of Spirituality in as far as it pertains to the counseling process.  In researching this issue, the author has drawn on a number of texts, both professional texts accepted by the Profession itself, and allied texts akin to same.  Other texts consulted, though not standard texts, help to highlight the relevant arguments made herein.

This paper addresses the need for counsellor awareness of a client’s spiritual outlook, the need for counsellors to respect the right of clients to follow a spiritual path, and to increase our skills as counsellors to incorporate the three core skills of genuineness, acceptance and empathy when dealing with clients – as found in the Person-Centred approach.  A number of questions are put forward merely to assist in facilitating our own awareness as counsellors.

The author trusts that after a counsellor has read the paper that they will have a deeper appreciation for the need to include an assessment of client spirituality.  Apart from looking at some possible real-life situations and a true client case, and suggestions for appropriate use of interventions,  there is attached a lengthy reference list for those desiring to research the issue more comprehensively.

Two examples of Spiritual Needs Assessment Profiles can be found in be found in Topper (2003). There you will find both a Spiritual Well-Being Scale and another, Developing Your Own Survey Questions.   These have not been reproduced in the following Paper due to copyright.

SPIRITUALITY AND ITS PLACE IN COUNSELLING 

To begin this paper, given its broad scope, it may prove beneficial if we attempt to define what we mean when we use the term “Spirituality.”   There are a number of definitions that all have their place and yet, collectively, when read together,  add to each other  and disclose a far deeper layer than if simply taken in isolation.  A literature review reveals the following: “Spirituality…is not simply the opposite of materialism. Far from it. Spirituality is an active process that is inherently purposeful. Its objectives are growth, development, and transcendence. Through our spirituality, we seek to achieve the highest and noblest in ourselves and to create a united and ever-advancing civilization…It follows that a spiritual lifestyle calls for a major review of our thinking about our life experiences and perspectives”  (Danesh, 1994) Thus we can see that an individual’s concept of spirituality in relation to oneself is a matter of deeply going within and “finding” their place in the world. It is an active process of discovery, not a passive or neutral act of simply “accepting” that which is put on us by outside influences. Often we listen to what others are telling us and thus we can incur problems as we bury our own authenticity so as to be accepted by these others.   See the CASE HISTORY on pages 11-12.  Another definition is that put forward by the White House Conference on Aging as developed in 1971:“We shall consider ‘the spiritual’ as pertaining to man’s [woman’s] inner resources, especially his [her] ultimate concern, the basic values around which all other values are focused, the central philosophy of life…which guides a person’s conduct, the supernatural and non-material dimensions of human nature. We shall assume, therefore, that all men [women] are ‘spiritual’ even if they…practice no personal pieties.” (Moberg 1971 cited in Topper, 2003) Here again we have a broader definition that assumes a reality of being called ‘spiritual’ yet not necessarily limited to any one particular faith, -osophy or –ism. Rather, it tries to be broad in its perspective and embraces the concept of values as a guiding principle of how we each conduct ourselves. One publication puts it like this: “We all want our life to have some meaning, some direction, some self-evolved authority for guidance. Values give us all this, so it would be foolish to close our eyes to them.” (Vedanta Kesari, 1996).   Corey (2001) points out for us as counsellors that whilst some clients embrace a spirituality in the context of a formal religion, others may embrace same yet without recourse to formal religion. It shows the importance that we need to be alert, as counsellors, to the difference between Spirituality and Religion, and the nuances contained within each.  It has been advocated (Hepworth, Rooney and Larsen 2002)  that people fall into one of four categories: 1.                  Spiritual and nonreligious

2.                  Religious and dispirited

3.                  Dispirited and nonreligious

4.                  Spiritual and religious 

Finally, an even more broader definition can be seen in the following as addressed by the Summit on Spirituality:  “Spirituality may be defined as a capacity and tendency that is innate and unique to all persons. This spiritual tendency moves the individual toward knowledge, love, meaning, hope, transcendence, connectedness, and compassion.  Spirituality includes one’s capacity for creativity, growth, and the development of a values system.  Spirituality encompasses the religious, spiritual, and transpersonal” (as quoted in Corey, Corey and Callanan, 1998)  From the foregoing, we have a fairly wide scope in which to work by.  Within the fields of counseling it is becoming increasingly acknowledged that by addressing our clients’ spiritual and religious needs, we will assist them to be able to move towards growth and healing. By exploring such issues with our clients in relation to their presenting problems, clients may be helped to find solutions to their struggles (Corey, Corey and Callanan, 1998). Evidence for the interest that spirituality and religion plays in our clients lives can be found in the increased number of articles in this area in professional journals and in presentations at professional conferences. (Corey, 2001). The American Psychiatric Association added the term religious or spiritual problem to its diagnostic manual (4^th Ed. Code V62.89) in 1994 to describe: “examples include[ing] distressing experiences that involve loss or questioning of faith, problems associated with conversion to a new faith, or questioning of spiritual values that may not be related to an organized church or religious institution.” (cited in Topper, 2003) Why is it important to understand the role of religion and spirituality in a clients life? One author, Ratliff (1996) in discussing health care settings, informs us that: “Religious beliefs may dictate food choices, clothing styles, customs of birthing and dying, etiquette in the sick room, use of modern conveniences, invasive procedures, organ donation, reception, use of blood products, certain diagnostic tests, gynecological procedures, spiritual influences on or control of sickness and healing, the wearing of protective devices or tattoos, and the need for prayers and rituals performed by various religious specialists” (cited in Hepworth, Rooney and Larsen, 2002) As counsellors we need to develop awareness of, and respect for, our client’s view of their spirituality (or lack thereof) and their adherence to religion and what this means to them.  It is important that we never assume what a client believes simply based on our own understanding of what spiritual or religious path they may identify with.   For example, if a Christian man is struggling with issues surrounding his sexuality (for example, homosexuality), he may present with feelings of confusion, guilt and/or shame.  These may be due to how he perceives the teachings of his Church, the Bible, and his own concept of spirituality.   He may say that if he acted on his feelings of attraction to other man, that he will be barred from the Kingdom of God or, even more frightening, shall burn for an eternity in hell (yes, there are groups who still push this line). Indeed, I feel some of the so-called “Christian” attitudes regarding “healing” gay people to do more harm than good (for example, Dalbey 2003) whereas others are at least addressing it in a more positive way yet remaining true as to how they see the word of God (Attridge, 2000). Again, as a counsellor, it is important that I be present and listen – and hear – what the client is exposing to me in a spirit of “trust,” and not to be “condemned.”   An awareness of body language is useful here, though the counsellor still needs to check with the client before jumping to conclusions. Given that counsellors have an ethical responsibility to become aware of their own beliefs and how these affect their work with their clients (Corey, 2001, Geldard, 2003), this Christian man’s story should be heard without any judgment. By being able to go with the client’s “frame of reference,” and empathically listening to what is behind his words, he will be placed in a better position to be  therapeutically helped.  As a counselor, I believe a Person-centered approach is required here. To downplay his beliefs and associated fears as somehow being “too out there” or “too abstract” in no way validates his worldview – with the possibility that he may abandon therapy, thus remaining “stuck” in his conflict. I would imagine that this would create further turmoil for him or even worse.  Often people who identify as being Spiritual or Religious are told, “Have Faith.”  But what is faith?  For the Christian man, its explanation is found in Hebrews 11:1 – “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”  Which begs the question: What if this man sees NO HOPE?  We need to then listen to him as he explains how his lack of hope is at variance with his faith.  One book  (Faiver, Ingersoll, O’Brien and McNally (2001) explains that “hope is expressed by the client as faith that there is some reality to life that allows her to endure experiences of suffering.  This reality may be a god who intervenes in history to end suffering, a faith in counseling or the counselor, a faith in science, a faith in the goodness of human nature, or any combination of theses.”  In the same book is cited Sasonkin (1995) who has suggested that for the spiritual or religious person, a loss of hope is actually a loss of faith in God.   So we need to hear where the client is in terms of his (or her) relationship to hope or a lack thereof. As we take on the task of counseling and recognize the place of spirituality in our clients lives, our own beliefs and values will be challenged as we listen to them and the stories that they share with us – we need to guard against being too directive with our clients (Corey, 2001) To overcome such hurdles, we as counsellors are consistently taught to adhere to the three Rogerian core concepts of genuineness, acceptance and empathy (Sharf, 2000) as taught in Person-Centred Therapy.  Again, we are taught that: “The key is for counselors to be sensitive to the needs of their clients, to listen to them and let them lead the way, and to talk about areas they indicate they want or need to explore.” (Corey, Corey, and Callanan, 2001).    In the case of our Christian man above, we should simply let him talk and tell us about what it means for him to be kept from the Kingdom of God,  to allow him to talk as he sees his problems not as we may see them (that is, how we may perceive homosexuality in a Christian or spiritual context). We may be liberal in our own beliefs yet the client’s more orthodox views are what need to be dealt with here.   The counsellor may believe that it is perfectly acceptable to be a gay Christian. However, if the client does not see this as appropriate to their belief system, they may walk away thinking that no one really appreciates where they are at.  As we explore with a client about how they view life in a Spiritual and/or Religious context, such will assist the counseling process tremendously.  We should keep in mind that: “Religious beliefs strongly influence when, how and why persons seek help for emotional dysfunction, and how others [ie. Counsellors] perceive their [clients] symptoms of emotional distress’ (Wilson and Kneisl, 1983) By way of another example, a young Jewish man may be perceived as paranoid if he frequently were to open a female counsellor’s door yet, upon investigation we learn that his religion admonishes against his being alone behind closed doors with a woman who is not a family member (Hankoff, Blumenthal and Borowick, 1977).  This could work the opposite way where a similar though less orthodox client may feel too exposed to disclose certain issues to the counsellor if she were to leave her door ajar on the assumption that this same Jewish admonition is applicable to all Jewish male clients; that all Jewish male clients would accept it. Again we need to be on guard against making any assumptions as to a client’s relation to their faith.  On way to obtain a lucid understanding of our clients spiritual needs is to perform a “Spiritual Assessment of Needs” profile when initially meeting with our clients.  Such will assist the counsellor to gain a deeper awareness of the client’s needs, and the client may feel at ease in talking about their respective spiritual beliefs.  Two such profiles are to found in Topper (2003)     My preference is for the ‘Developing Your Own Survey Questions,” as it allows for greater scope and includes those whose ‘faith’ may otherwise be overlooked.   Another factor to consider is that counsellors do not see a client’s needs only arising from out of a psychological basis – such as low self-esteem, anger, loss or frustration.  As people, we have the four aspects of Physical, Psychological, Emotional and Spiritual – each with its own independent, yet interdependent needs. Maslow’s ‘Hierarchy of Needs’ fits in well here (Diamond, 1994).

Maslow (1954)  presents this set of needs as a hierarchy, consisting of:

1) PHYSIOLOGICAL: hunger, thirst, bodily comforts, warmth

2) SAFETY/SECURITY: out of danger, order, law, stability

3) BELONGINESS AND LOVE: affiliate with others, be accepted; and

4) ESTEEM: to achieve, be competent, gain approval and recognition

5. SELF-ACTUALISATION  - realising personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences.   

If a client feels that their needs are not being met, then they could become ‘stuck’ on a given rung. For example, if a client is not eating well – due to anxiety – then they most likely will not feel ‘Safe’.   If they can talk through their problems, this may help to lesson their anxiety and allow them to regain an appetite.  Then we can move up to safety needs etc.  Maslow’s model shows that we need to have the first four needs met before we can be self-actualized.  We must learn that clients also have spiritual needs such as for meaning, for hope, and for deeper connections in life and beyond.  Indeed, one’s spiritual needs are a deeper perspective of and/or completion of psychological needs.  (Topper, 2003).  Likewise, the spiritual contains a psychological need and neither should exclude the other. One author describes such a limited view leading to what he calls Counterfeit Recovery (Means, 2002) where a person is treated only as a spiritual being, not one who possesses other aspects such as physical, psychological and emotional needs.  He explains that “one dimensional recovery only drives the pain underground where it will later break out in some other form.”   Telling a client who may present with a problem such as guilt, to simply remember, and rely upon, a set of Scriptural injunctions, will not magically solve their problem.  It may certainly offer some form of comfort or respite but other interventions need to be concurrently in place, as too an exploration of the clients cognition and affect surrounding the issue of guilt. He further adds that: “Many secular psychologists have their own version of one-dimensional recovery, because they leave God entirely out of the healing equation.” Let us imagine that a client has a need for connecting to a group of like-minded individuals. The psychological need might consist of the fulfillment of issues pertaining to self-esteem or a feeling of ‘belonging.’  The spiritual need: To find purpose in one’s life via connecting with others who share the same outlook, the same hopes and dreams.  I follow an eclectic spiritual path, taking from a blend of Paganism, Hinduism, Christianity and Theosophy – such a path assists me – as an individual – to make sense of the world; it adds meaning to my life and to the life around me.  Without this ‘meaning,’ I would question the purpose of life and yet to no avail – without finding a ‘meaning;’ a purpose, I feel life would lack that something for which I get up for each day. Finding the Spiritual meaning supplies my psychological and emotional needs for peace, inner strength and understanding of the ‘purpose’ of life per se. If a counsellor seeks to specialize in a given ‘Spiritual’ or ‘Religious’ path, such as Christian Counselling, then they need to be aware of how they deal with their clients.  One example would be the appropriate use and timing when employing scripture to assist in healing (Cloud and Townsend, 2003). If a client were to present with distress concerning a pending divorce from an estranged partner – so as to remarry – yet concurrently feels “condemned” by the Bible, it would be remiss of the Christian Counsellor to say to her: “Well the Bible clearly teaches that divorce is wrong – let us turn to the book of Romans 7:2-3…”   To do so validates her feelings and simply add to her original distress.  Here inappropriate use of scripture could lead to her experiencing deeper guilt, grief and loss issues, and anger at God for creating this scenario in her life. She might turn from her faith yet hanker for this loss of her faith, of her ‘meaning’ in life. A more appropriate and timely response to her might be, “It sounds like it’s really difficult for you to reconcile your wanting to remarry with what the Bible is saying to you.  Remember the words of Jesus from Matthew 11: 28 when he says to you: ‘Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”    Such a response would certainly allow a different view for our client and offer her an avenue of hope as opposed to predetermined despair.  It allows the client to be able to open another “window of opportunity” that might otherwise have remained shut (if not hidden).  Here the appropriate use of scripture can be validating and, given that it is uplifting – for we have passed no judgment on our client – it should add to the healing process or grant the client permission to vent her concerns without hesitation or embarrassment.  For men, in particular, it is important for the Christian counsellor to allow him the opportunity to explore his wounds, and not simply to seek for more strength via exhortation and admonition. (Koepcke and James Wilder, 1994)     By an appropriate and timely  employment  of scripture the counsellor may bring to awareness that which was previously hidden. This is a bit akin to the Johari Awareness Model/Johari Window which, though used to represent the total person in relation to other people (Wilson and Kneisl, 1983), can be made to include an individual’s awareness of hidden thoughts – Quadrant 4: The Unknown.     As seen above, using alternative Scriptures to instill hope can instill hope in people and thus, healing.  Allowing men to speak up is very validating and can generate a whole new emotional awareness which, often hidden, will free men from their pain. (Means, 2002;  Diamond, 1994) For others of different spiritual persuasions, a more eclectic ‘Spiritual and/or Religious’ outlook needs to be employed.  For instance, often men who are starting out on the Pagan path tend to have difficulties relating to the God of Paganism and WICCA (Conway; 1997, Drew, 1998) for they may equate the word ‘God’ with the concept of a ‘Patriarchal Judgmental God’ as often taught in various religions.  These men may feel alone as they have lost the ‘God’ of their family-of-origin, yet find it difficult to get over the hurdle – they find it hard to embrace such a God as a Creator of Life – yet the Pagan God is many things: a creator, a protector of animals, a joker, a god of judgment (Drew, 1998).  And without the embrace, these men can feel lonely, dejected, and that there is no Male Deity with which they can turn to and model Him in love.  As such, male pagans often turn to the Goddess as a Mother figure – but we men need a Father figure too.  As

CASE HISTORY:  A client that I saw for a while had been sexually abused as a child, then as a teenager, and later as a young adult.  Her path was that of the New Age.  Unfortunately, she was told several things that she could not really prove.  For example, that she was a man in a past life and the sexual abuse was a natural outpouring of karma – to balance her past wrongs.  This led to her allowing people to treat her as they wanted – “I deserved it,” was how she put it.   At the same time, she was taught that to express anger was wrong – “Just accept things for how they are.” As we explored her numerous issues, together, a number of beliefs were at variance with others.  Together, we worked at challenging these beliefs so as to bring them into clearer unity.   How does she know that her abuse was linked to a past life event?   She was accepting what was told her on faith.  If true, then are all who are abused as children, teens etc., simply reaping karma?  She responded that, “Yes, they too are being abused due to negative karma.”  And if this is so, then why was she sitting here in front of me trying to gain healing from her past abuse?   What right did she have to expect any less than karma was now presenting to her as recompense?   We looked at the life of people who were poor, those who were martyrs for their faith. I lent her a book, ‘Whom Shall I Fear?’ (by Burkholder), the story of a woman who died for her Faith in the Reformation, not because of some belief that it was so due to karma.  This book seemed to help her a lot. We look at various scriptures together (taken from the Bible and the Bhagavad Gita) to try to gain a spiritual understanding.  But the thing that helped her move on the most was in being able to – and allowed to – express her emotions for possibly the first time.  She cried, she felt pain but then, having worked through these, she reached ANGER.  Together we worked through the anger that had so been cruelly denied expression all these years.    She still holds a lot of her original beliefs but now she questions if these are her own true beliefs or simply the introjections of others.  She told me she feels free at last and that if she enters into another relationship, that now she can take mutual control of the relationship (as an equal), instead of being controlled by her partner. For me, I felt this is a good example of how a person can be caught in an unhealthy belief system, work through past issues by bringing them into the Now,  and then being able to reconstruct their belief system to one that is healthy and encourages growth of their own true self. Corey (2001) points out the following for us: “In some ways a spiritual/religious perspective and a counseling perspective have similar goals. Both perspectives emphasize learning to accept oneself, forgiving others and oneself, admitting one’s shortcomings, accepting personal responsibility, letting go of hurts and resentments, dealing with guilt, and learning to let go of self-destructive patterns of thinking, feeling and acting….Because spiritual and therapeutic paths converge in some ways, integration is possible, and dealing with a client’s spirituality will often actually enhance the therapy process [italics mine]. Following is a brief outline of some of the attributes that a Spiritual Care Giver / Counsellor should try to emulate in their counseling of clients who identify spiritual or religious needs. It needs to be stated that where the term ‘God’ is employed, this is simply indicative of the authors (McBride and Armstrong) own spiritual heritage yet does not detract from that which is meant to be conveyed. 

·        Counselors need to allow clients to tell their stories. It is imperative that counselors communicate a sense of being loved by God and that clients are not responsible for what happened to them as a child.

   ·        Counselors give permission to clients to be angry, especially with God. Be nonjudgmental in allowing clients to explore spiritual issues. Counselors expressing unconditional acceptance may be survivors’ only experience that demonstrates the possibility of God being able to love them in the same way.

·        Counselors help clients recognize that forgiveness is not simply an act but a process that can be begun and completed only after working through the issues concerned and their accompanying feelings. Do not try to rush this process by questioning their pace or suggesting forgiveness as the first step.

·        It is recommended that counselors use every avenue to give clients reassurance of their accountability before God and their place in God’s plan.

·        When appropriate, counselors celebrate, bless, and praise survivors’ rediscovery of a God of hope, a God of great comfort, and a God of great respect for them             (McBride and Armstrong, cited in Topper, 2003 – slightly paraphrased) 

This paper has attempted to highlight the need for counsellors to be open to a client’s spirituality, religion and faith. To deny that such is important for the client, is tantamount to ignoring the client as an individual.  Even if we ourselves do not follow a spiritual path we must allow for our clients to have choice when it comes to the path they choose. If we cannot respect our clients right to this end, then I propose that we seriously must question our motivation for entering the profession in the first instance.  Counsellors have an ethical obligation to continually undertake professional development so as to keep up-to-date and to better understand both future trends and their clients.  This paper highlights too, I trust, a number of questions for possible reflection: 

·        What is the counsellor’s own faith and spiritual prejudices?

·        Can a strong Christian-oriented counsellor work with clients of other faiths and more sofaiths they believe their own negates – Paganism, for one example?

·        How do counsellors grow in awareness of other faiths, spiritualities etc., and thus develop empathy with clients whose persuasion is of these faiths, spiritualities etc?

·        Can an atheist work with a client holding deeply-held beliefs which may be seen, by the counsellor, to rule the clients life?    How does the atheist develop their empathy for such clients?

·        When we challenge clients, are we doing so to change their beliefs to our own? Or to one that is more acceptable? 

·         Is our own faith so deeply challenged that we fear the loss of our own beliefs? If so, then are we fit to remain in therapy with the client?

·        How can we explore a religious belief system that clearly is detrimental to the client and yet the client does not see as being detrimental? 

These are just some questions that I feel we, as professional counsellors, may need to ponder over in anticipation of our meeting with such clients.    By thinking about issues such as these now, we shall certainly both grow in ourselves and, I would hope, be at an advantaged when meeting with clients who may fall into the category of holding to a Spiritual outlook on life.    I wish to conclude this paper on linking spirituality with counselling with the following quote that, for me, sums up best that which I have attempted to say. “Indeed, as one comes to learn the true meaning of life, both in general terms and in relation to individual purpose, every thought, every action is recognized for the full responsibility it implies as a representative of its author. The realization, not only that everything has a purpose, but more significantly, that that purpose is the acceptance of a very special responsibility, [that it] is a measure of true initiation into the secrets of the inner [spiritual] self” (Phillips, 1988)

REFERENCE LIST

1. Attridge, C  (2000)   The Fruit of The Spirit,   The Dawn Book Supply   UK   2^nd  Ed..
2. Cloud, H & Townsend, J (2003)  Making Small Groups Work,   Zondervan  USA
3. Conway, D.J  (1997)  Lord of Light & Shadow:  The Many Faces of The God,  Llewellyn  USA
4. Corey, G (2001)  Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy,  Brooks/Cole  USA  6^th Ed.
5. Corey, G., Corey M.S, & Callanan (1998)   Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions, Brooks/Cole   USA     5^th Ed
6. Dalbey, G (2003)   Healing The Masculine Soul,  W Publishing Group  USA   2^nd Ed.
7. Danesh, H.B. (1994)  The Psychology of Spirituality.     Nine Pines Publ. Canada
8. Diamond, J (1994)  The Warrior’s Journey Home: Healing Men, Healing The Planet,  New Harbinger Publications   USA
9. Drew, A. J  (1998)   Wicca For Men,   Citadel Press  USA
10. Faiver, C., Elliot Ingersoll, R., O’Brien and McNally, C. (2001) Explorations in Counseling and Spirituality   Brooks/Cole  USA
11. Farrar, J & Farrar, S (1984)  The Witches Bible Compleat,   Magickal Childe   USA
12. Geldard, D & Geldard, K (2003)  Basic Personal Counselling: A Training Manual for Counsellors, Prentice-Hall    Aust.   4^th Ed
13. Hankoff, I.D., Blumenthal, M & Borowick, A.E. (1977)  Jewish Ethno-Psychiatry,  Federation of Jewish Philanthropies  USA
14. Hepworth, D.H., Rooney, R.H & Larsen, J.A. (2002) Direct Social Work Practice: Theory and Skills,   Brooks/Cole  USA   6^th Ed.
15. Koepcke, R & James Wilder, E  (1994)  ‘The Men’s Movement’,  Faith & Renewal, May/June 1994
16. Maslow, A. (1954)  Motivation and Personality   Harper USA
17. Means, P. A. (2002)  Men’s Secret Wars,   Fleming H. Revell Publ. USA
18. Moberg, D. (1971) Spiritual Well-Being: Background and Issues. Whitehouse Conference on Aging
19. Phillips, D.A. (1988)   New Dimensions in Health,  Angus & Robertson   Aust.  4^th Ed.
20. Ratliff, S.S. (1996) The Multi-Cultural Challenge to Health Care. In M.C. Julia, (1996) Multicultural Awareness in the Health Care Profession
21. Sasonkin, M. (1995) Unpl. Interview with R. Elliot Ingersoll – See 10 above.
22. Sharf, R.S (2000)  Theories of Psychotherapy & Counseling,  Brooks/Cole USA 2^nd Ed.
23. Topper, C. (2003)  Spirituality in Pastoral Counseling and the  Community Helping Professions,  Haworth Pastoral Press  
    USA
24. Vedanta Kesari (1996)  Values: The Key To a Meaningful Life,  Sri Ramakrishna Math  India
25. Wilson, H.S. & Kneisl, C.R. (1983)  Psychiatric Nursing,  
    Addison-Wesley  USA  2^nd Ed.

[*] Even then, it is up to the client as to whether or not they embrace forgiveness.  Forgiveness may come along years later and therefore I believe a counsellor does not place this on the client as a given expectation.

This article represents the views of the author which may not necessarily be those of the Theosophical Society Pasadena.

WHAT ARE HIERARCHIES?  by  Andrew Rooke 

The concept of Hierarchies is one of the corner-stones of the Ancient Wisdom. This article discusses what this means and how we can apply it to our understanding of how Nature works and how we fit in with the divine plan of Universal Nature.

Many of us have fond memories of school days, progressing on through our classes in elementary school, high school, and perhaps college, all under the watchful eye of our teachers. As we outgrew the lessons of one class, we graduated and moved forward with our classmates to the more complex lessons that await higher up the educational tree. The universe itself is in a sense a vast school in which we are all pupils, learning and progressing in awareness through the various kingdoms of beings and planes of existence that this cosmos offers us. In every classroom there are pupils at roughly the same stage of educational development — the various kingdoms of life — and teachers to help us along to graduation, the spiritual teachers, messengers, and divinities. This in essence is the concept of hierarchies, a cosmic ladder of life reaching upwards and downwards through countless kingdoms of life, offering the multitude of learning experiences we need to progress through and beyond this universe. The word hierarchies comes from the Greek hieros, “sacred,” and archein, “to rule.” It therefore implies grades or a series of beings working cooperatively under delegated authority directed by One having supreme authority. Examples would be any commercial company, government, or club we may have belonged to that has members, managers, and a Chief Executive Officer. Everywhere nature gives evidence of hierarchical organization, of myriad individual lives working cooperatively within more complex entities in the march of evolution. Consider the amazing social organization of the insect world where colonies of ants or bees, for example, behave like a single organism. The human body provides another example in its complex of specialized organs, each fulfilling highly specific tasks to forward the health of the whole. If one looks at the basic building block of the body, the cell, miniature organs with specific functions within their tiny cosmos appear, and again on through the molecular and sub-atomic levels in an infinite hierarchy of life.  The concept of the universe as a hierarchy of life extending through the physical into the spiritual realms is integral to most religious systems around the world. From the animist beliefs of African traditional peoples to the hierarchy of the Hindu gods, there is evidence of a widespread belief in a gradation of power and authority in the universe, of a multitude of entities working together in their appropriate realms in conducting the affairs of the cosmos. In some religions this hierarchy is symbolized as a tree — for example, the Asvattha tree of India, the tree of wisdom and knowledge whose fruits are immortality, with its roots in heaven and its branches in the material world. The Jewish Kabbalah speaks of nine sephira hanging from a tenth, Kether, the crown or primordial point. The Pythagorean school of Greek philosophy had what they called the sacred Tetraktys, referring to the hierarchies of the cosmos in mathematical symbolism. Christianity looks on various grades of archangels, angels, seraphim, and cherubim referred to in the Bible as intermediaries between man and God. Especially influential for our view of angelic beings in the Western world were the writings of 5th-century Christian mystic Dionysius the Areopagite, including his On the Celestial Hierarchy. In modern theosophical literature hierarchies signify the innumerable degrees, grades, and steps of evolving entities in the cosmos guided and directed by higher entities in an infinite series upwards towards godhood and downwards towards increasing materiality. Of mankind’s position in the innumerable steps of the ladder of evolution, G. de Purucker says: “The series of hierarchies extends infinitely in both directions. If he so choose for purposes of thought, man may consider himself at the middle point, from which extends above him an unending series of steps upon steps of higher beings of all grades — growing constantly less material and more spiritual, and greater in all senses — towards an ineffable point. And there the imagination stops, not because the series itself stops, but because our thought can reach no farther out nor in. And similar to this series, an infinitely great series of beings and states of beings descends . . . downwards and downwards, until there again the imagination stops, merely because our thought can go no farther.” — Occult Glossary, p. 58  Theosophical literature generally employs scales of seven, ten, or twelve in describing the hierarchies of beings “above” and “below” the human condition. The hierarchies hang one to another like pendant jewels forming a chain. So, if we use the scale of ten, the highest of our series is the lowest of the next hierarchy above it, and the lowest of our hierarchy is the highest of the cosmic hierarchy below it, giving nine steps. The nine kingdoms of life from highest to lowest as taught by the Greeks are sometimes given as: Super-Divine, which is the highest for us but which is the lowest of the hierarchy above ours — then 1) Divine hierarchies; 2) Gods or the Divine-Spiritual; 3) Demigods, sometimes called the Divine Heroes; 4) Heroes, meaning highly evolved humans; 5) Human beings; 6) Animals; 7) Plants; Minerals; and 9) Elementals. Last comes the highest “Super-Divine” level of the hierarchy below ours, which is highest for them but which is attached to the lowest portion of our present cosmic hierarchy.  

What of the beings “above” humanity, the angels and gods of religion and folklore that so fascinate us? H. P. Blavatsky wrote that the universe is “guided from within outwards” just as human actions are: 

The whole Kosmos is guided, controlled, and animated by almost endless series of Hierarchies of sentient Beings, each having a mission to perform, and who — whether we give them one name or another, and call them Dhyan-Chohans or Angels — are “messengers” in the sense only that they are the agents of Karmic and Cosmic Laws. They vary infinitely in their respective degrees of consciousness and intelligence; and to call them all pure Spirits without any of the earthly alloy “which time is wont to prey upon” is only to indulge in poetical fantasy. For each of these Beings either was, or prepares to become, a man, if not in the present, then in a past or a coming cycle . . . — The Secret Doctrine 1:274-5 

Theosophy refers to the more evolved beings as the Hierarchy of Compassion, which extends from good and noble human beings on upwards through masters of wisdom, gods, and super-divine intelligences to the ineffable source of life in our universe. Here cosmic intelligence and divine substance, emanating from the boundless Unknowable, together produce all phenomena belonging to the spiritual or conscious side of nature.  In theosophical literature, the Hierarchy of Compassion of our solar system from the lowest to the highest is given as: 

1. Men - the human kingdom - This is the midpoint of evolution between elementals and the gods We have reached some degree of self-consciousness and evolved the capacity to think and make independent moral judgements. With these divine capacities we can choose to go on to join the gods, or languish with the lower kingdoms of life - it’s up to us here and now! 

2. Boddhisattvas - those spiritually and intellectually advanced human beings who leave the Nirvana of Buddhahood in order to remain on earth for their sublime work of aiding, stimulating, and guiding those hosts of entities, including humanity, trailing along behind them in spiritual evolution. The Masters of Wisdom who in one or more incarnations will become a buddha. 

3. Manushya-buddhas - meaning human Buddha born in a human body for compassionate work amongst mankind. They usher in each of the 7 root races on each globe and one appears at the mid-point of the root race before the global natural disasters that eventually destroy it. Gautama, commonly known as ‘the Buddha’, was such a Manushya-Buddha being the second racial buddha of our 5th root race. 

4. Dhyani-Bodhisattva - a Bodhisattva of Contemplation. They supervise each of the 7 globes of each round of planetary life. The dhyani-bodhisattva of this Glode D or our earth is also known as the Silent Watcher of our globe. The Silent Watcher is the supreme head of the hierarchy of Masters of Wisdom attached to our globe. 

5. Dhyani-Buddha - meaning the Buddhas of Contemplation. The divine architects who brought forth our solar system. There are 7 Dhyani-Buddhas so that for each round of the 7 rounds of planetary life there is a presiding Dhyani-Buddha. Our present 4th round is under the care of a Dhyani-Buddha belonging to the 4th degree of this celestial hierarchy because we are in the 4th round. 

6. Sons of Light - rays of the manifest or Third Logos. The originants of all phenomena attached to the light side of nature. In our solar system the 7 “rays” emanating from the sun and working in its kingdom as the parents of the planetary spirits of the 7 sacred planets. 

7. Daiviprakriti - divine or original evolver, original source, divine matter or original substance. The Second Logos. 

8. Mahabuddhi - great cosmic mind, intelligence. The basis and fundamental cause of the intelligent operations in and of nature considered as an organism. The Logos. 

9. Adi-Buddhi (Primal Wisdom) - the mystic universally diffused essence. The source of the fountain of light running through all subordinate hierarchies and thus the supreme lord and initiator of the wisdom side of our universe. 

As self-aware human beings we stand midway between the gods and the elemental lives. Having nascent divine capacities, we each can choose here and now whether we will strive to join the gods or be content to remain among nature’s lower kingdoms. As pupils in the school of life, our aim must be to graduate one day, along with our classmates, to other schools of higher learning in the cosmos. Our teachers from the hierarchy of compassion call gently, encouraging us to apply ourselves to our studies and one day join them in guiding the kingdoms of lives ever onward up the cosmic ladder of life. 

AFTER DEATH: WHAT?    by  Andrew Rooke 

There are many fascinating stories in the world’s mystery traditions regarding the nature of heavens and hells. We all know the extent to which these concepts have dominated Christian thinking, though the archetypal preacher raining down “fire and brimstone” from the pulpit on Sundays is thankfully less common these days. More detailed and enlightened statements of the reality of different levels of consciousness we have come to call heaven and hell are stated particularly well in the mystery tradition of the ancient Egyptians in the Book of the Dead (more correctly translated as the Book of Coming Forth Into Light), and Tibetan Buddhist teachings of the six realms which so heavily influenced H.P. Blavatsky and the theosophical tradition – the six realms being hell, the “prêtas” or hungry ghosts, humans, animals, asuras or titans, and the gods or devas (from the Tibetan Book of the Dead). One also finds complex and detailed teachings on this subject in the mystery traditions, such as we have come to know them, of native peoples in Africa, Mexico, North American Indians, and our own Australian Aboriginal peoples. They all have their own symbology, but they set out to describe broadly similar themes in the language and metaphor of their own peoples. This is because of the difficulty we always face in describing in human terms matters relating to the invisible worlds beyond the everyday experience of most of us.

Imagine, if you will, that you are in a pre-birth state with a good friend who is about to take birth on Earth. Your friend asks you: “What will life on Earth in a physical body be like?” How would you answer? No one answer is likely to cover all possibilities. The same is true in discussing the after death states which are so intimately related to the question of heavens and hells. Instead of talking at length about what the various religious and philosophical teachers of the world have said on the subject, I will concentrate on an outline, as I understand it, of what theosophical teachings in the Blavatsky tradition have to say on the subject.

The ancient Egyptians, the Greeks, and others have told us that the after death journey can be pictured as a pathway leading through various realms along the way. Let’s follow this ancient tradition with a modern exploration of this sublime journey that awaits us all one day.

Physical life: a short period of time, maybe only 1% of our ‘universal life’, compared to our other life in the after-death states, said by Theosophy to be on average 1,500 – 2,000 years during which time aspects of our constitution could experience various heavens, hells, limbo, purgatory, etc., according to our level of spiritual evolution and consequent actions in our material life. Alas, for many, life on the physical earth is a hell most of the time; in fact, some Buddhists refer to our earth as a hell (Sanskrit: Myalba), in that it is the arena for working out the effects of past karma and generating future karma.

Physical Death: After the initial disengagement from the physical body so well described these days in the many accounts of “Near Death Experiences”, we have from people revived in intensive care units in hospitals, there is for most people a period of blessed unconsciousness before moving on the so called heavens or grades of ascending bliss and purity, and hells of increasing purgation or suffering. The Esoteric Doctrine teaches that one is not a “punishment” nor is the other strictly speaking a “reward”. The teaching is simply that each entity after physical death is drawn to the appropriate sphere to which the karmic destiny of the entity and the entity’s own character and impulses magnetically attract it. That is, over a long period of time we choose heaven or hell by our own actions! As the Bible puts it, as a man lives of ‘sows’, in his material life, that and that only shall he ‘reap’ after death. Good seed produces good fruit, bad seed tares – or perhaps, even nothing much of spiritual/enduring value follows a negative or colourless lifetime.

Kama Loka: is a Sanskrit phrase meaning “desire-world” into which the human constitution is projected after physical death. It is a semi-material plane or realm, invisible to most, but not all human beings, which surrounds and encloses our physical world. It is the dwelling place of the astral forms of dead men and other dead beings variously referred to in the legends of ancient Greece as “Hades” and “Amenti”, the land of silent Shadows, by the Egyptians. 

When the physical body breaks up at physical death, the astral elements of the excarnate entity remain in kama-loka or the shadow world. If our tendencies during earth life have been on balance spiritually inclined, we can shed aspects of our lower nature which remain and dissipate in this “purgatorial” or “limbo” state following the “Second Death”. If, however, an entity is so weighted with evil tendencies and attracted to earth spheres that it cannot easily rise to the heaven worlds, then it remains for a longer period in Kama Loka and may even sink to the dread Avici state and below that to the Eighth Sphere or Planet of Death there to be ground over in nature’s mills to begin the evolutionary journey towards true humanity again.        

Descents into the Kama Loka and the states and locations even below this state are described in the world’s literature and traditions most beautifully perhaps by Dante in his Inferno, and are attempts to describe real states or locations of purgatorial experience for the soul we usually associate with a hell.             

Second Death: thankfully, lengthy sojourns in these hellish realms are usually the exception in human experience. In most cases, the higher aspects of a human being are successful in bringing about the separation of the “Upper Triad” from the “lower Duad” (Kama-Manas). Previous to this event, the upper Duad, gathers unto itself the “Reincarnating Ego” which is all the very best of the entity that was – our purest and most spiritual and noblest aspirations and hopes and dreams for betterment, beauty and harmony (hence the importance of concentrating on these things during life). The ancient Greek philosopher and initiate priest of the Delphic Apollo, Plutarch, says of this process: “Of the deaths we die, the one makes man two of three, and the other, one out of two.” What he meant was that using the simple division of man into spirit, soul and body:  the first death is the dropping of the body, making two out of three; the second death is the withdrawal of the spiritual from the lower (Kama Rupic) soul, making one out of two. The seeds of the lower elements remain in the Reincarnation Ego as it enters the heaven worlds. Later these will develop into what we recognize of a person in the material worlds when we enter incarnation once again.  Divested, or more accurately, having ‘shaken off’ our lower aspects, the enduring spiritual aspects of our constitution can rise into the heaven worlds. Theosophy uses the Sanskrit – Tibetan word Devachan to describe the “heaven”experience of most human beings.                                                                        

Devachan: means the “god-land”, the state between earth lives into which the human entity, the human monad, enters and rests in peace and blissful repose. I have heard that the highest aspects of our constitution, fly back to their home star, hence the old Roman epitaph “gaudeat in astris” meaning “he rejoices amongst the stars”. Devachan is the most accessible of the heaven worlds so let’s talk about this blissful state. There are many degrees of Devachan and therefore many heavens ranging from the highest Kama-Loka to blissful states beyond our understanding. Devachan is the fulfilling of all the unfulfilled spiritual hopes of the past incarnation, and an efflorescence of all the spiritual and intellectual yearnings of the past incarnation which in that past lifetime have not had the opportunity for fulfilment. It is a period of unspeakable bliss and peace for the human soul, until it has finished its rest-time and recuperation of its own energies, ready for the challenges of another lifetime. It is a state of blissful dreaming reviewing, and constantly reviewing, and improving upon the most spiritual lessons and yearnings of the past lifetime. Though described as a state of dreaming, sages also describe it as vividly more real to the entity in the heaven worlds than our life is to us in this material world (described as illusory or “maya” by the Hindus). It is a time of incorporation and assimilation of the spiritual and enduring lessons we have learnt in any one lifetime as is sleep in our regular sleep/waking cycle in everyday life. Gradually, this process is completed, old memories, wants and desires from previous lives stir in the heart of the entity blissfully dreaming in the heaven worlds and the process of reincarnation is begun.  If we had more time, we could perhaps discuss other subjects such as the even more blissful state of Nirvana and the responsibility of those who approach this high heaven world. What about the Tibetan teaching that the moment of death holds great importance as an opportunity for enlightenment? These are wonderful and complex subjects however a more down to earth consideration may be – how real are these realms and what do they mean to me here and now? Let’s turn to the Tibetans themselves for an answer to this question as they point to the reality of the teaching of the six realms (the heavens, hells, human and animal kingdoms) for us in our behaviour each day. The following is from the wonderful book by Sogyul Rinpoche, The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, pp. 112-113: 

“Do these realms actually exist externally? They may, in fact, exist beyond the range of the perception of our karmic vision… Looking at the world around us, and into our own minds, we can see that the six realms actually do exist. They exist in the way we unconsciously allow our negative emotions to project and crystallize entire realms around us, and to define the style, form, flavour, and context of our life in these realms. And they exist also inwardly as the different seeds and tendencies of the various negative emotions within our psychophysical system, always ready to germinate and grow, depending on what influences them and how we choose to live.”  

HISTORY OF THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY (PASADENA) IN

Our Australasian Section of the Theosophical Society is part of the worldwide theosophical movement founded in 1875 in New York City by H. P. Blavatsky, Henry S. Olcott, William Q. Judge, and others. Since Blavatsky’s death the Theosophical Society has divided into many separate organisations, including the TS (Adyar) based in India, our TS (

Our Australian Section is part of the Theosophical Society (Pasadena), currently under the Leadership of Randell C. Grubb, with International Headquarters located near

The first split in the Theosophical Society took place in 1895, with Colonel H. S. Olcott and Annie Besant on one side, and William Quan Judge on the other. Prominent among the early members who supported Judge at that time was T. W. Willans of

In 1938 Colonel J. M. Prentice became President, and succeeded in the 1940s by Ray James. From 1951 to 1973 Mrs. Muriel Vickeridge was our National Secretary. In the 1970s Clive Bellgrove served as Liaison Officer between our Section and the International Headquarters, and in 1981 Andrew Rooke became National Secretary and remains in that position currently. The focus of activity has gradually shifted from

During Grace F. Knoche’s leadership (1971-2006), there was increased emphasis on public work throughout our Theosophical Society (Pasadena). From August 1976, monthly public meetings were resumed in Melbourne, and in April 1983 the Australasian TS Newsletter, now Theosophy Downunder, commenced publication. In 1992 the section was finally able to realize its long-held dream of a permanent home at 664 Glenhuntly Rd., South Caulfield in Melbourne. The Theosophical Society (

In March 2006 Randell C. Grubb became leader of the Theosophical Society. In 2007 we the established University of the Third Age (U3A) classes in basic theosophy and revamped our newsletter and website as Theosophy Downunder (www.theosophydownunder.org). 

The twentieth century included two world wars, cruel dictatorships, incredible acts of inhumanity, and disharmony with the environment executed on an enormous scale. Finally towards the end of the twentieth century there appeared a glimmer of light – an awakening to the fact of our universal brotherhood – giving renewed hope that we can, if we will, survive as a whole and live in peace. Global awareness spurred on by the ecological crisis of global warming in the 21^st century has led to a wider realization that humanity is indeed one entity and an intimate part of the earth as a living being. 

A shining beacon, ever steady and bright, is the theosophical ideal and its objectives which may apply to everyone, rich or poor, regardless of race, nationality, or religion. If we in Australia, and our Companions around the world, continue to serve the theosophical ideal as steadfastly as did those who have gone before us, I am confident that its light will shine ever brighter throughout the 21^st century and beyond. 

HISTORY OF THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY (PASADENA): PROFILES OF ITS LEADERS  Compiled by Andrew Rooke.

H.P. Blavatsky: Principle founder of the modern theosophical movement Helena Petrovna Blavatsky was never formally the Leader of the Theosophical Society, although it is generally recognized that she was the motivating force of the Theosophical Society. Blavatsky was born on August 12, 1831, at Dnepropetrovsk (Ekaterinoslav), Ukraine, daughter of Colonel Peter Alexeyevich von Hahn and novelest Helena Andreyevna (née de Fadeyev). In 1849 she married N. V. Blavatsky, and shortly thereafter began more than 20 years of extensive travel, bringing her into contact with mystic traditions the world over. In 1873 Blavatsky arrived in

• The Secret Doctrine (set of 2 vols.)
• The Secret Doctrine Index
• An Invitation to The Secret Doctrine
• Isis Unveiled (set of 2 vols.)
• The Key to Theosophy
• The Voice of the Silence
• Studies in Occultism
• Secret Doctrine Commentary: Transactions of the Blavatsky Lodge
• H.P. Blavatsky to the American Conventions 1888-1891
• Gems from the East
• The Letters of H.P. Blavatsky to A.P. Sinnett, transcribed and compiled by A. Trevor Barker
• H.P. Blavatsky and the Theosophical Movement, by Charles J. Ryan
• H.P. Blavatsky and the SPR: An Examination of the Hodgson Report of 1885, by Vernon
  Harrison
• Sunrise Special Issue 1991: HPB, Theosophy, and The Theosophical Society
• H.P. Blavatsky: Collected Writings (15 vols.), compiled by Boris de Zirkoff
• From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan, by H.P. Blavatsky
• Theosophical Glossary, by H.P. Blavatsky et al., edited by G.R.S. Mead
• The Theosophist, (Vol. 1, 1879-1880), edited by H.P. Blavatsky
• HPB: The Extraordinary Life and Influence of Helena Blavatsky, by Sylvia Cranston
• The Occult World of Madame Blavatsky, compiled and edited by Daniel H. Caldwell
• Blavatsky Reference Books compiled and annotated by H.J. Spierenburg. Includes The Buddhism of H.P. Blavatsky; H.P. Blavatsky on the Gnostics; The New Testament Commentaries of H.P. Blavatsky; The Veda Commentaries of H.P. Blavatsky; The Vedanta Commentaries of H.P. Blavatsky; Astrology of a Living Universe; The Inner Group Teachings of H.P. Blavatsky
• Reminiscences of H.P. Blavatsky and The Secret Doctrine, by Countess Constance Wachtmeister, et al.
• Nightmare Tales
• Some Unpublished Letters of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, compiled, with commentary by Eugene Rollin Corson

WILLIAM Q. JUDGE: Leader from 1891-1896William Quan Judge was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1851. He came to New York with his father in 1864, and upon his maturity became a citizen of the

His works are classics in their clear presentation of theosophy to new students of theosophy, particularly his Ocean of Theosophy and pamphlets Echoes from the Orient and the Epitome of Theosophy. Letters That Have Helped Me, a series of personal hints to one of his students, stands as one of the very best guides to putting theosophy into practice in daily life. He also issued recessions of the Indian religious classics the Bhagavad Gita and Patanjali’s Yoga Aphorisms. His writings are collected in three volumes titled Echoes of the Orient. 

KATHERINE TINGLEY: Leader from 1896 – 1929

Katherine Tingley succeeded William Quan Judge to become the second Leader of what is now the Theosophical Society (Pasadena). She was born Catherine Augusta Westcott in 1847 at Newbury, Massachusetts. From an early age she displayed a profound sympathy for the suffering of humanity brought graphically before her sensitive nature during the turbulent years of the American civil war. As she matured, she dedicated her life to philanthropic work in relieving the distress she witnessed in the cruel inequalities of late 19^th-century American urban life. In the early 1890s she organised a Women’s Emergency Relief Association in

DR. GOTTFRIED DE PURUCKER: Leader from 1929-1942

G. de Purucker was born in 1874 at Suffern, New York, son of a prominent Anglican Minister who some years later served as chaplain of the American Church in

JAMES A LONG: Leader from 1951-1971Following the death of his friend and mentor, Colonel Arthur L. Conger, in February, 1951, James A. Long assumed the leadership of the Theosophical Society. His leadership marked a major turning point in the organisational structure of the work of the Society which paved the way for the present period of public work, open discussion of esoteric aspects of theosophical teachings, and expressing theosophic ideas in one’s own words based on trying to practice them in daily life.  Jim Long was born at York, Pennsylvania, on August 27, 1898. At four years of age he was severely crippled with polio, long before modern therapy had found means to relieve its effects. But typical of his tenacious spirit, he turned this “handicap” into a blessing, for it brought with the passing of time a depth of compassion and richness of understanding. Graduating from York

GRACE F. KNOCHE: Leader from 1971 - 2006 Grace Knoche was born February 15, 1909 at the International Headquarters of the Theosophical Society, then located at Point Loma, California, where her father, J. Frank Knoche, was general and business manager. Her mother, Grace Green Knoche, was a writer, teacher, and the international superintendent of the children’s work of the Society.   

Educated at the Raja Yoga School and Academy at Point Loma, Grace completed her education at

RANDELL C. GRUBB:  Leader from 2006 onwards 

WHAT IS THEOSOPHY?: Articles by H.P. Blavatsky, Lo Guest, Jennifer Pignataro, Tony Downey, and Andrew Rooke.  

THE ESSENCE OF THEOSOPHY by H.P.Blavatsky  Many who have never heard of the [Theosophical] Society are Theosophists without knowing it themselves; for the essence of Theosophy is the prefect harmonising of the divine with the human in man, the adjustment of his god-like qualities and aspirations, and their sway over the terrestrial or animal passions in him. Kindness, absence of every ill feeling or selfishness, charity, goodwill to all beings, and perfect justice to others as to oneself, are its chief features. He who teaches Theosophy preaches the gospel of goodwill, and the converse of this is true also – he who preaches the gospel of goodwill teaches Theosophy.             From HPB’s letter to the 1888 Convention of American Theosophists. 

______________________________________________________________________ 

WHAT IS THEOSOPHY? by Lo Guest 

Theosophy is not just another dry and dusty philosophy for university academics! On the contrary, Theosophy is a bright living beam of light in our troubled world, for which all who may wish, can see and follow.  Why did Madame Blavatsky and her Teachers establish the Theosophical Society in 1875? With the upsurge of interest in the ancient Sanskrit literature in the West during the 19^th century and the discovery of the profound knowledge and truth to be found in it, combined with the greatly increasing materialism, greed and lust for power that the mechanisation of industry that century brought with it, the need for restating the ancient Truths for a world in dire need of them had come. HPB was well aware of the fact that the ideas of compassion, tolerance and of a brotherhood of men were desperately needed in the world not only for the last quarter of the 19^th century, but still more for the turbulent 20^th century which lay ahead. In her very first issue of the magazine The Theosophist published in October 1879, HPB wrote an article explaining the meaning of Theosophy in detail, stating that it had been studied for many thousands of years. One of the definitions of the meaning of Theosophy she gives in this article as follows: 

“…The answer, as with all things, is really a hierarchy, a multilevel system that is limited only by our own inability to comprehend. In other words: “What is Theosophy?, is a Koan”… (a word used in Japanese Zen Buddhism, the same as a Mantra=Man=Latin, mense to think, Tra=Tool, therefore a Mantra is nothing else but ‘A tool to think’)…Theosophy in its fruition is spiritual knowledge itself – the very essence of philosophical and theistic inquiry”. [from The Theosophist Oct. 1879: 6] William Quan Judge, who was one of the co-founders of the Theosophical Society along with Madame Blavatsky, Col. Henry Olcott and others, said of the meaning of Theosophy:  “The strength of Theosophy lies in the fact that it is not defined. This means that evolution, slowly progressing will bring out new truths and new aspects of old truths, thus absolutely preventing any dogmas or ‘unequivocal definitions’. In this modern world, Theosophy serves the purpose of quietly, without power and glory, trying to keep alive the ancient Truths without which Humanity cannot survive intact for very long. There is nothing spectacular about Theosophy as stated by Madame Blavatsky. There is no promise of instant enlightenment, of contact with other worlds, or with spirits or ghosts or paranormal phenomena. 

There are no shortcuts to learning about the meaning of Theosophy, no help of mediums or spiritualists, for it is up to each student of Theosophy to try and understand by herself/himself. It is a fact that nobody can tell someone else what is right for them. Each one of us has to be his or her judge. It is well to remember that Life and Karma is an evolutionary process based on Cause and Effect produced by our own actions. One of the lessons that Theosophy teaches is the need to avoid excesses of any kind. The Middle Path, which the Buddha advocated, is perhaps the hardest path of all to travel, for it demands tolerance and understanding and above all love for our fellow men and compassion for them. It also demands of us that we keep our equilibrium, particularly under stress. In his book, Expanding Horizons, James A. Long summarised this task of Theosophy:  “…the present confusion of ideals has brought us to a dangerous pass – and I am not referring to the perils of missiles and rockets, satellites or bombs. They are symptoms, and alarming ones in the hands of the wilfully destructive; but they are symptoms only and do not constitute man. Should the much feared destruction of civilisation eventuate – which I very much doubt will occur- we will have to rely on the simple yet all inclusive truth that you may destroy the body, but you cannot kill life. Man will survive; he will face and surmount every cataclysm that may be in store for him, whether by flood, fire, outer space – or himself! Nations and races, as such have time and again passed out of existence, but the egos that once inhabited them incarnate anew in other lands and in other racial strains. If we grasp that larger vision as far as humanly possible, this will not remove the dangers, but it will help us to meet whatever comes with fortitude…”

After all this the question still remains: WHAT IS THEOSOPHY? What does it mean in every day life? Is it hard to understand? Is it difficult to learn? Do we have to sit for hours studying books? I would say a resounding ‘NO’ to each and every one of these questions! Why? Because the main role of theosophy in our daily lives is to give us awareness of life, a feeling of compassion and tolerance for the joys and sorrows of our fellow men and to help remember the old maxim: “Do unto others, what you would like others to do unto you”. Perhaps to put the meaning of Theosophy into other words we would say – Theosophy is trying to teach us to be ‘humane’ in the fullest sense of the word. 

____________________________________________________________________

AIMS OF THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY (PASADENA) by Jennifer Pignataro. 

I feel the following objectives of the Theosophical Society can give adherents a practical road map for living, if you like. What exactly do each of these aims mean and how does one attempt to aspire to such noble objectives? I would like to walk you through each of them with my interpretation and application of them in daily life or “the karmic script”. The Theosophical Society’s objectives: 

1. To give people an awareness of the laws of the Universe.
2. To spread the knowledge that there is unity to be found amongst all things, because unity is the basis of Nature.
3. To promote an active brotherhood amongst people regardless of race, creed, or colour.
4. To learn knowledge about ancient and modern religions, science and philosophies.
5. To study the inner powers of people.

1/ To give people an awareness of the laws of the universe: The essence of the law of nature is, that all is unity. Everything originates from Spirit and returns to Spirit. Moreover, that the knowledge of “ancient truths” is timeless and universal. 

2/ To spread the knowledge that there is unity to be found amongst all things, because unity is the basis of nature: I like to think of this objective as meaning that everything is connected, that there is no such thing as “chance”. I believe that all civilizations over the eons have believed this, and grasping this principle may lead the seeker of truth to a sense of reconnection with the “divine”.

3. To promote an active brotherhood amongst people regardless of race, creed or colour:  I understand this to mean that a Theosophist is encouraged to consider every person that they meet as having a “divine spark”, that they have come from spirit and that every one is at some stage of evolving along their path of “becoming”, of reaching their potential. While some people that we meet may seem “unevolved”, they hone our power of discrimination.Yet, we must not let race, creed, colour, age or gender initially prohibit us from demonstrating one’s innate “divinity”. One should be able to help those among us by illuminating a path, by way of illustration; by acting with right intention, and mindful of one’s thoughts, words and deeds which daily create one’s karma. I feel that this is the road that leads to “divine ethics”. 

4. To learn knowledge about ancient and modern religions, science and philosophies: Even a cursory glance of past civilizations and their human endeavours in the fields of science, art, religion and philosophy points to timeless lessons of truth, for while man has evolved over millennia, his search has not altered. That is, the perennial questions remain, which, can lead the individual to search for meaningful truth. Such a quest, once the adherent encounters it, sets him on a journey of great discovery. The fruits of such a journey lead the seeker to a greater understanding of self, of those around him and that of nature and the environment in which he finds himself in his current incarnation. 

5/ To study the inner powers of people: This is the magical, alchemical process which occurs when a Theosophist earnestly searches for meaningful truth via the study over a life time, of “ancient wisdom” and universal laws. When the Theosophist applies some of the universal, ancient laws in the practical areas of his life, such as the aims espoused by this Society, then one’s sense of divine origins and strength become further refined. Ultimately, one is aware of creating his own Karma and so may become a beacon of light, hope and inspiration to others.

SYMBOLS OF THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY  by Jennifer Pignataro. 

As one who is curious about the use of symbolism in art and religion, it is of interest to consider how the emblem of the Theosophical Society integrates a number of the prominent religions in a single seal. On the basis of design to convey the multiple messages of the key spiritual movements, the Seal of the Theosophical Society adeptly conveys these. The seal of the Theosophical Society was adapted from the personal emblem of Madame Blavatsky before the Society was founded in 1875. The five prominent symbols in the Seal are: 

1. The Star of David
2. The Ankh
3. The Swastika
4. The Ouroboros (Serpent swallowing its tail)
5. Aum.

Each of the symbols is very old. After some research into the origins and significance of them I was stunned to realise that all of them have been prominent throughout the major civilizations and religions of the world. Madame Blavatsky selected wisely from the ancients when designing her personal emblem which ultimately influenced the Seal of the Theosophical Society. Each of the symbols is representative of “divine, spiritual” principles.  The Star of David: Also known as King Solomon’s seal, in

The Ankh: This was an ancient Egyptian symbol of resurrection and immortality. The cross shape represents matter or the world of form, while the circle above it represents spirit. It can denote the embryonic universe, or spiritual egg or germ hovering over the cross of matter. Astronomically it is the sign of Venus, Earth’s sister-planet and guardian of humanity. The Ankh situated in the centre of the triangles suggests divine immortality.  The Swastika: The Swastika is a holy symbol in Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism. However, this sacred symbol has been misrepresented in the eyes of most people by reversing it, and now it is widely known and used as a symbol of Nazism and other modern Fascist organisations. The Hindu version is often decorated with a dot in each quadrant. It is one of the 108 symbols of Vishnu and represents the sun’s rays. The motif was first used in Neolithic Eurasia and was also used in Native American cultures. The symbol has also been found in Greco-Roman and Gothic Art and architecture. Essentially it represents good luck. The Indian word Shubhtika meaning: good mark, first appears in the classical Sanskrit epics the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. It was incorporated into the Seal of the Theosophical Society due to its Hindu and Buddhist links. 

The Ouroboros (Serpent swallowing its tail): is Greek for the word “tail-devourer”. It is one of the oldest mystical symbols in the world. Plato described the serpent swallowing its tail when describing the first living thing in the universe. It is represented in Aztec, Chinese, Native American, Norse, Christian, Hindu, and Hermetic culture, mythology and literature. It symbolises the cyclic nature of life, the eternal unity of all things, the Absolute, unmanifested universe containing the potentials of all form, regeneration and reincarnation.  Aum or sometimes spelt ‘Om’: It is the most sacred syllable in Hinduism, representing the infinite Brahman and the entire universe. It is considered to be the first sound. In Hindu belief, the world is viewed as vibration or rhythmic waves. It is the sacred symbol of the Trinity of Brahma (the Creator), Vishnu (the Sustainer) and Shiva (the destroyer). The written form of Aum signifies the triple state of man’s consciousness, the waking state, the unconscious state, and the dream state. Aum is the source of all existence. We are reminded of the statement in Genesis which says: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word is God”.  Aum is a word of power and should be uttered with great reverence. Encircled around the Seal is the Theosophical Society’s motto: “There is no religion higher than truth” which is the quest of every theosophist. I like the Seal of the Theosophical Society as it succinctly incorporates the validity of all the major religions. Each of the symbols point to the eternal, unity of all major quests, the search for divine truth and divine meaning.   _____________________________________________________________ 

WHAT THEOSOPHY MEANS TO ME  by Jenny Pignataro 

For me Theosophy and its application of strategies for living, as espoused by the Society’s five objectives, attempts to direct one’s endeavours towards a life of “divine ethics”. This is a personal, individual attainment. I hasten to add, difficult to live by, but a noble attainment, regardless.  What I particularly appreciate about Theosophy is the lack of dogma, any sense of an organised religion with its attendant ritual and regalia. I applaud the fact that it always encourages the individual to freely and personally consider what is “truth” and to discard that which one feels is irrelevant. It encourages one to be the seeker of truth for oneself. It fosters the quest of the independent search for this “truth”. There are no gurus, leaders, messiahs. In fact, the seeker of truth must determine for oneself what this “truth” is, and allows one, over time, to re-evaluate whether this “truth” has currency. This principle links directly to the notion that no god is responsible for one’s fortunes. I especially relate to the notion of being responsible for my own salvation, based on my thoughts, words and deeds. Being aware of this notion, one can not but be made consciously mindful. I find it useful in understanding this notion to regard past civilisations’ images. The one which is the most striking for me is that of the Egyptian “Weighing of the Heart” Judgement scene. In the ancient Egyptian belief system, even thoughts were scrutinized at the day of reckoning.  I also find it insightful and instructional considering the ‘wisdom, truth, knowledge, science and philosophy of civilisations over the ages’ as such information relating to human endeavour has much to teach us, and is current and universal. As a student of the ‘human condition’, wondering and searching for answers to the eternal questions such as “Who am I?”, “How did I get here?”, “Is there life after death?”, concepts and objectives of Theosophy greatly comfort my inquiring mind. 

While various philosophies such as Existentialism consider such questions, I don’t feel that they give valuable strategies for living a purposeful life. Nor do they offer adequate mechanisms for exploring responses from the ancients about what constitutes “truth” and the ancient wisdom.  

THEOSOPHY: A QUESTION OF WHY?  by Tony Downey 

One word has dominated my life and that word has been – WHY? I must have been a very irritating child! However, when I went to school I quickly learnt to bottle up most “whys” for the sake of not only my fellow students, but the teachers who were quite convinced for a time that by staying after school and doing some extra work, all my “whys” would be answered! They were not of course, in fact more whys came and less were answered.  Picture the battle front in

Theosophy Outlined: Theosophy is part of a spiritual movement as old as thinking humanity. Its philosophy is a contemporary presentation of the perennial wisdom underlying the world’s religions, sciences and philosophies. But, these concepts are not dogmas nor is there a creed to summarise its principles, students accept only those ideas that have value for them – theosophical writings are considered not as revelation nor final authority, but as guides in the individual’s search. 

Reincarnation and Karma: are the most widely known ideas popularised in these writings. Whilst many people consider these ideas as Oriental, reincarnation was present in Platonic philosophy, Judaism and early Christianity and indeed was not excluded from the Christian church teachings until the 6^th century. Together, reincarnation and karma explain the causes of each person’s character and circumstances, tracing them to thoughts, actions and desires in this or a past life. It is for this reason people are responsible for their own lives, and no-one else, divine or human can take away or neutralise the results of any of our actions. We are each the product of our accumulated past and evolve spiritually through self-directed and self-devised efforts over a series of lives. 

Universal Brotherhood is a Reality: The basic theosophical idea is the essential oneness of all beings. Life is everywhere throughout the cosmos because all originates from the same unknowable divine source. Consequently, everything - plants, animals, minerals, humans, planets, stars, are alive and evolving. Each is divine at its root and expresses itself through spiritual, intellectual, psychological, ethereal and material ranges of consciousness and substance, depending on its own level of development. Our thoughts and feelings have a potent impact on others, by trying to live in harmony with the divine as best we can, we not only benefit our immediate surroundings but also humanity as a whole. We each have the ability to discover reality for ourselves. To progress we must learn to judge what is true and false, real and illusory, we do not grow blindly following dictates of authority, however high.

 No Dogmas in Theosophy: It was G. de Purucker, one of the foremost theosophical writers who said: “Have we not been told again and again that we must consult our conscience before we accept anything. In order to do that, we have to think. We also know that even in doing so we should, through our own blindness or incapacity reject a truth offered to us, we shall nevertheless have done aright, because we have been faithful to ourselves and to our conscience, the inner man understands, and the truth in time will dawn in faithful hearts”. In following our spiritual instincts and intuitions, we awaken our latent potential. For this reason, it is harmful to force others to adopt what we believe is the proper avenue of thought, each must follow his or her own unique path of unfoldment. We have all evolved at this point of our lives by our own volition – some have not, sadly, evolved too far - look at the wars in the Balkans, continuing unrest in the Middle East, and the drug lords in the Golden Triangle and in South America. So many of the people there are losers – they accept the dictates of their leaders’ dogmas. One day, however long it may take, and whatever generation may be on this earth then, they will be winners – as winners are those who think and thinking leads to change.  Self Directed Evolution: Man is in charge of his destiny if he choses to exercise his Divine capacity for thought and morally directed action. As a famous author said long ago: “Man is but a reed, the most feeble thing in nature, but he is a thinking reed. The entire universe need not arm itself to crush him. A vapour, a drop of water, suffices to kill him. …All our dignity, then, consists of thought. By it we must elevate ourselves, and not by space and time which we cannot fill. Let us endeavour then to think well: that is the principle of morality. By space the universe encompasses and swallows me up like an atom; by thought I comprehend the world”. Blaise Pascal from the Philosophers 1670.   ______________________________________________________________________

IS THEOSOPHY ONLY FOR INTELLECTUALS?  by Andrew Rooke. 

Somebody said to me the other day that their impression of the Theosophical Society was of a group of well-meaning people sitting around abstractly discussing religion without much idea of how the “real world” operates! Somewhere in the back of my mind I remembered that theosophical founder HP Blavatsky said: “Theosophy is who Theosophy does”. In other words, the principle founder of the TS had quite the opposite idea of Theosophy – that is a living philosophy to be incorporated into one’s life and expressed in everything we say and do. This line of thought set me rummaging about in the theosophical literature to see what more the theosophical founders had to say on the subject of whether theosophy is only for intellectually inclined people. Here are a couple of comments from William Quan Judge, the first Leader of our Society, on this subject:  “…High scholarship and a knowledge of metaphysics are good to have, but the mass of people are neither scholars nor metaphysicians. What we need is such a Theosophical education as will give us the ability to expound Theosophy in a way to be understood by the ordinary person … We should do as the Buddha taught his disciples: preach, practice, promulgate and illustrate our doctrines. He spoke to the meanest of men with affect, although having a deeper doctrine for the greater and more learned minds. Let us, then, acquire the art of practical exposition of ethics based on our theories and enforced by the fact of Universal Brotherhood”. A few months before her passing, HP Blavatsky said to her inner group of students: “The white Adept is not at first of powerful intellect. In fact, HPB had known Adepts whose intellectual powers were originally below the average. It is the Adept’s purity, his equal love to all, his working with nature, with Karma, with his “Inner God”, that give him his power. Intellect by itself alone will make the Black Magician. For intellect alone is accompanied with pride and selfishness: it is the intellectual plus the spiritual that raises man. For spirituality prevents pride and vanity”. This certainly gives us plenty to think about in approaching living and teaching Theosophy within the original spirit of the founders of the TS.         ____________________________________________________________________

THEOSOPHY AND DOGMA by Lo Guest   

What is Dogma and how do we define it? I looked up the word in the Concise Oxford Dictionary for a succinct explanation and this is what I found: “Arrogant declaration of opinion”. Surely nothing could be further from the teachings of Theosophy. 

Theosophy, as the word implies, is searching for the ultimate Truth and Wisdom. It is not a religion, yet today there are many people who are trying to interpret Theosophy as a religion, using old and new texts in an attempt to make the words in them say that theosophy is searching for the “God above all other Gods.”  We must be clear in our minds however, that Theosophy’s main object is to work for a Universal Brotherhood of Man, with compassion, tolerance and love. To be successful in its quest, Theosophy is striving to understand that mysterious something which is greater than us, yet is part of us, for it is this mysterious something which is the all-pervading, unifying factor of all life which makes us all brothers. In the ancient Upanishads of India, this One-Ness was recognised, and to express this One-ness the following phrase was used: TAT T’VAM ASI meaning THAT ARE THOU, recognising that the mystery we call God is within us, is our true Self, is the spark that never dies and this spark is part of Atman, the World-Soul.We are reluctant to acknowledge this fact, for it is a hard step to take. Suddenly we cannot say any more: “My God what have you done to me!” when something goes wrong. Our Western traditions have not prepared us to know and understand the mystery of the world, nor has it prepared us for the fact that we ourselves must seek the truth by our own efforts. However, to seek for the Truth by our own efforts, we cannot be bound by any Dogma. Dogma is imposed upon us by others and denies us our birthright of being allowed to think for ourselves and therefore stunts our mental and spiritual growth. Theosophy in its search for Truth has taken as its motto: “There is no Religion Higher than Truth”. It acknowledges that everything in the Universe, as well as all the other universes which we are gradually getting to know, is pervaded by the one life-force, including the smallest of atoms. 

Perhaps this sounds strange to us, but we have only to read a poem written by the English poet and mystic William Blake, to realise that this idea is not foreign to our way of thinking: “To see a World in a grain of Sand and Heaven in a Wild Flower, Hold Infinity in the Palm of your Hand An Eternity in an Hour”. In a small booklet published by the Theosophical University Press of Pasadena, the objects of the Theosophical Society are stated as follows: 

1/ to diffuse among men a knowledge of the laws inherent in the Universe

2/ to promulgate the knowledge of essential unity of all that is fundamental in Nature.           

3/ to study ancient and modern religions, science and philosophy.  

4. To learn knowledge about ancient and modern religions, science and philosophies:         

5/ to investigate the powers innate in man. 

All of these objects of the Society are learning ones, all of them are demanding that we attempt to practice tolerance and compassion towards our fellow men if we would like to achieve the aim of the Society: a Brotherhood among men. All of these subjects demand of us awareness of the need of our fellowmen, a broadening of the mind, a thinking out of ideas for ourselves and not simply accepting and believing because we are told to do so. One thing is certain, these objects of the Society do not allow for Dogma, “an arrogant declaration of opinion”. Nobody was more aware of the danger of Dogmatism than Madame Blavatsky. In the conclusion to her book The Key to Theosophy when asked about the future of Theosophy and how much knowledge the people who carry it on into the next (i.e. 20^th) century would have to have, she said: “I do not refer to technical knowledge of the esoteric doctrine, though it is most important: I spoke rather of the great need which our successors in the guidance of the Society will have of unbiased and clear judgement. Every such attempt as the Theosophical Society has hitherto ended in failure, because, sooner or later it has degenerated into a sect, set up hard-and-fast dogmas of its own, and so lost by imperceptible degrees, that vitality which living truth alone can impart”.  Dogma does not allow clear thinking, tolerance or compassion for it demands blind belief in what we are told to believe. Let me conclude with the last two verses of the ancient creation hymn from the Indian religious text, The Rig Veda, which opens up the quest for searching after the Truth inherent in every human being. In the beginning this creation Hymn is very similar to our Genesis until suddenly in the last two verses the question is asked: “Who really knows about creation?” These verses read as follows: “Who knows truly? Who can declare it? Whence this emanation has arisen, Whether God created it, or whether He did not. Only He, who is the overseer in the highest heaven knows. He only knows, or perhaps even He does not know!” (quoted from Hindu Scriptures, edited by R.C. Zaehner) 

There will come a day when we will know, but that day will only come by our own efforts.  

THEOSOPHY IN PRACTICE: practical methods for putting spiritual theory into practice in everyday life. 

Andrew Rooke 

The following is an ongoing series of articles published in ‘Theosophy Downunder’ Newsletter. For 130 years the Theosophical Society has been discussing the wonderful ideas of the Ancient Wisdom. Now, many people are asking for practical means to apply these principles in daily life. This new series will be devoted to such practical ideas in the form of stories and parables, methods we have found through life experience, or methods from past and present which busy people of today can practice.  

1. FOLLOWING THE DAILY KARMIC SCRIPT: We are compassionate beings, a whirlpool of forces amidst the greater sea of life in which we are immersed. The enduring part of us, our higher self, animates the material forms and energies with which we are more familiar, and sends us forth periodically on the journey we call a lifetime. As the conductor of our lives, it exactly balances the joys and hardships we face, so that hopefully our understanding will have increased at the close of each life. Our daily experience here and now is an unrolling day by day of a karmic score or script, if we have the eyes to see it. Reading this script enables us to appreciate more of the purpose that our higher self is trying to communicate each second as it urges our footsteps along the path to greater awareness of the oneness of being. As James A. Long put it: In our struggles toward a fuller understanding, we begin to realise we can develop the ability to read the unfolding karmic script of our lives. When we work with this, then we find ourselves better able to feel out the situations as they arise, and deal with them more intelligently. We can think of it as a Book – the Book of records as the Koran calls it – in which is inscribed in its entirety our individual life. Each of our days, representing a page of so-called merit and demerit, will contain the signposts, the impellings and repellings, the conscience knocks, and even the intuitions that are there to be utilized. Once we are able even slightly to read the daily script of our experiences, we realize something else: that there is a direct relation between the quality of a reaction and the quality of action that brought it into being. This is not going to be spelled out, but if we keep in mind that our major task in the long run is to unfold fully the divine values within us, we will know that the process of transmuting the lower by the higher self must be accompanied by a continued effort to improve the quality of our attitude in every circumstance.-         From Expanding Horizons, pp. 24-5Religious and philosophical teachers have offered various insights towards developing our ability to read this daily script. Discussing a few of these signposts perhaps will stimulate our own efforts. In these days of uncertainty in world affairs, it is easy to slip into the habit of becoming absorbed in the darker sides of life. Yet to discern the patterns of the daily karmic script which our higher self is trying to communicate, we should take a positive attitude toward our experiences. Rather than asking “Why me?” we could develop the habit of asking what our inner self is giving us the opportunity to learn. We might start by looking for the best aspect of every person and situation, rather than thinking and talking negatively about others and world conditions. A friend once described this habit as looking for “the Saint George and not the Dragon” in whatever we meet. This is no easy task when the people or problems which aggravate us most are close to us and there is no ready avenue of retreat.One simple practice we can follow to help strengthen a positive attitude is greeting each day for the unique opportunities it offers, and in the evening reflecting on what we have learned from the day’s activities. In such tranquil hours we can make a real effort to empty ourselves of selfish and irritable thoughts, hurt feelings, and the jangle and pressure of our lives. In the privacy of our deepest being, let us daily renew our vow to live up to the best of ourselves and to work each day for the betterment of all peoples, no matter how they have behaved towards us.                                                                                                  

2.  AN EXERCISE FOR DEVELOPING COMPASSION FOR OTHERS 

Theosophy tells us to constantly be loving and compassionate towards others. But how can we do this when we are surrounded by exploitation and selfishness in the world, which can lead us to easily become disillusioned, about the behaviour of other people?One technique from Buddhism is to learn to have affection for other people by simply thinking of them as being close to you, like a friend or relative. Particularly, since your mother is the closest person to you, cultivate recognition of all beings as your mothers. This is not as far-fetched as it may seem! When you think about it, science tells us that all human beings are related genetically, and that everyone in the past or future was or will be our relative! The Buddhist teacher further advises us to extend feelings of compassion outwards gradually. First, cultivate such a love and compassion towards friends by thinking of them as relatives/mothers. Then, cultivate love for persons for whom you have neutral feelings. Next, cultivate such feelings toward your enemies. Then, cultivate it gradually toward all beings. Such is the attitude of compassion and desire to help all beings that characterises the “Bodhisattva”, or the ideal to which all Theosophists are urged to aspire.

3. BODHISATTVA ATTITUDE 

Modern Theosophy says that the aim of every theosophist should be the betterment of other beings based on compassion for others. In this aim, Theosophy follows the tradition of Mahayana Buddhism by teaching our ideal is to eventually become a Bodhisattva (Sanskrit for Compassionate spiritual being) after many lifetimes of self-directed effort. The Buddhist tradition teaches there are basically three types of spiritual students and we have to make up our mind early in our search which we want to be!! These three stages as given by Mahayana Buddhism are: Sravaka (Sanskrit: ‘hearers’), the vast majority of people who are involved in religion/spiritual searching with the thought of what they can get out of it for themselves as individuals.  Pratyeka (Sanskrit: ‘everyone for himself’), meaning those who follow the spiritual path with the idea of liberation from this world of suffering rather than alleviating the suffering of others as their primary concern. 

Bodhisattva (Sanskrit: Compassionate, truth-embodying being), being the Ideal of Theosophy to join the ‘Brotherhood of Compassion’ of those people/beings who seek spiritual knowledge in the service of others.The essential difference between these three approaches is “Sravaka’ and ‘Pratkeya’ would look at this world of suffering and say: ‘If only those people/beings could have happiness and be free of suffering’, but they are not yet prepared to do much about it personally as their major motivation in life. They are typically disillusioned with this world, and direct their considerable spiritual energies to trying to escape from the physical world. The Bodhisattva approach, in contrast, would be: ‘I will take on the responsibility to remove the suffering and to provide for the happiness of all living beings’.Bear in mind that we may move through all these stages in our spiritual search and are not guaranteed of staying at one particular level or other. Remember that “Sravaka” and ‘Pratyeka’ spiritual searchers, are good and high-minded people who help many people in their way; and that it is possible at any stage prior to ‘Buddhahood’ of making the transition ‘forward’ or ‘back’, from any one of these three conditions. An interesting question for us all to consider is, how well qualified are we at a comparatively low level of spiritual training such as most of us are at now, to make value judgements about the paths, or the stages of spiritual development, reached by others? Theosophy encourages us to develop the ‘Bodhisattva Attitude’ of a wholehearted resolve that assumes the responsibility of liberating all beings based on compassion. Theosophical teachers have told us that developing this attitude, i.e. ‘to live to benefit mankind [and all beings], is the first step’ along the path to Bodhisattvahood. It is the responsibility of the Theosophical Society as the ‘kindergarten’ of the ‘Mystery Schools’ to encourage this attitude at the very beginning of our ‘training’. To follow the six noble perfections or ‘paramitas’, is the second step according to Theosophy. In the next and subsequent issues of our newsletter we will examine the ‘Six Perfections’ and practical ways to apply them in our lives in detail.  

4. PUTTING THEORY INTO PRACTICE

Those who wish to change the world and relieve suffering must do more than say: “May they be free from suffering”. Theosophy tells us that if we wish to follow the Path of Compassion we must engage in methods that will bring this cherished ideal about in actuality. If we do not first engage in those methods ourselves, we will be unable to assist others in freeing themselves. Therefore, Theosophy advises that if you want to work sincerely for others welfare, you must first discipline yourself, and put Theosophical theory into practice in whatever way is appropriate to your own life. OK – but how? Theosophy advises us to proceed by first gearing our attitudes towards benefiting Mankind rather than destructive, self-centred habits of thought. Then, secondly, to practice the ‘Paramitas’ or ‘Perfections’, as they are sometimes called, in our daily lives. Buddhism numbers the Paramitas as six:

Generosity; Ethical Discipline; Patience; Joyous Perseverance; Meditative Stabilization; Wisdom. 

Why should we develop these particular qualities along the Path of spiritual learning? To achieve the aims of others for spiritual understanding you must first help them with material goods as they won’t appreciate spirituality if they have an empty stomach! Since no benefit will come from Generosity accompanied by harmfulness towards living beings, you need Ethical Discipline, which has great purpose for others; this is the state of desisting from harm to others and the causes of harm. To bring this to its full development, you need Patience that disregards the harm done to you. You need to develop the ability to fix your mind on your ideals so you need to develop Meditative Stabilization. Calmness and single-mindedness in the service of others lead to Wisdom. None of this is attainable by laziness, so you need Joyous Perseverance in pursuit of wisdom through service to others and so this quality is the basis of the other Perfections.[These comments are based on Tibetan spiritual teacher Tsong-Kha-Pa, from his Great treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment] 

5. THE PARAMITAS: the six ‘Perfections’ of Buddhism are most often referred to as the seven ‘Paramitas’ in Theosophy. These aspects or requirements of enlightened living are given by H. P. Blavatsky in her, Voice of the Silence, and G. de Purucker in his, Fountain-Source of Occultism, as follows: 

TO LIVE TO BENEFIT MANKIND IS THE FIRST STEP.

TO PRACTICE THE SIX GLORIOUS VIRTUES IS THE SECOND. 

1. DANA: the key of charity and love immortal. If someone comes and asks for anything, as far as we are able, we should grant the request ungrudgingly and in a way to benefit them. If we see anyone in danger, we should try every means we have to rescue and impart to them a feeling of safety. If anyone comes to us desiring instructions in the Dharma, we should, as far as they are able and according to our best judgement, try to enlighten them. And when we are doing these acts of charity, we should not cherish any desire for recompense, gratitude, merit, advantage, nor any worldly reward.

2. SHILA: the key of harmony in word and act, the key that counterbalances the cause and the effect, and leaves no further room for karmic action. Harmonious action. We should abstain from killing, stealing, adultery, lying, deception, gossip, greediness, malice (hatred or cruelty), persuading for personal benefit, and misleading. We should endeavour by our conduct to avoid all disapproval and blame, and by our example incite others to forsake evil and practice the good.

3. KSHANTI: patience sweet, that naught can ruffle. Patient forbearance. As we meet the ills of life we should not shun them nor feel upset. Patiently bearing evils inflicted by others, we should have no resentment. Neither should we be elated because of prosperity, praise, or agreeable circumstances; nor depressed because of poverty, insult, or hardship. Keeping our mind concentrated on the deep significance of the Dharma, we should under all circumstances maintain a quiet and equitable mind.

4. VIRAG: indifference to pleasure and to pain, illusion conquered, truth alone perceived. Non-attachment. A doing only of our duty without desire for results, for if we become attached we deter not only forward progress but fill the Path, not leaving it void for our passing. Attachment would necessarily draw to itself scenes of passion which would cloud the view. Attachment to the Supreme Goal, however, draws us toward it, to ever-increasing splendour.

4. VIRYA: the dauntless energy or fortitude that fights its way to the supernal TRUTH, out of the mire of lies terrestrial. Courageous vigour. In the practice of good deeds we should never become complacent. We should look upon any mental or physical suffering as the natural consequence of unworthy deeds done in previous incarnations, and should firmly resolve that henceforth we would do only those things which are in keeping with a spiritual life. We should always make deliberate effort in the direction of the Path, never tarry or assume we have reached an “end,” for there are no ends, just subtle and gradual transformations.

5. DHYANA: whose golden gate once opened leads the adept toward the realm of Pure Being, eternal, and its ceaseless contemplation. Intellectual insight is gained by truthfully understanding that all things follow the law of causation, but in themselves are transitory and empty of any self-substance. These are two aspects of Dhyana: the first is an effort to suppress idle thinking, the second, mental concentration in an effort to realize the emptiness (Shunyata) of Mind-essence. We should contemplate the fact that although all things are transitory and empty yet, nevertheless, on the physical plane they have a relative value to those who are cherishing false imagination; to these unaware ones, suffering is very real – immeasurable and innumerable sufferings. Because of this, there is awakened in the mind of every earnest person a deep compassion for the suffering of all beings.

7. PRAJNA: the key to which makes of a man a god, creating him a Bodhisattva. Direct perception or intuitive wisdom. When we by the faithful practice of Dhyana attain to Samadhi, we have passed beyond discrimination and knowledge, we have realized the perfect oneness of mind-essence. With this realization comes an intuitive understanding of the nature of the universe. We now realize the perfect oneness of essence, potentiality, and activity. This principle makes of wisdom a separate thing from knowledge. Knowledge is learning from the physical apparatus, while wisdom is an innate understanding or intuitive glimpse. It affords us wider perception to the view of the universals and their patterns

SUCH TO THE PORTALS ARE THE GOLDEN KEYS.

6. HOW CAN WE BE GENEROUS? You may recall that the Paramitas as listed by the Mahayana Buddhists of the Dalai Lama’s school of teaching are as follows: Generosity; Ethical Discipline; Patience; Joyous Perseverance; Meditative Stabilization; and finally Wisdom.  

Let’s look in greater detail at practical ways in which can we be generous in a materialistic world: Picture this, the phone rings or someone knocks on the front door when you are busy serving dinner to a hungry family, and they ask you for money for a charity. What do you do? The world we live in is incredibly rushed and there always seem to be people putting their hands out for money when we are all finding it hard to make ends meet paying mortgages, school fees, and the like. The pressure of life today can certainly undermine one’s sense of charity when the doorbell rings at the ‘wrong’ time! Yet, theosophy says that it is a requirement of enlightened living that we develop a sense of generosity. How can we do this given the conditions that most people live in today? 

Firstly, for those of us living with family responsibilities, we obviously need to place the family first. We cannot naively give everything away at the expense of our own family, even to needy people who come into our lives. But this is exactly what many people do when they become seriously committed to try and live according to the Paramitas.   In Hinduism they speak of ‘Artha’ or material prosperity as being a real responsibility for seekers on the Path. This means that you must look after yourself and your family as a first priority, then do what you can for others. Otherwise you will add to the problems of the world by losing the ability to look after your self and your family. This does not mean becoming uncharitable or cynical about helping others who are in need. The ideal rather, is to create a mental attitude of not being ‘attached’ to material goods whilst recognizing their importance and your responsibilities to those closest to you. We do what charitable works we can according to our situation and our means, but always with an attitude of detachment from materialism. How can we achieve such detachment in a materialist culture like we live in today?  Buddhist teachers suggest that:

• Don’t become overly attached to the body and its needs.
• Meditate on the impermanence of material belongings and material life generally.
• Consider the life stories and example of great teachers such as Jesus, Gandhi, Mother Teresa, etc… who gave up their material goods in their efforts to help others.

Further, Buddhism suggests that charity does not just relate to giving material goods but also offering our knowledge of ethical principles and esoteric teaching so that others can be saved from getting into problems in their life which generate negative karma.  In both giving material goods and advice to others, Buddhism recommends that:

• Be even minded towards all recipients.
• Give without thought of reward or expecting something in return. This includes the fame or notoriety of being known as a generous person.
• Don’t be arrogant about giving.
• Consider our responsibility as people who believe in universal brotherhood. It is our duty to be compassionate knowing as do from theosophy that everything is connected.
• If possible it is better to ‘do’ rather than just give money. Through personal involvement through voluntary work, directly helping family and friends in crisis, etc… we can learn empathy and compassion through personal involvement.

7. HOW CAN WE PRACTICE ETHICAL DISCIPLINE? 

We continue our series on putting theosophical ideas into practice in daily life based on the Buddhist teachings of Tibetan Buddhist Master Tsong-Kha-Pa. This issue we continue our analysis of the six ‘Paramitas’ or ‘Virtues’ which are said by Mahayana Buddhists and Theosophists alike to be necessary for those seeking to live a more enlightened life or, as the Buddhists would say, follow the ‘Boddhisattva Ideal’. These six virtues are: Generosity; Ethical Discipline; Patience; Joyous Perseverance; Meditative Stabilization; and finally Wisdom.  Let’s take a closer look at the second such virtue: Ethical Discipline. 

When we set out seriously on the spiritual path, we may start to develop an exaggerated sense of our own importance after we receive a few teachings of the ancient wisdom. The every present tendency is to think of ourselves as ‘more along the spiritual path’ than others, and from here it is a short step to not practicing what we preach. Buddhists call keeping a sense of perspective and sincerely practicing our spiritual ideals, ‘Ethical Discipline’. Besides keeping high standards of personal ethics, it means refraining from harming others in thought or deed or even developing the attitudes which have the potential to harm others. Do not be hypercritical of those who know less than you or of the standards of the world which, after all, we helped create in other lives of the past, and must now work to put aright. Practice what we preach and sincerely work towards our own perfection of ethical discipline. For, how can we help others if we have no ethical discipline ourselves? 

Think and ponder upon the importance of maintaining ethical discipline and what follows karmically from it, and what may follow for us from the non-observance of it! One of the great benefits of quietly working at the implementation of these ‘virtues’ in our lives is that other people will automatically see it in our behaviour and people who need advice or assistance will be attracted to you. I remember a case like this once of an old lady in Canberra who had sincerely worked at the ‘inner work’ of incorporating theosophical teachings in daily life for a whole of a long lifetime. When at a bus stop one day, a young woman started spontaneously talking to her because she said she sensed there was something special about the old lady. It turned out the young woman was on her way to commit suicide, and the old lady was able to talk her out of it, and from then they became firm friends and the young lady went on to have a full life. 

So how can we practice ‘Ethical Discipline? Here are some suggestions from Tsong-Kha-Pa, the founder of the Buddhist order of monks the Dalai Lama belongs to: 

The ethical discipline of restraint: this means restraining from harm in word or deed to others, or doing that which is inconsistent with the ‘boddhisattva ideal’ [to live to assist humanity forward on the spiritual path], ie. restraining from deeds that are wrong in their very nature, or even the motivation towards such deeds. This was said to be important as the basis of the other two practices of ethical discipline being:

The ethical discipline of gathering virtue: this means sincerely working towards the development of the six ‘virtues’, ie: Generosity; Ethical Discipline; Patience; Joyous Perseverance; Meditative Stabilization; and finally Wisdom.  We should work towards developing those of the six that remain undeveloped in our nature, don’t spoil the ones we have developed already, and increase them even further in our thought and consequent behaviour.

 The ethical discipline of acting for the welfare of others: means that we should focus our energies on the welfare of others, and help them accomplish their spiritual development as far as possible in this and future lives in a suitable manner without wrongdoing. 

These may seem pretty high, and perhaps even, unattainable ideals in the hurly-burly of modern life. But at least we can do something along these lines in principle according to whatever job or situation we find ourselves in. If we genuinely try to pratice ‘ethical discipline’ in the arena of everyday life, we will strengthen our adherence to the ‘Boddhisattva Ideal’ and thus strengthen our capacity to serve the cause of the Masters of Wisdom in this and in future lifetimes.

This is an ongoing series. Please check every now and then for new articles in this series.

STRESS MANAGEMENT: perspectives from Theosophy 

 Andrew Rooke