Six Theosophic Points, and Other Writings
14. It is now evident what spirit can or cannot attain the freedom of God. For the soul's spirit or the image which has in itself the dim, dark property, cannot be capable of the clear light of God. Further, if it has in itself fierce wrathful essences and qualities, at cannot unite with the gentleness of God and inqualify with it; for wi'ath is enmity against love and gentleness, and love suffers not wrath within it. Here they are separated: love thrusts wrath from it, and neither does wrath desire any more the property of love.
15. For as soon as fire gives spirit from itself, it is perfect, and separates into its proprium, be it a spirit of light, or a dark wrathful sulphurous spirit. And into the same essence from which it is gone out does it desire to return again; for it is its property, be it in love or enmity to love.
16. Accordingly we understand what spirits or souls live in the source of enmity, and how enmity originally arises, so that a life is at enmity with itself from the first matter unto the life's light. The cause lies in the wheel of Nature, in the seven spirits or forms, each of which has its own property; and in whichever property the mind becomes enkindled, such a property getteth its soul's fire together with the will's spirit, which straightTHE THIRD POINT 59 way aspires after substance and being, how it may realize that with which the spirit of the will is pregnant.
17. Now it is necessaiy to break the earthly will's power and kill the old evil Adam, and bring his will-spirit by compulsion and force out of wickedness. For here, in this time, that is possible ; because the third principle by the water which gives gentleness is attached to the centre of the inward nature, and holds it captive as it were in its quahty.
18. But if the spirit of the soul's will, as the inward centre of light, breaks off from the outward and remains alone, then the soul's spirit remains in its property. For there is little remedy unless the spirit of the will have in the time of the external life turned round to God's love, and attained this as a sparkle in the inward centre. Then something may be done. But in what agony and travail that is done, experiences full well the sparkle of love, which has to break down dark fierce death. It is purgatory enough to it. In what enmity life stands, in terror and anguish, till it can sink into the sparkle, into the freedom of God, he indeed experiences who departs from this world so nakedly with little light. This, the present much too wise world regards as a jesting matter; but what kind of knowledge it has, it shows by its doing.
19. And thus we understand also the devil's fall, who was an angel; how he imaginated back into the centre of the first property, and sought great
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strength and might (as the present world seeks great might and honom*), and despised the hght of love. Albeit he supposed the light would burn for him thus (and the world also hopes and supposes the light of God shall burn in its pomp), and he willed to enkindle himself still more vehemently, to see if he could dominate over all thrones, and over the essence of the Deity in gentleness; which proved to be his fall, as will happen also to the present world.
20. Therefore let every man learn hereby to beware of pride and covetousness ; for the devil's fall came through pride and covetousness, in that he kindled in himself the centre of the dark world. Hence he was cast out of the light-world into the dark world. And thus it fares with all men, who, abandoning meekness and humility, enter into wrath, pride, covetousness and envy. All these imaginate into the centre of the dark Nature, as into the origin of Nature, and withdraw into the dark fire of the source of anguish, where the noble image is introduced into another quality, so that it must be in fear and enmity, each form of hfe being hostile to the other.
14. It is now evident what spirit can or cannot attain the freedom of God. For the soul's spirit or the image which has in itself the dim, dark property, cannot be capable of the clear light of God. Further, if it has in itself fierce wrathful essences and qualities, at cannot unite with the gentleness of God and inqualify with it; for wi'ath is enmity against love and gentleness, and love suffers not wrath within it. Here they are separated: love thrusts wrath from it, and neither does wrath desire any more the property of love.
15. For as soon as fire gives spirit from itself, it is perfect, and separates into its proprium, be it a spirit of light, or a dark wrathful sulphurous spirit. And into the same essence from which it is gone out does it desire to return again; for it is its property, be it in love or enmity to love.
16. Accordingly we understand what spirits or souls live in the source of enmity, and how enmity originally arises, so that a life is at enmity with itself from the first matter unto the life's light. The cause lies in the wheel of Nature, in the seven spirits or forms, each of which has its own property; and in whichever property the mind becomes enkindled, such a property getts its soul's fire together with the will's spirit, which straightTHE THIRD POINT 59 way aspires after substance and being, how it may realize that with which the spirit of the will is pregnant.
17. Now it is necessaiy to break the earthly will's power and kill the old evil Adam, and bring his will-spirit by compulsion and force out of wickedness. For here, in this time, that is possible ; because the third principle by the water which gives gentleness is attached to the centre of the inward nature, and holds it captive as it were in its quahty.
18. But if the spirit of the soul's will, as the inward centre of light, breaks off from the outward and remains alone, then the soul's spirit remains in its property. For there is little remedy unless the spirit of the will have in the time of the external life turned round to God's love, and attained this as a sparkle in the inward centre. Then something may be done. But in what agony and travail that is done, experiences full well the sparkle of love, which has to break down dark fierce death. It is purgatory enough to it. In what enmity life stands, in terror and anguish, till it can sink into the sparkle, into the freedom of God, he indeed experiences who departs from this world so nakedly with little light. This, the present much too wise world regards as a jesting matter; but what kind of knowledge it has, it shows by its doing.
19. And thus we understand also the devil's fall, who was an angel; how he imaginated back into the centre of the first property, and sought great
p. 60
strength and might (as the present world seeks great might and honom*), and despised the hght of love. Albeit he supposed the light would burn for him thus (and the world also hopes and supposes the light of God shall burn in its pomp), and he willed to enkindle himself still more vehemently, to see if he could dominate over all thrones, and over the essence of the Deity in gentleness; which proved to be his fall, as will happen also to the present world.
20. Therefore let every man learn hereby to beware of pride and covetousness ; for the devil's fall came through pride and covetousness, in that he kindled in himself the centre of the dark world. Hence he was cast out of the light-world into the dark world. And thus it fares with all men, who, abandoning meekness and humility, enter into wrath, pride, covetousness and envy. All these imaginate into the centre of the dark Nature, as into the origin of Nature, and withdraw into the dark fire of the source of anguish, where the noble image is introduced into another quality, so that it must be in fear and enmity, each form of hfe being hostile to the other.
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