The Creative Process in the Individual - Thomas Troward
From this intercourse new thoughts will continually flow in, all of them
bearing that vivifying element which is inherent in their source, and the
individual will then proceed to work out these new ideas with the knowledge
that they have their origin in the selection and initiative power of the
All-creating Spirit itself, and in this way by combined meditation and
action he will find himself advancing into increasing light, liberty and
usefulness. The advance may be almost imperceptible from one day to
another, but it will be perceptible at longer intervals, and the one who is
thus moving forward with the Spirit of God will on looking back at any time
always find that he is getting more livingness out of life than he was a
year previously. And this without strenuous effort, for he is not having to
manufacture the power from his own resources but only to _receive_ it--and
as for _using_ it, that is only the exercise of the power itself. So
following on these lines you will find that Rest and Power are identical;
and so you get the real New Thought which grows in Newness every day.
CHAPTER VIII
THE DENOUEMENT OF THE CREATIVE PROCESS
Then comes the question, What should logically be the denouement of the
progression we have been considering? Let us briefly recapitulate the steps
of the series. Universal Spirit by Self-contemplation evolves Universal
Substance. From this it produces cosmic creation as the expression of
itself as functioning in Space and Time. Then from this initial movement it
proceeds to more highly specialized modes of Self-contemplation in a
continually ascending scale, for the simple reason that self-contemplation
admits of no limits and therefore each stage of self-recognition cannot be
other than the starting-point for a still more advanced mode of
self-contemplation, and so on _ad infinitum_. Thus there is a continuous
progress toward more and more highly specialized forms of life, implying
greater liberty and wider scope for enjoyment as the capacity of the
individual life corresponds to a higher degree of the contemplation of
Spirit; and in this way evolution proceeds till it reaches a level where it
becomes impossible to go any further except by the exercise of conscious
selection and initiative on the part of the individual, while at the same
time conforming to the universal principles of which evolution is the
expression.
Now ask yourself in what way individual selection and initiative would be
likely to act as expressing the Originating Spirit itself? Given the
knowledge on the part of the individual that he is able by his power of
initiative and selection to draw directly upon the All-originating Spirit
of Life, what motive could he have for not doing so? Therefore, granted
such a perfect recognition, we should find the individual holding precisely
the same place in regard to his own individual world that the
All-originating Spirit does to the cosmos; subject only to the same Law of
Love, Beauty, &c., which we found to be necessarily inherent in the
Creative Spirit--a similarity which would entirely prevent the individual
from exercising his otherwise limitless powers in any sort of antagonism to
the Spirit of the Great Whole.
At the same time the individual would be quite aware that he was not the
Universal Spirit _in propria persona_, but that he was affording expression
to it through his individuality. Now Expression is impossible except
through Form, and therefore form of some sort is a necessity of
individuality. It is just here, then, that we find the importance of that
principle of Harmony with Environment of which I spoke earlier, the
principle in accordance with which a person who had obtained complete
control of matter, if he wished to transport himself to some other planet,
would appear there in perfect conformity with all the laws of matter that
obtained in that world; though, of course, not subject to any limitation of
the Life Principle in himself. He would exhibit the laws of matter as
rendered perfect by the Law of Originating Life. But if any one now living
on this earth were thus perfectly to realize the Law of Life he would be in
precisely the same position _here_ as our imaginary visitor to another
planet--in other words the denouement of the Law of Life is not the putting
off of the body, but its inclusion as part of the conscious life of the
Spirit.
This does not imply any difference in the molecular structure of the body
from that of other men, for by the principle of Harmony of which I have
just spoken, it would be formed in strict accordance with the laws of
matter on the particular planet; though it would not be subject to the
limitations resulting from the average man's non-recognition of the power
of the Spirit. The man who had thus fully entered into the Fifth Kingdom
would recognize that, in its relation to the denser modes of matter his
body was of a similar dense mode. That would be its relation to external
environment as seen by others. But since the man now knew _himself_ as not
belonging to these denser modes of manifestation, but as an
individualization of Primary Spirit, he would see that relatively to
himself all matter was Primary Substance, and that from this point of view
any condensations of that substance into atoms, molecules, tissues, and the
like counted for nothing--for him the body would be simply Primary
Substance entirely responsive to his will. Yet his reverence for the Law of
Harmony would prevent any disposition to play psychic pranks with it, and
he would use his power over the body only to meet actual requirements.
In this way, then, we are led to the conclusion that eternal life in an
immortal physical body is the logical denouement of our evolution; and if
we reflect that, by the conditions of the case, the owners of such bodies
could at will either transport themselves to other worlds or put off the
physical body altogether and remain in the purely subjective life while
still retaining the power to reclothe themselves in flesh whenever they
chose, we shall see that this denouement of evolution answers all possible
questions as to the increase of the race, the final destruction of the
planet, and the like.
This, then, is the ultimate which we should keep in view; but the fact
remains that, though there may be hidden ones who have thus attained, the
bulk of mankind have not, and that the common lot of humanity is to go
through the change which we call death. In broad philosophical terms death
may be described as the withdrawal of the life into the subjective
consciousness to the total exclusion of the objective consciousness. Then
by the general law of the relation between subjective and objective mind,
the subjective mind severed from its corresponding objective mentality has
no means of acquiring fresh impressions _on its own account_, and therefore
can only ring the changes on those impressions which it has brought with it
from its past life. But these may be of very various sorts, ranging from
the lowest to the highest, from those most opposed to that ultimate destiny
of man which we have just been considering, to those which recognize his
possibilities in a very large measure, needing little more to bring about
the full fruition of perfected life. But however various may be their
experiences, all who have passed through death must have this in common
that they have lost their physical instrument of objective perception and
so have their mode of consciousness determined entirely by the dominant
mode of suggestion which they have brought over with them from the
objective side of life.[6] Of course if the objective mentality were also
brought over this would give the individual the same power of initiative
and selection that he possesses while in the body, and, as we shall see
later on, there are exceptional persons with whom this is the case; but for
the great majority the physical brain is a necessity for the working of the
objective mentality, and so when they are deprived of this instrument their
life becomes purely subjective and is a sort of dream-life, only with a
vast difference between two classes of dreamers--those who dream as they
must and those who dream as they will. The former are those who have
enslaved themselves in various ways to their lower mentality--some by
bringing with them the memory of crimes unpardoned, some by bringing with
them the idea of a merely animal life, others less degraded, but still in
bondage to limited thought, bringing with them only the suggestion of a
frivolous worldly life--in this way, by the natural operation of the Law of
Suggestion, these different classes, either through remorse, or unsatisfied
desires, or sheer incapacity to grasp higher principles, all remain
earth-bound, suffering in exact correspondence with the nature of the
suggestion they have brought along with them. The unchangeable Law is that
the suggestion becomes the life; and this is equally true of suggestions of
a happier sort. Those who have brought over with them the great truth that
conditions are the creations of thought, and who have accustomed themselves
while in objective life to dwell on good and beautiful ideas, are still
able, by reason of being imbued with this suggestion, to mold the
conditions of their consciousness in the subjective world in accordance
with the sort of ideas which have become a second nature to them. Within
the limits of these ideas the dominant suggestion to these entities is that
of a Law which confers Liberty, so by using this Law of the constructive
power of thought they can determine the conditions of their own
consciousness; and thus instead of being compelled to suffer the nightmare
dreams of the other class, they can mold their dream according to their
will. We cannot conceive of such a life as theirs in the unseen as
otherwise than happy, nevertheless its range is limited by the range of the
conceptions they have brought with them. These may be exceedingly beautiful
and thoroughly true and logical _as far as they go_; but they do not go the
whole way, otherwise these spirits would not be in the category which we
are considering but would belong to that still higher class who fully
realize the ultimate possibilities which the Law of the Expression of
Spirit provides.
The otherwise happy subjective life of these more enlightened souls has
this radical defect that they have failed to bring over with them that
power of original selection and initiative without which further progress
is impossible. I wish the student to grasp this point very clearly, for it
is of the utmost importance. Of course the basis of our further evolution
is conformity to the harmonious nature of the Originating Spirit; but upon
this foundation we each have to build up the superstructure of our own
individuality, and every step of advance depends on our personal
development of power to take that step. This is what is meant by taking an
initiative. It is making a New Departure, not merely recombining the old
things into fresh groupings still subject to the old laws, but introducing
an entirely new element which will bring its own New Law along with it.
Now if this is the true meaning of "initiative" then that is just the
power which these otherwise happy souls do not possess. For by the very
conditions of the case they are living only in their subjective
consciousness, and consequently are living by the law of subjective mind;
and one of the chief characteristics of subjective mind is its incapacity
to reason inductively, and therefore its inability to make the selection
and take the initiative necessary to inaugurate a New Departure. The well
established facts of mental law show conclusively that subjective mind
argues only deductively. It argues quite correctly from any given premises,
but it cannot take the initiative in selecting the premises--that is the
province of inductive reasoning which is essentially the function of the
objective mind. But by the law of Auto-suggestion this discarnate
individual has brought over his premises with him, which premises are the
sum-total of his inductions made during objective life, the conception of
things which he held at the time he passed over, for this constituted his
idea of Truth. Now he cannot add to these inductions, for he has parted
with his instrument for inductive reasoning, and therefore his deductive
reasoning in the purely subjective state which he has now entered is
necessarily limited to the consequences which may be deducted from the
premises which he has brought along with him.
In the case of the highly-developed individualities we are now considering
the premises thus brought over are of a very far-reaching and beautiful
character, and consequently the range of their subjective life is
correspondingly wide and beautiful; but, nevertheless, it is subject to the
radical defect that it is debarred from further progress for the simple
reason that the individual has not brought over with him the mental faculty
which can impress his subjective entity with the requisite forward movement
for making a new departure into a New Order. And moreover, the higher the
subjective development with which the individual passed over the more
likely he will be to realize this defect. If during earth-life he had
gained sufficient knowledge of these things he will carry with him the
knowledge that his discarnate existence is purely subjective; and therefore
he will realize that, however he may be able to order the pictures of his
dream, yet it is still but a dream, and in common with all other dreams
lacks the basis of solidity from which to take _really creative action_.
He knows also that the condition of other discarnate individualities is
similar to his own, and that consequently each one must necessarily live in
a world apart--a world of his own creation, because none of them possess
the objective mentality by which to direct their subjective currents so as
to make them penetrate into the sphere of another subjective entity, which
is the _modus operandi_ of telepathy. Thus he is conscious of his own
inability to hold intercourse with other personalities; for though he may
for his own pleasure create the semblance of them in his dream-life, yet he
knows that these are creations of his own mind, and that while he appears
to be conversing with a friend amid the most lovely surroundings the friend
himself may be having experiences of a very different description. I am, of
course, speaking now of persons who have passed over in a very high state
of development and with a very considerable, though still imperfect,
knowledge of the Law of their own being. Probably the majority take their
dream-life for an external reality; and, in any case, all who have passed
over without carrying their objective mentality along with them must be
shut up in their individual subjective spheres and cease to function as
centers of creative power so long as they do not emerge from that state.
But the highly advanced individuals of whom I am now speaking have passed
over with a true knowledge of the Law of the relation between subjective
and objective mind and have therefore brought with them a _subjective_
knowledge of this truth; and therefore, however otherwise in a certain
sense happy, they must still be conscious of a fundamental limitation which
prevents their further advance. And this consciousness can produce only one
result, an ever-growing longing for the removal of this limitation--and
this represents the intense desire of the Spirit, as individualized in
these souls, to attain to the conditions under which it can freely exercise
its creative power. Sub-consciously this is the desire of _all_ souls, for
it is that continual pressing forward of the Spirit for manifestation out
of which the whole Creative Process arises; and so it is that the great cry
perpetually ascends to God from all as yet undelivered souls, whether in or
out of the body, for the deliverance which they knowingly or unknowingly
desire.
All this comes out of the well-ascertained facts of the law of relation
between subjective and objective mind. Then comes the question, Is there no
way of getting out of this law? The answer is that we can never get away
from universal principles--_but we can specialise them_. We may take it as
an axiom that any law which appears to limit us contains in itself the
principle by which that limitation can be overcome, just as in the case of
the flotation of iron. In this axiom, then, we shall find the clue which
will bring us out of the labyrinth. The same law which places various
degrees of limitation upon the souls that have passed into the invisible
can be so applied as to set them free. We have seen that everything turns
on the obligation of our subjective part to act within the limits of the
suggestion which has been most deeply impressed upon it. Then why not
impress upon it the suggestion that in passing over to the other side it
has brought its objective mentality along with it?
If such a suggestion were effectively impressed upon our subjective mind,
then by the fundamental law of our nature our subjective mind would act in
strict accordance with this suggestion, with the result that the objective
mind would no longer be separated from it, and that we should carry with us
into the unseen our _whole_ mentality, both subjective and objective, and
so be able to exercise our inductive powers of selection and initiative as
well there as here.
Why not? The answer is that we cannot accept any suggestion unless we
believe it to be true, and to believe it to be true we must feel that we
have a solid foundation for our belief. If, then, we can find a sufficient
foundation for adequately impressing this suggestion upon ourselves, then
the principles of mental law assure us that we shall carry our objective
faculty of initiative and selection into the unseen. Therefore our quest is
to find this Foundation. Then, since we cannot accept as true what we
believe to be contrary to the ultimate law of the universe, if we are to
find such a foundation at all it must be within that Law; and it is for
this reason that I have laid so much stress upon the Normal Standard of
Human Individuality. When we are convinced that this ideal completeness is
quite normal, and is a spiritual fact, not dependent upon the body, but
able to control the body, then we have got the solid basis on which to
carry our objective personality along with us into the unseen, and the
well-established laws of our mental constitution justify the belief that we
can do so.
From these considerations it is obvious that those who thus pass over in
possession of their complete mentality must be in a very different position
from those who pass into a condition of merely subjective life, for they
have brought their powers of selection and initiative with them, and can
therefore employ their experiences in the unseen as a starting-point for
still further development. So, then, the question arises, What lines will
this further development be likely to follow?
We are now considering the case of persons who have reached a very high
degree of development; who have succeeded in so completely uniting the
subjective and objective portions of their spiritual being into a perfect
whole that they can never again be severed; and who are therefore able to
function with their whole consciousness on the spiritual plane. Such
persons will doubtless be well aware that they have attained this degree of
development by the Law of the Creative Process working in terms of their
own individuality, and so they would naturally always refer to the original
Cosmic Creation as the demonstration of the principle which they have to
specialize for their own further evolution. Then they would find that the
principle involved is that of the manifestation of Spirit in Form; and they
would further see that this manifestation is not an illusion but a reality,
for the simple reason that both mind and matter are equally projections
from the Great Originating Spirit. Both alike are thoughts of the Divine
Mind, and it is impossible to conceive any greater reality than the Divine
Thought, or to get at any more substantial source of reality than that.
Even if we were to picture the Divine Mind as laughing at its productions
as being mere illusions _relatively to itself_ (which I certainly do not),
still the relation between the individual mind and material existence would
be a reality for the individual, on the simple mathematical ground that
like signs multiplied together invariably produce a positive result, even
though the signs themselves be negative; so that, for us, at every stage of
our existence substance must always be as much a reality as mind. Therefore
the manifestation of Spirit in Form is the eternal principle of the
Creative Process whether in the evolution of a world-system or in that of
an individual.
But when we realize that by the nature of the Creative Process substance
must be an eternal verity we must not suppose that this is true also of
_particular forms_ or of _particular modes_ of matter. Substance is a
necessity for the expression of Spirit, but it does not follow that Spirit
is tied down to any particular mode of expression. If you fold a piece of
paper into the form of a dart it will fly through the air by the law of the
form which you have given it. Again, if you take the same bit of paper and
fold it into the shape of a boat it will float on water by the law of the
new form that you have given it. The thing formed will act in accordance
with the form given it, and the same paper can be folded into different
forms; but if there were no paper you could put it into any shape at all.
The dart and the boat are both real so long as you retain the paper in
either of those shapes; but this does not alter the fact that you can
change the shapes, though your power to do so depends on the existence of
the paper. This is a rough analogy of the relation between ultimate
substance and particular forms, and shows us that neither substance nor
shape is an illusion; both are essential to the manifestation of Spirit,
only by the nature of the Creative Process the Spirit has power to
determine what shape substance shall take at any particular time.
Accordingly we find the great Law that, as Spirit is the Alpha of the
Creative Process, so solid material Form is its Omega; in other words the
Creative Series is incomplete until solid material form is reached.
Anything short of this is a condition of incompleteness, and therefore the
enlightened souls who have passed over in possession of both sides of their
mentality will realize that their condition, however beatific, is still one
of incompleteness; and that what is wanted for completion is expression
through a material body. This, then, is the direction in which such souls
would use their powers of initiative and selection as being the true line
of evolution--in a word they would realize that the principle of Creative
Progression, when it reaches the level of fully developed mental man,
necessarily implies the Resurrection of the Body, and that anything short
of this would be retrogression and not progress.
At the same time persons who had passed over with this knowledge would
never suppose that Resurrection meant merely the resuscitation of the old
body under the old conditions; for they would see that the same inherent
law which makes expression in concrete substance the ultimate of the
creative series also makes this ultimate form depend on the originating
movement of the spirit which produces it, and therefore that, although
_some_ concrete form is essential for complete manifestation, and is a
substantial reality so long as it is maintained, yet the maintaining of the
particular form is entirely dependent on the action of the spirit of which
the form is the external clothing. This resurrection body would therefore
be no mere illusory spirit-shape, yet it would not be subject to the
limitations of matter as we now know it: it would be physical matter still,
but entirely subject to the will of the indwelling spirit, which would not
regard the denser atomic relations of the body but only its absolute and
essential nature as Primary Substance. I want the student to grasp the idea
that the same thing may be very different when looked at, so to say, from
opposite ends of the stick. What is solid molecular matter when viewed from
the outside is plastic primary substance when viewed from the inside. The
relations of this new body to any stimulus proceeding from outside would be
those of the external laws of Nature; but its relation to the spiritual ego
working from within would be that of a plastic substance to be molded at
will. The employment of such power would, however, at all times be based
upon the reverent worship of the All-creating Spirit; and it would
therefore never be exercised otherwise than in accordance with the
harmonious progress of the Creative Process. Proceeding on these lines the
spirit in the individual would stand in precisely the same relation to his
body that the All-originating Spirit does to the cosmos.