Mutual
Help is the Law of
Blessing,
and of Good Karma
Carlos
Cardoso Aveline
There are various ways for the pilgrim to assess the
state or condition of that magic inner bridge which leads him to his own higher self, his spiritual soul.
One
of procedures consists in comparing the amounts of resentment and gratefulness
in the way he looks at others, and at life.
Disaffection,
of course, is shy: it tries to disguise itself under the beautiful appearance
of other and nobler feelings.
Frustration
over other peoples’ victory and positive qualities is a sure sign that our
Antahkarana is in trouble: the contact with the real soul is being asphyxiated
by the carbon monoxide fumes of personal pride, personal fear, personal
ambition, greed, and so on.
Ill-will
towards others is a form of blindness. He who feels it cannot see his own worth
and would like to steal worth from someone else.
Gratefulness
is different.
The
feeling of gratitude is not “shy” and has no reason to remain secret. It is
also not something one should take pride on. Just as the pilgrim cannot be
proud of his humbleness or joy, there must be something wrong if he makes too much propaganda of his own
gratitude.
Humbleness
paves the way to thankfulness, and the other way around: but these two aspects
of life are noiseless.
Destructive
sentiments usually make too much noise in a blustering materialistic society.
Friendly feelings flow in harmony with one’s spiritual soul and prefer silence,
or a succinct wording, especially if they are deep and lasting.
The Power of Mutual Help
The
desire to compete and to see others as inferior to oneself along the spiritual
path, or to see oneself as wiser and superior to them, is a widely subconscious
form of choosing to be deaf and blind.
It
also expresses the lack of courage to look at oneself in an honest way.
As
soon as the pilgrim makes a serious decision to walk the path to wisdom, he becomes
incapable of having pleasure in seeing real or imaginary faults in his fellow
beings and coworkers. He celebrates their progress, instead. He knows he is
helped by their victory.
Whenever
one sees an atmosphere in the theosophical or esoteric movement in which open
or covert personal attacks against members are possible - a psychological
atmosphere where people may want to compete and see “who is the wisest around
here” -, it is important to acknowledge that such an atmosphere is poisonous
and directly related to the spiritual death of esoteric associations.
Sincere,
long-standing mutual help is the Law of blessing and of good Karma.
Honesty
includes examining mistakes from the point of view of correcting and healing
them. There is no true sincerity, unless there is good will.
My
fellow beings are all colleagues in the sacred journey. They are imperfect yet
valuable reflections of my own soul.
With
varying degrees of accuracy, they show and interact with both the lower and the
higher levels of my existence. It is my duty to see in them the presence of an
immortal soul. By having respect for their higher selves, I preserve contact
with my own.
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An initial version of the above
article was published at the May 2016 edition of “The Aquarian Theosophist”, under the title of “Bitterness and Good Will” (pp. 14-15). It had no indication as to
the name of the author.
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See in our associated websites the
articles “Envy and Friendship” and “One for All, and All for One”, by C.C.
Aveline.
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In September 2016, after
a careful analysis of the state of the esoteric movement worldwide, a group of students
decided to form the Independent Lodge of
Theosophists. Two of the priorities
adopted by the ILT are learning from the past and building a better
future.
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