A Series of Lessons in Raja Yoga | Page 4

of but little knowledge does not see the
existence of many problems that force themselves before the attention
of the man of more knowledge, and demand an explanation from him.
The tortures of the man who has attained the mental growth that
enables him to see the new problems and the impossibility of their
answer, cannot be imagined by one who has not advanced to that stage.
The man in this stage of consciousness thinks of his "I" as a mental
thing, having a lower companion, the body. He feels that he has
advanced, but yet his "I" does not give him the answer to the riddles
and questions that perplex him. And he becomes most unhappy. Such
men often develop into Pessimists, and consider the whole of life as

utterly evil and disappointing--a curse rather than a blessing. Pessimism
belongs to this plane, for neither the Physical Plane man or the Spiritual
Plane man have this curse of Pessimism. The former man has no such
disquieting thoughts, for he is almost entirely absorbed in gratifying his
animal nature, while the latter man recognizes his mind as an
instrument of himself, rather than as himself, and knows it to be
imperfect in its present stage of growth. He knows that he has in
himself the key to all knowledge--locked up in the Ego--and which the
trained mind, cultivated, developed and guided by the awakened Will,
may grasp as it unfolds. Knowing this the advanced man no longer
despairs, and, recognizing his real nature, and his possibilities, as he
awakens into a consciousness of his powers and capabilities, he laughs
at the old despondent, pessimistic ideas, and discards them like a
worn-out garment. Man on the Mental Plane of consciousness is like a
huge elephant who knows not his own strength. He could break down
barriers and assert himself over nearly any condition or environment,
but in his ignorance of his real condition and power he may be
mastered by a puny driver, or frightened by the rustling of a piece of
paper.
When the Candidate becomes an Initiate--when he passes from the
purely Mental Plane on to the Spiritual Plane--he realizes that the "I,"
the Real Self--is something higher than either body or mind, and that
both of the latter may be used as tools and instruments by the Ego or
"I." This knowledge is not reached by purely intellectual reasoning,
although such efforts of the mind are often necessary to help in the
unfoldment, and the Masters so use it. The real knowledge, however,
comes as a special form of consciousness. The Candidate becomes
"aware" of the real "I," and this consciousness being attained, he passes
to the rank of the Initiates. When the Initiate passes the second degree
of consciousness, and begins to grow into a realization of his
relationship to the Whole--when he begins to manifest the Expansion of
Self--then is he on the road to Mastership.
In the present lesson we shall endeavor to point out to the Candidate
the methods of developing or increasing the realization of this "I"
consciousness--this first degree work. We give the following exercises

or development drills for the Candidate to practice. He will find that a
careful and conscientious following of these directions will tend to
unfold in him a sufficient degree of the "I" consciousness, to enable
him to enter into higher stages of development and power. All that is
necessary is for the Candidate to feel within himself the dawn of the
awakening consciousness, or awareness of the Real Self. The higher
stages of the "I" consciousness come gradually, for once on the Path
there is no retrogression or going backward. There may be pauses on
the journey, but there is no such thing as actually losing that which is
once gained on The Path.
This "I" consciousness, even in its highest stages, is but a preliminary
step toward what is called "Illumination," and which signifies the
awakening of the Initiate to a realization of his actual connection with
and relation to the Whole. The full sight of the glory of the "I," is but a
faint reflected glow of "Illumination." The Candidate, once that he
enters fully into the "I" consciousness, becomes an "Initiate." And the
Initiate who enters into the dawn of Illumination takes his first step
upon the road to Mastery. The Initiation is the awakening of the soul to
a knowledge of its real existence--the Illumination is the revelation of
the real nature of the soul, and of its relationship with the Whole. After
the first dawn of the "I" consciousness has been attained, the Candidate
is more able to grasp the means of developing the consciousness to a
still higher degree--is more able to use the powers latent within him; to
control his own mental