The Power of Oneself. Charles Fillmore

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ of the mind. Even Christian metaphysicians who belong in the second classification have no clear understanding of the two great realms of mind; first, that in which pure ideas and pure logic rule; and second, the realm in which the thoughts and the actions of the mind are concerned with reason and the relation of ideas in the outer world. It is only in the last half century that large numbers of Christians have discerned that Jesus taught a metaphysical science.

      Poets are natural mystics and metaphysicians, and in their writings we find the safest definitions of the names used to represent the actions of the mind. Poets nearly always make the proper distinction between wisdom and understanding. Tennyson says, "Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers." Spiritual discernment always places wisdom above the other faculties of mind and reveals that knowledge and intelligence are auxiliary to understanding. Intellectual understanding comes first in the soul's development, then a deeper understanding of principles follows, until the whole man ripens into wisdom.

      'Tis the sunset of life gives me mystical lore, And coming events cast their shadows before'.

      The writings of the Hebrew prophets are good examples of original inspiration, which is wisdom. Solomon was famous for his wisdom. Jehovah appeared to him in a dream and said: "Ask what I shall give thee." Solomon replied: "Give thy servant therefore an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and evil." Pleased because Solomon had asked for wisdom instead of riches and honor, the Lord said:

      Behold, I have done according to thy word; lo I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart . . . And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honor . . . And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a dream.

      It was after this occurrence that two women appealed to Solomon to decide which of them really was the mother of the child that they both claimed.

      And the king said, Fetch me a sword. . . .And the kingsaid, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other. Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her heart yearned over her son, and she said, Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, It shall be neither mine nor thine; divide it. Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof. And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do justice.

      The foregoing is a fine example of intuitive knowing. Instead of indulging in the usual taking of testimony and the various methods of proving the case by witnesses, Solomon appealed directly to the heart and got the truth quickly. No amount of exoteric testimony would have accomplished what the appeal to love brought forth at once.

      Although it is sometimes difficult to determine between pure knowing and the quick perception of the intellect, the decision can always be made truly, based on the presence of the affectional nature.

      Great philosophers in every age have testified to the activity of a supermind quality, which they have variously named. Socrates had it. He called it his daemon. Plato named it pure reason. Jesus called it the kingdom of the heavens.

      In an article by M. K. Wisehart, printed in the American Magazine for June, 1930, entitled "A Close Look at the World's Greatest Thinker," Professor Albert Einstein is quoted as saying:

      "'Every man knows that in his work he does best and accomplishes most when he has attained a proficiency that enables him to work intuitively. That is, there are things which we come to know so well that we do not know how we know them. So it seems to me in matters of principle. Perhaps we live best and do things best when we are not too conscious of how and why we do them.'

      "He spoke of the great extent to which intuition figures in his work, and gave me to understand that the ability to work by intuition is one that can be acquired in any walk of life. It comes as the result of prolonged effort and reflection and application and failures and trying again. Then, in the end, one knows things without knowing how one knows them! And I gathered that the Professor meant to say that no man knows anything until he knows it in this thorough, instinctive way.

      "People frequently ask Professor Einstein whether, as a scientist, he believes in God. Usually he answers: 'I do not believe in a God who maliciously or arbitrarily interferes in the personal affairs of mankind. My religion consists of an humble admiration for the vast power which manifests itself in that small part of the universe which our poor, weak minds can grasp!'

      "In a discussion, when the Professor is impressed by the correctness of his own views or those of another, he will suddenly exclaim: 'Yes! So it is! It is just! It must be so! I am quite sure that God could not have made it different!' For him, God is as valid as a scientific argument.

      "At one time, after prolonged concentration upon a single problem (it lasted for nearly four years), the Professor suffered a complete physical collapse. With it came severe stomach trouble. A celebrated specialist said: 'You must not get out of bed! You cannot stand on your feet for a long time to come.'

      "'Is this the will of God?' queried the Professor instantly. 'I think not! The voice of God is from within us. Something within me tells me that every day I must get up at least once. I must go to the piano and play! The rest of the day I will spend in bed! This I am prepared to accept as the will of God!'

      "And with the will of God, as set forth by Einstein, the specialist had to be content. Every day the Professor got up, put his bathrobe over his night-shirt, and went to the piano to play.

      "I asked many questions to elicit the lessons of his experience that might be of most use to the rest of us. I learned that he reads little. 'Much reading after a certain age,' he says, 'diverts the mind from its creative pursuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking, just as the man who spends too much time in the theaters is apt to be content with living vicariously instead of living his own life.

      "'I have only two rules which I regard as principles of conduct. The first is: Have no rules. The second is: Be independent of the opinion of others.'"

      So we find that there is in man a knowing capacity transcending intellectual knowledge. Nearly everyone has at some time touched this hidden wisdom and has been more or less astonished at its revelations. It certainly is a most startling experience to find ourselves giving forth logical thoughts and words without preparation or forethought, because we nearly always arrive at our conclusions through a process of reasoning. However, the reasoning process is often so swift that we are likely to think that it is true inspiration, especially when we have received either the reflected uplift of other wise ones or the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This quickening of the intellect is the John-the-Baptist or intellectual illumination that precedes the awakening of the ideal, the Christ understanding. Some Truth students become so enamored of the revelations that they receive through the head that they fail to go on to the unfoldment of the One who baptizes in "Holy Spirit and in fire." The Old Testament writers had a certain understanding of the first and the second opening of the mind to spiritual Truth; Isaiah said:

      The voice of one that crieth, Prepare ye in the wilderness the way of Jehovah; make level in the desert a high way for our God.

      Elijah had intellectual illumination, and the Israelites were taught that he would come again as a forerunner of the Messiah, Jesus said that Elijah had come again in the personality of John the Baptist:

      I say unto you, that Elijah is come already, and they knew him not . . . Then understood the disciples that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

      The history of the Israelites is a sort of moving picture of man's soul and body development. When we understand the psychology of the different scenes, we know what we СКАЧАТЬ