We ended the last presentation at a stage when the monad moves out of the causal envelope when it takes the (i4) and moves the consciousness of the monad into the Unity permanent atom (46:1). This is where the monad is focused, but as with the lower envelopes, the subplane where the monad is objective starts in the lower vibrations first.
Unity (46) consciousness provides a realisation of the One Consciousness, penetrating everything- God’s One Consciousness. This realisation instils a sense of safety, confidence, and an incredible impulse and stimulus. Initially, it might be alarming as one may feel like they are losing themselves. However, this is not the case. Christ purportedly said: “He that loseth his life for My sake shall find it.” Christ represents the buddhic/unity principle and essentially says that one who puts aside the causal vehicle, in which they have been living for so long, for the development of the Christ within will find a far grander and higher life. This process requires courage, and it is a startling experience the first time one is wholly in the buddhic vehicle and finds that the causal envelope upon which they have been depending for tens of thousands of years has vanished. However, when this experience occurs, the individual will know with certainty that the Self is one. This idea cannot be conveyed, but it will be known when experienced, and nothing will shake that certainty again.
When the buddhic/Unity consciousness fully impresses the physical brain, it brings a new value to the aspects of life. An individual no longer perceives a person or object but becomes that person or object. They can recognise the motives of others as their own, even though they understand that another part of themselves, possessing more knowledge or a different viewpoint, may act differently.
It should not be assumed that when a person enters the lowest subdivision of the Unity plane, they are immediately fully conscious of their unity with all that lives. This sense of perfection comes only through much effort and toil when one reaches the highest subdivision of the buddhic plane. As an aside, your chief solar deva usually resides on subplane 46:1, although some may be 45-Selves. Step by step, sub-plane by sub-plane, the aspirant must make progress for themselves as exertion and effort are still necessary at that level. Remember, we now enter this realm as a group, so we will have full unity with this group from the start of our life in this world.
The candidate now faces the task of developing themself on sub-plane after sub-plane. They are now on the Path of Holiness, known in the Buddhist system as the Sotapatti or Sohan, “he who has entered the stream”, and among the Hindus as the Parivrajaka, the “wanderer” who no longer feels that any place in the three lower worlds is their abiding place or refuge. The topic of unity consciousness will be discussed more fully in the following presentation.
Three interdependent factors are involved in a person’s readiness for first Initiation (i3). First, they must possess a sufficient amount of the well-known “Qualifications” outlined in the tasks of Hercules. Second, the soul must have trained their lower vehicles so that it can function perfectly through them when it wishes to do so; in other words, it must have achieved the junction of the lower and higher selves. Third, it must be strong enough to withstand the great strain that extends even to the physical envelope.
However, not all Initiates are equal in development, just as not all individuals who attain the degree of Master of Arts are equal in knowledge. While a certain level of attainment is required for Initiation, some may have achieved far more than the minimum demanded in certain areas.
Therefore, there may be significant variation in the time between Initiations for similar reasons. A person who has just taken the First Initiation (i3) may possess a considerable share of the qualifications for the Second Initiation; hence, the interval between the two may be unusually short for them. This was certainly the case for Jeshu, who went from an initiated First Self to a Second Self in his incarnation as Apollonius of Tyana 100 years later and is now a Third Self on plane 44, as the Chohan of the 6th Ray. On the other hand, a candidate who had only just enough strength in all areas to pass through the (i3) would need to slowly develop within themself all the additional faculties and knowledge necessary to take the (i4) and the (i5), resulting in a potentially longer interval. When you read about these superstars who race through the higher initiations, it tells us that these monads had remained in the lower grades of initiation for a purpose, that purpose being to do the bidding of the Hierarchy. As soon as their task was complete, they were able to rapidly ascend to where they could have been if they had just concentrated on their own evolution. This is the Law of Grace in operation.
Initiation changes the “polarity” of a person’s mental and causal vehicles, allowing them to be used in ways that others cannot, even if they are highly developed in other areas.
Whenever the Monad influences our lives, it is like a god descending from above. During all Initiations, the Monad descends and briefly becomes one with the soul, just as the Monad and soul will permanently unite when Adeptship is achieved. At other crucial times, the Monad descends when an adept makes a pledge to the head of the Hierarchy, who, for a very long time, was the Lord Buddha.
At the First Initiation (i3), the personality no longer has its own will, except when it forgets and lives solely to serve the higher objectives of the Divine Plan. The soul now operates through the personality on the lower planes and is starting to recognise the existence of the Monad, living in accordance with its will. The Monad has determined the path for the soul’s evolution, and there is no alternative, as the Monad is becoming itself, gaining liberation even from the constraints of the higher planes. Again, one has to ask the question when we speak about the monad here: are we really talking about a superconscious atom, or are we, in reality, being guided by the Protogonos, which oversees our evolution through the third triad?
Another way to express this truth is to say that, just as the person on the Probationary Path must learn to eliminate all aspects of personality, the Initiate must eliminate themselves of their individuality and reincarnating soul so that at the end of the Path, their life will be entirely under the guidance of the Monad.
The individuality, or soul, is a complex, exceedingly beautiful, and marvellously adapted being, perfectly suited to its surroundings. The idea of the separated self is deeply ingrained in us and is a fundamental part of the soul, which is the one permanent aspect of ourselves as far as we know. In the earlier stages, this idea of the separated self had to be developed and reinforced, as it was the source of our strength in the past. However, this “giant weed” must be eliminated at some point. The strong can uproot it at the beginning of their development, but the weak must wait and allow it to grow while they develop sufficient strength to eliminate it. Unfortunately, the longer it persists, the more deeply it becomes intertwined with the nature of the person.
Therefore, all systems of occult teaching advise students to try from the very beginning to dispel the illusion of separateness. The person must learn that behind the individuality lies the Monad, which will appear as the true Self once the individuality has been set aside. Beyond that, in due time, the person will realise for themselves that even the Monad is but a spark in the Eternal Flame. Although this is the case, the monad is still an individual and indivisible unit of unique experiences and, in this way, is never extinguished, as many Eastern systems of thought seem to suggest.
The lower self or personality must become free from all traces of passion, and the lower manas must free itself from kama before the “shining one” can impress it. H.P. Blavatsky wrote in Isis Unveiled: “It is when the trinity Atma-Buddhi-Manas becomes a unity for a few seconds in anticipation of the final triumphant reunion beyond the gates of corporeal death, that the candidate is allowed, at the moment of initiation, to behold his future self.”
This “trinity” becoming a unity is the “Christ” of all mystics. During the final Initiation, when the candidate has symbolically undergone the crucifixion of the flesh or lower nature and has risen again as the conqueror over sin and death, they then, in the supreme moment, see the glorious presence before them and become “one with Christ”, themselves the Christ. From then on, they may live in the envelope, but it becomes their obedient instrument; they are united to their true Self, Manas made one with Atma-Buddhi, and through the personality they inhabit, they wield their full powers as an immortal spiritual intelligence.
Thus, we read in the Persian Desatir of the “resplendent one”; in the Greek philosopher-Initiates of the Augoeides—the self-shining “blessed vision resident in the pure light”; in Porphyry, that Plotinus was united to his ‘god’ six times during his lifetime, and so on.
While struggling with the lower nature, the spiritual soul, Christ, is daily crucified within the individual. However, in the full adept (45 Self), Christ rises triumphant, becoming the master of himself and of nature. The long journey of manas comes to an end, the cycle of necessity is completed, the wheel of rebirth stops turning, and the Son of Man achieves perfection through suffering. Until this point is reached, “the Christ” is the object of aspiration. The “ray” is constantly striving to return to its source, while the lower manas continuously seeks to reunite with the higher. This ongoing yearning for reunion manifests as prayer, inspiration, and the pursuit of God. The earnest Christian exclaims, “My soul is athirst for God, for the living God,” reflecting the unquenchable upward impulse of the lower self toward the higher. Whether one prays to Buddha, Vishnu, Christ, the Virgin, or the Father is simply a matter of language, not essential truth.
The ultimate goal is for the individual soul, known as Atma-Buddhi, to unite with the divine essence within each person. This divine union is referred to in various ways, such as the ideal person, the personal God, the God-Human, God in human form, the embodiment of the divine word, and the Christ consciousness that every believer must awaken within themselves.
Once a person commits to the spiritual path and focuses all their energy on it, their progress accelerates significantly. This progress does not follow a linear or geometric trajectory but rather grows exponentially. This should be very encouraging for anyone who is dedicated to their spiritual growth.
In the next two presentations, we will look at unity or buddhic consciousness in greater detail.