There are many students who get confused in understanding the difference between that which we call the Reality and that which we call the unreal, or world of effects. It is quite right to ask: “If God is continually expressing Himself, is not that which is expressed, Real?”
All manifested life is real inasmuch as we experience it: or it is real to us if we give it reality by accepting it as such through our senses. This means that if we accept a thing as real we condition ourselves to the effects this “reality” is supposed to give. You might say then: “Disease is real”. This is real inasmuch as we involve ourselves in the condition; but as this is only an effect appearing on the physical body, it is not implanted or touching upon the entity or “spiritual man” operating through it. You experience the effects of disease but the truth is that because the “man” using the body is rooted in that which is Real and Permanent he, Himself, remains untouched by the effects. He remains a “witness” of what has been brought forth, either by his own hands or God’s.
The world of effects is a transient condition resulting from, for example, in the domain of man’s experiences, man himself. Man is therefore the Cause of his own disease, joy, sadness, peace and war – all these stem from his handling of his own affairs. God placed him in this garden with all things at his disposal so by the correct control of his individual nature he can experience almost what he likes for that matter.
The fault is however that humans (man thinking he is a physical body) instead of exercising their abilities according to the Cosmic Pattern, act according to how they believe things are.
There is much beauty, harmony and joy that has already been expressed into this world and it has been experienced and enjoyed, but as effects always fade away and other effects are continually coming into being, it is expedient to allow one’s self to maintain an attitude wherein the “new” can be fulfilled. Life from the Source is always on the move and the effects of this can always be witnessed if we remain awake to this truth. It is because the effects are continually changing that to get bogged down with fixed opinions, theories and philosophies, or religions, is to remain asleep – or even dead.
What then can we call Real and what can we call Unreal? The Real is that which is Permanent, unchanging and continually reliable. The Unreal is that which lacks substance and is continually changing in appearance. Thus, the Real is that which exists at the Source of all things and is the initiator of effects – being the First Cause.
It is because all impressions, received through the limited physical senses, are only minute facets of a whole mass of varied impressions that it is impossible to understand, via this medium, what is the correct picture. Thus we give way to speculations, theories and opinion and it is these speculations etc. that must be only illusions of what is Real and True.
On this basis we are obliged to accept that, since it is apparent that a perfect order exists, the Source must contain the very essence of Perfection, Wholeness and Supreme Intelligence. To us, this Source is Permanent and so it can be the only Reality because it contains the true substance of all manifested life.
To return to the problem of the unpleasant experiences of man plunges us into the great and glorious mystery of his makeup. According to the great teachers, upon whose word we can rely, man is contained as a vital organism within the universal whole, and as it is his destiny to develop and grow like unto his parent, his creator, he possesses the same inherent potentials and thus is in a continual process of creating. It is by him getting so involved in that which he has created that he does not stop to think what he is doing and he then blames everything, but himself, for his own mistakes: so he suffers. He then tries to find a way out of his dilemma by acting upon the outworking of conditions he sees taking place in his field of experiences. For example, back to health matters again, he observes a small organism present in his body during a “sickness” and claims that it is this that is causing the trouble and tries endlessly, and unsuccessfully, to correct the situation at this point. This same process he carries through to all things that he believes are giving him trouble in his environment, in family affairs and personal contacts, politics and almost everything else. As long as he believes his causes are out there in the world of effects he will never find the answers. All that is necessary is to put himself back into line with the laws of the Source and that which is false will be replaced by the true. This means that he has to maintain a firm, unwavering faith in that which he inwardly knows to be True (the simple facts taught by the great teachers) and disregard any other evidence, or claim, via the senses in regard to the situation. This bypasses the false impressions of the senses and the Reality floods into experience, and since the very nature of the Source is known, then it is only that which is like unto Its own nature that can be expressed and realised. So, by living in a wise understanding of the laws that govern our life, we can continue to experience the ever-outpouring of the Reality from within – without hindrance and without always running into the mistakes which bring us suffering. Revelation then becomes an everyday enjoyment for we remain in tune with our Source. We should refuse to get “set” in any condition in this field of effects – having no opinions about life, no theories, no pet philosophies, no judging of appearances, no argument, no “axes to grind” and no seeking. In the knowledge of Truth we have all that we need, for we not only believe but know and our faith is made complete.
Some people ask us if we believe in reincarnation. From our point of view it depends on what is meant in the mind of the enquirer by this question. To say that Cleopatra, Plato or Robert Browning, for that matter, reincarnates is incorrect, since these names were only the titles given to the vehicles of “divine sparks” – that which constitutes the name does not. To say that, for example, Shakespeare is here again in the flesh is stating an impossibility, for that which identified the “entity” as Shakespeare was only the outworking of a particular activity in this world of effects, and that said entity has ceased to be identified with it. Thus it follows that whatever name you are identified with at this time it is because that from your own Reality you are expressing certain energies, or forces, which are now giving you varied experiences according to how you are managing your affairs. When you have outworn these energies they will be dissolved into the earth’s own mass and you cease to be what you thought you were. In truth you were never actually John Smith or Mary Brown, in the first place. To say “I was so-and-so” in a past incarnation is really identifying yourself with something you never really were so this is another thing that constitutes the illusion. Whilst you continue to recognise these various facets of your experiences as being yourself you will never obtain release from such attachments and never be in position to take a responsible hand in providing a suitable vehicle for a specific end.
It follows that human beings, as such, do not reincarnate. It is the Spirit of Man which is continually in a state of incarnation. The body is an effect of the expression of Spirit. Man does not appear in and out of a “body” but rather a “body” is fashioned for the experience of the man.