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Thou who art now a disciple, able to stand, able to hear, able to see, able to speak, who hast conquered desire and attained to self-knowledge, who hast seen thy soul in its bloom and recognized it, and heard the Voice of the Silence — go thou to the Hall of Learning and read what is written there for thee.
Note — To be able to stand is to have confidence; to be able to hear is to have opened the doors of the soul; to be able to see is to have attained perception; to be able to speak is to have attained the power of helping others; to have conquered desire is to have learned how to use and control the self; to have attained self-knowledge is to have retreated to the inner fortress whence the personal man can be viewed with impartiality; to have seen thy soul in its bloom is to have obtained a momentary glimpse in thyself of the transfiguration which shall eventually make thee more than man; to recognize is to achieve the great task of gazing upon the blazing light without dropping the eyes, and not falling back in terror, as though before some ghastly phantom. This happens to some, and so when the victory is all but won, it is lost.
To hear the Voice of the Silence is to understand that from within comes the only true guidance; to go to the Hall of Learning is to enter the state in which learning becomes possible. Then will many words be written there for thee, and written in fiery letters for thee easily to read. For when the disciple is ready, the Master is ready also.
He is thyself, yet thou art but finite and liable to error.
He is eternal and sure. He is eternal truth. When once he has entered thee and become thy Warrior, he will never utterly desert thee, and at the day of the great peace he will become one with thee.
Note — Look for it and listen to it first in your own heart.
At first you may say: "It is not there; when I search I find only discord". Look deeper. If again you are disappointed, pause and look deeper again.
There is a natural melody, an obscure fount, in every human heart. It may be hidden over and utterly concealed and silenced — but it is there. At the very base of your nature you will find faith, hope, and love.
He that chooses evil refuses to look within himself, shuts his ears to the melody of his heart as he blinds his eyes to the light of his soul. He does this because he finds it easier to live in desires. But underneath all life is the strong current that cannot be checked; the great waters are there in reality. Find them and you will perceive that none, not the most wretched of creatures, but is a part of it, however he blind himself to the fact and build up for himself a phantasmal outer form of horror.
In that sense it is that I say to you: all those beings among whom you struggle on are fragments of the Divine. And so deceptive is the illusion in which you live that it is hard to guess where you will first detect the sweet voice in the hearts of others. But know that it is certainly within yourself. Look for it there and, once having heard it, you will more readily recognize it around you.
Note — From an absolutely impersonal point of view, otherwise your sight is coloured. Therefore impersonality must first be understood.
Intelligence is impartial; no man is your enemy; no man is your friend. All alike are your teachers. Your enemy becomes a mystery that must be solved, even though it takes ages; for man must be understood.
Your friend becomes a part of yourself, an extension of yourself, a riddle hard to read. Only one thing is more difficult to know — your own heart.
Not until the bonds of personality be loosed can that profound mystery of self begin to be seen. Not till you stand aside from it will it in any way reveal itself to your understanding. Then, and not till then, can you grasp and guide it. Then, and not till then, can you use all its powers, and devote them to a worthy service.
Study the hearts of men, that you may know what is that world in which you live and of which you will be a part. Regard the constantly changing and moving life which surrounds you, for it is formed by the hearts of men; and as you learn to understand their constitution and meaning, you will by degrees be able to read the larger word of life.
Note — It is impossible to help others till you have obtained some certainty of your own. When you have learned the first twenty-one rules and have entered the Hall of Learning with your powers developed and senses unchained, then you will find there is a fount within you from which speech will arise.
After the thirteenth rule I can add no words to what is already written.
My peace I give to you.
These notes are written only for those to whom I give my peace: those who can read what I have written with the inner as well as the outer sense.
The development of your inner sense will enable you to do this.
The conquering of the desires of the outer senses will give you the right to this.
The great and difficult victory, the conquering of the desires of the individual soul, is a work of ages; therefore expect not to obtain its reward until ages of experience have been accumulated. When the time of learning this seventeenth rule is reached, man is on the threshold of becoming more than man.
It is written that for him who is on the threshold of divinity, no law can be framed, no guide can exist. Yet to enlighten the disciple, the final struggle may be thus expressed:
Peace be with you.