The Editor of the Round Robin writes three paragraphs of comment, the first of which substantially outlines correctly the writer's idea of post-mortem existence . . . except for the following qualifications:
The personalized superior dynamism is able to maintain itself without a form of material order, such as a biological cell, because it is like in quality with the world soul, from which it draws its basic existence . . . Hypothetically, the spiriton may be looked upon as a disembodied soul. However, the spiroculon is connected with this latter form by clairvoyant investigation only, and this should be checked experimentally. The size, behaviour, and photographability of spiroculons, and their unfoldment in terms of an adumbration of the ontogenesis of the individual organism constitute an amount of experimentally obtained evidence which refers to the spiroculon only, but is connected with the spiriton for the sole purpose of establishing an objective place in Nature for the surviving entity in post-mortem existence. (§)
Thus, "soul travel" may be explained from either the stand point of the moving spiriton or from that of the instant creation, in terms of the world-soul consciousness and spiritual substratum, of an exact simulacrum, plus its egoic intelligence, of the embodied soul-being. The writer feels that there is some evidence for both these modes of travel. He repeats that this reasoning is in line with the alternation in the biological cycle, with the egg and chick manifestation as emergent from the general protoplasmic field. Basically observed, the soul (self of Geley) does not walk either in the seance room or in its clairvoyantly observed excursions. In both the world of the embodied and of the disembodied this holds good, except when for special purposes other forms of manifestation are made use of.
(§. Paragraph beginning referring has been misplaced from its proper sequence at the end of paragraph 4, sup.)
(§ Referring back for a moment to the paragraph ending (§) above): Further evidence of the reality of spiroculons may be had by developed [12] people, but not, alas, by non-psychic scientific people. This may be found in the play or fluttering of the two-petalled Lotus, so-called, in the forehead (ajnya chakra). There is a movement of slow character to the right and to the left. A faint bluish glow appears, mixed with violet; then the blue becomes more bright until white patches (ectoplasm?) may be seen. These become clearer until the blue disappears. There may be an alternating and rhythmic appearance of the white patches to the right and the left, as the general field moves from right and left. Usually with psychic people, and always with the writer, just before the general movement commences spiroculons may be seen, a few or many. As the white patches begin to appear, a fluttering, somewhat like that of humming birds bathing in a moving stream, will be seen. This follows the movement from right and left, at the center, and the writer has learned to believe is caused by the spiroculons. He has already indicated that the sound as of rushing winds is caused by spiroculons, and thinks also that the spiroculon, initiating this fluttering in the center of the visual field, is indicating his presence as well as adding to the beauty of the movement. This is in itself a form of communication. However, the description of the field just given applies to an early stage of meditation, and is found just before the subliminal level is reached. With experienced psychics it does, or should be immediately. As outer consciousness is gradually lost, pictures (visions) manifest themselves. These will always, the writer thinks, when thoughtfully considered in the life sequence of the beholder, except when some instruction is intended, or when some other special idea is interjected, as when an answer is required for some question in the mind of the seer, as long as attention can be held, be of the nature of precognition. Communication has now been obtained, and the seer will receive visions of his coming future. This will apply, of course, only to the point when the "messages" are completed. As the deep dreaming, sleeping stage is reached, the visions may become grotesque and rapidly, joined or superimposed. This will be because time is limited for communication at that point, and because the grotesqueness has been required to fix the dream in the memory.
(Returning to the subject of astral forms or vehicles): The belief in human-like vehicles may be due in part to wish-fulfilment, plus inheritance of the idea from pre-literate ancestry. For while the vital dynamism (etheric body) may take on during embodied life any form it chooses, it appears to the writer that the spiroculon may also do so in the disembodied state. The writer wishes to add, that having read what he could, for thirty years, of the descriptions of 'spirit chemists' (§), he finds them in the main a mass of disagreements. (Dr Haley then gives various illustrations of the dependence of spirit communications on the mentality of mediums and on ideas prevalent at the time. There are some high-grade literary and philosophical scripts, but none of a scientific value. Koot Hoomi and the Blavatsky messages are limited by the cultural level of the mid 19th century; and there is no indication of an ability to work in a fully controlled projected body on any plane.)
(§ Dr Haley is referring to the Editor's mention of spirit chemists, in correspondence about the present article.)
The writer thinks that the term "personalised superior dynamism" as used by Geley is preferable to other terms (Higher Self, Egoic Consciousness, Superconsciousness, Holy Guardian Angel, etc.) in that it provides a phrase that squares with modern classical science and abstract philosophical needs. However, he sees no reason why the other terms should not be used. (Dr. Haley continues by saying that cosmic consciousness, or God-consciousness is really a 'message' and is pre-cognitive; nevertheless God may grant man a vision of Himself at the time of pre-cognition. God-consciousness, and the power of miracle working, is always conferred - by Angels, or God, or the Ego, or the superconscious dynamism.) I trust that in all this I have not entered into precincts too advanced for me to walk in . . . but the time seemed a good one for amplifying the thoughts of the writer upon the spiroculon theory.
(Limitations of space in the Round Robin have compelled us to condense portions of the foregoing article, but the Editor has tried to present correctly the substance of Dr. Haley's ideas.)
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Author Thomas Sugrue, now editing the Saturday Review in New York, makes an interesting summary in a recent letter. For the last five months he has been listening "to the right wing, the left wing, and the middle. The only thing they have in common is fear. For instance, the British Israel people are convinced that Russia very shortly will march through Turkey and Syria, and that the great battle will take place in Palestine. Just when Britain and America are about to be he defeated the miracle will take place. An atomic explosion will force the fault which runs through the Mount of Ascension, and the ensuing vibratory pattern will bring a vision of the Master with his foot upon the mountain top.
Compare that with the more sensible opinion of other esotericists, those who take an objective view. It is their opinion that the battle will now go forward on the mental plane, since the issues are largely of this nature, and it has been proved that they are only suspended while physical conflict occurs. Of course the sane pattern will prevail, the sane maneuvering for power, but the armies will meet on the battle-fields of the mind and the issue will be decided in the spirit.
Those of the left, however, contend that the natural decay of Christianity will result in a coalition with the reactionary elements of capitalism, so that a new fascism will be formed to fight the "true" democracy of communism. According to this belief the new religion and the new freedom will come from Russia.
And according to the readings given many years ago by Edgar Cayce, the battle until the end of this century will take place on the mental plane by means of propaganda, diplomacy, strikes and counter-strikes. There will be blood running in the streets and brother will strike against brother, but not in international warfare - at least not until the late 1990s. At that time it seems that the battle will be between the east and west. It is also at that time that the pyramid prophecies will expire and a new set, as yet undiscovered, will go into effect.
It is foolish to prophesy the outcome. It is a matter of our own deeds and will, of our spiritual evolution.
- THE VITALITY GLOBULES -
(A summary of the account given in Chakras, a monograph, by The Rt. Rev. C.W. Leadbeater, The Theosophical Press, 826 Oaxdale Ave, Chicago, and copyrighted by the American Theosophical Society, 1927).
(With almost its first issue, Round Robin began calling attention to certain curious visual appearances known as vitality globules, spiritons, or zoo-ites - and to the fact that, so far as the RR editor could discover, no scientific writer on light, the eye, optics, visual oddities has mentioned the V-Gs at all - which is to say that no explanation for them is at hand, though probably 7 or 8 people out of 10 can see them quite easily. Or rather, there is no lack of learned fellows who 'explain' them by giving querent and query alike the scientific brush-off, rather than perform a two-minute experiment for themselves. Well, this deeply determined ignorance still persists, and the feeble voice of the ROBIN can do naught to enlighten it. But the RR Editor happened to know that these V-Gs had long been known and studied in the East, particularly in India, and so eventually located a full discussion of them, in English, by the famous clairvoyant Leadbeater. Meanwhile, many of our readers and correspondents had been observing the 'globules', and reporting a variety of appearances, and even trying to photograph them. So, it seems to us worth while to print this following summary. It involves, of course, data of the so-called occult order, or of ESP type, but which are probably quite correct and need not contravene in any way the 'ionized particles' of Tesla, or any other genuine scientific explanation - if and when we get one.)
"The vitality globule, though inconceivably minute, is so brilliant that it is often seen even by those who are not in the ordinary sense clairvoyant. Many a man, looking out toward the distant horizon, especially over the sea, will notice against the sky a number of the tiniest possible points of light dashing about in all directions with amazing rapidity. These are the vitality globules, each consisting of 7 physical atoms - the Fiery Lives, specks charged with the force the Hindus call prana . . . I think we may safely take prana as equivalent to our word vitality. (Note: these are also the Souls of Fire, or Fiery Lives, or Holy Aschim known to the Qabalists: they constitute the Angelic Host of Malkuth, under the Regency of Sandalphon and of Adonai ha Aretz - an interesting point of integration in occult wave of thinking. RR Ed.)
"When this globule is flashing about in the atmosphere, brilliant as it is, it is almost colorless, and shines with a white or slightly golden light. But as soon as it is drawn into the vortex of the force center at the spleen it is decomposed and breaks up into streams of different colors . . . Each of the spokes (of the chakra) seizes upon one atom according to its color, the 7th atom disappears through the 'hub' of the chakra . . . The life-force (prana) is clearly seven-fold . . . The vitality globule is the principal constituent of oxygen and is the cause of the unusual activity of that element . . . the body extracts the vitality globule from the oxygen of the air and recombines it to form some of the principal constituents of the blood. The prana from the spleen goes all over the etheric double; its essence is carried throughout the dense physical body. (With reference to colors of the V-Gs, non-clairvoyant observers report considerable variation, beyond what Leadbeater here mentions. Ed.)
"As the streams of atoms do their work, the 'charge' of vitality (v-gs) is withdrawn from them; they become bluish-white, and are thrown off through the skin and form the health-aura. They are now exactly like any other atom and enter into appropriate combinations.
"Vitality enters the atom from within, that is, from a higher dimension - just as does the force which holds that atom together; it does not act from without, as do (e.g.) light, heat, or electricity. The vitality give the atom an additional life, and a power of attraction, so that it immediately draws around it six other atoms, which it arranges in a definite pattern. Thus it makes a special 'element', arising from the First Aspect of the Solar Deity. This vitality globule is the little group that makes the exceedingly brilliant bead on the male or positive 'snake' in oxygen, and it is also the heart of the central globe in radium . . . They are conspicuous above all others which may be seen floating in the atmosphere, on account of their brilliance and extreme activity - the intensely vivid life they show." (This implies the existence of other visible atmospheric globules, besides the V-Gs, and this is of interest because of many variations in reports of recent observers. Ed.)
"These are probably the Fiery Lives mentioned by Blavatsky (in S.D., vol. 1, 282, new ed.), when she writes:
"We are taught that every physiological change, all the objective phenomena of life are due to unseen creators and destroyers called in a loose way, microbes . . . But these Fiery Lives and microbes are not identical. The Fiery Lives are the 7th and highest subdivision of the plane of matter, and correspond in the individual with the One Life of the Universe, though only on that plane of matter."
"While the force that vivifies these globules is quite different from light, it nevertheless seems to depend upon light for its power of manifestation. In brilliant sunshine this vitality is constantly welling up afresh, and the globules are generated with great rapidity and in incredible numbers; but in cloudy weather there is a great diminution in number, and during the night, so far as we have been able to see, the operation is entirely suspended . . . The stock runs low over a long succession of cloudy days. The globule, once charged, remains as a sub-atomic element, and is not subject to any change or loss of force unless and until it is absorbed by some living creature.
"Vitality pours forth from the Sun . . . dark and cloudy weather depletes the supply . . . nothing can entirely compensate for the loss of sunlight . . . Vitality is not directly connected with man's mental and emotional life, but only with his bodily well-being. The primary, the vitality, and the Kundalini enter the chakras of the root and spleen: forces of a 'psychic' or 'spiritual' order enter the navel chakra and the others higher up in the body.
"The Sun pours out the force called Vitality on all levels, and it appears in all the realms (physical, emotional, mental and the rest) but in the lowest realm it enters some of the physical atoms and fills them with life and activity. Vitality is not electricity, light, or heat . . . The atom is built of 'bubbles' (14 thousand million of them), which are holes in koilon (aether of space); the will of the Solar Deity holds the atom together, and vitality enters the atom along with this sustaining force."
References
- Gustave Geley (1868-1924), French physician and psychical researcher, director of Institut Métapsychique International (IMI). Author of "L'être Subconscient" [Being subconscious] (1899), "De l’Inconscient au Conscient" [From The Unconscious To The Conscious] (1919) <https://archive.org/details/fromunconscioust00geleiala>. Postulated a "superior, organising, centralising, and directing dynamism."
Further reading: IMI biography of Geley (in French), <http://www.metapsychique.org/Gustave-Geley.html>; SurvivalAfterDeath.info bio (in English), <http://www.survivalafterdeath.info/researchers/geley.htm>
- Leadbeater, C W. The Chakras: A Monograph. Madras: Theosophical Pub. House Adyar, 1927. Print. <http://amzn.to/1tuqEA9> [Digital: <http://www.anandgholap.net/Chakras-CWL.htm]
- Blavatsky, H P. The Secret Doctrine: The Synthesis of Science, Religion and Philosophy. Theosophical University Press, 1888. Print. [Reprint, 2000: <http://amzn.to/1B3pMHD>; digital: <http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/sd/sd-hp.htm>]