Yram Practical Astral Projection 1926

$2.95

Practical

Can man penetrate consciously into the fourth di-mension ? The answer is yes, and the author has givenpractical information in this book to guide anyonein such a way that he may proceed to success entirelyon his own.

Actual experiences of out-of-body travel are re-corded and the methods used to attain them are clear-ly explained. The author shows that the phenomenonof dissociation between man and his body gives ab-solute certainty that man is able to survive in a newdimension.

There are discussions of the scientific, philosophic,and religious unity of opinions and beliefs, the re-lationships between man and the universe, and therational practice of contemplation. There is alsotreatment of the distinction between thought-formsand living beings, the limitations of free will, theinfluence of will-power in the higher worlds, themechanism of intuition and inspiration, and the na-ture of thought.

Those who sincerely wish to understand the na-ture of astral projection and its basic principles willfind this a very valuable book; and those who applythese principles will find that consistent practicebrings valid experiences.

Samuel Weiser, Inc.740 Broadway

New York, N.Y. 10003ISBN: 0-K7728-267-6 COVER DESIGN BY ALDEN COLE

byYRAM

SAMUEL WEISERNew York

Reprinted 1967Third Impression 1974

Reprinted in Paperback 1974Third Impression 1977

ISBN 0-87728-267-6Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 75-16548

Samuel Weiser, Inc.740 Broadway

New York, N.Y. 10003

Printed in V.S.A. by NOBLE O F F S ET PRIN TER S, INC .

N E W YORK, N.Y. 1 0 0 0 3

Contents

PART ONE

T HE EXPERIMENTAL BASES OF TH E SCIENTIFIC,PHILOSOPHIC, AND RELIGIOUS UNITY OFOPINIONS AND BELIEFS

CHAPTER PAGE

I. A NEW SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR PROCRESS . 17

II. EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS REQUIRED . 2 2

III SOME GENERAL RESULTS . . . 31

IV. ANALYSIS OF THE PHENOMENON OF SEPARATIONBETWEEN THE HUMAN BEINC AND HIS BODY . 43

V. PREPARATION FOR PROJECTION BY MEANS OF THE

SENSORY FACULTIES . 51

VI. INSTANTANEOUS PROJECTION . - 5 5

VII. PROJECTION BY WHIRLWIND . . . 6 0

IX. THE CONNECTING CORD . . . - 7 5

X. How THE DOUBLE TRAVELS IN THE INVISIBLEREALMS . . . . . - 7 8

XI. How THE HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS USES ITS POWERS 84

7

8 CONTENTSCHAPTER PAGE

ASTRAL PROJECTION . . . . 1 1 2

SOME RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MANAND T H E UNIVERSE

UNIVERSE . . . . . . 1 8 0

CONTENTS 9 CHAFTBR PAGE

VI. T H E MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ATTRACTIVEPRINCIPLES IN THE INVISIBLE WORLDS . . 194

VII. SOME EXPERIENCES CONCERNING THE FUSION OFTWIN SOULS . . . . . 202

EQUATION IN THE HIGHER WORLDS . . 2 1 1

IX. T H E SUBLIME CONTACT WITH THE ESSENCE OFUNIVERSAL ENERGY . . . . 2 1 7

X. T H E RATIONAL PRACTICE OF CONTEMPLATION . 225

PART THREE

CONCLUSIONS

I. T H E CERTAINTY OF DELIVERANCE FROM EVIL . 233

II. T H E CERTAINTY OF A LASTING HAPPINESS . 238

III. T H E CERTAINTY OF RESULTS FOLLOWING ONPERSONAL EFFORTS . . . . 243

IV. CONCERNING CERTAINTIES AND PROBABILITIES . 247

Foreword

HE present work takes the place of the threevolumes which were originally intended to

appear on this subject. Since the publication ofmy work Aimez-vous les uns les autres I decidedthat further information would in no way help toconvince sceptics steeped in the mire of self-satisfaction.

It seems to me that to describe the results ofcertain experiments, to explain in a logical mannercertain problems which concern our future life, will be enough to lead those who wish to win free of thesuperstitions and errors of the present life, to thestudy with which this book is concerned.

We shall leave the problem of suffering to otherswho are at the beginning of their study of life. Forourselves, who do not think of the worldly life asbeing of great import, we shall try, on the contrary,to realize a finer existence, a fuller and freer con-sciousness, free as much as possible of all incon-veniences which are but obstacles to the peace weare seeking.

i i

12 FOREWORD

All treatises on morality can be reduced to a scheme rationally based upon our motives for per-forming any particular act or acts. When thereexists a lack of interest, then logic and common senseare no longer enough for us. An absolute, unshak-able faith in the fundamental principles of our beingis alone capable of giving our motives the necessaryimpetus for putting them into practice.

The experimental knowledge of a state of lifeexisting outside the physical world gives our faithan added strength now unknown for severalcenturies.

I am not exaggerating in claiming that the pro-pagation of this particular knowledge will causehumanity to enter into a new evolutionaryperiod.

For the layman there will always exist honest anddishonest people. The Initiate, on the other hand,whose vision penetrates into another dimension,sees this evolutionary wave in terms of progressivestates of consciousness, and he perceives a mass ofhuman beings striding boldly into the higherregions of the Eternal Substance. Those who accom-plish this feat will return no more. Free from theneed of once more taking up a physical body theywill gladly make room for others less advanced.

What is more, a thousand years hence, theignoramus of that period will cry out like his

FOREWORD 13

present-day prototype, that all efforts made toimprove the lot of the individual are useless,because in those days suffering and chaos will stillreign, up to a certain point, ovei the inhabitantsof this earth.

PART ONE

THE EXPERIMENTAL BASES OF THESCIENTIFIC, PHILOSOPHIC, AND RELIGIOUS

UNITY OF OPINIONS AND BELIEFS

CHAPTER I

A NEW SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR PROGRESS

A M O N G the many aspects of modern know-ledge the most difficult matter upon which to

form a rational opinion is one's own existence.This ignorance brings with it a mass of fallaciesin all other aspects of life. Social progress, in theminds of many persons, represents the only reality,and the modern aim seems to consist in being ableto imagine a state where everyone will be able todo as he pleases.

This Utopian conception, carefully fed by thevarious interested parties, has developed a crystal-lization in modern thought. Science, Religion,and Philosophy are marking time, quite unconsciousof the fact that they are doing so. A great dealis being written, far less being thought. There-fore, as soon as a work treats of questions whichcall for prolonged thinking on the part of thereader, it is hastily put away at the bottom of a drawer.

The world of to-day is always in a hurry. Eachindividual wants to see immediate results, withoutworrying in the least as to the causes which bringthem about.

Yet, never within the history of our race has the17

18 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

time been more propitious for the reform of ourideas, to a greater and speedier progress, all leadingtowards social harmony and happiness.

From what source shall we take the Mother Idea,origin of all future changes? What is the newelement whose energy will impregnate our know-ledge with its radio-active potentialities? On whatbasis are we to stand in order to balance our variousopinions and beliefs, with a healthy, clearly con-ceived reality?

So far as hypotheses are concerned we areburdened with too many already! The Great Warof 1914 upset many castles in the air which hadbeen built upon the illusion of goodwill. Religionsare no longer competent to deal with their task.The majority of these are lacking in the most rudi-mentary common sense. So far as the theories ofso-called scientific philosophies are concerned thesewould drag us back to the era of our cave-dwellingancestors by exalting the conception of our animalorigin.

Logic pure and simple is no longer enough.Despite the presumed advancement of our civiliza-tion, modern thought is lacking in food. The basesof true morality are misconceived, and the humansoul wanders aimlessly in the void of illusion andchimeric hopes.

The great problem which has always been presentbefore the human being is that of survival. If wewere able to know exactly what would happen tous after death, if we could only know in an absolutelycertain manner if it is possible to live, to see, to feel,think, and understand in another state of beingwith the same ease as we have done these on earth,

A NEW SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR PROGRESS 19

what enormous strides could be made in ourevolution.

Without the least exaggeration we could claimthat this knowledge would be the greatest revolu-tion which has ever been accomplished in all therealms of our activity. And if this knowledge canbring about some relief of human suffering, thenone may definitely claim that the knowledge ofthis secular enigma is one of the greatest benefitsthat one could give to humanity.

This fact, this faith through personal experience,this understanding, is being brought within yourreach by means of the present work.

It is not necessary that you should have faith.I am not approaching you as a missionary chargedwith the propagation of a new idea. I am simplyputting forward the results I have personallyobtained, saying: "There is nothing in the leastmysterious in what I have done. This is the wayin which I have set about the matter; all you haveto do is to reproduce the experiment under the sameconditions and you will obtain the same results."

It is obvious that, at first glance, this claim isunbelievable. To the average mind it will seemthat the unveiling of such an important mystery,without any possible doubt, could be only a dreambrought about by too much delving into mysticaland occult books during the silent hours of thenight. Think of the many mightier brains that havebeen harnessed to the great problem without beingable to find its solution! And is it not obvious thatwere it easy for the first-comer to penetrate withsuch ease the mystery of planes, hitherto believedto be inaccessible, this secret would be popular


knowledge? Were it all so easy, humanity wouldnot have had to wait centuries and centuries topenetrate behind the veil and to understand a mystery in the name of which so many humanbeings have been massacred—for the salvation oftheir souls!

Were it not that I have solved the enigmamyself, I would certainly make the same remarksand probably add: "The poor fellow must havesuffered from brain fever in his youth and is showingsigns of the after-effects of that disease."

No doubt my readers will be more polite, and theywill probably conclude that auto-suggestion orhallucinations have brought about some specialpsychosis in my brain, and that I would do well toconsult a specialist in the cure of such afflictions.

However pertinent these suggestions may seem,they will not alter the experience in the least degree.I have myself gone over all the arguments that any-one could put forward, gone deeply into the possi-bility that I might be a pathological case. For yearsI compared the results of my experiments with allthe traditional teachings which came before me.I analysed the essential characteristics of all thedifferent religions and philosophies, I dissectedthe nature of man according to the most up-to-date scientific knowledge, and found no flagrantcontradictions with my experimental observations.

Besides, there is one salient fact which stands outin relation to the whole of human knowledge; thatis, that our knowledge follows a natural process ofdevelopment at all times. In order that the fruit ofwisdom may be plucked we must await its ripening.Each stage in human knowledge is the result of

A NEW SCIENTIFIC BASIS FOR PROGRESS 21

causes initiated, perhaps, thousands of years prior totheir manifestation.

And, when the fruit of wisdom is ripe, the person-ality of the individual who has the luck to find it isof little import. His most obvious duty is to sharethis treasure with others, irrespective of the receptionwhich falls to his lot.

C HA PT E R II

EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS REQUIRED

T H E best way in which the problem of survivalcould be solved would be to die, in order toobserve the details of the phenomenon in a precisemanner. This is, from a practical point of view,impossible, the more so if we do not happen tobelieve in spirits. A more subtle solution is required.Whilst studying the different traditional systemsand philosophies one notices, among their sym-bolism, ideas concerning the possibilities of separat-ing the human being into two distinct parts, withouthis having to undergo too much discomfort.

The mesmerists, and especially Hector Durville,1

have studied this phenomenon by experiment onwilling subjects and obtained most satisfactoryresults.

For the sceptic, though, this kind of experimentgives rise to too many difficulties. But suppose wecould, each one of us, voluntarily put ourselves intothe same condition, could leave our bodies just aswe go through our front door, without for onesecond losing full control of all our consciousfaculties; that would be truly interesting! No

1 Vide Hector Durville : Le Fmltme des vivants.

EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS REQUIRED 23

more mysteries or complications of any sort. Wewould merely change our dimension.

Knowledge so obtained is of more use than thatobtained by dying. When the body is disorganizedby disease the mind is anxious and our faculties arenot in the best state to examine the process ofseparation between body and soul.

To be capable of renewing this experience ofdisembodiment at will, in full possession of all one'spowers, of all one's mental clarity, without trouble ofany kind, is, in my opinion, superior to final separa-tion. Such are the conditions which I have ob-served during the fourteen years since I succeededin my first experiment. Needless to say, I havehad plenty of time to become used to the finerstate and to study it in detail. Moreover, I soonbecame sated with ordinary phenomena. To passthrough stone walls, to visit friends, to roam freelyin space simply for the sake of enjoying this extra-ordinary state, are games of which one soon wearies.Human consciousness is more greedy, it seeks totravel further; this new dimension is not enough tosatisfy it, it seeks to penetrate into another form ofthe cosmic organization.

Truly the human being is insatiable and so ithappened that travelling from dimension to dimen-sion, I was not satisfied until I had attained thatalmost indescribable state when one is no more thana "unity-multiplicity" with the higher energy ofnature. Of course, there are many obstacles in theway, but these are within one's means to overcome.It took me exactly twelve years to develop myconsciousness and to penetrate with it to the extremeboundary of our universe. It became necessary for


me to carry out a whole series of operations on mypsychological being. These, though, mostly tookplace in so gentle a manner as to be imperceptible.With each stage, which might well be compared to a new death, because its development takes from ussome part of our affections, we must adapt ourselvesto a new mental regimen. This must go on untilthe last renunciation comes, when we take the greatdecisive leap into the unknown, and the consciousbeing loses the last vestige of his personality. YetI claim that this evolution lies within the grasp ofeveryone who takes the trouble to experiment.1

Taking into consideration the period over whichthese experiments were carried out, the mass ofevidence which I gathered in other dimensions ofspace, I am in a position to give absolutely precisedetails on the question of existence outside one'sphysical form.

My task is all the more difficult when one con-siders the almost total ignorance of these matterson the part of the general public. A widespreadknowledge of such feats is even dangerous. Toplace an experience of such major importancewithin the reach of everyone is equivalent to handingover the secret of new forms of energy which canbe used for evil. I spent a long time meditating onthis problem and these are the results of my search.From experience I have realized that evil can onlytouch those who are open to it, owing to the inherentevil in their own natures. Furthermore, the effortswhich have to be put forth call for a certain psycho-logical and physical balance from which evil is

1 This strange evolutionary process is described in a furthervolume by the author ; VEvolution dans Us monies supericurs.


excluded. Lastly, if, by some exceptional means, anevil-doer were to arrive at some results, he wouldquickly become the victim of his own nature; soI shall not give too exact information in thiswork.

I hope that my readers will not hold this againstme, and will understand the motive which causes meto act thus. As in all fields of work, there are certain"tricks of the trade" which only come with practice.In general these are of no great importance, andthere is enough in this book to guide anyone insuch a way that he or she will be able to succeedalone.

Besides, anything that has been omitted is only anopen secret, well enough known to many occultists.In the present work we are not concerned withoccultism nor with mysterious or sectarian operationsof magic. The work which has to be undertaken inorder to penetrate consciously into the fourthdimension is within the reach of all. In saying this,I am not pretending that effort is unnecessary. It isquite easy for anyone to read a newspaper, providedthat he, or she, has learned the language in which itis printed.

There are still far too many unknown quantitiesto be discovered before the experience can bedefined with the same exactitude as a chemicalanalysis. For the moment it is enough that we canobtain results from what we know, and that theseresults improve progressively with practice. "Time"is the only factor which cannot be limited. Thistime-element is reduced in proportion to the con-centrated intensity with which the student setsabout his task. For instance, the student who will


put his whole being into this work, without reserva-tion of any kind, who will sacrifice on its altar hiswhole wealth, his friendship, his dearest thoughts,his life, even, if that becomes necessary, will reachthe goal far quicker than another student whoretains in the depths of his heart some selfishtendencies.

It must be thoroughly realized that in thisphenomenon of dissociation between the physicaland other aspects of the human being, it is notappearances which count, but the real work whichhas been done, the intimate, unseen efforts madeby the human " I " to free itself from its attachmentsto the crude forms of the objective life, and to itsearthly ties.

In this state hypocrisy disappears and the soulstands naked. Better to attempt nothing than toundertake the study of these phenomena with anyhidden motive of self-interest.

The essential conditions required to bring thisexperiment to a successful issue are of three kinds:physical, psychological, and psychical.

The physical qualities can easily be summed upin the words "good health." People with hearttrouble should avoid experimenting.

If one is timid, subject to nervous troubles, it isnecessary, before attempting anything, to begin bytreating oneself and obtaining calm. The nervo-lymphatic temperament seems to be the best, aspeople who possess it have the greatest self-mastery.

Excess of any kind must be avoided. Eat in


wise moderation, avoiding highly alcoholic drinks.(This includes strong spirits like whisky, brandy,gin, etc., but allows a moderation of wine and beer,though the latter is not so good.) A careful eyemust be kept on the functioning of the organism,and the temperature and heart-beat, etc., should benoted every day. Adapt the psychical exercises inaccordance with this examination.

The training of the psychological being is ofparticular importance. We must always keep inmind the nature of the work to be carried out. Thisis not a matter of trying an experiment for after-dinner amusement. It is essential to realize theserious nature of the undertaking. In olden timesthe neophyte was prepared for this mystery byyears of arduous training and, even then, all werenot successful. Now, try to imagine the brutaltransition, the radical change, which you will experience on the day when you find yourselfseparated in two parts yet in full possession of allyour conscious faculties. I must, as in duty bound,warn you that the difference between the realityand the illusions which are taught us by present-day civilization, brings about an extremely violentreaction. It is for this reason that the first of ourprinciples is to be in good health, without any illnessor other organic trouble.

At first a peaceful life is necessary. We mustavoid worry and bother or, at any rate, not attachany importance to them. Both meditation andprayer are helps towards obtaining this result. Theseefforts will have an effect on the type of thought inwhich we indulge, or our desires and motives for anyparticular act. The shortest way is to choose a

2 8 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

noble ideal and to make it the central point roundwhich will shine all thoughts, desires and motivesfor action. This noble ideal must be your goal;for this alone you should work, and upon it youshould concentrate all that is best in you.

Why should this central motive, in which youmust concentrate your thoughts, be noble andgenerous? Because the whole world follows anopposite ideal, namely, that of living as comfortablyas possible without considering others at all. Thisis the ideal of the brute, born of the slime of life.It is the rudimentary state of personal consciousnessacquired by the living cells. It is the instinct ofself-preservation, it is life which develops accordingto the law of the strongest and best organized. Ifyou wish to succeed in the exploration of otherworlds, without danger, this law must become yourservant. It is the first dragon you must conquer,and which will allow you to penetrate into its secretswhen it has been mastered.

In order to reach this goal there are two paths.The choice depends on your character, your tempera-ment, your general tendencies, and will-power.The first path consists of overcoming the egotisticaltendencies by exercising moderation, by crushingthe lower instincts, by giving free rein to generousand noble motives, desires and thoughts. It is theway of moral perfection known to everybody.

The second path is far quicker, but also morepainful. It is the way of conscious sacrifice. Inthis case the suffering entailed is more violent inproportion to the nature and quantity of the ele-mental nature which has to be driven out. Forcenturies we have been developing certain kinds of


"energies" which live at our expense. We feedfrom our vitality a mass of beings, embryos of life,which we have attracted by our manner of thinkingand acting, and we must expect a reaction on theirpart. One of the favourite methods of theseentities is to inspire in their father a deep disgust, a moral lassitude, a profound inertia. Not only doesthe student see the black side of things, but he mayeven go so far as to commit suicide in an access ofdespair.

The best thing in such a case is gentleness. Wemust avoid being obstinate so far as recalcitranttendencies are concerned. Patience is now thequality which must come into its own. To put all theill-will possible into the act of giving way to animperfection is a principle of inertia which worksexcellently. If, at the same time, we are busilydeveloping the higher qualities towards which wefeel drawn, the others will die through lack ofnourishment. Last of all, remember that a higherLove-Principle, chosen as an Ideal, forwards thework to an incredible degree, and with a minimumof effort.

Psychism being the order of the day, everyoneknows its methods. The essential points for studyare: The power to concentrate one's thoughts on a single object without being distracted by outsidestimuli; the practice of rhythmic breathing; nervousand muscular relaxation; and finally, the ability tosuspend thought completely. This last exercise,called "withdrawal" by some, and "going into thesilence" by others, sums up the waiting periodnecessary before any phenomenon dealing with thefourth dimension can be expected.


It is not necessary to attain a complete masteryof all these exercises. The practice of self-projectionhelps to simplify them, and soon they can be dis-pensed with. All of which goes to show thestupidity of the treatises on magic which considertheir formulae to be axioms.

At all events, whatever your aim may be, remem-ber that the experimental conditions which I amgiving represent a minimum of effort, if you wantto keep your mental balance. Insanity, congestion,paralysis, the rupture of a blood-vessel, death, arebut a few of the dangers that lie in wait for thecareless.

Despite the fact that there are no rules withoutexceptions, I do not suggest that you go forward onthis adventure without preparation, because somelack of balance is almost certain. If you neglectpsychical training you will not obtain stable pheno-mena; you will not know how to control them andwill risk falling into an unhealthy mysticism. Ifyou neglect the psychological training, it is evenworse. You are then heading for an unbalancedmental state owing to the encroachment of lowerforces to which you will one day fall a fatal victim.

CHAPTER III

SOME GENERAL RESULTS

IN order to understand what follows, it will beuseful if I now give some general observationson several years of study.

These worlds upon which so many hypotheseshave been built, these universes which have excitedhuman imagination to the highest pitch, surpass,in their simplicity, anything that man could inventin the way of the marvellous and the complex.

The invisible universe is formless. It reducesitself to an atmosphere impregnated with energy,under a variable pressure.

The Human Being is formless and is also but anelectric atmosphere endowed with oscillating energy.

The only difference existing between man and theuniverse is that collection of psychological factors,represented by consciousness. In the invisibleworld, a human being is a conscious thought,endowed with an active will. The perception ofcause and effect takes place by the help of corre-sponding sensations in a unit of time. The relationbetween these two states of being represented byman and the universe is only a question of harmony.

When he leaves his material form, the humanbeing does not take away with him any one action

3»


more than another. He only retains the harmonies,the expressions and the rhythm of his experienceson earth. But this is sufficient to attract him andkeep him prisoner in a medium where he will beable to put into action his habitual affections.

These harmonious vibrations between the oscillat-ing matter of the subtler worlds and the matterwhich our consciousness uses for its expression, aretranslated in the form of innumerable attractingshades which enable us to discern the causes andeffects to which they are bound.

The substance of which our universe is madevaries from a state of extreme density, which may bedesignated as "matter," to that radio-active essenceto which we give the name of "force." The statewhich we call "matter" is energy curbed by timeand space into a minimum of activity. Thatwhich we term "force" is a maximum of instantane-ous activity. The steps between these two extremesof the cosmic ladder are numberless, and it is easyto imagine the infinite quantity of individual stateswhich must compose it.

On the "matter" side, a centralizing, centripetalforce is dominant. On the "force" side the cen-trifugal current finds its maximum activity. Theevolution of the human being then becomes a simple matter, agreeing in all respects with ancienttraditions.

The purpose is to establish in oneself the neces-sary harmonies to vibrate in agreement with the"force" aspect of matter, and in this way avoid theattraction of the planetary system where all otherkinds of attraction would hold us back.

One should be in possession of an absolutely

SOME GENERAL RESULTS 33healthy mind, backed up by sound common sense.In fact, the experience calls for observations whichare free from suggestions of all kinds.

Should one remain egotistical the evil would notbe so much in this natural attraction, which isessential to the manifestation of primitive life, butrather in the "quality" of the attractions of whichone remains a prisoner.

This mechanism gives us the key to altruisticlove, a state extolled by all the great thinkers ofhumanity. By detaching the human being fromhis lower tendencies, by suppressing his harmonieswith the forms of the universal matter, in teachinghim to live in a world of higher principles, he be-comes accustomed to the handling of the formidableenergy to which he is about to have access. I havemyself used this method in order to attain unity withthe cosmic consciousness and, however unbelievableit may seem at first sight, the results are in absoluteharmony with the constitution of our universe.

The matter of the other worlds appears to ourobservation as an atmosphere of density, luminosity,and of variable vibrationary reactions. Supposingthat we are experimenting with a double, composedof a matter of medium density, the following arethe characteristics which will be noticed and thesensations which will be experienced.

The field of energy in which pure energy has itsbeing is perceived by an increase or diminution ofthe centrifugal pull.

In order to maintain a perfect equilibrium in allthe degrees of the ether, all attractions must be leftbehind, in order to reduce the series of vibrationsused by the consciousness to its simplest expression.


Until this result is obtained, which representsthe goal of human evolution, one notices, in thevisible worlds, the existence of a field of energyparticularly favourable to the attractions, affinities,and sympathies of the moment.

The quality, the vibratory rhythm of our oscilla-tions, is balanced by a corresponding radio-activecondition, and automatically places each humanbeing in matter whose density decides the possibili-ties which are within his reach.

The power of action within the invisible worldsis therefore limited by the quality, the nature, andthe degree of concentration of the harmoniousconditions, registered by the consciousness.

By directing these harmonious conditions towardsa cosmic unity; that is to say, by referring one'smotives-for action, thoughts, desires, and affections,to a high ideal, one reaches the domain of thecentrifugal force. With a minimum expenditure ofenergy, we are given access to far greater powers,and in much less time.

On the other hand, by becoming attached tolower pleasures; by concentrating one's life, one'snearest and dearest affections, on the apparentqualities of matter in their attractive but temporaryform, one narrows down one's field of action intoa state of being where time increases in volume.

The substance of these vast moving waves hasthe appearance of an atmosphere which varies fromthe deepest darkness, passing through all theintermediary shades of grey, to radiant clarity.One sees nothing above, beneath, to the right, or tothe left.

In descending towards matter, the negative

SOME GENERAL RESULTS 35aspect of energy, the grey atmosphere becomesduller and darker. One experiences the sensationof a substance which becomes steadily thicker.This increase in density is irksome to bear, and it iswith difficulty that one can move about in it. Theimpressions which are received follow the samegradations. We experience the illusion of beingoppressed, of breathing with difficulty. A generalmalaise invades us, the consciousness becomesworried and soon the impression becomes definitelypainful. In these dark states one sees phosphores-cent points which move about in all directions.

When we go towards the positive side of energy,i.e. the negative side of matter, the opacity dimin-ishes. We come into a sort of grey mist, like a cloudy sky. As we rise, the mist becomes thinner,and soon its place is taken by a luminous clarity. A blaze of light, like that of the sun at midday, lightsup the atmosphere. Watching carefully, we noticeon all sides an equal intensity, showing that thislight is produced by the progressive activity in theatoms.

The corresponding sensations are: a gentlewarmth which pervades the body we are using; a feeling of exceptional well-being suffusing all itsmolecules; consciousness itself experiences an in-creasing happiness. It allows itself to drift into a sweet quietude, into an ever-deepening state ofpeace. It is filled with a more vibrant, morejoyous confidence. As we climb higher this peaceincreases in a surprising manner. It becomesreligious. In order not to disturb the concentratedstate of the atmosphere, we no longer dare to think.The surroundings seem to become more subtle.


The speed of movement increases. The shadow ofa thought evokes a whole world of phenomena. Atlast, if we go on with this strange ascent, a magnetichyper-activity saturates the atmosphere. Soon wefeel giddy. If we persist, it seems as if our basis ofenergy tends to disintegrate, owing to an inexplic-able disturbance of the equilibrium. It would seemas if all the particles of our being were being violentlytorn apart, and this painful explosion forces theexperimenter to descend into regions which aremore favourable to his personal vibrations.

In the intermediate regions, the impression isbetter, the feelings more stable. One can comparethe clearness of the atmosphere to the day at earlymorning. On the whole a sensation of repose, ofconfidence and calm is experienced. At the sametime the consciousness receives various impressions.At certain stages there is neither joy nor sorrow.Other stages communicate to it a feeling of greateractivity. One feels absolutely at home, one thinksor acts without any appreciable effort. The simpleact of thinking will transport you wheresoever youwish. At times the atmosphere seems to be likevelvet.

These observations were made during the firstfew years of study. When we have become able, bymeans of training and evolution of consciousness,to penetrate to the centrifugal states where the"pure energy" aspect of matter rules, the feelingsbecome changed.

The task is always more arduous in those planes ofmatter which are darker and denser, but the con-sciousness no longer experiences any apprehension.It has acquired a certain stability which allows it

to travel to the higher or lower states, withoutlosing in the least its calmness and confidentserenity. It acts without: anxiety and without care,with a confident peace and a special sort of happinesswhich accompanies it. When the consciousness isdirected towards the higher worlds, the impressionfelt may be described as the form of quiet happinessexperienced by the traveller on returning home aftera long absence. In this world, where cause andeffect are one, the impression received is that ofreturning to a familiar place. Without thinking,one goes straight to the goal. One sees nothing,one does not think, and yet one feels by a kind ofintuition, that the universe and its laws are at ourdisposal. And we use the faculties inherent in thisstate with the pleasure and ease of the travellerrediscovering familiar objects or favourite hobbies.

These general observations teach us that thepunishments invented by man do not exist. Every-one finds, after death, the plane in which he cancontinue to exercise his affections. This does notmean to say that everybody will be happy, as onegenerally understands the term.

Here arises an important distinction. In thestates where I made my observations, happiness orunhappiness are independent of the working of theuniverse. The law of Cause and Effect does nottrouble itself with our preferences or sentiments.The law does not favour the ascetic—equilibriumis absolutely established. The same causes alwaysproduce the same effects, if they are put into actionunder the same circumstances. This happens onall the planes of the universe. It is left to us toconform to the law.


Freedom exists in the choice of a decision. Deter-minism comes into play in the execution of thisdecision, because a relation of Cause and Effectunites them, and because this relationship is theessential factor of the universal order.

In principle, everyone should find happiness,since their affections draw them to a plane where thevibrations correspond to their own rhythm. Forthe animal, or the savage as yet unconscious of hisresponsibilities, this is true. For a civilized personit is not true. There are, in fact, few people whohave not some instinctive knowledge of a superiororder of things. Whatever these experiences maybe, each one finds more or less the particular orgeneral qualities tending towards progress andperfection.

He, or she, who has allowed himself to becomeabsorbed during life by satisfactions and enjoymentsof a low order, will find himself after death in a plane where he will try to satisfy the sameneeds.

On the other hand, the presence of more spiritualcharacteristics will have given him certain vibra-tions favourable to the positive planes of pureenergy.

A moment arrives when he becomes disturbed.He catches a glimpse of the grossness of his sur-roundings. I do not refer to the impure beings whocome to bother him, but to the inferior quality ofthe plane. His punishment begins. In order toacquire the freedom, that he glimpses by thisinspiration, he tries to escape from his own atmos-phere. But, as he must first work out the sum of theenergy which he has accumulated during his earthly

SOME GENERAL RESULTS 39

life, it is often only after centuries of painful loneli-ness that he can at last escape from the chains whichhe himself has forged.

Each time you think of human evolution, neverforget this double characteristic of the universe.

The electro-mechanical constitution of UniversalEnergy balanced in each of its waves of high andlow pressure by an equal amount of matter, varies inthe amount of energy and matter forming comple-mentary parts.

It has also a rhythmical aspect, under the masteryof the law of Cause and Effect, which brings togethervibrations of a similar nature.

As we are composed of a system of whirlingatoms, functioning at one moment in an opencircuit and at another in a closed circuit, it is up tous to direct our relationships in an intelligentmanner in order that we may escape from the lowerregions of the cosmic whirlpool.

Broadly, when an honest man dies, he finds him-self in a medium corresponding to his affections,and it is in an atmosphere of peace and quietudethat he exercises his joy of living. This happinesslasts until the energy which has been registered isexhausted. It will be necessary for him to return toearth, renew his store of energy, until he is centredon but one attraction, knows only one form ofharmony; that is, one which is independent of allforms of energy.

When we have attained the highest vibrationaryspeed of our universe; that is to say, when humanconsciousness has sufficiently realized the greatCauses of evolution and has localized all its affectionsin this, its presence on earth becomes unnecessary.


This state manifests, a supreme dimension, penetrat-ing all the others. The consciousness vibrates onthe fundamental harmony of all forms of energy, ofwhich it becomes, in a way, a conduit. It is at thismoment that human freedom coincides with thecharacteristics which have been attributed to thegods of religion.

The following is one of the most curious stateswhich I have ever experienced. After havingreached a highly sublimated state of the ether, I was stimulating the life of the space around me byprojecting my life energy into a considerable area. I experienced a sensation as if I were extending in alldirections, as if I had been placed in the centre of a sphere. At the same time, I was as entirely inthe total volume of expansion as I was entirely ineach separate point of this strange organism.

Whilst being clearly conscious of my unity I hadthe impression of multiplying myself. This multi-plication neither increased nor decreased my energyin the least.

Without moving, I could feel myself bridgingincalculable distances by means of the velvety vibra-tion which formed the limits of the immense spherewhich was my new domain. This activity seemedto "awaken" in each atom of this super-ether anattraction which would collect around me and whoseeffect was to increase the sweetness and delicacy ofmy energy.

Without having to think, I was endowed with a kind of divine consciousness. The finest vibration,entering into the atmosphere thus vitalized, wouldimmediately inform me of the details of its origin,while at the same instant I would act in the necessary

SOME GENERAL RESULTS 41

way. There was no difference of time between theaction and my resultant reaction. Action andreaction were simultaneous, in an immediate clair-voyance of all the details of Cause and Effect.

In order to act, I communicated an impulse frommy whole being either to the mass or to the fraction.Whether this impulse took effect simultaneously orseparately in the atoms of this magnetic field, italways acted in a proportion corresponding to theperturbing cause. And, strange as it may seem, all I experienced from this effect was a great happiness,without my energy either increasing or decreasing byone iota. Lastly, I would repeat that, whilst beingfully conscious of my unity, I could not say that I was more in the centre than on the surface, or inany other part of this radiant sphere. In truth, I felt myself as all over the sphere with an equalintensity.

Imagination would never have dared to conceivea function, at once so complex and so simple, of thehigher consciousness. All the expressions which I use in order to describe these results, limit anddestroy their experimental value. This substancewhich becomes ourselves, the prerogatives whichare attached to it, the profound Love which wcfeel, the inexpressible well-being which is con-current with this love, all melt into one unity-multiplicity, of which one is perfectly conscious.At this point in its evolution human consciousness isa synthesis, having at its beck and call the differentrhythms of the universal order whose harmoniesit has known in its past experiences.

On reflection, it is, after all, natural enough. Ifwe take away from our earthly life all the forms on


which we lean, if we look at what is really left afterthe disappearance of the physical envelope, whatcan there be, in fact, apart from affinities for a certain type of atoms, whose different relationshipsform the diversities of bodies, under the guise ofwhich manifests one equivalent energy, one identicaluniversal method?

C HA PT E R IV

ANALYSIS OF THE PHENOMENON OF SEPARATIONBETWEEN THE HUMAN BEING AND HIS BODY

IN order to observe successfully the compositionof Universal Ether, in its varying proportions ofEnergy and Matter, it is essential to start by keepingthe memory clear from the beginning to the end ofthe experience.

The more we rise towards the rarefied higherether the less we can depend on our memory. Ifthe concentration of the will is not kept up suffi-ciently another source of error intervenes. Theconsciousness abandons its astral body. This latter,endowed with a certain sensitivity of consciousness,gauges impressions on its own plane, whilst theconscious spirit brings back impressions fromanother dimension. The result is a mixture, moreor less coherent, of illusion and reality.

Therefore, the first point to be observed in thestudy of the fourth dimension is always to retain a conscious and continuous memory of the phenomena.In practice this control is very easy. You mustact in the other dimensions of space with morecertitude than on earth. That is to say, you mustnot only retain full mastery of your ordinary facul-ties, but your greater sensitivity permits a more

43


rigorous control. In good experimental conditions,faculties and sensations should be but one consciousunity, capable of judging, thinking, foreseeing,discerning, and acting with entire freedom.

For most people, the most convincing phenome-non is the act of conscious separation a few feetfrom the physical body. You leave your body withgreater ease than taking off a suit of clothes andyou wonder why this faculty is not more widespread.What a mass of stupid mistakes we could thenavoid.

At all events, the result is a certainty, withoutthe least doubt. It is a cold fact, beyond all judg-ment, beyond all hypothesis, hallucination, or sug-gestion. It is the most evident certitude obtain-able, without any possibility of error.

As soon as we slip out of the physical wrapper thistruth strikes us with all its force. We see the familiarfurniture of our room just as before. The onlydifference we notice is a slight phosphorescent glow.Our physical body rests inert, like a corpse, on thecouch. The impression is so striking that instinc-tively we think we are dead. We must avoid givingway to this natural reaction, and with all our willmust resist the pull which wants to draw us back toour physical self. This double is so sensitive that anexaggerated fear would draw it back into its envelopewith brutal suddenness, and we might find difficultyin trying the experiment again.

If we resist we have time to take note of surround-ings, then we slowly re-enter our physical body andstraightway note what we have observed. Whenthis has been done we should try the same thingagain. It will be much easier. The more the

PHENOMENON OF SEPARATION 45

double becomes used to temporary disembodimentthe easier it becomes to handle. We can thenwalk about in our room without inconvenience,making every possible and conceivable observation;we can sit down, think, and meditate with far greaterlucidity than in physical consciousness.

At first we are tempted to leave our room inorder to take stock of other places in this strangedimension. This is what happens: the substancewhich we are using to give form to our doublereturns to the physical body and it is with a far moreethereal body that we soar into space. The delicatenature of the vibrations in this new dimension givesaccess to quite a new order of phenomena. Theseshould be observed with the most minute attentionin order to become aware of the possibilities of eachworld into which we penetrate. If we wish topush the experiment still further it is possible toexteriorize a third body into an ether of even finernature, and the phenomena develop in a proportion-ate manner.

Everything happens as if we had a series ofdifferent bodies boxed one in the other by means ofa more reduced dimension. As the conscious willpenetrates into new dimensions it uses a correspond-ing body.

As each of the successive states of this universepenetrates the inferior dimensions of the substancewe have just quitted, it is easy to imagine thetremendous extent of phenomena which comewithin our orbit. To sum up, we draw near thefundamental causes of phenomena, and the sameseparation accomplished upon a higher plane causesa series of vibratory disturbances on lower levels,


which in turn become causes in a substance stillmore condensed.

When we project ourselves in a way which lacksorder and method, we are not properly aware of thenature of the body which exteriorizes itself. Thismeans that the consciousness will not find itself in a proper medium for pure observation, and the resultsobtained will not agree with those of a student whohas used the necessary vehicle for each stratum ofconsciousness.

From this we come to a second point which hasto be noticed. Always start with the first projecteddouble and then practice projecting yourself fromthat, inside your room, without trying to travel away.

The experiments which can be carried out in thisdimension are many and varied. These allow us toobtain all kinds of new data about our present-dayknowledge and to start building up facts concerningproblems which are considered beyond solution byour modern civilization.

Also, the act of conscious separation itself, itsabsolute possibility, beyond all possible argument,whilst keeping control of all our perceptive facultiesand feelings, is in itself quite enough to balanceall our opinions concerning science, morality, andreligion.

The phenomenon of dissociation between manand his body, the absolute certainty of being able tolive in a new dimension, is the only obvious truththat I can claim as being true without the least doubt.

This certainty is in no way a dogma. It is not a matter of faith. It is not a case of auto-suggestion.It is a truth within the reach of all. It is the mathe-matically precise result, born from a series of causes,


all ending in the same result, so long as they arepractised in the same conditions. It is a factbeyond all reasoning, beyond all criticism andargument. To deny the possibility of such a feat,before having tried to do it oneself, would, in myeyes, simply be a proof of such an individual's lackof evolution, irrespective of his social status.

Apart from this certainty, I am offering you allfurther details as personal observations. There are,in fact, many very interesting points over which I have not lingered. I always wanted to know thelast word of the puzzle—to attain the highestpossibilities of consciousness, and the facts whichhave resulted therefrom are so marvellous that theywill seem to be imaginary to those who are not awareof the admirable organization of the higher planes.

Let us, first of all, examine the nature of thesensations and impressions received during theprocess of dissociation. Despite their infinite varietythey may be classified in three categories:

(I) Phenomena of sensation which prepare forthe act of projection.

(2) Instantaneous projections which may or maynot be accompanied by sensations.

(3) Projection by whirlwind.The best time for observing these phenomena is

about four to five in the morning, after having sleptwell. In this way we avoid the influence of thesubconscious mind.

After having concentrated on all the details upon


which we wish to experiment, we drive away allthought and find ourselves in an excellent conditionfor receiving the weakest vibrations which come fromthe other dimensions of space.

Care must be taken not to fall asleep nor to be inthis state even for a few seconds before contactingreality. As soon as a vibration, however weak itmay be, affects one of our bodies, we must at oncetake full possession of ourselves. Our full attentionmust be immovably fixed on the sensations, imagesand scenes which are about to occur. We must beabsolutely lucid, holding well in mind all thedecisions previously made, and carefully followingthe different phases of the phenomenon, so that lateron we may be able to note every detail. It is betterto begin all over again fifty times in order to be ableto record our observations, than to seek to puteverything down at once. Remember that toomuch detail spoils the precision of facts.

After all, nothing could be easier, since we are notasleep. Projection, the separation of the conscious" I " and its provisional forms, takes place in fullwaking consciousness.

It has happened at times that I have found myselfprojected, standing beside my body, at the sameinstant as I closed my eyes, and without experiencingany particular sensation. Such speed is extraordin-ary. But what is most surprising is the reality ofthe material feelings one experiences. The practiceof projection becomes such a habit that there havebeen times when I have come back to my body inorder to make sure that I was really projected andnot sleep-walking.

This will give you some idea of the striking reality


of this state. Tell yourself that you are the consciousmaster of your different bodies.

The following experience will demonstrate theflexibility of this system, in transferring feelingfrom one form to another.

After having roamed about in space I came backclose to my physical body and, without completelyreincorporating myself, I found myself at the exactpoint of balance where the material sensitivitypasses into the next body, or plane. By a mere actof will I found myself able to incline the balancetowards one point or the other. As soon as I favoured the idea of projection into a fourth dimen-sion I began to feel lighter, without any physicalmovement at all. And, strangely enough, I had butone sensation, that is, as if my hands were touchingbehind my back in a familiar position. As soon as I brought my mind back to my physical body theintensity of the projection diminished. My bodywas as heavy as lead and breathing slowed down.I could feel the slight roughness of the sheets on mydown-stretched arms next to my body, the freshnessof the outside air, and the daylight which wasfiltering through my eyelids. I could hear noisesfrom the street.

Taking my mind back towards the idea ofprojection, the equilibrium immediately went theother way. All these physical sensations disappearedwith lightning-like speed. I once more foundmyself in the state which I had just left, and beganto enjoy the peace, the cool sweetness, and theinexpressible sense of well-being of this state.

The phenomenon of projection is not, therefore, a state of sleep, natural or induced. It has a clarity

§0 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

far superior to that of terrestrial life. Whateverthe dimension in which we find ourselves we mustremain conscious, and be capable of opening oureyes at will, taking up a pencil and noting downwhatever we may have observed, just as in our mostalert waking moments.

C HA PT ER V

PREPARATION FOR PROJECTION BY MEANS OF THESENSORY FACULTIES

T H E general characteristic of the phenomenabelonging to this category, is the preparationfor the work which is going to take place, byactivating one of the sensory faculties. Whether itbe through images or feelings, it permits thestudent not yet fully familiar with that intermediatestate which we might call self-isolation, to take fullcognisance of himself and help the extraction of hisdouble by acting in the right way.

We may use the image of a window, a door, any-thing which gives us the idea of passage from oneplace to another. It can also be a luminous area, a geometrical figure, a clear space in the midst ofclouds, all evoking the same wish. One day I became conscious of my condition at a moment whenI was half-projected. My face turned towards thefloor, my body leaning slightly forward, my armsstretched out in front of me, I allowed myself toslip to the ground and "pulled" on that part of mydouble still fixed in its envelope, just as if I weresliding out of a coat that was too tight. Soon I experienced the feeling of placing my feet on theground and stood up, regaining a normal posture,

51


with that feeling of freedom which is so characteristicof the projected state.

Another time I had scarcely closed my eyes when I found myself half out of my body. My chest wasstretched out, horizontally, off the bed, my faceturned upwards towards the ceiling. The sudden-ness, and the lugubrious effect of this scene pro-duced such a shudder that I immediately re-enteredmy physical form.

We must be ready for the strangest surprises.During one experiment, when I had used more effortthan usual to project myself, I was hardly out ofmy body when I received a terrific slap in the facewithout being able to find whence it came.

Another time I was scarcely out of my body whenI began to turn on my own axis, like "looping the loop," which was not at all pleasant. A furtherexample, even more unpleasant, was a completeknocking over of the projected double. That dayI had met unusual resistance in my projectionexercises. The more I increased my efforts, themore I felt oppressed by the surrounding matter.Determined to conquer in spite of all obstacles, I concentrated all my will and was freed. ImmediatelyI became aware of an intense disorganization in myastral body. I had a feeling of having every atombroken to pieces. As is my practice in case ofdifficulty, I called for help, when at once everythingstopped and I returned to my body.

In this category the final sensation in which allothers culminate, is that of "coming out" of some-thing, of leaving a narrow, tight place. All ourefforts should be directed to obtaining this result invarying degrees. Immediately on becoming free a

PROJECTION BY MEANS OF SENSORY FACULTIES 53

feeling of well-being flows through us; we seem tobreathe with greater ease; the consciousness has a feeling of unaccustomed freedom, and at the begin-ning I would find myself shaking myself like a dogjust out of the water.

This is not always accomplished straightway.Sometimes one stays for an hour or two in a highlystrung, nervous condition. The state of balance ofthe physical body, the general harmony of thepsychological being, atmospheric conditions, heat,damp, or dryness, are all factors which play theirpart. All vibrations, whatever their nature, sound,light, electricity, other people near one, exert aninfluence on the production of the phenomenon. Wemust therefore be prepared for the most contradic-tory sensations, until we have discovered the mostfavourable conditions in our own case for themanifestation of projection.

One day I saw myself stretched out face down ona table, gripping and pulling at the edge, in orderto leave my body. Another time, I found myself inbed, my head where my feet should have been; andI was moving in a jerky manner which was, then,necessary in order to obtain the desired results.On still another occasion I had the sensation ofwrapping myself round the bedpost in order toleave my recalcitrant body.

In the foregoing examples vision and feeling areunited. They can also be alternating, as in the casesalready cited, or quite separate.

In certain cases I had the impression of draggingmyself along the bed. Without seeing it I wouldfeel my covering as a hindering roughness. Duringother experiments, I seemed to be touching the

ceiling, and felt as if I were breathing through a thread. Then this breathing would become weakerand weaker until I gave one last leap forward andfound myself in the next dimension.

A rarer type of experience is concerned with thepsychic influence of our unseen guides. A sort offine rain, exceedingly cold, pours on the body fromhead to foot, and slowly numbs it. Or else it seemsas if circular mesmeric passes are being made overthe face.

The result is always the same: a sensation ofpassing through a narrow opening, followed by a conscious projection in the vicinity of the physicalbody.

It may also happen that rather disagreeablevisions of an hallucinatory character may be experi-enced. One day, with my eyes wide open, I sawa huge spider take shape beside me. On anotheroccasion two small dogs appeared in the same way.Though less unpleasant than the former experience,I dismissed the apparition, as it was useless for theresults I was seeking.

Generally the reactions of the sensory being areto be noticed just after projection, and whilst stillnear the body. When going forth into furtherdimensions the experiences are rather like those tobe described in the following chapters. In everycase, calm self-control is an absolute necessity.One must have sufficient self-mastery to be ableto step aside and watch the phenomena as if theywere happening to someone else.

CH APT ER VI

INSTANTANEOUS PROJECTION

T H E phenomena of this second category pre-suppose a certain amount of practice. Nevertheless,as they may happen when they are least expected,it is wise to know about them in order not to betaken by surprise.

Their main characteristic lies in the lightning-like speed with which projection takes place. Whenfeeling accompanies this type of projection it seemsas if we were being hurled through space. Thereare times, though, when there is no feeling, and wejust find ourself projected, either in the room or inanother dimension.

It is here more than ever necessary for theconsciousness to be prepared for this speedy transit,so that it may be ready to take up the defensive.We never know the nature of the phenomenon whichmay occur, and it is always wise to exercise prudence.

During one of these experiences I had the un-pleasant sensation of being hurled head first intospace. There is naturally at first a moment ofsurprise which we must do our best to reduce as faras possible. The consciousness must immediatelyacquire its full lucidity and be ready to counterwhatever obstacles may be put in its way.

55

PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

Another day, contrary to my usual custom, I hadprojected myself lying on my right side. I felt asif I were falling suddenly, as if I had been lying ona trap-door which had been suddenly opened underme. My first impulse was automatically to makethe same movements as would occur if this hadhappened to my physical body. I stretched out myarms and legs in the hope of gripping something,and started to cry out. However speedy thisreaction may be it has the effort of producing clarityof consciousness. I recovered my presence of mind,became fully conscious of my projected condition,of the efforts which I had already made, of theessentials for success, and the possible hindrances,and of the decisions I had made, all of whichI noticed without resisting the process ofprojection.

In another set of experiments I had been neatlyblocked by contrary forces. I struggled as hard as I could, but only succeeded in coming away with a general bruised feeling. On the day following thisstruggle I had not yet finished concentrating, whenmy astral body was shot out violently like a shellfrom a gun. I was thrown out, face downwards,with my arms stretched out, so realistically that I thought that I had really been thrown from my bedto the floor. There was nothing to give cause forworry. I was well out of my body and proceeded tocarry out, in my room, the experiments I had inmind. As it happened, on that day my astraldouble was more condensed than usual. In orderto change to another dimension I tried to passthrough the walls of the room, but found that theyresisted my efforts. When I tried harder I only

INSTANTANEOUS PROJECTION 57

managed to produce a pain in my forehead and hadto resort to the astral opening of the window beforemy first projection could have its way.

Another time, after having seen several grinningshapes, I found myself standing up in my roomquite without preparation. The surprise was all thegreater as I had not thought to project myself, andhad prepared no programme.

In another case, I experienced a sensation ofnameless fear. All my conscious faculties becamelimp, and suddenly I realized that I was in an unpleas-ant greyish atmosphere like dense clouds. Risingperpendicularly in this sombre mass, which made noappeal to me, I kept on the defensive (as in thesestates one may be attacked by rather unpleasantentities), whilst travelling with all possible speed.I then came to a more sympathetic stratum where I found one of my deceased friends with whom I hada fairly long conversation.

What is particularly pleasant in these visits is theabsence of the hypocrisy with which our earthlyrelationships are poisoned. Nothing can expressthe delicacy of the sentiments shared and understoodin our relations with our Friends of Space.

In order to appreciate this properly you mustremember that I am not telling you a dream, nor a vision. I am telling you of a real fact, a consciousact accomplished with an absolutely clear mind, withperfect freedom, and without any trace of sleep.You are there near your friends, talking affection-ately, fully conscious of your double state, which youcan terminate immediately whenever you wish. Asall your psychical elements are active, a thought isall that is needed to bring you straight back to your


body with a lucidity equal to that of any moment ofthe day.

On the contrary there are times when you willfeel rejuvenated by this more intense life.

As a matter of fact one often retains traces of theradio-active principles of the worlds one explores.These extra vibrations give one splendid strengthand energy. We think and act during the day withunparalleled ease. Without effort, complicatedproblems are solved. But, the strangest thing aboutthis state is the way we take it for granted. Do notthink that we are wonderstruck. This state seemsso natural that it is as if it had always been the case,and there seems to be no end to it. I have noticedthat this feeling of perfect calm is realized with anintensity proportionate to the height, and refine-ment of the strata of ether to which we havepenetrated. Maximum power is attained duringthe union of the Higher Consciousness and theEssence of the Life Spiritual.

It is only after having returned to the normalstate that the difference can be appreciated. Itseems as if all our faculties are shut up in a box,while thought only filters painfully through themolecules.

Among the cases of instantaneous projection I once had the ordinary feeling of getting up in themorning. As there is no difference in ordinarywaking, one does not notice what has happened. Itis only when one is standing up, conscious that thephysical body is still on the bed, that the doublestate is realized.

Lastly, the most curious of the experiences in thiscategory is the following. I awakened as usual and,

INSTANTANEOUS PROJECTION 59

having noted the time, lay down as usual with myarms by my side. I was getting ready to shut myeyes and prepare myself by different psychicalexercises when immediately I found myself standingbeside my body without having had time even toclose my eyes. For a moment I was startled,looking at my outstretched body with its open andexpressionless eyes. During this attempt there wasnot the slightest alteration in the memory or theconscious faculties. Without any time-interval thesensory power of my physical body passed intothe double, and all the faculties followed straightway.

C H A P T E R VII

PROJECTION BY WHIRLWIND

T H E separation between the conscious being andhis organic envelope takes place under a strangeimpulse in this third category, giving the impressionof being lifted up by a whirlwind. The sensationof being sucked up violently by a sort of hugevortex is felt, and there is an immediate and con-scious contact with the other worlds. This extrac-tion from the body is never painful. But, as we aregenerally unaware of the spot on which the whirl-wind is going to drop us, it is wiser to stay on thedefensive.

In order to keep better control, I made it a habitto project myself into my room before soaring toother dimensions. However, this whirlwind is notalways obedient and often it sucks up a moreethereal body, which it carries away in an etheric"draught" which is extraordinarily interesting toexperience. This is undoubtedly the most agreeableof all forms of projection. Though it can beattached to all sorts of visions and sensations this isnet essential. Generally the sensory reactionswhich follow this type of projection are moredelicate and refined. The expenditure of energy isnot noticeable. The faculties are more alert.

60

PROJECTION BY WHIRLWIND 61

Thought is far quicker. A far more homogeneousunity of life is experienced, whose more vibrantactivity transmits to the consciousness influenceswhich are unknown in other dimensions.

Here are a few examples. Having awakened atthe usual time for my experiments, I was surprisedto hear tremendous barkings all around me.Immediately I felt myself being carried away in a whirlwind. I had the feeling of descendingrapidly. In the greyish and cloudy opacity of theatmosphere into which I plunged I noticed greenishglows and, next to me, a big white dog. Then thecurrent slowed down bit by bit and led me back intomy body. I immediately noted down what hadhappened and awaited a new experience. I did nothave to wait long. A sort of fine ice-cold rain wasfalling on my head with great intensity and soon I was drawn from my body by a whirlwind whoseduration was as short as the first. After having,once more, made a note of its main characteristics, I waited for a third experience. This time the fluidswere less intense. I was travelling through spaceupright, floating a few feet from the earth. Thishappened during 1914, and I visited Belgium andviewed the horrors of war in this manner.

In passing, note the white dog as a symbol of themeans used by the Friends who help us during ourpsychic experiments. Actually, unless one has a special connection with them, the guides rarelyshow themselves. They would rather send animage which inspires confidence, and that of a dogis the most frequent. These dogs are not alwayswhite. They are sometimes grey, like sheep-dogs,and their size may vary from that of the little


Japanese dogs to that of great Saint-Bernards.There may be several dogs watching over us in thisway, and their presence inspires both confidenceand increases energy.

During the majority of cases projection by thewhirlwind method is not accompanied by anyvisions or sensations. We are merely transportedon a wind of ether, at a variable speed, towards someunknown goal. We must keep ourselves in readi-ness for any eventuality. When we are carried awayby this magnetic current there is a feeling oftremendous speed. A howling tempest deafens ourears, as if we were travelling over the earth at a rate impossible to gauge. Several times I havenoticed a white luminous cloud trailing my double.

The speed at which we are carried away may notallow us to put ourselves in a convenient position.Our double may be standing up, lying on thestomach, on the back, on the side, or simply sitting,as if in a chair. It may happen that we are trans-ported head first, or feet first, in an horizontal,oblique, or vertical current, with the feeling ofeither rising or going down. Generally, when thecurrent is lateral we may have confidence, but whenthe current is vertical, with a sensation of falling, itis time to be careful.

For example: in one experiment I was watchinga lovely panorama unfold beneath me, when sud-denly, without apparent motive, the current onwhich I was being carried suddenly changed itsdirection and I had the feeling of falling at a dizzyspeed. I noticed many different images. The lastwas a sort of tube in which I was shut up. Thefurther I went the narrower became the tube, with


sensations corresponding. I had the feeling ofbeing crushed in and was literally suffocating.Keeping cool, I began to smile, and mentally calledmy guides. Soon a whirlwind rushed me clean outof this disagreeable situation and, with a sigh ofrelief, I found myself in free space.

Travel in these electro-magnetic currents givesthe feeling of being borne by a tremendous draught,at a dizzy speed, through a cloudy medium which isgenerally of a greyish nature, and through rifts inwhich various landscapes are seen. To be carriedthrough a clear atmosphere is a much rareroccurrence.

These etheric currents to some extent revitalize thephysical body. After other kinds of projection wesometimes suffer from lassitude or discomfort. Thisis rare in the present category. On the contrary, wereturn to the physical body feeling overchargedwith vital energy. However banal the facts noticedmay have been, the return is always accompaniedwith a more active, livelier consciousness. The mostminute details are extraordinarily clear. The wholeof the body is impregnated with an energy whichis, at once, so gentle and yet so powerful thattears spring to the eyes. It is impossible to expressadequately a state of happiness so complete, so real,and so vivid. Any form of earthly exaltation is a poor analogy, because we have never been so peace-ful and calm before. It is, in some way, a higherlife which pours into the physical form and gives,momentarily, a considerable increase to the range ofour faculties.

The exceptional lucidity brought about by thiskind of projection has its balancing factor, in that


memory of it disappears all too quickly. It is anexcellent habit immediately to make a note of whathas happened if one wishes to keep a record. Oneday when I had delayed putting down my experi-ences I was only able to recover the memory ofthem by working backwards from the last to thefirst stages. Another time, with every detail of myexperience absolutely clear in my mind, I had hardlyput pencil to paper when memory vanished in a flash, and I was unable to remember the least detail.The following are further examples of projection bywhirlwind.

After having stayed awake for an hour in thestate of nervous tension which often precedes pro-jection I felt myself being suddenly sucked up by a whirlwind. Not knowing where I was, seeingnothing, I called out for help and, without delay,found myself in my own room. A strange, rosylight illuminated the atmosphere. As soon as I hadobtained full self-consciousness and noted what I would do, an etheric wind picked me up and carriedme away among grey clouds. Lying on my back,without having to make any movement, I had a wonderful feeling of calm and security. The con-sciousness, endowed with a greater clarity than inmy usual experiments, made it possible for me tonotice everything more easily. No sensation,however weak, could pass me by. Whilst being quitefree, without any faculty dominating another, myconsciousness was impregnated by a sort of clair-voyant intuition, and I had the feeling that all theknowledge I had ever had was there, ready tomanifest itself. I had the feeling that every atomwas awake, experiencing a conscious unity of their


powers, while no foreign vibration came to troublethe harmony of such a certitude.

I was carried for many miles over countryfamiliar to my childhood. I went through materialobjects as if they had been imaginary pictures andthen, having gone over many details of my youth,the current seemed to slow down and brought meback to my body.

In itself there is nothing very extraordinary inthis projection. What gives it value in my eyes isthe super-clarity, the super-lightness, and super-consciousness that I experienced.

On another occasion I was caught up by one ofthose magnetic currents during my projection.Contrary to my habit, I was experimenting duringthe evening and, after seeing a few grimacing faces,I found myself lightly deposited in my own room.After having walked up and down a little I noticednothing worthy of interest. My astral bodyseemed to be lightly coloured, and as for myphysical body, lying inert, it interested me not at all.I decided to go to a spot on the earth, hundreds ofmiles away, and passed through the wall of myroom. I had hardly done this when I was swept upby a violent whirlwind and carried at a tremendousspeed in a black cloud. I found myself travellinglying down and, as this blackness did not appeal tome, I tried to stand up, but could not. My astralbody began to turn as if doing straight somersaults,and I continued to travel through space in thisstrange manner.

I called for help, and this painful situationcoming to an end, I once more regained a normalposition. The cloud disappeared and I passed, at


the same fantastic speed, through a whole series ofhouses. During this experience I noticed a phos-phorescent streak left in the wake of my body. Atlast the current slowed down and I regained myphysical body.

C H AP T E R VIII

CONSCIOUSNESS SEPARATED FROM THE PHYSICAL BODY

To separate oneself into two distinct parts, infamiliar surroundings, acting in full waking con-sciousness, with more than the freedom and thinkingpower of an entity living on earth, sums up thegreatest triumph the thinking " I " can gain overmatter.

There are no limits to this triumph. Humanconsciousness can, if it so wishes, penetrate a seriesof dimensions in what we know as space, reachingup to the highest plane, which coincides with thefundamental state manifested by the atoms of ourparticular universe.

Our ordinary knowledge, our education, ourmoral system, and our social customs being inflagrant contradiction with this experimental reality,we experience at our first attempts at projection a shock for which we must be ready.

Truth is so sudden and brutal that our humanvocabulary fails before the accomplished fact.Before such evidence, which we doubt right up tothe last moment, all the self-contradictory reasoningsof science, religion and philosophy, collapse piti-fully, leaving not a trace behind. At the same timea flood of "whys" and "hows" rises up from every

67


quarter, and this superabundance of ideas gives a feeling of being struck on the head with a club.This state only lasts a short while. Soon the successof so problematic an experiment, the intimate,overwhelming joy of knowing at last the reality,apart from any sentimental and intellectual specu-lation, gives the student that hope and certaintyof which civilization had robbed him.

What is most astonishing about this experience isthe speed with which all ordinary knowledge dis-appears. Immediately reduced to nothing, thisbursts like a bubble. At once we stand aghast atthe efforts which, for centuries and centuries, havebeen made by man in order to bring about this finalcatastrophe. However, if we reflect, we realize thatit is this very human uncertainty which has led usto make the efforts necessary to reach the experi-mental certainty of to-day.

Once the first surprise has passed we begin toleave with joy the prison of flesh. In this newdomain we look around at our familiar surroundingswith pleasure. We walk about our room with anunaccustomed feeling of strength and confidence.Our ideas are more precise than in earthly life. Inshort, it is a life inconceivably better than terrestrialexistence.

At each experiment the same joys come again.The main impression we receive is one of returningto a well-loved home after a long absence. Andthis impression, this confidence, this feeling of home-coming is proportionate to the quality of "energy"of the matter into which we project ourselves.

The body which projects itself in this way andstands next to the physical body is, to some extent,

CONSCIOUSNESS SEPARATED FROM PHYSICAL BODY 6<)

material. It is made up of sensory matter from ourphysical being and cannot go further than a fewyards away. It is therefore natural that in this statewe would continue the acts and gestures of ourphysical form. Thus, in order to leave the room wemust simulate the acts of opening doors or windows.Time and again I have tried to pass through wallsin this state and have only managed to give myselfa headache, just as if I had banged my physicalhead against a wall. Much later on I was successful.At first the walls felt soft, and then I went throughthem as if they were not there at all. But that wasonly because I exteriorized a less material double, farmore radio-active than the previous ones.

The atmosphere of the room follows the samevariations. A weak phosphorescence gives a specialluminosity. Though rather dark it is quite easy tofind one's way about. When the magnetic sensi-tivity of the double increases, so also does the light.The following are a few examples of projectionwhich I accomplished in my room.

One evening I tried an experiment withoutbothering to undress, merely lying down on my bed.I simply began to think about projecting myself,without undertaking any other exercises, and closedmy eyes. Soon art image came clearly before mysight. I made the necessary effort and experienceda feeling as if I were wriggling through a tightopening. At last, in my second body, I rose frommy bed. Despite the fact that I had been practisingprojection for over a year, as soon as I left my bodyI felt an instinctive fear. I mastered myself, butdespite my will, the suggestion of fear had done itswork. It seemed as if thousands of invisible threads


were trying to pull me back into my physical body.I resisted with all my might and looked curiouslyaround me. All was dark. The fire in the gratewas giving a dim light, and I noted that, contrary tothe statements of several writers on this subject, thewalls were not transparent. With my right hand I gripped my left wrist; it seemed quite solid. Atthat moment I heard a familiar tune being whistled.Though I could not see anything I felt that thiswas meant for my ears. However, the pull had notceased and I was forced to give way. I opened myeyes, took notes of what had happened, undressed,went to bed, and started a new experiment.

I had concentrated my mind on the following:To bring a piece of paper from the chest of drawersto my bed, and to examine my surroundings moreattentively. I fell asleep and awoke towards mid-night with a vague memory of having flown, at a great height, over some buildings. Looking at thetime, I once more closed my eyes. I had hardlydone this than I left my body in a rather strangemanner. I was standing balanced on my handsand, in this manner, walked around the room withmy feet in the air. Reaching my bed again, I tookup the normal posture. Now, although the fire hadgone out, the room seemed less dark than the firsttime. I felt very peaceful. Nothing distracted myattention. Remembering what I had decided to doI went towards the chest of drawers but saw twopieces of paper instead of one. I picked up both ofthem and put them on the bed. Then, still in myastral body, I sat down in my armchair to meditateon this strange happening. I examined my handsand feet. They seemed semi-material, as if seen

CONSCIOUSNESS SEPARATED FROM PHYSICAL BODY 71

under X-rays. Finally, not seeing anything else ofinterest, I decided to transfer the consciousness toanother dimension and visit a friend. I stepped onto the balcony, and with a light leap found myself inthe street. I had not gone fifty yards before anirresistible pull drew me back, and I was forced tore-enter my body. I opened my eyes, wrote downthe details of the experiment and, looking up, notedthat the piece of paper had not moved from thechest of drawers where I had originally put it.

Towards three o'clock in the morning I attempteda third projection. This time the atmosphere wasstill more luminous. Although the shutters wereclosed I could see a fine blue sky through them. I once again began my experiment. I blew on thatdecidedly recalcitrant piece of paper. I examinedmy arms and, as on the previous occasion, foundthem to be solid to the touch and surrounded by a grey aura just as in an X-ray photograph. Then, tofinish up, I re-entered my body. The piece of paperhad not moved at all.

Ever since I began these experiments I havenoted the possibility of projecting a double whosedensity would vary considerably, bringing in itswake all sorts of experimental powers and possi-bilities.

During another exercise of the same kind I became aware of myself by a definite slowing downof the breath, followed by the sensation of trying tosqueeze through a narrow space. Then I felt morefree and was no longer cramped. This time theroom seemed rather dark. I contemplated withoutenthusiasm my physical body, whose shape showedthrough the bed-covers. I touched it; eemed

soft. I kissed myself and came away with thefeeling of having kissed someone who had only beendead a short time. In the midst of this rather trans-parent darkness this tepid body, limp and inert,has a rather lugubrious appearance. However, I brought back to mind my original intention in pro-jecting myself, which was to travel to a spot sometwelve miles away, in order to visit a friend. Withthis purpose I went towards the window. As I tried to pass through it I was met by a resistancewhich I could not conquer. I thought that my pro-tected double must be too material, and thereforemade pretence of opening the window and flungmyself into space thinking of the person I wished tovisit. My journey was quite speedy. Repeatedly I felt fatigued and was forced to stop, but after havingprayed, strength flowed back to me and I arrived atthe end of my journey without difficulty. I kissedthe person in question, who pointed out to me that I possessed neither stomach nor feet. I answered,telling her that in this dimension one only kept theappearance of the upper portion of the body. I noticed that talking was trying me a great deal. Assoon as I stopped speaking, strength seemed to comeback. At last I came back to my body, calmer andstronger than when I began the experiment.

With regard to the question of "time" it shouldbe noted that its value is in an inverse ratio to theradio-activity of the stratum in which one projectsoneself. Time becomes instantaneous in the pureessence of the higher worlds. Prayer, too, is a wordfrom which we should strip all its superstitiousdressing. In the invisible worlds prayer is synonymouswith calling, with asking for help and protection.

CONSCIOUSNESS SEPARATED FROM PHYSICAL BODY 73

The following is another projection accomplishedwith a body whose vibrations were still moresubtle.

Without preliminaries I simply thought aboutprojecting myself. I became aware of myself in thevery act of projection. I had both the feeling andthe vision of lying face down on a table. My armswere stretched out in front of me and I was pullingon the edges of this imaginary table to free myselffrom something. I had the impression of being ina sack whose narrow opening was no more than a crack. At last my efforts were crowned with successand I found myself standing next to my body in fullpossession of all my faculties. For a while I watchedmyself sleeping. Then I kissed my wife andchildren and went off towards the East. For sometime I floated in a normal position; that is to say,standing up in an atmospheric medium, my bodyleaning forward slightly, my head well forward withmy face turned towards the horizon, if I makemyself clear. All of a sudden I felt a pull whichput me on my back, and drew me, feet first, inan unknown direction. Without losing my self-control I let myself go, at the same time redoublingmy attention. I came to a place in space which wasrepresented by a room. Several people were sittinground a sleeping man. I was told the name of thesick man and invited to sit down, when I chattedwith my neighbour on different things. I then leftthe company and re-entered my body in order toput down notes of what had happened. The topicsof our conversation, however, disappeared from mymemory.

I now freed myself again from my physical body.


I then saw my Guide to whom I put several questions,the answers to which, this time, I remembered.Finally, instead of going, as usual, straight back intomy body, I stopped in my room in order to noticethe difference between a fairly condensed projectionand a far more rarefied substance such as the one I had just been using. The surrounding atmosphereof the room was far more luminous than usual. I saw my wife turn over in bed without having theslightest reflex. Then I practised going in and outof my physical envelope. The tenuity of theexteriorized form allowed me to do this withouteffort. This double followed the impulse of mythoughts with amazing facility. I hardly formedthe idea that I wanted to return to my body when,immediately, I clearly felt the bed on which I waslying. The weight of my limbs, the difficult andfeeble breathing, the cold air, the thousand-and-onestreet noises, all told me that I was back again inmy physical form. Did I wish to leave it? Like a flash all those feelings disappeared. I could see mybody stretched out on the bed, and could walkabout the room with greater ease than usual. AfterI had repeated this exercise as many times as I wished, I opened my eyes, which act in no wayhindered the detailed precision of my observations.

CH APT ER IX

THE CONNECTING CORD

may be the density of the atoms of thesubstance which we use to penetrate into otherdimensions, the connection between the physicalbody and its more subtle double is maintained bymeans of a kind of cord. The extent to which thiscord can stretch seems to be limitless, and itresembles the trail of a rocket as it soars into space.Where the cord joins the double it consists ofthousands of very fine, elastic threads, which seemto suck the double into them.

To make a detailed study of this point, it isimportant to practise re-entering the body veryslowly. The nearer we come to our physical bodythe more we feel those ties which draw us back,which pump us, so to speak; and it seems as if wewere irresistibly melting into our body. Thestronger this feeling becomes the more we feel thematerial sensation of the physical being. First ofall these sensations seem far away, then they becomestronger and stronger until we are reabsorbedcompletely into the physical body.

Subsequent upon several experiments, the fol-lowing axiom seems to stand out: the "Rapport" existing between the physical body of a human being

75

j6 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

and the matter of his other bodies is in an inverseratio to the electro-magnetic power of the saidmatter.

In other words, the double is the more tied tothe physical body the more crude, or material, itscomposition. The transmission of vibrations fromthe one to the other follows the same progression.This explains the wounds or deaths of those unhappysorcerers and witches whose projected form was toodense in quality, and would therefore transfer anyblows or wounds it might receive to the physicalbody.

As we penetrate into the upper regions the easierit becomes to separate the conscious form from thephysical body; so that the projection of the spiritualessence of man is the act demanding the minimum ofeffort. On the other hand, this calls for a veryspecial training in order to free-Nthe Higher Con-sciousness from its ties with lower forms of matter.

When I first began my experiments I noticedseveral times the difficulties caused by using a double of too material a quality. Everythingbothers one. All the vibrations which affect thebody touch the double with magnified intensity.The sensory reactions of the projected form areall of a material order. The fluidic cord which tiesthe two bodies together follows, the same law and isalso very highly sensitized. The intimacy of therelationship between a body of dense matter and itsnext refinement has allowed me to try out experi-mentally curious cases of ubiquity.

The following is an example: whilst projected I was passing over a magnificent countryside, thewhole panorama seeming to be lit up by brilliant

THE CONNECTING CORD 77sunshine. I could distinguish every detail. I arrived by the sea, the waves of which were beatingagainst the shore, and sat down on some cementsteps near which some children were playing. Withdelight I breathed the salt air, whilst a fresh windcaressed my face. Now, the definitely materialfeelings of this state were complicated by othervibrations transmitted by the astral cord. Duringthis projection someone was walking in the roomand each step on the floor produced reverberationsin my astral body which each time drew me nearermy physical form. I was fully conscious of thesesimultaneous states and, while tasting of thepleasure of this projection, my will strove vigorouslyagainst the pull of these thousands of invisible ties.Finally, I succumbed, and was forced to return tomy room.

The bald recital of this state of dual consciousnesscannot give the least idea of the truth. Rememberthat I was all the time fully aware of the fact that I could end or prolong my projection. At the sametime I was fully alive to the attractions which weretrying to draw me back and was looking about for a means of minimizing them. For the time being mywill conquered, but, in the end, I was forced to giveway.

Here again it is a matter of training, and it ispossible to neutralize this annoying sensitivity onthe part of the astral cord.

C HA PT ER X

HOW THE DOUBLE TRAVELS IN THEINVISIBLE REALMS

WHILST the experimenter is merely projectinghimself into his own room, strolling about there,walking down to the front door and out into thestreet, there is no real difference between the actsperformed in the astral and those performed in thephysical state. But, when it becomes a matter ofhurling oneself into space it is quite another matter.

First of all, before trying this, it is necessary tomake sure that your physical body is still in thesame place. Suppose for a moment that you aresleep-walking and that you live on the sixth floor.The arc which you would draw in space might begraceful, but the end would be somewhat lacking incharm.

As we have not developed the habit of gliding inthe air like a bird, I first of all began by makingthe movements of swimming. It was thereforeby pretending to swim that I first travelled inspace.

Little by little my skill improved. Instead ofswimming in the usual way, using the breast-stroke,I began to move along with a sort of side-stroke.After that I learnt to turn over on my back and float,

78

DOUBLE TRAVELS IN THE INVISIBLE REALMS 79

pushing with my feet only. Finally, I would travelhorizontally, with my hands clasped together andarms stretched out as if to cut through the etherwhich lay before me, impelled simply by a wish.

When travelling above a material surface, or anethereal surface which takes on a material shape,the impression of being surrounded by a great voidis far less strong. It will, in such cases, be foundquite a simple matter to glide, standing up, withoutthe help of any gesture.

The fear of empty space which is experienced atthe beginning is due to the formidable sense ofreality with which this conscious projection strikesone. During a dream one would feel no fear.Whilst dreaming such a feat would seem quitenatural. But here, though, in full possession of theordinary consciousness, which has been transferredfrom the physical envelope to the astral double,there is undoubtedly ground for hesitation.

In this new state, of which at first it is quiteignorant, the ordinary consciousness soon gainsconfidence through the use of its new powers. Themore these are exercised, the more quickly confi-dence is gained. Generally speaking, however, it isonly after several years of training in the differentdimensions that our consciousness manages to dis-cern the reality and value of the scenes it sees, thepower of thought and of the things which this canaccomplish.

The ease with which the double travels alsofollows a similar line of progression. According asthe double that one manages to project becomesfiner, so do all the normal faculties obtain a propor-tionate development. Not only does it become


unnecessary to make any gesture indicative of what-ever movement or act we wish to make, but thevery thought of movement, in the physical sense,disappears.

On one occasion, charged with a commission in a certain region of space, I noted the followingcharacteristics. I was going to accomplish the workwhich had been entrusted to me without thinkingwhich way I should go. The atmosphere in which I found myself, of a kind of light grey, seemed tohave no limits. I went hither and thither, climbedup and down, laterally and obliquely, in all direc-tions, all without thinking about it. In fact I wastravelling to the spot where my work called me inthe most natural manner. These movements, I might add, took place as instinctively as whenmoving an arm or a leg in the material world. I felt myself definitely master of that space whichseems so unconquerable when we are on earth. Theposition in which I normally hold myself is asfollows: It seems as if I were standing up, leaningslightly forward. In this way I float in the ether,looking straight in front of me. Then when I change from one dimension to another, I maintaina certain slope, as though following a tangent in a sphere.

In projection by whirlwind, the force of the cur-rent which draws one along prevents any idea ofmaking a movement. It is irresistible. The mostthat can be done, and that is not always possible, isto stand up, one arm straight in front, the index andmiddle fingers held up as if giving a benediction.That is called the defence position. No fear shouldbe felt. Let yourself be carried along. I have


already told you the positions which should beavoided. For instance, to be drawn along, feet upin the air, either in an upward or downwarddirection, is undesirable.

I also experimented with quite a novel method oftravelling, and this in a state where all notion orfeeling of "time" had completely disappeared. Theprocess seemed to be akin to that used in long-distance shooting, where the shell is launched on a calculated trajectory in order to fall on a predeter-mined spot. I came to this idea in working on oneof the conceptions of the theory of relativity, whichpresupposes a super-ether beyond the material one,which would transmit vibrations quite independentof those of the more material ether, in whichcase a series of waves having crossed the materialether at the speed of light would, in the super-ether,have a speed of "x."

Here is an account of what happened. I hadarranged a whole series of experiments in my roomfor that day. I was to knock a ball from a piece offurniture, put my finger-prints on a plate powderedwith flour, etc. However, as soon as I was pro-jected I changed my mind in regard to my inten-tions. I decided instead to call on a person livinghundreds of miles away. Quietly poised, and wellbalanced in mind, I made my way towards the wallof the room, with the intention of passing throughit. Suddenly a window, consisting of one largepane of glass, and without any means of opening,placed itself before me by some mysterious means.Experience having taught me the nature of such a raised-up obstacle, placed there by some unknownpower, I was in no way afraid. Stretching forward


my right arm, and pointing, I slowly made the signof the cross on this image. The window dis-appeared, but was soon replaced by another. I repeated the sign, with the same result, and with theappearance of a third window. For the third time I repeated the protective sign. My movement washardly finished when the window vanished, and,immediately, without the slightest perceptible lapseof time, I found myself hundreds of miles away.Combined with a speed which was in strong con-trast to that which I usually experienced, it wasimpossible to doubt the reality of what had happened.I was in a street of the town where lived the personI was seeking, and as I walked towards the house, I meditated on this instantaneous means of transport.At the same time I noticed in myself a feeling oflightness, of clarity, and of hyper-consciousness,such as I had never before experienced so intensely.As I was not sure of the exact spot where myfriend was living, I was suddenly drawn towards thesecond floor of an unknown house. There I foundthe individual I sought. I took stock of the furni-ture and the way it was distributed, and noted, inpassing, that workmen were repairing the street.

On my return to the physical body, I once morefreed myself again with an unaccustomed ease. A light zephyr carried me through space in obedienceto the slightest impulse from my will. When I hadreturned to normal consciousness I retained theimpression of the radio-active waves of this superiorstate for a whole day. No words of mine would dojustice to the condition of superior consciousnessexperienced in this dimension. One carries clearlyin mind even the most minute particulars of the


experience, with an unimaginable wealth of detail,all without having to rrake the least effort. Nomist, however light, intrudes upon the freedom andclarity of this perfect saper-dimensional state.

I wrote to the individual in question, givingdetails of what I had seen so many miles away and,two months later, rer eived full confirmation.

On the whole, t ie result of my experiments inthe higher matter ;s that the soul travels at a speedproportionate to trie quality of the "pure Energy"in which it finds itself. At the positive extremity ofthis quality one reaches instantaneousness. Timeand space which are so greatly differentiated in thisworld of ours unify more and more in the greaterrefinement of other dimensions. The centrifugalextension of the atoms increases the extent of thecircumscribed space. Time loses its value andinstantaneousness is the ultimate quality of unity.This unity follows a trajectory which is on a planeat a tangent to the extreme limit of our universe.

C HA PT E R XI

HOW THE HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS USES ITSPOWERS

TAKING into consideration the characteristics of thedifferent invisible states of matter, the narration ofmy experiments gives only an approximate concep-tion of the real thing. The factors which are of realworth in these unknown regions of the ether arealmost untranslatable.

The unity of all thoughts, of judgment andsensory reactions, the freedom and power which arecharacteristic of this state, call for the use of facultieswhich are unknown down here. There is nosimple expression to define them. This synthesisof faculties brings along a whole series of delicateand varied sensations. If to this one adds states ofconsciousness of tremendous scope, there follows anincredible clarity of multiple effects, based upon thefew causes which bring them about. The furtherone penetrates into the more subtle states of matter,the further does this lucidity increase, to attain itsabsolute fullness at that point where our ownuniverse contacts the Infinite, to which it gravi-tates.

In this supreme state, man has become a god,fecundating his portion of the universe with the

8 4

HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS USES ITS POWERS 85

conscious life, of which he has now become both thecentre and the circumference.

In the Invisible, the human being is representedby a state of consciousness. All the forms ofexpression, all the qualities, all the different faculties,by means of which one is able to define a humanbeing, collect, ultimately, in this great syntheticunity called consciousness.

This consciousness judges, meditates, and actswith a freedom and lucidity proportionate to thesum of attraction which it is capable of bringing tobear. As this totality of attractions increases, thecauses which bring them about decrease, or viceversa. At the final summing up, the consciousnessdiscovers itself at the top of the latter, living in a maximun state of pure "Energy," in a radio-activeunity, with free access to the phenomenal multi-plicity of causes and effects in all their dimensions.

The universal order which allows access to suchsuperlative powers is the only God which the humanbeing will meet during his peregrinations. It is byHim that one has access to the world of phenomena.It is He who allows these strange faculties to beshut away in the majority of people. Again it isHe, this Universal Order, which, in the infinity ofall-including space, as in the basic atom of all theworlds in the cosmos, allows the evolution of lifeand of consciousness.

In order to help you to obtain a clear idea ofthe results of experiment, let us suppose that anengineer has at his disposal a special keyboardwhich represents the directing influences of theworld. Each touch would correspond to a wholeclass of phenomena. Suppose, also, that the touches


on this keyboard are gradually reduced and that themighty "ensemble" of cause and effect to which itcorresponds is set into vibration under the influenceof will. In order to make our analogy complete, wemust imagine that the musician has quite a freemind, without any dominant thought. We mustsee him acting without effort, with absolute cer-tainty, without a shadow of hesitation, mechanicallycontrolling his impulses in the direction, at the place,and following the true nature of the equilibrium tobe brought about.

What is remarkable and quite beyond the under-standing of us earth-dwellers is that, in the Invisible,it is within reason to imagine such possibilitieswithout their author being tormented by a surgingflood of ideas. The more we draw near to thedirecting influences of the world, the more the con-scious spirit of man frees itself from the bonds of themultitudinous attractions of which the universe iscomposed. We might say definitely that the humanbeing condenses himself into an infinitesimal Point,which could be defined as a state of Consciousnessat rest.

The most mighty imagination will fail to con-ceive the dynamic intensity of the energy so consti-tuted. Only experience in these high regions ofbeing will allow us to realize that if human con-sciousness is able to put the forces of the cosmosinto motion, it is precisely because it has cast off allform, to re-absorb itself into one of the fundamentalprinciples of the universal order, of which it(the consciousness) has now become a consciouschannel.

On earth memory is indispensable if we wish to


go deeply into the causes which underlie phenomena.In the invisible world this memory is replaced by thesuper-sensitivity of the "matter" into which wepenetrate. The body of whirling atoms used by theconsciousness vibrates in harmony with this matterand transmits to its creator whatever wave-lengthsmay be brought to birth.

Imagine the development, the very perfection, ofsuch a system. Then you will realize the perfectunion which exists between consciousness and themedium in which it manifests. In its growing rare-faction, the ether increases in that vital sensitivenesswhich allows it to touch inferior strata. Withoutbeing absorbed by it, its own dimension penetratesall others, and we can consider human consciousnessas capable of localizing itself in each atom of thissuper-sensitive state of the universe.

This hypothesis will give you the key to thepowers which one can observe in the invisibleworld. The practical result corresponds, in fact, toa progressive and clairvoyant sensitivity, bringingabout a far more extended range of action. Thissensitivity gives birth to a scale of sensations, theincredible delicacy of which gives the consciousnessall the knowledge it could possibly require. At thevery instant that such knowledge comes to the con-sciousness the latter has already acted in thenecessary sense, by the help of inexplicable faculties,which are summed up in a form of autogenousimpulse.

There is no beginning or end between perceptionand action. To perceive is to act and vice versa.And, every time we use this strange power, we havethe impression of giving ourselves absolutely and


without reserve, however small or great the space inwhich our consciousness is functioning.

We might compare the accuracy and delicacywith which actions are accomplished in this state, tothe work of a clockmaker. When he sets aboutputting a watch together he does not consider themovements he is about to make in order to assembleeach piece in its right place. Through habit he willplace his cogs in the right and proper order whilstconcentrating his full attention on the idea of placingthem accurately. If he knows his job, it will beimpossible for him to make a mistake. Each partis allocated to a predetermined position. They arenot interchangeable in the same watch.

Similarly, the Laws of the Universal System arenot interchangeable in one universe, and therelationship between cause and effect is part of oneorder of placing, for all the systems of universesgravitating in the infinite. The observations wehave made in the Higher Worlds allow us to under-stand more clearly the mechanism of consciousness.

Each world, each degree of magnetic concentra-tion in the ether in which we are travelling, possessesa range and possibility of action in harmony with theelements of which it is composed.

When we project ourselves into one of thesedimensions the consciousness is limited by the verynature of the matter in which it is immersed. Inorder to increase its powers the consciousness mustfunction in a more rarefied magnetic atmosphere.And, as the human being can only change dimen-sions when he has cast off all the attractions whichhold him to a lower one, it follows that each indivi-dual is given power in accordance with his evolution.


The mathematical perfection of the Universeentails an equivalent justice. The conscious beingis now but a unity functioning in harmony with theprinciples of universal order, He thinks, he acts,with this order, in this order, and for this order, andit would be impossible for him to conceive anothersystem for the simple reason that a more perfect onedoes not exist. Arrived, by dint of his own efforts,at a state of perfection which he has realized littleby little, whose most distant vibrations have beenexperienced, it is materially and spiritually impossiblefor him to act in any other way. Good and evil,only differentiated by the limitations of an evolvinguniverse, no longer hold any significance. Toattribute meaning to these would be a weakness ofjudgment, as the human being having lived in andappreciated all the variations of the one-and theother, has chosen, in accordance with Nature, themost perfect elements which go to make up hishappiness.

If we sum up the practical results of the experi-ment in the invisible world, thinking and actingcome to one and the same kind of activity. A kindof perfect intuition allows man to realize theuniversality of his powers and his range of action.By instinct he feels that at the least desire, at the mostfeeble attraction, at the very shade of thought, thewhole of his psychological faculties will set to workas one. At one and the same instant he has under-stood, weighed, meditated on, and acted withoutthe collective whole of these functions hinderingin the least his confident serenity, indicative ofuniversal wisdom.

So soon as we succeed in penetrating consciously


into the different dimensions of the higher worlds,we bring away with us a greater stability in the lowerworlds.

This fact which I eventually noted after severalyears of experience, is very important. At thebeginning of our experiments we do not notice atall clearly the characteristics peculiar to eachdimension. A certain apprenticeship has to beserved, for which none other but oneself is of anyuse whatsoever. We are ignorant of what we canor should do. We tend to hesitate, let ourselves beeasily baulked by all kinds of obstacles.

Once we have obtained a consciousness of life inthe higher dimensions, we no longer proceed sotentatively; a displeasing shape being created infront of us is no longer intimidating. We gostraight to the goal and act with far more definiteness,and certainty, on any plane on which we findourselves.

The progressive ability which we develop andput into practice, harmonizing more with theessence of phenomena, has, as its immediate result,the obligatory selection of thoughts such as we useon earth. We deduce from this that for harmony toexist between the conscious being and the higherworlds, a series of definitely positive ideas becomesnecessary. And, this observation, born of experience,sums up all morality, terrestrial and supra-terrestrial.

There is no doubt that a moral principle doesexist. It becomes one with our consciousness, andcombines with the ever-moving ether in which weexercise our powers.

The true morality of evolution might be expressedas having none but positive ideas, positive desires,


the performance of none but positive acts, and beingsurrounded by positive affections.

To become positive towards ourselves, to bepositive with regard to the people around us all inaccordance with the facts of life and environment,sums up the finest way to live in the higher dimen-sions of the ether.

To be positive means that we must bring intoharmony the body of moving atoms which we areusing for our supra-terrestrial journeys, and the pure"Energy" of the fundamental matter.

This way of living is in direct relationship withthe very nature of ether. As the material aspect ofour true existence represents the negative side ofevolution, by freeing ourselves from the attractionswhich tie us down to earth we cannot fail to evolve.In order to concentrate the positive aspect ofvibrations in ourselves we have only to live a life ofpersonal desirelessness, without self-centred aims.In acting for the general usefulness, in a completelydetached manner, we do not attract to ourselves thedownward energy, expressing matter. We must,then, become generators of energy. In drawing thepersonality away from the limiting influence ofpersonal acts, we avoid the law of reincarnation withall its consequences.

Without becoming entirely social victims, eachone of us can act according to this teaching as far aspossible. It seems to me to be within the reach ofall to refrain from being egotistical or vain as far asmay be, and to remain simple of heart in all circum-stances. The law of evolution does not call formore.

At the beginning of my experiments I noticed,


to my own cost, the effects of negative thoughts inthose worlds where such things cannot live.

One day, I found myself on a fairly high plane ofconsciousness, carrying on a pleasant conversationwith some friends. We had, for the occasion,created the image of a drawing-room in which wewere all comfortably seated. Without being awareof it I used, whilst speaking, an unfortunate phrase.I had barely finished speaking when I felt a shock,followed by a giddy descent which brought me backinto my physical body. The impulse had been sosudden, and I was so unprepared for it, that I remained stunned for a moment, looking around mewith wide-open eyes and wondering whatever couldhave been the cause of such a fall. I took note of thevarious details of the experiment and, later on,understood that each thought is, in itself, a vibra-tionary world, in the selection of which greater caremust be taken the further one penetrates into thepure "Energy" aspect of matter.

In practice, the images and ideas sent forth bythought must always express some quality, never a fault. All ideas relating to money or fortune mustdisappear. All thoughts of vanity and egotism mustbe avoided. All pictures which have any idea ofevil, or hatred, all malevolent thoughts must beforgotten.

Remember these conditions. They are indis-pensable in the higher regions. They might beconceived as a mechanical necessity of the universe.

It also happened, during another experiment,that I wished to find out the effect of prayer in theInvisible. That day I used the words of the Pater-noster. When I thought of the words "Deliver


us from evil" I felt such a loss of strength, was soovercome, that I was forced immediately to returnto earth. This expression held a negative idea.What I should have said was: "Strengthen us ingood," so that vibrations of a similar nature to mywords might have been created.

The experience of projection in the differentdimensions of space allows us to infer with absolutecertainty the existence of an order of Principlesin action throughout the universe. The humanconsciousness is enriched by its past experiences,of which it retains the basic harmonies. In theinvisible worlds the magnetic subtleness of themovements of the matter allows us to bring allthese experiences into play, without any effort, inone great synthesis of thought and action.

The evolution of this consciousness consists indrawing nearer to the "constants" of the UniversalOrder, in order to be capable of vibrating in harmonywith It.

The potential of moving energy, which we knowas human consciousness, is developed by thepractice of a positive life. In order to eliminate fromone's existence all those forces which sap one'senergy, all discords created during successive ages,all negative acts and desires, one must become,onself, an attracting and positive centre within theuniverse.

In order to summarize the way of living in orderto obtain the maximum development with a minimum effort, and in a practical manner, I wouldsuggest that we must think, desire, act and love in a higher manner.

During every moment of our lives we must be


ready to bring into action the majestic powers of a higher life, and for that purpose must make use ofuniversal attraction in its finest and highest sense.

Whatever the kind of attraction which is affectingus we must never act towards it in a negative manner.It is necessary that one be its absolute master. If ithappens to be one which is personal, depreciating,wild, or hostile, we must remove its negativecharacter; then this impulse will become ourservant. And, in order to achieve this goal, theconsciousness must be centred fully on the best inthe universe, on principles of order, whose harmonyis perceived by us under the various aspects of theGood, the Beautiful, and the True.

In seeking a disinterested Good in all things, inloving Beauty in all its forms, in wanting to knowTruth stripped of all human illusions, giving to thisideal the backing of the whole of our being, withoutany reservations, we may be certain of being incomplete agreement with the "constants" of evolu-tion.

C H AP T ER XII

THE HINDRANCES AND METHODS OF SELF-DEFENCEIN THE FOURTH DIMENSION

T H E obstacles that hinder one when exploring themore subtle worlds are fairly numerous. Whatevertheir power may be, remember that the essentialcondition required in order to conquer them ismoral purity. Without this all other means losetheir efficacy and may even become dangerous,coming back on their author.

The man orwoman who sets about these experi-ments with a pure heart and a definite uplift of themoral consciousness is sure of success.

In my last chapter I pointed out the relationshipwhich exists between moral laws and the mathe-matical nature of the fundamental matter of ouruniverse. You should now have obtained someidea of their importance and scientific value. Weare no longer concerned with the word "moral" aswe have been used to understand it. Its mediaevalaspect has disappeared altogether. Morality is nomore than an intelligent selection of the forcesfavourable to our evolution, an evolution imposed bythe active composition of both man and the universe.It is by moral conduct that we synchronize theseworlds one with the other.

95


The hindrances we meet are a useful means ofbecoming conscious of the extent of our powers.At first we feel a certain pleasure in strugglingagainst them. Later on, when we have become fullyconscious of our mental power, we no longer attachthe some importance to them. We are so sure ofsuccess that we can carry on with an ease similar tothat with which, on earth, we would carry anobject from one place to another. In short, whenwe have penetrated the other dimensions andbecome aware of their characteristics, self-defence isno longer necessary, as the obstacles no longerconfront us.

The state of consciousness which precedes thedisappearance of these hindrances is rather curious.When it is a matter of having to defend ourselvesagainst entities existing in the invisible worlds, weconquer with regret—I might almost add, with pain.We suffer from having to defend ourselves. Thefeeling is similar to that experienced by a father whois forced to punish the children whom he loves.

Two kinds of obstacles are met in the invisiblerealms. The first of these are beings living in a lower stratum of the fundamental matter, and thesecond are images created by ourselves or by un-known intelligences.

To defend yourself from any of these, all youhave to do is to call your guides, to raise the con-sciousness to a higher and purer level, or to makethe sign of the cross.

To understand the nature of the obstacles and themeans of self-defence it is essential to keep in mindthe experimental definition of human existence inthe invisible worlds. It cannot be too often repeated

METHODS OF SELF-DEFENCE 97

that the elements which make up the Invisibleconstitute the true "scheme" of evolution.

Two essential differences characterize the life ofspace and physical life.

(1) The principles of authority and of power arefunctions dependent upon the moral loftiness of theconsciousness.

(2) Life in the rarefied matter of the subtle worldsnecessitates a perception and a placing of theconscious " I " in the directive influences of theuniversal order.

Thus it is materially and spiritually impossiblefor beings of a lower state of evolution to live,consciously, in the higher worlds, as long as theyhave not harmonized their consciousness with thefiner vibrations of those strata.

In the invisible realm, to change from one planeor dimension to another calls for an intrinsicalteration in one's component elements. If anindividual is unable to adapt himself to that changehe cannot live on a higher plane.

If a fish is taken out of water there is only onething he can do in order to live in the open air—to die and be reborn with a different organism.

To change from one plane or dimension toanother is to die; that is to say, to abandon alllower desires in order to live in a system composedof more subtle elements.

Broadly, human life on earth is nothing morethan the result of our aspirations. It is enough to

to adapt yourself to the moral impulse of evolutionand progress, if you cannot see, or sense, the directingprinciples of humanity and live in them and them


alone, it will be quite impossible for you to exist inthe matter of the higher worlds and to make con-scious use of the energy of its ultra-sensitive atoms.

Therefore, the obstacles we are likely to meet inthe Invisible world are the results of the inferiorquality of our own aspirations, which place usprovisionally at the mercy of the lower vibrations ofmatter and its denizens. As we centre our affectionson an Ideal more in accord with the Great Funda-mentals of the universe; as we strive to understandthose Principles and make them into an integralpart of ourselves, we suppress the other ties andsever all connections with the elements of disorder.

The gradual surrender of all egotistical tendenciesand the simultaneous acquisition of moral energyare only the first steps in evolution, which must becompleted by the intellectual grasp of the law ofCause and Effect.

These first few steps are, in all cases, a necessaryand indispensable basis. Their mastery favours thegermination and free development of the higherfunctions of the soul. It is for this reason that thegreat teachers of all time have advised and taughtbrotherly love, mutual tolerance, and the practiceof goodness of heart.

In order to discern the qualities of the forms andbeings which you encounter in the subtle worlds it isnecessary to consider as an actual reality any planeupon which you may be functioning.

In order to pass from one dimension to anotherit is necessary to abandon some part of one's make-up; just as, at death, the physical body is leftbehind.

When you are on earth a prison is a real obstacle.

METHODS OF SELF-DEFENCE 99

Project yourself, and it is nothing more than a picture through which you can pass, with ease, as ifit did not exist. On the other hand, in the projectedstate, if an astral box closes you in, you are well andtruly imprisoned. Leave the astral plane, projectyourself into a higher dimension, and you thenescape from the malevolent influences that are hold-ing you back. If, instead of going higher, you aresatisfied by going back to earth, then the astralprison will mark your psychic limits. Only anexodus to a higher plane can free you, or else theemission of a greater force of the same nature.

Each world, earthly or super-terrestrial, is there-fore a momentary reality. In order to conquer it,we must abandon it, and seek refuge in a morepowerful atmosphere.

The quality of the beings with which one comesinto contact are easy to discern. The vibratorysystem which we are using as a body transmits theslightest influence. By the good or evil sensationexperienced, it is easy to tell with what type we haveto deal.

Remember, as a general rule, that in the invisibleworlds the moral consciousness is all-powerful.Remember, also, that a thought is often enough tocause an entity which pleases or displeases us toappear or disappear.

C HA PT ER XIII

HOW TO DISCERN THE QUALITY OF LIVING BEINGS

obstacles of a lower order of evolution. To whichspecial names are given.

Certainly, in the dense and noisome matter ofthe lower worlds are to be found types of beingsupon the descriptions of which I do not think itnecessary to elaborate. It will be enough if I giveexamples of times when I have been forced tostruggle against malevolent entities.

One day I had projected myself with a definiteintention of rising to higher planes. As I then hadlittle practice, I did not know how to proceedcorrectly. Projection took place with ease. Withmy consciousness as clear as a bell, I found myselfprojected with perfect self-mastery. I leapt intospace. The atmosphere was fairly clear. In themiddle of a fine blue sky I noticed, set higher up, a house, which was surrounded by rather heavyclouds. I began to make my way towards this whenI noticed that a "Being" was coming towards me.He was dressed in a cloak whose dark grey colourdid not inspire confidence in me; yet, despite mymistrust, I went on my way with him. Soon I

100

HOW TO DISCERN QUALITY OF LIVING BEINGS I O I

found myself in the centre of a town, being chasedby men in black. Passing through the forms whichwere being built up around me, hiding in one houseand then another, I found myself shut up in a kind ofsmall cavern from which there was no exit. Mentally,I called for my guide. Immediately I was freedfrom the illusions created by these beings. Alltrace of houses or town had disappeared. I was inspace, surrounded by about fifteen persons who werequite incapable of hiding their malevolent thoughts.My curiosity aroused, I contemplated their enviousand sneering faces and made the protective sign ofthe cross. They staggered back slightly, but oncemore came forward laughing and talking foully. I made this an opportunity to try out the value of theso-called magical signs: triangles, pentagons, divinenames, etc. Not only did these have no effect, butthey mimicked my gestures, laughing and sneeringat me all the while. They even managed to catchhold of my arm in order to stop me. The result wasthat I lost my temper. This was a mistake. I camehurtling back into my body, furious with rage, myteeth clenched, but luckily unharmed. A fewmoments later I made a second projection, butwas not troubled by any further attacks of thiskind.

I have learnt since that the best and most powerfulprotection is a thought of love, which may besymbolized by the sign of the cross.

During another experiment I was being chased byan individual whose thoughts created cubes in whichhe tried to shut me up. Suddenly he attacked me.I had the feeling of being kicked twice on the head.Despite the pain, I managed to free myself and take


up the offensive. I destroyed his thought-formsand rose above him to a somewhat higher stratum.Still, he did his best to follow. Being unable toreach me, his powerful will took the shape of stoneswhich it seemed that he was throwing at me. Tiredof his insistence, I became aggressive and raised a huge bench over his head. . . . Luckily I stoppedin time, put down my weapon, and forgave him.Immediately a strange metamorphosis took place,and I saw this entity turn into a dog.

During the ups and downs of this struggle I hadnever ceased from praying and, as I rose above myopponent, I could feel my energy increasing.

During such experiments it would be interestingto study the relationship existing between the birthof forms and their ensouling ideas. This wouldprove a real key to dreams. It would naturally benecessary to observe and note the association ofideas, of sentiments, and desires correspondingto the images created, and to consider the density ofthe matter where these manifested.

For example, in the above-mentioned instance,why did this bench have the rustic form; i.e. of a longthick plank propped up on two short ones? Wouldnot the image of a revolver have been far moreappropriate to the occasion?

Here is another case which I can remember quiteclearly:—

I had not been feeling well for some days. Despitethis I was sucked up by a whirlwind which carriedme up in an unknown direction. As soon as I became aware of what was happening I tried tostand up in the magnetic stream which was carryingme away. I managed this, not without effort, when,

HOW TO DISCERN QUALITY OF LIVING BEINGS I O 3

to my surprise, I saw an individual of menacingaspect coming towards me, driving me into a cornerof a cube which he had created, and by means ofwhich he tried to hem me in. Fully conscious, andwithout any trace of dream experience, I felt a momentary reaction of natural fear. It was nomore than a flash, and quickly dissipated. Regain-ing confidence, I stood where I was, folded my arms,leaned against the impassable barriers, and smilinglyawaited the coming of this enemy. Without speak-ing or moving, I let him draw near. When heraised his arm to strike I mentally called my guides.He stopped transfixed, but retained his threateningair. At last he drew back slightly, stopped, steppedback once more, slowly at first and then morequickly, until I made him finally vanish by stretchingout my arm and pointing my right index finger inhis direction. Then I continued with my interruptedprojection. The magnetic current once more tookup its flow. The atmosphere became clearer and I saw below me green valleys, trees, rivers, andhouses. I came at length to a town which I hadintended to visit. When I regained my physicalbody I was strangely enough free from the indis-position which had been troubling me. I mightadd that at the time when this took place I had beentraining for eighteen months only.

Independent of the images and forms created bymalevolent entities, the influence which surroundsthese is definitely significant. Thus, in the firstinstance, the evil influence of the people by whomI was surrounded came to me in the form of in-visible electro-magnetic waves of an extraordinarypower of resistance. Though seeing nothing, I


encountered a veritable wall of energy of consider-able power.

This perception may be quite useful when one isdealing with intelligences who may be moreadvanced than oneself, but who are unbalanced bytheir moral inferiority.

Here is an instance. I had projected myselfwith the intention of contacting beings superior toour degree of civilization. I felt myself rise intoa misty atmosphere. All of a sudden, withoutwarning, I found myself standing before a Beingwho was seated on a kind of throne, and whoseform was painted with various colours. His coldand severe appearance impressed me unfavourably.However, as he assured me that he was one of myguides, I guessed that I was mistaken and, over-coming my antipathy, tried to speak with himconcerning my work on earth. Then, strangelyenough, my memory suddenly failed me. When I came back to my body I deduced that Beings whoare really good are in need of no other distinctivemark.

In fact, I learned later on to appreciate the sublimelove of those Beings who are really of a higher order.Without form and without colour, the radiance oftheir aura inspires a feeling of such intense love,attracts us by a power so confident and devoted,that there are no words on earth capable of givingany idea of the power and quality of the energywhich emanates from them.

C H AP T ER XIV

HOW TO CONQUER ANTAGONISTIC FORCES

T H E obstacles we are likely to meet in this secondcategory are more varied and more frequent. Theyeven imply in certain circumstances, long practice inprojection.

The main aim of antagonistic forces seems to beto hinder the experimenter. They therefore pro-duce images which try to imprison the student inspace, or they attempt to sap his vitality.

The first kind are many in number: barriers,very narrow tubes, boxes, cages, and prisons, allaiming at the same result. Picture creations ofinsulating agents such as grease and glass are alsoused by these forces.

In the second instance, pointed objects arecreated, or mirages of rain, which draw away thestudent's strength and force him to return to hisphysical envelope.

Note that all these hindrances are produced whenwe leave our room in order to reach a new dimension.Also, I would remind you of an elementary precau-tion. Be sure, before launching your double intospace, that you are really projected, and that yourphysical body is safely in bed.

I now propose giving a few instances which105


demonstrate the above-mentioned obstacles in action.During one of my experiments, half-past two in themorning had hardly struck, when I began to feelmy body becoming heavy and numb under somemagnetic influence. Very soon I found myself out-side my body, in my own room, and fully conscious.

I went towards the door, intending to passthrough it. I had hardly done this when a new roomappeared and kept me prisoner. Making the signof the cross, I dispelled the illusion, but immediatelyanother room took its place, this time one with a window. In order to leave this room I broke thewindow-panes. Still under the power of themysterious influence, the glass broke into sharppoints. As it was not the first time that such a thing had happened I decided to risk it and tried tosqueeze my way past the jagged edges guarding thisopening. I then experienced a feeling which israther hard to define. I was neither cut norscratched. I felt only a strange discomfort whichdrew away my strength, as if it had been held in a reservoir from which it was rapidly being emptied.I had to return to my body, not having enoughenergy to go on.

I began a second experiment. The same obstaclescame up again, with this difference, that the cubicspace in which I was shut up had neither door norwindow. I made my invocation and then, pointingthe index and middle fingers of my right hand,exteriorized my thoughts by making the sign of thecross. The walls of my prison began to crumbleand break down, only, however, to rebuild themselvesas before. At last, all my attempts being useless,I regained my body.

HOW TO CONQUER ANTAGONISTIC FORCES I O 7

A third attempt was, at last, crowned withsuccess. As soon as I was in my astral body I flung myself into space, without any other visionthan a fine, clear atmosphere whose magnetismgave me a very pleasant reeling. Soon I had theimpression of being in the midst of heavy cloudslike white cumuli. I went upward at an angle inthis cloudy atmosphere and, later on, horizontally.Passing by on my upward journey I saw variousstudy groups being held in odd corners of space.I would stop for a little while at each one, take somepart in the discussions, then would go on further inthis "tour of inspection." After having passed a group of children, who, it seemed to me, could havebenefited by a little more discipline, I arrived at a meeting presided over by three Beings who weredressed in golden cloaks. After having shakenhands with them I sat down and listened to thelecture they were delivering. After the meeting wetalked together. I could feel their brotherly friend-ship with the same happiness as is experienced whenwell-loved people are found after many years ofabsence. We then prayed together, and I finishedmy astral journey by paying a series of visits onearth.

These study-groups represent one of the manyaspects of life in Space.

Sometimes obstacles crop up during a projectionin the same manner as occurred during the followingexperiment. I was wandering about a town builtin the ether when, arriving at a certain spot, I saw,to my great surprise, that the streets were closing upin front of me. Soon I found myself in a sort oftube shut up at both ends. Immediately I invoked

I 0 8 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

my guides. The tube then allowed me to passthrough, but again I found myself held prisoner, in a cubic space in which there was a window. Thepanes of this window had a circular opening pro-tected by pointed glass in the shape of a star.Despite these points I managed to pass through,and although I lost a good deal of energy, I was notso exhausted as to be unable to finish my experimentbefore returning to earth.

Another time, I was stopped, during a projection,by iron spikes fixed in a board which was placedinside a wall through which I was trying topass.

During another experiment, it had been hard workgetting out of the body. In the projected state mydouble became the victim of a very disagreeablerotary movement. However, despite this, I travelledhundreds of miles, intending to visit one of myfriends living on earth, when a grating suddenlysprang up before me. By an effort of will I forcedit to disappear and continued my journey. AlreadyI was near my goal. I could actually feel themagnetic aura of the person in question, when I had the very definite impression of being attractedby two opposing forces. One was pushing metowards my goal, the other was pulling me back.Despite my efforts, I had to yield to the second forceand come back to my body. Contrary to my usualexperience I was drenched with perspiration andfelt a violent pain at the top of my head.

Another day, after having projected my astral bodyin the room where I lay, I rose perpendicularly intospace. Suddenly a series of thatched roofs came inmy way, doing their best to stop this ascent. Aided

HOW TO CONQUER ANTAGONISTIC FORCES IOQ

by prayer, I managed to see daylight and carry onmy studies in good conditions.

In other cases I have been stopped from goingfurther by a kind of grease which would suddenlyimpregnate all the objects around me at whateverspot I visited.

On the other hand, I was once helped by a bladeof steel which had been given to me by friends onthe other side.

The phenomenon of rain is a fairly frequentobstacle. As soon as I am out of my body I some-times find myself under a dark and menacing sky.If I go forward it starts raining. Then my strengthseems to ebb away, and I find it necessary to returnto earth. On some occasions this space seems to belit by magnificent sunlight. A gentle warmth fillsthe atmosphere. Flooded with happiness by thisvivifying magnetism I have plunged joyfully into itsdepths when, without warning, the sky darkens andit begins to rain. The impression on the conscious-ness is analogous. Annoyed at first, then anxious,one's impression becomes definitely bad. Theastral body seems to dissolve under the influence ofthis darkening picture, and it becomes necessary toreturn to earth in order to gather a new stock ofenergy.

Only after ten years' experimenting have I beenable to conquer this important obstacle. The dayon which I realized this I was wandering in myastral body over a sea lit up by a kind of sunlightwith the same characteristics as the one I have justmentioned. It was with a feeling of deep pleasurethat I travelled over these moving plains of waterwhen, suddenly, the sky darkened. Calm up to that

I I O PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

moment, the sea now grew rough. Heavy blackclouds began to collect. Soon it began to rain,lightning flashed, to the accompaniment of terriblethunder, and a tempest was let loose. I did not feelthe least uneasiness and, from the rock on which I had landed, I flew through this tempest with thesame serenity and well-being as when the ocean hadbeen sunlit.

To sum up, I would suggest that, with constantand sustained moral energy, it is possible, givensome experience, to overcome all obstacles.

Before finishing this subject, it might be worthmentioning a few unpleasant things which mayhappen to the physical body. I myself have neversuffered anything very serious, which shows, betterthan any amount of hypothesis, the value of mymethods.

Once I had trouble with an unreasonable fear.As I opened my eyes it was quite impossible for meto make the least movement. My body wasparalysed. The beating of my heart was almostimperceptible and my limbs would not obey mywill. So I took the line of least resistance and wentto sleep. After a few hours I awakened, tired,aching all over, and feeling as if I had been beatenwith a stick. This made me meditate on the stateof those unfortunate people who are buried alive.I imagined them lying in their graves, fully con-scious of all that is going on, yet unable to move orcry out.

The following instance is rather unusual. Duringthe day I had been overcome with a lassitude soprofound that I was forced to go to bed. I sleptfor six hours and awakened in an apparently normal

HOW TO CONQUER ANTAGONISTIC FORCES I I I

state. As soon as I had risen, I felt extraordinarilylight. I felt as if I were walking on air and my legswere moving far too quickly.

At first this amused me. I had the impressionof being in an intermediary condition between earthand a less material substance, and this form ofdisequilibrium was new to me. At last, I remem-bered my social obligations and, walking down intothe street, boarded a tram. This semi-exterioriza-tion had not come to an end, though, and it some-what diminished my nervous sensitivity. It there-fore happened that, on stepping off the tram, I wasnearly run over. No longer having a full controlover my body, I still had the feeling of walking onair. On stepping off the tram it seemed as if a chasm were opening at my feet, and I reactedviolently in order to keep my balance. All thistook scarcely a second. Anyone looking on wouldonly have seen me take a few steps faster than wasnecessary. I did not fall, but the vividness qf theimpressions which I experienced in so minute a fraction of time is beyond imagination. At allevents, I do not consider that such states of spon-taneous levitation are to be encouraged.

C HA PT ER XV

HOW TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN DREAMS AND ASTRALPROJECTION

WE distinguish all kinds of dreams, visions, andtrue astral projections, in the same way as, on earth,we differentiate between conscious and unconsciousactions.

Whether the dream be caused by one of manyphysical sensations, by memory of past experiences,by symbolic visions, or by a simultaneous glanceinto many dimensions, it is impossible to mistakeit for projection.

On waking, people often feel as if they have beenflying over landscapes, or carried through spaceby some means or another. These cases are toouncertain to warrant confidence.

In order to become free of the stupidity of theteachings which shackle us to our material beingwe must have something more than "nearly." Inorder to unmask the charlatans who exploit the ideaof survival in one form or another, we must havedefinite facts, not semi-lucid experiences.

We must work in absolute control of our psycho-logical faculties, being fully aware of the conditionsunder which we are experimenting, and with vivid

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DREAMS AND ASTRAL PROJECTION I I 3

and full understanding of the dual state in whichwe find ourselves. Every attempt which fails tocomply with these conditions should be ruthlesslydiscarded. In my experiments I have noted onlyone exception, which, however, goes to confirm therule.

In my dream I was crossing a large room, inwhich several people were gathered, when I sawa pure white dove fly down obliquely and alight onmy forehead. Immediately I found myself in a state of conscious projection, and profited by theoccasion to go and visit some friends.

It is impossible to imagine the marvellous realitywhich lies hidden under the simplicity of this tale.Without being confused, my vision was, however,somewhat passive. However light it might be, therewas a sort of veil over my dream. But, as soon asthe dove had touched me, the transformation wasinstantaneous. As if under a magic spell I suddenlybecame as clear-headed as in the best moments ofmy physical life. This awakening of the consciouspersonality happens in a clear, lucid manner, withimmediate memory of all the facts, past, present, andto come, in which we are interested. Whilst thiswas happening I was fully conscious of all the workI had done with regard to astral projection, of thepresence of my sleeping body, and of the exterioriza-tion of my double, at the same time as I was workingout how best to use my momentary powers. Noexpression can define the feeling of joy of being freein space, all the time knowing that we are fullyalive on earth. Great is the happiness at being ableto act as we wish, to go where we will, withouthaving to consider our material necessities.

I 14 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

Truly, if everyone could become conscious of thisstate, how much pain would be avoided, from howmany worries of all kinds would man free himself.How furiously he would work to break his egotisticalattachments, and to return no more to a bodywhich, however beautiful it may be, is a sheer deadweight.

It is unnecessary for me to give instances ofdreams, or prophetic, symbolic or warning visions,which I have experienced. Everyone knows suchcases, either personally or among his friends.My only wish is to give you the means of selectingfrom among your dreams and thereby to obtaininteresting information on the past, the present, andthe future of questions whose solution you may beseeking.

Granting the progressive density of the matter ofthe invisible worlds, and the possibility of beingable to bring about harmonies between our ownsystem and that of another plane with which we maywish to communicate, the relationships between thevisible and the invisible are quite easy to gauge.

The greatest difficulty is to avoid the disturbancesbrought about by the unconscious or the lowerconsciousness. Still, this inconvenience is our ownfault. We have created it ourselves by the attrac-tions we give out every second by means of ourdesires, thoughts, motives, and sentiments.

If we wish to communicate with other dimensionsand obtain useful information, it is essential to startby creating a condition of harmony so as to selectsuitable wave-lengths only.

DREAMS AND ASTRAL PROJECTION I 15

We are therefore still within the same circle andare forced to return to the conditions alreadyexpressed: physical, psychological and psychicalhygiene. The more you concentrate your motives,desires, and thoughts on a Noble Ideal, the less youwill be disturbed by unwanted wave-lengths.

It is therefore necessary to get rid of the old Adam;that is, patiently eliminate all the mistakes, theantitheses, the contradictions of the manners andcustoms of our civilization, and build on newground the higher being, who will put you in touchwith regions of a kindred nature.

Experience has shown us that the human beingis a consciousness capable of living in extremelysubtle matter, in which he has access to the energywhich underlies phenomena.

In order that he may keep his equilibrium in thissuperfine matter it is sufficient to build up a systemof oscillating energy, capable of synchronizing withthe vibration of the higher planes, in order that theconsciousness may discern their characteristics.

The above remarks are absolutely essential.Whatever may be the world in which we are living,whatever the nature of the energy being used wherewe travel, in order to appreciate the nature of a vibration we must have practical experience of itseffects. Only experience in a world lower than theone in which we are creates in our system of har-monies potentialities which allow us, in the bestdegree, to differentiate between the causes and effectsthrough which we have lived.

On this earth, not everybody is capable of appre-ciating the difference between the atmosphere of a dance hall and that of a church, all the more so in

I l 6 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

dealing with those finer vibratory states appertainingto the essence of the phenomenal world.

In order to understand the true life of the soul onearth and in the Invisible, in order to form a validjudgment on the conscious and unconscious mani-festations of the waking and sleeping states, it isessential to realize our place in the universe.

As we have already said, we are a centre of radio-active matter, capable of radiating energy and ofperceiving vibrations which give us information onthe quality and reason for phenomena. In order tomake accurate observations on these, in order tocompare them one with another, and to deducerational conclusions, we must first have appreciatedtheir effects on those planes where they come intobeing.

These effects are of two kinds: good and evil.These qualities are decided by the density andsynchronization of our own centre of energy inrelationship to the material constitution of theuniverse. Good and evil, happiness and sorrow,are merely results due to the intimate inter-relation-ships existing between man and the universe. Theseare relationships which are built up between theinherent energy of man and the inherent energy ofthe universe. The universe being invariable in itsrelationship of cause and effect it is up to us to alterthe type of attractions which belong to our centre ofenergy.

Everyone on earth has seen the formidable massof suffering brought about by the chase afterpersonal satisfaction, by evil doing, by jealousy, andby the intolerance of men towards one another.This way, therefore, is not in harmony with the

DREAMS AND ASTRAL PROJECTION 117

types of energy in which we wish to live. Sufferingindicates lack of balance, disagreement, an inhar-monious relationship between man and the universe.

The conditions favourable to the happiness soughtafter by the human being demand the oppositepath: the application of true moral law, root cause ofall our experiences and their observation.

The mechanism of the relationship between manand the universe manifests in the following manner,and thereby decides the scientific basis of true morallaw.

The human being has reflections acting in threemain worlds by reason of his deeds, his desires, andhis thoughts. According to the intensity with whichhe travels, concentrates his motives for action,towards the world of thought, so do these threecentres of observation, these three sensory machines,take on importance. And, in the higher worlds, tothink, to wish, and to act, are inseparable from oneanother. They melt into one faculty, responsive tothe least influence, whether it comes from outside orfrom within ourselves.

This synthesis and speed call, therefore, for a certain choice in our ways of thinking and acting.Were it possible to reach these different dimensionsand to live in their substance without having tomake a mechanical selection in the direction of theforces v hich we bring into action, the order wouldnot be universal.

Therefore, every time you think, or desire, or actunder any influence whatever, you actuate a part ofthe ether whose waves will be directed towards the

I I 8 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

point which you have assigned to them. At thesame time you have created in the ether a "line ofleast resistance" which will favour your efforts inthe chosen direction. This magnetic path is a canalalong which all vibrations of a similar nature will flow. If you have thought of yourself, if your aimis personal profit, if you have been moved bygreed and with the sole aim of obtaining one advan-tage or another, this is what happens: The electronicparticles of the ether which are set in motion, afterhaving passed a portion of their energy in thedesired direction, will return to you. The magneticfield thus formed will attract, by affinity, all othersystems of a similar nature. Soon a veritable worldwill gravitate about you, attracting by sympathy allsorts of living entities of a similar quality. You arenow bound to a particular system of energy, thenature of which will force you to experience the sametype of attraction over and over again. For you it iseasier to give way to these attractions than to createnew ones. To destroy them means real suffering.We all know the power of habit and of the sweetnessof obeying its call. Having no better reason forchanging your mode of existence you go on livingin this way your whole life through. After death,the subtle body in which you find yourself will beplaced in an atmosphere having such characteristicsas harmonize with its composition, and will be inthe company of living beings possessed of similartendencies.

Observation of joys experienced by the conscious-ness in earth-life substantiates the emptiness, thevoid, and the heartbreak of the conditions producedby sensual pleasures.

DREAMS AND ASTRAL PROJECTION I 19

Observation of facts in the Invisible confirm this.In proportion to one's descent into the world ofsensual attractions so do our sensations become morematerial. The more condensed atmosphere seemsthicker. The reduction in the speed of its atomsmakes it seem darker, and we experience a definiteimpression of stifling.

Intellectual pleasures, the healthy joy of duty welldone, the conscious exercise of the finer faculties ofthe soul, the satisfaction of having made ourselves ofuse, of having contributed something towards thework of peace, of union, and of having mitigatedpain, produces, on the contrary, a lasting happinesswhich gives the soul new strength and a higher typeof energy.

Experience of the reality of the invisible planesallows us now to understand this phenomenon.All efforts thus directed put us in touch withworlds where energy radiates far more powerfullywith the expenditure of a smaller amount. Itis therefore quite natural that this super-activity should communicate itself to our earthlypersonality.

Writing from experience, the atmosphere of theinvisible worlds becomes finer in proportion as wefree ourselves from sensual satisfactions. The generaldiscomfort which we experience in the lower worldsno longer exists. We are now living in a state ofrest, in a state of well-being which increases until itbecomes pure joy, and happiness born of perfectserenity, wholly beyond the power of my pen todescribe.

Matter has followed the same evolutionary pro-cess. From the absolute darkness of the lower

1 2 0 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

worlds a slight luminosity manifests and begins toincrease. This clarity, which might be comparedto the dawn, is at first a sort of greyish mist. Thenthe opacity begins to disperse, the grey becomes lessdark, the mist less heavy. Lastly, this clarityintensifies, and becomes comparable to our sun atnoon. Of an equal intensity at every point,this light is felt as a gentle and vivifyingwarmth.

In order to live in such an atmosphere, experiencehas shown that we must first rid ourselves of sensualattractions, then of the desire for personal satisfac-tion, and lastly of all material motives. This doesnot mean that we should live as hermits, in ascetismand seclusion. Our physical being has needs whichit would be dangerous to ignore. We must notmake the pretext of harmonizing ourselves with thehigher worlds a means of disharmonizing ourselveswith this one. It is quite feasible to live withoutexcesses, using the material satisfactions of thisworld, and yet at the same time to evolve. All thatis required is that we do not make these the mainobject of our lives and become attached to themunduly. I repeat, the calls of our material naturemust merely be kept within limits. I succeeded inmy experiments whilst living like anyone else, inthe midst of my daily work, and without followingany special regimen. When I state that ascetismis not essential I have experimental proof ofit.

To sum up, the work consists of a progressivedecentralization of the personality, of the isolated" I , " to make it aware of the multiplicity of causesupon which it is possible to act.

DREAMS AND ASTRAL PROJECTION 121

To arrive at this end we must centre our attentionon higher things than material pleasures. By dintof practice our concentration gradually rises fromthe material to the spiritual. Then, one day, ithappens that we realize that our only satis-faction is to be found in the eternal principlesof life.

It is interesting to note that, in this evolutionarywork, the need for effort grows less, and the joymore profound in proportion to the perfectingof our system in harmony with the universallaw.

The most simple way for all people is to directtheir thoughts, their desires, and motives less andless on themselves. You should now realize thatthere is nothing mysterious in the choice of a nobleideal. It is an embodiment of the directing idea,guiding the uninitiated into this system of perfection.

Simultaneously with the diminution of self-centred interests, we should direct our minds moreand more towards the beauties of life. Ignore itsdefects and ugliness. Always see the good side ofthings, and struggle with all your might to destroywhatever evil you may meet.

This conduct, which is indispensable to anyonewho wishes to come into contact with the invisibleplanes without loss of balance and the developmentof psychic folly, is within the reach of everybody aspart of ordinary daily life. The smallest facts ofexistence may serve as rungs to help us surmount ourmiseries. We can make use of the most insignificantdetails in order to develop our energy in the way ofunfolding the higher consciousness.

This is the rationale of the method. The


energy which you put into movement in the sub-stances of the invisible planes follows blindly thedirection you give it, until, one day, it returns andconcentrates in you.

Now you proceed to decentralize your affections,placing them on a point other than yourself. Thevibrations of the ether will move towards the newgoal. If this is a noble ideal, the animated atoms ofthe world in which you have placed it will create a body into which will be drawn all elements of equalvalue. Weak at first, its vibrating energy willincrease rapidly. As you give more and more of thebest that you have in you to this noble ideal, thisnucleus of energy will metaphorically grow like a snowball and produce a well-defined system intowhich it will be easy for you to plunge, leaving theold state, without regret, to its fate.

By struggling against evil by means of moralperfection, by trying to see the usefulness of allthings, by realizing the charm, the poetry, thebeauty of nature, you will learn to love life for itsown sake. In seeking to find beauty in its variousguises, and then in its expression, you will soonlearn to love that beauty itself rather than its forms.In seeking out that which binds together yourdeeds, desires, thoughts, and affections, you learnto love good for its own sake. This is the true pathof the initiate. The secret of life is contained in thismechanism, and lies within the reach of all.

In proportion to your realization of the good andthe beautiful so do you find your way towards thetrue source of freedom and happiness. By yourefforts you learn to live in constant harmony, andyou soon have no wish for anything else. On that

DREAMS AND ASTRAL PROJECTION 1 23

day you will be very near to true perfection. For a long time you will have been able to communicatewith these wonderful worlds into which we pene-trate, and the domain of dreams will hold no furthersecrets for you.

C HA PT ER XVI

SOME REMARKS ON THE MECHANISM OF INTUITIONAND INSPIRATION

T H E development of these studies has allowed me tonotice certain characteristics concerning the differentmeans by which we can get in touch with theinvisible worlds.

In order to discuss these phenomena in a satis-factory manner it is best to begin by regarding thehuman being as a wireless station, capable of actingboth as transmitter and receiver. The selection ofthe wave-lengths that we wish to transmit, or receive,calls for the use of elementary psychical exercises.

In order to bring one's psychical being intoharmony with the higher worlds we must orientour thoughts in the direction of moral goodness.I am assuming that we are willing to proceed in anorderly and methodical manner. It is the only wayof obtaining rational results.

The different expressions which have so farbeen used fail to define accurately the presentcategory of phenomena. The word "clairvoyance" isnot exact. It is possible to contact the invisibleplanes without being clairvoyant. Neither is theword "medium" a proper one. We are in no wayintermediaries, but conscious operators. Although

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I am not in favour of creating new definitions, I nevertheless find it useful to define all psychicalprocedure having as its aim contact with theinvisible planes, as "Transconscious," "trans" beinga Latin preposition which signifies the passage fromone place or state to another. We shall thereforespeak of transconscious transmission or reception.This word gives the idea of an act through theconsciousness, and this, in fact, is the first rule tofollow. Every phenomenon which has as its aimestablishment of communication with other worldsshould be conscious. The student must be allowedfull freedom of mind. He ought to be able to notecalmly, coolly, and precisely the smallest details. Hisobservations should be independent, as if it wereanother person working, and he must not allowhimself to become absorbed to any extent. Needlessto say, he must be in good health physically andpsychically, the mind free from worry and, after a little practice, he should realize the fullest lucidityand freedom of will which it is possible to obtain.

The scheme and the experimental conditions inevery case are the same as for personal projection.All that is altered is the directive influence of thought.

It is possible to study the phenomenon of tele-pathy on this basis. In order to succeed in theseexperiments it is above all necessary that the trans-mitter and receiver should work together on the dayand at the time agreed upon. On no accountshould these be changed. Both experimentersestablish harmony between them by reciprocalthoughts of friendship. The one who is acting asreceiver makes his mind blank, and silently observesthe vibrations which come to him. These vibrations


may present themselves in the guise of pictures, ofsounds, or of thoughts. Distance is of no importanceand has no influence on the production of thephenomenon. At the beginning, the transmittermust avoid sending complicated phrases. He oughtto formulate his thought in one word, sending itoutwards as strongly as he can. He should imaginethat he is shouting into the ear of his recipient, orthat the letters are being engraved in the ether,or are producing a powerful sound, and so on. I once received thoughts from a distance of tenthousand miles as loudly as if someone had shoutedthem in my ear. Surprised at such a result, I sprangup to see who was standing beside me. This reflexaction shows now necessary it is to undertake serioustraining.

Psychic healing, practised in this way, givesresults which seem miraculous to the uninitiated.In my opinion, if you wish to become fully consciousof your powers, the best training you could have isto practise mental healing. I would advise you totreat your patient without his knowledge. Do notlet the factor of distance disturb you. The resultsare exactly the same if you are separated by onemile or by several thousands of miles. Preferablytreat your patient when he is in bed or asleep. Noillness can resist this treatment, which is the mostpowerful known up to the present day, unless thedisease be of Karmic origin. I have also noticedthat the treatment should never be stopped abruptly,but diminished gradually.

It is equally possible, by means of mental medi-cine, to treat oneself successfully. We can recoverour strength almost instantaneously, or inhibit

MECHANISM OF INTUITION AND INSPIRATION 12 7

the evil effects due to other persons or events, andin fact, change the conditions of life. I repeat, theneutralization of the vibrations produced by ourgeneral way of living is the only limiting factorto these powers. It depends entirely on ourselves towhat pitch we bring these according to our will tosacrifice the lesser for the greater things. The moralconduct which I have already pointed out is there-fore an absolute necessity.

As the same mechanism controls the conscioustransmission of thought we may establish contactwith every degree of the universal substance, fromits aspect of crude matter up to that of pureenergy.

The response varies in nature. Usually it comesin the form of a dream, in which a symbolic pictureallows us to adapt it to our particular character andtemperament.

Should you practise in the morning, receptionmay take place by vision or by intuition.

Vision may manifest itself in an inanimate fashion,such as a landscape projected as by a magic lantern;or a scene may be enacted, as in a cinema film. Inthe latter case it may even happen that you will betaking a more or less active part in the proceedings.

We now come to intuition, which I would call"Reception without form."

Although they are first cousins, we must notconfound intuition with inspiration.

Intuition does not permit of reasoning, howeverinstantaneous. It is the formless reception ofvibrations, varying from pure intuition to theclairaudient word. It is an idea, or a series of ideas,which come, at first in a confused manner, then more


and more clearly until one seems to hear as well as ifa friend were speaking into one's ears. Sometimesthe idea comes and goes with the speed of a lightningflash. On other occasions it seems as if we wereperceiving the idea through an obstacle.

The development of intuition takes place in thesame way as for the other processes of communica-tion. Lying down in calm and silence we con-centrate our minds on the problem to be solved, anddo our best to drive away all thought from the fieldof consciousness. So soon as an idea, or series ofideas, comes clearly to the mind, note it immediately.

If we consider intuition as the beginning of a mental correspondence between ourselves and theother dimensions of space, it is then possible tosay that inspiration represents its stabilization andcompletion. In intuition we listen, and catchvibrations as they pass. In inspiration, on the otherhand, it is not necessary to listen, because all theintellectual faculties are at a maximum of activity.It is no longer a case of mental communication, butyou yourself who draw deductions, with incompar-able ease. Inspiration, therefore, is an excellentworking method which becomes more and morestabilized by training, and becomes a regular methodof mental intercourse with the Invisible.

In order to put it into practice we must start byforming the habit of working regularly, on fixeddays and at a definite time. It is also advisablementally to invoke friendly Powers, to burn saltmixed with incense, all of which help in purifyingthe psychic atmosphere of the room set apart forworking, and in harmonizing one's psychicalvibrations.

MECHANISM OF INTUITION AND INSPIRATION 1 2 9

Let us suppose we wish to delve deeply into a subject by logical analysis and synthesis. In orderto judge freely and to avoid falling into ordinaryerrors, we must first of all define exactly the subjectto be studied. Then we must become acquaintedwith the latest investigations in the subject. Lastly,by an effort of will, we must drive all this informa-tion from the mind, and set to work as if we knewnothing whatever about the matter to be studied.

It is by following such a scheme in the organiza-tion of our studies that inspiration will come.

At first we do not take exact account of thephenomenon. During a moment when all ourthoughts are deeply concentrated on our work, a sudden flood of ideas will surge through the mind.The pen cannot write quickly enough. Under thesway of this panorama of thoughts we can write,meditate, reason, and deduce with marvellous ease.After having written a number of pages in whichwe believe we have discovered the solution of theproblem, we are brought up short by some questionwhich seems to be bristling with obstacles. Westop working, worried by this new aspect of thesubject about which we had not dreamed. The nexttime, having worked on this new idea, we start workonce more. The same clear insight is manifested,bringing in its train the joy of seeing new points ofview, until yet another difficulty intervenes. Thisone always seems worse than the other. We askourselves whether it is reasonable to carry on withthis method. At last we try again, and sufficientlyinteresting results reward us for the efforts we havemade.

Under the influence of concentration of thought,


we focus our consciousness on the purely mentalplane, which gives rise to new associations of ideas.Such is the mechanism of the phenomenon.

Several years of training are needed beforeinspiration becomes a regular working method.Numerous obstacles hinder its development : badphysical or psychological conditions, the temperatureor humidity of the atmosphere, education, home life,general surroundings, daily impulses and ways ofthinking, all play a part in helping or hindering thedevelopment of this new faculty.

Thus, on certain days we no sooner sit down toour work than we come under the spell of this higherunderstanding. Everything seems childishly simple.And this state seems so normal that it is as if it hadalways existed and would now last for ever.

Then, if at that moment we bring our attention tobear on the phenomenon itself, in order to discoverits rationale, everything stops immediately and wefind ourselves unable to put two ideas together.

At other times, on the contrary, we feel in excellentform. We sit down at our desk quite sure that weshall obtain extraordinary light on the work in hand.An hour goes by, two hours, without the slightestresults. Even if we carry on for from four to fivehours nothing will happen. The mind seemscovered with an impenetrable veil and we give upin a state of bad temper and dissatisfaction.

The periods of work carried out under theinfluence of inspiration are marked by a feeling ofpeace, of joy, and of confidence which stays with usthe whole day.

The "atmosphere" which surrounds us at suchtimes varies with the subject we are studying. When

MECHANISM OF INTUITION AND INSPIRATION 1 3 1

we are dealing with questions relating to the inter-correlation of our microcosm and the Absolute, thentears will spring unbeckoned to our eyes, and it iswith indescribable joy that we arrive at deeperunderstandings.

This method of working must not be mistakenfor ecstasy. In this inspirational condition weremain fully conscious. But the ideas which we arehandling are impregnated with such a marvellousatmosphere that the vibrations, in spite of oneself,act on our emotions. If our desire to know theultimate word, the cause of all things, has beenpushed far enough, we shall find ourselves trembling,and tremendous shudders, as from a strong shock,will run up our body, from feet to head.

In this state we lose all sense of time. Afterseveral hours of steady work it seems as if we hadonly been at it for a few minutes, and if someoneinterrupts, we seem to be holding our breath as iffalling from a great height.

The study of the relations between geometricfigures and numbers calls for more difficult training.At first it is impossible to give all the time we couldto this work, as the mind grows dizzy and this madwhirl hinders the work. Broadly speaking, inspira-tion is easier to develop on moral and philosophicmatters than on metaphysics, which call for a fardeeper concentration of thought.

Inspiration may prove very tiring, and thismanifests itself by a feeling of emptiness. The headseems hollow, and the body aches all over as a resultof the nervous expenditure.

These undesirable sensations which accompanyinspiration will disappear in time. The phenomenon


is transformed into a lasting faculty, neither morenor less obvious than those we already possess. Weonly work in a more regular manner, without suddenspurts, and in a state of profound peace above eitherj'oy or depression, in the knowledge that we aredoing something useful.

In other to develop and regulate the exercise ofthis faculty we may come to the following con-clusions :

(1) That it is wise to choose questions bearing onmorality, philosophy, and metaphysics, whose de-velopment will help the general well-being ofmankind.

(2) We should try to analyse our subject calmly,beginning our work over and over again until wearrive at results which are both logical and rational.

(3) We should always act in harmony with thehighest ideas that we are capable of understanding,and should pay attention both to physical and mentalhygiene.

CH APT ER XVII

RELATIVE VALUES OF THE TEACHINGS AND METHODS

FOR DEVELOPING PERFECTION USED IN THE

INVISIBLE PLANES

T H E metamorphosis of inspiration into a facultywhich is balanced with the others, permits itspossessor to come into touch with the higher planesat any time of the day, and amidst his ordinaryoccupations. This brings me to a point where it isnecessary to detail the nature of the information wereceive from the other side of life. Many personsbelieve that the ability to contact the state beyondthe veil, or to project oneself consciously, are enoughto teach us the laws of the universe. This is a mistake: they merely augment the "sum of prob-abilities."

The real teaching of those whom we call Guidesor Masters, who are brought to us by our love, ismore rational than we imagine. I can speak of thisfrom personal experience.

It is only after long years of meditation when,from one deduction to another, we have been ableto schematize the laws of the universe in a generalbasic order, that we realize the difficulty, we might

'33


even say the impossibility, of expressing theprinciple under one heading. Human consciousnessworks by stages. Its development calls for anintellectual perception of the connections betweencause and effect and the evolutionary value of theelements we may be contacting.

Let me point out, though, once for all, that anintellectual person is not necessarily conscious in thefull meaning of the word. In order to be trulyconscious, it is not enough merely to observe thetechnical relationships of experience, but also therelationships of the universal to the particular,in regard to the application of this experience tomoral utility, without which no evolution ispossible.

The evolution of consciousness cannot be com-pared to memory which becomes enriched by a greater store of material. On the contrary, con-sciousness is a central focusing of all the faculties ina new synthetic unity, giving the impression ofgreater freedom. By analogy, consciousness ex-pands like the horizon of the observer as he mountsfurther and further from the ground. Each newstage of consciousness synthesises the others intoa superior state which is the key to the one whichpreceded it, and so on, until we attain the FirstCause.

In such circumstances it would be stupid topreconceive one and the same instruction for every-body. The method followed by the HigherIntelligences is to impart knowledge according to thementality and temperament of each student. He isguided in his best path, his eye", are opened toconceptions of which he was ignorant, and he is

METHODS FOR DEVELOPING PERFECTION 1 35

taught to observe, correlate, deduce, and constructnew conceptions for himself.

The details of personal contact with these Intel-ligences does not, therefore, apply to all, but varyaccording to the evolution and development of thefaculties of the student. The effect of such teachingis to complete, in a useful manner, what the studenthas already learned, and to prepare the consciousnessfor a development which is both "wider" and much"deeper." These teachings are beyond price forthose who receive them. They allow a maximumcapacity to be obtained by the student with a corresponding minimum output of effort. Theyenable the student to maintain his mental balanceduring the study of the energy which he is handling.This remark is worthy of consideration. Radiatingaround the same universal order, drawing each timea little nearer to the core of this cosmic system, theylead the student, little by little, to a consciousness ofthe universal method. The exact manner in whichthese teachings are distributed is superior to anymodern method, as incomparable results are ob-tained without appreciable effort.

Daily communication with the higher worlds is a condition which occurs, after a certain time, withoutspecial preparation. The mere direction of ourthoughts towards our Guides places the conscious-ness within the magnetic aura of the correspondingdimension. The affection held in that thought willfree one's surroundings from hindering influencesand all that has to be done is to take careful note ofthe answers obtained in order to draw logicalconclusions from them.

I repeat, these instructions are not dogmatic


revelations. There is nothing supernatural orsensational about them. They are applicable in anexact, scientific manner, in a degree slightly beyondthe student's mentality, whose consciousness isslowly raised into the formless regions belonging tothe Fundamental Principles of life. As in any otherstudy, surprises and unexpected viewpoints crop up.These new ideas often seem to destroy those thathave gone before, but we see by what follows thatthey really complete them by sublimation. Wetherefore burn that which we have previously wor-shipped, in order soon to worship what we haveburned. In reducing itself to a unity the conscious-ness assimilates human suffering and plays its partin arranging it. The higher it rises, the lessaggressive becomes the spirit of man, and thenoblest tolerance walks hand in hand with the peaceof the higher worlds.

The same remarks apply to self-projection. Theprojection of the self on any plane of consciousnessdoes not necessarily give it an integral understandingof that level. Before penetrating into a more activestate, the consciousness must learn to make use ofthe elements in which it finds itself. It is only afterhaving felt the effects, observed the resistance orthe ease, respectively, with which these manifest theforms of thought, the subtle reactions of all nature,that we realize the possibilities and the limitationsof whatever state we may be in. When this has beenachieved we leave this world behind and travel for-ward into another, when it will be necessary oncemore to undergo the same studies as before in orderto analyse the make-up of our new state. We go onin this manner, from ether to ether, becoming all the

METHODS FOR DEVELOPING PERFECTION 1 3 7

time more refined in our substance until, one day,we reach the culminating point where the humanconsciousness becomes united with the essence ofall life and in this way understands the principleswhich give rise to existence.

If you will, once more, consider the nature of theseinvisible worlds, you will obtain a good idea of thework which has to be carried out there.

I have visited different dimensions, differentplanes, whilst taking a careful note of their inhabi-tants, human beings or otherwise, and the followingare some of the observations I have made in regardto them.

Each state of density, or dimensional division ofthe ether, corresponds to our affinities, desires andpreferences. Each one is therefore able to leadthe life he wishes. As the majority of people areignorant of the possibility of living consciously inspace, they surround themselves with imaginarycreations.

But what is the meaning of the expression,"imaginary creations"? For those who know nobetter their imagination is a reality. I would evenclaim that it is necessary to their state of being in thesame way as our earthly creations are necessities ofphysical life. These latter are, in the astral world,no more than "illusions" and "images," yet to whattrouble do we go in order to build them, whatsuffering do they not sometimes bring in their wake.It is therefore natural that each one should live in theworld in which he finds himself, surrounded byforms constructed from the materials of that world.No one is likely to worry as to the nature of thesematerials in the next world. Everyone knows that


atoms are particles of positive and negative electri-city, revolving one around the other, at speeds andin orbits which can be determined, but no one seemsto think deeply enough about the matter to realizethat these atoms constitute a world which is quitereal and not imaginary. No one thinks that thisreality is quite as absolute in the next dimension asit is on earth. This fault on the part of our reasoningfaculties is due to our ignorance of the manifestationsof life in other realms of space.

The tangible, conscious, and sensory reality ofthe world in which we find ourselves is a universallaw that no dogma can deny.

Apart from what I would call the world ofFundamental Principles, each state of the universalmatter lends itself admirably to the creation of formswhich represent the affections of each person. Bycomparison, these worlds are more perfect than ourown. What are we seeking on earth? Apart fromthe necessities of life, each one has a goal in mind.The most ordinary is to be allowed to work in peaceand then to save enough money to buy a smallsuburban villa in which to retire in modest comfort.To be one's own master, to have all the latest com-forts, to travel and see the world, are fairly generalambitions, but these are already harder to realize.Beyond this come the more detached aims of thepoets, artists, and scientists of all kinds and, further,the whole of humanity wants to live at peace with itsfellows.

Suppose, for a moment that our earth and itsinhabitants have been switched over to the nextdimension. As all variations would have occurred ina proportionate manner no one would notice that

METHODS FOR DEVELOPING PERFECTION 1 3 9

there had been any change. Everyone would carryon with his work as if nothing had happened. Allthe same, an unusual atmosphere of peace wouldextend over all. Inter-relationships would becomeless harsh, would gradually become more pleasant.Everything would turn out as it should, each personwould see his wishes realized very quickly, allwithout hindering anyone else. No more grumblingof any kind whatsoever. The social system wouldwork like a watch. Almost incredible fact, politi-cians would live in peace, "civil servants" would becivil, journalists would tell the truth, trains wouldbe punctual, and the ladies would no longer bejealous! In short, the Golden Age would havebegun.

The perfection of the means used in the invisibleplanes is far greater even than that which I havesuggested in this imaginary hypothesis, first of allbecause people are selected according to theirimpulses, which automatically place them in groupsof similar character, further because Beings of a greater development come to their aid, so that theymay organize a state of affairs adapted to theircharacters. This will allow them to rise to higherplanes in accordance with the lucidity with whichthey realize the state in which they happento be.

I once noticed, whilst I was in the astral world, a region in the ether where, after death, those peoplego who are neither good nor bad, and who know ofnothing but their daily work, with its pleasures anddifficulties. At first their material sensations persist.But, as I have just written, a devoted band sharesthe joy of helping these poor, half-blind people to

I 4 O PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

put into operation the possibilities of the world inwhich they find themselves. They start by freeingthem from their crudest material ties, and help themto organize a social system in which they will all behappy. In this state each one will devote himselfto his work, and familiar habits: Technical work,administrative work, commerce, and scientific experi-ment, all carried out in a state of peace and calm inaccordance with the nature of the matter in whichthey find themselves. Among others I noticed a group who were studying the circulation of the sap ina plant which had been specially enlarged for thepurpose.

As I saw it, space had been divided into sectionsin which were placed people of similar affections.Everyone was happy. I watched a certain class ofworkmen draw their wages and contrive importanteconomies. Had they but known it they hadbut to think of it to become multi-millionaires.In the life beyond, as on earth, all is relative.One can only become aware by acquired know-ledge.

In this ideal town I could see the trams workingwithout an accident ever happening. I visitedseveral factories without noting any otherdifference from those on earth than a generalhappiness and well-being among all the work-men.

It was in the dwelling-places, created by differentindividuals, that I observed the most curious facts.By examining them I was able to follow the natureof the thoughts and feelings of their occupants.Some were simple, sober and in good taste, otherslarge and luxurious. Many were furnished oddly,

METHODS FOR DEVELOPING PERFECTION I 4 I

all the shapes corresponding with the mentalities oftheir creators.

In a world which was lower than this one I observed a group composed of voluptuaries andslaves to animal passion. The dwelling-place incertain cases would be no more than a stable smellingstrongly of urine.

Whilst taking in the details of this organization,I pondered on the activities which were going onaround me, and could not find any arguments intheir favour.

To sum up, no one can develop except by thehelp of knowledge and affection. This is logical,rational and in accordance with the humanconstitution. By letting everyone have the meansof putting these essentials to the best use, andto the greatest possible extent, one helpsevolution.

It seems as if the different sections of thisorganization ended in cross-roads. These cross-roads represented concentration-points from whichhuman beings were collected into their differentcategories. Quantities of streets seemed to end upthere, from which one could go towards other planesby means of ladders set up in different directions.Waiting-rooms furnished with sofas covered withred velvet allowed new-comers to await theirturn.

I shall not waste time by a lengthy recital of allmy experiences on these planes. Thought beingcreative in these regions of space it becomes easy toimagine the perfection to which their organizationscan develop. What is more, goodwill is alwaysamply rewarded. Those Beings who are more


advanced lead, little by little, those individuals whoshow the necessary desire, to a state of consciousnessabove that of their existing one. This allows themto change to a higher dimension and take on moreperfect work.

CHAPTER XVIII

THE LIMITATIONS OF FREEWILL AND THE INFLUENCEOF WILL-POWER IN THE HIGHER WORLDS

T H E knowledge of the manifestations of life in thehigher worlds gives us the key to all the mysticalvisions of the Ancients, and we now understand thereason for their seeming contradictions.

The rational study of the atmospheres, whosedensity controls the radio-active power, demandsabove all absolute calmness of thought. In thisway we can obtain impartial results. An exceptionto this rule holds good for those who are sufficientlyadvanced, as they know how to limit the manifesta-tions of their thoughts.

In the higher planes the will is a magic wand andit is easy enough to put its instinctive tendencies toone side. It therefore interested me to know towhat extent the will could be used and to know itsrelationships with freewill.

If it is a question of individual perfection thereare no limits to its powers. Will grows, with fulldevelopment, up to absolute freedom. Every personcan aspire to escape from the evolutionary wheel byjoining his consciousness with the fundamentalprinciples of cosmic harmony.

If we seek for crude and vulgar satisfaction in thei43


lower worlds, our experiments are soon stopped byobstacles of all kinds. We become the victims ofthe Beings and Forces living in those dark regionsof ether, and madness is generally the ultimate result.In these heavy atmospheres the mockery of itsinhabitants is the dominating element. The thought-waves of the Beings who live there are transmittedin a fairly material manner. In the higher worldsthought is clear, precise, vivid and immediate,without the least sound being heard.

In the lower worlds it seems as if we hear a timbreof voice unknown on earth. Whilst being sustainedit gives the impression of being reedy. The timbreis neither high nor low; it is strong, yet has nopersonality. Its resonance is quite different fromour own and yet very distinct. As to the sensationswe experience in these worlds, these are almostmaterial.

During one experience I could just make out,through the dark atmosphere of one of these planes,a deceased person standing on the step of a staircase.The imagery had brought into being the entranceof a cave where absolute darkness reigned. I walkeddown a few steps, being attracted by this entity who,straightaway, embraced me. Despite the fact thatI was fully conscious of my condition, and alreadylong practised in projection, the material feeling wasso strong that, in spite of myself, I opened my eyes,certain that someone had disturbed me during myexperiment. I recognized my mistake immediately.It was too late and I had lost an excellent chance ofmaking some very interesting discoveries. I couldonly remember the feeling of "cold" and "touch."

Also, though it is possible to'pass through all the

LIMITATIONS OF FREEWILL 1 4 5

houses in a town, as if they were not there, we mustnot imagine that we can go into any man's placeagainst his will. If this were the case it would be a matter of perpetual intrusion, with all sorts oftroubles ahead. W h a t family skeletons would beexposed! Rest assured, in the Invisible, liberty issacred, and the will inviolable.

Unless your feelings are in harmony with thoseyou draw around you, have no fear of unwelcomevisitors. Your dwelling is unbreachable and noamateur detective can use this means to makeenquiries in your house.

In order to establish unbroken relationships withpersons living on earth, we must have very strongties with such individuals, who must be parents,children, fiances, or friends with whom we arespiritually united.

T h e ties of comradeship are not always enough.On this point I once made the following interestingexperiment .

A young man, who was my neighbour, wasinterested in psychic matters, and told me that hewas eager to have proof of astral projection. I therefore arranged that I should visit him astrallythat evening. Hi s house was close by, and I wasfamiliar with its interior arrangements. Consideringthat I was used to projecting myself to a distance ofhundreds of miles into an unknown house in a strange country, without having any other guidethan my own affection, this experiment was merechild's-play.

However, I encountered serious difficulties. Atthe first attempt I was hemmed in by unknown forceswhich made me cry out with pain and spoiled the


projection. The second time I was luckier, andmanaged to go into the room of the young man, butwas quickly driven away by the unfriendly atmo-sphere. I hardly had the time to see him lying inbed, his face slightly luminous, and to cry out hisname, as had been arranged, when I was pushedback by an unknown force. I had the idea that thisenergy was projected by someone called Jacques. I expressed a mental wish to see him. At once, thisunknown person appeared in the form of a soldierwith a fixed bayonet, menacing and insulting me.After much effort I managed, first, to disarm him,and then to send him away by making the sign of thecross. From that moment the experiment took itsnormal course. I returned to my body and, afterhaving noted the details of what had happened, oncemore set off, very conscious of myself and wideawake. After having passed through my children'sroom, I crossed, in one leap, the space whichseparated me from our rendezvous. Arriving onthe roof of my friend's house a magnetic currenttried to carry me away. I resisted, and came down,perpendicularly, into the sleeper's room. I sawhim lying in bed in a sort of flannel vest with hisarms bare. Placing my hands on his arms, so as tomake him feel my presence, I told him that I wasnear him, fully conscious of my dual state, andaware of everything that was happening. I returnedto my body and the next day questioned theyoung man. All the details of the experiment wereexact. A friend of his named Jacques had, infact, left his place some days ago. So far as my visitwas concerned my neighbour had not been awareof it.

LIMITATIONS OF FREEWILL 1 4 7

Broadly speaking we can go anywhere when weare travelling, but when our thoughts have a definiteobject, we must allow for the freewill of others, andfor the resistances due to the psychic atmospherearound the place we are visiting.

It has happened that, during my experiments, I have met resistance in the guise of black cloudsemanating from the house where the person I wished to visit was living. I was able to conquerthese, thanks to sympathetic vibrations emitted byfurniture which had belonged to me and pieces ofwhich were in the flat.

From all my experiments I have come to theconclusion that the will exercises, in the Invisible,power proportionate to the accuracy of our know-ledge and to the disinterestedness of our motives.The separation of these two essential factors inducesa lack of balance which becomes the more dangerousas the personal egotism is accentuated.

C H AP T E R XIX

HOW TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THOUGHT-F ORMS ANDLIVING BEINGS

BEING granted the vast field of matter in which alltypes of energy find a home, and whose radio-activity ranges from a possible minimum to a possiblemaximum, it is easy to imagine the construction ofthe living forms of nature. There is not an atom,not a vibration, however feeble it may be, which isnot registered in the cosmic substance.

On the side of crude matter the particles ofenergy occupy a minimum of space. Inertia is at itsmaximum, less a necessary fraction without whichit could not respond to any vibration whatever. Itis under the greatest compression" possible withoutgoing beyond the limits of our universe. It is theextreme limit of life in the material world.

On the side of substance the speed of the atomsis distributed into space which is at its greatestextension. The infinitely small fraction of mechani-cal inertia which remains to these atoms correspondsin the same proportion to the energy which animatesthe inertia of crude matter. Energy is then reducedto its simplest expression. To go beyond this wouldmean that we would once more have to leap beyondthe boundaries of our universe in order to contact a

148

THOUGHT-FORMS AND LIVING BEINGS I 4 9

reality far too abstract for our consciousness tograsp. This expression of the atoms radiates to itsgreatest extent when the aspect of crude matteris only a point seen at the uttermost extremity ofspace.

These extreme aspects of the universal substancebalance in a kind of reciprocal fecundation, which isnone other than "life," a neutral current, capable ofmanifesting in all parts of the universe withoutupsetting the equilibrium of the system of forceswhich it represents.

This quadruple relationship of vital energy is thereason why it is possible for the human to leave theuniverse in which he has come to consciousness ofhis relative and absolute possibilities.

This scheme of our cosmic system will explain toyou why all movements, whatever their nature, areregistered in the invisible substance. As it happensthey could not manifest otherwise. The attractingenergy, which varies from a maximum of com-pression to a maximum of extension, calls for somesupport it finds in the universal substance whosevariable proportions of pure energy and crudematter define the nature of the world in which welive.

In these conditions all the worlds are as real asone another. The least and the greatest are indis-pensable to the conscious differentiation which con-stitutes the essential part of the human being. Thistexture, or woof, under which the cosmic universeshows itself to the student in a state of self-projection,explains to us how all phenomena are created. Italso shows us how these can manifest, take root andevolve in the different worlds of our universe.


The simplicity of the cosmic constitution unfor-tunately also shows us the depths of our ignorance.It demonstrates without comment the poverty, theintellectual feebleness of all those so-called thinkerswho, from century to century, encumber our literaryoutput, by reciting, like parrots, the same inanitiesin a form adapted to the mentality of the time.

These fundamental and eternal conditions of lifehold sway in all the universes which exist in infinitespace and demonstrate the extent of the explorationswe can undertake. Original source of all the vibra-tions which have given birth to the many forms ofliving matter, the analysis of this universal sub-stance is the first task which confronts the student.

To begin with, it is prudent to avoid the innumer-able forms which roam the various planes of ouruniverse and to concentrate on the whirling matterof these worlds.

When, by experience, we have sufficiently studiedthe characteristics of the most accessible planes;when we have become aware of the nature of theenergies capable of manifesting these, and theconditions in which it is possible to live, then wemay begin to study the forms themselves in a more rational manner.

In practice, only place a limited confidence in theshapes which manifest during your projections.You must seek to see the universal substance as a limitless atmosphere of variable density andluminosity.

The observation of the study-groups scatteredabout the various planes sums up the most rationalexperience for the average intelligence. A beingwho is sufficiently advanced will never waste his

THOUGHT-FORMS AND LIVING BEINGS I ^ I

time on a plane where his work has become auto-matic. His Higher Consciousness will quicklybring him to a sense of reality and, with one powerfulupward urge, he will wing his way to those regionswhere the main study is that of the universe and itslaws. He will experiment, will enrich his conscious-ness by all possible means, and in his next incarna-tion he will be able to connect both causes and effectswith the fulfilment of the universal purpose.

It is impossible for me to give you any kind ofnomenclature for the images which are to be met inthe Invisible, as these are limitless. I repeat: Novibration can manifest in any planet of our solarsystem without its being registered on the differentplanes of the cosmic atmosphere in which ouruniverse is evolving. Whatever may be theirappearance, their magnetic attractions, affinities,ideas, thoughts, desires, sentiments, forces, shapes,or wave-length, all radiations are capable of mani-festing in the universal movement under thecategory to which they belong.

In practice, our first efforts will be to distinguishbetween thought-forms and living beings. Asexamples, the following are the most common:

(1) Images created by our own thoughts.(2) Images created by discarnate entities, depen-

dent upon the direction of their thoughts andaffections.

(3) The ephemeral thoughts of each individualconsciousness floating at random, or towards a pre-determined goal, in any grade of the universalsubstance.

(4) The collective thoughts of the earth'sinhabitants.


(5) Images relative to past events, great or small.(6) The animated double of everything which

exists here below, whether of so-called inanimateobjects or of living things.

(7) Living entities already well stabilized, suchas plants and animals which are awaiting theirearthly manifestation.

(8) The empty, worn-out shells of living beingspassing from one dimension to a higher one.

(9) Human beings themselves, among which wemust distinguish between those living in permanentand those in temporary forms.

Lastly, you must realize that a will greater thanyour own can manifest in any form, and then youmay gauge the difficulties attendant upon thesestudies.

So far as the shapes of Higher Beings are con-cerned, they have none. They are autonomouscentres of energy. It is easy for them to show them-selves in whatever shape they wish, but, in practice,one sees them rarely. We feel their presence onlyby a special atmosphere which is marked by a friendly energy, full of confidence and conveying a benevolent and protective magnetism. In certaincases they express their friendship by symbols andwith the sole aim of helping you.

The study of thought-forms calls for some amountof practice. The following is a procedure which I can recommend. When you understand sufficientlythe first few degrees that are within your reach, thenexamine the world where you may happen to be byplacing yourself in a substance which is slightly lessmaterial. In this way you will be able to observe atleisure all the different details without any risk of

THOUGHT-FORMS AND LIVING BEINGS I 53

causing any disturbance by your personal thoughts.What is more, we are far freer in our actions as weare in no way incommoded by the magnetism of theworld which we are studying.

Please note that this statement applies to all cases.Study scientific phenomena from a higher dimensionand you will have the key to their explanation.

One day I was studying the constitution of earthlyobjects in this way. I could see trees and plants asif under an X-ray. I could see the fibres in a darker tone like a vast nervous system and I couldsee the sap moving along in them. In the same wayI could see the skeletons of human beings and wassurprised to note the numerous malformations of thespine and thorax.

We appreciate the utility of a shape, or thedegree of evolution attained by a living being, by thequality of his magnetic radiations, by the reactionshe causes in our aura, as we shall see further on inthis work.

The images of past events are easily distinguish-able from those organizations whose aim is to giveinstructions to the newly dead, by an activity whosereality is beyond any power of expression.

I remember once having touched a metal shavingthrown off by a lathe in a factory and to havereceived a sensation of burning. This happened,of course, in the state of consciousness connectedwith the plane.

It is impossible to imagine the reality of thisexistence and all the facts connected with it. Weourselves placed in the same state of consciousnessas the dwellers on any given plane, feel the usefulnessof this organization, beyond the range of argument,


and would never dream of acting on these forms forthe sake of mere curiosity. Just in the same way asno sane person on earth would think of breakingwindow-panes in order to amuse himself. Theobserver who is conscious of the possibilities of thehigher worlds, judges this invisible life just as a university graduate would appreciate the work of a child learning to fashion a walking-stick. Theusefulness is impressed upon us by the fact that wehave ourselves lived through the same needs.Furthermore, it is impossible to give anyone theconsciousness of a higher state if he has not be-come aware of the need for such in the cosmicscheme.

When it is a matter of forms representing pastevents the will acts more positively. All that isnecessary is to will in order to make them disappearat once, just like a photograph in which we are nolonger interested.

The shapes of lesser importance created in a haphazard way, without any definite consistency,dissolve fairly easily under the influence of will. Wemust never be too trustful of appearances. If theybelong to groups it may be that we are not so strongas the people who have created them and may be ill-used by them. It is better not to take any notice ofsuch forces.

Under the influence of thought certain shapesdissolve and leave not a trace, just like alcohol doeswhen allowed to evaporate in the air. Others havefar more resistance, and we are obliged to have a kind of struggle with them before they will go. Incertain cases I noticed that a liquid residue was leftbehind, a thick, blackish kind of amorphous proto-

THOUGHT-FORMS AND LIVING BEING; 155

plasm. Sometimes it was a residue symbolic ofbroken glass.

After a few experiments it is easy to distinguishbetween thought-forms and living beings who arealready developed. In the majority of cases thought-forms are less vibrant, less active than beings inevolution. Their magnetism is far less powerful.During these studies I one day had occasion to dis-solve the astral form of a dog. Only the headremained, and I saw a child come towards me andtell me that it was really a dog. The intense natureof the life which animated this head made me under-stand my mistake at once.

When we dissolve a thought-form, the first thingwe notice is a slowing down in the whirling move-ment of its atoms. The shape loses definition andseems to go out of focus. The dimensions change,the image grows smaller and loses cohesion, andfinally disappears.

PART TWO

SOME RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MANAND THE UNIVERSE

CH APT ER I

THE POWERS OF THOUGHT

A L L the processes used for communicating withthe Invisible Life, of which self-projection is

the crowning feat, depend on the true balance of theforms of energy which are in action in our universe,and the general scheme of which I have outlined inthe previous part of this work.

Our usual conceptions enter on a new path.Morality itself leaves the premises of "right" and"duty," created by man.

The results of my experiments have shown methat human consciousness must be conjoined with a centralizing and directing system of energy beyond,though including, the temporary personality in useby the consciousness in its physical manifestation.

The key to the development of the higher facultieslies in man seeking to live and to manifest his will inharmony with the laws of nature and the system ofeternal harmonies which he is about to createbetween himself and the universe.

The means of communication with the Invisibleare fairly numerous. They vary from the mostelementary spiritualistic experiment to communionof the consciousness with the higher worlds.

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l 6 o PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

Thought is the tool which is used in all cases.The study of thought is of deep interest, and a knowledge of its mechanism is the elementary,indispensable basis of all psychical study.

It is sad that this mechanism is so misunderstood.The effects of thought are as positive as a materialobject, and its importance grows with the develop-ment of the consciousness.

Thought is the fruit of a long series of successiveevolutions. It is only after innumerable attempts,extending over immense periods of time, that naturemanaged to endow the human being with so perfecta power.

If we push the analysis of thought down to itsfundamental roots we realize that it is not a thing initself. The act of thinking is the result of a systemof energies which allow us to use images, calledideas, in order to discover either the root cause orthe key to phenomena and to adapt these to ourneeds.

The effect of thought on ideas might well becompared to a system of metal refining. Thoughtcompresses, moulds, and forges ideas, under therepeated assaults of the imagination, in order to makethem more supple under the hammer of reason.

Under the influence of thought a whole series ofunconscious processes come into play. Attention,comparison and judgment bring about a new orderaimed at a goal which may be sentimental, instinctiveor definitely marked out by reason.

Thought is the expression of a double relation-ship: "Relative" in phenomenal time; "Absolute,"that is to say constant, or invariable, outside thefield of attraction of our universe.

Thanks to this double relationship, consciousnesscan become aware of effects, deduce their causes,and extract the basic principles all by comparingthem with its own nature.

To trace out these relationships would take us toofar. Suffice it to say that the relationship which isvariable and relative follows the different phasesof experience, while the invariable relationshipextracts that part which is of general usefulness,by means of which it enriches the higher con-sciousness.

It should be remembered that every time onethinks, an energy, roughly comparable to electricity,is brought into play. This is of a positive natureevery time it extracts from the images a judgmentof a generally useful character. Its action is themore intense the more it approaches an organizationhaving for aim the common good.

The negative aspect of thought is accentuatedevery time it descends to ideas of disorder, dis-organization, egotism, and all images such as areconnected with the lower, animal instincts. In fact,it finds itself compressed by the nature of theuniversal substance, and this rapid breaking downgives it only an ephemeral life.

My experiments have shown me that: "thoughtsof a similar nature attract each other, and thoughtsof a contrary nature repel one another." Here isthe origin of all association of ideas, personal orcollective.

The act of returning good for evil is only thestrict application of this fundamental law. Inputting into practice the maxim, "an eye for an eye,a tooth for a tooth," you are increasing a system of


energy which hits the weakest, let it be a hundredtimes in the right. In sending thoughts of affectiontowards a person who wishes you ill, you raise animpenetrable wall, against which all adverse thoughtswill break themselves. If your enemy persists, a line of least resistance will be created, along whichhis thoughts will return to him, like a ball rebound-ing from a wall.

The same law can be applied, advantageously, tophysical, moral or intellectual ailments, as also tothe events of life. There is nothing mysteriousabout this, which merely expresses elementarypsychic laws.

Thought is also connected with a system ofenergy, used by many people, under a superstitiousform. I mean invocation or prayer.

I know from experience that it is possible to bringinto play, in the Invisible, forces whose potency isproportionate to the centrifugal power of one'sthoughts. In order to live consciously in this rare-fied atmosphere and have access to its reservoir ofenergy, it is necessary to be free from all contraryattractions. This decentralization calls for a seriesof sustained efforts, up to the point where personalinterest has been replaced by general interest. Wemust learn to love the "constants" of this generalinterest in the same way that we have been used toloving ourselves.

Though this goal may seem to be far off, it iswithin the reach of all. Each one of us can make thenecessary efforts which, in time, will allow him tobecome a higher being and live in the sublimeregions of space.

This ingenious mechanism of the cosmic system

THE POWERS OF THOUGHT 1 6 3

being taken for granted, we may deduce from thisthat life is eternal, by its automatic renewal in oneform or other. It is therefore not only possible, butpractically certain, that a mass of human beings havealready made the efforts to live constantly in thehigher regions of the ether.

This semi-certainty becomes definite by experi-ence, when we learn, in fact, of the existence ofsupermen, whom our ancestors used to consider asgods. The extraordinary power of their auras, theperfection of the qualities one recognizes in them,the perfect mechanism of the dimension where theyare to be found, surpass in simplicity all that mencould have imagined concerning the gods withwhich they peopled space.

When we consider their ignorance of evolutionarylaws, we cannot wonder that the people of ancienttimes tried to find favour in the eyes of their divini-ties by more or less barbaric deeds. Even to-daythese superstitions are carefully nursed by sectswhose self-interest it is easy to understand. So webehold powerful cultural associations brandishing,according to need, either the nightmare of infernalvisions or the beatitude of life in paradise.

Since access to the higher worlds is the effect ofour own decentralization, and it is enough to learnto love a higher and more perfect order of things,the dogmas enunciated by religious trade unionsbreak down lamentably.

If we follow a course of conduct which is honour-able, always trying to develop a state of affairswhich is more tolerant, more friendly, morebrotherly, we attract towards us the notice of thosehigh Individualities living in the superior worlds,


and will thus receive help according to the loftinessof our aims.

It is, therefore, useless to invoke any saint to doour work for us. All the wealth of the world will not give access to these higher worlds into whichthe poorest may enter. The coin we are using iswithin the reach of all: It is the universal attractiondirected by thought in the positive way of theuniverse.

Whilst, on the side of matter, energy is dispersedin a multiplicity of effects, of phenomena into whichevery fraction of life is imprisoned, on the side offorce it is a unification of causes into a principle ofactivity which is one and the same Life, Thought,and Wisdom.

To direct our thoughts and desires towardsthe material aspect of existence, is to compressourselves into the multiple forms of the passivestate.

To take as goal the idealistic side of life, and makeit part and parcel of the practical necessities ofexistence, is to attract towards us the positive"constants" of the universe and to become able tolive in this state in absolute freedom.

When your thoughts radiate into space, rememberthat they become subservient to the law of Cause andEffect, like all the other forms of energy. When youare concentrating your ideas on the goal to beattained, by asking politely, under the guise of aninvocation or prayer, that you should be helped inyour efforts, take care to follow psychical laws. Useonly such expressions as are positive, full of confi-dence and love and certainty. Avoid all ideasrelative to evil, to hate, to fear, to uncertainty, to

THE POWERS OF THOUGHT 1 6 5

pain, to passivity, to ignorance, etc. Only suchconceptions as are contrary to these will give youaccess to the higher worlds of energy. It is evidentthat if you attract it under this form, the other ten-dencies of the mind will be automatically destroyed.

C H A P T E R I I

ILLUSION AND REALITY

reading of these relationships which, inthemselves, are not so extraordinary, the reader whois not well versed in psychic matters may wonderhow, during these studies, it is possible to differen-tiate between illusion and reality.

If you will consider the results of the experimentsI have described, you will understand that thecosmic system automatically selects all forms ofenergy, according to their rhythms and harmonies,and distributes them either towards the crudematter or pure energy of the universe.

In these immense fields of electro-magneticmatter there are no privileges. Whatever thedegree of evolution, each individual receives accord-ing to his efforts. Whether this energy contributesto his happiness or sorrow does not concern the lawof Cause and Effect. The mechanism is the samein both cases.

Let us, for one moment, consider the generalcharacteristics of the universe. In a limited spacewe are given a radio-active matter endowed with a potential varying from +-I to — I . Of itself thissubstance has no other function than to absorbavidly all forms of energy which present th emselves

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This we might call the feminine element, amenableto all influences.

An active element, movement, animates this sub-stance. On one side a maximum of intensity and a minimum electro-motive energy balances the attrac-tions. This is the aspect of matter, negative, ruledby centripetal force. On the other side a minimumof intensity under the influence of a maximum ofvoltage. This is the energy aspect, positive, ruledby centrifugal force.

Life, a neutral element, formed by a conjunctionbetween the opposed relationships of universalmovement, lies latent in all motions of the universalsubstance. It can manifest from a state of extremedensity to the most volatile essence of our universe.It circulates freely in all forms of movement withoutbecoming subject to any one form.

The stabilization of these low and high frequencycurrents creates balanced states in the universe,planes which do not intermingle. Life alone,formed by a balance of extreme elements, maypenetrate within them all. In order to change fromone plane to another it becomes necessary to acquirelife.

This life is at the mercy of all disturbingelements, of all lack of balance occurring in any ofthe modes of movement in the universal substance.If an infinity is established between elements ofdifferent potential an electrical coupling will arise,the rhythm of which will evoke relationships of equalwave-length. This is the story of the mineral king-dom, visible reflection of the invisible agglomerationswhich exist in the universal substance.

The forms of energy circulating in the physical


matter will establish between the elements of themineral kingdom paths of least resistance which will,in turn, bring about new affinities. These, in theirturn, will take on life in the invisible worldsin order to manifest on earth at the firstopportunity.

The successive addition of the resulting poten-tialities determinates the visible repetition of theinstantaneous movement which may be observed inthe formation of the intimate principles of themineral kingdom. Instead of being born and dyingalmost instantaneously, the mineral elements succeedin coming together and giving each other mutualsupport. The result is an alternating movement, atgreat speed, of the life and death of the atoms; butthe sum total persists, grows and finally developsinto the vegetable kingdom.

The vegetable life will develop and strengthen thetype of movement begun in the mineral kingdom.Observed in its own dimension, each plant alreadyconstitutes a little universe of specialized life, andsoon the protozoons will appear, the rudiments ofthe animal kingdom.

First of all without a nucleus, then a simple uni-cellular organism, then association of cells, thisevolution pursues its way from the simple to thecomplex. In the ether the movement is accentuated,the potential energy takes on greater activity andbecomes visible on earth. The organs of movementcollect first of all as radiations around a centre, thenin pairs placed on either side of a median axis. Thedisturbing affinity, manifested by a specialized formof life, has been considerably transformed. Endowedwith a certain sensitivity it seeks out similar elements


and grows by means of all the affinities it cancapture. It attaches itself to these, clings on, andthereby increases its power and its capacity for life.

This elementary mechanism of life, visible andinvisible, opens out fresh horizons on all thephenomena of evolution.

Since there are constant relationships between thesame potential of life, whether visible or invisible,the evolution of the system of harmonies which itrepresents falls into normal conditions. Whetherthis vital potential be called mineral, vegetable,animal, or human, it is the same principle which isperfecting itself, ever drawn towards the positiveaspect of its own system in the universe.

We know, by experience, that this primitiveaspect represents a maximum of forces, of electro-magnetic power, with a minimum of density. Therarefication of this force is such that freedom isalmost absolute, and the manipulation of this energydetermines the greatest number of effects with theleast effort.

The observation of facts shows us all the affinitiesdirecting themselves towards the positive side of theuniverse. Life follows these groupings, whoseautonomy becomes more defined as they perfectthemselves.

Affinity, desire, sentiment, are all so many dis-turbing causes which are capable of taking on life inthe universal substance. It is therefore natural thatthe human being should be attracted constantly bythese elementary lives. To these man representsthe centre of the universe. From this results anattraction on the part of man towards the materialside of life, towards ephemeral pleasure of all kinds,


and this attraction of living matter is one of thenormal facts of evolution.

Writers who can only conceive of egotism as thebasis of our activities are only obeying this law ofnature. But, if they favour the evolution of theuniversal substance in the lower kingdoms they aredelaying their personal evolutionary processes.

The way of life, on our particular planet, seemstherefore to teach us that personal disinterestednessis a form of spiritual egotism. This would be trueif the Love of Unity did not intervene. This sendsback into multiplicity the benefit which has beenacquired by personal evolution.

The mechanical detachment from the lower formsof life, with the sole aim of perfecting ourselves andliving in the higher regions of the universe, wouldcertainly give results. The human being could begenerous, altruistic on principle, all the time retain-ing at the core of his being a feeling of individualityto which he would bring back the fruit of his labours.

I find this quite in accordance with reality, andthere are many philosophers who have never beenable to find a higher ideal.

The experience of self-projection in the higherregions of the cosmos confirms us in the possibilityof desiccation of consciousness. However great thedegree of evolution reached by an initiate workingin self-interests, he will never be able to escape fromthe universal system in which he is born, because themarriage between the higher consciousness andcosmic consciousness calls for the abandonment ofall the personal element. Having entered into thecircle of manifested life in our system throughegotism, the consciousness which results can only


leave by abandoning the root of personality. Itsfreedom is then limitless, because it is working inharmony with the Universal Order, procreator ofall the finite systems floating in infinite space.

This, therefore, is the definite result to which wecome when we wish to differentiate between what isreal and what is illusionary in our universe. Allwords, all forms of expression, seem to have beeninvented by the human being in order to hide hisignorance of the universal life.

Reality is one word, illusion is another. Both arenecessities of evolution. What is real on earth isillusion in the next plane, and so on. But withoutearthly illusion there would be no higher reality.Each living element possesses its portion of bothillusion and reality, one being as necessary as theother, since they transform themselves reciprocally.

C HA PT ER III

EVOLUTION IN TIME AND SPACE

T H E absolute, experimental reality of the worldsexisting within the various densities of the cosmicether, gives a new sense of value to our scientificknowledge.

The idea of energy appears, through all itsinnumerable transformations, like a universal Pro-teus. The atom, of electric nature, creates in itsseething whirlpools an extraordinary suppleness ofmatter, and gives the man who is living in thatmatter powers and faculties which are semi-divine.

During experience it appears as if these fields ofether and electro-magnetic super-ethers had simplerand simpler dimensions which, successively, pene-trate to the most dense matter. It is quite easy torealize that the converse does not exist. In findingtheir proper position, the delicacy and sensibility ofthe vibrations respond to a scale of powers moreextended in time and space.

We could visualize this atmosphere as a series ofwaves sustaining themselves by resonance. It isnatural that the human will can create the pheno-mena of interference by an exchange of potentialitiesdrawn from its surroundings.

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However far wc pursue our researches, observa-tion shows us that life animates a matter which ispure energy capable of responding to weaker andweaker stimuli the further it radiates into a greaterspace with, naturally, atoms which are far lessdensely packed together. It seems as if the limit ofcentrifugal exteriorization is lost in infinite space.

Our system of universes seems, then, to be a gathering of finite worlds, radiating into the infiniteby quantum, and the extreme limit of this radiationis the point of contact with infinity.

For the person who can push his experiments intothese sublimated regions of the universe, the pro-gressive subtlety of the succeeding states of matter,the increase in powers, the unity of the facultieswhich have the capacity for instantaneous self-realization in absolute freedom permits him toapproach the constitution of the universe with a total of probability hitherto unknown.

We arc in the presence of:(1) A matter in constant motion, progressively

obedient to our needs, in a manner which becomesspeedier and more intense.

(2) An intelligence conscious both of the unityand universality of its powers, which it can put intoaction in either a fraction or the whole of thespherical space which it occupies, in a measureexactly proportionate to its power. It is capable ofrest or movement with no interval of time occurringbetween the two states.

This extreme mobility, beyond all conceptions oftime and space, gives us some indication that thehuman being has succeeded in creating, for hispersonal use, a system of harmonies allowing him to


control his own movements, without having recourseto the limited forms of energy.

Energy is limited by two factors—time andspace. Comparison and deduction from factswarrant the conclusion that the evolution of theliving atom has in view the conquest of these twoelements so necessary to our universe.

Time, destroyer of all forms of energy, is the firstagent against which the battle rages. All livingatoms collect together in order to fight it. Theycling tenaciously to everything favourable to theirexistence and no individuality would ever have seendaylight without egotism or this centralization ofatoms.

After numberless peregrinations throughout thekingdoms of nature, the living being begins todevelop an energy system endowed with resonancessufficiently powerful to allow it to endure.

The analysis of the different states of conscious-ness in the various regions of space permits me toconclude that the human being denoted a definitestage in the universal struggle against time whichwas being waged by individualized life.

Space being conditioned by time, a great victoryhas been won. The materials accumulated by theliving being in the different kingdoms of naturehave balanced themselves to produce a higher formof energy, and now the animal has been transformedinto a human being.

The uninitiated, never having become aware ofthe modalities of force in the universal substance,cannot imagine the formidable amount of energywhich corresponds to this new title. And, withoutexaggeration, we may conclude that the human

EVOLUTION IN TIME AND SPACE 175

being is immortal in "Time." Please take notethat I carefully specify "in Time."

This is a matter of extreme importance to ourevolution. In fact, the human being, 'representingthe triumph of life over time, has no more cause toworry. This struggle for existence constituted thefirst stage of his independence. It was necessaryfor a maximum of energy to be collected in orderthat his vital potential might find sufficient nourish-ment, whilst recover its forces so soon as theywere exhausted, without being limited by the dura-tion of the process.

We may consider the vital potential of the livingbeing as a system of waves which tend to weakenand disintegrate under the influence of time. Thecentripetal action of energy balances this destructiveinfluence. The living being profits from this pro-visional help of nature in order to amass the materialsnecessary to the preservation of life. The struggleagainst time soon takes on a new character. As itdevelops, the animal's system of whirling atomsallows it to become aware of the higher forms of life.These elements of consciousness will become moreperfect, up to the moment when a final impulse will balance them with a neutral state in the Cosmosplaced half-way in the total evolution of the universe.

In order to make our ideas more definite, let ussuppose that in this state there is, for example, 50per cent of matter and $0 per cent of force, then thecentripetal and centrifugal actions are in equili-brium. In this density matter possesses an inter-mediately unify between the extremity of densematter and the extremity of pure energy. Thebalance is perfect from the point of view both of


matter and energy. The living being who hassucceeded in reaching this state possesses thereforeat this moment a system of atoms capable of main-taining its own movement without recourse tocentripetal energy. Internal pressure balancesexternal pressure. The weakening and subsequentdestruction of the efforts exerted need not be feared.Life is no longer limited by time. This is the birthof human consciousness.

Granted the experimental nature of the universe,each one of us can appreciate the efforts necessary torealize this new consciousness. At the moment it isobvious that the human consciousness is ignorant ofits possibilities. By analogy we may compare it tothe birth of the living being. The first whirlpoolsof cosmic substance, which have acquired life, aregoing to use this life in order to increase theirpersonal energy, and little by little reach this inter-mediary cosmic state, where a new birth awaitsthem. This awakening is for the animal a kind ofillumination. Without understanding its character-istics it becomes aware of being a unity. It feels asOne in the midst of the surrounding energy. Ithas now become an individuality.

If you have understood the extremely simplemechanism of the universe you should be able tosee at once this second part of evolution, which con-cerns us all. The living being, now become a con-scious unity, is going to work in order to conquerthe space which separates him from the otherextremity of the Cosmos. Up to the present thecentripetal energy preponderated. Now it is thecentrifugal force which is going to allow the energyof the human being to radiate, and this extension


will go on progressively until the extremity of pureforce in matter is reached. The balance which, upto then, was internal and centralized, will now trans-form itself into an external balance, circumferential.This is easy to understand. To the centrifugalstates, to the planes, dimensions and densities of thesecond part of the cosmos correspond the centripetalstates, planes, densities, and dimensions of the firstpart of evolution. In radiating an external energythe human being helps the growth of the previousstates in which he has already lived as an animalentity. In proportion to his advance towards theaspect of force, so do his radiations fall towardsmatter, the characteristics of which he now learns todiscern. This awaredness of the past gives thehuman consciousness an understanding of the causesand principles which will become its only food,allowing it to live in the atmosphere of the higherworlds. As it becomes able to obtain nourishmentin a more rarefied substance the consciousness soonreaches the extremity of pure energy. Conscious-ness has now vanquished space. The new equili-brium which is the result of this feat gives it a neutral nature similar to the life whose character-istics it takes on. The consciousness, as a unity,becomes a multiplicity and free of the CosmicUniverse in which it was born.

In this evolutionary scheme one fact of greatimportance should be kept in mind, i.e. that thehuman entity has no further interest in remainingegotistical. On the contrary, egotism and self-centredness hinder him from becoming aware of, andrealizing, the causes and principles which are goingto become his only nourishment in the higher


worlds. Egotism will hold him back to lowerplanes. It hinders the radiation of energy towardsthe matter side. It becomes a terrible obstacle tothe casting away of ties, a process indispensable tothe evolution of the human being towards freedom,towards the pure energy aspect of the universalsubstance. The human being has no longer anyneed to be egotistical as he has become independentof the time factor. He is no longer in the samecycle. In order to conquer time, he has had toaccumulate around him the greatest possible amountof energy. In order to become master of space thehuman being must decentralize himself by returningto nature the energy which he has borrowed. Time,the great destroyer, seeks in some way to tear up, todissociate, the forms built up by energy. Theliving being attracts to himself, centralizes, closesin, and, aided by centripetal force, holds time incheck by a constant attraction which is, egotistically,centred on his personality. When he acquiresequilibrium he becomes free.

Having passed through all forms of life, thehuman being proceeds to examine these manifesta-tions, with the help of the new faculties which willbe developed by the use of thought. In becomingaware of the causes of phenomena he also becomesfree of the forms of the universal substance. Theseinterest him all the less because he realizes that heis able to reproduce them at will, simply by puttinginto practice the causes which rule them.

By centring his affections on principles whichembrace a whole number of phenomena the humanentity, little by little, escapes from the general move-ment which holds in equilibrium the atoms of our


system of worlds. He frees himself progressivelyfrom the attractions which force him to gravitate tothe "interior" of this system of energies. His per-sonal formation draws nearer to the speed of theuniverse in which he lives. Soon he arrives at thepoint of contact between his planetary system andthe infinite. By decentralizing himself he has con-quered space and is no longer the slave of theobligations which limit the living beings in theuniverse from which he has just escaped.

CHAPTE R IV

SOME LIGHT ON THE FORMATION OF THE UNIVERSE

AFTER the preceding chapters, we can try to workup to the probable causes upon which are based theexistence of our universe.

The clairvoyant mind will be able to build up theskeleton of a system of forces by remembering thefundamental principles of its experiences. In theuniversal movement any disturbance of equilibriumof energy is readjusted by a balance of forces underanother aspect. The result of this is that no atom isever taken away nor is one ever added; there is onlya transformation of energy from one state to another.

In practice we must remember that when oneform of energy rises, another of equal value falls;and when a conjunction of two atoms is achieved a double expansion surges from the point of balance.The evolution of this point continues, therefore, inan inverse manner; and mobile forces change theirdirection in accordance with the new cycle. Weshall see this interesting idea again in greaterdetail later on, as being the basis of all cosmicformations.

For the moment I only want to give you some ofthe results of special experiments which place the

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problem of the creation of worlds and universes onnew ground.

I have already written of that fundamentalexperience, probably the most important, and at anyrate one of the most clear and conscious that I haveever obtained in the higher worlds. I am writing ofthat synthetic consciousness which I have calledUnity-Multiplicity, in which I managed, for a single instant, to place myself in the full knowledgeand understanding of Cause as such.

In this condition man is a god. In the orbit ofhis Love, his life is at once everywhere and nowhere.The space in which this formless, divine energyradiates, is impregnated with his life. Not an atomcan be influenced, not a single vibration can be pro-duced, without his being immediately aware ofit. This Unity-Multiplicity energy of the higherworlds makes it difficult even to remember the feeblepowers of the earthly state. No comparison ispossible between the two. I cannot repeat too oftenthe fact that we feel quite as much a whole in eachpart as we do in the sum total. Whether we acteverywhere at once or at some given point inspherical space, it is by means of an impulse whichcomes from the entire being.

Human consciousness has been transformed intoan energy which is stable, serene, and immutable,endowed with an immense power of attraction,capable of producing movement in a considerablespace without the intrinsic energy of this conscious-ness having been either augmented or diminishedby one iota.

Omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, are allsummed up in one universal Consciousness of Life


and Love. All powers are held in a single universalcapacity for awakening and developing latent energywithin the depths of the eternal silence of limitlessspace.

Let us now consider some of the characteristicsof the virgin substance which lies outside and beyondour evolutionary system. On several occasions I wasbrought into the presence of an atmosphere whichhad none of the usual properties of the substance ofour universe.

This new substance had the property of a kind ofmechanical inertia. In the successive ethers of theuniverse the matter of any one given stratumresponds with an intensity which varies with ourpersonal vibrations. Thousands of ties make usaware of the fact that we are in touch, through ourown system of atoms, with the surrounding uni-verse, and experience shows that the link becomesmore intimate in the higher worlds.

The virgin matter into which I projected myselfexhibited no ties like those mentioned above.Neither thought, desire, will, nor any attraction ofour own world has power over this matter, andequally, the matter has no magnetic effect on

Seen in bulk, this matter has the colour of freshlycut ebonite. It gives out no vibration. It has noelasticity. Whereas in our system the radio-activeemanations of matter increase the joy of living andfeeling, here we feel nothing, and we are not awareof the very least reaction. According to the densityof this virgin substance so we have the impression ofstanding before a thick wall or in a mist, neither sosolid nor so dark. Whichever may be the case, in

SOME LIGHT ON FORMATION OF UNIVERSE I 83

order to penetrate into it we must make a definitemechanical effort. With arms outstretched we mustpush this matter aside in order to break through,when we have the quite material sensation of movingin a sort of "paste" which does not stick and is notcloying. In an atmosphere which is not so dense,all that we need do is to make the motion ofwrapping it around us, just as we would put on a cloak.

This substance without cohesion has alwayspuzzled me. When we are projected into this kindof atmosphere wc feel that wc are thrown upon ourown resources. Though the powers of thinking,reasoning, and consciousness itself are clear, theyhave not the sensitivity even of that experienced inthe lowest strata of our cosmic ether.

Deeply immersed in this gluey matter, which I was handling as if it were some material object, I compared its characteristics, which are so differentfrom those of our own system; and I placed inopposition to it, by the power of thought, the vibrantsweetness and delicacy of the extra-sensitive wavesof astral matter.

The existence of a substance so material ledme to suppose that it might well be the root ofmatter.

Let us admit for a moment that this stagnant,motionless, vibrationless matter, this ebonite-coloured atmosphere, this veil of substance withoutties of any kind, is the virgin state of the matterexisting without form in the infinite.

Let us place it in the presence of the prerogativesof the Unity-Multiplicity consciousness. Thentell me who amongst you would not be eager to


bring these two results of experimentation together?With the extraordinary faculties which have been

acquired by evolution, where is the superman whowould not do his best to make this matter moresupple, to mould it, to try, by all the means knownto him, to transmit some of his own energy into itso as to make it responsive to a "stimulus"?

To sum up, are we not here face to face with thevery principle by which the universe was formed?This very principle would urge the consciousness tomake this matter sufficiently supple to transform a mechanical energy into a field of electro-magneticenergy, for instance, to make life spring forth bycreating an equilibrium of the forces brought intoaction. Life could then make use of this matterby means of the affinities which would be present.Lastly, we would extract these from the full con-sciousness of manifestations and their phenomenalcauses.

For the moment I do not propose labouringfurther the point which concerns the mystery of ourorigin. My aim was to point out these two oppositewinciples. One of them is endowed with consciousife, with universal powers, outside time and space.

The other with latent energy, limitless, sleepingin the womb of Eternity. Let it once happen thatthe former acts on the latter and a whole new systemof energies will be born, following upon this firstwave of universalized life.

In our system of worlds, everything happens as ifthe order of its reigning forces were obedient to a plan, to a scheme of action which knows of noexceptions.

This scheme, this evolutionary plan seems itself

SOME LIGHT ON FORMATION OF UNIVERSE I 8$

to be tied to other plans of evolution which havealready come to an end, and having as goal thepreparation of the elements of new worlds which willalso be only one of the multiple aspects of theuniversal order.

C HA PT ER V

THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF HUMAN LIFE

T H E information which I have been able to drawfrom the invisible side of our system of worlds hasto some extent allowed me to make a valuation of thefundamental factors of existence.

The increased subtility, under the influence ofthe universal matter-force which exists in the variousgrades of the ether, allows the human being a fargreater range of powers with far lesser expenditureof energy, and more instantaneous results.

The human being's personal evolution, that is tosay his successive mouldings in the universal matter,has, as its aim, the facilitating of this apprenticeship.

Attraction is the universal form of energy in theworlds of the cosmos reduced to its simplestexpression.

If we consider the question in terms of infinity,attraction can have no meaning. The fact that anatom may be drawn towards the centre or thecircumference of a magnetic field does not change itsabsolute value in the least.

In a system whose dimensions are limited,attraction takes on a value which is relative to thefactors which have to be taken into consideration.It is easy to realize the fact that attraction, viewed

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FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF HUMAN LIFE 18 7

from a central point of radiation, will be calledrepulsion if it directs itself towards the periphery,and vice versa. The word repulsion is relative tothe position of the observer.

In order to differentiate itself from the mass, a coupling of energy is forced to resist the dual currentof equilibrium and unbalancement which has beenproduced by one point displacing itself in order totravel towards another. To this end it will centralizeand focus itself, and will assimilate all the atoms ofenergy of an equal rhythm and periodicity. Thuswe realize that what we know as a human being isnothing more than a system of energies which hasbeen successful in assimilating a range of harmonicvibrations which are sufficient for it to maintain itsbalance in time.

If you reflect on what I have already written youwill realize that time represents the action of thecentrifugal force on the matter side of the universalsubstance. By progressively resisting this actionthe human being manages to nourish himself in a type of matter where the two forces, centripetaland centrifugal, produce a balance in an equalproportion of both crude matter and pure energy.We can claim that the time factor has been con-quered. The space factor, which the human beingis going to learn to master, is nothing more than theaction of the centripetal force, which stretches fromthis point of equilibrium to the extreme limit of pureenergy in the universal substance.

Time and space are no more than the aspects ofuniversal attraction functioning in its two modes,centrifugal and centripetal.

In pure reality infinite space is represented by the


tiniest possible material atom and infinite time by themost powerful form of energy. These two balanceeach other. The expressions, time and space, aretherefore not able to define the state in which thehuman consciousness finds itself in the uttermostdepths of eternity. The time-space in which itfinds itself, is, in reality, nothing more than a pointof the universal movement in equilibrium. It is a point of attraction without dimension, the exteriorpressure of which balances the interior pressure,and which has neither size nor duration.

Since attraction is the fundamental pivot, theeternal pulse of the Formless Energy vibrating inthe womb of the eternal present, it is natural thatthe observations made on the confines of our worldof being should confirm this principle.

After having registered all the attractions of thesystem in which he is evolving, the living entity,who has now become the human being, must ridhimself of all form in order to keep one thing only—the personal equation.

To remain in a condition of stasis, without desire,without thought, without affection of any kind, is a poor solution to the problem.

Experience demonstrates that it is necessary tounify these desires, thoughts, and affections alltowards the same point, directing them by lovetowards a more perfected state of things.

Whatever the state of development of an indi-vidual, this principle applies to all.

The energy to use is conscious thought, coupledwith an ever-growing affection for all manifestationsof the Good, the Beautiful, and the True. Thesemanifestations become unified, little by little, into

FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE OF HUMAN LIFE 1 8 9

strata of consciousness which are less differentiated.They lose their material support and resolve them-selves into a conscious unity, first-fruit of universalLove.

If we consider the really practical aspect of humanexistence, if we decide, once and for all, to bringout the very principle of his existence, to discoverthe intrinsic energy by which he is animated, it is inthis general attraction of the fundamental principlesof the world that we must delve.

Speaking for myself, having been able to appre-ciate the wonderful perfection of the scheme ofthings in the state of Unity-Multiplicity, all thisis an indisputable certainty. The fusing of theuniversal and the particular gives human conscious-ness the most perfect of prerogatives imaginable.

The idea of a divinity ruling heaven and earth iseasily understood. In imagining the possibilitiesof their gods, human beings were simply experienc-ing an intuition concerning their personal destiny.

Whatever may be the opinions and beliefs of anyindividual, experience permits me to affirm, withouta shadow of doubt, the absolute reality of a universalprinciple of attraction, fundamental in nature, whichunites human beings the one with the other andwith the universe.

In order that the human being may become a centre of independent life, free from all cosmicformations, and may participate consciously in thefull realization of the laws of the universe, he mustbe placed in agreement with the harmonies of whichthey are constituted.

As the harmonies of the universal order act atone and the same time on the past and the future,


in a present which is outside the scope of ourmeasuring ability, it is useless to encumber ourselveswith definitions. Far better for each of us to as-similate, little by little, states of consciousness whichare more extended, more profound, and to put intoaction the principle of attraction which lies withinevery living being.

Under different names this principle exercises itsactivity within all and every degree of evolution.Whether it be in the guise of affinity, instinct,desire, sentiment, ideal, it allows the consciousnessa means of maintaining itself in a more abstractmanner. The better to conceive this abstraction,instead of regarding space as extending towards thehorizon, visualize it concentrating towards you.This space, coming as it does from infinity, has nolimits. According to the intensity with which youcondense your energy more and more to a point,so do you increase the relationship between theinfinitely great and the infinitely small, and this isenough to gain access to the directing principles ofthe world.

In freeing yourself from all the forms with whichyour mentality is encumbered, by concentrating allyour motives for action on to one point of view, youreduce the space you are occupying to its mostsimple expression.

This condensation frees you from that part of theuniversal substance which we know as crude matter.It allows you to centre your conscious faculties on a point of pure energy outside the reach of the cosmiccurrents. It leads you, with absolute inevitability,to the eternal present outside the limitations of timeand space, and to a consciousness of the Universal


Order. This absolute certainty which may beacquired by practical experience of self-projectioninto the various densities of the universal substance, isa mechanical necessity of the universe to whicheveryone must submit. It is impossible to changefrom one state or dimension to another withoutleaving behind the heavier atoms of the matter inwhich we may find ourselves.

Whilst we are living on this earth, we can becomeacquainted with the other worlds only by means of a provisional projection, or by definite physical deathwhich gives you a full freedom of action. The law isthe same for all the realms of the invisible. We canonly reach a higher state by casting off heavier atoms.To rid oneself of encumbering atoms means that wemust leave behind our present affections in order toreplace them by others of a higher nature. Fromwhich we may conclude the existence of two evolu-tionary principles which are mutually complemen-tary. The first consists of mastering our lowernature. The second demands progressive centra-tion of consciousness in a more elevated class ofsentiments.

In order to put this mechanical necessity on thepart of the universe into words which are withinthe grasp of any mentality, I would say that eachone must try ceaselessly to discern an order of thingssuperior to that in which he habitually exists. Betterstill, we should seek to free ourselves from ourusual affections in order that we may be able toreplace them by emotions of a higher order. Thisgoes on ad infinitum. As soon as our motives foraction have changed in value we must envisage stillhigher ones.


The practice of the higher love brings resultswhich cannot be compared with the effort necessaryfor its exercise. In this evolutionary process thereare no privileged people. Whatever one's socialposition, the law is at the disposal of everyone.All that has to be done is to love a little more eachday.

To love nature for the sake of what it brings forth,for its beauty, for its harmony, will help to bring youa little nearer to perfection.

To feel love for the life in the mechanism whichI have just described, to love that supreme justicewhich gives to each one in proportion to his attach-ment to the laws of harmony which are part andparcel of the universal order, will raise you effortlesslytowards the higher worlds.

To feel love for humanity in the sweetness ofspiritual communion, in the joy of helping oneanother, in the happiness of playing a part togetherin the everlasting work of the formation of worldsand universes, will bring you all the nearer to thegoal of evolution.

I would like all my readers to realize that, at thispoint, we are no longer working out probabilities.The sum total of human opinion cannot alter thisexperimental certainty by one iota. Those feeblespirits who allow themselves to be influenced byso-called scientific arguments, philosophic andreligious speculations, only increase their sufferingand reduce their chances of finding a permanenthappiness.

Let us look back for a moment. Realize theabominable way in which you are being exploitedmaterially, morally, and intellectually. Decide, once


and for all, to conquer the routine existence andpreconceptions of our social state. Believe me, youwill never regret having made the effort. Insteadof increasing your suffering by cursing fate, youwill now create an atmosphere of peace favourableto your aims if you finally decide to love a little moreeach day this spiritual harmony in which and forwhich we live.

C H AP T E R VI

THE MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ATTRACTIVEPRINCIPLES IN THE INVISIBLE WORLDS

IT has been demonstrated, by physics, that if wedisplace a metallic circuit in a magnetic field, weinduce an electric current.

On the other hand, the passage of an electriccurrent in a conductor determines the radiation ofa magnetic field, lines of least resistance whencompared with the other forms of energy movingin the atmosphere.

When studying the matter of the other worlds,the principle upon which this law is based becomesof primary importance. Not only does the displace-ment of a point, or of an organization of energies,produce a powerful radiation, but further, all theatoms are the seat of vibrations which depend ontheir own particular nature. Therefore, in reality,we find ourselves in a field of multiple influences,ruled by the law of Cause and Effect, in circum-stances which are still to be determined.

At all events there is one fact of which we can besure, i.e. that the organization of whirling atomsused by the human' consciousness, as a means oftransport throughout the space of our system ofthe universe, is a marvellous detector. Extremely

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sensitive to the influence of the will, it automatic-ally selects the forms of energy to which we areaccustomed. Therefore each one of us, in theinvisible realms, is going to attract automatically,according to his or her affections, the elementsdesired.

In order to make sound experimental observations,it becomes indispensable to free ourselves from allpersonal affections, and centre the consciousness inthe Universal Order. Only by complying withthis condition is it possible to obtain much informa-tion concerning the attracting qualities of the variousshapes of living beings when seen in comparisonwith the utter perfection of the universe.

The closer we draw to the atmosphere of thehigher planes the more sensitive becomes the humanconsciousness. The shades of understanding withwhich this consciousness has now become familiarincrease in value and intensity. The atmosphereseems to be impregnated with the highest and mostperfect qualities. Every atom takes on a specialtone in agreement with the harmony of eternity,and we can see in them a world of realization whichaffects the consciousness in its most intimate depths.

The following are some of the realizations towhich I have come through practical experience ofconscious self-projection.

In the ordinary strata which we visit, the observa-tion of personal or collective thought-forms causesus to be definitely influenced by their radiations.The attention of the observer, who has placedhimself in the conditions which I have just men-tioned, is attracted in a proportionate manner to thehigh nature of the general character of these. The


vibrations which emanate from this atmospheremake us admire, with varying intensity, the partof beauty, of exactitude of expression, the wholevariety of shades which are expressed by the idea.At the same time we feel an attraction, which isvariable according to the forms taken on by energy,which stimulates the experimenter, who is observing,to take part in their perfection.

When it is a question of forms having a certaindegree of evolution, as in the case of minerals andplants, we are attracted towards them with anintensity which corresponds with their degree ofbeauty.

When we are dealing with the animal kingdom,the attraction doubles its intensity at a rate propor-tionate to the degree of goodness.

Between the forms which are created by personalor collective thoughts and the individualized con-sciousness of the mineral, vegetable, and animalkingdoms, there is one particular factor which mustbe kept in mind.

So far as the former are concerned, all that isgiven out comes from the intelligence alone. Sofar as the latter are concerned, it is no longer a matter of merely sending out a thought, but Wefeel an absolute loss of energy which leaves us withan intensity which varies according to the affectionwe experience. This affection, vibrant with purejoy, which links vs, if only for a moment, with theliving beings with whom we come into contact, is,equally, in jnoportion to the degree of 'goodness" which we feel at their approach.

One day my guides gave me a task to carry outin the dark part of the ether. I was so struck by the

ATTRACTIVE PRINCIPLES IN INVISIBLE WORLDS 1 9 7

difference between the higher worlds and the statein which I found myself that I put down the follow-ing notes. I had long been in the habit of projectingmyself, and my double had been organized toresist any pressure due to the surrounding atmo-sphere.

The quality of the substance in which I foundmyself did not provoke any disagreeable sensations.I brought my attention to bear on the work to beaccomplished, and the joy I felt was due merely toattraction. The joy to which we are subject isquite different in the higher worlds. It is moredelicate, more sensitive, more refined. An infinitesweetness plunges the consciousness into a varietyof shades of feeling. Each of the shades has its ownspecial qualities and the whole becomes unified ina Love, a plenitude of life surging towards the eternalprinciple of the Cosmic Harmony.

In the lower worlds the consciousness has noother objective but the work to be undertaken. Allits concentration is centred on the accomplishmentof its work in a manner as near to perfection aspossible. When I underwent the above-mentionedexperience I had the feeling of giving a part of mylife in the effort which I was making, and from this I experienced a deep-rooted happiness and infinite joy.But this joy and happiness were quite distinct fromthe gentle, sublimated atmosphere of the higherplanes. It was a joy which was purely attractive,vital, so to speak, without reflexes. This state isfound to be quite normal to us when we arrive at thenecessary stratum of space.


We will now examine the quality of the attractionswhich we feel, in the invisible worlds, towardshuman beings.

As you should know, in the invisible worldshumanity possesses a character quite different fromthat which we know on earth. The mask ofhypocrisy which we use in our social relations nolonger exists. Sexual differences are no more.Men or women, young or old, are no more thancentres of life radiating different qualities of energywhich they have assimilated during their successiveincarnations. In the aura of these people we findthe affections and desires which have guided theirmotives for action.

When we meet people whom we have known onearth, the dominant links between us are dependenton the kind of affections which brought us together.The power of radiation of these affections possessesan intensity in proportion to their upliftment towardsthe eternal principles of life.

Also, when we rise towards the higher worlds,only the most powerful affections may penetratethere. They may only find a place by casting offall egotistical vibrations.

It was in this manner that, on the occasion whenI was in the wonderful state of Unity-Multiplicity,a vibration of love reached me. At that veryinstant I knew the nature of this vibration, andthe individual from whom it came; and I actedin the direction, towards the emitting energy, with anexact intensity of reactive force. This personwas living on earth. Nothing can describe theinfinite sweetness with which I swept aside theegotistical ingredient of this affection, which seemed

ATTRACTIVE PRINCIPLES IN INVISIBLE WORLDS 199

to form an obstacle to the extension of my radiationinto space.

From this arises a point of importance to every-one. If you want to be united truly, eternally, withthose you love, you must vibrate in harmony withthem on all the planes, and in every kind of activity.The more intimate the communion of thoughts anddesires, the less will be the separation. I shall notwaste time over the false friendships of to-day. Thefeeble links of mere habit weaken rapidly and haveno influence in the higher worlds.

The ladder of affection has many rungs. A fewobservations on this subject may well follow.

On many repeated occasions I went astrally tosee an old friend, of the same regiment as myself,who died during the Great War. He told me hisimpressions, and I reminded him of our deepfriendship, and compared his state with my own.By a form of mutual understanding I was able tomake him aware of the satisfaction I experienced inbeing near him, consciousness simultaneously in astraland physical life. I pointed out to him this inevit-able outcome of my studies, about which we had sooften spoken when we were in the army together.On his part, he often asked for my help in assistingother comrades of whose death I was not aware.This I did with great happiness, being both joyfuland grateful to him for his good thoughts.

The quality of such attractions is marked by a real brotherhood, made up of reciprocal franknessand help, without the least egotistical reservation.Each person remains himself, without loss of indi-viduality, whilst giving to others everything withinhis strength and means. Apart from the intimate


pleasure of finding one another again, a tie ofspontaneous affection is mixed with this. One willexplain what he has seen and ask for explanations,while the other will tell what he knows and haslearned. It is a mutual exchange of sympatheticthoughts which does not go beyond the particularnature of the plane where people find themselves.This is a truth which knows of no exception. If a friend or a parent were able to become conscious ofthe characteristics of a higher life, this analysiswould enter into another category concerning theloftier regions of the Invisible.

When we meet a parent in our astral journeys theshades of affection which we have just analysed arecomplicated with further feelings of recognitionand devotion.

I have often visited my father, who died before I began to study the invisible life, and I have alwaysnoticed definite differences between the emotionI felt towards him and he towards me (as two peopleare actually aware of each other in this state), fromother forms of affection.

There exists an affectionate bliss in filial lovewhich is a gift in itself. We feel willing to give moreand more in order to avoid pain. This kind of loveseems to be composed of the thousands of ties formedby the memories of past lives which we have spentwith our dear ones, and especially of the true feelingstowards ourselves of which our parents have givenample proof.

A lesson may be drawn from the above, that oflearning to love children for their own sakes.Children are not toys whose only purpose is toamuse us, and over whom we have every right.

ATTRACTIVE PRINCIPLES IN INVISIBLE WORLDS 2 0 1

Whatever may be the title: parent, guide, protector,or master of a human being, whether visible orinvisible, his basic duty is to unite the elements ofthe human soul which has beon placed under his,or her, care into a special form. Whether this formis composed of earthly or etheric substance, it mustbe such as to allow its bearer to put into action thespecial qualities of the plane on which that soul finds

On this plane our duty is char: To give ourchildren a maximum of knowledge in order thatthey may be able to use their energies in the bestconditions for obtaining results.

At the same time we should give them instructionon the true nature of the universe, so that graduallythey may become free from the formal conventionsof our social system and centre their affections on theindestructible principles of evolution.

This gentle work of initiation allows both parentsand children to form wonderful ties, which will prepare the human souls for their future communionin the mighty harmony of the higher wonds.

C HA PT E R VII

SOME EXPERIENCES CONCERNING THE FUSION OFTWIN SOULS

As far as I have been able to gather, humanconsciousness is of a dual nature, feminine andmasculine. It can therefore stabilize its energyoutside the Time-Space system of the universe.

Apart from its evolutionary nature, the separationinto sexes is due to fundamental causes about whichthere is no certainty.

My experimental observations have shown methat there exist special affinities between conscious-nesses, one of which has feminine and the othermasculine tendencies. These tendencies in thecourse of evolution balance themselves in oneindividual. It is at this point that the union betweentwin-souls seems to take place.

Besides this union, this human duality destinedto form a tertiary system which will live in aneternal reality, another force comes into play.There seems to exist between all consciousnessesan intimate communion, whose main characteristicsI should like to point out to you.

Having been in an essence subtle enough to makeout the details that I am setting forth, I have

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THE FUSION OF TWIN SOULS 2 0 3

observed and analysed the attraction stimulated inmyself by the presence of a Friend whose acquaint-anceship I made on the invisible planes. Theseattractions are so complex and so different from ourearthly conceptions that it was some time before I could educate my consciousness to register theseharmonies.

When I had managed to balance my conscious-ness with this new state I was able to realize somequite new facts concerning our evolution. Asclearly as a material object, I noted a quadrupleexpression of affections, formed by a double natureof conscious fraternity, the masculine and thefeminine parts of the two souls, and a doubleaffinity, equally conscious, between the masculinepart of one soul and the feminine of theother.

On one side I seemed to be protected by thetenderness of an older, loving brother, whilst, onthe other side, it seemed as if I were the protector,gentle and devoted, of a soul both delicate andsensitive. At the same time I felt in my mostintimate depths the infinitely gentle penetration ofthe feminine aspect of this soul, whilst I gave out,with happiness and bliss, the corresponding fractionof my own being into the soul of my friend, withwhom this exchange was carried out. The wholeseemed to synthesize into a deep and reciprocal lovewhose nature was steeped in an eternal state oflimitless devotion.

This quadruple communion of souls is the statewhich awaits all human beings when they reach theend of their evolution. It is useless for me to insiston the difficulty we meet with regard to expressing


such an infinite complexity of shades of feelingwhich, in fact, vary with each one of us. Thedescription, the general outline can be acceptedas true, but the personal element gives thisspiritual communion an intensity, a brilliancy, a depth, a variety of reactions which it is impossibleto express in mere words. Earthly means of ex-pression limit our definitions of the magnificenceof life in the higher worlds through lack of possiblecomparisons.

We might try to express these ideas by means ofmusical symphonies of unbelievable sweetness, andeven then only obtain crude results in comparisonwith this living reality of the divine planes.

Apart from this communion between conscious-nesses, which is one of the finest triumphs ofevolution, the union between twin-souls is a factpeculiar to each one of us.

As a result of personal observation in the invisiblerealms it seems as if, at the beginning of manifesta-tion, two cells, or two separate systems cf whirlingatciua if you prefer the phrase, had been fecundatedby opposite aspects of the same Principle. Pro-gressing separately, they will once more cometogether at the end cf evolution in order to form a unity which will never again know separation.

This union between twin-souls expresses itself onthe higher planes as a state of Unity-Multiplicitywhich may be described, without fear of error,in the following terms: Light and intelligence;universal Jove and self-surrender. So long as theseprinciples have not reached perfection, separc+ionexists.

I shall not insist in any way on the private nature


of the experiences I propose setting down at thisstage. I count on the nobility and loyalty of myreaders to understand that I am publishing thesefacts from a feeling of brotherhood and with onlyone aim, to show that I am inventing nothing, thatI am not putting down any detail in this bookwithout having had full conscious control of it, in a state of full mastery of myself, and with perfectfreedom of mind. Such are the circumstances inwhich I was enabled to obtain the following interest-ing observations.

I had used my ability to travel in the fourthdimension in order to pay periodical visits to a young woman who, later on, became my wife. Afterwe had met three or four times on the physicalplane circumstances intervened to separate us onefrom the other by several hundreds of miles. It wasthen that, without knowing either the town or thehouse where she was living, I used to go to herevery night, by means of self-projection, and it waswhilst in this state that we became engaged. Theseprojections over a great distance were of great useto me. They allowed me to make a mass of observa-tions on the nature of time and space, on thebringing into action of our personal energy, andon the various hindrances which we are likely tomeet on the way. My fiancee was able to confirm,by letter, the exactness of the details about which I wrote.

When I was near to her, my impressions wouldtranslate themselves into a deep feeling of love,composed of brotherly devotion and of a generalattraction of all the molecules of my astral body.

On her side my fiancee would feel my presence


and speak to me, mentally, without being able to seemc. Whatever might be the place where she hap-pened to be, whatever she might be doing, she wouldimmediately have the very definite feeling that I wasnear her, and if her attention was engaged she wouldask me to come again a little later.

For the most part our meetings took place in herroom. She had the sensation of finding herself neara focus of energy from which she constantly receivedwaves of great intensity. She was able to perceivemy thoughts as easily as I could receive hers. Insuch a situation the only difference between thoughtand word lies in the greater facility and speed of self-expression. The relative states of consciousnessof the two beings are translated by each, withprecision and without ambiguity. It was with a sweetness and delicacy unknown on earth that wedeclared our love.

Later on, after we were married, it often happenedthat we would travel together in space, with a sweetness of sensation impossible to describe.

When I project my astral body in my bedroom, itis my custom to kiss my wife before going on withmy experiments. One day, when I was projectedand standing beside her, she said: "Stay near me!"

"Instead, you come with me," I answered.Immediately freeing herself from her physical

body she joined me. We went and sat down on a settee which was placed nearby, and I made herunderstand the nature of the impressions we canexperience in this state. When I kissed her, I pointed out the deluge of sensations which followed.Her love penetrated into my being under the guise ofa general warmth, while a feeling of absolute


confidence filled my spirit. On the other hand, myaura penetrated hers and I had the sensation as ifmelting into her. So intense were the vibrationsthat I experienced a kind of giddiness. I felt thatif I pushed the experience to its furthest limit theabnormal speed of the vibrations would make melose consciousness.

However, I wished to analyse this experience asdeeply as possible in order to become aware of theexact degree of spiritual union it is possible toattain. On this point I received all possible satis-faction.

During one of the experiments I noted thefollowing facts:

I wished to unite my psychical body with that ofmy wife in order to note the physiological andpsychological effects. In the atmosphere in whichwe had projected ourselves I could see our morematerial doubles united in the form of a cloud.Heavy at first, it began to clear in proportion to thegreater and greater intimacy with which our subtlebodies interpenetrated one another. The trans-parency increased until soon we seemed no morethan a vapour which was hardly visible.

The psychological reactions and sensations ofthis state were really extraordinary.

As the cloud became clearer I had the impressionof taking off a series of clothes and becoming moreand more intimately united with my wife. At thesame time I could feel the vibrations of this stateas if I were living in a psychological moment towhich there was no end.

The observations of this rather banal experiencecan in no way be compared with those which I have


been able to make in the state of Unity-Multiplicity.In fact, so much as the last described experimentwas greater than anything on earth so much are theexperiences obtained in a state of Unity-Multi-plicity greater than the aforesaid experience.

The realization, something of whose character-istics I have already tried to describe to you, couldnot have happened without the intermediary helpof my wife, with whom my conscious individualitywas for a moment united.

Words are powerless to describe the hyper-sensations of this stt te of super-consciousness. Inno other experience have I had so wideawake a consciousness, no love so powerful, nor a calm andserenity so profound.

It was as if an oceai; of love was taking possessionof the bed. When the individuality of my wifeunited with mine, she brought a shade which washardly perceptible, which then melted into mylove, giving it a considerable expansion. The aura,the atmosphere thus generated became myself. Bythe exercise of the powers attached to this spiritualstate, all our faculties are melted into a unity ofconscious life. The rac'iation of consciousness, thusuniversalized, awakened in every atom of my beinga kind of quivering which augmented the delicacyand sweetness of the spiritual harmony in which I found myself immersed.

Each particle of the invisible space was myselfin the same way as the sum total of the grains ofenergy which had awakened in my spherical aura.With remarkable ease I was able to act with equalfacility in the whole or in any given fraction of thespace thus limited. This was carried out with an


intensity of reactive energy proportionate to theaction. Reciprocally, all thought, all desire, allconsciousness, and all love only form one gentle andserene unity, acting as if from a general impulsefrom the whole being. Fatigue is non-existent.There is no expenditure of energy. Actionmanifests in an immense happiness and by a deeper love.

All these conceptions of universal or cosmic con-sciousness, existing in a unity which lies outsidephenomenal time, are very difficult to understandby anyone who has not experienced them. Suchdifficulty is insignificant, however, compared withthe one I am experiencing in trying to describethe extraordinary ease with which, in super-consciousness, we can exercise these almost divinepowers.

It is this fact which most surprises me when I think about this extraordinary experience. Myphysical consciousness asks why it is that so un-imaginable a difference exists between the povertyof our earth, the difficulty and clumsiness of ourmethods of action, and the riches, the harmonies, andprodigious ease with which the universal preroga-tives can manifest.

I am still short of the truth when I say that, byanalogy, in this supreme state we feel at home with anintimacy, a reality, which has not its equal in anyof the other separative states of the ether. Howeveringrained our terrestrial habits, the ease with whichwe put them into practice cannot compare withthe instinctive manner with which we handle thedirectives of a whole world.

We now no longer think of the constants of the

2 I O PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

past and the future. We "are" purely and simply,in a perfect present which unites in itself all theprerogatives which lie beyond the power of humanconception and which human beings have at alltimes attributed to their gods.

CHAPTER VIII

UNIVERSAL ATTRACTION AND THE PERSONAL EQUATIONIN THE HIGHER WORLDS

T HE nearer we draw to the limits of our universe inits aspect of pure energy, the more difficult itbecomes to express our ideas and observations asthese become more generalized.

Also, in this domain, it is necessary to be verycircumspect in judging the particular equation of theHigher Being living in the sublimated regions of theuniverse.

In order to form an accurate judgment it isuseful, even indispensable, to have previouslypenetrated into the various strata of the radio-activeether. We then learn how to notice a delicate shadein the surrounding aura of the Higher Beings. How-ever delicate this may be, it is none the less as realas any other general characteristic.

Before going any further with my remarks onthis important subject, I would like you, first of all,to realize the fact that, at this moment, we areanalysing "shades of harmony," and it would besacrilege to say that it is a fault not to find the samecharacteristics in all beings.

Let us, for example, consider the love of Jesus.This Higher Being, worshipped as a god, is the most

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easily accessible of our Brothers. On three differentoccasions have I been able to contact Him in a stratum where His manifestation was possible. Itis quite beyond my powers to describe the manythousands of attractions which emanate from such a presence. No word could depict the sensations ofwell-being, of calm, of peace, and of happinesswhich all blend in one immense attraction. A rushof love-consciousness caught me up, rushed awaywith my whole being, and filled me with a limitlesssense of confidence. It was no longer necessaryfor me to think: judgment was both beyond andbeneath me; I was able to understand and love all atonce, without any veil coming between us, to mar thegreat comprehension and the immense affectionwhich I experienced.

Were I to analyse the dominant characteristics ofsuch a love I would find there sweetness, simplicity,and goodness.

This in no way means that the other Great Beingsare not overflowing with gentleness, goodness, andsimplicity, which are part and parcel of the eternalqualities which we must all acquire. But in theharmony of which the love of Jesus is formed, allthese qualities are "raised" to their highest pitch.

I would like you to keep in mind this characteristicof exaltation, this dominant note among all thequalities of our attractions. This is the only co-efficient, the fundamental note which is retained byall Beings who have arrived at perfection.

Once evolution has come to an end, various waysopen out before the Perfect Being. All possessparticular and general characteristics which inter-penetrate in a reciprocal manner, all in an admirable

UNIVERSAL ATTRACTION AND PERSONAL EQUATION 2 1 3

orderliness which is an essential part of the basicharmony of their principles. In this supremesynthesis we may meet a category of Beings to whomI wish to draw your attention. They are the spiritsof pure love. Instead of being exalted in only oneshade of the harmony their consciousness manages toinclude all the modalities in a perfect equilibrium.The multiple shades of the chains of harmonywhich are opened to the Perfect Being, are dissolvedinto them with a tint hardly different from theeternal principle of life. Their numerical order iscomprised in all the others. They are sufficientlydistinguishable from the universal consciousnessto obviate any mistake being made between them,but their love represents the most general aspect.By analogy, we might compare them to a crystalwhere each Perfect Being would see his own traitsreflected. This pure love with which they areanimated welds together all the attracting shades ofharmony. It gives without counting the cost, andsees itself only in the infinite varieties of harmony,whose eternal spouse this love must always remain.The works of these Supreme Beings arc meant tobe used by all the chains of harmony.

During one of my projections I met a young manon a fairly high plane. We fell into conversationon the subject of self-projection and interplanetaryjourneying. Observing this young man, I wasstruck by the peace, bliss and serenity of his aura.However, there was ore note which dominated allothers: an extraordinary calm allied to a character-istic sweetness. If I were to compare the magneticgentleness of this young man's aura with that of theJesus consciousness, I would note a difference. The


fluidic benevolence of our Eldest Brother is, in someway, more general and universal. That of the youngman in question I would describe as being morevelvety, more tender.

In the same region as the one above I wasapproached by an unknown person. As before, I was projected with a supra-lucid realization of mydouble state. I moved around this person, takingcareful note of the radiations which illuminated himon all sides. I cannot remember his appearance andthe thoughts we exchanged, but I was so attractedby his auric atmosphere that, had it been possible,I would have liked to stay there for ever. My wholebeing responded to this tremendous attraction, intowhich I would have liked to melt my own being.I noticed, however, a limitless devotion whichseemed to be an integral part of this great love. Inthe advanced harmonies which seemed to rise fromthis love I noticed an incredibly high degree ofgoodness. When it came to noting my experience,I could only find one word for my note-book:marvellous!

It is evident that gentleness, calm, serenity, andsimplicity reign in their highest form in such anatmosphere. However, in this richness of the tonesof limitless love I was able to distinguish, by makingcomparisons with my previous experiences, a specialquality of sheer goodness which affected me in a manner quite different from the other cases.

During another experience I found myself walkingabout, on a high plane, with a Being who took on theappearance of a fair-haired young man. We wereexchanging ideas on universal love and specially onthe chain of correspondences. I called him my

UNIVERSAL ATTRACTION AND PERSONAL EQUATION 2 1$

elder brother and embraced him before goingaway from his wonderful atmosphere. His magneticaura had the characteristics which are constant in allthe higher beings. His magnetic emanations,alternatingly growing and diminishing, gave me a sensation of heat and inexpressible well-being, and,when I embraced him, it was as if I were experienc-ing a sense of immense love. It seemed as if I weremelting with him into one unique love.

In this case, again, I was aware of a factor whichwas distinct from those I had already noticed inother Beings. This particular harmony was that ofbrotherly love exalted to an infinite degree.

When we find ourselves among this super-abundant richness of tones and these harmoniousexaltations of the constants of the universalattraction, it is impossible to manifest any sort ofpreference. In analysing these masses of sublimevibrations, we are irresistibly attracted towards allthe different categories, all the varying shades, withan impetus which is characterized by a uniqueabandonment of self. It is the particularly exaltedcharacteristics of our own aura which join up withthe individual equation (the only term which I canapply to beings who cannot be said to havepersonalities in our sense of the word) of the HigherBeings and which allow us to discern their qualities.

The recital of these harmonious syntheses of theattraction which becomes individualized in theHigher Beings can give no true conception of theirintense reality. In order to appreciate them it isnecessary to have lived consciously in the immensefreedom of the super-dimensions of space. Ourlanguage, moreover, does not possess sufficient

2 l 6 PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

qualifying adjectives to express the innumerablevariety of shades which can be observed in theEternal Love.

In order to give you some idea of the manner inwhich we should conceive these abstractions whichsum up the one and only reality of the evolutionarysynthesis, let us assume that you could define thedifferent qualities of the universal attraction pertain-ing to each colour, as well as to their intermediateshades. This process would have to be repeated forthe whole scale of tones and their relationshipcompared with the scale of colours. Then do thesame for all the known wave-lengths—and you willfind yourself no further advanced than before. Allthe whirling, intermingling scales of the universalattraction which can be observed in our universe,only represent one note in the infinite multiplicityof universes which are capable of being formed in thewomb of eternity.

CHAPTER IX

THE SUBLIME CONTACT WITH THE ESSENCEOF UNIVERSAL ENERGY

DESPITE the fact that we are now going to touch onthe borderlines of mysticism I feel that, consider-ing the century in which we are living, it would bewell to define and explain how we can discernexperimentally the fundamental qualities of theuniversal energy. This attractive essence which hasan influence on all the forms of energy which areto be found in the universal matter gives, to the manwho can place his consciousness within its orbit a state of peace which passeth all understanding.

This cosmic consciousness which, for lack of a better expression, we may classify as divine, has noconnection with our conceptions of good andevil.

In the existing disorder of our ideas on this sub-ject, in the unleashing of egotistical passions, andin the social turmoil which is the result, it is usuallyimpossible to obtain sufficient calmness to make a proper judgment of the directive energies of theuniversal life.

Religion, science, and philosophy quarrel aboutextreme qualities, from opposing points of view,without dreaming for a moment that in order to

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obtain a balanced vision a medium must be foundwhich is free from all preconceived ideas.

This is only human. We have all passed throughalternatives of extreme opinions, and we always tendto exaggerate the importance of a personal point ofview.

I have not the space to give a dissertation on thefundamental Trinity of the Unity. I would ratherrefer you to the special works on this subject. Ifyou are really desirous of breaking off all attachmentsto the lower degrees of life, it is essential that youshould begin by habituating your consciousness tothinking mathematically, in terms of figures. Ifyou do this you will, little by little, become aware ofan order of things free from all the usual attributeswhich have been added by the human imagination.A new scheme will unfold itself, from which you will be able to understand the role played by the humanbeing in nature.

I am not of the opinion that ideas and beliefsshould be broken down brutally and suddenly.However great an element of error these may con-tain, they are essentially relative to the character,the temperament, the personality of those who holdthem, and are therefore necessary. Whatever theideal which we wish to attain, it is not enough topreconceive a good state; more important is it togive people the means by which they may reach it.

For example: In the state of society to-day, howare we to ally a moral ideal with the need to live in themidst of a taxation which makes living impossible?It is very difficult. There are cases when it becomesimpossible to differentiate between honesty anddishonesty. However much he may seem like a

THE SUBLIME CONTACT WITH UNIVERSAL ENERGY 2 1 9

good apostle, the moral counsellor dies of indiges-tion, whilst the idealist famishes.

When we reflect, when we think, and when wtreason and meditate on the harmonious fundamen-tals expressed in these pages, we realize that thebalance of our faculties requires that we should notforget that we do have an earthly life. When wecontemplate divine love we should always considerit possible that it should be utilized as a means ofrelieving human suffering.

I would add another piece of good advice. Whenyou find yourself in the midst of an organization,scientific, philosophical, or religious, whose aim isto raise the human race towards some ideal orother, note what part it is willing to play in humansuffering. Ask of such a society what it is doing inorder to alleviate misfortune; what organizationshas it founded in order to bring relief in case ofneed? Then if all such a society can give you tobite on are theories, beware lest such an organiza-tion destroy whatever little material happiness youhave by disorganizing all your hopes.

The man or woman who is able to live in the calmstate which is needed in order to realize an ideal,who is going to be progressively detached from theordinary interests and obligations of life, can obtainresults which are inestimable. The true unionbetween human consciousness and cosmic conscious-ness gives the key to the riddle of Good and Evil.The works of such a person will always be balanced,and show tolerance in accordance with the intrinsicquality of beings and things.

All the opinions, all the beliefs, all the experiencesthrough which the human being learns to evaluate


the constants of life, when they reach the peak ofevolution, melt into a state of supreme, universallove. As we have seen, in this universalized state,each person keeps his or her own personal equation,which permits access to a multiplicity of joys inrelationship with the never-ending multitude ofregenerated Beings.

Unity-multiplicity, such is the seal of theAbsolute, which sanctifies individual perfection.This certainty lies within the reach of every onewho has courage and love, without it being necessaryfor him to weaken this reality by means of imaginaryhypotheses. And, though this is the most simple ofall states, it cannot be described except by using themost complex forms of analysis.

If we consider the general state of Unity-multi-plicity, outside such small variations as are producedby different consciousnesses, the universal attractionthat we generally designate under the name of divinelove represents that quality of "Unity" whichanimates all the shades of attraction of humanindividuality.

With the speed of lightning, the unity of harmonygives us the impression of melting in a love of theworld. As if through thousands of channels we findthat we can feel, think, cogitate, and conceive withan ease which is nothing short of prodigious. Thegentleness, serenity, and calm of this state arewrapped in a peace and fullness of life which isformed from these melted down and unifiedsensations.

If we make a comparison of these characteristicsby means of the earthly consciousness, we notice a particular impulse made up of a blend of confidence


and abandon. Without quite experiencing a feelingof unworthiness, this consciousness becomes preyto a state of deep dissatisfaction, due to the momen-tary clairvoyance in which it sees all it might havedone. All matters of personal interest, all cravingsfor joy, for peace, even for happiness, no longerinterfere with the steady flow of pure consciousness.However noble and disinterested it might be, allambition disappears. The earthly consciousness isnow capable of undertaking the greatest possiblesacrifices in order to balance up the wave of lovewhich it is receiving. In the presence of thisimmense onrush of universal love which saturatesit, the personality of the individual knows andunderstands, without the least doubt, that it willalways be a debtor whatever the efforts it makes. Itis fully conscious of the fact that even the mostextreme sacrifices which it might accomplish, themost intense pains it could endure, would not comeup to the same level as the millionth part of thefundamental qualities of this ocean of harmonyfrom which such benefits are being obtained.

Apart from the personal equation, I do not thinkthat it is possible to analyse the extraordinaryrichness of the harmonious tones which reveal them-selves under the influence of this unity. The veryintensity of the wave of reactive energy which liftsup the consciousness into the ability to express,practically, such an attraction is beyond the range ofmetaphor. We are now outside the limits of ouruniverse and any form of expression serves only toweaken the relationship which I am trying to express.

This super-devotion, this conscious super-sacrificewhich invades the personality of the thinker who is


making contact with his "Unity I ," might be trans-lated as the emission of a wave of joy, fully consciousand infinitely gentle, infinitely happy, infinitelysweet and serene. It would seem as if this wave ofsuper-being meets another wave coming from out-side which penetrates its most intimate atoms.

The fecundation of this personal wave of energyby means of the ocean of cosmic radiations, brings tobirth sensations which are of a delicacy and sweet-ness unimaginable. The contact between thesepersonal and cosmic spheres of energy is at onetime a unity and a multiplicity—a unity through theabsolute synthesis of all the personal elements whichgroup together in a similar abandon towards thecentre, towards the origin of all life and cosmic love.

The multiple element comes in owing to the floodof feeling and awaredness which is brought to birthat the same instant. Once again unity, owing tothe expansive sweetness and bliss which is com-municated to all the atoms of the consciousness.

A multiplicity owing to the wave of creativedesires which it engentlers.

A unity owing to the supreme happiness of beingand feeling ourselves loved with such a divineintensity.

A multiplicity owing to the waves of affection ofvarying shades which flow from us.

From the physiological point of view the humanbody is influenced by this spiritual communion.An infinite sense of sweetness and bliss fills everyfibre. Tears flow naturally. This communion is soessentially sweet and pure that we have the feelingof all the centres of life being merged gently into a deep peace.


In order to make an exact analysis of thiscommunion between the human being and hisorigin, this state should never be evoked by auto-suggestion.

Meditation and contemplation will help us totune in to its vibrations. In its finest state thisunion must occur spontaneously, must be a suddenillumination of the earthly consciousness.

To endeavour to put down all the details of themysterious Flame of such a conjunction is to try toexpress the inexpressible. All the same, it does notseem out of place, during a century when people aresaying so many insignificant things, when so manyabsurdities are written, that someone should expressonce and for all, some tangible, real, and eternaltruths.

The details which have been given at differenttimes by unbalanced minds which wished to dealwith this question of the regeneration of the individ-ual consciousness in the cosmic consciousness,without having themselves made the necessaryefforts, does not prove anything against a truth andreality of which certain proof is obtainable by anyonewilling to make the necessary efforts.

In the spiritual essence which springs forth fromsuch a communion, we become aware of the factthat a union takes place between the source and theoutlet of all forms of universal attraction. Thiscontact gives us the impression of eternal youth,of an eternal splendour in the eternal present of a love without end.

We are made aware of an instantaneous evolution,without beginning or end, in a unity which is thegerm of all past and future evolution.


Whatever may be its range of expansion orcontraction, this immense love remains itself withouteither size or duration. It is the point whose circum-ference is everywhere and whose centre is nowhere.It is the origin of all forms of universal energy, it isthe infinite synthesis of all spiritual potentials, itis the Finite coming into equilibrium with theInfinite in an eternal Present.

C HA PT E R X

THE RATIONAL PRACTICE OF CONTEMPLATION

T H E negative tendencies of experimental sciencegives any charlatan an exceptional power to exploitthe credulity of the public.

It is for these reasons that I insist on the need ofpersonal work if we wish to arrive at any results ofpermanent worth. Start by realizing that magicalpowers have no existence. No one can give you a lasting power unless you have developed it for

I have now made my point of view quite clear.This done I propose giving you the followinghints which may help you both to develop andto control your results. We have already seen(Part I, Chapter XVI) that inspiration is inno way related to the supernatural atmospherewith which it is usually surrounded. It is a method of working which becomes a habit bypractice.

The method of reflection in which we contactthe first rudiments of this faculty is called"meditation."

The rational exercise of meditation must be putinto practice, as I have already pointed out, by the

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concentration of the mind on the essential elementsof any question, as if we were in complete ignoranceof its nature, and seek to find a solution to some-thing quite strange to us. Meditation is not a reverie, a blank gaze lost in the depths of infinity,but the putting into action of a sustained, voluntaryand conscious attention. The logical processesof analysis and synthesis used in this waygive remarkable results. Precision, clarity ofthinking, and common sense are indispensableif we wish to maintain a good balance betweenour faculties and develop them on the higherplanes.

The observations carried out during self-projectionare a great help to the practice of meditation, andallow it to work in a field where its possibilities aregreatly increased.

With the practice of this method of rationalmeditation the consciousness becomes familiar witha new order of vibrations, and the inspiration whichsprings from this becomes, through habit, a normalfaculty.

What we know as contemplation is far less wellunderstood. It is, however, a natural sequel tomeditation. To consider contemplation as beatificadoration, more or less unconscious, is an error forwhich we can easily forgive those who have notmade a study of the subject. Contemplation is nota blind, suggestive repetition of words, desires,feelings, or prayers.

On the contrary, this mental exercise exacts thestrictest training, and one which must always bedefinitely rational. I repeat: the more we drawnear to the initial relationship which exists in the

THE RATIONAL PRACTICE OF CONTEMPLATION 2 2 7

system of Cause and Effect in which we areliving and evolving, the more imagination mustgive way to a far more concentrated form ofreasoning, to a more unshakable will, to a greaterself-mastery.

Whilst it is within the reach of all to create animaginary heaven and to endow it with all theattributes we may wish, it is necessary, on the otherhand, to be an Initiate; that is to say, absolutemaster of meditation and of self-projection in thehigher planes, in order that consciousness may beable to appreciate the constants of harmony in theirtrue simplicity.

The practice of contemplation must not bean intellectual reverie, but the continuation andstabilization of the exercises of meditation,and the fixation of the ideas obtained byinspiration.

This complementary exercise is usually practisedlying down on a comfortable couch, in a state ofrelaxation, which produces a stillness, and a removalof all nervous tension. The next step is to make a clear, lucid and absolutely conscious exposition ofthe motives which inspire you, and the reasonswhich induce you to love a principle whose keynoteis harmony.

We start off by considering a cause which will bring about effects of which we are aware. Thescale of these causes is very extensive. It beginswith the general effects which we are used toobserving, rising progressively until it reaches thedirective principles of evolution.

Now it will be quite easy for you to realize thatthere is nothing mysterious in the practice of


contemplation. Its aim is to fix in the consciousnessthe impulses and states which it has reached. Itwould be an exaggeration to make it into the basisfor a mystical system. All the criticisms which areaimed at contemplation only serve to show the lack oforganization in methods of psychic development.When alternated with the practice of meditation,contemplation allows the individuality to becomefully aware of what it is doing. Never must it beallowed to lapse into sentimental day-dreaming, forthe mere pleasure of experiencing new sensations.This practice should keep the attention fixed on thelaws of the universe, then on the directing principlesof evolution. In this way it opens out canals for theenergy of the higher worlds. It accelerates tre-mendously the results of meditation, and opens theway to inspiration.

To sum up, remember that the practice of contem-plation requires as its basis: The consciousness ofthe effect whose cause is being contemplated, theconsciousness of the cause whose basic principleis being contemplated, the consciousness ofthe principle whose spiritual essence is beingcontemplated.

As the higher consciousness rises into thishierarchy the reaction develops in the lower con-sciousness a stability, a fixity of purpose, and a calmwhich makes it independent of the results of itsactions. Eventually this road ends in the bringingtogether of the individual and the universal bya meeting between these two systems of energy.Infinite smallness now unites itself with infinitegreatness. The regenerated human being becomesconscious of the immense solidity which ties him,

THE RATIONAL PRACTICE OF CONTEMPLATION 2 2 9

on one side to the vibrant unity to which he oweshis life, and on the other to the multiplicitythrough which this energy expresses itself. Thisoccurrence is the opportunity for man to realizemany different forms of bliss.

PART III

CONCLUSIONS

CH APT ER I

THE CERTAINTY OF DELIVERANCE FROM EVIL

T is only when we stand face to face with actualexperience, the reality of which takes possession

of the whole being, reducing his previous beliefsto nothing, that we realize the hardihood ofthose pioneers of humanity who came to thesesame conclusions by undergoing the same ex-periences.

Formerly the dogma of survival has been imposedupon the masses; but to prove this truth by strikingexperiments, is, I feel, the finest method of con-vincing the multitude.

Unfortunately human consciousness does notevolve by faith alone, but needs especially thedevelopment of its intellectual and moral faculties.To impose dogmatic beliefs is to sow the seeds ofdiscord and of fratricidal wars.

Scientific progress has rendered real services tothese studies. In spreading the knowledge ofthe universal law of Cause and Effect whichrules phenomenal existence, it has done moretowards helping human relationships and makingpeople more tolerant, than all the philosophicdissertations.

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As we know that the same causes bring about thesame effects, if we put them into action in thesame circumstances, opinions and beliefs mustchange in value. "Either we know or we do notknow." In the latter case it is wiser to keep silentunless we wish to give others the opportunityof making ironic remarks which are fairly wellfounded.

After all, why should we repeat obstinately, likeparrots, ideas which we have adopted by chance,coincidence, instinctive affinity or hereditary sug-gestion?

Scientific philosophers are working on a soundbasis when they maintain that we are unconsciouslyinfluenced by associations of ideas provoked bycustom, environment, education, heredity, thehistorical past, and so on.

Everything, or almost everything, has been saidabout the majority of questions upon which webuild up our theories. Many of the ideas which areconsidered as new, are nothing but whited sepulchres.In order to escape from routine and prejudice inorder to have individualized, original ideas, it isnecessary to form the habit of reasoning andthinking. It is excellent training to meditate on thelaws of life and to draw from these conclusionswhich are in agreement with the order of nature;providing we do not allow ourselves to be influencedby academic doctrines which are often a hindranceto freedom of judgment.

In order to bring back some balance into thedisarray of our modern theories, a new fact wasneeded. This fact, like every other, must submitof the law of Cause and Effect. Furthermore,

THE CERTAINTY OF DELIVERANCE FROM EVIL I^S

everyone must be capable of proving this fact bythe same experiments repeated in equivalentcircumstances.

It is from this standpoint that I have analysedsome of the characteristics of conscious self-projection. To separate ourselves into two distinctparts, one of which will be standing a few yardsaway from the other, which lies inert but living, tohave full mastery over our conscious and sensoryfaculties, is an all-embracing certainty. It is also a source of new ideas. It is a mine of knowledge. Itis the starting-point of a greater, wider and morecomplete life. It is the end of all our sorrows,of all worry concerning the painful enigma ofsurvival.

At any rate, now that we know, we can commenceto live in a real sense of the word. Up to the presentyou have probably, like the majority of humanity,been tossed from shore to shore of the river ofdoubt by the opinions and beliefs, sometimes satisfied,sometimes deceived, passing through alternationsof joy and despair. What pain, what suffering,have we not been forced to endure owing to thisfatal ignorance concerning the fact of survival!What fears have been born of this same ignorance!Beneath the vainglorious domination of the powersthat be, man has been forced to bow his tremblingframe beneath the perpetual menace of vengefuldeities. At each step, fathomless pits have openedbeneath his feet. Every day it has seemed asif that great arsenal known as "rights and duties" took on greater importance. Confusionand anxiety are the inevitable end of such anunstable morality.


Is it true that all that has now disappeared? Whatis the benevolent energy whose magic wand willallow us to make a clean sweep of all these mis-fortunes?

Despite everything, we must admit that these newideas may inspire fear when first we contemplatethem. Will they not be blown away by the firstbreath of rational thinking? Misled, deceived,buffeted by fate, ridiculed for so many centuries,can we be sure that this is not anything but a mirage? The torrent of hope which rises from thedepths of our consciousness no longer dares tomanifest. It is difficult for anyone to put aside themask of scepticism when faced by popular irony.How dare we admit this great hope which we senseis being born within us?

This intuition which grips us, this urgeof our innermost self, is it no more than a neurosis? Who can tell where mental disorderbegins?

It is therefore with circumspection that, timidlyat first, we begin to change the normal course of ourlife in favour of one which is possible outside thelimits of our earthly system. Yet, little by little, webegin to become familiar with it. The radiantatmosphere which is brought about by the practicalmanifestation of these ideas is so sweet that onewould be a fool to neglect it. We fall into the habitof living this new life. The anxieties of life becomeannihilated before the light which begins to mani-fest within us. Soon wc find that we are no moreso interested in ordinary material pleasures. Fardeeper forms of satisfaction are born within us.

THE CERTAINTY OF DELIVERANCE FROM EVIL 2 3 7

Life is no longer a quicksand. Every day we findthat we are treading with a firmer step. Soon ourknowledge will form a rock upon which we shallbuild the basis of an immortality which shallconquer space.

CHAPTER II

THE CERTAINTY OF A LASTING HAPPINESS

WHE N we consider the period of time during whichhumanity has been forced to live in an agony ofdoubt, the conscious certainty of being able to createa happiness which will last, irrespective of thepassing phases of life, is a priceless boon.

The word "happiness" is one which bearsinnumerable meanings. Every one has a differentinterpretation of it, and quite rightly. Why shouldanyone impose a certain definite form of happinesson another? The happiness experienced fromhaving eaten when hungry is as respectable as thatof having discovered a new scientific law. Thereare joys, great and small, ephemeral and eternal,illusory and real. There are the joys whichneutralize, and joys which complete one another. Isthat a reason why we should exalt some at the cost ofothers? I do not think so. Each one of us mustfind out, by experience, the happiness which suitshim. I submit that it is by becoming aware of theephemeral nature of the happiness of the senses, andthe joys of material life, that the sage identifies him-self with the fundamental principles of the universallife.

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THE CERTAINTY OF A LASTING HAPPINESS 2 3 9

We should remember that a period of apprentice-ship exists in all things. That of life is variable.Earnest and over-conscientious natures will want todrain the cup of bitterness to its dregs. Soft anddocile natures will try to avoid pain by every means.The reasonable and conscientious being who alwaysseeks logical and experimental truth, will neitherwish for an intensification nor diminution of hissuffering, but rather will profit by whateverexperience falls to his lot, and deal with lifeaccordingly.

It is this category of thinkers that I have inmind when writing of happiness which will lasteternally.

All the expressions which we can use in order todefine happiness are of value only in relation toexperience. If we bring into action our newexperimental knowledge, happiness is seen to be thenormal state of balance of all beings, whatever theirdegree of evolution.

Every being who follows his natural tendenciescannot be held responsible for a state of affairs whichhe did not create. The savage who eats his parentsin order to honour them with a tomb, cannot besubject to the same kinds of suffering whichwould grip the conscience of a more developedbeing.

Good and evil develop in accordance with theexpansion of consciousness. What we loosely termgood simply sums up the characteristics of a normaldevelopment. Evil is a lack of balance, a disorderwhich exists between the progress of individualfaculties and their application.

It is of no avail to discuss the relative value of the

2 4 ° PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

happiness of two beings, one of whom is placed atthe highest rung of the evolutionary ladder andthe other on the lowest. All we can say isthat as soon as there is a balance between thequalities of our being and their application there isPeace.

Pain and suffering are born of discord. Thisbecomes clear in the lives of disincarnate beingsliving in the nether world. Every one is happy solong as he is not aware of a more developed state.Immediately light is cast upon the substance inwhich they are living, a comparison is established.Suffering is born. As long as these disincarnatebeings have not broken the fetters which hold themprisoners in the lower worlds, their remorse willbecome greater as they consider their pastmisdeeds.

The pain of not being able to satisfy a life whichis wider, more complete, more in agreement withour real selves, gives ample proof of its necessity.All the expressions by means of which we idealizeour intuitive desires are only of value in relation tothe state of consciousness with which they corres-pond. It is useless to try to give some one sensationsand impressions which are the fruit of a state ofconsciousness which he has never experienced.Logic and reason require that we give the conscious-ness a means of realizing a higher degree of under-standing in the hierarchy of causes and principles,in order that it may experience the correspondinghappiness.

By means of experience, which is the product ofexperiment, it becomes easy to see the influence

THE CERTAINTY OF A LASTING HAPPINESS 2 4 I

wielded by collective ideas on the development ofhappiness. All procedures whose aim lies in dog-matizing ideas, feelings or facts, upon a pre-established order of things, hinder the growth ofhappiness.

All those organizations which have as theiraim the establishment of a lasting peace, ofa greater social balance, of a more rationalorganization, must tend towards greater freedomof thought.

In giving to all the necessary instruction forforming a free judgment, more is done for the happi-ness of a people than by nourishing them on dogmasand paradoxes.

There is an enormous difference between a freejudgment, and one that is false. The former bringsabout repercussions on its author which he willhimself rectify when he understands the painfulreaction. The latter brings about a crystallization,a general inability to put into action the necessaryefforts to establish a balance more in agreementwith our mental evolution.

It is thus quite useless to discuss the priority ofany procedure, or special method of finding happi-ness. All those means which start by calling onlogical reasoning are good, so long as we do notbecome obstinate over ideas which we do notunderstand.

The method of meditation, or reflection, whichsplits up ideas into their elementary principles, inorder to reconstruct them, is one of the most effica-cious means for everybody.

The Higher Life possesses some elements whose


certainty lies beyond all doubt. Evolution is theeasiest possible idea to conceive. It is a naturalsequence in the development of the consciousness,towards which we are led by an observation of thefacts of our daily life.

CH APT ER III

THE CERTAINTY OF RESULTS FOLLOWING ONPERSONAL EFFORTS

WH E N we examine the life of the people around uswe note the poverty of effort directed towards self-perfection. The majority of people allow themselvesto be guided by their appetites, and by the ties ofspecific and general events in the social life. Fewdare to try to swim upstream in order to create fortheir personal use circumstances more in accordwith a better life.

The conditions of life in the invisible teach usthat nature is a great store-house of energy intowhich the human being has but to delve in order tobring to light faculties well beyond the ordinarydevelopment.

So long as the individual does not take himself inhand he is a slave to the particular and generalreactions of the events in which he is living. Thelaw of equilibrium is not concerned withsuffering. Under a multitude of forms each onecan discover the qualities which he must develop inorder to master those conditions which are unfavour-able to his existence.

The first principle of this organization, of thispersonal reform, is "confidence." Whatever may

*43


be the difficulties of life we must never lose courageand must keep an unshakable confidence in its laws.We must realize that harmony, equilibrium andorder compose the universe even to its most minutefractions. If, in our personal life, we put the sameelements into action, we must inevitably arrive atresults which are more in conformity with ourdesires.

As moral suffering is the result of a lack ofbalance between our desires, our thoughts, ourfeelings and our social obligations, all we haveto do in order to make it disappear is to organizeand bring into line our affections and tendencies.Following upon the same way of thinking thephysiological organism has to undergo a moresevere discipline and therefore disease cannotovercome us so easily.

The second principle of a harmonious life is"goodwill." Now that we have firmly establishedin ourselves confidence in the laws of life, we have noreason for wishing ill to those who are less advancedthan we. Let us leave it to quarrelsome, argumen-tative and suspicious minds to create their owncomplications in life. After all they are working forthemselves. So far as egotism, pride and vanity areconcerned, these faults are so widespread that itwould be in vain to try to eliminate them from oursurroundings. Goodwill shields us from eviltc igues, protects us from envy, gives us strengthto bear with the thousands of faults which we seearound us.

The third condition of success is to think unceas-ingly of the results to be obtained. Man is essen-tially a thinking being. The association between

CERTAINTY OF RESULTS ON PERSONAL EFFORTS 2 4 5

those images which we call ideas, has no limits. Sosoon as we step across the successive dimensions ofthe plane in which we live, these ideas become unifiedwith the very principle of energy whose realizedforms they represent.

In order to obtain powerful results, thoughts ofgoodwill must be guided. Thought is a force whichhas to be directed consciously, with good sense andlogic. It would be a mistake to think that it isnecessary to lead a special kind of life in order toobtain results.

The ancient initiations, occult tests, and magicalspells, were all adapted to states of consciousnesswhich could not have developed by any othermeans. The most trivial facts in our lives can serveas rungs in the development of our powers andfaculties. In his own particular sphere of actioneach one of us can progress as easily as in thetemples of Memphis. All that is needed is to con-centrate on one purpose the entire sum of one'sthoughts and desires. In the case with which weare concerned, this purpose must be that of progressand evolution. We must consider all events,whether good or evil, as lessons from which to drawuseful conclusions concerning the path we aretreading.

If our social condition does not help us with thework we wish to accomplish, let us be patient andseek to achieve the best we may. Inevitably thingswill improve. We may have difficulties in our familyor social surroundings; never mind, let us standfirm in our goodwill. A few appropriate hometruths will eliminate the greater, or lesser, asses whoare circulating around us. Human stupidity is a

2 4 6 RPACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

mine of "awful examples" which we shall learn touse for our own improvement.

The habit of seeing the smallest details of life as a means of drawing deductions useful to our develop-ment, brings out qualities of observation which will increase, and bring about the birth of new faculties.It is for each to use the faculties in the mannerwhich best suits him. Whatever they may be, nowand always they lead to the same goal of perfection.

There is a very simple way of finding out if weare taking the wrong road. We have seen thatattraction is the universal principle which bringshuman and cosmic energy together. Multiple inthe lower strata of the universal substance, all formsof attraction unite in the higher states to become a concurrent Unity-Multiplicity functioning in thePerfect Being.

If this work of reorganization has been carriedout well, we shall become aware of an attraction ofthe Being drawing all things towards a collectivegood. This attractive tendency is surrounded byan aura of quietness and peace. As it develops andstrengthens, the personal interest is transformed intoa joyous interest, then into love of the directinginfluences of the Good, the Beautiful, and True.This goes on until the human being becomes con-sciously identified with a universal love whichincludes all beings and all things.

CHAPTE R IV

CONCERNING CERTAINTIES AND PROBABILITIES

I have done my best to avoid the use ofambiguous terms, it is far from an easy task to givean exact definition of the forces functioning inthe universe. Nevertheless, it is of use to schematizetheir action, generally, in order to prepare the con-sciousness for their experimental realization.

If we visualize the mechanism of this organization,we can say that self-projection opens the door forstrict experimentation in a new field of activity.

With its aid all metaphysical phenomena may bestudied scientifically. The transformation of ener-gies may be directly controlled. All the manifesta-tions of the living and the dead become new subjectsfor inquiry. All forms, all modes of thought maybe studied, as it were, on the spot.

For this purpose three operators are needed.The first is the one who projects himself from thephysical body, in order to decide on and prepare forvarious physical or psychical experiments. Thesecond operator mesmerizes a subject who is chargedwith passing on useful comments and observations.

This direct control in the dimensions where thephenomena occur will prove of great service. Thecomposition of the atom, the constitution of the

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various bodies, the inter-blending and disintegrationof the grains of energy, are all going to open out newvistas on the origin of the universal substance.

These analyses will allow us to go far moreintimately into the mysteries of life. The action ofdifferent medicines, studied from this point of view,gives precious information with regard to the healingof disease. The Elixir of life, the Philosopher'sStone, will now become realities. The principle ofself-projection is within the range of science. Inthe present work I stress the need for a psycho-logical and moral development because I foresee thepossibility that the student will be able to penetrateinto other worlds, and wish him to do this with theleast inconvenience. Apart from that, to use a newkind of energy without any moral developmentwould increase disorder and prove dangerous to allconcerned. But, from the phenomenal point ofview, there is no doubt that the physiologicalmechanism of self-projection can be brought downto a scientific technique. In this case, so long as heknows all the needs of his own particular tempera-ment, there is no reason why anyone should not beable to project himself.

Thus we can well imagine, in the future, anadept ordering his patient or pupil a special regimenin order to modify his radio-active potential. Thislatter will only have to place himself in a roomionized by colours, perfumes and radiations suitableto a favourable atmosphere for automatic self-projection.

There is no doubt concerning the part of self-projection. It is manifest to the most sceptical. Tosuppose that I have been able to imagine all the

CONCERNING CERTAINTIES AND PROBABILITIES 2 4 9

details of the experiences I have related would be toendow me with qualities far more perfect than thoseneeded in order to project the astral body.

A second certainty is impressed on all who comeinto touch with the invisible worlds. It is the cer-tainty of the evolution of consciousness, with whichis associated the highest imaginable bliss. Thiscertainly includes all others. It is therefore of para-mount importance that it should be acquired. Stepby step I have myself experienced its many varia-tions. I have explored tentatively and gropinglythe successive states of consciousness one after theother, and have come, finally, to a total immersionin Cosmic Consciousness.

I can therefore fearlessly affirm that evolution isthe general law of every living being. I havealready cited certain characteristics observed on thespot: infinite bliss, absolute freedom and well-being. Perfect love, at once individual anduniversal. Unity of consciousness; multiplicity ofpowers. From these truths come many others.For instance: that death is an illusion. Thesupremacy of Good, of Order, in all degrees ofevolution. The certainty of immortality in aneternal present. The non-existence of time andspace; and many more which it would be puerile toenumerate.

Then what is now left for us to know? Perhapsdetails concerning weight and measurement. Theintimate nature of energy and substance. Wecould also draw lines of demarcation between thedifferent states of space, their number, their 6ize,their possibilities, the means of interpenetration. Wemight also study the nature of the projected double

25O PRACTICAL ASTRAL PROJECTION

and of consciousness. These are all questions aboutwhich we have little data. But these are of secondaryimportance since we have the means of studyingthem.

I think that in all things it is the result which mustbe considered. The essential need is not to argueto infinity, but rather to understand the relationshipswhich unite us to nature, to the laws of life, ofequilibrium, of the fundamental principles of theuniversal order. Definitions are only of value inrelation to our understanding of these correspon-dences. Once the individuality has attained fullconsciousness, of what import is the relativity ofwords! It knows quite well that it can reproducethe same phenomena, at any moment, by bringinginto play the laws and relations of which it isconscious.

All questions of certainty rest on a progressiveawaredness of Fundamental Causes and Principles.So far as definitions are concerned, these are infinite,as they are adapted to the degree of evolution whicha being may have attained.

Let us take an example. The certainty of myobservations in the different degrees of the etherallows me to visualize the schematic constitution ofthe universe, without having a thorough knowledgeof the intimate nature of the universal substance.Whatever hypotheses I may form, the whole remainstrue, because I would always try to adapt myearthly knowledge to the process that I haveobserved.

In order to fix our ideas, let us consider a virginsubstance, an impalpable ether, whose grains ofenergy are in an indifferent equilibrium, outside all


forms of pressure going in any direction. Whetherthe atoms are separated by one metre or one kilo-metre, it is of no consequence. This is infinity, inwhich time and space do not exist.

Let us suppose that, by the power of thought, I produce a pressure. Whatever may be the directionof this attraction I immediately create a limitation.The intensity of the centripetal force will be propor-tionate to my act, which will have determined theidea of duration, of space, and of matter. As soonas I refrain from action, the atoms, returning totheir normal state, bring about the idea of a centri-fugal force. The material aspect is now transformedand is replaced by quality: force.

Again, we can imagine a pendulum which pushesback the universal substance to a maximum point ofcompression and returns to its point of departureminus a fraction of interest. Let an impulse returnthis interest (used by the resistance of the surround-ing atmosphere) each time, and the scientific notionson potential energy and the energy of movement areenough to maintain the stability of the universe. Asto the relationship existing between the point of sus-pension and the extremity of the pendulum this willrepresent the constant relationship between thatwhich is absolute and that which is relative. What-ever may be the size of a circle, or a sphere, every oneknows that the relationship between circumferenceand diameter is invariable.

The conceptions of equilibrium at each point ofspace can also be worked out easily in a schematicway. Let us assume that the quantity of substancein a universe be equal to one hundred units. Wecould consider the extremity known as crude matter


as being made up of ninety-nine parts of crudematter and one part of pure energy. Reciprocally,we shall have ninety-nine parts of pure energy andone part of crude matter at the opposite extremity.Now, in all the fractions of this imaginary universewe shall always have one hundred units with a variable proportion in the aspects pure energy andcrude matter. From which we have our conceptionsof constant equilibrium and of the transformation ofenergy.

In whatever degree these hypotheses may beillusory, I shall always finish up at the essentialpoints of experience.

(I) One substance, eternal, manifesting underthe aspects of matter and force.

(2) A constant equilibrium on every plane.(3) An energy pressing the atoms towards a

centre: crude matter.(4) Complete absence of pressure: pure force.(5) The possibility for the human soul to pene-

trate into each of these states of the universal sub-stance—that which seems heavy and dark, being thecrude matter aspect, and I:hat which seems light andluminous being the pure energy aspect.

(6) Lastly, a unity of conscious sensations, whichconsiders the crude matter aspect as an imprison-ment of all the faculties with a minimum of satis-faction, and the pure energy aspect as an absolutefreedom of action with a maximum of satisfaction.

Do not trouble too much about the definitionswhich are given in course of this book. Rather try toseize hold of the relationships which are bornfrom them. At each step you take in this pathyou will understand better why and in what way


consciousness is a unity of life capable of expressingitself in a multiplicity of forms.

Do not worry whether humanity will follow youin your deductions. These studies have this aboutthem, that in working for yourself you will open a new field of experience for others. You thereforecontribute your share in giving a little more peaceto the world. Let every one do as much andevolution will no longer be a mere word.

THE END

Documents

Yram Practical Astral Projection 1926