Ani

from The Blossoming of the Human Soul THE GREAT LAW “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27 People of today are trying to handle most of the fundamental issues, but did not take time off to establish which of them are of higher priority to be resolved, which fundamental task is the most important to resolve. Therefore, this topic is quite controversial. The most important for them at present is the economic problem and nourishment in particular. It is alright, but I ask, if the problem of food shortage, existing for thousands of years, has ever been fully resolved. It has been resolved only temporarily and partially. In reality, it remains without solution. Others say that the most important problem for them is education and knowledge. Truly, for thousands of years, people have been learning and seeking knowledge, but have they ever really attained it? It also remains unsolved. Still others are interested in the issue of security. They say that to be strong and mighty, the country should maintain a powerful army capable of withstanding the enemies. That is true. But which country, through its military forces, has answered the question of existence? Give me an example of a country, which has maintained its power for at least two or three thousand years. All big empires existing so far have reached their zenith and after that declined. Therefore, there is one really essential issue in the world, which has remained unresolved so far. It is not national, social, or scholarly. Nations always have different imperious issues. Social activists face a number of problems requiring their attention. Likewise, learned people have a plenty of questions to deal with. However, the most important issue that humankind needs to consider is the human soul, or, if you prefer, the human spirit. It is not the human mind because a person is more than just a brain. The human mind is only an attendant to the human spirit; the same is true for the human heart and willpower. The humankind is something great by its origin and nature. If you truly understand someone and believe in him, not in his outer manifestations, then you will know the greatness of the human being. Would you call the merchant who is selling you faulty clothes a good person? Would you call the professor at school who at times demeans you a good person? Would you call the mother who has deliberately neglected her child a true human being? Would you call the father who is taking advantage of his son a true human being? Would you call the statesman who issues senseless laws a true human being? It is necessary to define the notion of “human being.” It is said that the human being implies a thinking being. No, it is much more than that. The Great in the world is beyond any words. The most important subject for the learned people all over the world is the Sublime Conscious Life. You may say that it is created through the supply of light, warmth, food, clothing, and so on. However, that life, which comes as a result of the sustenance of warmth, is not a true life; it is only a certain energy requiring maintenance. The True Life gives birth to everything by itself. When we embrace it, it brings light and warmth, food and clothing within itself. Life is something really mighty when properly understood. You will ask, “Yes, but what do scholars say about Life?” Scholars should forgive me, but they have not yet discovered the true meaning of Life. I will tell them: Come to resurrect the deceased. Can they heal the ill? What do they know about them? Nothing. Today, the ill die with or without the physicians’ aid; so, what is the use of such doctors? With teachers, people die and without them, they die too; even those who are educated steal, just like the uneducated. With teachers, people slander and without teachers, they slander too. Even with the preaching of clergymen, people steal and without their preaching, they steal too. When they are ruled by statesmen, they steal and when they are not ruled by statesmen, they steal too. What then has humankind contributed to the world? Someone will say that law and order are necessary, but what do law and order include? Even the most malevolent people institute their own laws and order whenever they form an association. In the animal world ants display law and order, bees have their own law and order as well. If you find yourself near a beehive, you will run as quickly as possible. Why? It is because of the law and order reigning there. Bees use their stingers as “machine guns.” You tell me, “The most important problem for us to solve is that of life.” You conclude, “A person dies and that ends all.” I agree with you that people die, but have you answered the question of death? In fact, death shows that people have not resolved the essential issue of Life. They have not yet attained true Life. Let’s concentrate on the verse, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” Why? It is because Love is the source and origin of the Great Life we have been discussing. Some may ask what Love is. Love is the source of that Life, which brings everything with it: Light and Warmth, food and clothes, life-force and all needed. This is how Life can be recognized through experience. For all those who have resolved the problem of Life in this way, it is written in the Scriptures, “And this is eternal Life, that they may know You, the only true God.”[1] We understand by “God” not an external being to whom people bow but rather the Source of Life, the Infinite that can manifest Itself within us, who are finite. It shows that the Infinite can manifest Itself in the finite. Therefore, we, the people of this world manifesting Infinity, represent a great issue even now: how it is that in the finite forms the Eternal life is revealed. For this to happen, we should have knowledge and wisdom to create harmonious relationships among all people. All should know the purpose of their coming to Earth. If you are to answer, perhaps you will lift your chin and say, “It is not so important.” How strange you are! If you ask me why I have come to Earth, I will tell you. If you ask some little children in the first grade why they go to school, the answer will be, “To learn.” These children will take out their primer. “Who is your teacher?” They know. “Who is your father, your mother?” They know again. And when you ask them about their parents, you get an immediate reply. These children know everything. But if someone asks you the same questions, you will say, “I do not know.” You have come to Earth. What will you learn here now? “I do not know.” Once you complete your earthly life, where will you go? “I will go to the World beyond.” It is not only you in this situation; it is the same with the philosophers. For thousands of years, their discourses have deliberated on those subjects: Is there God or not; is there soul or not? Finally, some of them conclude, “There is no God, no soul.” They answer all questions with ease. The drunkards too, when they are inebriated, get into fistfights with each other and, apparently, that is the end of the matter. No, nothing is finished this way. The next evening, they do the same: get drunk, fight, and that is all. The third evening - the same again. I say that they are done for this evening, but not for tomorrow. You say of someone who has died, “He is gone, he died.” Yes, he is gone, but only temporarily, not forever. Nothing in Nature has been lost forever. You ask, “Where has this person gone?” Yet I would ask whence he had come. For whence he came, there he returned. Such is the Law: Everything always returns to its source. All, no matter intelligent or not - always return to God. We refer to this Intelligent Source, which is endless and infinite, as the “Law of Love.” Nowadays, all recognize that there is a dispute about the essence of Life. I say that there is no dispute. Why? It is because the attributes of Life are: Intelligence, Light, Warmth, and some others. Should there be any dispute about Life under these conditions? As long as disputes exist, life is not judicious. All people have the same notion and desire of Life. All people acknowledge Love and desire it, but when? When they are young, they acknowledge Love; when they become old, they deny it. Love has this feature: when you grow to love something or someone, they become valuable to you. Why? It is because you can prize only those objects, which have Life in them. And everything that is life-bearing becomes precious. When you love it, you take care of it and protect it. You write letters and say only pleasantries to your beloved friend; but if somehow your love is transformed into dislike, you forget about this person. What, then, is Love? Love is a power that expands you and offers you incentive. Some say that when someone falls in love, that person has no desire to study anymore. That is not true. Love adds an incentive to the pursuit of knowledge. A person whose heart is inflamed learns and applies. Some others say that Love makes people absent-minded. What makes people absent-minded is not Love, just as Love is not what makes the wolf eat a sheep. When a person is in love with someone’s money and wants to steal it, this is not Love. When a person falls in love with someone’s farm and wants to take it, that is not Love either. Love has this attribute: It makes you not only value things, but also gives expansion to your heart and thus you become generous. The purse of that one who truly loves is always open. That person is like an ever-flowing spring, and not like a barrel of wine, as to always count up the outlay and remainder. The person of Love resembles a fountain that continuously streams, but is never depleted. Therefore, if your goodwill unceasingly flows as a wellspring, Love has come to you. If you can see the good features in every person; if you can see the meaning of all things, in this case, when you raise your eyes to Heaven, you are on the threshold of that Great Divine Life and Love has come into you! I am speaking to you of that Great Science, which foundations are within. You have experienced Life many times before; I believe that is true. Whether you admit it or not - it is a different question. You have come to this planet many times before, in many different forms; whether you remember it or not, whether you admit it or not; it is written in the records of Nature. What you believe is not important. The important thing is what is written by Nature. You may object, “We do not remember.” Neither does a person who has become intoxicated remember whatsoever. But the bartender remembers everything and has taken note of it in his book. He recorded that on a certain date, you drank a certain amount of wine and brandy with this and that person. You declare now that you do not remember. Nevertheless, he calls you before the court and the judge says, “You must pay.” “But I do not remember anything.” Remember it or not, you must pay! Similarly, Nature has a great Book in which everything is recorded. Why do you not admit your deeds, why do you not remember them? Because then you would need to pay the bartender. Those who remember are those creditors who have something to take and those who do not remember are the debtors who need to pay back. God sent human beings many times to Earth and many times did they return to Him. So it is written in the Book of Nature. Your beliefs and convictions are your own business because all are free to have their own ideas. It is not important whether we believe in something or not. What is essential for us is rather the question of Love. We consider it the most important question. We do not discuss who will come into power in Bulgaria, who is the richest person in the world, or who is the most learned scholar. Why? It is because these are questions that even children can answer. We seek to explain the most important issue: Life and its fundamental principles. If you want to live and make your life meaningful; if you want it to be better, we are going to show you the way. We tell you, “Embrace Love!” I ask: Which love, of the young or of old people? None of them. Why not? It is because both young and old are unfaithful. Young people desert their love by marrying someone else, while old people betray others by departing from the Earth without paying their debts. We say about someone, “God rest his soul - he was old!” He had promised to get married, yet he died. He should not have died. That one who makes a promise should not die. He must fulfill his promise first and after that he can die. If he has promised something but dies before fulfilling it, it is an indication that he had some hidden motive. You can excuse him, but we cannot. In the Law of Love every good thought, every noble feeling or desire shall be fulfilled regardless of whom it may concern: mother, father, or child. The Law applies to all. We need to show the world that we are bearers of the Great Life of God and as He lives within ourselves, we should live like Him. Why do people deny God? It is because they are His debtors. Why do people believe in God and accept Him? It is because they want to take from Him. I assert that both the people who believe in God and those who deny Him do this for their personal interest. We, however, have a different idea about God. We want to serve Him because we are aware that we have received everything from Him. We do not go to God to benefit from Him; we do not deny that we are His debtors either, but we recognize the Great Wisdom that exists in the Universe and awaits us in the future. What is the scope of modern science? Many things are known. But knowledge of the great philosophers and scholars of today will be known even by children two thousand years from now. At that time, children will be more learned than our contemporary philosophers and scientists. I ask about the role of our science then. This is not a reproach; I only mean that the true human being has not yet revealed itself. When I come to see you at home and you meet me with resentment, do you think that you reveal true humanity? You forthrightly ask me, “What do you want?” I respond, “Please, do you have bed for tonight?” You reply, “No, I do not.” Or you give another reason, “My wife and children are not at home.” You may also respond that there is no bed for me, but there is a hotel nearby, where I can go and so on. I ask: Is this the true human being? But if I tell you that I am ready to give you one hundred thousand leva in cash, you will certainly find a place for me. Your wife and children will immediately squeeze together somewhere in order to free a bed for me. More than that, you will even slaughter a lamb. Why? For one hundred thousand leva in cash. Where, then, is your compassion and nobleness? You are looking at me now, asking yourself, “Does he say the truth?” I wonder who of you has acted observing God’s Will. This is the first question you should answer. You, who are listening to me, have you answered this question? When all people, in all towns and villages, come to live according to God’s Will, there will be no capital punishment and prisons, as everyone will reside in their appropriate place. Then all homes will stay open and when someone meets you, he will say, “Brother, it so nice to see you; come to my home, I have been expecting you for so long!” And you will begin talking. You will comment, “Well, where is this leading?” You surprise me! When I enter your home, I am not going to ruin it; I will rather bring my blessings. One of the great ancient adepts, a Jewish prophet who lived somewhere in Palestine, embarked on a long journey. One evening, while looking for a place to stay during the night, he stopped at the house of a very poor man. He implored the man, “Man of God, can I spend the night with you?” “Oh, gladly,” replied the man, “my home and all I have is at your disposal, but I do not have even a crumb of bread to offer you.” The prophet begged, “Have a look, please; see if you could find even the smallest morsel.” The man searched thoroughly; at last he found a very small piece of bread. The prophet took it and blessed it: at once a large loaf of bread appeared on the table. “Wake up your children, let them come and eat with us as well.” Those who live by God’s Will bring their blessings whenever they enter some home. You may disagree with me on this subject, but that is the Truth in the world. If this adept has entered the world, bringing a grain of wheat with him, he could say to you, “Take this grain of wheat. It will solve the economical problem of bread shortage.” You may ask, “How long will it take?” “Twelve years.” You will not eat it, but will sow it in a fertile soil. In twelve years you will get such an abundant harvest of crop that not only you, but also all your relatives and friends can eat from it. Do you know what the weight of this grain of wheat would be? As that of the whole Earth. Therefore, even the smallest particle of Life contains enormous energy. If we live in accordance with the Law of God, the Law of Love, this power can unfold and be manifested. In modern society people who do not understand Life say that they need money. In fact, the amount of money has increased, but food has decreased. As a result of the human greed, the organism of humankind is diseased. Currently, we have everything in abundance, but we are not able to use it. The richest billionaire in America, Rockefeller, who owns forests, estates, dwellings, and so on, suffers from an upset stomach. He cannot eat anything but oatmeal: the physicians have put him on a strict diet. He laments his fate, saying, “Although I possess such a big wealth, I am compelled to eat only oats, like a horse because of my sick stomach!” I ask, “What is the meaning of Life for you now?” You answer, “A person should be wealthy.” That is fine. It is true that the meaning of Life can be found in the search of wealth, but you do it in the wrong way. Love comprises the Great Life. Love makes life meaningful. Love creates the wealth of the human soul. A true connection is formed only when we find God or, in other words, only when God comes to live in us, which gives an impulse to Life itself. Then people will not ask each other whether there is a God or not. When someone asks me this, I tell him, “Come to see me tomorrow evening.” When he comes, I invite him to dine with me, converse with him pleasantly and accompany him to the door. I bid him goodnight. He says, “But you have not told me anything about God.” I answer, “Come to see me again tomorrow evening.” He comes. We again dine together, converse, and he leaves. I never answer the question about God in words. It is strange that people ask me this question. Why is it the most important one? You could also ask me, “What is Love?” And I will reply in the same way, “Come to visit me tomorrow evening.” I do not answer the question of Love either. If I am a person of Love and live in accordance with God’s Law, then you will come to know me. If my opinion of you remains unchanged, I will receive you in my home and will invite you to test me. It is not what I think, but rather how I live that really matters. To find solution to any important question, you should unite three great factors: your thoughts, your feelings, and your actions. Moreover, you should be consistent in every moment. You may doubt about the existence of God, but you will experience it in the following way: When you ask for a loan of one thousand leva and the reply is, “Certainly, with pleasure.” Afterward, when you ask for another two thousand leva, again, you receive the same answer. So, you find yourself as if before a fountain where you can come with a big bucket and fill it as much as you like, on the provision that you can carry it by yourself. People should have abundance, such abundance that they will themselves say, “That is enough.” Christ was teaching, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” It means that one should be completely filled with God’s Love. Some claim that when they fall in love, they cannot work. That is not true; in reality, the genuine work in the world is often inspired by love. At present, there is mainly labor, but no work. Work will be the great task for the future generations, for those great souls that will not doubt the life after death and will answer the question of Life. If you ask such person whether he knows you, he will just say, “You are welcome to my home tomorrow evening.” You ask again, “Where are you from?” He repeats, “Welcome to my home tomorrow evening.” You go to his home and he gives you a good dinner, talks to you and finally, in parting, he kindly says, “If you are ever in need, come to me, please.” This is the example, which we should give to the world. Whatever we possess should be laid upon the common altar of sacrifice. People in modern society have a wrong concept of sacrifice. They think that what they sacrifice will be lost. Let me explain to you the sacrifice of the grain of wheat. If it does not sacrifice itself, if it does not fall in the earth and “die,” what will the condition of the farmer be then? What dies gives its strength, which then increases. It is one of the qualities of sacrifice. Some scholars say, “It is not necessary to make a sacrifice. Nothing should be given to anyone.” Does it mean that no one should sow and plough? No, we should sow and plough, but we should do it wisely. Therefore, we need solid foundations in life. You are of this or that nationality, you have good education and new ideas of life - all these facts do not provide a foundation. The true foundation of Life is Love and Love is Life. We have this Life in us, but have not yet made it manifest. I consider the present theories of Life as puddles of water formed by the rain; although there are frogs creaking in them, people drink from there because of the lack of something better. In my opinion, frogs symbolize the great materialism existing in the people of today and making them anxious for more and more of the luxuries in life. Do you know how people understand materialism? I will give you an example. In the kingdom of the tenth dynasty of Egypt, during the reign of Pharaoh Zenobiy, a law was issued by which all criminals were condemned to death. Two Egyptians committed the crime of offending the sacred bull Apis and that is why they were punished by death sentence. Pharaoh, in this case, changed the sentence to life imprisonment. But the jury issued the following decision: One of the criminals was to carry on his back a sack of wheat weighing one hundred kilograms; the other was to carry one louse on his head. And they were to carry their respective punishments until someone volunteered to relieve them of their burdens. It was left to them to decide who is going to carry the wheat and who - the louse. The more cunning criminal said to himself, “Who would be so stupid as to carry that sack of one hundred kilograms on his back? It is impossible to carry such a burden!” He chose the louse. No option was left to the other, but to take the sack of wheat. According to the decision of the court, they were to travel unceasingly. Neither of them was allowed to stop for a rest until someone would stop them asking for a part of what they carried. The two men started out on their journey. The man who chose the louse asked the other one, “How is your load?” Of course, the louse was not heavy at all. The other criminal carrying one hundred kilograms of wheat on his back often turned to God in prayer, “Oh Lord, have mercy and lighten my burden just a little!” After some time, a traveler stopped them on the road and asked the first man, “What have you got in your sack?” “Wheat,” was the answer. “Can you give me some wheat?” “Oh, gladly,” the man replied and after giving him as much as he wanted, continued on the way. Then the traveler turned to the other man and asked, “What are you carrying?” “A louse,” was the answer. “Oh, I do not want any lice,” the traveler said and hurried away. The trouble was that the louse began to reproduce and in one year there were 200–300 lice. The sack of wheat, on the other hand, had been reduced to half of its original weight during the year. As they were passing through the villages, when people heard of someone who was carrying a sack of wheat, they stopped him and asked for some of it. In this way, in two or three years, that criminal had only one grain of wheat left. The other one who chose the louse, was not welcomed anywhere. In every village he visited, when people saw that he was infested with lice, they did not want to receive him. Soon he began to realize his dreadful situation. And we, the people of today, solve our problems in a similar way. Materialistic thinking - that is the louse, which can draw all life essence from the human being. When it infests someone, it increases continually until it crowds out every noble feeling. If we lose all that is sublime and noble in us; if we lose our highest ideas, feelings, and thoughts; if we lose our divinity, I ask, why are we living in this world? Christ teaches, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”[2] Modern religion has misinterpreted this teaching by merely saying, “Believe in the Lord!” People should not be commanded to believe in Him; it is rather the Great Law that solves all problems that guides them to love God. However, people have taken this verse, “You shall love the Lord your God,” and interpreted it as, “Believe in the Lord!” Certainly, without faith it is not possible to serve the Lord, but a different approach is required when we want to answer the most important question in Life and that is: to love the Lord your God. If someone asks me about my faith, I reply that I believe in nothing. “Why?” Nothing is nothing. They ask me, “Do you not believe in God?” Show me the God you trust. Show me the path you walk. “We trust the God of our mothers, fathers, and ancestors.” Very well; but did they fulfill the laws of their God? Let us examine your records and see what you have done for that God in whom you believe. From someone’s records I will tell you an interesting incident, which happened somewhere in Bulgaria. A very rich merchant fell seriously ill and was in a coma for some time. When he recovered consciousness, he immediately called his sons and said to one of them, “My son, bring me the two books in which I keep my accounts.” The son brought the books. The merchant took and burned them in the fire. Then he gave his sons what each of them deserved and said, “Take what is yours so that you would not call me before the court after my death. When I was in the World beyond, I saw and understood what the most essential for us was. So I want to live according to the Will of God.” I ask you, “Where are your account books?” You say, “We have none.” But I will bring out your inner accounts to see what is written in them. For instance, your neighbor said something to your discredit and you hurried up to write it down. This or that person insulted you and you also wrote it quickly in your account book. The merchant, in the same way, brings out his account book and enters who bought what (olives, sugar, and so on) and in what quantity. I ask, what is the difference between you and the merchant, if you all write in your account books? The priest has an account book too. When the clergyman says, “This person does not believe in God,” he puts it down in his account. Yet when he is called to conduct a funeral service, he requires payment. They tell him they have no money and he replies, “Sorry, but I cannot perform the funeral without payment,” and makes a note in his account book. May all be consistent in the Great Life, in the Great Love that most profoundly answers the fundamental questions of being and lays brotherhood as a foundation of Life. It is not the brotherhood lasting for a day or two only, but the brotherhood that withstands all trials. A priest once said to me, “Your teaching is not right.” I answered him, “You may doubt, it is your right. However, I will give you a rule: When you have a funeral service, instead of taking money from the poor widow, it will be better to give her something from your pocket. Also, when you are called to the court to administer an oath, you should not do so. Instead, you should reach in your pocket and give the money to those who are on trial so as to clear off the enmity between them.” You will say, “What will be the end of all this? The end? Have faith that the Lord has sent you to Earth not to act in the human way, but rather to properly fulfill His Will. May lies disappear from the world! Those whom God assigned a certain service on Earth must act accordingly. You quote the Scriptures that every authority is given by God.[3] No! Something is missing here. The verse should read, “Every fair and just power is given by God.” The Bolsheviks in Russia also have power. You say that your power is from God and theirs is not. The Law states: Every just and righteous power is given by God. And the Law of Love is applied to every righteous power. It is not absolutely necessary for the judge to condemn the criminal. The Turkish government issued a very good law by which the judge should ask the accused, “Do you acknowledge that you are this person’s debtor?” “I do.” “Then give back to him that which is due.” It is an excellent way to resolve arguments. Nowadays, the case will be postponed for one or two years until they finally say, “Where is the justice?” There is no justice but a waste of time. We have been sent to Earth to find the answer to the paramount issue of being. Listening to me now, you may say that this teaching is difficult. It is difficult because your account books are heavy. You need to burn them. “Oh,” you will say, “we do not believe in such nonsense.” But eventually you will because tomorrow, when you will be buried in your grave, they will ask you, “Did you burn your account books?” There you are going to decompose hour after hour and the worms will devour your flesh. You will then say, “Return me, oh Lord, to Earth, so that I may burn my account books!” No, others are going to burn them for you. All of you - mothers, fathers, children - are walking on coals of fire. Why? It is because you have many accounts. The Lord has two books preserving the records about everything - the Book of Life and the Book of Good and Bad - and that is all right. He has the right to keep record of everything in these books. God has every good intention in His relationship to us. He does not ask us why we commit injustice, but rather teaches us to pursue justice. The fact is that there is destiny; the Divine Judgment shows that through our experiences, we are taught to fulfill God’s Will. God erases all sins of that one who decides to live by His Will no matter how big they were. God says, “Behold that one, behold a child of Mine who has made up its mind to live by My Law!” God is full of abundance. He can delete all our debts. When someone is not willing to live godlike, God writes all that is needed for this person in the Book of Life. At present, it is not only the Bulgarians, but people from all other nationalities are unhappy. All nations are unfortunate. Why? It is because the paramount question remains unanswered. The priests, bishops, and preachers, not only in Bulgaria but in the entire world, are obliged to answer this question. However, they have not found a solution. The statesmen have not found it either. There are two more factors that should have resolved the problem: these are the fathers and mothers, on the one side, and the teachers and instructors, on the other side, but neither they have found the answer. Those young men and women who get married and who want to address this question should ask themselves about the reason for uniting in marriage. It is often said of a young woman, “Let her get married.” Why? The marriages that currently exist are like business transactions. After four or five years, the husband deserts his wife, obtains a divorce, and marries another woman. Time passes, he leaves his second wife as well and concludes, “These women have turned my hair grey, such horrible snakes they are!” If women are horrible snakes and men are dreadful dragons, where are the humans then? If all men and women are bad, where is the true humankind then? It is not a solution of the problem at all. The word “snake” denotes that men and women are cunning but not virtuous in their relationships. It is an important condition to apply goodness in your relationships. It is difficult to answer the paramount question. It is as difficult as understanding some pieces of music, for example some passages of Paganini for violin. For the piano playing, too, there are some pieces of music, which are considerably difficult to understand and perform. We know that people who practice constantly can perform something masterly only after ten years of practice. Do you think that you can answer the Great question of Life and Love without any effort? Great effort is needed, but do not get discouraged! This issue is the best one. When you come to the question of receiving God, your heart will stir and become soft, your mind will be enlightened and such Light will enter it that you will see things you have never seen before in the world. You will ask, “If we live like that, how can we make our living?” If you live according to God’s Will, one of the Great Teachers will come to you and will give you a little wand of magical power. When you are in a difficult situation and feel hungry, you will tap gently with the little wand and right then a table loaded with food will appear before you. You will eat, after that you will tap with your wand again, everything will be taken away, and you will continue on your way. Is that not an easy solution to the problems? You will say, “These are just stories taken from the books and fairy tales.” But is our present life not like a fairy tale? Is there anything real in it? It is not important whether you believe in the World beyond. One day, when you find yourself there, you are going to laugh at your past life. A man once told me one of his dreams. He had many debts and often prayed God to help him. One evening, he dreamed that someone came to him and brought him a bag of gold. Immediately, one of his neighbors came in and said, “This bag of gold is mine!” They started to quarrel and fight and in this fight, the sleeping man kicked, so the glass container by his bedside fell and broke and the water spilled out from it. When he awoke, he saw the pieces on the floor, including the tablecloth in his hands. The spilled water was there, but the bag of gold was not. You will find yourself in a similar condition after death. When you awake in the World beyond and look around, you will find out you have none of the money that you possessed on Earth. You will see the spilled water on the ground and the tablecloth in your hand and the situation will seem ridiculous to you. The time is coming, when people of today will restore their spiritual senses. At the moment, their minds are greatly obscured. Their greatest desire is to insure themselves. It is okay, but their way of attaining insurance is not good. So their desires will never be realized in this manner. I agree that we should be wealthy and insured. I am not an advocate of poverty, but if we are wealthy, then we should be the wealthiest of the wealthy. In my opinion, Life and Light bearers are the wealthiest. Those who bring inner warmth, food, and garments are the richest. The wealthiest has Love within which is the biggest wealth. This is the core of our Teaching. If you gain this wealth on Earth, everything else can be easily attained. The person who has attained this inner Life will bring blessings not only to himself and his beloved but also to all around. Therefore, you all need faith. You may ask, “Is all that you say true or not so true?” I will ask you in reply whether your beliefs are actually true or not. May we test our faith in practice. If you want to know my faith, then I will explain it: Come to my home tonight and not only tonight, but I invite you for the whole year. I solve difficult problems in this way and you should do the same. We should put everything on test. This question cannot be answered with money. If I give you a check for two, three, even twenty-five thousand leva, that will not provide the answer to the question. Money causes disputes. I can give you only an idea. I can give you only one little grain of wheat, but it will be a big blessing for you, if you know how to cultivate it. I will tell you another story. It happened during the reign of Zenobiy, an Egyptian Pharaoh. In his time, the laws of Egypt were very severe: all criminals were punished by death. One of the notable assistants of the Brotherhood of Light, Eshuah Bentham, was sent to Egypt on a mission. He had to solve a certain task: to find out how to elevate the conditions of those people who were condemned to death for the slightest offence. After that, he had to return to the School and report the results. At one time, the Pharaoh’s daughter fell sick of an incurable disease. Eshuah Bentham went to the Pharaoh and said, “I can heal your daughter, if you grant me a certain favor.” Zenobiy answered, “I am ready to grant you any favor.” Bentham replied, “Give an order and bring before me all those criminals who were punished by your law to have their hands and feet cut off, their eyes - taken out, and so on. Bring them to me in these maimed conditions.” Eshuah Bentham cured the daughter of the king. Then the Pharaoh gave this order, “Bring before Eshuah Bentham all those criminals who have received their sentence and the punishment was executed upon them.” They were brought into his room, one by one. Eshuah Bentham knew the Laws to make them wholesome again; so he began healing them, restoring their eyes, hands, and legs. After restoring them to full health, he changed their faces and set them free, advising them not to tell anyone how they were healed. All these criminals became his students and followed him. When they were asked, “How has this man attracted you?” They answered, “Has your head ever been cut off from your shoulders?” The questioners replied, “No.” The disciples explained, “When your head will be removed from your shoulders, you are going to understand who Eshuah Bentham is.” They replied to another curious person, “Have your hands ever been cut off?” “No.” “When your hands will be cut off, you are going to understand who Eshuah Bentham is.” And then they answered another person, “Have you had your legs cut?” “No.” “When they will be cut off, you are going to understand who Eshuah Bentham is.” They asked another person too, “Have you ever been so unfortunate as to have your eyes and heart taken out?” “No.” “When your heart and eyes will be taken out, you are going to understand who Eshuah Bentham is.” The person of Love shall restore people’s heads, recover their legs and hands and place their hearts and eyes in place. Our thoughts and feelings must be in their proper places; our minds and hearts need to take their own seats. Therefore, all doubts existing in human minds today should disappear, so when people meet, they will fully trust one another. When you meet me in a year or two, you shall not find any conflict between my thoughts, feelings, and actions and you need to be ready to sacrifice everything for God. God is the best known and the most Sublime Being in the world. What makes us rejoice in the beauty of creation; what inspires us to strive for the Sublime and ideal - all that is God, all that is the Divine in us. The stillness that speaks in us is God. The quiet soft Voice that whispers inside all of us is God. How many times did you regret that you had not listened to this inner Voice and therefore you had made a mistake? The Divine in us does not speak in the voice of a thunder but very softly and, sometimes, when we have made an error, it says, “Let it go, there is a way of correcting it.” When someone does not want to yield to another person in something, the quiet inner Voice says, “Give it to him, yield!” As a wise person, when I see an ant on my path, I yield; I do not step on it, but rather go around. The ant has no idea that a big being is approaching it, but I, who can see it, will give way. In a similar way, God Who supervises all our needs and weaknesses has taken it upon Himself to rectify the world. The world will be set right; it will not always remain as it is. But you need to apply this Teaching and embrace it. Rejoice and thus you will solve one of the biggest problems existing in your mind by loving the Lord with all your heart. I ask you whether you have loved God so far. You say, “Yes, I have.” You have loved, but what? You have loved the ice. You have loved, but what? You have loved the pear. The ice melted; and there is nothing to love now. The pear decayed; and there is nothing to love now. When you come to love the Infinite God, you will never lose Him. God will always speak to you and your faces will be illuminated. So, I say that all people will learn to love God. Only then will our life become meaningful. God will teach us how to love and you will come to love your neighbors as yourselves. This is the greatest art. God shall come to live in us so that we could learn how to love because it is not us but God is Love, it is not us but God is Life. God will teach us how to love and how to live. It is paramount for us to learn how to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, with all our souls, with all our strength, and with all our minds. It is the easiest art and everyone can attain it. You object, “I will wait for a while, I will rest, I will read what a certain philosopher has said, and then I am going to try.” You may read the works of thousands of philosophers, but they have not answered this question. Love God! This commandment is the answer to the issue of the entire existence. It implies loving everything and all in the world and understanding it as a manifestation of Supreme Intelligence. And when you go outside and look at the stars, your heart will stir. When you go out and look at the Sun, your heart and your whole being will be moved. How do you look at the Sun? Some claim that the Sun is a big celestial body of fire. Every morning I see how the Lord takes the Sun as a big burning candle and makes His rounds everywhere. He comes from the East. This is how I view the Sun. There is something else, something greater behind it. In the same way, something great is hidden behind our lives. Behind this ordinary manifestation of routine being, there is something sublime and every one of you is aware of it. It is the manifestation of Divinity within the human being. Some ask me, “What God do you believe in?” We believe in God that is Love and Life, that gives Light and Warmth, that brings food, water, clothing, and all inner blessings to us. We believe in that God Who does not require of us to serve Him superficially, but needs us to manifest His Love to the world. He desires His Love to pass through us, just as water passes through the Earth’s layers being filtered and coming to the surface purified. God desires all of us to be conduits through which His Love may flow. If we allow this Love to pass through us, we are going to receive His Blessings and accumulate Divine Credits and thus we all will be called sons of God. Is there anything more wonderful than this - to be sons of God? Is there anything more beautiful than this - to live by God’s Will? This is one of the most important issues to be resolved. Every one of us can do it in a blink. After you solve this, you will go to the world and begin to study. You will encounter a great, profound Science. But first, you should attain Eternal Love and Life so that you could become aware of God and Eternal Truth in its totality and fullness. Lecture held by the Master in the town of Ruse on October 11, 1925. -------------------------------- 1. See also John 17:3. 2. See Luke 10:27. 3. See also Revelations 2:26, “And he who overcomes and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations.”

from The Blossoming of the Human Soul ABSOLUTE PURITY The word “purity”[1] is taken in its wide meaning: as internal and external purity. External purity can be seen and understood by everyone as cleanliness. When we speak about a clean house, we mean that it is lime washed on the outside and inside, the floors in all rooms are swept and tidy, and everything is well-dusted. When we speak about a clean garment, it is shining if white and stainless if black. When we speak about pure butter, it should be fresh, clear, and odorless. It implies that purity is maintained when no extraneous elements have been added or mixed. Therefore, certain elements in Nature can cause impurity. What is impurity? It is the opposite of purity. As long as a person is alive and healthy, he has purity. When an element of impurity penetrates Life, death immediately takes one step forward. The more impurities, the more death has seized Life. Death and impurity have a directly proportional connection. Hence, impurity correlates to death. When this is known, purification of one’s thoughts is the first rule in life. Purifying thoughts regularly, one attains a crystal clear concept of God. God is not a form outside of us; God is the Prime Source of all Life. What better gift do we have than Life? Every impulse, every joy we feel is due to our awareness and inner sense of being alive and evolving. When you get up in the morning, refreshed and revitalized, you look at the rising Sun and rejoice that you have a little idea what to do during the day. This comes as a result of the first offshoots of the Tree of Life. Someone complains, “Life is tough: since early morning we need to think about living, what we are going to eat, how much we earn, and so on.” I say that the concern about food is characteristic of material life on the physical plane. The bodily need for food is not essential to one’s spiritual life. To be spiritual does not suggest eating a lot or eating tasty food. The seasonings added to a meal are extraneous elements. If all Intelligent Beings gather in one place, what would be the food served to them? A highly varied food. Why? It is because every kind will take what is needed for their own development. However, there is something common in the nourishment of all beings and organisms on the planet Earth. For example, all living beings, without exception, need water. Initially, they received their food from the air, after that - from the water, and lastly - from the solid matter. This is how it happened to the human beings as well. At one time, the light was their only nourishment. But they have already lost this way of livelihood. So at present, only the human eyes have retained this art of light nourishing. If they do not receive light for a long period of time, they will suffer atrophy. Consequently, attaining a clear notion of God is the paramount aim in life. One should understand that all beings, from the smallest to the biggest ones, are equal to God and He cares equally for them. There is no one like God Who is the Source of Life - so elevated and good-natured, so loving and compassionate. Life of the entire Universe lies in Him. Not a single being is equal to Him. Thinking of God, even the most sinful and the most ignorant person could feel a stirring somewhere deep within. If the Source of this inner stirring is not understood, one will pass through life without ever grasping the essence of the Great Origin. He will say, “Something stirs in me as if I have encountered a bear.” Yes, it is exciting to encounter a bear, but because the stirring is strong, one is frightened out of his senses. Even the greatest hero is often scared by the glance of a beautiful girl. He would say, “I saw a beautiful girl and my heart quivered.” Why did his heart quiver? For the sole reason that this hero cannot bear the blessing that is contained in this glance. Every blessing conceals a certain danger within itself. For whom? For the one who is not ready for it. People fear everything for which they are not prepared. Many people ask about the essence of fear. Fear shows the boundary, the place where man has separated himself from God. However, if one keeps the right pure thoughts, he could turn fear into a conscious force. When one thinks right, this one becomes fearless. Therefore, unless you have a clear idea of God, you cannot evolve or attain true knowledge. If you cannot accept this specific idea, you will soon lose everything that you have already attained. For example, by a certain point you can advance to become an educated person, learn art, gain wealth, acquire strength, and so on. But when you get older, you will gradually begin to lose your acquisitions. Today you will lose your knowledge, tomorrow - your art, the third day - your wealth and the fourth day - your strength. Eventually, you will find yourself in the position of a person who has lost all his sublime thoughts and inspiration for work and so you will say, “I have only one thought left.” What is this thought? “Once, I was a rich man and now I am an utter pauper.” What could be expected from a person with such a thought? Now someone may say, “If one loses everything, one should not think, feel, or act.” I say that if one’s thoughts and feelings are not true, they will create worries, anxieties, and premature aging as a result. We speak about the intelligent thoughts and pure, noble feelings, which connect the individual to God and give inspiration and free rein to one’s activities. For example, our thoughts are worrisome when we are anxious about our way of living - will we have good health, enough resources, and so on. When the king’s son enrolls in school, I ask if he should think of the financial aspects like: who will support and serve him, how much money he will receive, and so on. He should not dwell on these questions. Once sent to school, he is expected only to study; his father will take care of the rest. If the son is lazy and does not study, he is going to bear the consequences of his laziness in the form of grave misfortunes that will befall on him. I say: You are the King’s son and you have been sent to the Earth for your studies. Give thanks to God for everything you have: light, air, water, and bread. What else do you need? You must study! One day, upon your return from this long journey on Earth, your Father will ask you, “What did you learn up to this point?” Your acquaintances will ask you the same, once they find out about your journey to the Seven Lakes of the Rila Mountains.[2] You will tell them that you have climbed the peaks of Damga[3] and Haramiyata[4] and you have seen the Seven Rila Lakes. However, this is not all that you could have seen and learned. All these peaks and lakes are symbols. It is important to understand what you read in the Book of Nature. How many pages did you learn and what did you grasp from them? What difference does it make to climb a high peak? Why do you do it: to observe from afar those who pass by and what they carry? Is this the meaning of climbing high peaks? You will say that brigands went up to the peak Haramiyata to await the passage of rich travelers, whom they robbed. Outdoor excursions have their profound meaning and, particularly, high peaks hiking! So, when you talk about robbing rich people, you need to know who they are in the symbolic aspect. Rich people represent the rich ideas in the world. Good is like a rich man, whom we need to rob. Evil is like a poor person, whose passage we should not obstruct. What should we take from the poor? The Scriptures say, “Do not resist evil!”[5] Why? It is because the evil is like a poor man whose bills you should pay for. This sentence from the Scriptures represents an important economic formula. Therefore, you should better give him an undisturbed passage. Otherwise, if you obstruct his passage, the poor man will begin begging money, clothes, and shoes of you. So, in this case you will give him everything he asks for. The evil is really like a beggar who relies on the mercy of others. A student who enters the Divine School should let go of begging. I say: if you want to understand God, you need to be pure. It is said in the Scriptures, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”[6] Suffering, hardship, and misfortune will come inevitably. You are in the sea, where big storms rise up. These storms may affect the ship as well. They will rock it to one side, then to the other, but harmony and peace should reign inside the ship. If the ship is flooded and the waves enter even through the smallest of its cracks, it will be destroyed and wrecked. The negative, impure thoughts, from which you should guard yourselves, enter in the same way. When you travel in nature, do you not make a mess? How many servants need to go after you to clean up your mess? Some people consider themselves pure and saintly, but they leave their dirt behind; they eat here and there, leaving garbage all over. While you are carrying your impurity within yourselves, you are neither saintly nor pure yet. If you observe the cleanliness in the physical world, you are also pure in the mental and spiritual world. Some people may brag to me that he is a believer guided by high ideals, but in fact he does not observe even the elementary hygiene in the physical world. No, purity is required from everyone and in all aspects: physical, mental, and spiritual. You say, “Everything is up to us.” Yes, it is up to you to observe the Absolute Purity in every aspect of your life. Life itself, however, depends on God. If you want to be healthy and happy, each of your feelings, thoughts, and actions must be permeated by the idea of Purity. Only in this way you will receive God’s Blessings. Currently, you spoil whatever God has sent you, but in this way, you will be facing sure death. It is time for you to renounce your petty pride. What if someone has said bad things about you or has defamed you? Do not occupy yourselves with negative things; do not allow them into your mind! Even if all people disrespect you, you should work to prove that you are a person of dignity and self-respect. Work incessantly for ten years to develop inner strength and willpower as to prove others that you are a true human being. If you go to a village and lift with your hands a big stone weighing one ton, you will impress the villagers. Seeing your strength, they will say to themselves, “We should better not mess with this person and tease him - he is very strong!” However, you go to a village and cannot actually bring up even the smallest pebble, moreover, you ask the villagers for some elementary favors and on the top of this you want them to respect you. And afterward, you will boast that you can converse with God. The one who is in communion with God is strong enough and is able to move mountains from one place to another. If you cannot move mountains, do not delude yourself - everyone else might have talked to you but not God. When God spoke to Moses, the latter raised his staff, struck the rock and from there, water gushed out. God spoke to Moses and manna descended from Heaven. God spoke to Moses and he had shepherded the Jewish people for 40 long years through the desert. Instead, those who boast cannot earn their living, but still claim that God converses with them. I ask: How will you recognize when God speaks to you? Are you going to learn that from books? No. Every person has a unique inner experience as a means to recognize God’s Voice within. There are many ways to understand Nature, but only one way - to enter the world of Truth. Truth is the purest of the worlds, in which Love manifests itself. Truth is the purest form of Love. What is Love? It is the purest essence of this form. Truth is the highest manifestation of Love! The absolute Freedom is achieved through Truth. The brightest Light is attained through Love. In esoteric sense, Love is substituted by Justice. If you are looking for warmth and heat, seek out Justice. Whenever Justice comes into the world, it raises the temperature. Justice represents the strongest warmth of Love and Love is the essence of Life. When it is a question of Life, you should know that there is nothing higher than Life. Therefore, Love, Wisdom, Truth, and Justice are realms or worlds, through which Life manifests itself. At present, what is meant by the word “Life” is the human consciousness driven by the permanent aspiration for achievement. When we say that we live, we imply that we constantly strive for something, which we desire to achieve. When children are born, their consciousness is instantly awakened and they begin to have desires and wants related to the objective world. When we consider the world of feelings, there we are also searching for a certain object. When we come to the mental world, we are willing to study; however, we are searching for an object there as well. Life also exists in the spiritual and Divine worlds, which implies that it manifests itself in all realms and worlds but in different forms. One thing is important: whatever form Life may take, it cannot function without Absolute Purity. I ask: How could you sustain Purity? By serving God. Whenever speaking about serving, I imply that one can serve only God, only Love. We say, “God is Love.” Therefore, it is only Love that one can serve. In respect to Life, we say, “We will become even servants only if we could attain Life.” Therefore, three things are important in your life: to serve God, to respect yourself, and to love your neighbor. To love your neighbor means to unload the unnecessary burden that is on your back. To respect yourself means to understand the meaning of Life. Only the good, intelligent, wise person has self-respect. A person perceives these traits first in oneself and then in others. If you see goodness, intelligence, and wisdom in yourself, then you are going to see these qualities in others as well. It means that what you see in you is reflected in those around you. You respect people because of the consciousness you have yourself. You love people for the beautiful, sublime, and noble that you see within yourself. If you see all these traits in others, then you already love them. Why does father love his son? It is because of his own self-respect. It is then transformed into love for his son. What is Love? To see yourself in others. What is respect? To realize your dignity as a human being. What does it mean to serve God? To realize that everything comes from God and that there is no one equal to Him. If you say to yourself that everything is possible for God, you will be prepared for everything. You can serve God only conceptually. The word “serving” implies that everything you do in the name of God is possible. Then someone will ask you, “Can you shoulder the Earth?” “I am shouldering it now.” “Then what about the Solar system?” “I have been shouldering it for a long time.” “Well, what about the Universe?” “I am a master of the Universe.” Now, every person with petty ideas will say, “What a statement! How can people dare to claim that they shoulder the Earth and Solar system or that they are masters of the Universe? Is this possible?” To say that you are a master of the Universe means that you have traveled across it from end to end. The wise person can see the entire Universe represented between one’s head and feet. Therefore, when one says to be a master of the entire Universe, it suggests that he knows his body from head to toe. Thus, he holds the Universe in oneself. The time it takes him to stretch his arms from head to toe, is the time needed for passing the Universe from one end to the other. It is sufficient that he only moves his hand to instantly pass the Universe from one end to the other. It is sufficient that he only moves his hand to instantly cross the Universe from the one end to the other. Things are distant only when they are separated from the common organism. When they are together in the organism, they are close. The word “closeness” implies an organization of all intelligent beings in oneness. Disorganization implies an act of separation. When you claim that someone has offended or harmed you, then either the offender is outside the common organism, while you are in, or both of you are outside. There cannot be disharmony among you, when you are both parts of one common body. Could there be any imbalance between the fingers of your hand, for example? It does not matter that some fingers are on the left and others - on the right hand, as they could help each other. I say: Many people of today have reached a certain area in life, where they have stopped. They need to take a step forward, so as to enter the new that is now coming into the world. If you walk in the old path, the same is awaiting you: you will die; there will be a funeral service and speeches over your grave that you graduated from three universities and served greatly your country. Yes, this person served the humankind but not God. We know that he did not serve God because he died. It is written in the Scriptures, “This is an eternal Life for me to come to know You as the One and only God.” I add to this quote: This is an Eternal life - to come to know and serve God. However, there is a certain danger that people in their service might go to extremes like getting bored and abandoning their work. It is true that many reasons might bring them to such situation. Yet, if they have proper understanding of Life, nothing can steer them away from their path; nothing can disturb their balance. I will give you an example from the country life (because it is closer to the Living Nature) and will explain why sometimes people run off the rails of their life. A youthful, very hard-working farmer used to get up early in the morning, before sunrise, yoke his oxen and go to the field to plough. His ox-cart was always in order and his oxen were groomed and brushed with care. He himself, cheerful and smiling, was quietly singing to himself; he was aspiring to Life. All day long, until late in the evening, he worked and did not get tired; he was content with his life. He returned home still cheerful and smiling. He unyoked his oxen, fed them, put his ox-cart away, and awaited the following day to come with delight so that he could continue his work anew. Thus the days slipped unnoticed, until one day when he met a beautiful girl and was captivated by her. He did not feel like working anymore. He departed late in the morning and returned early in the evening. He neglected his ox-cart and oxen. The song was no longer on his lips and the smile - on his face. He roamed in a daze and said, “I suffered enough; I do not feel like working anymore. How did it happen that this slaving lot fell upon me? Up to now, I have been working my whole life. From now on, I want to entertain myself.” He dressed well, put on a hat and a new belt, placed a flower on his coat and off he went around the village, walking along random streets, until he came to the garden of that beautiful girl. Just like a soldier, he patrolled it from one end to the other. Then he stopped for a moment in front of it. He wanted to see the mischievous girl hiding somewhere among the trees. His patience was over. He wanted to enter, but the garden was locked up and the girl was not there. She was sitting inside, smiling, and observing what the young man was doing. What was this mischievous girl like? What does she look like? The young man was interested; he wanted to know everything. It was because of her that he had left his field and oxen. The girl was sitting inside with a flower[7] in her hair and smirking. At that moment, the youth was struck by the idea to take the girl’s flower away. Why did he want to do this? He wanted to rob her, saying, “I worked so hard. I have been ploughing the field by now, but nothing happened through work.” And thus, he began courting the girl. Today, he took a flower from her. Next day, he took another flower. When he took ten flowers from her, he took her as well. That was the magical approach used by the youth. He knows that the girl puts something of herself in the flower she adorns with. That day, he took something from her with her flower. Next day, he took something else, until finally the girl came to ask for her flowers back, but remained with him. Such relationships exist in all manifestations of life. They are symbols to be translated into the human language. The young man will marry the beautiful girl, but how long can they be happy with their current views on Life? For a year or two, but afterward their happiness will disappear. Why? It is because neither the young man nor the girl have the eternal Life in them. As long as the wife has something Divine in herself, her husband can love her. And as long as the husband has something Divine in himself, his wife can love him. Once they lose the Divine in themselves, their love for one another disappears. In other words, as long as one is pure, this one can be loved. If an element of impurity enters someone, love toward this person gradually recedes, until it vanishes entirely. Therefore, the lack of love comes as a natural consequence of the impurity in Life. When people do not love you, you should know that you yourself are the reason for this. Who does not like to bathe in a clean wellspring? However, if you are a puddle or a swamp, who would bathe in you? Everyone wants to wash his face, hands, and feet in a clean wellspring, but no one wants to do it in a swamp. Now, once you grasp the meaning of Purity in its broadest sense, the best you can do is to place it as a foundation of your physical life. Why? It is because health depends on one’s inner and outer purity. Purity of ideas is what is required from the human beings! In this respect, when we say that one should not look into the shortcomings of others, criticizing them, we imply that one should not contaminate the Purity of life and expose oneself to death. To occupy yourself with the shortcomings of people is a contagion that will destroy your body. What will you gain from this? Nothing and moreover you will lose all that is good in yourself. Hence, why should you occupy yourself with the wrongdoings of others? A Turkish proverb states, “Leave the drunkard; do not support him. Let him fall down and learn!” It is easier for the Bulgarian to get drunk than for the Turk. The Turk, in general, is more sober. When he gets drunk, he walks, falls down, gets up, and tells himself, “Come on. Go on, Hassan! Why did you drink so much that your legs are not obeying you now?” He falls down again. “Walk, Hassan! Why do you drink so much?” This is how he talks to himself on his way home. When he enters his home, he begins to apologize to his wife that he got so drunk because according to the Laws of Mohamed, one is not allowed to get drunk. The Bulgarian, however, when he gets drunk, will demonstrate first his art of fighting. Sometimes his wife is strong enough and when she sees that her drunken husband spoils for a fight, she pushes him to fall on the ground. He gets up and starts again. After she pushes him three or four times onto the ground, he asks her, “What do you mean by this?” She replies, “You have drunk too much.” He then says, “Well, it is good for everyone to enjoy life in one way or another.” The Bulgarian accepts wine as a gift of God and thinks that one should drink as much as he pleases. The Turk believes that he has done wrong when he gets drunk. So, early in the morning, he goes to confess to the Imam[8]. I say: Inebriety is impurity. Gluttony is impurity. Gossiping is impurity. Envy and a number of other vices represent impurity. Therefore, entirely from a hygienic point of view, impurity has to be thrown out if we want to be free. If we want to become knowledgeable, in the broad sense of the word, we need to be pure. Scientists filtrate and separate things in their scientific experiments until they purify them completely. When we talk about Purity, it applies to those who are assiduous in their work for self-improvement. It applies to those who have a strong aspiration for Purity. The rest will not understand my words and will comment, “This subject is really tough.” Those who follow the right path need to take one small step forward in order to enter the Realm of Purity. Only then conceptual issues can be discussed with them. One cannot talk to those who live in impurity about conceptual issues because of the risk for them to lose their Purity. There are Realms, where the Absolute Purity reigns: they could not be mentioned nor a human foot could enter there. If this happens, it will contaminate and disturb it all. Neither disarray nor dislocation whatsoever is absolutely allowed there. You do not have the right to move even a single pebble there. If you go to one of the Sacred Wellsprings of the Eternal Life, you should dip a cup into the water and drink it down to the very last drop. Not a single drop of water is allowed to be spilled there. What do you usually do, when you go to the wellsprings in the physical world? You pour a full cup of water, but you drink two or three gulps from it, throwing the rest out. In the Divine World, this is absolutely inappropriate. When contemporary people are told about the sacred, pure things, they laugh. They do not realize their great importance. People of today become serious only in the face of the most difficult and complicated situations in their life. Only then they begin to think of God and the World beyond, only then they acknowledge the existence of something that is beyond their comprehension. For example, when the rope is hung around someone’s neck and the priest comes to read a prayer, he becomes very serious and looks around for some help. If, at that moment, they set him free, he would feel really grateful for the life granted to him. And he would eventually understand the true meaning of Life. The negative thoughts represent the rope with which people are hung. The enemies, the foes of people, are those who are the cause for the rope to be placed around your necks. They offer you bad advice today and more of it - tomorrow, until finally you are hanged. Be careful not to hang on the rope the way it happened to a saint who was cheated by the devil. This saint lived in the desert, where he spent his time in fast, prayer, and deep contemplation. The devil decided to tempt him by making him a king. He tried one trick, then another, until he finally succeeded in achieving his aim. The saint really became a king; however, the circumstances soon enough brought him to the gallows. The devil told him, “Trust me. I will set you free.” When they placed the rope around the neck of the saint, the devil appeared again and told him, “Look out into the distance and you will behold a vision.” The saint looked in the direction, which the devil pointed. ”Do you see anything?” “I see a donkey.” “What else do you see?” ”I see another donkey.” “Anything else?” “I see a third donkey.” “What are they carrying on their backs?” “They are loaded with sandals.” “Well, these are the sandals I tore until I managed to place the rope around your neck.” That one who follows the devil’s advice will come to a bad end: they will put the rope on his neck and afterward - take him down from the gallows. Certain deceitful relationships are observed in life. These are relationships of impurity. To avoid them, one needs to be exact and fulfill whatever promises and good intentions one has declared. In the Divine Life, where Absolute Purity reigns, there is no forgetfulness. Everything there happens precisely on time. Precision is a quality of pure Life. Not living in Purity, you obscure the horizon of your sky as clouds obscure the Sun. That is why you hear some people saying, “I am somewhat sad.” Yes, it is because your sky is cloudy. If you want it to clear up, you should serve God, respect yourself and love your neighbor. The formulas you need to apply to yourself are: serve your spirit that guides you; respect your soul that preserves all valuable things in it; love your body and all those beings that serve you due to the Sublime idea living in you. If you treat yourself accordingly, you will have a clear idea of God and everything will be possible for you. If you do not serve God, all around you will be dead. If you come to know God having a distinct idea of Him, you will be able to move all boulders in Nature, as they will become as light as feathers. In fact, they are heavy and frightening only for those who do not serve God. It is sufficient for them to see that such boulders are moving, for their hair to bristle up with horror. But to the true assistants of God, everything in the world is living and evolving. They can make an experiment to assure themselves that all in Nature is alive and living. We see many objects in a passive state and the sole reason for this is to give us the opportunity to live so that we can be the manifestation of Life today. One day in the future, when people finish their evolution on Earth, all beings that are currently motionless, will abandon this state to manifest life. Many want to know today what will happen with the boulders. This is an easy question to answer. But it is more important what will happen to you. When you attain the Eternal Life, you are going to visit the Earth again and will see all those changes that have occurred on it. If the human consciousness is constantly awake, people will be aware of all changes that are taking place on Earth. Currently because of this interrupted consciousness, people expect from the scientists to explain everything, including the past geological changes on Earth. That is good, but it is time for the human consciousness to awake and for the human thought to become more active. Hence, we recommend Absolute Purity to all contemporary people. For many, this idea is still unacceptable. It depends on the situation in which they find themselves today. Purity is followed by holiness. These are synonyms. Holiness is followed by service. If one is pure and holy, one cannot do anything else but serve. Finally, after serving comes Love. If one does not know how to serve, one cannot love either. If one does not know how to love, one cannot learn either. And if one does not know how to learn, one can never attain freedom. These possibilities are closely interrelated. Whoever begins with Purity has already taken a step forward. This is the natural, normal path in Life. Someone says that he has already aged, but has not lived enough. What is the essence of Life? Suppose that someone lives 100 thousand days on Earth. What will be his needs meanwhile? If he eats 3 times a day, he will need 300 thousand meals. If he drinks water 5 times a day, 250 grams per glass, it means that he will need 125 thousand kilograms of water. And if he tears a suit each day, he will need 100 thousand suits in total. Some scientists claim that the cells of the human body are completely renewed every seven years. Others say that this process occurs every three months. Therefore, according to some scientists, a person changes one’s clothes every seven years, according to other scientists - every three months; and according to me - every single day. A new suit lasts from sunrise to sunset. As you see, someone who has lived 100 thousand days on Earth has done many expenses. How could he justify this expenditure, if he does not serve God, if he does not respect oneself, and love his neighbors? I say to those who are awake: Keep the idea of Purity in your thoughts. May Purity stay as a norm in the minds of all people and be used as a measure in all situations of Life. Purity is a magic wand for every conscious person. When you wake up in the morning, get up with the idea of Purity. May this idea become as beloved for all people as beloved and desired is the beautiful girl as an idea in the youth’s mind. We see how a young man awaits his beloved girl, seeks her, being ready to go to the end of the world for her. May the idea of Purity be like the beloved girl that everyone seeks even at the end of the world. May Absolute Purity be the beloved of everyone! Once you find Purity, stop at a distance before this holy image solely to observe and contemplate it. Once you attain Purity, you will connect to the Sublime World and the Prime Cause of being. Only in the Sublime World, there is constancy and steadfastness. The constant and steadfast things are important to you. What could be better than knowing that there is One Omniscient Being in the world Who loves you at all times, - whenever you are asleep or awake, sick or healthy, learned or ignorant, wealthy or poor? There is nothing better than to realize that the attitude of this Being toward you is never changing. If you serve God, everyone will love you. Someone says, “I want to serve God, so I do not want to get married.” I say: If you try to resolve this issue without God, you will become an unhappy person. On the other hand, if you marry without the approval of God, you will be twice as unhappy. If you do not marry, but you are connected to God, then you will be happy. If you marry with God’s consent and you are both connected to God with your spouse, you will be twice as happy. This idea, expressed in another way, implies that every assignment, every conceived idea of Divine Origin, is pure, sacred, and sublime. Only in Purity can a person be content. What is the purpose of bringing people together? Why do two souls decide to live together? Thus they become two poles through which the Divine Life can manifest Itself. When someone refuses to marry, it suggests that the sphere he moves through is not pure. When a traveler passes by many wellsprings without drinking from them, it shows that they are not pure. And vice versa, if he takes water from them, it is a sign that they are pure. I ask: Will you marry, when you ascend to Heaven? No. Therefore, marriage is a side issue. When we speak about marriage, the first idea to be considered is that one should marry Purity. That is the true marriage. Whoever has not married Purity is a widower. In this sense, when people do not wish to marry Purity, they self-sentence themselves to death. The spiritual sense of marriage is marrying Purity. Whoever marries physically on Earth, will die; whoever stays single, will live. In the Spiritual World the process is reversed - whoever marries Purity will never die. Therefore, the union with Purity is a condition for the continuation of Life. People of today should free their consciousness from all impure images. They need to create pure ideas, pure images of young women and men, of marriage and celibacy, of Love and Eternal Life, of children, and so on. Everyone will be submitted to a thorough inner purification, similar to the traditional full house cleaning done before Easter. Assign beautiful explanations to all happenings and events in Life. When I am told that someone is crying, I do not dwell upon it. I say that it is raining outside so the rain waters the garden of that person and the flowers are happy. When they tell me of someone being happy, I understand that his flowers are blooming with wonderful fragrances lit by the Sun. If I hear that someone beats his wife, I understand that in this home they are threshing wheat to be then stored in the barn. Try to substitute the negative images with pure, vivid ones so that you may preserve the Purity of your consciousness. Now, talking about the Absolute Purity there, it is quite possible that you would pay attention only to one of its facets, only to the external cleanliness. If a young but lazy lad who does not want to do any kind of work strives only for external cleanness, he will ask his father every day for money to buy new clothes, shoes, fragrances, different combs and brushes solely to appeal to the girls. Thus, he will destroy both himself and his father, but he will not be able to achieve his goal. The girls will see him dressed up and clean every day, but they will not like something else about him. They will not see the true human being in him. We cannot go without clothes, but clothes do not make the person. Good clothes attain value only when a wise person wears them. Knowledge and strength adorning the impure person is the same as a bell adorning the swine. I say: Purity is the first condition for attaining the Divine Life. The human souls are longing, praying, and searching for Purity. The Scriptures are full of verses about Purity and Sanctity. Many opportunities arise before pure people. If someone cannot get rid of impurity, the opportunities will remain sealed for this person. Spiritual growth, light, knowledge, strength, and freedom - it all depends on Purity in the physical, and Sanctity - in the Spiritual World. The more Light the spirits have, the more power they have. In the Divine World, everything is determined by Love. When you descend, you will work on the following ideas: service, respect, and affection. Through ascension, you are going to attain Purity, Sanctity, and Love. Today, all of you attended the Feast of Purity, but be careful now not a single crumb of It is to fall on the ground. Gather all bread and give it to those you encounter. Someone says, “May people embrace our ideas and beliefs.” I ask you: What are your ideas? Be pure! What is your creed? Purity! You all should be distinguished by your vigorous aspiration for Purity. Let’s dedicate this day to Purity. You will ask, “Is everything hidden in Purity?” It is the first step on the staircase to the Eternal Life. When you ascend to the second step, you will read again “Purity.” The latter is a broad, inexhaustible world. The Bulgarian word chistota (purity) is not a strong word, but we use it for the lack of a stronger one. That is what every good village lad does when he wants to get married: he searches for the best bride, the most beautiful one, but when he cannot find the wife he fancies, then he takes the best one who lives in the village. They ask him, “Why did you marry this girl? Was there not a better one, a prettier one?” He replies, “This one was the best of all available. As I did not find the one I fancied, I married this girl instead and I am content with her.” Thus, also by necessity, we use this simple, humble Bulgarian word chistota (purity) to express one beautiful, magnificent world. The word chistota (purity) is not very beautiful here on Earth; it is not a strong word. Purity is not a princess. Her father is not rich, but he is a respectable man; her mother is not rich either, but she is a hard-working woman. Therefore, Purity was legally born by good parents. Circumstances need to be favorable for realizing the idea of Purity. At present, Purity is at the stage of a small seed, which should be planted in the soil so that to grow. Let several people take from this seed and form groups of two, three, five, or ten in order to work upon the idea of Purity. Only in this way, the world can be transformed. Many hold the idea that God can do everything, that the Angels assist Him and so on. Since God can do everything, you assume that you do not need to work. This is a false idea - stay away from it! God has His plan of action. He will come to Earth, but will He find people who are ready to work? Everyone should work for self-development and perfection. Do you know what the situation will be for someone who expects a good, happy life, but does not work? I will give you an example to understand this situation. Imagine a young woman, waiting for many years for her beloved to come and create a happy life for her. However, once he arrives, she is bedridden by sickness for the next three years. What can her beloved do? Either depart or wait for her to recover. What would her situation be if her leg was broken while her beloved offered her an automobile ride into town? Her legs need to be healthy so that she can go with him. Every person who lacks virtues is in the position of the girl with the broken legs. The legs of all should be healthy! This will be achieved only when people change their old views and beliefs. Now, when a new idea is revealed to people, they panic. In this respect, they resemble the little children of old times, whose teachers entered the school with canes. Whenever the children saw the teachers bringing in the canes, they knew that a punishment would follow. When one teacher entered the classroom, he saw that the children had raised dust because they were unruly and had messed up the classroom, but in fact he did not know the true culprit. So he began in due order. He hit one on the hand and the other on the head. So, he punished everyone and went out. However, modern teachers do not enter the classroom with canes. Contemporary education does not resemble the old one. There are new methods and ways to educate children nowadays. When I am revealing some new idea, you have fear, due to the old habit of yours. You suppose that I carry a cane in my hand. No, I am without a cane, without a stick. The cane method is not recommendable because it is not economical. When a teacher enters the classroom with a cane, a great deal of his energy goes into it. Teachers should not give their lectures with a cane. Today, the cane is substituted by a pen or pencil. It is like a magic wand that every student should hold in hand during the teacher’s lecture. Therefore, with this magical wand, you are going to write down the idea of Absolute Purity in your consciousness. If someone is interested in what happened at the Fifth Lake, you could answer, “No ear has ever heard and no eye has ever seen what we were told. It was about hygiene, but from the point of view of the Absolute Purity.” Lecture of the Master Beinsa Douno held to the General Esoteric Class at the Fifth Lake of the Rila Mountains, Bulgaria, on August 21, 1929. ------------------------------------------------------ 1. The Bulgarian word chistota is used to signify both the inner purity (as a state of being free from any extraneous elements that could change its essence) and the external purity or cleanliness. 2. Referring to the Seven Lakes region of the Rila Mountains where the Master lectured during the summer months. 3. Damga is the old name of Vazov Summit, 2,669 m, the Seven Rila Lakes Region. 4. Haramiyata is the old name of Haiduta Summit, 2,465 m, the Seven Rila Lakes Region. 5. See also Matthew 5:38–45. 6. See Matthew 5:8. 7. It was a Bulgarian village custom for girls to carry fresh flowers - one or more - behind the ear or in their hair. By taking their flowers the young men court them. 8. The male prayer leader in a mosque.

The Human Spirit Now I will ask you the following: why must man learn? Many people say that science guides man in Life. Is this true? If you board a car, could you say that the car is guiding you? As much as the car guides man, that much does science guide him. In reality, what is science? There exist two opinions about this. The first opinion is that it is not possible to live without science; the other opinion is that it is possible to live without science. That is to say, it is possible with a car and it is possible without a car. Science is a product of the human spirit, and the human spirit is above all sciences. The human spirit has been creating for thousands of years, and continues to create the sciences. Some of them have disappeared; others still exist. Contemporary science will vanish some day; only that which is most valuable will remain. Everything else which has served for the entertainment of children will be forgotten, will disappear. Do you think that an angel can be interested in contemporary mathematics or bookkeeping? Do you think that an angel will get involved in contemporary laws according to which contemporary society and nations are ruled? Do you think that in the future contemporary chemistry and physics will remain in the same stage of development as they are now? When I speak this way, some people may think that I am rejecting science, or that I do not recognize men of science. I deny neither science nor scientists; but I say that all men of science have gained their knowledge from a source which is much higher, and everyone has reached for this knowledge according to the degree of his development. In this respect, I do not recognize scientists who receive their knowledge from the earth. Kant was a man of science, and yet whence did he gain his knowledge? Whence did the prophets receive their knowledge? Therefore if someone thinks that he has much knowledge, it indicates that before that he has been ignorant. Even before finishing college, a man knew something. After he finishes college he still has some knowledge. It is important that man should dot delude himself that after having finished his college education he knows everything. As much as one learns, he still remains ignorant in respect to that which is being reveiled to him. The learned man knows that the earth rotates around its own axis, yet how this rotation comes about he cannot prove. The learned man knows that the earth has deviated 23° from its axis, yet how this deviation came about he cannot prove. Therefore he must be like the painter; when the painter finishes a picture, only he knows whether is picture is true, whether he has represented nature well, etc. The learned man must be his own first critic. Everything which he knows, he must be able to prove, to explain. This is true knowledge. When a musician plays, he must be able to express things the way they truly are. If he plays Beethoven he must perform it as would Beethoven. Everyone must be true to himself. If one performs Beethoven's music, one must give it an expression that he himself would recognize. Many people want all other people to resemble them. There could be nothing worse for people than to be all alike. Nature loves diversity. As long as each person represents a special example, he is valuable. As soon as there exist two of the same example, the price becomes devaluated. You think that there are many learned men en earth. No, there is only one learned man in the world — the cosmic man. All other learned men are his secretaries, who go here and there, collect data — what this or that scientist has said — and publicize it. For example, can the source of life and man's creation be explained by a knowledge of contemporary science? Does science understand that element which creates immortality? Contemporary science explains things only from the viewpoint of physical laws. Outside these laws it can prove nothing. I ask: besides physical laws, do other laws also exist? Besides the physical laws there exist others which the learned men have not discovered yet. That which they call a law is the manifestation of the real law. In the absolute law, there are no exceptions. A law for which there are exceptions is not a true law. In the laws of living nature there are no exceptions at all. Therefore if you call something a law, there must not be any exceptions in it. If there is one exception, it is not a law but a rule. It is said that logic is the examination of the laws of correct thought. If in man's thought there are exceptions, what kind of laws are these? What could one say about peoples1 negative thoughts, upon which is based a life full of sufferings and disappointments? What can one say about contemporary peoples’ love? Upon what laws Is It based? I don't wish to destroy your ideals, but I want to lead you away from life's illusions. For example, someone who is standing in front of a wall says, "Behind this wall nothing exists." No, behind this wall are hidden many things which he cannot see. If you cannot see something that does not mean that it does not exist. Therefore the stage which modern science has reached is only an introduction to true science. This does not deprive the scientists of their authority. Rather, contemporary scientists have a value and it is the greater the closer they come to truth. Each theory is valuable as far as it contains truth. Also, music and the arts must contain truth. Everything upon which we are working must contain truth. Each thought, each feeling, each deed must contain truth. Truth is the essence towards which you must aim. If you place truth at the base of your life, all disagreement among you will disappear. Peoples' relations lack common points. Why? Because everyone lives in a specific center of his mind and does not leave this center. One person lives in the center of his personal feelings, someone else in the center of his religious feelings, a third in the center of his social feelings. Does every one of you know which center of his mind he lives in? Do you know which station of your mind is working? You are listening to an interesting lecture, or a speech, and you are thinking at the sane time about something else; other feelings awaken in you. You think, "I hope this lecture will end soon, so that I can go to a concert." Or, "I hope that soon I will be free, as a very important business awaits me." This indicates that the human spirit has diverse interests. How does the human spirit profit from music, religion, or science? Who is teaching whom? Is the spirit taught by music, or is music developed by the spirit? Does the violin teach the violinist, or does the violinist develop his violin? The violinist teaches his violin to play well, not the opposite. Therefore in the same way, the human spirit teaches man everything. Someone performs a deed, and says afterwards, "I acted thus according to ray nature. I could not act any other way," Someone else says, "I must go to bed early. Only this way can I rest." I ask. Is this true? True rest does not need much sleep. If one wishes to rest he must free his mind of all needless thoughts, his heart of all needless, depressing feelings and desires. These drain the energy of man without giving him anything. If the painter wants to rest he must temporarily free his mind from the thought of painting. If the student wants to rest he must free himself from the thought of books. Until he regains the needed energy from nature, the mind of man must be absolutely free of all external tools. As soon as he has attained the needed energy he may take again his accessories and start his work anew. When you know this rule, you must be careful towards yourselves as well as towards others. You should never try to impose your opinion upon your friends in a way that burdens them; neither should you permit yourself to be burdened by others. Avoid satiating yourself. One can become satiated with music, with science, with religion. There is nothing more dangerous to man than satiating. One can become satiated even of life, and then one begins to think of suicide. In order to avoid becoming satiated by life, do not desire to try out everything, do not want to know everything. Someone says, "I know everything." Those people who knew everything are today imprisoned in the earth. The learned went down in the earth, and the ignorant remained on the surface to learn. The learned created the worlds. Is this true? This is theory, which needs to be proven. Even if it were proven, still everyone would ask, "Who was present at the creation of the worlds to know how this came about?" I say, "Truth needs no proof or demonstration." A man is sad, depressed, desperate. How will you prove that? If you could instantly change his state, this would be true science. One thing is Important for man: his heart, his mind, his will, his soul, and his spirit must be absolutely free; they must be able any moment to reveal, manifest themselves. Right thought can be manifested only where there is freedom. Without freedom it does not manifest itself. When the mind, the heart and the will of a man can manifest themselves freely, the man has valuable achievements. These achievements are stored in the soul. The soul is the treasury of the human spirit. It keeps in itself everything which the human spirit has achieved from time immemorial to the present. In this sense one can say that nothing in life is lost. The wealth which the human spirit has acquired is hidden in his soul and one day, when it is needed, it will be given as a gift to him who has acquired it. One day this knowledge, this wealth, will be available to all souls. The day will come when even the ignorant without having worked will have access to the science of the past. Doesn’t this happen today? One takes a record, places it on the record player, turns a knob, and listens to the speech of some learned man. This man does not live any more on earth; he has passed away, but he still teaches, develops, and explains his theories. Can you call the record learned in this case? As learned as the record is also the computer which solves automatically the most difficult problems. Can you call the man learned who has calculated how many people have been born and have died since the creation of the world? He is learned, but what good is his learning for humanity? After him will come another scientist who will explain the reason for the death of these people, and will prove that living conditions must be improved so that there will be a smaller mortality rate. All this is good but it is only theory. Who of these learned men will have the greatest authority? If these learned men came to you and, on the basis of calculations, could prove what sufferings you will go through in your life, by what circumstances these sufferings will come upon you, and how you could avoid them, then you would begin to contemplate on that. At the end you would say that it is only theory. Yet, as soon as you begin to suffer you begin seriously to think. In such cases, the true authority for you is life itself. You say, Einstein, Darwin, and Kant are learned men because they have brought something new to the world. Einstein is somewhere in Germany, Darwin in England, Kant in Germany; yet every man has within himself Einstein, Darwin, and Kant. All people live in you. The whole of humanity is included in one man and each man is in the whole of humanity. When you speak about the seed of an apple, you imply the germs of all apples. One apple seed contains in itself the variety of all apples. To be able to understand this, one must study life as something whole. For this purpose man must be imbued with an overmastering inner love for knowledge, for truth. The spirit stimulates the human soul to acquire knowledge. You have heard the expression, "my soul is longing." The spirit inspires the mind to be flexible, to become enlightened, and the heart to become ennobled. Why does man need to have knowledge? Why does he need to master sciences? Science develops the talents and capabilities. It cultivates and forms the head of a man. When you look at the front, at the skull of a man, you can see in what fields of science he has worked the most. If the spirit of a man cannot find favorable conditions to manifest itself, the head of such a man gradually becomes deformed, and his nose becomes crooked. When you observe people you can see that each one has some defect; someone's eyes are crooked, someone else's nose is crooked, the nostrils are flattened, someone's eyebrows are deformed, or his face is asymmetrical. It is good to observe yourselves from time to time to see what defect you have on your face or head and to work for its correction. If a man could not see himself in a mirror he would think that he was perfect, that he is the best man. A good man, in the full sense of the word, is he who has no defect in respect to his physical, mental, and emotional condition. Physically he must be healthy but not fat. Stoutness does not imply good health. The waistline of a man should be twice the thickness of his neck; his neck should be twice the thickness of his wrist. If the measurement of the waist and neck are bigger than this, then there is some abnormality. When I speak about positive science I am comparing it with music. Mathematics, physics, and chemistry are musical expressions. Mechanics is occupied with the movement of bodies, with powers. This is to say that it is occupied with living bodies. Only living bodies move. Movement is not a mechanical process. Only intelligent bodies move, only intelligent bodies can be dark and light, only intelligent bodies can be soft or hard, fluid or gaseous. The energies, the powers are attributes of the human spirit. When the human spirit wants to make for himself a shadow, to free himself of the vibrations of the light, he thickens the matter around himself. He is capable of thickening and thinning matter. In this respect the earth is an image, of hardened, thick matter, and the sun of thin matter. The sun is a shining body and the earth is dark. Perhaps after millions of years the earth will also shine like the sun. Once the earth was a shining body, but it has lost its light. A Bulgarian proverb says: Where there was once water flowing it will flow again. Man too passes through stages of darkness and light. Sometimes he shines like the sun, and sometimes he is dark like the earth. These are states through which man passes in order to learn. Thus man will rise to heaven; he will descend also to hell. When he descends to hell he says, "Hell is something terrible." I say, hell is terrible when can does not know how to leave it. Otherwise, if he manages by himself to leave hell, there is nothing-terrible about it. If can found himself among the citizens of the sun and did not understand their language or their order, was not prepared for their culture, and besides could not find his way back to earth, he would be unhappy there also. Many people think that if they could enter heaven they would be accepted with music and songs, and that a feast would be prepared for them. Yes, if they are ready for heaven, and if their consciousness is awakened, this would happen. If their consciousness is not awakened, both in heaven or in hell, everywhere it is terrible. Christ says, "Great is the Joy in heaven when a sinner repents for his sins, when he turns to God and lives according to the laws of love, wisdom and truth." And thus, if you want to take advantage of the knowledge which you have acquired, you must apply it. Whatever knowledge you acquire, whatever book you read, apply at least the smallest part of it. If you have read a book without applying anything from it, it would have been better not to read it. The same applies when you read the Bible. Read a little from it and apply it. You may ask, "How could we know which book to read?" I will give you the following rule: take the book you want to read, place it on your front, direct your thought to the world of reason and ask the divine in yourselves whether you should read the book or not. After that, remain for one or two minutes quietly and you will hear a still, small voice from inside to answer you. Listen to this voice. It will never mislead you. One must know what one should read. Some reading may be useful for one person and not for another. It is reasonable to read a book when it gives nourishment for the mind, for the heart, the will, the soul, and the spirit of man. When a man reads in this way and when he listens to his inner voice, he will develop his Intuition, through which he will be able to recognize the saps which flow throughout life and from there he will keep for himself only the wholesome and avoid the poisonous saps. You must protect yourselves against the poisonous spas of the books. You read a philosophic book or a novel and the whole night you cannot sleep. You say, "This book completely mixed up my mind!" Therefore, one must always be watchful. When one reads something or speaks with someone, one must always analyze oneself. The materialistically-minded people say that everything in the world is only matter. Therefore another world besides the material one does not exist, and God too does not exist. Both of these assertions present only the external aspect of life. When you speak about the material world as the only world, then for you God will be material. Everything which is outside you is material, and everything which is in you is spiritual. Therefore, the external is a reflection of the internal. When one speaks about his soul and yet lives exclusively in time and space, this will indicate that he lacks something. For this reason, man is not a complete master of his situation. Thousands of years must pass before the human soul will remain with the body forever. This is true incarnation. When man becomes master of his life, he becomes a saint. At present man is in the position of a plant. He has not yet made deep roots into his environment, and for this reason he lacks the conditions for a long life. Even in this situation people say that they have free will, that they will do this and that. It is true that contemporary men are so strong, so clever, that when they reach sixty years of age they lose this power and knowledge and say, "At one time we were talented, capable; we had knowledge; yet with old age we have lost everything. I ask how is this possible?" Thus, when man gets old his thought disappears. If he starts to think, his film is not in focus, and for this reason nothing appears on the screen. I say, if someone wants to preserve his knowledge even in old age, his wealth, the abilities which he acquired while he was young, he must have lived an absolutely pure inner life. Without purity, the human spirit cannot manifest its power and a man cannot keep the wealth which he has gained in youth. Many times man will study the same things, forget then, and will study them again, until they become his second nature. True knowledge is that which never disappears from the consciousness of man. According to the theory of reincarnation, you have cone to earth many times and in one of your reincarnations you may have been a distinguished adept in India, you may have had many followers, you may have taught people about great knowledge, and yet today you recall nothing. Why? At some point you have changed direction, leaving the right path, and as a result you have lost everything. Now you must start working anew to regain your lost knowledge. Some people say that Ledbeeter, the leader of the theosophists, in his far past was the prophet Amos. Ledbeeter himself wonders how he lost his past knowledge. At present he is deprived of the prophecies of Amos, who was a plain coward: he knew little, but what he knew he knew well and applied it. He prophesied many things; yet Ledbeeter has preserved from his past only his disposition for spiritual life. Therefore if a man does not want to regress, but wants to preserve his knowledge, he must live an absolutely pure life. Only by living this way can man keep his knowledge, give freedom to his spirit, and work according to the laws of living nature. Modern men think that they have much knowledge. They should not forget that they are mediators of God's knowledge. As long as they keep in touch with God they can be carriers of God's thoughts. If they break their connection with Elm, their knowledge will be discontinued. And besides, the knowledge which they have received they must process in themselves and give a part of it to others. There is no state more beautiful for a man than to be well disposed, to have the receptivity of a child and to profit from everything which he hears. Besides this, he must be free to speak about his viewpoint assuming that all people know at least as much as he does. Now I will write the number 111 which is made out of three units, three straight lines. (The Master combines straight lines drawing a human profile.) When you observe this profile you see that it is made of seven straight lines: 1111111. We have the number 1.111.111. Does this profile cost one million? Imagine that these units are power lines out of which you may create a whole image and give the world a push ahead. Yet to be able to place these lines in their respective place one needs knowledge. In these lines is hidden a whole science. When one speaks about the number one, two, three and the other numbers, one must know where they are to be found on the human face and body. For example the number one is placed on the nose; three, on the eyebrows; five, on the fingers. The number three is also placed on the mouth, observed in profile (2). The mouth is a hook which connects us with the earth by a rope, which constantly moves in and out, bringing food (3). The anchor represents the eyes connected with the nose and the mouth as a ring. The mouth rescues us in the difficult situations of life. If the ring breaks, the anchor by itself can do no service. The rope represents man's faith that he will always have good food to support his body. Food represents the living powers which enter the mouth and then again go out from there. The mouth performs several functions: first, through it enters food which is chewed by the teeth, and then through it passes the air on its way to the lungs. And finally the mouth speaks, and gives its opinion on everything it has tasted. I ask: what is the theme of this lecture? (Someone answered, the human spirit as author of everything on earth.) If the human spirit is the author of everything which can be seen on earth is it then correct to worship that which he has created? It is written In the Scripture, "You must not worship any idol on earth or on heaven." When I say that the human spirit has created everything I have in mind the spirit in its original power and purity. Man must strive for this state of the spirit, to restore its power and purity and thus gradually free himself of the illusions of his past. Since the human spirit through the time of its life has created good and evil he can use them, he can master the one as well as the other. You may ask, "What of the will of God?" I say: the spirit of man always expresses the will of God. He does that which he has learned from God. He is the rational beginning (element) in the life of man. Therefore to do the will of God is a manifestation of the wise, the rational in us. To oppose the will of God is to give expression of our will. When man opposes the will of God he reveals himself negatively. In this respect those people which are considered to have strong will are exposed to greater sufferings than those which have not their own will but fulfill the will of God. Such people are considered as without will. In my opinion, these people are the smart ones. Someone can say, "This man is a fool, I will beat him." I ask, is there a teacher who has punished his pupils and has had their respect? Is there a father who has pulled the ears of his children and they have respected him? In spite of this, there exists the opinion that the stick originated in heaven. About what stick are people talking? There were no sticks in heaven. Why? Because all sticks In heaven were living and could not be cut. Therefore, if one speaks about the stick in heaven it represents God's righteousness. That is, righteousness has come from heaven to rule people. He who knows the relation between the facts and the phenomena in the world has access to this stick. It is a magic stick. I say: strive to master your inner life. Speak little, think much. Worry little, work hard, when thought is accompanied with worry it' becomes crippled. As the rings in a chain follow one another, thus must thought pass smoothly, incessantly. Each anxiety interferes with the smoothness of thought and Interrupts. If you take out only one ring from a chain, gradually the chain falls apart. Therefore when you take only one ring from your thought, it looses its flow and changes into a mechanical action, thinking according to a pattern. Right thought is always accompanied by joy, and man feels that he is master of the situation. When people think hard they hold their head, shake it, walk around; yet this is not right thought. A poet sits to write but somehow it does not come to him. He holds his head, he scratches it, gets up, sits down again and finally gives up, saying: "I will never become, a poet!" As soon as he says this, the divine in him awakens and whispers to him, "Sit down and write! You will become a poet now that you have accepted the thought that it is not you that can do something." The poet becomes inspired and begins to write. Thus, the spirit dictates what the poet should write and then says to him, "Now you may sign instead of me." The same thing happens with men of science. A scientist wants to write about a certain matter, but cannot. He rises, walks around, sits down again until finally he says, "Of me will never become a scientist!" As soon as he says that, the spirit supports him and says, "Sit down and write? Write what I dictate to you, and you will see that of you will become a learned man. Now you can sign your name." For this case the English have the following saying: the faults and mistakes of people are a favorable condition for God to manifest. In other words: where man stops, God starts. God never lets a soul be lost. When man comes to complete discouragement and desperation, he says to him, "Begin to work! I will be with you, and will help you. You will succeed; you will achieve your desire." Therefore every man must remember that in himself ha has a spirit, the author of everything which he considers impossible. The spirit of man is valuable for the reason that it connects him to God. It is the author of everything on earth, and for this reason people must listen to their spirit. When they listen to their spirit they listen also to God, because the spirit executes the will of god. Keep in your mind a high opinion of your spirit as a great author, as an authority, as an interpreter and executor of the will of God. 7th lecture of the Master, held on November 3, 1926, Sofia. The Human Spirit

Faces of Reality Meditation I will read a few verses from the thirty-second chapter of Isaiah, from the seventh verse to the end. In this chapter, we read what a poet spoke to the peoples of Israel. There is something in this chapter that all of you know and believe in. In this respect you know well human nature. Many people ask why difficulties come in life. If there were only the difficulties, they could be easily overcome, but the earth is a place of great contradictions. There is nothing that man has thought that has not or will not come true. What can you expect of a world in which everything can happen? In this world, good things also happen, but you do not mention them — you take them for granted. As soon as you come into touch with evil, you ask why it exists. Why does evil exist? I do not have time to give the answer. I ask, why does the rich man clip his beard? Why does the old woman go with crutches? Why do children go on stilts? Why does the hair of people become white? You may say that it is natural for the hair of the aged person to turn white. In reality, this is not true. Old age is not the reason for the hair turning white. If you ask old age why it has made the hair of man white, it will not be able to give an answer. Old age has a goal other than that of turning the black color to white. As much as youth is not responsible for the dark color of its hair, old age is not responsible for the white color. The happiness of man does not lie in his dark, brown, or blond hair, and his unhappiness is not because of his white hair. Which color is better — the white or the black? If you say the black, it will mean that there is nothing more precious than coal. Coal is good for burning, and from it are derived many useful products. If this is so, place the coal in the oven, and the white on your body. If the white hair is bad luck, why do you put on a white shirt? The white hair is fashionable. Why be afraid of it? When a wise and learned man is to be presented on the stage, he usually has white hair and a white beard, but the white color is not always the sign of wisdom. As disciples of a great school, you must study the language of Nature, which is used by all learned men, adepts, and saints. This language makes everything meaningful. The greatest sages see in it the manifestation of God's wisdom. God's wisdom is great, but it is not for common men. In order to achieve it, they must pay a high price. I draw the triangle ACB. For the common person, this is an ordinary picture. For the educated, this is a figure for which it is said that the sum of the inner angles is equal to two right angles. I say that the triangle is the half of a quadrangle. In life, this quadrangle may be a smooth water surface. If we place the triangle over this surface, it will be reflected in the water. The triangle is in a thinner environment — the air — and its reflection will be in a denser environment — the water. The upper triangle represents the favorable conditions; the lower represents the unfavorable. Daily life includes both conditions. What is the carrier of -the one sort of conditions and what carries the other? Light brings favorable conditions and darkness brings unfavorable conditions. In general, the first conditions bring health to man, and the second, disease. The favorable conditions are related to the wise and prudent man, and the unfavorable conditions are related to the person unable to reason. The favorable conditions bring you to the good and to love, and the unfavorable conditions to the evil and hatred. The favorable conditions strengthen man, the unfavorable weaken him. What does the quadrangle represent? A place of conflict, a place of all possibilities and impossibilities. In the quadrangle everything is possible and impossible. When I divide the quadrangle into two triangles, the upper represents one part of life — paradise — and the lower, the other part of life — hell. Why heaven and hell exist at the same time cannot be explained. It is as if one would ask why men and women exist. Is it possible to have only men or only women? If this were possible, God would have created a different world. No world exists in which there are only men or only women. To think differently is only to imagine. In the present time nothing is possible without men or without women. Do not occupy your mind with questions which do not exist. You are solving your problems — this is perfectly all right. I say, Do not try to solve problems which are related to the vanity of life. This I say first to myself. When I have free time, I sing a song with the following message! Do not attempt to solve the vanity of life. Do not avoid the sweet sorrows that are part of human life. In them there is hidden love. Aim for eternity, wherein exists the great glory of God. When I speculate about these words, I ask myself, Do you think that you can answer the question of why some people are rich and others, poor? Why do I have a headache? Do not busy yourself with this question. Take care of your health and do not reason about the cause of a disease. When you cure yourself, you will learn about the causes of your illness. Why are my clothes in rags? What will I eat tomorrow? Do not think about this, either. Do not occupy yourself with thoughts about tomorrow. According to some philosophers, man must search for the reason for everything, every phenomenon and manifestation of life. This is correct, but you can not find the reason before you have studied the phenomenon. In the county of Varna, in the village of Chatme, something happened from which the mayor first learned his lesson. This happened in the time of the Turks. At that time, when the taxes were collected from the people, he who could not pay his taxes was punished by being beaten and put in jail. One poor Bulgarian, a good man, could not pay his taxes, and asked the mayor to postpone his payment, hoping that in some way he would be able to pay his taxes later. The mayor, who was a stern man, would not agree to postpone the payment, and gave the order for the man's arrest and punishment. Not too long after this, the Turkish supervisor went to the mayor to inspect the mayor's affairs, and since he found some irregularities, he gave the order to beat the mayor and put him into jail, in order to have him learn to keep his records in good order. Now the mayor learned what it meant to feel the stick on one's back. He said to himself, "Beating is a bad thing." Therefore, as long as other people are suffering, we say that suffering is reasonable in its place. As soon as sufferings come upon us, we say that this is cruel, and we start looking for the cause that brings them about. I say, as long as you do not include yourself in the suffering, you cannot include yourself in joy. This is a law. If you are able to exclude yourself from suffering, you will exclude yourself also from joy. However you may philosophize about the way in which you go, your philosophizing can bring no solution. You say, "That person is happy — he has managed to bring all his affairs to a good solution." Show me one person who has arranged all of his affairs for at least a thousand years. There is not a man on earth who has settled his affairs for even five years. Therefore it is said that man cannot be sure about his tomorrow. What may be gained from all the contradictions of life? What may be gained from a transitory, false thought? This should not discourage you, but rather encourage you to work more. I want to show you the laws on which contemporary life is based. Examine sorrow and joy as two faces of reality. Realize that your sorrow is the basis for the joy of your neighbor. "Why must I suffer?" That your neighbor may be joyous. If you do not suffer, your neighbor cannot have joy. If your neighbor does not suffer, you cannot have joy. "Why am I joyous?" Because your neighbor is suffering. "I do not want to suffer." Then you will not be joyous. Where there is death, there is also life, and where there is life, there is also death. "What shall we do, then?" Make life meaningful as well as death. "I am sick of life." What you may be sick of is death and not life. Man is passing away every day, and therefore he is sick of it. Real life can never be a burden because it has no weight at all. Life is not of material nature. Therefore sufferings are a burden, and death is a burden, but life — never. What is our conception of death? Death is that which stinks. It is only with this that man is fed up and tired. When he is dead he begins to stink. This way, he understands that he has been living in a prison. On earth man is a prisoner. Why must he die? So that people may recognize him. Everyone says, "We now understand what a man he has been." It is true — man becomes known after he passes away. He becomes generous, he gives away everything — even his body. He gives something to his relatives, to the Church, to the poor. When he is alive, he gives nothing. As soon as he starts to pass away, he becomes generous and gives away everything that was in his possession. The best man is the dead man. If I am asked why a man must die, I answer, "Man dies in order to manifest the good that is put in him." People live and yet they do not understand life. You say: I must live! To make it possible for you to live others must be sacrificed for you» the chicken must die, the sheep must die, the apple, the wheat all must die. The most difficult task is to support life — conditions and resources are necessary. Since you don't know that, you want only to live and to have goods, even temporarily. You cannot imagine that the temporary goods create unhappiness. You are wealthy, sit at a table with rich food. The food looks well prepared but after you have eaten with great appetite you feel pressure in your stomach. - Why? - The butter and the flour were not fresh. The baker has put old butter and old flour in your pie. Happiness is not in the pie. Don't think that every pie is made of fresh butter and flour. The baker found it convenient to make the pie of old flour and put in it bad butter. Don’t stop at every bank to ask for a loan. Don't stop at every shop window to choose clothes for yourself. Every garment is not for you. Every pie is not for you. Not all the money is for you. Not every book is for you. Not everything that you come across on your way is for you. You need many things but many things you don't need. The useless things mix up your mind and your heart. You fill up your life with a thousand things but not with that which is essential. What is essential? That which does not decay, which nothing can spoil. If you are sad sing one of your favorite songs, a cheerful one to take away your sorrow. Someone comes to visit me and starts complaining that he feels a sadness in his heart. "I am glad that you suffer. It means that you have a heart." The best thing on earth is the sorrow. Wherever God is there is also sorrow. If sorrow is far away, God is also far away. All goods on earth come through sorrow. If it were possible without sorrow first, then Christ would have saved humanity without having to suffer. Could not the angels have descended from Heaven and chained all those who punished Christ? Did He have to be crucified? You ask why God does not correct the world. Could the world be made better at once? First of all, I do not believe that the world is bad. How can you prove that the world is not good? The only one who is not reformed is man. As soon as he becomes better, the whole world will become better. It would be enough for man to sincerely desire for the Kingdom of God to come on earth. His whole inner world would be corrected. Therefore, if you say that the world is bad, you speak about a world which is the reflection of your inner world. You see yourself in the other people and say that they are bad. "Am I that bad?" You are not that bad, but you also are not as good as you think you are. "Do you know how much I love people?" I know that you love, but I know also that you hate. On earth you could not know what love is if you did not know hatred. Naturally, you have a daughter, and you love her, and sacrifice for her, and then along comes a young man all at once and looks at her. You are not content with that — you hate him. There is nothing bad about the fact that he looks at her. He has seen something that he likes, and naturally he will look at it. It is important to know how he looks. He looks, and reads what is written in her book. Or he looks at what fruits are in her garden. When he sees a nice fruit, he wants to pick it. You may pick it, but only with permission. To pray is to ask for permission. You may pick a fruit, but you will have to take the consequences for your deed. After that you will complain to God that you are suffering. Many people want to become great and eminent. He is great who bears suffering with understanding. If you try to escape from suffering you cannot be great. Since you live on earth, conflicts are unavoidable. What are the causes which bring on difficulties? The causes are many; some are visible and others invisible. "Why do I suffer?" Not only you suffer — thousands of beings suffer with you. To overcome a sorrow, you must uplift your mind to a higher level than usual. After a short time your sorrow will wane. You meet a rich person and begin a conversation with him, but you notice that he is restless — he looks to one side or the other, afraid of being robbed. How can such a man be calm? When he stops thinking about his money and about robbers. "What will happen if I am robbed?" You will suffer; if no one robs you, you will be glad. It is easy to give advice, but it is difficult to overcome suffering. Be glad for your suffering. If you are glad for your suffering no one can take away your joy. If you are not content with your sorrow everyone can take away your joy. After that you will wonder why you have lost your joy. When I speak to you this way, I do not wish to interfere with your family affairs. They are of no interest to me. I am concerned about that which is wrong in your life. Something is wrong with you, and it has to be cured. Two friends come together, but there is no real friendship between them. Two scientists come together, but not for the sake of science. This I do not consider relationship, but business, rather, which can fall apart any minute. Today I am speaking to you and you are listening, but this is something temporary, passing by. You may come, also, without my speaking. My speech may give you something, and it may give you nothing. This is a banquet, but you can live without it. The important thing is that if I do not speak to you, someone else will come and speak to you. If he gives up, a third or fourth person will come to replace him. Therefore, I am the minimum evil. Man cannot be free. There will always be someone to come and speak to him. Whether or not you wish it, he will speak to you. I may sit alone in my room, but from somewhere there comes a fly who wants something from me. It says also, "Give!" I may go out to the woods, and here too, thousands of preachers will find me. The fly says to me, "Do you know who I am and what I am doing? I am biting every stupid man because he does not understand me. When he understands me, I will stop biting him." You say, "This is a fly — it is useless." What have you brought today? You sit down to eat and you see that you have consumed everything that was served on the table. Are you not a bigger fly than the one that you chase in your room? The fly is not as intelligent as a man is, but what has man achieved with his great intelligence? Contemporary men are discontent with life, and think that when they go to heaven they will be well-accepted there. This is a wrong idea. Did one of the deceased ever tell you how he was accepted in the other world? Tell me at least one of your memories about the other world. You live on earth and imagine how you will pass into the other world. If you pass into the other world unprepared, you will cause there the same antagonism which exists here. You say, "How contented the beings in the other world are. How hard life is on earth!" The moment you think this way, you will have to leave the other world. You may be in Heaven or in hell, but nowhere is it permitted to compare one life with the other. You will be driven out of hell as well as heaven. How should you live? Wherever you live you must apply the great philosophy of life. Now you are at the beginning of this philosophy. "We do not understand this philosophy." You do not understand it because if you did, you would have to pay a very high price. An American millionaire heard that there was to be a concert in New York — some famous virtuoso was to play. He took the train to New York, but arrived late. When he came to the concert hall, the concert was over. Because he had a great desire to hear this virtuoso, he found out where he was staying, and went to ask him to play something for him. The virtuoso answered from his room that he was too tired, and that he was already resting. "I will pay you a thousand dollars." "I am too tired — I cannot play." "I will pay two thousand dollars." The virtuoso opened the window and played some small piece. The millionaire was very satisfied. He then said, "Lend me your violin. I want to play now for you." What is music? The sorrows of life. The greater the sorrow, the higher price you must pay. For an ordinary concert you pay little, but for sorrow you pay much. Why? Because you learn valuable lessons from sorrow. When you suffer, you speak and complain, and people listen to you. You say, "We wish to be rich, to be able to spend much money." Are you prepared, as a rich person, to receive many people and to listen for hours to their complaints? This is what it means to be a rich person. "Why has God created such a world?" The world is well-created — it goes its way. But how we should go is important. The fly buzzes — this is her pastime. To me it is important that I do not buzz like a fly. The ox gores — this is his affair, but I should not gore like an ox. The horse kicks — it is created this way. But I am not a horse and I am not supposed to kick. The judge tries suits because he is a judge, but I do not have the right to judge. "What should I do then?" For you there is designated another work. "Who makes the servant suffer?" His master. "Who makes the master suffer?" His servant. Therefore, the reason for our penitence lies in ourselves. When you complain, this shows that you do not realize the meaning of life which God has created and in this way you cause misery to yourselves. Because of their ignorance, the first men brought suffering upon themselves. The same is true for us. The smallest impurity in your thoughts can ruin the harmony of your life. The smallest impurity in your feelings and wishes can permeate the purity of your life. "Why does a person sometimes steal?" He is hungry and no one sympathizes with him. You are rich, and you pass by a poor person and say, "God will help you." Why do you not help him in his misery? Why is all your wealth given to you? Stop on your way and help the poor. If you do not help him, you contribute to his crime. Therefore, do not ask why life brings sufferings, but look back into yourselves to see if you have fulfilled your obligations. You suffer — it is not you who suffers, but somebody else within you. If the young man suffers, somebody else within him suffers, and if the old man suffers, again somebody else suffers. "I am tired of life." You do not speak the truth. Have you lived one day without suffering? What would happen to the young man or the young girl if they did not cry and suffer? What would happen to the mother and the father if they did not take care of their children and would not suffer? Be glad that in the world there exist mothers and fathers, young men and young women, servants and masters who suffer. Be glad that people die and are born. Be glad that people transgress and undo their transgressions. Be glad that good and evil exist. Make the best of life without feeling that it is a burden. Life gives many lessons for which must be paid a high price. In conclusion to all that I say, do not try to solve the mystery of life — it is unsolvable. As long as the sun shines it will cast shadows and the triangle will be reflected. When the sun stops shining, the shadows also disappear. If good goes away, evil will go away also. Where will man go then? You wish to teach God how to create the world. God has thought for a whole eternity before creating the world and you wish to change it with one gesture. Present your project to God to see what kind of world you would create. He who wishes to correct God and His manifestations will find himself in the position of Jonah, who stayed in the entrails of the whale for three days. True philosophy of life expects that man will be satisfied with all of that which God gives him at the moment. Consider that everything given by God is good. Do not think that your destiny is only to suffer, but neither think that it is only to be joyous. You are not born only for hatred, but neither are you born only for love. The moment changes, and with it, conditions also change. Do not say that you have not had one happy day in your life. You do not speak the truth. Light and darkness alternate continually. You say, "The war should not exist." You cannot stop the war — it has its destiny. You cannot stop the storm. You cannot stop the earth from turning around its axis and around the sun, which creates day and night and the four seasons of the year. You cannot stop the sunrise and sunset. "What can I do, then?" You can take certain position and make use of the goods of life. Someone says that since he has started to follow the new way, his hair has turned white from suffering. A crow decided to move her little baby crows into a new nest. The baby crows were very happy about moving into a clean place. Their mother asked them, "Are you going to take with you your rear ends, also?" "Yes, certainly!" "Well, the new nest will soon be as messy as the old one." Today, everyone is asking himself why he is on earth. The purpose of man is to change the matter of evil from thick, as it is now, to thin. In this way, he will improve his life and free himself from the conflicts in his mind that the world is not created well. The world is neither bad nor good. The people are giving their opinions about it — each according to his own understanding. When you read the Bible, you can see that one prophet writes about an event in one way, and another prophet in a different way. Christ said, "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees!" Why did He say that? Because they kept the goods only for themselves. The day will come when the woe of the poor will be upon their heads. "Blessed be the poor." One day this blessing will pour over the heads of the rich. The wheel of life is turning constantly. Everyone must find for himself such a philosophy that will bring him closer to truth. "Why does evil exist?" For manure. The rich soil does not need to be fertilized, but the poor soil needs it. Therefore, the evil is necessary only for some people, but not for all. Today evil is necessary, but the day will come when evil, hatred, and envy will not be needed. Someone says a cross word to you, and you immediately protest that your dignity is hurt. What did they say to you? That you are ignorant, that you are a bad person? Badness sometimes brings some good. Why are you bad? Because you have taken away someone's burden? If you had not taken it, he would have collapsed under it. Someone has eaten your chicken, and you say that he is bad. What is bad about this? You and he are the same. From a human viewpoint it is evil, but from the divine viewpoint there is nothing bad about it. From the viewpoint of the sheep, the wolf is not good, but from the viewpoint of the wolf, his conduct is correct. You ask yourself, "Should I be a sheep or a wolf?" It is preferable to be a sheep. The herbivorous animal is necessary for man because it brings fire and warmth. The wolf brings the suffering in life. Become a sheep, to bring warmth and fire into life, for he who eats you will turn into fire. There is much truth in life that must be explored. Study the New Testament as a reference book, so that you may know what to take from the different authors. The New Testament is not only a written book. Every living man who brings good tidings is a new testament. If you bring good tidings, you are a holy scripture that people should read. Because I know that, I am not afraid of anybody. It may happen that some child bites — this is all right. I will give him one or two apples. It has learned to bite, and now it has a skill. If it had not bitten me, I would not have given it the apple. Some day it will reject this skill. Look upon the world as though through a kaleidoscope in which you can see many colorful pictures. Now I will tell you to be natural, without over- or under-estimating yourself. It is good to be courageous, but not more courageous than necessary, and yet not more timid than necessary. You present yourself as more learned than necessary and more ignorant than necessary. The bad thing about you is that you are richer and also poorer than you should be. It is good to be rich and poor, but not more than necessary. One thing is expected of all — to follow the new teaching. It does not judge, but it shows how rich and how poor one should be. It will give everyone what he needs. "I need money." It is not bad to have money, but one should know how to use it. Money, as well as knowledge, is a means, but you must make use of both of them wisely. "I do not want to be rich." Wealth does not only signify money. Be rich in virtue, in knowledge, in power and in life. He is truly rich who can load and unload himself. As long as you can not at the same time be both rich and poor—as long as you can not both load and unload yourself—you do not understand life. You have become rich thanks to the efforts of the poor. One day, God will say, "Poor and rich, come all to Me to eat and drink together." "When will God summon us?" It may be tomorrow! Be prepared to meet God. Thank God for everything that He has given to you — for your mind, for your heart, for your will. Thank God that you meet both good and evil people. Thank God that you meet both poor and rich, learned and ignorant people. Thank God for everything. Gratitude is a word of the language of the old sages that has not been understood until present times. One of the words of this language is gratitude. In this way I interpret this word into our own language, but it still remains not understood. A lecture of the Master on February 3, 1932, at Sofia - Izgrev Sunrise, at the settlement of the White Brotherhood near Sofia Faces of Reality

The Safe Path. I will read the 23rd Psalm. Often people speak of truth. Speaking of truth is the same as speaking of freedom and of love. Sometimes you hear people speaking of love like speaking of the apple. The same way they speak also of freedom. Externally all people know the apple but few only know the apple from within. The external knowledge is not essential. You hear people speaking of someone as being successful in life. Which man is successful? What does this mean? I say: Only he who is accompanied by the bread, the water, the air and the light is successful in life. Only he who is united with the bread, the water, the air, and the light can conquer. Show me one man in the world who has vanquished without bread, without water, without air, and without light. - The right is on my side. - When? - When the bread, the water, the air and the light are on your side. Someone observes things externally and is dissatisfied with life. - Why? - Because he has not the right idea about life. With his thoughts and desires he is annoying God, He is a self-willed s child that no one can satisfy. It is not bad that one is dissatisfied but he must work, he must overcome the causes of his dissatisfaction. It is not your fault that you are discontented. Discontent has its origin since the first men on earth. Today all who surround you are discontented. You must overcome not only your own discontent but also the discontent of those who surround you. How can we overcome discontent? You must make contact with the light, because God is light. You must make contact with the air, because the breath of God is in the air. You must make contact with the water because it is bearer of life. You must make contact with the bread because it has been said: "I am the living bread which came down from heaven." (John 6:51). People receive things in two ways: through the law and through love. The law is a compulsary way - it is for the children. When one becomes an adult the law must yield way to Love. That which hampers and confinds man is the law. It is confining him in the understanding and application. Where there is the law is also violence and evil. Imagine that you brake a mottle in small pieces which you scatter on the ground. This bottle becomes dangerous for man. If he should walk with bare feet he certainly will be injured. In this sense evil is glass broken in many small pieces which are scattered on the earth. Every thought which is shattered in many thoughts which are dispersed throughout the world without to be applied, without to serve God, becomes dangerous. Every man who does not receive the bread, the water, the air, and the light with love is dangerous. Every man who receives the bread, the water, the air, and the light with love, is safe, is good. Today all people are asking who will succeed in the present war. Those with whom the bread, the water, the air, and the light are will succeed. Without bread, without water, without air, without light there can be no progress in the life of the individual, the family, the society, nor in the life of the whole of humanity. This must be understood by all people. - I think. What is your thinking? If your thought is powerful say something and whatever you say fulfill it. You will write a book. What is so special about the fact that you have written a book? - People will read it. - They will read it if they can read; yet if they cannot read what will they benefit from the book. He who cannot read but believes in it will use it as medicine but he will come to the persuasion that this book cannot cure. The true cure for a man is hidden in the bread, in the water, in the air, and in the light. - What is the bread? - The living bread is God. The pure, vital water is God. The pure air and the light are manifestations of God. There is nothing more nourishing in life than bread, more pure than the water, more pleasing than the air, and more beautiful than the light. Go to the North pole and live there for six months in the night and then you will understand what light is. Great is the joy of the soul when after a six months long night it first sees the rising sun. Therefore if someone says that he is joyous this indicates that he has seen the rising sun after a long night. Only through joy can a man experience the power and the beauty of the divine light. The joy is due to the rising sun in the spiritual world. The light makes man brave and resolute. It uplifts him, gives him wings. At night, when the sun sets, man becomes afraid. Without light space is filled with enemies. Man then feels as if something withdraws from him, he looses his courage and becomes afraid. It is pleasant for a man to walk in the light. How must one live? Go to the fruit-trees where you can learn. When an apple tree loves the people it bears good fruit. When a young maiden loves a young lad she starts to dress pretty and becomes prettier. She becomes courteous, friendly to all people, speaks with them and behaves nicely. If by any chance love abandons her she closes herself up again and nothing interests her. At present the whole of humanity is approaching the end of the century. A new epoch is coming which will bring a healthy environment for all people. There is nothing more pleasant for a sick person than to feel that gradually he recovers from his illness and to expect the day when he will leave the bed. Do you know what a power flows into a man when he decides voluntarily and with love to fulfill the will of God? Let us all fulfill God's will with love and without the necessity to be taught and persuaded to do sol If we should constantly be reminded to love God, to fulfill His will we will become bored, - Let us play and sing songs! - This, too, cannot be done only through beeing reminded. For thousands of years people speak about love but what did they understand about it. If they encounter with the mildest trial of love they cannot endure it. How are the good and loving persons distinguished? If he carries a basket full with sweet, ripe grapes and meets someone on his way, he is ready to give him the biggest cluster. He who does not have love in his heart by meeting someone on his path may give him also a cluster of grapes but it will be the smallest one. He will take one cluster and seeing that it is a big one will leave it; take a second, a third one, and upon finding the smallest one will reach out to give it. We must be thankful that he even gives that much. When people compete for the first place they are more generous. It is good for a man to be first but he must have the respective qualities. First is he who caries light in his mind, warmth in his heart, and power in his soul, I say: If you are first in the physical world you may accomplish the hardest job; if you are first among the learned men you may solve the most difficult problem; if you are first among the good people, you are ready for the greatest sacrifice for your neighbor. A musician is prominent because he can play the most difficult pieces of music. He who plays easy, popular compositions is a common musician. It is good for one to be first but in the opportunities which are hidden in his soul and not when he only sits in the first place. The ignorant man sitting in the first place still remains ignorant. The educated one, even in the last place, remains learned. Wherever he may sit the talented man is always in the first rank. Usually the strong people remain behind and the feeble ones pass toward the front. We can observe the same happening in nature. The small, the weak branches pass toward the front and toward the peaks and the large and strong branches remain behind and in the lower part of the tree. They are the bearers of the heavy wait. In the worldly gatherings the children are in the first place and the adults in the rear. In the spiritual societies the adults are in the first place and the children are behind. The one and the other is good. Delicate jobs are been done with fine, sensitive instruments. The small things are been sawn with small needles, and the big ones — with big needles. The words "big and small" have a different meaning and not the same as they have had until now. By big is not implied something that is physically big. - Why? - Because the physically big things deminish and the physically small things grow. That which becomes smaller is not big; and that which grows is not small. Is the thirty feet high snow drift which melts during the summer days and disappears big? Is the seed which germinates, grows, and develops giving fruit small? Great power is hidden in the small seed. Where the Spirit of God is present there is present power, too. What good will do to you ten boxes of wet matches? You try one match, the second, the tenth, but not one katches fire. One thought with divine contents is preferable for a hundred thoughts with human contents. The human stubborn and capricious thoughts estrange man from God. After that he prays to God to make him talented. This can be dangerous. To become prematurely talented would say to emerge in a first place like a parasite. The louse, too, emerges to a first place, lays her hitts which sit in the hairs like strings of pearls. It takes long care for someone to free himself of these nitts. Modern men spend a great deal of their time for hiding things. Not everything should be hidden but on the other hand not everything can be exposed to the sight of the world„ How can you expose your heart to show what processes occur in it? How can you disclose your brain? If you should open your brain you may interfere with the order and system which exist there. Since there is an external and internal pressure in the brain nature has made for it a solid, strong enclosure to protect it from these pressures. The cranium protects the brain from the great pressure of thought. If the processes of thought and the reflection which they cast upon the brain one could observe great rising and lovering of the surfaces of some brain centers. Try to make the stubborn man to say something which he does not want to disclose. Whatever punishment you may use he does not speak out but in the place where the center of steadfastness is there can be measured a slight rising. Let us return to love as something real. It is not sufficient to say to a man that you love him. A man needs not only words. God, too, needs not only words. To love someone will say to do something real for him. God loved man and created for him the world. He foresaw and created everything which people need. This is love. Love brings for man bread, water, air, and light. All other goods derive from them. You speak about love but what have you contributed to humanity with your love? If the people would fulfill God's will few would be sick, poor, uneducated, and homely. By not doing the will of God people do things through which they compromise themselves. Most people have two faces: when they turn to God they expose their nice faces - they are well disposed, when they turn toward their fellow men they expose their sturn faces, they are not well disposed. God looks at all people equally. He wants to see if they will show to their fellow men their nice, smiling faces as they show to Him. St. Paul says: "We shall not die, but we shall change." We all must change but not according to the law of force but by freedom. All people speak about freedom but only a few have the right concept about it. Where do we find a free man? Is there freedom in the a family? When I visit a family I see that either the husband or the wife are oppressed. If the wife is pretty, with nice features on her face, with a kind heart, her husband oppresses her, watches her actions. Occasionally he looks at me to be sure that I would not want to take something from her. I look at both and say: Both of you are good, rational people. Love God, work for Him so that you may gain by His blessing. I say to the husband mentally that he should not be jealous. From his wife's eyes one can judge about her purity. She is just and honest and will never betray him. Your wife is a beautiful book from which it is a pleasure to read. Profit of her presence because she will not remain forever with you. If you think that you can keep this book only for yourself she will leave you soon. I say the same to the wife also. The husband, too, is a beautiful book which the wife must read, if both of them have the desire to become masters their life will be ruined. The husband must see in his wife God. The wife must see in her husband God. In the name of God they must give each other perfect freedom. Without God we do not know how to relate to people. Every man needs a friend. If you are sick and meet a man who can be your friend you will recuperate. The friend gives something from himself. All people are carriers of God's blessings. Be glad when you meet a man who does not hide these blessings but is ready to share them with all his neighbors. We must be like springs which give abundantly their blessings to all. We must be transmitters of the divine and rejoice that we can perform this service. The other problems are God's. It is him and not us who solves all difficult problems. - What will become of the world? - This is not your problem. He who has created the world cares about it. At the end everything will work out the way it should. You sit and think what to do, how to finish school, when you will pass into the world beyond. This is of no importance. It is expected of you to study and to be a free student. How can you finish school if you do not learn? You do not think about your own responsibilities but give your opinion that someone does not live properly. If you see that your friend does not live properly do not require of him to live a good life, do not criticize him but turn to God and say: Lord, teach me how to live well. His faults are my faults, too. Whenever I will correct my life he will correct his, also. If you have hired for the store of your friend a bad servant who's fault is it? Change the bad servant for a good one and all affairs will work out well. Do never appoint for your store or for the store of your friend a bad servant. Modern people do not understand the deep meaning of life because they think statically. They have the urge to live well. In reality something else is expected of them: they must reveal God's love, be transmitters of love. Often people like each other but derive undue benefit of each other. The servant is careful and good to his master with the expectations to be promoted. The master, too, treats well his servant, rises his pay in order to dispose him and have him work better for his store. Both are self-seeking in respect to each other. This is good, too, but true life demands something else of man. If the servant will not work for his master as for himself, and if the master does not pay the servant as for him self both have no love for each other. To work for the others as for myself and been paid by them as for themselves this is the ideal situation in life. In such case there cannot exist conflict between the people. God wants to teach us to understand life in this way. I say: We must come to know God Who lives in the food, the water, the air, and the light. If you receive the bread, the water, the air and the light and are not contented what else are you expecting? What else can you expect of the fruit which serves you as food for your body? A luminous thought is a fruit which man creates in the mental world; the good feeling is a fruit which man creates in the world of the heart; the good deed is a fruit which man creates in the physical world. Be joyous when someone tastes the fruit of your mind, of your heart, and of your soul, and says: these fruit are good. This is the only way how to interpret the verse which Christ has said: "Each plant which my Father has not planted will be uprooted." Or, Each tree which does not bear fruit according to the law of love cannot be blessed." Therefore, our lives must be directed toward the proper use of the light, the air, the water, and the bread as blessings of life. Few people realize that in the air is God's breath, in the water is life, in the bread is pure spiritual milk. In every external blessing is hidden an inner blessing which must be utilized. Imagine that God asks men the question how they could improve the world. What will they answer? What will I say if this question was directed to me? I will not speak about the improvement of the world but since I see that I am a large snow drift I will pray to God to melt me so that I may start flowing, Together with me will melt all people and we all will start to flow. As long as we are snow-drifts we will be stationed at one place and will not move. When we melt we will start moving and all around us there will be created new life. Today everyone has shrunk into his shell being afraid that he may be robbed. Exchange is needed among all people, thing must move. If a divine thought comes to your mind do not keep it for too long time. Apply it into work to accomplish something and after that to return back to you. Do not withhold your feelings, too - let them go to work. You, too, do not stay in one place„ What do the military with the soldiers? They train them all day long. As soon as they learn the military arts let them leave them to go back home to help their families. As soon as harvest time comes let all soldiers go back hope to help with the harvest work. The officers, too, can go to harvest. If a man of war can fight why should he not work at the harvest? If he can accomplish the harder work he should be able to do the easier also. Modern men accomplish the harder works and neglect the easier ones. Sometimes happens the reverses they are occupied with the easy things and neglect the difficult ones. It is easy to break a bottle but it is difficult to glue it back together. To collect all the broken pieces and one by one to glue them together is not an easy task. Make exercises so that you do not loose the order which is required by nature. This summer I could not go hiking and now I feel hardship walking, But I tell myself: I will walk. When I rise in the morning I see that I have lost this habit but I start out so that I may be useful to myself as well as to the others. Some people want to know what I am doing in the mountains. I enjoy the mountain and try to find the reason for the evil of people. I have reached to two conclusions on this question. A man becomes evil when he is given more then is necessary. When someone has received more than he needs he cannot carry it and searches for a man or an animal to carry it for him. This way he creates evil. We burden our mind with unnecessary thought, our heart with unnecessary feelings, and our body - with unnecessary actions. This way a great pressure is created. Man cannot work in the world as long as he himself does not learn from somewhere. What is expected of us now? - The only thing that is expected of us is to reduce our loads. You have put on your shoulders a great load and I say: reduce your load! You worry, I say: Do not worry! I meet a young maiden and she worries that her luck has not come out yet. She was engages several times and the engagement has been broken each time and now she is discouraged, I say to her: Be glad that you are free. To whomever you may have been married would have given you a hard time. Providence wants to free you from torments and you try to tie yourself. You must wait. Your hour has not come yet. Through you will be incarnated souls which will help people. God is saying to a young maiden to wait but she is in a rush, she wants to marry as soon as possible. Her mother and father also hurry wanting to see her secured in a good home. If I was in the place of this young maiden, I would become a servant. As soon as my luck comes I would merry. In this case serving is in place. When I do not need to cultivate the land I will take out my violin and play or I will read a book. The young maidens and lads need musicians to play for them when they dance folk dances. I have observed how three musicians: a violinist, a bag piper and a rebeck player play together and the young people dance the round dance. I say: draw the moral from everything in life. When you see an apple or any other fruit observe the form and see what you can learn from it. Say to yourself: I want to be like this fruit. Everything that is pretty must serve as an example. When you learn to draw the moral from everything you will start to appreciate even the minutest things. Someone picks up a hair and traws it away saying: this is a hair. Truly, it is a hair but God has worked upon its creation. Look at life with the necessary seriousness. When you finish first grade this will indicate that you have passed through a whole course during which time the earth has made a tour around the sun. This way pass year after year and you accumulate more and more knowledge. Finishing high school indicates that you have gained something. Study life but remember that without Divine love, wisdom, and truth nothing can be achieved. You cannot understand a person whom you do not love. Love precedes everything It leads man toward true knowledge. Hearing that it is been spoken about love someone may say: You can love someone but first you must know the person, you must be sure that he deserves to be loved or not. It is an art to love a man, to give him your love selflessly without to think if he deserves it or not. Only in this way can you see the results of your love. Every living being deserves to be loved. As long as you measure your love you will observe things only according their form and will fee reserved. Love excludes any form. You love someone because of him himself and not because of his pretty eyes, nose, or mouth. Two days ago two friends and I were climbing the mountain Vitosha. At one time it started to drizzle, there occurred some dew drops. I had spoken already about the drew drops being God's blessing. As we were climbing a rainbow in the form of a great gate from the west to the east appeared. For two full hours the rainbow was moving in front of us and accompanied us. We climbed, the raindrops were falling softly but we were not afraid of them. We were glad that the rainbow was in front of us saying that there will never again be a flood. The coming of peace and the solving of all problems depends upon us. If we do not shake off the raindrops the peace will come sooner. They bring a blessing to the world. Have you caressed the dew drops to experience the blessing which they bring? This does not happen by obligation but in freedom. The dew drop hides in itself electricity and magnetism which ought to be used wisely. Knowing this do not shake off the rain drops from your coats. Do not fear that your clothes may be ruined. In the opposite, the color of the garmet becomes prettier. It is a different matter if the rain drops are mixed with dust and smut. These ruin the clothes. But the pure dew drop brings blessing. Whoever has a strong sense of smell can sense the aroma of the dew drops. We continued climbing higher and the higher we went the more we felt well disposed, This way we tasted the blessings of the rainbow and the dew drops. I say: Rejoice in the small blessings which come from God. The great is hidden in the small blessings. Everyone must come to this conclusion by himself. Do not pass instruction to other what to eat and how to eat but give him fruit and let him coap with it himself. If he values the small blessings he will first look at the fruit, will caress it, will converse with it and after that he will feel free to open this envelop and read the letter which nature has written to him. In every fruit nature has inscribed something beautiful. There is nothing greater than having God as our father. You say: Abba, Father! He is far away from us and not as the other fathers, God keep far away from us so that He may not scare us. He wants us to be free: everything which we do to procede from love. He does not criticise us, He leaves us free even when we make some mistakes. After that calmly He whispers to us: You have erred but you will correct your error. We must correct out mistakes without to feel sorry! We must be glad that there is something which we can correct. We must be glad when we can do something according to the will of God. "This is eternal life, that I come to know Thee the only true God." This is eternal life to come to love all people in the name of God, to love what He has implanted in every man. - What is man? - A page from the great, divine book upon which God has written very important things. Every page is in its place. Reading this book when you see that one page is missing you must search and find it so that you may read what God has written on that page. Learn to understand these pages in which God has implanted the eternal blessings of life. Value every page so that you may understand the Lord's prayer: "Our Father who art heaven, hallowed be thy name." - Where is God's name? - In our minds. "Thy kingdom come," - where? - In our hearts. "Thy will be done." - Where? - In our souls?" And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever, amen!" Temptation comes into the human life when people become negligent. When you do not appreciate the wealth which is given to you, you will be placed on trial so that you may see what poverty is. If you are not satisfied with wealth you will be visited by poverty; if you are not satisfied with poverty to you will be sent wealth. Wealth is one category of trials, and poverty — another. When you become rich you make enemies and start to worry that you may loose your possessions, there will be always someone to cause you harm. Wealth that is not well understood is a torment; poverty that is not well understood is a torment. Wealth that is well understood is a blessing. Poverty that is well understood is a blessing. Therefore, it has been said: "Blessed are the poor in spirit." How you will understand this depends upon you. Every one will understand and apply this truth in a specific way. Every man applies love in a specific way. In this is hidden the beauty of life. There is not a more delicate problem than that to apply love, and in the best case to apply it in one's own specific way. You can imitate each other but you cannot copy each other. Apply love the way God directs you, in that form that soots you. Divine beauty consist in the harmonious combination of the diverse forms of love. Let us be carriers of the God’s love! Let us be carriers of the God’s Wisdom! Let us be carriers of the God’s Truth! Let us be bearers of God's life, of God's knowledge, of God's freedom! Let us be bearers of the Divine movement, of the Divine teaching and the Divine work! Let's sing now the song: I can love and become good, I can love and become strong Love and charity will teach me how to become God's servant. Christ says: "It is given to you to understand the secrets of the kingdom of God," What do these words mean? - When a flower or a tree come to grow it is given to then to understand the secret of the light. - What will become of these plants? What will happen with the other people? We speak of those who have began to grow already, to them light is understood. They must use the light, not turn backwards. You turn back to see what will happen to the world. You will find yourselves in the position of Lot's wife to whom it was said that leaving Sodom and Gomorrah she should not look back to see what happened. Do not look xo see what happens in the world. God will manage with the world as He knows. - Why not to look to the world? - There are things which cannot be looked at. In the morning you can look at the sun but at noon not. Those things which we can accept and apply in our lives we can see. Yet the things which we cannot accept and apply we cannot look at. - What will happen with the world? - This is non of your affairs. If you love you will be in heaven; if you do not love, you will be in hell. - Am I going to be in heaven? - If you love God you will be in heaven; if you do not love Him you will be in hell. - Is there any other way for entering in heaven? - I do not know, there may be one other way. The only safe way for entering into heaven is love for God, If you do not love Him you will find yourselves in hell. There is nothing more simpler and clearer than that. - Let me perform a good deed. You may but this does not indicate that you will enter heaven, Christ says: "It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Do you think that if you load up yourself with knowledge like a camel that you will enter the kingdom of God? With human knowledge one cannot enter the kingdom of God. There the learned men have a different kind of knowledge. Observe the musicians how they play in a symphony orchestra. They play for hours at a time without making any mistakes. Some play even without a conductor and still make no mistakes. No one has heard how the musicians in heaven play. Their thoughts, feelings and actions are in perfect harmony. If they face a new piece of music they play it right away without any mistakes. The newcomers in the field of music make many mistakes. Among them one finds argumentation and disharmony. I say: Learn to play so that you may become virtuosos. Play for God. If a woman works for her husband twenty-thirty years and learns from him why should she not work twenty-thirty years for God? Her husband scords her, sometimes he even chases her away, calls her names and she endures all that. Why should she not serve God? You have served for many masters and they all have cheetet you and for this reason you cannot trust even God. You say: We do not know how our new master will behave with us. Many things which the people do are due to misconceptions. They study many things which they already know. They go to the army, learn to march, to turn left or right. Don’t they know all this? They do but still for the slightest disobedience they are put to jail. Everything that happens in the world is good. In the wholesome life all things are good; only certain things under specific conditions are evil. The whole bottle is not dangerous. Yet as soon as it is broken, its parts scatter and become dangerous. In the wholesome life all things are in their place; as soon as the parts of this life depart aside as separated independent manifestations they become dangerous. The parts of the broken bottle and the individual manifestation of the wholesome life we will place aside as problems. The Psalmist says: "It was good for me that I suffered." If you suffer and do not see the good aspects of the suffering you lack understanding of what suffering is. Today you may not understand the suffering but in two-three years you will comprehend that everything that you have passed through was for your benefit. Remember: Everything that happens in life is always for the good. Be joyous that you have passed through sufferings which have enriched you with experiences for the new life. Do not be disturbed. If you worry do not become distressed; if you are offended do not become grieved. If you travel nights through woods keep your hand in front of your eyes to that you may not hurt them hitting a branch. When you feel that in front of you is a branch creating a low bridge, bow down a little. Someone may say that he is not used to bow down in reverence. Whatever you meet in your life do not say that you could not do this or that. I may be a rich man and I meet someone who tells me to share my wealth. Immediately I will fulfill his wish asking him: How much do you wish? - He quotes a sum. - I say: Please here it is! He may think that he has rubbed me. He has not rubbed me. If he rubs me he rubs himself but he does not know the law. Now some people rub others and defeat-themselves thinking that they do not rub themselves. In reality if they brive someone they cheet themselves. Humanity needs a new way of thinking. The people preach the Word in an old way. They say: How much has Christ suffered! They wish to follow His path to be like Him, Many people wish to be like Christ without to have suffered the cross, without to have the nails driven through their hands and feet. I can give no recognition to such Christs. That through which Christ has passed is true heroism. I preach now the teaching: Down with the hails that kept Christ's hands and feet nailed to the cross! Let's put the nails aside and understand resurrection, God freed Christ of the nails and manifested His love to Him. Some people still weep that Christ was nailed to the cross. Let love pass through our hearts and melt that ice that is in them! Christ is even today crucified and nailed. The nails must melt! The hands and feet must be free! Man must come down from the cross and serve God! Dead crosses are no more needed. We need Living crosses that grow. The true cross is love that grows, that uplifts the human mind, the human heart, the human soul. It frees the dead from their graves. This is love, this is God who manifests Himself, Let's become one with God! Let's receive the love that flows from God and free ourselves of the needless torments. This will say to become immortal. Let's receive love and share its blessings. What is wrong with meeting on ones way someone who is hungry? When Christ passed through the hungry world He shared with it all the good and beautiful fruit that he was carrying. Now, we too, passing through Christs path have what to eat, Christ's path is already covered on both sides with ripe fruit. When He first passed through that path there was not one tree along it. Many have tried to pass on that path and reaching to a certain point they turn back. First Christ passed through this path. Today this path is covered with blessings. Let us be joyful that we pass on the path which Christ has traced for us. Now our path is even better. Until the time of Christ there was no one to hold the key to hell. The sinful and the righteous went there together. Christ locked the gates to hell so that the righteous do not enter it. Saint Peter holds the key to heaven so that no sinner can go there also. Dangerous place is hell but there exists no more the danger that the righteous may go there. It is dangerous to be trapped in the astral world of delusions. Let us be joyful that the path on which we walk is safe. Let us take off our backs the flag of love and lift it high above to be seen. There are no people more courageous than those who live in love. There are no people more fearful than those who live in lovelessness. The greatest heroes are those who live in love. The most faint-hearted people are those of lovelessness. Until now you all had the desire for this or that nation to become great. Now we have the desire that God may bring peace among the nations and that they may listen to what He speaks to them. All nations must fulfill the will of God, so that the peace may come in a divine way as God wills. 8th Morning Sermon of the Master held on December 5, 5 AM, 1943, Izgrev, Bulgaria. (From the volume ‘The new beginning’) The Safe Path

Note 1 A Voice from the City

HIM WHO COMES TO ME "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." John, 6:37 The words of men are like seeds. If you want to understand their inner meaning, you have to sow them in life. Therefore, if you want to know the meaning of a word, you have to sow it as a seed into the soil. Some understand the words, "Him who comes to me" literally, meaning that if one goes to a master to ask for work, he will not be sent away; or that if he works loyally for his master he will not lose his job. But one day you will be thrown out nonetheless, for there isn't a single man who has never gotten thrown out. "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." These words have a deep inner meaning. Christ doesn't speak as a Jew, nor as a nationalist, but as a man who is proclaiming a great truth. He means that he who comes to God, that is to Love, will not be disillusioned. Follow through the history of human evolution and you will find that whoever has not lived according to the laws of love, whether he be an individual or a nation, has lost everything in his possession. On the other hand, whoever followed the laws of love lives until now. Not only did he not lose anything, but he gained more than he ever had. This is natural, because love is the foundation of life, and only upon love can one build. All civilized people should know this. Without love as the foundation, nothing can be built. The foundation of a building is love, its walls - faith, and its roof - hope. When the hope becomes weak, the roof of the house starts leaking. If they say of someone "the wind is blowing him", this means that his faith is weak. You say, "I have no roof over my head". This means that you have no hope. Therefore, in order to be carefree, you have to have a foundation, walls and a roof - in other words, love, faith and hope. You ask: "Why don't people succeed in their lives?" - Because they don't depend on love, but on human selfishness, and say: The teaching of egoism is sacred and profitable. The mother says to her son: "My son, think of yourself; don't be stupid and worry about others." A little insect lives in this way. It, too, thinks only of itself. It, too, practices the teaching of egoism. You wonder where man learned this art? He learned it while passing through the kingdom of the insects. In this respect every man is an expert - he knows how to take care of himself. And yet the mother advises her son - who has graduated in natural science - to take care of himself. He already knows that very well; there is no need for her to instruct him further. His mind, even without her prompting, is filled with thoughts about himself. From morning till night man thinks about himself - about his clothes, his shoes, his house - he is fully preoccupied with himself. Everywhere one hears the same advice: "we have to take care of ourselves." Do you think that this is a basic science? Who doesn't think of himself? In the schools and universities we are taught the same thing - to take care of ourselves. But here, no. You will accept the new teaching and forget yourself. And this we had to be told - to forget yourself! It is very simple. If you don't forget yourself you cannot find the truth. If the principle, "to take care of oneself" were valid, let one man come and show us that after living according to this rule, he acquired true happiness. Is there such a man, be he a king, a patriarch or a layman? Everywhere those who have followed this principle have failed. Yet even today we still hear: "Let's think of ourselves, our children, our relatives." Which bird doesn't take care of its eggs and little ones? Which cow doesn't look after its calf? Who doesn't know this art? All of humanity knows the teaching "take care of yourselves" and practices it well. God first taught man to take care of himself, but this teaching has outlived its time. Many people proceed from the secular world to the religious one, but still follow the old teaching, "take care of yourselves". For them the form changes only to: "take care of our faith". What do you think can happen to your faith? Are you perhaps afraid that you will lose it? Where did your faith come from? Where do your thoughts, feelings and desires come from? Who put into man these higher sentiments that inspire him? Where are these thoughts from, that fill your entire being? Everything that is pure, enlightened and elevated comes from God. In that case why do you fear? This is why man, when he opposes a noble wish or a pure thought, exposes himself to suffering. Therefore, know that the sufferings you pass through are caused by your suppressing the divine in you. When the divine enters you, you begin to correct it and to say: "Wait a little, God; I want to advise you." God tells you: "You have two houses and your brother has none; give one of your houses to him." "Wait, God. I need money now in order to educate my children, and then to marry them off. After these are accomplished, I will begin to consider how to carry out your suggestion. At the moment I do not agree with you. In the future some day I will carry out your will, but not right now." God writes into his book: he is one of the students who corrects the divine. After that, God turns to a priest and tells him: "Hear me. Go to your congregation, and tell them the truth." "Wait, God. We are servants of the church and it imposes upon us certain restrictions which we cannot violate. I am a sagacious, learned man; I cannot discredit myself before my audience and lose my authority. One day I will tell them the truth, but in the meantime I will continue to deceive them somewhat. You will see what bright ideas I can make up!" God enters into his book: the priest also corrects the divine. Every church and every faith has excellent laws, but there is always something lacking in them. What is missing? Love is not included among them. A person accuses me: "You love someone else more than me." You have not understood love. There is only one being in the world that you can love - God. If you love the little leaves, blossoms and branches more than God, you have not comprehended the divine. When I know a person, I know the divine in him. If I love him, it is again for the God in him. Without the divine, he is just a dry branch. As a dry branch he is worth nothing to me. I would throw him in the fire and burn him. Christ says: "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." In the Book of Love there is not a single code according to which love can send anyone away from her. So abundant is love, and so many methods does she possess to amend the mistakes of the ignorant and incorrigible people. She welcomes people who have been forgotten in the cellar of nature. If their legs and arms are broken, she heals them; if their eyes are lost, she gives them new ones. Christ tells his followers, "Whoever comes to me I shall not send him away," This is a sentence which can be easily twisted into different meanings. Some say that Christ means this, that Christ shall receive whoever believes in Him. In other words, whoever thinks that Christ is the Son of God will be received. Many other meanings are attributed to this verse. This is not a problem. In life one has to use the following rule: in all your sufferings and trials throughout your life there shouldn't ever appear a shadow of suspicion in your mind that there is a flaw in God. I tell you, don't put God far away from yourself. He is always present in the soul of man, and talks to him all the time. If you contemplate committing a crime, immediately you will hear the divine voice talking to you. It whispers to you softly, "don't do this". If you think of going someplace where you shouldn't go, the divine voice advises you again, "don't go there". After you commit a crime, you confess to God that you have killed your brother. God resurrects your brother in your mind and, wherever you go, he accompanies you. You get up in the morning - your brother is with you. You go to bed at night - again he is with you. You just cannot get rid of him. Then you remember that you had heard a voice which advised you not to commit the murder, but you disregarded it. Christ says: "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." This means that God lives in us and we in God. All people will understand this. I am speaking about those whose conscience is awakened. And to those whose conscience is not yet awake this is immaterial. It is said in the Scriptures: "Sell your possessions and divide the money among the orphans." You ask how it is possible to give up all you have worked for all your life? This is natural. I can demonstrate easily how this can happen. A ship loaded with goods is under sail. On the sea it cannot unload, but as soon as it reaches the harbor it will. Why? Because this is its destination. Doesn't this make sense? I tell some friends: you will unload in the harbor. To those who are yet at sea I say: you will sail on with your goods. When you reach the harbor you will unload. I ask someone: have you arrived at the harbor? Yes, I have. Then soon you will unload. I ask someone else, are you still at sea? Yes, I am. Then you will wait until you reach the harbor. Someone is not satisfied that he is still at sea. Someone else has reached the harbor but remains loaded. If you are loaded and have reached the harbor, you have to unload. After that you go to the city of God, walk around a little, take what you need, reload your ship and return to the harbor from which you sailed. Christ says: "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." This is also the way a true friend feels. Do you know what it means to have a friend? In one American harbor passengers were coming down from a ship. Everyone of them was met by either a mother or a father, a brother, a sister, a relative or a friend. All were kissing and embracing and happy to see each other. One traveler, a poor man, came down from the ship, but there was no one to meet him. He was thinking, "Isn't there one God-loving man to greet me?" At that very moment a man came towards him, took the poor man by the hand, kissed him and said, "come on, brother, lets go". So there was a man who loved God after all. I say, when man comes to earth he has to have at least one friend. Who is your friend? In the dark night of your conscience, when you are very discouraged, deserted by all and very depressed, a still, small voice whispers to you, "Do not fear! I am with You." I ask you now, is there a reason for you to be discouraged? Do you have to contemplate suicide? No, here is no place for death. Who is this at the harbor who is meeting you? It is He, your true friend. He is the one who says to you, "I am going to arrange for you a dwelling and when I return, I will take you to Me, because where I am you shall be, too." Christ not only will not send you away, but He will take you to Him. When I say that Christ will take you to Him, you begin to fear and think that death is awaiting you. No, this is not death, but true life. When they tell you anything about the other world, you are afraid, and yet you come to earth crying. He, whom Christ takes to Him, will not die. According to me all those who sin are dead people. In the Scriptures it also says: "The sinners are dead people, and those who love are alive." Only God's love can heal our wounds and unite us. Only love can bind us to God and make our lives meaningful. Love recommends a person. What recommends a good painter? - His paintings. If you are a painter just because you have paints and brushes - then anyone could be such a painter. No, it is the paintings, the creations, that make one a painter. What recommends an author? Is it his pen? No, it is his books with valuable thoughts that distinguish him. What recommends a good man? - His virtues, not only his good deeds. His soul is expressed through his virtues. I say, people who live on earth for thousands of years could not at once change their way of life, but they have to begin with the new life from within. Even the doctors come to this conclusion. They begin to realize that the cause for many diseases is food, and that's why they prohibit the sick to eat meat, and advise the healthy not to indulge in food. What should the sick do? He should eat a little toasted bread, light vegetable soup and fruits. Imagine a glutton, who has been eating only roasted chicken and lambs, to have to be satisfied with such simple food! But if the doctor prescribes the diet, there is nothing he can do but to comply. A doctor told an American millionaire: "Listen, I know that you are extremely wealthy, but for the sake of your health you must eat nothing but oats." This is also the diet of a horse. And this millionaire ate nothing but oats for three whole years. To you such a diet must be a deprivation. But actually it is a happiness to spend three years of your life on a strict diet which will purify your thoughts and desires. What greater bliss is there than to be able to purify your mind and heart to the extent, that when you come across a kindhearted person you don't have the desire to take advantage of him. If you are not purified, the moment you meet such a person, you will want something from him. He will give to everyone without impoverishing himself. But what sort of people are those who always want to be given? A liberal minded man went to a millionaire and demanded: "Sir, you have millions of dollars, you owe me part of your wealth." "Yes, I do owe you." And the millionaire sits down and begins to calculate: "On earth there are two-and-a-half million people, and I have two-and-a-half million dollars. Here is one dollar for you. This is your share. Let the rest of the people in the world come and claim their share. I owe them too." That's the way it is. Everything on earth belongs to nature, consequently to all of humanity and not only to some individuals. This is true not only in words, but in actuality as well. Everything on earth is a common wealth - everyone has equal right to partake at the banquet of God. All people as souls have equal rights. - Why? - Because they all are created by God and He regards them all equally. God regards all creatures the same, from the smallest to the biggest ones. - How is this possible? Doesn't man have the image and likeness of God? Man is higher than all the other animals, and so God should treat him in a special way. - You have no right to speak this way. The present day man is far from the image and likeness of God. Today, when there are millions killed on the battle fields one cannot speak of man having kept the image and likeness of God! Only those who love, have the image and likeness of God. It is impossible to encourage killing and speak of love. In the Scriptures there are also stories of killings, but what is the result of such deeds? When Cain killed his brother, God asked him right away: "Cain, where is your brother Abel?" "I don't know, I am not his servant to follow him everywhere", answered Cain. "The blood of your brother cries to you. And so that no one will kill you, I will put a sign for recognition on your forehead. Thus you will carry the sign of your crime for centuries." And inspite of this, you pass for Christians, civilized people. You let this one be hanged, that one killed. How dare you preach Christianity at the same time? If the world could have been saved through killings and hangings, it would have been saved long time ago. And is the world actually good? Then this law is wrong. The world doesn't get saved through killing and executing. The Jews also preached about God, but they had a wrong conception of Him. When a prominent man came once to Christ asking what he could do in order to inherit eternal life, Christ replied: "You call me benevolent. If I tell you the truth will you accept it? " Christ told him, what he had to do in order to gain eternal life, but the man became thoughtful, got up and left. He had to decide whether or not he wanted to divide his wealth among the poor. And he was questioning whether this would be in accordance with the traditional ways of his contemporaries. If he gives away his possessions to the poor and follows Christ, what would the wise men say of him. I tell you, you need not worry, there are no wise men in this world. You will say that the religious people are crazy. But all the people are crazy. The whole world has fallen into sin - say the Scriptures. If this is true, then people don't know what they are doing. They are like half-wits. We are people of the Twentieth Century, we are civilized. - I acknowledge only one culture, according to which not a single crime is permissible. - It is impossible for us to practice this culture in its absolute sense. We live on earth, have children, we have to take care of them. We cannot be absolutely honest, we have to lie a little and steal a bit. But the fact that you have children and live on earth is not an excuse. You have to live without lies, without theft. The mothers lie on a grand scale, and the fathers as well. The mother tells her child, "Go, dear, do this for me and I will give you something." The child does the task, but he receives nothing. Next time the same thing happens - the mother wants something from her child, promises to give him an apple, but she doesn't keep her promise. At the end the child concludes: "mother and father lie, brother and sister lie as well, therefore I will also lie." This is not moral. After some time the mother starts moralizing to her child: "Don't lie, don't steal, there is God in heaven who punishes the bad and unruly children." But no matter how much she moralizes to her child, it is of no use now. The child follows the living example. You insult someone with a bad word and he jumps up and starts defending himself: "How dare you insult me, I am an honest man." It's too late, you have lost your reputation as an honest man. The truly honest man is he who doesn't get tempted by the lies and promises of the devil. If you believe him, befriend him and then you discover that he cheated you, you will suffer and torment yourself. Two young men, who were good friends had always talked a lot about the nature of woman. They had both heard that woman is a monster and very difficult to handle. One of them was a strict and serious pedagogue. He got married first, to a good girl. As he had known that women are terrible creatures, he right away on the first day of his wedding decided to give his wife a lesson - he took a cat and tore it to pieces in front of his wife. When she saw this, she became frightened and decided - this man is terrible, how I didn't know him before. If he can tear up a cat, without blinking, he will stop at nothing. I have to be careful. So she began to treat him with care and respect. Whatever she intended to do, she always consulted him. She addressed him "dearest" and he her "sweetest" and so they lived for ten years in peace and harmony. The second man got married as well, but his life was not good. His wife always quarreled with him, she never listened to him and she didn't want to know him. One day he asked his friend: "brother, how come that you live so well with your wife, and I have had no peace or quiet ever since my wedding." "Listen my friend, on the first day of my wedding I tore up a cat in front of my wife. She became frightened, and decided that in order for us to live well we have to respect each other." "If this is the case, I will also tear up a cat in front of my wife." He took a cat and tore it up in front of his wife, but she only looked on and smiled, then said to him: "It is too late, my friend, even if you tear up ten cats in front of me I will not get frightened. Nothing will help now." After you commit a crime you also realize and say: "do you know that I am an honest man?" - It is too late. There must be no division and breach in your conscience. Christ says: "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." He will not only send no one away, but where he is we shall also be. How is the young generation being brought up these days? The mother says to her daughter: "Daughter, think of yourself, guard yourself from other people, they are evil." The father says the same thing to his son. But I tell you, put preaching aside. Inspire your children with love. There is no other way. When you instill love into your children you have achieved everything. Begin with love. In order to bring up your child, you have to feel that you wish his good as you do your own. You have to give him all the rights and privileges that you reserve for yourself. While you are on earth you have to realize that the sun shines equally for man as well as the smallest insect and plant. But whoever thinks this way today? You regard the animals and plants as an amusement. But God looks at you also as an amusement. What do you say to that? All your sufferings and difficulties are diversions for God. - Doesn't he see that we suffer? - He sees and understands everything, but he only looks at you, smiles and says: "Just listen to me, and do not be afraid. He who listens to me I will free him from all his sufferings in one moment." Everyone can try this. When you become discouraged think about God and His love, and put all your trust in Him. Your conscience will immediately become cleared, your mind will begin to work, and you will feel inner peace. This is what it means to live in happiness and joy, to be a citizen of the new life. Whenever you are unable to manage your life, you say: "Let's get out of here! Let's leave this land!" There is no reason to leave. "The world is bad, our life is difficult." You shouldn't run away, life is a great blessing, but people themselves poison it with their crooked thoughts and desires. They put poison in their own lives. "What should we do then?" Like chemists, you have to remove all the poisonous elements from your desires and leave in them only the divine, which is powerful enough to enlighten your minds. "We want to be free." How will you win your freedom, with wars and murders? If you read the Bible you will see that no other nation fought for their freedom as much as the Jews. Did they achieve freedom? Even today they are not free yet. They are working and fighting for the foundation of at least a tiny state. God, whom they served and whom they crucified, is teaching them not to be selfish, to open their hearts wide, and to love God and their neighbors. Every nation must know that it cannot become great through wars, but through the path of God. You say: "We have to realize our national aim." What is your national aim? "We have to become great." To me, a nation or a man is great only when he is united with God. Therefore, if there is only one man, who is united with God and lives according to His laws, he will raise not only one nation, but the entire world. "Then why don't you unite the Bulgarian people with God?" - I have not come to unite anybody. I have come to show people the right way. "Do you preach the truth?" Come and find out for yourself! There is only one thing people have not tried yet, - the union with God. Connect yourself with God and you will achieve everything. The new way of life will not make monks and nuns out of you, it will not deprive you of worldly goods, but it will make your life meaningful wherever you are. And if you have the lowest position, if you are united with God, your life will be paradise. Wherever you will trod streams will spring out, and you will bring blessing. I will give you an example from life - One rich merchant had bought himself a turkey and was looking around for someone to carry it home for him. He looked here and there and couldn't find anyone. At the same moment a gentleman passed him and inquired of the merchant whether he could be of help to him. "I have bought this turkey and am looking for someone to carry it home for me." "I am ready to help you." The merchant handed the turkey to him and the man took it to his house. Then the merchant took out a dollar to pay the man who had helped him. "No, thank you, but I cannot take your money." "Why? You are not satisfied? Do you know who I am?" said the merchant and handed him his card. At the same time the man also handed his card to the merchant. You can imagine how astonished the merchant was when he read on it: George Washington, President of the United States. There is another story from Washington's life: Some ten soldiers were working on a bridge. They had to lift a heavy beam. They tried from here and from there, waved their arms excitedly, ran around it, but they just couldn't lift it. They saw an officer passing by and asked him for help. But he shouted at them: "Don't you see I am a field Marshall?" At the same time there was a gentleman passing who heard the refusal of the field Marshall, and right away came up to the soldiers and put his shoulder under the beam and helped them move it. When they finished he gave his card to the soldiers on which they read with awe: General Washington. The contemporary merchants and field marshalls feel their nobility and don't lower themselves to carry turkeys or lift beams. And still you preach about Christ and cry for Him, because he had to carry his heavy cross. Both men and women lament for Christ, but don't get disturbed by the thought that there are somewhere Christ's brothers and sisters who walk around naked and barefoot, who have to sell their chastity. I ask - what sense does such Christianity make? If the thought of Christ and his love enters the hearts of all living creatures, the world will be saved in one moment. God speaks to those people, who want to apply His love and live in the new way. Christ said: "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." This applies to those who, having arrived in the harbor, are ready to follow the laws of Christ. Everyman can fulfill His laws. Man's mind is powerful! If you believed in Christ the way you should, you could also fulfill His laws. But most people regard Christ as an historical person who had lived on earth 2000 years ago. This is a literal understanding. God lives in the hearts and minds of men even at present. He occupies the whole universe, all the worlds - the Sun, Venus, Jupiter. God attends even to the smallest beings, speaks with them and arranges their relations with the bigger beings. To man, a higher being, God gave more endowments and told him: "Always be good and wise, and express your love towards all living creatures." This is the new teaching which you have to practice. When you follow it conscientiously your face will light up. All will recognize that you are with Christ. "Do you believe in God?" "It doesn't matter to me what I believe. What counts is that I am ready to share my bite with my brother," "What about your bed? Or your room?" "I can share with my brother everything that belongs to me. But the problem is that I don't own my bed and room. If I possessed anything, I would share it all with him who is in need. Tomorrow they will come and throw me out of my room. But I have one place where I can receive anyone in need and this is in my heart. I pray for the salvation of every soul and, for the well being of all living creatures, without them knowing it. My wish is that we all pray for each other." - "But how do we pray for each other?" You will pray with love and from the depth of your hearts. I have seen how the older child implores his mother to forgive his little brother. He takes his mother's hand and begs her not to punish him. The mother loves her children, but when she sees how her children also love each other, she is touched and ready to forgive them. "Him who comes to me I will not cast out." Why will He not send anyone away? Because love is in Him. It solves all cardinal problems. The scientist who is filled with love, will remain a scientist, the lawyer will remain a lawyer. It is important that the soul of man would be filled with love, and become as pure as crystal and sparkle like a diamond, Christ says that he will not throw anyone who comes to Him out, but people speak constantly about casting out. We cannot throw anyone out, we don't have the right to. God has created all living creatures, and only He has the right to dispose of them as he likes. God has given life to all creatures and human beings. Therefore we have to live according to His wish. -"We want to love each other, but don't know how." Turn to God. He will show you how to love each other. Now, I am not teaching you something you don't know. I am merely reminding you what you had known but forgotten. You know how to love; you know the teaching of love, I will only remind you. In the Scriptures it is written: "When the Spirit of Truth comes, He will teach you and remind you everything." I also will merely remind you of love, and whoever is ready will accept it. And then you will be free. Only in love is there freedom. Where love exists, there is inner understanding among the people. When you love, you are not only considerate to the person outwardly, but innerly as well - towards his mind, heart and will. In love there is no doubt, no insult, no despair. Everything is positive in love. Negative powers do not thrive in love. They burn in it. Love invites them to her, treats them hospitably, disciplines them and then they stay in her domain as faithful servants for ever. People's opinion that the sinners will perish, means rather that they will reeducate themselves and rise higher, and then they will say: "One time we were blind, but now we can see. Once we thought that way, now we think otherwise." Remember, God lives in your hearts. In order to revive yourself, to free yourself from slavery, to make use of your powers, turn to God with the words: God, we want to follow Your laws, to execute Your will and to express Your thoughts. Fulfill everything with thanksgiving for God's love to you, and do not doubt Him. "He who comes to me I will not cast out." We roust turn our hearts to Christ and to thank Him for His love to us. When you love, that means you are fulfilling Christ's law. When you follow this law you are uniting yourself with God. What greater bliss can there be than such a union. It means that the whole world is open to you, that you have a free ticket to travel. You can go wherever you wish. - You think these are lies? - But they are not. You have to visit the world of the angels to see what culture they possess. Whoever had been there and then had returned to earth, he could never reconcile himself with the rough conditions of life on earth. Only strong and self-denying people are permitted to enter the world of the angels. For this reason Christ says: "Who doesn't denounce his mother, his father and himself, he cannot become my disciple." It is also said: "Love God with all your mind, with all your heart and all your soul and all your strength, love your neighbor as yourself." This means, to pass from death to life - e.g., from life on earth to the life of the angels. You cannot understand the culture of the angels before you enter their world. "Can we also become angels?". Yes you can. "When?" - When you transform yourself not only in mind but also in being. In Bulgaria there are many angels in mind, but not a single one in being. To be an angel in being means to be able to say at a time of personal disaster - such as losing his wealth - in a quiet and calm way: "Blessed be God, God gave, God took." Or in the event of the death of a beloved one: "Blessed be God. God destroyed the old house, he will give a new one, there is no evil in the world which God's love cannot turn into good." This is a truth which is hundred and one percent correct. When you know this apply your faith and do not get discouraged. You ask: "Does this apply to us?" It applies to all. If I had the time I would write a personal invitation to everyone of you. Since I don't have the time I am writing it to all: God of love invites you to return to the path of love, and to follow its laws. "How do we know that we are on that path?" Your sufferings will disappear. For it is said: "God will wipe away all your tears, he will erase all your sins and he won't mention them again," In this way joy and happiness will pervade the world. Young and old, women and children, all will live in joy. There will be no death on earth. This is what it means to live in love. "He who comes to me I will not cast out," says Christ. And today Christ sends you also a special invitation. Take the invitation with you and when you reach your home read it once again carefully. Put the invitation next to your heart. Hide it so people wouldn't see it. The same way that the young girl hides her love letters from her mother. Her mother sees that she is hiding something and asks her what it is. But the girl denies everything because she doesn't dare say the truth as she is shy. I say to you: read and reread the invitation of Christ, until your heart is filled with love. There is nothing greater in the world than the love of God. We should be in union with Him. You complain: "My nerves are unstrung. I don't know what to do." - Your nerves need love. Your mind requires enlightenment, your heart warmth and your will strength. And all this you can receive from universal love. By universal love I mean the living God, who calls upon all the nations. The Kingdom of God is coming to earth. - "When will it come?" It will. In the Scriptures is said: "The word of God will not return without bringing its fruits." This is only a matter of time. When the time comes all the people and nations will embrace this great truth. And then the verse: "the wolf and the lamb will feed side by side" will be fulfilled. This was said by Isaiah several thousand years ago. "He who comes to me I will not cast out. I am going to my Father to prepare a dwelling and I will return and take you with me, because, where I am you shall be too." Where there is love, there is Christ. He lives in the soul of man. Therefore the time is approaching, when we will become citizens of the great Kingdom of Love, where there is peace, light and freedom of thought. "He who comes to me I will not cast out." 1. Sermon of the Master held on 16th March, 1924 in Sofia, Bulgaria. Him Who Comes to Me

YOUR BROTHER HAS COME BACK And he said unto him: "Your brother has come back". "Your brother has come back. And your father killed a calf, because he found him in good health." The contemporary learned men - the philosophers, mathematicians, scientists - always keep searching for the cause of things. Every phenomenon has a cause. Therefore, the understanding of the great processes of nature is dependent upon the inner understanding of life. By "life", I mean, in this instance, the awareness of man. We always regard material objects as things without awareness. When man loses his awareness, he doesn't perceive the phenomena of nature. When he is in full awareness, he is sometimes satisfied with nature's course, sometimes not. "Your brother has come back and your father killed a calf, because he found him in good health." When the elder brother heard this he became angry and refused to enter the house. Is it wrong that the father killed a calf because his lost son came back? Why is the father happy and the elder brother angry? You will say: such is life. Indeed, on first thought, life appears to be a simple matter. - No, life is the most complex problem. For this reason, a man has to have a clear and sharp mind to be able to build his life on a good foundation. There is not a single creature, no matter how small, that doesn't know on what ground to build his life. No matter how you build your life, it is temporary and passing. When you read of the incident of the lost son, you right away condemn the elder brother. You say: 'He shouldn't get angry”. Why do you get angry? Why are you dissatisfied? When you suffer you are discontent. When you are happy you are content. Do you know that your happiness is caused by someone else's suffering? You are selling your house and are sad to lose it. Whoever bought it, he is happy that he has gained something. He gave money and against it he received something. Consequently your joy doesn't mean that everyone else is happy. Those who suffer also don't mean that all people are unhappy. You say: "We know these things, we are educated." You have to have a clear idea about science, the aims it pursues and the advances it achieves. For instance, you are studying anatomy and you think you know a lot. - What sort knowledge is this? As far as I am concerned, anatomy is a dry subject - of dead bones. Do you know what it means to learn about a bone, to know its every particle? If you don't study the bones in detail, you have learned nothing. The anatomist studies every bone, every muscle by itself, without finding any connection between them. This is why anatomy is considered a dry, dead science. Anatomy is meaningless without physiology. They say about someone that he is an excellent physiologist. He knows how all the processes in the living body take place. This is not sufficient. He knows how the processes function, but he also has to know their implication. Now let’s take a look at biology. You say that biology is the science of life. But this is not enough. You study the life of the cells, but you also have to study the origin of life. Every mother has to study biology, in order to know how to give birth to healthy children. To be a real man, to get developed properly, you have to understand the life of the living cell - biology as well as psychology - the life of the soul. The psychologist speaks of the soul without seeing it. The soul is recognized by its behavior. This is so for the one who sees: he knows that the soul has a particular shape, just like the body. - Is it true? It is a facto for the one who sees. Consequently, when you express your opinion about something, don't jump to conclusions from partial observations. Partial understanding is not valid to everyone. And so as I observe the sciences, I hold a special view on them. To me, every science is in its right place. It is essential that close connection exists between all the sciences. From the viewpoint of the materialist, sciences have application only in the physical world. But I believe that the sciences have relation to the human awareness as well as to man's inner life. Then today's sciences are only for the earth. When you go to the other world they will remain behind. Then what will you do in the next world? You have no awareness, you cannot enter into communication with the beings from the other world. To be able to benefit from the conditions there you will have to start from the a, b, c. There you will study the spiritual science. You say: "How come that I, an educated person, have to start again from the beginning?" The child who has just completed the 4 grades also thinks that he has finished 4 faculties. Yes, he has finished 4 faculties, but when he enters the secondary school he will start right from the beginning. There he will use only the base which he has acquired, and will build upon it. From there the student will enter high school, where he will again have to start from the beginning. From there he will enter the university where he is as well obliged to start from the beginning. No matter how much knowledge you acquire you will always be in the position of the small child. – "I am an educated person." When you go to the next world you will see how educated you are, and how much more you have to learn. In the other world you will see, how little you really know. He said unto him: "Your brother has come back". These words upset the elder brother innerly. He became angry and didn't join his father in his joy. Why did he get angry? Because of material considerations. He thought to himself: this brother, who has eaten and drunk his share, has now returned to father's house to eat and drink from my share. I thought that my father will be wise and will not receive him. That's why I don't want to join them... The elder brother appeared to be philosophizing, but actually, he was not satisfied with his father and was jealous of his younger brother, because his father killed a calf for him, but for him, who had served his father faithfully many years, he had never killed a calf. "You love him more than me." The father, who knows the heart of his big son, says: "My son, everything I posses, is yours, let's be happy for brother who was lost and is found, who was dead and now is alive." I say: the way which you follow you have to understand thoroughly. You are sitting content, and calm and all of a sudden your wellbeing is gone. Did you account to yourself for this change? You say that your state of mind is changed, but you don't know why. You think that the reason is deep inside you, because you have become indifferent to life. - When did you become indifferent? Few moments ago you were content. If you are young it is natural that sudden changes of your disposition will occur, but you are mature, and settled in character. That indicates that the disposition changes in the young, elderly as well as old people. Today you are happy, energetic, well disposed, and in a few days your spirit falls and you say: life has no meaning. Psychologists say of such a person that he has lost his objective in life. Consequently, if you lose the purpose in life, know that you have lost your objective towards which you could direct your energy. When the energy grows to excess the person feels tense. If he cannot alleviate it he feels depressed. How can you deal with this condition? You say: if I get any material reward for it I can bear it. Imagine that they give you two million in gold to carry to a place few kilometers distant. Is it easy to carry gold on your back? You say that you will carry it in a few trips. Even so you will become so exhausted at the end, that you will not want the gold or any other material goods. If they tell you to carry a sack full of sand, you will refuse right off. Why did you agree to carry the sack of gold, but you refused to carry the sack of sand? You say, because you will gain something valuable by carrying the gold, but nothing at all. Often people burden themselves with so many desires and thoughts which contain nothing valuable, that they became exhausted as a result. The same as if they were carrying sacks of sand. You are reading a novel and you fall in love with the main hero. But he is a fictitious character, not a real one. The author had created a wonderful character, with whom you fall in love and as a result you are unhappy. This hero acts his role in the novel, but he is non-existant in real life. You see on the stage a generous man who is ready to help, but if you go to his home, you will find that he is not willing to help you even with a penny. If you want, he might lend you some money. But otherwise he doesn't give money away, even not to a beggar. I say: life on earth is not real, it just represents the life of actors, who play strange parts. When the daughter cries for a new pair of shoes, she is acting. Is it a tragedy that she doesn't have shoes? When the child cries to his mother to give him apples and nuts, he is also an actor. When he gets his mother to satisfy his demand, he thinks: I am a good actor, I got what I wanted. The mother thinks: my child is good, he cried a little but he stopped soon. He makes some mischief, but she forgives him. I ask: the one who makes mischief is he not good at heart? He is expressing everything that is hidden in his heart, when a good person does a good deed in this way he expresses himself, they say about him that he is a benevolent person. When a man steals, and commits crimes, they don't say about him that he is benevolent. And he also expressed what is in his heart. What kind, of moral does he have. The true morality is common to all men. By this he means mutual respect for one another. Whoever applies this moral, he is distinguished through the fact that whatever he says, or whatever he promises he does. Honesty has to be a trait of all people. You have to be honest to animals, plants and people. He who doesn't carry out his promise, disturbs the harmony of the divine world. This is written in the divine book: "here is a man who doesn’t fulfill his promises." If you don't fulfill your promises the invisible world will take upon itself the task of correcting you. He says: this undisciplined child has to be put straight. Do you know that the angels rejoice over every good deed done by man, and suffer for every evil and mischief committed? - Do the angels suffer? They do, but not in the same way as men. For a single mistake of a person all the angels get to their feet. They all want to correct it. It is not easy to correct a person. Someone thinks that with the sweap of his arm he can improve himself, that this is an automatic process. If the world could be corrected automatically, God would have been the first one to do it. Benevolence is a quality which man can develop himself. Patience, self-control, abstenance, perception, all are qualities which man can develop himself. Often people say: "you received freely, give freely." - Given and taken freely can be things like money, bread, clothes, but wisdom cannot be given freely. Do you think I would be right, if when I have invited you to ray table for dinner and eaten the soup myself first; and then I would claim that everything can be taken freely? I have received freely because I ate the soup, but it was not the same for you. So when we come to eating, everyone has to eat for himself, it is not given as a gift. Everyone should drink for himself; and everyone has to earn for himself. By earning I mean the acquisition of certain powers necessary for our development. By "gift" I mean conditions created by our relations, and in these conditions we can develop. I am asking: What do we base our wrong conceptions on? One french baron, by the fictitious name of Abizi, who was badly off materially, fell in love with baroness Melbi. As a man from a noble background, he held on his word of honor. He was very honest, but had no wealth. Melbi, who was from a wealthy family, wouldn't marry him. But she had the desire to help him. One day she said to him: ‘I am willing to lend you two-hundred-thousand francs, but you have to sigh a paper. It doesn't count in this that you love me. I am acting in this business like manner, because I want us to have a clear balance.’ The next time she lent him five-hundred-thousand francs for a specified period of time, and again she requested him to sign a paper. The same treatment was given him the third time when she lent him one million francs. At that time the baron fell in love with another girl. One day he was taking a walk with his girl and they came across baroness Melbi. When she saw him with another girl she wanted to embarrass him so she stopped to talk to him. The baron excused himself for a few seconds and went over to baroness Melbi. She came close to his ear and asked him whispering: "when are you going to pay me the first loan?" He listened to her then moved away. When he returned to his girl, she inquired: "What did this young lady whisper into your ear?" "I cannot tell you," - "That means you have a liaison with this woman." Yes I have, thought the baron, this is also a liaison eventhough of material nature, which could embarass me at any time. - What do you think, is the baron honest? Yes, he is honest, but he has to give. All human conclusions, all philosophical meditations are like those of the baron. He is honest, but has to give. He wants to return the loan, but he has no money. Consequently, when someone whispers into your ear, others will ask you "what did he tell you?" I will tell you the story of the two friends and the bear. They were passing through the woods. Suddenly a bear appeared in front of them. One of them climbed quickly a tree but the other one remained on the ground. When the bear came very close to him, he lay on the ground and pretended to be dead. The bear came looked him over, sniffled him and as he thought he is dead walked away without touching him. As soon as the bear went away the first one descended from the tree and asked his friend: "what did the bear tell you?" "He told me next time not to travel with such a fellow like you." I am asking you what peculiarity is there in the character of baron Abizi? He was distinguished with a mysterious sort of pride. He didn't tell his girl what the baroness whispered into his ear not because he didn't want to upset his beloved, but because he didn't want to expose himself. The baron should have said to her "this girl lent me some money, and now she wanted to know when will I return it to her." The readiness of a person to tell the truth, even if it would embarass him, is called in Christianity the state of repentance. And so to repent means to show your weaknesses, your faults, not before people, but before God. You will say: God I have a few loans which I have to return. - The loans represent weaknesses and faults which man has to cope with. If you can confess to God, you can also confess to your near ones. - What will people think of me? - Let them think what they want. You will present yourself as you are. This is what a real man is in the full sense of the word - honest and noble. Most people today play an unenviable role, because of which they appear dishonest and ignoble. For instance, the elder brother became angry because his father made a feast for his younger brother. He regarded himself as the good son, who worked for his father with readiness, but his goodness was put to a test. Instead of being happy because his lost brother returned, he showed his anger to his father. When I observe the people who come to listen to me, I read from their faces what they are thinking. I know the science of the contraction and expansion of the muscles, and by these I distinguish the good from the bad person. The muscles of the good person expand and his face acquires a calm noble expression. The muscles of the bad man get contracted - and his face becomes tightened. This is due to the law of head, by which the body expands with heat and contracts with cold. You will say that there are exceptions to this law. For instance, the water by freezing expands. This is true, but aside of this exception the law is correct. Observe your face, when you are in a bad mood your face becomes dark and the muscles tighten. When you see such a face don't attempt to talk him out of it, because such a face never listens or believes what you tell him. He says: I am not in the mood, I don't believe anything. So, you believe when you are content, but when you are in a bad mood you don't believe. This is no faith, just a mood. When the circumstances of your life are good, you believe, when they are bad you don't believe. The same way the beloved of baron Abizi lost her faith in him. - Why? - Because another girl came near him and whispered into his ear: "When will you return my money? Don't you know that the time is due?" What is wrong with that? The wrong is in the suspicion. The baron's beloved thought that there is some secret in the whispering. Many people speak about secrets of nature. Strange are the people who seek secrets. There are no secrets on earth. If you are looking for secrets, then go to heaven where you will find them. What kind of a secret can you find under the snow and ice? If you ask the ice what secret is hidden under it, it will answer you – "wait a little. When the spring comes, and the sun begins to shine stronger, you will see the secret - grass coming out." If you ask the river what is hidden under the ice, it will also tell you – "Wait a little until the ice gets melted, and then you can see the life of the underwater." Consequently, all secrets of earth can be discovered easily. It is just a question of time. When the spring comes the sun gives greater heat and all the secrets one by one come out. — After all, aren't we living in a material world? - Isn't our life real? - When you live, you will yourself become convinced how real you are. This can be proved from the viewpoint of today's science. It is easy to prove even the idea that man is made out of ice. You can see that this is true from the fact that man lives such a short time on earth. In the present condition, man can live at most 120 - 150 years. Is there any record in history of man having lived for 2-3 thousand years? In the Bible it is said that someone had lived for 900 years, but this anyway is in the past. Today no such an instance occurs. That's why I call the men of today men of the ice and snow. The contemporary man is made out of ice. When the sun shines, he melts. When the sun begins to shine even his benevolence turns into water. He lives on earth for at the most six months. You say to someone: "I love you, my heart is burning for you. I am ready for any sacrifice for you." This is so, but how long will your love last? Until spring. When the sun begins to burn the ice will begin to melt and your love will also get melted. When the sun begins to shine even your promises melt. No, say to your creditor: "My friend, I owe you thousand dollars. I am ready to pay you, but I don't have money. You are a big merchant, you own a large restaurant. Let me work for you, and repay you with my work. How much will you pay me?" "Thousand dollars a month. Are you satisfied?" "Yes I am. This way I will pay you my debt and be free." When you hear me speak like this, someone will say: "How can I, a respectable person, go and work in a restaurant as a simple labourer. This is impossible." Then, how will you pay your debt? "Whenever I have the money I will settle it." This is the philosophy of contemporary people. This is the way educated as well as simple men behave. This is how people also behave in moral issues. The scientist reads about a theory, throws in something new, and claims he invented it. This theory is not his. He didn't think over it. - He just added something. What matters is the fact that the theory is from another scientist. One poet read the poems of several other poets, collected a little from each and wrote it into a few verses. Then he passed them for his own creation. But these are someone else’s verses. I call a poet the one who writes only one poem but it comes from him. If you create a theory, it has to resemble you. When you write a poem it also has to resemble you. What is created by you has to resemble you. Otherwise, everything which doesn't resemble you is foreign, borrowed from somewhere. He said, to him: "Your brother has come back". The elder brother is not satisfied. Tie gets angry with his father. In Sofia there are also people who are not satisfied with themselves. They ask: "How was this spiritual movement created? Isn't the church sufficient for us?" All the things that are written about us in the papers! The elder brother became angry with his father because he killed a calf for his young son. What is wrong with that? "Your brother has come back" His return is a fact. It would be something else if we your brothers, would come to eat your share, to eat and drink away your wealth. In that case you have the right to be angry. But be sure that we won't take even a penny from you. We will go to work in the field, and with sweat on our brow earn our bread. We will never extend our arm and say: please in the name of God, help us! Who follows the way of God doesn't have to beg. God, who resides in us, never begs. I am against begging, against asking favours from people. There is a sense in asking from Got, but to ask from people is wrong. When you are in need of money you will find it. - How? - In an honest way. Imagine that you can heal people. You go to an ill person of whom the doctors say that he will not live, and you help him. You are poor and the ill person is wealthy. At first he will ask you how much you want. — "I will tell you, but I want to see what is the disease." The doctors say that I have cancer in my stomach. - "I want from you 10,000 dollars. Right away I will sign that I will cure you. And if after one year your disease doesn't get repeated, you will give me the promised 10,000 dollars. If the disease comes back you will give me nothing." Every art has to be put to use in life, otherwise it will remain untried. I say: The people of the 20th century in whom the awarenesses is awakened, are distinguished by great Intelligence. I use the word "intelligence" in a broad sense. The intelligent person has to have in him the qualities of the real man. It is time that you get rid of your wrong conceptions and conclusions. When you see someone move his arm or leg you have to know why he is doing so. When he is moving his head he may be threatening someone. When he is tightens his fist, he shows that he wants to fight. Many children are born with closed fists. - What does this mean? - 'They want to indicate that they are not very noble. The old person keeps his fists open to show that he is noble, and ready to sacrifice everything. This is good, also. The young and the old have to be natural. This is good and as well bad. For some it is good, for others bad. For instance, you can save a man with a rope who had fallen into a well, and with the same rope you can hand another. This depends on the Intelligence and wiseness of the person. The intelligent persons can use his power for good and evil. I ask you, what do the military people make their swards out of - gold? The part of the sword which kills is made out of steel. You say: "We have no need of knifes. - No, you do need knifes. They say about us: These people speak of peace and love, but they also make use of knifes. - This is it, person has to have character, namely a knife, iron is required of him. Iron is a necessary element for man. If it is absent in us, we cannot speak of a resistant, stable character. If you don't have gold in your blood, you cannot be noble. In order to be quick and intelligent you have to have silver and copper in your body. All the elements are necessary to the human character. And so, our life, as well as our body are a books, of which we can make use. In this respect, everyone has to study himself. People say of someone who likes to carry his head high, that he is too blown up. The one who carries his head backwords, is lacking in balance. According to the laws of nature, man has to carry his head straight, so that the centre of weight would fall downwords. Otherwise at the slightest deviation from this balance, he nay stumble and fall. You take care of your physical balance, but not in the mental and spiritual world. You borrow 10 - 15 thousand dollars and promise, that after two three months you will return them. But the time for returning the money comes and passes, and you don't want to know. Where is your stability as a person? What does this show? - That you are not clever. This you should know. You should have borrowed as much money as much as you could return. Never borrow more than you need. Never secure the life of others. If man was wise and worked only to make his own life secure, there would be less suffering people on earth then there are now. All great Teachers, who had come to earth, have given many maxims, many rules about life. It is not my business to quote what these Teachers have said. But what they have preached needs to be explained. Today we cannot live the way people did during the time of Christ. After thousand years we will live a little better, but not like during Christ's time. Every epoch requires its own conditions for development. Wt are not the only stimulants for the creation of conditions. There are other creatures above us. God had foreseen a certain plan, which has to be realised. Everything happens in its own time. God demands the reformation and the correction of the world. We are not the ones who are doing it. God demands that there should be order in the world. He wants people to be truthful, honest, just, quiet, controlled, etc. If you think that it is you demanding this, then you are wrong. Be sure of the things God demands. Whatever it is it will be fulfilled. You say that the world is bad. - No, the world is the way it should be. You think that God created the world bad, but this is not so. The world is bad in relation to your development, and not because God created it bad. From the philosophical point of view we cannot say that the world is bad. In comparison to the future, the world is not perfect, but in comparison, to the past it is better. In the past times, when men fought, how did they treat the war prisoners? - Cruelly. - How do they treat them today? - More humanely. They take the wounded to the hospitals where they treat them and then they exchange prisoners. Then there is betterment in men. The relations of the sons and daughters with their parents are better then in the past, but still a lot is demanded from them to become the way they should. We also could be better then we are now. When I say this I mean that we should utilize better and more rationally the conditions we are given in our hearts, minds and souls. For instance, in Bulgaria there are many natural resources, but there are no men who would utilize them, There are ways in which with a little of fuel, more energy could be produced. The sunrays could be utilized for this purpose, but scientists are needed who would use the natural powers and resources. - Why? - Because, if an inventor comes along, ten others will come up who will be in his way. The Bulgarians are not socialistic minded. They are great individualists, everyone wants to be first. The ambition for being first is well represented in the painting of one artist. He expressed symbolically this idea, this ambition in one high mountain peak. Millions of people want to reach it. The first one who wants to climb towards the peak is grabbed by the others and pulled down. In this moment another one manages to start towards the peak but they pull him down too. This happens with everyone. They pull, grabb and stumble each other, fall and rise, as if they are dancing a group dance, but no one can reach the peak. Today many say: One cannot live honestly. - Why not? - Because we have not yet arranged our lives. When we get settled, we will live well and be honest. - No, in this way you cannot reach the top. There are more then one way in which we can reach the top. Why did the elder brother get angry when he was told that his younger brother came back? When we love someone, our heart gets opened and we feel happy. Whom we don't love, we are not happy to see. They say: This is my brother. - No, only the one you love can be your brother. This is the law of God. If you love someone he is your brother; if you love someone he is your sister. If you don't love him he is not your brother nor your sister. You become joined with someone you love. The one you don't love you stay far away from him - there is no connection between you. And so those of you who are advanced in your development, you have to have the correct conception of life. For this everyone has to strive to fulfill the will of God. There is no other will higher or wiser then the divine. In our solar sphere have lived "before us many other more intelligent creatures. They had achieved a high level of development. They are called angels. There is a close bond between the souls of the angels and men. One day they will be our brothers and people will be their sisters. In the house of God there are both sons and daughters. Today all the people on earth are women - there are no men as yet. Don't imagine of yourself that you are sons of God. There are no sons yet. They are elevated spirits. Until you reach this high position, you will have to work on the fields, make bread and cook. You will work for a long time on the fields and vineyards as farmers. But this is not a task for one person, everyone has to take part in this work. They say about someone that he is a great man. No, the great men are in heaven. The great man have created the solar systems. And on earth both men and women are occupied with insignificant things. Yon continuously keep hearing that Ivan, Peter, Dragan have stolen something, or misused a certain sum of money. What kind of science is in this? What is the sense in caring about the honesty and dishonesty of others? This is woman's business. Only women are occupied with small things. Therefore if men get concerned with small things then they are only woman. You say - a certain Ivan, Dragan, Peter stole something. - What is the sense in getting concerned with other people's affairs? The great life demands a wide scope. It excludes small women's ordinary business. You, sisters, will please excuse me. If you get insulted you have not understood me. Who gets insulted is a woman. Men are still in heaven, they have not yet descended. Only women are on earth. Everyone has to know his role in this sense. Some women wear pants and men's hate and pass for men. But don't imagine anything, you are all women, I can prove this easily to you. - If a man's wife dies, he cries. - Why? - Because he is a woman, only women cry. The angels never cry. They are not familiar with this art, of having tears run from their eyes. The crying is the art of women. You say: which man doesn't cry? They also cry like children. You see someone has got four doctorates, and he cries and still he passes for a man. If he cries he is not a man. It is not bad that you are women, but what is your calling as women? "Your brother has returned." The father was happy and killed his best calf. But the elder brother got angry and didn't appear at the banquet. - Why? - "Let evil rest under the rock". I say: The discontent of man represents the old-fashioned distorted outlook on life. People still kling to the old. Christ says: "If you don't become like the little children, you cannot enter the Kingdom of God." It hasn't been said anywhere that you will enter the Kingdom of God if you become like the old." But it is said that if you become like the children, then you will enter the Kingdom of God. It is the same way in our environment on earth. Therefore if you cry and become discouraged, you are women. This is the nature of woman, to cry, to get discouraged. She has to know that one day her brother will come and she has to await him, to be ready to welcome him. Today people are divided into men and women. Actually, the men our brothers, are up there, there they work. Now they are coming our brothers, our advanced brothers. When I say earth, I don't mean the ordinary earth. It is said in the Scriptures: "God will make a new earth and a new heaven," I believe that you will understand the things correctly. I consider you to be wise. The new doesn't contain the qualities of the old. Consequently, the material from which our earth is made, will be changed completely. The material will be taken from the space and from this will be created a new earth. The earth will be changed innerly. New things are being created now. You also are not the same today the way you were last year. Man is constantly transformed, his cells, his thoughts, feelings change and are renewed constantly. "Your brother returned". One of these brothers, who came to earth was Christ. How did the Jews receive this brother you all know. When He returned to heaven He said: how they had received Him. The Jews were dissatisfied with Him because He told them that they don't live well. He showed them the right way but they didn't listen to him. Today the most beautiful words we can pronounce are: "Your brother has returned". This makes everyone happy. What nationality this brother is makes no difference. Let him express what God has put into his soul. Do not stay in the way of God! Do not correct the divine plan. You will say that you have to have varied opinions. - Yes, you can all have different opinions, but there has to be agreement in the applying of love. We all have to apply the Divine Love. In nature exists great differentiation. All people are not the same hight, but all have to work. As long as people work their lives are meaningful. You will say that the wise people have to work. No, all have to work - the plants, animals as veil as men. What would happen if the plants and animals were to disappear from earth, and only the wise people would remain to work? Each animal, each plant according to the level of its development does some work. You will say that this is not in accordance with religion. "Your brother has returned". So that you don't get into the situation of the elder brother, throw every bitter feeling out of you. The brother who returned is a Divine Spirit. Therefore when he comes don't fight him. What does the Spirit represent? It is an angel who makes life meaningful. You say: The Spirit entered me and then went out. - This is a childish notion. When the powerful, strong spirit enters into you must say: Brother I am dependent on you, on your power and strength, let them guide me. The student has to let his Teacher guide him completely. The brother has to guide his sister and not the sister her brother. This is the law. It is d in the Scriptures- "I will send my Spirit and it will guide you as to what to do." In the Churches they interpret this in different ways. By "Spirit" I mean in the broad sense the elevated beings - the angels. They are directly concerned with our situation. Their future development depends on their contact with us. When they make this contact they are ascended one step higher. If they don't make it their development will be arrested. The same thing applies to us - if ye also don't achieve contact with the angels, our development on earth will stop. Then this contact is necessary for our awareness to become broader, and to pass from one phase into another. Many people see that something new is coming to earth. This is spiritual sight. Now I speak to you of things that happen in the spiritual world. As you are listening to me, you will say, that this are illusions. And of those who believe in this they say that he is hypnotised. - What does hypnotism really mean? - It means the putting off of all the candles in your mind. They leave only one candle to burn. When a person comes out of a hypnotised state all his candles are again putt on. The hypnotised state is necessary. - Why? - So that the person can forget that certain situation which could stumble him. For instance, if the kings son doesn't forget his situation, he wouldn't be able to study. - But he has royal blood. -It isn't the blood which gives knowledge. The king's son has to study with all the students together. He can live without knowledge, but in no case must he remain illiterate. So when we come to earth we have to forget our royal heritage, to forget that we are descendents of God. We have come to earth as kings sons, to learn, and when we acquire knowledge, to return to our fatherland. This way we will have one plus because eventhough we descended from God we have acquired more knowledge. "Your brother has returned". As some people don't understand the meaning of this verse, they say: Beware of this brother. - What kind of a person is he? Where did he come from? - From broad. You will say that he is stupid, he shouldn't have returned to his father, he is not normal. I ask you, are today's people normal? Let the scientists show us the prototype of the normal person. They say about someone that he doesn't reason logically. I would like to know of what consists the correct logical reasoning. According to me the people of love are the normal people - not of the ordinary love, but the one which raises the person. The person of love is powerful. When he waves with the stick, the table becomes set. When the meal is completed, the table clears itself. You have need of money. You wave the stick and the money comes immediately. - You want to travel someplace. You wave the stick and you find yourself there. What ever you wish you receive. For the ordinary men who are women, the trains are needed to take them from one place to another. All the communications are made in the feminine way. Today women govern everywhere, in the churches, in the government. It is also said in the Scripture: "My country is governed exclusively by children." The children those are women. The first child that got "born brought unhappiness to the world. But one day, when the woman will complete her development, she will make an excellent sister. Then they will say about her: Thin sister has gone on her own way. How she is a winged angel. "Your brother has come back". We should be thankful to the father that he was happy when his son returned and killed a calf. We should be thankful that he welcomed his son with joy and made a big feast for him. Let us also enter his house and partake in the joy. We shouldn't be angry with our father like the elder brother, and not to say that the world is bad, but to be thankful that our brother has returned. "Your brother has come back". 2nd Sermon of the Master, held on March 23rd, 1924 in Sofia. Your Brother has Come Back

ONLY SAY THE WORD[1] The centurion replied to him and said: "God, I am not worthy to receive you under my roof, but only say a word, and my boy will be healed." Two states are important in life: the negative and the positive. The centurion reasoned correctly, wisely, and logically. He realized that the power of Christ was not in the entering of his house, but in the word which he would say. Consequently, power also is not in the body, nor in the build, nor in our stoutness, nor in our wealth, but in our intellect, which we manifest in our life. Every man however he might be, owes his greatness to three essential factors: to his mind, heart and will. For instance, they say about some doctor that he is wonderful, famous. - Why is he famous? - Because he is intelligent, knows how to put in use the four important, basic elements of nature - the light, the air, the water and the food. If the patient doesn't make use of these elements, no matter how many doctors would treat him, their efforts will be without result. The orator and the preacher, however great they might be, without these elements do not amount to anything. They owe their greatness to them. You will object, that light is an external element. But, we speak of the inner power of light, about that which it creates in the consciousness of man. What is the meaning of our present life? - Everyone has his ideal and this also gives meaning to his life. All creatures, from the biggest to the smallest, have their aspirations, their aims. Despite of this no one can be without light. You are traveling in the evening through a dark, obscure night, and any moment you might loose your way. Somewhere in the far distance you see a small light. The only aim you have in this moment is this small light. You set off towards it. What will happen to you, if this light disappears instantaneously? You stop, surprised, and don't know in which direction to go. You stand and wait, perhaps the light would reappear. When it appears you start on your way again. Consequently the meaning of light, especially in a dark gloomy night, is the light which shines somewhere in the distant horizons. - What is the reason for the appearance and disappearance of the light? - It depends on the place or on the man, himself. If the path on which you are walking is not straight, the light will appear and disappear - there is an obstruction of the light in the human conscience. When you go up high the light shines and guides your way; when you descend, it gradually disappears. The same thing happens in the mental life of man, for which reason he at times loses then finds his ideal. You say: I lost my ideal. - You have not lost it, but the path you are following is hilly, you meet obstacles. When he comes down to the material, man loses his ideal. There is nothing more difficult for a conscientious man than to lose his ideal. He may live in abundance, be wealthy, but the minute he loses his ideal, his life also becomes meaningless. He will always feel emptiness, which cannot be filled by anything. These are states through which everyone passes. And he said to him: "God, I am not worthy to receive you under my roof, but only say a word." Only one word the centurion wanted of Christ. I ask: What is it that improves man? What is important for you: What you think of me, or what other people think? The divine light and warmth, that living bread, that heavenly manna are important above everything. They descend to man, they create conditions for life in him. They ask me: What do I think of Christ? - What do I think of Christ? That men for two thousand years also think something of Christ. Open the books to see what they have written and write about Christ. They all debate who was Christ and whether he really was Son of God. Half of mankind are of one opinion, the other half of another. They keep convincing one another and cannot convince each other. The ones prove the question, and the others prove it, but there is something crooked in their proofs. What Christ brought into life, is the wise love, that is love in the divine life. Love is an attribute to every soul. Many interpreters of Christian teaching came along, but they could not reach the essential. They were concerned with his appearance, with what robe he was wearing, on what cross he was crucified, etc. Many even today wear this cross on their neck, especially in difficult times, when they go to war, when they are ill. Despite of this the cross does not help them, many soldiers died on the battle field. If they had accepted the love into themselves not one would have died. "Only say a word." By "word" the centurion means the wisdom. His boy is ill. From what? Contemporary men don't they get ill? It seems strange to you, doesn't it? What more terrible illness is there than ignorance? Today people don't understand one another. - Why? - They are ill. Who will take care of these patients? It is necessary that reason comes among them. Our goal is to show people the true way of healing. They are in need of light, fresh air, clean water, and healthy food. These are four elements, which if correctly applied in the spiritual life, will solve all important problems. Today there exist various trends in life, which explain it from different points of view, in a different light. It is good for man to occupy himself with everything, but he has to solve the problems thoroughly. He has to base himself upon healthy, unshakable ground. When the night is dark and gloomy, he is in need of a small light, towards which he can strive. His direction has to be exactly determined. You also have to know that outside the intelligent love, life has no meaning. You have already experienced human love. Mothers bear children for years, but which mother is ever satisfied with her sons and daughters? Men have lived for their fathers land, have built great empires. This is the world, which they have built, but which empire satisfies this love? The empire is not able to satisfy love. This shows, that even now people are wandering in the illusions of life, far from the essential. This is the reason for the inner fear in man. Everyone is striving to get security by any means. According to me, the least should be thought about security. Intelligent people have no need to secure themselves. If all men would have lived according to the laws of God, there would be plenty for everyone. The earth is rich, it has available unexhaustable energies. It would completely take care of all the needs of the entire mankind. But the unwise human life has subdivided people into camps: the rich and the poor, the learned and the simple. There is actual difference between the learned and the simple, but I have met learned, lacking in right, sober mind, as well as those with healthy, positive mind. "God, only say a word." You also find yourself in a hopeless situation, like that centurion. To whom will you turn? They will say that you are faint-hearted, that you seek help from outside. Which man does not need the help of the wise people? I have not met a man, who could solve his problems. Some pray to God, but they say of him that he is stupid. I say: He is stupid because he prays to God. But if he prays to a man like you, wouldn't he be stupid? This does not mean that you should not pray to a man. You will pray to your brother and he will pray to you. This is alright. It is better, before our brother prays to us to recognize his needs and to satisfy them. Now you want to demand love and say to your fellow man - You must love me. - There is no law in the world which would regulate love. The only power in the world which is not subject to any laws, is the intelligent divine love. Everything in life which is meaningful, is the intelligent love. It makes men immortal. He who accepts love, enters into the frame of divine life, where everything is in harmony, where there is no death. By "death" I mean everything that limits human thought and emotion. In appearance, a person may be calm, to think himself free, but inwardly he torments himself. Someone outwardly is calm, but in his stomach something is gnawing him -inwardly he is restless. This pain may send him to the next world. The doctor diagnoses a tumor in his stomach and they have to operate. Is he sure that after the operation he will become healthy? Someone else has a tumor in his brain. Also him they have to operate. Is he sure that after they remove the tumor he will recover? If the doctor tampers with his brain, all is ended for this man. He may remain alive, but he doesn't have the intelligence any longer. The doctors still continue to trespass into the sacred parts of man. They have tempered with his stomach, and his brain, and his eyes and his ears. There is not a secret place in the human organism that the doctors have not touched. And after that they speak of morals! Then they all inquire where is man. The human body is a house, but man is not in it. But there is one place where the doctors cannot reach. This is the holy temple of the human soul. When a man is operated on, the holy in him, that is his soul. When they crucified Christ, the divine, or His soul left Him, The divine spirit departed from Christ and left Him alone. Very naturally, they cannot crucify the divine. No one can touch it. It makes man strong, powerful. All men subordinate themselves to the divine beginning in them. For this it is said in the Scriptures that the hypocrite is divided in his path. - Why is this? The divine is not within him. Such a person speaks one thing and means another. He speaks of love, but conceals something covetous. This is not love. Love means unity in the whole life. Unity gives meaning to life. It makes it beautiful. When the musical tones are in unity they are also harmonious. Where there is unity in the thoughts, emotions and actions, there is harmony. If there was unity in the whole life, it would have had a different expression. Two things hinder the human life; they have hindered him in the past and are doing so now. One of them is that people don't keep their promises - the faithfulness to God. The other one is that they don't follow their ideal. I will tell you a story from the egyptian history. At one time the Pharaoh Haki Bal wanted to test the faithfulness of his subjects. One evening he called in confidence one of his loyal subjects, Osiris Ben, and said to him: I want to place you temporarily in my place to rule the state without anyone suspecting this. You will rule the way you think best. You will have at your disposal, as you know, all my property. I ask: How many loyal subjects can one ruler have? If he lets one of them rule instead of himself, to leave at his disposal all his power and wealth, without misusing them, how would he behave? Osiris Ben acted wisely. After one year the king returned, and Osiris Ben handed him over everything in order. In the mind and in the heart of this loyal subject never occurred any thought or desire to usurp the royal throne. He stands even higher than his king. He says to himself: This position is not mine, it belongs to another. When Haki Bal took the throne over again he said to himself: I found one faithful man in this world. I can always count on him. And note that this ideal image of a genuine man is of the masculine sex. Now I will bring to you another story, also from the egyptian history, which tells of an ideal woman - an egyptian. She lived in the time of Ramses Salu - an egyptian Pharaoh. Her name was Eltamar, she was the poorest girl in Egypt. But she was so noble, intelligent and beautiful, that she attracted the attention of the young Pharaoh, Ramses. He fell in love with her and wanted to marry her. She answered him: I would get married only to the most intelligent man, even if he were poor. In my eyes you don't pass for that intelligent. If I don't find such a man, I will stay unmarried. Such should be the ideal of the human soul. If you also were as loyal as Osiris Ben and as idealistic as Eltamar, the present day world would be completely different from what it is. Today all speak about Christ, about His love, but what lies, and perverted things are written in the newspapers. The minute they hear something about me they are in a hurry to transmit it in a distorted way. Why do they have to misinterpret my words? -Because they understand them only superficially and mechanically. And in spite of all this they still continue to speak of Christ and God. We don't speak about God, but about love. Without love no one can understand God. When you love someone, you are ready to say sacrifices for him; you call him with the nicest names. If you don't like him, you are not prepared to any sacrifice, and don't see anything good in him. Only love disclosed things. This is the reason, why man errs in respect to love. Love cannot be bought with anything. If the girl wants to attract the boy with her appearance, she deceives herself. If the rich boy wants to attract the beautiful girl with his wealth, he deceives himself. If the learned man wants to appeal to you with his knowledge, and the saint with his virtues, both are on the wrong path. The only thing which can attract the person and to transform his life, is the great, intelligent love, which acts inside the man himself. It manifests itself through necessity, - the way of humanity's past, or through the present life, or through the future. The past is the law of necessity, the present of divine providence, and the future - of divine love. This means that the past, the present and the future are the three directions of love. In the law of necessity there is suffering. How many boys and girls are crippled by human love! How many young people you meet faces jealousy! How many hearts have been stabbed by the knife of jealousy! And this love is considered pure! No, in the law of necessity there is no real love. In order to come out of this love, you have to live in the present, where the divine providence is at work. In this love all people are members of one family; they are all under the protection of the divine spirit. From this love you will enter into the law of freedom, where all people, all living creatures, have equal right to life. Every living being has the right to live. "Only say a word". These words, are not pronounced by a jew who observe the laws of Moses, but by a heathen, in whose heart there was light, who understood the great truth of life. You also have to understand Christ's teaching and follow it. You will apply it in three ways: through the law of necessity, the law of divine providence, and the law of freedom. You are, for instance, born into a Christian people. This is the faith of your father and your mother. Consequently, by necessity, you will also be a Christian. As a Christian you can see everywhere the divine providence. And finally you say: I will live like Christ, by the law of freedom. It is not enough just to understand Christ's teaching but to live by it. - How did Christ live? – He lived by the law of love and carried out the will of the Father. Christ says: I am ready to give my life for God and to carry out everything that He desires. For two thousand years people talk about Christ, but until now the Christians are not united. Two thousand more years will pass and they still will not be united. The unification cannot happen automatically, the way hoops are tied around the cask. If there are no hoops to connect the boards of the cask, nothing can be done. While the hoops of the cask are in good condition, they tie it well. If they fall apart all the parts of the cask fall to pieces as well. Doesn't the same happen to people? The bones are their hoops. It is enough that they get scattered on the face of the earth and nothing will remain of them. How many delicate fingers of young people are scattered around the earth! You say: We have to strive towards good life. Who will help us in this? You will say that Christianity is able to help us in this. - Why? -Because it excludes death. Immortality can be achieved only through the way of love. If a feeling for revenge is born in you, or you hate someone, it is the same thing as if you were poisoning yourself, or suffer from leprosy, which eats away your life. In the middle ages the alchemists sought to discover the elixir of life, with which they could prolong their lives. There is no power, greater and more powerful than love. It gives birth to life and prolongs it; it brings peace to man. If love does not work equally in all men it is not the real love. When you know this, don't think that love will come through one person only. Actually, one man brought it but all men will preach it. Nowadays people go to church for the "Resurrection of Christ", with burning candles, and wait for the priest to say "Christ is resurrected". So when the angels say: "Christ is resurrected" you also have to light your candles. The burning candle is the divine spirit. When He comes to earth, when the human heart accepts the divine in him, only then you can light your candles. This is still required now from all the Christian nations. When I speak of life, I don't deny it in its perfect manifestations. I don't say, that he who has acquired love, shouldn't occupy himself with science, music, art. Ho, he will study and understand everything with ease. In the divine love there is music of love, science of love, art of love. I have been asked often what is the teaching, which I preach. I reply: It is the teaching about the living nature, which includes in itself all living powers, with which science is concerned. It is the science of man, the science of intelligence in the world. It is the science of God, of love. The new teaching includes everything, which is a subject life and of nature. That's why if I say something, whether about medicine, music, art or any other field of science, there will always be someone who will feel insulted. The doctor will say, is this teaching higher then medicine? According to me the doctor should know much more than what he is practicing. - When will he learn it? - When he becomes student of the living nature. Few doctors study the living nature. You will say: When have there been no doctors? And they still don't know the living nature. Yes, from time immemorial there have been doctors. Those who are connected with the living nature, are born doctors. They come with ready knowledge. The same applies to scientists; astronomers, naturalists, mathematicians. Man has to start with what is originally put in his soul; and be true to those abilities, vested into him. With this knowledge man will study himself, the living nature, and love. Who studies in this way, he is on the right path. When you meet such a person you will right away get along with him; neither one of you will have to speak too much to understand one another. Does the good painter have to tell you how he paints? It is sufficient if you see how he uses the brush in order that you understand his art. You enjoy to look how this painter is painting. It is agreeable for you to listen to the clean and gentle sounds if an experienced violinist is playing. But if you hear the bow squeaking in the hand of another violinist, you block your ears and run away. - Why don't you stay and listen? - He doesn't play clean tones. After four-five years, when he learns how to play, I will listen to him. There are wise people in the world, but they also don't reason correctly. And the people after living two thousand years after Christ, dare to ask me if I believe in God. How shouldn't I believe in God, I live in Him. - And you believe in love? - If I live in God, naturally, I believe also in love. - What else do you believe in? - I believe in man. - And what else? - I believe in the living nature. - Do you believe in anything else? - I don't know what else one could believe in. If I tell you that I believe in anything else, I will be telling you a lie. Outside the truth everything is a lie. There is no lie in the world which cannot be detected. A Bulgarian proverb says: "The legs of the lie are short". Which man was ever ennobled by lying? What has the lie contributed to man? The truth raises people and the lie degrades them. There is one law, which excludes violence, and ennobles man. They say of me that I hypnotize people. This is strange! Hypnosis is violence, and I preach love, which excludes all violence, all hypnosis. If it is true that I hypnotize, I would have first hypnotized those who speak against me. And as you can see, they are free to speak against me, whatever they wish. What would they speak about me? I leave people free, because I serve love. Many say, that we occupy ourselves with spirits. What is bad in spirits? All people on earth are embodied spirits, coming from God. By "spirit" I mean, the intelligent beginning of man. They say about us that we call spirits. They asked one woman how she calls the spirits. She answered: I throw a rope in the air, and I catch a spirit onto it. - No, this is not the correct way, the woman was only jesting. Our brothers, the bodyless spirits, come to us by the law of love. It is sufficient that you like them, and they would come to you. It is said in the Scriptures: Call God, who is a spirit, through the law of love. When you turn to God, to the great spirit, He will right away respond to you. Without God there are no thoughts, no feelings, no deeds. Thanks to Him, our life gets straightened out. Love - is the base on which we step, the foundation of our life. Others reproach us that we are against the church, against the state. This is not so. We quote the verse: "Every power is given by God". You will say that you also respect the state. If this is so they will test you in this respect. - How would they test us? - The way they test the professor, when he wants to be given a chair in the university. Before he is accepted, he has to present a degree as well as his scientific work. The color also has its own distinguishing marks. Likewise the state you honor has to have some distinguishing marks showing that it has its power from God. I have said time and again: There exists only one state in the world - the divine state, and you have to subject yourself to it. In the Lord's prayer it is said: "For Your's is the Kingdom and Power, forever." Read the seventh chapter of Daniel, where it is said: "God raises nations. He gives them power to govern." But we are not concerned with the nations. We are interested in love, because it solves all problems and all contradictions. When some don't understand love, they say: This one man is a warrior, he makes use of a weapon. - What is the role of the warrior? According to me, his role is to preserve order in life. It is by chance that he fought. What is the role of the doctor? - To teach people the laws that would stipulate their health and good life. That a disease has appeared and the doctor has to occupy himself with it, this is also by chance. The healing and fighting are accidental. The doctor, as well as the warrior are fighting with enemies they meet on their way. Life is not based on chances, but on love. Put love into your life in order to solve all your problems. "Only say a word, and my boy will get healed". The centurion understood, that the wise word of Christ will have effect on the boy and will heal him. It is proved statistically, that diseases appear and disappear periodically. It is predetermined how many sick will recover and how many will not. For each year it is calculated how many ships will sink, how many houses will burn down, how many children will be born, how many people will die. These numbers increase gradually within a twenty year period, after which they begin to decrease. There is a law, by which events happen periodically. - Why do the ships sink? - Because they didn't take into consideration certain things. - Why do the houses turn down? - Because certain precautionary measures were not taken. All disasters are due to violation of certain laws. The deceased show, that people don't abide by the law of love. It is said: "The day you eat from the forbidden fruit you will necessarily die." That means, before this law was violated, death didn't exist. Death came because first human beings disobeyed. They didn't obey God's law. So, where love is absent, there is violation of God's laws. This is the reason for the inner emptiness that people feel. Doubt and distrust spread where love is absent. You listen to someone speak and you ask yourself: Is he speaking the truth or not? Everyone can tell who speaks the truth. There is nothing hidden/covered in the world. Men as well as animals have the ability to test things. The great truth, toward which we are striving is not only for men but for all living creatures. At the present conditions of life, two things are required from man: love and reason. The wise man easily makes friends. It is sufficient for him to pardon the debts of his debtors, to make them his friends. But the unwise, sacrifices the higher for the baser. He takes his debtors to court, get them sentenced and so creates for himself enemies. If you let life develop wisely and naturally, you will gain deep inner peace within you. Some try to prove whether God exists or not. What is the use of such a proof. Whatever you prove, God exists. Imagine that you are proving to a blind man, that God exists and there are blessings on earth. What is the use of these blessings, if you don't have senses with which you could perceive them? You tell the blind man that there is light but he doesn't see it. What does the blind need? - To develop his sight. I am not speaking only of the outer senses. If it is only a question of them, how will you perceive the divine love? How will you feel the divine blessings? In man there is one special sense, a special feeling through which he can perceive the divine love and the divine blessings. This sense is not equally developed in all people. This is the reason why, when you talk to someone about God, he either doesn't understand anything or understands something else. When the divine sense becomes developed in man, he will perceive divine love and strength in himself and will become immortal. Christ says: "In the last days I will resurrect him." - When will these last days come? - When this sense blossoms like the bud of the solar light, you will make the first inhalation and thus you will acquire divine life. Until he blossoms, man is in the position of the small child in the womb of his mother. When it leaves the womb and makes the first inhalation, it blossoms. If a child is born and it doesn't start crying, it is dead. It must make the first inhalation, so that reaction would happen within it and so it would begin the new life. The conscience of man is hidden in the first breath. When I speak to people about divine love, they ask me: Did you talk with Christ, did you talk with God? - People are strange! If I tell them that I did, they will say that I am not in my right mind. How will you understand the words of Christ, then who says: "Go and preach my word, and I will be with you till the end of time." In another place he says: "If you abide in me and carry out toy commands, I and my Father will come and dwell in you." So, life in itself is not something real; it is manifestation of the divine spirit. In this sense all people have to become spiritual, to acquire divine happiness, divine intelligence; to understand the living nature; to enter the divine life. Only this way, will the life of the contemporary man become transformed. Since they don't understand the meaning of life, people poison themselves. There is no stronger poison then negative thoughts, feelings and states of man. Fear, hatred, suspicion, doubt, are such poison. They are sediments, which settle in the blood and poison it. Can man be healthy under such conditions. He is in need of inner transformation, of new, pure surroundings. When he enters into this environment there he will find the true rest. This environment is the divine love. In it man feels free and is bothered by no one. What greater blessing exists then to live in the divine environment, to be able to converse with God; to carry out his will. What is there greater then to live with sensible beings; to understand the intelligent nature, and it to give you answers. Today everyone is asking, what is the sense of life. - To live in harmony with the live nature; to live in harmony with sensible beings; to live in harmony with the God of love - this is the sense of life. 4th Lecture of the Master from the volume 'He Who Comes to Me', held on Sunday 6th of April, 1924, in Sofia __________________ [1] St. Matthew 8:8 Only Say the Word

Note 1 For He Knew "Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a Multitude was coming to him, Jesus said to Philip, "How are we to buy bread, so that these people nay eat?" This he said to test his, for he himself knew what he would do." St. John 6:5-6 All beings from the smallest to the largest, know in general what to do. In this respect the smaller ones even surpass the larger ones, because they know better than them to do their work. It has been said that Christ wanted to test his disciples to see if they knew what to do. There is a great law in natures: she likes to tests all beings in order to see if they know what to do. In respect to people, however, there exists a specific situation which creates for them confusion. This is the bad habit. From the bad habit is generated laziness and laziness impedes every culture. Laziness is an attribute only of darkness, of rest. All modern men in general are possessed by laziness and are aspiring toward laziness and for this reason this culture will perish. Whomever you ask will always say that he wants to have security. Why? Because he wants to become lazy, not to have to work. This is noticeable among doctors, artists. merchants, etc. Some doctors after having worked for a few years and gained a good number of customers, slacken off. The artist after having painted 5-6 pictures says: a man must not work. Why? - Because he must not exhaust himself. What can exhaust a man who sits with a brush in his hands and paints. The housewife, also, says: one must not work too hard in the household because one can sprain some ligaments. Others say: one must not go for walks because one may get injured and loose one's life. All aim for the eternal life and say: Happy are those that are resting in God's arms. They envy the dead because they are able to see God. Once we have mastered the law of leisure, we know it. It is nothing new. All animals also make effort to insure themselves. I will cite two examples from the Russian life, from the lives of two professors, prominent personalities - prof. Velmirov and prof. Pastovski. These are their pseudonyms, so that I do not need to mention their true names. Both of them are famous Russian biologists and chemists, both have written important works. After ten years of hard work the uncle of prof. Pastovski died and left him great wealth. Immediately he gave up his work in research saying that it is senseless for a man to occupy himself with biological sciences and chemistry. Why did these sciences become senseless? Because of these millions of rubles. Professor Velmirov inherited an even greater wealth yet he continued in his work. I ask now: why did the first one give up his research and the second did not? I knew of another example which is from the American life. One American inherited 15 million leva in gold but shared it with the poor people and he himself remained a street sweeper as he was before to inherit this wealth. This man can be taken as an example for a man with character. From this state, from this tendency for repose, for laziness, comes forth death. Here is born death, because of lack of the necessary conditions for life. If the conditions for life existed in the state of rest the world would not have been created. Therefore every universe after having been for billions of years in a state of rest finally emerges from this state and in this way life comes forth from out of the state of laziness. This is an explanation given in the human language. What can one achieve from a life of laziness. Some people have the opinion that one needs to sleep more. What can one gain from too much sleep? It is true that a man needs to sleep but what are the achievements of sleep? - It is a rest, people say. Man must eat. Well, what is achieved with eating? Everything must make sense. True knowledge is to be found in a completely different direction — in the knowledge of how to serve. To serve what? - Truth. I will use the words "serve truth." Someone will say: We know what truth is. I trust that at some time you knew what truth is but you have forgotten it and now you do not know what truth is. You do not know even how to pronounce this word. For thousands of years the word "love" has been used, but who is it who can pronounce this word in its own language? Because every nation, every thinker, every man of genius who creates a word has possessed the key to this word. Tell me what is the key to the word "love"? Take out the Sol key from a musical piece and then see how the violinist will play it. After that take the time measures out also and leave only the music. What will be the result of playing this musical piece? Modern men speak without the keys and the bars. It has been said about someone: what a great musician this man is, or what a great philosopher this man is. He speaks on philosophic matters so learnedly. Yes, he speaks philosophical natters that lack the keys and measures. They lack completely the key and definite measure. Someone says: do you know what 'love' is? I say: love is something made of potatoes. He says: love brings life. This is right but let him explain how life reveals itself? - In life there is movement. It is true that movement is one of the attributes of life. This will say that the transport of matter occurs but in life there is something else that is essential. The most essential element in life is rationality, is light. From this point of view, in the universe there exists absolutely no movement. This may disturb you a little. You will say: what, no movement in the universe? - There exists in the universe only a slight stirring. Every particle moves in its place. It vibrates but goes nowhere. For example no particles come from the sun. Each particle of the sun vibrates in its place and people call this movement. You may reply: Didn't I come here from my home, didn't I go from one place to another. These are philosophical statements which must be proven. Can they be understood? In this thought there is an extreme controversy. At first the conflict is great. You say: I move and he wants to prove that there is no movement. Assume now that our universe, as big as it is, has a radius in the form of a straight line which moves. Imagine that this line is made of matter and is several trillion of kilometers long and on it are arranged living beings. Let's assume that you turn this line with such a speed that in twenty-four hours it turns once around the whole universe. Can you calculate the extreme point of this movement? When the whole line, the whole radius makes one great rotation, the point in which the radius leans will have not moved at all, it will only vibrate in one place. If this is only a projection of your mind, then we only think that there exists movement. Fox example at night when you sleep you climb mountains, hike through woods, visit your friends, but your body stays in one place. You say: I went to the sun and came back. I ask: did you go to the sun in reality? These things are not essential. The question is whether or not movement exists. Movement exists in the world, as does distance, this is true. In psychology there exists another state which we define. A man sometimes says: I am fallen, I am sunken to the very bottom. To where are you sunken? - I am sunken so deep that I may hardly ever be able to get out. This falling is so real for this man that he believes in it. Another time someone says: I am high, I as in the sky above. I ask: how is it possible that the first man was fallen to such a depth and at the same time could speak to me, and the other one is so high above in heaven and can still speak to me? How can we explain these things? Knowledge is necessary. The respective organs must be created in people for the comprehension of these abstract matters. And in reality some scientists, some occultists notice that in the human brain white filaments are forming. New organs for the future humanity are now being formed. Until new organs are created, many things will remain unexplainable for the people. The new people must be created out of new matter. The old matter must pass away and sake place for the newer one. It is not the same if you wear an ordinary stone or a precious one in your ring. Their matter is not the same. The powers which are implanted in these stones are not the same either. This says that in the universe between the matters and the powers which function in it there is a difference. Then we define the true life by the following properties: in it functions the work which pertains only to that which is real, the unchangeable in the world. This is serving God. It is that in which there exists not a trace of self-seeking. I must serve God not for pay, not for glory. According to this understanding, if I pray to God standing in front of you, so that you may see me when I pray, my whole prayer goes with the wind. When you see me standing in prayer in this way you will say: why is this man standing like an idol? If I stay and pray in a church someone may say: what is this man muttering there? If they say this, everything is ruined. Whatever pose you may take, he who observes you will always have some wrong interpretation; if you are too cheerful the interpretation will be different again. The fact that a man is laughing does not represent man himself. If he cries it is still not man himself. If he is deep in thought? Well, which is the true form of thought? Where is the characteristic feature of thought expressed? He is noble! Where is that line of nobility that never changes? When it changes, it does not correspond to nobility. Therefore the lines of the true world have always the same intensity. In this world one can be at the same moment everywhere. From this point of view, the movement is so quick that there is no span and it seems that man does not move. In the other worlds where matter is less dense man moves easier, and simultaneously he can be at many places. For example the angels that have six million wings can make the rounds of all the suns of our universe and return with knowledge and facts. You my say: how is this possible in the interval of only one minute to cover such great space? This span of time which makes one minute can be divided into still smaller units. Modern scientists began to prove that one second of time can be divided into several billion parts and in this time every particle has made several trillion rotations. The men of science are saying this. If some religious man would make such a statement he would be considered foolish. What would be the distance which the particle has traveled moving with such a great speed? You say: These are only assumptions. No, there exist a law according to which a man can never say that which does not exist. Therefore the scientists are moving in the right direction. I say that a particle can move not only with the speed of several trillion rotations in one second but even faster. The speed with which these particles move in the invisible world is the speed of a snail. What would these men of science and philosophers say? They will say that this is impossible. It is possible, because a man cannot assume things which do not exist. Therefore we can never think or say things which do not exist. When are these foolish things being said? When we restrain from saying the truth, we say nonsense. Stupid things are nothing but denying the real life. Someone says: There is no God in the world! I say: no, this is a quadruple nonsense. If someone says that there is not a God, they will say that he accepts some other God. He will become a god to himself. All these people that deny the existence of God are gods for themselves; they say: we must be strong, rich people, we must domineer in the world. They say: let's dominate the world! Well, what is the difference between those that impose their will upon others and those who do not domineer? At the end, the former as well as the latter finish in the same way. I wish to see how the ones finish who do not domineer in the world. There is no sense in imposing one's will. In this sense, reality does not permit us to domineer. Now, we say that we must return to that true understanding of life if we want to be happy. In order to be happy the people with whom we communicate must be happy, rational people also; all their particles, all their cells must be rational. The cells of a rational man must be rational. As long as people will not begin to think with their feet as well as with their heads the world will not improve. I think that in the world a race will come whose feet will think like our brains. I ask then: would such feet walk on the earth? No, they will not. According to my knowledge the first culture which was born went to live in the water so that no record could be kept of all the crises, nothing could be made known about living nature. Those who created this culture made all creatures voiceless. No language, no voice existed there. Nothing is known about all the crises that were done there. It was a perfect hell, everyone swallowed the other in the water. All the great sheatfish, all the big carps, all whales, sword-fish, all these are philosophers of the past. They have created an incredible culture about which I will not stop to speak but all these beings which reached the extreme limit consulted together: this is not possible any more, for we will not learn anything. When they had thought for a long time they said: we mist go out from this hell, we must create our own language. Then these learned fish brought about an emerging from the water, they became pilgrims and changed into birds. As fish they had no home, no fatally. They seeded two - three hundred thousand seeds, their children, and left them to float into the arms of fate and said: Let God take care of them! Do you know what great lewdness exists in the water? All fish perished because of depravity. When Cod saw that this culture came to a decomposition, he put salt into the seas so that it would not rot. I ask them why is necessary so much salt in the oceans? In order that this; culture may not rot and in this way start everything around decaying also. This it my interpretation which the scientists may not accept. When the fish emerged from there and modified into birds they had rich experiences and passed on into a higher phase. As birds they solved the family question in such a way that even men have not been able to do. Very clever! They manufactured for themselves pretty feathers, pretty wings and flew high into the sky like airplanes. That which makes the different from men is that they have solved the family problem. They say: that which was in the water we will not continue to do any more. Then came the opposite poles, man and woman; they built the nest, they laid the eggs in it and after having completed the job they left it. Among them they did not fight about who should run the family. The man does not say here to his wife: go, leave me alone! Among then divorce also exists but they are very honest among themselves. When they stay together one year, the next year one of them chooses another partner and says to the first one: I have found a new partner for myself. The only bird that loads a monogameous life is the eagle. When he marries once, he does not marry a second time. The others marry several tines. If one looses his spouse, he marries for a second time. If that one dies, he marries for a third time. In the marriage life of the birds falsehood does not exist. When they finish their task together they say to each other: now I can fall in love with another bird. Great sincerity is a custom to them. What is the situation with men? You may say: it is not proper to speak like that! How should one speak? - Let the people not be tempted! Well, what about the jeweler who displays the most attractive gold coins and other objects in his shop, is he not tempting the people? What about the merchant who hangs these beautiful clothes and hats in his display window, is he not tempting the people? And the grocers displaying all these good foods...? Modern men have the attitude that everything which they are doing is proper. I have a different opinion about morality. I will look into the life of a doctor, I hope nobody will mind. I do not want to judge the doctors but want only to point out how things are. For example John, or Frank, or anyone else gets sick and immediately the doctor is called. He is glad to be called and rushes to see his clients. Is this doctor a benefactor, No, he will be paid well for his service, according to his status as a doctor. The more he is educated the more he charges. The less he is educated the less he charges. He cures his patient and makes him understand what his science has done for him. The patient thinks in his mind: if I did not have the money to pay for your visit I know what would you have done for me. He only thinks this way but in front of the doctor he keeps silent. Now I will speak about the priesthood such as it exists in the whole world. I do not speak specially about the local priests, I rather speak principally about all as they are in India, in Japan, in Germany, in America, everywhere. Someone comes to the priest saying: John so and so has died. The priest is glad; he takes his shawl, the prayerbook, the gospel and goes to say a prayer and supposedly he does this only for God's sake. Then he says: you must pay and when this is done he still thinks that he has done God's will. Next day someone comes and tells him that a child has been born. Again he goes to the home of the newborn and again he is paid for this. On the third day he is invited to perform the wedding ceremony for someone else. He does this service and again he is paid for it. I ask where is the moral code according to which one is supposed to serve God. Where is that selflessness with which we mist serve Cod? It has been said: this is Christian culture. In this respect the Christian culture is not different from the pagan one. It is true that we are not as rough as the pagans, yet according to the light which is given to us our small mistakes can have worse consequences than the pagans. Their mistakes are minor in comparison to those of the great moralists. In America there are some great preachers, but they all are well paid. They receive enormous salaries in comparison with our local living conditions. It is expected that they will preach with great eloquence. According to my concepts this is not true culture. This is a depositing of materials. Every desire for money in me will bring leprosy. In these noble filaments in my brain there will be deposited some very fine, poisonous and lethal matter which will form a fine layer. Do you know how thin this layer is? In thickness it measures one ten-billionth part of a millimeter. It is so thin that it is not detectable with a microscope but when this matter is deposited in the brain it creates the conditions for discontent. For example, if I serve in a man's funeral independent of whether I am a saint or a sinner, and if I am paid one hundred dollars for the prayers, all my nobility will disappear when I go home. Besides people think that they must be seen when they pray. No, people are not supposed to see you, they are not supposed to know that you pray. The modern world understands only the language of the hoe. When you take the hoe and go to the vineyard to cultivate, people will ask you: - What are you doing? - Cultivating the vineyard. - This is a very useful job. Then you take the hammer and again people ask you: - What are you doing? - I am hammering. Well, this is a useful job. But if you sit down and contemplate they will say: this stupid man, what is he doing there? The whole day he is wasting his time. These are human concepts. All people that work truly are considered stupid. Why? Modern men think that religious people do not work. This is not true. Only serving God is true work. I think that if a saint cultivates only one acre of land the wheat that will yield will have seeds as big as chicken eggs, when you eat this wheat you will have such a pleasantness in your mouth that it will refresh you and keep you satiated for a whole week. I ask then, would not in such a case the economic problem of the nutrition of the world be solved? Now you eat three times a day and the problem of bread is still not solved. "For he himself knew what he would do." I will give you an example about what happened to professor Blackstone, the pseudonym of a famous chemist and physicist, an innovator who was occupied with the deep questions of living nature. He had an excellent laboratory, well equipped with different size flasks with different contents. Once he was away for a whole month studying in nature. He left the key to his laboratory with his very studious servant to keep watch. She decided to go to the laboratory to inspect it. Having a very strong sense for order and seeing all the different bottles and flasks arranged in a rather mixed up manner she thought that the professor did not have time to put them in proper order and decided to put his laboratory in order. She put all the bottles according to size on the shelves and in this way she satisfied her own concept of orderliness. After she had finished rearranging the professor's laboratory, she gave one last look, with the feeling of satisfaction, she thought that the professor would be very nicely surprised upon returning from his trip. The professor returned home to find this great reconstruction of his laboratory in which all his precious chemicals were completely mixed up. I ask: did this servant understand the deeper meaning of why the professor had arranged all his flasks in his own way? Ho, she did not. This way, we too, when we come into living nature, begin to rearrange all the flasks. Do you have any idea how inch time this new arrangement took until prof. Blackstone could again find his way in his own laboratory? Sometimes we, too, like this servant arrange our thoughts. We have a strange understanding about what is moral and what is not. We have a strange understanding of prayer, too. Praying without being seen by anyone is not even enough. One mist not have even one desire in his soul and one must feel absolutely alone. In the future the saints will not pray here on earth. A true saint when he prays ascends up high. He leaves his body and raises twelve thousand kilometers to where he prays. Have you ever prayed this way? Have you climbed twelve thousand kilometers above the earth? You must ask modem pilots what they experience when they rise to certain heights in the air. What would it be at an altitude of twelve thousand kilometers? Some people say: I have offered God a warm prayer. I wish that you could lift your warm prayer twelve thousand kilometers and then see what it is. Do you know what frost exists at such altitude. If the cold progressively rises then at such altitude there can exist thousands of degrees of cold. Some scientists say that more than 200 degrees below zero does not exist. It does. People say that the maximum cold that can exist is 270 degrees below zero. No, cold can be even ten thousand degrees below zero. In this respect I am at a disagreement with modern scientists. Some scientists say that if matter reaches 270 degrees below zero the whole universe would disappear. These scientists think like the old Bulgarian grandma who called her neighbors and said to them: with faith I can accomplish everything. My prayer is so strong that you will see that tomorrow this hill in front of my house will be removed by the morning. In the morning her neighbors looked out to see if the hill was removed but it was still there. This woman was clever enough to find an excuse by saying that she had pity upon them because she thought that if she had, in reality, removed the mountain they would be really shocked. In her self, she knew that with words only, the mountain cannot be removed. Some people think that with words they can move mountains, others even think that they can move the earth. This is possible also, but a man who works with faith, truly pure faith, has absolute knowledge. Faith implies Christ. Someone says: I believe in you. - What do you believe? - That you can do everything. What do I care that you believe that I can accomplish everything? What can you accomplish? That which I can accomplish is what raises myself in my own eyes, but if you believe that I can accomplish something and I cannot then I am falling in your eyes. Well, I do not want to say that we must think this way but for we people who are on the threshold of the new culture it is most important now to emerge from the old culture as the fish emerged from the water. And we will emerge! In scripture it is said: "All will be taken up into the air." We will emerge from the dense environment of this life like the fish and will solve an important problem of this world — brotherhood and love. This question will be solved only in the new culture. The important question is not the salvation as many preach. Salvation is not a problem, it is only a state on earth. For us the question of the new life which God brings into the world is the important one. Since He created the world and its people, it is God's desire that all his children not perish. In the Scripture it is said that: God does not delight in the death of his children. His purpose is that all His children live. Now, Christ was testing his disciples to see if they thought that all these people can be fed with five loaves of bread and two fish. One of his disciples said: "Even two hundred dinars will not be enough bread for all these people." "For Christ himself knew what he would do." Some people say that Christ did not study anywhere. Others say that he studied in Egypt, in India or in other places. No. The great Masters in general do not study on Earth. Some of them may go for only five-six years to the sun to study and then come back to earth. If some people say that the great Masters study here on earth this indicates that they are ignorant. Now you may ask me in which way do they go to the sun. One day you will be able to prove this yourselves and I do not need to tell you. This is pure truth. As the fish became birds and the birds mammals, as the mammals became people, as the people became angels, according to the same law will all this happen. It is important for us not to try to prove all this, but to have a common language by which to communicate. Now while I am talking to you, are you understanding, is this all true or not? Do I speak the truth to you? Some things are true, others are slightly exaggerated. I will tell you which things are exaggerated. This I do with the purpose to awaken your thoughts. For example for so many years I have been speaking to you about love, but I have not yet said the essential about love. I am still in the introduction to love. If I would pronounce the word love as it should be pronounced, do you have any idea what would happen to you? First, smoke would start to rise from you, everything that you have with you would burn and you would remain naked. If I were to pronounce the word love a second time, your body would start to heat up and warmth would radiate from it to a far distance, This warmth would not be the usual one, but if I pronounced the word love for the third time you would be lit up, you would be like luminous beings clothed in angelic form. This hall in which we are now would disappear, not because it would burn, but you would find yourselves outside. Well, are you ready for such a state. Many of you are as ready as the maiden for whom the bridegroom comes to ask her to follow him. He asks her: come with me! She answers: - are you ready to insure me, aren't you a poor lad? Every young maid dreams about the king's son and prepares herself for him. It is true that it should be this way, but the king's son is only he who has the true, divine knowledge, who has a soul in himself, who has a divine mind which is not soiled by any lie or falsehood! There is something detestable in a lie! First we must get rid of all lies. Every one must see if his feelings are stable or fluctuate. If they waver one day they my cause great evil. Why did Christ feed so many people. He could have sent them away. These people, this multitude that was gathered around Christ were thirsty souls, future pupils whom he had to feed. These souls which Christ fed two thousand years ago remember him even today. These souls satiated in this way will never forget Christ. They have been fed spiritually and for this reason the inner longing lives in them. In one place Christ says: "A man lives not on bread alone, but from every living word." And so, there exists this phase in which we live now and it is the striving of the soul toward the divine, toward God. I do not want to say that you must give up your present lives because in the world things do not happen suddenly. In rational transient nature periods do not exist, nor do skippings or omissions exist. Living nature loves succession, she never hastens. Remember this! This is one of her methods - she never hastens. In her is eternity, she has time at her disposal, as much as she wants. She economizes her powers, because her powers are not in such plentitude as time. Therefore you can dispose of her time but not of her powers. This is the reason why those who do not live according to her desire, who speed much, use up their powers quickly and die very early. No prayers can help them to prolong their lives. In this respect nature does not sacrifice her powers. If you wish to live longer, some living being mist be found who will loan you his powers. Therefore in order to prolong our lives we must not hasten. In this respect I consider virtue in the world as economizing for living nature. If someone asks me what virtue is, I answer: - virtue is the economy of living nature, to know how to save her powers. According to this economy, the priest, the writer, the father, and the mother must know how to work. When you understand life this way, there exist no better methods than the economy of virtue. When someone says that in the future economy must be studied, I say: one must study virtue as the economy of nature. "For he knew what he would do." What was Christ's intimate thought? Christ had not the slightest desire to attract people to himself. His intimate thought was to fulfill God's will, to serve God with selfless devotion, without any reward. Someone may say: we must be paid somehow. I ask: If a rich person, or the king who has everything for his disposition wades, what does he work for? Does he need to gain more riches? I say: when the richest people start to work they will work selflessly. When the best people in the world start to work, they work selflessly. Therefore we cannot work selflessly until we become good; every anxiety, envy, malice and hatred must disappear from us. Someone may say: I cannot stand that person, I dislike him. Why? God can stand him! If God can stand him how come that you cannot? It is possible that something may exist in this man that is detestable but God can stand his and you, too, must be able to stand him. He whom God teaches, you watch and learn also. You may be dissatisfied with him but others are dissatisfied with you. Many angels are displeased with people. Sometimes even in the angels who are so advanced in their culture an aversion in generated, a desire that God may permit them to destroy the people and create something better. God stops then and tells them to wait. Now if you ask me what do the angels do, I will tell you that they are sharpening their fiery swords. And when they come to earth in one minute the whole modern culture will be turned into dust. Without using any weapons they will free the people from their shells and all will follow them with resignation, like whole regiments of soldiers who follow their superiors, This will come to pass! Kings, bishops, patriarchs, preachers, all these majesties which have been deceiving the people from time immemorial until today. All these men have been lying in the name of God. The whole pseudoculture must be wiped out. This will come to pass! The mother must not be angry with her daughter but from the depth of her soul, she must tell her: here, daughter, is the key! Upon calling his pupil the musician also gives him the key. The mother will begin to pronounce the word love in front of her daughter. She will say it the first time and the clothes of her daughter will start to smoke. Then she will say this word for the second time, and her clothes will burn and she will regain naked. After that with the saying of the word love for the third time the body of the daughter will heat up and become luminous and at the same time send forth warmth. In this way the daughter will come to know that she knows nothing, but the desire to find truth will remain with her. This is true achievement. When her body starts to heat up from within, the noblest feelings will generate in her. After that will come light and the true blooming of the soul will begin. When the souls bloom, we will come to know each other. People say: why is this flower blooming when it is exposed to the rays of the sun? The flower recognizes the rays of the sun that bring life with them. In this sense the soul, too, knows the divine rays which bring life within themselves. Then we will not be so self-willed and eccentric anymore as we are now. If you would already possess this divine spirit when a man comes to you at the distance of half a mile, his thought would modify and when you look at him you would send him this divine light. It is said in the scripture: "For Christ knew what he would do." Some people say: it was a time when Christ knew but if he would come today he would not know what to do because he was not a highly educated man. This is not true. It is the opposite! the first people that came to the earth were very knowledgeable; those that followed were a little stupid and the present ones are the most stupid. This is reverse process of evolution. The first people who case created the earth; the second created only the gardens; the third ones left the garden of Eden and learned to plow the earth; the fourth - to fight; the fifth learned to be lazy. The present culture I call "the culture of spiritual laziness." Every man works end rushes to become rich, to have much money and then to start living an easy life. I ask: is this work? - It is not. In work there should exist no material object. I say: in the world, in us should exist only one material object - wisdom. It will come like a power which will make us free, self-sufficient in respect to the difficulties of life. This way we will try to love in the world. Some people may say: we know all this but tomorrow we will need to eat. Who is it who does not know that he must eat? I do not say that we must not eat. Some others say: Couldn't God create the world in a different way? He could. I do not think that He could not have created it in a different way but it is already created. What is bad about eating? If a man overeates he will die, if he is fasting too much - again he will die. These are two extremes, A man must always eat that little as to support his organism and there should not exist any surpluses. He mist stop eating with the bite that tastes the best, he should eat no more. If he eats more, it will be like poison for him. In respect to enjoying nature it should be the same. When you reach the highest peak, when you come to the greatest satisfaction, stop there. Now many people want to go to the angels. What would they do there? In order to be able to go to the angels, you must have their organs. You say: if we go there, are they going to meet us? Are you able to receive their love? An angel can stop and pay attention to you If you can understand his language. The same is true with God. With this language, we will be accepted nowhere else. When I speak about God’s love I want to imply that we need to learn the divine language. When we learn this language, only then will we be able to come in touch with God. Someone says: I must learn how to pray. Yes, you will pray, but for this purpose you must learn the sacred language of prayer. Only one word has remained from the prayer - "Amen." The Egyptians had also this word "amen." At that time there was a pharaoh with this name, "Amen." The Hindu have the same sacred word "Aum." They pronounce this word before the service, and the Christians when praying "Our father" always say at the end "Amen." What is the meaning of this word? Aum is a sacred word that has remained from a superior culture. All people say "Amen, so be it." Only this sacred word has remained from the sacred language. How we must trace our way back to restore all sacred words of this sacred language in order to understand how things have began. Only then will we be able to be obedient to God. The present culture will change. The present words which we pronounce carry depravity in themselves. Start to speak to whomever you want about love and he will be tempted. For example, if someone says: "I am in love with you," these words will immediately bring some disturbance. Some sister is free in her relations to some brother, but as soon as he starts to speak to her about love, as soon as he pronounces this word in her presence she becomes serious, cold. Where did love go? You pronounce the word, and love is not there. This indicates that the word love is soiled. If you pronounce the word "hatred" it has the opposite effect. If you say to someone, "I hate you" this man, when he meets you another time, is warmer, he tries to be helpful to you, he opens up to you. This indicates that when you pronounced the word "hatred" you have done this sore correctly than the word "love." I asks where is the power of this word? There exists something special in the human soul, an inner language which we must speak to each other. I consider this one of the greatest attributes - this is reverence. When I meet a man and look at him he ought to understand that I speak the truth to him. It will not be necessary for him to tell me: tell me the truth! I say: are you ready to understand me? I will tell you only "Aum, aumen." And when I say to you this word you must understand me: "Aumen - amen" contains everything in itself. "Aumen" - this is the key. I will interpret this word in our language with the following comparison: You are a voyager who has traveled for a whole week; and the night falls; you are in the middle of the way and the weather is very bad. There is a snowstorm with strong wind, your feet are wet and freezing, and you can hardly take another step. I meet you and say: take this key, in a distance of about 100 feet there is a building, a beautiful palace, unlock it, and when you enter you will find food, drinks, a warm bath, a nice library, all the best conveniences and there is no one in it. "Aumen" - this is the key - the man who's life is rescued. You unlock the palace and enter in it. If you start asking met which is the way to unlock it, my hands are frozen, I cannot hold the key - then I will come with you, but I will not tell you "aumen," you will not hear this word but instead you will hear only the noise of the lock which I am unlocking. And now, you do not pronounce the word "aumen", for someone else is pronouncing it for you, and you hear only the noise of the rusty lock. You say: "aumen, so be it!" I say to you: "I bequeath you a big house." – Amen! I am willing you one million dollars, - Amen! No, you should have said "amen" before I had spoken. The disciples asked Christ: "How are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?" - It is possible to do this. Christ said a sacred word. Why did Christ always pray in the evening? He never prayed during the daylight. People considered him a heretic. He prayed in the evening so that no one could see him. Besides, he always preferred cloudy, dark nights. Even at moonlight he did not pray. He loved the dark nights! I say: is there a greater darkness than sorrow? Someone asks: Why exists sorrow? - So that you may pray. In order that you may pray and your prayer may not be soiled, you must have a great sorrow, your soul must be shook up, so that you may feel a deep inner desire to pray in the darkness so that no one would see you and you could say to God: Aumen! Lord, I love Thee for all the blessings which Thou hast been providing for me all these thousands and millions of years. I thank Thee for all the mercy, all the blessings with which Thou hast protected me and showered upon me. The only being in the world who loves us is God, and He has never asked us if we love Him. He sits and waits to see if human consciousness will awaken, if man will stop and say: I must help this man for all the endless Love with which I was always surrounded and protected. When I say this to myself, secretly, is the same secret way I must help him. After that a sacred joy will remain in my soul. When I am in the greatest sorrow, I must perform the greatest good deeds. And now, when are expected people to do the greatest service? - When they are joyous. This is not the correct way. Now you are asking me: why does sorrow exist? I say: sorrow is a great method for the understanding of the great truth in the world. All great masters, all saints, all prophets, all learned men have passed through the school of sorrow and have become true men. Everyone must come to love sorrow and when he meets it, he must be glad. If you tell sorrow that you do not love it, it becomes cold, shuts its doors for you, hides from you and you cannot become acquainted with it. If you say to joy that you hate it, it opens its door for you and receives you and treats you well. And so if you say to sorrow that you like it, it will open its home, will give you a good hospitality, but if you say that you hate it, that you do not like it, it will look its door, will sit on your back and will punish you with ten times greater suffering. How will you understand life new? Because you think in a human way, you will say: Lord, can you see my sufferings? You think that God worries about your small sufferings. He sees everything. The same way all these people came to Christ and he said: "We need bread for these people!" Christ sees today also all the difficulties and sorrows of the men of science, of the doctors, the sick, the suffering, the dying. I say: you must all understand the key of love. When you find this key and pronounce this word even if you find yourselves in the worst state of your soul, it will be tuned. Sometimes you are close, very close to this state of joy, but easily you loose it and it does not come back for many years. How is the time for some of you to study this sacred language. Besides I would say to those who think that they are born by the Spirit of God, that for them it is permitted to study this sacred language of love and to learn to serve God. When we come to this service, we will understand this sacred language, and among us will be born the inner tie and we will know each other. We will not need then to say make this and make that. Everyone will know for himself what he ought to do. No, you must already live in the new life. I say: the new morality is absolute selflessness, not idleness, not unemployment but pure work, that is noble, elevated, without being obstructed by the present difficulties. The present difficulties are forerunners of something great that comes into the world. We have come to the extreme limit of the modern world. Not too long a time will pass before we will enter into a new wave in a new transformation and for this reason we must be ready, whoever is not ready will find himself in the position of a man who boards an airplane for the first time. He trembles the whole time and is not able to see anything and has the greatest desire to leave it as soon as possible. He who is ready will experience an upliftment of his spirit. Many people want to study living nature, mathematics, biological sciences, astronomy, etc. Astronomy is a great science. There is a discrepancy between the true science and modern concepts, what do people study today about the state of the sun? It is laughable to say that the sun is made of hydrogen, oxygen sad some other elements. It is the same as if someone comes and says that the house of some man is made of wood, bricks and other materials. If my house is made of these materials I myself am created in the same way. No, the manifestation of the sun which we see and of which is said that it is made of oxygen, hydrogen and other elements is only a form of one or the other kind of energies which are named hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, etc. These are different kinds of energies which manifest in specific ways. These smallest primary manifestations of the energies we call elements. That which we call the elements are not such in reality. Where can we then stop? We cannot stop at the atoms because they are whole worlds created by ions. Then we will come to the superions. Where will we stop then? These elements are accumulated energies. If we study the world scientifically or anatomically, or any other way, the idea is one and the same. That which the world today teaches you is by itself the most important. In the sun, besides these elements, there are other elements, also, which man must know. Other times I have also said that the sun can give us life, but it cannot give us rationality. Besides that, it cannot make us wise for it also implants laziness. As soon as you get hot from the sun, you have the desire to stop working. All beings become lazy beneath the beneficial rays of the sun. For this reason culture had to be transferred from Africa to the more cooler places so that its warmth and light may be lesser. Therefore rationality does not come from the sun, but it comes from a different place. True culture comes from somewhere else. When I say that rationality does not come from the sun, in my mind, I have a different idea. If I say that I see another sun, what would you say? You will say: why is it that we do not see it also? I see it under special conditions and you, too, could see it under special conditions under which I see it. If someone can see a microbe, he sees it under special conditions, under a microscope. Or, if he sees a star, he sees it also under special conditions, through his telescope. Therefore in the universe there is another sun which brings rationality. We must come in touch with the living sun and not with the one which we see, about which it is said in scripture: "You must not worship the sun." This sun is the forerunner of the other sun. In the esoteric science, there exists a number of methods for those students who want to study it. With the help of these methods, they can verify things about which is spoken and not leave them only in words, but for this task one must be brave like a pilot and not say: I have devoted so many years for this teaching and what did I learn? No, you will say: I have devoted so many years in order to prove a fact in living nature about the existence of another sun, but this fact is living with me. What does matter if I have devoted one hundred years of my life, if I have obtained one secret. I have sacrificed one life but I have obtained a great wealth, I have made an experience which becomes flesh of my flesh, bone of ay bones, spirit of my spirit. This knowledge lives with my consciousness. As it is now, we believe in one God, the Christians believe in a different God, the Moslems believe in their God and at the end one does not know which God the people worship. It is not bad that people believe this way, they see their God. Every religion is good and in its place, it has contributed, there is no doubt about this, but the question is for these advanced souls who have matured, already. They must emerge. We do not need to stop and say to the people that they are ignorant. My intention is not to deny things but to know what I must know right now. In the conditions with which we now live, we must empty our bottles in order to refill them with the new contents. I call an ideal bottle that which stays always a little empty and to which always can be added. I call them the communicating vessels in the world. Have you ever been in such small flasks, in such small vessels? Why can’t they be filled up? These are billiards of flasks which are connected in such a way that they all fill up simultaneously. He all are communicating vessels in the world. Therefore the virtues of the people, the good as well as the evil that come to this world, when filled in these communicating vessels, in these flasks, are distributed equally. For this season we all must strive toward our wholesomeness, toward the virtues, because this good is for the whole of humanity and we are particles of the whole. In one lecture I spoke about the parts and about the whole (The true wine). All these rules must be studied and it is not important what is the service. The service is only a temporary aspect. Some of you are women, others are men, learned men, poets, artists, doctors yet when I look into the eyes of whenever may be, I see something bad. Why? One of the sisters is an excellent artist. What is she lacking? - Nothing except that she has no chance to manifest herself. And so, we all have accumulated so much energy that we wish to be able to manifest. It is not only a question of being loved, but we, who have come to this earth must all manifest. Our manifestation will be in expressing God's love. Two thousand years ago Christ said: "To love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind and power." This is a way to manifest this love! Now when I speak so much about love, immediately the thought generates in you: this man has something on his mind when he speaks to us so much about love. Or, after we have spoken so much on that subject someone comes and tells you: we have come to love each other so much, I love you. Can you lend me five or ten thousand leva? Something shocks you and you think: friend you have priced your love very high. For the time being, in all people, there exists only one material knot. Someone loves a beautiful woman with some intentions. Someone else loves the merchant also with other intentions. The student loves his teacher also for some special reason. Everywhere one can see self-seeking and this must disappear! We must come to know the teacher independently from that which he has in himself, independently from his profession. We must know the doctor independently from his profession. We must know the mother not only in her form of a mother, but also we must know her soul which is free; in it there is more than only the manifestation as a mother. Christ says: "Those who fulfill the will of God are my mothers, brothers, sisters." What is the deep meaning of these words? And so, I say: there is something higher than the father; there is something higher than the mother, there is something higher than the brother and the sisters there is something higher than the friend, what is it? - We do not know. It is so sacred that it cannot even be spoken of! What is Christ saying about the world beyond? Someone will say: About cognate souls? To express that which is so great, one would speak out the words: "Lord, God of mine?" In the Bulgarian language there exist no more sacred, higher word than this. This is the word that contains everything. It is higher than mother, father, or brother. When the Bulgarian comes to a point where he cannot solve a problem, he sighs and says: "Lord, God!" In this moment in his soul comes a calm. The Bulgarian must change these two words into one. He says: Lord, God, Oh! - and he puts the object in front of himself. I say: now we all are in the position at which the Bulgarian has reached. He is a practical man. When his affairs come to a point of being mixed up he says: "Lord. God", if only once my affairs would come to a good development I will devote everything to Thee and I will serve Thee forever!" Yet, as soon as his affairs start going better he says: well, it was nothing so special. I spoke these words, I turned to God in a moment of weakness - and he renounces. Not too long a time goes by and God clenches his throat, but this time so that he cannot pronounce a word - he breathes his last, falls and is dead. In this way end all those who have said "Lord God" and after that have renounced. At the end they say "Oh" and pass away. In the same way will pass away the modern culture. You will say: "Is everything that is said to us the truth?" I give you ten years time to prove it. Always ten years! As many as go by, ten years always remain. Do not be fooled by anyone's words. Someone may come and tell you that all this is not true. Do not fool yourselves! Everything that people are saying to you is deceipt. Because of their words, the noblest and most sublime ideas become defiled. That which I am speaking to you now is not human but divine, once it has been. That which people speak, brings death for everyone in the future. If you say once "Lord, God," be courageous man! Stand resolutely and say: from now on I will serve bravely, selflessly and the sacred idea which I have seeked, I have found. I will not turn away even if the world should turn upside down! Start to sing, be cheerful and joyous and say: "Aumen!" When you rise in the morning say "Aumen!" Even if you should not have shoes to wear, it doesn't matter. "I thank Thee, Lord, that I can see my feet as Thou hast created them." You may not have clothes to wear. Then say the same. Why not? This I call love for God. When I see my torn clothes, the rags of which look like trimmings, laugh, and think that you are dressed in the latest fashion and say: My clothes are not so miserable, they may be raggy but in them I have implanted my highest and most sacred ideas! And in fact, if a sick person would touch these clothes he will recover, but from the fashionable clothes he may perish. It is true that the clothes of the saints have been powerful enough to cure people's diseases. These clothes of a saint are imbibed with the most beautiful ideas and are more beautiful than the most exclusive modem clothes. As you can see with my fine clothes, I look like you. "For he knew!" We all mist know! I wish that all of you would know this sacred word and when you say it, realize that one day the sun will rise for you; it is for you! And when the sun rises, know that the first ray is yours. For when all these millions of rays come to shine, you cannot thank them for you will not know which is the first one, there will be so many! And so we all must be bearers of the new culture and not be ashamed. I wish that all of you may now know what to do. When you go back home say: "Lord, God!" When you say that, then say the third word "Aumen amen" and start with the key Sol to pronounce the word love. The purpose of this will not be for people to love you, but when you pronounce the word love your clothes start to smoke and then your body will become hot, then become glowing and shining, to cleanse everything in you and to understand that life has a meaning, Only pronounced in this way these words can give meaning to your lives. This I call "resurrection." In this way true life will begin. It has been said that God will send His angels with trumpets to blow them and a man will resurrect, this is resurrection. The angel will speak with the new words to the living, and the righteous, and the trumpets are for the deaf, for the dead. For then, they will blow the trumpets so loud that all will jump out from their graves and there will be no place to hide. As the fisherman pulls out the fish in his net, the same way the angel with his trumpet will pull us out from the water and will bring us into Christ's court. This is the picture which the religious people present but in my mind there is a different picture. First all impurities of the people will disappear, after that their clothes will start to smoke, then their bodies will start to heat up, will become luminous, and we all will feel that in our rags were hidden the sacred words through which we could come to life. And so, Christ says: "Make the people sit down!" And he fed five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish. Lecture of the Master Beinsa Douno, Sofia, Bulgaria, November 29, 1925. For He knew

Note 1 Sons of the Resurrection

In Those Days "It came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan." Mark 1:9 The name of John can be given only to that man who can discern the hidden wisdom of nature. A national, sane man can read and comprehend well the sense of the books written by the great souls who have lived before him. I use the words 'great souls' in a broad sense of the word. There are two processes in the world. The one process is that if temporary limitation. It is common to the whole animal kingdom from the most inferior to the more superior beings bordering with man. It is an auxiliary process. The other process can be called Divine. Its specific quality is that it is liberating. If man could understand this process, he would see that it alone could set him free. Once come to earth, the purpose of man is attaining freedom. He wants to become free from something, which he himself can not understand. Man can not know this, because his spirit passes through four phases of consciousness: sub-consciousness, consciousness, self-consciousness and super-consciousness. He does not understand the processes within his sub-consciousness, because it includes all creation; that is the reason why man does not remember his past existences. He is aware, to an extent, of his past in his consciousness, since it is a process, which is temporary manifested. That which mans knows with his consciousness is that he is a being who lives, who has certain rights and a certain freedom to develop himself normally. Consciousness, as a process, exist in all animals. The self-consciousness, however, distinguishes man from the animals. He says: "I am a man!" Therefore, he is self-conscious. The final state is that of the super-consciousness, of which very little is known. It is the purpose, toward which man aspires, for it gives meaning to life. As soon as man understand he laws of his super-consciousness, he is free. In that state, he would be exposed to all the changes, which are now taking place in the world. Contemporary man, however, is not free. When someone says that he is free, it means that he is relatively free, for a certain time. The freedom of men today is relative. The young man is only temporary free from old age. At first, the young man is being life with his weakness and helplessness. He struggles for a time with it until he becomes stronger and thinks he has won the battle. As soon as he reached the climax of his victory, he begins to grow old. In his old age, he again becomes like an infant. And you will be that old man. That sage had thought he had understood the sense of life, in need of others to take him from one place to another. The old people like the small children can not work. When people make hurried conclusions and say: "This man is young, this man is old. However, they must understand what young and old mean in the fill sense of the word. Youth and age are two important processes, two important phases in the life of man. Someone says: "I am a man." You must understand what it is to be a man. - I am a Bulgarian. - You must understand what is it to bea Bulgarian. Then you must understand what it means to be a Frenchmen, a German etc. - This is an animal. - But you must know what animal is. - This is a wolf. - You must understand what a wolf is. On the whole, contemporary people have given certain interpretations to all the things, but for the most part they are not right. For instance, one must give a right interpretation to the wolf. Since nature has created him, she has had in view something rational. In the economy of nature, the wolf fulfils an honorable service. Therefore, we must not consider only his external form. If he does not fulfill his service well as a clerk, he will only remain with the title wolf, but everyone they will persecute him. He is employed as a treasurer of a bank, but he opens up the treasury, takes the money out and runs away. He is like some great military personage, like general, who sent to the battle- field to fight, but this general run away and the soldiers do the same. After that he tries to find excuses for his escape. You ask why he must run away. - Because he does not want to die -that is all. - Why does he not want to die? When we are at home, it is easy to say that must die, but on the battlefield, it is not an easy matter to speak about death. Often speakers, orators deliver speeches before the people about their patriotic duties and encourage them to fight by saying: Brothers, you must to go to the battlefield to fight the enemy and sacrifice yourselves for your country. You must be ready to die! Yes, these men will fight and die for their country, but those who speak must remain at home. Now on the basis of this same moral, some people say: "The Christians must lead a good life. - If only the Christians live well, the whole problem is not solved. It is true that the Christians must live well, but all the rest humanity must well, too. If we live, we must all live well. Life was created for the sane people. In their studies and researches, all men of talent in the past and in the present have at this conclusion. There are as many people of this kind as you wish, however, it is better for you to believe in this fact without referring to them, but if you can not believe, all the worse for you. Nature has an extreme reluctance of the cowards, the criminals, the foolish, there who slander and spend their energy in vain. In a word, nature had an extreme abhorrence of all crimes which people commit today: "She is enraged at them that she is continually thinking what penalty to impose upon them. She has already made up her mind to put plan into execution, and after it is applied, all men will see it and pass trough suffering. You say: "What does nature think?" She thinks how to punish all those people who have violated her laws. Why and what for, she not gives anybody an account to her acts. Now, you may or may not believe my words. Faith is rational process, or a process of the higher mind. People must live well. There is no sense in their tormenting each other. It says in the scripture that Christ went to be baptized by John. Christ, who stands higher that John, went to the latter for his baptism, thereby giving people a good example of humility. He said to John: "You must baptize me with water!" The way John baptized Christs is a symbol. According to that symbol, every man has been born in order to be baptized. Someone says: "I want to baptize!" Even if you do not want to baptize, someone must be found to baptize people. Whether you want to of not, you will be baptized, but not only by water, as you understand the baptism. Every suffering is a baptism; every trial is a baptism. After being baptized in Jordan, Christ was speaking about another baptism. Therefore, his baptism was not finished. The first baptism by water is easily performed. One is dipped and washed in the water, and that is all. After that, however, comes the difficult baptism through the trials in life, when man must become free from the limiting conditions in life and understand the relations of good and evil. Sometime people regard evil as if it does not concern them. In the evil as well as in the good is hidden a certain philosophy which must be studied. Someone says: "What is the sense of the cosmos? Man can understand the sense of the cosmos to the extent that he understands the sense of his own life. The cosmos has a relation to the human life to the extent that men have relation to it. People often ask what is the sense of life. It is not important for you to know the sense of life according to the philosophers, theologists or the believers, but in a given case, it is important for you to know the sense lo your own personal life. If I can give a solution to this question, themselves will solve the other questions. There is a continuous connecting link among all living beings. No one lives for himself alone. If someone thinks that he lives for himself, this is only apparently true. In reality, no man lives for himself. Notice that every branch of a tree lives for itself, but at the same time it has a relation to the tree; it lives for the whole also - for the tree. So long as it is bound to the tree, it grows, develops and leads its own life. But as soon as it admits thought that it can live outside of the tree, independently, it withers. If you ask the mystic or the occultist for the reason why the branches wither, they will draw the conclusion that the branches of a tree wither when the}' think they can live independently from the life of the whole. Why is there so much unhappiness and suffering today? - Because the scientists and the men of letters admitted something wrong in their conceptions. They introduced the idea that men must conquer nature and become its masters. Up to this day there is a great struggle between man and nature. A Great War is being waged, but we shall see who will make amends after it is all over. It man conquers nature, the latter will pay the indemnity, but if she is the winner, man will pay it. In this respect the learned men are divided into two opposing parties: some maintain that nature must submit to man; the others say that man must submit to nature. Therefore, when one asks what the evil is, I say: "When men want to make nature submit to them, they create the evil." He, who wants to conquer nature, brings unhappiness and evil into the world. He, who lives in concord with living nature, is in the realm of the good. - Where is the good? - The good is always around you. When the sun raises, that is good; when the stars rise, that is good; when the wind blows, that is good; when the water flows, that is good; when the earth brings forth fruit, that is good; when the plants grow and develop, that is good. Everything around is good and still we ask what is the good! Is it not good to sit at the table to eat, then to feel well disposed and happy? Is it not good after you have hungered for three days to have someone brings you some bread? Someone says: "If I hunger tree days, it shows that such is the will of God. That is not true. If you have hungered three days without any important reason and have not gained anything by that fast, it is a result of the human will, which wants to conquer nature. He who three times a day says that he is in accord with nature; he who does not eat, says that he is at war with nature. Now men preach fasting and the churches also advise men to fast. In both cases by fasting is understood abstaining from bread and food. According to me, the rich must fast, but the poor must eat. - Why? - Because the rich have eaten so much that they have overeaten, and it is necessary for them to fast for a while. When they fast, they must give to the poor people the food which otherwise they would use up. Today fasting is preached to people, but the poor fast anyway they want to or not. That is why the poor always complain. They say: "We are tired of fasting!" are not the years of fasting ever going to finish and the good times come at last? When we speak about fasting, we must understand it in its deeper sense. There exists today a perverted idea about fasting. Fasting means abstaining from evil, from violating the Divine law and not merely abstaining from food. When a man fasts, he must have in mind the thought if giving his food during that day to someone who has been hungry and lost his balance in life. He who fasts must sustain his hungry brother, because no one lives for himself. The servant who does the work for his master must be fed by all means, otherwise he will not be in a condition to work. Therefore, one of the important questions in life is that of food. The economic question is based on the process of nourishment. Contemporary scientists, biologists, financiers and philosophers solve this question, because it is one of highest importance for life as a whole. Every nation must live well. Every man must also live well. Every man must have only food, but air, light, water and a home, as well. Nature itself as created mans this way. Man has a house - his body; he has two windows - his two eyes through which the light enters; ventilation's - his nose; a main entrance - his mouth, that economic net -work in which are deposited all the necessary provisions for the sustenance of the body. Man has two telephones also - his two ears by means of which he make contract with the external world. Now if we discuss the question why Christ went to John for his baptism, what would you say about that? What is the relation between Christ and John? The relation between them is such a relation between a strong and a weak man. The strong must go to the weak to help him. Therefore, Jesus wants to John to help him - which was all. Christ said to John: "you preach a teaching of repentance which does not appeal to people. The rich do not want to repent that is why they will cut off your head. Now by baptizing me, we shall come to the agreement that you will not be weak-hearted or cowardly. You will prove to the people the truthfulness of your teaching even at the expense of your head. Moreover, you will know that you will pass through suffering, but I also will suffer. You will be beheaded, but I shall be crucified. When they nail me to the cross, you will come to help me. Many people today think that everything ends with their death. When a man dies and goes to the other world, he helps people from there. While man is in his body, he is weak, but as soon as he leaves it, he becomes strong and powerful and able to help people. While man is in his body, he is like a debtor who owes money to at least a thousand men. As soon as he goes out of his house and meets any of the men to whom he owes, he is called dishonest and considered as an unreliable debtor. They call him a thief and all kinds of bad names, until he finds himself in a position not to know what to do. I tell that to go out of the land of bills, to pay all his debts and to become a free citizen. Then whoever of your creditors would meet you, he would say: "I am a glad to meet you. You are an honest and good payer. Now you can walk on the earth freely. Such is the state of everyone who can freely go out on his body. Contemporary people have work only with bills. Visit any institutions: the Congress, the churches, the Public Safety office etc. everyone you will find men talking about bills. Often people judge someone, and accuse him for wishing to bring about a certain reform, a new political order, as a result of which he is turning the world upside down. I say: "The world has been upside down for the last eight thousand years." Who has turned it upside down? According to you a certain man is turning it upside down. But who been doing that till now? Certain people say that the religious, the spiritual people are psychopaths, somewhat abnormal. However, the statistics show that in Bulgaria there are more that 10000 insane people. Who is to blame for their insanity? Are they all religious men? I give an interpretation to the word 'psychopath' and find that it is not a bad word. It is composed of the word 'psyche' - soul and 'pathos' - disposition, an emotional state. Thus, a psychopath is a man in a good disposition of the spirit. People do not accept this interpretation but they will answer for that. The psychopath is a man who does not interpret things, as people understand them, as a result of which, he comes into conflict with them. Sometimes, he exaggerates things, since his nervous system is more developed than necessary. He is extremely sensitive. Since you say that the psychopath is an abnormal type of man, what is then the standard for the normal type? An abnormal person is one whose nervous system has fissures through which a great amount of his nervous energy flows out. A neurasthenic, on the other hand, is a man who is distinguished in some way from the other people - who has progressed in a certain department of life. It is not a bad thing for one to have a well-developed nervous system, but the evil lies in the fissures, which take place in it. This is like the interruption of an electric installation, as a result of which communications are irregular. Today 'psychopath' perverts the sense of the word psychopath; men understand a man who has a certain mental deficiency. We can draw the following conclusion from this: "If the mind of someone is sufficient for the committing a certain crime, he is not a psychopath. If the mind of someone is sufficient for violating a law, or going around it and then justifying himself before the people, he is not a psychopath." Now it is not a question of disputing, or of comparing different teaching. Whenever the question arises as to which religion or teaching is right, I take as a starting point the following view: in nature there is only one light. All fires, all lights existing on earth, have issued forth from the sun. Which is the standard, which determines the power of the different lights? -The sun. If the sun should be extinguished only for a moment, you would not be able to light any fire. Therefore, if your candle burns, be sure that the sun is in a normal state. On the same basis, when you think well, when you have a good disposition, you must know that at the same time, many other beings think like you. You are not the only person who thinks in this way. Wise nature is the standard for all things. If you examine life closely, you will see that there is a close, continual connection among the minerals, plants, animals, man and the beings superior to man. According to me, minerals represent life in a genetic state. They are deeply buried in the earth. Those minerals, on the other hand, which have sprouted up and have shown some of their parts on the surface of the earth, are the plants. Thus, when a mineral has solved an important problem in its life, it sprouts up and passes into the phase of a plant. The lower parts of the plant - the roots, remain in the earth. The plants are not yet completely free. After they have thought for thousands of the years how to liberate their heads - the roots - from dense matter and to obtain heir liberty, they appeared like animals in which state they found a solution to that question which they, as plants, had not been able to solve. The animals, however, remained for a long time in bad, unfavorable conditions for their development. It was necessary, finally, for man to come think for a long time about this problem until he could find a way to liberate himself. Man solved the question, which the animals could not solve. The animals, because of their lack of reason, developed different passion by which they usually destroyed themselves. The crime which men of today commit, is nothing other than an ancient heritage of the mammals. If men would return to there past and examine the life of their forefathers, they would be terrified at the sight of that terrible destruction, of the awfully cruel wars and contents of mankind. The present wars are nothing compared to those in the past. Perhaps, the future in which man will use poisonous gas could be compared to the cruelty of the past wars. There has been a time when terrible devastation and distractions have taken place in the world, until finally, man has appeared with his thought, in order to put an end to those distractions and to introduce order into the world. When man has appeared in paradise, he has restored peace and calmness on the whole earth by his thought. This is, in fact, the reason why has come into the world. However, after the fall, this destruction started again among mankind, as among all the nations. I ask you: "How humanity come out of the condition in which it is now? Today, man must come again with his new, right thought to solve all questions. The solution of these questions is not a problem of a single man, or of a single nation. A single man or a nation can solve only one question, but the solution of all questions represents the problem of the entire humanity. It must participate in this great problem, which concerns and engages all men equally. Contemporary nations are conscious of this fact and are working toward the realization of this problem. Christ came to earth with a great mission. He wanted to show contemporary European nations how they must act. Everything Christ preached in his time has a relation to the present epoch. He told all nations: "You will come to a great crisis. If you want this crisis to be averted, you must apply my teaching. If you apply my teaching, you will be saved from a great catastrophe, if you do not apply it, the catastrophe is inevitable. One of the ancient prophets has said: "The time when this catastrophe will come is not very distant." How will this catastrophe come? The time has come when scientists will be able to inflame the air. Imagine that the air enveloping the whole earth is inflamed. What will become of the present culture then? The Scripture says that the whole earth will be on fire and everything upon it will disappear. This time is near. If men do not apply the law of Love, the air will be inflamed, by all means, and then the earth will purify both the good and the evil people. However, the good will not burn up - They will pass trough fire and become pure, while the evil, who are in contradiction with nature, will be burned and melted away, as the dead bodies are incriminated in special kilns. Only in this way the contradictions in the world, which cause many diseases, will disappear. On account of these contradictions, contemporary men have not solved the question what their relations toward nature is and whether their acts agree with its laws or not. They say: "The conditions do not allow us to act in accord with nature. But conditions do not justify men. If I am a man and think of my welfare, I must know that I have a relation to the whole as well as to the parts of the whole. If I am conscious of this fact, should I admit a misfortune in my life, which will inevitably have a reflection upon the life of the other people? The law is one and the same both for misfortune and fortune, fortune, for the evils as for the benefits. They are equally transmitted from the whole to the parts and from the parts to the whole. Today, men all over the world are beginning to realize the influence of the pure Divine thought upon man. All good people must become united and concentrate their thought in one direction - toward the reconstruction of the world. If all mothers say: "We do not want anymore wars! - They would have success. If all mothers would say to their children, while they are still in their womb, that they do not want to fight and to kill, those children after they are born, will bear the ideas of their mothers. They will become transmitters of the new thoughts and for the rectification of the world. If a son wants to marry, his father must say to him: "If you marry in order to give birth to criminals who will kill each other, it is better for you not to marry. But if you marry, in order to give birth to good sons and daughters who help their neighbors, then you can marry. Today, good people are needed in the world! If good people are born, marriage is in its place. The good people must work collectively for the elevation of the world. The good people must occupy such posts as living nature has assigned to them. "Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee." Nazareth represents our lowly, humble origin. In this sense Nazareth is a symbol. Galilee is the beautiful and fine in life. Galilee is a region where Nazareth is found. Contemporary people must nourish in themselves the beautiful and fine; they must maintain the great idea of the nobly human in life. This idea is as necessary to the wise men as health. While he is ill person. The sick man does not need wealth but health. While he is ill, the most important thing for him is health. If he health, wealth will come to him. Which is the most important thing for the ignorant man or for the small child? - To become educated. By the word 'educated', I understand that knowledge which can set man free from all the limiting conditions of life. What is the most important thing for a man who is in darkness? - Light. He wants to find the way in which he must walk. Thus under the present conditions, there is no better thing for man than to have a sane mind, to understand the relations among people, to know the laws and study the language of nature. People today do not understand nature. For instance, scientists say that heat expands the bodies, while cold causes them to contract. They do not give any explanation what the relation of expansion and contraction is, in regard to man. Men have not observed what changes take place in them when they experience pleasant or unpleasant feelings. When you have a pleasant feeling, measure your hand or neck and see what change you can notice. Then do the same when you have an unpleasant feeling. In the first case, you will notice an expansion in the hard and neck, while in the last, you will notice a small contradiction. You say: "Man is wise, he knows the laws and knows how to cope with his difficulties. It is true that man is wise, but often when this wise man find himself in difficult conditions, he becomes afraid of the future and commits suicide. In this respect, the hare, which is considered as the most timid animal, when frightened, does not commit suicide, but even retains the presence of mind and can think. There are examples from the life of the hare when in the most difficult situation of life, it thinks like philosopher. For instance, when a hound which runs faster than it, is chasing it and the hare downward with greater difficulty than upward, as soon as the hound comes close to it, it lies down for a second and the hound in its speed jumps over it and continues on. At that moment the hare jumps up and runs in the opposite direction. Thus, while running away from he hound, the hare is thinking how to get free from it. When a setter is chasing it, the hare has another method of running. It begins to run around in a circle, as if dancing a Bulgarian horo, then suddenly it jumps the pace often feet from the center and runs away. In this way the hare gives the setter a geometrical figure for solution. And after all that, you say that the hare is cowardly and foolish! The hare is not foolish, but the one chases it: - You are a man, but so long as you chase me with your gun, misfortune will never cease to follow you. As the hounds and setters chase me, in the same way your evil thoughts will chase you until you become sane and see the consequences in your acts. Stop chasing me! The long ears of the hare indicate good intelligence. If men, according to the degree of their development, were as wise as the hare, the world today is all in order. You, who are listening me now, will say: now this is too much be the prophet Isaiah says: "The ox knows and returns to its manager but Israel does not know God and does not return to its home." Who ranks higher? The ox knows his master, but man whom God has endowed with a mind denies the Rational Principle in life and says he will direct his life alone. Thousands of years man has tried to put order in his life and has not yet succeeded in doing it. There is an ordinary way to liquidating with your debts. It is that of John, i.e. the way people use today for liquidating with their debts. John was a man of the Old Testament. He represented the old law: "If you owe, you are obligated to give. Christ, however, showed people another way for liquidating with their debts: "Liquidation by the law of Love - giving out of love. Christ did not have in mind that love which does not give man liberty, which does not enable man to do away with all fear, hatred, sickness, suffering and all bad conditions of life. This is not love. The love Christ spoke about brings beauty, joy and happiness into life. This love has in view the welfare of all beings. Therefore, if some men say they have grown old, the reason for that is their old conception of life. The old man must give up his old conceptions, if he wants to become young. Contemporary people are still supporting the thoughts and conceptions of the thousands of generations before them; the father tells his son that he will grow old, for that reason he must build himself a house and become insured. And actually, present-day people know everything they can build houses, sew clothes, graduate from universities, become generals, ministers, princes and kings, but life remains the same. The king lives like the simple man and the simple man lives like the king. Every man can be king, but according to me, a king can be only that man who has freed himself from death and evil. He, who is not set free from death and evil, is a slave of the conditions of life. He can only bear the title 'king' without being a one. An acquaintance of mine that has studied medicine in Boston once told me the following interesting story about a king. While walking in the streets of Boston, he saw a tall man coming towards him, about two meters tall, with crown on his head, in a mantle, holding a scepter in his hand. All the people passing by did not pay any attention to him. He wondered why these Americans did not pay attention to this European king, as he thought him to he. As he passed by him, he turned around to look at his back, but his surprise was great when he saw on his back the advertisements of a factory. I say: "Every man is a king, but if the advertisement of all his crimes are posted on his back, what sort of king is he? When speaking about a king, understand the real man. The man of today has many advertisements of crimes in his back. I ask you: "Should he recommend by them? Today people are trying to become free of the external crimes, but they do not think of the inner crimes. However, both the outer and crimes are registered not only upon paper, as it is done today, but they are also written upon the whole body of man. Some day you will meet more advanced beings than you will. How will you look at them? Some day you will meet beings that have expected love from you, which you have not given them; some day you will meet you brother who have expected help from you, which you have not rendered them. How will look at them? You say: "What was the sense of Christ's coming to the earth and suffering. Could He not save Himself? - Christ had great powers at His disposal and could save Himself. It says in the Scripture that Christ could call to His aid 12 legions of angels. In every legion there are 6 000 angels. A single one of these possesses such great power that he can destroy in one night a well-armed army of 150 thousand soldiers, so that not even one would remain alive. Then how many such angels are needed for wiping the Bulgaria off the face of the earth? If 6 000 come, they will destroy the whole of humanity. However, the destruction of humanity should be uplifted is not the question. It is important that humanity should be uplifted through the good. The good is distinguished from the evil in that it always constructs and creates, while the evil destroys. Love is that which always constructs and liberates man. That which always constructs and liberates man is wisdom. That which always constructs and liberates man is the truth. They are eternal processes. The desire of someone may say: "This is all in vein, it is only for children." I ask you: What is the real, the essential thing in life? We often pronounce the name of God, but in this beautiful name are done great crimes today. All sorts of crimes have been committed in the past, all in this sacred name! Christ says: "The hour comes and now is when everyone who kills you will think that he is offering service to God." And contemporary people think that by killing the criminals and the bad people, the world be set right. If actually the world could be set right by killing people, every year about 35 million people are condemned to death and still the world is not rectified. Therefore, the question can not be thus solved. Every year 35 million men die and, in their place about 40 million are born. Thus million men more come to the earth than those who go to other world. The evil kills 35 million, while love sends 40million men. It would be interesting to see in the end: who shall take the upper hand. Finally, the hands of evil will weaken and it will not be able to kill anymore. The evil will kill until it capitulates. The necks of people will become so tough, that no knife will be able to cut them. A time will come when the human neck will be in such a state that as soon as a knife comes close to them it will be thrown off them and break, but the necks will remain untouched. A tire will come when the human bodies will be so constituted, that every bomb thrown at them will melt without causing them any harm. Then I ask you: how will people kill one another? A time will come when man will not kill the bad people and the criminals, but they will put to sleep and rest, while the good people will do their work. This time is coming, is it not far; the question is - what we must do now. It will be easy to attain everything in the distant future, but today, the evil people can not be put to sleep yet. Someone was asked once: how are you getting along? - I am a very difficult condition. - What will you do then? - At last, I shall get used to it. However, I do not stop at this point. The question is not that man should get used to the evil, but there is a natural way by which man can become free of the influence of all diseases. This is a real science. And in this science is hidden the sense of life. The future sciences will not deal with the pathological states of people, but will rather study their states. Let us admit that a merchant loses a hundred thousand leva and remains without a cent in his pocket, so that he has no money to buy bread. He wonders what to do. He goes home and can not bear to see his wife and children hungry. At last the thought of suicide takes possession of him. I call this state a state of stupidity. In the world there are many resources by means of which man can be delivered from even the worst conditions of life. You have no admittance yet, to these resources. If you knew the laws of nature, you would find a way to them and be saved. I shall cite an example as an affirmation of this idea. It is concerning a principal of a grade school in Kazanluk before the war. Up to the time of the war, he had been a great atheist and had often to his students that God does not exist, but man directs his own life and forges his destiny. During the last war, he took part in the battle with the Greeks and during the retreat of the Bulgarian army he hid with great difficulty in a cave where he spent three days hungry, without a bite of bread. The hunger began to torment him so terribly that the idea of turning to God came to his mind. He said: "God, my father and mother have said to me that you exist but I do not believe in this. Of what benefit is at this moment your existence when I am dying of hunger? If you can save me from this difficult condition, I shall believe that you exist. I promise you, that when I return in Bulgaria, I shall gather all my students to whom I have preached that there is no God and shall convince them in the opposite. After pronouncing these words, he smiled and naively said to himself: ""When one has no other work, he talks nonsense like me. However, half an hour had not elapsed before there appeared at the entrance of the cave a tortoise carrying half loaf of bread in its mouth, which it left in front of the cave and returned in the direction from which it came. He took and ate the bread and thus gathering some strength, he continued on his way. When he returned home, he called together all his pupils: -"Children, I preached to you before that there is no God, but an important fact convinced me completely in His existence. And then he told them of his experience. - Up till now - he continued, neither Kant, nor some other philosopher could convince me that God exists, but the tortoise succeeded in doing it. That man had a great influence upon the others, because he told them of a living experience of his. I say: "The great truth must be tested, we must acquire experiences upon which we can build our future creed. Contemporary people must have a creed in which they absolutely should not doubt. I say: "If a present day people, who believe in a certain Supreme Principle would concentrate their thought on Him with the desire that He should set the world right, the world would become right. Even if only the Christians wished it, they could set the world right. That can be achieved even in the course of five years. There are no obstacles for that. The only obstacle is the personal, selfish interest of people. Two brothers who had been in a great conflict, were taken captives in the same place and were delivered to a soldier to kill both of them along with some other captives. When they saw each other, both of them embraced and kissed one another and said: "We shall not dispute from now on. We are both going to the other world, let us become reconciled here. The soldier who accompanied them, asked them why they embraced and kissed each other. They told him they were brothers who were becoming reconciled after a long conflict. He answered them: "Since this is a fact, go to your homes, I give you your life that you may live at liberty in the new way. There is a language in nature, which is the same for all plants, for all animals and for all men. I shall cite an example from Bulgarian life, by which you can see that actually, there exists a common language for all beings in nature. A little girl lost her parents and got lost in a forest. She started to cry and to seek her mother. Suddenly, she saw a bear, which immediately squatted, on the ground, in order not to frighten the child. The girl approached it and asks it: "Tell me, where is my mother? The bear squatted still lower, so that the girl might get on its back. Thus, with the child on its back, it continued its way through the forest to take the child to her mother. The bear is a clairvoyant, for it saw the father and mother climbing a rock, because they were afraid of it. When they saw their girl on the back of the bear, the mother immediately called to her: - Come down from the back of the bear! They were afraid of it, while the little girl calmly sat on its back. After that, the bear squatted low again, the child came off its back and joyously went to her mother. Many people will say that this is one of the stories from "Arabian nights" It is to be remarked that people today have lost all faith. Unbelief as reached its highest point. Men have no faith in each other. The husband has no faith in his wife; the wife has no faith in her husband; the son has no faith in his father and the father has no faith in his son; the daughter has no faith in her mother and the mother has no faith in her daughter. All over the world there exists extreme unbelief. And all these people who have lost their faith preached some kind of liberty to the world. All men must return to the true faith and know that if they do not believe in their father, mother brother, sister or friends, there can be not order whatever in his world. What can these people preach? They will preach that Christ has suffered and has been crucified. And after that they will weep for him. I say: "You do not weep for your brother who is suffering, but you weep for Christ. Christ for whom you apparently weep, is in your brother who suffering and calls for your help. Now you ask: "Which teaching is right? Only that teaching brings freedom for all beings without exceptions: "For all plants, animals and peoples. Wherever it may come from, so long as it brings liberty for all living beings, this teaching is right. I am not speaking about a temporary freedom. If it is a question of temporary freedom, the Bulgarians, for example, acquired such freedom - Russia liberated them, but up to this day they are not free. Now someone else must come to liberate them again. I do not know who will liberate them now. Not only the Bulgarians, but in America, in England, in Germany, everywhere you go, you will find that men are not free and need liberation. If you go to London, for instance, There you will find city-quarters of 45-50 thousand people: men, women and children, but the children in those quarters do not know their fathers and mothers. If a foreigner happens to pass through such a quarter, a police must, by all means, accompany him. He who passes through such a place is exposed to some danger. This is true of all large cities: New York, Paris, Berlin, etc. Even in small Bulgaria their are quarters in the cities where one can not walk freely. As soon as ore becomes angry, he does not think much and is ready to send a bullet through somebody. In case he does not shoot anyone, he is ready to say offensive words to that person and after that begin to regret his act. Every man has such a section behind his ears where the center of destruction is found inhabited by 45-50 thousand cities. There is one way for getting saved from the inhabitants of these quarters. There is one way for acquiring freedom. When I say that there is one way for acquiring freedom, I do not deny all the other ways, but I do not say that all attempts of humanity for freedom are out of place. I mean to say that today humanity is in need of a special starter, which will give it a strong impetus forward. All men have a good desire acquire this starter in order to understand that freedom acts always in the same way and must be common to all people. So long as man wants freedom only for himself he is in the wrong way. If he wants freedom for the others, as well as for himself, he is in the right way. If you wish good for all people, as well as for yourself, you are in the right way. Now when you get up in the morning, ask yourself where you ha\ e come from and how you have acquired all that you have within yourselves. Without thinking about these questions, you say: "I was born, but some day I shall die and my life will come to an end. I say: "It is easy to die and finish up with everything, but just when you think you have come to the end, you will find yourself in a contradiction. You will find yourself in the position of that man who had to pay a bill of one hundred thousand leva, but not being able to pay it, he decided to commit suicide. He climbed a high rock and jumped down, but he did not succeed in killing himself, only his legs were broken. When he saw himself in such a condition, he despaired still more and said: "If my legs were good, I could pay the bill, but now both my legs are broken and the bill - not paid. Many people think in this way. They hope to pay their bills after they die. When they die, they neither pay their bills, nor have life. Therefore, it is better for man in the present conditions, to have strong legs and pay up his bills gradually. Back of every creditor stands an angel who tests people. When you believe that your creditor is an honest man and there is a Divine Principle in him, as well smile at you fall in love with your creditor. As young man falls in love with a maiden and is ready to kneel before her, this robber. As you call your creditor, will smile at you, pat you on the back and say: "I am ready not only to forgive your debt of one hundred thousand leva, but also to give you that sum. Men have done this in the past and are still doing it. This is the only way of becoming brothers. This is what men ought to preach in the world today! Today all men are disputing which church, which teaching, or which philosophy is right. All churches must preach the teaching of nature. All men must become coworkers with nature. All must receive a baptism along with it. Where? All must be baptized in the river, which Love proceeds from. All must be baptized in the lake of wisdom Love flows into. And finally, all must step firmly upon that soil upon which is poured the rain of truth. Therefore, you will dip yourselves in each one of these, three times: "Dip yourselves three times in the river of Love; then dip yourselves three times in the lake of Wisdom and finally, expose yourselves three times to the shower of Truth. Only in this way can one enter the Kingdom of God. He who has not dipped himself three times in Love. Wisdom and Truth can not enter the Kingdom of God, neither can he solve anything in the world. There are not vain words, but they are an interpretation of the verse: "And in those days came Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized of John in Jordan." Now, I speak, I raise my voice a little. However, the power of the words does not lie in their loud pronunciation; they are powerful in so far as they are true and applicable; they are powerful in so far as they are in accord with the Divine in man. You say: "We must speak the truth! This is True, the truth must be spoken, but there are things which are only external folders. To speak the truth to a man implies saying to him that which can rejuvenate him. Man is rejuvenating when he applies his ideas. If a nation applies the laws of Love, Wisdom and Truth, it will be completely rejuvenated. You say: "What is the Bulgarian accomplish? If they apply the teaching of Christ, they could set the whole world on fire and liberate it. Many have asked me: "What is the mission of the Bulgarian nation? If the Bulgarians are ready to fulfill that which I say to them, they will know what their mission is. If they do not fulfill that which I preached to them, I shall not say what their mission is. The apostle Peter has said: "You are Sons of God" - If today someone says that he is a son of God, everybody condemns him for calling himself a Son of God. The Scripture has said this not only about one person, but also about everybody. In this sense, I would like all of you to be Son of God, i.e. Sons of the Divine Love, the Divine Wisdom and the Divine Truth. I would like all of you to be bearers of the new teaching and wherever you pass, to wipe the tears off men's eyes, to liberate them from all diseases, from all poverty, infirmities and suffering. Therefore, be Sons of God, sons of Love! A talk of the Master held Oct. 25, 1931, Sofia, Izgrev. In Those Days

Born Again (anew) "Except a man be born again he can not see the Kingdom of God." John 3:3 "Born again." I will compare these words to a precious stone, which is on the finger of a person. This person may be a young maiden, a young man, or he may be a king, a prince, or an ordinary man. He who looks upon the stone, admires it and wonders if there is some relation between it and the man who is wearing it. It is a scientific question as to whether there is a relation between the precious stone and people. That which can be taken off and put upon the fingers of men can have only a temporary re1atlon to them. There are thoughts similar to these rings with precious stones. Man deposits such a thought in his mind and all men see it. However, after a short tine, that thought disappears. Such thoughts can be constantly put in and taken out of the mind, as rings are put on and takes off the fingers of man. One can understand the transitory in life by these thoughts that which has a temporary relation to them. This does not show that these thoughts are lost, but that they only change their places, as a ring can pass from one hand to another. A ring can be worn by thousands of hands, but that does not mean that it is lost. When such a ring gets attached to a person, it remains upon his finger for a longer time. Wherever this ring passes, it bears upon itself the imprint of the people who have worn it. The same thing is true of our thoughts. Every thought bears the imprint of the character of the man through whose mind it has passed. It bears as many imprints as the number of heads it has passed through. Not only the character of man, but his whole life, convictions, virtues etc. are imprinted on the thoughts. Therefore, all thoughts and desires which enter and go out of a man, return to the invisible world. By means of these thoughts can be determined the character and the life of people as well as the life of a whole epoch. And now as you are listening to this talk, in the invisible world the beings are already determining how you listen, what you have understood and what can become of you. Someone may say that these things do not interest him, but I say: only the foolish man is not interested in anything; the prudent man is interested in everything. If the ignorant man is not interested in wisdom, then wisdom will not be interested in his ignorance; if the ignorant is interested in wisdom, then wisdom will be interested in his ignorance. If the evil man is interested in virtue, virtue will be interested in his evil. These are relations existing in life. In this sense, God is interested not only in the upright, but in the sinful people also. In which sinful men is God interested. — In those who are interested in the Divine Love. Someone goes to God and begins to tell Him that he is of noble birth, that his father and mother have been eminent and noble etc. but God is not interested in these things. He is interested in your father, forefather or mother in so far as they have been interested in Him. And actually, the value of man depends upon the extent he has been interested in the Primary Principle and is in connection with it. If you are not interested in the Primary Principle, it does not care at all about your father and forefathers. When contemporary people read or listen to some philosophy, they say without much thinking: this is a foolish philosophy. Why? I say: two quantities, each one of which is equal to a third quantity, are equal among themselves. This is a mathematical maxim which can be applied to life. For instance, when two bad people, love equally a good man, they are in a certain relation among themselves. When it is said about a man that he is bad, he is relatively bad: for certain people, he is bad, in certain respect, while for others, he is good, in another respect. The bad man emanates an odor. He is like a merchant who displays all his goods. Whatever goods he has, he exposes them in front of his shop. Who can be called bed? A bad man is he who wants to earn much money quickly; a bad man is he who wants to live fast; a bad man is he who wants to become rich, learned, and strong at once, so that, he can command people. Thus, the evil in man lies in his unnatural desires, on account of which he is always in a restless state like the waters of an ocean. The bad man says: — I can not live in any other way. I am what you see me and can not change. The bad man always hurries, for be does not stop to think much. Now, the bad man is not the subject of my talk, but I am only explaining certain positions in life. For instance, many people consider as bad, the man who has stolen something or lied to someone. Suppose that a man who has made up his mind to kill someone and has an excellent revolver in his pocket, visits a bad man. The bad man searches his pockets and discovers the revolver saying: this revolver is for me and not for you. Is he a bad man? No, he is a noble man, because he does a noble act. That visitor has decided to commit a crime, but seeing the revolver is not in his pocket, he becomes angry, but finally he is reconciled and gives up the idea of the crime. A rich man decided to go to a poor man with the idea of bribing him to do a crime. The pockets of the rich man are full of money, but on the way a thief robs his money and continues on his way. The rich man becomes enraged, at first, wants to catch the thief and report him to the police, but after considering the purpose of his money, he decides to leave the thief alone. Is the thief, in this case, a bad man? I say: It is not right to steal, but if someone robs the purse or the revolver of a man who is on the way to commit a crime, that robbery is in its place. It is temporary, for the rich man will regain his money and revolver on the next day after he has realized his mistake. Thus, as long as life is in the present phrase of its development, there will be both temporary and constant relations among people. If man wishes to interpret the mystery of his life, he must turn his attention to the new philosophy of life. At present, man has fixed his attention upon the daily matters of life and does not pay attention to the new which is coming. The daily questions of life are also important, but their solution must take the last place. "Born again", You say: this house must be made anew. Therefore, the new does not bear any patchwork. The new excludes the old. Someone says: old science, old religion, old truth etc. But I say: a science which grows old is not true, it is an ordinary science; a truth which grows old is not an absolute, but a temporary truth; love which grows old is not a great love, but another one of the ordinary people; virtue which grows old is not durable, but timely, transitory virtue; thoughts, feelings and acts which grow old belong to the common order of things. The true science, the absolute truth, the great love, the right thought, the noble feelings, the sublime acts never grows old. If the word 'old' is employed in the ordinary sense of the word, it means a wrong direction in life. We could say, for instance, 'an old truth', which means — a truth which does not change; it is an absolute truth, equally important for all times and epochs. We are not interested in the sun which has already set, but in the sun which will rise now. And after all this, people will come to convince me that the sun which has set will rise for me. I am not interested in that kind of sun. How can people behind my back interest me? I can be interested only in those people who are before my face. On the same basis, only that food which is before my mouth and not behind my back, can interest me. Why? — Because, in order to take the food which is behind my back, I must turn around at an angle of l80 degree, which would change the whole coarse of my evolution. That food, placed behind my back, represent some bait or trap in my life. I am moving toward the East, but someone places that food behind my back — on the west. If I should turn around to receive that food, I shall lose the direction of my movement. You ask: how will you lose the direction of your movement? Imagine that I walk in a dark, stormy night and have fixed my gaze eastward. Someone has put food behind me, which I must take. I think that if I turn around to take the food, I shall lose the direction in which I am moving. What must I do then? Either walk forward without turning around, or turn to take the food and then wait several hours until the sun rises and I see my right direction. In such, a case, I prefer the food to wait than to lose ay way. I ask you: what application has this philosophy to your life? — None at all. In order to apply this philosophy to life, it must become real. I shall give you an explanation to this philosophy, in order that it may become perceptible and acceptable to your minds. Imagine that a man is falling in a well. Does that man need many promises that they will come to take him out of the well, when no one comes? What does the man need in that case? A heavy rope and a man with strong muscles who can pull him out of the well. The whole philosophy in that case is induced in the heavy rope and the man with the strong muscles. He who can drop you in a well and pull you out of there, is a wise and good man. He who can drop you in the well but can not take you out, is a foolish and wicked man. These are maxima which one must meditate upon. People say about a man that he is bad. — Upon what basis do you call him bad? — Because he drops people in the well and can not take them out. Therefore, when the present world is called bad, we understand that people drop one another in the well and no one can take any body out of it. Now you often hear people say; men do not need knowledge. What do they need then? — Ignorance. What is ignorance? — Dropping down into the well. Others say: freedom must not be given to men! They need laws and limitations. What is a law? What is limitation? — dropping down in the well. — Men do not need wealth, but poverty! What is poverty? — Dropping down in the well. Can people be fooled by such a false philosophy? When some say that God has created both the poor and the rich, they fool themselves. It must be explained scientifically why there are poor and rich people. In Bulgarian the words 'rich' and 'poor' begin with the same letter 'b' In the Hebrew language, however, the world has been created with this letter. Therefore, wealth and poverty are two elements which participate in the construction of the world. I say: try to give a concrete definition of a rich man. Can a camel, carrying on its back ten million leva in banknotes, be called rich? Can a camel, carrying a big load of scientific books on its back, be called learned? And finally, can a camel carrying on its back pictures of saints, be called religious? It is strange that contemporary people who have large libraries of scientific books, are considered educated. They are as educated as they are Christians only because they wear Christ's cross on their breasts. Contemporary people wear the cross on their breasts as the camels carry gold on their backs. Many who hear this truth are offended and say: — Are we camels? I ask you: is not a Christian who kills his brother like a camel? In this case he is worse than a camel. And after all that, you will see that Christian with a golden cross on his chest giving his blessing to the arms! Wherein is the humanity of contemporary Christians? Up till now, in the whole history of the development of the animals, I have not met a case where a wolf devours another wolf, or a sheep to devour another sheep. There have been cases when, an ox has pierced the stomach of an other ox with its horns, but to devour another ox — never! However, in the history of the human development, there are numberless cases when a man kills another man. How will you explain this fact? Christ says: "The time comes and now is when everyone who kills you will think he is doing God service." And now when people kill the criminals and bad men, they think that they render service to God. Everywhere you will hear that it is in the right order of things to kill the criminals. I ask you: how can you recognize a criminal? Can a man who has done something not pleasing to the nation, be called criminal or a bad man? If such a man is killed, who will be worse: the man who kills, or the one who is being killed? What benefit has humanity had by this philosophic—religious conception during the past thousands of years? It has not only brought no benefit, but also alll the misfortunes in the world are due to this wrong conception in life, namely, that the bad people must be killed. "Except a man be horn again." It is time for man to be born again. How? By taking off his old creed, as the snake takes off its skin. The wolf also changes its fur, but it does not change its character. I discuss these questions for those people who want to walk in the new way, to serve the Truth and who want to become citizens of the Kingdom of God. The first condition for the attainment of these ideals is for a man to be born again. You all know the verse in the New Testament where Christ has said: "It is easier for a camel to pass through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God." Those who do not understand the Eastern language, think that the needle's eye Christ spoke about, is the needle's eye of the needl's people use today. The needle's eye Christ spoke about, represented small entrances before the city gates, which were so narrow, that when loaded camels had to pass through them, they had to be unloaded beforehand, leave their loads outside, the camels had to kneel and thus pass through the narrow entrances. The camels had to pass through the needle's eye because often robbers met them on the way and killed them for their load which they carried on their back. Thus, in order to enter the Kingdom of God, man must take off his load and be free. This means that man should become free of his old ideas, doubts, suspicions and crimes; or become free of all temporary things and remain only with the essential which has been originally deposited within his spirit, soul, heart, mind and body. After he has left all his baggage outside, man can pass through the needle's eye and feel free. When man becomes free of his unnecessary luggage, which he carries on his back, he can judge whether his attitude and sets in regard to the Primary Principle and his neighbor, are right or not. Until he comes to that state, he will always judge wrongly his own acts and the acts of his neighbor. You meet a friend of yours and say: my friend did not act with me as he should. I ask you: since you complain of your friend, have you always acted right with your friends? — Yes, but he dropped me in the well. — He has acted badly, but do you know that ten years ago, yon acted in the same way with another man? As soon as you realize this, you will say: that which I did ten years ago to a friend of mine, was done to me today, so that I should realize that neither my act, nor the act of my friend is right. Only in this way can you understand that it is not good to drop people down the well. I say: many people today have a philosophy like that of the fox. This must not offend you, because such is in general the philosophy of the world. One summer day, a large goat walked away from the herd and said: I want to be free from my master, at least, for a short while. He walked with his head up in the air, free from all limitations. As he was walking, he passed by a deep large hole in the ground where he saw a fox meditating and nodding her head to the one and to the other side. The goat asked her: — What are you doing in this hole? — I came to make scientific explorations. — Is it nice down there? — It is very nice, cool end pleasant for work. - May I come down also? — Of course, you may! The hole is broad, there is room for you also. Without much thinking, the goat jumped into the hole, but immediately the fox stepped on his back and jumping out of the hole said 'goodbye' to him thus, leaving him to continue her scientific experimentations. This is called 'cunning'. Such is the philosophy of the world which the intelligent people apply in their life. They say about someone: That is an intelligent man! Why? — Because through cunning he has led someone down the hole. And afterward, in order to come out of the hole, one must pray that someone may come to take him out. This is what the goat did. Up to that time, he had never prayed, but after staying several days in the hole, he began to pray that someone might take him out. He said: I did not do well when I left my shepherd. That fox deceived me to make me jump down the hole. However, after a few days, hunters chased and caught the fox and tore her skin off. If she had remained in the hole, her skin would have remained on her body. Now let us return to the verse: "Except a man be born again." There are unattainable things in life toward which the human spirit is aspiring. One of the ancient kings had only one daughter who was extremely beautiful, as a result of which she had many suitors. However, the father offered a single condition to all of them which was the following: I shall give my daughter only to that young man who can bring me a coach made of the stuff of light. This coach must move with the speed of light. The King wanted to visit all the worlds outside the earth with that coach and meet the sons of light. The last candidate of the daughter came, finally, a young, educated man, but the king said to him also: — You are intelligent and young and I approve of you, but I shall give you my daughter only if you can bring me the coach of light. — I shall go and think, about it — answered the young man. Since that time six thousand years nave passed, but the young man is still thinking and has not yet thought out where to find a coach of light for the king. And still the king's daughter is not married. I say: six thousand years will pass several more times, but the question will remain unsolved. This is an insoluble question. All contemporary people search the coach of light, in order to marry the king's daughter, but that candidate who can bring such a coach has not appeared yet. Christ says: "Except a man be born again." He puts the question directly. Man must be born again! He must acquire new ideas, if he wants to enter the Kingdom of God. In this sense, man must know that he can not be saved by that which enters into him; only that which goes out of man can save him; the water which enters the fountain cannot save man, but the water which comes out of the fountain saves him; the light which enters into man does not save him, but the light which goes out of him has the power to save him. In general, all that goes out of man can save him. Since the light which goes out of man can save him, I ask you: what is darkness and what is light? I shall give you a new definition about light and darkness. All bodies which emit light are called shining, luminous. All bodies, on the other hand, which receive light, i.e. absorb light, are called dark. Therefore, darkness proceeds forth, in all cases, when the light is absorbed by certain bodies. On the contrary: in all cases when certain bodies emit light, there is light. When it is said about certain people that they are dark personalities, it shows that they absorb light, i.e. they only take in without giving anything out. Those people who incessantly emit light, i.e. give of themselves, are light personalities. This law is psychologically true. Notice that when a person nourishes a desire within himself to do good to others, something live and luminous is emitted by his face, which makes him pleasant and beautiful. The moment he says to himself that there is no sense in working for others, but that he must live only for himself, his face darkens, his eyes take on a particular appearance, his mouth looks crooked, his gait and movements change — in a word, he changes radically and attains to a state entirely different from the original one. Thus, darkness and light differ radically: they are two poles, two contrary states. If you observe how a man moves in the dark and how he moves in the light, you will see the great difference. The scientists of today make experiments in this field, but have not revealed yet; the final results of their observations. When they attain positive results, the will apply them in the education of people. When men know the laws of the manifestations of light and darkness, they will keep in view the conditions under which man must be born again. "Except a man be born again." The process of being born again has its definite time. Good and evil, happiness and unhappiness, take place at definite times and definite numbers. A man once went to a known cabalist who told him about the meaning of the numbers in life. The cabalist asked him which number he liked and considered lucky for himself. The man said that he liked the number 153. Then the cabalist bold him to come to him after a period of 15e days, saying to him that if he could turn; this number into time and apace, days, hours, minutes and seconds, into a direction of movement, he would be lucky man. If he did not understand that number, he would lose his time in vain. In order to be lucky, man must understand the science of numbers. There exists a science of numbers upon which the whole cosmos is constructed. The whole world is based upon the science of numbers. All manifestations that can be noticed in light and darkness are due to the relation among the numbers; all groupings, all combinations and divisions among the nations are due to the relations of the numbers. And finally, the formation of the brain, the lungs and the stomach of man, are the result of different combinations and relations among the numbers. Therefore, the possibility of different groupings of numbers, creates harmonious and inharmonious combinations. The harmonious combinations create the harmony in the world, while the inharmonious — create the dissonance. Harmony is the result of the emission of light, while dissonance is the result of the absorbing of light. The dissonances are as necessary in music as harmony is. However, if the dissonances predominate, that is not music. In the present-day harmony there exist two dissonances. Certain contemporary musicians desire to introduce something new in music, namely, to increase the dissonances. However, such an innovation would not be real music, but rather a musical jargon. If the dissonances are increased, there will be a descent in music. In the future, there must remain in music only one dissonance, even two are too many. Now these are side questions. However, in order to understand what the dissonances represent in life, as well as in the human organism, they must be interpreted. The dissonance must exist, because the human brain is also created in the way music has been created. There is melody and harmony in the human thought also, but there is, at the same time, a union between the melody and the harmony. The melody softens the tone, while the harmony gives it expansion. Therefore, if a man wants to expand, he must employ harmony; if he wants to attain plasticity, he must deposit within himself the melody. The Eastern nations gave greater attention to the melody in music, as a result or which they developed to a high degree their emotions and formed around themselves large marshes. The hard soil in them turned into marshes and ponds. The animals also deal with the melody. For instance, the present-day animals remained in this stage of development on account of the melody. The creation of man, however, started with the harmony. The difference between man and the animals consists in this that the melody predominates in the music of the animals, while the harmony — in that of man. Whenever an animal gets in a tight place, it begins to sing melodiously: it knows the melodic scales; as soon as it is free, it immediately shows its teeth. In order that the animal may understand man, first of all, it must learn and apply in its life the law of harmony. I say: if you want to be happy and live right, you must unite within yourselves the harmony and the melody, i.e. you must form a connection between the heart and the mind. The melody is the life of the heart, the heart always sings melodiously. The misfortunes of the world are due to the heart, which thinking about its melody, denies the harmony. As a result of this fact, the heart of people today has turned into a mess. The evil in people today lies in the fact that they have a human mind and animal heart to which is due the fall of man. It says in the Scripture: ''I shall take their stony hearts and shall give them a new heart." By the words 'stony hearts' is meant — animal hearts. By 'animal heart', I understand the 'holy egoism', of people. When a man wants others to love, honor and respect him; when he wants to be considered as divinity, but he gives nothing of himself, that defines him as a man who serves the 'holy egoism'. In case he gives two or three thousand leva, he wants all the papers to write about him. If such a man is a writer, anything he writes he carries it in his pocket and reads it to his friends, wishing everybody to know what he has created. Now there are among yon many poets, musicians, politicians and when I speak about the poets, musicians end politicians, many are offended. I do not want to offend anybody. I do not have in view the human affairs, or in your own language, I am a wholesale merchant and do not deal with small groceries. The power of man does not lie in that which he says, but in that which he does. And God said: "Let there be light!" — and there was light. Some man wants to be respected by the people. It is an easy thing to be respected. How? When you enter a house and whatever you say, you do it. You enter a house where people have neither a candle, nor fire, and you say: — Let there be light! — and there is light. You enter another home where people are hungry, naked and bare-footed, and you say: let the bread comes! And the Bread comes. — Let the clothes and shoes come! And the clothes and shoes come. Don't you think they will welcome you with honor and respect in that home? They will welcome you as an angel of mercy and kiss you at that. I say: I am preaching that which can be done. That which has been preached till now, that we must love one another, is an old teaching. The popular saying: God. is good, I shall become healthy, is an old philosophy with which you should hare liquidated a long time ago. If anyone says: God is good, I shell answer him: — I do not understand what you are saying. Two Englishmen meet. The one says 'good-day' to the other. However, the other man has a stomach-ache, that is why he answers: why do you say good-day to me? If this day was really 'good', my stomach would not be aching. The first man takes a piece of sugar from his pocket and gives it to the sick man. As soon as he has eaten the sugar, his stomach-ache is gone. — Now I understand that this day is good. The Englishman said 'good-day' and proved that the day is good. Thus, if anyone says 'God is good', he must prove the truth of his words. Whatever you say, prove that it is just as you say it. You say: it is not given to us to be like God. — It is not given to you to be like God, but you have the right to say 'God is good'. I call the first state a false state, the second — a state of truth. Now let us return to the question of light and darkness, of light and dark bodies. We said that all bodies which absorb light, are dark. All bodies, on the other hand, which omit light, are light. Therefore, when the process of absorbing the light takes place, we have a state of coldness as a result. Cold is a process of absorbing light, while heat is a process of emitting light. The intelligent man knows the laws which regulate the relations between the absorbing and the emission of light. These two processes take place simultaneously in man. If man does not understand the law of absorbing and does not know how to regulate it, he will experience a certain discontentment. This discontentment will be called forth by the residue of certain thoughts and desires which he cannot realize. He who does not know the cause of his discontentment, tries to find it outside of himself. Actually, the cause is external, but the process of discontentment is internal. Man's discontentment shows that he has taken in more light than necessary, and not being able to assimilate and utilize that light, it causes him great sufferings and misfortunes. When a man receives into himself more love than he can assimilate, it causes him sufferings and misfortunes. All people today are unhappy. Why? — Because of too much love. Someone says: — I am an unhappy man. — You have received too much love. — What shall I do then? — Stop to absorb love. When a man limits love within himself and does not give it a chance to be manifested, he experiences many sufferings and misfortunes. Give generously of yourselves, until love, according to this law of opulence, begins to return to you. This wise giving of love will bring about the salvation you are expecting. Give and fear nothing! Many people say: — God does not think about us. — Since thousands of years, God has not stopped thinking about people, but they want to force Him to think like then! No man can make God think like him. The greatness of God lies in the fact that in spite of His great, enormous matters, He gives time to the small ones also. I call small matters those, which concern the individual consciousness of man. If God did not have that quality of caring for the small things, all people would have vanished till now. Now I shall explain by the use of an example, what an individual and what — a collective or Divine consciousness is. The individual consciousness represents the limited state a man is in. The collective consciousness is the freedom and expanse in which a man can move. Imagine that you are in a telegraph station connected by numberless wires with the whole outside world. Your happiness depends entirely upon your communication with the outside world. While you are in that station, you have the possibility to receive the thoughts of the good and wise people of England, Germany, France, Russia — in general, of the whole intelligent world. This is what a collective consciousness means — to live in connection with the whole. However, if the connection with the outside world or the consciousness of the whole, is broken, you remain alone - a small, petty man, isolated from all outside thoughts. You begin to worry that your connection with the intelligent people is broken. Such is the state of a man who lives solely within his individual consciousness. Thus, as long as man is in connection with all the good and intelligent people, with all the angels and saints, he is satisfied and happy that he can receive their thoughts. As soon as his apparatuses of communication begin to break, man gradually fells into a state of darkness. The moment his last apparatus breaks, he says: — It is dark within me! I say: the last wire of communication with, the rational world is broken in the consciousness of that man. What must he do? — A correction must be made in his station. What is that correction? — He must correct his relations with God — assume a right attitude toward the Primary Principle. As soon as he corrects his relations with the Primary Principle, those of the external, physical world will be changed toward him. There exist certain relations between the microcosmos, i.e. the human world and the macrocosmos, i.e. the Divine world, which show that God thinks about people, but they must also think about Him. As long as these relations are right, people live in light. The moment these relations are broken, men fall into a state of darkness. The darkness, on the other hand, produces a dissonance in life. This is the right philosophy. In spite of all that, many people ask the question why God has created the world in this way, why He has admitted sufferings and misfortunes. I say: The world was created very well, but you, your grandfather and grandmother, burned the sacred books which showed the right way in life. In ancient times, a poor man once visited a king and complained to him about the poverty he was in. The king gave him a fine golden ring with a large diamond. The poor man put the ring on, his finger and went away. Whoever he met on his way, he told him about the ring the king gave him. Every man stopped and examined his ring; while he told its story. Years in succession he told the story of his ring, until he forgot his poverty. Another poor man went to that king and the king gave him a golden pen. The poor man took the pen and .went away. Up to that time, he had not known how to write, but after receiving that fine pen, he learned how to write well. Thus, he became a famous man. Whenever he met any of his acquaintances, he said to them: — I became a man when I received this pen. A third poor man went to the king and received a star. The poor man placed the star on his chest and went away. In the daytime that star gave his joy and happiness, while in the night it lighted his way. That man constantly told people about his star and the way he had received it. A fourth poor man also went to that king. The king gave him a fine book for reading. However, the poor man could not read. He learned to read out of love for his book and became a learned man. Whoever he met, he showed him his book and told him how he had received it, saying: — I was blind, but since I learned to read and understand this book. I received my sight. I say: all of you who are gathered here, are of those who have gone to the king. Some of you have received a golden ring, others — a golden pen, a third part of you have received a star, while a fourth group — the book which contains all the secrets of life. And now, he who has the golden ring on his hand will speak about himself that he is a talented man with talents and abilities. He who has the golden pen will tell that he is a famous writer. He who wears the star on his chest, will tell that he is a hero, a strong man. He who has the book in his hands will tell that he is a learned man and will desire people to respect and honor him. It is not enough only to carry that book in your hands. You must understand its deep sense, because all the secrets of life are concealed in it; in it you will find the meaning of the ring, the pen, the star and of the book itself, that book is nothing other than a commentary of the entire life. Now you must not stop at the contradictions this ring causes; you must not stop either at the contradictions which the pen, the star and the book cause. When a young maiden is marrying, she is given a ring. She speaks during her whole life about her ring. When she has a child and becomes a mother, she visits all her friends to show her ring, i.e. her child. The child grows, becomes a youth, graduates from a university and brings his diploma home. The diploma represents the golden pen of the king. That young man becomes a scientist, graduates from the university in four different fields of knowledge. The mother speaks about the knowledge of her son. Finally, he becomes a prime-minister and takes all the power in his hands. That is the man who is wearing the star on his chest. He constructs roads, canalizes rivers, illuminates whole cities. Everybody praises him and says: — Since that minister came into power, the cities are all lighted. Yes, the cities were lighted, but because of that light people were lost. If one has light, but seeks with that light to kill every man who is suspected in something which is not according to the interest of his country, that light is not in its place. True light is that light which gives life and brings peace and happiness to people. When someone is persecuted in a dark night, he considers the darkness his savior, He prays to God that the night might be prolonged so that people would not see him. The moment the first ray of light appears, his heart quivers, he is terrified at the thought that they may see him and catch him. Today all people are speaking about science and knowledge and say that knowledge brings light to humanity, which knowledge? There is a knowledge, a science which really brings light; however, there is a science which brings darkness and limitation to people. In reality, there exists a science, a knowledge, but it is important how and where men use this knowledge. For instance, Lambroso threw light upon the signs by which criminals can be detected. However, today this light is not utilized in the right way. The question is not in recognizing and punishing or killing a criminal. This science is necessary for people, in order that they might recognize their good and bad traits and educate themselves. Now when you examine the head, the face and hands of a person, you say: this man is a defected type, he is a criminal. Since you know these signs, you must know also the signs of the normal people. You will find this standard in living nature. "Except a man be born again, he can not enter the Kingdom of God." In order that a man may be born again, he must undergo a radical transformation. When I speak about, the new which must come, I do not have in view the present order of things. The present order is an exposition of thousands of years. The violence and crimes in the present world have their origin in the thousands of years, but today, they are only manifested. Violence is a result of the past, of a lack of understanding life correctly. As a result of that past, present-day people also have wrong conceptions of life. And all men seek a way to heal themselves of these wrong conceptions. However, the methods they use for their correction do not give good results. The questions can not be solved by these methods. For instance, how can peace be brought about in the world? Who can bring this peace? Today, no law, whatever, can put an end to war and bring peace into the world. If all the men of learning become united and begin to work with the sciences for an annihilation of the war and for peace, they also will not succeed. I say: There is one unique power in the world which can annihilate war and bring about peace. Which is the power? — The woman. If all the women unite and say: — From today on we shall not give birth to criminals! — They will put an end to the war. And if every mother would say to her son: if you kill your brother, I disown you, you are not more my son! — war will come to its end. Therefore, the salvation of humanity lies in the conscious refusal of women to bear criminals, as well as in the disowning of sons who kill their brothers. In order that this may be attained, not only two or three women must realize their problem, but all the women, as a whole, must be raised higher and begin to work for the salvation of the world. Today, I address the women! You, on your part, will preach to the rest of the women, because from now on, the women will be held responsible for not fulfilling their problem. If a young man loves a maiden, but soon become cool toward her and begin to love another, the letter must say to him you must return to your first love. I am not better than her. Since you lost your love for that girl, you will also lose your love for me, tomorrow. However, how do the present-day maidens act? When a young man comes to them and confesses his love toward someone, she does not take into consideration the fact that he has loved another girl the day before and today he has lost his love for her, and she accepts his love; the young man will leave this last girl on the morrow, then do the same with a second and a third one. He plays with the feelings of the young maidens and they only reproach him without undertaking any resolute, conscious action. You are the mothers, he is the son, the mothers are guilty and responsible for the acts of their sons. That is the reason why for thousands of years, the women have been beaten until they have come to the state of slaves. They have unbearable sufferings. The law applied on them is implacable. Why? Because they possess the power to solve the question of the salvation of humanity, but do not want to use that power. The women must direct their power toward the whole world and say: - Down with the war! Down with all false conceptions! Down with all pagan teachings! Now as soon as a girl becomes of age for marriage, she says: Would that God would give me a good husband! God gave you a good, husband — Adam. Eve, who came out of Adam, was originally a fine maiden. a virgin. However, after the fall of man, all the women who where born of her, perverted the world. Eve bore a son - a criminal — Cain. Adam was not the father of Cain, out of Abel. Cain came from another father. It says in the Scripture: "You are the children of the devil." It may be supposed that the devil was the father of Cain. It is impossible for a sheep to bear a wolf. If a sheep bears a wolf, the cause is ridden deeply in life. Abel was the victim of Cain, of the evil in the world. Is it possible for two brothers of the same mother and the same father, to kill each other? Therefore, it is supposed that those brothers came from two fathers: the one — a bearer of darkness, the other — a bearer of light. Today, half of humanity are Cains, and half — Abels. If people live according to the old law which allows criminals to be born, they always will kill each other. The new woman, the new Eve must close the way of Cain, that he may not be born anymore. Cains have no right to be born! The world has no need, of criminals. Let Abels and Siths come, for the world is in need of good people. If you admit Cains in the world, you will have to go and deal with them. They will speak about peace, about this and that reform, while at the same time they will turn the world upside down. "Except a man be born, again, he can not enter the Kingdom of God." A woman who bear, good and sane children, bears anew. Only the free mother can give birth to good and sane children. The same thing can be noticed in the plants. Every tree which grows at liberty, under good and favorable conditions, bears good and delicious fruit. To give birth to the good, implies the emission, the giving out of light; to give birth to the evil, implies the absorbing of light. Therefore, to be born again means a going out of yourself. All virtues are manifested on the outside when one is born again, but they are not absorbed into oneself. All crimes are manifested in absorbing the light. Nothing can be expected of a man who absorbs light. Many say that Christ came to earth to save he world. I ask you: how will contemporary people be saved? — By believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. No! a mere belief in Christ is not sufficient for a man to be saved. As Christ came out of God and came to the earth to save humanity, in the same way we must come out of God and work upon ourselves and our neighbors. Someone says: if I once go to heaven, I shall never think of returning to the earth. This shows that that man runs away from sufferings. The invisible world has a particular opinion of a man who is afraid of suffering. He is far from the truth. He who is not afraid of suffering will attain to the true knowledge and become intangible like light. The man of light has at his disposal the wealth and power of the whole world. Christ says: "I have power to lay down my life and to take it up again." Someone says that after praying to God, his prayer was accepted and answered. That does not mean anything yet. His prayer was answered only once and he tells everybody about it. Today his prayer is accepted, but tomorrow it will not be accepted. Such a man can not be free. A free man indeed, is he who can turn into light. He will enter and go out of all places he wishes and will be free under all conditions of life. The free man moves incessantly in light; he traverses all the worlds without any obstacle, he who can not turn into light is a slave of the conditions of life. When I say that a man can turn into light, I have in view the receiving of the new which bears life, light and freedom. Someone says: I want to walk in the new path. — If you wish, you may enter in this path. I give him a lighted candle and say: take this candle and be careful not to extinguish it. — But if it burns out? Since you ask such a question, you are of the old teaching. The mind of that man can be seen by the question he asks. — As soon as this candle burns out, you will burn out with it. After the first candle has burned out, you will come to me for a second one. — Where will you buy the second candle? — You are not a man from the new teaching. Until I come a second time, many years will pass. You are a man of the old teachings. — Are you speaking the truth, or you are only mocking me? I say: if you are aprudent man, I am not mocking you, but if you are foolish — I am mocking you. You yourself will determine what you are and how I am speaking to you. You ere puzzled about my mind, but I wonder at you why you do not want to accept a teaching which brings you happiness. Contemporary men doubt whether the truth is spoken to them or not; they also doubt in their love toward each other. I say: every man knows whether one speaks the truth to him or not, whether he is loved or not. The first impression shows this. In that there is hardly any exception. He who speaks the truth to you, he who loves you, the first moment causes in you a sacred thrill. If you do not feel that sacred thrill, no matter how much a man may try to convience you that he loves you, he is not speaking the truth. No matter how much you may force yourself to believe that he loves you, you will not gain anything. He who loves you, gives you a lighted candle. Thus, you will determine the love of that man not by the words he speaks to you, but by the light of the candle which he gives you. The candle speaks louder than all other things. Someone says: — I love you deeply. — Then give me 20,000 leva! — I have not any. — Therefore, you do not love me. If you want 25,000 leva from the man who loves you, he gives you 50,000 leva; if you want 50,000 leva, he gives you 100,000 leva; if you want 100,000 1eva, he gives you 200,000 leva. The more one gives, the more he is a men of love, if you visit the home of such a man, he does not doubt in you and leaves his whole house at your disposal. You say: that is an ideal man! When other people act that way, you call them ideal, but when it comes to you to act that way, you apply another standard. A man went to a restaurant where he ate and drank and said: everything goes very well. When the tine for paying came, he had no money and said: now everything goes very badly. Today all men complain of the consequences of life. What are the consequences of life? — A misunderstanding of life itself. People do not understand you and you do not understand them. For instance, which of you has understood his brother, sister or friend? Which man today is ready to sacrifice himself for the others as for himself? The apostle Paul says: "There is hardly a man who will sacrifice himself for his friend; however, when we were enemies of God, He sacrificed Himself for us." "Born again". If you are not born again, if you do not change your conceptions and outlook, but retain your old ideas of life, you will not attain anything. The old life you are leading, will not contribute anything to your progress. The present life of people can be compared, to baked bread which men buy at the bakery-shop and eat up. Then they wait for the other bread to be baked so that they may buy again. They will stay hungry while waiting for the bread to be baked. The future life is like a grain of wheat which you sow in the earth. Once sown, it produces more of itself. If you keep the law, in 12 years that grain of wheat will produce so much grain that the whole earth would be able to be nourished by it. If you create conditions for its development, there will be enough wheat for you and for your neighbors. On the same basis, if you want to be insured, give way to the great Truth! Everyone contains in himself the nucleus of the great Truth, but he must give that nucleus conditions for development. Present-day people expect someone to put a loaf of bread in their sack. As soon as they have a loaf of bread in their sack, they think they are insured. They are insured for a single day, but on the next day they are hungry again. I say: there is hunger in the physical world, there is hunger in the spiritual world also. You meet a man who loves you. He regards you with kindness and you are glad. As soon as he goes away, you are sad and begin to seek that man. Thus, you are hungry again. If you want to find the one who loves you, go to a forest. When you are sad, go to a pine, beech, or oak tree wood and press your back against a tree, in order to see what result you will have. The trees are your beloved. What will you say to that? You will say that the trees are not intelligent beings. Apparently they are trees, but in them are concealed wise beings with whom you can come in contact. When the saints have fasted in their desire to attain something, they have passed 20-30 years in the forests among the trees. There they lived in prayer and fasting undisturbed by anyone. Whenever the trees say a saint among they, they said: how good this man is! Both the trees and the saint were happy. After certain attainments, the saints went among the people. He who wants to live well must live among the people in the world who are nothing other than trees in the forests. When a man lives among the people in the world, he can become a saint sooner than if he lived among those who love him. A man who loves his wife always watches where she goes, with whom she speaks, to whom she write letters, etc. An American once told me an experience of his. He was a good and capable man. At one time, said he, I fell in love with a married woman. I felt sympathy for her and she responded with the same. We retained our good, friendly relations and from time to time we corresponded. One day she wrote two letters: one to her husband, who had gone on a journey, and one to me. However, in her hurry, she had made the mistake of placing my letter in the envelope addressed to her husband, and his letter — in the envelope addressed to me. I received the letter and say that it was written for her husband. I wondered whether she had decided to leave her husband and did not know what to make of it. After several days, however, I received another letter from her in which she explained the mistake she had made. She excused herself and asked me to return the letter. She said: I shall easily come to an understanding with you, you will return my letter, but I do not know how I shall come to terms with my husband. After receiving the letter of his wife to her friend, her husband will say: My wife then has another beloved like me. That letter will cause a bitter feeling in his heart and a wrong thought in his mind, which will constantly disturb him. I ask you: what is wrong, if someone loves two persons? There is something wrong. When? When a man absorbs the light of the person he lovers and retains it for himself, he commits a crime. However, if he gives of his own light to the one he loves, he does good. Therefore, the following law exists in love: if you receive the love of someone and retain it for yourself, you commit a crime; if you receive the love of someone and give of it to others, you do good. Otherwise, if you only receive light and do not give anything, while to another person you only give without receiving anything, you commit a crime. God Himself is against such love. However, if you take and give to all people at the same time, that is a right manifestation of love. God gives in that way also. He is a father and a mother to all, at the same time. Man must have a right philosophy and understand what is good and what is evil, what is a crime and what is not. Crimes are committed when the relations between the absorbing and emitting of light are not regular. It is said: "Freely ye receive, freely give!" In other words: As you take from God, give in the same way. You take life, light, freedom, knowledge, peace, joy. This is what you must give to others. There is an inner impulse in man — to give. He must not stop that impulse. If he gives freely, he will receive freely. The moment you decide to live in this new way, you will have the help of all the good and advanced beings on the earth. These advanced beings form whole societies and live among people, but you do not know the place they inhabit. These beings dispose of great knowledge. They are only waiting for the moment when someone decides to live according to God and they immediately come to his aid. They watch over him and help him. Many will say: we are already old and what you say does not concern us. It has not happened to us till now, there is no chance for it to happen from now on. The Turks say about the same case: since it has not happened in our fifties, it cannot happen in our nineties. I say: it cannot come to pass for an ignorant and foolish man, but it is possible for the man of genius, for the saint. As soon as man decides to live according to God, if he has been a poet, a musician or an artist, he will be immediately inspired and everything in him will begin to flow like a pure, crystal spring. "Born again", says Christ. In order to come to this great law, you must all assume a new attitude toward the Primary Principle, The August which brings your happiness. Only in this way can you comprehend the Divine love. God wants all people, without any exception, to be happy. He wants all men and women, mothers, fathers and children, servants and masters, rulers and subjects, to be happy. He wants this not only for the people, but for the animals and plant as well. This is what God wishes everywhere for all beings. You say: can this be? — Yes, it can. This is a problem for the future — the future can realize it. For this purpose, the Divine, the super-consciousness must be awakened. This will not be accomplished in a mechanic way, but by hard, conscious work. The schools, the mothers, the fathers, the minds and hearts of people will help toward the realization of this problem. Thus, contemporary people know many things, but there are still many things they do not know. For instance, they know where our sun rises and sets, however, they do not know where the sun of life which never sets, rises. They know how the plants which bloom and fade grow, but they do not know where the plants which never wither come from. They know where the springs which flow and dry up, proceed from, but they do not know where the springs which flow eternally, come from; they know there is good in the world, but they do not know where the good comes from. These things can not come from the people. The great thought can not be born in the head of man. It comes from the August Consciousness whose origin is in eternity. Man can only reflect the Divine thoughts, but he cannot give them birth. And the better he reflects them, the more is he a bearer of the Divine. So long as man receives and gives the Divine, all men seek him. As soon as he comes to a state only to receive and not to give anything, he breaks his bond with the Divine and all men abandon him. How I wish all of you to have a chariot made of the substance of light. I wish all of you to have a golden ring with a precious stone on your hand. I wish all of you to have a golden pen, a star and a book which contains the solved riddles of life. All these things are necessary. If one has these things, he will not beg money from the king, or complain of poverty. Contemporary people realize that they have a mind and a heart, but they deny the soul and the spirit. This means that they acknowledge the ring and the pen, but disacknowledge the star and the book. They say: we do not need a star. Every man must realize that in the first place he has a mind; in the second place he has a heart; in the third place he has a will; in the fourth place he has a soul and in the fifth place he has a spirit, essential and necessary for him. Man must apply in his life all these forces in the service of the great and the beautiful. When men come to this state, they will live in mutual understanding, peace and harmony. Thus, you must all study the great book of life. This book will give you the true knowledge of life. It will give you the keys by which you will know who speaks and who does not speak the Truth. If you are given knowledge to recognize who loves you and who does not love you, in the light you have today, you will come to contrary results. You will not find the one who loves you, but will rather come against the one who is false to you. If you are given knowledge by which to detect the honest people, you will find the dishonest men. If you are given knowledge by which to discover the wise people, you will come to the imprudent and foolish ones. Finally, of what use shall this knowledge be to you, if in your desire to find the positive qualities of others and yourself, you come across the negative? I say: every man must strive to acquire the positive knowledge. When he obtains this knowledge, he will realize the forces which operate outside and inside of him. Every given moment man is strong in the very little. The power of man does not consist in his greatness of size — to shine like a sun so that every man might see him. The power of man lies in this that he become so small that nobody could see him. Then he will go in and out of that great world without being seen by anybody. Therefore, the first thing is that man should deal with the smallest thing necessary for him. He must enter the depth of his being and come to a knowledge of his spirit, soul, mind, heart and will. The heart, the mind, the soul and the spirit are outside of man. While his will in the sole power which penetrates the depths of life and investigates it. The will, this small entity, represents man manifested in the physical world. God pays attention to this small thing in man. Man is not yet a spirit or a soul. The only thing which represents man on the physical plane is the will with which the mind, heart, soul and spirit cooperate. So long as man, i.e., the will in him, has contact with the mind, the heart, the soul and the spirit, he has light in himself. The moment this bond is broken, these aiding factors in life withdraw themselves and man remains alone like a dried up bone without any organs; without hands, feet, eyes and ears. He sits on a branch like a bird, swaying to and fro and thinking of his past happiness. Now, I do not wish to leave in you any pessimistic thoughts, but I say that sin, lovelessness became the cause for man to make the biggest mistake to forget the Source of his life and to separate himself from it. After that came all the misfortunes in the world. As a result of that, humanity today is moving in a contrary direction: today all men are on a crossroad and do not know which way to go. At the present moment, all stand in one place, but they must start in some direction. Every one feels old, discontented, his hair white, his legs weakened, and he only nods his head and speaks about his past. When a man comes to this state, he begins to dream of the other world and wishes to depart sooner for it. I ask you: where can he go with the kind, of mind he has? Contemporary people cannot go even to the other world with the sort of mind and heart some of them have. "Except a man be born again, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God." The other world is the Kingdom of God. Therefore, to be born again is to be in the other world, "he other world is a world of freedom, of thought, of feelings, of light, of knowledge, of immortality. The other world is a world of abundance. It can be everywhere. Who can deceive us about the other world? The other world can be also on the earth. "Born again". Except you be born again, you will be slaves of the world. Do not be slaves of men. Be Sons of God! A Son of God implies a man who wants to go out to help humanity. To be a Son of God does not mean that men should glorify you and regard you as something extraordinary, but you must help people that they might acquire freedom also. Thus, the women must observe one rule, they must be as free as God has originally created them. When God created the first woman, Eve, He put Adam to sleep, that he might not disturb him, in his work. Adam slept for a long time until God created the first woman who was so beautiful that when Adam saw her, he cried: "This is a bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh!" By that, he committed the first mistake. Adam did not say that that woman is spirit of his sprit, or a soul of his soul, a mind of his mind and a heart of his heart. Adam said that Eve is a bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. After that the black adept saw Eve and injected her mind with evil. When he looked at her and spoke to her. Eve obeyed him, ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree after which she said: I found a wiser man than Adam. I say: if a woman sees a man, i.e., her Adam, she must not ask the question whether she is a bone of the bone and flesh of the flesh of that Adam. The man also, on his part, must not ask himself whether that is the woman who has gone out of him. If they think that way, both will make a mistake. When a man meets a woman, he must say: you are the one who have sprung from my mind, my heart, my soul and my spirit. When a woman or a virgin meets a man, she must say: this is he who came out of God. If both say this, they will be born gain and will enter the Kingdom of God. This is the new culture, this is the Kingdom of God! If the men and women don’t think this way, another culture, except the contemporary culture, can have no place on earth. And then no matter how you combine people, they will be unhappy. If they think in the new way, there will always be cooperation and mutual understanding between men and woman. This is the way people must be educated! This is the way they must think! "Born again". This means that the man must return to the state God create him originally. In the face of woman, he must see the new Eve, the deva, i.e. the sublime, the beautiful, the powerful principle of life, or the Primary Cause which has created everything. Unless man understands the woman, i.e., his heart, he can not understand himself, he can not understand his mind either. Unless he comas to that state, he will be in contradiction with Creation. Why? — Because woman is the last act of God. Therefore, one can judge of the causes and effects by the last act, or the result of things. "Born again." is means that the woman must return to that state in which God originally placed her. She must see the new Adam, as God at one time created him, in the face of man. He must be a mirror in which she should see the image of the Divine beginning. Unless the woman come to understand the man, i.e. her mind, she can not understand her heart. Thus, if the heart does not sustain the mind and if the mind does not direct the heart, they can not have normal relations among themselves. Finally, if the will does not aid the heart and mind in the lealization of their aspirations, man would not have any attainments and his life would become meaningless. The mind represents the goal in the life of man; the heart represents the conditions, the means for attaining the goal, while the will is the lealization of the goal, the acquirements of the mind and heart. The mind, as it was originally created, represents a high mountain summit covered with ice and snow, but always illumined by the rays of the beneficent sun of life, which rises and never sets. These rays melt the snow and the ice of that peak, forming numberless brooks arid springs for watering the life below it. The heart in its original life, represents a boundless, beautiful valley, abundantly watered by the pure water of the mountain peak, in which grow fragrant flowers and delicious fruit. The heart, this valley of life is no other than the paradise on earth. Today, all men seek this lost paradise. Therefore, the heart is the lost paradise. By the word, heart some understand woman, others — mother, while still others — the virgin. These three conceptions represent degrees in the development of the heart. The lowest state of the heart is represented by the woman, while the highest — by the virgin. The virgin is the goal, the mother represents the conditions, the means for attaining the goal, while the woman is the attainment. I say: if the woman does not understand the man, if the sister does not understand the brother and if the heart does not understand the mind, there can be no attainments whatever. And inversely: if the man does not understand the woman, if the brother does not understand the sister, and if the mind does not understand the heart, there can be no mutual relations among them whatever. If they understand each other, they will lend one another a helping hand and begin to work successfully for the elevation of humanity, for the elevation of the woman and of the men, for the elevation of the heart and mind. Only in this way will the image of the ideal Adam be renewed in the new Adam. The image of the ideal Eve will be elevated and placed upon that pedestal where God had placed her; she will resurrect in the new Eve. And then the new epoch will greet the two God-chosen ones along with their children. ''Except a man be born again." Therefore, if birth is an important process which requires new, favorable conditions, conception and pregnancy are not less important processes. During the time of pregnancy, the woman must be placed in the most favorable conditions: she must be nourished regularly in a good disposition of the spirit and never eat before sunrise or after sunset. She must breathe deeply, think and feel rightly. Since in that state the woman is very sensitive and perceptive, with a big imagination, her family and she herself must try to create the highest sort of occupations, amusements and means for artistic satisfactions. Her morning alike must be at sunrise so that she should observe the beautiful pictures of the rising sun; then she should walk in gardens where beautiful and fragrant, flower grow and fruit trees bear fine fruit. Wherever life grows and develops there is its meaning. Purity — physical as well as spiritual, is a necessary condition for the pregnant woman. Where can she find a greater purity than in nature? For this purpose she must visit pure springs and rivers whose waters serve as a mirror of her life. The calm, pleasant nights with the sky strewn with numberless twinkling stars, are also of great benefit to the woman who is a future mother. I say: the mother must raise her child while it is still in her womb, not after it is born. In former state, the child is very receptive while after it is born, it needs only the conditions for the development of that which it has received. That is why the mental life of the pregnant woman must also not be neglected. The best artistic literature must be her mental food. The life of the saints, of the great people, must serve as an impulse of her thought. Beautiful and sublime poetry, fine music and songs must at times break the silence of her life. Calmness and quietness are necessary for the woman — mother, as well as for nature, who during that time performs a great creative act — the creation of man. If you want the fruit of a tree to be good, create the conditions for it and leave it to God. Born anew, March 3, 1924 Born Again

THE FATHER LOVES ME John 10:17 "For this reason my Father loves me." To have the love of God, this is the real greatness in the world. Man cannot have any achievement unless he knows the Great in the world and until the Great knows him. In his life man may meet with two dangers: to go to a fountain that flows feebly, drop by drop, with a large vessel; to go with a small vessel to a great spring which drives mills and fulleries. In the first case he will wait a whole day until his vessel is full. In the second instance his vessel will soon be filled and he will have to go many times to the spring, losing his time to obtain water for his needs. Those are two incompatibilities, two unnatural conditions which people meet often in their lives and with which they do not know how to cope. What is the cause for these disparities? -The lack of understanding of life. This in turn is due to the delusions of people. They are at a crossroad and do not know which way to go. Man is easily mislead. If a person is given a precious stone and a grain of wheat he will prefer the jewel. Why? - Because if he sells the jewel, with the money he receives he may buy thousands of bushels of wheat. But in the real, in the spiritual, in the perfect world wheat is not bought and sold in bushels. There it is not kept in barns. It may be found hanging from trees as you see here on earth apples, pears, lemons, oranges hanging on their trees. There the wheat grains have different sizes. These are comparisons with which I want to make clear my idea without expecting you to believe as I do. I do not want you to believe as I do, because my faith is leased on great experiences, on countless experiments. Whether you believe in this or not, is your own affair. When I bring out the truth before people, I speak only of that which I know and of that which I have experienced. As for you, each person will make conclusions based on his own knowledge. Knowledge depends upon the experiences which man makes. Knowledge without experience does not exist. Unless he has experienced bitterness, man does not know what it really is. Unless he has experienced sweetness, man does not know what it is. Man does not know what God is, what love is, and what freedom is until he has experienced them. What is freedom? In the physical sense of the word freedom means the condition of the human organism when all of its organs are free of any limitations or obstructions. If you look at the feet of the free man you will see that they move lightly, swiftly without any inner obstacle. Freedom in respect to the heart, as we understand it, means that every feeling which comes from the human heart flows quietly, calmly, without storms and shocks. As soon as something appears which constricts either man's feelings or thoughts, then he is no more free. In freedom everything is in its place. When things or manifestations change, they are out of the world of freedom. You see a woman who laughs and cries alternately. Why? - She is an actress who plays on the stage. When she comes down from the stage she says that she has cried much. She has cried while she has been on stage. When she goes down from the stage the crying stops. Children cry most of all. Why? - They want to attain something. If they see that they cannot easily realize some wish, they immediately begin to cry. With their tears they oil the rope to slide easier. When someone greases a silk rope with fine oil, he has something in the back of his mind. During the Turkish yoke, when someone was hung on the scaffold, soap was rubbed on the rope so that it would fit better the neck of the man who was to be hung. The thicker and less greased rope could not fit well the neck of the victim. You will say that this is knowledge. If your knowledge extends only to the degree that you know how to hang a man easily and surely - then this is no knowledge. In such cases it is better if the rope is not greased, that is, it is better if you do not have such a knowledge and do not hang people. If weeping puts man in the condition of an actor, it is not in its right place. But if weeping ennobles man's feelings - then it is in its proper place. Somebody weeps because he has eaten nothing, or because he has lost his money; another weeps because his wife has left him; a mother weeps because her daughter has run away with someone; some other man weeps because he has broken his leg. I ask: Which of these weepings is in its right place? Or in which of these cases is the misfortune the greatest? The greatest misfortune has happened to the man who has broken his leg. He feels the greatest pain. His pain is real and everybody feels it. In regard to the one who has lost his money or the man whose wife has left him, their pain is not so real, and is not so tangible to those around them. And so, real sufferings are those which man feels every moment. If someone's money has been taken by someone else, this is not a real suffering because it is not connected with the man himself. Maybe a merchant imagines that he is robbed. You will say that if the man is crying, that he cannot do so if he only imagines that he has been robbed. Is it so bad if a man cries? As he cries so he can laugh. How? - I meet the merchant and tell him: Do you know that tonight the man who robbed you will visit you and bring you two bags of money instead of one? He is a rich man and wanted to try you only, that is why he took your bag of money. The next day I meet the merchant who is smiling, contented and he tells me that he has received two bags of money. - As you see everything that happened was for the good. If you were not robbed, you would not have two bags of money today. - It was better that I was robbed says the merchant. When is it better for a man to be robbed: when he is sinking into the sea or when he is on the land? If someone carries a bag of gold on his back and is sinking into the sea, it is preferable that he is robbed while he is still in the water. He will lose the gold but save his life. When a man is sinking into the sea, it is well if there is somebody to free him from the bag of gold. When he comes out of the water onto the land then it is better if the bag of gold hangs on his back. Such is the philosophy of life. Man must study the philosophy of the new life. For this purpose he must accept the new ideas and apply them. Modern people live with the old ideas of the past. They must study them but must not stop upon them or repeat them. People stop on events which have happened thousands of years ago and repeat them. For example, eight thousand years ago a man was put in paradise, but did not stand the conditions there, did not keep the promise which he had given to God, as a result of which he was driven out of paradise. When he came down into the world, he ate and drank and made large debts. From that time on all people repeat the same story: they break their promises, lose the good conditions in life, and as a consequence pay debts to this day. Somebody comes to you and says: Pay your debts! - Which debt? - The one that Adam and Eve left. You ask: what must we do to free ourselves of this debt? - Renounce the way which Adam and Eve have trod and start on the new way. Otherwise as long as you walk in their way you will have to pay for a long time to come. I shall give you an example now about a Bulgarian squire but I do not want you to feel offended. This squire lived in a village between Varna and Shumen. He had given a Turk eight bushels of wheat. But the Turk, after paying the squire for eight years still owed him eighty more bushels. What are you going to say to that? What interest must have asked this squire from the Turk, so that eight bushels of wheat in eight years could grow to eighty bushels? To pay eight whole years and after that still to owe eighty bushels! No one ought to act in such a manner, neither a Bulgarian, nor a Frenchman, nor an Englishman, German, Chinese or Japanese. No man must act like this. This is not humanity. You will say that this is the negative side of a man. Yes, it is man's negative side but it is not one of his qualities. It is atavism, a remnant of the past of man. The grandfather or great-grandfather of some man has been a great drunkard and now his nephew receives as a heritage that negative trait and becomes a drunkard also. When parents see that, they excuse themselves and say: "Our son has inherited this vice from his grandfather. There is nothing to be done." - Yes, there is something to be done. Man may get rid of his bad inheritance. When he works consciously upon himself he will easily free himself from that bad heritage. Contemporary people must work upon themselves to become free from all bad traits inherited ages ago. Someone will say that he studies anatomy, biology and a number of other sciences. Whatever he studies, man still is engaged with the past. The anatomy of the human organism is nothing more than the structure and functions of his organs in the past. Biology is also a science which studies the functions of the human organism from its past life. If you look at the skull of a man today you will learn about his past life: how he has lived, what has been his occupation, etc. As you study the craniums of the different nations and of the different races, you may compare them and note the difference between one and others. The cranium of the negroe, the Chinese and the european differ from each other. On the white man's cranium is seen that he has better resources than those of the black man. Someone may say that both are men. Yes, the black and the white persons are men but there is a great difference between man and man. At first the word "man" meant a thinking being who has noble feelings. This same man has been the cause of all the misfortunes in the world. If you trace back the history of human development you will see that man has been the cause of all evils and misery. This is a fact which everyone may prove by personal experience. Now you ought not to take things literally, but ought to reason. Mathematicians deal with numbers. They make sections, surfaces, figure them out and put them to work. All that they solve with numbers. Chemists study the elements and form different combinations as they put them in certain reactions; on the other hand they discover new elements and study their properties. As a base of all their work they use the elements. Therefore, as mathematicians deal with numbers and chemists with elements, so you must put into action your right thought in order to solve the problems of your life. Whatever people tell you and however it is told, apply your right thought as a measure for things. In everything search for the scientific side in order to profit by it. When God created the earth an exhibition of all that had been done was arranged in heaven. To this exhibition came representatives from all the worlds and from all kingdoms which existed at that time. Among the angels who were present at the exhibition was the fallen angel - Lucifer. He sat important in all his grandeur and looked over all that God had created. He then saw a small tiny being like a mustard seed. And it came out that this creature was the man. God saw that Lucifer did not pay any attention to the small being and did not stop to see him well, so he asked the fallen angel: "Did you see the man?" - "I saw a small tiny creature but did not stop to look at him." "Do you believe that something may come out of him?" "I do not believe it. Nothing can come out of a mustard seed. That is what man looks like to me." "Something great is going to come out of that being." - I do not believe it - answered Lucifer. But for his unbelief Lucifer had to leave heaven and go down to wander upon the face of the earth. When asked why he left heaven Lucifer answered: Once there was an exhibition in heaven. Among all created by God was also man - a small tiny being, like a grain of mustard. God asked me: "Do you believe that something may come out of that being?" I said that nothing is going to come out of it. God tried to persuade me but I did not believe his words. For my unbelief I was driven out of heaven. That small creature did me a great harm. When I got down to the earth I wandered lonely from place to place and one day I saw a great being who worked and created. I wondered who was the being whom I did not know. And then I understood that it was man - the small mustard seed which thousands of years ago did not inspire any trust in me. Really, out of the tiny grain of mustard came out an eminent and celebrated man whom God put in paradise to live and develop. From that moment Lucifer took for his purpose to drive man out of paradise and deprive him of his happiness. He said to himself: - Once man happened to be the cause for which I was driven out of heaven and now I shall be the cause for which he will be driven out of paradise. But there is a difference between the harm which man did to Lucifer and that which Lucifer did to man. Man, perfectly unconscious and without any designs became the cause for which Lucifer was driven out of heaven. Lucifer's unbelief was the real cause for his misfortune. But Lucifer quite consciously set to work to rob man's happiness. When he entered paradise, Lucifer wanted to introduce his unbelief among the first men. He succeeded. When he saw Eve in paradise he began to tell her about his experience: "Once, for my unbelief, I lost my happiness. I did not believe that something may come out of a tiny seed. From this experience I learned the law not to say that nothing great can come out of small things. That is why I say to you now: Eat from the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil and believe that out of it everything may come out. When you taste of this fruit you will become gods, and acquire great knowledge and experience." Now I tell you: "Believe that out of that tree nothing is going to come out. Upon that tree was written in an ancient language the following: Do not eat of the fruits of a tree of which you do not know the flowers, nor the odor of its blossoms, nor the light under which its fruits have ripened, nor their taste either. Eve knew this inscription, had read it many times but did not believe that it really was true. Indeed she had not been there at the time when the tree bloomed in order to see what kinds of blossoms it had and what their odor was. She had not been there at the time when the fruit ripened to see under what light it ripens. But she ought to have believed the inscription. When the serpent offered Eve the fruit of the forbidden tree, she tasted it but was not satisfied very much. Why? - The fruit was still green. Eve knew that one of the rules of paradise said: never eat green fruits. Inspite of that, she tasted the fruit, offered it to Adam, and in this way clothed herself in a green dress. All of you must know that the fruit of evil is green. At first it is bitter, then becomes sour and after a long, long time becomes sweet. Therefore, if you would like to try the evil, wait until it is ripe and its fruit is sweet. And if you taste it then, at least you will not die. Now these are old things. Whatever you think and talk about and how you feel: all these are old things upon which you must not stop. The only new thing in the world is God's love which comes now. It represents a fruit, which everyone may try and be satisfied. The man who tastes this fruit, experiences in himself new forces, a new impulse of life. The love of God is that force which gives the conditions for growth to the human heart, to the human mind, to the human soul and to the human spirit. This is the real in life. Therefore, if you want to know what reality is, I say: The present, the youth is the reality in life. It rejuvenates man. The past makes man old, while the present rejuvenates him. Now I do not talk about things in which you have to believe unconditionally, or absolutely. Try them and then believe. Believe in your personal experience. You all have the experience that while you believe and live with the past, you grow old and die. Take, for example, the faith of the contemporary religious people. They believe that Christ came to the earth, preached to people, suffered, was crucified, died and after three days resurrected. In spite of their faith in Christ these people suffer, agonize and die, just as those who do not believe in God and Christ. What kind of a teaching is this, which cannot raise people to a higher level than that upon which the common people are? Either the teaching of Christ is not right or the people do not understand it and cannot apply it. Christ did not come to the earth to show people that they must suffer. He came to the earth to make people believe in love and in life and to restore their tie with God. Suffering is only a method for redemption, while Christ's teaching is a teaching of love. Love is the method for restoring the correct original relations among the souls. Today, there is everything in the world, but one thing is missing and this is love. Somebody says: "I have everything." - You have everything but you lack just one thing. "What do I lack?" - You do not have love. "But I suffer." - If you are suffering this indicates that you have no love. Love cannot be obtained through suffering. The easiest thing to attain in life is love. When you attain love, things will happen magically to you. There is not a harder, more fearful thing for man than to do something without love. This applies not only to people, but also to the gods. If God is almighty that is due to the fact that He does everything with love. It is said: "God is love." Contemporary people do not believe in love. Why? Because their thoughts, feelings, actions as well as their lives are interwoven. They have interwoven the Divine with the human and in consequence they do not distinguish one from the other. This way they take the negative human manifestation for Divine. For example: a man injures his neighbor and the latter asks: "Why did God cause that evil to me? Why did He let this man do me such a harm?" I ask then: "Why did you let this man harm you? This man is a mosquito by nature, he cannot do anything else except to bite. A mosquito comes to you, alights on your nose and bites you. Who is to blame for that? As soon as you see the mosquito tip it with a finger and it will fly away. You should not dispute with the mosquito or try to educate it not to bite." The mistake of the mosquito lies in the fact that it has not asked for your permission to bite you or not. It ought to come near you and say: "Sir, I am hungry. Will you allow me to suck a little blood from your hand?" If you give it permission, only then has it the right to alight on your hand, stick in its trunk and suck some blood. Then it may suck and you shall keep quiet. But it is a crime without permission as a robber, to alight on your hand and suck your blood. You also have to know this law: Never do anything without the permission of other people. Even if you do something good, always ask for permission. For example you have thought to do something good to somebody. Go to that man and tell him: "I have decided to do something beneficial to you. Do you agree?" If that man consents then do that good to him; if he does not give his consent, renounce that good. Even though it rarely may happen, it is possible to offend a person with the good that you do to him. But you always offend man with the evil which you do to him. Therefore whenever you intend to do something either good or bad, ask the person to whom it is directed. For example, somebody has thought of robbing his brother. He must go to the man and say: "I have decided to rob your safe. What are you going to say? " "I do not permit you. Go away quickly!" But if your brother allows you to rob him he will give you the key to his safe and say: "Here, brother, take the key. Unlock it yourself, take as much money as you want, and return the key to me." One thing is important for him who robs: he must know the art of how to open and shut the safe and how much money to take. When you listen to these things, you may say that there is no logic in them. Which things are logical? Logical things are those which happen by mutual agreement; logical things are those which do not create any contradiction between the one who takes, and the one who gives. When in the relations between two persons one of them is dissatisfied with the other, this shows that there is no logic in their thought and in their relations there is no justice. If the number of persons who are interrelated increases and all are satisfied with one another, this shows that their thought is logical and the tie between their souls is correct and harmonious. Remember the following: never say that what you think is absolutely right. No man can be a measure for others. Everyone may be an absolute measure for himself, but not for other people. The mind of man and his thought may be a measure for himself alone but not for others. If anyone wishes to impose his thought upon others, then what will happen to their own thought? What will happen to their own minds? If you wish to impose your thought upon a certain person, you must ask him: "Do you allow my mind and thought to be a measure for your mind and thought?" The man will answer: "If you let my mind be a measure for your mind, then I shall accept your proposition." The same question may be asked in regard to your heart, but you will receive the same answer. Somebody may say: "Believe my words!" No man may believe your words if you do not believe his. The only One who absolutely believes in man is God. If all people say about someone that of him nothing will come out, only God will believe that out of that man something will come. He not only believes, but positively knows that out of that man something will come. If God believes that nothing is going to come out of that man, this means that He accepts the evil in Himself. When God believes that people will become good, it shows that the evil is outside Him. In God evil does not exist. Therefore, when man accepts that some things cannot be corrected or cannot happen, this shows that he has let the evil into himself. When man knows this, then he must look at things positively. Whatever thought or feeling passes through him or whatever act he does, he must know that they are good. However bad they may seem, at the ultimate end they will become good, i.e. they will work for good. This is an important psychological law which has its application in human life. If you do not think so, you cannot study, cannot develop correctly. What do we see in life? -Just the opposite. In whatever church you enter today, everywhere you will hear that man is sinful, that he will enter hell for eternal tortures and sufferings, etc. I can understand if you say that a man has made mistakes, but to claim that he is incorrigible, this is a wrong conclusion. That man has sinned and continues to sin, to do crimes, for this we have series of facts, data and evidences. But what data do you have that man is incorrigible? To correct and acknowledge his mistakes is a privilege given only to man. This privilege distinguishes him from all other animals. On the way of his coming down to earth man has deviated from the right direction of his movement and as a result he has made many mistakes and crimes. If this is not so how would you explain the origin of all carnivorous animals? How were the fish as well as some birds which are also carnivorous created? All animals generally represent phases through which man has passed in the process of his development. When man begins to ascend upwards he will acknowledge his mistakes and begin to correct them. Now I shall not stop upon the question of evil and explain physiologically its origin. However I may explain it, you will not understand it correctly and will draw out wrong conclusions. For you the important thing to know is what man, in reality, represents. How evil has originated ought not to interest you. Man is composed of three essences: spirit - superior wisdom — the highest principle in man; soul - the second principle, and mind - the third principle. In regard to the human heart and the human will, these are derivatives, that is of secondary magnitude. Man then is composed of three principles: spirit - first principle; soul - second principle and mind. Scientifically explained: the spirit represents a convex mirror which disperses light. The soul represents a concave mirror which receives light. The mind cultivates light. First the spirit comes into the world and sends light everywhere. Then the soul comes to receive that light, while the mind as a collective indivisible principle in man begins to cultivate the accepted light. In all people the mind is one and the same, indivisible but in different stages of development. When I say that the mind of man is indivisible you will meet with a certain contradiction and say: "How is it possible for my mind to be common with the minds of all people?" There lies the delusion — when man thinks that his mind or his spirit is something perfectly different and separate from the common spirit and from the common mind of the cosmos. Christ says: "All that the Father gives me will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me." (St. John 6:37-38) Many think that they have their own understanding, their own will which they must do. - No, as you have come to earth first you will do the will of your mother and your father. This is translated in human language and it cannot be otherwise. Whose will is the wolf's offspring going to do? It will do the will of its father and mother. Nothing else may come out of the young wolf, except a common or at the most, a talented wolf. In order to change its nature, this wolf must undergo a number of modifications and would have to change radically. The same may be said about man, too. In order to free himself from the will of his parents and to be ready to do God's will man must renounce his old ideas. The human concepts are old, rotten ropes with which man cannot climb high. The last strain is able to break them. One who depends upon his old ropes will inevitably fall to the ground together with them. In order not to fall, replace the old ropes with new and strong ones to be able to rely on them. The rope represents the faith and hope which man grasps and which supports him in the contradictions of the mental or physical worlds. There is no other rope more sound in the world of thought than the rope of faith. And there is no stronger rope in the physical world than the rope of hope. While man is mentally healthy, he has faith. While he is physically healthy, he has hope. And the opposite: while he has faith, man is mentally healthy. While he has hope, he is physically healthy. As soon as he loses his faith and hope man weakens both mentally and physically. The faith and hope of man are not lost but they weaken. We call this weakening in ordinary life the loss of faith and hope. As you study the chemical elements from the standpoint of their inner, spiritual influence upon human development you will come to the conclusion that only two elements exist in chemistry: gold and silver. The silver cures all human faults while the gold brings life into the human organism. In that respect gold and silver represent the two poles of life. All other elements such as iron, mercury, copper, lead, have taught man something good, but at the same time have taught him bad things also. As pupils, you ought to study the properties of all elements, but not as the present chemists study them. Contemporary chemists study only the material side of the elements and their combinations. They do not occupy themselves with their organic and psychical qualities. When we talk about gold from the occult standpoint we understand its organic and psychical properties in addition to the physical qualities. Therefore, in order to benefit from the forces of gold, man must know the methods through which to transform the physical gold into organic and the organic gold into mental. Only in this condition will man understand gold as a carrier of life. In the astrological respect gold is connected with the sun, while silver is connected with the moon. Every element is connected with a certain planet. Let us leave this question aside because no matter how much explained, it still remains unfinished. How can you prove that gold brings life? In order to prove this statement a series of experiments have to be made. Make the following experiment: go to someone who is sick and has a high temperature - about 41 C and put on his head a gold coin. Not long after this his temperature will go down with one or two tenths of a degree. After a little put on his head another gold coin. His temperature will go down with a few tenths of a degree again. As you increase the number of gold coins the temperature will go down so much the quicker. When you put on the head of the sick man seven or eight gold coins, his temperature will become normal. This is a fact tried and verified, it is not only theory. Other experiments may be made with gold too. For example in the blood of a very sick man may be inserted a thousandth part of a milligram organic gold and you will see that the condition of the sick man will improve. What greater proof than this do you want? Great is the influence of the organic and mental gold upon man. This is a grand science but it is not given for free. This science, that art, may be given only to the man who has enough strength to uphold the following three things: to be faithful to his spirits to be faithful to his soul and to be faithful to his mind. If a man cannot promise that he will fulfill these three things nothing can be entrusted to him. I may entrust this art only to him who is ready to fulfill these three conditions because in such case he and I are one: his spirit is my spirit; his soul is my soul; his mind is my mind. And the opposite is true: my spirit is his spirit; my soul is his soul, and my mind is his mind. And then whatever he does for himself, he does the same for me; and whatever I do for myself I do for him, too. If he loses his faith he will influence me. While when I believe I shall influence him, too. "Therefore the Father loveth me." Contemporary people seek love and freedom but in a mechanical way. They think that if they acquire riches and knowledge simultaneously, with that they will become free. If it is so, then the rich and the learned have to be free and independent. Is it so in reality? If it were true for holiness, then all priests and all preachers have to be saints. It is true that the free man has to be rich, learned and sainty, but those are inner and not external qualities. Who is really learned, really rich and holy? When I speak about learned and rich people and about saints I include myself among them. So when people's strength, faith, knowledge and holiness have to be tried simultaneously with their qualities, my qualities are also going to be tried in order that it may be seen who of us is of pure gold and who - counterfeit. How do you recognize a wise man? When in the home of a wise man enters a robber holding a knife, the wise man must say to him: "What do you want, brother, from me?" - I want money. Since you are a rich man you ought to give a part of your wealth to other people. "Yes, I had forgotten that I was a rich man. Here, take the key, open the safe and do with my money as you please." The robber becomes thoughtful, he opens the safe and takes a small part of the money. After that he gives the key back to the wise man and parts friendly with him. This is a truly wise man. For such a man the knife in the hand of the robber is not made of steel but of paper. You will say: Where shall we be if all act like that? I ask then: At present, when people do not act like that, what have they achieved? That which people do is good also, but it is not the good toward which all people aspire. The important thing is for every man to act freely. His every act must be dictated from an inner freedom, that is, from the freedom of his soul. If with his ideas and understanding about the world man enters the spiritual world - he will pass for abnormal. What do we understand by the word "abnormal"? Abnormal things are these which depart from the standard measure. In mathematics there are abnormal quantities which are called irrational, i.e. quantities which cannot be measured with the standard measures. For example you take a number or a fraction and begin to divide it. You divide it in one way and another and yet it remains indivisible. This does not mean that it is absolutely indivisible, but only that it cannot be divided by a certain system of calculation. It can be divided by a different system. So when a fraction or a number is indivisible it constitutes an element from another world, from another system. All numbers which are indivisible in the physical world are related to another world. Their indivisibility in the physical world represents a closed up opening toward that other world. Wise people walk in a path, which leads to a normal life; ordinary people walk in a path, which leads to an abnormal life. These are questions upon which we have to think. Whether you believe in them, whether they are pleasant to you, is quite another matter. You are in a theater and look how the chief actor plays his role. He has employed all his efforts to carry out his role well. He is not interested how the role reacts on you. The idea which he is bringing out is important for the actor. When the musician plays, the important thing for him is how he will convey the idea which is put in the musical play. When an orator speaks he takes care to bring out his ideas the best he can. The same may be said about the listener. He is interested more in the idea which the musician, the artist and the speaker brings out and not so much as to how this idea is being carried out. Therefore the reality of each thing is the idea which is implanted in it. When you find reality you may stop to be preoccupied with secondary things. What is the reality for every man? - The Love of God. There is nothing greater for man than to know that there is One who loves him. Christ says: "For this reason my Father loves me, because I lay down my life, that I may take it again." The strength of man lies in the thought that there is someone who loves him. Who is that someone? Either God must love man, or his neighbor must love him, or he must love himself. If he does not have at least one of these three things, man despairs and life loses its meaning for him. The reason for man's discouragement, for his despair is due to the loss of these three things. There is no cause for man's discouragement. Since he has come to earth, his coming is bound by the love of someone: either God loves him, or his neighbor loves him or he alone loves himself. The one who loves you comes down to the same level, to the same condition where you are. Man cannot but be loved. What does man represent? A man is one who understands the position of his spirit, his soul and his mind. Man is one who believes in his spirit, in his soul and in his mind. The spirit is his God, the soul — his neighbor, and the mind — man himself. Under "neighbor" in a wide sense of the word we understand nature which represents that great vastness in which we live and move. Who was neighbor to the man whom robbers had caught and beaten? - The Samaritan. To whomsoever you do good, he is your neighbor. To the one whom you have done good, he will thank you and appreciate your goodness. One who does good for the sake of the good itself, he is in unity with all souls. One who helps, who does good, is always in harmony with the Divine laws. In such a case both the one who helps and the one who is helped are contented. With that, the circle of good for the given moment is complete. Therefore, when you know that, do not refuse to help, to do good. Do not refuse to work for the Great in this world; do not refuse to work for your neighbor; do not refuse to work for yourself. In other words - work for the development of your mind, for acquiring knowledge; work for your soul, which is the place of love; work for your spirit, which is the place of wisdom. When you understand things in this way, you will understand the meaning of the present life, you will understand the properties of the air which you inhale and exhale. When you acquire the knowledge of your spirit — of wisdom, the knowledge of your soul — of love and the light of your mind, you will obtain everything which is needed for your development. The Christian nations may acquire this today. If all nations and communities, statesmen and rulers, bishops and priests, mothers and fathers, teachers and students, masters and servants would believe in this, the world would soon be set right without any difficulties and conflicts. But because people do not believe in that, the world moves in a peculiar way. People have come to the point that they split a hair into two pieces. What do we see in the contemporary world? - Everywhere you meet with discontent. A rich man builds for himself a grand, beautiful house but is not satisfied, he wants to build a larger one. A poor man builds a small hut, but he is not satisfied either — he dreams for a bigger one too. Men's desires are good and natural but their ideas are wrong. What will a great house add to a certain man if with it he awakens negative feelings in those around him? With their enmities, with their negative feelings they will kill him prematurely. If someone builds a marble palace, those that pass by will say: "From where did this man acquire so much money to be able to build such a palace?" Undoubtedly he has stolen it from somewhere. It is impossible in an honest way to erect such a home. The question is not whether people will believe in the honesty of the person, but that generally marble palaces are not hygienic. In future the houses will be made out of glass. The ultraviolet rays of the sun will pass through them and so the houses will be hygienic. With the help of curtains people will regulate the light and will let in more or less light according to their wish. This will not happen today or tomorrow but some day when humanity reaches a higher stage of development. You say: "When will the time come for people to live in glass homes?" According to me the time has come already. It is enough for man to climb the mountain in order to find himself at once in such a home. As soon as he sees that someone is coming, he will hide his house. This house may be hid in the shell of a hazel-nut. When the man passes he will again take out his house, will stretch it, enter it and from time to time show his head outside. I will not explain what kind of hazel-nut this is. If I stop to explain I shall lose much time. You may say that these are abstract things. They are as abstract today, as were long ago the ideas of the trains which circle the earth, the airplanes with which people fly in the air, the metals which are cultivated and find their application in life. Mind is needed for man that he may be able to discover and find the metals, the precious stones, the glass and apply them in life. That which I say to you now is abstract and impossible. But some day it will be possible and will come to realization. The day will certainly come when people will live in homes made of glass. I shall tell you now briefly a story from "A Thousand and one Nights". This story is about a king who had three sons: Husein, Hasan and Mehmed, The three brothers were madly in love with their beautiful cousin. In order to decide correctly which one of his sons was to ask for his beautiful niece, the father said one day to them: "Go into the world, the three of you and find an object the likeness of which does not exist. The One of you who finds such an object will marry your beautiful cousin." First started Husein — the oldest son. He reached a far away kingdom and at once began to search in the markets for some peculiar, rare in quality object the likeness of which is not found in the whole wide world. As he went around the markets at last he saw a man who was selling a small rug very simple and ordinary in appearance. "How much do you want for that rug?" - "Only 15,000 dollars." "It is too costly. It looks so ordinary. It costs not more than a few dollars." - "If you continue to bargain I shall ask 20,000 dollars for it." - "What in particular does it possess?" -"Listen, with that rug you may obtain a great deal. It is enough for you to sit on it and wherever you wish to go you will find yourself there immediately." -"If it is so then let us make an experiment." Both of them sat on the rug and started travelling. When he saw that the rug really possessed peculiar qualities Husein immediately bought it. After Husein, Hassan started on his journey. He too went far from his father's kingdom to search for a peculiar object unseen and unheard of till that time in the whole world. When he went about the markets he met a man who held a tube in his hand. He immediately asked: "Do you sell that tube?" -"I do", was the answer. "How much does it cost?" "15,000 dollars." - "You want too much. It costs not more than a few hundred. Why do you want such a great sum for it?" -"It is not an ordinary tube." -"In what does its peculiarity consist?" - "If you look through that tube you will see what is being done all over the world. You are able to see with it both near and far." -"Here, take 15,000 dollars." Hassan looked through the tube with the intention to see what his father was doing and saw all that interested him. He bought the tube, and, content with the fact that he had bought a peculiar object, started on his journey toward his father1s kingdom. At last came Mehmed1s turn to start travelling abroad in foreign lands to search for some peculiar object. When he had gone around all markets he met a man who carried an apple in his hand. "Where do you carry this apple?" asked Mehmed. "I am selling it." "How much do you ask for it." "Original price — 15,000 dollars." "Why is it so dear? Is it possible that only one apple can be worth 15,000 dollars?" "It is a peculiar apple. With it all diseases may be cured." "If it is so, here take 15,000 dollars. I want to possess this apple." First Husein started on his way home. Hassan started second and third was Mehmed. When the three brothers met, each began to speak about the peculiar object that he had been able to acquire in his wandering. When they had shown each other their treasures the three decided to go to their cousin in order to show her what gains they brought from abroad. The cousin lived far away. In order to reach her they had to travel a whole month. But just before they started the second brother said: "Wait, let me look through the tube and see what our cousin is doing." When he looked he saw that the cousin was very sick, at death's door. They decided to arrive as soon as possible in order to help her. Husein said: "Do not worry, we all shall sit on the rug and immediately shall be with her." Mehmed added: "And I shall cure her with my apple." The three brothers sat on the rug and at once found themselves at the bed of their cousin. Mehmed offered her the apple and she was well again. Then the three brothers began to dispute who of them had the greatest right to marry the beautiful cousin. Hassan who carried the tube said: "The cousin is mine because if I did not have that tube we would not have seen that she was sick and would not have hurried to help her." Husein said: "The cousin is mine because if we did not have the rug we would have to travel a whole month during that time she might have died." Mehmed added: "What would have happened if I had not carried the apple which cured her? I have the greatest right over her." No matter how long they disputed who had the greatest right to marry the beautiful cousin the question remained unsolved. Therefore, this question is left for you to solve. I ask: "To whom does the beautiful cousin belong?" - The beautiful maiden as well as everything beautiful in the world belongs simultaneously to the spirit, to the soul, and to the mind. They are so interwoven that there cannot be one without the other. That which is good for the spirit is good for the soul and the mind, also. The spirit, the soul and the mind represent a trinity among themselves. When you know this do not make a difference between the spirit, the soul and the mind. Many people want to know what love is. According to me we cannot talk about love. It may only be tried. What will you say about fire? If you go near a burning stove you may experience a pleasant or unpleasant sensation — depending on the distance at which you stay. But if you put your finger into the fire it will infallibly burn. The least that may happen is, to scald it. And so, do not complain, do not say that love burns. You know already when love burns. Love burns people but the sun burns them too. Often young maidens complain that they were burned and tanned by the sun. If they knew the truth they ought to be glad for that. Why? Because the sun draws out that black substance which is in man, takes it out and brings him health. In this way the sun makes people black on the outside but white inside. Therefore every maiden who is tanned by the sun may be easily cured by it. If she does not get tanned it shows that the sun is not able to cure her, there is something sickly in her which does not yield to a treatment. From here we may draw the conclusion: if life can stain a man this shows that there is something good in him; if life is not able to blacken somebody, then there is something peculiar in him. Which soil gives the best wheat? - The black humus soil. The white soil — lime, white clay, are good for plastering, for bleaching. And so, it is not important for man to understand what love is but he must live in love, and express God's love outwardly in its fullness. The strength of man lies in the love which he may try and apply in his mind, in his soul and in his spirit. In his mind he will apply love as knowledge; in his soul — as feeling, and in his spirit — as power. With this threefold manifested love man will be able to free himself from all his difficulties in life. All people have to make experiments in this respect. It is not enough to ask each other only: "Do you believe in God or not?" Everything in which man believes must be tried. Only in this way may faith become strong. The disciples of Christ turned to him with the words: "Master, give us faith." Christ answered: "Faith is strengthened by trials." When things are tried then they become true. Faith must be tried. With every failure man's faith weakens but at the same time it spurs him on to new experiments. When man makes a successful experiment his faith is strengthened. In order not to weaken his faith man must think and reason what kind of experiments he ought to undertake. Do not make experiments in which your faith may be weakened absolutely. Do not make experiments in which your faith may become bankrupt. I shall give you an example to clarify my last thought. A Russian, whose name was Arsimenko, liked to read the Holy Gospels and contemplate upon them. From time to time he preached before a certain audience. It happened that one day he preached to some people about faith and gave the example from the Gospel about the wonderful cure of the blind man. It is said there that Christ spat on the ground, made some mud and putting it over the eyes of the blind man the latter at once recovered his sight. Arsimenko was so much inspired by that example that he was filled with faith in himself and said: "When I finish ray sermon I shall go out and say to the blind man who usually sits before this building: "In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I command you to see!" As soon as he finished his sermon he took the Gospel in one hand and set out to the blind man. When he was near him he lost courage and said: "But if he is not cured?" He withdrew his decision as a result of which the question stays open till today. Arsimenko did not want to make the experiment because he felt that his faith would undergo failure. Contemporary people make the same experiment. They take the Gospel in one hand and start for the assigned place. When they are near it they say: "What if it does not happen?" -Make the experiment and do not be afraid! If it is successful — good; if it doesn't come out successfully, again good. What does it matter if you have made an unsuccessful experiment? Who's scientist's first experiment was successful? How many unsuccessful experiments the scientists have made! Not only the first, the second but even their hundredth experiment have been unsuccessful, yet they still have continued to persist and work untiringly. The idea of flying in the air has undergone so many changes! At first the flying machine had pinions, then wings until today we see it in the form of the present airplanes and zeppelins. How many changes has undergone and will continue to undergo the human belief about the existence of another world and about the existence of God! It is not easy for man to reach absolute truth about all the important questions of life and death. Many people think that another life outside the physical one does not exist. This statement is relative. Man distinguishes himself from other animals by his self-consciousness which envelops a very limited world. Out of his self-consciousness, out of his world exist many other consciousnesses and worlds. Through his self-consciousness man has reached the greatest intensity of joys and sorrows but he has not found yet the way of his salvation nor the way of his strength. Until man lives in his self-consciousness he will be born and die, will grieve and rejoice. You hear that today someone is born; the next day you hear that somebody else has died and gone to the world beyond. Whether he really has gone there or not must be examined. When a man enters the superconsciousness, his consciousness expands, his sufferings leave him and he begins to live in the realm of love. When people enter in the region of superconsciousness, they are bound amongst themselves with love. For the present even the most sacred relations between people such as exist in some families, in some organizations and communities, are not bound by the ties of love. There, too, exists the sacred egoism. Really, where is the love of the sons toward their fathers, and of the daughters toward their mothers? Where is the love of the parents toward their children? If you enter a religious society even there you will not find people with deep, firm convictions. Love must join people. Those that love each other have the same belief. And those who have the same belief, they love each other. When love is not a natural tie between people they are apt to limit themselves mutually. A real natural limitation is that which man imposes upon himself. It is a limitation by freedom and by love. Each limitation of man which comes from without is violence. When people limit you then you are not free. We do not speak about that love, that faith, and that freedom which you have tried; we speak about the love, the faith, and the freedom which you have not tried. "For this reason my Father loves me, because I lay down my life, that I may take it again." Daring and resolute was Christ. This is what is required of us, too. God is satisfied with us when He sees that we are daring and determined. If a man is daring and if he is determined, if he has a positive knowledge about life, even if he is put in prison he will still find a small opening and will escape through it. If they hang him with a rope, the rope will break and he will again be free. If he is bound in chains, they will melt and he will step out of them. If people plan to shoot him he will become small as an atom and the bullet will miss him. We must have such knowledge, you will say. - Yes, you must have it. This knowledge is the knowledge of the new teaching: the knowledge of the spirit, the knowledge of the soul, the knowledge of the mind. This knowledge is given only to the Sons of God. No one may be called a Son of God until he has conquered death. One who conquers and subjects death to himself can be free and he can be called a Son of God. The first obstacle in the life of man is death; the second obstacle is sin, and the third — delusion. No matter whether a man says that he believes in God — if he dies, his faith is not real. How is it possible for God, Who holds immortality and Who lives in you to make you mortal? - I believe in Christ. - Why do you die then? These are delusions, contradictions which you must solve. When you solve them you will free yourself from them. Today all people talk about love. Somebody tells his friend, "I love you very much. My heart burns for you." - I am glad that your heart is burning. I ask: "What will happen to the fire of your heart if only one drop of water falls on it? - It will extinguish. What kind of love is that which from the first drop of water can extinguish? Nothing is capable of extinguishing hearts which burn with real love. Do not believe in the love which blows out from one drop of water. Believe only in that love which no water can ever extinguish and which never changes. The more water you pour over such a love, the more it burns. Where love reigns there is no death, no poverty, no ignorance. Where love reigns there is life, knowledge and freedom, there exists eternal joy and happiness. Now to all of you I give a greeting from your Father. In order to understand who He is, call your fathers and mothers on earth and ask them to tell you the truth, whether they are your fathers and mothers. If they cannot answer this question they are not your true fathers and mothers. One is your Father, One is your mother, One is your teacher. Hold to this Teacher, who wishes your good and works for you as he works for himself. I do not mean that teacher who knows only how to throw ropes around your necks, to harness you and make you work for whole days on his field. The world is full of such teachers, of such mothers and fathers. Have one Teacher who is able to bring light to your minds. Have one Mother and one Father who will bring love to your hearts and into your minds—wisdom and knowledge. Only this Teacher, only this Mother and this Father will be able to free you from all hardships, from all difficulties and contradictions. I wish you this year to free yourself from troubles, sickness and sufferings, not a hundred percent but at least fifty percent. I wish you to get rich not a hundred percent but fifty percent. I wish you to bring to realization all your longings little by little; not at once and even then not a hundred percent but only fifty percent. I wish you to obtain not one hundred percent of all toward which your soul aspires but only fifty percent. "For this reason my Father loves me." March 22, 1936, Izgrev – Sofia Translator unknown (probably Livca Slavianska ?) The Father Loves Me

The Laws of the Parts and the Whole. In the scriptures it has been said that truth will set you free. At the present time all people want to be free but they do not know how to obtain their freedom. They say that they are free to think how and what they wish. They are on the wrong path. Kan is not free to think the way he wants, neither is he free to do what he wants. Man must think right. If he does what he wants and whatever occurs to him he will then be punished in the least desirable way. Someone thinks that he is free to cut the forests, but at the end he pays a high price for his wrong idea about freedom, Man has the right to use the dry trees but not the living ones. You may say that living on earth gives man the right to log the woods, to catch fish, to grind the wheat, to make wine, in order to provide for his living. Man has the right to do everything in order to provide for his living, but look at the life of the miller, the fisherman or the winemaker and see which one of them has finished his life well. - Is not man free to choose an occupation which he likes? - Man is free to work as he wants, but at the end he will bear the consequences of his choice. Who is truly free? A free man is he who does not become soiled when soiled. No matter how much soil is thrown on him he never looses his equilibrium. When he does not lose his balance the soil is cleansed by itself. A free man is he whom no fire can burn. If he is not free the smallest fire will burn him. Modern men are influenced by their passions, vices, misconceptions, wrong thoughts and still consider themselves to be free. No, I speak of a fire. As long as he does not pass through this fire and does not get purified man can not be free. The little child in its swaddling clothes is not free. As soon as it is able to step on its feet it becomes free, it can move where it wants. When he becomes old, again, man loses his freedom. Be wants to move by himself but he cannot: he tries to get up but cannot keep balance and falls to one side or the other. It is not horrifying when the feet of man can not hold him, and make him fall on one side or the other. It is horrifying when roan loses his mental freedom and starts to fall on one side or the other. There is nothing as dangerous for man as to lose the freedom of his thought and to succumb to a foreign thought. Often you hear someone say that he has a headache, or pain in his stomach or kidneys. This is not his own condition. He has perceived the pains of some people that are complaining of these pains. In general man perceives the good and the evil equally, because they are equally strong. They are cosmic powers which work in the whole of creation. Many people mix up the concept of the evil with sin. These are two different powers. Sometimes sin succeeds in bribing the evil in order to manifest its power. But the good can never be bribed. There is no power in the world which could bribe the good. Modern man complains of sufferings and hardships which make them unhappy. Why are they unhappy? Because they have misplaced things. They have put man higher than God and have placed in him their love. How is it possible to love more him who has given nothing to you than Him who has provided you with everything? Love your father and mother, brothers and sisters, your friends, all people, but above all these place your love for God. Whatever sacrifices people may have made for you, no one has made that which God has made. In the scriptures, it is said: "God Loved the world so much that He sacrificed his only beloved Son, so no one may parish who believed in Him." He who loves more the world will taste the effects of this love. If you love God less than you love people, your sons, too, will love you less. If one loves his wife more than he loves God will taste the effects of this love in not too long a time. No one can love his neighbor more than God. - Why? - Because this love will bring disappointments. To come to love God this is an assignment that is given to the whole of humanity. If people suffer today this is the result of their disobedience. The source of disobedience is due to the lack of love in the human heart. People are discontented with each other because of lack of love. Everyone expects a sacrifice from the others but does not get it. Only love sacrifices. Man makes sacrifices because of fear and this is not true sacrifice. The sacrifice must be rational. If it is not rational it cannot give good results. Love, too, must be rational. If it is not rational as a result instead of bringing the good it causes evil. What did Jacob achieve with his love for Joseph? He caused jealousy among his other sons and for this reason they sold Joseph. As disciples you must be aware not to make the same mistake which Jacob made by showing your weakness for Joseph. Everyone has a Joseph in himself whom be loves more than his other sons. Jacob loved Joseph more than his other sons and for this reason he did not send him to work. When the sons were going to work Joseph stayed with his father. For this privilege his brothers sold him to the rich merchants who were on their way to Egypt. There he had to stay m prison. Then he was tempted by a woman. Joseph passed through difficult trials which he passed well. The world through which a man passes is nothing but a beautiful and lusty woman. Everyone who sees her falls in love with her and wants to indulge with her. Everyone is free to indulge in the world but will taste the effects of this life. It is said about man that he has come to love worldly glory more than diving Satan glory enslaves man and divine — frees him. Many people say that they are free, that they can do what they want. They do not speak the truth. - Why? - Because freedom is accessible to all living beings. Since this is so with what right are you depriving the grass, the flowers, the plants, and the animals of their freedom? You may say that man as an advanced being has the privilege to exploit the plants and animals. If the stone is responsible while falling on somebody for hurting him, how much greater is man's responsibility for the unhappiness he causes to the creatures beneath him. It is not enough for the stone to excuse himself for the harm which he has caused but he must be alert and wait in his place until the man has passed on his way. Love is able to solve all the problems. Therefore, if you want to be free practice love. When one subordinates himself because of love he is always free. If you do something do it with Love. Only this way you will be free. The freedom of man depends upon his right thought, and the right thought - upon love. He who loves thinks correctly. How is a loving man tried? Through trials and sufferings. Love is tried through life. In this respect life is a great school. Peter, one of Christ's disciples was saying to his master: If all should deny you, I will never do so. Not too long a time went by and he was put on trial. For no reason he denied Christ three times. In this way Christ’s words, "Before the cock crows you will nave disowned me three times." What do we see in Christ's character? Great endurance and patience. He passed three kinds of trials: in the mental, spiritual, and physical worlds. It is not easy for man to be the object to the scourching of a regiment of soldiers. A whole they mocked with Christ until finally they put him through crucifixion - the last suffering. After that Christ rose. Christ had a strong character and because of that he could endure all the trials. Where is the Roman Empire today? "Where is Christ today? Nothing has remained of the Roman Empire but of Christ remained something that will live forever. The cross upon which Christ was crucified became more prominent than the whole Roman Empire, Today all people wear a cross on their chest as a symbol of courage and fearlessness. With this they want to point out that they are following the example of Christ. The Romans considered the cross shameful but today it has become a symbol of courage and nobility. Modern religious people aim for Christ. They want to follow his path. In order to follow Christ you must pass through his trials. Many trials have been prepared for modern mankind and it must pass them. If it endures, its conditions will improve. Today all people pass through their negative karma. In the future they will pass through positive, through favorable conditions of life, called dekarma. Present life is a life of the evil and of trials; the future is a life of the good and of love. The world is full of goods that are provided by God. In order to be able to profit from these goods man must have open eyes. This year (1940) you have favorable conditions to profit from the Great Divine blessings. In order not to loose these conditions you must try to avoid using the service of someone else’s horses. Every man has his own horse on which he can depend. Therefore, if you climb or descend the mountain depend on yourselves. The horse represents man's mind. Depend upon your own and not upon someone else's mind. When listening to his own mind man comes to the conclusion that that which he himself can do is better than that which others can do for him. Let's return to the question of freedom. When is a, man free? - When he serves God, this means when he serves the whole. As long as a man works in the name of God, all are content. As soon as he does something for one part, immediately there starts competition between the parts. Where there exists competition love is not present. Where love is absent obstructions appear. -What shall we do to free ourselves? - Give way to God's love in yourselves. When God's love embraces the human soul his love passes into a higher degree: from human it becomes divine love. God's love makes a man strong. It gives him the ability to cope with his old habits and to correct all his mistakes. Without this love he will be like a smoker or an alcoholic who wants to rid himself of his weakness but cannot. He who can cope with his weaknesses is a strong man; he who cannot cope with his faults is a weak man. As we divide people into strong ones and weaklings the same way we distinguish in man two natures: divine - strong, and human – weak. The divine nature of man has wings, does not need a horse or a car. The human nature is weak and for this reason seeks for some means of transportation, it seeks external help. Therefore, depend upon the divine nature in yourselves and not upon the human which seeks external assistance. Divine Providence exists for all souls. As long as there are living people in the world in whatever difficulty you may find yourselves there will be a man who will help you. Is there a need for fear of life? Every man is ready to give assistance to the divine. Not only man but the animals, too, are ready to give assistance to the divine. One time during the past years of war I needed to pass through town late at night. No one was permitted to move in town without an identification card. All alone I left the house of the general where I was visiting. I wanted to go come alone. Yet I do not know where from a big dog came out and started to follow me. When I was approaching some guard on the street I greeted him and the dog started circling around the guard. The guards answered politely my greeting and thought that I am official inspector. This way I passed all the posts where there were guards without being asked even one time for my identification. The dog followed me all the way home where I fed him well and let him go. He never appeared again. This way the dog rendered me a service and there was no need for someone to escort me. When you realize that, do not hesitate to render a service to the divine. Do not think that you are feeble or poor and not able to do something for the Great in the world. In respect to the Great the poor and the feeble can equally render service. What is the difference between the rich and the poor? The rich is a ripe fruit and the poor - a seed that has just been put in the soil. When the seed germinates and starts to grow it already is able to do some service. Even while in the ground it still, does some work. You may say that when you set your affairs in good order than you will serve God. Start working this moment independently from the state of your affairs. This is not of importance. You must not waste time. Plant the seed and do not worry. From that seed will grow a big tree that will bare a lot of fruit. - We lack the proper conditions for work. - Conditions for work always exist. Important is the desire in you to work. There are always favorable conditions for the receiving of divine love but it is up to you to place yourselves in a state of receiving. As soon as you tune yourselves you will receive love such as it comes from God. All depends upon the consciousness of man. Everyone receives love according to the degree of his consciousness. Now let the basic idea, remain with you: love the Whole and live for it. As long as you love the Whole you will love its parts also. A Talk of the Master Beinsa Douno on the peak of Mussala, Rila, July 24, 1940. From the volume “The Divine and the Human World” The Laws of the Parts and the Whole

Note 1 The Laws of Breathing. Modern men know about many things but they do not know about the ordinary things. For example, sometimes they are joyous, well disposed, but they do not know why. Many people strive to become rich. Why do they want to become rich they do not know. They think that with wealth, with money everything can be achieved. It is true that one can purchase many things with money, but you cannot purchase life with money. With his wealth one can cause himself many diseases but with wealth one cannot rid himself of diseases. When one becomes rich he starts to worry not be robbed, not to loose his wealth. As a result he cannot sleep well, he cannot eat well. Because of this fear he becomes ill. Yet his wealth cannot cure his disease. Man uses his body like a machine for work, but he does not know the needs of his body. He says: I need to have more fat so that I may endure the external conditions. - You need fat but you need also muscles, bones, and nerves. The most resistant matter in man is the brain. When a man is suffering from a serious illness he first looses his fat. It melts and he becomes thin like a candle. If the illness still continues the muscles vanish, but the nerves and the brain last to the end. They are the most resistant. The opposite is true, too. When the organism begins to recover first the brain is restored, than the nerves, the muscles, and at last comes the fat. People that have more fat are more relaxed, have a better disposition. Those with less fat are irritable, nervous. The uptight and nervous man says: Nature has created me this way. The relaxed man says also: Me, too, nature has created me this way. We say: The character of man is defined by his head. What his head is such is his character. The mind of man depends upon his brain and then upon his relation to his lungs and to the heart. You must remember one thing: The health of man depends upon the laws that govern his body. In first place the health of man depends upon man's thoughts. When he knows the laws of thought and applies them correctly man is healthy. We do not speak about the ordinary human thoughts that are accompanied by worries and unrest. We are speaking of the enlightened and elevated thoughts. A man whose thoughts are elevated, right, has a special warmth, a distinct pulse, a distinct relation towards things. He who does not have a proper relation to the air cannot be healthy. Many people cannot be healthy because of an inner fear to which they are subject. When one worries about his wealth he is being influenced by mental microbes and becomes ill. Beware of any mental, emotional or organic microbes. You must become their master and not their victim. Doubt, suspicion are mental microbes. Do you need to become subject to such microbes? You say that one of your closest relatives, your mother or your father do not love you. How do you know that? If you love them, they too, love you. Have you measured your neck to know if you love them? When you rise in the morning measure the width of your neck. After that start thinking about your mother and father and then measure your neck again. If there has been at least a microscopical widening of your neck this will indicate that you love your parents. If you love them, they love you, too. Therefore, do not permit suspicion to make deep roots. If the thought should enter your mind that someone close to you does not love you, without delay measure your neck. Put suspicion far away from your mind if you do not want to be sick. These are facts which need to be studied. Yet the facts do not represent the science itself. There are laws which must be observed, yet even the laws do not represent the science. You must come to the principles. In order to have a clear opinion about a given question, first of all man must know the facts, the laws, and the principles which define it. For example, it is a fact that the mother loves her child. On what law is her love based? What principle governs this love? You must know all this. You may say that love is defined by the law of giving. This would mean that the mother has given something to her child and for this reason she loves it. Man gives in two ways: First, he gives and then he wants to take; or, first he takes and then he wants to give something. Therefore, if someone wants to be loved this indicates that first he wants to receive and then to give. When he wants to love, man first wants to give and then to take something. Someone complains that he wants to love but that he has not found the right person. This is strange! The world is full with people who wait to be loved -yet he cannot find a man whom to love. - Why is it that he cannot find such a man? - He is searching for a man who suits him, who fulfills his expectations. The skinny man matches with the fat one, and the fat man matches with the skinny one. People must relate in such a way that their powers may be balanced. The muscular and nervous systems of the fat man are well greased with fat and as a result his wagon does not squeek. The fat are accumulators for heat energy in man. He who does not have inner fat looses easily his warmth. For this reason the skinny people and those that live in the North need more fat in their food. Let us return to the question of health. What does it depend upon. It depends upon his thoughts, feelings and emotions. The brain is connected with man's thoughts, the lungs and the heart with man's feelings, and the muscles, fat and bones — with his deeds. If the muscular, the bones, and the digestive systems were not connected man could not move. When he cannot move he cannot work, he lacks power. When you know the relationship between the different systems in man and the manifestation of his thoughts, feelings and deeds you will take good care of them, to keep them in excellent condition. Only then is man able to think, feel, act, speak, and move. What is the function of the mouth? You will answer that the function of the mouth is to receive the food from outside, to speak, to express man's thoughts. We say: The service of the mouth is to receive and to give. When it opens and closes it receives the food from outside, chews it and sends it on to the digestive track. In this respect it is very stingy. What it receives from outside it considers its capital and shares it with no one. In respect to that which it considers its own the mouth is stingy. In respect to that which is not its own the mouth is very generous. Here it acts very democratically, shares with great ease, which is the foreign capital of the mouth? - The air that is passing through it the mouth creates such beautiful words with which it can become famous in the whole world. When you listen to such a speaker you say: This man has honey in his mouth. This is true but with someone else's capital. To take part of the air that should go out through the nose and from it create a beautiful speech, this is not a minor art. It is said in Genesis (2:7) "God fashioned man of dust from the soil. Then he breathed into his nostrils a breath of life, and thus man became a living being." This will say that God breathed through the nose air into man and he received the divine life. Therefore, when man finds himself in difficulties he must breathe. When he breathes and receives air through his nose he will find God. When he breathes man begins to think. After thought cone the feelings. Only he who breathes conscientiously can find God. God speaks to man: When you breathe through your nose you will find me and you will hear what I am saying to you. The air is conductor of electricity and magnetism. These energies pass through man's nose and renew his nervous system. There exist many methods for breathing but some of them are very costly. When people want to produce one pound of rose ether they must use three thousand pounds of rose petals. You can imagine how many workers are needed to collect the roses, to boil and distillate them in order to receive one pound of rose ether. Under such circumstances, naturally, the price must be very high. The rose ether is very valuable but even more valuable is a good disposition. Man can create his good disposition from the air through his nose. Through breathing you can make your brain to think properly, your heart to feel properly, and your stomach to work normally. Many people get angry, nervous, think improperly. - Why? - They do not breathe correctly. Incorrect breathing causes many ailments: headaches, stomach, heart, chest disorders. You have pain in your feet because you do not breathe correctly. You have pains in your spine because you do not breathe correctly. In general, all diseases are due to improper breathing. Fast and shallow breathing is very dangerous for the organism. It leads to many diseases. Breathe calmly, regularly with a definite rhythm. Be careful of the air which enters through your nose. With it enter also the divine thoughts which prepare the path of man toward the divine. God’s blessing, however, passes through the upper part of the brain of man, descends vertically to his physical brain and then through his nose it goes out. Make experiments to cure yourself through breathing. If you have head or stomach aches, or you don't feel generally well, make in the morning, at noon before lunch and in the evening before dinner twelve to nineteen breathing exercises. If you are not used to do breathing exercises do only six. Each inhaling, holding the air and exhaling represent one exercise. This means that you will make six inhalations, six holdings of the air and six exhalations. When you do these exercises your mind must be concentrated. When you breathe, the diaphragm must move up and down, it must contract and expand. The diaphragm represents a borderline between the spiritual and the physical worlds. One of the causes for an increased heartbeat, for asthma and some other malfunctions of the chest is the displacement of the diaphragm from its natural position. If the diaphragm rises higher than normal the lungs and the heart are suppressed and cannot function properly. When one inhales deeply air, the lungs get filled with air, press the diaphragm and it returns to its proper place as a border between the two worlds - the physical and the spiritual. Have you made the experiment while breathing deeply to say a prayer? If not, start doing your breathing exercises by saving in your mind the prayer, "Our Father", or "The Good prayer". Inhale, hold, and exhale calmly, slowly so that you may recite the whole prayer during one breathing exercise. When you make the exercise by saying mentally a prayer you will feel a soft warmth in the area of the solar plexus. In order to be convinced of the power of thoughts you must make experiments. Modern scientists believe only that with which they can experiment. For this reason there exists the argument whether or not there is life on the sun, on the moon, and the other planets. Some say that there exists life on the other planets. Others deny this. Now experiments are being made to communicate between the inhabitants of the earth and the moon. In order that the inhabitants of the earth may be able to come in touch with the inhabitants of the other planets first of all they must have a spiritual concept of things. Today the scientific facts are in pieces, lacking a connection because people pass through different morbid conditions. When they will make their nervous system more stable and organize the powers of their body, people will understand that there exists a close unbroken connection between all facts, phenomena and laws of the different sciences. Today people cannot reach the spiritual sciences and come in touch with the spiritual world because they are occupied with ordinary things. Everybody worries thinking of tomorrow. Everybody want to know how he will pass his physical life. With other words everyone thinks about his stomach. Is it necessary for the son to worry what will happen to him? His mother and his father love him. They take care of him. His work is only to learn. The parents care for the material needs of their children and the children must study. Every man is a child of some advanced spirit. Therefore, man's assignment is to learn. If one's affairs do not work out well he must pray for help to come to him from somewhere. Someone prays hastily and says that his prayer has been heard. No, a prayer that is not accompanied by slow, calm, and rhythmical breathing and thinking is not accepted. When you pray you must concentrate your thought only on the subject of your prayer and will inhale the air slowly and deeply. With every inhalation, holding the air and exhaling you will think only of that which is concerning you at that moment. If you have pain in your stomach you will think about your stomach, if you have a headache you will think only about your head. He who is not accustomed to deep breathing should hold the air only for two or three seconds and should prolong the time for holding the air every day with one second. This way after thirty days he will be able to hold the air as long as thirty seconds. If he can hold the air for thirty seconds he will be able to cope with many of his morbidities and diseases. Headaches, chest diseases, stomach problems, paralysis - all this disappears. Therefore, if you hear that someone is sick advise him to breathe deeply. If he does not know how to breathe he will lie in bed and will say: Let the will of God be fulfilled! - Let the will of God be fulfilled means that a man can move his hands and feet freely, that he thinks, feels and acts as God thinks, feels, and acts. Man must free himself from all misconceptions; he must understand his actions as well as those of the people who are close to him. Someone shakes hands with his friend and applies a lot of power. Why? -He wants to indicate that he loves him. Someone else shakes hands by barely touching the hand of his friend. Someone else reaches out only with two fingers. In general through shaking hands one gives and receives energy. If a man does not breathe deeply he cannot shake hands properly, either. Before shaking hands with someone take a deep breath. Before entering your room or a hall, again, take deep breath. Before speaking, again, take a deep breath. Good speakers breathe deeply. Those who do not breathe deeply are not good speakers. If one breathes deeply through his nose he receives within himself God's blessing. When one breathes properly he also eats properly. When one breathes and eats properly, all processes in his body are proper, too. And thus, if you want to be healthy, breathe deeply. It is worth it to pay a doctor for a good instruction in breathing before one gets sick. In the future the doctors will be more occupied with the healthy people, to teach them how to preserve their health. Take care of yourselves before you have become ill. The medicine cures those who breathe deeply. If one does not breathe properly no medicine can help him. Someone becomes angry and after that starts to breathe deeply. No, before you get angry, before you start an argument, before you start to speak, breathe deeply. Fill up your chest with pure air and then start speaking. If you do not observe this rule your words will remain without a result; neither you nor the others will profit. Be very kind to others so that you may not disturb your heart. When you think about the mistakes of others, breathe deeply so that your thoughts may become enlightened. As disciples you must cure yourselves through deep breathing. If your stomach or your intestines are not well make six breathing exercises four tines a day. When you do this exercise place your left hand on your stomach or belly with the palm down; on your left hand put your right hand, again, with the palm down. When you breathe deeply you must feel the expanding and contracting of your diaphragm. He who does not practice deep breathing cannot be a disciple of the new teaching. When you study the location of the human feelings and skills in the brain, you will find that in the back part of the brain are to be found some feelings: the feeling of friendship, of communication, love for the family, for the children, the wife and the husband, the so called love of the youth. The love of the youth is peculiar. It is located in man's small brain. When more blood flows into this center it hinders the blood circulation which then cannot be proper. When the young people do not breathe properly they constantly fight. In order to be able to avoid arguments and disagreement among themselves the young people must learn to breathe deeply. When a man does not breathe correctly love cannot be manifested properly. Such a man has a bad odor in his mouth, his sweat, too, has a bad odor when he starts to breathe properly his blood circulation improves. He then is healthy. Breathe deeply and believe that you will achieve that which you desire. Faith is a divine feeling which awakens in man the process of thinking and urges him to work. When breathing, one must be calm, sing, and by thinking search for the reason of his pain. Breathe and sing to your pains! For example what is the reason for headaches? When in the head of man is accumulated more electricity an inner tension comes about and this affects the nervous system. When the tension lets off the headache disappears also. When you get ill sing to your illness. To each illness sing a special song. When you breathe properly you will be able easier to leave and return to your body whenever you wish. Then you will not die of asthma as so many people do today, but you will leave your body easier. You will invite your friends and family to a feast, you will sing with them, speak with each one, and when the hour for parting comes, you will say good-bye to all saying that you are returning now to your homeland and to your friends. He who breathes properly is a good tenant and is kept longer on earth. If you breathe properly you can live on earth for 120 years. If you do not breathe properly you will hardly make it to 30-40 years. Longevity depends upon deep and proper breathing. The breathing depends upon proper thinking and feeling. Breathe deeply and think the God's blessing comes to man through the air. People on earth breathe air. "When they go to the world beyond they will breathe ether, a thinner matter than the air. The fish live in a thicker matter than man — in the water and from there they receive the air. At present the only being that breathes consciously is man. For this reason it is said about him that he has become a living soul. The animals breathe, too, but subconsciously. When you breathe you must realize that you are receiving God's blessing. If he breathes and does not think, man is in a state of an animal. The longest life on earth have the plants because they breathe properly. Therefore, remember that all diseases and morbidities can be cured through deep and conscious breathing. For every man exists a special method of breathing. He will discover this method with the help of his inner teacher and doctor. Listen to your inner doctor, listen to the divine in you. He will guide you onto the right path. If you do not listen to your inner doctor you will also not listen to the physical doctor. When you listen to your inner doctor you will be able to correct all your shortcomings. What you lack you will attain; what you have not developed you will develop. And so, you will breathe and sing. If you do not sing you will not be able to breathe properly. He who sings can improve his breathing. If he does not breathe well man goes to the other world before his time. He will not be accepted as a disciple in the other world, too, if he does not learn to breathe well. When he arrives in the other world he will be stopped at the gate of paradise and will be requested to say "The Good prayer" through inhaling, holding and exhaling of the air. If he cannot read it fluently with deep breathing he will not be accepted in paradise. The world beyond is well organized. All people there are beautiful, with excellent features on their faces and bodies. No diseases, sufferings, and problems exist there. Knowing this you must breathe correctly. Breathe consciously and with love. When you rise in the morning before you do anything else take a few deep breaths. Breathing helps for the improvement of the human character. Proper breathing improves the light of the mind and the warmth of the heart. It makes the face pretty. If he does not breathe correctly man's skin on the face and the hands wrinkles very early. The wrinkles are due to malfunction of the liver and improper breathing. As soon as he starts to breathe properly the wrinkles on man's face and hands will gradually disappear. Some people avoid deep breathing because it makes them suffer. This is not important. There exists in man some inclination to rest; he does not like to suffer. Let the tendency for inertia suffer, why do you feel sorry for it. When this desire for rest suffers man improves. The same is true with small children. When they do not breathe properly they cannot develop their thinking and feeling. Modern man breathes fast and on the surface only. In one minute people inhale and exhale twenty times. This would mean that in one minute they have twenty air lunches. This is too much. When he learns to breathe correctly man must gradually diminish the number of his inhalations, to come to two air lunches per minute. This can be achieved gradually in the course of many years of practicing, and not at once. Do apply deep breathing also when you make the gymnastic exercises. Doing the exercises you kneel down and rise again. Each time when you rise you inhale deeply, then you hold the air in your lungs until the time comes to kneel down and you exhale the air slowly. When you rise again you inhale again. When you make the exercises with deep breathing you concentrate and this way the exercises gain in meaning. In this case the result will be much greater. September 4, 1940, 5am, Izgrev, Sofia, Bulgaria. The Laws of Breathing

Note 1 THE KNOT Sermon of Beinsa Douno, printed according to shorthand notes taken in Sofia, 9.10.1941 What is man? Many definitions of man have been given, but we will add one more: Man is a knot of possibilities and conditions. Some people look at you as a combination of spirit, soul, mind, and heart. All recognize the mind and the heart since they have respective organs. The spirit is recognized as something that is spread out everywhere. As soon as one speaks about the soul there occurs a controversy: some accept the existence of the soul and some deny it. There is nothing bad about discussion. When two people have a discussion the stronger one always wins, and the weaker is the loser and must pay a fine. If the weaker thinks that he will be the winner, he is mistaken. It is preached that God is merciful and will forgive the weak and the sinners for their mistakes. But the world was created neither for the weak nor for the sinners. The world needs strong and righteous people. Therefore preach to the weak that they may become strong, and the sinners that they may become righteous. It is unforgiveable for the strong to become weak or for the righteous to become sinners or for the learned to become ignorant. Very often people ask why they do not succeed in life. Quite simply, their failure is due to unhealthy conditions in the material and social lives of these people. For instance, everybody speaks about patriotism, about love for one’s country. To me this emotion seems natural to man. Where is the fatherland of the wheat? The Field. Is it possible for the wheat not to love the field where it gets its nourishment? The wheat loves the field, but even more it loves the owner of the field. If he had not seeded it the field itself would give nothing. The same applies to man. If he loves his homeland and speaks about it he will also love the Master of his homeland and will speak about Him. It is impossible to love your mother and father and not to love the place where they live. Therefore when you love those who have given you life you will love also the place where they have given you birth, where you studied and lived. When you love your mother and father you will love also your brothers and sisters — you will love all people. We are speaking about love, but not about that transient and imaginary love of which the world is full. Wherever you look you come across only that unstable, transient love. You look in someone's yard and see many well-fed chickens moving freely around several modern poultry houses. From time to time the owner comes to feed them and looks at them with satisfaction. You will say that he loves his chickens. He loves them, but for his own good. One day he will come with a knife, enter a chicken house, catch one of the best-fed chickens and cut its throat. What has the owner done to better his chickens? He has accomplished nothing but the taking of their lives. How did Bulgarian beekeepers at one time treat their bees? In order to take all the honey they killed all the bees with the exception of those from which they could get a new queen. Today the beekeepers are more humane — they build modern beehives and when they need to take the honey they make smoke around the bees to knock them unconscious, and then take as much honey as they need, leaving part of it for the bees. In past epochs there was much cruelty toward the Christians. Everyone who believes in Christ as the Son of God was persecuted and cruelly tortured. Even now you are asked what you believe and what you think about Christ. I believe in that which you believe. As for Christ, I know that no one knows the Father but the Son to whom God has revealed Himself. Contemporary men want to be strong, good, and wise, but they should know what makes up goodness, power and wisdom. Strong is the one who bests the weak with his mind and not with his physical strength. The elephant is stronger than man, but man rules him and makes him serve him. Place a child on the back of an elephant, give it a little hammer with which it can lightly hammer the elephant, and the animal will serve the child. Man rules the elephant with his brain. Once the human brain was not as developed as it is today, Man was like a tree that grows, develops, gives fruit, but remains in one place. With the gradual development of the brain man has demonstrated greater abilities and finally reached his present condition. One day when he reaches perfection man will pass into the evolution of the angels and will possess even greater potential for development and work. Whatever one says to people, at the end they will ask why God created the world as we know it today. This question can only be answered by one who knows and understands the language of matter and of living creatures, of water, of air, and of light. He who understands the language of matter can come in contact with God's spirit and converse with Him. Man cannot believe that the water, the air, the light have a language of their own and can communicate with him. He must go to the seashore and listen to the wind and the surf to hear how they speak. Poets describe their speech as milder or more powerful according to the occasion. The wind blows, the water foams and washes over the rocks and sand and does its work. If the water did not move it would begin to smell bad. Therefore, to keep the water from becoming stale, the wind comes and blows over it. When people do not understand the language of nature they separate things from each other — light from air, air from water, water from earth — and in this way they lose the connection between all the phenomena of life. When men discuss the question of the creation of life they say that man is created in God’s image and that everything else, the stones, the plants, the animals, is created through the Word. In reality man is also created through the Word. God asked the Word for advice on how to create man, and He decided to make him of dirt. He took earth and created man and breathed into him a living soul — He filled him with a small part of God's divinity. Today everyone wants to know of what material God made man. If you were told, do you think that you would understand? Man consists of many particles — electrons, protons, esotrons, neutrons. The first two kinds of particles are electrically positive, the third kind is electrically negative, and the fourth is neutral. Matter has in itself a certain intelligence — man must study the manifestations of reason in all of nature. Only in this way will he come to understand how much he has to learn. He has only to look at himself to see how many things he does not know. He does not know how his eyes and mouth are made, his eyebrows, lashes, ears. He does not know that wise and advanced beings have worked on the creation of his body for thousands and millions of years. It is not easy to create the materials which make up the human body. The theologists say that God created the world in six days, and on the sixth day He created man. When a Turk hears something that is incomprehensible to him he says, "Even if I see it I wouldn't believe it!" In Scripture you read, "For God a thousand years are like one day, and one day is like a thousand years," The six days mentioned in Scripture are equal to six divine days, and in one divine day are many millions of years. According to some scientists it took eight thousand years to create the world, according to others, two million or five million. Which estimate is the correct one no one knows. It is important that time and space are relative quantities. For the wise, the longer the time the better. For the unwise, the shorter the time the better. Time and space are elements of thought. The ants do not need as much space as man does. If you lock a man into a closed space he will escape into the open — he yearns for the open air. The day will come when the earth will be too narrow for him and he will want to go and live on the sun. If this could happen he would come back enriched and full of knowledge. He would say wonderful things about the sun but no one would believe him. People would consider him a storyteller, telling stories of one thousand and one nights. And so it is impossible today to speak to people about the sun. They are not ready to accept the truth. If one tries to speak to them he burdens them, as if one were to put five hundred pounds on the back of a weak man. He will be exhausted under the great weight. He who cannot accept truth looks only on the surface and makes conclusions which his mind can accept. The same thing happens with him who does not understand the Sacred Book of Life. He is content to seek the superficial truth — he is not ready to seek its real content. As the Book is a living and sensible book for one who understands it, so is the sun a living and sensible book, which only a few can read and understand. Every morning the sun rises and a voice from the invisible world asks if you have read your page for today. The sun is a book in the pages of which God every day writes something new. You may say that the sun is something that has no intelligence. The sun exists — it has abundant light which causes the fruits to ripen, the flowers to bloom, the snow and ice to melt — how can it be said that it has no intelligence? The light that the sun sends to all the plants indicates that there are living beings in the sun with a high level of intelligence and the ability to reason. Whatever the speculations about the sun may be, it is important for man to know how to make use of the sun's light and warmth and to achieve something from it. One day his eyes will open and he himself will be able to investigate. Therefore I say that man has a great future ahead of him. For the time being he is in his childhood — for many years he has to work and learn, to travel from one planet to the other, until he reaches the age of ripeness. He will be a dweller not only of the earth, but also of Venus, Mars, and Jupiter. After he has passed through all the planets and has acquired valuable knowledge from them he will go to Sirius, where he will remain for a long time. From there he will go to another sun, around which orbit all the other suns of the cosmos. This will mean that he has entered the Kingdom of God and become its citizen. You will say that a long time will pass before all this comes true. Are the young maiden and the scientist not the same? The young girl waits for years for her beloved to come and make her happy. The young scientist works for many years, does research, makes many discoveries. He expects the day to come when he will be recognized as a great scientist and will receive high awards and degrees. What happens finally? After several years his discoveries are disproven. After thousands of years nothing will be left of the scientific assertions of today. In the future, children will have knowledge greater than that of all the scientists of today. Be glad about progress. There is much to be learned — it is worthwhile to be alive. As students of life you must have a feeling of awe for the divine cause of things, and indeed for all men. All your affairs will be unsuccessful if this feeling is lacking. Love of God and one’s neighbor makes a man strong and powerful. It is only through this that his consciousness wakes and he sees how he should live. He understands that the time has come for him to part with his childish ideas. There is nothing bad about being a child, an intelligent child who can perceive the new teaching. There is nothing bad about being old if one is not hardened in his opinions. The young person can easily accept the new ideas, but the old person has a hard time parting with all that he has learned. Sometimes a very religious person will come to visit me and will tell roe that he knows the whole Bible by heart. He thinks that he knows everything but if I ask him to give me an explan­ation of a certain verse he will refuse. I want to see how a religious person will interpret the verse; "I am the way, the truth, and the life," In order to be able to interpret properly one must perceive the thought that Christ has put into this verse. Since Christ lived, 2000 years have passed, but few people can determine exactly the meaning of the word "way" about which Christ spoke. You may say that the Bible contains everything. Indeed, many things are written in the Bible and many more are going to be written. Saint John writes that Christ said much, but not everything has been written down. Not one, but many more Bibles will be written to contain all that Christ has said. When I speak about the Bible that has been written by people, everyone considers it a sacred scripture. But about the head, in which are hidden all the things inscribed over the centuries, few people even speculate. To me, the only sacred book that exists is the human head, and everyone owns the original. Besides that which is already inscribed, every new moment's experiences are recorded. In this respect the head represents the New Testament and the stomach the Old Testament. Everything that Christ said two thousand years ago is recorded in the head. That which I say today is also written down. Contemporary men lack the light necessary to be able to read and understand that which was recorded in their heads in the past, as well as that which is being recorded every day. As long as man has light he reads and is considered learned. As soon as he loses his light he can read and comprehend no more and is considered ignorant. Therefore take advantage of your own light to read the original, the holy Scripture written in your head, and through it to correct the holy Scripture that is written outside of you. Scripture says, "I will inscribe the Law in the heart of man." This means that God has written this Law in the heart of man. He who has the light reads the Law in the original, and interprets it to other people. Moses recorded the Laws of God in the same way. He read them in his head and his consciousness in the original and interpreted them to the people who did not have their own light in a language that they could understand. The original that is in the human head and heart is called by philosophers the "Akashic Records." When we say that someone is ready to serve God, we mean that man can read God's laws in the original. As soon as doubt and hesitation come up he loses the original and reads some version in which, inevitably, mistakes are to be found. Love that causes man doubt, hesitation and suspicion is a translation. Love that excludes all doubt and hesitation is the original, the eternal love. He who upholds eternal love values the love of God, appreciates the possibilities and conditions which are granted to him, and praises all the blessings which are given to him. If you say to someone that you will love him, this means that you appreciate his love, and value all the chances and conditions that are granted to you, and that you are thankful for all the goods that life gives you. Be thankful for the smallest manifestation of love because it is a divine impulse which makes you develop. Be glad and thankful whether you are sick or in good health. As a healthy person you will learn one thing, and as a sick person you will learn something else. The sick person becomes gentle and tolerant and very careful of himself and his surroundings. When his health improves he appreciates all that which previously he did not even notice. You may say that a disease can hinder a person. In the physical world the obstacles are unavoidable. Take for example the violin — learning to play more and more advanced tunes is difficult, but through beat and rhythm a person can master the difficulties. Paganini was distinguished because of his extraordinary feeling for time, rhythm, technique and skill in his playing. He possessed one more virtue: when he was playing he managed to place his double inside the violin, and when he finished, his double returned to his body. Because of his ability Paganini could in a masterly way imitate with his playing a human voice — when he was playing it was impossible to tell whether he was playing or a human voice was singing. Every man needs to possess such abilities — to master life as the good violinist plays his violin. The time will come when man's double will be able to leave and return to his body freely. Today a few people are able to do that. It is very dangerous when a man's double leaves his body and is unable to come back. A well-known violinist once took his violin for repairs — he possessed a Stradivarius, The repairman checked the violin, found out what was wrong with it and what ought to be done to repair it, and invited the violinist to sit for a while while he did the job. Then he took a knife and cut the violin in two pieces lengthwise and started to repair it. When the violinist saw this he lost consciousness. Why? Because his double was in his violin — when his violin was cut through the same thing happened to his double and he could not bear that. Christ said, "Do not become attached to the world," This means that you can love an object or a person without becoming attached to it. As soon as you become attached to something or somebody, necessarily you will be the loser, especially if your objects of attachment are of an unstable character. Therefore if you own a violin on which you have been playing for many years, do not give it away to a stranger. Never give away or sell things which you have used or with which you have worked. Do not lend your brain, your heart or your body. Deliver your body as a living offering, holy and pleasing to God. Your body can be given only to God. He is the only one for whom we may sacrifice everything that has been given to us — mind, heart and body. He has sacrificed Himself for us and we will sacrifice ourselves for Him. We will help people with love and we will serve God and will sacrifice ourselves for Him. This is the new teaching of life. I say: He who lives for God will be helped by God. Try living for God as an experiment and you will see how your affairs will be in good order. If your life is pleasing to God, your grain will germinate in time. It will be well-watered and will yield richly. When you pray to God your prayers will be answered. Years ago, in the region of Novi Pazar, there was a drought. There was no rain for three months. Autumn came, and the soil was too dry to be plowed for the sowing. The peasants of fifteen Turkish villages gathered together to pray to God for rain. Their prayer was sincere, and before evening they had rain. The peasants of a neighboring Bulgarian village thought, we do not need to pray for rain. If God hears the prayer of the Turks and sends rain, He will send some for us, too. What happened? Not a raindrop fell on the soil of the Bulgarian villagers. This is understandable, for they did not make an effort to pray. Therefore, if your neighbor prays, pray with him — do not expect to profit from another's prayers. It is childish to depend on the prayers of others. Be children, but be wise children. Do not criticize everything, but rather work to improve things. See what you can do, but do not pass judgement on the world for the way it is made. How should the world have been created? Kan can think and reason about abstract matters, but he must understand that he himself could not accomplish more than God has. If he thinks he can do better that his abilities allow, he will become completely disoriented. A professor from a Boston college discussed with his students the human ego. He got so carried away that he completely forgot his name and who he was. Time passed, and he had to go home and ask his wife if he was Professor Brown or not. It is very dangerous for a man if someone else replaces him inside his own mind. In the vicinity of Varna a peasant traveled with his sturdy wagon and two strong horses. He needed to stop for a while in a tavern. Since he did not want to leave the wagon and horses alone he gave the reins to a bystanding boy, saying, "Sit and drive the wagon slowly and I will catch up with you," The boy sat on the wagon and whipped the horses and they started galloping so fast they could not stop. The man had to run after his wagon for an hour and a half before he could reach it. You will say that the boy was not smart enough. I say, do not give the reins of your mind into the hands of a silly child. If it wants to sit in the wagon it may, but not without you. It may even sit in the first place and you in the second, but the reins must remain in your hands. Do not trust the reins of your heart to anybody, A young girl will say that she has presented her heart to a young man. This cannot be. No one can live without a heart. But the hearts of both can be in harmony. Love manifests herself in harmony. Love cannot tolerate disharmony or duality. For this reason it is said that the bigot is unstable in all his ways. If you are hesitating you lack love, and you are not wise. The cautious person easily surmounts his difficulties. He has a critical mind: he observes the facts, makes a comparison, and then draws an inner conclusion. Thus he learns about the laws of nature and applies them in a correct way. Remember: Love contains all the methods through which the human spirit becomes stronger, the human soul matures, the human mind becomes enlightened, and the human heart becomes uplifted and renewed. Love not only renews and rejuvenates man, but also brings the new teachings into the world. If love cannot accomplish all this, then it is a superficial human love. Seek your happiness not in a superficial way, but in the profound way. By the profound way we mean the manifestations of inner abilities that are inherent in you. If you meet an old person do not say that you will become old like him, if you meet a sick person do not say that you will become sick too, and if you meet a feeble, helpless person do not say that you will become like him. Do not let a single negative thought enter your mind. Keep only positive thoughts in your mind and say, I believe in youth that excludes old age and death, I believe in wisdom, light and knowledge that excludes stupidity and ignorance and darkness. Old age that weakens the mind is not old age but stupidity. We do not believe in such an old age. We believe in the old age that brings knowledge, that gives strength to a man of 120 years to work and be helpful to his people. Do not let yourself be influenced by suggestions that have their roots in the long past of man. Remember that man is a knot where thousands of thoughts, emotions and desires from the past cross. According to the laws of inheritance these thoughts and desires will become manifest either in the man's own life or in the lives of his children. Therefore present people show, through suggestion, the impulses of the past generation. The future generations will manifest the impulses of the present generation. To avoid the evils of the past and the future, turn all evil into good. How? Through prayer, through thought, through a good and reasonable life. If you are facing a crisis brought on by the past, pray to God to place you in the path of the good impulses, that they may become realized in your life. Only in this way will you be able to go in the right path—the path of love. The only power that can lead man out of the labyrinth of the present life and bring him to the shore of salvation is love. Be flexible like the water, be patient like the wind, be quick like the light and durable like the earth. The Knot

http://en-petardanov.com/index.php?/files/file/12-%7B?%7D/ A call to my people Bulgarian sons of the slavic family[2] Listen to the words of Heaven: Brothers and sisters from the Slavic house, family of suffering, tribe of discord, soul and heart of Life and Salvation of the present, bearers and defenders of peace, Sons of the Kingdom of God, listen to the Word: Heaven has assigned you a sacred office in the coming Kingdom of Peace, which is coming and approaching in its power, to mark a great event in the life of this world, and if you prove to be faithful from now on to this noble and sacred calling awaiting you, then believe that the God of Hosts Himself will enwreathe you in the glory and the greatness of His life and will inscribe your names in the Supreme Books of the higher worlds that minister to the Supreme Holy Work of the great redemption. A glorious future is awaiting you, coming not to wipe out or destroy life but to resurrect it in its perfect fullness. All chosen people and nations, constituting the flower of the new generations of humanity are called to partake in this life. Your time is approaching, your trial is coming to an end, the hour of your calling has come and the moment of your life has arrived to wake up and to enter into this gentle life which is coming to this long-suffering land. I come from above at the supreme command of God, your Heavenly Father, Who has entrusted me with the great mission of warning you against the bad ways and to announce you the Truth of Life which descends from the heavenly dwellings of the eternal Light, in order to enlighten each mind, revive each heart, to uplift and renew all spirits – the chosen children of Truth preordained to form the seed of the New Humanity of which the Slavic family, the stock of Judah,[3] will become the hearth. The leader of this salvation, the anointed of Zion, the Lord’s King, the brother of those who suffer, will arrive in all His power and spiritual fullness and will change the appearance of this world. You will soon be elevated in the order of the redeemed higher worlds, which gradually yet steadily rise one after the other into a new region of the upper supreme worlds, into the Heaven of the Divine Instructions, into which also your world will step forward to take its place among the others as assigned to it by the Supreme Father. Your stepping into these new infinite boundaries of the New Kingdom of the everlasting worlds will be marked by being given the sign from the Supreme Lord, Ruler and King over everything. He with all the angelic hierarchies will meet you, will receive you with joy and cheer as fellow citizens of the Everlasting Kingdom of endless power and glory. Do not grieve God by your conduct; do not doubt His Truth, which He brings to you from the Heavenly Dwellings as a sign of His faithfulness and His love for you. Become enlightened, pull yourselves together, become conscious of the truth of life. He Who has given birth to you keeps watch over you. You know His Name. Doubt not or hesitate, but put aside your faintheartedness; come to the eternal light of life to know the eternal ways of God, Who has raised you from the ashes of nothingness to the glory and greatness of immortality. Do not err, but make a place for Him Who gives you life. In Him the families, generations and nations do not disappear, but they are restored and regenerated through this same Eternal Spirit, Who puts everything in this great Divine World in order. Renewal is a great blessing for you, which contributes to your becoming worthy of entering the path of light, which is endowed with peace and love at every step. This blessing is the powerful and eternal generator of life, which uplifts all the fallen in spirit. It is the path to salvation which unfortunate mankind takes, summoned from Heaven to perform one more heroic deed, with which everything that is destined will be completed. The path on which I come to lead you, so that you enter the Kingdom of God, serve Him, is eternal. It is a path filled with all the sweetness of life. All the heavenly hierarchies and dwellers, before the origin of that very eternity without beginning or end, have passed along this path. Between you and this path of the Heavenly Dwellers exists a great distance which no mighty power can fathom, yet there is an invisible bond connecting everything in one indivisible brotherhood. This bond is the love of the Eternal and Invisible God, the Source of Life. It is this infinite love of Him Who loves you and cares for you that called upon me from on high in order to come and help you in these hard times that lie ahead for the last time in this world. Before you lies a great danger which is getting ready to destroy all holy things which have been planted by the hand of your Heavenly Father. This is why I came to this world to guide you in person through this most dangerous moment of your lives. Be brave, strong and steadfast, faithful to your calling, and braced for battle. Each of you, make the necessary self-sacrifices for the truth to triumph. Now is the right time to show that you are the chosen kindred, a Royal Seed, a nation whose ruler is the God of Hosts. I come to support the Slavic family to whom is given to prevail over all its enemies and foes standing on its way to the noble knowledge for which it is striving and in its way to its destiny as ordained by Supreme Providence. The time is drawing near and is by the gates of this world. Truth will triumph and will reign in all its beauty, which will illumine the face of this world with heavenly radiance. This is the day of Truth that has given birth to you for His glory. Listen to His voice. He is coming from above, raise your eyes to see that which is awaiting you, open your ears to hear the sweet songs, the pleasant hymns, the great anthems, the songs of praise sung by the angels who are preparing themselves for this glorious day. Listen: faithfulness is the first step for entering the new life, the first condition of passage through the narrow gates of admission; it is the first fruit of Love which you shall place before the Hearth of the Father’s altar. There is no time left to involve yourselves with irrelevant discussions of the past which are of no use to you, unless past errors teach you a lesson to correct the present ones. Your rebirth requires pure virtues which are lacking. It is now superficial and not fundamental; it is of a transient and inessential nature, not able to bring the expected good fruits. This nation is yearning to be led and ruled by holy and godly principles, which are necessary to succeed. These principles were established long ago by God, Who takes care for the improvement of all His nations, and these principles are implanted in your souls. In the revival of the nations, the mind and the heart must be in harmony, love and virtue must be together, power and reason must jointly lead and steer the way of their good endeavours. Without these conditions everything is irretrievably lost for the nations. This is why you need to stop and consider the situation in which you find yourselves, in order to avoid the total destruction which is hanging already over all your heads. I arrive in this depraved world at this important moment to exert the necessary influence, to lead you away from this pernicious path into which the nations on earth rushed to pursue recklessly. Remember, if you repudiate my good advice and oppose my Divine Directions which I gave you because you are dear to My heart, then I will employ also other measures which are much worse and I am bound to apply in response to your disobedience to the holy Divine Commandments. You are under my protection and it is my duty to guide and educate you in the Word of Truth. I am your protector and a supreme leader among the Heavenly Dwellers. When I took upon myself to take you under my guardianship, I could foresee all the difficulties which time would present to me until I lead you to safety. I knew how many obstacles and how many failures in this great battle you and I would have to face, yet my spirit will not depart from my intention. My love for you dictates this sacred duty to me, so I stepped forward to take you under my supreme protection. In this distant past your spirit did not possess any beauty to attract me and make me love you. You looked disgusting and those who looked at you were repulsed by the rudeness of your heart. I did not reject you because of your flaws, nor did I disdain you because of the crudeness of the external garments in which your soul was wrapped, but I came to love you completely with all my kind spirit, which undertook to probe you and to find any Divine virtue, any kind feature of your soul, which my spirit could cultivate and make fertile, so that it might bring plenty of good fruits and that a pure, holy and sublime behaviour might be formed in you, so that you could deserve the honour to join the family of the first nations which the God of Hosts has chosen to fulfill His everlasting holy will. The day has already come to determine the main destiny of this corrupt world, in which Heaven is going to make a radical and great change, and that very soon in the approaching New Age, to mark new pages on the face of the earth. It is my desire to prepare you for this, because you are far behind due to your present crimes as well as past national sins; for them you were required to go through countless sufferings and sacrifices, until you wash away and clean the disgusting vileness with which you annoyed God. This made Him turn His face away from you and leave you in the ordeal which took centuries,[4] so that you might recognize and repent for your sins, that tear the sacred bonds of His Love. Yet, God is not angry forever. His mercy is from generation to generation and His kindness is always with those who love Him and His blessing does not withdraw. He guides you with a strong hand through all the dark ages and His eye watches you, especially when you were passing through the dangerous paths of this world. As your Supreme Protector, I had to exert great efforts and make sacrifices in order to correct your past behaviour, to educate you and adorn you with the beauty of the eternal assigned to you. For this purpose I deigned to call forth from afar, from the farthest realms of Heaven, the two brothers,[5] luminaries of the Slavic family, and to hand to them the Word of Truth and the Word of Life, so that they could bring them to you and teach you the path, so you could climb along it towards the Eternal Light in which I dwell, i.e. the Light of Life which I sent you to live in forever. “The world did not accept this Light but refused it and exposed Jesus, My Anointed of the Covenant, to violation and death because the deeds of these people were evil. But the transgressors of My Testament have paid for their lawlessness, and now all has come to an end. Righteousness is everlasting, My Father is unchangeable and His deeds can not be changed; you are My nation.”[6] The Lord searched for a dwelling for Himself and His choice fell upon the Slavic family which Heaven has come to love because of its Divine virtue. For this reason I sent My two servants to bring you good tidings, to abandon the darkness of gloomy pagan gods. And there was great joy in the worlds of the Light when God placed the seal of His great name upon you and put His Spirit into your hearts as an eternal covenant. And I appeared to your royal Ruler at that time,[7] and let him know the Will of Heaven to receive My Messengers of the New Testament; and he listened to my voice and was honoured in my presence to become the founder of your spiritual renewal. I can assure you that since him there has not been a more modest and pure-hearted ruler born to the family of Slavs. He fulfilled the given promise with unshakable faith, like Abraham who did not spare his son, but presented him as a living sacrifice to God; in this way acted your pious ruler and father of the Slavic family, who gave the eyes of his firstborn son as an auspicious sacrifice, a chosen gift to God, as a sign of his unshakable faithfulness to Him;[8] this very day your calling was initiated by the God of Hosts, Who ordained in His imeasurable wisdom to glorify, together with you, the whole Slavic family in which God Almighty abides and which He has destined to take the first place in His Kingdom which is now coming into power in this long-suffering world. Understand the unchangeable truth that the elevation of the Slavic family is an elevation necessary for all, which God Himself is performing for His chosen one, the Leader of Salvation, Who will appear soon among you in his full Glory and Power to restore the eternal Kingdom of Peace, God’s Kingdom on earth. “And he who challenges your pre-eminence from now on, says the Lord Himself, challenges Mine, for I have the power to give Mine to whomever I wish, and if I give out of My good will, who would oppose Me and ask Me what I am doing? He who has the courage to do so, let him come and try his strength and he will see. I am one, My Word never changes, I am faithful and true in all My ways. My Word is irrefutable.”[9] The Lord is to you a Leader, He is to you a Bridegroom Who sends forth His gifts, Who is delighted as a newly-married man with the love which you have accepted faithfully from Him, Who is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. This is why I come from the eternal dwellings to awaken you to a good and holy life and to protect you not to trespass anew against the supreme will of Heaven, so that it may reject you as it did in the past, when you annoyed God with your unlawful acts and He let you fall into the hands of your enemies, who came from far away to punish you for your crimes and to fulfill the Supreme Judge’s will against you. Yet, at that time during your fall I supported you with My Love, because you had not been completely rejected from the sight of Him who had chosen you. And thus during this longlasting bondage I steadily guided you along the path of patience and humility and taught you to correct your life, to become conscious of your sins, to repent and turn to God the Lord with your whole hearts, with Whom you are united in the marital ties of pure and immaculate life. In all your sufferings and trials I supported you with My hand and gave you spiritual power and strength, so that you would not completely decline spiritually and become lost in the mire of life and in despair. And with all the power which I possess I began to create in you a pure and immaculate soul with Divine conduct. And at the end of your trial of many centuries, when Heaven under a Supreme judgment of Divine Providence decided to deliver you from the heavy slavery,[10] I was the first to appear, to intercede for your liberation, supposing that you would take advantage of this given blessing and correct your past behaviour; yet, you misused the gifts of your freedom. Anyway, I began the process of your liberation by putting into action all my mighty powers to work everywhere for the accomplishment and realisation of the great idea which I shall bring about in the shortest time. This is waiting for My supreme order, but your discord, your new sinful life are interfering with the sacred idea which I keep in my heart for your good and for the good of the whole mankind. There is a limit to everything and you must know that. During these last years of your newly begun life I have guided you safely until the present moment and have made greatest efforts to protect you from many dangerous evils. Give praise to God that I am not one of those who can be defeated. “The time has come when you will feel My Power and you will know that I am God, Who cannot be deceived, but you are a self-willed nation who does not see where its own good is hiding.”[11] The weak side of your soul is the general lack of unity and discord which hinders the sacred cause of the Slavic family, yet I am faithful to the work of Him, Who has sent Me. For Him there are no obstacles, no difficulties, His will is eternal and unbending and all He has said shall come to pass, but not in your days, if you turn back as did the Israelite nation in the desert, and like them you shall leave your bones because of your faintheartedness and general disbelief. Yet, the new generation which the God of Hosts Himself shall raise, shall bring to completion His intentions as ordained to be carried out. You may speed up or hinder the development of your cause, if you become involved in the licentious life of the corrupt nations, and this makes Me be more watchful over you, so that you may not turn back again and fall into the trap of evil, which fall shall cost you your lives. This has forced Me to come among you from above and to intercede for you again and to wipe out and remove the infernal hatred towards your brotherly nation which has sacrificed innumerable human lives for you. This is holy Russia for which God has ordained a great future, to fulfill His will for your glory and for the glory of His Kingdom. You will receive a gift from Russia as Melchizedek received from Abraham whom he blessed.[12] She owes her present power and glory to you; such are the Divine orders: one sows and another reaps, but in the end all will partake in the blessings of God. The infernal venom is being put aside today, the events are taking another course, the powers of hell are yielding the leading role on the battlefield; those who disturb the Peace of God will be punished everywhere and His justice shall be re-established on earth. The kingdom which I will restore is not a kingdom of hatred, but of love; raise your eyes to see that the world is ripe for harvest. Soon I shall prove the truth of my Divine words. One more great deed and all hearts shall tremble and the speculations of the world shall cease once and forever. As a sign of its benevolence, Heaven has given you a sacred pledge of great mercy and love which is kept between you, and from the day when the answer is given, your redemption shall begin; and I am warning you to protect what I am building, not to destroy it, because it is sacred and if you try to commit a sacrilege, I shall send three evils upon you: hunger, plague and devastation, and I shall have no mercy on you and I shall judge you so that you shall forever remember that God has spoken to you. Mind My words. In the Pledge, which I have entrusted to you, your future rests; it is the legacy of your house, it is the hope and life of your family. Listen to me, Slavic house, be witness that I have spoken to you. Now I am addressing you, my servants, leaders and teachers and to you scribes, Pharisees and hypocrites, and I command you to not corrupt My people which I have entrusted to you. Turn away from your evil paths, it is time for you to consider, guide my people on the path of the truth and do not mislead them, help the defenseless in their sorrows and do not injure the poor. Put away lawlessness, renounce injustice, leave depravity behind, for God can no longer look upon these evil deeds which are being committed everywhere before His eyes. He is out of patience, I have been called to bring an end to the mass of evil. Heed this while there is still time left, for the moment is coming when it shall be too late to seek me; think about this, the lack of faith which has taken over you wilfully, won’t bring you any good. This is my second coming since you have become my people, in order to see with my own eyes how you are and how you live and My spirit is moved when I see the dismal picture. You are to be pitied, you for whom I have sacrificed all that I acquired: life, glory, and honour; you have misused My goodness and love. In front of My eyes a great number of your unhappy brothers and sisters are standing whom you yourselves have violated and plundered. Go to them and confess your trespasses and make peace with your neighbours. On the day when I am coming to reveal myself to you in My full glory, I wish it to be a day of joy and not of sorrow, a day dedicated to My Lord. I am Elohil, The Angel of the Lord’s Covenant. Communicated on 8 October 1898, Varna, Bulgaria ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2 Translated by Harrie Salman. Translations made by Marianna Radoulova and anonymous translators have been consulted. Redaction of the translation by Cora Manzano (Hawaii). 3 A reference to the book of Isaiah, chapter 48:1, where the house of Jacob, sprung from the stock of his son Judah, is addressed. 4 The years under Byzantine rule (1018-1186) and Turkish rule (1396-1878). The Bulgarians were under Turkish bondage as a punishment for the persecution of the Bogomils, as Peter Deunov later explained. 5 The two brothers St. Cyril (827/28-869) and St. Methodius (815/20-885), who devised the Slavonic alphabet, the so-called Glagolitic alphabet. During their missionary work in Moravia (863) they began to translate the Bible into the language of the Slavs (now called Old Bulgarian or Church Slavonic). 6 In these sentences not the angel Elohil, but God the Father and Christ are speaking. Quotation-marks placed by the translator. 7 The Bulgarian king Boris I (ruled 852-889, died in 907), who adopted the Christian religion in 865-866 and later introduced the Slavonic alphabet. He welcomed the disciples of the two brothers, St. Cyril and St. Methodius, in 886 and founded schools where they could teach and translate Biblical texts into Old Bulgarian. 8 King Boris I abdicated the throne in 889 and became a monk. When his son and successor Vladimir attempted to restore the pagan religion of the past, Boris emerged from his monastery to save Christianity and defeated him in 893. Vladimir was blinded and replaced by his brother Simeon. 9 In these sentences the Lord is speaking. Quotationmarks placed by the translator. 10 After the Bulgarian uprising of April 1876, Russia declared war on the Ottoman Empire in 1877 and liberated the Bulgarian territories. A much smaller Bulgarian state was established at the Conference of Berlin in 1878. 11 God is speaking here. Quotation-marks placed by the translator. 12 It is not clear what kind of gift is referred to here.

Note 6 HE CREATES I will read the first chapter of the “Acts”. Life is a science which has to be studied. You speak of human life, but do not know it. You speak about the life of Nature, but you do not know it either. Nature’s life is a life of great variety in forms and manifestations. Human life is full of negations, grief and joy, anxiety and misunderstandings, contentment and discontentment. Joy and contentment are rarely found, most of life is grief and discontentment. Scientists, philosophers and Masters have made many efforts to show people how to live. It is hard to teach someone to live rightly. This is a difficult, abstract subject. Life is not something concrete that you can see and touch. One hopes for happiness, and waits for the Kingdom of God to come upon Earth; one wants to go to Heaven and dreams of real Life. Is there anything that one does not hope for? All these are forms of complete Life. Many people ask themselves if there is another life besides this one on Earth; and if there is, what is hidden in it? Of course there is another world, there are many worlds, but these are levels of consciousness. Focus your attention upon the consciousness of an ant, a fish, a bird, a mammal, a human being and an Angel, so that you can see what big variety is hidden in their view and understanding of Life. Compare the purity of a human being to that of an Angel, and see what a big difference there is between them. I say: It is spoken now about the coming of Christ, that is, about His descent upon Earth and about His life. Therefore, when it is said that He is coming to Earth, everyone thinks that this will happen as it used to happen in the past. You know how your relatives come to Earth and how they leave it, therefore you think that Christ will also come and leave as they do. This refers to those who have not lived correctly. They are solemnly carried on litters; priests sing and deliver speeches to them. This is a life of aristocrats. However, Christ did not come like ordinary people do, and will not come like them. Christ did not wait to be carried on a litter. He summoned His disciples, spoke to them and ascended before them. Nowadays people wait for Christ to come to Earth in flesh again. It is not a question of whether He will come in flesh or as a Spirit. His coming is a question of consciousness. Why? – Because even those who saw the resurrection and ascent of Christ, still doubted. The one, who has awakened consciousness, never doubts. This person lives in the rapid changes and fears nothing. (Please check if this is what the sentence should mean. Or does it mean {This person lives in the swift transformation and fears nothing}) (Kalina wrote: In the Bulgarian text it is not specified whether it is the changes in life or the transformation within the very person. I suppose it is meant both externally and internally. Please check if it is OK in the way I have corrected the sentence. If you have another suggestion, please write) What is required of the present-day person? – Fearlessness. In order not to be afraid, one must be acquainted with the inner side of Life, with the changes that occur in Life. Many people are afraid of losing their body. Whatever they do, and however they look after it, they will lose it some day. This is the truth. It is said: “There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body!” The natural body gets lost, and the Spiritual one stays for eternity. Consciously or unconsciously, all people strive to build their Spiritual bodies. This body is also exposed to constant changes, but to fewer contradictions than the natural one. As for the building of the physical body one needs materials, means and workers, just the same for the building of the Spiritual body; one needs materials, means and workers as well. The mother and the father are the main workers for building of the physical body of a child. Once a child comes out of its mother’s womb, it starts working upon itself. Who is the chief worker for creating the Spiritual body, named “not made by human hand”? - God. He has created this body to be a dwelling of the soul. Through this body, the soul grows up and develops, that is why you have to assist it. Thus you will constantly change and will study the laws of Life. If you do not know these laws, you will not come to know yourself. – “Will we know each other in the next world?” – Of course you will know each other. If a dog knows its master, then would not one man know another one? There is something by which a dog knows its master. Therefore, no matter how much one will change in the next world, there will always remain something by which one’s relatives will know one. On Earth people also know each other with difficulty. A child grows up, becomes a youth, grows to adulthood, becomes middle-aged, then gets old, and cannot be recognized by the relatives who have not seen him or her for a long time. One is most easily known by one’s voice, which is the most permanent feature. This is an external mark. Internally one is known by one’s thought, feelings and acts. People do not think, feel and act alike. Thanks to this they differ from one another. Bear in mind: Life is beautiful and full of variety. Once you come to uniformity in people’s thoughts and feelings, they bore you. Uniformity repulses while variety attracts. If you often hear people saying that you should love each other, you are repulsed and turn away from these people. To love each other, to love each other! What is the meaning of the words to love each other? It means to manifest Life and Love in their variety. Life is beautiful when it is full of Love, work and prayer. To pray does not mean to take the position of a pious person. This is vainglory – you want to present yourself before people as something you are not. A mother will teach her child how it should pray. The child, on its part, says: “My mother taught me to pray.” Once a child learns to pray, when it grows up and becomes adult person, it will still pray. It is important that one does not pray in one and the same way – uniformity is boring. Keep away from it, so that you do not get bored with prayer. One has to be free in all of one’s manifestations. If someone has advanced in one’s development, this person should not impose his own will on the young and tell them what they must do and what they must not do. What will happen if the young do everything that the old do? A young person differs from an old one who constantly complains that his feet cannot carry his body, and that he cannot think and speak fluently. When he sees his face wrinkled and old, he says: “I’ve lost everything!” Even in this situation, one still hopes and waits for better conditions in Life. What will these improved conditions be for the one who suffers? Whatever the conditions may be, if he does not know God’s Love, he will achieve nothing. Some people imagine God in a certain way, while others do not think of Him at all and do not even imagine Him. I would not like to dwell upon this question, because a dispute will occur among people, regarding who understands Life better and who has clearer vision of things. This dispute can be solved easily: the one, who has a better understanding of Life, can accomplish a lot of things. Thinking that you understand Life without doing anything shows that you are under a delusion. If you understand things, then you will have bigger possibilities and achievements. You will speak about God only after you have done something for Him. Do not speak about your virtues before you have manifested them. Do not consider yourself a singer, before you have sung and while you do not know how to sing. Do not speak about art before you have painted a work of art. Do not say that you are an occult disciple before you can read from the human face, head and hand. The Bible considers it a sin telling the fortune from the human hand, face and scull. You will say that the apostles spoke and predicted many things; you will say that the Spirit spoke through them. One should positively know whether the Spirit has spoken through him, or not. If the Spirit has spoken through him, he will speak as the Spirit does. How can you recognize when the Spirit speaks? If you go to a sick person and the Spirit speaks through you, the sick person will recover his health. If you enter a home where the family do not love and understand each other, you will bring in a certain improvement to their relationship. When two children, two lovers, or a man and women quarrel about something, the Spirit is not between them. The Spirit reconciles people. The Spirit tolerates no misunderstanding, and no dispute. When people quarrel and argue, it shows that they lead an extremely individualistic life. In individualism everyone seeks for his own rights. The reason for arguments and misunderstandings between people is insufficiency. Everyone argues about little things - always. Suffering, suspicion, doubt, and envy are due to lack of Love. Put Love into someone’s heart and see what happens to him. He will begin to study and work. He will come to love people, and every negative thing in him will disappear. Love brings the new philosophy of Life. How can doubt be cured? – By faith. “Nothing can be done by faith.” – Nothing can be done with the present human faith, but with this absolute faith which the Spirit brings, everything can be done. There is no faith and no sight without the Spirit. How would you believe in things which you have not seen? You will quote the verse: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet still have believed”. How do you understand this verse? For example, you believe in the apostles because they saw Christ. So, you believe because you have a concrete thought, a concrete consciousness before you. If no one ever saw how Christ ascended to Heaven, you also could not believe in it. You cannot have faith in something that has not happened. Generally, one believes in things which have happened and which are happening. You say: “If only we lived in those times, to see with our own eyes the ascent of Christ!” Very few people had this privilege even in those times. Very few people had the privilege to live in the time when Christ was born, and see Him. How many Jews can boast of having this privilege? A rumour went around that Jesus was born in the manger, but how many saw Him? If you also were living at the time of Christ, what possibilities would you have? Those times were dark. People used to look for God with a candle, but did not find Him. The present century is a century of dawning. People can find God without a candle, but if they are searching for Him. To find God, easy or difficult, is a matter of consciousness. Nowadays this possibility is bigger. – “We saw the Lord.” – Did you come back to life? - “We didn’t.” – If this is so, then do not speak about things you are not acquainted with. It is said in the Scripture: “He who hears the voice of the Lord, will come to life.” He who sees the Lord, will be enlightened. To see the Lord, means to see the reality of Life. He who has seen the Lord, has done away with discontentment. If you have not seen Him and you doubt Him, you live in discontent, you are a poor man. – “I want to become rich.” – Rich in what? – “In faith, and in Love.” – Once you have acquired faith and Love, your discontent disappears. So, faith and Love are virtues that everyone aspires to. What is Virtue? – Only he can speak about Virtue, who says “I” about himself. An animal cannot say “I”, it lives within the joint consciousness. Whereas humans have separated from community and live as separate, self-dependant beings. According to some people, there is a state higher than the “I“. Some call it impersonal state. To live in the impersonal state means to include all the “I” ‘s while living outside them. Can you imagine what state this is? Think over the impersonal state in order to understand its inner sense. Which state is better – to live in the state of the “I”, or in the impersonal state? I am asking you which one is better – to know only a letter of the alphabet, or to know all the letters? Therefore, the “I” is the first letter of the great Divine knowledge, which will be revealed to you in the future. Is God a letter? – More than a letter. – Is He a personality? – More than a personality. God is more than anything you can imagine. Now, whatever state you may be in, don’t think that you have come to the highest degree of consciousness. I am glad that you have come to the state of the “I”, but you have to include many more “I” ‘s in your consciousness. Then, when you say that you love your fellow, I understand that you love all these who can say “I” as well as those who cannot say “I”. Why should we love everyone? – Because every living thing is created by God. You meet an ox and ask it: “Where do you come from?” It cringes, and does not reply. – “Who created you?” Again no answer. Then God comes and answers: “I created it.” You ask the ant, who created it, why it has so many legs; it also knows nothing and cannot answer these questions. It only knows that for its present life it needs more than two legs. In this case God also appears and says: “I created the ant”. You ask an animal why it walks upon four legs. It glances towards you and says nothing. You, the human being, also move on four legs when you get on a cart, carriage or automobile. You can also move on two legs – by motorcycle. The power of human beings is not in their two legs but in the position that they take regarding the Earth and the Sun. They are in a position which is perpendicular to the Earth while animals are parallel to it. Their head is connected to the centre of the Sun – this makes humans radically different from animals. Knowing this, be ready for the moment when the Spirit will visit you. The Spirit manifests Itself like the rising Sun. First it lightens the high peaks and gradually goes down until it lightens all objects. There will remain not a single person on Earth to whom the Spirit has not manifested. This is a question of time and consciousness. The time when the Spirit will visit someone depends on one’s readiness. If you are ready, The Spirit will speak to you; if you are not ready, It will only shine on you and will continue its way. After this, you will wait long for the Spirit to manifest itself again. It comes to Earth periodically. Now I appeal to the awakened souls and say: Do not lose the conditions! Many people lose conditions because they think that in order that the Spirit may manifest, they have to live exclusively in the Spiritual world. No - whatever you work on, in whichever world you are, the Spirit may visit you. It is important for you to open the door to the Divine within yourself. You might be the last worker in the corn-field, and be visited by the Spirit; or you might be a king on Earth, and not be visited by the Spirit. What may a king expect if he sentences to death dozens and hundreds of people, without having given them a fair trial? A king must convince himself of the guilt of a criminal and after that convict him. Under the present conditions of life, the king has no ability to check things. Whatever the court decides, the king has the right to sign or not sign. This refers not only to the king, but also to all people. How many times a day do you convict your relative without making sure of his fault! Someone tells you that a person named so-and-so, has acted badly, and you believe this and start saying bad things about this person. You say: “This person, named so-and-so, doesn’t know how to pray.” Did you check this? Do you know which prayer is genuine? Do you know which way of praying is right? Someone prays on one’s knees, another one prays raising one’s hands up. It is not important what position you take; it is important that your thought is concentrated, that you are not divided in your mind. Someone prays but thinks about his wife and children while another one thinks about the insult he has been offered. What does an insult represent? – An impure spot on your garment. If someone has insulted you, then it is not enough for this person just to apologize to you, but he must take a brush, clear water and soap, and clean up the spot which he has made upon your garment. He would say that such is his temper, and that he is a hot-tempered person, that is why he has insulted you. Your temper does not excuse you – you will clean the spot. You have not come upon the Earth to stain yourself, neither have you come to stain other people. Once you have stained yourself, you are going to clean yourself up. If you stain your fellow, you will clean him as well. When someone stains oneself or stains others, he loses his peace and good spirits. How long can one keep his good spirits? You fly into a rage, get angry, take offence, stain yourself – you constantly lose your good spirits. Watch yourself, to see how many hours a day you are in good spirits. In order to keep your good spirits, you have to be awake, to be unceasingly conscious. It is said that God gets angry, too. However, there is a big difference between God’s anger and human anger. A person gets angry when his affairs are not going well and are not in the right place. God gets angry when He places everything in its place. When He is angry, He is working. You say: “Let’s not get angry”. You cannot do without anger. – “Let’s not be afraid”. You cannot do without fear either. You are scared by a bear, but indeed you are scared by God in this bear and you run away from Him. If you are not afraid of God, you would not be afraid of the bear either. A good person is not afraid of bears. Once, there was a bad man in a village, his name was Ivan. One day he went to the woods to cut down trees and a bear met him. Since he could not manage to climb up a tree, the bear knocked him down and started to trample upon him. It didn’t bite him, but only rolled him on the ground, turned him from side to side and pressed him with its paws. At last, it released him and hid in the woods. Barely alive, Ivan returned home quiet, meek, and unrecognizable. – “Ivan, what has happened to you?” – asked his wife. – “Have you ever been trampled by a bear, do you know what it is like? A bear rolled me on the ground; I hardly survived under its paws.” Indeed, it is not easy when a bear tumbles you about and presses you down. Everyone has experienced its paws. The great grief, this is the bear in the woods. If the bear only rolls you in order to make you meek, you have acquired something valuable. If it hurts you, breaks a bone, or bites you, then you are not one of the advanced disciples. The bear just tramples on and tames the one who is connected with God; while it bites and hurts the one who is not connected with God. So, if you are connected with God and constantly bear Him in your consciousness, then the wolf and the bear, and the tiger will come before your feet and will glance at you without doing you any harm. If you are not connected with God, if you do not think of Him, then they will cause great misfortune to you. Only thus will one free himself of his own grievances and sufferings, hardships and misfortunes. Therefore one needs to work upon oneself. Once you are connected with God, even if you suffer, your sufferings will be given meaning. To give a meaning to your suffering means to develop yourself properly, to be visited by the Spirit. To give a meaning to your suffering, means to await the spring with joy. Who does not know that after a dark and stormy night, the sky will clear up and the sun will rise? Who does not know that after the winter snowy days, the spring will come? All of this will turn into good. You ask why suffering comes. Many explanations to suffering might be given, from which one can understand that they are a necessity for humans. In spite of this, one must not sink into them and lose everything of value in one’s life. Christ has also spoken about sufferings and has shown mankind how to suffer. In this sense, Christ’s teaching came to save the world. For a person, to be saved means to come to know God. Only God can save humanity. One can only save oneself if one knows God. Knowing God is not a one-time process, but a repeated one, i.e. unceasing process – it continues during eternity. You will eternally learn so that you may come to know the greatness of God. This will be Joy of your soul. It is said in the Scripture: “This is eternal life, that we may know You, the only true God, and Christ whom You have sent.” In this knowledge, God reveals Himself to all people in different ways: in one way - to the good and the righteous, in another way - to the mindful[A] ones, in a third way – to the saints. On the whole, there is not a single being in the world, to which God does not reveal Himself. Besides, He reveals Himself to the beings according to the stage of their development. He looks upon them in a different way, not like people do. They say about a person that he is stupid, and for another one – that he is underdeveloped. That is how you look upon them, but God sees the Good in them. You say: “This is a child, it is unwise.” Today it is an unwise child, but in the future it will become a genius – this is what God sees. Everything that God has done, is good, but very few look at things in this way. Why? – They don’t see clearly. What is the condition of a mother who carries her child nine months in her womb? You will say that it is good. Have you ever carried a child in your womb, so that you may know what it is like? It is not easy to carry a child in your womb for nine months! However, after being delivered of her pregnancy, a mother is delighted that a person is born in the world. Before this, she experiences great fear, she trembles in fear that her child might die or something might happen to it. To give birth to a child is a hard task. In order to give birth to a right thought and a right feeling, you have to undergo great sufferings. Everyone who suffers is pregnant with a certain idea. One passes through great sufferings until one gives birth to it. Some women give birth to a child easily, while others do it with difficulty. Some people think quickly, while others think slowly. Once, a priest spoke about an interesting experience of his. It so happened that a woman was giving birth to a child in the house he lived in. She was in anguish three whole days until she was delivered of her child. The woman yelled in her room, and the priest yelled after her. He was tormented so much that he could not go to the church to perform his service. After this, he used to say: “Giving birth is a frightful thing!” You also often grieve and are in torment, without knowing why. Someone else is in torment, but you also have a hard time together with him. That is why it is said in the Scripture: “You shall not covet!” – Why should I not covet? – If you covet, you will pass through hardship and suffering. Until you give birth, you cannot be delivered of them. If you do not want to suffer, you should not covet. Since you have a lot of desires, you will suffer a lot. You will be like the fish which bears much (This is in the meaning of “gives birth to a lot of fish”. If necessary, please suggest a more suitable word). By giving birth, one is delivered from his desires, and by this is delivered from one’s sufferings, too. Here is a particular philosophy of Life that needs to be studied. Let us return to the question of faith as a necessity for humanity. Without Faith, no Knowledge can be acquired. You will believe, you will be in anguish and will suffer, until you give birth to a bright and elevated thought. Ordinary people give birth to their thoughts with difficulty. But the saints and the Advanced beings give birth to their thoughts easily. When an Angel comes among people, first he is confused; he falls into a tight place. Then he gradually finds his way and gives birth to an elevated thought. Even Christ met great hardships until He managed people. He used to say: “How longer will I bear you?” They often asked Him: “Where do you come from, who are you and what do you bring?” What can a man be? – Either an ordinary person or a saint. A saint knows God and bears this knowing within him. It is said that Christ has ascended to Heaven. Not everyone can ascend. One must have patience and wait till the time comes when the Spirit will dawn on him and vest him with strength. Patience is needed for that! You will wait and believe until the Divine in you ascends up towards Heaven. From this position you can work in life among people. You say: “I saw Christ.” – This is not enough. – “I felt the Spirit.” – This is not enough either. It is important that you take in the Spirit and He speaks to you, and after that you apply everything you have heard and understood. The power of the human Spirit is hidden in understanding. I do not say that you do not understand, but you should not put things off. There are new things that must be put into practice without any delay. Many people delay things and therefore they suffer. Someone says: “What else should I do? I have read the Bible two or three times, I need not read it any more.” You may have read it a thousand times, but it means nothing. You must read it so that you write down within yourself what you have read. It is not enough just to open and close the Bible, but you yourself must become a living Bible. Where lies the power of Christ? – In the fact that He can feed a thousand people without having even sixpence. You should aspire to a deep understanding of things, so that God may manifest within you. Be conscious that God lives in you, without wishing yourselves to be glorified. God lives in every human being; therefore you must give Him conditions to manifest Himself. Once you say “I”, you must be aware that God manifests in you. Whether you walk, speak, think or feel – this is not you, but God who lives in you. He teaches you everything. Both a human being and an ox walk, but the difference is great between the one and the other way of walking. Great is the difference between humans’ and animals’ understanding of Life. People need a new, right understanding. Until you come to that understanding, you will stay in your Jerusalem - you will have patience and wait. A day will come when you will go to the woods where you will ascend and vest yourselves with might and strength. Only in this condition will you work as they teach you from inside. A lot of work is in store for you: you will draw knowledge from the tank and put it back. The work that lies before you is like a tank that constantly flows – it fills and drains. When it flows for a day or two, it drains up and has to be filled up again. However, Divine knowledge is a spring which never runs dry. Keep in mind: today God is working hard over the human souls, over all living beings. He puts the world to rights. There will be not a single human being left on earth, who is not awakened. All people will be awakened. The difference between them will be only in the fact that some of them will know why they are awakened, while others will not know and will say: “Our sleep time is over!” One day, when they undergo great sufferings and hardships, they will also realize why they have been awakened, and will start working. They, too, have to wake up from the sound sleep of the past. The one, who has awakened and become conscious, perceives the presence of God everywhere. He sees His greatness and the beauty of Nature. He understands the meaning of Life. He lives with his eyes open. The one who has got up, but has not awakened, is blind to everything. Whatever you say to this person, he sees nothing. The prophet says: “You have deprived them of their sight, so they cannot see, lest they should turn towards You and be saved.” Now I say to you: “Guard yourselves against inner blindness, there is nothing more frightful than this. In order not to get to inner blindness, rejoice at sufferings. He, who has awakened and become conscious, rejoices at sufferings and gives meaning to them. The one who has awakened from sleep but still has not become conscious, has not understood the meaning of sufferings, and becomes embittered by them. The good of man is in God’s Love. 27 September 1936, Sofia 50 EXPLANATORY NOTES 50The morning speech “He creates” is first published in the collection “He creates”, Sofia, 1947. [A] Here “mindful” should be comprehended in the sense of “intelligent”, “understanding”, “wise”. Here “good” should be comprehended NOT as the opposite of “evil”, but in the meaning of “blessing”, “weal”, “boon”.

Note 2p Applying of the Faith, the Hope and the Love

Note 2p Exchange in Divine

MAGNANIMITY AND CHASTITY I will read chapter 10 from the Gospel of Joan, from 22-42 verse. There is one special way of studying the holy books. Many people have forgotten this way. It has to be known that the holy books are not being studied like the ordinary ones. But, the present people have wronged this way and they don’t know what to do. In this relation they may be compared to one our fellow-men who has got confused in the calculation. He has multiplied 6 by 9 and received 54. Afterwards he multiplied 6 by 10 and received 60. When he compared the numbers 54 and 60, he asked himself immediately: How is possible to multiply 6 by 9 and 6 by 10 and to receive numbers with a difference from six units? He deducted 9 units from 60 and has received 51. How is it possible to multiply 6 by10 and to receive 51, less than 54? As much he calculated, as much he confused, till at the end he understood that the mistake is in the nine which he deducted from 60. He has to deduct six units and will receive 54. The present people often get confused since their mechanisms on earth are not managed in the same way as the spiritual ones. It is impossible. There is some likeness between the earth and the spiritual works, but there is a big difference. This difference is visible and between the people who live on earth. Some man has big desires, like the elephant. When he eats, he satisfies himself with 75 kg. rice. Others are satisfied with little – 200-220 gr. rice is enough for him. The first one has more earthly desires, like the elephant. This desire is a remnant from the past. The second one has more spiritual strivings, that is why he satisfies himself with little. Sometimes the elephant has eaten 75 kg. rice a day, but the contemporary conditions are different, it can’t be delivered as there is so much rice in it. One young man marries a beautiful, young girl. On the day of the marriage an unhappy event occurred: the bridegroom felt lethargic and he spent 45 years like that. His sweetheart wondered what had happened to the bridegroom, but she decided to remain devoted to him, to wait for his recovery. It happened only after 45 years through which time, due to the sorrow she felt for him, she become so old that man couldn’t recognize her. When he got up from the long dream, he immediately remembered his sweetheart who he imagined still young and beautiful, as he had remembered her to be 45 years ago. In his consciousness 45 years compare to one day. When he saw her, he was surprised – she looked so old to him. The time and the conditions throw an imprint over the human face, as over the objects. The quicker things happen, the more energy has to be spent. Hurried works don’t happen well. This may be noticed especially in eating. Some say: Eat in a way so that your ears crack. When do the ears crack? – While eating fast? Then the jaws move fast and the ears burst. Ask what will the stomach say? When you eat fast, he starts to protest. – Why? – It can’t manage with the fast thrown food. The intestines protest too. In fast eating the digestion doesn’t occur correctly. One part of the food doesn’t penetrate into the blood and can’t feed the cells. The undigested food lays down a kind of sediment around the joints, as and in the capillary vessels. This is the reason why man falls ill from joint rheumatism. You say: Where does this rheumatism come from? – Very simply, from eating fast and from the unchewed food. – What do I have to do? – You will eat slowly and will chew the food a lot. It is predicted in the Divine plan. After you execute this plan, the work will be arranged well. If you don’t execute it, everything will go backwards. There aren’t any exceptions to it. Today everyone complains about the consequences of their past life. – There is no why they have to correct the bad consequences from the past. Many people have high aspirations, love to God, they pray several times a day, they look from outside like saints. But, after they start to speak, they immediately start to complain of illnesses, sufferings and difficulties. Here people detained them to pay their debts, there people detained them and they wonder what to do, where to pay earlier. When they can’t manage with their obligations, they refuse to pay under the pretext that their creditors are millionaires, there is no reason why they should pay them. It is not like that. Since in the past you have eaten and drunk, you haven’t thought about tomorrow, now you will pay: a little every time but regularly you will pay your obligations. If you are a saint outside, you will be a saint and inside. When you come in life, you say: It is easy to speak, it is hard to correct the mistakes. And so, it is easy to theorize, it is difficult to apply the things. I can speak to you a lot about the music, but it is difficult to sing one tone correctly. Everybody can sing but the real singing is which corrects the confused human works. To sing well, means to chew your food well in order it to suck in yet from the tongue and mouth. The longer the food stays in the mouth, the easier it is to suck in part of the nourishing substances and the prana. In this way they go directly into the nervous system. Those saps, which don’t suck in the mouth, go directly into the stomach where the complete grinding happens. You say that you haven’t got no much time to chew the food for a long time and to keep it in your mouth. – If you fall ill, how will you have time to lie down? As an ill man, you will receive leave for two-three weeks and you will lose much time. It is preferable to eat slowly but to be healthy rather than to eat fast, so as not to lose time and be ill. You say: Let’s love each other! What do these words mean? What does love give to man? You all know it. What does the mother do with her favourite child? She kisses it on the one cheek, afterwards on the other; she kisses it on one hand, afterwards on the other; on one leg, on the other leg, the knees – she kisses it everywhere. Who doesn’t understand the meaning of the mother’s kiss, say: Why does this mother kisses her child so much? Are her kisses appropriate? – They are appropriate. Every child, kissed from its mother and father, becomes a man in the full sense of the word. Therefore, if your works are not being arranged well, you will know that your mother and father haven’t kissed you as they have to. When I speak about chewing food, I have in mind the young man who has strong teeth. What sense has the old, the toothless man to chew his food? If he has got any teeth, he can’t chew it. In order to chew your food, you have to have teeth. What do the teeth represent? They are an emblem of human goodness. And the dog often shows its teeth to man, barks at him. It says: Do you know that I have teeth? How do I manage with the teeth of the dog? I take out from my pocket a piece of pretzel, I give it to the dog and say: Your teeth have to be occupied with something. Here, I have enough little pretzels. Take this piece in order to become friends. When it shows its teeth, the dog wants to say: You have to know that I am just. I act equally with everybody. If you dare to cause some mischief to my master, you will test my teeth. – Be calm, I came here to empty my pockets of the little pretzels. What do you want to do for me? Make it to the little pretzels. When do you have from them, you will understand why I have come. Some people say: God lives in us. – How do you know it? – He says to us to make something which we haven’t thought about. – Have you executed it? One evangelist, our fellow-man, now he is already in that world, said for him: I am very lazy. I want to get up early in the morning, but I can’t, I want to sleep. He has reproached himself alone, but originally he was lazy man. He had short, fat arms, his fingers were fat around the base, the legs – also fat. His whole figure was fat, it was disposed to laziness. The old man in him loved to sleep more; the new man incited him to work and said to him: Nothing can be achieved by sleeping. I will deliver one case from the life of Edison, whose one fellow-men often said to him that he had to sleep more, not to exhaust himself. Edison thought for a long time over the phonograph but he couldn’t decide on it. One night he got up around one o’clock after midnight and he couldn’t sleep. He immediately got up and started to work. At this moment he decided the question which interested him. Satisfied from the decision of the task, he said to himself: If I continued to sleep, I wouldn’t find the phonograph. I said to you too: If you sleep too much, you will not decide anything. If you get up at midnight and you don’t feel sleepy, get up immediately. In this way you will decide the task which you haven’t decided at this moment. The tasks can’t be decided in a dreaming state. The dream is a rest, passing from one state to another. Now let’s come to the singing, to see what is being missed from the present singers. Two men sing. If one has a clear tone but sings rudely, there is no softness. Generally as the singers, as the speakers need softness. This is missing from the present people. Every rude word is reflected in a harmful way in the nervous system of man. – Why? – Because it comes back to him. As the cart shakes the man, as the vibrations of the rude words, of the negative thoughts and feelings produce shaking of the nervous system and man falls ill. It is preferable to walk than to get up on a cart which will shake you to the last cell. As you know it, keep yourself away from thoughts, feelings and actions which shake the nervous system. What does the cart feed from? – from a spring. The vibrations of the human words, thoughts and feelings also need a spring, i.e. from softness. And the singing needs a spring. A Smart man is that one who has put a spring on his cart. Every cart which moves fast in the mental world has to have a spring by all means, in order not to cause any shaking. The nervous system needs a spring. If there is no such spring, it is exposed to violent shaking. Some man says: I am not satisfied with myself, with my quick-temper. What should I do? The guilt is in my grandmother and my grandfather. They were quick-tempered and delivered their quick-temper to me too. – Don’t blame your grandmother and grandfather. They were poor, they didn’t have a chance to buy a spring. Today you dispose, you have funds to buy a spring. How much does one spring cost? – Two-three hundred leva. Even if it is a thousand leva, you can buy it again. You have money in the bank. Take out how much is needed for one spring, so when you sit, you sit in away which is comfortable for you. When I study the question about the rudeness of man, I come to the conclusion that in order for some softness to be acquired, what is needed are the correct conditions. I go into one home, I observe what the relations between the children and the parents are. The children are rude to their parents, they speak snappily, rudely to them. The parents wonder what to do with them. According to me, the reason for this rudeness is hidden in the superfluous energy of the children. If they know how to invest it, they will be softer and more careful. One day the little Ivan becomes a young man and his rudeness gradually decreases. He has found one Lady-bird, which he speaks to softly and gently. When he address it, he calls her little Lady-bird. Why is he grub to his mother but is soft and careful to the Lady-bird? The reason for the rudeness of little Ivan is in the mother. When she was pregnant, she couldn’t carry the necessary softness in little Ivan. That is why, a Lady-bird comes from outside, as a doctor, to cure little Ivan of his rudeness. It knows how to act with him in order to carry in the necessary goodness. What does the softness and the rudeness represent? Rudeness is a bad meal, and the softness – a good and delicious meal. You are an educated man, you understand from a good meal. You go to an inn, to one old cook. You think that he is experienced, he knows how to cook well. But you remain surprised. He puts the meal in front of you, but it doesn’t make you feel good. You leave the inn, dissatisfied and never go back there again. The meal is bad, i.e. the cook is rude. You go to another inn. One young, disposed cook meets you. He puts your delicious, well-cooked meal. Even indisposed, you eat and feel well. The reason for it is the softness of the young cook. Something soft, pleasant is given off from him. To meet this rude man, means to enter into a dark, dusty, unaired room. To meet a soft man, means to enter into a clean, well aired and arranged room. What are the conditions of the spiritual life? – Cleanness, absolute hygiene and airing. The spiritual man works with gold, not with paper money. Everybody knows the price of gold and strives towards it. Gold has a price every time, and paper money is temporary, they lose their price quickly. The points of view of the people for the present life is paper money which loses it’s price yet on the other day Divine in man is gold which never loses its price. If the Divine is in you, you never lose your price. Humans lose their price but the Divine – never. And human things are nice but they are temporary, light, like the paper money. Divine things are eternal; they have value like gold. Which is better?: To dispose with paper or with gold money? There is one little cat here, which often stays at the door of my room, it waits for me to give it something to eat. It represents an example of softness. One day I opened the door of the room to give it something to eat. It gives a mew very pleasantly. There was a special softness in the mew. For this pleasant mew I got up several times through the night to give to it something to eat. For first time I have met a cat which mews so pleasantly and softly. A magical power is hidden in the mew of this little cat. How many times have I heard it mew, I always gave an ear, I listened to it with pleasure. In this way it showed its gratitude. It said: I am being chased everywhere, they don’t accept me; you have accepted me, you give me food. Its gratitude made it pleasant. And God listens with tremor to hear our gratitude, to hear out soft voice, an expression of love to Him and to our fellow-man. I take this little as an example of softness and gratitude. Outside it is weak, gentle, with modest clothes, but there is something pleasant in its eyes, and in its voice – something musical. When I hear its mew, I become disposed immediately. It can be compared to a buyer who gives the baker a gold coin. Everybody understands the price of the gold coin and puts it in his pocket. Even an animal, brings something Divine in itself too. When I listened to the mew of the little cat, I say: if one little cat can express the Divine in itself, what remains for the man who has come out from God? Man can express the Divine not only like the little cat, but much better. Desire is wanting from man! If he has it, he gives a chance to the God in him to express itself in fullness. When you read the holy books, you stop on the little and the big prophets and see the big difference in their characters. Some prophet speaks severely to people but with softness. He judges them, scourges as a judge, but it becomes hard to him. That is the way many of the present judges act. One judge spoke to me one about his experience. One case between rich and poor man is being examined. The last one owes one big sum of the rich man. By law he must pay his debt. By conscience the case in use of the poor man. If I don’t apply the law, I bring responsibility, they will judge me. I applied the law and I judged the poor man to pay the obligated sum to the rich man. But my conscience spoke to me: Now you will pay the half sum to the poor man to help him. I agreed and I took part in the debt of the poor man. It means to awaken the conscience which understands which side the right is. By conscience, the right is on the side of the poor man, and by law – on the side of the rich man. This judge is a follower of the New teaching and acts accordingly. What do we do? – We produce one decision every day, we judge ourselves; it is correct by law, but not and by conscience. Be such a judge: to judge and the poor man, and the rich man after they are guilty. Once the Turkish judicial procedure became very quickly. There weren’t any defenders there. A poor man complains to the judge that he has worked for one rich man who doesn’t want to pay him. The judge calls the rich man and asks him: Do you owe money to this poor man? – I owe. – Pay him immediately, still now, without any delay! It means efficiency of the destiny. Today everyone, like judges, constantly postpone out cases. One judge postpones the case, the second one postpones it, the third one postpones it, the fourth – also till at last somebody decides to examine it and to give a resolution. There is such an example with one big case which came into the hands of one experienced German judge. He constantly postponed the case and almost his whole life was financed from the funds of this case. In this time he married his daughter. His son-in-law was also a judge. Instead of a dowry, he received from his grandfather this case with the words: Here, this case may rise you. You may spend all your life on it. The son-in-law took the case, examined it and pondered it for two years. When he heard about it, his grandfather told him: This case decided your destiny – you can’t be a good judge. If you work like that, you will go hungry a lot. To postpone the cases with years, is a wrong tactic which conceals some self-seeking. The uses of short procedures do not serve any useful purpose. These are intimate works in the human life. If you don’t think correctly, you can’t use yourself with the blessing of the invisible sensible world. It pays attention to the essential of the things. If you think correctly, and there is not softness in your thoughts and feelings, your thought is not absolutely correct. It is necessary to have love in the thought, and in love – softness. It improves life. Softness is a healthy state of human life. He who has softness, studies easily, he educates himself easily, he educates his children easily. Everything may be reached with softness. Without softness man is dissatisfied by himself, from his thoughts and feelings. When I make observations over the human manifestations, with this I study and the fruits. Still from outside I guess the conditions every fruit has ripened under. The Best fruits are those which have been exposed to the south; afterwards come those ones which have been exposed to the east and west, and at last come the ones exposed to the north. The same thing may be observed with the watermelons. Eat watermelons which have been exposed to the south to see what difference there is between them and those which have been exposed to the west or to the east. And eat only the upper part of the watermelon, not the lower part which has lain on the earth. Make this attempt for one month to see what result you will have. The same thing may be observed with people. Every man wants to be soft and sweet but he can’t. The more people are exposed to the north the less they grow. There is one place which man has to stay in, in order to be shone on from all the sides. Can man make a house without north windows? In the house of one scientist the idea came to make a house either on the north, or on the South Pole. Only there will it be shone on from all sides equally. Since the man and the woman are the poles of life, man has to be born now like a woman, now like man, to acquire the necessary softness and sweetness. Then man will not live on the equator but will live on his pole which is shone on from all the sides. Some man hasn’t been shone on as he had to be. He says: it is cold to me. – You are in the North Pole. – I will go to the equator. – According to me, there is no reason to go to the equator, but you will stay in the North Pole to acquire softness as a man. In order to acquire the necessary softness as a man, you have to be magnanimous. In order to acquire the necessary softness as a woman, you have to be chaste. The pole of the man is the magnanimity; the pole of the woman is the chastity. If man is not magnanimous, he can’t acquire that softness which will carry the new in his life. If the woman is not chaste, she can’t acquire that softness which will carry the new in her life. Remember: The softness will bring the new life. The magnanimity and the chastity are conditions for the acquisition of the softness. One of the beautiful features of man is the magnanimity, and to woman – the chastity. It is pleasant to meet magnanimous man. His walk is light, movable, flexible. It is pleasant to meet a chaste woman. She has a beautiful figure, well-knit, with nimble, light movements. There is no more beautiful thing than a magnanimous man and chaste woman. He, who wants to acquire the necessary softness, has to be magnanimous and chaste. The magnanimity demands an excellent mind, and the chastity – an excellent heart. The magnanimity demands a brisk, powerful spirit, and the chastity – unbounded, large soul. – Where are they? – In you. Give place to the mind, to the heart, to the spirit and to your soul to manifest. If you reach it, you will acquire the necessary softness. For this aim man has to be free. – Let us leave everything in the hands of God. – Leave everything to God but listen to Him and execute His will. He says to man: Be magnanimous by mind and spirit. He says to woman: Be chaste by heart and soul. What he says, they must listen to. Man to be magnanimous and chaste, these are possibilities, put in him. When I say this, I come in your state. You live in a world of big fights and contradictions, of big adversities and difficulties. You load yourself with the responsibility to decide which necessary special conditions are. If you expect these conditions, you will know that they will not be given to you. If you think that the world may be managed easily, you are lying to yourself. You will wait a long time, as you wait to win in a lottery. The world today contains all the necessary conditions for you, but you have to believe in it. – Is there an exit from the state we find ourselves in? – There is, but it is demanding sensibility for it. One girl, the best daughter in the family, was the smartest, but in spite of this everybody in the house was against her. She wasn’t upset by it and patiently endured everything. One day the entire family went to the mountain, on a trip. Unexpectedly, the weather broke and turned to snow. They were frozen to death and looked at each other in wonder at how to make a fire to keep warm – nobody had predicted it. There were trees but a match was necessary. Their good daughter had predicted everything, she brought a match. In this way she helped to her family to escape from the hopeless state. Till this moment everybody had called her Maria, but when they saw her foresight, they started to call her Mariyka. Only the sensible man is provident. And so, the bad states of life are nothing other than a possibility of God to manifest his Love. Mariyka will come from somewhere, will strike the match, will light the fire, and from this moment out of the soul will come happiness. There is no better thing for man than to be spiritually disposed, to be soul, mentally and heartily disposed. There are the tasks which expect its decision. – How will they be decided? – In an inside way. These tasks are important and for this, and for that world. A wealth hides in their decision making, which man will bring with himself in the other world. You will remain everything on earth but this wealth you will take with yourself. It means that the only wealth which man will bring with him to that world, is the softness of his spirit, the softness of his soul, the softness of his mind and the softness of his heart. -The good of man is in Divine Love. 9. Morning Speech from Master, delivered on 31 January, 1937, Sofia – Sunrise. Magnanimity and Chastity

Study and Serving I will read chapter 9 from the Gospel of Joan, from verse 22 further. Now I will speak clearly, defined over some things which you have to know. It refers mainly to the old people because all the mistakes are in them. The old people say: They tormented us. – Who has tormented you? – The young people. – It is not true. The old people torment the young, and the children, not the opposite. The fact that it is like that, look what the relations are between the big and the little children in one house. When the mother leaves her home, the big brother fights the smaller one as it says: Early mother has brought me on hands, but from the time you have been here, she has left me. You took my place. The little brother cries and doesn’t understand why it is beaten. Not only do the children cry and don’t know why they suffer but the old people suffer without knowing the reason for their sufferings. I say: The present people suffer from ignorance. When they think that they know much, they say: Everything may be reached with faith. It is right but only that man believes who knows things. Faith is a condition for the development of the human mind and for the serving of God. And love is a power man works with. If you have love, you are strong and you can work; if you don’t have love, you are weak and can’t work. Hope is an assistant of faith and of love. It makes the smallest works. That is why man has to serve with the faith as a condition for acquiring knowledge, with love – as power for work, and with hope, as an application of the acquired on the smallest scale. Only in this way does he serve God and executes His will. Some people say that they don’t understand the sense of the circle in life. – If they don’t understand it today, they will understand it in future. The circle is a notion of something, as and the man is a notion of something which has to be educated. You meet one man, well dressed, and other – badly dressed. The clothes are secondary work. It doesn’t influence upon the mind and heart of man. The clothes give only a notion for something but it doesn’t define the man. It is only outside decoration. The clothes don’t make man good or bad. The good man, and with the nice, and with the bad clothes, is always good. The bad man, and with the nice, and with the bad clothes, is always bad. Remember: Man is master of himself, not with his outside wealth, not with what the other people possess, but with faith, the hope and love in him. So, man is a master only to himself and God is Master of the whole world. When they don’t understand where their rights stretch to, sometimes people want to have their way with everybody. No, you don’t have rights over the others. – Why? – Because their right has been given from God. To be a master of yourself, it is your right, it has been given from God to you. What will you acquire if you take with violence the rights of the others? Some man comes into your home, he wants to teach you how to live, what to do. How may I teach man? For example, I want to teach him on generosity. How will I teach him? First I have to show him what a thing generosity is, how to give and how much to give. What people give, doesn’t show that they are generous. Some man has given money to his acquaintance and he thinks that it is generous. It is not generosity. Some man raises his hand to bless and says: I bless you. It is not a blessing. Another question is if with the raising of the hand you call Divine blessing over man, they both have to acknowledge the power of God. Only in this way does Divine blessing have power. May you say that after you have baked the bread, you have been fed your home? The wheat feeds man. You have only sown and reaped it. The power which you acquire from the bread is owed to the wheat. Now from all of you one is demanding: to acknowledge what God has put into us. When I have this in mind, I know if I act correctly, or not. There is no why to ask people for it. After I act well, something stirs in me. I hear the silent voice of God which says to me: You acted well. If I don’t act well, I will hear the silent voice tell me: You didn’t act well, you are not just. Why am I unjust, why don’t I act well, He doesn’t tell me anything. – I know how I have to act. – It is not important. You are unjust – nothing more. You have more knowledge than you need. Why do you have to have so much knowledge? You compare to that millionaire who after he had a hundred million, wanted to have 200 million. Why do you have to be greedy? Today God wants from everyone first to complete His work. According to your confusions and love works, you have abandoned Divine works backwards. The young man, a servant in some house, has fallen in love with the servant-girl, he has become enraptured with her and has forgotten his obligations. And young and old people do the same and remain Divine work backwards. – Who is the reason for not executing your obligations? – Love. – What do we have to do then? After you are a servant, you don’t have to be enraptured. When you become a master, then you may be enraptured as much as you want. If the master sees that his servant has become enraptured with some servant-girl, he says: Is this the work I pay you for? You don’t have right to be enraptured with the servant-girls! It means: If you, an ordinary servant, have the right to love a royal or princely princess? The ordinary man has got no right to dream about the royal princess. What happens really? Only the royal son has the right to fall in love with the royal princess and to dream about her. Every ordinary man may stealthily to take a look at her, to sigh and say: This girl is beautiful but she is a royal princess. If I only try to come close to her, they will beat me. There are exceptions to this rule but it happens rarely to an ordinary man to fall in love with the royal princess and to have access to her. The ordinary, the mortal has got no right to fall in love with the royal princess. He will not be happy with her, neither she – with him. How many men may marry for the royal princess? – Only one. She has her sweetheart. In the kingdom of her father there are millions of subjects. How many of them have the right to marry her? – Few. She will choose only one from them. It refers only to the earth life of people. In Heaven the relations between people are other. When we come to real love, there the relations between nature and life are in absolute harmony. When love is not correct, the relations are not correct either. If between the mind, heart and will there is no unity, then harmony doesn’t exist in life. Often the disharmony in life is being provoked from the collision between the new and the old points of view. The old points of view, the old thoughts and feelings enter contrary to the new and produce disharmony in man. Everybody has this experience. Everybody has tasted the envy of the old to the new. The old doesn’t believe in the new. If you are a baker and somebody comes to want the keys of your pay-desk, what will you do? Will you give the key to him? You will not give it because you don’t believe him. – He is a moral man. – He may be moral but you don’t know him. If in the house of two young people, man and woman, one young preacher enters with desire to turn them to God, will they believe him? The young man will doubt the preacher. – Why? – He doesn’t believe him. He still doesn’t know the new moral and doesn’t see it in the face of the preacher. I say: Don’t go to turn the young people who love each other. Love already has turned them, there is no reason and you turn to them. God is in them. – they have to believe in Christ and to start to love Him. I repeat: Don’t turn people but awaken them. If two young people are asleep, say them: Get up! After you see that they get up, continue your way. Don’t stop to ask something about their love. Show your love to them. If you want to turn them to God, you will come upon big contradictions. What is wanted today from people? – Application. Everybody has some understanding which he has to apply. The understanding refers to how he has to be served. – Who has man to serve? – First he will serve to God, afterwards to his fellow-man and to himself. – We have to study, to finish a university. – It is the final work. You will study, will acquire cleanness and holiness, but gradually. The first task is, when you study to serve to God. The remaining things are ornaments, clothes. Have you, when you preach Christ’s teaching, to strive to nice clothes and a hat, to wealth? Many people think that in order to preach, they have to have money. Could people be turned with money to God? Or with knowledge? – Neither with money, neither with knowledge. Man is sent on earth to work for God. It is his first obligation. The knowledge is necessary too, and the wealth is necessary, as a secondary thing. – Who does the mother preach to? – To her children. She has to have two children – two buds. She has to preach them the Speech till they bloom. It is the task of the mother. It is already time we to work for God, to serve to Him, to satisfy Him. Then our faith, hope and love will increase. The difficulties and misfortunes in our life will disappear gradually. Our life will improve inside. One of the difficulties in human life is owed to the fact that everybody wants to put the other people in their places. It is not YOUR work. They will want to put you in your place too. What will happen then? – Mess. Who may put who in his place? It is the same as some doctors to come one after another to put your eyes in their place. One of them will say: Let us take out the right eye in order so that the left will not be infected. Other will say: Let us take out the left one. For the Third we will say: Let us operate on both eyes. Don’t succumb to this advice. Don’t take out your eyes. One man from Turnovo felt seriously ill. Some abscess had appeared on one of his legs. He went to the hospital for advice from the doctors on how to cure himself. They examined him and they said that the leg had to be cut to the knee. Otherwise the other leg would be infested. – I don’t give my leg. Why does God need my leg? If he wants some victim from me, I am ready to give the whole of my body. I came to earth entire, I will come back to God entire. I will leave hospital. I will go back to my village, there I will cure myself as I understand. After six months he went into the hospital to see the doctor who had examined him and said: Mister doctor, I am in perfect health. – What happened to the leg? – It became well. God didn’t allow my leg to be cut. What is wanted from people? – Teaching and serving of God. He, who doesn’t study and serve to God, enters into a collision with Him. He goes to God and he complains from about his brother. Do you know what it means for the son to go to his father and to complain from about his brother? You will say that your brother is bad. Who is the reason for it? – The mother and the father. They have brought him up badly. As you know it, don’t complain from about your brother. To complain from about people, it means indirectly to throw mud in the face of God. No matter in what form the complaint comes, you throw mud over the First Reason of things. God will say nothing to you but you soil His name. – My brother is bad. – Do you know what the word “bad” means? It is easy to say to man that he is bad, that he is a blood-sucker or rich. All the poor people fight over him and accuse him of being a robber. They say that his wealth has been robbed. But there is and other understanding about the rich man. He is a cashier of God. He uses it with His trust. Only one thing is wanted from him: to execute his obligation. He has to know how much to give to everyone. Who ever takes money from the Divine bank, has to be ready to give. But it is impossible in one given moment to help to everybody. You say: We have to help each other. – In one given moment you may help only that man who stays in such a place where you will pass. He is defined for you. Only you can help this man. He has come on the counter where you work. You will take his check and will change it. – Do you have the right? – I have the right. Christ opened the eyes of the blind man and the entire question was raised: Who has opened his eyes? How has he opened them? The Jews didn’t want to acknowledge that Christ had opened the eyes of the blind man. They said: “God has spoken to Mosey, we know him; He hasn’t spoken to that one, we don’t know Him.” Wonder! The then Jews hadn’t lived in the time of Mosey. How do they know that God had spoken to Mosey? Today they see in themselves a man who performs miracles and don’t believe that God performs these miracles through Him. To the asked questions from them, does the cured man who was blind from birth and how his eyes opened, his parents said: “He is on age, let he alone speak for himself.” What do we see in the read chapter? – Conflict between the old and the new. The Jews were dissatisfied by Christ because He had destroyed the old order, confused their understandings. What has to be done then? What does the mother have to do when the big brother fights with his little brother. She has to separate them. She will separate the big brother from the little one and will give him all the conditions for development. The big brother is the old one in world and the little – the new. Therefore, the old and the new have to be separated. They can’t live in one place, to eat from the same food. If they remain in one place, it is enough for the mother to go out for a moment outside and the big brother will fight the little one by all means. I can tell you what the reason is behind it but you will not use anything from it. According to the Hindus it is carma, according to the occultists – fighting between the old and the new. I will deliver one example for a rich and poor man. One poor man worked for one rich man. The rich man was a big miser, he didn’t like to pay his debts. The poor man kept silent, suffered, but it was impossible to force him to pay. Something unexpected had happened: the rich man had unexpectedly died. According to the then habit people didn’t bury the rich men immediately; they left their bodies on the graveyards and they buried them on another day. Making use of it, the poor man took one stick, went to the graveyards and started to fight the dead man. What happened? From the hits of the stick the dead man got up, looked around and when he saw that his poor man took revenge by fighting with him, said: Don’t fight me any more, I will pay you everything that I owe you. He thanked him and went home. I asked: If you were in the place of the rich man, wouldn’t you be glad? If I wasn’t the poor man, they would bury him alive. Thanks to the stick the rich man survived. – Why did the sufferings come? – It is the fight in the graveyards. – Why do they fight us? – to pay your debts. If they don’t fight you, you will be buried alive. It is better to be fought a little but to live again than not to fight you and to bury you alive. After you survive, you will invite a poor man to your home and between you will create friendly relations. It is a law: When love comes, the fight comes too. Say thanks for the fight which comes from God, not from people. When man is tested man, God sends Love. When the mind of a man is being tested, God sends faith. When man is being tested in the physical world, God sends hope. – Why are people able to have wealth? – In order to work. God gives them sheep, bulls, fields, vineyards in order for them to torment and to work in entire days. Otherwise they will become indolent. – We will suffer with this wealth. – You will suffer, you will punish yourself but and you will study yourself. So, God tests the heart of man through love, the mind – through the faith, the will – through hope. To serve to your wealth, to your sheep and bulls, to consider them as private property, it is Divine punishment. You will occupy yourself with one idea, with another idea, and in this way you will acquire knowledge. As a rich man, the mental world will test you. – How? – Through faith. In this way you will acquire knowledge and will increase your faith. People say that God punishes everybody who He loves. It means that love punishes. For that man, who doesn’t understand the laws, love is a punishment; for that one who understands them, love is a blessing. It is terrible if love rises jealousy between people. The sensible man finds ways to manage and with jealousy. Sometimes one beautiful, wise, good girl lived. Ten young men fell in love with her; everyone of them was ready to sacrifice himself. She understood that if they remained all together, they would start to be jealous. That is why she decided to send them to a foreign country to study. She said to them: I give a hundred thousand leva to each of you and post date it to five years through which time you will gather the most precious stones in the world. They agreed and went to wander about. After five years they came back to her with precious stones and much knowledge. Now, said she, you will travel five years more to gather the most beautiful flowers in the world. They went with joy to gather flowers and to acquire knowledge. In this way she sent them into the world to study until they became 120 year old men. At last they came back to her with desire to receive an answer of whom among them she prefers. She said to them: Now I will come in one retort and you will see what happens with me. She started to melt till she had completely melted and disappeared. When they lost their last hope, the young men started to cry and to say sorry for the lost time for one girl. They said: We learned many things but we lost the girl. Today many people complain and say: We learned many things but we lost the girl. Said with other words: We learned many things but we lost love. – You haven’t lost love. It has the characteristic to become small and widen. In this case it has been become so small that she has become hidden in your hearts. You suffer because you search for it outside. It is better for your love to be inside you than outside. If it is outside, it will start a conflict about who should take more from it. Everybody will take something from it; one will take a hand, other – leg, third eye, ear and so on. Don’t separate love. It is indivisible. Don’t put God in you with regards to contradiction. Don’t say that this or that brother doesn’t live well. How do you know if he doesn’t live well? You want to live like you. – His eyes move too much. –How do you know it? – He makes his eyes to my wife. – It is impossible. If he makes eyes, he will not be able to see anything. How did you see this? So and you have made eyes. You haven’t looked at God, you haven’t listened to His Speech but you have made eyes to your wife. Then you don’t live well either. People are a wonderful thing! If you enter one art gallery where hundreds of pictures are exposed which present the rising sun, what will you do? You will look at these pictures but you will compare them with the sun of life which rises every day. According to me, people are pictures which represent the rising sun. They give an idea for the live sun but don’t carry life in man. That is why, when the sun rises, I will leave everything and I will go to meet it, to see its first ray. The pictures of the rising sun are not bad but there is no life in them. A rising sun is a great thing! As you know it, don’t occupy yourself with people, but at the same time, people should not become occupied with you. Occupy yourself with the live sun which can give you what you need at every moment. And so, what is wanted from you is learning and the correct serving of God. Put more trust in each other and leave God to correct the works of man. Some man comes to me, he complains about his brother. – Leave this work, God will correct it, keep out of His actions. One day and I wished to correct one mistake, but God said to me: Keep out of this work. I will correct it. Really, if I occupy myself to correct it, I will spoil it more. God knows His works. He knows the fine points of things and corrects them. He, who has made the watch, knows how to touch it in order for it to work well. One is wanted from man: not to make a mistake. If he makes mistakes, he has to correct them alone. Imagine that two men come to me, one after other. To the first I give one ring from copper, with a beautiful form. He puts the ring on his finger and is glad that he has received something from me. To the second one I give one gold ring with a diamond. He puts the ring on his finger too and is glad of the expensive gift. He shows it to everybody and praises that I have given him such an expensive ring. The first man sees it and takes revenge on my side in partiality – Where is the mistake? – In the second one who hasn’t listened to me. When I gave him the ring I said to him not to show it to anybody, but he hasn’t listened me. He had to hide the ring and just to look at it from time to time. And so, don’t show your golden ring to people when you want to show yourself as a great person. Strive always to take the last place. It is better than the first place. I always take the last place and I am satisfied. When I catch a tram, I take the last place again. After there are many people, I leave them to get up before me; I get up last. This place is very calm, nobody pushes me. When I get on the tram, I leave everybody to sit down, I stay right. If I hurry to sit, somebody will come and will say: Please, squeeze up in order for me to sit down too. In such cases I prefer to stay right. Keep the rule: Never take the first place in life. Always follow if the big fights the little. The little are not guilty – the old are guilty: the mother and the father. After it is like that, I have proven myself to be guilty too for all the misunderstandings between you. If you argue, I am guilty. If someone has died, I am guilty; some man has become poor, I am guilty; some have become rich, I am guilty; some have felt ill, I am guilty too. Whatever happens in life, I am always guilty. What I have to do in order to remove the guilt from myself? In order somebody to live, I have to let somebody to die. For example the hen has to die in order for his master be able to live. The hen asks me: Why you have put me to live in hencoop, but man – in nice, big house? – Only in this way you will rise. – Till when people will slaughter me? – Till you become man. You have to pass through the stomach of man in order to become like him. First you will pass through difficulties and afterwards you will be blissfully happy. You will be born as man, with two human legs, you will speak as man. – Is it truth? – You will try it. In fact, it still doesn’t prove anything. We don’t know what a Divine plan is. We can’t take the place of God. Whatever we talk, wisdom exists out of human understandings. All the contradictions, as and the good, as and the bad, have its purpose. – Why does the bad exist? It is not important. God said to me: “You will not eat from the tree for knowing of good and bad.” – Why I don’t have to eat, I don’t ask. It is said to me that if I eat, I will suffer. It is enough. The tree for knowing what is good and bad is not for me – nothing more. The snake said to Eva that if she eats from this tree, she will become like God. Why didn’t they have to eat from this tree, it is not known. It is a secret, deeply hidden in man. The deep sense of things is hidden from him. One day, when he reaches the biggest deepness of life, to its philosophy, man will understand why he hadn’t eaten from the forbidden tree. It may be after a thousands years, it is not important. This question can’t be decided today. Some man says for himself: I am a good man. On the other day he sees bad things in himself and says: Wonder, I didn’t know that I am so bad! I have the desire to take revenge on people. – the works don’t agree with revenge, but they don’t agree with good either. It means that you can’t arrange things either with good, either with bad. The only power which reconciles things is love. After you come to the law of love, all bad disappears. – What does it mean when love reconciles people? Imagine that two men hate each other. The reason for this hatred between them is hidden in the past. The one has robbed the other. The robbed man can’t forgive that man who has robbed him. The last one comes to the distressed one and said to him: Brother, forgive! Sometimes I have robbed you but today I am ready to correct my mistake. I leave my whole treasure at your disposal. Will you hate this man now? You are ready to forgive him. Therefore, in order to be reconciled with God, be ready to sacrifice the whole of your wealth for Him and to become His servant. If you say that you first want to correct your life and afterwards to serve to God, you are going in the wrong direction. That is why you shouldn’t make a noise around yourself. You will occupy yourself to serve God – nothing more. Till now you have been only a master. There is the evil. You will be a servant, not a master. God has served too and continues to serve. Whose mother hasn’t served her child? When it grows up, when it becomes a big son or a big daughter, the mother says: I have served to you till now, from now on you will serve me. Now you have grown up too, have knowledge, you are already able to serve. You have knowledge like I; you have love like I. You know the good water; you understand the good things. You are dressed with nice clothes, even and not with the most expensive ones. What sense is there to dress in your most beautiful clothes? And you have so many clothes that you have got no opportunity to dress in all of them. If you change your suit every day, for 365 days you need 365 suits. How will you manage with them? It is big Tovar. One thing is important for you: To strive to the knowledge which will be appeared for you in future, and to see in your brother at least one good feature. If you see the good in your brother, you see God. If you see the evil in him, you look yourself. Don’t look at yourself in people but look for God in them. It is a method for resignation with people. You will never be reconciled with man till you don’t see God in him. Therefore, in order to be reconciled with people, you have to see God in them and for them to see God in you. – I don’t know how I have to see God in my fellow-man. – Don’t justify yourself! Everybody knows how to act. After it is necessary to manifest my love to somebody, I complete my work alone. In other place somebody may replace me, to do one job because of me; but on the attitude of love nobody is able replace me. There I complete my work alone. It is said: “God was in Christ and has reconciled people with Him.” If God is not in us, we never would be reconciled with people. - Is God in you? – He is not. – After God is not in you, you haven’t been reconciled with people. God has to live in us in order to teach us how to be reconciled and how to love each other. It is said that God is love. What does man represent? – A conductor of God, i.e. of His Love. Man is a conductor only to one part of love, not to the whole love. If I am the red ray of the light, I can play only the role of this red colour but not and to the remaining ones. We will come to the remaining colours – the orange, the yellow, the green, the blue, the violet, there the role of these colours is being played from other people. Now, as I give different examples, I observe how they deflect on you. If the example is positive and I look at some of you, it is becoming pleasant to him; if the example is negative, it is becoming unpleasant to him. If I pass near somebody and I don’t look at him, he takes offence and says: Why hasn’t the Master looked at me? Sometimes I consciously don’t see because I don’t want to confuse you. Some man steals. Why will I confuse him? When I don’t see him, I think that he puts something in the pay-desk, not takes. – How is it possible? This man steals. I think that he puts something in the pay-desk. If he really takes, he will give the money back soon. This man is not bad. After he has taken one bag, he will take two. After this I correct his mistake by myself. I open the pay-desk and I put two bags instead of one. Who wants to correct the mistake of his fellow-man, has to put into the pay-desk two bags instead of one. It means the verse: You have taken gratis, give gratis!” Keep yourself away from the role of reconciler. It is a prerogative of god. Don’t say that you love. Love is a prerogative of God too. The only right of man is to serve God. I want to teach you how to serve. There is no better thing from man than to serve to God. Remember: There is no greater thing than the teaching and the serving. Teach and serve! The rest of the works are for God. He will come to you to teach you how to love. He will come to you to teach you how to be reconciled. It is a science which only God may deliver. Christ says: Father doesn’t judge anybody. He is eternal and unchangeable Love.” When people have turned to Christ with the words: “Gentle Master”, He said: “Why do you call me gentle? Gentle is only God. He always forgives.” God never sees the evil in people and says: Man is good. I created him good. If he has made some mistake, I will correct it. Really, God corrects all the mistaken works of people. The bad, the distorted which you see in people will be corrected. – When? – Whenever; early or late, it is important that it will be corrected. Believe in good and serve God. In this your happiness hides. There are no impossible things for God. The impossible for man is possible for God. – Why doesn’t will succeed in life? – Because we strive too much for knowledge, and to big wealth. Afterwards you don’t know how to manage with this abundance. You have to be just! Some man comes to me, stays more than an hour, wants to take much from one time. – What will he do with what he receives? If he is able to develop it, it is good; if he can’t develop it, he will suffer. Another man comes to me, stays only five minutes but is not satisfied, he wants to stay an hour too. I have decided for people who come to me to stay a little, five minutes. That is why I will accept them or in warm room, as bath, or in much cold. But it is inserted, it is not essential how I will accept my guests. Who has some difficulty, and in warm, and in a cold room to be, he will stay for more time again. It is a side question. For you is important to know how to serve to God. When you serve to Him, He will teach you what love is and what – the teaching is. Love is abundance which reconciles the things. When you have enough resources, you will manage easily with your creditors and debtors. If you don’t have resources, you can’t pay your debts and you will search a way to be reconciled with your creditors. Since the abundance is in God, we have to leave Him to live in us and to manifest Himself freely. After God lives in us, let us say in one voice: Let the Divine will be, not our. Let us all execute His will as he demands. Let us wish to execute Divine will from our hearts! He knows what work to give to everybody. The unity will be in execution of Divine will, the variety – in the work which everybody will make. Remember: All will be corrected in our world, that is why I wish to you to teach and to serve. There is no better thing than this. Teach yourself well and serve God well. The present world needs from disciples and from servants: To teach themselves and to serve the others. Who or what has been learned, let him apply it. Who or what has served, let him say it. Let everybody feel yourself inside so free that wherever he goes to feel pleasant to teach and to serve God. Christ says: “If you love me, you will keep my orders.” Without love, Divine law can’t be executed. Without love it can’t be served to God. The teaching and the serving are two processes through which love comes. Only love will correct the world. Teaching without serving and serving without teaching doesn’t cost anything. What you learn, you will serve it; what you serve, you will learn. Only in this way we will give a possibility to God to manifest in us and to reconcile people one with another. There is no better thing than two men to reconcile themselves and to start to love each other. In order for two men to love each other, it means everyone of them to have such respect and esteem to the other as to he himself. People want to be helped without them take the same obligation to the others. In order for other people to help you, you must have absolute faith in God, not to harbour evil thoughts and feelings for anybody. What better than to have the trust of your friend and to always rely on him? To have absolute faith in God, it means in all kinds of conditions of life – as sinful and just, as illness and health, to know that everything will be corrected, will arrange well. What do you expect today? – To come into the new life where love reigns. Where Divine Love is, there all kind of contradictions disappear, all the mistakes are being corrected. The new life understands ending with the accounts of the old life. What the old life is, you all know. It has good sides but it has bad sides too, with which you have to be liquidated. It is said of the new life: Neither an eye has seen neither an ear has heard what God has prepared for those who love Him.” Said with other words: An eye hasn’t seen and an ear hasn’t heard what God has prepared for the souls which teach and which serve to Him.” I wish you to come in the great good which God has prepared for you. I say: You all are good but you haven’t manifested your goodness; you all are rich but you haven’t manifested your wealth; you all are educated but you haven’t manifested your erudition. Why haven’t you manifested yourself? – You haven’t the conditions. And God hasn’t the conditions to show Himself as Love. Which is the reason for it? You are reluctant to make one little effort, to give the chance for the Divine Love to manifest itself in you. You say: God can do everything. Therefore, He can manifest himself when He wants. But God doesn’t do anything by force. People have stayed in the way of God and are being an obstacle of Him to manifest. This obstacle has to be removed. You can’t you manifest yourself too. There are obstacles to you too. In this state only God can help people. – How? – He comes in Christ and reconciles people with Himself as He forgives them all the sins. After this He says: “Go with peace, live and don’t make more mistakes.” If god doesn’t forgive the sins of people, the carma will come upon them. If it is being put on the back of people, they will sink. Reconcile yourself with God in order to free yourself from the debts, to become lighter and to get out on the surface of the water. When I speak to you this morning, you wish God to come in you. He will come but on the condition that you will not complain about your difficulties. Why do you have to tell Him that that has offended you, that hasn’t evaluated you. God will hear you but He will not take a part. Here, you complain to me too but I keep silent, I don’t take any part. No matter which side I take, the work will not be corrected. It is important to everyone to be given what he needs. Everybody has to satisfy himself in the Divine way. The hungry man has to be satisfied, the thirsty man has to be satisfied. Only in this way man shows his gratitude. He becomes generous, ready for all kind of sacrifice. If you don’t satisfy man, bitter feelings are being borne in him. And so, everybody has to be satisfied correctly, in Divine way. The satisfaction is not a mechanical process. It understands the resignation with God. Give place to Christ in you in order to reconcile yourself with God. Then you will not want God to love you because He loves you in any way. Only one is wanted from you: Don’t put hindrances in the way of Divine Love! Only in this way will God manifest himself Which was the main thought of the today’s lecture? – The Teaching and serving of God. I repeat: Teach and serve to God! Only in this way the resignation will come. Only in this way Love which brings the new life will come. The new life brings the resurrection. The good of man is in Divine Love. 7. Morning Speech, delivered from Master on 17 January, 1937, Sofia – Sunrise. Study and Serving

Divine Food I will read chapter 9 from the Gospel of Joan, from 21st verse. “He speaks for himself.” (-21 verse) When you come back at your houses read chapter 32 from the book of prophet Jeremiah. Three crimes trip up man. The first crime is the shedding of blood on earth. The second crime which man has made and stumbled Alone in it, is distortion of his heart. To distort your heart, means to distort your senses and to go after foreign gods. After distorting his heart, man enters into the area of the injustice. He doesn’t serve only to one God but to many gods. Under these conditions man inevitably coarsens. He thinks only for himself and leads from what is pleasant for him. He leads only from his personal feelings and interests. What gives proctor to the human soul and helps in its development, is Divine Love. To give place to this love in you, means to be a conductor of good. The third crime which man makes is the distortion of his thought. In this way he moves away from Divine Wisdom. The distorted, the wrong human thought is reason for discord and misunderstandings between people. The child is angry with its mother that she hasn’t given it anything to eat on time. Is it right to be angry? The poor man is being angry with the rich man because he doesn’t give him trees, coals, clothes to spend during the winter. Does he a have right to be angry? Everybody wants to arrange first his work, then the other works. And it is good but in the Divine world all the work is arranged. We don’t have to take care of the Divine work over ourselves. “ The World is not created for one; it is created for everyone. Therefore, from a Divine point of view, it is defined a little place for every man. He has the right to use from the place and of the others. But, if he tries to appropriate the foreign places, he acts against God. Has man to wish the good of his fellow-man for himself? Has he to envy that somebody has more goods than him? Imagine that you meet a man, well dressed, with new, nice clothes, with new shoes. You look at him, and simultaneously to yourself, and say: Look how elegantly this man is dressed! My clothes are old, worn out and my shoes are worn. It awakens envy in you, you feel unpleasant feeling towards him. If you look at the things with resignation, you will say that this man is clever, deserves to be well dressed. Simultaneously you see how this rich man eats good food. On his table some kinds of food are put which are well cooked and you eat dried bread. You ask yourself: Why does this man eats so well and you just find the dried bread? If you are being reconciled easily, you will say: This man is clever, he knows how to eat. I am stupid, there why I am satisfied with the dried bread. Who doesn’t think like this, remains unappeased. If you are a little child, you have bigger brothers and sisters, you say that your mother loves her big children more, that is why she dresses them nicer. It may be like this, it may not be like this. What will you say if you are 25 years old man, who works somewhere and doesn’t dress yourself well in spite of it? Is your mother guilty again? The guilt is already in you, in your character. But, if you don’t like the truth, you will search for the guilt in your mother, in your grandmother and grandfather, from whom you have inherited some features. As disciples, you have to be sincere, always to speak the truth. You travel in the evening through a wood and you fall into one big puddle. You wonder how this puddle has formed and how you have felt in it. When people ask you why you are muddy, you say: I fell into one puddle. I wonder how nobody has seen it in order to remove it from out of the way. It means that the guilt is again in other people, not in you. You know that you will travel in the evening. Therefore, you had to bring a torch, to light up your way. There why I say: Don’t search for guilt in your mother that she doesn’t love you as much as her other children. Don’t search for the guilt and in God. Don’t say that He loves one person more, others – a little more. He gives everything to His favourite children, to these that He doesn’t love, He deprives them from the vital. It is a wrong understanding. In spite of this, this is the way some believers think. They say that God is Love but when they find themselves in difficulty, they doubt in His Love. It is the white lie which people stumble alone from. You go to one good dressmaker, you want her to sew some clothes for you. Till you are with her and watch how she sews, she is correct. She sews the sewing well, even and the most hidden. After you go, she starts to work in her way. Those places which are visible are well sewn. The places which are hidden, she sews in a hurry, from above, so as not to waste time. It is a white lie too. Outside the cloth is well sewn, but inside – badly, the needle had just passed through it. Could you be satisfied by this dressmaker? I ask: Which is the reason for the human dissatisfaction and indisposition? There are many reasons for it. They may be from physical, from heart and from mental character. Somebody pricks you with a needle in the arm. You lose your disposition immediately. The reason is physical. If consciously or unconsciously he has pricked you, it is another question. He may prick you and with his tongue, to tell you one offended word with which to disorganize your sensual world. At last, he may prick you and with his thought. No matter in which world he pricks you, you lose your disposition. Ten mothers gather and speak. The fifth mothers love each other and their children love each other. The five mothers don’t love each other and their children don’t love each other. The first five mothers speak well for their children; after they start to speak for the children of the other mothers, they immediately start to reproach them. If somebody listens these conversations, he will be dispirited. He sees that they are in the wrong. It is not correct to speak well of these people that you love and badly of those you don’t love. You will say that it was always like this on earth. Even if it was like this, it is not correct. You will say that and on the other world it is like that too: some people are in Paradise, on eternal felicity, and others are in hell – in eternal torment. One question appears: what is reason for this? – Man may torment alone, and others may torment him. If you stab yourself with a knife it the arm, who is reason for it? If you don’t love truth, you will say that others have forced you to do it. Somebody kills himself or drowns and it is written that the reason is the big despair he has felt inside. Simultaneously, as guilty for his despair, he directs somebody else. – Why man kill himself? – In order to acquire something that he has not got. It is atavism. Through a murder things do not happen. Nothing can be reached through drowning. If you are fish, there is a sense to throw yourself in the water. That is the way how and the sheat-fish throw it, catches more little fishes and satisfies its hunger. What will you catch in the water? Not only will you will not catch anything but you will die, will become a victim of the fishes. What do we see in the life of the present people? In justice everywhere. And the world, and the religious people are extremely unjust to each other. The spiritual man watches how his fellow-man prays and criticizes him that he doesn’t pray as he has to. How man has to pray, he doesn’t know too. Others say that the weather improved because he had prayed to God. It is an unjust conclusion. Don’t think that you only pray for the improvement of the weather. Hundreds of people pray together with you. Their prayer has contributed something too. You say: This house is mine. – The house is not yours, you have received it through inheritance. – I made it. – You haven’t made it. Around ten workers have taken part in its building. I ask: Who may praise you with something that he has made alone? Tell one good in which you have taken part alone. I don’t say that you don’t make good, but in every good many creatures take part. Good is collective process. You say: Last year my garden bore much fruit. – You have worked much. This year you have less fruit because you have worked less. Till your trees bear fruit, you will always visit them. After they stop to bear fruit, you leave them. It is self-seeking. Such are the relations of the present young people. The girl loves the young man not because of he himself, but for his qualities. He is young, powerful, health, he can keep her. He is handsome, educated, works well, he can feed and dress her well. Others the relations are of the health to the ill man. You love the ill man and help him, you are ready to make sacrifices for him. This love is disinterested. The girl draws from the healthy and handsome young man. If she goes to the ill man, she gives there. The girl relies on the strong young man, but if it comes to his handsome, she loses soil under her legs. – Why? – Many girls strive to this young man. All of them like him, all of them flock to him. The girl starts to get jealous, she is afraid of losing him. Many girls may appropriate the young man, but nobody can take away the beauty. It is deflected on the human face but it is elusive. But, the girl wants to hold the beauty of the young man only for her. When I speak for the young man who strives to the beautiful girl, I have in mind the spiritual side of the question. It means that he strives to the beautiful sense in man. The young man takes the beautiful girl’s arm and walks complacently around with her; he wants to show her to the people, to see his sweetheart. Another young man does absolutely the opposite. He looks to hide his sweetheart from the eyes of the foreign people. If you marry, who would you prefer? – The first. – Really, the first is preferable, but and in the showing of the sweetheart to people there is something wrong. And both of the actions are not ideal. To manifest your beautiful feelings on show to people, is vanity. To close and hold your beautiful feelings only for you, is self-seeking, jealousy. Today you have come to listen me. You compare to that young man who leads his sweetheart everywhere, everybody to see her. Those, who haven’t come to listen me, you compare to the jealous young man who keeps his sweetheart hidden, so that nobody sees her. They say: We engage with God, that is why we haven’t come to a meeting. It is not the truth; they don’t engage with God. Neither these who have come on the meeting engage with God, neither do those who haven’t come. Nobody speaks the truth. The prayer is an internal process. You can’t pray in a defined time: only in the morning, at lunch or evening. You will pray when your soul wishes. It means to pray with disposition. You may pray and inside, and outside. As you know it, don’t say that when you pray in the evening at home, then you go to God. The psalm singer says: “I will praise you, God, at a big meeting.” It is not said anywhere that you will praise God only by yourself. Christ says: “If you want to know me, come into your secret little room and pray secretly.” For which secret little room it he speaking of? For your little room at home? No, you will enter inside in yourself, in the holy place. – Which is this place? – It is the place which is far from every suspicion, from every doubt, from every hatred, from every lie, from every darkness, from every envy. The place you are now is a place of lie, of argument and hatred. These are your houses. The clothes you dress with are soaked with negative thoughts and feelings. What will you say about it? Some men say that I don’t love them. They think like that because they don’t have love in their hearts. From morning to the evening they care only for themselves. Does God have to live for me or do I have to live for Him? Are the legs created for man or is man created for the legs. Of course that the legs are created for man. Therefore, they have to be of use to man, and he has to care about them, to wish good for them, otherwise they wouldn’t serve him. I ask: Which is the way we may be good to God? – in a way which is dutiful. Unless you study to serve God, you can’t find the right way. It is a law: God loves all those who serve to Him. He who only serves himself can’t be loved by God. To love only you, means to be exposed to sufferings. To serve God, means to be glad. The serving of God brings life. The suffering understands that you have more love to you than to your fellow-man. – What has that man to do who lives only for himself? – He has to let himself free, to stand the consequences of his life. You want all the people to be good to you. They want the same too. It is not bad but everybody has to demand it first from himself. Be good to the others in order and they will be good to you. The mother is good and indulgent to the mistakes of her child, but not and to the mistakes of the other children. If she has one item of clothing, first she will dress her child. It is natural. She can’t dress all the children with one item of clothing. But she may make one item of clothing and for the other children. It is a question which refers to all people. The hindrances may be moved with collective taking part of everyone. They have to unite, to deliver food to everybody. God has given enough food but people don’t distribute it uniformly to them. Thanks to this the contradictions which are being created. Since people are not good conductors of Divine Love, hatred is being raised between them. They are not good conductors to the Divine Wisdom either and that is why the curved and distorted thoughts arise. That is why I say: People themselves are the reason for their sufferings and unhappiness. Big and many are the sufferings of people, but you are not responsible for them. You are responsible for your sufferings and you can move them away in every moment. – How will I move them away? – As you carry Divine Love in your mind, in your heart and in your power. The mind has a relation to the mental world, the heart has a relation to the heart world, the soul – to the spiritual world and the power – to the casual world. It is not speaking for the spirit, he hasn’t come yet. That is why we don’t say let us come to love God with our spirit. Mind, heart, soul and power – this is the way you have to walk on. Till you pass this way, you will experience huge suffering. It is inevitable. As you know it, work consciously upon yourself, free yourself from the connections and the desires of the body. If you don’t succeed in this, even if you leave for the other world, you will go around long time your grave. Your fellow-men will think that you have gone to God but you know truth. Few people know who is free from his body and who is connected with it. As disciples, you have to study the human and Divine love, to distinguish them. Human love presents concaved plate which contains everything. When you fill it, you have a meal. If you decide to give away everything what you have been gathered, you will remain hungry. Divine Love presents a protruding plate with the bottom upwards. Before something is to be poured into it, it already has given it away. It doesn’t keep anything for itself. When you give away everything that you have, you feed yourself. It means that if you live in the human love, you will constantly gather it; if you live in Divine Love, you will constantly give it. What constantly takes is human; what constantly gives is Divine. These things are not bad but you will know: When you take constantly, you will be fed in a human way, but in a Divine way – hungry. If you constantly give, you will be hungry in a human way, but in a Divine way – fed. Then you will choose one of the two: or hungry in a human way, or hungry in a Divine way. If you feed in a human way, you will feel Divine hunger; if you feed in a Divine way, you will feel human hunger. Which from two you will choose, it is your work. According to me, it is better man to be fed in a Divine way and to be hungry in a human way than to be fed in a human way and to be hungry in a Divine way. Which food is Divine? Which way of eating is Divine? – The mother feeds her child with Divine food and in a Divine way. Originally the child doesn’t know how to eat. The mother opens its mouth and puts food into it. He, who serves God, eats in a Divine way. People outside come to feed him. When will they feed you in a human way? When you are ill, you can’t move your hands, that is why your fellow-men feed you. – How the just man feeds on earth? – When people speak badly of him, it is Divine lunch. He needn’t be grieved. If somebody says that people grieve him, he eats it in a human way. Be glad even when they speak badly of you, in order to eat in a Divine way. And both ways of eating don’t decide the tasks in life. And so, in order to understand life and to decide your tasks, you have to know the human and Divine love and to make the human the love servant of the Divine. Until they are separated and independent one from other, you will always come upon contradictions. If you want to settle your contradictions, put the human love to serve the Divine’s. In this the settling of all the questions remains hidden. If you don’t do it, your life remains unsettled and you will remain such as you are now. When will the new come into the world? – When human love becomes a servant of the Divine’s, it has to become voluntarily, not with violence. Man alone has to force his love to serve the Divine’s. Only in this way will all your contradictions be removed and you will come into the new life. The new to come in you, means to refuse your will and to penetrate into the wish to execute Divine will. It understands entering in the right way of life. To fascinate your will to the Divine’s is correct understanding. It refers to all the kings, patriarchs, bishops and ordinary people, to all live in the world. Everybody has to be submitted voluntarily to the Divine will, to become a servant of the Divine will. To serve God – here are the keys of life. Out of this serving, all the keys are empty work. For this aim you have to be clever and good. Clever is only he who has fascinated his love to the Divine’s. Good is only he who has fascinated his knowledge to the Divine Wisdom. It may be done from everybody. It is said in the Divine prayer: “Forgive our sins as we forgive our debtors.” You want to follow the Divine way. – How will you reach it? – When you forgive the debt of your fellow-man. Somebody has to give you something. Forgive his obligation. Forgive everything that he owes you. If you want to serve people, you will take the money from your fellow-man. After you erase the debts of your fellow-men, and God will erase yours. Now I speak and to young, and to old people. The first thing which is wanted from everybody is to force your love to serve the Divine’s; your will to fascinate the Divine’s. – Who is young and who – old? – According to me, old is that one who forces Divine will to serve his. Young is that one who forces his will to serve the Divine’s. – Who is beautiful and who - ugly? – The young is ugly. – Why? – Because he is in the process of forming. Is the unripe fruit beautiful? But, when it ripens, it becomes beautiful. Strive to the youth as an uninterrupted process. Be eternally young, to fascinate your will to the Divine’s, to refuse from your old human habits, to follow the way of perfection and beauty. The young man constantly applies his virtues in the serving of the Divine. Morning Speech of Master delivered at 10 January, 1937, Sofia – Sunrise. Divine Food

The Reality of Life I shall read chapter eight from the Gospel of Joan, from verse 14 onwards. Many people ask themselves: Is the life on earth real or unreal? Is it actual or not actual? It depends on people’s understanding of life and from the sensible application of their understandings. For example, no matter how much you talk to the Angel about the sufferings of people, they remain a theory for him. Even to show him your sufferings as experience, they again will remain for him an unknown area for him. He sees the human sufferings as a mathematical problem. The same refers * and to you. Some real things are tasks for you without understanding them. You say that one angle deviates to two, to three and more degrees, but what the deviation is in fact, you don’t know. You say that this deviation may be ascending or descending without understanding it. You say: A:B = B:C. But you don’t know what this relation represents in Life. These relations must be explained. For example the steam has relation to the water. If there is no water, the steam would not exist. The steam has relation and to the rain drops, came out from the same source as the water. You don’t know what the relation is between the water steams and the rain drops. You know only that the water transforms into steam which goes into space, where it cools off and in the form of rain drops falls onto the earth again. Have you fallen down from a height of four – five kilometres, as the rain drops, hit the earth and stayed alive? You will say that it is a relation, but what is said from you is not enough. You can’t imagine how man may be in relation as the steam is to the water and the water - to the steam. I say: Things become real for man only when he tastes them. People speak about love but they don’t understand it. For them it is not real. – Why? – Because they haven’t tasted it, they don’t know it. If it is eating, if love is drinking, they don’t know it. Someone says that he feels things, therefore he loves. The feeling, the sensation is not love. Another says that he has become hot, that he burns from love. – The process of heat, the warming is not love. When somebody falls in love, he notices that his neck, legs, arms widen. – It is not love either. The widening is a consequence of something. Characteristic of the matter is to widen from the warmth. Love is something elusive: it can’t be looked, it can’t be heard, it can’t be touched. You read the book of some genius, great scientist or philosopher. You admire from it, keep it as something holy, but where is the holy thing? Where is what fills you with enthusiasm? You search for it in the words but you don’t find it; you search for it in the letters, it is not there either. You hear that somebody speaks or sings on the radio. You say that man speaks or sing, but where is man? The voice comes from afar but man can’t be seen. If your consciousness is awake, you will differ whether one man speaks or a few do; if one man sings, or the whole choir. And you may distinguish the different voices of the singers. No matter how much you can distinguish the different voices, you can’t accept again what a real man is. He is elusive too, as love. You say: This man is sorrowful. – Where is his sorrow? – He is joyful. – Where is his joy? You don’t see either his sorrow, or his joy. His joy and sorrow don’t represent man himself. They have a relation to him but man can’t be seen. Every man has relation to the outside world but he can’t explain alone the contradictions which penetrate his soul. You stay alone and are being confused. Why? – Something worries you. You are a trader and you hear that people speak on the radio that the price of wheat has fallen. You deal on the stock-market and when you hear this news on the radio, you lose your peace immediately. You have just calculated that, when you sell the wheat at one defined price, will make a big sum of money. The wheat isn’t interested in its price. It doesn’t want to know if its price has fallen, or has risen. And the ox doesn’t care what price they will sell it for. He stays calm and ruminates. Who has bulls, he cares if their price falls. If their price has risen, you are glad and say: “My work is being put in order.” Your work is being put in order but not and the work of the ox or of the bulls. If the price of the bulls goes down, your work becomes bad. But the bull doesn’t care about this, its work doesn’t put in order again. Whether your work is put in order or becomes bad, the work of the bulls always remains wrong. You say: I made a mistake. – The price of the bulls is falling. – How have you made this mistake? One bad thought passed through your mind. – This thought has soiled me. – It is as if an automobile has passed near you and has splashed you. It has soiled your clothes, not you. The mud hasn’t reached you, and you start to feel sorrow. It shows that the present people have vague concepts over some questions. – I want to understand everything. – How will you understand? You understand only when the prices of the bulls rise or fall. In the first case you are being glad, and in the second case you feel sorrow. When the prices falls you say: It is painful. – Nothing is being painful to you. It is a reflection. – I shall lose the respect of people, I shall lose the status I hold in society. – It is the truth. Man is not being respected for the dignity which he has as a soul, but is being respected for the money, for the houses and the fields, for the bulls, for the possessions, for his physical power. It is a respect of outside things. It doesn’t depend on what man brings in himself which is invariable. The money, the bulls, the houses, the possessions, the wealth may be taken away from you. What will you do then? You will say that you are in the state of the just Iov who has lost everything. Even people acknowledged him for justice, Iov had to make one correct philosophy for life. He was a rich man, esteemed and respected by everybody as good and pious, but in spite of this, he supported the philosophy: Everyone for himself. But, when he passed through big sufferings, he acquired something valuable, he understood his mistakes, he repented and became a real just man. Iov had reached the third category of life. After this, Satan came to tempt him. In one of his advices God asked him: Have you seen my good slave? Do you know him? Satan answered: He is rich, has children, fields, vineyards, bulls, he is satisfied in every way. Take away his wealth, then you will know him. Give me the right to test him. I can’t give my opinion right now. When I test him, then I shall give my opinion of him. The story for the just Iov is occult. In it, is hiding, one inside side of life, You can’t imagine how God pushed Iov into the hands of devil to torment him. God said to Satan: After you want, you can test Iov. First you will take away his whole wealth, afterwards his sons and daughters, at last you will touch and his body. In this way you will know his power. You will test his love of wealth, to his children and, at last, to him himself. You will not go further than these tests. When Iov lost his wealth Iov said: God gave, God took. When he lost his sons and daughters, he said again: God gave, God took. But when he fell ill and his body was covered with scabs, he didn’t say as in the first two cases but cursed the day of his birth. It was one hard serve which he had to make. Since the beginning he didn’t understand what was wanted from him and how to execute his serve, he said: Let the day on which they put me on this hard serve be cursed! You say that it is not Divine when man curses his destiny. With it you want to say that Iov was soft, of a weaker character man. Who between you, if they put him in the state of Iov, may give a better example? What will you say and if your body is covered with scabs? You will say: It would be better if I had never been born, i.e. not to accept this serve. When you acquire material goods, you feel glad and afraid that somebody may take them away from you. Somebody may take them but they may not to take them, but through wealth the biggest trials and unhappiness will come to you. Wealth is beautiful, like a loose woman, without any morals. Whoever smiles at her, she is ready to go with him. There is no man whom she loves. What is important for her is that he is rich. When she meets him, she looks at his hands, for the money, and says: Hold the money out, don’t lose it. In it stays your grandeur. And the money says to man: Till I am with you, everybody will esteem and respect you. After I leave you, you will become an ordinary man, a beggar. It means the tinkle of the money. And nature has one coin it serves with. Its coin is made from clear gold. It is a beautiful, noble woman. Between the money and the noblest woman is the gold. It hasn’t got any weakness: it doesn’t oxidize, neither does it rust. Wherever it enters, whatever it makes, it never soils. As you know it, keep yourself from money, i.e. from the women who oxidize and rust it. They bring poison in themselves. And so, if you want to understand life, take over my words, to understand their inside sense. You will assure yourself alone how much you know. You think that you know much. No, these are old clothes, a remainder from the past which you sell at a rag-fair. If you sell these old things, you will receive or millions, or they don’t cost anything – it depends on their inside contents. As you know it, strive yourself towards the new which opens the way of man to the boundless life. You ask me what the words that love is a door through which it has to be passed means. – No matter how much is spoken about this, you will hardly understand it. Instead of explaining it to you, I will take you by the hand and we together will pass through the door of love. To speak about the door of love, is as if we are speaking about money, or about material works. On earth, people speak mainly about material things. On earth, real things are not being spoken about. Sometimes, charity is spoken about as if it is a real thing. Who has seen the charity? How may the charitable man be identified? Some say: I am a charitable man. – I look on the head, I don’t see charity anywhere. If you want to see a charitable man, let us visit ten men and I shall show you who between them is the most charitable. I shall tell you how the charitable man may be known. One needy man goes to the first of them and says: Please, accept me, I want to say something to you. – I am busy, I can’t now. He goes to the second, he receives the same answer: I am busy, come another time. He goes to the rest of the seven men but they don’t accept him either. The tenth accepts him, listens to him and satisfies his needs. The applicant wants from him one sum to support his family. – How much do you want? – 20 thousand leva in all. I have a son and a daughter who study, I have to pay fees, to buy them textbooks. He takes this sum, says thanks and says to himself: This is a good, charitable man. He says good bye and goes home. He passes through one wood where robbers meet him and attack him. They take his money, but because he resists, they fight him well and break his leg. He remains in the wood helpless, with a broken leg and without any money. He looks here and there, he hopes that somebody will come to help him. The first of the ten men passes by, but he hurries on, he was occupied, doesn’t stop. The second one passes by, he doesn’t stop either. The third one passes by and immediately stops and starts to speak in a distressed way. – What happened? Why are you crying? – One good man has given me 20 thousand leva, but the robbers met me, robbed me and broke my leg. It would be better if he hadn’t given me anything, not to happen this unhappiness! If I hadn’t been passing through the wood, nothing would have happened to me. The charitable man consoles him, binds up his leg, put him on his donkey and takes him to his home, there to cure him. He says to him: My friend has made one mistake which I shall correct. When he became well the ill man, the charitable man said to him: Call your wife and children to see them. They came to him. He helped everyone. He satisfied their needs and sent them on their way. They had to passed through the wood but no-one of them has suffered – they haven’t brought money. They spoke with the robbers and separated in a friendly way as they have given them one little sum. The robbers remained surprised as a result of this meeting and huddled up between the trees with the desire to rest and to think what to do next. In the same way that sometimes Adam has huddled up and hidden from the face of God. He hasn’t any notion how merciful and gentle God is. When God had searched for him through Paradise, Adam had been silent, he hadn’t wanted to say anything. At last God found him and asked: Adam, why are you hiding? – I made a mistake, God. The woman you gave me lied to me. I fell into temptation with her. The real charity we see is in the face of Christ. He came to earth, took the sins and the sufferings of the whole of humanity and liquidated them with his life. He showed to people how charity manifests itself. It is not necessary to give money to people and to let them pass through the wood, to expose themselves to new sufferings. Be charitable to people, remain to live together with you, where there is order. If you make your charity in a human way, you will expose people to trials and sufferings by all means. Wealth leads to trials. First Christ showed how charity has to be manifested without putting man to unnecessary risk. You say: Tell us something more for charity. – I have given you the material, you have to develop it. What has the teacher on mathematics got? He gives rules to his pupils, explain to them what is a simple triple rule, a complex triple rule, equation and after that he leaves them to decide alone. If there just is a sense, after he has given the rules and models for their decision to waste his time with them to decide all the tasks? The pupils will decide their tasks alone. There are tasks for the decision for which a lot of time is needed, but the pupils are indebted to decide. You search an easy way to decide the tasks. The easiest way is through addition. One one and one one make two ones. One ox and one ox make two oxen. One louse and one more, make two lice. You will say that the lice can’t be added. You are right, any teacher hasn’t given to his pupils tasks in which to add lice. In fact, the mother is the first teacher of the child but not in addition, but in deduction. When she sees that the child has lice, she immediately takes the hair-comb and takes them away. Really, it is not correct way of the work. You can’t teach your child to deduct if you haven’t taught it to add. One is wanted from man: when he adds some quantities, to be ready to bring the consequences of their addition. You ask yourself why people don’t succeed in their life. Very simple, they don’t succeed because they have started with the deduction, not with the addition. It is a wrong method of working. Two men gather in one place and they immediately hurry to separate. This is deduction. Everybody wants to go back from where he has come out from. When the young girl falls in love in some young man, she hurries to gather with him. Till that time everything goes well. After they marry and she wishes to go to see her mother, all the work collapses. It is a process of deduction. But, nature allows the deduction as an action only between the lice. It is not allowed to be taken out of people. When the first man makes a mistake, he is transformed into a louse which was taken out from Paradise. Therefore, the first action which Adam learned was deduction, not addition. When he put the first people in Paradise, God gathered them but they haven’t understood this process. They transgressed and there why were they taken out from Paradise. If just two people gather in one place, what do they have to do? Can you gather them? Can you gather two saints in one place? It is the most difficult work. You may gather two saints in one place if one is bigger than the other. If the two are equally old, you can’t gather them in any way. The most difficult action is the addition. You ask: Isn’t the equation addition? – It is not. The equation is a process of taking and giving. When he makes a mistake, man creates conditions for the drawing up of equations in him. As a process, the equation is still incomplete. Are your relations to God, to your fellow-man, to yourself equations? The teacher has given some tasks to his pupils. It is his obligation. The work of the pupil comes down to the equalization of his relations. If he doesn’t equalize them, he hasn’t decided his task. When he just accepts his obligations and tasks, man executes the will of God, and simultaneously knows himself and his fellow-man. You ask: Will we know each other in that world? – You don’t know yourself here, it is hard to believe that you will know yourself there! The knowing has a relation to love. You can’t know somebody if you don’t love him. It is a law. If you don’t love man, you don’t know him. – I know him. – It is an illusion. You can’t speak for that world until you have seen and felt it. I speak to you for that world, for the heaven, for Divine world, but they still remain misunderstood for you. You don’t have an image for the Divine world. You torment yourself, you want to present it, to understand it in some way but you don’t succeed. The difference between the earth and life in heaven is enormous. In order to understand life on earth, to use it and for it to be useful to others, you have to be healthy, to have knowledge and at least one virtue. Only in this way will you enter into communication with people, with life and will be useful for everybody. – Can’t it be without virtues? – It can’t. You can’t love one man who hasn’t at least one virtue. You may love one dead man but you love him for something: there is one good feature in him, or some virtue. You may have respect for the educated man, but not love. But the virtuous man you may love. What is demanding from man in order to be esteemed and respected? In order to be esteemed, it has to have something in you with which to respond to the esteem and the respect. You can’t be a banker if you don’t have money; you can’t be a farmer if you don’t have a field; you can’t be smart if you don’t have a mind; you can’t be good if you don’t have virtues. Man has to have something in himself with which to respond to the reality. You want to study the reality but the time for some things hasn’t come yet. They are for the future. – Whenever it was, after you have entered into the School, you have to study. The letters of your primer are torn, you have to study it again. – We need money. – How much money do you want? – Ten thousand? One hundred thousand? A million? A Milliard? No matter how much money you have the question remains undecided. Do you think that the money will fall in love with you? In the end, they will draw from you. Your mind, heart, lungs also will leave you. And your virtues will leave you too. – The whole earth will leave you and you will remain alone. What will happen with you? – When it will happen? – When will you go to the other world. Now, when I speak to you about death, you say: How will we die? What dies in man? – The unreal dies. All the shadows have to die – nothing more. First the painter puts many shadows over his picture, but he deletes one part of them. He remains only these shadows which give the expression of the picture. If the picture has more shadows than is necessary, it loses its beauty. You will say that around the eyes it has to have circles around the eyes, to look deeper. The eyes are deep and without circles. They present a deep valley which you may kill yourself in. If you fall in it, you can’t get out. The eyes are a deep lake, in which, if you don’t know how to swim, you will drown. You will say that the black eyes are beautiful. They are beautiful but they are and deep. Who doesn’t know how to swim may drown easily in them. As disciples, it is good for you to study the eyes, if they are concaved or goggle, as and their colour. If the eyes are concaved, the physiognomic says that you have in front of you a deep lake; if they are goggles, you have a mountain top covered with snow and ice. If you cheat in such eyes, you will go deep into the valley. What will you do then? Take one rubber boat and descend with it into the deep lake. So, if you are on the black and concaved eyes, i.e. on the deep lake, take a boat and descend with it into the lake. Otherwise you will drown. If you are on the goggle eyes, i.e. on the mountain top, covered with snow and ice, put points on your shoes not to cheat yourself and fall into the valley. When you want to penetrate into the eyes of man, it means that you want to understand his spiritual life. Remember: Truth is behind the eyes, Wisdom is behind the ears, Love is behind the mouth. Behind the nose is a human mind, behind the lips is a human heart, behind the arms is Justice, and behind the legs – the virtue. Now it seems to you as a theory. In future, these things will revive for you and will become real. These are symbols behind which something real hides. Justice, the virtues are real things which today few people understand. One day, when you understand them, you will see what they represent. They have their language too. When listening to these things, some people say: We were stupid people. If you understand the sense of the world stupid man, it is true that you are stupid. Not only you but even and the genius, and the saints are stupid people. It is like that on earth. You see one saint humbled, silent, passes imperceptibly between people. You meet one rich man dressed with a leather coat, with a sable hat, with a cane in his hand, look around proudly, self-satisfied, as he has fascinated the world. But the saint walks humbly and says: I am an ignoramus, I don’t know anything. – He doesn’t know anything but people search for him, please him to cure them. He puts his arm over their heads and they become well. How it happens, he doesn’t know either. He walks and speaks to himself: I am a stupid man. Everybody says for him that he is good, educated man. He is really good because he doesn’t tempt anybody. According to me ,a good man is that one who doesn’t tempt anybody. When the saint meets one beautiful girl, in order not to tempt her, he immediately disguises himself as an old man, with a wrinkled face. She asks him: Grandfather, where are you going? – I go to walk a little. She goes with him and they two start to speak. He tells her his life story and she listens carefully. She invites him to her home and says to her mother: Mother, I am inviting one guest, one grandfather, who has passed through many sufferings. I ask the girls: Have you walked with some saint in order to know what he represents? I ask the young men: Have you walked with some saintly woman in order to know what she represents? The girl searches for the young saint, and the young man, the young saint-woman. It is not for reproach but I say that the reality is not in the outside side of the things. You say that this one is young, that one – old. Young is that one who doesn’t understand the reality of life. What is reality expressed in? – In love. Out of love, everything is temporarily, meaningless. Out of love, life can’t be understood. You say that life is good. – What else will you say? Life is good but it could be better. You live on earth but think about heaven. You ask: Will you be the same on heaven as you have been on earth? – From your present body will remain nothing. – Will we know each other? – You will not know each other. When you see one old, broken down man, will you know in him that little boy which you watched tens years ago? You say: And this was sometimes a little, beautiful boy. But, in reality the old man and the young man may live together, to understand each other and to love themselves. In this state, the old man may take the form of the young man, and the young man to take the form of the old man. In this way they will execute two services: The services of a young one and of an old one. But in the unreal world, neither the old man may execute the role of young man, neither the young – of old. In the real world man may take the role of a woman, and the woman – to man. On earth it can’t happen. Why? – Because the life on earth is unreal. It is a world of illusions. Until are on earth, man and woman constantly fight a woman wants to be a man, a man doesn’t want to be a woman. But, neither woman may be a man, neither man – a woman. – Why? Because they have both stepped over Divine law, but they make mistakes up and until today. – What do I have to be? – A man. It is said in the Writing: “And God made man by His image and likeness.” Now I don’t want to have the form of man, either the form of a woman. You have to refuse from your form too and to wish to be a man. If you don’t refuse from your form, you will not enter into the Divine Kingdom. It is said: “Flesh and blood will not inherit the Divine Kingdom.” And so, you live in a relative world which you have to study. All the things you serve with on earth are given to you as temporarily appliances. In front of you, it opens up a great future. What this future is, I will not explain to you right now. What woman will be then and what man is, is not important. We have to be men – it is important. How will you explain, why when the man or the woman who haven’t lived will die, cry each other? The woman says: My man fought me but I am sorry for him. He was good! How I wish he would come back! And man, when his wife dies, says the same. She has tormented him too, but he forgets everything, he feels her absence. What do man and woman represent? Man is wisdom, woman – love. So, man looks for love, woman – wisdom. Man is a form behind which wisdom hides. Woman is a form behind which love hides. As forms, they are shadows of the reality. When they don’t understand it, woman says: I don’t want this man. Man says: I don’t want this woman. The question is not in the not-wanting, look to pass from the shadow of man and woman in the reality of life. You will enter into the reality only when you pass through the forms of man and woman. You say: What is being spoken now to us is much wronged. When we come upon to what we have learned and what is being imminent to learn, we totally acquire the wrong image. – Tell me then something in a more clear language. If the daughter invites one old grandfather into her home, her parents will say nothing. But, if she invites one young man, they will remain in a special opinion. The mother will immediately ask her daughter where this young man comes from, if he has an education, what he has finished, what he does, how much he receives. – I don’t know, I haven’t asked him, I don’t dare to talk about it. What meaning is there for you where the young man has finished, what he does and how much he receives? If the young man invites one girl into his home, he will be asked too: Where this girl is from, if she has an education, if she has money? Woman – housewife has to have two qualities: To cook well, to satisfy the taste buds of her man and to dress well. It makes a man glad. If she has these qualities, a woman may always satisfy her man. In the ability of a man to dress, hides the ethics of life. Who doesn’t dress well, is far from these ethics. Who cooks well, he lives well. Therefore, if you want to understand what the girl is, look how she dresses and how she cooks. In order to guess what a man is, understand how he thinks. A man has to think well. It is demanding for him. If the woman says to her man that he thinks well, it shows that she has valued him correctly. On earth, in order to facilitate a good life between man and woman, man has to think well, and woman – to cook well and to dress well. These qualities have a relation to the practical life of man. Man and woman have to apply these qualities in their life in order to understand each other and to acquire good results. When some woman comes to me, I ask her: Do you know how to cook? – I am learning now. – Your head will suffer a lot. In Turkish time, somewhere around Varna, in the home of one Bulgarian and one Turkish bey the bold came on a visit. Ivan said to his wife: Aim to cook well because the Turkish bey the bold will come to lunch at home. – I shall cook a chicken to satisfy him. When they sat to have some lunch, the bey the bold first tasted the meal and said: Ivan, who has cooked? – My wife. – Come to me. The bey the bold picked up the pot with the meal and poured it over the head of Ivan. When she saw him, his wife asked: Ivan, why are you so soiled? Who has soiled you? The bey the bold. Look out, you have to cook well another time in order not to bring about the consequences of your carelessness. And so, the Divine Spirit gives an impulse and to woman, and to man to think. To think correctly, it is wanted from every man. Generally, woman takes the inside work, man – the outside. When he comes back from work, man works on probation to his woman. There are and man cook but the women are specialists. Man has to learn from a woman how to cook and to dress well. Man stays humbly by his wife and listens to her lectures on cooking and good dressing. He is satisfied from these lectures and says: Do you see how beautifully I dress myself? – Till you dress well, you will live in Paradise. When you don’t dress yourself well, people will chase you away outside. Cock-a-double-doo! – it is what the cock says to the hen, too. It struts, passes near it and goes on its way. I say: Use from the new which life brings. If you remain with the old, you will be endure huge sufferings. Some woman complains that she can’t live any more with her man. – Who forces you to live with him? – I can’t remain in his house any more. – After you can’t, go out. When you don’t feel well with him, leave his house. He hasn’t called you by force. – I can’t live on rent, I am already tired. He has to make a house, not to move from one house to the other. – Where will the man find money from? – I want to have three-four rooms available, with steam heating and a bathroom. – You want too much. You search all the conveniences on earth and in, spite of this, expect to be accepted on heaven with beys, as a saint. – How will we go to the other world? – As butterflies. Till you are on earth, you will be treaded on as worms. After you transform to butterflies, you will leave earth and will go to the other world. Many people say: We learn so many years and haven’t acquired anything. – How many years you learn is not important. How you learn, is important. I have given you many examples. Have you taken over them? Have you understood their sense? What lesson have you taken out from the example for the Persian saint and his followers? Do you remember this example? The Persian saint had many followers. One day he decided to test their love. For this aim he called everybody and said to them: I want you to sacrifice for me. Who is ready, let him enter into the dark room to give his life. When they heard it, one after another people started to step back. Only five to six men remained at the door of the room, but they hesitated too. One young girl called: I am ready to sacrifice myself. Immediately after this, her sweetheart called too: And I will come with you. You know that I can’t live without you. The two young men entered into the dark room and waited for the moment when the saint steps over to the operation. He took out one oven in front of them, drove the knife into its throat and let all the blood run outside. When the followers who were waiting outside saw the blood, they bristled with terror and one after another took flight. The young men, who were in the room of the saint, stayed patiently and waited for their time. They thought: We love each other and we will see to the other world – nothing will separate us. Then the saint has risen his arms upwards and said: Be blessed from God! You are worthy of life. Live in peace and love! I say: If you are able, too, as the two young men, to sacrifice yourself for God, you will have his blessing. Only in this way will you enter into the Divine Kingdom. If you remain outside and look as soon as possible to run, you will never enter into the Divine Kingdom. – Can’t we enter into the Divine Kingdom without trials? – It can’t. The trials are not real things, they are not necessary. When you are being tested, you suffer, but what is suffering in you is what can be sacrificed. Through the sufferings man tests himself alone but and others test him too. Iov passed through big sufferings but they weren’t real too. In spite of it, he has given in, suffered, tormented himself. He lost his wealth, the fields, the vineyards, the bulls, the sheep, his camels, and all these were given back to him. He lost his sons and daughters but others, better and more beautiful than the first, have being born to him. He has felt ill, his body was covered with scabs, but he didn’t die. And Christ went through hard sufferings. He lost everything too. Have his sheep come back? – They have come back. Today Christ has more than 500 million followers. These are his sheep He has sacrificed for. His daughters still haven’t come back, they are not formed. They are seven – a number of perfection. The sufferings of Christ were incomparably harder than these of Iov’s. The last one had friends he has spoken with. Christ remained alone on the cross. People have mocked Him, they have abused Him and said to Him: You are a son of God, right, get down from the cross! Christ prayed to God but His prayer was a voice in a desert. God has spoken to Iov, but Christ hasn’t heard any voice. He prayed and said: “God, I don’t understand this work. I deliver my spirit in your hands. Let Your will be!” After the resurrection Christ understood what Divine will was. Now I tell to you too: You will also go through the sufferings of Iov, through a dedication. After that you will pass and through the sufferings of Christ, through the great dedication of life. Now I speak to those of you who study the way of the disciple. There are things for studying and in the rest of works, but they pale at the way of the disciple. In the way of the apprenticeship there are imminently serious tasks. Now you think how to arrange your work better. Not only will you not arrange them, but you will confuse them more. As disciples, you will hold for God and will give thanks for everything that has been given to you. Now are times of trials. There is no postponement! You say: One idea has entered my mind, it constantly buzzes, as a beetle. – Leave this beetle aside. When the winter passes away, all the hives rise, the bees start to buzz, they gather on common work. Look what trials come today! Here, according to one statistics, in Spain, only in five-six months, more than a million people have been killed. In the past wars, in several years only around 500 thousand people were killed. You can imagine what would happen with Europe if today a war breaks out! Terrible is what is happening is Spain now! Terrible is the evil in man! Man is a bomb ready to explode. If you don’t know how to touch him, he will explode in a way that and from you, and from him will remain nothing. Be careful with each other, not be offended. When I speak to you in this way, I shall give courage to you not to be afraid. Which is better: to travel with cart, to shake you, to shake your whole interior, or to travel easily and freely by airplane? You will remember the caret with months, the airplane will remain good, pleasurable memories. Already enough shaking! Whoever I meet today, everybody complains that he has been shaken. I bring the new airplanes. Get into them. It is the new teaching. You will pay the ticket, will get into the airplane and after, an hour and a half you will reach the defined place. Then your net will be so dilapidated as you are now. I wish you, through the whole year to work consciously with your mind and heart. I wish to the sisters to cook well and to dress well, and to the brothers – to think well. After this we will get into an airplane and will go on an excursion, to be glad of the green grass and of the limpid springs. There we will sit to have a meal and enjoy ourselves. Only in this way will we understand that life has sense. And so, to cook well, to dress well and to think well! All the rest is foreseen. It means life without contradictions. To you, the disciples, I wish to work. I draw your way through the year. I can tell you many more things, but it will come out forcedly. If I speak much, I shall be compared to that man who has put milk in one pot to boil. When the milk started to boil, the pot was gradually being filled; the milk overflowed and spilled out. He went up onto the chimney and watched from there how the whole room would be filled with milk. I say: Don’t expect one litre milk to fill the whole room. If the pot fills it, it is enough. Why do you have to be greedy for too much? If you have an excess of milk, you will sell it to become rich. Don’t strive for wealth, but strive yourself to acquire love. The beauty of life is in its correct understanding. The beauty and the sense of life are in the good cooking, in the good dressing and in the good thinking. It is the way the disciples have to walk on, in order to come into the favourable conditions of life, into the new life, into the Divine Kingdom. In Divine Love is the good of life. 5. Morning Speech delivered from Master on 3 January, 1937, Sofia - Sunrise The Reality of Life