Nev Posted December 27, 2025 Report Posted December 27, 2025 Musical Exercise 5 o’clock in the morning (The weather is foggy. The sky is lightly veiled.)fk ● “Our Father” ● “Give, Give” ● “The Spirit of God” Reflection There are certain things in life that must be repeated. As the saying goes, “Repetition is the mother of learning.” And yet, repetition can also become the mother of ignorance. That’s why not everything is worth repeating. In every community, there is a danger of something creeping in—a kind of depersonalization, a spiritual dulling. At first, people are full of enthusiasm. When we are young, we are idealistic, eager to engage with life. But as the years pass, many begin to turn their thoughts toward the next world. And even when doing so, they often carry a sense of dissatisfaction. Older people are sometimes disappointed with the younger generation—not because of the faults of the young, but because they themselves can no longer fully participate in the vitality of youth. Yet the life of the young is natural, and it should not be condemned. Each human being walks three fundamental paths—three great schools of learning: The first path is physical—it relates to the body, to the cells, to worldly desires. These are natural. Sometimes we speak disparagingly of worldly life, but we should learn to rise above condemnation. Consider the mother who first warns her child: “Don’t play with that one or the other.” Yet later, when the child goes to school, she insists: “You must get along with everyone.” The second path is of the heart—it is the road of feeling and emotion. To walk this path is to begin developing one’s inner life. The third path is that of the mind—it, too, has its own roads, its own disciplines. Through this path, one cultivates clarity, understanding, and wisdom. Each of these paths offers a different kind of exercise, a different kind of work. And Christ said: “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” How would you interpret these words? What place would you give to the Way? In this context, the Way originates from Wisdom. Christ says: “The new path is the path of Divine Wisdom.” He says: “I am the Way.” The Way—but only for the one who believes; and you must begin to walk it. In the second part, Christ says: “I am the Truth.” That is the zenith. The beginning is the Way. Knowledge, light—these are the Way. Now, knowledge does not come from only one world. Some people have only studied the physical world. In the human body, the area near the eyebrows, the lower part of the forehead, corresponds to the physical world. The middle part of the forehead is the spiritual world. And the upper part is the Divine world. The mind in the lower area corresponds to the physical world; the mind in the middle area corresponds to the spiritual world; and the mind in the upper area corresponds to the Divine world. A person also has three kinds of feelings: feelings of the physical world, the spiritual world, and the Divine world. When a person is properly developed, when all three of these worlds are properly represented, there is a certain proportion in the head. There are defined relationships between the parts of the head. You draw a horizontal line from the ear canal. a – discernment, b – mercy, c – reverence, d – steadfastness. And from that line, a vertical is drawn upward, until it reaches the top of the head. This vertical line shows how the faculties are represented in the human head. In the whole of humanity, over the course of one century, the head rises upward by one-tenth of a millimeter. On the other hand, the head also develops forward (the skull). The physical world has physical matter and physical forces that must be studied. The spiritual world also has spiritual matter and spiritual forces that must be studied. And the Divine world has Divine matter and Divine forces, which likewise must be studied. The Hindus call it Akasha. And the Bulgarians have the word kasha—meaning something mixed up and unclear. Sometimes you find yourself in a contradiction—your leg starts hurting. You don’t understand the laws of physical matter. Other times, you want to heal someone, but you don’t know how. There is a way to heal. People apply compresses, do massages with oil or alcohol, place dough with wax, with bran, etc. But all illnesses come from the loss of physical warmth in the body. That’s when sicknesses arise. There are three main causes of illness. Some illnesses come from people's actions in the physical world; others come from the emotional world; still others arise from human thoughts. All nervous disorders that people suffer from are due to thoughts that are not in harmony. I don’t want to dwell on painful topics. But since you've advanced far enough, you’re like closed lakes—you have no outlet. You walk around, you want to do something. This accumulated energy within you must be released outward. At first, people were taught: “You must guard yourselves from the world.” But there’s nothing to guard against in the world. If anyone needs protection, it’s the world that must be guarded from us, not the other way around. Yet today, they say the opposite. No—the world needs to be protected from us. They say, “Beware of the devil.” No—it’s the devil who should beware of us! If you need to be cautious of the devil, then you are fearful. But if the devil needs to be cautious of you, then he is weak. If you must protect yourself from him, it means he is stronger than you. But if he must protect himself from you, then he is weaker than you. We are stronger than the devil. Keep that in mind! It’s just that the devil happens to be more skilled in some areas: he is a master of lies. When he comes, he builds a little contraption, like a spider spinning a web to catch a fly. But it’s through trickery, not strength. Now, I don’t want to talk too much about the devil, because we shouldn’t offend. Do you know how much of a headache he already has? He’s cooked up such a mess that he doesn’t know what to do. He thinks everyone else is to blame and tells you, “You're responsible for the mess you made.” But he's wrong. He got himself tangled up in this confusion, and now he’s trying to place the blame elsewhere. Let’s leave the devil aside now. He’s doing his job quite well. In fact, there’s one quality of his I actually admire: he’s incredibly diligent. There’s no being more persistent than he is. If you throw him out the front door, he comes in through the chimney. If you drive him out of the chimney, he slips in through the tiniest crack. You can chase him away a hundred times—he’ll still come back. He’ll greet you with, “Good day, how are you?” He’s very polite. And he’s very weak. He’ll flatter you endlessly. Anyone who flatters too much is very small. He’ll set you ablaze from all four sides—you’ll burn. Because he wants something from you. When he shows up, he’ll say, “You’re a genius! There’s no one like you in the whole world. I’ve never seen such a being!” But once he’s done with you, he’ll say, “I’ve never seen a bigger fool than you.” He’ll get you to do something questionable, then say: “It’s nothing, just try your best. Build a church for people—take from here and there, gather from this one and that one, and build the church. Even if you’ve stolen, it’s no big deal—after all, you’re building a church! People will become better.” But once the church is built, he’ll stir up lawyers and judges to come after you and squeeze you tight. Then he’ll make you bitter and whisper, “People just don’t understand the good you’ve done.” That’s how he works. When the devil makes a mistake, he thinks he’s done something good. And when he does something good, he thinks it was a mistake. And when he praises someone, he later says, “For that praise, I’m going to teach them a lesson.” Just to redeem himself, he’ll “rub your nose in it,” thinking he’s done you a great favor. That’s how he sees things. Just don’t go telling him that. So I say: You must develop your physical forces. A person has plenty to develop in their body even into old age. If you were to follow the laws of nature, you would live very naturally. Today, the upper limit is considered 120 years. There are 12 zodiac signs—10 years per sign, totaling 120 years. But people rarely complete the full circle. Some live only a month, some a year, 10, 20, 30, 50, 60, 70, 80. By the time they reach 80, they start thinking they're already old and say they should head off to the next world, feeling there’s nothing left for them to do in the physical realm. So I say: You must always have something to engage with. First, bring the forces of your body into a natural state. Second, don’t lose the strength of your heart—don’t lose your sensitivity. Let even the smallest gain you achieve bring you joy. Then, don’t lose your good thoughts. When a good thought comes to you, rejoice in it. If you feel a little stronger, or experience a pleasant feeling, or have a beautiful thought—rejoice! Rejoice in your thoughts, your feelings, and your actions. Because when you enter the next world, your thoughts, feelings, and deeds will go with you. In that world, you’ll see that the physical world will be closed off to you, but you’ll carry with you its images. The real, tangible world will close, but its pictures will remain. Sometimes you become troubled, as if you have nothing to do on Earth. For example, an actor can perform many tasks, can speak about many things. But a member of the audience, who goes to the theater, buys a ticket, sits down, and watches how the actor plays their role. Or an opera is being performed. The opera represents the world. It’s something like that. It’s for the world. By “the world” I mean people […]. And it serves an educational purpose. They try to portray life in the opera or in the drama. They represent life, though not exactly as it is in reality. Still, the performance has an educational effect on the audience. Religious people who don’t understand the broader plan God has, think that everything done in the world is sinful. But sin exists everywhere—in the world, among spiritual people, and even among the angels. It is something individual. Anyone can make a mistake. And you should be glad that you can make a mistake. That shows you are free. When you sing, you can make a mistake. You can hit a note that’s a half tone off. Whether ascending or descending, you can hit the wrong tone. But that’s not such a big deal. One mistake is not really a mistake—it’s just a contrast. Every mistake is simply a stimulus to help you understand things more clearly. So I say: among all of you there must arise an inner connection of mutual respect and honor. Each one of you must respect the others, and honor in them that which God has given them. In life, honor the body of a person, which God has given them; honor the heart, which God has given them; honor their mind. In the new culture, people must be honored. And do not interfere too much in trying to correct others. That is not right. If anything is to be corrected, begin by correcting yourself. There are so many things that need correction. Have you ever observed? Let’s suppose you are a cashier at a bank. Today, 100–200 people have passed through your hands. How many times might you lose your composure? Or you are at the post office, selling stamps. Or you are a grocer handing out sugar. How many times might you lose your balance? Or you might be a lawyer, a teacher, a mother. As a mother, how many times might you lose your composure! The child does not in the least put themselves in your position. It demands, insists. It may cry ten times and will rouse you. It does not care at all that you may be tired. Religious and spiritual people are more sensitive, and for them, suffering is more intense. So sensitivity must develop in proportion; one should not develop their sensitivity too much. If sensitivity has become overly developed, one must learn how to guard their heart. Many sufferings come from excessive sensitivity. For example, someone didn’t look at you kindly. And you say that they have become cold. But let us return to the question: warm and cold. Coolness is pleasant, but cold, too, has its role. However, many illnesses are due to cold. You can do an experiment. Let’s say you’ve caught a chill, you've lost the warmth of your body, and afterwards, you curl up. Then they apply warm compresses, rub you down, and when the warm compresses are applied, it feels pleasant. What is the philosophy behind that pleasant feeling? When you have inflammation on the outside, it feels warm outwardly—but what if it's cold inside? In the spaces between the molecules within the body, cold exists. And therefore, when heat is applied so it can penetrate that space, it is to restore the warmth the body naturally has. And once this space is filled with warmth, the compress feels pleasant. Once all the ice melts and turns to water, you say: “I don’t need the compress anymore. That’s enough.” If the temperature continues to rise, the reverse happens. So, at times, a person’s feelings can freeze over. Then you feel great discomfort. In such cases, you must apply warmth. When we speak of love, we must understand that through the law of Love, through the law of Affection, we impart the normal warmth that the body requires. You must love—otherwise, you will lose your warmth. And once you lose the warmth of your spiritual body, you cannot maintain a good disposition of the heart. The mind also has its own warmth. As long as the mind possesses the light it ought to have, it also maintains normal warmth. When that light diminishes, its warmth will also decrease. Every thought that is right carries light; every feeling that is right carries inner warmth. This warmth is called “peace,” “joy,” and many other names. But I say: it is warmth. I use the word “warmth,” because it is a word that is easily understood. This is the value of comprehensible words. If you go into a theater and say: “Love,” people will say: “This one’s lost a screw.” But if you shout: “Fire!”—everyone immediately understands the meaning. The word “fire” is a powerful force. We don’t have a word for love that is as strong as the word “fire.” When someone says “love,” people reply: “Love is nonsense, it’s child’s play.” But if you tell someone “suffering, torment,” they begin to tremble. When the word “torment” is spoken, you understand it right away. Suffering is only a shadow of love, merely a shadow of that warmth. Why do you suffer? You suffer so that you don’t lose the warmth of your spiritual body. Every suffering restores the inner warmth. Without suffering, people would become cold, they would freeze, they would become rigid. You want not to suffer. In order not to suffer, you must leave the physical world. But you’re not yet ready to go to the other world. They wouldn’t accept you into the school there. Not even as servants would they take you. Well, perhaps as servants. In the Varna region, a 60-year-old sister once dreamed that she went to the other world. She didn’t know how to read. At a table sat 24 elders dressed in white robes. There were books on the table, and they were writing. She asked: “What are you doing here?” She wanted to know what they were doing. They replied: “Grandma, do you know how to read?” – “I don’t.” “Then here, you will carry water.” Meaning she would start from A, B. “You will not interfere in the work we are doing here—you will begin learning the alphabet.” The physical, spiritual, and mental worlds are interconnected. In the new culture, there will be balance. Now, the spiritual person must become more serious. Seriousness does not depend on one’s muscles. Rather, the spiritual world must draw the attention of the mind. One must see the beauty of the spiritual world. The physical world has its own beauty too. And the Divine world has its beauty as well. These three worlds form a unified whole. If you lack the beauty of the physical body, something will be missing in your spiritual body. If you lack the beauty of the spiritual body, something will be missing in your mental body. True health must be present in the body, in the feelings, and in the thoughts. Then we say: luminous thoughts, warm feelings, and strong actions. These are the things you will need. You want to live. But what does that really mean? The more souls you connect with, the more human beings you come to know deeply, the better. If you do not establish a connection with human minds, you will not experience good inner disposition. If you do not connect with human hearts, you also will not experience harmony. And likewise, if you don’t connect with human bodies. You’ll notice that when you draw near to certain people, you come to love them because warmth emanates from their bodies, and these people are pleasant to be around. But there are also people who are very poor. They go around trying to help others, but they themselves are in need. A person who wants to help God, who wants to help others, must be rich—in body, in heart, and in mind! And whoever is not yet rich must work in order to become rich. Scripture says: “Lay up for yourselves treasures.” Through our physical body, we enter into communion with the people on Earth. We must enter into communion with them. And through the spiritual body, we enter into connection with their souls—that is, through our heart. If our heart is not developed, we will not be able to commune with the souls of others. And if our mind is not in the proper state, we will not be able to connect with the spirits of others. By “spirits” I mean the highest state—pure, advanced, perfected souls. By “spirit,” I mean a soul that has completed its evolution. By “soul,” I mean a soul that is in service to humanity. By “spirit,” I mean a soul that outlines the future of humanity. It is the spirit that sketches the future. It is the soul that realizes what the spirit has outlined. And it is the mind and the heart that apply what has already been sketched. When we speak of music, we must understand that there are different methods. You, the elder sisters—do you still sing? The younger ones should sing. There are certain times when people cannot sing—for example, when they are eating or when they are sleeping. Once, someone was accused of being a terrible drunkard, and another replied: “That’s a mistake—I know him to be a sober man: when he sleeps, he doesn’t drink at all.” Now, these are fundamental things you must keep in mind. They are part of your present self-cultivation. You must work. There are other things that will gradually be revealed to you. To each of you, according to the degree of your development—if you are ready—it will be revealed. These are inner, spiritual attainments that are meant specifically for you. Whatever you attain, you must guard it. Do not go around bragging about it, because it could be stolen from you. You may have seen something in the spiritual world and then go around telling others. And someone will say: “What you saw—such things don’t exist.” Don’t talk about it. You think the whole world knows these things. It doesn’t. The song “Fir-Fyur-Fen” is a song for the mind. “Mahar Benu” is a song for the heart, and “Davai, Davai” is for the body. Each of these songs has a particular construction—there’s a distinct structure to them. In “Fir-Fyur-Fen”, for instance, it begins with a prime, followed by a fourth. Then it moves up by a second, another second, and then a third. What does a third mean in music? The third gives softness or tenderness to a tone. The third follows the feminine line. The fourth follows the masculine line—it is powerful. When someone is ill, you prescribe a fourth. Then come the fifths. Fifths and thirds are similar in nature. A third produces a sixth, and a second, when raised, produces a seventh. The philosophy of music is a very subtle and demanding discipline. To sing, it’s not enough to activate your musical center—which is in the forehead—you must also awaken a range of feelings that are connected to music. If your feelings aren’t engaged, you can’t truly sing. When you do awaken those inner feelings and sing properly, you’ll immediately feel a gentle warmth beneath the sternum, a sense of inner ease, and you become joyful. “Fir-Fyur-Fen” begins on D (Re). But if you were able to sing in a higher voice—spanning two and a half octaves—I would recommend starting the song on G (Sol). Here, we begin on D. A bassist might start from low G, others from middle G, and some might even sing from high G. (Here the song was sung first starting from middle G, then again from low G, and finally as notated—from D.) D signifies movement. When you rise in the morning, do a musical exercise. Prepare a small personal repertoire—something of your own. Take a word, and compose a melody around it. The songs we’ve already studied are simply models. Use them as a foundation to create new ones. Every song has its time. Perhaps not all of you will become violinists, pianists, flutists, or guitarists—but all of you can sing. And it would be a pity if you didn’t. God has given everyone a voice. Not to sing would be a neglect of that gift. The voice organ—the larynx—is the most refined instrument a person has. Just think how capricious a violin can be—sometimes it squeaks so much that you can’t draw a single clear tone from it. (The Master plays a few notes on the violin, then sings the words “strength, perception, thought,” and everyone joins in, repeating the phrase with variations.) You may never become great stage performers, but you must learn to sing. When you sing something once, the second time it will come out more beautifully. In the word “strength” (Bulgarian: сила), the syllable la is particularly resonant—it conveys divine energy. The a sound carries a sacred burden—a divine idea that fills you with joy, even when carrying life’s hardships. You might also sing: “The Way, the Truth, the Life!” (The Master sings this several times. “Did you remember the melody?” he asks. “It can be written down in musical notation.” “The Good Prayer” 6:15 a.m. (We did the morning exercises on the meadow) 13th lecture of the General Esoteric Class, held by the Master on December 27, 1939, Sofia – Izgrev. Translated by Nev
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