4. Chesed

The title of my talk for this morning is the Blessed Merciful in Qabalah.

Now the Blessed Merciful are basically attributed Qabalistically to that portion of the Tree of Life which, as you look before you, you will see marked as Mercy. That's the blue Sephirah. And remember, Sephirah means emanation. It means an emanation of light or an emanation of consciousness substance and it also means an area of activity of that special level or quality of consciousness which is expressed as mercy that is one of its terms but with this particular Sephirah on the Qabalistic tree of life we're also starting to discuss together, to try to understand together, the highest portion of that part of personality which is able to express itself on the manifested plane, even though it is not a physical substance as such, or whatever expresses it physically, expresses it because that level of spiritual substance is able to be emanated from a particular individual but we are starting to deal when we deal with that particular Sephirah with a power of personality once that personality has attained the ability to be linked to this particular level level of consciousness and to hold itself to this level.

Of course, at first, when linkage is made, it isn't even recognized because it isn't strong enough to focus into this area to be able to hold itself to this very fine vibratory substance or sphere of activity of consciousness. Consciousness. Nevertheless, it is a beginning, and aspirants, true spiritual aspirants, have usually already had some kind of contact with this level, or they couldn't be spiritual aspirants. Now, the Qabalistic terminology for this particular portion of our consciousness, or the expression of our consciousness, has to do with two very important terms which which, when we understand these, helps us to understand ourselves and helps us to know better of what the ideas are that are involved with mercy.

Now, chesed is one of the words, and that means literally mercy, or compassion, or loving-kindness.

Now, it means this as a consistent, continual thing. In other words, the whole principle of compassion, of loving-kindness, of benevolence, of generosity, of self-givingness, this is involved with the ideas that are called chesed. But then there's another name for that particular aspect of our being, and that name is called gudula.

Now gudula literally means magnificence. It means majestic.

It has been called majesty, but when we think of majesty, we have more of the idea of the central ego or the central I. and that is attributed to beauty, to the portion of the tree which is involved with that central pillar on the tree, the white, the yellow, the violet, and the multicolored, that center of awareness.

And, of course, all these qualities on either side of the tree, remember, have to be expressed from the center, the center of I. nevertheless the idea of majesty really has to do with majestic for example when we see some glorious scene like vast mountains one of the ways we would describe it is how majestic so that we have ideas of vastness in the ideas of Godula this majestic magnificence we say magnificent majestic there's an intensity of feeling a sort of zeal is involved here in this intense depth of feeling and of course compassion pity that is I'm talking about true pity not some of those false cover up that sort of masquerade as true pity. True compassion really has within it that very deep, intense emotion, but it's a very high quality, a very high spiritual emotion. It has a vastness in it. So that when we think of compassion, of loving kindness, what we want to try to remember is that it is not a namby-pamby kind of terminology.

It is not trying to express something in a narrow sentimental area at all because this is a vast aspect. It is a quality of the very highest form of being that man is capable of on this plane of existence.

Beyond that, remember, remember, the supernal triad, these are actually the three aspects of the one universal deity. And though it exists in us, our consciousness is not capable of comprehending anything across the abyss, because we attempt to comprehend it with intellect, and intellect does not belong up there. The principles of intellect are there.

But the principles of intellect are evolved below this abyss in the projection of this deity this universal deity the reflection of the universal deity which becomes you and you and me it becomes all things and all beings and all life. It is like the myriad reflected lights from a prism, which actually are one light. And this is one of the many ideas that are involved in attempting to see the entire Qabalistic tree of life, that the one and the many are not the many in the way it would appear now because they are essences of the one now in trying to understand mercy compassion loving kindness what we want to do is discuss a little together some of the ideas involved with the terminology that has been alluded to as the masters of compassion passion. In Qabalah they have been called the Hasidim. Now the Hasidim are those who have been students, disciples, and initiates of the Qabalah for a long enough period, which means very much more than one incarnation incidentally, so that they have already managed to become become linked to that portion of the total consciousness of the Most High, which expresses that most unifying principle of the Most High, loving-kindness, compassion.

Now, all of us realize that loving-kindness and compassion can come from just one basic essence, and that would be love. Because in a way you would call these terms synonymous so those souls those beings who we call the masters of compassion again I repeat in our tradition have always been called the the chesedim, which literally means the merciful ones, the givers of mercy, those whose very presence bestows a sort of grace of God, whose very presence does this because their emanations, which are, of course, emanations of the one essence or substance, are consistently the emanations of a love that is full of loving kindness, or shall we say, of goodwill.

Now, what is goodwill? You know, we hear it a lot, especially at Christmas, peace on earth, goodwill towards men. But goodwill, literally, is wishing somebody well, wanting them to have the goodness in life. And when we hear terms like blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy, we are actually hearing something that deals with the capacity to feel merciful merciful because of having such basic and deep goodwill. Now being a member of the Hasidim, incidentally, also can be referred to as being a member of the inner school. In our lessons, which you receive through the mail, you hear this terminology often, inner school. And And one of the things that we do not do is give too literal a translation of this most of the time.

But what is really the inner school?

And what is it to be a member of the inner school? And what is it to be in contact with the inner school, perhaps not as a full member, but shall we say as a probationary member, that might be a good way to put it, since all evolution is involved in taking steps that are a step beyond where we've been and then undergoing the tests, which are an essential part of evolutionary growth, in order to discover in what ways we are able to keep ourselves focused within this particular area of consciousness and activity.

So there are those who you might call probationary members of the inner school. And these are spiritual aspirants who have been guided to some true spiritual teaching where there is a teacher because there comes a point in everyone's evolution where some of the teachings have to be oral well actually some of the written word is you might is in many ways the same thing as the oral today because of the fact that those who have attained to the capacity for certain levels by participating in what has been said for example the classes that I give orally are taken and as they were with Dr. Case they're taken and then they are translated and re-edited so that the basic teaching is made available to those who are not able to be physically present. But when we consider that those on the same or spiritual levels, those on the relative levels where they have earned the privilege of being able to become receivers from higher levels, that these are in tune or in contact on the mental, emotional part of the being, whether they live on the opposite ends of the world or not the physical presence has become less necessary for some portions of the training because of contact having already been made in previous incarnations so that all that is required is for further training all that is required is to start receiving the contact, the teaching, say like through the lessons.

What we want to do at this point in our evolution is to contact whatever levels we can up above that will help develop in us the linkage to this mercy level, to the master of compassion level. Because, again, I'd like to point out this is the very highest and most grand quality that incarnated human beings can attain to within the total personality level.

And the total personality can be brought into development and expression to become a channel for those qualities that we call qualities of compassion, of mercy, of loving kindness, of givingness, which has to do with that level. If you will recall, I've pointed out that the Supreme Chief of our Order usually has to have developed enough of this quality so that they can remain focused in it in order to be able to emanate or distribute the forces benevolently. Because if one is going to be a center for the distribution of great forces or powers, I hope you can see that if we are still capable, say, of hatred, if we are still capable of reacting with vengeance, if we are still capable of reacting with outrage to what may be considered a personal affront, then that energy that we have to be channeling for the good of all of the disciples who are children of this tradition, the sons and daughters of the Qabalistic tradition, then what would occur for such a center of distribution who has to bring this energy across or as a channel from what we call across the abyss.

Power is power. But the particular training and tests that, say, the Supreme Chief of this order has to go through is really no different than the training you have to go through because you, as spiritual aspirants, automatically are linked in to a greater power source. This power source, this energy that comes from the higher levels of the hierarchy can come, you know, pouring through. It can certainly, and it does, intensify our whole natures. And it is true, therefore, that every aspirant does have a sort of intensification of their immature qualities as well as the mature ones. But this is an essential part of the training. This is the way we discover what could be injurious, what is discordant, what is not in harmony with that level, with mercy, with loving kindness. Now, what kind of practice does it take? Well, I think this is obvious.

The practice that is necessary is using the mind to remind oneself as consistently as possible that all are one.

To remind ourselves, for example, as has been stated in the Bible, that blessed are the merciful, for they shall see God, and they shall obtain mercy.

We all want to be the recipients of mercy, I guess, though some of us want to punish ourselves, so I guess we don't want mercy, do we? When we go into states of masochism, I guess we're denying the very mercy that's always waiting there for us, the mercy of God, which is there with us when we're able to receive it. But in essence, the ability and the capacity to be merciful, to feel merciful, again has to do with what Jesus said, for us to be able to recognize this principle when Jesus, in the midst of his pain, was able to say, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Now, this is the kind of practice we have to go through. When we hear things, say on TV or the radio, that would rouse anger, it's up to us to control this anger. We're allowed to be righteously indignant. That's not the same thing, you know. But I point out that true compassion has in it a goodwill, a loving kindness you have to wish the person well now what does it mean to wish them well well if we will remember wishing somebody well having goodwill towards anybody means we want them to be the kind of being that is benevolent for humanity then in actuality we're helping evil people in some way or other but mostly we're helping ourselves though we don't know it we're helping evil people in some way or other to at least receive a blessing we're becoming an agent for the masters of compassion by being able to have goodwill towards them who despitefully use us and we always are tested with this from time to time we'll run across people who are gossipy or who are jealous who are envious in various ways a lot of people are immature but to have goodwill is a very easy thing to develop within ourselves when we remember that that doesn't mean we are approving of their immaturities or their destructiveness we don't have to approve of the activities of people who do evil or immature things but we do have to learn to feel a goodwill towards them, towards their final beingness.

The true master of compassion is compassionate towards humanity. The true master of compassion feels loving kindness and compassion for all creatures.

The true master of compassion feels loving kindness towards friend and enemy alike.

Not that we don't love those who are close to us more in a personal sense, but there's the same goodwill that goes out towards all. And we can feel personal about it, even though it's also impersonal. So the blessedness that has to do with the merciful ones, my loves, really involves the fact that here and now, those of us who have been guided to become followers of the Qabalistic way of return, we have already been the receivers of the great bounty and mercifulness of the Most High, to be guided into this way. And what we want to do is to make up our minds that more than anything else, we want to be the perfected agents for this power of kindness, of goodness, this power of compassion. We want to reach a point where no matter what, anybody comes to us to tell us about others. We will not go into a rage. We will not go into a react with storms we will not become angry and outraged didn't have to teach so and so a lesson you know life and karma teach lessons and are able to take care of things very well and we don't have to get in there and deliberately become agents we are agents in any case for all the things that are necessary but we want to walk through life with that beauty because there is no greater beauty to walk in.

When we become truly receptive to that level of beingness, then when we are in the presence of a master of compassion, we will feel this lovingness as an actual substance, incidentally, because it is an actual substance. And one of the things about this lovingness that we will feel is also a peacefulness with it. There's a serenity in what we experience with that lovingness.

When we are able to be in the presence of this kind of blessing, we are truly being given the gracious mercy of God because this means that we are already, you might say, in training to become more and more effective agents ourselves for this benevolence, this kindness, this goodness, this mercy.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. With what measure ye mete out, it shall be measured unto you.

We must love measurelessly. We must give measurelessly of ourselves when we have this outpouringness there's a generosity and do you know why? Because there's this intuitive knowledge real knowledge that from the exhaustless riches of its limitless substance I draw all things needful both spiritual and material So the master of compassion, knowing this, has no need to try to exploit another human being mentally, emotionally, physically, or materially. No man will exploit another woman in order say to relieve any pressures or tensions because there will be too much loving kindness and concern for the welfare of the feminine principle no woman will exploit a man to try to just get his strength to do this or that or the material requirements that she may think she has because there will be no need. Each will be wanting to be a giver and a giver, incidentally, is one who outpours blessing.

When we feel loving-kindness, we are automatically blessing. And so in Qabalah, in this Western Mystery Training System, it is known that there does walk amongst us, my loves, certain individuals who have already attained enough of this mastery of the emotional mental being that they are a living, loving kindness all the time that they cannot and will not permit themselves to have any kind of emanation towards another that is less than goodwill and when we are blessed and privileged enough to come in contact with this principle through any agent, no matter whether that agent is a completed agent and a perfected agent or not, then what we should know is that we have already become one of those who are being given the privilege, who are being called in the tradition to become rich in the measureless richness that no words can convey, rich in the complete security that nothing can take away from us, the security of being, in deep and profound ways, a real incarnation of the love of God.

This is in store for you, my loves. Start practicing its joy every moment now.