ROSICRUCIAN ORDER

A M O R C
TRADE MARK
Supplementary Monograph
PRI NT ED I N U. S. A.
The subject matter of this monograph must be understood by the reader or student
of same, not tobe theofficial Rosi cruci anteachings. These monographs constitutea series
of suppl ementary studies provi ded by the Rosi cruci an Order, AMORC, both to mem
bers and non-members, because they are not the secret, privateteachi ngs of the Order.
The object of thesesuppl ementary monographs is tobroaden themi nd of thestudent by
presenti nghi mwi th thewritings, opinions, and dissertations of authorities invari ous fields
of human enterpriseand endeavor. Therefore, it isquiteprobabl e that thereader will note
at ti mes inthesesuppl ementary monographs statements made whi ch areinconsistent wi th
the Rosi cruci an teachi ngs or vi ew-poi nt. But wi th the realizationthat they are merel y
supplementary and that theRosi cruci anOrgani zati on isnot endorsi ngor condoni ng them,
one must take themmerel y for their pri ma facievalue. Throughout thesuppl ementary
series theauthors or translators of thesubj ect will be gi vendue credit whenever we have
knowl edge of their identity.
SUPREME TEMPLE, ROSICRUCIAN PARK, SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA
"Consecrated to truth and dedicated to every Rosicrucian"
SPECI AL SUBJ ECT L ECTURE NUMBER
AMORC - Rosi cr uci an Or der
ANALYTI CAL DI SCUSSI ONS
( Suppl ement ar y Lect ur e)
E A R E HE R E- - WH Y?
Per pet ual Cel l Response i n Dai l y Li vi ng. An I l l ust r at i on
The day begi ns. J ohn Doe f ai l s t o f i nd hi s newspaper on t he ver anda;
he shows annoyance by cal l i ng t o Mr s. Doe: "Why i sn t my paper her e?"
Hi s mi l d f or mof anger t r ansmi t s i t sel f to hi s cel l san i nevi t abl e
r esul t . The mor e vi ol ent t he emot i on, t he gr eat er ar e I t s ef f ect s on
t he physi cal body.
Unj ust l y br ought to account, , Mr s. Doe answer s wi t h a sense of i nj ur y:
"Why do you hol d me r esponsi bl e?" Her cel l s l ose t one. Cases have
been known of exagger at ed sel f - pi t y l eadi ng to mel anchol i a.
Mar t ha br i ngs i n t he t oast and depar t s. Under t he af t er mat h of hi s i r
r i t abi l i t y, Mr . Doe r emar ks: "Can' t you get her t o t oast br ead wi t hout
dr yi ng i t t o a cr i sp?" Anot her dest r uct i ve i mpul se t r avel s t o hi s
cel l s.
Mr s. Doe' s l i ps t i ght en.
"Her e i s a pi ece t hat wi l l sui t you. " She speaks col dl y and makes no
at t empt t o pass i t of f l i ght l y, nor t o cont r ol her sl i ght f eel i ng of
r esent ment . Resent ment has an adver se ef f ect on t he physi cal cel l s,
but nei t her i s gi vi ng t hought to ef f ect s. The psychi cal l aw, however ,
under l yi ng t he i nf l uence upon cel l s of t hought and emot i on, wor ks on.
At t hi s j unct ur e bot h husband and wi f e- - who ar e al most i nvar i abl y af
f abl emet aphor i cal l y shake t hemsel ves and begi n agai n; but t he at mos
pher e i s st i l l cl ouded. Even t he ef f ect s of a sl i ght l oss of sel f -
cont r ol ar e not cl ear ed away on t he i nst ant . No heal t h gi vi ng i mpul ses
ar e bei ng sent to t hei r cel l s.
She wal ks out acr oss t he ver anda wi t h hi mas usual to t he st eps. As
she ki sses hi mgood- bye, she l ooks hi mdi r ect l y i n t he eyes and t hei r
gl ances meet . She smi l es; he smi l es sheepi shl y. Thei r cel l s ar e get
t i ng t one.
"Have a f i ne day, J ohn, " and she f eel s a t hr i l l of af f ect i on as she
r egar ds her spl endi d husband. Ah! That st ar t s a gl ow of heal t hf ul
I nf l uence. As he wal ks up t he st r eet mor e at peace t han si nce hi s
f i r st out br eak, he i nhal es deepl y t he f r eshness of t he mor ni ng ai r.
That i s a physi cal cause t hat i nvi gor at es hi s cel l s. And he admi t s to
hi msel f t hat he was a l i t t l e di sagr eeabl e about t he paper and t oast .
"Mar y i s a t r ump! I amf or t unat e! I l l not be a boor agai n. " That i s
f i ne f or hi s or gani sm!
He j umps on a car, mi scal cul at es, and i n r ecover i ng hi msel f knocks
shar pl y t he bundl e f r omhi s nei ghbor ' s ar m. He swoops down t o pi ck i t
up; t he ot her man makes a si mul t aneous swoop; t hei r heads meet - - a t hud!
A f er vent ej acul at i on escapes f r omMr . Doe and anot her bad i mpr essi on
passes t o hi s cel l s. But hi s nei ghbor , havi ng a keen sense of humor ,
bur st s out l aughi ng; ever ybody l aughs cont agi ousl y; J ohn Doe l aughs.
A good nat ur ed conver sat i on st ar t s among t he men, and soon J ohn Doe
r adi at es cont ent and hi s cel l s al l r ef l ect hi s buoyancy.
Lat er i n t he mor ni ng, i t occur s t o Mr . Doe to t r y "i nst ant Posturn" f or
br eakf ast ; hi s cof f ee i s not agr eei ng wi t h hi m. Of cour se not ! But he
has never hear d of t he i nf l uence of t hought and emot i on on hi s bodi l y
cel l s. I t has not come home to hi m t hat he mi ght f i nd sel f - cont r ol i n
l i t t l e mat t er s as good f or hi s di gest i on as a cof f ee subst i t ut e.
Or di nar i l y bef or e she t ur ns i nt o t he house, Mr s. Doe t akes i n t he beau
t y of t he mor ni ng whi ch has bot h a physi cal and spi r i t ual ef f ect upon
her . She i s not as spar kl i ng as usual t hi s mor ni ng and- hast ens i n to
t el l Mar t ha about t he t oast bef or e she f or get s. Had she l ooked f i r st ,
she woul d have post poned her mi ssi on f or i t was appar ent t hat Mar t ha
had her own t r oubl es. Al t ho she t ol d her sensi bl y and ki ndl y how t hey
pr ef er r ed t hei r t oast , t he mai d bur st i nt o t ear s; she needed sl eep, her
ner ves wer e unst r ung. Mr s. Doe sei zed her by t he hands. What ever was
t he mat t er ?
Her young man- - i t was hi s r i ng she had been wear i ng on her f i nger l ast
ni ght had danced wi t h a new gi r l al l t he eveni ng and had l et her come
home by her sel f .
Thi s was r eal t r oubl e! Even her e Nat ur e ur ges to cont r ol , and t he l ack
of i t however ext enuat i ng t he cause- - has a del et er i ous ef f ect upon t he
physi cal syst emgener al l y at t acki ng i t I n i t s weaker spot s. Happi l y
t her e i s compensat i on. Al t ho . t r oubl e and a weak wi l l act det r i men
t al l y on t he body, cour age and st r engt h of char act er br i ng about con
st r uct i ve r esul t s.
And so t he days go by, and al l t he Mr . and Mr s. Does and t he Mar t has
ar e af f ect i ng t hei r bodi es f or bet t er or f or wor se. I nexor abl e, un
changi ng l aw! Yet t he l aw poi nt s t he way, and man s onl y met hod of
conquer i ng i s t o know t he l aw and conf or mt o i t s f i ndi ngs.
The cl ock t i cks i t s seconds; and each soul i n ever y t hought , wor d, and
i n ever y act , whet her of sel f - i ndul gence or of sel f - cont r ol , st or es up
f or i t sel f i t s own physi cal f ut ur e. We hear t he cr y: "i t i s not j ust
t hat gr i ef over my cr uel l oss shoul d r eact on my heal t h! " But t hat i s
exact l y what does happen. I t i s t he l aw; i t must be j ust . By t hi s
meanst hr u sel f - cont r ol and sel f - f or get f ul ness I n sor r ow- - t he human
f ami l y ar e i mpel l ed t o gr owt h t hr u ser vi ce to ot her s. I f i t i s our
wi l l not to cont r ol , Nat ur e f or ces us to t he cont r ol l i ng. I t i s our
of f i ce t o cooper at e i n t he pr ogr essi vel y unf ol di ng pl an f or human evol u
t i on.
Cooper at i on i n i nt el l ect ual gr owt h
The same I nt el l i gence t hat mani f est s I t sel f I n nat ur emani f est s I t sel f
i n usbut i n us i t i s i ndi vi dual i zed. And i n us and by us i t must be
unf ol ded. The ef f or t expended i n t he pr eser vat i on of heal t h i s onl y a
begi nni ng of cooper at i on; our i mmedi at e ai mal so i s to advance i n
i nt el l ect ual gr owt hto devel op our f acul t i es and ment al power s. The
gr eat I ncr easi ng Pur pose r eveal s no concei vabl e l i mi t t o t he f ut ur e of
mi nd capaci t y. As t he consci ousness wi dens, l at er , wi l l come per cep
t i on, t r anscendi ng t hought and r eason as t hey exi st on t hi s pl ane, but
t her e i s much t o accompl i sh bef or e we ar r i ve at t hat st age.
Our pr esent concer n i s to cul t i vat e al er t at t ent i on, and cl ose and ac
cur at e obser vat i on- - knowl edge i s an absol ut e necessi t y. I f we woul d be
al i ve t o what i s goi ng on about us, we must t r ai n our mi nds t o conse
cut i ve and shar pl y out l i ned t hi nki ng, we must make compar i sons, use our
di scr i mi nat i on and our j udgment . I f we wi sh to compr ehend, I f we wi sh
t o see bel ow t he sur f ace, t her e i s no ot her way t han to devel op our
mi ndst hat i s sur e! Ot her wi se, how can we possi bl y make i nt el l i gent
choi ce of act i on?
The knowl edge we have of t en det er mi nes what we el ect to do; we cannot
l i ve up t o t he hi ghest st andar ds of mor al i t y- - i n spi t e of t he best i n
t ent i ons- - ^ i gnor ance of f act s and i n t he absence of under st andi ng.
You ar e ki nd; you wi sh to pl ease your nei ghbor s chi l d; she eat s an
enor mous pi ckl e- - your gi f t - - and becomes i l l . You advi se a f ri end, to
put a cupf ul of ker osene on t he wood to hur r y up t he f i r e; i t r esul t s
i n her hast y depar t ur e f or t he next wor l d. Thr u i gnor ance you be
come t he aut hor of uni nt ended mi sf or t une. Never i s an i gnor amus god
l i ke! A good or mor al man wi t h an uncul t i vat ed mi nd wi l l be nar r ow i n
hi s j udgment and hi s opi ni on wi l l be val uabl e i n a l i mi t ed sense onl y.
How coul d one who does not know t he f act s act wi t h I nt el l i gence?
"But i t i s har d wor k to cul t i vat e t he mi nd! " Yes, i t I s har d wor k to
cul t i vat e anyt hi ng- - peas, vi ol et s. One st ep f or war d at a t i met hat i s
al l t hat I s needed! Read f or f i ve mi nut es and t hi nk about what you
have r ead f or t en mi nut es ever y day- - ever y day because t hat sor t of
habi t does wonder s f or t he cul t i vat i on of ment al power . And t hen do
get I nt o t he habi t of doi ng your own t hi nki ng, of doi ng your own r eason
i ng, and of t r ust i ng to your own concl usi ons. You ar e connect ed wi t h
t he same uni ver sal r eser voi r as t he most br i l l i ant man! I t i s bet t er
t o be occasi onal l y mi st aken I n maki ng your own uni nf l uenced deci si ons
t han t o depend upon ot her s.
We shoul d st udy our ment al sel ves and cor r ect our weaknesses. I s I t a
poor memor y? That can be hel ped. We can f ocus t he mi nd and concen
t r at e on what we wi sh t o r emember , put t i ng as much vi t al i t y i nt o i t as
i nt o our f avor i t e past i me; but we must t ake an i nt er est i n t he accom
pl i shment . Ther e i s no ki nd of l azi ness so pr eval ent as ment al l azi
ness. Peopl e shr i nk f r omment al exer t i on as f r omheavy bl ows. I f t hey
come t o a di f f i cul t passage i n r eadi ng, unconcer nedt hey ski p i t! A
f ew passages f ur t her on t hey come t o anot her har d onei t i s pr ompt l y
omi t t ed and t hey r ead on. But to get t he t r ue meani ng of t he whol e,
t hey must get t hat of t he vaul t ed pages. "Oh, wel l t hat i s t oo much
l i ke wor k! " They r ead i t t hru, but t hey never know t he book.
You, who l ef t school af t er t he gr ammar gr ade, you who l ef t af t er t he
hi gh, you, af t er col l ege, you a post - gr aduat e- - how consci ent i ous have
you been each day to i ncr ease your ment al capaci t y- - t r yi ng to conquer
somet hi ng a l i t t l e har der t han you can do easi l y? One gr eat need i n
t he wor l d t oday i s br ai ns. Ar e you hel pi ng? Ar e you doi ng your shar e?
We need you; we need t he r esul t of your i ndependent t hought .
"What hast t hou t hat t hou di dst not r ecei ve?"
What I s mor e usel ess t han an unused gi f t ? An unexer ci sed mi nd i s l i ke
a r ust y hi nge; i t cr eaks. Each of us i s pr ovi ded wi t h a mi nd and i t i s
our dut y t o use i t . Each has r ecei ved f acul t i es and power s and an en
dowment of I nnat e possi bi l i t i es. Why? To use I n or der t o wax st r ong
ment al l y. The ai mi s not t o accumul at e f act s, for, , unused. , t hey encum
ber t he mi nd; t hey ar e hoar ded f ur ni t ur e col l ect i ng dust ; t he ai mi s
i nt el l ect ual st r engt h. To expand i n capaci t y of t hought and under st and
i ng and t o i ncr ease i n wi sdomwe shoul d make use of t he mat er i al gat h
er ed and we shoul d t hi nk, THI NK! We shoul d combi ne and anal yze and
syst emat i ze usi ng our r eason.
We ser ve t he r i si ng gener at i on by of f er i ng t hema col l ege educat i on.
Our obj ect i s t o have t hem i ncr ease t hei r i nt el l ect ual power s, to
st r engt hen t hei r ment al acumen, and t o advance i n t he evol ut i on of
t hei r mi nds. The maj or i t y of our young men and women dur i ng col l ege
year s do a f ai r amount of f i r st hand t hi nki ng; of t en I have been amazed
at t hei r or i gi nal i t y i n cr eat i ve t hought . When t hey ar e l aunched upon
t he wor l d, what happens? They sl ump ment al l y! And yet a shor t t i me
each day gi ven to har d st udy and or i gi nal t hought woul d r et ai n f or t hem
and i ncr ease t hei r ment al el ast i ci t y. Happi l y t he ef f ect s of t he f our
year s l abor can never be t aken f r omt hem- - t hey ar e i ndel i bl e. But
t hey l ack pr oper st i mul us t o cont i nue and shi r k t hei r r esponsi bi l i t y.
The wor l d needs t hem; t he wor l d cr i es out f or t hi nker s, anywher e,
ever ywher e!
And yet , i n God' s pl an, ment al gr owt h i s onl y one st ep. A man I knew
as a br i l l i ant st udent , abl e as a l awyer , di ed, l i t er al l y i n t he gut t er.
He was f ound t her e by t he pol i ce- - a mi ser abl e dr unkar d. He had i nt el
l ect ual supr emacy, but he f ai l ed t o t ur n hi s ment al power s to t he uses
of wi sdom. The f i nal obj ect of wi sdom, i t has been sai d, i s t o l i f t
t he wor l d out of t r oubl e, mi ser y, and pai n I nt o et er nal peace. Ment al
gr owt h, mor al gr owt h, and spi r i t ual gr owt h- - al l - - shoul d be nur t ur ed
wi t hout cessat i on f r omi nf ancy to deat hwi t hout cessat i on. Ther e
must- needs be si mul t aneous pr ogr ess- i nt el l ect ual , mor al , and spi r i t ual ,
si de by si de, cooper at i ng, i nt er l i nki ng.
Cooper at i on I n Mor al Gr owt h
You who wer e t ender l y nur t ur eda pr oduct of t he wi se upbr i ngi ng of
i nt el l i gent and consci ent i ous par ent syou who i n addi t i on have had t he
best oppor t uni t i es f or educat i oneven you, how much syst emat i c t hought
do you gi ve to t he sci ent i f i c devel opment of your char act er ? But char
act er i s t he most i mpor t ant t hi ng i n t he wor l d! I t i s t he i ndex of
your f at et he basi s of t he wor l d' s r egener at i on. I t det er i or at es
t hr u i ndi f f er ence and negl ect ; I t s devel opment r equi r es scr upul ous car e
and f ai t hf ul appl i cat i on.
I f you st r i ke a di scor d upon t he pi ano, you cr eat e a j ar r i ng noi se
di sagr eeabl e t o t he ear . And t hi s i s not al l . You cr eat e equal l y
di spl easi ng ef f ect s upon your r el at i ves, f r i ends, and associ at es by
your t hought l ess f ai l i ngs or f aul t s, or omi ssi ons or commi ssi ons 5 Mor al
gui l t , even each car el ess mor al l apse, br i ngs i nevi t abl e consequences.
Even et hi cal i ndi f f er ence i s to be over come. I ndi f f er ence, car el ess
ness ar e phases of char act er - sl umpi ng. I t i s as t ho t he soul was si t
t i ng wi t h r ounded shoul der s, chest col l apsed, eyes vague, and t he at
t ent i on sl ackal l evi dences of an absence of at t ent i on and ear nest ness.
A wor mi n t he f l ower bud mar s t he per f ect bl ossom; weakness, i ner t i a,
heedl essness, si n, have t he same ef f ect upon t he unf ol di ng char act er ;
t hey i mpai r t he beaut y and har moni ous devel opment of t he soul .
I t I s wi se t o keep one' s hands out of t he f i r e, t o shut t he wi ndows t o
keep out t he st or m. I s i t any l ess wi se to cont r ol t he f ear whi ch par
al yzes your body, t o t ur n t he i ndi gnat i on whi ch shakes your f r ame i nt o
const r uct i ve act i on, t o conquer t he anger whi ch consumes l i ke f i r e, t o
ki l l t he j eal ousy t hat r obs you of your manhood? I s i t not a mar k of
i nt el l i gence to avoi d i mpat i ence, i r r i t abi l i t y, wor r y? I s i t not an
evi dence of wi sdomt o st r uggl e agai nst ever y i mpul se t hat i r r evocabl y
br i ngs a cor r espondi ng penal t y?
We avoi d physi cal har m; we do not l eap f r om t went y- f oot wal l s. Her e we
see vi si bl e connect i on bet ween cause and ef f ect , but t he ef f ect of moral
car el essness i s l ess i mmedi at el y appar ent . Nat ur e hol ds back and gi ves
us t he chance of vol unt ar y cooper at i on t hr u l ove and not t hr u f ear of
penal t y. So cause and ef f ect i n t he psychi cal r eal mar e of t en mi sund. er-
st ood, and we l i ke to bel i eve t hat t hey have no connect i on- - no i l l ef
f ect . Not so- - as Emer son says:
"You cannot do wr ong wi t hout suf f er i ng wr ong. Ever y cr i me i s puni shed,
ever y vi r t ue r ewar ded. . . Cr i me and puni shment gr ow out of one st em.
Puni shment i s a f r ui t t hat unsuspect ed r i pens wi t hi n t he pl easur e t hat
conceal s i t. Cause and ef f ect , means and end, seed and f r ui t , cannot
be sever ed f or t he ef f ect al r eady bl ooms i n t he cause, t he end pr e
exi st s i n t he means, t he f r ui t i n t he seed. "
The gr owt h of t he soul i s al ong sci ent i f i c l i nes- - nat ur al l y, si nce i t
emanat es f r omSupr eme I nt el l i gence. Ever y l apse f r omt he mor al st and
ar d has i t s pr eci se ef f ect ; i t pr esses t he el ect r i c but t on, di sconnect s
t he cur r ent , and ext i ngui shes t he l i ght of gr owt h. Al l who want l i ght
must conf or mt o t he l aw t hat br i ngs i t. I n gener al , peopl e pr ef er
mor al devel opment t o r et r ogr essi on; const ant l y, however , t hei r act s do
not accor d wi t h t hi s pr ef er ence. Many per sons ar e l i ke t he youngst er
eager t o go t o t he Sunday School pi cni c. The nei ghbor hood i s seet hi ng
wi t h t he st i r of exci t ed young l i f e. The mot her t el l s t he boy i f he
pul l s hi s si st er ' s hai r once more. , he shal l not go. Wi t hout pause f or
t hought t he boy r epeat s t he of f ense. Lat er , he peeps f r ombehi nd t he
bl i nds I n hi s dar kened r oomand wat ches t he gai l y l oaded busses pass.
He bl ames hi s mot her , not hi msel f ; he bl ames hi s si st er f or havi ng
t empt i ng t r esses. Fi nal l y, as t he hour s dr ag by, he r epent s, but he
had al r eady set i n mot i on a chai n of event s t hat cannot be st ai d. I t
i s t oo l at e I Hi s mot her s puni shment has i nt r oduced t he boy to Nat ur es
met hod whi ch i s i nexor abl e. He i s t oo young yet to have obser ved t hi s
a penal t y f or ever y vi ol at i on of t he l aw t hat gover ns t he gr owt h of t he
soul