In Search of the Subtle

by John Davidson Copyright, August 1989, John Davidson These topics and many others are all discussed in John Davidsons books www.john.davidson.org

There is much talk in our present times of chakras, pranas, ether, subtle energy and the like. Many of these technical terms are taken from the Sanskrit and Hindi, relating to those aspects of our human constitution or inner make-up that are directly perceived or experienced by yogis in their meditational practices. But, in many Western writings, one often feels that the writers hardly know what they are talking about, copying from previous writers or often seeming to invent things out of their own imagination, sometimes fondly calling it intuition or channelling. Ninety-nine percent of this comes from the mind of the individual, often unknowingly, and like much else in the world which originates in the individual mind, it can be greatly misleading. We should understand that to really experience these things takes many years of sincere and dedicated practice under the guidance of a mystically qualified guru or teacher. And not just any self-appointed teacher. It is not a matter of just a few weekend seminars or enlightenment intensives. A human being is comprised of soul, mind and body. The soul is a drop of the divine ocean of consciousness, of God. It is a spark of the divine flame, a ray of the divine light. We all, therefore, possess the potentiality to become God, to realize our innate oneness with God. Our individual human mind is likewise a drop of the universal mind. this universal mind contains vast inner regions of the lords creation, including the astral and causal realms. These are the inner and many mansions in my Lords house, spoken of by Jesus and by all true mystics. In fact, mystics talk of the Three Worlds of the Mind, meaning the physical, astral and causal realms. Like our physical realm, these worlds are levels of consciousness, levels of being within the supreme Being. For the mind universal, individual and all its other intermediate aspects are all creations of God. It is said that the human form is created in the image of God. This a great mystery, for clearly this does not mean our outward bodily appearance. Not only is our deepest inward reality identical with that of God, but in a wonderful and mystic manner, the human form is a microcosm a miniature, a focus of reflection, a projection of all facets and regions of the entire creation, the macrocosm. The point to be grasped is that our body and mind are not something solid and ultimately real, but are only projected images within the substance of being. God is the supreme Energy. In his creation, this energy of being is split, divided, projected and reflected in multiple fashion. This division is brought about through the agency of various centres of being, power or energy. And the underlying, sustaining power is the Creative Word, the Logos, the Life Stream, the Celestial Sound or Music, the Primal Vibration of Creation. Meditation on this central energy is therefore the best means of returning to God without diversion in the multitudinous areas of His creation, both within and without. And that means

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direct experience of this tremendous power not just thinking about it or imagining it while one sits in a blissful reverie! The centres or chakras within our subtle physical body are thus reflections or projections of even higher centres. These physical chakras are administrative centres for the organization of prana. They are made of prana as it weaves its way through the subtle, etheric matter of the subtle physical body. Prana is the life force in the body. It is the final, distant echo of the Word, the Life Stream, stepped down below the threshold of our consciousness, yet still responsible for the amazingly dynamic physiological and biochemical activities which go on within a living human frame. The dancing, organizational centres of pranic energy radiate out from the spine, forming a dynamic subtle energy blueprint the subtle or etheric body which underlies the manifestation of the physical body. Death of the physical body comes about when the pranic energy is withdrawn. The mind and soul continue on, but the projection into that particular physical frame ceases. The chakras then dissolve, evapourate or disappear like ripples on a pond, when the wind or breath of life subsides. The chakras and prana, therefore, are entirely related to the maintenance and well-being of the physical frame including its associated mental-emotional aspects. Consequently, though it is useful from the point of view of physical and emotional health to understand something of the chakras, they should not be confused with the true spiritual path. True mystics, therefore, always insist that we begin our meditational practice at the highest of these physical centres, namely the eye centre, the third eye or two-petalled chakra behind the two eyes, and that we proceed upward from there. And for that, a guru is required. A trip through the Himalayas of Being requires a guide. We easily get lost even in a new area of this world without a guide, so to really go adventuring into the realms of being without a guide is foolhardy. Someone has to show us how to meditate. It cannot be learnt from a book. But while spiritual tipsters and tricksters of many an ilk are readily found, even appearing to talk the right sort of language, the true mystic is not so easily recognized, for he does not proclaim or advertise himself. And the one born blind (ourselves) can never catch hold of one with eyes (the mystic). So we have to prepare ourselves and hone our seeking spirit to a fine degree of inward sincerity. Then, as the old saying goes, When the disciple is ready, the guru appears. Or as one of the great masters of the past has said, Knock and it shall be opened to you. Seek and ye shall find.

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