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
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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
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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,
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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
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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
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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
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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.
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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.
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