INTRODUCTION

The upsurge of spiritual energies encircling our planet at this present time, has resulted in an awakening in humanity of the existence of higher realities. Whatever the cause of this spiritual conflagration in the hearts and minds of humanity may be, the effects of its pulsation are readily apparent in the interest taken by the general public in the many metaphysical arts and sciences that were once considered occult and mystical, studied and applied by only an elite few. This higher awareness is gaining momentum with the aid of scientific research and study that is being carried-out in various universities and colleges--researches based on the theories of hyperspace and quantum physics, and also in the field of parapsychic science. Various paradigms of the constitution of man and his occult anatomy as found in Eastern philosophy and Yoga are being discovered to contain elements of truth. Even the nature of the occult processes of death are now being studied through various methods already established by science, such as hypnotic-regression. The problem now facing the metaphysical teacher and practitioner is:

1. The integrating of present findings of science to traditional metaphysical knowledge so as to be able to convey spiritual truths and Cosmic Laws in a rational, logical and intelligent manner to the educated masses who are wary of traditional cultural values and knowledge that are out-worn or unscientifically presented, such as precepts of value that are sometimes wrongfully considered to be superstitions.

2. To present new ways of teaching and healing in an efficacious and holistic manner.

3. To personally prepare the metaphysician's own mind, body, and soul that s/he may effectively heal the dis-eased psycho-somatic principles of humanity.

4. To present metaphysical truths that would stimulate and awaken the innate divinity of those interested persons, thus fostering spiritual growth in contradistinction to the development of religious fervor, bigotry, zealousness, and fanaticism. The precept of universalism falls upon the shoulders of metaphysicians to educate the masses.

The four points above should be the main goal of metaphysics. Too often we see so-called metaphysical counselors degenerating into psycho-deceivers and rapists, into street fortune tellers and psychic readers who present sensational readings to appease the lower selves of their clients. Such a manner of counseling causes a dependency to others on the part of the client. As a result, spiritual growth is stunted for both the client and the counselor; for the counselor is responsible for what he teaches. Most people seem to believe that psychic ability indicates a high spiritual development. This is one of the erroneous beliefs concerning metaphysics that has to be rectified. A psychic person may not be spiritual, neither does a spiritually-evolved person to a certain degree have to be psychic. Low forms of psychicism may be atavistic, an indication of soul-regression, for certain animals have shown to be sensitive to psychic impressions. Psychic abilities may deceive a person and others into thinking that one is an "old soul." There is an element of pride in this and is a spiritual pitfall. Like the medical profession that upholds the ethical code of Harpocrates, the metaphysician should conform to the divine moral principles that resides in his innermost being, and not deceive anyone, himself included, as to the puerile over-concern over one's soul status or spiritual standing.

In this dawning of the Aquarian Age, every person is to be their own priest and healer. This should be kept in mind by those who are seeking to be shepherds of men. Like Socrates, counselors should be adept in awakening the inner intelligence of those who come to his sanctum for advice by mystical, metaphysical and psychological means, and not simply repeating scriptural verses or platitudes parrot-like for their clients to swallow. People may reiterate verbally the wisdom of others, and yet in their lives we see nothing--no divinity expressing through them. To practice what we preach is a trite saying, but a true one nevertheless.

Metaphysical and spiritual teachers should strive to connect every person who calls at his door to the person's own Inner Light, to the person's own innate wisdom or Buddhic Mind. We should all take responsibility for our own spiritual unfoldment. Self-reliance and self-motivation are factors that indicate the maturing of the soul. It is of vital importance to educate people the lesson of non-dependency upon the unreal, that which is false, the non-self, upon externals, and upon the fallible human intellect.

Awareness of higher realms is not synonymous to the ability to function in those states. Before one can operate one's microcosmic components in higher dimensions and apply the laws governing any field of evolution, the laws of those states must be understood; the occult nature of man must be known and developed. For without the understanding of such, wisdom and power lies dormant. The Universe operates through Cosmic Laws and creative principles. By knowing and understanding these laws, it is possible for the human mind/will to apply and direct these laws so as to manifest perfection in mind, body, and soul. Cosmic energies may be harnessed by knowing its source, nature, and how it operates in the universe; and by duplicating the processes of creation in our individual lives, we raise our creative level and output that eventually manifests in abundance, prosperity, peace, health, love and fulfillment. A high level of awareness creates strong, constructive survivors out of us. It stimulates in us a profound interest in the abstract, in the first causes of mundane manifestations of circumstances, conditions and states that fill our lives.

An intellectual understanding of the Cosmos and its laws, and Reality, is insufficient, however. At a certain point of one's probing into Reality, the intellect has to be transcended and a higher faculty of the soul brought into activity. It is incumbent upon the metaphysical counselor to unfold divine qualities such as wisdom, love, power, and intelligence that he may be an effective instrument in the hands of the Divine Being.

Laws of Nature belonging to any realm of existence are natural. It is only by non-awareness and non-apprehension of those laws that we call them "super-natural." Nature manifests as a whole spectrum of energies, and only an infinitesimal part of it is perceptible to man's senses. By expanding one's consciousness by daily attunement with the Divine Mind, one gradually realizes the interrelationship of all manifestations, which in reality is of one essence. This awareness assists us to get into touch with the immaculate being of other people, and from such a level of awareness it is possible to aid them to improve their lives in a beneficial manner.

Our purpose in this paper is to present some of the important points of Cosmic Law and principles that the metaphysical counselor should be familiar and fully grounded with, thus increasing his effectiveness in his ministry. In Christian Tradition, it is believed that St. Peter holds the keys to the portal of heaven. "Peter" means "rock," which in a philosophical and esoteric sense, signifies something fundamental, a foundation, a basis. Therefore, spiritually interpreted, Peter and the keys simply mean the fundamental laws and principles that when applied, opens our awareness to the spiritual heavenly state of our primordial consciousness. Higher metaphysical awareness can only be acquired when the fundamental laws of the Cosmos are sought, understood, and applied. There should be a sincerity of purpose in the heart of the metaphysician, for without it divine attunement would be difficult. This lack of divine attunement manifests in a poor expression of one's ministry. The metaphysician must be attracted to the human soul and its manifold qualities; its struggles, its pain, its sorrows, its aspiration toward Truth and the Light, and its endeavour to acquiring freedom from mortal limitation and delusion. Such an interest unfolds one of the most important divine attributes in man--compassion. The true metaphysician is a mystic and an occultist, a magician, a philosopher, priest, scientist, and a humanitarian. All true servants of the Divine Being and humanity are Bodhisattvas. As a public servant, the metaphysician should live-up to this image--by expressing his innate Buddha-Mind in the world of men. This he should do so if he is to avoid being a metaphysician in name only.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

In this chapter we will present two themes which we feel are the basis of metaphysical thought and awareness, and possessing the potentiality of spiritual application. To the metaphysician, they are the keys that unlock the door to myriad possibilities in healing and counseling. We will not overburden this section discussing the many excellent books and literature on the subject, we will, however, quote a few passages to support our notions and assertions. In the following chapter we shall present several principles and laws as related to those two themes that could be expressed as "relative and Absolute Reality."

Awareness of the Mind and its Relationship to Mundane Reality

Metaphysics is the study of true perception; the knowing of the First Cause that brought the universe into being and the ontological processes that manifests life in the physical dimension; it is the personal awareness of the causes that creates one's reality, the causes that are beyond the physical and material plane. The word "Reality," of the above heading here refers to one's mortal experiences in the samsaric, relative worlds and not to the Absolute. What one experiences in life is determined by the attitudes, thoughts, beliefs, opinions and feelings one revolves in one's psyche. They are the cause of our fortune or misfortune. Our mind is an expression of the Divine Mind of the Universe, and thus, functions in a microcosmic manner and in the world as a creator. The mind creates in the world of form whatever lies within its consciousness, and more subtly but forcefully, whatever lurks in its subconsciousness. How we use our mind in filling these lower streams of the Divine Consciousness causes the many circumstances in life that we find ourselves experiencing. By creating our inner reality, we manifest our external reality--the outer is but a reflection of the inner. Animal breeds after their kind, so do our thoughts and feelings. For instance, poverty thoughts create poverty while sickly thoughts manifest sicknesses. Negative thoughts expresses outwardly as negative words and actions, and they usually rebound back to us as negative feedback from all those around us. What is true for the negative is also true for the positive polarity. This is the law of "like attracts like" in operation within the psychological and psychospiritual being of man. It is in this wise that we create and are responsible for our own heaven and hell on earth. We are creators and not mere creatures. The Aquarian Gospel puts it this way:

God never made a heaven for man; he never made a hell; we are creators and we make our own." (33:9)

Living in hell-like circumstances and states is is the result of one's ignorance and misapplication of the laws of the mind. Our mind is a two-edged sword that either "slays" the Real by its misperception or able to cut-through the unreal by its power of discrimination between the true and the false. Man was given the "freewill" to choose either one. Correcting one's inner state--one's attitudes, and belief-framework by positive, uplifting, constructive and lofty thoughts cause, spiritually speaking, the manifestation of heaven in one's mundane experiences. Heaven is actually one's way of perceiving things. We may see things as they are, or as they appear to be. Appearances are deceptive, a veil of Maya upon the senses. Hindu philosophy knows the world to be a play of the mind--Krishna's leela. True perception is the de-hypnotizing of the mind of its false conceptions and ideas based upon opinions and not facts--that it may see beyond the veil--that it may cognize and recognize one's true nature as the New Jerusalem.

It is well known to mystics, and documented by psychic researchers, that the subconscious mind radiates or broadcasts thoughts and feelings. Thoughts are patterns of energy-waves that tend to actualize or concretize in the world of form. Our minds, at a subconscious, psychic level, have the power to create sub-atomic particles from the Universal Substance. Whatever we conceive and generate in our minds, whether expressed or repressed, we influence our outer and inner environment--and thus, indirectly speaking, to us personally. It is for this reason that in order to create abundance, peace, health, and contentment in our lives and in the lives of others, the first step that we have to take is in the amelioration of the nature of our thoughts. Aside from improving one's life, lofty thoughts also stimulate the higher chakras, or psychic centers. Prince Gautama who became the Buddha, discerned this truth and incorporated it into his teachings, in order to relieve the state of suffering in humanity and to set their feet firmly onto the path of spiritual integration. "Right Thinking" as taught by the enlightened prince, is one of the steps in the Buddhistic Eightfold-Path.

How one creates one's reality is a theme in many of the channeled teachings that is being conveyed to us at our present area. This is, however, but an echo of the ancient sages and their teachings."New Age" truths are but fragments of the eternal Wisdom that was taught by them. There is, as the Solomonic saying goes, "nothing new under the sun." Understanding how we create our reality is one of the points that the metaphysician should be familiar with. It is one of the basic teachings that has to be inculcated in the minds of men, for the correct apprehension of this principle has the power of transforming a person's life.

The metaphysician has to awaken a sense of responsibility in his clients, that they take control over their world. Many people believe that they are weak and powerless to change things directly or indirectly. This may or may not be true; however, one still has the freedom to choose one's response and attitude toward things; and more important, one has the power of putting the right causes into motion in the realm o the mind that will indirectly change and influence conditions and events. Such an awareness should be instilled into the minds of people that they begin to live harmoniously, for when the source and cause of abundance are known and applied, less tension will there be in the struggle for survival. The laws of the jungle will be replaced with the Law of Love. Instead of competition there will be cooperation. There will eventually be more time and energy for higher pursuits. Without a higher awareness of life, man wastes and squanders his time and resources on trivial matters, and this causes one's evolution to stagnate.