Though it was mentioned in a previous lesson that the planet does not need us to evolve beyond our current condition, that is not to say that it is not a requirement at other levels of the ray of creation.

Unlike animals, which are solely planetary in their manifestation and whole from an evolutionary standpoint, man is an incomplete, self-developing organism. One of the aspects that makes mankind so unique is that we are imbued with something from higher than planetary level.

While it is true that we have a planetary body, unlike any other life on the planet, we also contain the seeds of life from the levels of 'All Planets,' 'Our Sun' and 'Our Galaxy' and even 'All Galaxies' as outlined in the ray of creation.

We hold these potentialities in custodianship within ourselves, and the purpose of life from this standpoint is to allow for the possibility for human life to return to the source of its arising, namely a return to the consciousness level of God and Creation. This is a very real proposition for the life of any human, but it does not happen automatically.

To aid in this quest, there exists a signal from very high up in the ray of creation, which serves as a spontaneous impulse in man to refine, evolve, and grow. This impulse is ultimately responsible for religious expression on this planet.

Note: The term 'religion' in this context does not refer to classical organized religion, which is often the expendable byproduct of a connection to an original signal once it has lost its potency.

Throughout the history of human endeavor, this signal has stimulated the conscious evolution of mankind in the form of various expressions and new permissions. Thus, religion in its living context can be divided into seven categories, each according to how it has or will manifest:

The First, Second, and Third Ways

The "First Way" is based on the body and instinct. These are the primitive religions that emphasize such practices as ritual, physical discipline, fasting, feasting, dancing, chanting, drumming, etc... It should be noted that although some remnants of this way are still in existence, being sublunar, they are no longer 'viable' for human personal development.

The "Second Way" is based in emotion and includes prayer, devotional practices, singing, evangelizing, etc...

The "Third Way" is based on the mind and features the memorization of scripture, recitations, philosophy, logical deduction, ethics, and morality...

It is important to note that among the first three ways, none is higher or lower than the other. They simply appeal to one of three hereditary inclinations. Some people tend to be more physically based while others tend to be more emotionally or mentally based; man number one, two, and three respectively.

This is a matter of degree; there are no religions that are completely physical, emotional, or mental to the exclusion of the other two.

The Fourth Way

For nearly 40,000 years, the only ways that a human could respond to was among the first three. This relates to the position of the first 'shock' in the law of seven, as discussed elsewhere. For something to proceed past the first shock, a sustained force from the outside is required to bridge the gap. In this case, the outside force was Christianity - not the Christianity paraded about churches today... but the Christianity that existed thousands of years before the appearance of Jesus.

The form of Christianity I speak of came to the first century through an esoteric school known as the Essenes. For thousands of years, they were the keepers of pre-sand Egypt's mysteries and traditions (i.e., Egypt as it existed before it was covered by sand).

The Christ embodiment broke humanity's stop-situation, which opened a new possibility for the human race in terms of evolutionary and creational response.

Although not realized in the development of humanity at large, this new possibility introduced the potential activation of the pineal gland in the human complex - a level of development known as The Silver Chalice. Jesus (the Christ) was the astral embodiment of a solar entity in human form - the outside influence that made the bridging of the first shock possible.

While it took nearly 40,000 years for humanity to break through the 1-2-3 stop-situation, the signal only took less than 2,000 years to reach the full note of Fa or The Fourth Way.

The primary difference between The Fourth Way and the three prior ways was that it became possible to practice the first three simultaneously and achieve the desired results in a single life instead of many recurrences for the first time in human history.

Before this, a man might enter a school as the first way to train his body. Only after years of intense physical discipline might he become eligible to enter a temple of the second or third way. However, the span of human life did not permit enough time to become a master of all three ways in a single lifetime. This led to a very lopsided kind of development. Referring to the post on reincarnation necessitated many (or perhaps thousands) of recurrences to achieve mastery in all three ways.

In contrast, it became possible for a practitioner of the fourth way to accomplish, in a single lifetime, that which used to require many. The result is the formation of one's astral body, also known as the 'golden bell'. This also stimulates the activation of force in the spine that projects into the head - a level of development known as the 'gold rod.'

One may wish to consider the idea of heaven from this point of view. For, the astral body is not confined to the planet but enjoys the entire solar system (i.e., heaven) as its home and level of consciousness.

The Fifth Way

Whereas it took nearly 40,000 years for the human stop situation to be bridged, it took less than 2,000 years for the signal of the fourth way to become generally accessible. Similarly, the fifth way emerged in less than 100 years. This is due to the higher frequencies of each successively higher note (i.e. 'Fa' to 'Sol') which registers as speed increases.

The chief feature of the fifth way is the activation of the pineal gland powered by the spine. The level of development associated with the activation of the pineal gland is referred to as the 'Silver Chalice'because the activation produces a certain type of silver radiance in and around the head (the chalice). This also marks the formation of what has been called the 'Mental Body.' One of the powers and manifestations of the mental body is the ability to produce a lance of force that can illuminate, power, and activate anything in our solar system. This ability is known as the 'Silver Beacon.'

Note: Just as the permission for the golden bell and gold rod was held in custodianship in the first three ways, the silver chalice and the silver beacon were held in the custodianship of the first shock or esoteric Christianity.

Whereas spiritual advancement could take a lifetime of effort in a fourth-way school, in a fifth-way school, it can take as little as 20 years.

The Sixth Way

Click! We speed up once again at the note 'La' and find ourselves in the wash of the sixth way where we enter the realms of the 'Platinum Arch' and the 'Platinum Vortex' (two distinct natures found within the form of our Milky Way Galaxy).

Understand that each level of development brings in an increase in conscious perception. For example, the development of the astral body through the fourth way brings an intrinsic knowledge and understanding of the planetary influences in our solar system. This is not meant figuratively. In the aura of a man or woman possessing an astral body can be seen (if one can see electrically) a miniature solar system of planets surrounding the person's head.

It is by the process of sympathetic resonance that one in possession of this level of development can know such things. Similarly, with the development of the mental body comes knowing of a solar nature, including perceptions of the nature of time from the sun's perspective (as an example). The development levels associated with the platinum arch and the platinum vortex are an order of magnitude of perception above that of a solar embodiment wherein one is conscious at the level of our galaxy.

The Seventh Way

Enter the now, that which extends into the future. The seventh way is the highest conceivable permission in the ray of creation and represents what is onsetting at the level of the chamber of God and Creation.

The embodiment and consciousness herein are universal and have no equivalent in terms of the human complex [i.e., the astral body corresponds to the higher emotional center, the mental body corresponds to the higher mentality, and the higher sexual body corresponds to the higher sexual center]. In other words, the development of one's level of being to the point of The Jeweled Way cannot be attainment but rather attendance.

In closing, this post is merely intended to be an introduction to a very vast topic and an indicator of what is attainable and of that which is to come. Once again, consider the aspect of Scale and dominion as discussed elsewhere.

Many respects,

Pierce!