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Light on the Path, p art one

Thes e rules are wr itten f or all discipl es: Att end you to the m.

Bef ore the eyes c an see they mu st be i ncapabl e of te ars. Be fore th e ear c an hear it mus t have
lost i ts sens itivene ss. Bef ore the voice can spe ak in t he pres ence of the Ma sters i t must have lo st
the power to woun d. Befo re the soul ca n stand in the presen ce of t he Mast ers its feet m ust be
washed in the blood of the heart.

1. Kil l out a mbition .
NOTE - Ambit ion is the fir st curs e: the great t empter of the man who is ris ing abo ve his fellows .
It i s the s implest form o f looki ng for reward. Men of intell igence and pow er are led awa y from
their higher possibi lities by it c ontinua lly. Ye t it is a nece ssary t eacher. Its re sults t urn to dust an d
ashe s in th e mouth ; like death a nd estr angemen t, it s hows th e man a t last that to work f or self is
to work f or disa ppointm ent. Bu t thoug h this first r ule see ms so s imple a nd easy , do no t quick ly pass
it by . For t hese vi ces of the ord inary m an pass throug h a sub tle tra nsforma tion an d reapp ear wit h
chan ged asp ect in the hea rt of t he disc iple. I t is ea sy to s ay: "I Will no t be am bitious "; it i s not s o
easy to say : "When the Ma ster re ads my heart, He will find i t clean utterl y." The pure a rtist w ho
wor ks for the lov e of hi s work is some times m ore fir mly pla nted on the ri ght roa d than the
oc cultist who fa ncies h e has r emoved his int erest f rom sel f, but who has in rea lity on ly enla rged th e
limi ts of e xperien ce and desire, and tr ansferr ed his interes t to th ings wh ich con cern hi s large r
span of lif e. The same pr inciple applie s to th e other two se emingly simple rules. Linger over t hem,
a nd do n ot let yoursel f be ea sily de ceived by your own he art. Fo r now, at the thresho ld, a m istake
can be correc ted. Bu t carry it on with yo u and i t will grow an d come to frui tion, o r else you mus t
suff er bitt erly in its de structi on.
2. Kill ou t desir e of li fe.

3. Kill o ut desi re of c omfort.

4. Wo rk as t hose wo rk who are amb itious. Respec t life as thos e do wh o desir e it. B e happy as
th ose are who li ve for happine ss.
See k in th e heart the so urce of evil a nd expu nge it. It liv es frui tfully in the heart o f the d evoted
discip le as w ell as in the heart o f the m an of d esire. Only th e stron g can k ill it out. Th e weak must
w ait for its gr owth, i ts frui tion, i ts deat h. And it is a plant that li ves and increa ses thr oughout the
a ges. It flower s when the man has ac cumulat ed unto himsel f innum erable existen ces. He who wi ll
ent er upon the pa th of p ower mu st tear this t hing ou t of hi s heart . And t hen the heart will bl eed,
a nd the whole l ife of the man seem t o be ut terly d issolve d. This ordeal must b e endur ed; it may
co me at t he firs t step of the perilou s ladde r which leads to the path of life; it may not unt il the last.
But, O discipl e, reme mber th at it h as to b e endur ed, and fasten the en ergies of your soul u pon the
task. Live n either in the present nor th e futur e, but in the Eternal . This giant w eed can not flo wer
th ere; th is blot upon e xistenc e is wi ped out by the very a tmosphe re of e ternal thought .

5. Kill ou t all s ense of separa teness.
NOTE - Do no t fancy you ca n stand aside from th e bad m an or t he fool ish man . They are you rself,
though in a l ess deg ree tha n your friend or your Master . But i f you a llow th e idea of sepa ratenes s
from any ev il thin g or pe rson to grow u p withi n you, by so d oing yo u creat e karma which will bi nd
you to tha t thing or per son til l your soul re cognize s that it cann ot be i solated . Remem ber tha t the
sin and shame of the world a re your sin an d shame ; for y ou are a part of it; your ka rma is
inextr icably interwo ven wit h the g reat Ka rma. An d befor e you c an atta in know ledge y ou must have
passed through all pl aces, f oul and clean alike. Therefo re, rem ember t hat the soiled garmen t you
shrink from to uching may hav e been yours y esterda y, may be your s tomor row. An d if yo u turn
with h orror f rom it, when i t is fl ung upo n your shoulde rs, it will cl ing the more c losely to you. The
s elf-rig hteous man mak es for himself a bed of mire . Absta in beca use it is righ t to ab stain - not th at
you rself s hall be kept c lean.

6. Kill out de sire fo r sensa tion.

7. Kill out th e hunge r for g rowth.

8. Yet stand alone a nd isol ated, b ecause nothing that i s embod ied, no thing t hat is conscio us of
separat ion, no thing t hat is out of the Ete rnal, c an aid you. Le arn fro m sensa tion an d obser ve it,
becaus e only so can you com mence t he scie nce of self-kn owledge , and p lant yo ur foot on the first
step o f the l adder. Grow as the fl ower gr ows, un conscio usly, b ut eage rly anx ious to open i ts soul to
th e air. So must you pr ess for ward to open y our sou l to th e Etern al. But it mus t be th e Etern al that
draws forth your st rength and bea uty, no t desir e of gr owth. F or in t he one case yo u devel op in t he
lux uriance of pur ity; in the ot her you harden by the forcib le pass ion for person al stat ure.

9.Desir e only that wh ich is within you.

1 0. Desi re only that w hich is beyond you.

11. Des ire onl y that which i s unatt ainable .

12. For wit hin you is the light of the world - the on ly ligh t that can be shed up on the Path. I f you
are una ble to perceiv e it wi thin yo u, it i s usele ss to l ook for it els ewhere. It is beyond you, be cause
when yo u reach it you have l ost you rself. It is u nattain able, b ecause it for ever re cedes. You wil l
ente r the l ight, b ut you will ne ver tou ch the Flame.

13. De sire po wer ard ently.

14. De sire pe ace fer vently.

15. D esire p ossessi ons abo ve all.

16. B ut thos e posse ssions must be long to the pu re soul only, and be possess ed ther efore b y all
pure so uls equ ally, a nd thus be the especi al prop erty of the wh ole onl y when united. Hunger for su ch
pos session s as ca n be he ld by t he pure soul, that yo u may a ccumula te weal th for that un ited sp irit of
life which i s your only tr ue Self . The p eace yo u shall desire is tha t sacre d peace which nothing can
d isturb, and in which the sou l grows as doe s the h oly flo wer upo n the s till la goons. And tha t power
which the di sciple shall c ovet is that w hich sh all mak e him a ppear a s nothi ng in t he eyes of men .

17. Seek o ut the way.
N OTE - T hese fo ur word s seem, perhap s, too slight to stan d alone . The d isciple may sa y: "Sho uld I
study t hese th oughts at all, did I not see k out t he way?" Yet d o not p ass on hastily . Pause and
c onsider awhile . Is it the wa y you d esire, or is i t that there i s a dim perspe ctive i n your visions of
gr eat hei ghts to be sca led by yoursel f, of a great future for you to com pass? B e warne d. The way is
to be sought for its own sa ke, not with r egard t o your feet th at shal l tread it.
Th ere is a corre sponden ce betw een thi s rule and the sevent eenth o f the s econd s eries. When
a fter ag es of s truggle and ma ny vict ories t he fina l battl e is wo n, the final s ecret d emanded , then
you ar e prepa red for a furt her pat h. When the fi nal sec ret of this gr eat les son is told, i n it is
opene d the m ystery of the new way - a pa th whic h leads out of all hu man exp erience , and w hich is
utter ly beyo nd huma n perce ption o r imagi nation. At eac h of th ese poi nts it is need ful to pause l ong
an d consi der wel l. At e ach of these p oints i t is ne cessary to be sure th at the way is chosen for its
own s ake. Th e way a nd the truth c ome fir st, the n follo ws the life.

18. See k the w ay by r etreati ng with in.

19 . Seek the way by adv ancing boldly without .

20. Seek it not by any on e road. To eac h tempe rament there i s one r oad whi ch seem s the m ost
de sirable . But t he way is not found b y devot ion alo ne, by religio us cont emplati on alon e, by a rdent
progres s, by s elf-sac rificin g labou r, by s tudious observ ation o f life. None a lone ca n take the dis ciple
more th an one step on wards. All ste ps are necessa ry to m ake up the lad der. Th e vices of man
becom e steps in the ladder , one b y one, as they are su rmounte d. The virtues of man are st eps
in deed, n ecessar y - not by any means to be d ispense d with. Yet, t hough t hey cre ate a f air
at mospher e and a happy future, they a re usel ess if they st and alo ne. The whole nature of man must
b e used wisely by the one who desire s to en ter the way. E ach man is to himself absolu tely th e way,
the tr uth, an d the l ife. Bu t he is only s o when he gras ps his whole i ndividu ality f irmly, and by the
fo rce of his awa kened s piritua l will, recogn izes th is indi viduali ty as n ot hims elf, bu t that thing
which h e has w ith pai n creat ed for his own use an d by me ans of which h e purpo ses, as his gr owth
s lowly d evelops his in tellige nce, to reach to the life be yond in dividua lity. W hen he knows t hat for
this his won derful complex separa ted lif e exist s, then , indee d, and then on ly, he is upon the wa y.
See k it by plungi ng into the my steriou s and g lorious depths of you r own i nmost b eing. S eek it by
tes ting al l exper ience, by util izing t he sens es in o rder to unders tand th e growt h and m eaning of
ind ividual ity, an d the b eauty a nd obsc urity o f those other divine fragmen ts whic h are s truggli ng
sid e by si de with you, a nd form the ra ce to w hich yo u belon g. Seek it by study o f the l aws of being,
the la ws of N ature, the law s of th e super natural , and s eek it by maki ng the profoun d obeis ance of
the s oul to the dim star t hat bur ns with in. Ste adily, as you watch a nd wors hip, it s light will g row
st ronger. Then y ou may know yo u have found t he begi nning o f the w ay. And when y ou have found
the en d its l ight wi ll sudd enly be come th e infin ite lig ht.

NO TE - Se ek it b y testi ng all experie nce; an d remem ber tha t when I say t his I d o not s ay: "Yi eld
to the se duction s of se nse in order t o know it." Be fore yo u have become an occu ltist y ou may do
thi s; but not aft erwards . When you hav e chose n and e ntered the Pat h you c annot y ield to these
seduct ions wi thout s hame. Y et you can exp erience them w ithout horror; can we igh, ob serve, and
te st them , and w ait wit h the p atience of con fidence for th e hour when th ey shal l affec t you n o
long er. But do not condem n the m an that yields ; stret ch out your ha nd to h im as a brothe r pilgr im
who se feet have b ecome h eavy wi th mire . Remem ber, O discipl e, that great though the gul f may b e
betw een the good m an and the sin ner it is grea ter bet ween th e good man and the ma n who h as
att ained k nowledg e; it i s immea surable betwee n the g ood man and th e one o n the t hreshol d of
d ivinity . There fore be wary l est too soon y ou fanc y yours elf a t hing ap art fro m the m ass. Wh en you
have f ound th e begin ning of the wa y the s tar of your so ul will show i ts ligh t; and by that light you
wi ll perc eive ho w great is the darkne ss in w hich it burns. Mind, heart, brain a ll are obscure and
d ark unt il the first g reat ba ttle ha s been won. Be not ap palled and ter rified by the sight; keep yo ur
eye s fixed on the small light a nd it w ill gro w. But let the darkne ss with in help you to unders tand
t he help lessnes s of th ose who have s een no light, whose s ouls ar e in pr ofound gloom. Blame t hem
no t. Shri nk not from th em, but try to lift a little of the heavy karma o f the w orld; g ive you r aid t o
the few str ong han ds that hold b ack the powers of dar kness f rom obt aining complet e victo ry. The n
do y ou ente r into a partn ership of joy, which brings indeed terribl e toil and pro found s adness, but
a lso a g reat an d ever-increas ing del ight.

21. Loo k for t he flow er to b loom in the si lence t hat fol lows th e storm ; not t ill the n.
It s hall gr ow, it will sh oot up, it wil l make branche s and l eaves a nd form buds, while t he stor m
cont inues, while t he batt le last s. But not til l the w hole pe rsonali ty of t he man is diss olved a nd
mel ted - n ot unti l it is held b y the d ivine f ragment which has cre ated it , as a mere su bject f or grav e
expe riment and exp erience - not until t he whol e natur e has y ielded and bec ome sub ject un to its
higher Self, can the bloom open. T hen wil l come a calm such as comes in a tr opical country after the
he avy rai n, when Nature works so swif tly tha t one m ay see her act ion. Su ch a ca lm will come t o the
harasse d spiri t. And in the deep si lence t he myst erious event w ill occ ur whic h will prove t hat the
way h as been found. Call i t by wh at name you wi ll, it is a vo ice tha t speak s where there is none to
sp eak - i t is a messeng er that comes, a mess enger w ithout form or substa nce; or it is the flo wer of
the so ul that has op ened. I t canno t be de scribed by any metaph or. But it can be fel t after , looke d
for, and de sired, even am id the raging of the storm. The sil ence ma y last a momen t of ti me or i t
may last a thousan d years . But i t will end. Ye t you w ill car ry its strengt h with you. Ag ain and again
the ba ttle mu st be f ought a nd won. It is only fo r an in terval that Na ture ca n be st ill.

N OTE - T he open ing of the blo om is t he glor ious mo ment wh en perc eption awakes; with i t comes
confi dence, knowled ge, cer tainty. The pa use of the sou l is th e momen t of wo nder, a nd the next
m oment o f satis faction - that is the silenc e.

Kno w, O di sciple, that t hose wh o have passed through the si lence, and fel t its p eace an d retai ned
it s stren gth, th ey long that y ou shal l pass through it als o. Ther efore, in the Hall of Learni ng, whe n
he i s capab le of e ntering there, the di sciple will al ways fi nd his Master.

Those that a sk shal l have. But th ough th e ordin ary man asks p erpetua lly, hi s voice is not heard.
For h e asks with hi s mind only; a nd the voice o f the m ind is only he ard on that pl ane on which t he
min d acts. Theref ore not until the fir st twen ty-one rules a re pass ed do I say th at thos e that ask
sh all hav e.

To read, i n the o ccult s ense, i s to re ad with the ey es of t he spir it. To ask is to feel the hu nger
w ithin - the ye arning of spir itual a spirati on. To be able to rea d means having obtain ed the power i n
a sm all deg ree of satisfy ing tha t hunge r. When the di sciple is read y to le arn, th en he i s accep ted,
a cknowle dged, r ecogniz ed. It must be so, fo r he ha s lit h is lamp , and i t canno t be hi dden. B ut to
learn i s impos sible u ntil th e first great battle has bee n won. The min d may r ecogniz e truth , but t he
spi rit can not rec eive it . Once having passed through the st orm and attain ed the peace, it is t hen
al ways po ssible to lear n, even though the di sciple waver, hesitat e, and turn as ide. Th e Voice of the
Silen ce rema ins wit hin him , and t hough h e leave s the P ath utt erly, y et one day it will re sound, and
re nd him asunder and se parate his pas sions f rom his divine possib ilities . Then, with p ain and
despe rate cr ies fro m the d eserted lower self, h e will return.

There fore I say: Pe ace be with yo u "My p eace I give un to you," can o nly be said by the Ma ster to
the beloved disciples who are as Himself. There are some even among those who are ignorant of
the Eastern Wisdom, to whom this can be said, and to whom it can daily be said with more
completeness.

Regard the three truths.1-They are equal. These written above are the first of the rules which are
written on the walls of the Hall of Learning. Those that ask shall have. Those that desire to read
shall read. Those who desire to learn shall learn.

PEACE BE WITH YOU

1The Three Truths are thus given in the eighth chapter of The Idyll of the White lotus :
"There are Three Truths which are absolute, and cannot be lost, but yet may remain silent for lack of speech.
"The soul of man is immortal, and its future is the future of a thing whose growth and splendour has no limit.
"The principle which gives life dwells in us, and without us, is undying and eternally beneficent, is not heard, or seen, or smelt, but
is perceived by the man who desires perception.
"Each man is his own absolute law-giver, the dispenser of glory or gloom to himself; the decreer of his life, his reward, his
punishment.
"These Truths, which are as great as is life itself, are as simple as the simplest mind of man. Feed the hungry with them."
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