Theosophical Siftings

A Lecture to Enquirers...

Vol 3, No 17

A Lecture to Enquirers into Theosophy and Practical Occultism

by W.W. Westcott, F.T.S.
Reprinted fro !Theosophical Siftings! Volu e 3

The Theosophical "u#lishing Societ$, England

%"age &' ( )AVE #een requested to spea* to $ou this e+ening for a short ti e on the su#,ect of Theosoph$ and the -ccult Sciences. There can #e no dou#t that the esta#lished for of religious .hristian instruction has for an$ $ears no/ failed to satisf$ the aspirations of the ore enquiring of the people. The rapid ad+ances ade #$ science ha+e ena#led it to contest and o+erco e the ordinaril$ recei+ed e0planations of 1i#lical state ents on an$ su#,ects connected /ith the ground/or* of the 2e/ish faith, upon /hich $ou ust re e #er the foundation of the .hristian e0oteric religion /as laid. The rapid ad+ances ade #$ Science in the in+estigation of the structure of +egeta#le and ani al #eings, coupled /ith the de onstration of the so3called Natural La/s, ha+e li ited the popular conceptions of the Spiritual and ha+e tended ore and ore to a gross aterialis . Pari passu /ith this aterial de+elop ent there has gro/n /ith its gro/th and strengthened /ith its strength a t$pe of selfishness, /hich is fatal to a high spiritual de+elop ent of the inner an. To co #at these e+il tendencies of the present da$ is the self3i posed function of the 4ello/s of the Theosophical Societ$. 4ar #e it fro an$ of us to #oast of an$ success that a$ ha+e #een gained, /e are content to de+ote ti e and funds to the e0ecution of our sche es and to a/ait the +erdict of posterit$ upon our conduct. -ur ai s are to culti+ate a #rotherhood of the /hole hu an race, 5 a fa il$ of #rothers all see*ing a high ideal of ental and #odil$ purit$, offering on the altar of utual i pro+e ent, li+es of self3sacrificing 6eal. 4or such of us as ha+e ti e 5 and opportunit$ 5 and education there are other o#,ects of attain ent, the search into the records of the past7 the li+es and /ritings of sages of a +anished age and race a$ $et #e pregnant /ith an$ a seed of /isdo /hich a$ #e fertili6ed and #ring forth a rich crop of good in the future. 4or such again as ha+e still rarer attri#utes, /e offer the induce ent of the successes of so e of us, to pursue in+estigations into the hidden $steries of nature and into the secrets of an, 5 his constitution, his origin, and his destin$. The presence here toda$ of $our earnest faces leads e to hope that all of $ou ha+e #een con+inced that there is a so ething to #e learned %"age 8' #e$ond the *no/ledge of the schools, #e$ond the contents of the Enc$clopaedias7 and an attaina#le ai #e$ond that e+en of li+ing respected and d$ing regretted. The Theosoph$ of /hich ( a the un/orth$ e0ponent is not a Theolog$, is not a Religion, and ( a not concerned in founding an$ ne/ sect, nor e+en in tr$ing to tear $ou a/a$ fro the 4aith of $our choice or of $our up#ringing. 1$ Theosoph$ ( plead for the ele+ation of $our li+es, and for $our de+elop ent into #eings of purer aspirations and enlarged po/ers, so that on resigning the earthl$ gar ents $ou no/ "age 1

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/ear, $ou a$ not onl$ reach a ha+en of cal , #ut a$ in so e future age and state once ore start into acti+e e0istence on a higher plane7 and that $ou a$ escape the degradation /hich a life of earthl$ i purit$ and sordid cares and en,o$ ents /ill surel$ #e the forerunner of. 9our futures are in $our o/n hands, #$ $our o/n thoughts and actions shall $our future lot #e decided. The la/ of :ar a is an unerring la/, and the cause ust #e follo/ed #$ its effects, 5 as $e so/ so shall $e also reap. The doctrines /hich /e teach descri#e no place for re/ard, no Ne/ 2erusale , and no #otto less pit for a )ell, #ut /e sa$ that this earth is the scene of $our future e0istence and that $our course of life in the personalit$ to follo/ /ill #e fra ed, #$ a la/ unerring in its ,ustice and i placa#le in its accurac$, to a+enge the faults of $our present e0istence and to ac*no/ledge the successes in de+elop ent /hich $ou a$ no/ attain. (n the sa e anner /e sa$ $our present life is fashioned #$ the :ar a of $our past, $our attri#utes are tinctured #$ the follies and the sins of a for er e0istence. )u an *no/ledge is too finite for an$ an to tell $ou in /hat $ou ha+e sinned in the past life, an$ ore than an$one can tell $ou what /ere the sins of $our $outh /hich a$hap ha+e tinctured the life $ou are li+ing toda$ 5 #ut the cases are si ilar and the effect is equall$ registered in $our life histor$. This :ar a is as accurate in its perception, and as relentless in its action as the All3seeing E$e of the personal deit$ of the orthodo0 a ong $ou, it is the ne+er3failing La/ /hich supplies to e+er$ cause its appropriate effect /hether of a oral, spiritual or ph$sical nature; of it again a$ #e paraphrased the attri#ute of the .hristian <od, !not one sparro/ a$ fall to the ground! /ithout the corresponding effect, ho/e+er inute that result a$ #e. Li*e the la/ of gra+it$ of the scientist, its effects are around us, and itself as an entit$ is equall$ unapprecia#le. a$ #e appreciated, 5 and the la/

:ar a is the reco penser for suffering and the stern hand of retri#uti+e ,ustice upon the e+il doer. The po+ert$, squalor and iser$ /hich e0ist toda$ are trul$ the effect of so e antecedent /rong3doing of the past, for :ar a e0ists as a fate de+ol+ing upon nations, as /ell as a %"age 7' redresser or e0ecutioner of an indi+idual. Too true to #e turned aside #$ regret or #$ pra$er, it is also too fir in its decrees for an$ to, escape its effects. The punish ent for a cri e ust #e #orne, 5 and then a$ co e surcease of sorro/ and future ,o$. -nce ore ( can refer to the .hristian 1i#le for an appropriate quotation, !=ith /hat easure $ou ete it shall #e easured to $ou again!, here is the la/ descri#ed, oh > that other parts of this +olu e had #een per itted to re ain unaltered, and to represent as trul$ the /ords of 2esus called the .hrist. That 2esus /as a great prophet, or rather great teacher, no one can den$, #ut alas, li*e al ost e+er$ other great aster in the past, he left no /ritings of his o/n, and the scattered sa$ings that ha+e sur+i+ed hi , ha+e #een so e ended, added to, ta*en fro , and istranslated, partl$ #$ inad+ertence, often #$ design, until the /hole +olu es designed to illustrate the doctrines of the aster fail us in our hour of need. The scattered frag ents of ancient truth found in the teachings of 2esus de onstrate his (nitiation, the co plete +olu es of his church teach us ho/ frail is an*ind, and ho/ falli#le is tradition.

"age ?

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The /ords ( ha+e quoted are indeed the /ords of truth such as a aster a$ spea*, and there is no conte0t to point us to a +icarious rede ption,/hich #$ the sacrifice of another shall ena#le us to escape the ,ust penalties of our failings. (n further recognition of this La/, did 2esus, li*e 1uddha, preach self3a#ase ent, practical altruis , forgi+eness of others. (n *no/ledge of :ar ic retri#ution did the$ teach, cease to do e+il, learn to do /ell, resist not e+il, and render good for e+il 5 for #$ such eans $our personal future is i pro+ed and e+il deeds shall recoil on the head of the transgressor, and perchance $our good e0a ples a$ at length #e not /ithout good effect on the e+il doer. An e+il action returned #$ $ou la$s up for $our future a sin to #e atoned for, /hile $our act /hich a$ produce a present pain a$ relie+e $our aggressor of a share of his punish ent in the future. ( do not /ish to #e understood to ean that $ou standing /ith e here in this land, /here selfishness is ra pant and the :ali 9uga is upon us, can carr$ out this auspicious line of conduct in its entiret$, #ut little /ill pro#a#l$ #e gained #$ @ui0otic and isolated instances of high conduct, #ut the Theosophist can resist and refrain fro acti+e e+il, and lose no opportunit$ of ai ing at this ideal hi self and teaching it to his neigh#ours. =e hold that 2esus then, has #een isrepresented and his teachings graduall$ altered #$ successi+e generations of his follo/ers, too an$ of /ho for ulated their o/n ideal of his eaning and #$ do inant personalit$ succeeding in o#scuring in the course of centuries his pri iti+e doctrine. =e teach that the orthodo0 sche e of the constitution of an, as a co pound of #od$, soul and spirit, fails to carr$ /ith it a correct %"age A' appreciation of the real nature of hu anit$, and /e sa$ further that the si ple ideal of a Soul to #e sa+ed is incorrect and isleading. 1$ the orthodo0 it is laid do/n that the /hole nature of an is desperatel$ /ic*ed on account of a pri al sin of the first hu an #eings, and that e+en if an$one can resist further /ic*edness in life, $et the original sin in his constitution /ill necessitate his da nation, in the a#sence of a sa+ing faith in a +icarious rede ption. Theosoph$ assures us that this /hole idea rests on a is3conception, and is founded on an allegor$, and further that the <enesis legend /as not e+en /ritten nor for ulated for centuries after the date of its reputed author, Boses. The =isdo Religion traces indeed in <enesis a rese #lance to the origination of certain races in a re ote past, #ut conde ns as incorrect the .hristian sche e /hich has #een founded on this 2e/ish #asis. (t has #een trul$ said that .hristianit$ is founded on the Ce+il, /ho is of +ital i portance to the /hole sche e, for if the pri al te ptation and fall #e erased there e0ists no foundation on /hich is needed an$ Rede ptor$ structure. 1ut e+en here if /e e0cise all the personal po/ers fro the narrati+e /e get another e0pression of :ar ic La/, that pri iti+e, e+en as present an, ust #e punished for his sins, #ut his punish ent is not to #e a+erted #$ the sacrifice of an innocent #eing, ho/e+er e0alted in his ran* and constitution. =e confess indeed that .hrist 2esus /as <od, or as /e sa$, /as o+ershado/ed #$ the )ighest Ci+ine Essence, the At a3Ra$ of the A#solute, and as an ulti ate incarnation of a series of li+es of self3 e0altation #$ suffering and #$ personal hu ilit$, /as of i ense i portance to us ordinar$ en, 5 #ut /e clai that each one is also <od in the sa e sense, ho/e+er far re o+ed fro hi , or fro 1uddha, or fro "$thagoras, or Doroaster, /ho ha+e all #een great souls, Bahat as if $ou /ill, and ha+e all #een great teachers 5 each speciall$ suita#le to his ti e and the necessities and peculiarities of his nation. =e clai that each one of us has the potential di+init$ /ithin us, the Triad of the Spiritual, /hich is indeed .hristos, the Ra$ fro the Supre e At a, the 1uddhi +ehicle or ode of co unication, and the Banas, Bind or .onsciousness of the (ndi+idual; these three inspire each personalit$ here present, and in each one of us there is a possi#ilit$ of ad+ance ent and spiritual ele+ation if /e do #ut li+e so cleanl$ "age 3

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and so purel$ in this life of sorro/, /ea*ness and te ptation, as to dissipate the Veil /hich hides us fro our higher sel+es and per it us to reach up and percei+e that su#li e essence of the .hristos Spirit, that our personalit$ a$ gro/ #$ its reflection and #eco e strong #$ conte plation of its purit$. And the pure and serene ra$ of At a /hich #$ e0altation /e a$ $et percei+e, /ill #$ a series of e+er /idening po/ers, and e+er ascending stages of de+elop ent, at length attain in the "rala$a of the future that Nir+ana or a#sorption into the A#solute Ceific essence %"age E' /hich is the hea+en of the Esotericist, as it has #een the drea of the :a##alist, and the constant and uch isunderstood a #ition of the illions of li+ing 1uddhists. =ith these e0hortations then, $ friends, /hich are applica#le to e+er$ conscious hu an #eing, and /hich ser+e to point to the Fni+ersal sche e of the Ele+ation of Ban, ( propose to lea+e the general su#,ect and to request $our attention to the "ath /hich may #e trod #$ the 4e/. ( ha+e alread$ hinted at the third o#,ect of our societ$, the in+estigation of the !hidden $steries of nature!, if ( a$ #orro/ a phrase fro the 4ree asons, /ho also profess the sa e ideal, the$ too clai for their -rder that it is a s$ste of Boralit$. (, as a 4ree ason, ac*no/ledge #oth the clai s, #ut ( #lush to thin* of ho/ little stud$ the e #ers of the order gi+e to the $steries, and again ( regret to confess that the doctrines of oralit$ are often insufficient to preser+e the high character of the e #ers. No atter no/, 4ree asonr$ had secrets, e+en if its present professors ha+e lost the , and Theosoph$ has had secrets, and has the still7 the so3called occult sciences are a realit$, 5 #ut their e0istence is a +eiled one, and rightl$ so, for /ere the po/ers /hich are un*no/n to the /orld, #ut /hich reall$ e0ist, onl$ *no/n to the selfish a ong en, and /ere e+il en #ut a#le to /ield the po/ers /hich can #e learned #$ the pure, the a ount of hu an suffering ight #e intensified and the foundations of hu an institutions ight #e sha*en. S all /onder then that such po/ers should #e strictl$ guarded7 5 and perhaps ( ight sa$ s all /onder that the scientific /orld scoffs at their e0istence. The selfishness /hich our +aunted ci+ili6ation tends constantl$ to increase, and /hich orthodo0 religion certainl$ further intensifies, is fatal to an$ hope of acquiring agical po/er. The )igher Bagic has al/a$s e0isted, a ong a fe/ adepts in e+er$ age, and pro#a#l$ /ill ne+er #e /idespread7 #ene+olence is its ainspring, and test stone, and i ense po/er a$ #e gained and /ielded #$ the pure, if he do #ut e0ercise patience, self3restraint, self3sacrifice, and ental and #odil$ purit$7 to hi is not alone good :ar a, #ut enlarged po/ers of usefulness, and a higher perception of the secrets of e0istence, and gli pses !#e$ond the Veil /here others sit!. 1ut co ensurate /ith these enlarged po/ers are the dangers of these occult pursuits, an$ are the pitfalls, greatl$ increased are the te ptations to sin, i ense a$ #e the dangers to life and ental soundness /hich ignorance and rec*lessness /ill e0pose the t$ro to suffer. =a+es of attraction to the Fnseen =orld see to s/eep o+er enGs inds at inter+als, and an$ get sei6ed /ith a cra6e for occult research, /hether the$ #e or #e not fitted for such pursuits. (t has #een said the Bagus is #orn not ade, ,ust as has #een said also of the "oet, and there is an ele ent of truth in the assertions. )o/e+er it is certain that the %"age 1H' e0pression of the desire for the occult is no proof of suita#ilit$ for such stud$; ( do not thin* /e /ho *no/ so e little of these su#,ects ha+e an$ right to #ar the door of progress to others if the$ can progress, #ut /e are /ithin the right to cease to encourage an$one /ho fails in his pro ises, in his efforts, or /ho is found to #e anifestl$ too /ea* or too erring. ( do not assert that it is i possi#le for a an alone to a*e hi self an adept, #ut ( do insist on the e0tre e rarit$ of the occurrence7 a teacher is distinctl$ necessar$ and so is a s$ste . No one #ut a teacher /ho has hi self follo/ed the "ath /ith success can lead others7 and no neoph$te can fail to #e "age I

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assisted in his researches #$ one /ho has disco+ered the #lind, #ut often alluring #$e3paths /hich lie to right and left of the narro/ /a$ of progress in occultis . No one #ut he /ho has threaded the a6e can /arn of the pitfalls and quag ires in /hich ind and #od$ a$ #e engulfed. 1e /arned in ti e then, $e aspirants, and #e/are of the e+il effects of rushing in li*e fools /here angels ight /ell fear to tread. Te pt not the po/ers /hich haunt the entrance to the ca+es of -l$ pus, unless $ou *no/ $ourself ar ed /ith +irtue, purified #$ restraint, furnished /ith the /eapon of *no/ledge and guarded #$ a high purpose and e0alted aspirations 5 not for persona pre3e inence #ut for enlarged po/ers of doing good to $our fello/ creatures. The chief danger of occult stud$ lies in the fact that to certain persons of peculiar constitution the /a$ to unusual po/ers lies open to so e e0tent, and a$ re ain open, although the actor #e not pure in ind and #od$, and in those cases there arises that dar* shado/ of the )igher Bagic /hich has e0isted fro ti e i e orial in isolated cases, and at ti es in large groups of en, and /hich is properl$ designated 1lac* Bagic. This fearful possi#ilit$, li*e its great and high predecessor, is also often scoffed at #$ the outer /orld, /hich indeed has gro/n so cle+er in the last centur$ or t/o as to den$ e+en the possi#ilit$ of its e0istence and e+en to repeal la/s /hich the en of past ti es dee ed necessar$ for its repression; and $et 1lac* Bagic is a great fact, it does $et e0ist, and incautious students a$ #e led into it and a$ fall into its eshes, and co e to oral ruin, al ost as surel$ as he /ho /ith per+erse /ill see*s the #lac* art for his personal aggrandise ent or for the pursuit of re+enge. E+il forces and e+il re anets of hu anit$ a$ e0ist around us unpercei+ed and un*no/n to en in their ordinar$ condition, #ut he /ho o+ersteps the threshold of the unseen /orld a$ e0pose hi self to their action. 4or e0a ple, he /ho ta pers /ith spiritualis not onl$ e0poses his senses to #e decei+ed #$ fraud, /hich is rife /hene+er one$ or personal gain is o#tained #$ occult arts, #ut also endangers his intellect #$ the reception of l$ing and ensnaring allusions /hich a$ #e uttered #$ ediu s at the instigation of e+il forces 5 :a a lo*ic shells of %"age 11' suicides 5 and perhaps others, to /hose insidious ad+ances the an /ho a*es no such e0peri ents is not e0posed. Bodern England is not free fro sorcerers, /ho also in (ndia are /ell *no/n to e0ist and for societies of repro#ates *no/n as Cugpas, Red .aps or 1lac* Bagicians. (f one once ta*e the first step fro the ordinar$ /al*s of life, nothing #ut a po/erful /ill and a fi0ed intention of #ene+olence can *eep the student fro har . The =isdo of the )i ala$an Adepts is a#le, ( ha+e no dou#t, to lead the student as far along the path of "ractical -ccultis as finite an can tread, and can lead hi safel$. There ha+e #een in +arious countries, and there are still, other $stics, /hose learning no dou#t ca e fro the sa e parent stoc* #ut fro lapse of ti e and re oteness of place, has #eco e so e/hat differentiated fro that of the (ndian teachers. "ro#a#l$ there is no one in this countr$ /ho has gone far enough in ore than one s$ste to ,udge of their final identit$7 at an$ rate there are other s all groups of o#ser+ers /ho can sho/ part of the /a$ to -ccult Science, the onl$ one ( ention is that of the :a##alists, /ho co #ining the secret doctrines of the re ote )e#re/ Esoteric Ra##is /ith the )er etic doctrines of the Ancient Eg$ptian $steries, and the .haldee Bagic, are still, in secret, teaching their ethods to fa+oured pupils. ( ha+e $self #een through a large portion of their tuition, /hich perhaps is ost properl$ na ed Rosicrucian, and passing fro their s$ste ( ha+e #een fa+oured #$ the teachers of Theosoph$ /ith an "age &

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insight into the first gli pses of Eastern -ccultis . ( a not going to sa$ tonight an$thing ore concerning the Rose and the .ross, and indeed ( should dissuade an$one /ho has ta*en up the Theosophic teaching, fro #eginning an$ other such stud$, for the second /ill certainl$ tend to ar success in the first. -ne cannot /ell o+e along t/o lines at once, e+en if the$ #e nearl$ parallel in parts of their course.

There is one other atter ( should li*e to utter one /arning a#out, and that is /ith regard to the )$pnotic e0peri ents /hich are no/ once ore the pu#lic rage; and here again ( do not propose to sho/ $ou an$thing nor gi+e an$ instruction in the art, #ut ( onl$ desire to gi+e a sole n /arning to an$one disposed to these proceedings. 1e /ell assured that $ou /ill suffer a :ar ic penalt$ for an$ e+il that a$ result fro it. (f $ou are the eans of paral$sing the ental consciousness of an$ person, $ou ust #e ans/era#le for all effects, /hether intentional, or due to $our ignorance, or $our /ill. (t is a terri#le thing to ta*e a/a$ a anGs sense, e+en #$ eans of chlorofor , for $ou put his life in danger7 still ore if $ou paral$se his actions #$ =ill po/er super+ening on passi+it$, do $ou endanger his intellect and his future course of life. 9ou are in the /rong %"age 1?' if $ou e0peri ent on hu an consciousness7 if the h$pnotic sleep ust #e used, let it #e e plo$ed alone #$ such as are purposel$ purified and /ho ha+e #een instructed #$ those /ho *no/. ( sa$ again )$pnotic po/ers are not fit for purposes of pu#lic a use ent, nor for pu#lic e0peri ent7 their use e+en #$ ordinar$ edical en is to #e conde ned #ecause /ielded in ignorance, the te porar$ relief of disease /hich has #een o#ser+ed #$ such is often fallacious7 there is a positi+e danger that a #odil$ ner+ous ail ent a$ #e chec*ed and con+erted into a oral failing7 and lastl$ there is a definite degradation of an$one /ho is coerced #$ the /ill of another. 1odil$ and intellectual and oral strength coincide /ith "ositi+it$, /ith hi /ho can guide and lead, and can #ear /ith fortitude his fate7 #e/are of the state of acquired negati+it$, la$ing one open to e+er$ e+il influence, to ediu ship and to failure. The greatest praise is due to Cr. Nor an :err, /ho a fe/ /ee*s #ac* at 1ir ingha , in conde ning )$pnotis as a treat ent, said; !Let the /hole profession set its face against the practice as a ha6ardous and unrelia#le re ed$, ne+er free fro the ris* of perilous consequences, lia#le to the gra+est a#uses, operati+e onl$ in a li ited nu #er of patients, lia#le to produce conditions of #rain conduci+e to ental unsoundness, and to trans it to posterit$ per anent or#id ner+ous suscepti#ilities /ith an ill3#alanced and unsta#le #rain 5 ore especiall$ in these da$s of ner+e riot, e0haustion, and unrest, /hen o+er3/earied Nature $earns /ith an unuttera#le $earning for o#li+ion and repose!. There a$ #e so e a ong $ou to /ho it shall co e, that initiation for /hich ( ha+e longed, #ut #elie+e e Adeptship is not to #e o#tained #$ one life; as has #een said, $ou ust ha+e a 1irthright, in other /ords in an$ pre+ious e0istences $ou ust ha+e gained ore and ore footing in the "ath. Secondl$, $ou ust #e prepared to sacrifice all earthl$ a #itions. Thirdl$, $ou ust cast aside all earthl$ pleasures /hich are not pure, $ou ust a#stain fro all #odil$ defile ent, fro all ental dissipation; it has #een said !he /ho drin*s #eer, thin*s #eer!, this is the *e$3note, ental and oral ele+ation can hardl$ #e o#tained e0cept #$ the sacrifice of +er$ an$ ha#its dee ed per issi#le #$ societ$; a#stinence fro alcohol is of the greatest i portance, and ani al food ars the purit$ of the #od$, and, se0ual en,o$ ent, e+en if /e neglect the consideration of its ph$sical de+itali6ation, e+en #$ its ental clai s so distracts the attention of the ind as to render passion inco pati#le /ith adeptship. Although $ou ust e0ist on this ph$sical plane, $ou ust li+e a#o+e it. The #od$ is neither to #e conde ned nor neglected, #ut to #e used onl$ as a local ha#itation and a na e. 4ourthl$, #e read$ to stud$ at all ti es, #e prepared "age 8

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A Lecture to Enquirers...

Vol 3, No 17

to sift the true fro the false, let no gla our decei+e $ou, no prestige islead $ou. %"age 13' 4ifthl$, recognise $our faults, $our o/n special failings, see* for no re/ard, hope not for gratitude, for that onl$ /hich co es unsought is to #e appreciated. Si0thl$, consider /ell #efore the "ath #e entered, and ha+ing #egun 5 loo* not #ac*, re e #er the allegor$ of the "illar of Salt, pause not in $our progress, for no sluggard can succeed7 and Se+enthl$, proclai not $our progress as $ou pass the ilestones of the "ath, nor $our co unications /ith higher po/ers to the foolish. .onte plate the e #le atic Sphin0 of antiquit$, that co ple0 s$ #ol /hose cla/s and li #s as of a Lion teach audacit$, /hose loins as of a 1ull denote strength and patient endurance, /hose )u an )ead suggests the culti+ation of the ind7 and /hose =ings as of an Eagle a$ ena#le $ou to ount into those higher planes of thought and e0istence /hich are flooded /ith the radiance of the (nco prehensi#le -ne All. 333333333333333333333 (n proportion to the lo+e e0isting a ong en, so /ill #e the co unit$ of propert$ and po/er. A ong true and real friends, all is co on7 and, /ere ignorance and en+$ and superstition #anished fro the /orld, all an*ind /ould #e friends. The onl$ perfect and genuine repu#lic is that /hich co prehends e+er$ li+ing #eing. Those distinctions /hich ha+e #een artificiall$ set up, of nations, societies, fa ilies and religions, are onl$ general na es, e0pressing the a#horrence and conte pt /ith /hich en #lindl$ consider their fello/3 en. ( lo+e $ countr$7 ( lo+e $ /ife7 the cit$ in /hich ( /as #orn, $ parents and the children of $ care7 and to this cit$, this /o an, and this nation, it is incu #ent on e to do all the #enefit in $ po/er. To /hat do these distinctions point, #ut to an e+ident denial of the dut$ /hich hu anit$ i poses on $ou, of doing e+er$ possi#le good to e+er$ indi+idual, under /hate+er deno ination he a$ #e co prehended, to /ho $ou ha+e the po/er of doing it J 9ou ought to lo+e all an*ind7 na$, e+er$ indi+idual of an*ind. 9ou ought not to lo+e the indi+iduals of $our do estic circle less, #ut to lo+e those /ho e0ist #e$ond it ore. -nce a*e the feelings of confidence and of affection uni+ersal, and the distinctions of propert$ and po/er /ill +anish. S)ELLE9 KEssa$s and 4rag ents'.

"age 7