(On the occasion of the new moon of Virgo, the great “Mother of Cycles”, we publish this article by Philippe AC)
The Law of Rebirth or Reincarnation is a Fundamental law of our universeIt should be seen in the context of cycleswhich are the breath of the evolution of conscious entities on all planes of manifestation. “Cyclic appearance (…) governs the rays, as well as the Kingdoms of nature and the forms contained therein. It determines the activity of God Himself. Races (the group of human egos) incarnate, pass away, and re-incarnate, and so do all lives in form. Reincarnation or cyclic activity lies behind all phenomenal activity and appearance. It is an aspect of the pulsating life of the Deity. It is the out-breath and in-breath of the process of divine existence and manifestation.” (Alice Bailey, Esoteric Psychology Ip. 266)
The Law of Rebirth or Reincarnation therefore concerns all conscious entitiesfrom man to the solar Logos, passing through a planetary Logos. In fact, “the entire solar system embodies the consciousness of an Entity, which originates on planes that are entirely devoid of the impassable solar ring. (The) manifestation is periodic and (…) the Law of Rebirth is the method that evolution follows to deal with a man, a planetary Logos (1) and a solar Logos (2). Hence the emphasis placed in the Prologue of the Secret Doctrine on the three foundations: the Unlimited Immutable Principle, the periodicity of the Universe (and) the identity of all souls with the Supreme Soul.” (Alice Bailey, A treatise on cosmic firep. 238)
“As the wheel turns, the earth itself is reincarnated; places pass into pralaya (3) and emerge into manifestation, containing within them the seeds that will concretize into a similar vibration and bring into existence again similar modes of expression and similar forms of life. forms.” (Alice Bailey, Letters on occult meditation, p. 306)
For humanity in particular, it must be understood as The corollary of the Law of Evolution (4) and, as such, must be related to the Law of cause and effect. Indeed, as far as the human group is concerned:
“…all souls incarnate and reincarnate under the Law of Rebirth. Each life, therefore, is not merely a recapitulation of life experience, but an assumption of old obligations, a recovery of old relationships, an opportunity to pay old debts, a chance to make restitution and progress, an awakening of deep-seated qualities, the recognition of old friends and enemies, the resolution of hideous injustices, and the explanation of that which conditions man and makes him what he is.” (Alice Bailey, Esoteric Psychology I, p. 300)
The Law of Rebirth therefore represents a A great challenge for humanity:is in the heart of Human problemsand understanding it correctly could well be the key to solving them:
“…the Law of Rebirth holds the secret of the present crisis hidden. Groups of egos are uniting to work out certain karma related to days gone by. Men have made grievous mistakes in the past. Punishment and transmutation are the natural solution. The violence and cruelty of the past will reap their heavy karma, but it is now in the hands of all of you to transmute the old mistakes.” (Alice Bailey, TO Treatise on White Magic, p. 114)
This Law therefore implies understanding the evolution of consciousness as the result of a group impulse and not at a purely individual level, which is an illusion. It brings entities of consciousness into incarnation at the same time as an opportunity (the Tibetan Masters also call it the “Law of opportunity(5)) to collectively process the legacies resulting from the Law of Cause and Effect and the perspectives offered in terms of the Law of Evolution.
This Law is of particular importance to the New world religion because it will be at the heart of the universal teaching imparted by the Christ. “This doctrine will be one of the keynotes of the new world religion, as well as the clarifying agent for a better understanding of world affairs. (…) (When He returns, the Christ) will teach men the method by which this possibility can be made an accomplished fact, through the constant return of the embodied soul to the school of life on earth, there to undergo the process of improvement of which He was the outstanding example. That is the meaning and teaching of reincarnation.” (Alice Bailey, The reappearance of Christ, (p. 116-117).
In summary, the Tibetan indicates certain concepts about this Law To prepare ourselves to understand it:
“1. The Law of Rebirth is a great natural law on our planet.
2. It is a process instituted and carried out under the Law of Evolution.
3. It is closely related to and conditioned by the Law of Cause and Effect.
4. It is a process of progressive development, enabling men to advance from the grossest forms of thoughtless materialism toward a spiritual perfection and intelligent perception that will enable them to become members of the Kingdom of God.
5. Explains the differences between men and, in connection with the Law of Cause and Effect (called the Law of Karma in the East), explains the differences in circumstances and attitudes towards life.
6. It is the expression of the will aspect of the soul and is not the result of any formal decision; it is the soul in all forms that reincarnates, choosing and constructing appropriate physical, emotional and mental vehicles through which to learn the next necessary lessons.
7. The Law of Rebirth (as it relates to humanity) comes into action on the soul plane. Incarnation is motivated and directed from the soul level, on the mental plane.
8. Souls are incarnated in groups, cyclically, under the law and in order to achieve correct relationships with God and with their fellow men.
9. Progressive development, under the Law of Rebirth, is largely conditioned by the mental principle that “as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” These few words require very careful consideration.
10. Under the Law of Rebirth, man slowly develops the mind, then the mind begins to control the feeling, the emotional nature, and finally reveals the soul and its nature and environment to man.
11. At that point in his development, man begins to walk the Path of Return, and gradually (after many lives) is oriented toward the Kingdom of God.
12. When, through developed mentality, wisdom, practical service and understanding, a man has learned not to ask anything for the separate self, then he renounces the desire to live in the three worlds and becomes free from the Law of Rebirth.
13. He is now group conscious, aware of his soul group and of the soul in all its forms, and has attained—as Christ had requested—a stage of Christlike perfection, attaining to the “measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).
“No intelligent person will attempt to go beyond this generalization. When Christ reappears, our knowledge will become more true and realistic; we will know that we are eternally related to the souls of all men, and that we have a definite relationship to those who are reincarnated with us, who are learning with us the same lessons, and who are experiencing and experimenting with us. This tested and accepted knowledge will regenerate the very sources of our human life. We will know that all our difficulties and all our troubles are caused by our failure to recognize this fundamental Law, with its responsibilities and obligations; then we will gradually learn to govern our activities by its just and restraining power. The Law of Rebirth embodies the practical knowledge which men need today in order to conduct rightly and correctly their religious, political, economic, communal, and private lives and thus to establish right relations with the divine life in every way.” (Alice Bailey, The reappearance of Christ, (p. 118-120)
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(1) Planetary logosThis term is generally applied to the seven higher spirits corresponding to the seven archangels of Christianity. They have all passed through the human stage and are now manifesting through a planet and its evolutions, just as man manifests through his physical body. The higher planetary spirit working through any particular globe is, in reality, the personal God of that planet. (Alice Bailey, Initiation, Human and Solarglossary)
(2) Solar LogosThe solar Logos is more than man, for it is the sum total of all evolutions within the entire solar system, including the human one, which is an evolution that is at an intermediate point in relation to the other evolutions. (Alice Bailey, TO Treatise on Cosmic Fire, p. 203)
(3) Pralaya. A period of darkness or repose—planetary, cosmic, or universal—opposed to the Manvantara (SD, II., 80) (Helena Blavatsky, Theosophical Glossary)
(4) The law of Evolution:The Law of Evolution, as commonly understood, refers to the evolution of the form aspect as it gradually adapts itself to be an exponent or expression of soul energy, and later of monadic energy. This law (…) might be termed the Law of Perfection. (Alice Bailey, Esoteric healingp. 659)
(5) See Alice Bailey, Esoteric Psychology IIp. 431
