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THE WAY THROUGH THE CAUSAL REALM When the aspirant goes beyond Sahasdal Kanwal, the binding powers ruled
by Kal, are most severe. Kal can neither create nor destroy a soul, neither give light nor sound,
but he can keep souls traped in the causal and astral realms as well as in the
physical region.He captures man’s soul with the chains of worldly pleasures and
if a soul wishes to return to its eternal home, Kal releases all his powers to
prevent this soul from its ascending. But Sat Purush, the sublime Lord of Love, is the Supreme Godhood and the
creator of all universes. The perfect Adept of Mysticism is his incarnation,
and he can safely guide the soul through Kal’s regions. Immediately before the aspirant reaches the atrium to the causal realm
the soul encounters in the higher astral regions indescribably handsome men and
beautiful women, who offer incredible temptations, to prevent it from its
further ascent. The protecting Shabd-power of the Adept of Mysticism will make these
tempting astral entities invisible to the aspirant. No negative power can
approach the charisma of Shabd (the Sound
Current) which was given by a perfect Adept
of Mysticism. When you see the bright star within, the day star, as Jesus puts it, just fix your inner gaze minutely into
the centre thereof. This will give you
penetration and away through the star and you will cross it. At times,
the Master also appears over there. While hearing the Sound, please do not try to stick to it, but listen carefully
to the Sound and gradually you will hear the Sound destinctly as that of
drum-beat or thunder. The Master-Power is overhead and will be extending all
possible help, grace and protection. (Sp.Exr. p. 182) Maulana Rumi said about the protecting mercy of Pir (the
Master): Oh, courageous soul, hold on to the garment of somebody who knows the various levels well. The physical, mental, supra-mental ones and the levels beyond it – and who as a true friend, whether in life or death, can stay with you in this or the next world. Now the aspirant prepares himself for the second stage of his journey
upwards, but before he is able to enter the causal realm, he has to pass on an
incredibly narrow path, a curved tunnel or a bent pipe, known to the Eastern
Adepts of Mysticism as Bankanal. Kabir said about this tunnel to the mental
worlds that it had only one tenth of the size of a mustard seed. And he
compares the mind to that of an elephant. Guru Nanak also described this tunnel and compared it with a passage
which is only one tenth of a hair’s breadth. Other Adepts of Mysticism compared
it to the eye of a thin needle. It is impossible for the aspirant to cross this
tunnel without the assistance of a competent Adept of Mysticism, but with the
help of such a Master of Spirituality the path is broadened and the aspirant
succeeds in asceding and descending without difficulties. Thus, the initiated enters the causal regions through the U-shaped
tunnel of Bankanal. For some time the way forward is straight and even, but
suddenly it drops steeply. After a downward bend it leads upwards again, and
the initiated walks on an even path that leads to a region which is described
as the seventh heaven in the Sufi literature. If the initiated has reached the upper end of the Bankanal tunnel his
view and the whole perspective seems to be turned upside down, and he sees just
like from the opposite side of the curtain or mirror which he has penetrated.
Now he is in the second big division of creation known as Brahmand (egg of Brahm) in Eastern Mysticism. Obviously, it is called Brahmand because of its elliptic form. In its
totality it comprises the material-spiritual as well as the physical universes,
but it is much bigger than these two together, and, in fact, the three lower
divisions of the entire cosmic creation can be perceived as a whole, the
highest level of which is Brahmand, the spiritual-material division; in the
centre there are the astral regions as the material-spiritual section, and the
lowest part is formed by the physical universe. The residents of the causal regions are unspeakably happy, but after a
long stay in Brahmand they are still subject to the final rebirth into the
physical universe. Hence, they are not immortal as the liberated souls in the
purely spiritual regions are, but they live during an immeasurable vast and
longer scale of time than the beings in the astral and
physical universes. Brahmand is ruled by Maha-Kal,
which is also known as Par-Brahm in
Eastern teachings. Maha-Kal is the higher aspect of Kal and is located in the upper
spiritual regions of Brahmand, just as Kal rules in the lower and more material
regions. In the lower regions of Brahmand the mental matter ranks first, for it
is the level of mind, and mind itself consists of a refined form of matter and
a certain amount of spirit. The aspirant ascends to the lower levels of Brahmand and finds himself
in the realm of the universal mind, known as Trikuti in Eastern teachings. This realm of universal mind was
mistaken for God by a lot of metaphysicians and mystic theologians; however, to
the Adepts of Mysticism and their disciples this is only the initial stage of
the second step on their journey upwards. When the aspirant ascends to this region of Trikuti he hears a sublime
melody that is very similar to a tonal expression of the word Om. It is a
lingering, roaring sound which is reminiscent of the thunder of storm clouds on
earth, but it is full of an unworldly sweetness and harmony. Trikuti is a level in which the soul can travel through a roaring
planetary path, a literal way through pulsating celestial bodies. If the soul
of the initiated looks upward into this direction, it arrives at a region of
fortress-like buildings with high towers and minarets. It will stay for some while in this region and it is filled with the
features of devotion and belief, it sees itself as the master of the mental
level. The region of the fortress is the warehouse of the human karmas, the
records of past and present. The law of karma, the irrevocable law of cause and
effect, governs the whole tripartite creation of the causal, astral and
physical universes. Each human’s individual karma determines his fate. The way and manner
that someone has acted in his present and past courses of life determines what
he is now. The Karmic law acts permanently, since a man is what he thinks in his heart. Which other way is there in order to conclude or release the Karmic
debts of a man than the long and seemingly endless cycle of birth and rebirth?
Part of the answer to this question is given in the fortress region of the
causal worlds; but nobody can get there without a competent spiritual guide. At the physical level it seems to be so that as soon as one has atoned
for his past faults he creates new karma for himself and has to pay tribute to the law of
cause and effect. Kal is sitting at the supreme judge’s seat of the astral, causal and
physical universes; he is the master of the karmas, and only an incarnation can
be authorized to change certain dispositions of Kal in order to release a soul
from the wheel of births and deaths. Such an incarnation is the master of the highest order, known as Sant
Satguru in Eastern terminology. As soon as such an Adept of Mysticism has taken
an aspirant under his protection, this aspirant will be released from his link
to Kal – the negative power (the binding
power) -- and after that his Karmic debts – part
of which is released at the time of initiation – will be subsequently redeemed
by the mercy of the Adept of Mysticism. If the disciples reaches the fortress region by the mercy of
the Adept of Mysticism, the germs of his past karmas will be destroyed finally,
though his soul is still loaded with the fault of major impurity which was
accumulated during many incarnations. During his stay at the region of the fortress the disciple
looks over the high minarets and views vast dark clouds from which the roaring
sound of cosmic thunder permanently resounds. Don’t be afraid of the deep
thunder in it, follow the sound of thunder, it will take you to the Master’s
feet. If the purpose of his stay in the region of the fortress has been
achieved, the initiated rises above the black clouds and recognize that the
whole region is a grand cosmos of
vibrating red light with a wonderful red sun in the centre of the sky which
renders the cridinn hue to the entire region. In addition to being the big warehouse of human karmas (a large stock which has accumulated in the course of
millions of lives), Trikuti is also a region of
knowledge. The three cosmic features of harmony, activity and inactivity have their
origin in Trikuti and enabled the creation of the astral and physical
universes. In Hindu writings, these three features are embodied by Brahma,
Vishnu (Lord Krishna) and Shiva who are called Mahadev; great God collectively. (In the teachings of other Adepts of Mysticism they
are known as arch angels Michael, Israel and Gabriel. (Crown of Live p. 65.) Below the bright cridinn sky that reminds you of the most beautiful dawn
you can experience on earth, the radiating shape of the Adept of Mysticism ( the Master) is seen
in still bigger glory and the initiated experiences the higher impulses of the
heavenly Shabd (Sound Current) in a way that goes beyond all his former experience
in the astral and physical regions. The initiate sees the cosmic form of a bright four-leaf lotus the
predominent red colour of which develops into a lot of wonderful details and
multifarious bright sounds which become clearer and clearer the further he
approaches the lotus. Now he can hear the mighty sound of a giant drum which is beaten
incessantly, and its deep sounds accompany him at this stage of his journey
upwards. If the initiated continues his way he will travel through the infinite
space of the causal region and the melody of the drum is to be heard
everywhere. Now, the initiate fully understands the significance of the heavenly
Shabd, the audible stream of life the original power of which brought about the
whole creation. The initiate rises on a pulsating star-studded path leading forward and
upward and consisting of numerous suns,
moons and stars that become visible and disappear again. Words are incomplete to describe this experience, for now the disciple
completely recognises his absolute separation from the material universe and
from the languages of the physical world. When he rises into the upper regions of the causal realm the initiated
will get drunk with joy and bliss because of his newly won liberty. He hurries across glowing cosmic mountains and wonderful regions. Below
him, he can see wonderful gardens, where vibrating flowers are arranged in
symmetric patterns to form a symphony of colours and sounds. Bright rivers and channels of the ethereal nectar of Brahm are
meandering through this region, and, finally, the initiated approaches a huge,
bright, shining ocean and crosses it on a bridge of light. Now he sees the awe-inspiring hills of Mer, Sumer and Kailash in front of him, the incredibly
cosmic mountains that gave the region of Trikuti its name. According to the
Vedantic teachings of the old Rishis (holy
men), who at their snow-covered mountains of the
Himalayas meditated on the nature of the cosmic universe, this level of
consciousness is the ultimate aim of spiritual striving. However, this is only
the second step on the mystical path of love, the path of Sant Mat. Guru Nanak described this region of
Brahmand as follows: Countless the Fields of Action, Countless the golden mountains, And countless the Dhrus meditating therein. Countless the Indras, countless the suns and moons, and countless the earthly and stellar regions; Countless the Siddhas, the Buddhas, the Naths, and countless the gods and goddesses. Countless the Danus and the Sages, and countless the bejewelled oceans. Countless the sources of creation, countless the harmonies, countless those that listen unto them, And countless the devotees of the Word, Endless and unending, O Nanak, is this Realm. Jap Ji, Stanza 35 This glorious region is the realm of the universal mind through which
the supreme Lord created the cosmic universes. However, the supreme Lord
is n
o t this universal mind, despite
the differently phrased reports given by a lot of modern metaphysicians and
mystics. The universal mind is a projection of the will of the supreme being to
reflect a part of himself into his creation. Man, who is created in the image
of the Lord also acts through his mind creatively, but he is n o t
the mind. Man is a living soul, a spiritual being of god’s spirit and on
his journey upwards the initiated striving for higher regions realises that the
human mind is still much lower on the ladder of the inner universes than the
spiritual aspects of the mankind, despite the wonderful functions and the
creative power of mind. Beyond this realm of universal mind there is that region about which
Christ said: But there is neither anything hidden that was not revealed, nor secretly anything that you will never know. The aspirant has to remain some time in this causal region, a realm of
unspoilt joy, while his entire karmic burden is destroyed in the fortress-like
region. The Adept of Mysticism orders him to meditate for some time in this
causal realm in order to further clean his soul from impurities. If this
purification has been achieved the Adept of Mysticism will encourage the
initiated to proceed to the higher regions beyond Brahmand. The ascent must be
aimed at the super causal regions, which are known as Par-Brahm (beyond Brahm) or Daswan Dwar (the tenth gate) in Eastern Mysticism. |