The man and woman of culture and refinement are generally
inclined to smile at the heaven-traditions of the primitive
peoples, and, perhaps, to experience a feeling of sorrow at the
lowly ideals of the barbarous and semi-barbarous races of man as
manifested by their primitive conceptions regarding the
heaven-world. But, the experienced occultist, in turn, may smile
at the smug complacency of many of those in civilized lands who
speak pityingly of these lowly ideals and conceptions, for these
occultists know that these conceptions have a basis in reality
in the life of the primitivepeoples on the Astral Plane.
Just as the future condition of the individual is determined
largely by the nature, character and strength of his desires, so
is his life on the Astral Plane largely determined by his
desires and ideals. The Astral Plane gives free expression to
the ideals entertained by the individual in earth-life, and, in
fact, may be spoken of as largely a reflection of those ideals.
On the Astral Plane our ideals tend toward a real manifestation.
And this is true not only of high ideals, but of the lowest as
well.
This fact being understood, it will be seen that it is a logical
necessity that the astral existence of the primitive peoples of
the race shall be a reflection of the ideals and desires held by
them during the period of earth-life - a dramatization of their
desire-ideals of their past life. In short, the Indian really
finds his 'happy hunting grounds,' and the other primitive
peoples their particular paradise as pictured in their creeds
and faiths. This at first, seems somewhat shocking to the person
whose ideals of heaven are modeled upon the realm of golden
streets, where milk and honey flows. But a little thought will
show that the conception of the ggolden streetsh is but a
little higher in the scale than that of the happy
hunting-ground, for it is purelymaterial and reflects the ideals
of a race whose desires are for glittering and costly things.
If one will but consider the emotional and intellectual nature
of the primitive person, he will see that to surround such a
soul with the environment of the cultured civilized person would
be to render him very unhappy. In fact, such a heaven would to
him seem like a hell. One has but to imagine a savage in earth
life placed in a palace with the surroundings fitted to the
ideals of a person of high culture and refinement, to realize
just how miserable the savage would really be. The same thing
holds true on the Astral Plane. Nature is kind to the savage, as
well as to the cultured person, and furnishes him with the
environment in which he will feel the most at home, and in which
he will findthe greatest opportunity for self-expression.
This does not mean that on the Astral Plane there are
elaborately arranged series of scenery and surroundings fitted
for the tastes of each and every kind of soul. On the contrary,
there is no such stage-setting whatsoever. Here is the secret:
There is no scenery on the Astral Plane except that furnished by
the thought-forms of the souls inhabiting it. Each soul carries
his own set of scenery with it, in his imaginative faculties of
mind. It follows, of course, that many souls of the same general
ideals and tastes inhabiting the same sub-plane, will carry the
same mental scenery with them. And, as the power of
thought-transference is manifested strongly on the Astral Plane,
each soul affects the general scenery of the others. In fact,
the scenery of each sub-plane, or division thereof, represents
thecomposite ideals and mental images of those inhabiting it. In
earth-life, environment largely makes the man - on the Astral
Plane, man makes his own environment, in accordance with the
absolute and unvarying laws of Nature.
The Indian, during the short period of his sojourn on the Astral
Plane, finds himself surrounded by all that makes life pleasant
and harmonious for him. The clairvoyants among the old American
Indians, who were able to penetrate the lower planes of the
Astral Plane, were thoughtful when they reported the existence
of gthe happy hunting groundsh of their departed brothers on
the other side. True also were the reports of the shadowy forms
which communicated with their former brothers on earth, to the
same effect. The heaven-world of the Red Indian was precisely as
his medicine-men had taught him it would be. Such a soul,
awakening from the soul slumber, would find itself perfectly at
home, surrounded by all that made life pleasant to it; great
forests and plains, streams and rivers, plentyof buffalo and
deer to be shot, and plenty of fish to be caught.
All these things existed for such. But they existed only
mentally. Like a very intense dream these things appeared to
such a soul - but it never realized that it was merely a dream.
Dreams are true while they last, as the old writings inform us.
And, as for that, the wisest of the race inform us that the
phenomenal universe is really in the nature of a Dream of the
Absolute - but it is none the less real to us. Even in
earth-life, we sometimes experience dreams so real that we
suffer as keenly, or enjoy as rapturously, in them, as if they
were the only somewhat more substantial realities of the waking
state.
Those who have made a study of the subject, inform us that among
all races of men there are many reports of clairvoyants, seers,
dreamers, and communicators with departed souls, who assert
positively the existence of gheavensh in exact accordance with
the religious teachings of their tribe or race, no matter how
crude and barbarious these conceptions may appear to one of a
more cultured faith. It is very easy to dismiss these reports
either as pure inventions, or dreams of the priests. But, closer
examination Will reveal the fact that there is a striking basic
unity among them-they all agree on the fundamental points,
although they differ as to the details. The occultist knows that
these reports are all truthful, so far as they go, and have been
based on actual physic experiences of certain members of the
tribe of people. Although they differ greatly in details, they
agree in fundamentals, and are all based on truth. A little
consideration of the nature of the Astral phenomena, as we have
stated it, will explain the matter.
These primitive souls spend a brief existence on the lower
Astral Planes to which they have been attached, and develop
newer and fuller ideals and desires, which will blossom and bear
fruit in their next earth-incarnation. Moreover, they wear out
and outlive certain of their lower desires and ideals, and in
this way, make way for the spiritual evolution which is ever
seeking to unfold on the Astral; serves to unfold these souls a
little -only a very little, it is true - but every little is a
gain. Moreover, as the Astral Life (and usually the earth-life)
of the savage is comparatively brief, these souls really make
considerable progress in a given space of time - they may live a
hundred earth-lives, and the corresponding Astral Life, while a
more highly developed soul is earning its spiritual rest on the
higher Astral planes. Compensation and equity is found here, as
elsewhere, in the life-processes.
One of the great gains of the savage soul on the Astral Plane is
that of the development of comradeship and fellow-feeling. This
is caused by the reunion of the soul with its friends of
earth-life, and the joy felt thereat. Moreover, the animosities
of earth-life are softened by the nature of the life on the
Astral, for with a bounteous supply of all that the savage soul
craves, there is far less opportunity for jealousy and rivalry
than onearth. And, accordingly, hate is stilled, and comradeship
and elementary friendship (the buddings of universal love) are
encouraged. Each trip to the Astral Plane burns out a little
more of the lower nature, and awakens a little more of the
higher - otherwise, there would be no progress for the race in
repeated lives. Each soul, no matter how undeveloped it may be,
learns a little more of that feeling of unity and oneness, each
time it is relieved of the stress of the physical body. So that,
we may see, that even in these crude gheavensh of the
primitive peoples, there is the opportunity and the certainty of
progress.
Happiness begets Love, and the soul responds to the stimulus.
The primitive soul abides but a short time on the Astral Plane
to which it is attached. It soon wears out its limited
opportunity for expression (although to the soul itself,
eternities seem to have been passed). It soon feels the
drowsiness of the sleep, which precedes rebirth overtaking it,
and falling into a state of coma, it awaits the attraction of
Karma which shortly leads it into a new body, to again study the
lessons of life, and to live and out-live that which it finds
within itself. The attraction of earth-life is strong in such a
soul, and the law of attraction soon draws it back to the scenes
of earth. There is no injustice or harshness in this - each soul
gets that which it most desires, and that for which it most
craves. The Law of Compensation is in full force here, as
elsewhere, and eternal Justice reigns. All is well, even with
such lowly souls - and they are all on the path!
