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CHAPTER I

THE MYSTERY OF GOD

S far back as the mind of man can reach is the time, just before creation sprang into existence, when darkness was over the face of the deep. Darkness is expressive of something which is incomprehensible to man.

But God is Light, and before the morning stars flashed forth their light "and the sons of God sang sweetly together," "God Is," as "He forever was," and will never cease to be. God is One! and will ever thus remain, filling all space. Therefore, He is limitless and boundless, this is Aum.

For a clearer comprehension of Light, we will use the Solar Sun, whose light is warm and life-giving, as the symbol of the Light of Love, whose Light is Eternal Warmth and Life-giving.

Then, cannot one easily perceive how the universes and systems, yes, myriads of systems of universes, can come forth from the Impersonal God into manifestation, each in the center of God, and all living and moving and having their being in God? Then it is plain that each universe and system of universes can perceive their atone-ment with God,-AUM.

These universes and systems of universes can live and move in their appointed places for ages, yea, æons, and finally dissolve and retire into the Impersonal Aum, and the place which knew their form, know them no more. Yet, they are not destroyed, as every atom of their being exists now, as it did before they formed into forms.

God, the Intelligence, Life, Light, Love and Warmth that is, is not disturbed, neither divided by the forming and unforming of the myriad of systems of universes.

We make the statement that God is Light. Let us analyze Light. When we begin to dissect Light we find that it is Life, Warmth and Love; then, too, we see that it must be Intelligence.

Then we have God as Light, Life, Love and Intelligence; and, as God is all, there is nothing to obstruct Him. Thus we see that Light fills all space; and, if Light fills all space, Life, Warmth, Love and Intelligence fill all space; and so we see that Aum is limitless and boundless. Then each and every manifestation of God is forever in at-one-ment with God, and lives and has its being in God; it matters not if it is a tiny grain of sand or a system of universes, a blade of grass or man, the crowning glory and highest manifestation of God.

After the storms of winter, which have caused the earth to become bleak and barren of vegetation, the warmth of the solar sun, which has again crossed the equator, causes the life, which was concealed during the cold, wintry blasts, to burst forth; and soon a green mantle is spread over mountain sides, valleys and plains; and the blossoms of fruit and grain announce that the harvest time will approach; and the beautiful flowers, which are the messengers of Love sent forth from the Heart of Love to cheer earth's children, sway and smile and radiate perfume, filling the air around them with the breath of Paradise.

Life, Intelligence and Love manifest in Law, Action and Order. These are impersonal, fill all space, and are limitless and boundless; for, lo! these are God,-Aum! and all live and have their being in this Presence.

The mysteries of God are not past finding out to the Soul, when once it awakens to the grand varieties of Being; but they are unfathomable to the intellect of the earth-man.

We read in Sacred Writ, "At the beginning, darkness was over the face of the deep. The mind of man extends backward, as it were, to the curtain of dawn in the beginning of creation; but it cannot penetrate the veil, because the finite mind cannot reach into the Infinite.

God existed in all His magnitude before creation came into existence, just as He now does; and, the fact is, that in a literal sense there was no darkness at all. Unknowable, unfathomable is that which resides just beyond that dawn; and this is darkness to the finite mind of man.

When God, after His period of repose, being unmanifest, desired to become manifest, creation sprang forth, coming from its Source,-God. As God was All, there was no other Source; therefore, creation came forth in His Wisdom and is forever unchangeable; and thus it stands and will forever be.

God being perfect, an imperfect manifestation could not come forth from Him.

When God became manifest in creation, or through creation, He set the Eternal Law of Action into action, in and through creation; yea, He, Himself, is that Eternal Law of Action; for, lo, in the beginning there was nothing but God. In this Eternal Law of Eternal Action, all God's Laws spring into existence,-in God's wisdom and at His desire, and all are working in His care to hold, sustain and invigorate creation as it moves on throughout the endless æons of Eternity. Creation, which is the manifestation of God, is forever in this Law. As long as it moves in rhythm with those Laws, all is well with it as a whole, or as an individual.

The earth took form from the One and Only Substance. It came to pass in rhythmic action with the Law, and the laws contained in the Law; and as long as it vibrates in the harmonious rhythm of the Law of God, which is Unchangeable and Eternal, all is well; but, when a discordant note is struck and the rhythm interfered with, the rate of vibration is lowered, according to

the condition of the discordant note which has been struck, and it may require ages before the rate of vibration is lowered sufficiently to cause it to lose its individualized form and sink back into the unmanifest, there to remain until God wills it to come forth again. It is thus throughout the endless æons of Eternity.

As the ages roll by, God reposes. Then He becomes manifest at His Will; and all His creation moves and fulfills in His all-wise plan.

But what of man, "the crowning glory of God's creation"; yea, he whom "God created in His image and likeness'?

Man! O man! None but the awakened Soul, the one who has been born again and has the Christ, the Holy Spirit, dwelling within him, can grasp, even in a faint way, what it means to be created in the image and likeness of God. It is as nothing to the finite man, because to him it is beyond the curtain which drapes the dawn of creation, and will there remain, hid in the unknowable, until he awakens and is born again. Then the curtain will be rent in twain and the light of the morning penetrate him through and through.

Why is it we find man in the finite state and so sound asleep that he must be awakened and born again before he can comprehend what it means that "God created man in His image and likeness'?

God has the Power and Wisdom within Him to desire a change, as He Eternally lived Himself; and this desire came into manifestation in this which man calls creation. This change manifesting as creation did not take place instantly. We read in Sacred Writ that seven days were consumed in bringing it forth into expression. "Seven" therein is used as symbolical of the time of completeness, which was Ages and Ages, as the men of earth reckon time.

God endowed man with Intelligence, Life, Love and the Power of Desire; which desire, when set in operation in

man, causes a change to take place in man. Creation sprang forth from the only Substance there was, which was God-Substance. Man, being a manifestation of God, when he used His power of choice and desired a change, it was limited; therefore finite; and within the scope and power of his desire, and man began to move out from the Infinite concept to the finite. Infinite means limitless, while finite means limited.

We read in this same Sacred Writ, that God placed man in the Garden of Eden. This was a large estate,yea, it was a blissful state in which all Souls of God's creation dwelt; this state is Paradise. At creation, when the Souls of men became individualized, they dwelt in the bosom of God, their Creator,-yea, their FatherMother; and this is Eden; it is Bliss; it is Paradise. As long as they dwelt in contentment there it was well with them; but when desire came into expression, the change began to take place in the individual. It was in the individual only; as Paradise was in no way disturbed or affected by the change which was taking place in the individual Soul, who had desired a change.

As soon as the desire was expressed in thought or word, the vibration began to change; just a slight change at first, 'tis true, but the change had begun; and, as the desire increased, the vibrations became lower until they were low enough to cause this Soul to begin to look outward; and we find man (the positive and the negative part of his being) partaking of the Fruit of the Tree which stood in the midst of the Garden. When they became conscious of their nakedness, feeling that they were not in perfect rhythm with God, and not understanding concerning this change which had taken place in them, they desired a covering. As they moved along, continuing to look outward and to observe the outer things, they by and by lose sight of God as He is, and enter the illusion of seeing God as they think He is.

God, Aum, fills all space; and Jesus Christ said, "I