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The  Mystical  Language

Uranda   August 26, 1946

 

I have in mind for tonight a consideration of what we might call the mystical. When we speak of mystical things we mean simply a consideration of those spiritual realities, those eternal verities, which cannot be expressed in mere words alone, a portrayal of truth which must be spiritually understood. There are levels wherein words can be used to simply convey information as such, but there are those realms which cannot be clearly conveyed by any means if we undertake to do it by words alone. 

Mystical language has for its purpose the conveying of an idea, an awareness, the development of a sense of perception beyond what we might call the ordinary. I use “ordinary" rather than "normal,” because humanity is functioning on a subnormal basis. That which is normal, or natural, in the true sense of the word is of reality, or the absolute truth. That which is natural to this world is actually unnatural. What is ordinary in this world is not normal; it is subnormal. And when we consider the realm of awareness ordinarily conveyed, in this subnormal expression of life, by words usual to this subnormal consciousness, we cannot fully convey, or reveal, that which is of the true normal, the true natural. We must let ourselves develop a sense of awareness, an ability of perception, which will open a state or level of consciousness above this subnormal state in which the world is engulfed, and when we begin to approach this normal, or natural, realm of being we find that the language upon which human beings depend for the conveying of ideas is inadequate.

In Scripture we are told that in the beginning there was one language—a means of conveying ideas which was not limited, as the many languages now in existence are limited. That one language had words to convey meanings which are not to be found in our present language. In that original language the spirit of the expression was of the essence, and that spirit of the expression is still a universal language. There is still, regardless of the divisions of language, a universal language. Some have tried to say that music was the universal language. It partakes of the nature of the true universal language that is utilized in the world today, but the languages of today are inadequate in their comprehension and expression of this universal language.

The universal language is the language of love. The barriers that human beings have erected are not barriers to that language, and unless we let the spirit of divine love be in the spirit in which the word is spoken, and unless that universal language in its essence, as it emanates from the divine source, is recognized in the word that is heard, there cannot be true comprehension. These things transcend the realm of so-called scholarly attainments, because the intellectualist undertakes to define and confine to the letter of the word and the letter of the law, to bring everything down to a point where it may be analyzed, taken apart and put together again. A peculiar thing about these things which can be analyzed, taken apart and put together again is that they are dead—all of the brilliance of man brings, in fact engenders, death.

We begin to understand the true purpose, yea, the necessity, of what we may call mystical language, because it is in this that we begin to truly comprehend the reason for the word that is written: “The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” Mystical language undertakes to convey without limits, undertakes to make possible an awareness that cannot be set within definite confines, undertakes to reveal that which cannot be defined.

In this particular expression, conveyed in mystical language, which I would consider with you tonight, we have something that shows a most remarkable wisdom with respect to the use of mystical language, for it begins in its mystical expression in a realm where comprehension should be easy, concerning things that are readily recognized, and moving from the realm of the known, which is portrayed in the simplicity of mystical language, it moves into the realm that is not known, into the realm where there is very little comprehension in the world; and it is done in a few words. To my mind it is one of the most remarkable of all the mystical passages to be found anywhere in all of literature. Its achievement in this regard, in so short a space, so effectively done, sets it apart as a brilliant gem, something that is well worthy of our consideration.

I am going to read just seven verses and all of this is achieved within the range of seven verses. And one verse contains the epitome of the mystical portrayal that is essential to man if he is to become more than man: four lines, one verse—the sixth verse by the way. You can call it coincidence, happenstance, whatever you wish, but nevertheless it is the sixth verse and it reveals that by reason of which man can become aware of his true nature and of the right way to function in harmony with God.

Or shall we say, with respect to this specific verse, it reveals the machinery, if you want to put it that way, the means by which man can become more than man. When I read it, at first you may be unable to see all that I have just suggested, but my introduction is not leading up to an anticlimax. Just let go to the spirit of the Word. Remember that we are dealing with mystical language, which must be spiritually perceived and understood. I am going to read seven verses from the 12th chapter. As I go along, don't try to figure anything out; just let go to the spirit of the Word.

Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not,

nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;

While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened,

nor the clouds return after the rain:

In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble,

and the strong men shall bow themselves,

and the grinders cease because they are few,

and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low,

and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird,

and all the daughters of music shall be brought low;

Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way,

and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden,

and desire shall fail:

because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:

Or ever the silver cord be loosed,

or the golden bowl be broken,

or the pitcher be broken at the fountain,

or the wheel broken at the cistern.

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was:

and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

Seven verses, moving from the realm of the known to the unknown, revealing the secrets of life for those who have eyes to see. There we have the beauty of mystical language immediately evident. Let us consider the meaning of this mystical portrayal. It moves from the realm that is obvious into the realm of the unknown. “Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them." It is obvious that we should remember our Creator in the days of our youth, and it is obvious that when the individual does not remember his Creator in the days of his youth the evil does come, and the years draw nigh when he says, “I have no pleasure in them.” And that leads to the mystical expression of the known: “While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain."

“In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble..." The house is the physical body. The keepers of the house are the hands. He is talking about the human body, the human being. “Tremble” indicates advanced age. “...and the strong men shall bow themselves...” That is the obvious mixed in with the mystical. “...and the grinders cease because they are few...” The teeth are the grinders that cease, because they are few. “...and those that look out of the windows be darkened.” The sight gets dim; they are not able to see. Here we have mystical language describing something that is known, that should be immediately recognized and grasped. “And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low”—outside influences shut out as much as possible. I don't think that I need to talk about the balance of that verse, or the next one; it should be obvious.

We come to the 6th verse: “Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.” There is the mystical portrayal that is of vital importance to us, that moves out of the realm of the known into the realm of the unknown.

“The silver cord” is the mystical language utilized to describe that connecting link between the Source of life and the human being. In Revelation we have a portrayal which correlates with this, also given in mystical language. This silver cord is the connecting link between the Source of life and the human being at the point of what we call the seventh seal—the pineal gland in the head. Once that silver cord is broken the physical body is dead. As long as that silver cord remains there is life, and that is true of all human beings, without exception. “Or ever the silver cord be loosed.” Of course the original point is: “Remember now thy Creator,” before the silver cord is loosed, before the connecting link between the body and the Creator is broken.

“Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.” Let us begin at the end of the verse and move backward. It would be a little easier, because the golden bowl is the least understood. A cistern is a means for storing water. It is not a source of water, merely a means for storing water. Water is the symbol of truth, and a cistern is a means for storing water; therefore the cistern here symbolizes the human mind which undertakes to store up certain truths in itself. The wheel is the means by which the water is lifted out of the cistern, and that means the processes of thinking, or memory, etc., by which the truths which have been stored in the mind can be lifted up to the surface for use. But the mind is not the Source of truth. The mind is merely a storage place; and the wheel represents the thinking processes, the memory processes, by reason of which that which is stored may be brought to the surface for use.

“Or the pitcher be broken at the fountain.” A fountain is more than a cistern. A fountain is that through which the water springs and bubbles and flows. It is a source, not just a storage place. It doesn't say that the fountain is going to be destroyed; it simply says, “or the pitcher be broken at the fountain.” The pitcher is the means by which that which is at the fountain may be taken and utilized by the individual. The water bubbling from the fountain cannot all be contained, or all stored. All that the human being can do is to go to the fountain with his pitcher and receive of it. So the fountain does not become destroyed; it is the pitcher that is broken at the fountain. The fountain is the source of water, or truth, or the water of life. And it is a fountain.

What is the pitcher? What is the fountain? What is the source of the water of life, or truth? It is the Lord, or the Creator, the Father within. And there is a fountain, if it be recognized and known, within every individual who has any ability of comprehension. We might say that the fountain is there anyway; but the fact of the fountain being there would not make any difference if there was not any ability to have perception, any intelligence. “Or the pitcher be broken at the fountain”—the means by which the water of truth, the water of life, is carried, conveyed, so that it may be utilized. This has what we might call a double meaning. It is a function of the mind, particularly in this illustration, but it also applies to the physical body. The important application, however, is that the mind itself is not just a cistern, although it has the ability to store up; but it also is a pitcher which has the ability, if that ability be used, to go to the fountain and receive of the water that bubbles forth from the fountain freely, fully, available to all alike.

There we begin to reach into the realm of the unknown, because there are very few human beings who realize that the fountain even exists, let alone to take their pitcher to it that they may receive the water of the fountain. Nevertheless the fountain does exist, for every man, woman and child on the face of the earth, and every individual who has any intelligence at all has the pitcher wherewith he may go to that fountain and receive of that water, concerning which the Master said: “He that drinketh of the water which I offer hath eternal life. He shall never thirst again.” That is the water.

When individuals function in the realm of the cistern mind the water is more or less stagnant if the water from the fountain is not continually being put into the cistern, and when the individual undertakes to function from the cistern level of consciousness he finds that when he drinks of that water it doesn't quench his thirst; always he wants more and more— he can drink of the water of this cistern and keep drinking, keep drinking, keep drinking, and his thirst is never quenched; and the more he drinks the more he wants. You can go out and examine all these great intellects in the world who think they are going somewhere and doing something wonderful. They have all this knowledge and information; they have been drinking freely of the cistern water. How many of them are satisfied? Those whom I have contacted were obviously still just drinking the cistern water that was not very fresh. They were in a sore state of mind.

But that is not all. The pitcher being broken at the fountain: if there is such a pitcher, and if there is such a fountain and it is connected here, that is, while the individual has life—and until the silver cord is loosed he does have—it behooves each individual to find out how to use his pitcher and how to find that fountain.

“Or the golden bowl be broken.” What is this golden bowl that is broken when the silver cord is loosed? When the life of the body is gone the manifestation of spirituality is gone, the manifestation of nobility, of all that is the highest and finest and best that is possible in the realm of the kingdom of heaven on earth. “Or the golden bowl be broken.” That relates to the spiritual expression plane of being. All the way through the Bible gold is used to symbolize the true expression of spirituality, that which is of the divine essence of being. We remember, for instance, in Revelation, in the mystical language that is used there, the portrayal of the seven golden candlesticks. We can turn to the Old Testament and find the use of gold with respect to the temple, fixtures of the temple, vessels of gold, etc., all revealing the same thing. Gold is used all the way through the Bible to symbolize the expression of true spirituality of being, the essence of divine being made manifest on earth. There are specific reasons for that.

When the light of true spirituality is made manifest through the individual there may be the pure white light that contains the all, or there may be the creative light that is of the current of divine love, and that is golden in color actually; not just according to imagination, not just something someone develops as a fanciful theory, but that light which is of the light of divine love is actually golden in color. And that is the reason for the utilization of gold as the symbol of the expression of the essence of divine being on earth.

The golden bowl means the expression of the divine essence through the individual, the spiritual expression plane of being, the means by which all that is noble, fine, true and real may manifest, that phase of the human being which is revealed when the human being responds properly to the Lord, the essence of divinity on earth. That is the golden bowl, and the golden bowl should manifest through every man, woman and child upon the face of the earth. It doesn't. Most human beings do not even know that there is a golden bowl. But actually everything that is an expression of true nobility in any individual is something of the manifestation of that golden bowl—not its fulness, but at least an indication that there is such a thing. It behooves each individual to find out what that golden bowl is, find out how to let that golden bowl manifest.

What is a bowl for? It is to contain something, to convey something. We have a pitcher at the fountain, but we have the golden bowl. The divine source of life, or the expression of life, is contained in it—it is the means by which God would convey to every human being the very essence of the atmosphere of heaven, that it may manifest on earth, that man may enjoy that which is contained in the golden bowl and let it overflow. That golden bowl will overflow, and keep overflowing, in the life of the individual if he simply continues in true attunement to his Source of life.

So, until the silver cord is loosed, which means the end of life in the physical sense, there is a golden bowl for every human being, there is a fountain, there is a pitcher at the fountain, there is a cistern, and there is a wheel at the cistern. The brilliant intellectualists of this world, with their educational programs, confine themselves to the cistern and the wheel of the cistern. They ignore everything else, and then wonder why conditions of chaos exist in the world. The answer is contained in the 6th verse of this 12th chapter. There you begin to see something of the revelation that is possible through mystical language, and it should emphasize why mystical language must be used, because if the cistern mind could comprehend it, and if the wheel at the cistern thought that it could understand it, it would forthwith make it a cistern expression, and that would not give contact with the fountain, or with that which is contained in the golden bowl. That which is contained in the golden bowl is not lost when the golden bowl is broken. The fountain is not destroyed merely because the pitcher is destroyed at the fountain.

“Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.” When we realize these things that exist for the individual, that are living, are just as real and more so in fact than the cistern itself and the wheel at the cistern, when we realize that the intelligence of men is supposed to be lifted up to a realm beyond the cistern mind into an awareness of the fountain and the uses of the pitcher at the fountain, to the uses of the golden bowl and all that which is contained in the golden bowl, then we begin to live. The world is not truly living; it is merely existing until it dies under the rule of the prince of death, because it is subject to the things of death, as the cistern mind always is until that cistern mind is connected up with the fountain by means of the pitcher at the fountain, and until that which is of the golden bowl begins to overflow in the individual life.

We see that humanity, having separated itself from God in consciousness, closes out the multitude of blessings which the Lord our God would so gloriously make manifest for human beings. Why is it that the human being refuses to recognize, acknowledge or utilize the fountain, or the pitcher at the fountain, or the golden bowl, or that which should overflow through or from that golden bowl, that all these blessings of true life might manifest while the silver cord unifies the human being with his Creator?

“Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” That is the end of the physical manifestation, just like that. That is not what God intends. He intends that we should know the fountain, utilize the pitcher at the fountain that He has given us, that we should come to recognize and know the golden knowledge, that which is contained in the golden bowl, and let it overflow through us into the world. Then will we be serving God and man, fulfilling that for which the Creator made us, and then will our lives be worthwhile. Concerning the Creator and His attitude toward you, toward each one who will hearken, toward all who will become aware of the fountain and the golden bowl, there is more mystical language, that reveals the love which the Creator has for you, that reveals what will take place in you and for you when you become aware of the pitcher and the fountain and the golden bowl.

There is the mystical language of the Lord calling to you: “Come near unto me,” or again, “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins.” It is all the same story: Come away. Cease to function in the stagnant realms of the cistern mind. Cease to depend upon the wheel at the cistern. Begin to depend upon the Creator. Begin to be aware of the pitcher and the fountain. Begin to be aware of the golden bowl and that which it contains, yea, and that which will overflow through it, filling your life until even the water that is in your cistern shall be cleansed and purified, until that water is living water—because it comes bubbling from the fountain, no longer sour, no longer stagnant, no longer impure—until your cistern is filled with the water that satisfies.

© Emissaries of Divine Light