Now, in condemning the above passage as inculcating selfishness, superficial critics neglect many profound truths.  In the first place, they forget the other extracts already quoted which impose self-denial as a necessary condition of success, and which say that, with progress, new senses and new powers are acquired with which infinitely more good can be done than without them.  The more spiritual the Adept becomes the less can he meddle with mundane gross affairs and the more he has to confine himself to spiritual work.  It has been repeated, times out of number, that the work on the spiritual plane is as superior to the work on the intellectual plane as the latter is superior to that on the physical plane.  The very high Adepts, therefore, do help humanity, but only spiritually:  they are constitutionally incapable of meddling with worldly affairs.  But this applies only to very high Adepts.  There are various degrees of Adept-ship, and those of each degree work for humanity on the planes to which they may have risen.  It is only the chelas that can live in the world, until they rise to a certain degree.  And it is because the Adepts do care for the world that they make their chelas live in and work for it, as many of those who study the subject are aware.  Each cycle produces its own occultists capable of working for the humanity of the time on all the different planes; but when the Adepts foresee that at a particular period humanity will he incapable of producing occultists for work on particular planes, for such occasions they do provide by either voluntarily giving up their further progress and waiting until humanity reaches that period, or by refusing to enter into Nirvana and submitting to re-incarnation so as to be ready for work when the time comes.  And although the world may not be aware of the fact, yet there are even now certain Adepts who have preferred to remain in statu quo and refuse to take the higher degrees, for the benefit of the future generations of humanity.  In short, as the Adepts work harmoniously, since unity is the fundamental law of their being, they have, as it were, made a division of labour, according to which each works on the plane appropriate to himself for the spiritual elevation of us all—­and the process of longevity mentioned in the Elixir of Life is only the means to the end which, far from being selfish, is the most unselfish purpose for which a human being can labour.

(—­H.P.  Blavatsky)

Contemplation

A general misconception on this subject seems to prevail.  One confines oneself for some time in a room, and passively gazes at one’s nose, a spot on the wall, or, perhaps, a crystal, under the impression that such is the true form of contemplation enjoined by Raj Yoga.  Many fail to realize that true occultism requires a physical, mental, moral and spiritual development to run on parallel lines, and injure themselves, physically and spiritually, by practice of what they falsely believe to be Dhyan.  A few instances may be mentioned here with advantage, as a warning to over-zealous students.