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The Esoteric Ephemeris for 1899 is now ready for distribution. As was done in the Ephemeris for the passing year, we have given, for every day of the year, the degree, minute, and second of the positions of the Earth, Moon, Mercury, and Venus. The positions of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn are given for each fourth day; their motion being slower, this is considered sufficient. The motions of Neptune and Uranus are yet slower and their positions are given for each eighth day. The Ephemeris also gives the time-hour, minute and second-of the passing of Earth, Moon, and all the planets from one sign to another. We were very late in getting out our Ephemeris for last year, and the work on it, being more than we anticipated, was very much hurried at the last moment, which occasioned the mistake in the placing of the days of the week; however, the days of the month were correct and the calculations reliaable. But we have taken great care in preparing the Ephemeris now ready, and we feel that it will bear criticism.

It is due the friends of THE ESOTERIC that we acknowledge the success of their endeavor to spread the truths; our subscription list is increasing, and we hope that those who are working to interest the people will continue their efforts and not only obtain subscribers, but that they will send us the names and addresses of those who are likely to become subscribers, so that we may send them sample copies. We know that there is opposition to the Esoteric thought, and that those who would work for its enlarged circulation must expect to meet this opposition, yet we have to encounter opposition to everything that we undertake in life, and it is only by overcoming that we become strong and vigorous, and are able to learn our most important lessons. If, dear friends, you realize all this, and, whenever the opportunity presents itself, speak for THE ESOTERIC and the truths that it contains, always seeking wisdom and guidance from above, and working exclusively for the good of the people, you will be placed in touch with the Spirit of the Highest, and knowledge and wisdom will flow in at the time of need. Only by such means can you learn the law of inspiration and obtain frequent illumination and revelation, for it is by the use of the knowledge obtained that we gain more; and my past experience leads me even to venture to promise that every one who takes the attitude just described, and seeks opportunities for the presentation of Esoteric truths, will learn what it means to grow in Spirit and in the knowledge of the truth, and that he or she will receive added powers in the direction of personal attainment. But they who fear to teach the great doctrines, and selfishly seek them only for their own use, will soon find that the truths are of no use to them; for no one can receive help, strength, wisdom. and understanding from on high unless one desire these gifts for the use of others and so use them when the opportunity presents itself.

Of course, you should be careful as to the manner of presenting the truth, and use all the wisdom at your command; and, if you follow the impressions that you receive from within in regard to how and to whom you should speak, you will find a spirit illuminating your intelligence and causing you to approach people in ways unexpected, and when reason suggests that an effort would be useless. But the Lord knows his own, and, if you fearlessly follow the spirit prompting from within, speaking such words as come to your mind,-for the Spirit will give right words at the right time, if you will be passive to it, you will find you will gain in the Esoteric life as only those can who follow such a course.

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A scientist once replied to this question, "Never mind,” and when asked "What is mind?" answered, "No matter." This answer would be a characteristic one were it intended to convey a meaning opposite to that expressed by the words, for all that is known of causation leads to the logical conclusion that matter and mind are identical. There is at the present time a great body of people who have an instinctive-hardly sufficiently united to the mind to be intuitional-perception of the fact that all is mind, but the great majority of them have no conception of how or why it is so, or of the relation of the fact to universal law. The original party of so-called Christian Scientists are actually forbidden to think.

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That matter is but a form of mind is distinctly apparent throughout Scripture revelation. The first chapter of Genesis states that "in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth;" and over and over again throughout the chapter is there a repetition of the words, "And God said, Let there, be * and it was so," that is, he sent forth the word and the word was a fact. John begins his gospel by saying, "In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God (or power), and the word was God (or power). All things were made by him (or it); and without him was not anything made that was made." Paul, in his letter to the Hebrews (XI. 3), says, "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." We find not only these declarations but numerous similar ones throughout the Scriptures; in fact, the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, seems designed to lead the mind of man out of the delusion of matter into the realities of spirit.

When we read that the worlds were made by the word of God, intelligent reason must connect the assertion with what we know of a spoken word. We know that, when we form a

thought in the mind and give expression to it in word, it becomes a voluntary action of the will; and those who have observed the laws of mind know that certain speakers are capable of putting much greater force into their words than are others. It is commonly said that such orators are very magnetic, because the hearer realizes a force outside of and beyond the mere sound of the word, and this fact demonstrates the meaning of the declaration that God created man in his own image. Surely, God is not a man having eyes and ears, hands and feet, and all the various functions organized into a body to meet the necessities of locomotion upon the earth, of handling material things, tasting, hearing, and smelling: God is spirit. While spirit is not necessarily formless, yet use is the law of all nature, nothing can exist without it, and of what use would be the varied organs of a physical body to one who by a thought could bring into existence any and all things, who by a thought could be in any and all places, who by a thought could know any and all things, and who, at the same time, remains “unchangeable, now and forever;" forming all things, yet formed by nothing, above all things, therefore affected by nothing. Yes, by sending forth a word, a thought, the Creator builded worlds and systems of worlds, each world but a separate thought of that Deific Mind.

Our own daily experience enables us to account for the diversity of matter: a wise man does not express a thought until that thought is sufficiently matured and comprehensive to include everything belonging to the idea put forth. For illus tration, the mechanic says, "I am going to build a house;" that thought, if properly matured in the mind before expression, includes not only all the methods of mechanical genius, but also takes into consideration every particle of material of which the house is to be constructed, its quality, the amount, its funetions, and the means by which it is to be brought into form. Thus, when God spoke the word that formed a world, it went forth as the laws governing that world, and those laws were the formative agencies that were active therein-all necessary qual ities and elements were comprehended in the thought.

We have hitherto considered this subject from the standpoint

of a Deific Mind-somewhere unknown to man-projecting, or sending out, a thought and a world stands forth, our world, as it is in all its completion. Let us now turn from revelation and direct our attention to evidences of an all-inclusive mindsubstance and to the perception of methods of accomplishment which are within the range of our own cognition; some of them within the reach of the five senses, others logical conclusions from experience and from knowledge gained. First, then, it is easily shown by experiment that all solid substance is redu cible to a gaseous, or an invisible and intangible condition. If this be so, it is not hard to believe that the tangible and material originated in and from that which is invisible, intangible, to the physical senses.

Now, if the intangible, the immaterial so far as our five senses go, is the cause realm next beyond that of matter, then it is for us to feel after and obtain evidences of the laws and methods by which the immaterial brings the material universe into existence. Many of the manifestations of physical nature are directly traceable as originating in this invisible realm; such, for instance, as the rolling of our earth upon its axis, traveling around its ceutral sun and whirling its lunar companion around itself, yet ever holding it in its place; the moon influencing the tides; the earth's revolution influencing and producing not only day and night, but winter and summer in their season.

If one would go further into the cause realm and discover the methods by which mind is manipulated, worlds are formed, and the elements controlled, he must have the proper conditions. For example, the scientist who is studying the laws and methods of nature and making a careful record of his conclusions, could not successfully carry on his researches surrounded by a crowd of people, nor in the city's busy thoroughfares; he must have his room secure from intrusion, where he can be quiet and undisturbed in his work. And he that would go yet further into the realm of cause must have other and still better conditions for his work. One of the world's most prominent scientists said to a friend of ours that, if while solving one of his problems he indulged in the sex relation, it arrested the progress of his work for a long time. The man that would know the mysteries of the cause world must not only live the regenerate life, conserve all the life generated in the body, but mentally he must live in constant and careful observation of

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