silent song

Silent Song for the Mind and the Soul

Posted on by Harold Boulette

Sing a Silent Song

“’I am silent, father. I want to sing a song to you while I am silent.’
“’Sing it. I am mind.’
“’I understand mind, Hermes. You cannot be known, since you stay in yourself. I am happy, father. I see you laughing. The universe is happy. No creature will lack your life, for you are the lord of the inhabitants everywhere. Your forethought keeps watch. I call you father, eternal realm of eternal realms, great divine spirit, who through spirit sends moisture on everyone. What do you tell me, father Hermes?’
“’Child, I say nothing about this. It is right before God for us to be silent about what is hidden.’ “’Trismegistos, don’t let my soul be deprived of the great, divine vision. Everything is possible for you as master of the universe.’
“ ‘Praise again, child, and sing while you are silent. Ask what you want in silence.’
“When he finished praising, he called out, ‘Father Trismegistos, what shall I say? We have received this light, and I myself see this same vision in you. I see the eighth, and the souls in it, and the angels singing a song to the ninth and its powers. I see the one with the power of them all, creating those in the spirit.’ ‘From now on it is good for us to remain silent, with head bowed.
“’From now on do not speak about the vision. It is fitting to sing a song to the father till the day of leaving the body.’ ‘What you sing, father, I also want to sing.’
“’I am singing a song in myself. While you rest, praise. You have found what you seek.’ ‘But is it right, father, for me to praise when my heart is filled?’
“’What is right is for you to sing praise to God so it may be written in this imperishable book.’
“’I shall offer up the praise in my heart as I invoke the end of the universe and the beginning of the beginning, the God of the human quest, the immortal discovery, the producer of light and truth, the sower of reason, the love of immortal life.’” ~The Discourse on the Eighth and the Ninth: Nag Hammadi Library

A Silent Song

How can anyone sing a silent song? As Hermes indicates, you sing it in your mind. We all do sing silent songs. We hear an old favorite on the radio and we mentally sing it for hours after. Or sometimes a song just pops into our head and we can’t help mentally singing it for a while. And there are times when this is the best way to sing a song.
First, we have to notice that Hermes’ definition of a song seems to be somewhat more general than that of most people today. It seems that chanting, humming, or even talking mentally would qualify as a silent song to him. And that is probably as it should be.
Sometimes, we find it difficult to find the time to practice spiritual techniques, affirmations, meditations, prayers, and so on. But if we can do it silently, that makes it much easier. When we are on a train, bus, or car heading for work, we can sing the song in our mind as we go. If we are practicing sun gazing, but other people get too close, we can chant a silent song rather than verbalizing it. Continue reading “Silent Song for the Mind and the Soul” →

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self-existent

Self-Existent Reality and Illusion

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“In Meno, Plato, speaking through Socrates, describes color as ‘an affluence of form, commensurate with sight, and sensible.’ In Theretetus he discourses more at length on the subject thus: ‘Let us carry out the principle which has just been affirmed, that nothing is self-existent, and then we shall see that every color, white, black, and every other color, arises out of the eyes meeting the appropriate motion , and that what we term the substance of each color is neither the active nor the passive element, but something which passes between them, and is peculiar to each participant; are you certain that the several colors appear to every animal—say a dog—as they appear to you?’

“In the Pythagorean tetractys—the supreme symbol of universal forces and processes—are set forth the theories of the Greeks concerning color and music. The first three dots represent the threefold White Light, which is the Godhead containing potentially all sound and color. The remaining seven dots are the colors of the spectrum and the notes of the musical scale. The colors and tones are the active creative powers which, emanating from the First Cause, establish the universe. The seven are divided into two groups, one containing three powers and the other four a relationship also shown in the tetractis. The higher group—that of three—becomes the spiritual nature of the created universe, the lower group—that of four—manifests as the traditional sphere, or inferior world.” ~Manly P. Hall

Nothing is Self-Existent

This simple statement may be one of the most important things Plato ever said, and our modern science has finally caught up with him. What Plato is saying here is that when we think we see a tree, what we are really seeing is a relationship between some unknown thing with our eyes and our brain. The eyes see something, the brain interprets it as a tree. But this is just our interpretation of what is there. The modern science of Quantum Physics now tells us that the form of the thing is affected (changed) by the observer. What’s more, they say that at least with some things on the subatomic level, the thing doesn’t even have a form until it is observed, it is just a wave of potential. The scientists are not willing to go this far, but I think that logically, if all things are made up of atoms, and all atoms are made up of subatomic particles, then the rules of those subatomic particles must apply to everything unless someone finds a law that says these particles behave differently when clumped together into atoms. So far, I know of no such finding.

It isn’t that nothing exists without being observed, it is that what does exist is waves of energy with no specific form. The forms we see are those we have agreed upon as representing certain nodes and frequencies of energy. Those forms are part of the Great Illusion we call the physical world. Continue reading “Self-Existent Reality and Illusion” →

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musical sensibility

Musical Sensibility for Spiritual Inspiration

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“One needs to sing with inspiration. By singing beautifully, one also perceives beautiful thoughts and feelings. When you listen to talented singers and musicians, you make a connection with advanced Beings who manifest themselves through them. The vibrations of these beings penetrate far into space through the voices of these singers and are uplifting to human souls. Few are the songs that are carried through space. Seldom is when an ancient Egyptian song can be received. A song or musical piece that doesn’t remain in space is not true music.

“The subconsciousness, the consciousness, the ego consciousness, and the Higher consciousness should all participate in the singing. Those who want to sing well need to be calm within. If you sustain negative thoughts and feelings within yourselves, you cannot sing or play an instrument. Technically, you can play and sing, but not with your soul.

“Wisdom makes use of music. From now on the world of music belongs to Wisdom. Performance, which is the external aspect of music, cannot be manifested without Wisdom.

“Music is a great art. … Sublime beings apply music readily, whereas it is much harder for ordinary people to apply music. … The more advanced a person’s musical sensibility, the more stable his character.” ~Biensa Douno

Sing with Inspiration

Part of musical sensibility is to sing with inspiration. Of course, all musicians and composers will probably say that they are always inspired. In a way, that might be true, but not in the sense Douno means.

A musician can see a person running to catch a bus and be inspired by that vision to write a song. A popular singer can break up with her latest boyfriend and be inspired to write about it. But that is not the type of inspiration needed.

Douno is talking about music that is Divinely Inspired. This can happen in one of three ways. First, the musician or composer can be an awakened soul and inspired through their own spiritual knowledge. That is the best way to be inspired. A musician might also be inspired through a spiritual being putting ideas in their head, the classic “muse” method. Or third, another person who is divinely Inspired might give an idea to the musician to use. All of these methods are good, but as already noted, being divinely inspired by your own spiritual experiences is best. Continue reading “Musical Sensibility for Spiritual Inspiration” →

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spirit of art

Spirit of Art for a Harmonious World

Posted on by Harold Boulette

“The voice of our age seems by no means favorable to art, at all events to that kind of art to which my inquiry is directed. The course of events has given a direction to the genius of the time that threatens to remove it continually further from the ideal of art. For art has to leave reality, it has to raise itself boldly above necessity and neediness; for art is the daughter of freedom, and it requires its prescriptions and rules to be furnished by the necessity of spirits and not by that of matter. But in our day it is necessity, neediness, that prevails, and lends a degraded humanity under its iron yoke. Utility is the great idol of the time, to which all powers do homage and all subjects are subservient. In this great balance on utility, the spiritual service of art has no weight, and, deprived of all encouragement, it vanishes from the noisy Vanity Fair of our time. The very spirit of philosophical inquiry itself robs the imagination of one promise after another, and the frontiers of art are narrowed in proportion as the limits of science are enlarged. The eyes of the philosopher as well as of the man of the world are anxiously turned to the theater of political events, where it is presumed the great destiny of man is to be played out. … I hope that I shall succeed in convincing you that this matter of art is less foreign to the needs than to the tastes of our age; nay, that, to arrive at a solution even in the political problem, the road of aesthetics must be pursued, because it is through beauty” ~Frederich Schiller

Spirit of Art

Schiller is correct in saying that real art is as much a spiritual thing as it is a physical one. Art that simply reflects the status quo of a materialistic society is not really art at all but simply a form of newspaper. Art needs to be more than a mirror reflecting what is around it. While such art can be useful in making us see things about ourselves that we don’t want to face, it has to be spiritual art, at least a little, when it does that.

Spirit of Art in Architecture

When the ancients designed buildings they often followed spiritual principles. They were built to be in harmony with man and nature. They were designed to stimulate spiritual thoughts and ideals. Awakening the spirit and soul was too much to ask of them, but they were one of many tools that aided that process. The great buildings of ancient Greece and classic Egypt are among the best examples of spiritual art in architecture. Today, however, architects are more concerned with showing off how they can stretch the limits of design and function with modern technology. There is nothing wrong with the technology, but it would be better utilized to make buildings that are harmonious and spiritually stimulating. Continue reading “Spirit of Art for a Harmonious World” →

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