Higher Self, Lower Self, And The Mask
By The Pathwork Guide
Greetings in the name of the Lord. Blessed is this hour in which I am permitted to speak to you, my friends.
I have promised to talk to you tonight about we in the spirit world see the entire human personality, the complete unit of the human personality. You all know that man has not only a physical body but also various subtle bodies. Each subtle body represents something different. You also know that man's thoughts have definite spiritual forms, and such forms are created not only by thoughts but also by feelings, for a feeling is really a thought that is not made conscious: it is an "unthought" thought. Although thoughts create forms of a different kind from those created by feelings, both create definite and, for us, very substantial forms. Each subtle body, just as a physical body, has a
so-called aura. Thought forms or feeling forms also create an image in the aura that may be perceived on the physical level, but these images are merely the reflection of their reality. These forms truly exist, but around or outside the personality and their images they are only reflected in the personal auras. These forms create spheres in the spirit world that, according to the intensity of the thoughts or feelings, are either vague and weak or definite, strong, and durable. In other words, all these forms are more or less fluctuating, changing, because everything is in perpetual motion in spirit.
The aura of the physical body shows physical sickness or health, or any
and all states of the physical being. Emotional, intellectual, or spiritual reactions show in the aura of the respective subtle body.
Each living being has a higher self, or the divine spark. This is the finest and most radiant pf the subtle bodies, and has the quickest frequency of vibration. The aura is the vibration and the emanation of each particular subtle body. The higher the spiritual development, the quicker the vibration or frequency. Since the fall of the angels, the higher self has surrounded itself, in a slow process and in gradual stages, with various layers of denser matter, but not yet as dense as the physical body. From your human viewpoint these layers are also of subtle matter, because you cannot see them with your physical eyes, but they are infinitely denser than the higher self. This is how the lower self came into existence. The aim of spiritual development is to eliminate the lower self so that the higher self becomes free of all the layers it has acquired. In your practical life you will be able to sense rather easily -- either in yourself or in others -- that certain parts of the higher self are already free, whereas other parts of it are still hidden. How much is free, how much is hidden, and how thickly it is covered depends on the overall development of the respective person. The lower self does not comprise merely the common faults and the individual weaknesses, that vary with each person, but also ignorance and laziness. The lower self hates to change and hates to conquer itself. It has a very strong will -- which may or may not manifest itself --
and wants its way without paying the price. It is very proud and very selfish. It has always a great deal of personal vanity. It is the ego, with all its manifestations. All these characteristics are generally part of the lower self, regardless of each person's individual character. But there are many ways in which the lower self can display these general trends it contains. Specific personal faults, varying experior circumstances, as well as each person's good qualities all play their part. Together they influence the outer manifestation, the intensity, the degree, and the direction of these general trends and common traits of the lower self.