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Tertium Organum (P.D. Ouspensky) · 217 of 225 · tr. Nicholas Bessaraboff and Claude Bragdon

Page 28 (part 1)

p. 333 CONCLUSION In conclusion I wish to speak of those wonderful words, full of profound mystery from the Apocalypse and the apostle Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians , which are placed as the epigraph of this book. The Apocalyptic angel swears that THERE SHALL BE TIME NO LONGER. We know not what the author of the Apocalypse wanted to convey, but we do know those STATES OF SPIRIT when time disappears. We know that in this very thing, in the change of the time-sense , the beginning of the fourth form of consciousness is expressed, the beginning of the transition to COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS. In this and in phrases similar to it, the profound philosophical content of the evangelical teaching sometimes flashes forth. And the understanding of the fact that the MYSTERY OF TIME is the first mystery to be revealed is the first step toward the development of cosmic consciousness along the intellectual path. But what did the Apocalyptic sentence mean? Did it mean precisely what we are now able to construe in it—or was it simply a bit of verbal art, a rhetorical figure of speech, the accidental harping of a string which has continued to sound up to our own time, through centuries and millenniums, with such a wonderfully powerful, true and beautiful tone of thought? We know not now, nor shall we ever, but the words are full of splendor, and we may accept them as a symbol of remote and inaccessible truth. The apostle Paul's words are even more strange, even more startling by reason of their mathematical exactness. (A friend showed me these words in A. Dobroluboff's From the Book Invisible , who saw in them a direct reference to "the fourth measure of space.") Truly, what does this mean? . . . . That ye, being rooted and grounded in love , may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the BREADTH and LENGTH and DEPTH and HEIGHT. p. 334 First of all, what does the comprehension of breadth and length and depth and height mean? What is it but the comprehension of space? And we now know that the comprehension of the mysteries of space is the beginning of the higher comprehension. The apostle says that "being rooted and grounded in love , with all saints " they may comprehend what space is . Here arises the question: why must love give comprehension? That love leads to sanctity —this is easily understood. Love in the sense that the apostle Paul understands it (Chapter XIII of the First Epistle to the Corinthians ) is the highest of all emotions, the synthesis , the blending of all highest emotions. Incontestably, this leads to sanctity . Sanctity : that is the state of the spirit liberated from the duality of man, from his eternal disharmony of soul and body. In the language of the apostle Paul sanctity meant even a little less than in our contemporary language. He called all members of his church saints ; sanctity meant to him righteousness, morality, religiosity. We say that all this is merely the path to sanctity . Sanctity is something more—something attained . But it is after all immaterial how we shall understand his words—in his meaning or in ours—sanctity is a superhuman quality. In the region of morality it corresponds to genius in the region of mind. Love is the path to sainthood . But with sanctity the apostle Paul unites KNOWLEDGE. Saints comprehend what is the breadth and length and depth and height; and he says that all—through love—may comprehend this with them. But may comprehend what, exactly? COMPREHEND SPACE. Because "breadth and length and depth and height" translated into our language of shorter definitions actually means space . This last is the most strange. How could the apostle Paul possibly KNOW that sanctity gives a new understanding of space?
Themes
Cosmic Consciousnessanthropology

A state of awareness transcending ordinary human consciousness, often involving unity with the universe or higher dimensions.

The passage explicitly identifies the transition to 'COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS' as the central goal and meaning of the discussed mystical states.

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Infinite Cosmoscosmology

The doctrine of the universe as boundless and without center or circumference, populated by innumerable worlds — Bruno's rejection of the closed Aristotelian sphere; the divine and the cosmos as ontologically infinite.

Reassigned from fourth_dimension

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Mechanical Humanityanthropology

Gurdjieff and Ouspensky's claim that ordinary human beings live in a state of waking sleep, reacting mechanically without unified will or consciousness, and that the spiritual path begins with recognising this condition.

The passage describes the 'duality of man' and 'eternal disharmony of soul and body' as the condition to be liberated from, which aligns with Ouspensky's concept of mechanical humanity.

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Gnosis Direct Knowledgesoteriology

Salvation through direct experiential knowledge of the divine nature, not through faith, ritual, or moral works alone.

[auto] The text emphasizes that understanding and comprehension of mysteries are the steps toward developing cosmic consciousness.

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Hidden Sayingssoteriology

Esoteric teachings reserved for those ready to receive them; outer meaning conceals an inner liberating truth.

[auto] Biblical verses from the Apocalypse and Paul are interpreted as symbols of remote truth containing profound philosophical content.

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Mystical Unionsoteriology

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

[auto] The attainment of cosmic consciousness implies a merging or alignment with the broader reality beyond individual limitation.

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Numerical Mysticismtheology

Numbers, proportions, and mathematical relationships as the underlying structure of divine reality.

[auto] The passage highlights the 'mathematical exactness' of Paul's words regarding dimensions as a key to higher comprehension.

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Opposites Transcendedanthropology

The dissolution of binary oppositions (male/female, inner/outer, above/below) as a mark of spiritual completion.

[auto] Sanctity is defined as the state of spirit liberated from the duality and disharmony of soul and body.

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Paradox As Teachingethics

Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.

[auto] The statement 'THERE SHALL BE TIME NO LONGER' is presented as a profound mystery that challenges ordinary time-sense.

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Spiritual Ascentpraxis

A staged journey of the soul upward through heavenly realms or levels of being toward the divine source.

[auto] The passage describes a 'transition' and 'development' toward a higher state of consciousness through an intellectual path.

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Related passages · 5 parallels
christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 1 (part 1)
p. 33 THE DOCTRINES OF JACOB BOEHME. "Our whole doctrine is nothing else but an instruction to show how man may create a kingdom of light within himself. . . . He in whom this spring of divine power flows, carries within himself the d…”
Both passages explore the concept of higher consciousness or spiritual awakening. Passage A discusses the transition to cosmic consciousness and the comprehension of space through love and sanctity, while Passage B describes the attainment of a divine state within oneself through self-knowledge and the divine spirit. Both emphasize the transformation of human understanding and the role of spiritual qualities in achieving higher states of being.
christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 2 (part 1)
p. 58 CHAPTER II. THE UNITY OF THE ALL. "We are all one body in Christ, and have all the Spirit of Christ within our reach. If, then, we enter into the Christ, we may see and know everything by the power of His Spirit." ( Forty Question…”
Both passages explore the concept of transcending human limitations to comprehend higher realities, such as cosmic consciousness or the divine. They discuss the role of love and sanctity in achieving this understanding, and the idea of perceiving space and time in a transcendent manner.
christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 10 (part 15)
"The Spirit of Christ in His children is not bound to a certain form, so that He could say nothing but what is found in the writings of the apostles; but as the Spirit was free in the apostles, and as they did not all use the same expressio…”
Both passages explore the concept of higher consciousness or spiritual understanding, with Passage A discussing the transition to cosmic consciousness and the comprehension of space through love and sanctity, while Passage B describes the free spirit of Christ speaking through individuals and the understanding of divine principles through love and wisdom.
christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 12 (part 10)
Every object or person we see in the world is nothing but a symbol of existing ideas; every event taking place in external life is the outcome of invisibly acting forces. The historical correctness of the occurrences described in the Bible…”
Both passages discuss the transformative power of love and its role in achieving higher states of consciousness or spiritual understanding. They also explore the mystical comprehension of space and time, linking these concepts to divine love and spiritual awakening.
gnosticism|Pistis Sophia|Document SECOND
It happened, Jesus having finished saying these words unto his disciples, came forward Maria the Magdalene, she kissed the feet of Jesus, said she, My Lord, bear with me, and be not angry with me, seeking from thee, but have mercy on us, my…”
Both passages discuss mystical insights and the understanding of higher realms or consciousness. Passage A describes the mysteries of the First Mystery and their effects on the soul, while Passage B discusses the transition to cosmic consciousness and the comprehension of space through love and sanctity. Both emphasize the transformative power of mystical knowledge.