haken, the outer world cries out to
him to come and labor in it. So with the heart.
When it no longer wishes to take, it is called
upon to give abundantly.

"Light on the Path" has been called a book
of paradoxes, and very justly; what else could
it be, when it deals with the actual personal
experience of the disciple?

To have acquired the astral senses of sight
and hearing; or in other words to have attained
perception and opened the doors of the soul,
are gigantic tasks and may take the sacrifice
of many successive incarnations. And yet, when
the will has reached its strength, the whole
miracle may be worked in a second of time.
Then is the disciple the servant of Time no
longer.

These two first steps are negative; that is
to say they imply retreat from a present condition
of things rather than advance towards
another. The two next are active, implying the
advance into another state of being.

III

"BEFORE THE VOICE CAN SPEAK IN THE
PRESENCE OF THE MASTERS."

Speech is the power of communication; the
moment of entrance into active life is marked
by its attainment.

And now, before I go any further, let me
explain a little the way in which the rules
written down in "Light on the Path" are arranged.
The first seven of those which are
numbered are sub-divisions of the two first
unnumbered rules, those with which I have
dealt in the two preceding papers. The numbered
rules were simply an effort of mine to
make the unnumbered ones more intelligible.
"Eight" to "fifteen" of these numbered rules
belong to this unnumbered rule which is now
my text.

As I have said, these rules are written for
all disciples, but for none else; they are not
of interest to any other persons. Therefore
I trust no one else will trouble to read these
papers any further. The first two rules, which
include the whole of that part of the effort
which necessitates the use of the surgeon's
knife, I will enlarge upon further if I am asked
to do so. But the disciple is expected to deal
with a snake, his lower self, unaided; to suppress
his human passions and emotions by the
force of his own will. He can only demand
assistance of a master when this is accomplished,
or at all events, partially so. Otherwise
the gates and windows of his soul are blurred,
and blinded, and darkened, and no knowledge
can come to him. I am not, in these papers,
purposing to tell a man how to deal with his
own soul; I am simply giving, to the