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Archive for the ‘Meditative Thoughts’ Category

The Need for Visions of a Good Life

Sunday, March 10th, 2024

We are currently in Pisces, where the old annual cycle is slowly coming to an end. And today, Mercury enters Aries – it’s time to start thinking about our plan for the new annual cycle.

In the last two days, I read two articles in two different magazines that were not directly related in terms of subject matter, but were similar in one important respect – visions of a good life are needed to make it possible.

One article in the newspaper “Der Bund” from March 8, 2024 by Nora Zukker was about a new book by German philosopher Carolin Emcke, who used to write as a reporter about people in conflict zones who are disenfranchised, persecuted, tortured and killed. In her new book (“Was wahr ist. Über Gewalt und Klima” – What is true. About Violence and Climate), Emcke says that we need to counter the dystopian narratives with something worth hoping for. We need a narrative that is committed to what should be socially valid – and resists violence. Among other things, the predictions of a climate apocalypse that many are making are worrying, but we need utopias that are recognizable on the horizon, because they convey hope. If no one tells the story of the utopia, then it cannot be true. Only the telling makes something true. It needs a narrative that justifies what it wants to create: humaneness, a more humane life.

The other article by journalist and Middle East correspondent Detlef Gürtler in the Swiss magazine “Das Magazin” No. 10/2024 (for subscribers) describes how no one knows when and how the war between Israel and Hamas will end, but that it is certain that a new beginning is needed afterwards, which could be a new beginning for the entire Middle East. And he shows a vision for the Middle East region in the 21st century and which processes could lead there. Assessments of dangers are described, but viable solutions are also outlined.

With the background knowledge of the wisdom teachings, we know that we are going through severe crises in the current transition period. We can prepare ourselves for the events that unfold through time. The times are prone to unrest, struggle and conflict unless much is done to counteract this on a global, group and individual level.

We can align ourselves with the Masters and invoke their energies so that the higher Will may rule the governments of the countries of the world. We can invoke the energy of synthesis with group prayers so that this energy brings about the necessary synthesis among us. And we can tune into the light of the soul and continue to work with ourselves to transform ourselves. May the new cycle give us the determination and strength we need to move forward on the path!

Journey to Group Livings of WTT in India, Part 8: The Essence

Tuesday, January 23rd, 2024

It is now a week ago that I started the journey back home from India and nearly five weeks since the start. Through the fog of inner and outer impressions, the contours of what I experienced slowly become clearer. In this mist, there is a light shining through which becomes stronger when I contemplate on it, and I might call it the essence. It is inside but it is shining into the outer as well. It has been impregnating me and keeps doing so.

The journey itself is like a multi-dimensional cinema experience – I go in and I go out again. And the intensity fades when the cinema show ends. With a cinema show, there is mostly no lasting impact. And it is the same with many things I encounter in India – they are not of relevance for my life in the West and face away again. But each journey is like a “reset” of my life which is not possible when I stay comfortably at home. It is a transformation experience. Such a pilgrimage journey helps me to better align to the purpose of my life. And gain fresh vigour and determination.

Abu Dhabi airport

There were many exchanges, I saw saw many forms of community/communities and coherence/being together. With the group members and other people I encountered, I perceived an intense striving for divinity, expressing spirituality in daily life. It was much stronger perceivable than in the surroundings of my Western life. And this was very inspiring. Although I cannot and do not want to live and work and express myself in a way I saw in India – and I also saw forms which kept me at a distance and were disgusting – it gave me fresh resolve to express divinity and spirituality in my life and through the ways and forms which are possible in my surroundings. It is a matter of inner attitude. This fresh impulse is most essential for me.

The Triangular Book of Count Saint Germain

At the beginning of the journey, on the very first day, Sri Joshi showed Mark and me photos from a manuscript which he and Shreya had taken at the Getty Research Institute in LA, the Triangular Book of Count Saint Germain (Master CSG). I was very thrilled to see the beautiful drawings and writings in perfect handwriting mostly in cipher language. It was a touch of the great Master who had built a bridge of the wisdom of Hierarchy from the East to the West – although it still remains a mystery. I didn’t know about this book but we are reading in a German study group the “Most Holy Trinosophia” of Master CSG, which Master EK had mentioned, and Sri Joshi wanted to send the photos. I didn’t receive it but the information came in other ways, by sharing with group members and some further search: the entire book is scanned and online; it is translated into English here. There are two manuscripts of the Triangular Book, one dated 1775, the other 1750. There is a very interesting website about it, “The Triangular Book“, by an anonymous author, giving an aura of mystery. He hinted at a book and he might be the author himself, since he writes about “my publication of Triangular Book of St. Germain (Ouroboros Press, 2014). So, it is probably Nick Koss, who produced an exquisite limited edition reproduction published in Seattle, from where my friend Mark Ray came and where he passed over at return of our journey, completing his cycle on earth.

I do not know which is the relevance of all these impressions and all information about the “Triangular Book” of Master CSG for me. But I mention here this story because it shows well how mysteries reveal themselves when the time is ripe, even if it takes centuries. I learn not to rush but let things develop themselves.

And this is, where the end of my blog-posts about the “Journey to Group Livings of WTT in India” touches the beginning. The mystery of the extremely intense experiences of this journey.

Drawing of Master CSG, from the Manly Palmer Hall heritage collection, manuscript 209, at Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles (c)

Libra Equinox Celebration 2023 at the Paracelsus Center

Tuesday, September 26th, 2023

Time offers different qualities. Especially the solstices and the equinoxes carry specific qualities which are supportive for spiritual practices. It is very good to align to these specific energies time offers. 20 September 2023, I had given a short introduction about “Tuning into Autumn Equinox Celebration” at a Zoom equinox meeting of WTT-Global, illustrating the energies with some of my paintings.

Since 10 years, we have been celebrating the solstices and equinoxes at the Paracelsus Center of WTT in Einsiedeln. Whenever the weather allowed, we started with a fire ritual on the Etzel Pass mountain ridge. The day before, it had intensely rained but on Libra equinox morning the rain had stopped. We decided to go, while the clouds were hanging low.

There is a nice place in a small clearing at the ridge. The forest was wet but singing the mantrams of the the fire ritual created a sublime ambiance.

The low-hanging clouds created a mystic ambiance over the landscape.

Cows, farm houses, and the town of Einsiedeln with the old monastery in the background
Cutting some rose hips for the decoration of the equinox celebration
Picture of Master KPK

Master KPK had inspired the creation of the Paracelsus Center and had accompanied it over the years. He pointed out the important of Paracelsus, a great spiritual Master whose impulses had a profound impact on the development of medicine, especially naturopathy. He was born at the place where the Paracelsus Center is located.

We prepared the room, did a little ritual of candle lighting and a guided equinox visualisation. Later in the afternoon, we studied a talk of Master KPK on the importance of Libra (autumn) equinox.

In the afternoon, the sun came out for a while and we walked along the Sihl river to a little shrine of Maria near a waterfall. She is an emblem of the World Mother.

The evening meditation closed our autumn equinox celebration. We were a small group but in the wareness of being linked to many who were also celebrating the equinox around the globe. We were thankful for being allowed by time to participate.

8 May – White Lotus Day, in remembrance of Helena P. Blavatsky

Saturday, May 6th, 2023

On 8th of May, the “White Lotus Day”, we commemorate the life and work of Helena P. Blavatsky or, as she was lovingly called ” Madam HPB”. She was the great Bringer of Light for the Aquarian Age. Full of courage, she opposed old superstitions and she did not hesitate to stand up for spiritual truth: “Truth is Higher than Religion”. So she named the monthly magazine which she published, together with Mabel Collins, “Lucifer”, the light bringer.

A major purpose of HPB’s grand opus “Secret Doctrine” is devoted to the task of revealing the deep occult truth behind the mystery of the Light Bringers. In Sanskrit, they are called Agnishvattas, meaning “the Lords of the Flame” or Sons of Fire.

However, in Western theology, they are considered to be fallen, rebellic angels. For the Wisdom Teachings, they are the ones who formed the Hierarchy of Teachers. They gave humanity the light of Manas, the mind principle.

Madam Blavatsky was chosen by Hierarchy to spread this understanding to all seekers of Light. Master Kumar explained the essence of “Secret Doctrine” in his profound work on “The Seven Waves of Life“.

At a meeting in Interlaken, Switzerland, June 2004, the Master gave some recommendations about how to study Secret Doctrine in a group:

– “Start studying the Laws given in Secret Doctrine, the law of alternation, periodicity, time cycles….
– Then study the Races / Root Races
– Then the Manus
– Then the Globe Chains
– Then from the 3rd volume (old sequence): ‘Anthropogenesis’, till the end of the book
– Then Cosmogenesis

Thus we will have a sound foundation of the Secret Doctrine.”

In Berne, we once followed this recommendation in a small group and thus read the books in this manner.

At many occasion, Sri Kumar highlighted the importance of what HPB had done for spirituality. There are further books by him about works of HPB, on “The Golden Stairs“, on “The Theosophical Movement“, 3 volumes on “Lectures on Secret Doctrine” (1, 2, 3, giving deep insights into the wisdom teachings) and “Teachings of Madame HPB“.

At the “White Lotus Day” 2021, Sri Kumar said:

“The work of Madam Blavatsky is seen as a stupendous work carried out in the last part of the 19th century which has vibrated the planet. Thousands and thousands of groups have joined till date and it continues to be. All that she contributed to humanity is recognised more by the Brotherhood than the humanity. It will take a long time for humanity to understand the great work that came through Madame Blavatsky.

We fondly remember her. She is the first one in the recent cycles of time that has unveiled the wisdom which is universal. It is not sectarian. It is not based upon limited thoughts about God. In His memory we…we say, ‘His’ because even the Masters recognise her though in a female body, as a grand male that did a lot of work from the soul dimension.”

May we take up the inspiration given by HPB’s life and work to pay her homage by climbing up the Golden Stairs to the Temple of Divine Wisdom – and this, by practically integrating the wisdom into our lives.

Have a good White Lotus Day!

HPB in her youth

Self-Excuses and Twists in Perception

Tuesday, September 27th, 2022

My mother once told me that when I was a child she asked me to pick up something on the floor which I had thrown there. I didn’t want and replied: “I cannot, my arms are too short.”

This became an iconic example for self-excuses. It comes to my mind in cases of my own self-excuses and when coming across others’ expressing their inability to do something. Often it is a self-fooling and trying to hide one’s unwillingness. In such cases, my wife and I use to say, “Yes, the arms are too short.”

Such twisting is not as negligible as it might appear at first sight. It causes inner twists leading to distortions in our perception and to character flaws. And these again, are boulders on the spiritual path.

I recently came across a person having problems with a neighbour for years. The problem was, of course, seen as being with the neighbour, and there was no chance of changing the situation. So she said: “They say it’s all part of the Divine Plan. My view is that the Plan must have flaws.”

We usually project the sources of problems to the outside, to other people or outer situations, neglecting to start with ourselves. So I replied, “Sorry to say so, but it is your view of the Plan where the flaws are.”

The Essence of the Journey to India

Friday, June 10th, 2022

Looking back to the journey to India 10 days after returning, the impact of the experiences slowly become clearer. The memories of details recede; exchanges with close friends or with my wife have given shape to certain moments by telling about them. But there is more to it, and it needs time to digest. It is one thing to be under the direct impact of situations and exchanges and it is another to observe transformations happening inside and to perceive how the trip was enriching to the inner growth of awareness. There were moments and observations which have contributed to it.

Entrance to the hall

I have been at many group lives and seminars with Master Kumar over the last 25 years – journeys to India, in Europe, to North and South America. I have been keen on absorbing the teachings, on digesting them by intense taking notes, on developing a network of like-minded people. Friendships developed or were deepened. There were incidences and encounters which moved and partly challenged me – health issues, digesting situations and impressions, re-stabilizing in everyday life after some climax experiences. There were ideas for projects or service activities coming up which needed to be developed through months and years. This has been much enriching for my life. It was and is an unfoldment to many dimensions.

The last journey has been special – short but again very intense: two days of travelling, five days of group living, long hours of meditation, of rituals, of long lectures of the Master full of energy and with great presence, where he was surmounting all physical disabilities, radiating joyfulness, uplifting the large group present in the hall and outside and also participating online somewhere on the planet. Intense talks; eating in the hall with the other Westerners, where mindful and cheerful Indian ladies, group members, took lovingly care of serving us food; being accommodated as a group in the houses of group members in the surrounding. Sleeping on a mattress on the floor, short nights, getting up at a quarter to four, having time for bathroom and doing asanas before going to the morning prayers. Witnessing much attention of many helpers looking to the many details of organising – arrivals and departures of the participants, housing, transports – in an unexcited and efficient way… A strong presence of group consciousness with a pleasant absence of a commercial attitude. An experience of brotherhood.

A reflection of fire ritual in an image of Master M.

After the journey, I try to distil what I should integrate into my way of life and add to my daily or weekly practices. This part goes more to the core and has a long lasting influence. There were hints of Sri Kumar which impressed me – on the importance of one-to-one relations in group building; on sharing one’s knowledge about the Hierarchy and the wisdom teachings and letting friends and relatives participate; on the inner strength needed for conducting ritualistic work and its magnetism; on the power of inner relating and visualising; on feeling the Master consciousness existing as ourselves and recollecting the presence of the Master. Not much can be mentioned here. But applying such hints is the essence of experience and development. Otherwise, things are quickly forgotten, and the journey would just have been an entertaining adventure.

Sunrise over the Arabian Sea during the flight back


The 3 Monkeys and the 3 Wise Monkeys

Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022

When composing the new Lunar Messenger of the symbolism series on the symbolism of the monkey, for the Aquarius newsletter (still unpublished), I discovered that there is a profound difference between the Western and the Eastern understanding of the famous symbolic representation of the three monkeys:

While the three monkeys today in the West usually stand for “not wanting to see, hear or say anything” in order to ignore unpleasant things, in the East they symbolise three wise monkeys:

One monkey has his eyes covered, thus showing “I do not see the unimportant”. Another monkey covers his ears: “I do not listen to the unessential”. The third monkey covers his mouth: “I do not speak or eat unnecessarily”. These are instructions to be applied by a disciple of the Master’s precepts. In this way we prevent undesirable things and diseases from entering us.

When searching photos of the symbol for a future video on the three monkeys, I came across the following photo of the Indian Prime Minister Modi presenting the gift of a copy of statues of the three monkeys to the then US-president Trump and his wife Melania on 24 February 2020. The statues are in the garden of the Mahatma Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, India.

The photo with these three persons and the three monkeys, chosen as a gift from India to America, is highly symbolic of the much-needed “fusion of the wisdom of the East and the strength of the West” to overcome the global antagonisms. “East” and “West” do not mean locations on the planet but “material” and “spiritual”. There is much “west” in the “East” and much “east” in the “West”.

Extract of the official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks
Extract of the official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks

Twelve Taurus Paintings

Friday, April 16th, 2021

Taurus is the first earthy sign of the zodiac. It belongs to the fixed cross and provides form and stability. Venus rules over Taurus and gives beauty to the form. Subtle forces radiate through a beautiful form bestowing splendour on it. This splendour is an expression of the subtle beings of light. At Taurus full moon the light descends in a great measure. Since ancient-most times, the Masters of Wisdom and their disciples assemble at the time of this full moon in the Vaisakh Valley of the Himalayas to receive a fresh impulse of energies of Will and to distribute them on the earth.

The symbolism of Taurus is visualised in the twelve Taurus paintings done between 2010 and 2021. For detailed detailed descriptions please see the ludgerphilips.org website.

Taurus – Vaisakh Festival
25 April 2010, pencils, crayons and photo work
Taurus – Receiving the Milk of Wisdom
11 March 2011, pencils, crayons and photo work
Taurus – The Woman in the Heart of Man
12 February 2012, pencils, crayons and photo work
Taurus – The Magic Flute of Krishna
21 December 2012, pencils, crayons and photo work
Taurus – Receiving the Flow
27 December 2013, pencils and photo work
Taurus – The Bull and the Lingam
25 January 2015, pencils and photo work
Taurus – The Higher Bridge and the Awakening of the Third Eye
25 December 2015, pencils and photo work
Taurus – Krishna’s Flute, Microcosmic and Macrocosmic Centres
29 January 2017, pencils and photo work
Taurus – Impregnation by the Divine Will
20 December 2017, pencils and photo work
Taurus – Downpour of Divine Will
1 February 2019, pencils and photo work
Taurus – Transmitting the Impulse of Consciousness
13 December 2019, pencils and photo work
Taurus – Apollo and the Seven Centres above the Neck
24 January 2021, pencils and photo work

Twelve Aries Paintings

Wednesday, March 17th, 2021

Aries is the first sign of the zodiac and from the standpoint of light it is celebrated as the true beginning of the year. It is the sign of the birth of a new idea, which starts unfolding its activity. Each time a planet enters into Aries, a cycle is completed and a new one begins.

Aries is the highest point of enlightenment and at spring equinox the sun is also at the highest point at the equator. In our body, Aries is in the upper part of our head, it is the radiant light of the head centre. In the Vedas Aries is also worshipped as the head of the cosmic person called Purusha.

The symbolism of Aries is visualised in the twelve Aries paintings done between 2010 and 2020. For detailed detailed descriptions please see the ludgerphilips.org website.

Aries
13 April 2010, pencils, crayons and photo work
Aries – The Fire of Life
04 March 2011, pencils, crayons and photo work
Aries – The Mother Principle and the Descent in 10 Steps into Creation
20 November 2011, pencils, crayons and photo work
Aries – The Birth of a Diamond
30 November 2012, pencils, crayons and photo work
Aries – The Birth of a Butterfly
26 November 2013, pencils and photo work
Aries – The Ruler of the Solar Dynasty
14 December 2014, pencils and photo work
Aries –The Three Great Fires and the Cosmic Kundalini
16 December 2015, pencils and photo work
Aries – Permeation
12 December 2016, pencils and photo work.
Aries – Planet Blossom
23 November 2017, pencils and photo work
Aries – Spring-up of Awareness
19 January 2019, pencils and photo work
Aries – Sun cuts the Equator of Mother Earth
1 December 2019, pencils and photo work
Aries – The Midheaven Sun Alignment
28 December 2020, pencils and photo work

Eleven Pisces Paintings

Monday, February 15th, 2021

Pisces speaks of the wheel of creation and of cyclical endings and beginnings. For seers, time is a flowing current or stream in which the past, present and future merge. The symbol of Pisces is a symbol of synthesis. It contains two fishes moving in opposite directions. Although the Pisces fishes appear as two, they are actually one. In truth, there is neither beginning nor ending, but a single continuous movement in which we think we see beginnings and endings, depending on our levels of perception and understanding.

The symbolism of Pisces is visualised in the eleven Pisces paintings done between 2010 and 2020. For detailed detailed descriptions please see the ludgerphilips.org website.

Pisces – Fusion. Synthesis of Existence
06 November 2010, pencils, crayons and photo work
Pisces – The Mother Blessing the Earth Through the Grace of her Looks
22 October 2011, pencils, crayons and photo work
Pisces: The Alpha and the Omega
28 October 2012, pencils, crayons and photo work
Pisces – Ascension, the Light of the Higher Bridge
28 October 2013, pencils and photo work
Pisces – The Tablet of the Universe
17 November 2014, pencils and photo work
Pisces – Alpha in Omega, Omega in Alpha
12 November 2015, pencils and photo work
Pisces – The Great Fish and the Seed of the Universe
14 November 2016, pencils and photo work
Pisces – Flower of Time Cycles
19 November 2017, pencils and photo work
Pisces – The Spiritual Waters of the Sky
16 December 2018, pencils and photo work
Pisces – Spiralic Ascent
31 October 2019, pencils and photo work
Pisces – The Rod of Initiation
30 November 2020, pencils and photo work