What Alice Bailey writes in "A Treatise on White Magic" about the Higher Self

A Treatise on White Magic

This attitude of mind is inevitable until the consciousness of man can be so expanded that he becomes aware of the greater issues. When, through contact with his own Higher Self, he participates in the knowledge of the objective, and when through climbing the mountain of vision his perspective changes and his horizon enlarges, he comes to the realization that a law is but the spiritual impulse, incentive and life manifestation of that Being in which he lives and moves.

Later we may get down to the application of knowledge to the outer manifestation of world forces, but now our objective is something different; I seek to interest the minds and brains (and therefore the lower self) of students in the Higher Self, thereby keying up their mental interest so that sufficient impetus is generated to enable them to go forward.

Let this not be forgotten. If any command may ever emanate from the subjective band of teachers of whom I am a humble member, let it be to follow the dictates of your own soul and the prompting of your Higher Self.

A principle, when really fundamental, appeals at once to the intuition and calls out an immediate reaction of assent from the man's higher Self. It makes little or no appeal to the personality.

Principles governing the Higher Self and dealing with the love or wisdom aspect. It is with these that we are now concerned and half the troubles in the world at present arise from the fact that these higher principles, having to do with love or wisdom in all their fullness, are only now beginning to be apprehended by the rank and file of mankind. In the quick recognition of their truthfulness and the attempt to make them facts, without previously adjusting the environment to those ideals, comes the frequent clashing and warfare between those actuated by the principles governing the personality and those governing the Higher Self. Until more of the race are governed by the soul consciousness this warfare is inevitable and cannot be avoided. When the emotional plane is dominated by the intuitional, then will come universal comprehension.

Souls are finding themselves and learning dependence upon the inner Ruler. When all outward props fail and when all the apparent authorities differ in the solution proffered, then souls are thrown back upon themselves and learn to seek within. This inner contact with the Higher Self is becoming apparent in gradually unfolding degree, and leads to that self-reliance and inward calm which is based upon the rule of the inner God and which, therefore, makes a man an instrument for service in the world.

One of the primary conditions that a disciple has to cultivate, in order to sense the plan and be used by the Master, is solitude. In solitude the rose of the soul flourishes; in solitude the divine self can speak; in solitude the faculties and the graces of the Higher Self can take root and blossom in the personality. In solitude also the Master can approach and impress upon the quiescent soul the knowledge that He seeks to impart, the lesson that must be learnt, the method and plan for work that the disciple must grasp.

Fifth: Certain dangers which aspirants must watch as they seek to be of use should here be mentioned:

They must guard against over-emphasizing one aspect at the expense of another part of the plan or vision.
They must avoid unequal concentration of thought upon that part of the plan which appeals the most to them personally.
They must recognize the inability of the workers to continue to bring through the plans and to work together peacefully and steadily. Friction is oft unavoidable.
They must watch for the creeping in of self-interest and of ambition.
They must guard against fatigue, due to long effort in materializing the plan and the strain incident upon high endeavor.
They must develop the capacity to recognize those who are sent to help them in the work.
They must above all watch against failure to keep in touch with the higher self and with the Master.

The aligning of the man on the physical plane with his ego, soul or Higher Self, on the mental plane and the subordination of the physical plane life and nature to the impress and control of the soul. This is covered sufficiently in the first two or three chapters of Letters on Occult Meditation and these should be studied by aspirants.

Virtue is the calling in of new energies and of a new vibratory rhythm so that the soul becomes the positive controlling factor and the soul forces supersede those of the bodies. This process is that of character building. Let me illustrate! A man is the victim of an irritable and nervous disposition. We say to him that he needs to be calm and peaceful and to cultivate detachment and so gain control of himself. We teach him that in place of a cross disposition there should be sweetness and calm. This sounds a platitude and most uninteresting. Yet what is really being stated is that in place of the restless self-centered emotional nature and the activity of the solar plexus center (carrying the powerful forces of the astral plane) there should be imposed the steady detached and harmonizing rhythm of the soul, the Higher Self. This work of imposing the higher vibration on the lower is character building, the first prerequisite upon the Path of Probation. On reading this the earnest student can begin to sum up his energy assets; he can tabulate the forces which he feels control his life, and thus arrive at a reasonable and truthful understanding of the forces which require to be subordinated and those which require to be strengthened. Then in the light of true knowledge, let him go forward upon the path of his destiny.

The effort on the part of all aspirants should not be to resist and repel the pressure or to fight and ward off. Such a method centers the attention upon the not-self and leads to added chaos. The effort should be along the lines of an endeavor to make contact with the Higher Self, and keep it stable and steady, and to be in such direct alignment that the force and power of the soul may be poured upon and through the lower threefold nature. This pouring through will bring about a steady radiation which will affect the surroundings exactly in proportion to the extent of the inner contact, and in direct relation to the clarity of the channel linking the physical brain to the causal body. The aspirant should also strive after that self-forgetfulness which merges itself in the good of those contacted. This self-forgetfulness refers to the lower self. Self-recollectedness and self-forgetfulness should be companions.

All occult training has in view the development of the aspirant so that he may indeed be a focal point of spiritual energy. It should be remembered, however, that under the law, this training will be cyclic, and will have its ebb and flow, as all else in nature. Times of activity succeed times of pralaya, and periods of registered contact alternate with periods of apparent silence. Note here the choice of words. This alternation is due to the imposition of the Law of Periodicity and if the student develops as desired, each pralayic period is succeeded by one of greater activity, and of more potent achievement. Rhythm, ebb and flow, and the measured beat of the pulsating life are ever the law of the universe, and in learning to respond to the vibration of the high Places this rhythmic periodicity must be borne in mind. The same law governs a human being, a planet, a solar system - all centers or focal points of energy in some greater Life. If such work as you are doing is to succeed (and it is largely the work of developing the ability to touch certain currents on mental levels - currents which emanate from the Higher Self, from your egoic group, or from the Master) definite planned conditions must be provided. Certain factors must be present. If they do not exist, then the currents are (if I may so express it) deflected, and contact fails of accomplishment. If occupation with mundane affairs is necessitated - and such periods come in every life cycle - then the attention should be concentrated on these details, and the higher contact may be then temporarily unrealized. Such attention to affairs on the physical plane is not necessarily loss of time, for it may be as much a part of the plan at that particular time as any other kind of service. Full expression and consciousness on each and every plane is the objective, remembering that each plane with its varying states of consciousness is equally a part of the divine Life. What is lacking as yet with the majority of aspirants is a synthetic consciousness and the capacity to hold and register continuity.

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