The Crest-Wave of Evolution: A Course of Lectures in History, Given to the Graduates' Class in the Raja-Yoga College, Point Loma, in the College-Year 1918-19Morris, Kenneth
Philosophy
The Crest-Wave of Evolution: A Course of Lectures in History, Given to the Graduates' Class in the Raja-Yoga College, Point Loma, in the College-Year 1918-19
Morris, Kenneth
Theosophy
Laotse showed his deep Occult wisdom when he said that the Man of
Tao "does difficult things while they are still easy." Liehtse
tells you the story of the Assitant to the Keeper of the Wild
Beasts at Loyang. His name was Lian yang, and his fame went
abroad for having a wonderful way with the creatures in his
charge. Hsuan Wang, the Chow king, heard of it; and sent orders
to the Chief Keeper to get the secret from Liang, lest it should
die with him.--"How is it," said the Keeper, "that when you feed
them, the tigers, wolves, eagles, and ospreys all are tame and
tractable? That they roam at large in the park, yet never claw
and bite one another? That they propagate their species
freely, as if they were wild? His Majesty bids you reveal to
me the secret."
A touch of nature here: all zoologists know how difficult it is
to get wild beasts to breed in captivity.
Lian Yang answered: "I am only a humble servant, and have really
no secret to tell. I fear the king has led you to expect
something mysterious. As to the tigers: all I can say is that,
like men, when yielded to they are pleased and when opposed they
are angry. Nothing gives way either to pleasure or to anger
without a cause; and anger, by reaction, will follow pleasure,
and pleasure anger. I do not excite the tigers' joy by giving
them live creatures to kill, or whole carcasses to tear up. I
neither rouse their anger by opposing them, nor humor them to
make them pleased. I time their periods of hunger and anticipate
them. It is my aim to be neither antagonistic nor compliant; so
they look upon me as one of themselves. Hence they walk about
the parks without regretting the tall forests and broad marshes,
and rest in the enclosure without yearning for lonely mountain or
dark vale. It is merely using common sense."
And there Liehtse leaves it in all its simplicity; but I shall
venture to put my spoke in, and add that he has really given you
a perfect philosophy for the conduct of life: for the government
of that other and inner tiger, the lower nature, especially; it
is always that, you will remember, for which the Tiger stands in
Chinese symbology;--and also for education, the government of
nations--everything. Balance,--Middle lines,--Avoidance of
Extremes,--Lines of Least Resistance:--by whom are we hearing
these things inculcated daily? Did they not teach Raja-Yoga in
ancient China? Have not our school and its principles a Chinese
smack about them? Well; it was these principles made China
supremely great; and kept her alive and strong when all her
contemporaries had long passed into death; and, I hope, have
ingrained something into her soul and hidden being, which will
make her rise to wonderful heights again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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