(6)
Therefore, there is no contradiction in saying that the ego, once reborn in the Devachan, "retains for a certain time proportionate to its earth life a complete recollection of his (Spiritual) life on earth." Here again the omission of the word "Spiritual" alone produced a misunderstanding!
(7)
All those that do not slip down into the 8th sphere — go to the Devachan. Where's the point made or the contradiction?
(8)
The Devachan State, I repeat, can be as little described or explained, by giving a however minute and graphic description of the state of one ego taken at random, as all the human lives collectively could be described by the "Life of Napoleon" or that of any other man. There are millions of various states of happiness and misery, emotional states having their source in the physical as well as the spiritual faculties and senses, and only the latter surviving. An honest labourer will feel differently from an honest millionaire. Miss Nightingale's state will differ considerably from that of a young bride who dies before the consummation of what she regards as happiness. The two former love their families; the philanthropist — humanity; the girl centres the whole world in her future husband; the melomaniac knows of no higher state of bliss and happiness than music — the most divine and spiritual of arts. The Devachan merges from its highest into its lowest degree — by insensible gradations; while from the last step of Devachan, the Ego will often find itself in Avitchi's faintest state, which, towards the end of the "spiritual selection" of events may become a bona fide "Avitchi." Remember, every feeling is relative. There is neither good nor evil, happiness nor misery per se.
The transcendent, evanescent bliss of an adulterer, who by his act murders the happiness of a husband, is no less spiritually born for its criminal nature. If a remorse of conscience (the latter proceeding always from the Sixth Principle) has only once been felt during the period of bliss and really spiritual love, born in the sixth and fifth, however polluted by the desires of the fourth, or Kamarupa — then this remorse must survive and will accompany incessantly the scenes of pure love. I need not enter into details, since a physiological expert, as I take you to be, need hardly have his imagination and intuitions prompted by a psychological observer of my sort. Search in the depths of your conscience and memory, and try to see what are the scenes that are likely to take their firm hold upon you, when once more in their presence you find yourself living them over again; and that, ensnared, you will have forgotten all the rest — this letter among other things, since in the course of events it will come far later on in the panorama of your resurrected life. I have no right to look into your past life.
Whenever I may have caught glimpses of it, I have invariably turned my eyes away, for I have to deal with the present A.P. Sinnett — (also and by far more "a new invention" than the ex-A.P.S.) — not with the ancient man.
Yes; Love and Hatred are the only immortal feelings; but the gradations of tones along the seven by seven scales of the whole key-board of life, are numberless. And, since it is those two feelings — (or, to be correct, shall I risk being misunderstood again and say those two poles of man's "Soul" which is a unity?) — that mould the future state of man, whether for Devachan or Avitchi then the variety of such states must also be inexhaustible. And this brings us to your complaint or charge, number —
(9)
— for, having eliminated from your past life the Ratigans and Reeds who with you have never transcended beyond the boundaries of the lower portion of your fifth principle with its vehicle — the kama — what is it but the "partial remembrance" of a life? The lines marked with your reddest pencil are also disposed of. For how can you dispute the fact that music and harmony are for a Wagner, a Paganini, the King of Bavaria and so many other true artists and molemans, an object of the profoundest spiritual love and veneration? With your permission I will not change one word in clause 9.
(10)
Pity you have not followed your quotations with personal commentaries. I fail to comprehend in what respect you object to the word "dream"? Of course both bliss and misery are but a dream; and as they are purely spiritual they are "intensified."
(11)
Answered.
(12A & 12B)
Had I but written, — when answering Mr. Hume's objections, who after statistical calculations made with the evident intention of crushing our teaching, maintained that after all spiritualists were right and the majority of séance rooms spooks were "Spirits" — "In no case then, with the exception of suicides and shells" — and those accidents who die full of some engrossing earthly passion — "is there any possibility for any other, etc., etc." I would have been perfectly right and pukka as a "professor"? To think that, eager as you are to accept doctrines that contradict in some most important points physical science from first to last — you should have consented to Mr. Hume's suggestion to split hairs over a simple omission! My dear friend, permit me to remark that simple common sense ought to have whispered you that one who says one day: "in no case then etc.:" and a few days later denies having ever pronounced the word never — is not only no adept but must be either suffering from softening of the brain or some other "accident." "On margin I said rarely but I have not pronounced the word never" — refers to the margin of the proof of your letter N. II; that margin — or rather to avoid a fresh accusation — the piece of paper upon which I had written some remarks referring to the subject and glued to the margin of your proof — you have cut out as well as the four lines of poetry. Why you have done so is known better to yourself. But the word never refers to that margin.