I write now for those initiates who have taken the third initiation, whose personality is soul-dominated and who [357] "walk ever in the light." It will therefore be obvious that there is relatively little that I can say at this point which will be comprehensible, as far as the true meaning goes, to you who have not as yet achieved that state. The key to your understanding lies in the realization that our seven planes are only the seven subplanes of the cosmic physical plane, and that all that now transpires in the life of the initiate simply releases him from physical experience (technically physical, even on the atmic, monadic and logoic planes), into that vortex of force which we know and understand as Love, or onto the cosmic astral plane. The note, the quality and the influence of the cosmic astral plane is love - the higher correspondence of emotion as experienced upon the astral plane of the planetary or solar manifestation. It is therefore to be realized that the Hierarchy is definitely under the impact of energies emanating from the cosmic astral plane, whilst Shamballa reacts to influences coming from the cosmic mental plane. The related stream of energy can therefore be seen to be from:

1. The cosmic astral plane.
2. The solar buddhic plane, reflected in our planetary buddhic plane.
3. The astral plane, the plane of glamor in the three worlds.

In relation to the mind, you have:

1. The cosmic mental plane.
2. The solar atmic plane, reflected in our planetary atmic plane.
3. The mental plane, the plane of illusion.

In connection with the references to glamor and illusion, (see Glamor: a World Problem) it must be borne in mind that the reason glamor predominates and illusion functions in the three worlds is due to the fact that men identify themselves with the dense physical brain, and interpret life in terms of experience in the three worlds. There is no true astral plane, from the angle of personality identifications, but only what might be regarded as the figments of the imagination; yet fundamentally and substanding what [358] we know as the astral plane is the reflection of the cosmic principle of love. However, being essentially a reflection, it lacks basic reality from the angle of the true disciple and must be ignored as an expression of fundamental truth; at the same time, the astral plane exists from the angle of the Master, because it is an expression in dense physical cosmic substance of cosmic love. Its potency is, however, so great that it produces glamor in those who are not yet liberated. Students should remember that focused power produces glamor where wrong identification is involved, but only reality and truth where there is freedom from the factor of form life. Therefore, temporarily, there is no astral plane for the disciple who is withdrawing identification; there is a field of service for the Master Who has no longer the power to identify His consciousness with anything in the three worlds; He can, however, relate cosmic sources with planetary and solar expressions of energy.

This 4th or buddhic is a fusion of 2 and 3, of love and [359] intelligence, and produces understanding and intuitive perception.

The three lower planes of our seven planes are, from the angle of the esotericist, the equally unprincipled dense cosmic substance; the mark or indication of the true initiate is the transfer of his life and his point of identification from unprincipled substance and substantial forms to "principled" substance and etheric forms. The tendency of the occult student to think ever in terms of spiritual abstraction can (and often does) militate against a grasp of the truth and presents a false picture to the intelligence; the facts which I have just emphasized have much to do with the nature of the higher initiations. I would ask you to remember this.