Light, Illumination, and the Law of Change: From “The Sanctuary of Self” – Rosicrucian Order Library, Part 1 of 2

The Ancient Mystical Order Rosae Crucis, also known as the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC, is a worldwide cultural, educational, and philosophical organization that is perpetuating the profound and practical teachings of the Rosicrucians. These teachings, as passed down and added to over the centuries, from ancient Egypt to Europe and now all over the world, pertain to the mysteries of the universe, nature, and humans themselves. The Rosicrucian library is a source of spiritual wisdom and insight that includes the important writings by the respected imperators of the Order such as Dr. Harvey Spencer Lewis, Ralph M. Lewis, and Christian Bernard. Today, we will read from Frater Ralph M. Lewis’s book, “The Sanctuary of Self.”

“Of all of the contraries in nature, the opposites — light and darkness — are the most obvious. To the primitive mind, both light and darkness have a positive quality. Darkness has as much actuality to the primitive mind as does light. Some myths of primitive peoples represent light as being created out of the nature of darkness, but these are comparatively few. There are many experiences which are common to light and which we are accustomed to associate with the word ‘light.’ By means of light, all of those things which constitute our visual world have existence to us. Even dangers are tangible, definite things in light, because they can be perceived. Their visual form depends upon light.”

“In the Book of Genesis, in the Old Testament, it is said: ‘Let there be light.’ Then we are told that God divided light from darkness. This very definitely indicates that darkness and light were considered by the ancient Hebrews as separate creations.”

“The symbolism, of light and darkness, in the moral sense, does not definitely appear in the Bible until the New Testament, several centuries after the books of the Old Testament. There, darkness is made to represent concealment. Under cover of darkness, most crimes are committed. Consequently, darkness takes on the moral equivalent of evil. Conversely, light represents action in the open - things frankly and honestly done - so light is symbolically associated with goodness and virtue.”