THE nebular theory explains with wonderful ingenuity the material viewpoint of how a solar system consisting of sun and planets may be formed from a central firemist, provided the firemist is put in motion. Something or somebody extraneous to the firemist is necessary to give that first impulse, however, as shown by Herbert Spencer, who rejected the nebular theory because it implies a First Cause, yet he was unable to enunciate a hypothesis free from that, to him, objectionable flaw. Thus the scientific theory of the genesis of a solar system coincides with the religious teaching of a First Cause, call it God or by any other name, who is the superior intelligence ordering the path of the marching orbs with a definite end and aim in view. That end we may not yet be able to wholly perceive, but all about us on our planet we cannot fail to note, if observant, an orderly progression of all things towards perfection, and it may be inferred that a similar process of evolution must be in progress on all the other planets, varying of course, in consonance with the diverse conditions existing on each.
Mystic teaching concerning the formation of a solar system agrees with the nebular theory which says that rings were thrown off from the central mass of the Sun, forming in succession the several planets, those farthest from the Sun being formed first while Venus and Mercury, last formed, are nearest the Sun.
Back of every act is a thought, and behind every visible phenemenon there is an invisible cause. So with the formation of the planets in a solar system, there is a spiritual reason for their being, as well as a material explanation.
The central firemist we may consider the first visible manifestation of the triune God, the Lord of Hosts, Who contains within His Being a multitude of other beings at varying stages of development. Their diverse needs require different external environments. In order to furnish such proper conditions several planets have been thrown off from the central mass, each being differently constituted and each having a climatic condition varying from the others. Yet they are all in the kingdom of God, the solar system. “In Him they live and move and have their being” in the most literal sense, for the whole solar system may be considered as the body of God and the planets as the organs in that body, ensouled by His Life, moving in His Strength in accord with His Will,
Each visible planet is the embodiment of a great and exalted spiritual intelligence Who is the minister of God in that department of His Kingdom, endeavoring to carry out His Will, the latter having in view the ultimate highest good, regardless of temporary ill.
These Planetary Spirits exercise a particular influence on the beings who evolve upon the planet which is Their embodiment, but have also an influence on the evolving beings upon other planets according to the development attained by such beings. The lower in the scale of evolution a being is placed the more potent are the effects of the planetary influences; the higher, the wiser and the more individualized a being is, the more it is able to shape its own course and the less it will be actuated by the stellar vibrations. That is why Astrology applied to daily life helps us. It gives us a knowledge of our weaknesses and the tendencies to evil in our nature; it shows us our strength and the times most opportune for development of added power for good.
In all religions we hear of the Seven Planetary Genii: the Hindu tells of Seven Rishi, the Parsi of Seven Ameshaspentas, the Mohammedan of Seven Archangels and our Christian religion has its Seven Spirits before the Throne.
The modern astronomer divorcees the spiritual aspect of the celestial science, Astrology, which he pooh-poohs as “”an exploded superstition,” from the material phase, Astronomy, counting eight primary planets in our solar system—Neptune, Uranus, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus and Mercury. He shows through the telescope that they exist and thinks he has proved that religion knows not whereof it speaks when it asserts that there are seven planets in the solar system. The Mystic, however, points to Bode’s Law as vindicating his assertion that Neptune does not really belong to our solar system.
The law is this: If we write a series of 4’s, add 3 to the second, 6 to the third, 12 to the fourth, etc., doubling the amount added each time, the resulting series of numbers is a very close approximation to the relative distances of the planets from the Sun with the exception of Neptune. Thus, to illustrate:
Mer- cury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Aster- oids
Ju- piter
Sat- urn
Ura- nus
Nep- tune
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
. .
3
6
12
24
48
96
192
384
4
7
10
16
28
52
100
196
388
If we divide this series by 10 we get 1 for the distance of the earth from the Sun and the other numbers then represent the distances of the other planets in terms of the earth’s distance. The closeness with which this simple law gives the distance is shown as follows, the column headed “Bode” being the distances according to this law, while the column headed “Distance” gives the correct values in terms of the earth’s distances.
It is thus seen that, with the exception of the values for Neptune, the numbers represent very nearly the relative proportional distances from the Sun, of the seven planets and the Asteroids which are within our solar system, but fail very decidedly when applied to Neptune, who is the embodiment of a Great Spirit from the Creative Hierarchies, which normally influence us from the Zodiac. This planetary genius works specifically with those who are preparing for initiation and partially with those who study astrology and put it into practice in their daily lives, for then they are also preparing for the path of attainment. The twinklings of the fixed stars from without our solar system are the pulsations of spiritual impulses sent forth by the guardians of the Greater Mysteries; and the Mercurians, the Gods of Wisdom send out similar impulses pertaining to the lesser mysteries, hence Mercury twinkles like a fixed star.
Planets revolve around the Sun at varying rates of speed; the smaller planets, which are the closest to the Sun, moving much more rapidly than the larger ones which, in addition, describe wider circles.
Besides revolving in their orbits around the Sun, the planets also revolve upon their axes in the same direction as they revolve in their orbits; that is, from west to east. This movement is called the diurnal rotation.
The time occupied by the diurnal rotation of the planets is as follows:
The inclination of the axis of the Sun to the plane of the ecliptic is about 7½ degrees.
The above inclinations of the axes do not in all cases coincide with the figures given by physical science, neither do we endorse their view that these inclinations remain practically unchanged, save for a slight vibratory movement called nutation. There is an exceedingly slow third movement of the planets whereby that which is now the North Pole of the earth will in the future, as it has in the past, point directly towards the Sun. Later it will be in the position where now the South Pole is, and in due time it will reach again its present place. Thus tropical climate and glacial epochs succeed each other on all points of each planet.
In addition to this gradual movement of about 50 seconds of space per century, whereby a whole revolution of the earth’s axis is completed in about two and one-half million years, there have also been sudden changes at a time when that which is now the North Pole pointed directly towards the Sun. The southern hemisphere was then continually in darkness and cold.
Resulting conditions caused a sudden overtopping of our globe the last time. Since that time, however, the Spirit which previously guided the earth from without has drawn into the sphere and such a happening will be impossible in the future.
Mr. Pierre Bezian, a French mechanician, has constructed an apparatus demonstrating this third movement. He is said to have received his idea from a study of the teachings promulgated among various ancient people by priests possessed of mystic learning, particularly from the Egyptians. He shows how such a third movement will account for the tropical flora and fauna found in the frozen North, which can be accounted for in no other way. He also shows that when in the course of this third movement the inclination of a planet’s axis becomes greater than 90 degrees and its North Pole commences to point toward the south, the satellites of that planet will seem to turn in the opposite direction from the satellites of the other planets, as is the case with Uranus and Neptune’s satellites; a fact which astronomers are puzzled to explain.
On Uranus and Neptune the Sun also rises in the west and sets in the east for the same reason: the inversion of their poles.
As a last difference between the teachings of modern science and the Western Wisdom Teaching of the Rosicrucians, we may note that astronomers of today speak of Venus and Mercury as inferior planets because they always appear close to the Sun; Venus is seen only as a morning or an evening star; Mercury is rarely seen because it keeps so close to the Sun.
The other planets are called superior because they are seen at all distances from the Sun, being even at the very opposite point of the horizon from the Sun.
This appellation, inferior and superior, the mystic would reverse, for to him it is clear that the Sun is the embodiment of the highest spiritual intelligence in our system. At the beginning of our present phase of evolution all that is now outside the Sun was inside, but not all beings could continue to vibrate at the immense rate which obtained there; some fell behind, crystallized and, in time, became a clog on other classes. They started to crystallize at the pole, where motion is slow, but gradually their increased weight brought them to the equator, where motion is most rapid, and they were thrown off from the Sun by centrifugal force.
Later, other beings failed to keep up the vibratory movement, lagged behind, and were thrown off at a proper distance so that the solar vibrations may give them the rapidity necessary to their development.
The most advanced spirits stayed longest with the Sun and consequently, if the appellation inferior and superior is to be applied at all, it should be used in reverse manner.
In order to avoid all misunderstanding, it may be well to state that Jupiter was thrown off and given its enormous bulk of fiery substance because the Jupiterians had arrived at a very high state of development, where they needed both high vibrations and independent motion. Jupiter is therefore in some respects an exception to the rule; a case where a higher law supersedes a lower.
In conclusion we reiterate that the planets in our solar system are the visible embodiments of the Seven Spirits before the Throne of God, the Sun, and that just as it is possible to us to transmit by wireless telegraphy the force which moves the telegraph key, lights a lamp, pulls a lever, etc., so may these Great Spirits exercise an influence upon human beings in proportion to our stage of individuality. If we aim to act in harmony with the laws of Good, we rise above all other laws and become a law unto ourselves; co-workers with God and helpers in nature. Ours is the privilege, ours the loss, if we fail to live up to our highest possibilities.
Let us therefore, strive to cae that we may do, and, above all let us beware of prostituting the science of the stars to the gutter of fortune-telling. Gold of Mammon may be ours if we do, but the “peace of God which passeth all understanding” will bring us lasting joy if we use our knowledge in unselfish service to others.
