The philosophy of that law in Nature, which implants in man as well as in every beast a passionate, inherent, and instinctive desire for freedom and self-guidance, pertains to psychology.

—The Secret Doctrine, II, 484

...the great evolutionary Law...must finally prevail because it is the Law of the Deity, an expression of the nature and being of the Unknown, which nature is towards manifestation, self-realization, and re-absorption.

—Letters That Have Helped Me

In these two quotations is epitomized the whole history of evolution, material, mental, spiritual. But to understand them as a practical guide to daily living, the help of H.P.B.'s first book, Isis Unveiled, is needed. There we have the key which will help us in the understanding of many things which are otherwise puzzling. The first important truth we learn is that Law works throughout Nature. The corollary to this, "There is no miracle," has to be accepted at least as a hypothesis.

The question then arises: How does this Law work, and why? It works because there is but one common vital principle which pervades all things. This common vital principle can be controlled by the perfected human will.

In order to begin this task, it is necessary to know the vital principle and its field of operation, which includes not only the human being but also Nature in toto. Hence H.P.B. gave the second and third Items in Isis Unveiled, showing the threefold aspects of Nature and of Man.

To understand further the practical aspect of this information it is necessary to turn to the Three Fundamental Propositions of The Secret Doctrine, where the manifested Universe is said to be composed of Spirit, Matter and Fohat. It is the knowledge of Fohat as "the dynamic energy of Cosmic Ideation...the animating principle electrifying every atom into life," which gives the key to progress. What has man to do with Fohat? A more thorough familiarity with what is said under "Kamadeva" in The Theosophical Glossary is necessary. "Desire first arose in IT, which was the primal germ of mind." Kama in its pure form is that desire which is "for universal good, love, and for all that lives and feels, needs help and kindness, the first feeling of infinite tender compassion and mercy that arose in the consciousness of the creative ONE FORCE, as soon as it came into life and being as a ray from the ABSOLUTE."

It is this same Desire which "Sages, searching with their intellect, have discovered in their heart to be the bond which connects Entity with non-Entity," or Manas with pure Atma-Buddhi. Make Desire, Fohat (the intelligent medium, the guiding power of all manifestation) and Will a three-in-one, a unity, and we have the secret for success.

The Universal Mind manifesting as human consciousness has to seek within the heart for universal good and love, and has to learn how to help all beings and to become part of that infinite tender compassion and mercy as a self-conscious unit.

What is consciousness? It is that which passes through the lower kingdoms of Nature, urged on by natural law which ever strives towards perfection, and which in the human kingdom has to work by self-induced ways and means. But wrapped up as it is in the material form evolved in those past ages when the tamasic element of cohesion as also sensation and instinct came to birth, it has to elevate these faculties by turning them towards their proper uses in their new environment in the human kingdom. The human faculty of self-awareness has to understand its material vehicle, its astral counterpart, and the power of the Spirit functioning within, namely, the will, which is said to be Spirit in action. All of man's faculties and vehicles must be brought under the control of his true will; that is, the desire to know and understand the goal of evolution has to be the foremost driving force. He is now his own creator. Wisdom says he must follow natural law if he would create aright; therefore he must learn how that law functions in all the constituents of his being.

Knowledge of Nature and of man in their inner aspects is said to be the science of magic; its application in practice is the art of magic. Used rightly, spiritual wisdom is born; used wrongly, black magic is the result. Right use requires an "all-embracing desire for universal good, love, and for all that lives and feels, needs help and kindness." But knowledge is also required so that right application may result—knowledge of magnetism and electricity and their effects on all matter, especially on the animal kingdom and man. Wrong desire leads to wrong action which is the opposite of "infinite tender compassion and mercy"; that is, any feeling of selfishness or self-centredness—"myself against the world"—taints all action.

The real field of action is the invisible region, primarily the astral. Says The Secret Doctrine (I, 644):

It is the law of occult dynamics that "a given amount of energy expended on the spiritual or astral plane is productive of far greater results than the same amount expended on the physical objective plane of existence."

There are three stages of growth: manifestation, self-realization and reabsorption. The impelling force is the inherent, instinctive desire for freedom and self-guidance. Reabsorption cannot mean the giving up of self-guidance or of freedom; it must surely mean that self-guidance has become ALL-SELF guidance, freedom has become union with the ALL, because the individual unit has realized his oneness with the great universal Life and has become a channel for the Law of that Life.

Though all has to be gained by self-effort, there is the dark side. The urge towards freedom and self-guidance often leads to complete lack of restraint and separates man from Nature and from his fellow men, as also from his own spiritual heart. The material and lower part of man is an animal. The inner man has to "domesticate" it as he does some species of the animal kingdom. Through the "blows" of Karma man learns how to domesticate his animal vehicle to some extent, but when he loses all restraint over it he falls even lower than the animal. It is necessary to learn the laws of life, to know what our goal is and what is the quickest way to reach it. Then comes the hard task of disciplining the lower in terms of the higher, with compassion, not with the whip!

Step by step Nature proceeds, and so does man. To "adapt our thought and ideas to our plastic potency" it is necessary to begin now with the small duties and events of life, with the eradication of the little faults and the development of the little virtues. With the ideal before us and proceeding step by step, we shall see how evolution works outwardly and inwardly. For the silent, steady working of the inner change in thought and knowledge we have to have trust and reliance in LAW. The painter or sculptor has to have a design first in his mind. To reproduce it in outer materials, time and patience, effort and knowledge are needed. Thus we can recreate ourselves according to any pattern we desire.

The Laws and principles of existence—the true rationale of life—are presented by Theosophy; hence, each man's contact with it is alike an opportunity and a responsibility, to which he has been brought under Karma. He can make the most of it, or he may neglect it so as to fail to obtain or extend benefit. His refusal to take advantage of it now will make him less determined in some other life to carry out the purpose of his nature, which is defeated presently if he neglects, under any circumstances or pressure, that which he sees to be leading him in the right direction. But always there are those who will test Theosophy out in their work to the last end. They in their good time must come to be the leaders and pioneers of humanity, which must learn, even though the learning takes centuries of suffering. If the light of pure Theosophy is kept burning clear, it will be the saving light of the whole world. That must be. But the question is, who will be the light-bearers?

—Robert Crosbie