WHAT A PHILOSOPHER IS
from Living Wisdomby Anthony Damiani
Paul Brunton: It is out of such a splendid balance of utter humility and noble self-reliance that the philosopher gets his wisdom and strength. He is always kneeling metaphorically before the Divine in self-surrendering renunciation and often actually in self-abasing prayer. Yet side by side and with this, he is always seeking to develop and apply his own intellect and intuition, his own will and experience in life. And because they are derived from such a balanced combination, this wisdom and strength are beyond any that religion alone, or metaphysics alone, could give. (The Notebooks of Paul Brunton, (20.5.16) (Category 20 Chap 5 para16)
Anthony: Here is a quote that will give you an idea of the magnitude of the spiritual grandeur
of what a sage is. I don’t think we can properly grasp it.
DO NOT PRETEND to be other than you are. If you are one of the multitude, do not put upon yourself the proud robes of the Teacher and pretend to imitate him; unless you stick to the Truth, you can never find it. To put yourself upon the pedestal of spiritual prestige before the Master or God has first put you there is to make the first move towards a humiliating and painful fall. Vol. 16 (25:5.33 andPerspectives, p.16)
Anthony:Now a Master is a person who has realized the I AM, the Overself, and philosophically has brought that realization into the world-that it is basically a manifestation of Consciousness or Reality-that is a Master. I don’t know if you’ve got any idea what work is involved to reach
those heights, but in studying these things I began to realize we’re speaking about the quintessence of Divinity as far as humanity is concerned.
Student: At one time PB said, “The whole trick is simply: Don’t let yourself be hypnotized by any thought.” We’re always looking for something to be fascinated with.”
Anthony: Let’s say that theegois always looking for something to be fascinated with, in its pre-occupation with its own glamour. But the stillness isn’t.
” Working Descriptions:A few key terms in Living Wisdom for readers whoare unfamiliar with how Anthony Damiani used them.
MENTALISM: As used in this text maintains that the natural universe is mental, and traces its creative thinking principle to Mind as the unique reality. It upholds both the existence and the marvelously intricate detail of this universe, but denies the materialistic view of it. “It refuses to attribute to matter a creative power to be found only in life, an intelligent consciousness to be found only in mind.”
(Perspectives, p. 282) It encompasses the relation of the individual mind to its world of experience, the World- Idea as the source of world existence, and Mind as the ultimate nature of both the world and the individual.
MIND: Paul Brunton’s term for the ultimate mystery of Reality. It is not only the transcendent Reality in itself, but also Reality as the nature of all that is authentic. “Mind alone is.”
Mind, World-Mind, and Overself are not conceived as separate entities, but as three aspects of One Reality. Mind is Reality per-se. World-Mind is the reality of the universe, active in and as the Universe.
Overself is the reality of the individual, the individual’s indissoluble inner connection to Reality.
OVERSELF: The inner and ultimate reality of the individual, the individual’s participation in the universal intelligencefrom which the world arises. Overself, where the human and the divine meet and mingle, is both universal and individuated. As Brunton writes, “The Overself is the true inner self…reflecting the divine being and attributes. The Overself is an emanation from the ultimate reality but is neither a division nor a detached fragment of it. It is a ray shining forth but not the sun itself. (Perspectives, p. 296) and (Living Wisdom, pp. 265-267)