In the first
initiation, the physical form must be restrained and purified to become an
expression of soul. Lewdness and thrill-seeking are symptoms of an immature
attitude. To gain insight and growth of character, the body must be
disciplined, its impulses transmuted, and conduct reoriented toward wisdom and spiritual
principles. The needs of the body for food, drink, sleep, and sex must not
dominate. The aspirant moderates desire, practices vegetarianism, and shuns
stimulants such as caffeine and nicotine. Ideals of duty and mercy will become
strong.
In the second
initiation, the emotional life must be stabilized. The ignorance and
confusion of fear and vanity is clarified and overcome through withdrawal from
the senses and detachment. The soul is then no longer stifled by animal
instincts and conditioned reactions. There is no more distress arising from
shame, aversion, and the need to control. Distortion of thought caused by
jealousy and habituated opinions is gradually understood as a disturbed
delusion. Sincere devotion and steady effort will nurture altruism and free an
initiate from the burdens of the heart.
In the third initiation, the intellectual life is developed, and character becomes mindful and virtuous. By a logical method of inquiry and investigation, the initiate can arrange facts, observe patterns in accord with principles, and apply knowledge in the creative expression of wisdom. There is mastery of numbers, forms, and harmonics. The philosophical apprentice gains abstract and practical knowledge of minerals, plants, animals, and astronomy. In the discovery of relationship between macrocosm and microcosm, symbolic intuition is acquired, and the spiritual nature of man is confirmed. The soul now discerns the unreal from the Real in the first perceptions of unchanging original Truth.
In the fourth initiation, false identity is retired, as are the masks worn for the common roles of society. The initiate is no longer motivated by money, status, or pleasant sensations. Life is generously dedicated to a noble purpose and given meaning through the study of religion and esoteric knowledge. Meditation and other advanced spiritual practices are integrated into daily routines. The soul is done with suffering in the cycles of phenomenal appearances and seeks freedom in the permanent joy and peace of the numinous eternal. The disciple perceives the unity and order of the cosmos and gains in superhuman perfection.
In the fifth initiation, the initiate becomes a Master of the worlds of sense-desires, pure forms, and formless Truth. The veil of existence is perceived as the timeless play of the immortal Absolute free from causality. The soul is beyond disease and decay with extraordinary knowledge of the past, the future, and the invisible processes of Nature. With skillful means and fully-realized mind-powers, the adept may act as a figure-of-history and person-of-destiny to introduce new values and lifestyles to society. The evolutionary goal is thus achieved.