- —man being but the footings-up of all the ages of
eternity. All is summed up in him; and he is the footings-up of all that preceded him; hence all the Spiritual spheres have their basis in man. Therefore, when we wish to study the Spirit-spheres, we are not obliged to go out of ourselves and begin to look off into space ten, fifteen, or one thousand miles away. The way is to come within, and ascertain the sphere of Spiritual being, Spiritual perception and affection; for all there is of the Spiritual universe is what has its basis in the individual Spirits who constitute the spheres.
As the societies of earth are composed of the individuals of earth, so are the spheres of the heavens composed of the individuals of the heavens, and the ruling nature of the different spheres is but the aggregate of the ruling loves of those composing those spheres. The laws of the spheres are but the laws of those composing the spheres. We are germinal universes. We are to be developed and unfolded consciously till the whole universe is translated into our consciousness. There is but one way to study the universe, and that is to come down into ourselves and study ourselves. This idea of looking out of ourselves, looking to any external method outside of our consciousness to find out what constitutes a Spiritual sphere or degree, is all fallacious. Spirits may come and rap, talk, and preach till doomsday; if they can not find the elements within your consciousness out of which they can construct that Spiritual sphere, you can not perceive or get any true idea of Spirit-spheres. It is as though I were born blind, and had never seen
