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Theorem One - Commentary par Dupré
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Introduction
The following represents one of the official commentary on theorem one. We quietly remind the reader that ultimately, each person must make their a commentary on the theorems for themselves. As noted previously, the main purpose of initiation is for the adherent to make their own commentaries and to come to their own conclusions.
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¤ - Theorem One "Every human being ...
THEOREM ONE
"Every human being has a personality of their own as dissimilar as are two beings of the same race and of a similar nature."
"This personality is more or less manifested and is more or less strong, depending on the degree of the individual’s experience."
"As for manifestation, it depends on the more or less free environment in which the individual was reared."
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Commentary par Dupre
TEACHING FOR THE ADHERENT
CONCERNING THE INDIVIDUAL
The theorem is admitted without controversy, Man does have a personality. Yet, when we examine the meaning of the word personality, we see that it is of a very complex character.
Personality is the character presented by an individual. This character may be good or bad, so there could be good or bad personalities, compound or complex ones. If we limit our observations to the visual and verifiable field, we shall define personality as the sum total (ensemble) of the human being’s manifestations.
It is the character proper of every being, together with their conscious individuality.
This actual personality would be composed of three kinds of manifestations:
Physical manifestations
Animic, psychical or moral manifestations, and
Spiritual or mental manifestations.
The physical manifestations are those that we see and that are perceptible to our senses. Thus, we observe a person’s appearance: they may be tall or short, dark, blond or white. We observe their gestures, stances, movements, gait, voice, the sound of their steps. All these are as many indications that make us recognize one person from another. There are also gestures, languages, kinds of behaviour and types that are common to a certain community {collective}. In this way, in the Occident, you can tell that a person has lived in the Orient by their gestures alone.
The psychical manifestations of the human being are more difficult to grasp, for we should already have learned how to deduce from the impressions that we get when we are close to people so as to draw conclusions regarding their psychical personality. A person may have a strong or weak soul, may be active or passive, may be easily impressionable or impressive. We note the feelings that this person has in their everyday dealings with others, if they feel Love, Goodness, Brotherhood, etc. or again if they harbour resentments, that is, if they feel hate, if they are evil or antagonistic.
A visible psychical expression is usually revealed in a person’s features, which may express joy, fury, sadness, enthusiasm, indifference, fear, composure, daring, etc.
The spiritual manifestations of a human being are even more difficult to observe, for these require the study of the individual in question and a spiritual relation (rapport) with them. They may be affirmative or negative - by this, I mean to describe a quality or defect of judgment of the human spirit. There are persons who see everything favourably and others who see everything dark, bad and impossible. Some are materialists and make use of their spiritual faculties to serve negation of the spirit. Some are spiritualists. Others observe and draw conclusions only from what they see, feel or think. Others still, they do not observe at all. Some have a lively intelligence others do not. Some express themselves with ease others cannot. Some have a quick understanding, others are slow-witted. Some have a strong memory, others do not. There are intelligent, stupid, wise and foolish, etc. persons.
Personality is thus complex and different because humankind, just as everything created, is subject to a law that is named “the Law of Dissimilarity”. The reason of the existence of this law is antagonism that gives rise to efforts of movement in Matter and of opposition in the Psyche and the Spirit so as to attain the knowledge of Truth.
The discovery of this Law (O.V.M. discovered that dissimilarity is a Law) results in the possibility of spiritual, psychical and physical evolution through judgment that makes a selection of what is good and adapts it or appropriates it and renders the collaboration of various spiritual virtues possible, as also spiritual unions and physical practices.
Sympathy or antipathy exists among men and women because of the Law of Dissimilarity. And the diversity of conceptions among individuals, which is the source of progress of Civilization and the process towards perfection, is due to the Law of Dissimilarity.
Personality is manifested in a greater or lesser degree and is more or less strong. In fact, you must have surely observed that some persons have a definitely good or bad character, whereas others just follow everyone else’s opinions.
Moreover, personality and the state of the individual depend on experience.
Experience is the setting of the senses into action for acquisition and thus getting to know the things that have been observed and examined. You form and then have a certain opinion because you yourself know it and because in the course of your life you have had good or bad experience of it. This experience will grow further. Then, with this experience - that is, the practical or experimental knowledge - of the laws of Nature, you will be ready and on the way to making your personality proceed towards perfection.
It is the experience of life and not instruction that is the vehicle towards perfection and the definitive edification of personality in Man is experience of life. It is not instruction, because instruction is a factitious acquisition.
Instruction contributes in an interesting manner when a person is intelligent and good, for it piques their faculty of reasoning and allows them easier access to possible perfection. If, however, the person happens to be intelligent but bad, it is a dangerous accessory for the community {collective} and it distances that person from possible perfection. If again, a person is not intelligent, instruction is a useless baggage and an accessory that can drag them to errors that may harm themselves as well as the community {collective}.
I shall now sum up this commentary.
After the succinct analysis that was made, we have been led to the verification of the existence in Man of a personality in its triple constitution.
This personality may be good or bad and is often mixed, having both qualities and defects. This leads us to the most difficult study that one can make during one’s lifetime: the study of one’s self.
“Know thyself”, this was the formula of the Sages of Antiquity and these are the words that our Venerable Masters still say to us.
Let us get to know ourselves and let us study our personality through a happy experience. In this study, instruction is of no use. What we want is to reach the state when our true spiritual personality becomes manifest in our life and our actions. We want the spiritual to be in harmony with the physical and the psychical. We want all false appearances to cease to exist. We want Man to appear as he really is and want his bearing to register a superior personality (self-taught). We must not confuse personality with pride. Personality is exalted through humility. Pride is an exaltation of the physical Ego, about which we shall speak in the next theorem.
It is through dissimilarity that personality becomes evident. This dissimilarity - happily converging with Life - is a Virtue that can be obtained only by the acquisition of the independence of our intellect in all its manifestations. In fact, such an attempt was made, unfortunately without success, two centuries ago in the form of freedom of thought, freedom of opinion etc.
However, only one part of the community {collective} benefited from this freedom, a tiny minority of society and in a very small way at that.
Conformity and Sectarianism hastened to grab hold of the free principles of Society and annihilate all the beneficial character of the freedom and independence of personality, which is based on the dissimilarity of human beings. This alienation of freedom was obtained by an incontestable minority against the majority of our community {collective} through a number of means, usages, customs, conventions and doctrines. As we shall see in the theorems that follow, all these gravely hinder the intimate freedom of the human being and enslave personality to the point of effacing it altogether.
The 1st Theorem tells us that the manifestation of personality depends on the more or less free surroundings (milieu) in which the human being was reared.
As a conclusion to this 1st Theorem, I add that the personality of a person, when manifested freely and without any hindrance, having been guided towards the spirit of goodness, makes of the individual an element able to contribute to the well-being and the happiness of the community (collective).
One of the aims of our Order is to pick from society elements that have goodness loyalty and integrity - and guide them to the enhancement of their personality by reinforcing their virtues and characters.
Thus trained, our Knights will become numerous assimilating nuclei in the community {collective} for the good of Humanity.
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¤ Back to - Exposition of Theorem One
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Theorem 1