of the full significance of the act, as is shown by his questions. He makes no resistence when Abraham places him upon the altar, although the idea seems to be that he thought that death was the necessary outcome of the service. But God shows him that his work will consist in living all through the ages to help man, not in dropping the body, but in retaining it. The peculiarly gentle, devoted, loving nature of Isaac has often been spoken of by Bible students.

When he is forty (the perfected quaternary, symbolic of the perfected physical), his father causes to be brought to him especial teaching in the Mystery work of Laban the Great White Brother, which is symbolized by Rebecca. As soon as he sees the beautiful higher Wisdom he loves it, and is at once married to it, or makes it one with him. It is significant that Isaac first sees Rebecca when in the field, meditating.

There are those who claim that this is one of the incarnations of the one whom we call the Christ, but as Christ Himself speaks of Jacob and Isaac as two distinct entities in the words "God is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God is the God of the living, not of the dead," and as we feel sure that Jacob was an incarnation of the Christ, and as Jesus seems to have ever worked in the degree between the Lord Jehovah, and the Christ, making a Trinity of Great Ones, that we distinguish at every turn in the affairs of humanity, it looks probable that we are right.

In the next incarnation of this Great Soul, however, it is easier to see the distinguishing characteristics by which we know Him. We will first look at the meanings of the names, and see what we find:

In the Smith and Peloubet "Bible Dictionary" we find the meaning of Jesus given as "The Greek form of the name 'Joshua,' or 'Jeshua,' a contraction of 'Jehoshua'; that is, help of Jehovah, or Saviour." Right here is stated that he is the "help of the Lord Jehovah, we have pointed out. At the mention of Joshua the mind at once reverts to the minister of Moses. Now we are told by those who have the ability to judge correctly, that Moses was a manifestation of the Great Law Giver, or the "Manu" of the fifth root race. It must have meant much to be in such close touch with the Great Manu. It rather startles one to note that Joshua is called the son of "Nun," when we find that

"Nun" means "Fish," and we are reminded that the astrological sign of Jesus was Pisces, and that the early Christians used this sign as a kind of token to distinguish each other when among enemies.

We must remember that Moses is the leader of all of the Aryan race, not of the Jews only. "Judah" refers to the Jews, "Israel" to the whole Aryan race, in symbolic language, with its twelve, or perfect number of nations. And Moses turns the guidance of the race over to Joshua, when they reach the Jordan, symbol of the degenerative tendencies of the strongly developed desire nature. His the work of teaching this people the lessons

of self control and purity.

In Numbers XI:28, we find Joshua spoken of as minister of Moses from his youth up; this may, of course, mean for only that life, but "youth" may mean his Isaac incarnation.

Joshua is one of Moses' "chosen men.” In Numbers XIII, we find he is one of twelve, chosen by Moses to go to spy out the Promised Land (or the planes of extended consciousness). In another chapter the reader will see a description of the Garden of Eden, where the Promised Land is shown to be the planes of consciousness, from the land of Cush, or the Physical Plane, to the full and abounding River of Wisdom (Euphrates) on the Buddhic, Universal Love Plane. So Moses chooses twelve of his best men, to start esoteric work, to learn under his direction how to develop the powers latent in man, that would enable them to function consciously upon the higher planes of consciousness, the "Promised Land," the ultimate destiny of the race.

Up to this time the young man had been called "Hoshea, in that incarnation, but now Moses gives him the name of "Joshua," or gives him the Second Great Initiation. As Isaac, he had shown his willingness to place himself upon the altar at the call of Abraham, and had gone up into the Mount of Initiation, carrying the fuel of the sacrifice in his own hands, or having in himself the consecration to feed the flame of the spirit. There, he took the First Great Initiation, here he takes the second, and receives his new name. In Ex. xxiv, 13, we find that Joshua, alone, went up into the mount (of Initiation) "with Moses." Ten of the men who had been chosen became discouraged, or died metaphorically; it was too big an undertaking to conquer the desire nature suf

ficiently to enter the land of the higher planes, and the spiritual impulse dies. Only Joshua and Caleb are left alive upon the higher altitudes, and only Joshua goes up into the mount with Moses (is initiated).

Mr. Leadbeater says, that a man may be called at any time by sounding the name of the Augoeides, for that is the chord of the three principles of the Ego, and the Monad behind, so no matter where the man may be, when that chord is sounded his causal body (his soul) lights up, and leaps upward like a great flame, plainly visible to the seer. Page 140, "Inner Life," Vol. II. This is evidently the "new name" given in the Bible at the Second Great Initiation, and I think I am right in saying, that this name or one of the same rhythmic value, will be found identifying the Ego in succeeding incarnations. In the case of Jesus, the name of Joshua, the Hebrew for Jesus, is consistently used throughout the allegories where he is mentioned. This makes it easier than it proves to be with the Christ, who has such a number of names. But we will handle that later.

Let us see where we find Joshua figuring in the Old Testament: In I Sam. vi, 14, we find Joshua a high priest in the temple of the Sun God, at Beth-Shemish, or the ancient Heliopolis, of Egypt. The Philistines, the descendants of Esau, the fourth and a half root race, strongly Physical Plane people, had taken the Ark of the Covenant from Israel in battle, but did not know what to do with it.

The Ark, the reader will remember, symbolized the ideal of the fifth race man, the perfect, the God Man, the destiny of the fifth root race, and understandable by them, but the Philistines were simply disturbed by the suggestion. Perfection was beyond their conceptions; so they placed the Ark in the temple with their god Dagon, a symbol of the Astral Plane, half fish half man. The poor old god of the desire nature at once recognized that its conqueror had come, and fell upon his face, and when set up again he broke himself in pieces in his effort to humble himself. This made the Philistines so uncomfortable that they decided to get rid of this disagreeable reminder of man's destiny.

Let us look at the beauty of the symbols used: First, the "Ark of the Covenant" made of Shittim, or the imperishable wood of the Orient, overlaid inside and outside with the gold of God's

righteousness and wisdom, with the law of God in the heart of it, containing also the pot of mana (manas, mind), symbol of the intellect, or rather the higher mind, for it came from above, overshadowed by the Cherubim, and continually receiving a stream of power from God,-the perfect man, the Christ. Naturally the poor physical-natured descendent of Esau would be far more comfortable with Dagon, the god of desire. Now note the other symbols. They took two "kine," confining their calves. Does not the reader see the symbol? Creative animal nature leaving its young, or all material attractions, even those most deeply rooted in the heart. They are "turned loose upon the highway," hitched to a cart containing the Ark, to go as they may choose. When the ideal of the race is really loaded upon the animal nature what happens? It forgets every material consideration and they start at a brisk pace, lowing with longing as they go, toward the temple of the sun (or God) "at Beth Shemish, in to the field" (the immortal life field) of Joshua the High Priest, and stand by a "stone" (the rock of our salvation), and upon this "Stone" is placed the Ark, the perfect man. As soon as he finds his feet upon the rock, Joshua offers up the kine, or his entire animal nature, before the ideal of the perfect man standing upon the rock of our salvation, or the Christ. Now all this happens in the immortal life field of Joshua.. Does this not identify him with Jesus who gave his body to Christ in another incarnation?

But let us look farther before we judge. Several hundred years later we find in Zach. III: "And he showed me 'Joshua the High Priest, standing before the Angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand" (testing him), "and the Angel said unto Satan, 'The Lord rebuke thee Satan, yea the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem" (peace), "rebuke thee, is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?"

"Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments" (lower mind body), "and was standing before the Angel." Remember in his last incarnation he had offered up his desire nature, now it is the mind body that must be purified.

"And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him saying, 'Take those filthy garments from off him,' and unto him he said, 'Behold I have caused thine iniquity' (lower mind) 'to

pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with rich apparel.' (Wisdom.)

"And I said, 'Let them set a clean miter' (or diadem) 'upon his head.' So they set clean miter upon his head" (another symbol of crowning him with true wisdom), "and clothed him with garments" (gave him a purified mind body) "and the Angel of the Lord was standing by.'

"And the Angel of the Lord protested" (spoke earnestly) "unto Joshua, saying 'Thus saith the "Lord of Hosts:" If thou will walk in my ways, and if thou will keep my charge, then thou shalt judge my house' (race), 'and shalt keep my courts' (take charge of the spiritual temples of the people, guard them), 'I will give thee a place of access among these that stand by.' (He will let him come in between the two other Great Ones, the "Lord Jehovah" and the "Christ," the two who stand by.)

"Hear now, O Joshua the High Priest, thou and thy fellows that sit before thee (the other two Great Ones), for they are men that are for a sign" (or a wonder), "for behold I will bring forth My servant the Branch, for behold the Stone" (symbol of Mastership) "that I have set before Joshua" (the stone was set before Joshua in the last incarnation, remember); "upon one stone are seven eyes" (sight, or consciousness upon seven planes); "behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the "Lord of Hosts" (God in the heart), "and I will remove the iniquities of that land in one day" (he will be perfected in one incarnation, become a Master of Compassion, which really happened when he gave his body to the great Master Christ two thousand years ago.) How can it mean any other than our Blessed Jesus?

In Chapter IV we get another significant allegory:

"And the Angel that talked with me came again, and waked me as a man is wakened out of his sleep, and he said unto me, 'What seest thou?' And I said, I have seen and behold, a candlestick all of gold, with its bowl upon the top of it, and its seven lamps (seven races of men) thereon; there are seven pipes (streams of power) to each of the lamps, which are upon the top thereof; and two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof. And I answered and spake to the Angel that talked with me saying, 'What are these my Lord?' Then the Angel that talked with me answered