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CONFLUENCE OF OPPOSITES
earth, earthy; but the soul is from heaven, and, therefore, heavenly. Hence, the Intellect is made to say that it is unworthy to loosen the latchet of the shoes of the Messiah. Again, because it is only through the Intellect that one can become convinced of the existence of the higher self, it (the Intellect) is the solitary witness to the coming Messiah, at whose birth it leaps with joy. But in so far as wisdom is a necessary attribute of the Christos, he cannot do without the baptism of the Intellect, in the first instance. Hence the remarkable words of Jesus: "Suffer it to be so now, for it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness" (Matt. iii. 15). The Intellect, again, is not the enjoyer of bliss, hence, not the bridegroom, but it is natural for it to feel joy at the bridegroom's voice, for he is to turn the wilderness into a veritable paradise. Lastly, because the freedom of the soul means the attainment of omniscience which arises on the destruction of the lower mental equipment-judgment, memory, and the like the Intellect is described as saying, 'he must increase, but I must decrease.' The sending of his disciples by John to ascertain whether Jesus (soul) is the Messiah, i. e., the Redeemer, in spite of the fact that he bad exulted with delight at his mother's voice, is in keeping with the nature of the Intellect, which always doubts and hesitates, and is seldom satisfied with its own conclusions. It is, thus, clear that the personality of John, the Baptist, is typical of the intellectual self of the man who has become conscious of the fuller Life of the higher Ego. The Holy Ghost is the spirit that
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