Joy as a Spiritual Quality, Discipline, and Transformative Power
By Roberto Assagioli
Talks, writings, notes, and an exercise
Compiled and edited by Jan Kuniholm
(Doc. #23438, #23435, #22960, #2904 et al. – Assagioli Archives, Florence)
Editor’s note:
This is a compilation of Roberto Assagioli’s writings on Joy. The pieces blend spirituality and psychology to present Joy as a central note of spiritual consciousness and a practical discipline for humanity, especially in the emerging Age of Aquarius. Additional notes:
- The text includes multiple versions (in English, Italian, and German) and references to Dante, Paul, and various spiritual traditions to illustrate the universality of joy.
- The material is part of Assagioli’s archive and deliberately presents a seamless blend of esoteric and exoteric material, emphasizing joy as both a personal practice and a social, transformative force.
Introduction by Jan Kuniholm
Joy was an important part of Roberto Assagioli’s personal and professional life. He lived a joyful life and spent considerable effort to show others what this life is like. In this five-part article, we have gathered some of the writings he left to show the way. Each part of this article is from a different time in his life and ranges from the early days of psychosynthesis in the 1930s to the end of his life. Because Assagioli made no distinction in his personal life between “esoteric” and “exoteric” — terms to denote what material was to be presented to certain audiences and what was to be “reserved,” in recognition of the differing mental aptitudes, linguistic choices and degree of openness to be found in various students — we find in these writings a rich mix of spirituality and psychology, which were for the author inextricably entwined. The reader will find some repetition and duplication from one piece to the next, however there is sufficient new material in each piece to justify including each in its entirety rather than attempting to edit them.
Abstract
In this composite work, Roberto Assagioli presents joy as a fundamental quality of spiritual consciousness and a practical discipline essential for both individual development and collective transformation. Drawing on texts from the 1930s through the end of his life, Assagioli explores joy as an expression of the soul, inseparable from light, love, and bliss, and capable of coexisting with pain and suffering. Integrating psychological insight, spiritual teaching, mystical sources, and practical exercises, the article shows joy to be not merely a feeling but a duty, a method, and a regenerative force. Joy emerges as a central note of awakened consciousness, a key to service, and a means of aligning personal life with universal spiritual purpose.
Part I
Joy
(Prelude to a Meditation)
Doc. #23438 (undated) Assagioli Archive – Florence
Original Title: La Gioia: Proemio per una Meditazione
Translated and Edited With Notes by Jan Kuniholm
Joy as a Fundamental Note of Spiritual Consciousness
One of the essential notes [1] of spiritual consciousness, which we must always evoke within ourselves, but especially on every spiritual occasion, that every “Feast of the Spirit,” is the note or quality of joy.
Joy, Light, and the New Spiritual Cycle of Humanity
Joy is not only an essential quality of spiritual consciousness, but it will be the quality of the new two-thousand-year Age of Aquarius that is now beginning. The note of the previous Age of Pisces, of the past two thousand years, has been pain, suffering, and sacrifice. Pain has a great spiritual function: purification, detachment, and liberation from forms. But now the function of joy, of the triumphant affirmation of the Spirit over and within matter, will increasingly take its place.
Joy can and must be cultivated and developed. One teacher called it a discipline:
“Just as there is a discipline of suffering and pain, there can also be a discipline of joy and fulfillment. Today, people need to learn this new truth, and its perception will greatly change human consciousness.”
The Coexistence of Joy and Suffering
It may be objected that in many cases physical or mental suffering cannot be eliminated. Well, it is not necessary to do so: joy and suffering can coexist at different levels of our being. Let us always remember the complexity of human nature, of our internal structure. We live on various levels; indeed, we could say that there are various “subpersonalities” within us. We have numerous examples of the coexistence of pain and joy. A great modern mystic, Sister Elizabeth of the Trinity, [2] said: “If you know how to put joy into pain, what delightful peace!” And Hermann Keyserling [3] said, “Joy is achieved through suffering that is accepted..” Tommaso Campanella [4] summed it up succinctly in his verse: “In sad flesh, with a joyful spirit.”
Another point is the relationship between light and joy. This is intuitive, but it can and must become increasingly conscious. It has been said that light and joy are synonymous. It has been suggested that “light” should sometimes be replaced with “joy.” Thus, when reciting the Great Invocation, one can sometimes say:
“From the point of joy in God’s mind
Let joy flow into the minds of men
Let joy descend upon the Earth.” [5]
Where there is joy, there can be no emotional clouding or illusion; joy dispels illusion.
There is also a close relationship between spiritual love and joy. Dante celebrated the synthesis of light, love, and joy in his famous verses:
“Light of the intellect, which is love unending;
love of true good, which is wholly bliss;
Bliss beyond bliss, all other joys transcending . . .” [6]
Now, let us joyfully engage in our meditation, invocational and receptive.
Part II
Joy
(Doc. #23435 (undated) – Assagioli Archive – Florence)
Translated and Edited With Notes by Jan Kuniholm
Joy as a Ray from the Spirit and Attribute of Divine Life
Another precious reflection, another vivid ray that descends from the Sun of the Spirit to illuminate and enliven the human personality is that of Joy. The spiritual origin of Joy is attested to by the fact that one of the essential notes of the Spirit is Bliss.
Indeed, the Supreme, who is Omnipotence, Wisdom, and Love, who is the sum of all perfection, cannot have any sense of deficiency, unawareness, suffering, or desire. He cannot be conceived otherwise than as perfectly content and supremely blissful. All spiritual conceptions, both in the East and in the West, agree on this. For Indians, the three essential aspects of the Spirit are Sat — Chit — Ananda; that is, Being, Consciousness, Bliss.
Other texts such as the Upanishads say: Atman — Shivam — Advaitam; that is, Peace, Bliss, Unity.
According to the Christian conception, the attribute of God most often proclaimed and celebrated is Glory, and glory implies bliss. This conscious bliss is permeated with love and is praised by Dante at the end of Paradise:
- Light Eternal fixed in Itself alone,
by Itself alone understood, which from Itself
Loves and glows, self-knowing and self-known [7]
Human Pleasure, Spiritual Joy, and the Ascent of Consciousness
This divine bliss, manifesting itself in our spiritual individuality, in our higher Self, takes on the character of pure joy; then, gradually descending from the various levels of the personality, it attenuates, refracts, and mixes with other elements. Thus we have human joys and satisfactions of various kinds, degrees, and values, until, arriving at the physical body, they manifest themselves as physical well-being and pleasure produced by sensory impressions and the satisfaction of various natural needs and instincts.
Unfortunately, man, with his selfishness, greed, and sense of attachment, has contaminated the original purity and naturalness of joy and pleasure and has created a multitude of excesses, perversions, and disharmonies, which are sources of evil and pain. He has often dried up within himself the sources of high and noble joy and pure happiness, and has given himself over to the pursuit of satisfaction and happiness, pursuing without restraint or measure the easiest and most accessible pleasures, the enjoyments of the senses, the pleasures of ambition, conquests, and material victories. But in these he cannot find permanent fulfillment; these satisfactions are transitory, changeable, uncertain, and imperfect; they often provoke reactions of disgust, or reveal themselves to be petty and illusory.
The real higher nature of man can be temporarily asleep and paralyzed, but it cannot be destroyed; it struggles in its captivity, being by its nature and essence indestructible. It gives those who forget or deny it a sense of unease, of restlessness; a subtle but persistent torment which one tries to silence by throwing himself into the whirlwind of frenetic activity. . . but in vain. Then the return begins, the ascent, at first laborious and difficult, but comforted by ever higher and more intense joys. Then one begins to replace physical pleasures with spiritual joy.
Spiritual Joy as Strength, Peace, and Expansion
Spiritual joy has its own characteristics that clearly distinguish it from other joys. It is permeated with peace, security, and complete fulfillment that are lacking in tumultuous pleasures and violent intoxications of other kinds. Selfish pleasures and satisfactions are followed by a sense of fatigue and apathy. Spiritual joy does not provoke such reactions, but is invigorating and also restores the body.
Finally, selfish pleasures tend to separate us from others, making us forget everything, closed and absorbed in savoring our small personal satisfactions, or else they constitute a “selfishness for two.” But true joy is, by its very nature, expansive, making us kinder and more compassionate, inspiring an ardent desire to share our joy with others.
Another characteristic, which at first glance may seem paradoxical, is that spiritual joy can coexist with pain. This can be explained by remembering the complexity of human nature, of our internal constitution. I have already mentioned how complex we are and how we are made up of many elements of various kinds, but even if we take only the simplest division, that of personality and individuality, we can see that in those who are at an intermediate stage of development, in which spiritual consciousness is awakened but many elements of the ordinary personality still persist, there is a more or less pronounced duality of feeling and reaction. Therefore, it is understandable how it can happen — and not infrequently does happen — that while the personality suffers humanly, the individuality, the soul, rejoices in the light of the Spirit. This coexistence of pain and joy was well expressed by a noble soul, Sœur Blanche de la Charité [Sister Blanche of the Daughters of Charity], [8] with the following words: “Souffrir et être malheureux ce n’est pas la même chose” (“To suffer and to be unhappy are not the same thing”).
Let us now mention the educational value of Joy. Certain somewhat narrow and divisive religious conceptions have been wrong in overestimating pain. Considering joy as something bad or suspicious is a spiritual error that has been seriously damaging, since it has led many people away from religion and spirituality, which were presented to them in an unattractive form. Instead, we must do the opposite, without concealing the serious and austere side of spiritual growth. We must emphasize its joyful aspect, the great rewards to be found in it, and point out that for every personal satisfaction that must or should be abandoned, a greater, more beautiful, and more luminous joy comes to give abundant compensation. This makes spirituality appear in a different light and makes it attractive to those who are taking their first steps.
Joy as an Ethical and Educational Duty
But spiritual joy is not only good, lawful, and “elevated;” it is also a true and definite duty. The most effective propaganda and “advertising” we can do for spirituality is to show ourselves to be joyful, serene, and satisfied. Humanity, which has been tormented by a thousand fears and constant doubts, seeks joy and is irresistibly attracted to those who, by their lives and their radiance, show that they have reached a center of calm, harmony, and satisfaction. After seeing the positive results, after recognizing the value of spiritual life in a living example, people feel willing to pay the necessary price, which in reality proves inadequate for such a great treasure that we gain for eternity. Therefore, joy is a duty.
Virtue must be joyful and not sad in any of its actions;
wherefore if the gift is not joyful in giving and receiving,
there is no perfect virtue in it. [9]
It is not fitting for a servant of God to appear sad and gloomy. (St. Francis)
Obstacles to Joy and the Means of Overcoming Them
It is not easy to be joyful. Let us see what the main obstacles to joy are and what the best remedies are. The obstacles: pain, the adversities that arise in our lives, and sometimes even a certain attachment to suffering. By examining them with a sincere and dispassionate mind, we will recognize that what causes us the most suffering is our attitude, our way of reacting to those circumstances and events. This way of reacting, which is a source of suffering, is first and foremost rebellion. It is clear that this only exacerbates suffering. In addition, there is often a petty attitude even in the face of minor inconveniences, the little pinpricks that life gives us, the ease with which we allow ourselves to be irritated.
Another obstacle to joy, which depends on us, is being demanding. We are demanding of others and of circumstances; this demandingness then translates into complaining, whining, and the all-too-familiar “grumbling.” Another is taking things too seriously, that is, feeling too strongly the tragic aspect of life. Finally, an obstacle connected with the previous one is taking ourselves too seriously: clinging to a certain kind of satisfaction, or to a particular satisfaction, and therefore feeling pain when we lack it. The common denominator of all these obstacles is selfishness, and the effect is an unhealthy self-pity. However, these obstacles can be eliminated, and it is not too difficult to do so if we are serious about it. Rebellion must be replaced with acceptance; pettiness and demandingness with generosity, patience, and serenity. Generosity springs from a sense of dignity; we must have the dignity not to let ourselves be exasperated by small pinpricks. Acceptance and generosity lead to praise and gratitude for all that is good, mixed with the adverse and the painful. They develop and cause the flower of joy to blossom.
Giving too much importance to things, a sense of tragedy, can be easily eliminated by the opposite attitude, by making fun of ourselves. Looking at our own personality from above, observing how funny it is in many of its reactions and contortions, establishes a sense of right proportions and values — once we have done this with ourselves, we can also do it benevolently with others. . .
Direct Cultivation of Joy through Conscious Practice
We will now touch on the direct cultivation of joy.
Spiritual joy is proof of a spiritual conception of life in which we place the utmost attention and emphasis on the glorious goal that gives purpose and meaning to life. The meaning of this glorious goal, of this higher and more real life, is the greatest and inexhaustible source of Joy.
St. Paul said: “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” ( Romans 8:18, RSV).
Duck St. Francis: “So great is the good that I expect that every pain is a delight to me.”
There are also other sources of joy:
Nature, always ready to help us, always accessible to all.
Art, which in a certain sense perfects nature, since one adds a spiritual element to it. (I am referring, of course, to true artists, those who have awakened their spiritual nature.)
The example of others. The evocative and creative effectiveness of living examples is incalculable. When we do not have the good fortune to know and be in contact with a “living example” of spirituality and joy, we can turn our thoughts to those who have been such examples, with the help of good reading. Here is a short list:
M. Piccinato, Allegri nella speranza (Joyful in Hope) [unknown edition].
Van Keppler, Più gioia [More Joy] [unknown edition].
Father Vittorino Facchinetti, Siate allegri! Il serafico poverello e la Gioia della Vita [Be Joyful! The seraphic Poor Man and the Joy of Life], Milan, 1918.
Nino Salvaneschi (who was blind), Breviario della Felicità [Breviary of Happiness]; Milan, 1957.
Helen Keller (who was blind and deaf-mute), Optimism: An Essay; New York, 1903.
Dora Melegari, Artefici di Pace [Peacemakers], Lausanne, 1908.
Other sources of joy are spiritual communion in love and friendship. I have already spoken of Love, but no less important is the joy of friendship, based on selfless, fervent, and vital communion. See Emerson’s essay On Friendship in the volume of essays: L’Anima, la Natura e la Saggezza [ The Soul, Nature and Wisdom ], [10] and Emile Paguet’s, De l’Amitié [Of Friendship]. Once upon a time there were artists of friendship, and there is no reason why they should not return the favor.
Another constant source of joy — if we know how to find it — is work, activity. Since this takes up several hours of the day for each of us in one way or another, we can understand how important it is to work peacefully and happily. Even in a thankless and painful occupation, we can find opportunities for spiritual joy, made up of overcoming difficulties. Those who are fortunate enough to be able to carry out an activity that is not thankless and boring, but in keeping with their nature, will have a greater duty and greater ease in working happily.
“Permeate all your occupations with joy.”
“Throughout all your mortal work, your soul must sing divinely.”
“Approach every task with a smiling face, and your work will seem to do itself and return your smile with satisfaction.”
A good morning disposition is this one suggested by Mary Baker Eddy:
As you open your eyes in the morning, let your thoughts rise above the discord of the self and matter, to the eternally present Father. Greet the morning with the radiant joy of gratitude for every task before you, considering each one as a new and joyful opportunity to lean on the unlimited divine strength, serving the children of God with a willing heart; working for love and loving to work, devoted, devoted, ready to receive the infinite and ever-present good. Listen to the voice of the Father and with a song of thanksgiving follow the path that the Divine Mind shows you. Gratitude will color everything with gold and you will say, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it. This is the house of God, the gate of Heaven.’ [11]
Giving oneself to others, serving humanity, is one of the sources of joy. The first benefit is that it makes us forget ourselves, it takes us out of the “steel cabin” of our personality. [12] The right satisfaction that comes from doing good around us is great and no one can take it away from us.
But the most direct method for attaining spiritual joy is that of recollection and meditation, which can lead to contemplation, communion, and identification with the Supreme, who is Joy and Bliss.
I cannot think of a better way to conclude than by quoting two well-known tercets by Dante, which we should repeat to ourselves every day:
- joy! O blessedness no tongue can speak!
- life conjoint of perfect love and peace!
- sure wealth that has nothing more to seek! [13]
Light of the intellect, which is love unending;
Love of the true good, which is wholly bliss;
Bliss beyond bliss, all other joys transcending. [14]
Part III
Spiritual Joy
Doc. #22960 – Assagioli Archive
Original Title in German: Spirituelle Freude [15]
Translated and Edited With Notes by Jan Kuniholm
Spiritual Joy in the Stages of Inner Development
When spiritual life and spiritual development are viewed from a traditional standpoint, they are often associated with the idea of renunciation, suffering, toil, sorrow, and pain. This causes confusion, even aversion, and can discourage those who are new to the spiritual path.
This is the predominant and characteristic element of only one phase, one stage of spiritual life — the phase of purification that follows the awakening of the soul — the first revelation of the spirit that dwells within us. This awakening is full of joy and jubilation, and joy is the keynote of the state that follows purification, the state of the enlightened soul. After the “dark night of the soul,” a period of shadow, hardship, and pain that follows awakening, comes the glorious goal: the transformation of the soul in God, the conscious communion of the individual with the universal Spirit. The Orientals call this Moksha or Vimukti (liberation) and Nirvana; for Westerners, it is the mystical marriage and the life of communion.
In this state, the soul is full of bliss, full of lasting and inexpressible joy. This should not surprise us, because joy is the essential quality of the Supreme Spirit. Both Easterners and Westerners confirm this. According to the Hindus, the three essential attributes of the Supreme Spirit are: Sat, Chit, Ananda, ie, being, consciousness, bliss. In other authoritative scriptures, such as the Manduka Upanishad, these attributes of the Atman or Supreme Self are called Shantam, Shivam, Advaita, ie, peace, bliss, unity.
According to the Christian view, communion with God in this life and in the next confers conscious awareness of His joy, His glory, and His bliss.
Spiritual joy should not be confused with the pleasures and enjoyments of the world. It has qualities that enable us to distinguish it easily and confidently from other satisfactions.
Spiritual joy is completely imbued with peace. It gives a sense of tranquility, security, and complete stillness, which is completely absent from the loud pleasures and impetuous desires of a different nature. It has completely different, often opposite effects. Selfish pleasures and excitements throw the whole nature into turmoil, consume nervous energy, and the repercussions that follow are fatigue, depression, and lack of vitality. Spiritual joy, on the other hand, gives strength instead of taking it away. It does not produce any adverse reaction, but leaves behind a wave of energy and courage and often real physical relief. While selfish pleasures separate us from others and make us forget the world in our small egotistical satisfactions, spiritual joy is comprehensive in its very nature. It strengthens our selfless love and compassion and awakens in us the desire to help others share in our joy.
Joy, Pain, and the Duality of Personality and Soul
Spiritual joy also has another characteristic that at first seems strange and paradoxical, but on closer examination proves to be natural and in accordance with the nature of joy: namely that it can coexist with pain. Such an apparent contradiction cannot be explained the way materialists who know nothing of spiritual life do: they regard such a state as an anomaly, a perversity, a kind of psychological masochism. However, it is easily explained in the light of the spiritual conception of man and his complex inner structure. This is a conception that is increasingly confirmed by the contemporary development of analytical and synthetic psychology.
At his present stage of development, a human being is not a harmonious and coherent unity. He consists of a multitude of disjointed and contradictory elements, grouped around different centers at different levels and relatively independent of one another. The purpose of this article does not require us to go into the more subtle differences between these elements and centers. It is sufficient to keep in mind that they can be divided into two main groups: those that constitute the ordinary human personality and those that are inherent in the higher individuality — the Soul. While ordinary joys and pleasures are experienced by the personal self, spiritual joys are the province of the individuality of the human being. The average person lives within the shell of their personality and ignores the existence of the higher elements. In contrast, in the “fully awakened” liberated spirit, in the soul that is completely united with God, the personality is dissolved and its regenerated components have been transferred to the individuality, so that the whole being of the person forms a unity.
Those who find themselves in an intermediate state, in whom spiritual consciousness has awakened but who still retain many components of the ordinary human being, live in a more or less conscious duality of feelings and reactions. It is therefore understandable that — as is often the case — the personality suffers while the individuality of the human being rejoices.
Furthermore, one must take into account that the stages of spiritual development are not strictly separated from one another, but often merge into one another and interpenetrate one another. Thus, during the phase of enlightenment, the process of purification generally continues, and it is this interaction that causes the simultaneity of joy and pain.
The enlightened soul, having experienced the purifying and uplifting effect of suffering, does not shy away from it, but endures it with patience, accepts it willingly, and is even glad for it. The power of the spirit takes up the cross of heaviness and transforms it into light.
There is nothing abnormal about all this, but rather something supernormal. It is a noble and beautiful experience, and those who ignore or even delay it have not understood that “suffering and being unhappy are by no means the same thing.” [16] They are the blind, who should not be listened to, but pitied. It is true that there have been cases — especially in past centuries — where the awareness of the necessity of suffering degenerated into a thirst for it and enjoyment of it, and thus became abnormal; but these are deviations from the true spiritual path: impure mixtures, imitations or counterfeits of the true mystical experience.
Joy as a Duty Toward Humanity and Service
Recognizing the difference between the pleasures of the personality and the spiritual joy of the soul also helps to explain the error of those (as we emphasized at the beginning) who, on the basis of an overly strict, dualistic and pessimistic view of life and religion, emphasize exclusively the side of sacrifice and suffering. They regard everything that speaks of the joys of the soul with suspicion and condemnation. In reality, spiritual joy is not only permitted to all, but is a duty, for many reasons. First and foremost, this joy helps us greatly in expressing our gratitude and our voluntary dedication, which is the best way for the soul to express the floods of light it has received from Above. Spiritual joy also facilitates the transformation and sublimation of all personal elements — an activity that the soul must increasingly engage in on the ascending path.
Ultimately, spiritual joy is a duty towards others. At every step, we should help our brothers and sisters to share in the treasures we have discovered, the blessings that have been showered upon us, and the powers we are developing within ourselves. Joy is an expression of the immutable law of justice and love, the direct expression of the fundamental unity of all beings.
Therefore, those who experience enlightenment have a duty to share it with others. One of the most effective ways to do this is to radiate our own joy towards them.
Poor humanity, tormented by countless worries, haunted by endless fears, troubled by innumerable doubts, anxiously seeks peace and security, pure and lasting joy (whether it knows it or not). People feel irresistibly drawn to anyone who, through the example of their own life, through their own wordless radiance, proves that they have touched the inner center of peace, harmony, and contentment.
Only after experiencing the positive results of spiritual life and recognizing its value and benefits are people willing to submit to the necessary discipline, to pay the price that at first seems too high but later proves not only justified but even insufficient for such priceless riches, for such eternal possessions.
We do what is right and our simple duty to ourselves, our fellow human beings, and to God when we not only fully accept spiritual joy, but deliberately awaken it within ourselves, preserve it, and increase what we have received.
And so let us make Paul’s glorious motto our own and strive daily to express it:
“Rejoice in the Lord always, again will I say, Rejoice.” [17]
Part IV
From the Assagioli Archives:
Roberto Assagioli’s Notes on “Joy” or “Gioia”
Translated and Edited With Notes by Jan Kuniholm
Assagioli’s Notes on Joy and the Psychology of Bliss
These were among Assagioli’s “notes to himself,” that were collated by volunteers at the Institute of Psychosynthesis in Florence after his death. Most were hand-written as reminders or ideas for use later, and many contain only one or two “evocative words.”
Doc. #6796 (in English)
The psychology of Joy. Non-existent! (like the psychology of health). Pleasure principle. Pursuit of happiness. Enjoyment. Its levels: Pleasure – Happiness – Joy – Bliss. The satisfaction of the various levels of needs. Their combination and final synthesis.
Doc. #6798 (in Italian)
I fervently write about the ecstasies of the will: the joys of victories over oneself…
Doc. #6799 (in English)
Will
Will-to-Joy
Doc. #6800 (in English)
Will and Bliss – The Power of the Dedicated Will
Doc. #7179 (in English)
Psychosynthesis Techniques.
Technique of the “Virtuous Circles”:
Ex: Joy → Strength → Joy → Strength
Will → Power → Power → Will
Doc. #7180 (in English)
Psychosynthesis Techniques.
Technique of the “Virtuous Circles”:
Joy → Fire → Joy. . .
Joy → Energy → Joy . . .
Gratitude → Abundance → Gratitude . . .
Doc. #7181 (in English)
Psychosynthesis Techniques.
Technique of the “Virtuous Circles”:
Joy → Strength → Joy → Strength
Joy → Infinity → Joy → Infinity
Doc. #10193 (in English)
Silence is joyful
Doc. #9298 (in English)
The central theme: Liberty Freedom In-dependence.
Proclaim the joy and the power of non-dependence from externalities, conditions, people
Doc. #7762 (in English)
Realisations: – Various levels and qualities of spiritual consciousness
(describe them) —
– joy
– power
– prayer
– light
– sense of eternal
– the ineffable
Doc. #7782 (in English)
Ψλ experiments
The superconscious
Higher states of consciousness.
Characters:
– light
– joy
– intensity (potential)
– sense of increased reality
– expansion, widening
– the pure Self, without “contents”
Part V
Joy
Doc. #23437 (1934) – Assagioli Archive – Florence
Translated and Edited With Notes by Jan Kuniholm
Joy, Light, and the Esoteric Meaning of Bliss
Joy has a profound esoteric meaning and an essential spiritual function. It must be a practice and a duty for us. Reading Dante’s tercets carefully we find very well the meaning of Spiritual Joy:
Light of the intellect, which is love unending;
Love of the true good, which is wholly bliss;
Bliss beyond bliss, all other joys transcending. [18]
The Light of which Dante speaks is the light of the soul in which the soul lives, and from which it comes, in which it finds its joy. The essence of the soul, the core, the “jewel in the lotus” is of a buddhic essence, while the vehicle of the soul is formed of elements of the higher mental plane; the ‘jewel’ has been projected from the buddhic plane, whose note is bliss; (Reread the chapter on the buddhic plane in Besant’s book The Ancient Wisdom [21] ). It is very difficult to describe what is indescribable in human words. Alice Bailey [22] has various profound expressions in Light of the Soul : “Beatitude always follows upon realization of the unity of the part with the whole.” (Book 1, Sutra Pat. 17). [23]
Conversely, all pain consists in the separation of the part from something or someone. [24] The “great heresy” of separation is an illusion from the point of view of knowledge. The root of all pain is in evil. [25] Suffering derives from desire, and desire from the illusion of separation. If, on the other hand, we rise to the level of the soul and transcend the separations, the cravings, desires, and the pains that derive from them fall away from us.
“The Joy of the Lord is our strength, based on the recognition of eternity, on the realization that all things cooperate for good; and since life persists in its perennial work of perfection, it is above all joy that will fill the abyss that separates the visible from the invisible, life from death, the future from the present.” [26]
Joy, Service, and the Transformation of Human Life
In thinking of the very high forces of Light that will soon illuminate humanity, I believe that we must feel them at the same time as powers of joy. Light and joy are inseparable. And in bringing about the changes that will bring peace, culture, and the development of humanity, they will be nothing more than an affirmation, a victory in the outer and material worlds of the perennial bliss that has always reigned in the spheres of the spirit — joy and bliss that for each of us is like a gift that is ready for anyone who knows how to take it. The feeling of joy is extremely beneficial for us and for others. Joy enlivens, stimulates, and gives fervor to our work, to our whole life. It radiates within us one of the greatest benefits we can give to tormented humanity. Much of the evil that man does derives from his seeking joy on the lower planes, through divisive, illusory, and wrong ways. It is not by renouncing joy that we can induce men to abandon their mirages and idols, but by the touch of spiritual joy. Let us therefore carry out our work with joyful fervor, especially from now until the full moon in May [1934]. Let us feel the privilege of being able to do something, of being channels, conduits of Light from the Great Beings. Let us abolish any idea of effort, replacing it with enthusiasm. [27]
One can feel the joy of the spirit while suffering personally. This is one of the most difficult experiences of dualism that one must go through before reaching higher spiritual synthesis. The unawakened man identifies with his pain and his joy; but the awakened man, who feels the soul within himself independent of the personality, lives in two worlds. This creates complications that make us almost incomprehensible, but this also happens because we are imperfectly awakened and never lose the sense of our personality, and we have not yet reached the complete realization of the soul.
This explains why joy and pain can coexist in us.
The Practice of Joy: Evening Examination
EXERCISE: EVENING EXAMINATION ON JOY
- What is an examination of conscience?
a. Am I not confusing the examination with reliving past experiences?
b. Am I asked to relive those experiences or simply to observe them as a detached spectator? - Am I able to detach myself emotionally from every observation of joy?
- Can I observe myself impartially, free from any emotional reaction of the personal self?
- If I practice the examination of joy according to the rules, what will be the effect on my life and on the life of the group I am trying to serve?
- Can I honestly say that I serve joyfully?
- What is more important, to serve joyfully or intelligently? Am I aware of the reasons?
- If this examination is indeed a scientific method of development, have you ever properly experimented with the method of joy? And the evening examination method?
- In my studies, what reasons can I find that prove that this kind of method is suitable for me and that it will intensify my ability to increase the usefulness of my service and thus hasten my progress on the path?
- Does my spiritual progress have any importance? And why?
- If it is true that the blind must advance by touching and holding on, and that those who have eyes proceed by seeing and keeping themselves free and detached, why do I, being able to see, close my eyes and lean on others and grope my way instead of seeing the way? Those who see are full of joy and can be messengers and helpers. Those who grope must simply be led. To which of these two groups do I belong?
- Is my mind the organ of spiritual vision? And am I offering this organ to the higher Self for its use?
- Can I hold my mind steady in the light of the soul?
- In reviewing my day, what part did joy play in it?
- How do I define the word “joy”?.
- Have I been diverted from joy, and has it dominated my day?
- Joy is the quality that develops from the realization of the Self. Am I capable of forgetting the fragmented personal self? Can I recognize the divine Self in everyone?
- It is said that there is an archetype, a model, a ray, a goal, and a light that illuminates the Path. But, realizing this, do I know anything about the joy that should radiate my path?
- How is the Archetype of joy (which is bliss) reflected in my life?
- Can I recognize my fellow pilgrims on the path of joy?
- Is the archetype of joy always before me?
- Do I have the ability to attract the joy and bliss of the Path when others need it?
- I am the redeemer of my lower nature. How does joy redeem?
- Does the redeeming power of joy flow through me?
- My nature is actually joy and bliss. How does this Joy manifest itself? Or does it not manifest at all?
- With which body [28] can I most easily express my joy?
- Have I expressed joy today?
- If I have shown it, was it a task to perform, or was it easy for me?
- What activities and qualities of my lower nature must be eliminated if I seek to serve more joyfully?
- What really prevents me from being full of joy?
- What effect does a joyful spirit have on my fellow human beings?
- How can I serve my fellow human beings more joyfully?
Examine one of these questions every day for a month and repeat the exercise in the following months.
Notes:
[1] . The Italian word note may be translated into a variety of words in English, and as in English it is used to denote a tone in music. It is important to retain the full implications of this word, which may also include an “aspect” and a “quality,” among other meanings. We have translated this literally in order to retain this spectrum of meaning that includes the musical, for this aspect has particular significance in spiritual life. —Tr..
[2] . St. Elizabeth of the Trinity (1880-1906) was a French Carmelite nun, mystic and writer.—Ed.
[3] . Hermann Keyserling (1880-1946) was a Baltic German philosopher and writer. -Oath.
[4] . Tommaso Campanella (1568-1639) was an Italian friar, philosopher and poet. -Oath.
[5] . In the original, it is “the point of light,” etc. The Great Invocation is used by students and followers of the teachings of Master DK, transmitted by Alice A. Bailey, in whose circle Assagioli was a teacher. -Oath.
[6] . Dante, Paradiso 30, vv.40-42. Translated by John Ciardi. New York, New American Library 1961-1970.
[7] . Paradiso, 33: 124-126, translation by John Ciardi, New York, New American Library, 1961-1970.
[8] . Countess of Saint-Martial, known as Sister Blanche (baptized 1856) wrote letters, published as En Haut [On High] was a member of the Daughter of Charity, a Catholic order founded in 1633 which is dedicated to serving the poor.—Ed.
[9] . Dante, Convivio (Treatise I). — Tr.
[10] . This is an Italian translation of work by Emerson translated by Mario Cossa and published in 1925. Emerson’s essay “On Friendship” was first published in Essays: First Series, in 1841—Ed.
[11] . Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910) was an American religious leader, founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist, and author of the work Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures (1875). The exact source of this quotation is unknown. This is translated back from the author’s version in Italian. -Oath.
[12] . This is a reference to a 1919 poem titled “I” by Italian poet Guiseppe Zucca, in which the narrator lives in a six-foot cube steel-lined cabin with no windows, feeling oppressed by his “self.” -Oath.
[13] . Paradiso, 27, 7-9. translated by John Ciardi.
[14] . Paradiso, 30, 40-42. translated by John Ciardi.
[15] . An English language version of this article was published in The Beacon, June 1942. It is not known whether the English edition is the original, or whether the original essay was composed in Italian and then translated into other languages, including German. It is not known who was its intended audience; however, since the publication date was during World War II, there may have been some motive for reaching a German population that was suffering under the effects of Nazism and war. There are slight variations between this translation and the published English version. -Oath.
[16] . The source of this quotation is unknown, but this concept is found in the work of several philosophers, including Friedrich Nietzche, and the work of psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. It is also embedded in Buddhist teaching. -Oath.
[17] Philippians 4:4.
[18] . Paradiso, 30, 40-42. translated by John Ciardi, New York, New American Library, 1961-1970.
[19] . Paradiso, 27, 7-9. translated by John Ciardi.
[20] . Paradiso, 33: 124-126, translation by John Ciardi.
[21] . Annie Besant (1847-1933) was an English theosophist. She met Helena Blavatsky in 1890 and became President of the Theosophical Society. Here book The Ancient Wisdom, (1897) presents the basic tenets of Theosophical thought in concise format. The “buddhic plane,” in esoteric and Theosophical teachings, is a realm of consciousness beyond the ordinary mind: a realm of intuition, wisdom and enlightenment where the spiritual self integrates with the physical, emotional, and mental bodies. It is a state of unity and connectedness. – Oath.
[22] . Alice Bailey (1880-1949) was a British-American theosophist who left the Theosophical Society and with her husband Foster Bailey founded The Lucis Trust and the Arcane School in 1922. She wrote over 24 books that were channeled for “The Tibetan” and seven books of her own. Roberto Assagioli was associated with all of this work from 1922 on, and was a teacher in Bailey’s circle of work. – Oath.
[23] . The Light of the Soul: Its Science and Effect is a paraphrase of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali with commentary by Alice A. Bailey, first published in 1927 and continuously in print since that date.—Ed.
[24] . Parts can be considered intellectually as distinct from the whole from which they derive, but ontologically there is no separation, according to this teaching. – Oath.
[25] . In The Light of the Soul Book II:14, the author asserts in a discussion of karma that “These seed or roots [of karma] produce pleasure or pain according [to whether] their originating cause was good or evil.” According to this teaching, evil is one of the polarities that is limited to the “earth plane.” – Oath.
[26] . The exact source of this quotation is unknown; however it is consistent with the teachings of Master DK (Djwal Khul) who is the source of the esoteric writings of Alice Bailey. Several of the phrases in this quote are found in Biblical texts, including Nehemiah 8:10, Romans 8:28, and the Gospel of John and First Letter of Peter. – Oath.
[27] . The author uses the Italian work slancio here, which has a literal meaning of momentum or impetus. So the sense here is of “going with the flow,” where the “flow” is an energy larger than ourselves. – Oath.
[28] . ie physical/etheric, emotional (astral) or mental bodies — all forms of energy or “sheaths” of the true self, according to the Bailey teachings. – Oath.
