Extract of lecture given at the Psychosophy Conference in Copake, NY, February 2000.

The modern pathology of the heart is intimately related to two phenomena. The first is a loosening of the etheric forces around the heart; thereby leav­ing it vulnerable. The second is a pervasive and continual assault by the "cultural double." As a result most heart pathology can be traced to trauma and abuse, whether physical, sexual, emotional or mental.

At the core of every trauma and abuse is the violation of human dignity and the encounter with evil. Souls that incarnate into today's world can no longer be assured of finding the light of divine archetypes in nature and human beings.

We are unable to protect our chil­dren. Exposure to distorted images glori­fying violence as a way of the world has imprinted fear upon the psyche. The drive for perfection by the marketing agencies upon young people has created an abstract measure of what is normal and consequently has fostered self-hate, rage turned inside out, which is behind so much violence. The doubt of the spiritual world pervades our educational institutions, leav­ing young souls undernourished.

These factors of fear, hate, and doubt, described as the "cultural double" expose the soul to the lie, where no truth for the heart can be found, and hence no spiritual nourishment for life. This is in itself a trauma; in many cases leading to an aborted quest for the Holy Grail.

Three psychological mechanisms can be associated with trauma and abuse. Identifying them allows us to come to a deeper understanding of the ramifications implicit in each.

1. Compartmentalization: a way of cop­ing with life's stresses by separating experiences, feelings and thoughts, as well as iso­lating one sphere of activity from another. Such a coping style leads us to believe that there is no continuity to life, no past and no future, and we become fixed in the present situation. This is the triumph of evil (Ahri­man). It results in a hardening of our etheric body, rendering any fluidity of the heart impossible.

2. Disassociation: an outcome of ex­treme trauma and intolerable pain. It is a growing reality that many people experi­ence disassociation from their lives, which means that they have no sense of time. They live in an excarnated space with the un-born, the dead, the spectors and phantoms feed­ing on the unfinished karma all around us. Think of living in such a space! In this case evil has pushed the soul out of the body and invited elemental and demonic beings in to inhabit it. This is possession, plain and simple; tragic and all too common.

3. Suicidal ideation arises out of the despair of living in such a space. Imagine still having your heart beat, still having your heart perceive all the paralyzed attempts to meet your destiny and yet being helpless and enchained by fear. Eventually there is only one course for someone who experi­ences this in their heart; i.e. to long for death. In this suicidal act evil is able to steal the unused ether forces, manipulating them from the other side of the threshold to dis­empower us. All of this is aimed at prevent­ing us from fulfilling our destiny.

We, who want to take up the work of pastoral care, who want to wed psychosophy with `physiosophy,' have a mighty task ahead of us. We must will to become Grail Knights of the Word. We must forge an iron sword of courage in our hearts. This courage is the warmth substance of the heart, shaped by the ego, and brought to light. We must do this for our brothers and sisters who also seek the Holy Grail. Not one of us will ever go to the inner sanctum of the Holy Grail alone. We must bring someone with us. This is done when the courage of the heart has become compassion, when our love touches our brother and sister with healing force. We have to take on the work of the spiritual hierarchies, who are being obscured and prevented from direct access to us by the counter-forces of our time. You see, the Holy Grail is all about the mystery of the battle of good and evil. There is no room to be con­tent with lukewarm hearts. The Apocalypse states that lukewarm is unacceptable. Only the transformed heart, shining like an inner sun, can become victorious over evil. The heart must become good; and in goodness, becomes the altar for the flame of offering. In this way the heart will become the source and substance of the Holy Grail.

William Bento is an Astrosophical Psycho­therapist incorporating a broad range of thera­peutic modalities be brings practical meditation and artistic approaches to the process of  soul heal­ing. Co founder of the Rudolf Center in Toronto, and of Gradalis Seminars, he has prac­ticed in California, Pennsylvania, and Colorado, and bas lectured extensively throughout the United States, Canada and Europe.