WHERE TWO WORLDS MEET
CHAPTER I
WHERE TWO WORLDS MEET
Six people sit in a room in a London flat with their hands resting lightly on a small table. They sing the Spiritualist hymn, "Open My Eyes," and as some of the gifts of the spirit are described in it, the power of the spirit begins to manifest.
The table moves, slowly at first, then vigorously as each of the guides of Hannen Swaffer's home circle is greeted. Starting with Silver Birch there are sixteen of them, and two of them always insist on moving the table in characteristic fashion, so that they can be identified.
There are Indians and Englishmen, two famous parsons, a great journalist, an Arab, a German chemist, a Chinese, two Englishwomen, and by the time they have each been greeted by name the medium is ready to go into trance.
The Lord's Prayer is said, and there is generally quiet con-versation as the control becomes more marked. Often Silver Birch asks the sitters to wait until he has entranced the medium as deeply as he requires.
Always he begins with a prayer, which is taken down ver-batim by a member of the circle who is a trained shorthand writer. Here is the prayer he utters on this occasion:
"Oh, Great White Spirit, we strive by prayer to attune our-selves to the highest, the noblest and the purest that we can reach. We recognise in Thee the epitome of perfect love and wisdom and the eternal mind which controls the whole of life. The mind of man, so puny in comparison, is unable to grasp the whole of Thee, and so all conceptions are but pale reflections of a perfect truth.
"Nevertheless, we can understand the wonder of that unfail-ing natural law which holds the whole universe in its embrace of love, and governs and guides all that it contains with regularity and constancy, without error, without fault or blemish. Pro-vision has been made by the divine governance for every facet of being and activity and all moves and flows in one rhythmic, harmonious, cosmic pattern. And within that divine frame-work all Thy children have their ordained place, each contributes some essential part towards the united whole.
"Each small spark of divinity contributes to the divine flame. We strive to spread the whole of an infinite spirit, that exists potentially, in embryo, within every child, so that all may understand the divine links that sustain and nurture them and realise that they are held together and to Thee by ties that can never be sundered.
"It is part of our task to teach them the source of all their strength, their knowledge, their wisdom, so that they may be encouraged to allow their finer attributes to find a fuller expres-sion, and thus be able to reach heights at present beyond them, and have access to all the riches of the spirit which are waiting for them.
"There is at their command and their disposal a vast spiritual treasury. There is always a host of wise ones who desire to illumine and enrich the world with the knowledge born of the experience they have gained in wider fields of service. All that stands in the way is the accumulation of prejudice and dis-tortion, of superstition and ignorance, and all that belongs to the darkness of man's life.
"We desire to fill it with the floodlight of knowledge so that always he may be guided by truth and know that love sur-rounds him, desiring to urge him to become aware of his rich heritage, his noble destiny, and to live his life in accordance with the truth vouchsafed to him.
"This is the prayer of Thy Indian servant who seeks to serve.”
"I am very happy to come amongst you all,” says Silver Birch, "and to bring you my greetings and my love from the world of spirit.”
Because the members of the circle have not foregathered for the past few weeks the guide comments: “It seems so long since I spoke with you all and felt the warmth of your love, but here I am once again, and we pick up the threads of our task so that we can go on trying to be of service in your world." Then he goes round the circle, talking first to one who, through illness, was kept away for some time.
"I am very glad to have you here,” he says to her, "for it is not the same to me when you are absent."
She replies, much as we all do in a conventional world, “It is nice to hear you say that," and with that disconcerting sim-plicity which is the mark of Silver Birch, he says, “It is the truth."
He greets the note-taker, whom he calls the scribe, her husband, a potential healer, and comes, after light-hearted exchanges, to the serious business of the circle.
Silver Birch is always conscious of his self-imposed mission, to disseminate, in his simple but eloquent fashion, a knowledge of spirit truths. His comments inevitably express some lesson, the need for service, as, for example, when he says, at this sitting:
"You all have gifts, talents, which can be used in the service of mankind. You have been helped by others who are richly endowed. Make your own gift so fruitful that others in turn will rejoice because of your labours and then they, in turn, will find that they are the possessors of some virtues which can be of some assistance to others—and so it goes on, service extended through service.
"Never mind the condemnations, never mind the rebuffs, never mind the frowns. They cannot touch you as long as you continue to do the tasks for which you were born into your world. Your world requires so much service. It is full of des-pairing souls. There are millions whose hearts ache, whose bodies are tortured, and whose minds are racked with problems that they cannot answer.
"Could we but bring them within the radius of spiritual truth they would find there the solution to all that troubles them, the incentive to order their lives aright, the urge to work for better conditions so that all men may live in peace and harmony.
"I have sojourned for a while in spheres which I have known for a long time. I have seen much, I have heard much, and I come back to do what I can.
"I bring with me the love and good will of many who are still unknown to you, but who I am proud to call my brothers and my sisters, for they are my colleagues and co-operators in a task which is dedicated to the afflicted, the suffering, and the weary, to see if we can give them some little help in the days which seem so dark to them.''
Then, in a voice his friends know so well, he adds, in mock seriousness, “I nearly forgot to tell you, they think you have all been very good."
"Who are they?" somebody asks.
"A few people I have been talking to."
"Back-room boys?" inquires another jestingly.
"No, not back rooms," says the guide. "They live in the many mansions."
To someone who mentions the passing of a friend, the guide says: "I started with a very small family which has grown larger and larger on both sides, but it never grows so much that I cannot look after one more."
Before the circle closes he says: "I love you all, and will continue to serve you all, and I know that you love me and will give whatever service you can. Give my love to all my friends, whoever wants my love, and convey this message from me:
"To all the unknowns who send me their love, their thoughts. their good will and their blessings, I rejoice and am grateful. I am proud to be the bearer of such affection. I know that they feel I have been of some service to them, and although they have not seen me, I am a living presence in their homes.
"I go to see many of them, for love is my life, service is my religion, and I welcome, as comrades, all who share my ideals and are imbued with the same principles."
With these words he ends: “Now let us pause for one moment whilst the power of the spirit is in our midst, so that we may be conscious of this influence, this force, this love which surrounds us all, this mighty expression of the Great Eternal Spirit, this cloak, this mantle, this protection.
"May we, by our lives, strive to justify the service that is so freely offered us; may we feel that we are in harmony with the eternal purpose. May we become instruments to the fullest degree and radiate the truth that has brought us so many rich blessings, and may our lives be examples of that truth."
The medium quickly returns to normal, drinks a little water, and the sitting is over. That is a home circle, and that is what happens when it meets.