In the lecture begun with this post, Hazrat Inayat Khan gives clarity to the philosophy of material form, relating it to the unseen, unformed world.

The activity in the plane of consciousness produces vibrations which, clashing together, produce sound and become audible, and sound in its next step towards manifestation becomes light, which brings the audible manifestation to the visible state. The sparks of light grouped together by the power of their innate affinity make the inner light, the torch of guidance. The concentrated reflection of the same in the physical world is the sun, which so long had been taken as the substitute of God, which people worshipped, calling it Sun-God.

The concentrated reflection of the sun is the moon. It is the sun which is reflected in parts, the light of which grouped in greater or smaller portions and settled at longer or shorter distances which has illuminated the whole cosmos. The sun is not only the origin of the whole solar system, but the maker of all the forms of the universe which are its manifestations.

A certain degree of light shining in a certain direction before different views produces the illusion of a certain color, as it may happen. In fact, all colors are the different aspects of light, but the degree of light and the ever active nature of the variety of the manifestation change it into different aspects.

The whole space contains forms and all forms occupy space, yet all negative forms become invisible in the presence of the positive. Again, every positive form becomes negative in the presence of a still more radiant one. For instance, if there be a blazing fire in a room, we practically notice nothing else, no matter how many objects there may be, because our eyes are attracted by the radiance of the fire. In the same way, if there be any bright objects in the room our eyes are attracted to them before anything else in the room. The objects as we see them, we believe them to be; that which owing to the limited power of our sight we cannot see we say does not exist, but that there is only an empty space. Therefore, if anybody happens to see any such forms which are not visible to all, people at once begin to accuse him of lunacy.

The view of every thing depends upon three things: 1) the radiance of the object, 2) the grade of light thrown on it, 3) the power of our sight. The pearl in the shell, the uncut diamond fresh from the mine, or rusted gold, however precious, cannot show their value at first sight, for their value is in their radiance, and as the radiance is brought out, so precious they become.

To be continued…