The Wisdom Of The All-Seeing Eye... (The Importance Of Humor) - Best Of The Alchemical Lantern Live Broadcast - Episode #39

[00:01:02] Piercing through the darkness with the radiant light of truth, this is The Alchemical Lantern. Good evening everyone, this is your host Wayne McRoy, broadcasting live this evening from my subterranean alchemical research library in the heart of Pennsylvania's back mountain. Good evening one and all tonight.

[00:01:20] We're going to take a look back at a periodical written by Mr. Manley P. Hall, and this one's called The All-Seeing Eye, and we're going to look a little bit into the wisdom of the all-seeing eye, because you see, oftentimes I do point out the flaws in many of their ideologies, but oftentimes they have things right as well.

[00:01:45] So I think we need to focus on those kind of teachings as well at certain points here. So we're going to take a look at this tonight. And a lot of this talks about, well, humor. We need humor in our lives, and if we don't have humor, then it's very hard to have happiness without some type of a sense of humor.

[00:02:08] And therefore, this is part of the completion of yourself. This is part of soul growth, according to Manley P. Hall. And we're going to read an article here called Nonsense as a Factor in Soul Growth, because if you don't laugh at the nonsense once in a while, you're missing out on some of the better portions of life.

[00:02:32] We have to have a little bit of perspective on things. We have to be able to keep and maintain a sense of humor about the things going on around us in the world. And oftentimes, things get very serious, and a little too serious at points. And we need to take a step back and understand what it is that gives us a little bit of joy and happiness and mirth.

[00:02:54] And we need to have that humor about us and to kind of keep our mindfulness on these kind of things. Focus on what brings us joy in this life, what brings us peace. And this is kind of something that is lost in our society today in many ways.

[00:03:15] You see, we oftentimes get so focused on so many of these serious things going on in the world around us, and we get so caught up in that, that anxiety takes hold. And we don't need to be an anxious or fearful people. You see, God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of strength and power. And a sound mind. And what does it mean by a sound mind?

[00:03:42] Well, that means not getting caught up in the whole fear narrative that's put out there. You see, we are propagandized 24-7 in this world in which we live. In this internet age, this information age in which we live, we are handed a lot of narratives that we have to find a way to sort through. And oftentimes, these narratives, I shouldn't say oftentimes, it's almost all the time.

[00:04:07] They are so interladen with fear and negative things that we have to be able to take a step back and see it for what it truly is. It is just propaganda, folks. That's the important thing. Anything that comes through your television set or your computer screen is a form of media.

[00:04:29] And media is used primarily as a means of implanting ideas into people's minds, giving people a worldview that may not align with what's true. And one of the main tools that the media uses is this narrative of fear. They like to give you fear. They like to hand you this negative viewpoint of this world that exists.

[00:04:57] All in that screen. But if you step outside your home in your neighborhood, oftentimes you'll find that's not really how it is. Now, there may be pockets of ugly areas where you see a lot of crime and a lot of just heinous things going on. But by and large, if you step out in your community, most people, they're just like you and me. They don't want anything more than what we want.

[00:05:22] Just want to be left alone, live their life, be able to pay their bills, live comfortably, have enough to eat, maybe go on vacation once in a while or something and enjoy themselves, enjoy the fruits of their labor, and be just left alone. Don't bother me. Right? I know that's my attitude as of later. I've kind of become kind of a hermit in my older age here. Not to say I'm necessarily old, but as I'm approaching an older age, an older mindset,

[00:05:50] I really don't like to leave the house much. And that's not necessarily because I buy into the media programming that's out there. That's not the case at all. Well, it's just, it's tiresome dealing with the people who do let that media programming affect them in that way. It just, it's tiresome. You can't have a conversation with somebody like that. I know many of you folks listening probably experience that on the daily as well,

[00:06:18] where you have to deal with a public that just doesn't seem to be able to look past all of the regular stuff that we're so inculcated with in this cultural norm that we have. Things like football and movies and entertainment and, oh, did you see this on the evening newscast? Did you know Henry Kissinger just died? Oh. Well, that's a good thing, folks.

[00:06:46] That man was evil and rotten to the core. And I'm sure there's a lot of the normie folk out there who have realized that as well and will say the same thing. In fact, I haven't seen anybody say anything good about the guy, honestly, on social media at all. So we have that kind of thing going on, but people are just caught up in this nonsense in the world.

[00:07:14] And oftentimes the best remedy for dealing with the nonsense in the world is being able to apply humor to it and to laugh at it. Laugh at the absurdity of all of it. Look at the things they hand us all the time in the media. It's absurdity on the face of it. And yet people accept it as truth. And I find that to be an interesting state of affairs, really.

[00:07:44] That people will accept something as truth just because it's transmitted through a monitor to them. A television screen, one of these black mirrors that we spend so much time in front of. It has an air of authority to it for some reason. And this was carefully inculcated into the development of these tools.

[00:08:09] Television is the most successful mind control tool ever conceived. And of course they've doubled down on it with computers and computer screens and the internet and social media. And all of these different things that are all based upon this same type of technology. So we have the screen telling us one thing. But the real trick is being able to separate ourselves from that. And laugh at the absurdity of what's presented to us through the screen.

[00:08:38] And not accept it as truth at face value. Because that's what they want you to do. They want you to accept whatever they tell you as the truth. And you will react accordingly. And that's exactly what they're looking for. They're looking for a reaction. They don't want you to think critically. They want you to be simply reactive. And that being the case, we see that all the time. But the best weapon to combat that is the use of humor.

[00:09:08] So let's get right into the reading here. Nonsense as a factor in soul growth. There are times in the unfolding of human consciousness when the student feels and honestly believes that the entire weight of the eternal plan, the salvation of God, man, and the universe, and the perpetuation of civilization rests upon his shoulders. He feels that when he passes out, truth will die with him.

[00:09:33] And that his life must be so filled with duties that he has little, if any time, to demonstrate the qualities of the human race. Religion becomes such a weighty problem that he entirely forgets the necessity of humor and the value of mental and spiritual recreation. Or rather, we may say, that lack of use has caused his sense of humor to atrophy. I'm going to pause right there for a second.

[00:09:59] And can't emphasize enough how much I agree with Manly P. Hall on this point. You see, sometimes we get bogged down in this life, especially when we're trying to expose other people to truths about corruption and about the nature of what's going on in this society, the spiritual battle that is ensuing. Sometimes we get so caught up in that we lose our sense of joy about it.

[00:10:27] But let's face it, it's not fun to always be fighting, is it? It's not always fun to always be in this fight mode. To be on guard. To be ready for a conflict of some sort. It's not always good to be angry about a thing, even if it's righteous indignation. It's not a good attitude to have all the time.

[00:10:52] So we need to not lose sight of recreation time and of humor. And humor is one of the best weapons here. So it's a true thing here that Manly P. Hall is saying. When he says that a lot of times people, they don't take a mental break or a spiritual break from the battle. And they get so weighted down with this whole notion that truth rests upon their shoulders.

[00:11:20] And if they stop pursuing it and stop and take a break from these things for any length of time. That the weight of the world is on them and it will come crashing down and the truth will be lost forever. That's not the case. What he's saying here is sometimes we need to take that rest. We need to take a break from the spiritual warfare. We need to take a break from the mental battle that ensues everything around us every day.

[00:11:49] You need to maybe step away from the internet for a while. Now back when he wrote this in 1923, there was no internet at that point. But certainly if there was, he would tell you. Take a break from the computer. Don't be arguing with idiots online. Because that's going to go round and round in circles. Ad nauseum forever. And it won't result in anything good. You know the old axiom. If you've been on the internet, don't feed the trolls. There's no sense in that.

[00:12:18] No sense in trying to convince somebody of something they don't want to hear. And they're not going to change their mind ever. So you're wasting your time. And you're wasting their time. And you're wasting the cycles of your mental energy that way. And sometimes that gets you more frustrated. And more angry and upset. And more focused on this notion of this spiritual fight that we are in 24-7.

[00:12:47] But Manly P. Hall points out, you need to take a break from that once in a while. Can't emphasize enough that you need this recreation. And he calls it mental and spiritual recreation. You need to take a break from it. Not everything has to be the weight of the world all the time. You can laugh and have fun. And sometimes you can poke fun at these things. And I think that's why there's been such an attack on humor in the modern day.

[00:13:16] I'm sure if you guys are as old as I am out there in the audience. You remember a time when you could make some really offhanded and what would be offensive jokes nowadays. And it wasn't a big deal. Everybody had a good laugh at it. And you moved on. And nobody got their feelings hurt about it. And nobody got all up and tizzy about it. And you didn't wind up getting yourself banned from anywhere because of the joke or anything like that. And you had fun with it.

[00:13:46] And it was a release. Well now they've tried to take away a lot of that release. And now you can't do that. Especially on the internet. It's a violation of community standards. You can't say that. There's certain people you can't criticize. There's certain things you can't say. Because it will invariably offend somebody out there. No matter how absurd the whole thing sounds. But anyway.

[00:14:12] That's kind of part of what's going on. They've eliminated the use of humor. To alleviate some of the stresses of this constant spiritual fight that we're in. Humor and satire are powerful weapons against this. In this spiritual battle. And it's a release. It helps you to maintain a certain amount of composure in yourself. And maintain perspective on things.

[00:14:42] If you could step back and laugh at it a little bit. So Manly P. Hall says here. People oftentimes they get so caught up in the constant fight. That their sense of humor. It begins to atrophy. And we don't need that. Let's read on. So he says.

[00:15:02] The inevitable result of losing the ability to laugh and to relax the tension of massive thought and incessant labor is unbalance and ultimate spiritual crystallization. Commonly known in the world of affairs as freakishness and crankism. Crankism. That's a word I'm not familiar with. That must be an old time term. I mean if you're a cranky old man yelling get off my lawn. Maybe that's it. Maybe that's what it is. Get off my lawn.

[00:15:32] Maybe I'm an old crank now. I don't know. Maybe I'm affected by crankism. Because I don't like dealing with a lot of people anymore. I shouldn't say that. I mean I don't mind dealing with people. As long as it's not out in the public. I don't like being out in the public with large crowds of people. Who just act like a herd.

[00:16:01] I don't like the herd mentality. And you experience that and encounter that a lot in our society. So I prefer being somewhere with people where it's a little bit smaller of a group. Where you can interact with them on a more personal level. Rather than just having all kinds of people around that may have a lot of different ideas than you. And like different things than you. And I really honestly I hate small talk. I can't stand that.

[00:16:31] I don't like like talking about oh did you see the football game. Yeah yeah I saw the football game. And I just can't. I'm not wired that way anymore. I think it's been too much of looking into these deep subjects for too long. And maybe. Maybe. Maybe. This is what Manly P. Hall was talking about here. Maybe I've just gotten so entrenched in a lot of it. That I'm beginning to lose a little bit of my sense of humor about it.

[00:16:58] I don't think that's the case because I laugh at it all the time. But you know I do have to take a break once in a while. And interact with the other people out there. The ones that aren't interested in this kind of stuff. But it's hard to have a conversation with somebody when they're talking about something you have no clue. What it is they're saying because they're all concerned with the latest Hollywood release. Or you know this movie or this TV show. Or this football game. Or this whatever it is. And you have no clue what they're talking about.

[00:17:29] And then you're talking about something completely different from them. And they don't know what you're talking about. They look at you like you have lobsters crawling out of your ears. If you're like hey did you see how they sprayed the sky today? Did you see all the chemtrails up there? And they're looking at you like you have lobsters crawling out of your ears. And it's hard to deal with those kind of people. But you do have to keep your perspective and a sense of humor about it. I don't mind being the black sheep of the family.

[00:17:56] I think I've accepted that moniker pretty well here. Not to say my family is anywhere near normal. But that's beside the point too. But at any rate let's get back to what Manly P. Hall has to say here. So he says the ability of the philosopher to forget his philosophies. And the mystic to lay aside his religion and smile with the world. Over some hopelessly trivial bit of nonsense.

[00:18:22] Is the sign of a true super physical greatness and spiritual balance. I'm going to pause again there. So he's saying here. You can laugh with the world. At some of the stupid things. That they put out there. So if you see a funny cartoon or some such thing out there. And you think it's hysterical. It's okay. Go ahead. Laugh at it. There's nothing wrong with that. You can laugh with them. You can understand maybe some of the same things that they find humor in. And it's all good.

[00:18:54] You can laugh at that. He says that's good for your soul. That's a true sign of spiritual balance. And that we need this balance in our lives. We need to not be so serious all the time. I try my best to inflect humor into a lot of the things I look at. But it's a lot of deep subjects. And that becomes problematic at times. Because it's hard to joke about such serious things.

[00:19:25] But that's why we have things like memes. It's easier to make a joke out of something. Look at all the Henry Kissinger memes that are going around now. I find them funny. The little death. The Grim Reaper at the Claw Machine game. Yes, finally got Henry Kissinger. That kind of thing. We can laugh at that. It's kind of offensive to some people to talk that way. About somebody that just passed away. Oh, you're so insensitive.

[00:19:54] But remember, there was a time when you could make jokes about this stuff. Without people becoming offended and becoming whiny about it. But they just kind of, ha, they snickered it off. And that was the end of it. Even if they didn't think it was funny. They just kind of moved aside and let it be. And it didn't last long. But now people make controversy over things that don't deserve controversy. And it's become all too serious of a society. And I think that's by design.

[00:20:23] And I think that's one of the things that's being pointed out here. You have to have that release. You have to be able to take a break. You have to be able to have that recreation. That mental and spiritual and physical recreation. You have to have something else to focus your attention on. Even if it's like just watching a movie or something for two hours. Escapism. Escapism is important. It's important.

[00:20:53] It's important psychologically to a human being. That's why movies and television shows and stuff like that have been such a successful thing. It's one of those areas where it draws our attention and it gives us a release from our everyday stresses and worries.

[00:21:14] Now what's happened in recent years though is they've taken this escapism and they've turned it into preachy prattle and nonsense and trash and outright woke garbage. And they pound a message into your head over and over again. It's all about the messaging.

[00:21:35] And it's become so bad that now our best form of escapism is to laugh at it and mock it. It makes a mockery of itself. It truly does. And it's interesting to think in these ways because there used to be this old trope, if you remember. Think back a couple decades.

[00:22:00] I haven't seen any of these recently but my 14-year-old son was asking me the other day, he's dad, whatever happened to spoof movies? You know, things like space balls and stuff like that. I don't see them anymore. And I told them it's because the woke writers, they make a joke and a mockery of themselves with what they write. It's so bad anymore. They just don't do that. They wouldn't dare make a spoof movie. Like anything Mel Brooks wrote just wouldn't fly today. Look at Blazing Saddles.

[00:22:29] That just would not be politically correct. Are you kidding me? They'd need safe spaces. There'd be libtards out there screaming their brains out over stuff like that. You just can't have it. And that's one of the things that's missing from our society. That's part of this release. Sometimes laughter is the best medicine. I feel bad for comedians anymore. They can't even make proper jokes. Like you can't make a joke about something anymore without having to worry, is it going to offend somebody?

[00:22:59] It's ridiculous. It really is. And I don't think this younger generation, these Gen Z crowd and whatever they are, anything post-millennial as far as the generation gap goes, I don't think they know what good comedy is or what good humor is.

[00:23:22] Because they've been so indoctrinated with so much of this nonsense at this point that they don't know how to have a good time without stressing out and worrying if somebody is going to be offended by something they say. I mean, you have to be afraid of even using the wrong pronouns with people these days. It's totally unbelievable.

[00:23:49] And I think this is all by design because it takes away this whole notion that we have here, this thing that Manly P. Hall is talking about. You have to have a break once in a while. You have to have that recreation, that spiritual and mental recreation, as well as physical recreation. Take a break from it. Laugh at it. Have some humor about it.

[00:24:15] Anyway, let's go ahead and we'll continue on here because I didn't get really far into this reading yet. All students of symbolism know that for ages a long face has been considered symbolical of religion and that the more sad you appear and the more dejected your countenance, the holier you are and the closer you are to a God who has long-for-sworn laughter. This idea is based upon an entirely erroneous concept of life.

[00:24:44] The appreciation of humor is a divine faculty. The quick wit that it develops may be used for much deeper works, while the inevitable radiation of cheer which accompanies the happy person is just as important to the growth of humanity as the philosophical concepts which we expound and the problems of compound ratio. I'm going to pause for a second there even though I just butchered the word philosophical for no good reason. I say it enough.

[00:25:13] We have to keep this in mind, okay? God has a sense of humor. That is something that is massively important and a lot of people who seem holier than thou, Manly P. Hall is right about that, they seem to have less of a sense of humor. Everything is so dour and serious all the time. And yes, I understand. Sometimes having knowledge of spiritual truths,

[00:25:42] understanding spiritual truths and seeing other people suffer because of their lack of understanding of these spiritual truths, it can have a depressing type of effect on a person. It really can. But you have to also remember, that's not how God had called us to be. We're not supposed to feel dejected or to feel in that way. It's okay to have empathy for people. Don't get me wrong. We're supposed to be empathetic of others

[00:26:11] and feel their pains, their sorrows, and be able to identify with that. But at the same time, we also have to keep a little bit of perspective on the matter and be able to live in the fullness of joy as God intended us to. And part of that is a sense of humor. And I know for a fact God has a sense of humor. Seems that way. See, here's the thing, folks.

[00:26:40] My wife wanted four kids. I didn't want any kids. So we compromised. And now we have six kids. So God has a sense of humor. So just when you think you're done, I mean, there's always something more that gets thrown into the mix. And you just never know. You never know. But understand, God has a sense of humor. And he sits back and he laughs at us with some of our silliness at times. Why so serious all the time? We don't need to be so serious all the time. Got to have humor in things.

[00:27:10] And you got to take a break. That's the whole point here. And if you get no other message from this broadcast tonight, understand it's okay to take a break mentally, spiritually, physically from the woes of your everyday life. Laugh a little. Live a little. Love a little. Enjoy yourself. Okay? Even if it's, like, ridiculously bad television programming or something.

[00:27:38] If you like that stuff once in a while, that's fine. If you like watching trash TV, that's all well and good. My buddy Billy Ray Valentine and I, we've had conversations about that. But he likes to watch certain shows like, what's the one I'm trying to think of that he told me that sometimes he'll watch just because it's just an absolute clown show all the time. 90 Day Fiancé. He likes to watch garbage trash TV like that once in a while just to have a good laugh. And he finds it entertaining. And I'm the same way.

[00:28:06] I will find something like that to watch once in a while too. And just laugh at how pathetic some of this stuff really, truly is. And I like old sitcoms and stuff too. I like that kind of stuff. And it's okay. It's okay to watch the entertainment. Now, we talk all the time on shows like this about all the social engineering and everything

[00:28:33] and the agendas that go into this and how they use certain mind control templates in these things and they use predictive programming and revelation of the method. They jam all this stuff in all the media out there. We talk about that all the time. But you know what? It's okay to let loose once in a while and enjoy an episode of Star Trek or something. It's okay to do that. There's nothing wrong with that. Don't let them take your joy. That's the thing.

[00:29:02] You see so many people that fall into this trap. They fall into this trap when once they become, I guess, what's the best term I'm looking for? Awake to all of this? When they become awake and they see the depth of how we've been lied to and the corruption, it's a very, very humbling experience for most people

[00:29:27] to realize that about 95% of everything you've ever learned in your life was totally wrong and that there were social agenda programs and everything inserted in all of it and mind control and all of these things that you grew up enjoying and liking, like music. I know Crow has talked about this ad nauseum. All this music and these musicians he looked up to

[00:29:54] and all this stuff that he modeled his life after for some time in his early youth. How it was all just this manipulation. But you know what? It's still okay to look back and enjoy that stuff. I thoroughly enjoy listening to music. I thoroughly enjoy watching comedies on TV, watching science fiction movies, things like that. Now what they've been putting out lately is total garbage

[00:30:23] and it's not even worth watching. It's not even fun to watch because it's just so chock full of the ridiculous, absurd social engineering. But sometimes you gotta even look at that and laugh. Like I don't know if anybody out there watches Doctor Who or has watched Doctor Who at some point. Well, they just did a 60th anniversary special. And it's just absolute trash. It's so bad. It's ridiculous. Like there's a point at which there's a furry alien creature or something

[00:30:51] lands in the backyard or something and the doctor's asking it, says something about, oh, I'll help him find his way back to where he needs to go or something. And the other side character says, are you assuming it's pronouns? Pronouns? And they actually go through a whole bit where they ask the little alien creature its preferred pronouns. And it's just, it's so retarded and it's so banal and ridiculous that you just have to laugh at the absurdity of it. And they insert this in the entertainment

[00:31:21] all the time. And then they wonder why they're hemorrhaging money. Right? And this is the BBC and I guess they got money from Disney to fund this project. No surprise there. Disney's one of the big abusers of this. They're hemorrhaging money with these movies that they're putting out because it's absolute trash and nobody wants to watch it. It's not escapism like what we desire and what we have a psychological need for. We just want to be entertained. We want to have fun.

[00:31:50] We want to watch a story. Okay? We want to watch a fun story. We don't want to be beat over the head with your social agendas all day long. And this is what they do anymore. It's all social agenda all the time out there in the open just blatantly and the story doesn't matter. It's about getting the social agenda in there and the inclusivity and diversity and equity crowd and all of that inserted in there. We have to fill the quota. We got to tick the boxes

[00:32:20] at the expense of the story. Whereas in the past they were able to maybe insert very subtle portions of this stuff in there but they still told a good story. That's not the case anymore. So, I mean, it's absurdity. But sometimes you have to laugh at even the absurdity of it and I think that's what's been going on. People have gotten to the point where they just don't care about these intellectual properties anymore

[00:32:47] because of this agenda-driven nonsense that's gone on with it. All of this identity politics and everything inserted into everything all the time. They don't care. So, that opens up the floodgates for independent creators out there. Independent filmmakers. Independent content creators. To try to fill that void. They can do this.

[00:33:17] I know a lot of really talented people that could write so many better stories than what they've been putting out there in the Disney media and the other media as well. It goes across the board. It's not just Disney but they're probably the number one abuser right now. They're in the limelight about it. They've lost so much money on these film projects. It gets to the point where you can't properly explain to the investors anymore why are you hemorrhaging money.

[00:33:47] Like, they just made the film The Marvels. It was supposed to be Captain Marvel 2. Nobody liked the character. They don't seem to learn their lesson. They doubled down. They made this film. It was absolute garbage and trash. It tanked at the box office. And now they're probably looking at about a $450 million loss on this movie release. Now I know that's probably pocket change for Disney Corporation but the investors are starting to notice

[00:34:16] because it's been happening. They're just hemorrhaging money all over the place. The theme parks are losing money. Disney Plus that streaming service is losing money hand over fist now. And that should be a no-brainer, right? That should be a no-brainer because Disney in the past has put out a lot of classic films. Had good writing. Not the case anymore. They've done a complete 180 and have turned the opposite direction with this. And I think this is all on purpose.

[00:34:45] And it's all to sap the joy out of people. And this is an important part of it. It's about what Manly P. Hall is talking about here. Let's continue on. So he says, There are those in the world as wet blankets, gloom dispensers, and auntie dole fools who in the name of God take all the cheer from life and with their blankets of pessimism

[00:35:13] totally eclipse the sun which might otherwise send to our hearts at least a solitary ray. If there be an exceptionally high spot in heaven, a brownstone front in the great beyond, we shall undoubtedly find it reserved for those mystics and philosophers, sages and seers who have not only made man think and pray but have taught him how to laugh. I'm going to pause again. I think this is another important statement here.

[00:35:43] You see, it's one thing, one thing to teach people philosophies and to help them have a deeper understanding of spiritual things. But along with that, you also have to know how to laugh, how to love, how to live. These things go together. That old phrase, live, laugh, love, you've seen it before. It's so cliche, but you know what? It's true.

[00:36:13] They all go together. You need laughter. You need love in order to live. And it's a pretty simple concept, but a lot of people, they get lost in the seriousness and the dourness of all these different topics and all these different things and the whole spiritual ramifications of things. How many good-hearted, good, well-meaning Christian people do you know that will go out

[00:36:43] and preach to somebody, you're going to hell? Is that helpful? You can't watch that TV show. That's a bad TV show. You can't listen to that music. That's the devil's music. You'll go to hell. Well, that's not helpful. That doesn't instill a sense of joy. Doesn't instill a sense of humor.

[00:37:15] And we don't really understand God's tastes in these kind of things. Now, yes, I don't think we need to be out there running around using foul language all the time. I very rarely use any kind of cuss words. Very rarely, if at all. Once in a while, I'll slip or say something or if the moment seems to call for it in an appropriate way. Sometimes I'll let one fly, but generally I try my best

[00:37:45] not to cuss because I don't think it necessarily represents, first of all, the intent of our creator and our God in the right way. And I don't think it really makes anybody sound more intelligent or any cooler. So I don't use that parlance. I don't use that language. Usually not. But some people use that as a

[00:38:14] type of measure of judgment against others as to their spiritual walk or their spiritual path and that's not appropriate either. You can listen to something and it's not your fault if they use cuss words or something like that or if you listen to a certain genre of music it's no more evil than any other genre of music. Now music is a tool often used by dark magicians and these dark occultists who run things in this world certainly

[00:38:44] but you can still find joy in the music. Don't let them steal your joy because once they steal your joy then you become this dour person and you're missing out on a whole side of things you don't need to be missing out on. It's all part of this balance we do have to have and like I said God does have a sense of humor and many people don't seem to understand that.

[00:39:13] It's all so serious all the time. But anyway let's continue on with what Manly P. Hall says here. The world is filled with trials and worries with long faces and hopeless souls which must be met along that weary road that leads to light but the powers that be have seen fit to bring laughter into the world to cheer the weary hearts of striving men and women and to make this gift doubly sure have supplied a special set of facial muscles for its expression

[00:39:42] and it is the duty of every student not only to promote aestheticism but also to bring into faces furrowed with care and hearts frozen and endless snows the happy smile which is indeed the greatest boon of the gods I'm going to pause for a moment here folks sometimes the mere act of giving somebody a smile can change their whole day you see when you're having a bad day and somebody gives you

[00:40:12] a friendly smile and maybe you can see from the countenance on their face that they understand your situation they understand what kind of a day you're having and they feel for you and it's just their way of telling you you're not alone well there is a measure of comfort in that and there's nothing wrong with that a smile a laugh all of these things

[00:40:42] like I said sometimes we get so bogged down by our own problems in life that we can't see past them and the best thing to do at times is to take a step back look at them objectively from the outside and laugh at it laugh at the absurdity of your situation how many times do you end up in uncomfortable situations and you live through them and you're not happy with them at the time but later on you can look back and laugh at the whole thing but

[00:41:13] at any rate it's hard to do in the moment at times but we do need to be able to laugh at ourselves it's okay to laugh at others sometimes too because let's face it we're all stupid at points and we do stupid things I know I've done stupid things I continue to do stupid things on a daily basis it's all part of life but you have to be able to reflect on it and admit it and just laugh it off don't stress over it see sometimes people stress

[00:41:44] over everything they try to be perfect and nobody's perfect and we can't be perfect on our own power there's no way so we gotta take a step back and laugh at our faults and our flaws that's what make us who we are that's what makes us individuals be a boring world if everybody agreed all the time and nobody had any flaws at all let's go ahead and continue reading

[00:42:13] all the greatest philosophers have been noted not only for their quickness of mind but for their sharpness of wit and in truth there is nothing which shows the depth of thought and knowledge of life more than an original joke which has something really funny in it there is an art ingesting which can only be appreciated after a suffering mortal has listened to what the world calls humor this art should be listed with the seven immortal arts and sciences let us remember the words of an ancient

[00:42:42] philosopher who said when referring to the court jester of a king it takes the brightest man in all the land to make the greatest fool the kingdoms of suffering humanity must have that court fool but few of our so-called religious lights will allow their faces to relax for fear that their dignity may be affected and their congregation dwindle away gonna pause for a moment again there folks

[00:43:12] i'm gonna read that last line here again i like that it says it takes the brightest man in all the land to make the greatest fool you need to really have a good sense of humor the more you know the more you find out the more you learn the more you need a sense of humor to maintain some balance about these things because let's face it

[00:43:42] we deal with a lot of absurdity especially in our modern era we deal with a lot of absurd things and you need to be able to reflect on it and laugh at it and the more you know the more you need to be able to laugh but at any rate let's go ahead and continue because we're running short on time already boy the time flies doesn't it time flies when you're having

[00:44:12] fun that's part of the whole notion that's being communicated here when we laugh from the depths of our soul relaxing for a moment the nerves and muscles that have so long been at attention and fighting the battle of life it is like a gymnasium exercise for the body and a tonic for the soul the lungs fill with air the liver receives its daily dozen and the face beams with a greater joy because for one moment the purely human has been given expression in a way

[00:44:41] which can injure none even those people who are unconsciously ridiculous will never realize nor be accredited with the honor that is due them from the fact that they have made others laugh for while their personality is hurt and is many cases their noses are seriously cracked still the laughter will reach to the ends of creation before its last echoes die away at the very footstool of divinity

[00:45:10] I'm going to pause again here so the comedian has their place it's an important place those people who can make you laugh they're doing a service to humanity it's good to be able to laugh it's good to have joy it's good to have like I said just that sense of escapism even if it's for a mere moment out of your day and sometimes

[00:45:40] there's a lot of people that walk around and they don't realize that joy that they spread to people just by maybe cracking a stupid joke or something at an inappropriate time making a gesture wrong moment a facial expression that's inappropriate or some such thing we all have that one friend don't we that one that you can look at if you're in a serious situation with them

[00:46:09] you give them that knowing glance and they give you the knowing glance and they make the face and you can't help yourself but laugh because you know they're thinking the same thing you are you see something like that we need that kind of appreciation for that in our lives it's a form of escapism that gets us away from our everyday grind from the stresses of life we need this it's an important thing it is

[00:46:39] said that the Christian theology is the only one that has not at least one laughing God in its train and we cannot but feel that there has been a serious omission the laughter of the gods sounds through all nature which is filled with cheer it is the sorrows and discouragements of life which turn all things to a leaden gray those who radiate this sweat colored expression of life are never popular never happy seldom useful

[00:47:08] and always a bore the laughter of children is music in the ears of the almighty and all living creatures are children who cry one moment and laugh the next and of those moments which come closest to the divine the joy or the tear all human beings are like little ones crying over broken dolls and the toys which have fallen to pieces in their hands but their sorrows are short lived and soon the bursts of merry laughter shroud the sorrow

[00:47:38] and forgetfulness but there are some who cannot forget and it is the duty of all to cheer them on their way for every heart is filled with sadness and when we too are sad it but brings back memories which do not help but always surround us with thoughts of bitterness or remorse it is said that animals do not smile but it seems that they do for every horse and dog and even that old cat purring on the hearth rug have a contented smiling appearance

[00:48:07] concealed somewhere about their faces even the fowls of the farmyard with all their stateliness and dignity have a certain twinkle in their eyes and a certain upward curve at the corner of their bills which is often missing from the human physiognomy and their dignity is all the greater because of its absurdity well man's absurdities are always greater because of his dignity gonna pause for a moment here folks so the man who's always walking around serious

[00:48:39] can sometimes be funny in and of himself without realizing it I'll use Leslie Nielsen as an example of that go watch the old naked gun movies if you want to have an example of that he's always serious and dour but it makes for some great comedy there's a type of dignity about that about somebody who can do that there

[00:49:09] is a psychology in humor a moral effect upon all with whom we come in contact it makes us friends we are invited to call again in a voice which means it it brings us closer to the hearts of others it tries us more tightly to the truly human it tears down the barriers of creed and caste and gives us a footing in the hearts of others there is no greater power which man can evolve than that of seeing all nature smiling

[00:49:39] every plant and flower wreathed in merriness smiling because his own soul is laughing filled and overflowing with that exuberance of spirit which marks the true expression of spiritual growth to see the laughter in nature the joy in living the good concealed beneath the ever painful is a thing not always easy to do one must have within himself this fountain of mirth which would have lengthened the life of Ponce de Leon had he not shortened his career

[00:50:08] by the seriousness of his search which sees in everything not only the deep and mystical but the divinely and sublimely ridiculous take the time to notice the beauty in life enjoy those small moments enjoy those happy times those happy moments it's okay you see that's the thing our society

[00:50:38] has tried to instill a sense of guilt in us for having fun or doing something nice for ourselves haven't they think about that having a laugh at somebody else's expense or enjoying something they tried to offer us this sense of guilt they really have even if it's something as simple as food choices

[00:51:08] you see here in America we have an enormous amount of food guilt trip idea of where there's children starving elsewhere be thankful for what you have and I'm all for being thankful don't get me wrong I'm grateful for all these choices and stuff we do have but you should not feel guilty about the fact that you have those

[00:51:37] choices in fact you should enjoy them enjoy those things and I know a lot of times we get super serious about food choices and stuff in this type of a community as well people don't want to eat genetically modified this or that and stay away from this and this is healthy that's healthy don't eat this don't eat that once in a while it's okay go ahead and enjoy the peanut butter cup eat

[00:52:07] the chocolate life is fleeting it's short have enjoyment in it if you like it go for it everything in moderation eat the have guilt because maybe you have a friend that's a vegan and they wouldn't make the same choice and they may not like your choice or agree with your choice but you know what

[00:52:37] enjoy it enjoy it simple as that let's continue running short on time when our hearts are about to overflow with sorrow if we could but see with the eyes of the gods we would smile at least when actions of others if we could but think a moment we would probably make matters much worse

[00:53:07] for it would be a herculean task to restrain the laughter which would bring with it the wrath of our opponent you may say that you will it is better far to see the ridiculous in life than the ever sorted it is better far to laugh at the mistakes of man than to curse the decrees of God and those who go around brewing cups of hemlock and radiating avalanches of gloom should indeed be listed with the false prophets and the blasphemers of God

[00:53:36] the man who cannot find something pleasant to say no matter where he may be how unpleasant the experience how uncongenial those around him or how contrary to his taste the incident in question should never claim even the first degrees of spirituality the mystic knows that in the last analysis all opposites blend tragedy and comedy are one and their apparently diverse ways are united at the doorway which leads to heights

[00:54:05] immortal gonna pause there folks that's why if you look at the old actors guild masks hanging on the wall you have the tragedy and comedy masks I'm sure you're familiar with the symbol you see there's a spiritual component to that and we go through times of sorrow and times of joy in life you see it's all part of this experience we're having but you can't focus solely

[00:54:35] on one and not the other it has to have a balance and sometimes you need a break sometimes you need to walk away from the serious and enjoy the moment have that joy and we can't always be entrenched in joy either sometimes we have sorrowful times but we need to hold our heads high and be thankful for what we do have give thanks every

[00:55:05] day that's one joy and you have a better

[00:55:35] outlook you have more of a peace you have more joy and if you go around looking at what everybody else has that maybe you don't have that's when you become a little bit more bitter and we can't be bitter in life we want to have that joy and sometimes it's about just having the cheap

[00:56:04] laugh once in a while if you're having a bad day do something to make it a little better go buy yourself that cup of coffee or something if it'll help cheer you up sometimes that's all you need day by day just to get through we all go through rough patches in life it rains on the just and the unjust that's what the Bible tells us we're all going to have

[00:56:34] troubles and we're all going to have joy if we but accept it and understand that that's our portion here we can have happiness we can have joy and peace in our hearts and in our lives even though sometimes we go through hard times and hardships we can still have that escapism

[00:57:05] we need that it's a psychological need sometimes you just need to take a break and that's fine don't feel guilty about it don't feel like you're not doing your due diligence or you're not fulfilling your obligations you need that break we all need that break once in a while and you need to have that laughter that comes with it let's continue on here and we're going to wrap it up so laugh

[00:57:35] and list among the benefactors of humanity those who often with hearts filled with sadness have realized the sweetness of a smile and the gloriousness of mirth and who have been the fools to make their brothers laugh their only reward being the realization that for a moment at least a few hearts have forgotten their sorrows and a few lonely wanderers have seen the sunny side of life there is nothing more contagious than joy and nothing more infectious than gloom these two inseparable

[00:58:05] companions of mankind walk side by side gloom noted for its length joy for its breath and this eternal battle for mastery one over the other must be played out heart acid temperaments make acid bodies and the world is filled with intellectual alkalis which seem to stunt all the glories of nature the reward of gloom is dyspepsia ankylitic joints rhum and

[00:58:33] and sour stomach. Those who cannot smile ferment all the world and spoil a glorious crop by their own tiny apple, and too often they do this in the name of God. There are thousands whose motto for life is, if ye smile upon the Sabbath, ye shall weep ere Monday dawn, and other equally sentimental

[00:58:54] concepts of God's demands of a man. Let us remember, let us rather use as our motto, a smile a day keeps the doctor away, and the more smiles the more undesirables are excluded from the aura of our association. There are glooms of all kinds revolving in their orbits around us, but until the wet blanket

[00:59:18] enters our own hearts we are master of them, and if our own lives are sunny the spirits of negation have little chance of entrance therein. One thing about the devil that we always admire is the fact that he has a most resounding laugh, and in spite of all his villainies there is a certain refreshment which comes over us, even as we are chilled by his hilarity. He does the most miserable things in the

[00:59:45] most jovial and likable way, and can even damn us with a smile upon his face. While many of our friends cannot even say good morning without looking like a heavy storm, occultists and occult students must realize that when they forget how to be jovial, they lock the door of heaven and throw away the key. And that's the

[01:00:07] end of the reading, folks, from Manly P. Hall. The whole point here? Live, laugh, love. Enjoy, and don't feel guilt about it. Take the break. Eat the cheeseburger. Have the cup of coffee. Watch the hilariously bad TV show, and take a break once in a while. The world's pretty serious, and we need a laugh every now and again, and it's okay, and it's good to take that break. That's the whole message here tonight.

[01:00:37] Anyway, I want to thank you all for tuning in. We'll catch you next week here on the Alchemical Lantern. Have a good night.