What could be the task for us today? What form could the next link in the golden chain of cooperation have?
An image that often recurs in the books of Agni Yoga is that of the “chain of cooperation”, in which each ring represents a part of the global creative work: a part that, intimately connected to all the others, constitutes an infinite and eternal chain. Since the word “chain” in common language easily arouses the impression of something that imprisons, I like to imagine the chain of cooperation as made of a golden light, which envelops the Earth and then juts out into the sky stretching endlessly.
We too, each of us, are rings in that chain, if we make that choice.
In the most recent history of the Teaching of Fire – which has in fact always been present on Earth, since the time of the mythological figure of Prometheus, the bearer of Fire – the first link in the chain was created by the Master in his relationship of direct exchange with Helena Roerich and her family.
The closeness of this great woman to the Master was such that she asked him many questions, every day and of all kinds and levels: these could range from great questions about cosmic events to the request for practical advice on the needs of daily life, concerning for example the treatment of diseases or relationships with collaborators and with neighbors.
To all questions, the Master answered precisely and Helena promptly transcribed all the answers into her diary. Years later, Helena was guided to clean up the writings removing overly peronal items and to extract small paragraphs, the contents of which could be of wider use.
Thus were born the books of Agni Yoga, translated in the following years into many languages and distributed all over the world. The work was intense and the various generations of collaborators who dedicated themselves to it made available everything they had – time, energy, money – to be able to carry it out. For some of them the price was very high, because in Stalin’s Russia being followers of Agni Yoga and the Roerichs often involved detention in concentration camps.
Thus the first links of the chain, the Master and the Roerichs, were joined by many others, more or less consistent, more or less luminous, but all together they made up an initial and fundamental part of the Work. Among them I would like to mention some of groups that beceame theses “rings”: the Riga Roerich Society group (Lettonia), which was the first to print the books; the Roerich Museum in New York, which has carried out an enormous work of dissemination for decades; and since the time of the Roerichs, the Corona Mundi Association in Geneva, founded in the 1980s precisely with the task of completing the publication of books in as many languages as possible.
Other links in the chain were the many who organized conferences on Agni Yoga, who wrote books, who preserved the original paintings of Nicholas Roerich and who distributed printed copies of them. A large group of collaborators, united by having responded to an inner and subtle call from the Teaching and by the love for everything it conveys.
A magnetic point of service to teaching and its task, was also our October Conference, like more links in the chain of cooperation were all those who collaborated to achieve it and all those who participated in it with the impetus of their enthusiasm.
In addition to giving space and expression to many valuable contributions, those days represented a moment of collective celebration of 100 years of incessant work: an opportunity to express gratitude to those who preceded us in the Work. But also to open together – many from all over the world – the doors of the next cycle, which will have to see an equally intense commitment and which can lead to even more varied and abundant fruits in the coming decades.
What could be the task for us today? What form could the next link in the golden chain of cooperation have?
After embarking on our journey to the Cosmos in October, to find an answer to this question we can only turn our gaze to the sky: what do the great celestial movements tell us? They tell us about an era, that of Aquarius, in which the values of brotherhood, group and group service will be emphasized; where the process of spirit/matter unification will make great strides; in which right relations will prevail in all kingdoms; in which beauty and joy will be expressed in every life…
To achieve all this we need a guide, that is, a real instruction manual: Agni Yoga is here for this and was given a century ago so that today, precisely in this new celestial age, it can play its function of offering to human beings who know how to recognize and welcome it, many indications and visions in all fields of life.
First of all, it makes available to us the awareness of our great heritage, the psychic energy, the subtle fire that permeates every consciousness. It is a fire that allows us to build and replace all the forms that are no longer useful, swept away by the fire of space. We will see how the two fires (which are in fact the same), the cosmic one, in which we are immersed, and the inner one of consciousness, can cooperate to demolish on te one hand, and to replace on the other, everything that is now worn out.
It also helps us not to look at the “unusual”, all those things we do not expect and that undermines our security, as something negative, but, indeed, highlights it as a fundamental factor for the development of consciousness.
It repeatedly stimulates us to join forces, both among us human beings who are like-minded and oriented in the same direction, and with those who guide us, giving us many ideas for the choice of those with whom to cooperate more closely.
It invites us to look at work as a free expression of our talents, and not just as a means of maintaining ourselves economically.
It suggests that we change the type of work frequently even within the same day, in order to be able to keep our strength and not to overload the energy body.
It offers us beauty as an indicator of the quality of every aspect of life, thus replacing beauty with material richness.
It reminds us of the courage to live with heroism, that is, with passion invested in a common goal, drawing from this attitude the resources to overcome all obstacles.
It urges us to make the most of all the opportunities and resources available at all times, bringing them together through an orderly and focused pace.
These are just some of the countless ideas proposed by Agni Yoga, and that we take as necessary steps to enter the next century.
One hundred years ago, workers aware of the creative fire were few and scattered in countries far from each other. Today there are many of us and all in constant connection; we can meet whenever we want and help each other keep the flame burning. That’s a lot. It seems obvious to us, but in fact it is a gift to be used well, a gift that is also based on the work of those who preceded us.
In the October Conference we collected many gifts in the form of the cornerstones and seeds which could be a signal for us of the next stage of our work and the next links in the chain….
So, what are we going to do together that’s beautiful and big in the next 100 years?
Marina Bernardi