THE NEW AGE--ARTICLE--FEBRUARY 1990--ARTLYLE.FEB

                          Heart Lodge #1
              An Imaginary Story with a Real Meaning

                      GERARD T. LYLE JR., 32
         1341 East Lawrence Lane, Phoenix, Arizona  85020


     It started in the dark.  Now seven hearts are standing at 
the base of an ever-upward, ever-widening spiral.  Their petition 
to the Highest of Hearts that they may establish and maintain a 
group of hearts to function as one heart more powerful than the 
individual hearts which compose it was granted in the form of a 
sphere twelve feet in diameter.  It came with instructions which 
clearly stated that their mission is to roll the sphere, as far 
as they can, up the spiral on the track provided for it.  Thus 
the Highest of Hearts, in its infinite wisdom and love, conceived 
of a way that all hearts everywhere would benefit.
     They started their mission immediately.  Their enthusiasm 
energized their striving.  They soon learned something wonderful.  
Their striving was the key to their achievement.  Without it, the 
sphere would not move.  This individual heart energy mysteriously 
seemed to be transferred to the sphere, for the higher up they 
pushed it on the turns of the spiral, the more the sphere glowed.
     Their striving served them well, and they moved the sphere 
up to the seventh turn of the spiral.  The light it emitted has 
gradually increased to the point where it could illume a whole 
room of hearts.  The seven hearts were beginning to understand 
that the light of their striving was accumulating in the sphere.  
This light, they learned from experience, was saturated with the 
protective qualities of wisdom, strength and beauty.  In their 
enthusiasm, the hearts at first concluded that the sphere would 
accumulate the light of striving and that this light of striving 
would only increase and never diminish in the sphere.  But there 
was more to learn about Light.  
     It happened on the occasion of their first discussion.  The 
hearts discovered they were not in agreement as to why their 
mission was to roll the sphere up the spiral track.  Confusion 
manifested among them, and they allowed their minds to become 
focused on the details of their confusion.  In retrospect, their 
first indication that something was wrong should have been when 
the light of the sphere began to slowly and consistently blink.  
     But the hearts were so identified with their own personal 
points of view that they paid little attention to the warning 
signs of the sphere.  Each heart began to feel very strongly 
about his ideas and just couldn't understand why the other hearts 
didn't feel the same way.  The blinking of the light in the 
sphere became faster as the emotional intensity of their argument 
increased.  Some noticed the blinking increase, but felt that the 
winning of the argument was more important at the moment.
     The emotional intensity became stronger between the hearts, 
and they were now speaking towards each other with obvious lack 
of mutual respect.  So involved were they that only one of them 
noticed that the sphere began gradually to roll backwards down 
the spiral.  Also, there was diminishing in the intensity of its 
light, but even this discerning heart figured that there was 
plenty of time to win the argument before any real problem 
developed with the sphere.
     After all, the heart thought, what's more important?
     The sphere continued to roll backwards and diminish in light 
until finally one heart noticed the dimness of the light and, 
outshouting all the others, directed their attention to the 
sphere.  Six of the hearts stopped arguing and moved to prevent 
the sphere from rolling any further back down the spiral.  But 
when they tried to roll the sphere back up the spiral to where it 
was, they did not have enough energy to get the sphere moving.  
Their enthusiasm had all but disappeared, and they were now using 
the energy of their concern for the loss of the fruit of their 
labor, which, as they soon found out, was much less powerful than 
their enthusiasm.  
     The six hearts did, however, stop the sphere from rolling 
backwards any further.  It was now back on the fourth turn of the 
spiral.  
     They hailed the seventh heart to come and help them, but the 
seventh heart was so upset that the other six hearts would not 
agree with the seventh's point of view that the seventh heart 
just could not bring itself to cooperate with the other hearts.  
     After all, what's more important?  
     The six hearts did not know what to do.  They could not 
leave the sphere unattended, for it would roll back down the 
spiral, and all would again be in darkness.  They could not move 
the sphere up the spiral because that, they were finding out from 
experience, required all seven hearts to work together 
enthusiastically in mutual respect.  The hearts were very 
experienced in winning arguments for personal satisfaction and 
self-gain, but it was very apparent that they were not 
experienced in working together in mutual respect for a common 
goal.  
     Ah!  One heart started to remember why they were there in 
the first place.  The petition was remembered and shared out 
loud.  It was to establish and maintain a group of hearts to 
function as one heart--a heart more powerful than the individual 
hearts which composed it.  Now all of the hearts, even the 
seventh heart, began to think about their original petition to 
the Highest of Hearts. They began to focus on the meaning of 
their petition and on the Heart itself.  The hearts were starting 
to remember about the qualities of heart and how those qualities 
manifest in personality and character.  Each of them remembered 
their commitment to purify their hearts in order to maximize 
their service to all humankind.  They gradually began to smile 
and lessen their identification with their being right and 
winning the argument, and thus they began to refocus on their 
mission--to roll the sphere up the ever-widening, ever-upward 
spiral.
     The seventh heart joined the other six at the sphere, and 
all began to push.  It didn't move.  They tried again, it didn't 
budge.  Then the seventh heart said, "Let us be grateful for each 
other's companionship and being allowed and able to work together 
in increasing the Light of our Lodge."  The hearts began to glow 
as they heard these words and renewed their efforts to push the 
sphere.  The sphere increased its glow.  The hearts knew it would 
soon move upward in the spiral, and they began to push 
enthusiastically.  The sphere glowed brighter and began to move 
upward.  The hearts were again experiencing happiness in their 
united efforts.  They were working in harmony and making good 
progress toward achieving their mission.
     They were now, after months of intense striving, much higher 
in the turns of the spiral.  The light of the sphere was very 
beautiful.  But the seventh heart couldn't hold it in any longer, 
and he allowed vanity to speak its confusion out loud.
     "I knew it.  I knew I was right about the sphere.  Our 
gratitude powers the sphere." 
     The second heart said, "No.  It is enthusiasm which powers 
the sphere." 
     "All of you are wrong,"  said the fourth heart, "Brotherly 
love powers our sphere, and there can be no doubt about it!"
     Thus on the seventy-seventh turn of the spiral, another 
argument began among the hearts and they gradually slowed their 
efforts and became once again more interested and focused on 
being right and winning the argument and less focused on their 
mission.  The hearts stopped, let go of the sphere, and began 
shouting their reasons with such increasing emotional intensity 
that their words were as bullets.
     An hour passed without a pause.  The sphere blinked its 
first warning.  The fifth heart saw the sphere begin its slow and 
consistent warning blinks, and he tried to tell the other hearts.  
But they just thought that the fifth heart was trying to get the 
best of the argument by outshouting the rest of the hearts.  
This, of course, the other hearts could not allow, and they got 
together and outshouted the fifth heart in such a way that they 
never heard the warning of the fifth heart that the sphere would 
soon roll backwards and diminish in light.
     After all, what was more important?


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In their enthusiasm, the hearts at first concluded that the 
sphere would accumulate the light of striving and that this light 
of striving would only increase and never diminish in the sphere.  
But there was more to learn about Light.  

They could not leave the sphere unattended, for it would roll 
back down the spiral, and all would again be in darkness.

Now all of the hearts, even the seventh heart, began to think 
about their original petition to the Highest of Hearts.


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