One of the most universally recognized formulations in modern human history is the phrase “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness,” stated as a principle by the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Indeed, we all have at least a vague awareness that these three elements are good, if not essential, for fulfillment of our life on this planet. Also, most of us, especially those in authority, adhere to our own perceived privilege, under a variety of circumstances, to deny these elements to one or more of our fellow human beings. Of course such denial also has limits, as expressed, for instance, in the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Which brings us to the question: What really is freedom?

While we wrestle with that question, we may recall the saying of Jesus, “The truth shall make you free.” (John 8:23)

What then, is truth? And how does that truth function in life to work its wonders and produce the stated freedom?

As readers of Three Sages are aware, for almost a year we have been the only US website to publish selections of Bô Yin Râ’s spiritual writings, along with background and commentary. See additional selections of recent articles HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Bô Yin Râ was the spiritual name of Joseph Anton Schneiderfranken (1876-1943), born in Aschaffenburg, Germany, educated as a landscape painter, by spiritual pedigree a “Luminary of Primordial Light,” and, through his writings, the creator of perhaps the most important compendium of original spiritual writings in modern Western history. His master work is the 32-volume Hortus Conclusus (“The Enclosed Garden”).

While most of the material carried by Three Sages by and about Bô Yin Râ has pertained to the spiritual pursuits of the human individual, his book “The Specter of Freedom” focuses on the life of society as a whole. It’s a relatively long work, one that will be carried here in 12 installments. Within this book, Bô Yin Râ, explains two different perspectives on “freedom.” One path is that of freedom as a “specter”—a “ghost” or “illusion” that people follow believing it will lead them to happiness while instead it deceives them into falling into a pit of despair and, ultimately, destruction. The other path is real freedom that comes only when the price for it has been paid.

But what is that price? What are the practices and conditions that must be followed to create something really worth having? One of the conditions clearly is to study the teachings of spiritual masters who know what they are talking about. In our experience, Bô Yin Râ stands in the forefront of those individuals. Another is certainly Jesus, whose advice includes, for instance, the practices spelled out in the Sermon on the Mount.

The group of people involved in presenting material by Bô Yin Râ on Three Sages have provided these definitions of “The Specter of Freedom”:

1. The idiotic idea that we should be “allowed” to do just about anything we desire (as long as we don’t get caught?).

2. That enticing notion we conjure up thinking how being free from various earthly restrictions will allow us to fulfill our dreams but which ultimately disappoints because we did not take into account spiritual law and our spiritual inheritance.

3. In Polish, “Specter of Freedom” is “Upior Wolnosci,” which is a great translation as it would mean a “negative, lingering ghostly presence/entity.”

4. What can “freedom” possibly mean for a person who has not achieved complete control of thoughts, speech, and actions?

1. Mirage

2. Necessity

3. Communality

4. Authority

5. The Urge to Associate

6. The Failed Economy

7. Competition

8. The Craze for Catchwords

9. Self-realization

10. Religion

11. Science

12. Consciousness of Reality

Human beings need communality on this Earth, just as in the Spirit they can, in the same way, only experience themselves in communality!

Communality in external life means: – uniting what is yours as ‘opinion’ in such a way with the ‘opinions’ of others that communal property develops from the opinions of all.

Every individual has a different ‘opinion’ through which one makes comprehensible for oneself the many catches of one’s thinking which have become one’s own.

Yet each individual’s ‘opinion’ can be united with someone else’s, and thus communality comes into being.

Everyone then shares in the ‘opinion’ of others, and so the opinion-by-all takes shape: into what is communal.

Necessity, however, causes people to seek the communal even where an otherwise binding ‘opinion’ is absent, – particularly with respect to averting suffering which to everyone’s ‘opinion’ is very hard to bear…

And so nowadays the most comprehensive communality exists through general dissatisfaction.

Only a few will be excluded in this respect.

Dissatisfaction primarily applies to the forms which human community life created for its own security even though this security sometimes means ruin for the individual.

Here dissatisfaction is very often justified!

It is folly to establish community life without concern for the well-being of the individual who is the building block of the whole and who can only joyfully serve the community if it serves him in his upkeep.

It is, however, equally foolish for an individual to misjudge oneself and believe in one’s right to demand the services of the community for oneself simply because of one’s existence, either on account of one’s special position or to meet with the privations of one’s life…

I do not mean the same thing when I speak of ‘community’ and of ‘communality’!

Things belonging to the community do not belong to me, – but the things I have communally with others, do.

Above all ‘community’ for me is: – an external aggregation whereas ‘communality’ concerns the soul. –

And so the individual cannot make a claim upon the community to share with one the riches belonging to it simply for the sake of one’s existence!

One must oneself become a ‘fellow owner’ of community property through one’s own contribution, – the value the community allocates to one’s contribution will decide one’s ‘claim’.

It is nonsense to demand a different measure of value in this respect!

The community will always value highly the things it would miss were they denied it.

How could one expect it to value a talent which is found in abundance as highly as the unique contribution which it needs!? –

It cannot be different in any form of community!

And so an individual may be right to feel dissatisfied with the community, – yet the community is no less within its rights.

If you seek to contribute certain things which the community lacks, it will then guarantee you ‘co-ownership’ of its possessions commensurate with its enrichment through your contribution. –

The factor by which your contribution is valued determines your remuneration! –

If, however, you say that you cannot contribute what the community needs, you are admitting your own incapacity and cannot complain if you are not offered any part of it where you do not impart or contribute anything of value. –

There is little use in complaining that the community has not sufficient ‘vision’ to value your contribution according to your own criteria. – –

Communality shows itself in a different way!

Here what you have to contribute is appreciated as testimony to your abilities even if it were never missed, and at the same time you will be expected to respect the contributions of others provided they are commensurate with their power to achieve.

You will be offered as much help as possible; but one will also build upon your help wherever you can help.

First and foremost the question will be asked: who are you?! –

Community asks only about your contribution, – communality asks about the whole person!

It is only where community is not satisfied with its form but raises itself to communality of the soul that all dissatisfaction will disappear, – nevertheless, inequality must continue to exist as it is conditioned by nature and spirit of necessity! – –

Our community life is made ill through the hardening of those arteries which should carry blood for its upkeep…

It will only be healed if it allows itself to be gradually transformed into true communality!

Even now people think they bear or have so much ‘communally’, – yet the word communal is a mere token and what it really denotes is all too often missing. –

Still people are far from respecting the ‘opinion’ of others because it represents what is ‘theirs’: – because it represents their property!

Still people’s contributions are valued everywhere by their material, momentary ability to add value; a person is left unappreciated until one’s contribution is required and the community remunerates one for it.

Many things are still missing for communality to grow out of community! – –

The individual within communality is fully aware of one’s own worth and gains from this self-awareness all the respect one allows to another person.

One knows one can only come nearer to one’s own development to the extent that one is trying to help others to attain their self-development.

‘Communality’ demands genuine freedom within the structure of necessity, whereas ‘community’ can never prevent one falling prey to the specter of freedom!

Communality evens out all opposites, for it knows the trivial is no less embedded in necessity than that which towers over the masses!

The communality of the soul finds its first sphere of influence within the family.

Blessed are the members of the family who know how to make use of it!

This sphere of influence then spreads out beyond the borough, country and nations…

It offers space and growth to all human life!

It can ensure true freedom to all within the structure of necessity!

If freedom is communal to all, no one will any longer seek to take it from another.

It is assured as an unthreatened ‘possession’ of every individual!

It has become a possession – it is no longer the dream of yearning!

Therefore no one can any longer be led astray into chasing after the specter of freedom; where encountered, one will good humoredly turn his back on it.

Then no one will think that one’s freedom has been diminished if necessity teaches one to subordinate oneself, along with many others, to a will where communality unites the wills of many! – –

The very origin of plurality is unity, – but it is also the crowning moment of plurality!

Only under unity can true freedom in plurality be preserved!

Yet unity remains rigid and sterile if it does not transcend a plurality united with it! –

From plurality rises unity in order to unite plurality within it!

Thus communality perfects itself! –

Thus communality builds itself into a pyramid and crowns itself in its supreme unity! – –

Choice and arbitrariness, however, may not decide what only true freedom can establish here!

And only subordinated and integrated into totality may the individual become the carrier of that unity from which communality arises from itself once perfected in itself! –

This ends Part 3 of 12

Part 3 — In this section, Bô Yin Râ confirms the absolute and fundamental necessity of human beings living together on earth, not in isolation, but as parts of the entire human race. “No man is an island,” as poet John Donne once wrote. But he distinguishes two distinct levels. The first level he calls “community,” which operates on a strict principle of reciprocity—individuals are valued according to their specific contributions. “Community,” however, is easily abused by entry of the “Specter of Freedom.” We see this everywhere today in forces intent on destroying real community through selfishness and violence. But there is a higher level which Bô Yin Râ calls “communality” and which operates through the human soul, where every individual is valued for their innate quality of being. The model for real communality is a fully functioning human family. At this level, humanity can move toward unity in its relationships and activities, away from tribalism and “the war of each against all.” The alternative is recognition, expressed in the famous 1955 book, of “The Family of Man.”

Part 1 of 12: “Mirage”

Part 2 of 12: "Necessity"

“The Specter of Freedom” is Book 13 of the Hortus Conclusus: the standard-translation© of the Hortus Conclusus (The Enclosed Garden), encompassing the spiritual teachings in thirty-two books by Bô Yin Râ. (Bô Yin Râ is the spiritual name of Joseph Anton Schneiderfranken 1876-1943.)

All rights, copyrights included, reserved by Posthumus Projects Amsterdam, 2014. Posthumus Projects Amsterdam is responsible for this standard-translation©. Posthumus Projects Amsterdam has provided general permission for reprinting and transmission of its publications with attribution. Edited for Three Sages.