Many of the subjects on this website involve the balance between two aspects or qualities. However, there is a balance between three significant inner qualities (a trinity) that we need if we are to ensure a wholesome balance in our lives. A good introduction to this subject is the book From Confucius to Oz by Vernon Crawford (1). Here is an extract from the book’s dust cover: “Why Confucius to Oz? Because proper exercise of Wisdom, Benevolence and Courage – the three Confucian virtues that the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman and the Cowardly Lion were seeking in The Wizard of Oz – can make you a more successful person in business and in life.” This book has many practical exercises to help balance the three qualities.

This theme of an inner trinity is also covered in the esoteric teachings of Theosophy. In his book Space, Time and Self (2), E. Norman Pearson describes it as follows: “… we see that thinking results in the acquisition of knowledge. Feelings gradually awaken love, and the experiences and activities of the physical vehicle, difficult as they are, call forth the power of will to overcome the difficulties and to express the powers of the Self in physical action. So we see that fleeting thoughts, passing emotions and many physical activities, all of which come and go without permanence, give rise to the Divine powers of Knowledge, Love and Will, which once acquired can never be lost.” These 3 qualities are basically the same as those in the first paragraph.

Threefold Flame The great significance of these three particular qualities is highlighted in this quote from the page Your Higher Self /The Mighty I AM Presence from the Teachings section of the Ascended Master Network (www.summitlighthouse.org): “The threefold flame of Life is the divine spark sent from the I AM Presence as the gift of life, consciousness, and free will. It is sealed in the secret chamber of the heart that through the Love, Wisdom and Power of the Godhead anchored therein the soul may fulfill her reason for being in the physical plane. Also called the Christ flame and the liberty flame, or fleur-de-lis, it is the spark of a man’s Divinity, his potential for Christhood.” (Picture and text reprinted with permission. Copyright © 2000, Summit University Press. All rights reserved.) These teachings refer to the Divinity within us, and they also relate these three qualities to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.(The “secret chamber of the heart” is a special chakra which is close to the heart chakra.)

The bottom line is that all 3 of these qualities need to be fairly balanced before we can make real progress in any endeavour, and it makes sense. If you have strong will power but little wisdom or compassion, you’ll become a tyrant. And no matter how much love you have, without wisdom and will power you’re likely to become a soppy doormat. The thing is, if you really love deeply enough you’ll make the effort to become balanced in the other two in order for your love to be most effective. The Kabbalah teaches something similar. The Tree of Life has three pillars. The extreme opposites of the left Pillar of Judgement (or Severity) and the right Pillar of Mercy are balanced by the centre Pillar of Compassion (or Equilibrium). “The balancing and harmonizing of the extremes of Mercy and Judgement through Compassion is what sustains our world.”(3).

Balance is the sign of mastery and the outpicturing of our divine potential. According to Elizabeth Clare Prophet, the definition of the Christ Consciousness is when your threefold flame is perfectly balanced. The Ascended Masters also teach that the lowest of the three plumes holds the other two back. So without bringing all of them into a fairly good balance keeps our flame from expanding. And its size determines our spiritual maturity. After all, that is who we really are, in essence. It is the “true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” (John 1:9) Balancing our threefold flame is also a requirement for the ascension, which is the goal of life.

“We have spoken to you during this conference of the balancing of the threefold flame in the heart and of increasing that threefold flame when it is balanced. It is necessary that you do this. It is necessary that you understand that your salvation lies in balancing that flame and in fanning that fire. No matter what else you do in each twenty-four-hour cycle, see to it that you work with the plume that is the weakest.” – Sanat Kumara. (Pearls of Wisdom Vol. 42 No. 10 pg. 86. Copyright © Summit University Press. All rights reserved.)

So how do we become balanced? We first need to look objectively at our strengths and weaknesses. This is not always easy or desirable, and often requires the help of others. It can be helpful to work on personal psychology or to get your natal astrology analysed by a spiritual astrologer. Worldly astrologers usually misuse the art through dubious fortune telling. There is also a good exercise from Summit University that can help you assess the balance of your “threefold flame”. (see www.summituniversity.org). They also have specific prayers and spiritual exercises to balance it. There are also some books on the subject, included below. But the bottom line is, don’t get too tied up in self-analysis. If you’re serious about getting balanced, find out basically what is needed, and then just do it!

References:

1. From Confucius to Oz by Vernon Crawford (Donald I. Fine Inc., New York, 1988).
2. A Trilogy on the Threefold Flame of Life, which is Book Three of Saint Germain on Alchemy recorded by Mark and Elizabeth Prophet (Summit University Press).
3. Kabbalah: Key To Your Inner Power (Pg 34) by Elizabeth Clare Prophet (Summit University Press).