Monaciello, The

An Encyclopaedia of Occultism (1920)

The Monaciello or Little Monk seems to have lived exclusively in that portion of Southern Italy called Naples. The precise place where he dwelt does not appear to be accurately known, but it is supposed to have been in the remains of Abbeys and Monasteries. When the Monaciello appeared to mortals, it was always at the dead of night; and then only to those who were in sorest need, who themselves had done all that mortal could do to prevent or alleviate the distress that had befallen them, and after all humain aid had failed. Then it was that the Monk appeared, and mutely beckoning them to follow, he led them to where treasure was concealed-stipulating no conditions for its expenditure, demanding no promise of repayment, exacting no duty or service in return. Men have vainly asked, was it actual treasure he gave, or did it merely appear so to the external senses, to be changed into leaves or stones when the day and the occasion of its requirement had passed? And if actual treasure, how did it come in the place of its concealment, and by whom was it there deposited ? In Germany , the wood-spirit Rubezahl performed similar acts of beneficence and kindness to poor and deserving, persons and the money he gave proved to be, or passed for the current coin of the realm; while in Ireland , the O'Donoghue, who dwelt beneath the waters of an inland lake, and rode over its surface on a steed white as the foam of its waves, distributed treasures that proved genuine to the good, but spurious to the undeserving. Monad is a theosophical term which literally means a unit (Greek Monas). The Monad is frequently described as a "Divine Spark," and this impression is particularly apt, for it is a part of the Logos, the Divine Fire. The Logos has three aspects, Will, Wisdom and Activity, and, since the Monad is part of the Logos, it also has these three aspects It abides continually in its appropriate world, the monadic, but, that the divine evolutionary purposes may be carried out, its ray is borne downwards through the various spheres of matter when the outpouring of the third life wave takes place. It first passes into the Spiritual Sphere by clothing itself with an atom of spiritual matter and thus manifests itself in an atomic body, as a spirit possessing three aspects. When it passes into the next sphere, the Intuitional, it leaves its aspect of Will behind and in the Intuitional Sphere, appears in an Intuitional body as a spirit possessing the aspects of Wisdom and Activity. On passing in turn, from this sphere to the next the higher mental, it leaves the aspect of Wisdom behind, and appears in a casual body as a spirit possessing the aspect of activity. To put this somewhat abstruse doctrine in another form, the Monad has, at this stage, manifested itself in three spheres. In the spiritual it has transfused spirit with Will, in the Intuitional it has transfused spirit with Wisdom, and in the higher Mental it has transfused spirit with Activity or Intellect, and it is now a human ego, corresponding approximately to the common term soul," an ego which, despite all changes, remains the same until eventually the evolutionary purpose is fulfilled and it is received back again into the Logos. From the higher mental sphere the Monad descends to the lower mental sphere and appears in a mental body as possessing mind, then betakes itself to the astral sphere and appears in the astral body as possessing emotions, and finally to the hhysical sphere and appears in a physical body as possessing vitality. These three lower bodies, the 66 mental, the astral, and the physical, constitute the human personality which dies at death and is renewed when the Monad, in fulfilment of the process of reincarnation, again manifests itself in these bodies. (See Theosophy, Evolution, Sphere, Life Waves, Monadic Sphere, Logos.)