We have done our best to display the colors. There will, of course, be differences in your monitors, software and other technical aspects. These variations will cause the colors to be different.

When reading a color definition, pay close attention to the description of the color. If you believe what you are reading and what you are seeing are not the same, go with the color description. Adjust the color in your mind’s eye or replicate it in color on white paper with pencils or crayons, etc.

If you want more precise colors, we have colorists who will duplicate colors for you by hand. This is not a free service and you will have to contact our e-mail address and request the service. You will be put in contact with a colorist to make the necessary arrangements.
 
 

Why Use Color?

It is available, it is free, it is easy, it works.  It is a fun and creative way to help yourself and others.  It  requires no belief system, only practice and consistency.

How Is Color Helpful?

Its consistent application can make corrective changes in people, situations, and conditions that bring them into balance, which is the most positive, life affirming state possible.

How Does It Work?

There are more scientific and spiritually esoteric answers, but the easiest to understand is it introduces a new element into your life’s equation.  It can shift your focus.  Many times it is our own minds and emotions that are creating problems.  By giving ourselves a positive in the form of a color, we can block and dissolve a negative.  Try entertaining a positive color and a negative feeling at the same time.  It is a struggle, so just give over to the positive color. Color is food for the soul.

Think about how many times a beautifully clear, blue sky, or an amazing sunrise or an inspired work of art has lifted your spirits.  This was done subconsciously.  Imagine how much more powerful it is when you go about it on a conscious level, when you have educated yourself on the use of color.

How Do I Start Using Color?

Start with one or two colors that you are comfortable with in that they are easy for you to remember and imagine in your head.  If you find that difficult at first, make a copy of the color with crayons and have a sample with you on a small piece of paper that you can carry on your person.  Whenever a situation arises that would benefit from the color, use it.  For example #7 in the Arc of Psychological Red is rosy pink.  The definition is human love.  You can use it on yourself, others, or even situations.  If you want to make yourself more likable to others, think, feel or look at the color and imagine it surrounding you.  If you want to make another person feel more wanted, do what you would for yourself and then imagine the color going over to her/him.  The person need not be in close proximity to you.  Color travels at the speed of light.  You are not bound by distance.  If you are going to a party or on a job interview, send the color to the room you will be entering for a warmer reception.
 
 

What Colors Should I Start Using?

Begin with colors that are easy to remember both in definition and color.  Think of ways the color could be beneficial and use that color.  That means thinking, seeing, saying, sensing, imagining, looking at, or using anyway you can  to create the color. Then convey the color from you to something else.  When you have created the color, release it like a puff of smoke, mentally directing it to where you want it to go.  This is to be done effortlessly.  If you are straining, you are trying too hard.  You want to be a conduit for the color.  It should be as easy and natural as breathing in and breathing out.

What About Using Color on Others?

First it should be understood, if a peson does not want to receive color from you, it can be rejected.  This is all done on an invisible, subconscious level.  The color will return to its source, you.  You can beneficially send colors to others without their ever being aware of it.  It is the choice of the individual soul to receive the color or reject it.

When Will I Get Results?

Color is not a magic wand.  You do not wave a color over something, say an incantation and everything will be the way you want it.  You may get an immediate response, which is nice and reassuring, or you may have to wait.  If you go on a diet to improve your health by reducing the fats you eat, you will not see results immediately.  You may feel better as a result of  better digestion, but it may take a couple of weeks to see the pounds go away.  Many times what you want to improve may not be the first thing to change, but your attitude toward it will.  This will produce an improvement in itself as conditions rearrange themselves in the most positive, balanced way.

How Will I Know If  It Is Working?

Sometimes it will be obvious, many times it will not.  However, if you find yourself with more energy, more patience, and a better, more loving attitude toward yourself and others, if you are happier and feel freer with a better understanding of life with more forgiveness, it is working.

What Is Color Like?

Practicing using color as a way of life is like learning a foreign language.  If you are going on vacation and just want to learn a few words to make your journey more enjoyable, you can dabble with a couple of words and phrases.  If want to become more proficient and want to learn to speak in sentences or read and write the language, you must study to master the foreign tongue.  If you want to become an eloquent speaker and an inspired writer, you must immerse yourself in the language.  It is the same with learning the language of color. How long all this takes depends on you.

The one wonderful thing about color is you grow into it.  The main purpose for the creation of this color teaching is to put you on the road to self-discovery.  As you use color and learn to recreate the colors and memorize the definitions, you will find more ways to use it.  You will expand your life and thinking and enjoy what you are doing along the way.

What If  I Use the Wrong Color?

Learn to listen to your small inner voice.  If you get a twinge or a color just does not sit right with you, do not use it, but ask for inner guidance as to why you are having this reaction to it.  It may be you should be using another color, or it could be you might be reluctant to change.  Be trustful of yourself and the mighty power you are connected to, and ask for answers and listen.  If you are having trouble getting the color the right hue or tone, just work on it, and with practice you should succeed.  Some people are better colorists than others, but everyone can work and benefit from using color.

What Is a Plume?

It is a combination of colors.  Instead of a word of color, it is a whole sentence, even a paragraph.  Plumes are an advanced form of using color.  (As an aside, the reason they are called plumes, is that Mary Weddell, the woman who brought through the colors from an advanced state of consciousness, saw them in the form like a plume of swirling smoke.)

How Often Should I Use a Plume?

Twice a day, morning and evening is sufficient.  Small doses of  color may be used liberally throughout the day.  Intensely using color, for long durations, is to be discouraged when you first begin.  Overusing color can deplete you.  It is like exercise.  If you have never worked out, start slowly and increase your reps as you gain stamina, strength and flexibility.  You will know your tolerance level.  If you get highstrung or edgy, you have done too much.  Color should be a benefit.

Why Are the Colors Organized the Way They Are?

It is totally arbitrary.  It was the way they were given to Mary Weddell.  Many times you will see a color that looks more blue than green and it is in the greens, the same thing is true with the yellows, blues and reds.

Why Are Some of the Definitions Confusing?

Many of the spiritual colors have very deep meanings that are revealed to the students as they grow in the use of the colors.  The definitions can be expanded upon, but never changed upon direct order of Mary Weddell.  We may find different meanings for ourselves, but when teaching a definition it must be verbatim.

What Is an Auric Viewing?

It is a way to use color to learn more about yourself.  While auric viewings  may be fun to do, when made over a period of time, they are quite revealing   Patterns will emerge, teaching you a lot about yourself and what colors to use for self-improvement.

What Is The Color Channel?

It is a way to meditate and develop in color.  If you are able to grow in the qualities represented by the colors in The Color Channel, you will well be on the path to finding your best self.

How Often Should I Climb the Color Channel?

When we use The Channel we refer to it as "climbing".  This is because we start at the bottom and work our way up the colors.  The Channel should be used before your first meditation of the day and  once before you go to sleep for best results.
 
 

Dedication

Copyright

List of Illustrations

Publisher's Preface

Introduction

MARY’S CHALLENGE AND PHILOSOPHY

Chapter 1: THE DEVELOPMENT OF CREATIVE COLOR

Chapter 2: EMANATIONS OF COLOR WITHIN THE HUMAN FRAMEWORK

Chapter 3: AURIC COLORS AND THEIR MEANINGS

Chapter 4: PUTTING COLOR TO WORK

Chapter 5: SOME NOTES ON AURIC VIEWINGS

Chapter 6: EXCERPTS FROM THE PERTINENT WRITINGS OF MARY, GEORGE, AND MIRIAM

LIST OF WRITINGS

GLOSSARY

Guide to Meanings and Descriptions of Color Rays

ADDENDA
 
 

The information provided in this book is not meant to replace the services of a physician nor is it intended as a substitute for personal medical care.

This book incorporates the Original Course in Creative Color Analysis by Mary Dies Weddell, as taught and illustrated by Miriam B. Willis.

Copyright © 1988, 1999, Spiritual Church of Ataraxia, Inc., The Essene Fellowship of Peace.

All rights reserved.

You are permitted to copy and archive Creative Color: Understanding and Using the Energies of Color, as well as distribute to third parties such copies as you make of Creative Color, provided that all such copies contain the same copyright notice as are on the original file of Creative Color, and provided further that you do not sell, transmit, or otherwise dispose of any copy for compensation or as part of a commercial offer. You agree not to translate, modify, or make derivative works from text or illustrations of Creative Color without prior written consent from the board of directors of the Essene Fellowship of Peace.

Illustrations copyright © 1984, Spiritual Church of Ataraxia, Inc.

Permission was given by Constance E. Smith to publish excerpts from the writings of Mary D. Weddell, George W. Weddell, M.D. and from Miriam B. Willis.

First edition titled Creative Color: An analysis and Synthesis of Useful Color Knowledge. Copyright © 1988, 1999, Spiritual Church of Ataraxia, Inc., The Essene Fellowship of Peace.

All rights reserved.

Website: http://www.creativecolor.org

Mailing Address:

Essene Fellowship of Peace

4212 E. Los Angeles Ave.

PMB 3428

Simi Valley, CA 93063
 
 

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 88-81957

1. The Relationship of the Inner Channel to the Aura

2. The Inner Channel

3. The Psychological Arc of Green

4. The Psychological Arc of Blue

5. The Psychological Arc of Yellow

6. The Psychological Arc of Red

7. The Spiritual Arc of Green

8. The Spiritual Arc of Blue

9. The Spiritual Arc of Yellow

10. The Spiritual Arc of Red

11. The Spiritual Arc of Purple

12. Structure of a Color Plume

13. Color Plume "To Reduce Tension"

14. Color Plume "To Overcome Criticism"

15. "The Lord’s Prayer" in Color
 
 

Three people merged their talents to receive and share the color knowledge that this book documents. Dr. George and Mary Weddell, students of ancient wisdom, were both clairvoyant and saw colors. They experimented for many years with these colors while seeking and testing the relationships and meanings of those colors they saw inside and outside the human body. Miriam B. Willis, who was clairaudient, received additional material as she worked to illustrate the colors Mary saw. Thus began, under Mary’s guidance, Miriam’s work of teaching this knowledge.

Each was prepared for their unique contribution by early life experiences and training. Each was sustained by a great faith that they were commissioned to bring this truth to humanity in the most accurate form possible. Each of their lives provided opportunities to prove the effectiveness of Creative Color.

Because their work has been beneficial and of great value to thousands, in America and abroad, we feel it should be available to all persons interested in the use of color in personal growth and healing. Factual information and first-hand experiences of teachers and students form the basis for this shared knowledge.

The Essene Fellowship of Peace approaches exoteric and esoteric Christianity in a flexible and nondenominational manner. It welcomes all seekers of truth. Fellowship members attempt to live and share the wisdom of early Essene Teachings. The Fellowship believes that Jesus was raised by Mary and Joseph, who were Essenes themselves.

Much material in this book is taken from the extended knowledge of ancient languages, esoteric truth and inspired guidance of Mary Weddell, mentor and master teacher. Mary believed that the knowledge of long-lost color meanings revealed to her and her development in the skill of using color were harmonious with what Jesus taught the disciples when he took them apart and taught them many things.

This book was prepared under the guidance of high spiritual beings by Miriam Willis and a committee of Fellowship members who are also ordained ministers and certified teachers of the color material. Our deep thanks go to all who have cooperated in the preparation of this book publication.

We welcome all readers seeking this knowledge and willingly share the color wisdom that we have, because we have benefited from its use. It is hoped that this book can assist others in pursuing and extending the knowledge of color and its usefulness to humanity.

The Essene Fellowship of Peace is a group of seekers who practice using Color as a means to better understanding the relationship with oneself, others and God. We want to pass on this tradition and share the knowledge with you.

Color can be thought of as a language. As with any language, you can get by with learning a few words or make it a life-long study in an attempt to master the language. So it is with Color. When beginning to learn the Color language, you can pick a few colors and use them to bring harmony to a person, situation or self. For example, the color of human love is a rosy pink. You can project that color, either through creating it in the mind’s eye or directly looking at the color, into a room you will be entering. You will receive a more cordial reception. As you go on, the study becomes deeper and more complex. Be patient and learn at your own speed.

If you have any questions, please contact us via our Website: http://www.creativecolor.org

or

Mailing Address:

Essene Fellowship of Peace

4212 E. Los Angeles Ave.

PMB 3428

Simi Valley, CA 93063

We will do our best to answer them. Please bear in mind these colors are a mere three-dimensional representation of a fourth-dimensional concept. Color vibrates in this world and beyond.

Consider that it may be a stroke of Divine Guidance that led you to this website.

Love-in-Radiant-Living-Color.

THE ESSENE FELLOWSHIP OF PEACE
 
 

After Mary Weddell’s transition, she gave the following message through Miriam Willis to graduating Color teachers. It is applicable to all who read this book.
 
 

Beloved ones, I would speak to you all from the depths of my heart. I would remind you that the power and strength that you build in the Christ center of your being comes to you through the faithful climbing of the beautiful colorful Channel of your being, that lighted path that is the way, the truth and the life. And, you will say to me or others will say to you, And what is it that you say is colorful? Why do you not just call the path the lighted path? Is that not sufficient? Beloved ones, it is truly all-sufficient, but the great Christ in this world is the light of the world. And His great emanation of light here o’ershadows, in truth, in infinite love, your earth. But the Christ light is a purity beyond all conception, and you must grow the Christ within you to touch it. In the greatness of His love to you, He knows that He cannot send the whole of His being, and He provides you with the color rays which are resplendent in this heaven world.

Dear ones, these color rays hold within them the healing powers, the virtuous traits that overcame the world. Many of you are privileged to have been trained as healers in this pathway of color light and the gracious rays of the higher vibrations of the colors you have learned, yes, hundreds of them. You must in your life refresh your being with the knowledge of the quality of healing in these colors, for the world is sick and needs much healing . . . and more healers. How dare you know the right colors to use if you do not lift your whole being into the Christ Channel to the higher dimensions and listen, ever listen, to the guidance of His spirit to help you to know the harmonic flow of colors needed for the specific cause and intent of your prayers?

Be faithful, dear ones, be faithful in joy and the beauty of color, in the graciousness of its enfoldment about you. And use the climbing meditative journey upward of your Channel morning and evening to strengthen the soul power of your being, the Christ center that can blossom in you. This is my heart’s desire for you because I know that color is a pathway for the saving of the world, even though there are thousands of people who do not know it. There will be a great burst of light through the scientists as well as through the religionists and the spiritual beings of the earth to bring this into blossoming.

Are you pioneers, among the first to spread the good news of this marvelous gift to change the world? He is, indeed, through you, each one contributing to the whole, the great Creator of all that you see of beauty and of usefulness about you. And so He brings unto you a great blessing of peace and the joy and the developing power in color rays that you know so well to use.

My love overshadows you, my very dear ones, like my own children. God bless you.

The story of this unusual trio begins with the birth of George Washington Weddell in 1881, on a farm near Ashland, Ohio. A middle child in a family of eight, George was a sunny boy with red-gold curls, big blue eyes, an infectious grin, and precocious beyond his years. By the age of ten he was interested in chemistry and attended lectures open to the public but usually attended only by adults. At eighteen he began teaching in a country school near the farm, while riding his horse to Ashland to take trigonometry and other classes preparatory to entering college. It took two years of teaching to save the money to study to be an osteopathic physician.

One summer, during their school vacation, George and another student accompanied a patient to Germany to care for him and see him settled. In return they were to receive round-trip tickets and room and board along the way. When they arrived in Germany, the man disappeared, leaving them with neither money nor tickets. While earning their passage back, George and his friend attended a lecture by a famous German doctor who practiced what was called "bloodless surgery." He was demonstrating a case of hip dislocation. The common practice at that time for a dislocation of that kind was surgery. The doctor looked into the circle of students around him and pointed to George, saying, "You with the blue eyes, come and assist me." George stayed longer than he had planned and learned many innovative techniques for the manipulation of bones and joints. Throughout his career, George was always open to new ideas and methods. After completing the osteopathic course, he took a job teaching anatomy at Drake University to pay his way while studying for a medical degree. He eventually became an accredited physician and surgeon, both a doctor of osteopathy and a medical doctor. It was during those years of study and teaching that he met and married Mary Dies.
 
 
 
 

One of George's many talents was a beautiful tenor voice and a lifelong love of music. In 1904 he and an older brother joined a chorus assembled for the Welsh festival eisteddfod. His brother became interested in a vivacious, blonde soprano. As it happened, her older sister, Mary, was singing contralto and the four became close friends.

George had the demeanor of a troubadour—laughing, singing, telling jokes and playing pranks. Mary was George's opposite: diminutive where he was robust, with thick, dark-auburn hair, sparkling brown eyes, a quiet, self-effacing manner and a tendency to take life just a bit too seriously. Mary adored George on sight, but never fully comprehended what he saw in such a shy little brown wren, as she thought herself to be. This tendency not to see her own uniqueness and merit and to be embarrassed by attention and adulation was to follow her throughout her life.

She entered the world as Mary Elizabeth Dies in 1886 in Santa Ana, California, but she and her five siblings were raised in Des Moines, Iowa. Her father was a skilled cabinet-maker and house builder. He traveled throughout Iowa building groups of houses, forerunners of our modern housing tracts. Mary's mother, the consummate matriarch, raised six foster children as well as her own six and helped to raise several of Mary's generation as well. This family provided fertile ground for Mary's innate psychic abilities, as both of her parents were "sensitives" in their own right. It was a boisterous, energetic, intellectual and creative family, where Mary, like her quiet, dreaming father, was often to be found in the background. Early on, Mary saw lights around people and was very sensitive to changes of mood and feeling in others. Her sensibilities were never discouraged, but neither were they given an explanation or frame of reference.

Mary's classical education included Latin, Greek, and Egyptian hieroglyphics. In addition, her study of opera taught her to sing and read French and Italian. All of these languages were to be of assistance in later years as she became a serious biblical scholar. After high school, Mary entered a music conservatory in Des Moines to study piano for a music certificate. The culmination of this effort was to take place several years later, when she was chosen to perform for the Boston Conservatory of Music.

It was a year after their first meeting that George was able to persuade Mary that he was as enamored of her as she was of him. They were married when she was nineteen and he twenty-four, temporarily moving in with her parents. This beginning was to set the dominant pattern of their lives; multi-generational living in houses filled with people of a variety of relationships. Dr. George, as he was called, had only one known regret in this union—a periodic yearning to have his Mary to himself. In 1906, a year after their marriage, Mary gave birth to their only child, Constance. To Mary's sorrow and deep regret, she was never able to have more children. Mary's strong maternal instincts, combined with spiritual power, were, however, to make her a mother figure to dozens of people throughout her life.

By early 1912 Dr. George and Mary each had a brother living in Seattle, Washington, urging them to move west. Later that year they did so and it didn't take long for Mary's parents to follow suit. Dr. George took over part of a medical practice from a doctor who was in failing health at the time. They moved in with the doctor's family and were hardly settled in their new life when Mary suddenly awoke one morning unable to walk. Her legs were completely paralyzed. Many doctors examined her, including the Mayo brothers, who were in Seattle attending a convention. The cause was never determined, but it was suspected that infected tonsils had poisoned her system. The doctors could offer no cure and little hope for her recovery.

Dr. George and Mary, however, never lost faith in her ultimate release from this prison. To understand her agony, it is necessary to examine how she had been used to spending her time: caring for Constance, running a large household, making her own and her child's clothes, moving frequently, usually redecorating and making curtains, entertaining elegantly and paying for a portion of the family expenses by teaching piano. All of a sudden she couldn't walk, couldn't sit at her beloved piano and life went on around her but without her. To pass the time and keep up her spirits, a missionary friend who had recently returned from the Middle East taught her Sanskrit, and from that root she studied Aramaic and ancient Hebrew. This afforded her an opportunity to read the Bible in the King James version, in Latin, in Greek, in Aramaic and in ancient Hebrew, and to read the ancient writings that pre-date but relate to the text. This journey through time was to give her a perspective of Christianity both historical and essential, the ability to sort that which changes with time from the underlying spiritual truths which remain constant. In addition, her study of the Essenes of Jesus' time was to influence a great deal her approach to religious expression.

Mary bore her affliction for nearly a year, but some months into this period something strange happened. One night the nurse found Mary standing by the window looking out. Wisely, she didn't awaken Mary, but observed her returning to the bed. After this incident, Mary began to dream over and over that she was walking, but continued to walk only in her sleep.

During this time, Mary began to see white light and then color swirling around her, first in a rainbow pattern and then in shifting, ever-changing patterns of light surrounding her. She began to perceive that when this happened she felt better. She asked in prayer for the meaning of this phenomenon and was gradually given the meanings of the colors. The first meanings came through automatic writing. She soon learned to enter the higher dimensions to learn the meanings and bring them back, one at a time. Over time, through her acceptance of the healing rays or color and the sleep-walking, feeling began to return to her legs and she was able to stand, then to walk first a few steps, and then gradually at a normal pace. Given the richness of learning and experience during that year of confinement, one cannot help but wonder if it was not a necessary respite in her busy life to allow her to obtain the tools with which to meet her destiny.

After Mary's recovery, Dr. George leased a large building in Seattle and equipped it as a convalescent hospital. This was the beginning of their collaboration in health care and in experimentation with the use of color. Mary would sometimes view a patient and note areas of the aura that were gray or discolored. She would mentally send specific colors to the patient's aura depending on the diagnosis of what was needed. Often, she was not in the presence of patients at all, but clairvoyantly saw them and so pinpointed the areas of difficulty.

Independent from her information, Dr. George made his own diagnosis on medical grounds. Even that early in his career he was highly regarded as a diagnostician. He added a rare kind of psychic ability of his own. He could literally see through the human body so that if there were a misshapen organ, an extra growth, discolored or blocked organs or blood vessels, he was able to see them with the inner eye as well as to diagnose from symptoms. He was active as a surgeon and throughout his life had a remarkable record for patient survival, both during and after surgery. One reason was that his ability to see into the body also enabled him to tell whether or not a patient could withstand the stress of surgery. On all of his surgical patients, he and Mary would deduce separately when the time was propitious and then together set the date and time, using color healing in the interim to better prepare the patient for the trauma of the surgery.

Before holistic medicine was even a seed in the mind of today's medical community, Dr. George and Mary treated the whole person, guided by attunement with God Power. These two individuals possessed a rare affinity beyond that of a conventional, happily married couple, an affinity of mind and spirit which made their collaboration far more than the sum of its parts.

These early years, beginning in Seattle, were the testing ground for color as a therapeutic technique, and Mary was able to be involved directly with the work. Their daughter, Constance, was interested in art from an early age and Mary, who had had no artistic training or aptitude, used her child's watercolors to show Dr. George the colors she was seeing and using as they discussed a particular case.

Mary saw the colors leaving her in the form of a feather. Thus, she used the word plume for combinations of colors arranged like blocks, one upon the other, in specific sequences. This term and configuration of colors is still used by her students today. Before her teaching days, these plumes were of a temporary nature, as she could carry all the visual and verbal images in her mind and color was a constant, ever changing part of her visual universe.

There have been others who could see and read auras. Few, however, have had the ability to read the physical, mental-emotional, and spiritual fields simultaneously, as Mary did. She was able to differentiate between colors that were pertinent to the psychology of the individual in contrast to those that would affect the spiritual side of the nature, as well as to see the holes, gray areas, or indications of imbalance that signaled physical disease.

Early in her work she formed a method of working that was either charming or frustrating to the recipients, depending upon their own psychological stance. She was a great storyteller and became known as the "story-telling lady" at a large children's hospital in Seattle, where the children adored her. She also told stories to the adult patients—usually homespun, sometimes humorous, and frequently unrelated to the listener in any discernible way. At the same time, she would read the aura, note imbalances and channel energy and color to the needy condition of the listener. People were drawn to her and remarked how much better they felt after seeing her, but few had any idea of what she was actually doing.

In 1916 Dr. George, Mary and her parents purchased and began operating a sanitarium at Soap Lake, Washington. This facility was close to the banks of the lake. The patients came primarily for the mineral baths. They were immersed in the mud up to their necks and were given mineral water from the natural springs to drink. There are still sanitariums of this type in the area. Dr. George and Mary continued their study and use of color throughout this period of their lives.

Mary focused primarily on the spiritual rather than on physical health in the teaching of color, reflecting her own spiritual evolution. Although she was brought up in the Episcopal Church, her natural philosophical and spiritual leanings, as well as those of her parents, generated a wide exploration of spiritual systems of thought. Before leaving Des Moines, the family was well versed in Theosophy and studied and contributed to the "Great Work" series of books. Upon moving to Seattle, they broadened this knowledge and joined a group simply called "The Brotherhood." This connection was to follow Mary throughout the balance of her life, even though the group was spiritually directed to disperse worldwide some years later. This preparation and her subsequent study of religious works written in ancient languages were to give her a universal perspective on what "Christ Consciousness" truly is.

While Mary and Dr. George were continuing to develop their work with color, Miriam Barr Willis was beginning her period of service as an Episcopal Sister in Canada. This remarkable lady began her life in 1895 in London, Ontario, as the youngest in a family of seven children. Her artistic abilities evidenced early and were expressed through drawing and playing the piano. The family lived a proper, genteel city life until Miriam was ten, when her father decided to move the family to Alberta in order to take advantage of free land under the homestead provisions of the day. Much optimistic government advertising had assured the adventurous easterners that snow in the West was nearly nonexistent and the overall weather picture ideal.

Six months before the ladies of the family left Ontario, Miriam's father and brothers traveled west to build a new home. They erected a large, two-story house, expecting to duplicate the amenities of their usual life style. In fact, the transportation of furniture and household goods, even including a modern furnace, required two railway cars. The ranch was seventy miles from the nearest railroad, requiring their possessions to be transferred to wagons for the remainder of the trip. The rest of the family arrived in November, and, as a portent of events to come, had to wait until a blizzard passed to begin the last leg of their journey.

The next seven years were often harsh, with drought, blizzards and prairie fire a frequent threat. However, being a happy family of adventurous personalities, the freedom and fun of outdoor life held great appeal. Miriam rode horseback frequently and fell occasionally. One of these falls, at age fifteen, resulted in a serious injury to the spine, causing paralysis. For a time she couldn't move sufficiently to take the arduous journey to seek medical care. When the paralysis partially passed, her brother made her a set of crutches, and it was lucky he did. Before the family had a chance to get help for Miriam, a prairie fire was upon them. As it headed straight for the house, Miriam hobbled out to a plowed field with her mother, who carried as many of the household goods as she was able. Her father and brothers desperately fought the fire, while Miriam and her mother sat in the field and prayed. At the last moment the wind shifted and spared the house. Some livestock were lost, and much of the surrounding land was made useless for grazing.

Once this crisis had passed, Miriam was sent to the hospital, a trip consisting of seventy miles by wagon and eighteen hours on the train. One of her early psychic experiences occurred at this time. She was lying on her back at night and could see a star outside the window of her hospital room. The star spoke to her and told her she would recover and devote her life to missionary work. Miriam felt this to be true. The idea was not foreign to her, as the family were devout Episcopalians and prayed together daily. Miriam received treatment all summer in the hospital; then in the autumn she convalesced at her eldest sister's home. By the time she was ready to return home, she was able to walk without assistance. However, her spine was twisted in such a way that her lower back became a lifelong problem for her.

When it was time to return home, there was no money to pay her fare. Miriam's family decided to sell one of the cows that had never been a cooperative giver of milk. Mrs. Willis was very worried that the cow would act in her usual manner when the buyer came to look her over. She stood at the window and prayed while the transaction, including a milking demonstration, was progressing. To everyone's amazement the cow never so much as switched her tail from start to finish. The family was paid the exact amount of Miriam's fare home. Miriam's trip home was uneventful until her trunk would not fit into the wagon and had to be left temporarily in town. Miriam had promised her sister not to tell that the trunk was loaded with fresh fruit as a surprise for the family. By the time the trunk was recovered, the fruit had frozen, then melted and ruined all of her clothes. But Miriam had kept her word that the gift would be a surprise.

Shortly after her return, Miriam's father took a job in Castor, Alberta, as manager of several lumber yards. The family left the ranch and never returned. They moved again to Calgary, but by then Miriam had left them, going to Toronto as nurse to her pregnant sister-in-law. Three of Miriam's brothers were in Toronto also, two of them at Trinity College. There Miriam met Jack, the man she was to love all of her life. This love was not to come to fruition, for World War I interfered. Jack joined the army and was sent to England and subsequently to France. Miriam learned later from her brother George that Jack had had a premonition of his own death and for this reason had not declared his love. He was killed in action not long after arriving in France.

It is at this point in the story that the invisible threads that interwove the lives of Dr. George, Mary, and Miriam began their tapestry. One of Miriam's brothers was sent on scholarship to a theological seminary in New York and took a job as assistant to the rector of St. Anne's Church in the Bronx. The rector was to later become the Episcopal bishop of Los Angeles and his wife's sister, Edith, the link by which the three principals of the story were finally joined. Miriam's brother was strongly attracted to Edith and she to him. Because of their friendship, Miriam was invited to visit Edith's family in New Canaan, Connecticut, and the two girls became and remained close friends.

Because of the war, Miriam's family dispersed to several widely separated locations. Miriam remained in Toronto, working as a governess. It was at this time that she met the administrator of the hospital run by the Sisters of St. John the Divine. She became interested in enrolling in the nursing school. However, the more she talked to the Sisters, the more she began to see herself as a part of the religious community as well. At the age of eighteen, after serious thought, she decided to join the Order and train as a nursing Sister. Soon after she joined the Order, Jack came to her in a vision while she was in the chapel. He knelt beside her, put his hand over hers and she knew immediately that he was dead. The Mother Superior called her shortly afterward to give her a telegram, but she already knew what it said.

Miriam spent the next few years in the operating room, becoming an expert surgical nurse. She also taught other nurses operating-room skills, the first in a long line of teaching assignments. Nursing and teaching skills were repeatedly called upon all of her life.

The end of Miriam's formal nursing career came when a serious attack of jaundice, caused by a chronically weak liver strained by overwork, convinced those in authority that a less strenuous career was in order. She was sent to the university to study teaching. Finishing fourth in her class, she was denied a certificate due to the fact that she did not have a high school diploma. The lack of a certificate did not hamper her career as long as she was a Sister, but it prevented her from teaching outside of the Order.

After her teaching course, she was assigned to a girls' boarding school where she taught elementary-age children. Combining art with geography and history delighted the children and made them more willing to apply themselves to the other basics. Her favorite teaching assignment was a seven-year stint at St. Christina's in Cooperstown, New York, where she introduced art, music, and physical education to the school. With her characteristic ingenuity, she made contact with members of the New York Actors' Guild through the Little Church Around the Corner in New York City. She persuaded those talented people to accept part-time employment at the school for room and board, teaching art, music, and drama to the children there as well as at the summer camp. Miriam traveled extensively with the mother superior, holding retreats for women and recruiting novices for the Order. Eventually she was named assistant superior of the Order.

One of her tasks was to be in charge of the infirmary, the closest she would be to her old nursing days. Miriam, like Mary and Dr. George, had a talent for combining physical with spiritual healing. One incident that occurred during her infirmary days illustrates the point. One of the younger Sisters, a beautiful and musical girl, had persistent ulcers in her mouth. She had been treated repeatedly but nothing seemed to help. One day she confided to Miriam that her childhood had been a tragic time and expressed her inability to let it go. They sat together on Miriam's sofa and prayed. Miriam advised the Sister to write down every one of the painful memories then and there. Miriam prayed silently as the girl wrote sixteen pages. Then Miriam took her to the fireplace and suggested she burn the pages and to know while they were burning that every one of those memories was vanishing forever from her life. The next morning the young Sister came rushing in grinning happily. Miriam told her to open her mouth so she could treat the ulcers. The girl just kept grinning. Finally, she opened her mouth and Miriam saw that all of the ulcers were gone.

Miriam's spiritual sight began early in life but was sporadic. One example from her teens took place on a train ride to Castor. She had a precognitive experience of teaching a spiritual message to a large audience. The lecture went through her mind and was far beyond her knowledge and comprehension of spirituality at that time in her life. She has since given that talk and similar ones many times.

During the last years in the convent, when she was functioning as assistant superior, Miriam began a healing group. This was a controversial step, as the more conservative sisters thought prayer and communion were the only proper forms of devotion. However, she persevered. The mother superior and the bishop both supported her work. This was gratifying to her, as both of these individuals had been instrumental in bringing her into the religious life and she had great respect for them. The bishop at one point expressed his intent to give a series of lectures at the convent on the theme of healing. He died before this could take place, but Miriam continued to see him in spirit and his support of her subsequent actions was important to her conviction that her decisions were in tune with God's plan for her. Miriam saw many people on the "other side" during her development as a Sister, and this mystical side of her nature continued to grow and develop.

Miriam remained a part of the Sisterhood for twenty-five years. During the months just prior to leaving she was increasingly troubled about her commitment to the Order. She had talked to the chaplain and attempted to consult with her mother superior but was unsuccessful. Shortly before the final decision was made, Miriam was awakened one night by a large figure of a man who she thought was Jesus. He stood in front of her bed, pointed at her and said, "GO YE!" in a commanding voice. He was carrying a small evergreen tree, which he threw out the window facing her bed. She then saw the roofs of many houses appear, each with an evergreen on its roof. The trees burst into flame. She knew it was a spiritual fire. The man kept repeating "GO YE!" During this visitation, Miriam reacted to the command of "GO YE!" with lamentations about all of her responsibilities. The visitor stared at her and simply repeated "GO YE!" Miriam had in fact five areas of convent responsibility, but soon after the spiritual visitation they were one by one given to others through no effort on her part. When tasks were removed, her superior attempted to give her a ceramic art studio, but by this time she was paying attention to her feelings and inner guidance and asked that this not be done.

Unbeknownst to Miriam during these months of turmoil, Mary, who now lived in Los Angeles, was clairvoyantly "seeing" the convent and the individual Sisters at their tasks as well as knowing what was happening in Miriam's mind and heart. In her own quiet way, Mary was nudging Miriam to action. Mary knew no names at this time, just pictures of faces and scenes. The detail she related later to Miriam was astonishing. She could describe the carved wood and the bronze and gold angels with decorations of pearls. She saw Sisters walking and talking and could describe their size, shape, ways of moving, and their personalities. Among the Sisters, she saw Miriam and knew her to be a highly spiritual individual to whom she would later act as teacher and mentor.

Miriam's opportunity to leave the convent came about through Edith, her old friend from New York. Although now married, with teenage children, and living in the Los Angeles area, Edith kept in touch with both Miriam and her brother. It was part of the principles of the Order that one did not communicate to outsiders the kinds of doubts and emotional turmoil that Miriam was experiencing. However, she was allowed to write to her brother and he, in turn, told Edith. By chance (or was it chance?), Edith and her family were in Detroit to purchase a new car shortly after Miriam was left with no duties and the conviction she must leave. Edith's husband, after picking up their car in Detroit, wanted to visit a friend who had been badly burned as a result of an accident and was convalescing in a Toronto hospital. While he was at the hospital Edith called Miriam and paid her a visit; it was Labor Day, 1941. To her embarrassed astonishment Edith kept hearing a voice saying over and over, "Take her back to California with you." She tried to keep her attention on their conversation, but the voice kept distracting her. Finally, in a quiet tone and sheepish manner, she asked, "Do you think you could come back to California with me?" Miriam promptly surprised herself by saying, "Yes, I could. I am due for my rest time right about now." Miriam then asked the acting superior if she could go to California, wondering, also, if it would be possible to get permission from the Ministry of the Interior in Ottawa. This formality was a recent requirement due to World War II. Several American Sisters had been waiting for some time with no word on when they would be able to return home for their rest time.

The acting superior sent a telegram to the minister of the Interior, whom she knew. He replied almost immediately, saying, "I will see her at 9:00 A.M. Tuesday morning. Tell her to take the four o'clock train." The Sisters gave Miriam money; she went to Ottawa and found her way around the strange city as if it were her hometown. She was amazed at how familiar it seemed. The night before her appointment she could hardly sleep. She felt herself surrounded with heavenly beings. The bishop was among them urging her on, and she thought, "This is of God, because if it were not of God the man who ordained me would not be urging me to leave." The next morning she went to the immigration office and met the man who was to approve her papers. He asked how long she wanted to be away, and she said, "Three months. I may have a commission to paint a portrait there, and I will need time to earn my fare back." A small smile tugged at his lips as he stamped her papers and handed them back. He looked at her directly and said, "The visa is good for a year, and the passport for ten years." She exclaimed with surprise. He merely smiled. Mary was to tell her later that all of these coincidental and fortunate events were foreordained and that the minister and the immigration agent were part of the "Brotherhood" of which Mary and Dr. George had been a part since their early days in Seattle. It gave Miriam confidence to hear that, for it confirmed her inner guidance.

During the decades of Miriam's sojourn with the Sisters, Mary and Dr. George had continued their medical and spiritual work, their knowledge shared only with Mary's parents. They lived in a succession of homes in Washington and California. Their daughter Constance attended fourteen schools before high school graduation. The family made their first trip to California in 1923, Dr. George being the catalyst for this venture. He was a charter member of the White Cross, a cancer research society. He and a pharmacist friend had developed a skin-cancer salve and Dr. George had contracted with a large California city to test it on prisoners in the city jails. Concurrently with this project, Dr. George enrolled in a six-month diagnostic course with an osteopath in Riverside, California, who had invented a machine with techniques similar to those available through modern ultrasonics.

The trip from Seattle to Los Angeles was in keeping with their usual lifestyle. The caravan consisted of three cars containing seven adults, five children and the family dog and cat. As if this were not complex enough, they camped out at night. In those days city parks provided travelers with public camping spaces and comfort facilities. Now this was not a family who had ever dealt with "roughing it," so camping consisted of setting up tents, beds, cook stoves, and tables each and every night for three weeks. After years in cool, rainy Washington, they arrived in Los Angeles in early October to be greeted by a temperature of a hundred and four degrees. They found a camping spot in Elysian Park, just north of the present-day Dodger Stadium. Fortunately, they soon found a suitable home in Eagle Rock near Occidental College.

Dr. George commuted between Riverside and Los Angeles for six months while completing his classes and overseeing the testing of his cancer salve. This salve destroyed certain kinds of skin-cancer cells and prevented the necessity of surgical removal. When the experiment was completed successfully, Dr. George donated the formula, it is no longer known to which concern, for the use of humanity. He continued his cancer research, later creating a second, post-surgical salve to be used where large indentations had occurred after cancers were removed. The salve brought the skin together and healed it without scarring. (These formulas were lost with the unexpected deaths of Dr. George and the pharmacist.)

The following year the family was recalled to Washington where Dr. George had accepted a position with the Immigration Service in Blaine. In addition to working for the United States government, Dr. George maintained a private practice in his home. Vancouver, on the Canadian side of the border, was not far away, and the family went often to visit a professor and his wife whom they had met in Seattle. This family was a member of the Oxford Group, founded in England by Dr. Frank Buchman and later referred to as Moral Re-Armament. Edith, Miriam's friend, had become involved with the movement in California and in 1924 was attending one of their meetings in Vancouver at the same time Dr. George and Mary were visiting their friends. Edith was immediately attracted to the tiny woman named Mary, who played the piano with sureness and command. She was further intrigued later in the evening to find that this same woman sang in a resonant contralto voice, had a range of several octaves, and displayed in her singing the same virtuosity as in her instrumental style. One of the premises of the Oxford Group was that everyone had problems in their lives, and it was the task of the members to find those problem areas in new arrivals and offer assistance. Edith was assigned to Mary, but to her puzzlement, could find nothing wrong with her. Gradually she became aware that Mary was counseling her, rather than the other way around. This meeting was the beginning of a friendship and teacher-pupil relationship that lasted until Edith's death in 1960.

The household in Blaine was typical of the family life style. It was a large, two-story, frame house overlooking the bay. Besides the three generations in the immediate family, two nieces and a nephew had become permanent members of the household. In addition, a former patient had moved in and several of either Dr. George's or Mary's nieces and nephews, at any given time, were dropped off for weeks or months depending on their parents' desires. The family nickname for this establishment was "The Weddell Hotel." The children, especially the younger ones, were hard-pressed to explain this menage to school friends. On any given day the one doing the explaining might not know everyone himself, especially at dinner. Twenty was a normal number, and the kitchen was always ready for more. Both sides of this family had an almost tribal consciousness; they seemed to have no difficulty moving from one group to another, the only criterion apparently being what seemed to make sense at any point in time.

In 1927 all headed back to California for the sake of Dr. George's health. He had had a series of bouts with flu and decided that a dry climate would stimulate an improvement in his health, which it did. The early 1930s were an important turning point for the family. In a three-year period, Constance and the nieces were all married and left the family home and Mary's beloved father died.

In 1937 Dr. George and Mary purchased a house in Glendale that was to be the closest thing to a permanent home they ever had. It was an authentic Mediterranean-style house that could have been moved to a canal in Venice, Italy without anyone blinking an eye. It was Dr. George's favorite home, and they were extremely happy there. To add to their joy that year, Constance presented them with their only grandchild.

It was during the 1930s and 1940s that Dr. George and Mary began to share their work more openly. Much of what they believed, studied, and worked with simply would not have been accepted in earlier years and in a more conservative locale. Their first class contained one hundred doctors and dentists, many with first-hand knowledge of Dr. George's remarkable cure rate and a desire to improve their own. Later Mary began to give classes on Color once a week in Bel Air and Beverly Hills. She also had students from England and France, where she developed quite a following. Those countries showed a greater eagerness for New Thought than did most of the United States at that time. Mary and Dr. George were still very private people, and most of the family were not privy to the beliefs and activities fundamental to their way of life.

In late 1941, shortly after arriving in California, Miriam was invited by Edith to accompany her to a dinner party at a friend's home where Mary and Dr. George were also to be present. The house was a large Spanish-style home with a long, sunken living room. Miriam entered the room wearing her nun's habit. From the far end of the room a small, elegantly clad lady with a big smile came across to her with hands outstretched and said, "You have come at last, oh, you've come at last." Miriam had no idea what Mary meant and thought she was merely being gracious. From that meeting began an intense and unique relationship that was to bring an expansion and fulfillment to the spiritual aspirations of both women. Not long after they met, Mary asked Miriam to live with her and to nurse her mother, who was failing rapidly. Miriam cared for Mary's mother through the last months of her life. In the process Miriam was adopted emotionally and spiritually by four generations of the family, and remained to the end a priceless treasure to all.

By the time Miriam's one-year visa was about to expire, she knew that Mary was the spiritual teacher she had been seeking and that she would never go back to the convent. Miriam had spent six months before leaving the convent trying to obtain an interview with the ailing mother superior to tell her of her doubts and her growing conviction that she would have to leave. When Miriam wrote that she was not returning she was urged to come back, but she reminded her colleagues of her attempts to seek counsel in the past and stated that she knew her life had undergone an irrevocable change. In order to get permanent-resident status, Miriam had to return to Canada and re-enter the United States as a registered alien. On leaving Canada the year before, she had been allowed to take only twenty-five dollars out of the country. In the United States she was allowed only to receive gifts of money while on a visitor's visa. Thus, except for room, board and a few monetary gifts, she was essentially penniless. She arrived in Vancouver with limited funds, expecting a short, orderly process of re- entry. Instead, the process dragged out to nine weeks, during which time she ran out of funds and had to stay with one of her sisters in a nearby city.

In addition to finding Miriam, two climactic events took place for Mary in the early 1940s. One was the death of her mother, with whom she had lived nearly all of her life. The second and most difficult was the sudden death of Dr. George. He was involved in an automobile accident in which a child in the other car was hurt. He hurried to the rescue, doctor's bag in hand, had a heart attack at the scene and was dead on arrival at the hospital. This ushered in the most difficult period of Mary's life. She was, for a time, nearly immobilized by grief. She needed all of her faith and self-discipline to find direction and solace. Constance and her family decided to move in with Mary to assist her in dealing with the loss. Because of the war, Constance's husband was working two jobs, and Mary became housekeeper and baby-sitter while Constance helped keep her husband's business going. When Constance wasn't playing the role of secretary, she was standing in line with food-ration coupons and riding the bus to save gasoline rations. Somehow, in spite of war and rationing and deaths, when the extended family gathered for holiday dinners an abundance of people, food, laughter, and love still prevailed.

Mary contracted pernicious anemia during this period and was not expected to live long. However, two friends who were doctors working in experimental medicine, came to her weekly for many years to give her injections of some kind. Miriam and Constance never saw them except at a distance, and the whole procedure was handled privately and quietly. The treatments gradually became further apart, and after the death of one of the doctors, ceased altogether. By that time Mary was nearly ninety and thirty-five years had elapsed. The treatments and Mary's spirit had prevailed.

While Mary was adjusting to her changing circumstances, Miriam was venturing out on her own. Shortly before Dr. George died she had obtained her first salaried job after returning to California. She had spent several days with little money, making long bus rides, trying to find work to no avail. Finally, at breakfast one morning, Dr. George handed her a business card and told her that the gentleman in question was in the pottery business and was looking for help. She suspected that Dr. George had had a hand in this but thanked him politely and tried to figure out how to get there. She was down to five cents and was too proud to tell Dr. George or Mary she did not have bus fare. As she sat down to her daily devotions she found ten dollars in her Bible. The job was hers by the end of the day, and a decade of creative work in ceramics followed.

The pottery company specialized in small animal figures. Whenever a particular function was short-staffed, Miriam would fill in. In this way she became adept at painting, glazing, mold making and the use of the kiln. The final opportunity to hone her skills came when she went to work for a woman who designed ceramic flowers. Miriam was given a job as designer, and created many beautiful floral displays for tables and wall hangings.

In 1944 Miriam decided to go into the ceramics business for herself. She rented a hillside apartment in Pasadena that had two downstairs rooms perfect for her work and a large upstairs living area. At first sight this did not appear to be an auspicious location. The stairway was filled with stones and dirt, nearly impassable. Upstairs the glass was gone from the windows. Food, empty liquor bottles and general debris covered the entire floor. However, a voice kept saying, "This is the place," over and over, so Miriam, trusting this inner voice, agreed to sign a lease. It turned out that, as in previous situations and others to follow, the Brotherhood, through the landlord, had had a hand in this choice.

Miriam had been settled for a short time when a gentleman appeared at her door and requested that she work for him designing and producing Chinese figurines. She stated that she was not interested, as her knowledge of glazing was sketchy, and she wished to work for herself. However, he was not to be deterred and stated that money was no object. She thought to herself that the man was crazy, but if he was willing to pay her to learn on his time, why not? She barely started producing the figures when it became apparent that he wanted a volume of production that was impossible from her two small rooms. Not to be daunted, she set out to find larger quarters only to discover that the war effort had made rental space nearly impossible to find. Finally she discovered a large upstairs room available in South Pasadena and proceeded to set up a kiln and build benches and tables.

No sooner was the second firing of the first batch begun, when a man appeared at the door to say that the government needed the space. She was evicted. There was nothing to do but add onto the downstairs rooms at her previous studio. Finding wood for construction, not to mention skilled labor, was nearly impossible during the war. Fortunately, her employer had also contracted with the local fire department to make wooden trays in their spare time and Miriam was the quality-control inspector. She prevailed upon the firemen to do construction work on their days off. They haunted junkyards until they found enough piano cases to build the walls and roof. The firemen also installed the electricity, which she insisted they inspect themselves. Although they were paid, it took liberal doses of pie, coffee, ice cream, and wheedling to keep them on the time schedule needed. When the war ended the market for mass-produced figurines quickly collapsed as less expensive imports began to arrive.

Miriam also created high-quality specialty figurines, flowers, and birds. She displayed her work annually at art trade shows, where she sold to better department stores in Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, and Seattle.

Miriam's old friend Edith had a twin sister, Violet, who lost her husband in 1948 and was lonely living in a large, two-story house on a half acre in South Pasadena. Violet asked Miriam to live with her. To assist her, Violet permitted Miriam to turn a building at the rear of the property into a ceramics studio. Miriam's work took a religious turn at this time, and she sold primarily through church-sponsored art shows. She created a beautiful Madonna, which was very popular, a charming St. Francis, and a unique crèche set that most of her friends have seen and admired through the years. A few more birds and flowers and a fountain or two completed the repertoire. Miriam always combined the spiritual with the creative, and she needed to do so at this time. The plaster molds for some of her figurines, when filled with liquid clay, weighed sixty pounds. She would fill herself with God power and become so filled with strength that she could simply pick up a casting and turn it. Mary taught her to use color to refine her techniques of lifting and moving. When they later lived together they would rearrange the furniture. It must have been a sight to see two small, not-so-young women carrying furniture around with cheerful confidence. To the end of her life, in her nineties and weighing scarcely one hundred pounds, Miriam moved her bed the same way.

In 1954, Mary left her Glendale home to live with a dear friend who had heart problems and no close family. They rented a house owned by Violet across the garden from Miriam's studio. It was during the next decade that the intense work by Miriam and Mary took place to produce on paper what Mary saw in auras. Mary would describe the color and Miriam would work with oil pastels to duplicate it. Mary coached her through her mistakes until the color was right and would then give Miriam the meaning. Then they would go on to the next one. Eventually the fans, or arcs, shown in the color plates of this book were created through this collaboration. After the completion of the color fans, which took over a year, Mary instructed Miriam in the Inner Channel.

When Mary's friend died in 1958, Mary built a wing on Violet's house and moved in. This extension was connected at Miriam's bedroom, and they essentially had a house to themselves. As Edith had previously added on to this same house Mary, Miriam, Edith and Violet all lived under the same roof until Edith's death in 1960.

During the period after Dr. George's death in 1943, and for a number of years, Mary taught color classes in other people's homes in the Los Angeles area. After Edith's death, the living room of Edith's apartment was turned into a permanent classroom where Mary and Miriam taught classes several times a week. The room used for the color teachings was a long rectangular shape with an eight-foot picture of Jesus, arms outstretched with angles under each, mounted on the front wall. This was one of Miriam's works. Large canvases displaying the color fans were mounted on easels on each side. Mary would stand in front of the rows of students and begin by talking about certain color and their meanings. This was followed by a period called auric viewing, in which students closed their eyes and allowed colors to emerge into their conscious awareness. Each one had a box of oil pastels and paper in front of them. During or after the silent period, they would mark down the color and the configuration that was seen as closely as they were able to remember and reproduce. Later a review of the auric viewings would be made by Mary and Miriam and returned to the student for discussion during the next class. It was often surprising how clearly the colors revealed issues currently pertinent in the students' personal lives. This room configuration and teaching format was continued after the move to Santa Monica and then in Hemet until Miriam's death in 1988.

Miriam had given up ceramics in the mid-fifties to devote more time to spiritual pursuits. She painted in oils for pleasure and profit and taught an art class once a week as well. Mary and Miriam soon became so busy with increased numbers of students and more classes that when Constance wanted to talk to her mother she would telephone, as it was the only way to get her undivided attention. The household had reverted to the old family tradition of cooking for a multitude. Classes always ended with coffee, tea, dessert, and lively conversation. The classes continued to expand, and people returned year after year. In addition, Mary and Miriam created the first correspondence course titled "Creative Color Analysis."

One of the private but ongoing parts of Mary's life was her association with the Dead Sea Scrolls. As was mentioned earlier, Mary read Latin, Greek, Ancient Hebrew, Aramaic, and Sanskrit and had made an extensive study of Egyptology. Sometime after 1947, a bonded messenger began to appear at her door from time to time, leaving packages consisting of photographs of pieces with writing on them. She never showed them to family members nor talked about what was happening until later. She would spend time working alone in her room, and the messenger would come again to retrieve the initial contents and her interpretations. In this way she read and translated many pieces of the Scrolls over a period of years. She later told those close to her about her work but never elaborated on the details except to explain that with an ancient language there may be more than one interpretation to a given passage. All interpretations submitted to committee were examined, and those which appeared most accurate and consistent were chosen.

Violet died in 1971. This event was to re-shape the lives of many people associated with Mary. It became impossible for Violet's heirs to keep the property in South Pasadena, and in 1972 Mary and Miriam were told to start looking for other quarters. In October of that year, a group of family friends and students formed a partnership to purchase an apartment complex in Santa Monica. Within a few months, a dozen of the units were occupied by Mary's relatives, friends, and students. Mary and Miriam held classes just as before, this time in a large, converted garage adjoining their apartment. New people were attracted to the group. Miriam, always an artist, converted a weed patch outside Mary's window into a lovely flower garden for her to enjoy.

During the years in South Pasadena a group of students had continued to attend classes for longer periods and with greater commitment to furthering her work than had been the case in the past. They began to know each other well, and a group connectedness took place. A number of these students were members of the Church of Ataraxia, which had been incorporated in 1942.

The church is now known as The Essene Fellowship of Peace, since ataraxia is a Greek word for peace, and the Essene philosophy was an integral part of Jesus' teaching and the thread that runs through Mary's teaching. Mary trained some of the more serious students as certified teachers of color, and some were ordained as ministers in this Fellowship. Mary saw the Essenes as a positive model for living and Jesus' connection with them to be a natural Judeo-Christian evolution of consciousness. The group that formed around her in the 1960s and 1970s began to model its values on the Essene philosophy and to see its place in the world as that of a bridge between the earth plane and higher dimensions. This approach to Christianity was spiritual rather than religious.

Several of Mary's students were of similar age and interested in choosing a place where they could live and learn in close proximity to each other. In the late 1970s they asked Mary if she would join them if they found a compatible location. She reluctantly agreed. Her lifelong hesitancy to be put in the position of leader or founder of a movement made her hesitate to be the focal point of this undertaking. One of the group moved to Hemet, California, and "happened on" a ranch for sale near San Jacinto. It was an unusual place, abutting an Indian Reservation and considered sacred ground by the Indians. It had been used by a succession of religious groups in a variety of ways since the 1940s when the original owner donated it to the Catholic Bishopric of San Diego, which sent a group of nuns to live there.

Neither Hemet nor San Jacinto was a location where any of the members had expected to live. However, after several Fellowship members experienced a series of dreams and visions, all strikingly similar, they went to take a look. There was the house they had seen, a big stucco structure with a cross on top. It looked like something from a Gothic novel. A cottage, mobile home, library and crafts building, and a half-finished ten-bedroom dormitory completed the collection of buildings. There were live-oak trees near the buildings, and around the whole cluster were two hundred and sixty-five acres of mountains covered with chaparral. The only usable exit from the property was one narrow road exiting to a county road, then on through the reservation. The ranch was purchased and named the Singing Heart Ranch. For several years it was home to the Essene Fellowship. Some lived there full-time, others visited, but all partook of the warmth and commitment of a shared life style based on love and each individual's desire to strive toward Christ Consciousness.

Those years were the last of Mary's life. Miriam's nursing skills, which had been called upon often throughout their association, became indispensable. Mary loved the old house and most of all the delicate sunrises and glorious sunsets, which backlit the hills in such a way that it seemed as if the sun were setting in all directions. She retreated more and more into her private self, and Miriam continued the classes with help from former students, now graduate teachers. They held Fellowship services, workshops on color and retreats. There were Saturday-night potlucks as well as weddings, holiday dinners, and other events a big family shares.

By 1980, the year of Mary's death, the average age of the membership coupled with the enormous physical work needed to maintain a ranch of that size, proved to be beyond the residents' capacity. In 1981 the ranch was sold. The members moved into Hemet and San Jacinto, disbanding the group-living arrangement but maintaining the classes and meditation meetings in each other's homes.

The legacy left by Dr. George, Mary and Miriam is a lesson in unconditional love. Mary walked in the light of faith through all of her days. It was no coincidence that her favorite colors were purple and rose; faith and love were the cornerstones of her existence. One of the characteristics of Mary as a teacher was that she believed and lived that which came authentically and personally from her own experience. She encouraged her students to do the same. She never had the desire to lead, direct or be idolized, only to show quietly by example what love of God and living in Creative Color had meant to her. The teachers often pressed her for "how tos" and uniform teaching methods. Her reply was, "Color is my way. If it means something to you, go forth and teach it in your own way, but never change the definitions. If you desire to lead a more balanced life, to accomplish certain goals, to develop spiritually or to make changes in your life, color can play a large part in accomplishing these things. I would add that color has a spiritual source. Color is light revealed—vibration, energy, the visible essence of the life force. It is a catalyst or change agent. It is safe, and it protects."

The balance of this book has been compiled to assist those seekers who may be interested in Creative Color as a tool for growth. We humbly offer the reader an opportunity to share Mary's faith, love and unique vision of this colorful world in which we live.

Mary Weddell often said, "Color, my dears, is a language." Color is the language of light, the light that permeates our bodies and our world, Color imbues the planet below and the heavens above—the pink roses, the verdant trees, the reds and oranges in a sunset, the marvelous soft blues and grays mingled with lilac beyond a sky of billowing clouds. We live in a universe powerfully inscribed by color. Light and color permeate our being, and we, in turn, radiate an essence that sparkles like the night sky filled with stars. It is no accident that the ancients spoke often of human beings as the microcosm of God's macrocosmic world.

Mary Weddell called her students colorists, those who study and use color. The emphasis was twofold: as a power to assist a person in self-therapy and soul-expansion, and as an energetic catalyst for healing self and others in life situations. As energy in motion, color travels through the universe at all levels, and it can act as a catalyst or change agent at all levels.

Mary's revealed color meanings evolved into a "Color Dictionary" of color definitions she had received inspirationally. In her mystical experiences, these definitions of color were verified and expanded. Thus, color emerged as a "silent language."

Color can be used to convey meaning between ourselves and our Creator, ourselves and others, and the ego and the inner self. When used as a method of sharing knowledge, color becomes the language that bridges the higher dimensions of sensed reality with the reality sensed in the physical dimension. Thus we grasp this insight when we speak of casting "great light of understanding" on matters, or ask to be "enlightened" with greater truths, to be brought forth from the shadows of darkness and ignorance into the brilliant blaze of illumined new knowledge.

As we learn to bring meaning from higher dimensions to our material environment, heaven will be brought to earth. This is that "heaven on earth" promised and so longed for that we almost despair of its ever arriving. But we need not despair, for it is we who can build this heavenly kingdom. The language of color can be the architect. Mary taught that it is our challenge to be a "co-creator with God" in the responsible use of color.

As students of Creative Color persevere and becomes practicing colorists, their spiritual gifts are developed until the extended colors of the higher dimensions are seen and the meanings recognized. The seeker comes to recognize the great trust involved in using the powerful color rays and accept the responsibility of their use. These color messages of love and wisdom strengthen the seeker so that he or she is able to assist others in the highest form of loving companionship—to walk the path of spiritual evolution together.

Humanity's conception of God has varied from material images to those of a Creator embodying Light and Love and Intelligence, as the macrocosm of our world. We can access this new system of color communication as we now accept that, indeed, we ourselves are made of pulsating particles of energy, like the chairs we sit on or the plants and animals we love. We must accept ourselves as part of a vibrating, electric universe that expresses itself in sound and color.

Color, as the language of light, is visible when it expresses in the physical plane of light. In its refined nature, it expresses invisibly in the higher spans of the spectrum. Color will be discussed in this book in many octaves of light—as used in the physical world and as a spiritual expression of man's soul.

As in any other creation, precision is the standard. So, too, with color, whether used as a language with which to communicate or as a therapeutic energy. Color can be separated into tints and hues. Each has a specific vibration, and the meanings of some have been described. To adhere to the correct meaning, the correct representation of color must be used. However, color perception will vary among individuals. There is a range of acceptability. Just as the letter "A" can be written "A" or "a" and still be communicated accurately, so, too, can some colors vary and still be described by the same meaning. But should the letter "a" look more like "e," "o" or "u," comprehension has changed. So, too, with color if deviation is too great. It requires a trained eye and one skilled in the language of Creative Color to discern allowable levels of variation. As verbal language begins with one letter and expands to syllables, words, sentences, pages, etc., so, too, do different color combinations expand in meaning.
 
 
 
 

The language of sound can be used to hurt or help, to incite or to soothe. So too with the language of color. Color uses the visual sensory system to convey meaning. It travels on both the visible and invisible frequencies of the spectrum. The colors of light in the aura can be seen by those who have attuned themselves to a higher vibration of vision. However, one need not see color in order to sense the vibrational quality.

Color shows us how light is absorbed. If particles of matter are disturbed, so as to vibrate more slowly or quickly, the energetic nature of a substance reflects this difference by a change in tone or hue. If complementary color energies are applied to the imbalanced area, a change can be made. Since we are colorful beings in constant change, the application of suitable colors can be beneficial to our growth toward ever greater wholeness and balance. This is the basis of much current research into the therapeutic use of color, whether applied mechanically or through human intention and visualization.

This is also the restorative tool available to us daily, as we perceive all creation filled with glorious colors which delight the eye and give zest to living. Color can enhance the power of prayer and still the mind in preparation for meditation. Through the analysis of the color rays and their application to life, the colorist develops a realization of the oneness of all and the helpfulness of living consciously in the rhythm of the laws of the universe.

Daily, we receive from the universe, yet are often unaware of the gifts. Who has not admired a sunset or awakened to the glory of a sunrise? Here one receives a color treatment from the Great Source of Life—the silvery blue lavender of Tranquillity, the rosy peach of Gratitude, the soft sea-foam green of Awareness, the soft pink-lavender of Inspiration or the more smoky pink-lavender-blue of Humility. These and more are seen in the morning or evening sky. Is energy needed? Look up at the vast blue sky or walk barefoot in the grass and be renewed. Breathe in the fragrance of the garden, the Faith of the purple violets, and the glorious shell pink blossoms of the peach tree in bloom. Feel God's love about you. All is provided, one need only to become aware of it.
 
 

This pulsing, ever-spiraling life energy emanates from the divine center within. The radiant energy flows from this center through every part of our body and extending beyond the body. The aura may extend only a short distance from the body when there is little soul attainment or when energy is depleted. Clairvoyants have seen it extending to quite a distance in some cases. Scientists have described it as "light radiating from the body in the form of photons" and have recorded this energy moving at up to 200,000 cycles per second.

When one is well developed spiritually, the aura contains almost all the colors and tints there are. Dr. Hunt terms such an aura containing the whole spectrum of color a "coherent field."
 
 

People often unknowingly affect each other through their auras. One often hears, "The chemistry between us is right." When two auras are harmonious, the chemistry is right. When inharmonious, discord can result. One person strongly filled with love, peace, harmony and kindliness can exert a calming influence on an entire group of people by merely being present.

Miriam Willis taught that there are no spaces in a healthy aura, but between the colors are silvery lighted bands which separate the colors and "feed" them. These bands are a holding force representing the Christ influence. They make it easier for an advanced reader of auras to distinguish its many separate colors.

Miriam also taught that permanent rays are developed in the aura as one grows spiritually and is able to sustain those qualities of spirit that ennoble the character. But, she would point out, even permanent rays differ among persons, depending on the life purpose and the life opportunities. For example, the rays of some individuals express brotherhood, kindness and charity. Other individuals may express purity of purpose, faith and humility. However, all such qualities bring spiritual balance when permanently registered in the auric field. These permanent rays are visible to the reader of auras and tell him or her the measure of the soul's development. Permanent rays developed in previous lifetimes are displayed only when the individual unerringly expresses them in this life. If not consciously used in the current life they will flash only occasionally in the aura. The rays of an old soul will, however, signal the true potential of the individual.

As Mary explained, within the framework of these permanent rays in the aura of the highly developed person are myriads of colors revealing each individual's special gifts and talents, personality traits, habits and dispositional patterns of thinking. The aura of a spiritually developed master displays a balanced synthesis of permanent rays, fully expressed, and the high attainments of his individual destiny. Indeed and in truth, the developed master "lives and moves and has his being" in the great all-enveloping Creator, whose loving power feeds and sustains the whole of life, redeeming and restoring, strengthening and making whole with infinite patience those who seek to become perfect in Him.

The aura is both a record of an individual's development and a constantly changing picture of his or her current condition. We are continually creating color through our thoughts, our emotions, our health, our intellectual and spiritual achievements. Our states of mind and emotion are reflected in the emanations of etheric substance from our life center.

Because the colors in one's aura automatically change as one's thoughts and emotions change, it is possible to eliminate old habit patterns and unwanted traits by changing the thoughts and emotions. This is more easily said than done. Since the root causes of emotional responses lie in the subconscious, changing them deliberately can be extremely difficult. A simple, effective way to change unwanted traits is to apply to one's own God-center the colors which will gently modify, absorb and clear the old conditions and replace them with beneficial ones. By flooding the aura with the virtues that will sweep away the undesirable traits, one also becomes more conscious of one's thoughts and learns to be in charge.

The changes brought about through Creative Color are spiritually activated. They progress from the spiritual body to the mental and emotional bodies. Lastly, they take effect in the physical body. Because the progression of healing from the spiritual level to the physical is usually gradual, and because color applications are very gentle, applications often require repetition. When the spirit is healed, the physical healing which follows is likely to be permanent.
 
 

Consider that because there is action and interaction throughout the whole of life, this process between the conscious and subconscious requires a similar action in the corresponding system of nerves. The cerebro-spinal system is the organ of the conscious mind and the sympathetic system is the organ of the subconscious mind. The cerebro-spinal system is the channel through which we receive conscious perception from the physical senses and exercise control over the movements of the body. This system of nerves has its center in the brain.

The sympathetic system has its center in a ganglionic mass at the back of the stomach known as the solar plexus and is the channel which unconsciously supports the vital functions of the body.

The connection between the two systems is made by the vagus nerve which passes out of the cerebral region as a portion of the voluntary system to the thorax, sending out branches to the heart and lungs, and finally passing through the diaphragm. Here, it becomes identified with the nerves of the sympathetic system, thus forming a connecting link between the two, making man physically a single entity.

Recall that every thought is received by the brain—the organ of conscious mind, and here subjected to the power of reasoning. When this objective mind accepts the thought, it is transmitted to the solar plexus—the brain of the subconscious where it is made flesh—to be brought forth into the world as a reality. It is then no longer susceptible to any argument whatever, for the subconscious mind cannot argue. It only acts. It accepts the conclusions of the objective mind as final.

The solar plexus is like the Sun of the body because it is the central point of distribution for the energy which the body is constantly generating.

This is very real energy and is distributed by very real nerves to all parts of the body. It extends in etheric substance, surrounding the body, and is known as the aura or the orbit in which man lives and moves and has his being. Here, all that he is, is reflected in living color generated from the channel within the solar plexus. When this process is functioning perfectly man is in health and happiness, radiating life, energy and vitality to everyone he meets.

The solar plexus is the point at which the part meets the whole, where the finite becomes the infinite, where the uncreate becomes create, where the universal becomes individualized, the invisible becomes visible. This center of energy is omnipotent because it is the point of contact with all life and all intelligence. It can accomplish whatever it is directed to accomplish—and herein lies the power of the conscious mind. The subconscious can and will carry out plans and ideas suggested by the conscious mind.

Conscious thought, then, is master of the Sun Center from which the life energy of the entire body flows, and the quality of thought which we entertain determines the quality of the thought which this Sun will radiate, and the character of the thought entertained by our conscious mind determines the character which this Sun will radiate and consequently will determine the nature and experience which will result.

It is evident that all we have to do is let our Light shine. Feed it with the living substance of Color rays that cleanse and uplift, transmuting undesirable thinking into harmonious fulfillment.

Yield to Color in non-resistant thought. It expands the solar plexus while resistance contracts. Thoughts of faith, courage, love, confidence and hope all produce a corresponding state.

The one arch enemy of the solar plexus is fear. This energy must be completely destroyed by the application of Color, for color has the power to still the busy mind, to calm the undisturbed emotions and to nourish and bring one into a unified whole of expanding consciousness and growth.

Since the aura is the garment of spirit, it is linked to the great universal currents and is affected by them, consciously or unconsciously. Herein lies the key to the secrets of the mysteries. For within the aura and lying in front of the solar plexus is the Inner Channel, the seat of the soul. Its function, as this central point, is the distribution of soul energy, which is constantly regenerating the body in order to integrate one's physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of being. This integration permits the manifestation, through the human vehicle, of God's love, wisdom and will expressed through joy, beauty, healing and understanding in love for humankind.

The Channel, heart and balancing force of the aura, is composed of etheric substance reaching up from the solar plexus through the crown of the head. At first, before the spiritual man awakens, it is like a capsule which can be compared to the single seed of a mighty tree, This capsule needs nourishment and the opportunity to begin to grow, which it does only as man prayerfully uses it. As the capsule expands from the God-center, its energy forms the Channel, which spirals upward through the top of the head.

The Channel's rate of vibration is the fastest in the human body. Its vibrating energy is a point of contact between man and his Creator. When this contact is consciously open, one experiences, in joy and gratitude, an ever-present sensitivity to the God presence. The developed Channel is active whether one is awake or asleep. It operates on a spiritual level at a frequency safely above the psychic field. One is never exposed to negative forces while in the Channel. The daily use of the Color Channel activates further spiritual enlightenment, gives protection against the vibrations of the psychic field, deepens insight, helps to refine and balance the chakras of the endocrine system and thus the emotions, and helps to develop spiritual sight and hearing.

When we begin to climb this Inner Channel of our being, we start by standing in the color of the royal purple of faith, the unadulterated God-power by which we step into the unknown, assured by that faith that the God-power will sustain us and overcome our fears and lack of trust.

The gray lavender endows us with the patience needed for balanced growth through the influence of the Christ spirit represented by the silvery overlay.

The pink lavender of inspiration is related to the uplift and joy of traveling the spiritual path as we bring inspirational ideas into operation.

The rose lavender of the spiritual voice represents the light of conscience, the inner voice which reveals us to ourselves.

The blue orchid of prophecy tells us what we may become, a forth-telling, interpreting the revelation that comes as we listen to the inner voice.

The yellow bridge enlightens and lifts us to the rose orchid of the message bearer so that we can bring through the message from the higher dimensions, as the red lilac of the holding force for the band of teachers sustains the higher power, releasing earth's spiritual power to meet this higher power.

Again, yellow’s enlightenment uplifts us, this time to the glowing peach of the union of mind and spirit, creating a balance to free the intellect to become the recording instrument of the spirit.

The light blue orchid develops in us the spirit of brotherhood and brings the great Invisible Brotherhood to our consciousness. It awakens the love-nature of humanity, the selfless love of the brotherhood of all human-kind.

The expression of this higher octave of love results in the blush orchid of serenity. With it self-centeredness vanishes in the lightest green of desirelessness. Then is the rose bisque of grace a gift of God, His perfume.

The light blue lavender of peace is the "peace that passeth all understanding."

In a letter to a friend, Dr. George Weddell wrote that peace is the perfect blending of the entire universe into one harmonious whole, without a single dissenting atom. He went on, "Peace means a perfect love and a perfect understanding, an abiding light that will shine in all dark places. No sorrow or misunderstanding can abide with peace. No turmoil is so great that this magic word does not turn the whitecaps of trouble into low waves of unrest which are succeeded by a beautiful calm where the weary soul finds rest."
 
 

The Inner Channel is a safe, lighted pathway to spiritual development. Climbing the Channel is, therefore, a good way to begin a meditation. The terms using and climbing are interchangeable.

Your own Inner Channel is a spiral of etheric substance centered within you at the solar plexus. Each color gives uplift and support to the spiral above it. Because each succeeding color is of a higher vibration than the one below it, you truly "climb" in consciousness while ascending the Channel. Each time you do so a little more color is added to your own etheric spiral, and you grow.

Here is one way to use the Channel. Assume a comfortable, meditative position. Take a few deep, easy breaths. Look at the Channel illustration. Then, beginning with the purple at the bottom, proceed upward, and audibly or silently name each color, its function and meaning as printed at the right of the colors. The words are:

At the word "peace," rest in the quietude of your lifted spirit in silent expectancy. Feel loved—cherished. This is a time of communion with the Infinite. Mary Weddell often reminded her students, "There is great value in the silence."

If busy thoughts or pictures cross your mind, merely see them momentarily and let them go by. If you happen to see or sense colors while in the silence, jot down a brief notation, then attempt to duplicate them after your meditation is completed.

The length of time you stay in the silence will vary. At first one or two minutes may suffice. About fifteen minutes is usually the longest recommended time. The faithful practice of the Channel, twice daily, is suggested for steady progress. The strength obtained through the use of the God-given Inner Channel helps to sustain your developing aura. The more you build these Channel colors and their qualities into your consciousness, the more you are able to sustain your growth. Climbing the Inner Channel feeds the highest faculties of your inner being and increases your Christ Consciousness.

Climbing the Inner Channel is also very effective in all types of meditations. For instance, if you have a question that needs an answer; or if you wish to meditate on a word such as Love or on a certain color; or if you have an urgent request, try presenting your need or word before entering the Channel. Release it when you reach the top. Then maintain the silence for a time, knowing with faith and gratitude that your answer or response is coming.

The answer may come in any one of many ways. You may open a book to just the right word. Answers may come in dreams or visions. In a telephone conversation you may hear yourself, or another, speak words of unexpected wisdom. An idea "out of the blue" may come while you are walking, or driving a car. You may experience a sudden tingling sensation together with "knowing" or "hearing" the needed information. While washing dishes you may find inspiration in the reflected color seen in soap bubbles. A paragraph in a newspaper or a line of dialogue in a television program may seem to have been inserted just for you. You may receive your answer immediately or days later. Gratitude for the answer stimulates growth in your soul.
 
 

As you climb the spiralled channel of your inner being and reach its summit, you free your soul to consciously breathe the pure air of the higher order and open the door of heaven, receiving more fully the rhythm of the spheres that sets the pace for your communication throughout your day. Hold this treasured experience and let it guide and bless you, thus adding to your permanent growth. Nothing can flavor each endeavor with a better seasoning. Nothing satisfies the hunger more than replenishment of loving power that descends and nurtures. It is a consciousness to be renewed by climbing this mount several times during the day and leaves its blessing just before sleep frees the soul for each night's adventure. It is the guardian of the soul and builds protection of the higher way, the lighted path of spiritual attainment, into natural growth—gentle, loving and strong.

As the sun is the lens through which the energy of God flows to give physical life to all creation, so the soul of man is the lens through which the energy of God flows to feed his spiritual growth and unfoldment. Thus man reflects all that he is in the color emanations of his aura.

The arcs of color, in fan shape, together with their original definitions and expanded meanings, are the heart and core of Creative Color. There are twelve basic psychological and twelve basic spiritual rays in each of the colors green, blue, yellow and red and twelve spiritual rays of the purple arc—one hundred and eight in all. These are the foundation for the development of higher octaves of color.

All colors are contained in light. In nature all are beautiful. In the emotional energy patterns of mankind, the beautiful can become distorted as well as the reverse. The rays which are designated in this book as psychological reflect in our aura the mental, emotional and physical expressions of our day-to-day living. Some refer to them as the lower octave of light. These colors flash in our aura as our thoughts and moods change. They include both positive and negative rays. Some psychological rays stabilize our life for good and prepare us for further awareness. Negative rays, if indulged, hinder and tend to hold us in undesirable conditions, revealing habitual faults. Positive rays persistently applied have the power to transform or dissolve those undesirable conditions.

With spiritual development change occurs. The basic rays of the spiritual arcs, also referred to as a higher octave of light, provide both a standard by which to measure growth and the means of further development. The majority of these spiritual rays reflect virtues you may be endeavoring to express in your life. Such qualities as selfless love, kindness and gratitude can move you toward the awakening of the Christ consciousness and the principle of Universal Love.

Each of the spiritual arcs is concerned with the maturing of an essential portion of our spiritual nature. Each spiritual arc has twelve steps of unfoldment. The first ray is foundational. The twelfth ray is the culmination of the entire arc's meaning. Rarely does a person develop the rays in the order in which they are numbered. We come into each life with different missions, different problems to solve, different tests to overcome. One person may have thoroughly developed a ray in a previous life and have only to review it at this time. The same person might find it necessary to go over and over again the work of some other ray because of a recurring problem in his life. Each person's mission, tests and special abilities are uniquely theirs.

You may notice a similarity between some psychological and spiritual rays. However, there is a difference between the similar colors, particularly when they are seen in light instead of pigment. Spiritual rays have more luminosity. Many psychological rays help to activate the related spiritual qualities, and the spiritual qualities, in turn, increase the positive energy of the psychological rays. Each is essential to the other. Therefore, in any analysis of their meanings, overlapping is inevitable.

When Mary was given the colors she was shown them one at a time. Later she was shown the colors in the presentation of fans or arcs. Organization of the arcs by hues (greens, blues, etc.) aids us in recognizing varying degrees of shade and tint. This leads to heightened sense-perception of sometimes subtle differences and the resonance of these energies within one’s aura.

In the psychological arcs, the denser rays are usually presented on the right side, representing the physical or earth plane, and move to the left or spiritual side. In the spiritual arcs, the right side indicates where our spiritual growth begins and the left represents the more refined spiritual attainments. Color rays are based on a general representation of where humanity stands today.

The slower, earthy or physical vibrations in the aura will be in the lower third of a balanced aura. These rays are not distorted, but appear naturally and promote physical health and a grounded sense of well-being. The First Ray of Psychological Red, Heroic Courage, represents pure physical vibrations. Red is the first level of the great creative current and is absolutely essential to physical strength, health and power. However, if over-intensified, it can indicate an individual who is heavy, coarse, crude and sometimes brutal. It is when seen in the higher psychological and spiritual areas of the aura that these heavier colors generally indicate distortion. See, for example, the description for the First Ray of Spiritual Green.

Many hues and tints may appear to one’s vision that cannot be placed in the basic charts, yet are valid auric colors for that individual. There are more innumerable colors than those shown in the arcs, but presented here were the ones that Mary was directed to apply to the color course. The "color dictionary" of the arcs was set down as a beginning course to learn. The learning of these colors initiates growth in soul consciousness within the physical world.
 
 

It is helpful to keep in mind the general meanings of the colors as the rays are studied. A brief discussion of each of the five basic colors follows.

Green represents growth, energy, accumulation and, in its higher frequencies, heightened awareness. Greens are as necessary to humanity as they are to Nature. Change and growth are an inevitable part of life. Clear greens help us to be flexible and to adapt to change so that growth proceeds naturally. Too little green hinders normal growth. Too much green accents the ego and creates imbalance. As is well known, moderation and balance are of prime importance for growth.

For clear understanding and richer realization of one's growth, guidance and training are needed. Blues aid this process by training the ego, or personality, through the development of positive attitudes that can overcome self-centeredness and negativity and by exertion of the will toward expression of these positive attitudes in daily living.

Blue is a cool color contributing to an overall condition of calmness and serenity. Various colors of blue are soothing to the nerves and can lead to spiritual awareness. The lighter colors of blue are healing, and the darker, or more intense, clear colors are positive forces that stimulate will power and right action. They give control and discipline, and the higher frequencies of blue continue this activity on a spiritual level. They guide the little ego toward a positive, conscious use of controlled emotion, which is the foundation of spiritual power.

Yellow colors warm and uplift. Some stimulate the intellect and aid in assimilation of knowledge. The positive yellows are lights on the path of life. Yellows throw light on the events, the relationships, the habit patterns of life, bringing a type of rebirth through enlightenment. They strengthen mature action and lead to the illumination of the developed person—a conscious union with God, a realization of the Divine within. There are degrees of this intuitional awakening and many of the yellows mark the steps in growth.

Red is a warm color that stimulates activity in life. It gives impetus to physical activity and catalyzes changes in consciousness. When seen in the psychological field of the aura, the slower vibrating frequencies indicate selfish intent and result in distorted relationships, whereas the positive tints and combinations contain numerous expressions of love. The higher frequencies of red provide the enabling power to transform our nature in order to express spiritual qualities. We remember more often that we are spiritual beings inhabiting an earthly body. They help to refine the human body-temple and to maintain a more subtle vibration so that the spirit within can function with greater ease. The natural environment of spirit is unconditional love.

Purples are concerned with balanced interaction, whether between oneself and one's Source or Creator, between persons, or between oneself and the environment in which one lives. They balance all one's forces—physical, mental, emotional and spiritual—with the whole of life. Helpful to all the color rays, the purples symbolize attributes of God and represent the true synthesis of all the best that we can be.

The definitions given for the color rays are the original definitions from the Course in Creative Color Analysis by Mary Dies Weddell. This note applies to all the color meanings and descriptions.
 
 

1st Ray:  Murky Green, Clouded Apricot Midray

Meaning: Indifference

Meaning: Jealousy

Meaning: Shock Through Fear

Meaning: Honesty

Meaning: New Growth

Meaning: Supply

Meaning: Adjustment to Life

Meaning: Philanthropy

Meaning: Integrity

Meaning: Basic Understanding

Meaning: Generosity

Meaning: Accountability

THE PSYCHOLOGICAL ARC OF BLUE

1st Ray:  Dark Blue, Streaks of Brown and Maroon

Meaning: Evil Intent

Meaning: Fear

Meaning: Reliability

Meaning: Emotion

Meaning: Moral Courage

Meaning: Justice

Meaning: Ambition

Meaning: Loyalty

Meaning: Responsibility