[Spirit]

Agastiyar - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:31:00 +0000

A rare and illuminating book in English on the life and works of the great siddhas of ancient and modern times, with particular reference to Sri Agastiyar, the archetype of all siddhas and gurus, was published in Canada recently, entitled Babaji and the 18 Siddha Kriya Yoga tradition, written by Marshall Govindan, an advanced Kriya Yoga sadhaka of Los Angeles and a keen scholar, who had carried out extensive literary and spiritual research in India and Sri Lanka for twenty years under the guidance of Yogi S.A.A. Ramaiah.

In the hierarchy of siddhas or perfected human beings, or Initiates of the White Brotherhood as they are called in the West, who have guided the destinies of nations on our planet Earth for the past 12,000 years of recorded history, the ageless legendary siddha Sri Agastiya Maha Muni stands out as the senior-most guru who initiated a galaxy of eminent gurus and siddhas down the ages, and who had established and nurtured the ancient Dravidian civilization lasting several millennia. He is also acknowledged, in occult circles, as the head of a representative group of rishis entrusted with the guiding of the destiny of India and other nations called the Sapta Rishis as disclosed in certain ola leaf manuscripts called rishi vakyams and also in theosophical writings. Sri Agastiyar is also considered the author of several Rig Vedic hymns in Sanskrit connected with the Aryan civilization of the North.

Sri Agastiyar’s role in the Ramayana

In the Ramayana saga, which is deemed by historians to have taken place about 9,000 years ago in the Treta Yuga, Sri Agastiyar is reported to have appeared before Rama himself on the day before the final victorious termination of the war with Ravana, the hitherto invincible King of Lanka, and initiated Lord Rama with a special divine mantra to counter the effect of the powerful boons that Ravana had earned from the gods by his great tapas.

It is significant to note that, according to geo physical research based on the movement of the continental plates, the Lanka of Ravana was situated in the continent of Lemuria, also known as Kumari Kandam, which was a land mass, connecting the Deccan plateau in South India and the island of Ceylon, with intervening straits to be crossed, with Madagascar in the West, Australia on the East and Antarctica on the South, until it sank into the Indian ocean in stages over 3,500 years ago, as mentioned in the writings of the German geologist Wagner anti the eminent Indologist Sir T.W. Holderness.

The research done by Fr. Heras and Sir John Marshall the archaeologist and other scholars into the archaeological finds at Mohenjodaro and Harappa point to the existence of an earlier highly developed Dravidian civilization in the deep South which, had influenced the Indus-Valley Aryan civilization of the North.

The available historical evidence referring to the Dravidian civilization commences with the records that have come down to us of the Tamil literary writings during the past 12,000 years, which have been divided by historians into three periods, called the First Sangam period from 9600 BC to 5200 BC, spanning the Satya and Treta yugas, the Second Sangam period from 5200 BC to 1500 BC spanning the Treta and Dwapara yugas, and the Third Sangam period from 1500 BC to 600 AD spanning the Dwapara and Kali yugas.

According to the present cycle of four yugas, namely Satya, Treta, Dwapara and Kali yugas, in their descending arc of 12,000 years and ascending arc of another 12,000 years, as stated by Sri Yukteswar in his famous treatis called ‘Holy Science’, we are now in the ascending arc of Dwapara yuga completed the Kali yuga period lasting from 600 BC to 1800 AD.

The Mahabharata war, where Lord Krishna propagated the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna, is reckoned to have taken place during the Second Sangam period about the year 3100 BC.

The First Sangam, which was founded and nurtured by Siddha Sri Agastiyar, lasted for 4,400 years and had its centre in the city of Dakshina Madura in the continent of Lemuria.

The Second Sangam, which was also established under the patronage of Sri Agastiyar, lasted for 3,700 years and had its centre in the city of Kavatapuram in the continent of Lemuria, after the records in the city of Dakshina Madura had gone under water.

The Third Sangam, also sponsored by Sri Agastiyar, lasted for 1,800 years and had its centre at Uttara Madura, namely the modern city of Madurai, which lays north of the earlier centres, after the whole of the Lemurian continent had gone under water.

After the commencement of the gradual inundation of the Lemurian continent, it is reported that Sri Agastiyar led a migration of Dravidians to Java and Cambodia and Central and South America. The legends of the Incas, Mayans and Aztecs of South America regarding the founding of their cultures by tall beared white-robed teachers confirm the tradititional view that the Lemurians, under the guidance of their siddhas, colonized North and South America, as well as the Nile Valley, when they founded the Egyptian civilization.

It is significant to note that Edgar Cayce the well-known ‘sleeping prophet’ of America, had in the course of his recent voluminous psychic messages given out by him while in a state of trance mentioned a similar sinking of the continent of Atlantis in stages into the Atlantic Ocean over a period of several centuries between 12,000 BC and 10,000 BC, before the sinking of the Lemurian continent.

Sri Agastlyar the Archetype of all Gurus

Maha Avatar Kriya Babaji of the Himalayas, the lineal Guru of Paramahamsa Yogananda, Yukteswar and Lahiri Mahasaya, who is well nigh 1,800 years old today, still retains a young physical body of a 16 year old youth, as a result of his divinising the cells of his physical body, after receiving initiation from two of the greatest siddhas of all time.

Siddha Boganathar instructed him in the higher Kriya yoga techniques, for six months at Kataragama in Sri Lanka in the year 214 AD and sent him thereafter to his own Guru Siddha Agastiyar at Couttalam in India, where Babaji had the final initiation in Kriya yoga, after he had practised severe austerities for 48 days to invoke the grace of Agastiyar, who finally appeared before him in his physical body emerging from the adjoining forest; and showered his full blessings on him.

These facts were disclosed by Babaji himself in 1952 to two of his disciples V. T. Neelakantan, a Theosophist of the early days, and Yogi S.A.A. Ramaiah, when he materialized in physical form from his abode in the Himalayas in the shrine room of V.T. Neelakantan at Suramma1 Lane, in Egmore, Madras. In.turn Babaji is known to have initiated among others the famous Hindu reformer Adi Sankaracharya into the mysteries of Kriya yoga about the year 800 AD.

Among the several Siddhas initiated directly by Sri Agastiyar were, according to certain sources, (1) Tirumoolar, the author of Tirumanthiram described as one of the greatest texts of yoga and mystic truth ever written, who lived for over 3,000 years in the pre-Christian era, and (2) Tiruvalluvar the author of the world famed classic scripture the Tirukkural, who lived 2,000 years ago.

It was the immortal Sri Agastiyar who originally taught and transmitted to several of his disciples over the ages the Kriya yoga techniques of divinising the cells of the body and:

rendering the physical body deathless for centuries, (as in the case of the 18 Siddhas and Kriya Babaji), or
enabling the physical body to disappear completely and resurrect in a glow of light into a subtler vibrational field, (as in the case of Adi Sankaracharya and the four great Saiva saints namely the Nayanmars and Kabir of medieval times and Ramalinga Swamigal as recently as 1874), or
enabling the physical body to be placed in a tomb in jeeva samadhi at will, in a state of suspended animation, where the blood circulation and the breathing have stopped but a luminous pranic energy keeps the body-cells alive, with the possibility of the siddha dematerializing the body in the tomb and materializing it outside in a completely different locality and living out an extended span of life for several years (as in the case of three well-known siddhas of modern times, namely Sri Raghavendra Swami about whom a popular film had been made recently, Sri Kulandaj Ananda Swami whose last jeeva samadhi is in Madurai city and Sri Muthukrishna Swami whose jeeva samadhi is in Vallioor).

The writer of this article had the opportunity to view and pay homage at the shrines, where the latter two jeeva samadhis are situated.

Amma - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:29:00 +0000

from www.ammachi.org

Amma's divine nature as a child could not be comprehended by most people around her. Yet many were drawn to Her love and teachings.

As more individuals began to flock to see this unique hugging saint, a formal center for spiritual training was established in Her name to disseminate Her teachings.

Amma's untiring efforts and charities continue to emphasize service of ailing humanity as a means of attaining spiritual growth and understanding.

Blavatsky - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:28:00 +0000

www.theosociety.org

Helena Petrovna Blavatsky was born on August 12, 1831, at Dnepropetrovsk (Ekaterinoslav), Ukraine, daughter of Colonel Peter Alexeyevich von Hahn and novelist Helena Andreyevna (née de Fadeyev). In 1849 she married N. V. Blavatsky, and shortly thereafter began more than 20 years of extensive travel, bringing her into contact with mystic traditions the world over.

In 1873 Blavatsky arrived in New York from Paris where, impelled by her teachers, she began her work. At first she attempted to interest the Spiritualists in the philosophy behind phenomena but they resented her refusal to accept their standard explanations. In July 1875 she was urged "to establish a philosophico-religious society," and in the Fall of the same year she became the principal founder, along with H. S. Olcott and W. Q. Judge, of The Theosophical Society. She devoted the rest of her life to its humanitarian and educational objectives.

About the time the Society began, she started to write her first major work, Isis Unveiled, and after its publication in 1878 she and H. S. Olcott left for India. There they worked to re-establish Oriental philosophical and religious ideas, largely through the pages of The Theosophist, a magazine which Blavatsky founded and edited.

In 1884, while Blavatsky was traveling in Europe, disgruntled TS employees in India went to the missionaries with forged documents, bringing charges of fraud against her. The Society for Psychical Research (SPR) then sent Richard Hodgson to investigate the charges, and subsequently published an unfavorable report. (In 1986 the SPR published an analysis of the Hodgson Report by Dr. Vernon Harrison, an SPR member expert in forgery and handwriting analysis, who concluded that the Hodgson Report was biased, unscientific, and completely unconvincing.)

Under the strain, Blavatsky's health had broken down, and in 1885 she left India for Europe, where she continued to write The Secret Doctrine, her masterwork. In 1887 she settled in London, and began a new magazine Lucifer ("Light-bringer"). In 1888The Secret Doctrine was published and, in the same year, aided by W. Q. Judge, she formed the Esoteric Section of The Theosophical Society. Shortly afterwards she wrote The Key to Theosophy and The Voice of the Silence. In 1890 she became head of a newly-established European Section. She died in London on May 8, 1891 after many years of chronic illness. (Link to Biographical Sketch.)

Books by and about HPB published by Theosophical University Press:

The Secret Doctrine (set of 2 vols.) (Full-text online)
The Secret Doctrine Index (Full-text online)
An Invitation to The Secret Doctrine (Full-text online)
Isis Unveiled (set of 2 vols.) (Full-text online)
The Key to Theosophy (Full-text online)
The Voice of the Silence (Full-text online)
Studies in Occultism (Full-text online)
Secret Doctrine Commentary: Transactions of the Blavatsky Lodge (Full-text online)
H. P. Blavatsky to the American Conventions 1888-1891 (Full-text online)
Gems from the East (Full-text online)
The Letters of H. P. Blavatsky to A. P. Sinnett, transcribed and compiled by A. Trevor Barker (Full-text online)
H. P. Blavatsky and the Theosophical Movement, by Charles J. Ryan (Full-text online)
H. P. Blavatsky and the SPR: An Examination of the Hodgson Report of 1885, by Vernon Harrison (Full-text online)
Sunrise Special Issue 1991: HPB, Theosophy, and The Theosophical Society (Full-text online)

Books by and about HPB from other publishers available through TUP:

H. P. Blavatsky: Collected Writings (15 vols.), compiled by Boris de Zirkoff
From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan, by H. P. Blavatsky
Theosophical Glossary, by H. P. Blavatsky et al., edited by G. R. S. Mead
The Theosophist, (Vol. 1, 1879-1880), edited by H. P. Blavatsky
HPB: The Extraordinary Life and Influence of Helena Blavatsky, by Sylvia Cranston
The Occult World of Madame Blavatsky, compiled and edited by Daniel H. Caldwell
Blavatsky Reference Books compiled and annotated by H. J. Spierenburg. Includes The Buddhism of H. P. Blavatsky; H. P. Blavatsky on the Gnostics.; The New Testament Commentaries of H. P. Blavatsky; The Veda Commentaries of H. P. Blavatsky; The Vedanta Commentaries of H. P. Blavatsky; Astrology of a Living Universe; The Inner Group Teachings of H. P. Blavatsky
Reminiscences of H. P. Blavatsky and The Secret Doctrine, by Countess Constance Wachtmeister, et al.

Books by and about HPB available only in full-text online editions at TUP Online:

Nightmare Tales (Full-text online)
Some Unpublished Letters of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky compiled, with commentary, by Eugene Rollin Corson (Full-text online)

Boganathar - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:26:00 +0000

from www.murugan.org

Bhogar was a South Indian by birth, belonging to the caste of goldsmiths, who became a siddhapurusha under the guidance of Kalanginaathar. In Bhogar's Saptakanda he reveals details of various medicinal preparations to his disciple Pullippani (so named as he is believed to have wandered in the forests atop a puli or tiger) and at every stage he quotes his guru as the authority. Also Pulippani must have been a young man then, as he is often referred to as a balaka.

It is said that as per the last wishes of his guru, Bhogar proceeded to China to spread the knowledge of siddha sciences and strangely enough his journey is said to have been made with the aid of an aircraft; he demonstrated to the Chinese the details of the construction of the aircraft and later built for them a sea-going craft using a steam engine. The details of these and other experi- ments demonstrated by Bhogar in China are clearly documented in the Saptakanda.

Bogar's guru, Kālāngi Nāthar, is believed to be a Chinese who attained siddhi in South India and thus became included among the Eighteen Siddhars.

Lao Tse - the founder of Taoism (5th century B.C.) was the first Chinese to propound the theory of duality of matter -- the male Yang and female Yin -- which conforms to the Siddha concept of Shiva - Shakti or positive-negative forces. This very same concept was first revealed by the adi-siddhar Agasthya Rishi, whose period is as old as the Vedas, which have been conservatively dated at 3500 B.C. Also alchemy as a science was practised in China only after B.C. 135 and was practiced as an art until B.C. 175 when a royal decree was enacted banning alchemical preparation of precious metals by the Celestial Empire; these details are recounted in the two existing Chinese books of alchemy Shih Chi and Treatise of Elixir Refined in Nine Couldrons, both dated to the first century B.C.

The emergence of Lao Tse with his theory of duality of matter and the journey of Bhogar to China seem to have taken place about the same time and it is even possible that Bhogar himself went under the name of Lao Tse in China, like another Siddharishi Sriramadevar, who was known as Yacob in Arabia.

This seems likely considering that:

before Lao Tse the concept of duality of matter finds no mention in any Chinese treatise;
alchemy as a science emerged only after B.C. 135, i.e. four centuries after Lao Tse;
there was a sudden spurt of alchemical practice aher the emergency of Lao Tse; and
the duality of matter and alchemy have been mentioned in South Indian scriptures that antidate Lao Tse by centuries.

The shrine at the top of the hill, though later than the Tiru Avinankudi temple, has overshadowed the older temple in the present century due to its popular appeal. Created by Bhogar, it was maintained after him by sage Pulippani and his descendants almost as their personal and private temple.

During the time of Tirumalai Nayak, his general Ramappayyan handed over the puja rights to newly brought Brahmin priests. The descendants of Pulippani were compensated for the loss of this right by being given:

Certain duties of superintendence
Right to some annual presents
Right to shoot off, at the Dasara Festival, the arrow which symbolises Subramanya's victory over asuras.
Right to be buried at the foot of the steps leading to the hill, if some of them so chose.

Christ - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:25:00 +0000

from Initiation, Human and Solar - By Alice Bailey and Djwhal Khul

The Work of the World Teacher, the Christ

Group two has the World Teacher for its presiding Head. He is that Great Being whom the Christian calls the Christ; he is known also in the Orient as the Bodhisattva, and as the Lord Maitreya, and is the one looked for by the devout Mohammedan, under the name of the Iman Madhi. He it is who has presided over the destinies of life since about 600 B.C. and he it is who has come out among men before, and who is again looked for. He is the great Lord of Love and of Compassion, just as his predecessor, the Buddha, was the Lord of Wisdom. [44] Through him flows the energy of the second aspect, reaching him direct from the heart center of the Planetary Logos via the heart of Sanat Kumara. He works by means of a meditation centered within the heart. He is the World Teacher, the Master of the Masters, and the Instructor of the Angels, and to him is committed the guidance of the spiritual destinies of men, and the development of the realization within each human being that he is a child of God and a son of the Most High.

Just as the Manu is occupied with the providing of the type and forms through which consciousness can evolve and gather experience, thus making existence in its deepest sense possible, so the World Teacher directs that in dwelling consciousness in its life or spirit aspect, seeking to energize it within the form so that, in due course of time, that form can be discarded and the liberated spirit return whence it came. Ever since he left the earth, as related with approximate accuracy in the Bible story (though with much error in detail) has he stayed with the sons of men; never has he really gone, but only in appearance, and in a physical body he can be found by those who know the way, dwelling in the Himalayas, and working in close cooperation with his two great Brothers, the Manu and the Mahachohan. Daily he pours out his blessing on the world, and daily he stands under the great pine in his garden at the sunset hour with hands uplifted in blessing over all those who truly and earnestly seek to aspire. To him all seekers are known, and, though they may remain unaware of him, the light which he pours forth stimulates their desire, fosters the spark of struggling life and spurs on the aspirant until the momentous day dawns when they stand face to face with the one who by being "lifted up" (occultly understood) is drawing all men unto himself as the Initiator of the sacred mysteries. [45]

Djwhal Khul - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:24:00 +0000

From Alice Bailey

The Master Djwhal Khul, or the Master D. K. as he is frequently called, is another adept on the second Ray of Love-Wisdom. He is the latest of the adepts taking initiation, having taken the fifth initiation in 1875, and is "therefore occupying the same body in which he took the initiation, most of the other Masters having taken the fifth initiation whilst occupying earlier vehicles. His body is not a young one, and he is a Tibetan. He is very devoted to the Master K. H. and occupies a little house not far distant from the larger one of the Master, and from his willingness to serve and to do anything that has to be done, he has been called "the Messenger of the Masters." He is profoundly learned, and knows more about the rays and planetary Hierarchies of the solar system than anyone else in the ranks of the Masters. He works with those who heal, and cooperates unknown and unseen with the seekers after truth in the world's great laboratories, with all who definitely aim at the healing and solacing of the world, and with the great philanthropic world movements [58] such as the Red Cross. He occupies himself with various pupils of different Masters who can profit by his instruction, and within the last ten years has relieved both the Master M. and the Master K. H. of a good deal of their teaching work, taking over from them for certain stated times some of their pupils and disciples. He works largely, too, with certain groups of the devas of the ethers, who are the healing devas, and who thus collaborate with him in the work of healing some of the physical ills of humanity. He it was who dictated a large part of that momentous book The Secret Doctrine, and who showed to H. P. Blavatsky many of the pictures, and gave her much of the data that is to be found in that book.

Djwhal Khul

from http://www.crystalinks.com/djwhalkhul.html

Djwhal Khul, said to have been a Tibetan who started out with the unlikely name Gai Ben-Jamin. Believers tell the legend of his incarnation on Lemuria where he assisted in rescuing valuable knowledge before the sinking of that continent. He is said later to have transmitted this information to channeler Alice Bailey.

Alice A. Bailey (1880 -1949), writer and lecturer on neo-theosophy, was born in England in 1880 as Alice LaTrobe Bateman. After spells as an evangelical Christian and a member of the Esoteric Section of the Theosophical Society, Alice Bailey founded the Arcane School in 1923. Her 26 books popularized notions such as the coming New Age and the New Group of World Servers, whose triangles she initiated in 1937. They include the mantram known as "The Great Invocation" used by thousands of esoteric groups all over the world. Today the seeds of her service are continued in the work of the Arcane School and Lucis Trust.

According to Alice Bailey, almost all of her books were dictated to her by the Tibetan, Djwhal Khul. The teachings contained therein are written in an unusually lucid style though the subjects are at times abstruse. These are textbooks on occult science, astrology, white magic, meditation and general occultism. It has been said that A.A.B.'s books are more inspirational than informational as the works themselves are occult artifacts which have a definite effect upon those who read them.

Metaphysics

Djwhal Khul is also a Master of the Second Ray of love and wisdom.

His teacher is Master Kuthumi.

He is known as "The Tibetan".

Previous Incarnations:
- Confucius
- Tibetan Lama overseeing a large monastery in the Himalayas.

In the 1900's he achieved his sixth Initiation and ascended.

He can materialize, dematerialize and bilocate.

He works to balance energies to make them easily accessible to all. He is responsible for making much of the formerly hidden esoteric knowledge widely available through the writings of H.P. Blavatsky, Alice Bailey, among others. Alice Bailey & Djwhal Khul

Shortly after leaving the physical plane in the late 1800's Djwhal Khul began working with El Morya, Kuthumi, and St. Germain to assist them in the research of Helene Blavatsky.

Gangaji - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:23:00 +0000

"There is a great secret that beings throughout time have announced, the secret of an extraordinary treasure, the treasure of the nectar of eternal life. It is the nectar of pure beingness, recognizing itself as consciousness and overflowing in the love of that recognition.

If you imagine yourself to be located in a body, then you will move that body from place to place, searching for this treasure of nectar. But, if you will stop all searching right now and tell the truth to yourself, you will know what is known in the core of your bones. You will know what these great beings knew and attempted to describe. You will know it with no image of it, no concept of it, no thought of it. You will know it as that which has eternally been here. And you will know it as yourself."

Gangaji, a teacher and author, speaks with thousands of spiritual seekers around the world, responding to the deepest spiritual questions of our time. While she does not offer a particular philosophy or practice, she extends the extraordinary invitation of her teacher, Sri H.W.L. Poonjaji, and his teacher, Sri Ramana Maharshi, to end immediately all outward searching and discover directly within your own heart the fathomless truth of who you are.

Check as well

www.gangaji.org

The Hierarchy - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:21:00 +0000

from Initiation, Human and Solar - By Alice Bailey and Djwhal Khul

THE THREE DEPARTMENTS OF THE HIERARCHY

We have already dealt with the subject of the founding of the Hierarchy upon earth, and we saw how it came to be, touching likewise upon certain crises which have occurred, and which still affect events in the present time. In dealing with the work and aims of the personnel of the Hierarchy, it will not be possible to state what those aims have been, nor to consider in detail who the active personalities have been during the past millennia of years since the Hierarchy came into existence.

Many great Beings from planetary and solar sources, and once or twice from cosmic sources, have at times lent their aid and dwelt briefly upon our planet. By the energy which flowed through them, and by their profound wisdom and experience, they stimulated earth's evolutions and brought the purposes of the Planetary Logos so much the nearer to completion. Then they passed on, and their places were taken by those among the members of the Hierarchy who were willing to undergo a specific training and expansion of consciousness. In turn these adepts and Masters had their places filled by initiates, and thus constantly has there been opportunity for disciples and highly evolved men and women to pass into the ranks of the Hierarchy, and thus constantly has there been a circulation of new life and blood, and the coming in of those who belong to a particular period or age.

Some of the great names during the later periods are known to history, such as Shri Sankaracharya, Vyasa, [38] Mohammed, Jesus of Nazareth, and Krishna, down to those lesser initiates, Paul of Tarsus, Luther, and certain of the outstanding lights in European history. Always have these men and women been agents for the carrying out of race purpose, for the bringing about of group conditions, and for the furthering of the evolution of humanity. Sometimes they have appeared as beneficent forces, bringing peace and contentment with them. More often have they come as agents of destruction, breaking up the old forms of religion and of government in order that the life within the rapidly crystallizing form might be set free and build for itself a newer and a better vehicle.

Much that is stated here is already well known, and has already been given out in the different occult books. Yet in the wise and careful enunciation of collected facts, and their correlation with that which may be new to some students, comes an eventual synthetic grasp of the great plan, and a wise uniform realization as to the work of that great group of liberated souls who, in utter self-abnegation, stand silently behind the world panorama. Through the power of their will, the strength of their meditations, the wisdom of their plans, and the scientific knowledge of energy which is theirs, they direct those force currents, and control those form-building agencies which produce all that is seen and unseen, movable and immovable in the sphere of creation within the three worlds. This, coupled to their vast experience, is what fits them to be the agents for the distribution of the energy of the Planetary Logos.

As has already been stated, at the head of affairs, controlling each unit and directing all evolution, stands the KING, the Lord of the World, Sanat Kumara, the Youth of endless Summers, and the Fountainhead of the Will, (showing forth as Love) of the Planetary Logos. Cooperating with him as his advisers are three Personalities [39] called the Pratyeka Buddhas, or the Buddhas of Activity. These four are the embodiment of active intelligent loving will. They are the full flowering of the intelligence, having achieved in an earlier solar system that which man is now striving to perfect. In earlier cycles in this system they began to demonstrate intelligent love, and from the standpoint of the average human being they are perfect love and perfect intelligence, though from the standpoint of that Existence who embraces even our planetary scheme in his body of manifestation, that love aspect is as yet but in process of developing, and the will is only embryonic. Another solar system will see the will aspect come to fruition, as love will mature in this.

Standing around the Lord of the World, but withdrawn and esoteric, are three more Kumaras, who make the seven of planetary manifestation. Their work is to us necessarily obscure. The three esoteric Buddhas, or Kumaras, are the sumtotal of activity or planetary energy, and the three esoteric Kumaras embody types of energy which as yet are not in full demonstration upon our planet. Each of these six Kumaras is a reflection of, and the distributing agent for, the energy and force of one of the six other Planetary Logoi, the remaining six spirits before the Throne. Sanat Kumara alone, in this scheme, is self-sustaining and self-sufficient, being the physical incarnation of one of the Planetary Logoi, which one it is not permissible to state, as this fact is one of the secrets of initiation. Through each of them passes the life force of one of the six rays, and in considering them one might sum up their work and position as follows:

They each embody one of the six types of energy, with the Lord of the World as the synthesizer and the embodier of the perfect seventh type, our planetary type. [40]
They are each distinguished by one of the six colors, with the Lord of the World showing forth the full planetary color, these six being subsidiary.
Their work is therefore concerned, not only with force distribution, but with the passing into our scheme from other planetary schemes, of Egos seeking earth experience.
Each of them is in direct communication with one or another of the sacred planets.
According to astrological conditions, and according to the turning of the planetary wheel of life, so one or another of these Kumaras will be active. The three Buddhas of Activity change from time to time, and become in turn exoteric or esoteric as the case may be. Only the King persists steadily and watchfully in active physical incarnation.

Besides these main presiding Personalities in the Council Chamber at Shamballa, there is a group of four Beings who are the representatives upon the planet of the four Maharajas, or the four Lords of Karma in the solar system, who are specifically concerned with the evolution at the present time of the human kingdom. These four are connected with:

The distribution of karma, or human destiny, as it affects individuals, and through the individuals, the groups.
The care and tabulation of the akashic records. They are concerned with the Halls of Records, or with the "keeping of the book," as it is called in the Christian Bible; they are known in the Christian world as the recording angels. [41]
The participation in solar councils. They alone have the right during the world cycle to pass beyond the periphery of the planetary scheme, and participate in the councils of the Solar Logos. Thus they are literally planetary mediators, representing our Planetary Logos and all that concerns him in the greater scheme of which he is but a part.

Cooperating with these karmic Lords are the large groups of initiates and devas who occupy themselves with the right adjustment of:

World karma,
Racial karma,
National karma,
Group karma,
Individual karma,

and who are responsible to the Planetary Logos for the correct manipulation of those forces and building agencies which bring in the right Egos on the different rays at the correct times and seasons.

With all these groups we have little concern, for they are contacted only by initiates of the third initiation, and by those of even more exalted rank.

The remaining personnel of the Hierarchy is divided into three main and four subsidiary groups, each of these groups, as will be seen by reference to the appended chart, being presided over by one of those whom we call the three Great Lords.

Hilarion - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:19:00 +0000

from Initiation, Human and Solar - By Alice Bailey and Djwhal Khul

On the fifth Ray of Concrete Knowledge or Science, we find the Master Hilarion, who, in an earlier incarnation was Paul of Tarsus. He is occupying a Cretan body, but spends a large part of his time in Egypt. He it was who gave out to the world that occult treatise "Light on the Path," and his work is particularly interesting to the general public at this crisis, for he works with those who are developing the intuition, and controls and transmutes the great movements that tend to strip the veil from the unseen. His is the energy which, through his disciples, is stimulating the Psychical Research groups everywhere, and he it was who initiated, through various pupils of his, the Spiritualistic movement. He has under observation all those who are psychics of the higher order, and assists in developing their powers for the good of the group, and in connection with certain of the devas of the astral plane he works to open up to the seekers after truth that subjective world which lies behind the grossly material.

Jesus - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:18:00 +0000

from Initiation, Human and Solar - By Alice Bailey and Djwhal Khul

The Master Jesus, who is the focal point of the energy that flows through the various Christian churches, is at present living in a Syrian body, and dwells in a certain part of the Holy Land. He travels much and passes considerable time in various parts of Europe. He works specially with masses more than with individuals, though he has gathered around him quite a numerous body of pupils. He is upon the sixth Ray of Devotion, or Abstract Idealism, and his pupils are frequently distinguished by that fanaticism and devotion which manifested in earlier Christian times amongst the martyrs. He himself is rather a martial figure, a disciplinarian, and a man of iron rule and will. He is tall and spare with rather a long thin face, black hair, pale complexion and piercing blue eyes. His work at this time is exceedingly responsible, for to him is given the problem of steering the thought of the occident out of its present state of unrest into the peaceful waters of certitude and knowledge, and of preparing the way in Europe and America for the eventual coming of the World Teacher. He is well known in the Bible history, coming before us first as Joshua the Son of Nun, appearing again in the time of Ezra as Jeshua, taking the third initiation, as related in the book of Zechariah, as Joshua, and in the Gospel story he is known for two great sacrifices, that in which he handed over his body for the use of the Christ, and for the great renunciation which is the characteristic of the fourth initiation. As Appollonius of Tyana, he took the [57] fifth initiation and became a Master of the Wisdom. From that time on he has stayed and worked with the Christian Church, fostering the germ of true spiritual life which is to be found amongst members of all sects and divisions, and neutralizing as far as possible the mistakes and errors of the churchmen and the theologians. He is distinctively the Great Leader, the General, and the wise Executive, and in Church matters he cooperates closely with the Christ, thus saving him much and acting as his intermediary wherever possible. No one so wisely knows as he the problems of the West, no one is so closely in touch with the people who stand for all that is best in Christian teachings, and no one is so well aware of the need of the present moment. Certain great prelates of the Anglican and Catholic Churches are wise agents of his.

PS: according to the esoteric tradition and the theosophical teachings, Jesus and the Christ are two different masters. The incarnation known as Jesus the Christ would have been a merging of these two beings or the expression of the Christ through Jesus of Nazareth.

Jesus Christ - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:16:00 +0000

Jesus Christ

in ancient Greek

Jesus Christ

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Jesus of Nazareth, or Jesus the Christ [Christ meaning Messiah or Saviour], (see alternate names below) (born: c. 6 BC- c.6; died: c. 27 - c. 36) was a Jewish religious teacher and healer who was crucified during the early years of the Roman Empire.

According to those religions conventionally designated as "Christian," Jesus is the Messiah and Son of God and broughtsalvation to humanity by living a perfect life, and dying in our place, and resurrecting three days later.

Other religions have varying perspectives on Jesus. He is regarded as a prophet by Muslims, as a false Messiah by Judaismand Mandaeanism, as a manifestation of God by the Baha'i, a manifestation of Maitreya by some Buddhists, as an avatar by some Hindus, as the savior and bringer of gnosis by various Gnostic sects and as a guru by many New Ageists.

The primary source of historical knowledge about Jesus is contained within the Christian Gospels which the majority of historians believe to have originated from sources written within living memory of Jesus. Evidence for a historical Jesus is also provided by the Epistles, especially those by Paul. Other sources regarded as of less significance from the perspective of modern historians are other early Christian material, other religious traditions, and certain historians of the period. The majority of historians accept the New Testament as evidence for the historical existence of Jesus; but there is somewhat less acceptance of the basic narrative of his life and death, and far less for any miraculous claims, among professional historians and liberal biblical scholars.

A minority of historians argue from the internal features of, and inconsistencies between, the Gospels and other canonical andnon-canonical Christian and Gnostic writings that Jesus was a mythical figure. The paucity of non-Christian historical sources that corroborate Christian writings is adduced as support for this position. See, for example, the writings of Earl Doherty. While once popular, this view has migrated to the fringes of serious scholarship today.

Introduction

Most discussions about Jesus, including this one, involve a conflict between contrasting, and in some ways incompatible, views of the world and of how humans acquire knowledge (this subject is discussed in the disciplines of epistemology andmetaphysics).

Christians believe that humans can have direct personal knowledge of God and of Jesus and that this is confirmed throughscripture, which is a form of divine revelation. Some Christians believe that Scripture must be interpreted in the light ofTradition, while others believe that individuals can interpret it for themselves. For some Christians, belief in Jesus is a matter of faith: they need no further confirmation of the existence of God and His son. Other Christians feel they have knowledge of God and Jesus based on the empirical existence of the Gospels and/or Bible as accurate historical documents, the Christian tradition passed on from generation to generation, and through their direct consequent religious experiences.

Jesus is a still more controversial figure because there are different accounts of Jesus within other religions like Islam,Judaism, Gnosticism, Mandaeanism (see later in this article.)

Historians meanwhile make statements about historical events or persons based on more pragmatic standards of empirical evidence. They look at scripture not as divinely inspired but as the work of fallible humans, who wrote in the light of their culture and time.

There is a paucity of accepted contemporaneous sources and of direct empirical evidence. Therefore, it is difficult for representatives of the different religious and secular traditions of knowledge and faith to reach agreement on a "biography" of Jesus. This article therefore while seeking to identify as much common ground as possible between the different traditions, also indicates where there are differing views and beliefs.

The historical Jesus of Nazareth

This section provides a historical view of Jesus, based on empirical evidence that is considered satisfactory by the majority of historians.

The names and titles of Jesus

Jesus is derived from the Latin Iesus, which in turn comes from the Greek Iesous (Ιησους). The Greek form is a transliterationof the Aramaic name Yeshua (ישוע), a short form of Hebrew Yehoshua (יהושע), the name that Moses gave to his successor as leader of the Israelites, who is known in English as Joshua. The Name means the Lord is salvation, literallyYahweh/Jehovah saves.

Direct English transliterations from the Aramaic Yehoshua/Yeshua include Joshua, Jeshua, Yahshua, Yahoshua and Yaohushua. These variations in English spelling are of no real significance as they can only approximate the sound of the Hebrew or Aramaic original.

Christ is not a name but a title, and comes, via Latin, from the Greek Christos (Χριστος), which means anointed. The Greek form is a literal translation of Messiah from Hebrew mashiyakh (משיח) or Aramaic m'shikha (משיחא), a word which occurs often in the Old Testament and typically signifies "high priest" or "king" - a man, chosen by God or descended from a man chosen by God, to serve as a religious, civil, and/or military authority. Other sources suggest the title Christ is linked to Latincrestus, 'good'. To Muslims, Jesus is known as the prophet Isa al Masih (عيسى المسيح ), from the aforementioned Aramaic forJesus the Messiah.

Sources about Jesus Christ

Main article: Sources about Jesus Christ

Most historians do not dispute the existence of a person named Jesus; evidence for Jesus' existence two thousand years ago is by historical standards actually fairly strong. Jesus is obviously mentioned extensively within the New Testament, but is also considered a historical figure within the traditions of Judaism, Islam, Mandeanism and alternative Christian traditions like Gnosticism. Jesus also gets a passing mention within historical accounts of the period, though the reliability of some of these accounts is disputed.

Moreover, historians generally agree that at least some of the source documents on which the Gospels are based were written within living memory of Jesus. These historians therefore accept that the accounts of the life of Jesus in the Gospels, excepting certain miraculous claims and the details that surround them, provide a reasonable basis of evidence by the standards of ancient history, for the basic narrative of Jesus' life and death.

Date of birth and death

The exact month or day or even the year of Jesus' birth cannot be exactly ascertained. Due to a mistaken calculation based on the Roman Calendar by Dionysius Exiguus in 525, it was long held that Jesus was born in the year 1 BC (making the following year, A.D. 1, the first throughout which he was alive).

The Gospels are problematic, because they offer two seemingly incompatible accounts. Matthew states that Jesus was born while Herod the Great was still alive and that Herod ordered the slaughter of infants two years old and younger (Matt. 2:16), and based on the date of Herod's death in 4 BC (contra Dionysius Exiguus), many chronologists conclude that the year 6 BC is the most likely year of Jesus' birth. Consequently, Jesus would have been about four to six years old in the year A.D. 1.

On the other hand, Luke's account places Jesus' birth during a census conducted under the governorship of Quirinius, who, according to Josephus, conducted a census in A.D. 6. In order to reconcile the two Gospel accounts, some have suggested that Josephus was mistaken or that Quirinius had a separate period of rule under Herod. In any case, the actual date of his birth remains historically unverifiable.

In recent years, East Asian historians have attempted to match the birth of Jesus Christ with special events in their history. They found that, according to the oldest record of the Comet Halley during the Han Dynasty, "The comet heads east with its tail pointing west at night, and was appearing in the sky for more than 70 days." in 6 BC. This has been suggested as an independent record of the "Star" described in Matthew 2. If accepted, this suggestion would place the birthday of Jesus Christ in summer rather than winter.

In the 6th century, Dionysius Exiguus proposed to make the birth of Jesus the basis of the calendar but he miscalculated the death of Herod. Years reckoned in this way are labelled "A.D.", which stands for Anno Domini, meaning "in the year of the Lord" in Latin. Since many non-Christians have come to use this calendar, an alternative notation "C.E." is sometimes used. It is presently uncertain what the original meaning of this abbreviation was, although today it is taken to mean either theCommon Era or the Christian Era: many references cite both.

Based on inferences from Gospel accounts, Jesus was executed by crucifixion on a Friday, and on the 14th day of the Jewish month of Nisan under the administration of Pontius Pilate. Pontius Pilate held his position from 26-36 and the only years in which Nisan 14 fell on a Friday are 27, 33, and 36 and possibly in 30 depending on when the new moon would have been visible in Jerusalem. Scholars have defended all of the dates.

Jesus' life and teaching

Jesus was possibly born in Bethlehem, although he may have been assigned this birthplace by early Christians based on that city's status as the presumed birthplace of King David, from whom the Messiah was to descend. It is much clearer, however, that Galilee was his childhood home. Gospel accounts state he was brought up in Nazareth, however, it is possible that early Christian transcribers mistook the title "Nazarene" for a location, because the town of Nazareth is unmentioned in contemporary historical sources.

Jesus' mother was Mary. Two of the Gospels (Matthew and Luke, but not Mark or John), are interpreted to allege that Josephwas Jesus' foster father, and that Jesus' biological father was God the Father, who impregnated Mary without sex via theHoly Spirit, giving rise to a virgin birth. The other two Gospels, Mark and John, make no mention of Joseph at all, but in their first chapters refer to Jesus as the son of God. Others have postulated that Jesus might have been the biological son of Joseph or an unidentified man with whom Mary had relations before her marriage to Joseph. We can say nothing with certainty about Jesus' childhood or young adulthood. Certain events are mentioned in the various Gospels, but there is no common agreement.

The Gospel of Mark reports that Jesus had brothers, that he was "Mary's son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon," and also suggests that Jesus had sisters. The Jewish historian Josephus and the Christian historian Eusebius (who wrote in the 4th century but quoted much earlier sources now unavaliable to us) refer to James the Just as Jesus' brother. Some churches reject this interpretation, saying that they were Jesus' cousins, which the Greek word for "brother" used in the Gospels would allow. Other churches suggest that these were half brothers, children of Joseph and a previous wife who died before Mary was betrothed to him. This tradition probably originates with the Protevangelion of James, traditionally ascribed to James the Just and certainly dated sometime in the late 1st to middle of the 2nd century.

Jesus began his public ministry some time after he was baptized by John the Baptist, who inspired Mandaeanism. Jesus began preaching, teaching, and healing. There is no firm evidence for when his ministry started or how long it lasted. The detailed nature of Jesus' spiritual teaching cannot be fully agreed because accounts are fragmentary and because he made extensive use of paradox, metaphor and parable; making it is unclear how literally he wished to be taken and precisely what he meant.

Jesus did preach the imminent end of the current era of history, in some sense a literal end of the world as people of his time knew it; in this sense he was an apocalyptic preacher bringing a message about the imminent end of the world the Jews knew.

Like the Pharisee, Jesus opposed stringent interpretations of Jewish law, and preached a more flexible understanding of the law. His teachings show an inclination to following a teleological approach, in which the spirit of the law is more important than the letter of the law. However, the Gospels record him as having many disagreements with the Pharisees, as he consistently takes differing views from the standard religious practice of the day. However, the interpretations of the law by the Sadducees were in most cases much stricter than Pharisee interpretations of the law, and the Sadducees were the dominant authority at that time, yet the Gospels record no sign of Jesus having much disagreement with their views (although it was, according to the Gospels, the priests -- alligned with the Sadducees -- who ultimately arrested Jesus). Some modern historians thus believe that Jesus may have been a liberal Pharisee in some respects, or an Essene (a sect with whom he shared many views); and that later Christian transcribers cast him as an enemy of the Pharisees, because when Christians and Jews came into conflict in later years the Pharisees had become the dominant sect of Judaism. This view receives some support in Acts of the Apostles, because Jesus' apostles were generally attacked by Sadducees but were sometimes protected by Pharisee liberal interpretations of Jewish law.

Jesus increasingly gained followers as his fame grew, though within his lifetime Jesus' core following remained no more than a small religious sect. Jesus had by the time of his death taught a number of his disciples or apostles to preach his teachings and perform faith healing to both Jews and Gentiles alike.

In his role as a social reformer Jesus threatened the status quo. He was unpopular with many Jewish religious authorities, not least because he criticised them; but also because some of Jesus' followers held the controversial and inflammatory view that he was "The Messiah". It is not clear from strict analysis of the original Gospel texts that Jesus made this claim about himself, but he did not deny it. Neither is it wholly clear to historians that when Jesus spoke of being "Son of God" he meant this to be taken literally as Christians believe, rather than metaphorically in the sense that we are all children of God.

Jesus came with his followers to Jerusalem during the Passover festival. He was involved in some form of public disturbance at the Temple in Jerusalem. At some point later, he was betrayed to the Jewish religious authorities of the city - either the full council (Sanhedrin) or perhaps just the High Priest - by one of his apostles, Judas Iscariot. The High Priest of the city was appointed by the government in Rome and the current holder of the post was Joseph Caiphas. The Romans ruled the city through the High Priest and Sanhedrin, so often the Jewish authorities of the city had to arrest people on the orders of the Romans. Jesus' disciples went into hiding after he was arrested.

Jesus was crucified by the Romans on the orders of Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor of Judea in Jerusalem. The Gospels state that he did this at the behest of the Jewish religious leaders, but it may have been simply that Pilate considered Jesus' ability to incite public disturbance as a potential Messiah to be a threat to Roman order. Pilate was known as a harsh ruler who ordered many executions for lesser reasons during his reign.

All the Gospel accounts agree that Joseph of Arimathea, variously a secret disciple or sympathiser to Jesus, and possible member of the Sanhedrin, arranged with Pilate for the body to be taken down and entombed. According to most accounts Jesus' mother, Mary, and other women, notably a female follower of Jesus, Mary Magdalene were present during this process.

The Resurrection

Main article:Resurrection of Jesus Christ

According to the Christian Gospels, Jesus' disciples encountered him again on the third day after his death, raised to life. He met them in various places over a period of forty days before "ascending into heaven".

The historicity of Jesus

Main article: Historicity of Jesus Christ

Some historians have disputed the actual existence of Jesus, claiming his existence was either an invention or he was a figure further removed in history.

Alleged relics of Jesus

Main article: Alleged relics of Jesus Christ

There are many items that are purported to be authentic relics of the Gospel account. The most famous alleged relic of Jesus is the Shroud of Turin.

Christian perspectives on Jesus

Main articles: Jesus Christ as the Messiah and Messiah

Christianity is centered on the belief that Jesus is the savior of man. According to Christians, Jesus was born in Bethlehem to Mary. He preached the new covenant across Judea, which angered traditional Jews and disturbed the Romans as he was seen as a threat to public order. One of his twelve apostles, Judas, betrayed him; and later committed suicide in remorse. Jesus was crucified by the Romans. However, he rose from the dead three days later.

Jewish perspectives on Jesus

Main articles: Jewish view of Jesus Supplementary articles: Judaism and Christianity and Jewish Messiah

Jesus Christ is deemed a false prophet in most sects of Judaism, and religious Jews are still awaiting the arrival of theMessiah. Christianity originated as a sect of Judaism, but developed into its own religion.

Islamic perspectives on Jesus

Main article: Isa

Muslims believe that Jesus, or Isa in Arabic, was a prophet and Messiah. However, they do not consider him to be a son ofAllah (God), other than in the metaphorical sense that we are all children of Allah.

Other perspectives on Jesus

Main article: Other perspectives on Jesus

Jesus is considered as a manifestation of God by the Baha'i. Mandaeanists see Jesus Christ as something of a false prophet as compared to John the Baptist. Jesus was seen as the savior and bringer of gnosis by various Gnostic sects, such as the extinct Manicheanism. In modern times many New Ageists have reinterpreted Jesus as a misunderstood guru preachingenlightenment.

Sizeable minorities of Buddhists and Hindus have beliefs about Jesus; some of these Buddhists have seen Jesus as manifestation of Maitreya, while some Hindus have considered Jesus to be an avatar.

Latter-day Saints and those who believe in Mormonism believe that Christ was the Messiah and the Son of God, but also that Jesus Christ visited The Americas shortly after His resurrection or ascension. The account may be found in the Book of Mormon.

Fictional portrayals of Jesus Christ

Main article: Fictional portrayals of Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ has been featured in many films and media, sometimes as a serious portrayal, and other times as satire.

External links

The Jewish Roman World of Jesus
From Jesus to Christ
Into His Own: Perspective on the World of Jesus
A Portrait of Jesus: From Galilean Jew to the Face of God
University of Birmingham: The Historical Jesus
864 pictures
A Jewish response to Christian missionaries
The Alpha Course
Jesus Christ Catholic Encyclopedia article
EWTN's Jesus Christ webpage
Skeptics Guide to Jesus
Was Jesus really Julius Caesar? Argues that the lack of a historical Jesus and the strange unJewishness of so many Church doctrines can be explained by the surprising amount of evidence indicating Jesus Christ was really Julius Caesar.
The Creation of Christ A similar theory that Christ was a myth based on Julius Caesar.
Article about the naming of Jesus
another article about the naming of Jesus
Jesus' birth (Jehovah's Witnesses official site)
Historical context of Jesus's time
Jewish sects during Jesus's time .

Krishnamurti - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:15:00 +0000

from www.jkrishnamurti.org

The core of Krishnamurti's teaching is contained in the statement he made in 1929 when he said: 'Truth is a pathless land'. Man cannot come to it through any organisation, through any creed, through any dogma, priest or ritual, not through any philosophic knowledge or psychological technique. He has to find it through the mirror of relationship, through the understanding of the contents of his own mind . . . Statement by Krishnamurti in 1981.

Jiddu Krishnamurti was born on 11th May 1895 in Madanapalle, a town in south India, the eighth child in a middle-class family. At an early age he was adopted by Annie Besant, then the President of the Theosophical Society, with its headquarters in Madras. She took Krishnamurti and his brother Nitya to England where she had them educated privately.

On Krishnamurti's return to India while still in his teens, Theosophists proclaimed him to be the world teacher whose coming they had been awaiting. They built a large and rich order round him, with many thousands of followers, but in 1929 Krishnamurti disbanded the organisation, returned the estates and monies that had been given to him and declared that his only purpose was to set human beings unconditionally free from psychological limitations. From that time he travelled throughout most parts of the world almost ceaselessly speaking to large numbers of people, until his death on 17th February 1986.

Krishnamurti is regarded globally as one of the greatest religious teachers of all time. He did not expound any philosophy or religion, but spoke of the everyday matters that concern all human beings—the problems of living in modern society with violence and corruption, the individual's search for meaning, security and happiness; and our need to free ourselves from the inner burdens of fear, anger, hurt and sorrow. He talked of the need to have a deeply meditative and religious quality in our daily life.

Krishnamurti belonged to no religion, sect or country, nor did he subscribe to any school of political or ideological thought. Instead, he stated that these are the very factors that divide us from one another and bring about personal and social conflict and ultimately war. His talks and discussions were not based on any authority of tradition or academic knowledge, but arose out of his own insights into the human mind and his own relation with the sacred. He consistently communicated a sense of freshness and directness with his audiences, although his message remained basically unchanged over the years.

Krishnamurti is unique in having left authentic written and recorded materials of his public talks and discussions and his conversations with scientists, philosophers, educators, children, businessmen and "ordinary" people. Many of these have appeared in books and on audio and videotapes and discs. His teachings are best approached directly and not through any interpreters or commentators.

Check as well

www.kfa.org

www.jkrishnamurti.org

www.kinfonet.org

The Krishnamurti Information Network documents the life, work and legacy of J. Krishnamurti,
undoubtedly one of the greatest philosophical minds of the 20th ...

www.jiddukrishnamurti.info

Kut Humi - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:13:00 +0000

from Initiation, Human and Solar - By Alice Bailey and Djwhal Khul

The Master Kut Humi, who is also very well known in the occident, and has many pupils everywhere, is of Kashmiri origin, though the family originally came from India. He is also an initiate of high degree, and is upon the second, or the Love-Wisdom Ray. he is a man of noble presence, and tall, though of rather slighter build than the Master M. He is of fair complexion, with goldenbrown hair and beard, and eyes of a wonderful deep blue, through which seem to pour the love and the wisdom of the ages. He has had a wide experience and education, having been originally educated at one of the British Universities, and speaks English fluently. His reading is wide and extensive, and all the current books and literature in various languages find their way to his study in the Himalayas. He concerns himself largely with the vitalizing of certain of the great philosophies, and interests himself in a number of philanthropic agencies. To him is given the work very largely of stimulating the love manifestation which is latent in the hearts of all men, and of awakening in the consciousness of the race the perception of the great fundamental fact of brotherhood.

At this particular time the Master M., the Master K. H. and the Master Jesus are interesting themselves [56] closely with the work of unifying, as far as may be, eastern and western thought, so that the great religions of the East, with the later development of the Christian faith in all its many branches, may mutually benefit each other. Thus eventually it is hoped one great universal Church may come into being.

Maha Chohan - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:12:00 +0000

Alice Bailey's definition

Mahachohan The Head of the third great department of the Hierarchy. This great being is the Lord of Civilization, and the flowering forth of the principle of intelligence. He is the embodiment on the planet of the third, or intelligence, aspect of deity in its five activities.

The Work of the Lord of Civilization, the Mahachohan

From Alice Bailey's work

Group three has as its head the Mahachohan. His rule over the group persists for a longer period than that of his two Brothers, and he may hold office for the term of several root-races. He is the sumtotal of the intelligence aspect. The present Mahachohan is not the original one who held the office at the founding of the Hierarchy in Lemurian days - it was then held by one of the Kumaras, or Lords of the Flame, who came into incarnation with Sanat Kumara - but he took hold of his position during the second subrace of the Atlantean root-race. He had achieved adeptship on the moon-chain, and it was through his instrumentality that a large number of the present more advanced human beings came into incarnation in the middle of the Atlantean root-race. Karmic affiliation with him was one of the predisposing causes, thus making this eventuality possible.

His work concerns itself with the fostering and strengthening of that relation between spirit and matter, life and form, the self and the not-self, which results in what we call civilization. He manipulates the forces of nature, and is largely the emanating source of electrical energy as we know it. Being the reflection of the third, or creative aspect, energy from the Planetary Logos flows to him from the throat center, and he it is who in many ways makes the work of his Brothers possible. Their plans and desires are submitted to him, and through him pass the instructions to a large number of the deva agents.

Thus you have Will, Love, and Intelligence represented in these three great Lords; you have the self, the not-self, and the relation between synthesized in the unity of manifestation; you have racial government, religion and civilization forming a coherent whole, and you have physical manifestation, the love or desire aspect, and the mind [46] of the Planetary Logos working out into objectivity. The closest cooperation and unity exists between these three Personalities, and every move and plan and event exists in their united foreknowledge. They are in daily touch with the Lord of the World at Shamballa, and the entire guidance of affairs rests in their hands, and in those of the Manu of the fourth root-race. The World Teacher holds office in connection with both the fourth and fifth root-races.

Each of these departmental heads directs a number of subsidiary offices, and the department of the Mahachohan is divided into five divisions, so as to take in the four lesser aspects of Hierarchical rule.

Under the Manu work the regents of the different world divisions, such as, for instance, the Master Jupiter, the oldest of the Masters now working in physical bodies for humanity, who is the regent for India, and the Master Rakoczi, who is the regent for Europe and America. It must be remembered here that though the Master R., for instance, belongs to the seventh ray, and thus comes under the department of energy of the Mahachohan, yet in Hierarchical work he may and does hold office temporarily under the Manu. These regents hold in their hands the reins of government for continents and nations, thus guiding, even if unknown, their destinies; they impress and inspire statesmen and rulers; they pour forth mental energy on governing groups, thus bringing about the desired results wherever cooperation and receptive intuition can be found amongst the thinkers.

The World Teacher presides over the destiny of the great religions through the medium of a group of Masters and initiates who direct the activities of these different schools of thought. In illustration: The Master Jesus, the inspirer and director of the Christian Churches everywere, [47] though an adept on the sixth ray under the department of the Mahachohan, works at present under the Christ for the welfare of Christianity; other Masters hold similar posts in relation to the great oriental faiths, and the various occidental schools of thought.

In the department of the Mahachohan a large number of Masters, in fivefold division, work in connection with the deva evolution, and with the intelligence aspect in man. Their divisions follow those of the four minor rays of attribute:

The ray of harmony or beauty.
The ray of concrete science or knowledge.
The ray of devotion or abstract idealism.
The ray of ceremonial law or magic,

just as the three departmental heads represent the three major rays of:

Will or power.

Love or wisdom.

Active intelligence, or adaptability.

The four rays or attributes of mind, with the third ray of intelligence, as synthesized by the Mahachohan, make up the sumtotal of the fifth principle of mind or manas.

Maha Chohan

from www.tsl.org

The Maha Chohan is the head, or hierarch, of the seven chohans of the rays. His name means “the Great Lord,” which is an office in the hierarchy of the Great White Brotherhood. He embodies the white light of the seven rays and teaches the balance and integration of these rays through the eighth ray. He also teaches that true love carries every other virtue and every other point of God-mastery.

The Maha Chohan is a representative of the Holy Spirit to earth and her evolutions. He initiates souls in the secret chamber of the heart and helps them prepare to receive all nine gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues.

Because of his pledge to all mankind to keep the flame until they are able, he is sometimes called the “Keeper of the Flame.”

The retreat of the Maha Chohan is located over Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon, an island in the Indian Ocean.

The Person of the Maha Chohan

Now let's talk about how we view the Maha Chohan. What is he really like as a person?

His embodiment in ancient Greece as the poet Homer gives us some insight into this "human" personality. In his epic theOdyssey, Homer steps into the role of Odysseus when he tells the story of three people: his twin flame, the Greek goddess Pallas Athena, who is an Ascended Lady Master; his soul mate, Penelope; and himself.

In the Odyssey, Pallas Athena says of Odysseus, bearing in mind now that it is Homer who is writing this story about himself as Odysseus, "Of all men you are the best in plots and story telling. Always the same detachment, coolheaded, quick, well-spoken." 3

Here are some further profiles of the personality in reality of the Maha Chohan: noble, greathearted, kingly, patient, long-enduring, expert in adversity, a man of ranging mind, master improviser, grand master of invention, the great tactician, the canniest of men, master of land ways and sea ways, master of subtle ways and straight. 4

We catch another glimpse of the person of the Maha Chohan through his work in the nineteenth century with the Masters M. and K.H. That's El Morya and Koot Hoomi. These Masters were among those who sponsored the Theosophical Society, founded in 1875. At that time these Masters were high adepts and in embodiment. The Maha Chohan was the Guru of El Morya and Kuthumi.

In one of his letters Kuthumi referred to his Master as "the implacable Chohan." 5 Implacable means "not capable of being appeased, pacified or mitigated; unalterable." 6

Koot Hoomi also remarked that the Maha Chohan usually frowned. 7 On one occasion K.H. found himself in a situation of dire necessity. 8 The Maha Chohan came to his rescue "with his eye twinkling in quite an unusual manner." 9 K.H. wrote that this led him "to hope for a relaxation of severity 'one of these days.'" 10

Madame Blavatsky said that the Maha Chohan "is as stern and impassionate as Death itself." 11

I would add to Madame Blavatsky's comment that the Maha Chohan is unmoved by the human consciousness. He is uncompromising. He compels those who would be his disciples to rise to his level rather than expect him to stoop to theirs. Remember that when you approach him. It is because the Maha Chohan has such great love that he exacts so great a discipline. He knows that when he gives that love, it is a great gift. He does not give it to those who are not worthy or to those who trifle with his affection.

The Ascended Masters who have dictated through the Messenger Mark Prophet and me since 1958 give us further insight into the personality of the Maha Chohan. The Ascended Master Paul the Venetian tells of an encounter he had with the Maha Chohan:

"Now, you know, when the Maha Chohan speaks, one does not refuse. Have you ever gazed upon the eyes of the Lord Maha Chohan? Even in heaven, in our ascended state, I once said to him, "I would like once again to take in my hand an earthly brush and palette and paint the beauty of your face." And do you know, precious ones, that the Lord Maha Chohan never answered me. He gave me a look that almost froze me in my tracks. And I never mentioned it again." 12

The Maha Chohan says that when you want to make progress on the spiritual path, you need to have a certain amount of sternness. So don't look at people who are stern and serious and try to cajole them into being less serious. He teaches that human sympathy, or agreement with the human consciousness, as opposed to true compassion, is a perversion of the flame of the Holy Spirit and he will have none of it. He says, "There is no other way to cut the tie with the human consciousness than to cut it! And it must be cut by a mighty sword, the sword that is sharp, two-edged and is the dividing of the way. There is no way that you can retain the companionship of the human consciousness and still receive the Holy Ghost!" 13

Write it in capital letters in your notes: "There is no way you can retain the companionship of the human consciousness and still receive the Holy Ghost." So establish spiritual ties with loved ones and get beyond the human, because the human is changing every minute. The spiritual ties are lawful. By those ties of compassion you raise people up to another level of being.

The Maha Chohan as Teacher

The Maha Chohan also fills the role of Teacher. The Father-Mother God and the Son have deferred to the Maha Chohan as the supreme teacher of our souls. He is the one sent to us to teach us the commandments of God the Father and the Word of the Divine Mother. He teaches us the Christ-like qualities of Jesus and the Buddha-like qualities of Gautama. He tutors our souls to enter into a direct relationship with the Father-Mother God, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is the supreme teacher. Remember, Jesus said the Comforter "shall teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." 18

Just remember, if he is the supreme teacher and we have not established a right relationship with him, then we are sitting in the very gall of ignorance. How many times I've thought to myself, if I hadn't been ignorant, I wouldn't have done such and such. It's ridiculous. We let ourselves remain in ignorance and so we make wrong choices, we take the wrong road, we make the wrong decision.

So if he is the supreme teacher, we want him. And if we really want to be enlightened, we'll be glad to strip ourselves of what stands in the way. When we have submitted ourselves to the disciplines of at least three of the Seven Chohans of the Rays, then the Lord Maha Chohan will review our entire life record and determine whether he will take us on directly as his chelas in a true Master-Disciple relationship. If we qualify, then the Maha Chohan will say to us, "I shall give you the same training I gave to the Seven Chohans." He's ready to do that if you are ready. "I shall not indulge you and I shall not give you any crowns that you have not earned." 19

Although he may be stern with our lesser self, the Maha Chohan, as representative of the Holy Spirit, is a personal Comforter to each of us. In his role as Comforter, the Maha Chohan walks and talks with us so that we may be his instruments. In a dictation he once said:

"I desire to approach very close to your heart. I am to you as the most personal friend." 20
"Talk to me, then, and hold my hand. I have need of friends here below, for I have much to give and I require a consciousness, a heart, where I can place myself am, and impart to other parts of life a smile, a tear of joy, a gift of love, a witness to the truth. Won't you take me with you, then, in consciousness? You might as well, for I am coming along anyway. " 21

Why should we want to get the Holy Spirit? Because people are losing their souls. Without the Holy Spirit, we can do nothing about it. With the Holy Spirit, we can do something. They do not know what is real and what is not real. They are watching their family and friends and neighbors and countrymen become victims of incurable diseases, outrageous crimes, natural disasters and genocide. And they do not know where to turn or what to do.

The only way we can help them is to become empowered by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit working through us will comfort and enlighten and heal and inspire others. The bottom line is this as far as I am concerned, if some people in the earth do not go all the way and become the living embodiment of the Holy Spirit, then literally millions of souls will be lost at the end of this age.

Maha Chohan

from www.ascendedmasters.ac

"One Heart At a Time"

" . . . How does one bring forth to a world the Teachings of the Ascended Masters? It is by contacting and winning over one heart at a time. Each heart responding to the inner call of their own God Presence will resound to the tone that will, in fact, resonate with the Cosmic Tone from the Great Central Sun. And all those Ascended Masters and Cosmic Beings will hear that Tone and respond in like manner with a release of Gratitude from Their Heart, for that one who has heard the call of their God Presence and responded.

"This is a Path intended ultimately for all, but relatively few will hear the highest Cosmic Tone. Only few will respond in a given time or cycle. There are reasons for this, not unlike the contagion of the psychic plane that you have spoken of this day. However, there is also the contagion of Ascended Master Fire. And when you have the Divine Blueprint and the God Identity impressed upon the Seed of Light that goes forth from the Universal Sea of Light, that moves into space and has the momentum and has been propelled by the student of the Light, that Seed of Divinely charged energy must go forth and impact all whom it contacts.

"And yet, how many are there who are sending forth by the will of their being, by the Fire and the sharpening of their visualizations, by the intent of their hearts, the pure aspect of Ascended Master Vibration? Contemplate, if you will, how many students of the Light do you know with the purest intent, that have in fact, forged through the veils of human consciousness sufficiently to release the Fires of the Heart. And then multiply that times seven, times twenty-four, times three hundred and sixty-five and consider, if you will, if that is sufficient to raise the consciousness of the planet.

"At the same time, consider those who are dabbling in all forms of lesser vibration. Then do you not see how great even one Ascended Master student’s embodiment can become? The fulfillment of even one who is determined to ignite the Fire of God upon the Altar on their Heart and resonate with that Fire then multiply that Fire with their calls, with their energy, with their momentums and talents, is a Victory indeed!

"This is the work that each of you must decide to embark upon each morning that you arise and awaken to the new day. There are those for whom it is no longer a question or a consideration. For they have chosen, over and over again, for many lifetimes to be counted among the Vanguard of Light and to move into action to bring forth the Golden Age. World Service has become such an ingrained momentum of their very lives that it is no longer even a conscious awareness, instead every action moves naturally toward that final goal.

"And yet there are others who have not quite determined which course of action to take. It is not because they would not desire to be the fullness of all that God would have them to be. It is because there yet remain momentums of human creation and the human condition. There yet remain desires of the flesh that cry out to be fulfilled. The Violet Flame is always the key, and where there is even a flicker of the desire of the Heart to be the hands and feet of the Ascended Masters and most especially and most importantly your own God Presence, apply the Violet Flame, for no greater Service to Life can be rendered than to transmute your own misqualified desire patterns.

"FOR ONCE DONE, THERE IS THE PURITY! There is the vibration of your own God Presence that can in fact reach through the Heart, guided by your Holy Christ Self, and can bring forth into this physical octave the pristine Essence of God! The Violet Flame can be your key if used diligently!

"If it is not yet the time for you, know well that at a given time in the future, the Heart will be able to reach through those veils of miscreation and you will respond. For it is the Law of Being for each Lifestream, whether fulfilled in this embodiment or sometime in the future. The only concern is how long will you tarry in the human condition. Bring God and the vibration of the God Presence into your world and it will quickly become the Heaven on Earth that all have long desired and now wish for this Ascended Master Activity.

"I, the Maha Chohan, stand ready to reinforce each of the Seven Rays and to support each of the Chohans, and to bring about the fullness of those releases in your world where I find true desire for God.

"Go in the Light and the fullness of all that you are capable of becoming and be Victorious."

The Maha Chohan

through the Messenger, Carolyn Shearer, September 12, 1999, Chelsea, Vermont U.S.A. (3)

" . . . Surely you know that there are some in the churches and throughout the earth who have Elements of the Holy Spirit, for the Holy Spirit does not limit Its Offering to those of the Christian faith. Beloved ones, the followers of Christ do not have all the elements; for the disciplines of the Holy Spirit that are found in the East in the long traditions of the Buddhas and the Bodhisattvas are sometimes too hard for devotees in the West. Almost as children, they play and splash in the fount of Divine Love and thus have that Joy of the Spirit, yet not its full Mastery.

"The Teachings you have, all that has come through the Holy Spirit from the Ascended Masters and Cosmic Beings, do give you the opportunity for such self-mastery. But you must take the opportunity as an exercise of free will, as an exercise of commitment to your own Inner God and not to another, as an exercise that shows your recognition that he who would desire the manifestations of the siddhis, the powers, must begin to be self-disciplined.

"The disciplining of the mind can be found in the practice of meditation. The disciplining of the emotions must be found in interaction with others. There is no more certain way to gain mastery of the emotions than to have to mingle with people from all walks of life, and to always prefer to impart the Flame of Love and of Charity toward those who do not have the Flame of Harmony.

"The choice is always there - to be pulled into the morasses, the cesspools, vortices, quicksands of negativity - or to shun them. And always remember the words of your Lord: 'What is that to thee? Follow thou Me.' In other words, forget it. Let it go. Do not become further engaged as you see your energies escalating, and with the escalation, the loss of your God-Control.

"There is no more important achievement for those who desire the Holy Spirit and Its Gifts, even one at a time, than to be able to offer to others perpetual love, perpetual comfort, perpetual sweetness, perpetual helpfulness, compassion and charity. Charity is a word that means 'self-givingness'. As Mother Teresa has said, 'Give until it hurts'.

"Now I come to you. And you have had a foundation of the perceptions of the Holy Spirit and of the Lord Christ by one and another and many whose lives have been touched. So great a salvation can be found in but a thimbleful of the Holy Spirit that can come upon you. Think, then, and say to yourself, 'I shall not neglect so great a salvation as the larger Circle of Awareness that my God has revealed unto me through this Path of the Ascension, this Path of the Resurrection, this Path of Eternal Life.' . . . "

Beloved Maha Chohan

through the Messenger, Elizabeth Clare Prophet, April 1, 1994, Royal Teton Ranch, Park County, Montana U.S.A. (2)

Lord Maha Chohan

from www.ascended-master.org

June 3rd, is Whitsuntide. On the first Whitsuntide was the

out pouring that gave the disciples the capacity to perform

more than ordinary service. The Lord Maha Chohan answered

that promise to Jesus, and on the first Whitsuntide released

those tongues of Flame referred to in the Bible. These were

actually magnetic currents of energy, which expanded the

Christ powder within them. It expanded their own Christ Flame.

This Day celebrates the decent and merging of the Spirit of

Cosmic Comfort (Comfort Flame) with the individual's outer

consciousness. It is the mystic union between the Divine

and the human, the miracle of Whitsuntide. The Maha Chohan

breathed His breath as the Comforter and as the Fire of Creation

into their Christ Flame, causing It to expand whereby they could

do the things Jesus did.

He is Lord over the Chohans. He is also a third ray activity.

It has been the office through which the Godhead worked on

the rays from the third to the seventh. However this action

changed a few years ago, and the first and second rays now

also come under the Maha Chohan.

A being must have developed and embodied all the divine

virtues and have mastered all of the seven rays before He

qualified to be a Maha Chohan

Check as well

www.mahachohan-edu.org

Maitreya - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:11:00 +0000

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

In Buddhism, the Maitreya Buddha (Sanskrit: Metteyya; Japanese 弥勒 Miroku) is "The Future Buddha" (or, "The Buddha of the Future"). Maitreya is a bodhisattva of the Tusita deva realm, who Buddhists believe will come to restore the purity of thedharma. He is comparable with the Pharsi Saoshyant.

Maitreya is typically depicted sitting on an altar with both feet on the ground, indicating that he has not yet ascended to his throne.

The Manu - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:10:00 +0000

from Initiation, Human and Solar - by Alice Bailey and Djwhal Khul

The Work of the Manu

The Manu presides over group one. He is called Vaivasvata Manu, and is the Manu of the fifth root-race. He [42] is the ideal man or thinker, and sets the type for our Aryan race, having presided over its destinies since its inception nearly one hundred thousand years ago. Other Manus have come and gone and his place will be, in the relatively near future, taken by someone else. He will then pass on to other work of a more exalted kind. The Manu, or the prototype of the fourth root-race, works in close cooperation with him, and has his center of influence in China. He is the second Manu that the fourth root-race has had, having taken the place of the earlier Manu at the time of the final stages of Atlantean destruction. He has remained to foster the development of the race type, and to bring about its final disappearance. The periods of office of all the Manus overlap, but there remains no representative of the third root-race upon the globe at this time. Vaivasvata Manu has his dwelling place in the Himalayan mountains, and has gathered around him at Shigatse some of those immediately connected with Aryan affairs in India, Europe and America, and those who will later be concerned with the coming sixth root-race. The plans are prepared for ages ahead, centers of energy are formed thousands of years before they will be required, and in the wise foreknowledge of these Divine Men nothing is left to sudden eventuation, but all moves in ordered cycles and under rule and law, though within karmic limitations.

The work of the Manu is largely concerned with government, with planetary politics, and with the founding, direction, and dissolution of racial types and forms. To him is committed the will and purpose of the Planetary Logos. He knows what is the immediate objective for this cycle of evolution over which he has to preside, and his work concerns itself with making that will an accomplished fact. He works in closer cooperation with the building devas than does his Brother, the Christ, for to him is [43] given the work of setting the race type, of segregating the groups out of which races will develop, of manipulating the forces which move the earth's crust, of raising and lowering continents, of directing the minds of statesmen everywhere so that
racial government will proceed as desired, and conditions be brought about which will produce those needed for the fostering of any particular type. Such a work can now be seen demonstrating in North America and Australia.

The energy which flows through him emanates from the head center of the Planetary Logos, passing to him through the brain of Sanat Kumara, who focalizes all the planetary energy within himself. He works by the means of a dynamic meditation, conducted within the head center, and produces his results through his perfect realization of that which has to be accomplished, through a power to visualize that which must be done to bring about accomplishment, and through a capacity to transmit creative and destructive energy to those who are his assistants. And all this is brought about through the power of the enunciated sound.

Mary - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:09:00 +0000

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

In Christianity and Islam, Mary (the Blessed Virgin Mary) is the mother of Jesus Christ and the betrothed of Joseph. Mary (Miriam in Hebrew, Mariam in Greek) is mentioned by in each of the Four Gospels, the Book of Acts and in the Quran -- although not by name in the Gospel of John.

It is generally agreed that she was a young woman when she first became a mother, and that she died between three and 15 years after the crucifixion of Jesus. Both Christian and Islamic theologies hold that Jesus was the result of a virgin birth. Christians hold that therefore God is the father of Jesus; Muslims reject that view. She is often called the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Our Lady (Notre Dame, Nuestra Señora), Theotokos, or Madonna, in addition to being given many other titles. She is also widely known to Catholics as St. Mary, Mother of the Church, Queen of All Saints, Queen of Angels, and Queen of Heaven.

Historicity

Most (though far from all) historians accept that Jesus of Nazareth was a historical figure, even if they accept nothing or almost nothing of the account given of his life in the Christian Gospels. If Jesus was a historical figure, then his mother must also have been a historical figure, and there seems no reason not to accept the Christian tradition that her name was Miriam. Given that Jesus died in his 30s, there is also no reason to doubt that his mother was still alive at the time of his death, or that she may have witnessed it.

Beyond the accounts given by the Gospels and a few other early Christian sources, however, there is no independent or verifiable information about any aspect of Mary's life. The edifice of Christian tradition that has been built around the figure of Mary, and the centuries of Marian cult in the Catholic and Orthodox Christian churches, to which the rest this article is devoted, are based on faith and speculation, not on historically verified sources.

Christian tradition

Little is known of her personal history from the New Testament. Her purported genealogy is given in Luke 3. According to Luke, she was of the tribe of Judah and the lineage of David (Ps. 132:11; Luke 1:32). She was cousin by marriage toElisabeth, who was of the lineage of Aaron (Luke 1:36). According to the Gospel of James (which, though not considered part of the New Testament, contains biographical material about Mary widely accepted by Orthodox and Catholic Christians) she was the daughter of Joakim and Anna. Before Mary's conception, Anna had been barren, and her parents were quite old when she was conceived. They took her to live in the Temple in Jerusalem when she was three years old, much like Hanna took Samuel to the Temple as recorded in the Old Testament (Tanakh, Hebrew Bible).

While she resided at Nazareth with her parents, while betrothed to Joseph, the angel Gabriel announced to her that she was to be the mother of the promised Messiahwhile remaining a virgin (Luke 1:35). After this she went to visit her cousin Elisabeth, who was living with her husband Zacharias (probably at Juttah, Josh. 15:55; 21:16, in the neighbourhood of Maon), at a considerable distance, about 100 miles, from Nazareth. Immediately on entering the house she was saluted by Elisabeth as the mother of her Lord, and then forthwith gave utterance to her hymn of thanksgiving (Luke 1:46-56; comp. 1 Sam. 2:1-10). (This hymn is commonly known as theMagnificat.) After three months Mary returned to Nazareth to her own home. Joseph was told in a dream (Matt. 1:18-25) of her condition, and took her to his own home. Soon after this the decree of Augustus (Luke 2:1) required that they should proceed to Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), some 80 or 90 miles from Nazareth; and while they were there they found shelter in the inn provided for strangers (Luke 2:6, 7). But as the inn was crowded, Mary had to retire to a place among the cattle, and there she brought forth her son, who was called Jesus (Matt. 1:21), because he was to save his people from their sins. This was followed by the presentation in the temple, the flight into Egypt, and their return in the following year and residence at Nazareth (Matt. 2). Mary apparently remained in Nazareth for thirty uneventful years. During these years only one event in the history of Jesus is recorded, viz., his going up to Jerusalem when twelve years of age, where he was found among the doctors in the temple (Luke 2:41-52). Probably also during this period Joseph died, for he is not mentioned again.

Mary was also present at the inauguration of Jesus' public ministry when, at the marriage in Cana, her intercession led to the first public miracle performed by Jesus (John 2:1-11). After this point, there is little mention of Mary in the Gospels until we find her at the cross along with her sister Mary, and Mary Magdalene, and Salome, and other women (John 19:26). Mary cradling the dead body of her son is a common motif in art, called a pietà.

Of the roughly 100 people in the upper room after the Ascension on the day of Pentecost, she is one of the handful who are named (Acts 1:14). From this time she wholly disappears from the historical biblical accounts, although it is held by many Christians that she is again portrayed as the heavenly Woman of Revelation (Revelation 12.1).

Her death is not recorded in Scripture. According to Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox tradition, between three and fifteen years after Christ's Ascension, in either Jerusalem or Ephesus, she died while surrounded by the apostles. Later when the apostles opened her tomb, they found it empty and concluded that she had been bodily assumed into Heaven. (A tomb in Jerusalem is attributed to Mary, but it was unknown until the 6th century.)

Beliefs

Immaculate Conception of Mary

The Immaculate Conception is a doctrine unique to the Roman Catholic Church, and is rejected by both Eastern Orthodoxyand by Protestantism, albeit for very different reasons.

Veneration of Mary

Both Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians venerate Mary, as do the non-Chalcedonian or monophysite Orthodox (such as the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt and the Ethiopian Tewahedo Church). This veneration takes a number of forms, including composing poems and songs in Mary's honor, painting icons or carving statues representing her, bowing or kneeling before such images as a token of respect to the one portrayed by them, conferring titles on Mary that reflect her exalted position among the saints, and prayer for intercession with her Son, Jesus Christ.

Both Roman Catholics and Orthodox make a clear distinction between such veneration (which is also due to the other saints) and worship, which is due to God alone. Mary, they point out, is not in herself divine, and has only such powers to help as are granted to her by God in response to her prayers. Such miracles as may occur through Mary's intercession are ultimately the result of God's love and omnipotence.

Roman Catholicism distinguishes three forms of honor: "latria", due only to God, and usually translated by the English wordadoration; "hyperdulia", accorded only to the Blessed Virgin Mary, usually translated simply as veneration; and "dulia", accorded to the rest of the saints, also usually translated as veneration. On the other hand, the Orthodox do not distinguish between "dulia" and "hyperdulia", at least not in current practice.

Even some early Protestants venerated Mary. Martin Luther said Mary is "the highest woman", that "we can never honour her enough", that "the veneration of Mary is inscribed in the very depths of the human heart", and that we should "wish that everyone know and respect her".

Other Reformers rejected the distinction between veneration and worship, and considered all these practices to be idolatry or unlawful worship. With the exception of the Anglican communion, modern Protestantism has generally followed those reformers who rejected the veneration of Mary (and, of course, of other saints).

Virgin birth of Jesus

The Apostles Creed and Nicene Creed both refer to Mary as "the Virgin Mary". This alludes to the belief that Mary conceived Jesus through the action of God the Holy Spirit, and not through normal intercourse with Joseph or anyone else. That she was a virgin at this time is affirmed by Eastern Christianity, Roman Catholicism and by many Protestants (though not by all Protestants).

Historic Christianity, including modern-day Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, teaches that she was a virgin before, during, and after giving birth to Jesus. Islam also takes this position, which is stated explicitly in the Qur'an. Some Protestants also hold this view, while many others believe that she was a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus, but that she later was not and had other children with Joseph the Betrothed. Catholics and Orthodox explain references to Jesus' brothers as either cousins, or as half brothers who were Joseph's children by a prior marriage.

Persons who are neither Christians nor Muslims generally doubt that Mary was a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus.

The Gospel of Matthew describes Mary as a virgin who fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14. The passage in Isaiah, in the Hebrew Masoretic Text, stated that a young woman would give birth to the Messiah. Some scholars believe that the Greek language Septuagint, which the author of Matthew would have used as his Bible, mistranslated the Hebrew word for young woman, "almah", into the Greek word "parthenos", meaning virgin. This suggests that the origin of the belief that Mary was a virgin derived from an attempt by Matthew at describing the fulfillment of a prophecy that was actually not made. However, many scholars find evidence that the Septuagint was translated from a different Hebrew text that has since been lost, based on comparisons between existing Masoretic texts, Septuagint texts, Dead Sea Scrolls, and some Samaritan texts. If so, then it is impossible to compare the Septuagint with the Hebrew text its translators used, and it remains possible that the Septuagint has an equally valid translation of Isaiah's prophecy. In addition, the currently accepted Masoretic text of theHebrew Bible was assembled centuries after the foundation of the Christans who held to the virgin interpretation.

In the academic community, controversy surrounds the interpretation of this passage. According to almost all non-Christian biblical scholars, many liberal Christian biblical scholars, and also according to Jewish tradition, the prophecy only describes events during the rule of King Ahaz of Judea. The prophet is giving information to the King about an event that will soon be made known to him. The text is clearly not about someone being born centuries later. However, soon after the development of Christianity a new way to read this text was born, one in which Isaiah was not only giving prophetic comfort to his peers, but was also cryptically forecasting the coming Messiah.

St. Irenaeus of Lyons observed in the second century that the Jews themselves translated the word "virgin" well before the time of Jesus; he attributes the translation "young woman" to Theodotian the Ephesian and Aquila of Pontus, both Jewish proselytes who published new translations of the Tanakh in the second century. Thus the universal acceptance of it in the Jewish community as meaning "young woman" apparently came about in response to the development of Christianity. Irenaeus reinterprets many prophecies by David, Moses, and Daniel as also predicting a virgin birth, and demonstrates why the messiahcould not be born of Joseph (Against Heresies, Book III, Chapter 21.). Jews and Christians have disagreed about the interpretation of these and other prophecies since the birth of Christianity.

Perpetual virginity

That Mary remained a virgin after the birth of Jesus has been accepted by most Christians until comparatively recent times. Of the early fathers of the Church, only Tertullian seems to have questioned the teaching. Both the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches insist on it, as do Muslims. The most prominent leaders of the Reformation, Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin also defended the perpetual virginity of Mary against those who questioned it.

Later generations of Protestants, however, abandoned the traditional teaching, citing references to "brothers" of Jesus Christ in the New Testament. Defenders of the teaching, including John Calvin, have pointed out that Aramaic, the language spoken by Christ and his disciples, lacked a specific word for "cousin," so that the word "brother" was used instead. In addition, nothing in Greek or Aramaic disqualifies a half-brother (same father, different mother) from being called a "brother".

Dormition and Assumption

For Orthodox and Roman Catholics alike, Mary's assumption, i.e., the lifting up of her body into Heaven after her death, is seen as a concrete and present instance of the resurrection of the body; a belief asserted by virtually all Christians in the creeds, yet often replaced in the popular imagination by a more shadowy spiritual immortality.

The Doctrine in Roman Catholicism

The belief in the corporeal assumption of Mary was formally declared to be dogma by Pope Benedict XIV in the encyclical De Festis B.V.M.; Roman Catholics must therefore hold the doctrine as being necessary to salvation. Pope Pius XII, inMunificentissimus Deus [1], reiterated "We pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory." The establishment of this dogma as "necessary to salvation" is widely taken to be an example of the Pope's invoking papal infallibility. The Feast of the Assumption is celebrated on August 15.

At the time that this dogma was promulgated, there was a strong sentiment among many Catholics that the immaculately conceived and sinless Mother of God would not have suffered death (which is "the wages of sin"), but was instead taken up alive into heaven like Elijah the Prophet. For this reason, the dogma was deliberately so worded ("when the course of her earthly life was finished") as to allow faithful Catholics to believe either hypothesis: that Mary was assumed bodily into heaven without dying, or that her incorrupt body was assumed into heaven after her death.

Judging from the sources quoted in Munificentissimus Deus, Pius XII himself almost certainly rejected the notion of Mary's "immortality" (the idea that she never suffered death) in favor of the more widely accepted understanding that her assumption took place after her physical death.

The Doctrine in Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy

The tradition of the Eastern Orthodox Church holds that Mary died, and that after her death and burial, she was resurrected and taken up bodily into heaven. This two-fold event is celebrated as the Dormition ("falling asleep") of the Theotokos. The Feast of the Dormition is celebrated on August 15, and is preceded by a fourteen day fast from meat and dairy products, the third longest fast of the liturgical year after Great Lent and Winter Lent. Despite the great importance of this feast in the Orthodox liturgical calendar, it is not, as in the Catholic Church, considered a matter of dogma, since it has not been formally defined by any ecumenical council accepted by the Orthodox.

Theotokos

At the Third Ecumenical council, the Council of Ephesus, it was decided that it was entirely appropriate to refer to Mary as the Theotokos, a Greek word which can be translated as "God bearer" or "Mother of God." This was to emphasize that Mary's child, Jesus Christ, was in fact God. She is often referred to as "Theotokos" in Eastern Orthodox hymns. She is also one of the most highly venerated saints in both the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Church; several major feast days are devoted to her each year. (See Liturgical year.) Protestants have generally been less enthusiastic about the cult of the Virgin than their Catholic and Orthodox cousins, often arguing that if too much attention is focussed on Mary, there is a danger of detracting from the worship due to God alone.

Some non-Christians, particularly followers of Wicca, link Mary to the Earth Mother of various Neo-pagan traditions. Some Buddhists have even been known to link Mary to Kwan-Yin of various Chinese Buddhist faiths.

External Link

Mary Magdalene - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:08:00 +0000

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Mary Magdalene, which probably means "Mary of Magdala," a town on the western shore of the Lake of Tiberias, is a character in the Bible described as a follower of Jesus Christ. Nothing is known about her outside of the Bible. Her feast day isJuly 22.

On part of her story, Catholics and Protestants agree: She is mentioned in Luke 8:3 as one of the women who "ministered toChrist of their substance." Their motive was that of gratitude for deliverances he had wrought for them. Out of Mary werecast seven demons. Gratitude to her great Deliverer prompted her to become his follower. These women accompanied him also on his last journey to Jerusalem (Matt. 27:55; Mark 15:41; Luke 23:55). They stood near the cross. There Mary remained till all was over, and the body was taken down and laid in Joseph's tomb. Again, in the earliest dawn of the first day of the week she, with Salome and Mary the mother of James (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:2), came to the sepulchre, bringing with them sweet spices, that they might anoint the body of Jesus. They found the sepulchre empty but saw the "vision of angels" (Matt. 28:5). She hastens to tell Peter and John, who were probably living together at this time (John 20:1, 2), and again immediately returns to the sepulchre. There she lingers thoughtfully, weeping at the door of the tomb. The risen Lord appears to her, but at first she knows him not. His utterance of her name "Mary" recalls her to consciousness, and she utters the joyful, reverent cry, "Rabboni." She would fain cling to him, but he forbids her, saying, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father." This is the last Biblical entry regarding Mary of Magdala, who now returned to Jerusalem.

The idea that this Mary was "the woman who was a sinner," or that she was unchaste, is rejected by most Protestants. Catholics, on the other hand, consider this one person to be the sinner Mary of Luke 7:36-50 and also Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and the resurrected Lazarus, of Luke 10:38-42 and John 11. She is a Roman Catholic saint and, according to one tradition, her head is in her shrine in a cave at La Sainte-Baume near Marseille, France, although another holds that she died in Ephesus and was buried in Constantinople.

Easter Egg tradition

One extra-biblical Christian tradition concerning Mary Magdalene says that she was a woman of some wealth and social status. Following Jesus Christ's death and resurrection, she used her position to gain an invitation to a banquet given by Emperor Tiberius Caesar. When she met him, she held a plain egg in her hand and exclaimed "Christ is risen!" Caesar laughed, and said that Christ rising from the dead was as likely as the egg in her hand turning red while she held it. Before he finished speaking, the egg in her hand turned a bright red, and she continued proclaiming the Gospel to the entire imperial house.

Today, many Eastern Orthodox Christians end the Easter service by sharing bright red eggs and proclaiming to each other, "Christ is risen!" The eggs represent new life, and Christ bursting forth from the tomb. This began one tradition of coloringEaster eggs.

Wife of Jesus?

An extra-biblical and Gnostic tradition about Mary Magdalene holds that she was in fact the wife of Jesus, a fact which was omitted by later revisionist editors of the Gospels.

There is an argument for support of this speculation. Bachelorhood was very rare for Jewish males of Jesus's time, being generally regarded as a transgression of the first mitzvah (divine commandment): "Be fruitful and multiply". Mary Magdalene appears with some frequency (especially as compared with other women in the Gospels) and is shown as being a close follower of Jesus. In the scene of the wedding at Cana, the names of the nuptial couple are not mentioned, but Jesus acts as a groom at such a wedding would be expected to act, for example by giving instructions to the servants (in fact, those servants had to be told by Mary his mother to obey his instructions). Finally, Mary's presence at the Crucifixion and Jesus's tomb, while hardly conclusive, is at least consonant with a role as grieving wife and widow, although if that were the case Jesus might have been expected to make provision for her care as well as for his mother Mary. Given the existing record, this scenario cannot be proven, although some consider the idea desirable to believe.

On the other hand, Christians traditionally believe that Jesus is the second Adam, and like the first, his bride was taken from his side when he had fallen asleep (died on the cross). The blood and water which came from his side when he was pierced, according to the gospels, represents in traditional Christian teaching the bringing forth of the Church symbolized in the water of baptism and the wine of the new covenant in his blood. In other words, Jesus has a wife which is one body with him, only in the Church; and it is not considered possible or tolerable to believe that he was otherwise married.

Author of John's Gospel?

Some scholars have suggested that this Mary was a leader of the early Church and maybe even the "beloved disciple" who was the author of the Gospel of John.

External Links

Mary Magdalene, Beloved Disciple: http://www.beloveddisciple.org/
The Catholic Encyclopedia on St. Mary Magdalen

Mataji - NOTE

noreply@blogger.com (vitalcoach) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 13:07:00 +0000

http://vitalcoaching.com/babaji.htm