Everything about Ascended Master totally explained
Ascended Masters are said in teachings derived from
Theosophy to be spiritually-
enlightened beings who in past
incarnations were ordinary humans, but who have undergone a process of spiritual transformation. The term "Ascended Master" was first introduced by
theosophists in
1934 with the publication of
Unveiled Mysteries by
Guy Ballard in
The "I AM" Activity. This term was further popularized by other theosophists in books like
The Bridge to Freedom (1951),
The Summit Lighthouse (1958),
The Temple of The Presence (1995), and various other organizations.
Beliefs about Ascended Masters
Originally presented by
H. P. Blavatsky in the
1870s, the "Masters of Wisdom",
"Mahatmas" or "Elder Brothers" were further developed by
C. W. Leadbeater,
Alice Bailey,
Helena Roerich,
Manly P. Hall, and many others in
theosophy-based organizations, especially in the
United States. They believe that Ascended Masters are individuals who were formerly embodied on the Earth and learned the lessons of life during their incarnations. They gained mastery over the limitations of the
matter planes, balanced at least 51% of negative
karma, and fulfilled their
Dharma (Divine Plan). An Ascended Master, in such an understanding, has become
God-like and a source of unconditional
"Divine Love" to all life, and through the Ascension has united with his or her own "God Self," the "I AM Presence."
It is further claimed by various groups and teachers that the Ascended Masters serve as the teachers of mankind from the realms of
Spirit, and that all people will eventually attain their
Ascension and move forward in spiritual evolution beyond this planet. According to these teachings, they remain attentive to the spiritual needs of humanity, and act to inspire and motivate its spiritual growth. In many traditions and organizations, they're considered part of the
Spiritual Hierarchy for Earth, and members of the
Great Brotherhood of Light, also known as the
Great White Lodge, Great White Brotherhood, or
Universal White Brotherhood (per
Peter Deunov).
According to
Alice Bailey and
Benjamin Creme there are sixty
Masters of the Ancient Wisdom, defined as beings who are have reached the Fifth Level of
Initiation or above, with
Djwhal Khul in a pivotal role as the master who telepathically dictated the many
esoteric teachings in Baileys' books.
Elizabeth Clare Prophet revealed the names of a number of these Ascended Masters that were previously unknown.
The concept of recognizing the spiritual self, one's own psychological and karma battles and how to overcome them, and eventual Ascension of all humanity is covered in
James Redfield's
Celestine Prophecy and it's sequels, and . These books, while controversial, are recent popularizations of the concept of Ascension.
Origins
Esotericism is defined as the belief that secret societies and mystery schools possess advanced spiritual knowledge. Such beliefs are extremely ancient. This idea was re-introduced in the West by the
Rosicrucians in the
17th century.
The founder of the
Theosophical Society,
H. P. Blavatsky, in the late
19th century brought attention to the idea of secret initiatory knowledge, by claiming her ideas were based on traditions transmitted to her by
occult means from a group of highly evolved humans which she called the
Mahatmas or Masters. These Mahatmas, she claimed, were physical beings living in the
Himalayas, usually understood as
Tibet.
» ".. they're living men, born as we're born, and doomed to die like every mortal. We call them “masters” because they're our teachers; and because from them we've derived all the Theosophical truths... They are men of great learning, whom we call Initiates, and still greater holiness of life."
While some of her critics believe the Masters are pure fantasy, other writers suggest that her changing stories were meant to hide the identities of real human teachers guiding her work. In assessing the veracity of Blavatsky's claim regarding the existence of these Masters, it's worth noting that at least 25 other people left a written account of having met the Mahatmas themselves during Blavatsky's lifetime. Blavatsky claimed that she personally met numerous Masters on countless occasions, and was also the guest of the Master
Koot Hoomi while visiting the "Little Tibet" region of Kashmir.
After Madame Blavatsky's death in 1891, the Mahatma concept was developed by her successors in the Theosophical Society leadership,
Annie Besant and
Charles W. Leadbeater, who described the Masters in great detail and added
Jesus to their number. In Leadbeater's book,
The Masters and the Path (1925), the Masters are presented as ageless and superphysical, albeit still limited by human bodies. Other branches of theosophy developed the theory slightly differently, notably
Alice Bailey from whose book
Initiation, Human and Solar (1922), Leadbeater may have borrowed some of his details.
Comparison of unascended and Ascended Masters
There is considerable difference between the concept of Masters in 19th century theosophy (as described by Blavatsky,
Olcott,
Sinnett, and others) and the current concept of Ascended Masters. The believers in "Immortal Saints and Sages" claim that these individuals have gone through the Initiations of the Transfiguration, Resurrection, and the Ascension to become "Ascended Masters". The twentieth century teachings of the Ballards, Prophets, and others claim that although
Morya and Koot Hoomi (Kuthumi) were Adepts and Masters of the lower matter planes and the elemental forces of nature, they hadn't become Ascended Masters until 1898, while
Serapis and the Maha Chohan, who were interacting with Theosophists during Blavatsky's time, already were Ascended Masters.
An unascended Master has, according to these later teachings, overcome the limitations of the
lower matter octaves (physical, emotional, mental), yet has chosen to postpone the final Initiation of the Ascension to remain in time and space to externalize and focus the Consciousness of God for the evolutions of the Earth. If a person takes a Bodhisattva vow, they may choose to remain with the humanity of this Earth as an unascended Master in one of the lower Spirit/Matter Octaves, as was the case with
Babaji. It is believed by proponents of these beliefs that if enough mastery and externalization of the Divine Nature has been developed, such an Adept becomes an Initiate of one of the Brotherhoods or Sisterhoods of Light under the auspices of the Great White Brotherhood. It is claimed that there can be a high degree of attainment within the lower body vehicles of expression (physical, emotional, mental, memory), yet that Adept may still not be Ascended (not primarily expressing through the Higher Bodies).
One such teaching claims that examples of unascended Masters are:
Yogananda, Mataji, and
Lao-tzu. The belief is that they've un-Ascended bodies that are not flesh and blood of the lowest of the sub-plane substance of the physical octave, but of the "finer matter" that composes the upper
etheric sub-planes of the physical octave, as well as the emotional (astral) octave, and the mental octave.
The Great White Brotherhood
aura) and has nothing to do with race. Blavatsky described many of the Masters as ethnically
Tibetan or
Indian (
Hindu), not
European. She did, however, describe them as being from all cultures and races, such as the "Greek gentleman" known as
Hilarion.
Belief in the Brotherhood and the Masters is an essential part of the
syncretistic teachings of various organizations that have continued and expanded the Theosophical philosophical concepts. Examples of those believed to be Ascended Masters are
Jesus,
Confucius,
Gautama Buddha,
Mary the Mother of Jesus,
Lady Master Nada,
Enoch,
Pope John Paul II,
Kwan Yin,
Saint Germain,
Sanat Kumara and
Kuthumi. It is believed that all of these put aside any differences they might have had in their Earthly careers, and unite instead to advance the spiritual well-being of humanity.
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