New Year with the Masters

Yesterday's blog got a little more lengthy than expected; so, today please accept a short tale about a group of dedicated Himalayan Masters who, it is told, guide humanity to eventual acceptance of their rightful inheritance of a Kingdom on Earth. Much has been written about these fabled Masters and the following is a short description of these illustrious light-bearers written in the early twentieth century:

"They aid in countless ways, the progress of humanity. From the highest sphere They shed down light and life on all the world, that may be taken up and assimilated as freely as the sunshine, by all who are receptive enough to take it in. The Masters especially connected with religions use these religions as reservoirs into which They pour spiritual energy, to be distributed to the faithful in each religion through the duly appointed "means of grace'. Next comes the great intellectual work, wherein the Masters send out thought-forms of high intellectual power to be caught up by the men of genius assimilated by them and given out to the world. Then comes the generation of the thought-forms which influence the concrete mind and guide it along useful lines of activity in this world. . .in the physical world [They are responsible for] watching the tendencies of events, the correction and neutralizing, as far as law permits, of evil currents, the constant balancing of forces that work for and against evolution, the strengthening of the good, the weakening of the evil.'

"It will be seen from this that although the Masters may have their heads in Heaven, Their feet walk the earth, which is another way of saying that they are no vague dreamers but eminently practical men. They have shed
all the vices and weaknesses of ordinary mortals, it is true, but They have plodded through these vices and weaknesses themselves on the way toward[s] Adeptship. Therefore, their attitude is one of compete understanding and tolerance, combined with a great sympathy [for struggling humanity] and what is equally important, as they say themselves--a pronounced sense of humor."

With description of these colorful characters as a background, let me tell you a short story as to how we got all the various spiritual and non-spiritual movements we did in the early twentieth century. In my minds eye, I can see several of the Masters conferring over hot tea in one of their huts and discussing the matter at hand with deep understanding of human nature as well as a wee sense of humor:

"The ideal of Unity in Diversity is so completely realized by the Masters that although on the surface they may sometimes appear to be working in opposition, in reality they are working in perfect accord, their manifold branches of activity blending with one another as do the colours of a spectrum. Thus, last century [19th century] when Victorian bigotry and religious narrow-mindedness had reached a climax, one of the Masters, in order to counteract this, inspired the Agnostic Movement. This in its turn showed signs of becoming overemphasized, so to adjust the balance another of the Masters inspired the Spiritualistic Movement [with mediums and the like.] a little later Master KH and Master M sponsored the Theosophical Society through their much-maligned disciple, Madame Blavatsky. Then another Master inspired Christian Science. All these Movements were operative simultaneously, and each in opposition to the other. Haeckel swept aside belief in the soul as pure superstition, Madame Blavatsky informed the spiritualists that their spirits were but empty shells, while Mrs. Eddy pronounced Theosophy to be an 'error of the mortal mind,' and Victorian bigots condemned each other and all these Movements as anti-Christian machinations of the devil. Meanwhile, the Masters, although they deplored these intolerant denunciations, patiently watched each Movement to gauge its effect on the great Evolutionary scheme, toward[s] the carrying out of which they work so harmoniously together." (Through the Eyes of the Masters, D. Anrias, 1932, pp. 8 - 9, 12.)

Whether this tale is true or not makes little difference. What is important is the message of tolerance, which is clearly heard. You might think of this story next time you hear denunciation of one movement of any kind in favor of another. In the grand scheme of things, it could be that each is good in its own right for the time, place and people that it attracts and necessary for the evolution of men's minds over the eons of time.

Or maybe not. You be the judge. . .