AVATARS COMPILATION
The word "Avatar" is a Sanskrit word, meaning literally "coming
down from far away." Ava (as prefix to verbs and verbal nouns) expresses
the idea of "off, away, down." Avataram (comparative) farther away. The root AV seems at all times
to denote the idea of protection from above, and is used in compounds, in words
referring to protections by kings or rulers; in regard to the gods, it means
accepted favourably when a sacrifice is offered. With the result that the root word can be said to mean "Coming
down with the approval of the higher source from which it came and with benefit
to the place at which it arrives." (From Monier-Williams' Sanskrit Dictionary.)
In this world cycle it might be said that the emphasis of all spiritual power is placed in the Hierarchy which is, at present, the divine intermediary, interpreting the will of God, which is the purpose of Shamballa. It transmits or steps down the divine energy so that safe application to Humanity becomes possible. It will be apparent, therefore, why in the second decanate of Aquarius the Hierarchy can, as the representative of Shamballa and with the aid of Mercury, bring into physical manifestation the coming Avatar. This becomes possible when the work of the first decanate is accomplished and when Shamballa has released and definitely re-oriented the energies of the third great centre, that of Humanity. This release and readjustment leads to creative expression and renewed spiritual life. Planetary alignment can take place and this is a planned objective for which the Hierarchy is preparing and for which the Avatar Himself is preparing at Shamballa.
BPL SO This Avatar can
be expected around 2350 – 2700 or so.- second decanate ruled by mercury
The third initiation is connected with Shamballa as a planetary centre and to the activity of the first ray. It should be borne in mind that this is the first initiation in which personality and soul are united and fused so that the two aspects form one unit. When this initiation has taken place, it happens that for the first time some of its broader group implications become a reality and henceforth constitute the motivating impulse of the initiate's life. Aspiration ends and the intensest conviction takes its place. It is interesting also to note that Venus now comes into control in the third decanate of the Aquarian Age. Venus is esoterically recognised as that mysterious force which is a blend of love and knowledge, of intelligence and synthesis, and of understanding and brotherhood. Within the Hierarchy itself, the two great Messengers who have embodied the dual Venusian energy were the Buddha and the Christ. The Messenger Who will later come and express the Shamballa urge to synthesis, the hierarchial aspiration towards love and the desire of humanity for intelligent activity with combined power will gather all into Himself. All these qualities will focus in Him, plus another quality or divine principle of which the race of men as yet knows nothing and for which there is, as yet, no name. He will be a great and potent Avatar and is not along the line of our humanity at all. DON 140
BPL – related then to the third physical plane avatar bringing the externalization of the mysteries – or is this the seventh ray avatar due this century?
If this Great Invocation which we are studying can be rightly said, the three great planetary centres can be related in a similar manner. The Lord of Civilisation, the Master R., representing humanity, the Christ representing the Hierarchy and the Lord of the World, linked through the Manu and representing Shamballa can be brought into a close relation so that the result will be the setting up of such a potent vibration and note that the Spirit of Peace will be invoked and contacted. By the voiced appeal His attention will be forced to turn itself towards our planet. The consequences will be significant and potent but as to the form which they will take it is impossible for me to say. Perhaps it will lead to some peculiar and powerful demonstration of the meaning of peace as the expression of universal and planetary love; perhaps it will produce the sending of an Avatar or Messenger of Peace to lead the nations to right action; perhaps some happening will take place of such significance that its import will be immediately recognised by humanity as a whole, leading them to take all the needed steps to restore right human relations. The nature of the activities which the Spirit of Peace will institute is not our responsibility. Our duty is to learn rightly to contact the Hierarchy, via our own souls; rightly to use the Great Invocation as souls, and rightly to render ourselves responsive to and sensitive to the resultant effects. Ponder on the above. EXH 161
The Spirit of Peace will, when the right time comes, vitalise the responsiveness of humanity, via the influence of the Hierarchy, to the will of God which has for basic intent the bringing of peace on earth. What is peace? It is essentially the establishing of right human relations, of synthetic rapport with its resultant cooperation, of correct interplay between the three planetary centres and an illumined, loving understanding of the will of God as it affects humanity and works out divine intent. It is for this reason that the Christ, Who established for the first time in planetary history a contact between the Hierarchy, Humanity, Shamballa and the Spirit of Peace in His Own high place, in His first recorded utterance said that He must be about His Father's business and then at the end of His life, reiterated the same thought in the words: "Father, not my will but Thine be done," thus carrying the thought up to the highest plane for He addressed the Father, the first Aspect of Divinity. He then focussed in Himself the two major divine attributes and aspects—will and love (atma-buddhi)—and because of this, His consciousness became extra-planetary as is the consciousness of the Lord of the World, and He could then touch certain heights of awareness and contact certain solar Agencies which had never before been contacted by man. This achievement enabled Him to put Humanity in touch with the Spirit of Peace. He thus Himself became the Light of the World and the Prince of Peace.
In this manner, Shamballa and the Hierarchy were brought into a close relationship and two great streams of force were blended and a definite interplay set up between them. The Buddha, through His achievement of illumination, established the first major link with the Forces of Light. The Christ, through His ability to express the will of God in love and as world salvage, established the first major link with the Spirit of Peace.
Let the Forces of Light bring illumination to mankind
Intermediary The Hierarchy. Soul consciousness
Agent The Buddha
Expression Light. Understanding. The illumined mind
Planes of emphasis The second or
monadic plane
The buddhic or intuitional plane
The mental plane
Focal point The head centre
Planetary centre The Hierarchy
Let the Spirit of Peace be spread abroad
Intermediary Shamballa. Spiritual consciousness
Agent The Christ
Expression The will of God as love and peace
Sentient response
Planes of emphasis The logoic or first
plane
The buddhic,
or intuitional plane
The astral or emotional plane
Focal point The heart centre
Planetary centre Shamballa
May men of goodwill everywhere meet in a spirit of cooperation
Intermediary Humanity itself. Self-consciousness
Agent The Lord of Civilisation
Expression Intelligent love, dedicated to the Plan
Creativity
The will-to-good
Planes of emphasis The atmic or plane
of spiritual will
The mental plane
The physical plane
Focal point The throat centre
Planetary centre Humanity
BPL note
– head – hierarchy – planes 2,4,5
Heart – Shamballa – planes 1.4.6
Throat – humanity – planes 3,5,7
Thus all the great centres are linked and all the planes are interrelated; the past has contributed its finished work; the present is evoking its just and right development; the future of wonder and of divine possibility appears—its results contingent upon a spirit of right understanding and invocation. Three statements in the New Testament begin now to demonstrate their profound esoteric significance and their amazing living potency:
I am the Light of the World The Forces of Light — Phrase 1. 2nd Aspect
My peace I give unto you The Spirit of Peace — Phrase 2. 1st Aspect
Love thy neighbour as thyself The Men of Goodwill — Phrase 3. 3rd Aspect
I would point out that just as the energies released by use of the first three phrases of the Invocation relate to the Head, Shamballa; to the Heart, the Hierarchy; and to the Throat centre, Humanity; so the right use of this fourth phrase will bring into conscious, functioning activity the centre between the eyebrows, the ajna centre in individual man and in humanity as whole. This centre begins to become active and to function dynamically, governing and directing the individual energies, once any real measure of personality integration has been achieved. It is, as you know, the fourth centre found above the diaphragm in the human body and the phrase which awakens it (both individually and in the group) is this fourth phrase. There is, therefore, a numerical relationship.
(May forgiveness on the part of all men be the keynote at this time.)
Next century, when the seventh ray has achieved complete manifestation and the Piscean influence is entirely removed, the seventh ray Avatar will appear. His work will demonstrate the law, order and rhythm of the creative process as it works out on the physical plane, blending spirit and matter. And as this ray is called the Ray of Ceremonial Order or Ritual, He will be largely instrumental in producing those conditions which will permit of the reappearance upon Earth of the Mysteries of Initiation, of which the Hierarchy is the custodian. He is necessarily connected with the Great White Lodge on Sirius. This fact does not, however, concern us now, for we await the coming of a still greater Avatar. EXH 299
BPL ok so the seventh
ray Avatar is not the AOS – perhaps he is connected with that life taking
etheric form referred to later in TOWM
5. Divine Embodiments. These Avatars appear rarely; and when They do, the effectiveness and results of Their work are very great. They issue forth into manifestation via the centre at Shamballa, because They are an expression of the will nature of Deity; They embody divine purpose; the energy pouring through Them and transmitted by Them is focussed through the Lord of the World; They can only be reached by the united voices of the Hierarchy and of humanity speaking in unison; Their service is evoked only by realised need, and only after those who call Them forth have added to their faith strenuous action and have done their utmost, alone and unaided, to overcome evil.
When the Avatar comes He will convey to humanity something for which we have as yet no true name. It is neither love nor will as we understand them. Only a phrase of several words can convey something of the significance and then only feebly. This phrase is "the principle of directed purpose." This principle involves three factors:
a. Understanding (intuitive and instinctual, but intelligently interpreted) of the plan as it can be worked out in the immediate future.
b. Focussed intention, based on the above and emphasising an aspect of the will, hitherto undeveloped in man.
c. Capacity to direct energy (through understanding and intent) towards a recognised and desired end, overcoming all obstacles and destroying all that stands in the way. This is not destruction of forms by force such as is now being imposed on the world, but a destruction brought about by the greatly strengthened life within the form. Only the next one hundred years will reveal the significance of this statement and then only if the massed intent of the people evokes this Avatar of Synthesis during the next twelve months. I have called this Being by this name because it expresses the quality and the objective of the force He brings and wields. EXH 302
BPL – principle of directed purpose – sounds like monadic plane through atma ie not atma buddhi as the Christ blended but monadiatma
Another and lesser Avatar is also awaiting a call from humanity. He is esoterically related to the Avatar of Synthesis, being overshadowed by Him. This Avatar can descend on to the physical plane into outer expression and can thus step down and transmit the stimulation and quality of the force of the greater Avatar Who can come no nearer than the mental plane. Who this Coming One may be is not yet revealed. It may be the Christ, if His other work permits; it may be One chosen by Him to issue forth, overshadowed by the Avatar of Synthesis and directed in His activities by the Christ, the Lord of Love. In this way, the energies of both Shamballa and the Hierarchy will be focussed through the chosen Coming One. Thus a triangle of loving, purposeful energy will be created which may prove a more effective way of releasing energy and a safer way, than the focussed impact of one selected force might be.
I realise the difficulty of this subject and perhaps may simplify the matter by a brief summation:
1. A great cosmic Avatar can come if the Hierarchy and humanity can stand together with massed intent.
BPL sounds extraplanetary but not cosmicif
he candescend all the way to our mental plane
a. He will descend into the three worlds of human endeavour, but no nearer than the mental plane.
b. He will transmit a cosmic energy whose quality is Synthesis. This will express itself through harmony and unity, producing necessarily understanding, promoting goodwill, and eventually ending the separative, isolating tendencies of mankind.
BPL – this sounds
like it must emanate from the higher three subplanes of the cosmic mental – in
effect it may relate to Agni the energy of the solar
personality
c. His note and vibration can only be sensed by those whose individual note is also synthesis and whose life objective is the will-to-good. These are consequently the Members of the Hierarchy, the disciples and aspirants of the world and a few of the men of goodwill.
2. A Messenger or Avatar of equal rank to the Christ in the Hierarchy (or possibly Christ Himself) may come forth as the Representative of the Avatar of Synthesis and as His transmitting Agent.
a. This lesser Avatar works today as one of the senior Members of the Great White Lodge and is in close touch with the Christ, with the Manu and with the Lord of Civilisation, the Master R.; He will act as the Coordinator between the Hierarchy and Shamballa. He will fuse and blend in Himself, through the quality of His Own life, the three great energies:
The will-to-spiritual power.
The will-to-love in its spiritual connotation.
The will-to-manifest spiritually.
b. The antiquity of the achievement of this Coming One is to
be found in the name applied to Him, which is found in so many of the world
Scriptures: The Rider on the White
Horse. This refers to the time prior to the phrase so well-known in the
Christian fields: "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."
In the earlier cycle, the then initiates spoke of the "sacrificial horse,
slain to all eternity." It conveys the same basic idea.
c. This Avatar can descend to the physical plane and there
appear, to lead His people—as the Prince Who leads through war to peace.
d. The whole problem before the Hierarchy and humanity
today, in connection with the coming Avatar, can be summed up in the following
four questions:
Can He bring the energy of synthesis with Him, thereby
bringing about rapid changes?
This depends upon His being overshadowed by the Avatar of
Synthesis and upon that Avatar being evoked through the demand and the massed
intent of humanity, aided by the Hierarchy.
Will the demand of the people be strong enough to evoke the
higher potency, or will it be too feeble because of the failure of the world
disciples and aspirants to focus this massed intent throughout the planet?
Will the higher overshadowing not take place and only the
lesser Avatar come to institute a slower method of gradual reform?
This slower method will be necessitated only if and because
humanity will have demonstrated its inability to call forth and receive the
higher measure and more potent vibration of divine energy. It is entirely for
the decision of the world disciples and aspirants; not the decision of poor
bewildered, deluded humanity. Will the world disciples and aspirants appreciate
the crisis and opportunity? They have not yet, as a whole, done so.
The Needed Steps
These steps are various in kind though one in intent. The first step is to realise clearly what are the methods whereby the Avatar can come and so reach humanity. These are the same methods, whether it is the Avatar of Synthesis, working through the Hierarchy, or the Avatar of Coordination (as I might call Him), working through humanity and representing the greater Avatar upon the physical plane.
BPL – is this avatar
of coordination related therefore to the seventh ray avatar?
The methods whereby Avatars reach and influence Their agents or those who respond to Their note, vibration and message are three in number.
1. Overshadowing. Where there is kinship in quality, in objective and in nature, it is possible for the Avatar to overshadow some Member of the Hierarchy (as in the case of the Avatar of Synthesis) or some disciple or aspirant where humanity is concerned (in the case of a lesser Avatar). This is done through meditation, through a directed stream of thought energy, the presentation of a thoughtform and the evocation of the focussed will of the one who is overshadowed. All this proceeds rapidly where there is close cooperation between the latter (the sensitive responding disciple) and the Avatar. The Christ is today in very close rapport with the Avatar of Synthesis, and this rapport will continue, becoming closer and closer until the Full Moon of June; He is giving all possible aid, as is His Brother, the Buddha. It is this which makes the coming Full Moon of May of such supreme importance.
A group of Masters and initiates Who are specially related to the Christ's department, as well as a group working under the Master M., are endeavouring to respond to this overshadowing which is only possible—even to Them—when transmitted to Them by the Christ. (I talk here of mysteries.) It will therefore be apparent to you that, as They succeed and become increasingly sensitive to and aware of this overshadowing energy of the great Avatar, Their disciples on earth can also—in a dim and faint way—become responsive to the ideas that are formulated in the mind of their particular Master in response to avataric impression. Ponder on this.
2. Inspiration. This is more direct than overshadowing and more potent in results. Certain Members of the Hierarchy and, above all, the lesser Avatars, are inspired from "on high" by the cosmic Avatar and become at times direct expressions of His mind, His energy and His plans. This is the spiritual correspondence to obsession. In the case of obsession, a man is taken possession of and inspired by some evil entity; in inspiration, there is no possession but only what is called "identical response"—a very different thing. In the one case, the free will and intelligent understanding of the Master or the disciple is enlisted on the side of the spiritual Agent; the spiritual man, functioning as a soul, becomes the channel for forces, ideas and activities other than his own but to which he gives full intuitive assent. It is all carried forward with full understanding and consciousness of method, process and results. It is an act of free spiritual cooperation, for the good of humanity, in the work of a great spiritual Force or Being. The cooperation of the Master Jesus with the Christ is a case in point. In connection with the coming Avatar, it may involve the cooperation of the Christ or of a "kindred, equal soul" with a cosmic Being or Presence, taking place on still higher spiritual levels of consciousness and producing an incredibly focussed potency.
In the case of obsession, the evil force enslaves the personality which, in the majority of cases, is but a shell. Of this, Hitler is a case in point. This produces greater potency on the physical plane and on the astral plane; it is quicker and more immediate in results, but the lasting power is less and the effects are relatively temporary.
In the processes of inspiration, the lesser Avatar—through His life and contacts in the three worlds—will necessarily influence sensitive, spiritually oriented disciples and aspirants, and thus the inspiration coming from the cosmic Avatar becomes in time a group inspiration, and therefore can be more safely handled. This group inspiration can happen today. If it does, there will then be a simultaneous appearing of the cosmic Avatar, the World Saviour in the Person of the lesser Avatar, and—at the same time—a group saviour, composed of responsive disciples and world servers. Ponder again on this.
In this way, if you will note carefully, there is established a direct linked chain from humanity, via the Hierarchy, to Shamballa. The Hierarchy is working at the establishing of this chain, aided by Their disciples. The demand for the cooperation of all aspirants is now going forth, because the times are urgent. If this relationship can be established (and it will be a sad day for humanity if it cannot), then the third method of avataric expression becomes possible.
3. Appearance or Manifestation. Every possible step has been taken by the Hierarchy to enable the Avatar, the Coming One, to appear. What these steps are cannot be declared here. Only some questions, suggesting possibility, are permissible. Think you that His body of manifestation is already on Earth, waiting to be overshadowed, inspired and used at the right time, as was the vehicle of the Master Jesus by the Christ? There are those who say that it is waiting and has been waiting for 22 years. Is it possible that there will be a sudden descent of the Prince of Light and Peace to change present conditions by the effectiveness of His radiance and His message? There are those who look for Him to suddenly appear, and they number millions of expectant people. Some say He is already on His way. Is it possible that this Wesak Festival will see Him approach nearer to the Hierarchy and make a contact with Them? Some say it will take place. Can the "massed intent" of humanity evoke response and lead to the appearance on Earth of the lesser Avatar? Some say nothing can stop it. Prophecy, expectation and the present time cycle testify to the opportunity. This possible dual event—the coming of the Avatar of Synthesis to the Hierarchy and of the lesser Avatar, His Representative, to humanity—can be a probable happening if the world disciples and aspirants measure up to the opportunity. EXH 309
As a result of Christ's decision and His "spiritual fusion" with the Will of God, the Avatar of Synthesis has become, for the time being, His close Associate. This is an event of supreme and planetary importance. His relationship and planned help date from the time of the pronouncing of the great Invocation and its use by men everywhere. Owing to the stupendous task confronting Christ, the Avatar of Synthesis will fortify Him, and He will be buttressed by this "Silent Avatar" Who (to speak symbolically) will "keep His eye upon Him, His hand beneath Him and His heart in unison with His."
This Being is closely related to the Will Aspect of divinity, and His cooperation has been made possible through Christ's Own attainment along the line of the highest, spiritual will. He works under the great natural Law of Synthesis, producing at-one-ment, unification and fusion. His function (in unison with the energy of Christ) is to generate spiritual will in humanity, the will-to-good; His potency works in three fields of activity at this time: ROC 77
In June, 1945, at the time of the full moon (so significant a day in the spiritual experience of the Christ), He definitely and consciously took over His duties and responsibilities as the Teacher and Leader during the Aquarian solar cycle. He is the first of the great world Teachers to cover two zodiacal cycles—the Piscean and the Aquarian. This is a statement easily made and written down, but again it involves the three modes or techniques of appearance to which I have already referred. His outpouring love and spiritual vitality (augmented by the energies of the Spirit of Peace, the Avatar of Synthesis and the Buddha) were refocussed and channelled into a great stream, pulled through into expression (if I may word it so inadequately) by the words of the Invocation, "Let love stream forth into the hearts of men.... Let Light and Love and Power restore the Plan on Earth."
In those three words—light,
love and power—the energies of His three Associates (the great Triangle of
Force which stands in power behind Him) are described: the energy of the
Buddha: Light, for the light ever comes from the East; the energy of the Spirit
of Peace: Love, establishing right human relations; the energy of the Avatar of
Synthesis: Power, implementing both light and love. At the centre of this
Triangle the Christ took His stand; from that point His Aquarian work began,
and it will continue for two thousand five hundred years. Thus He
inaugurated the new era and, upon the inner spiritual planes, the new world
religion began to take form. The word "religion" concerns
relationship, and the era of right human relations and of a right relation to
the
At that time also, the Christ assumed two new functions: one is connected with the second mode of His physical appearance and the other with the mode of over-shadowing. Over the masses, light, love and power are being poured forth and the growth of the Christ-consciousness is, therefore, being constantly stimulated. By His physical Presence, He will become the "Dispenser of the Water of Life"; through the over-shadowing of those sensitive to His impression and of His focussed Mind, He becomes what is technically known as the "Nourisher of the little ones." ROC 83
Thus the Christ, with the fused energies of love and wisdom, with the aid of the Avatar of Synthesis and of the Buddha and under the influence of the Spirit of Peace and of Equilibrium, can implement and direct the energies which will produce the coming new civilisation. He will see, demonstrating before His eyes the true resurrection—the emergence of mankind from the imprisoning cave of materialism. Thus He will "see of the travail of His soul and shall be satisfied." (Is. LIII.11.) ROC 102
BPL -Sounds like the
three energies of the cosmic triad – Buddha – manas, SOP – buddhi – AOS atma
As the invocative system spreads and a greater alignment is attained, Shamballa—the planetary head centre—invokes energies outside the planetary life and the inflow of cosmic and solar energies will be very much greater; for this the esotericists of the world must be prepared. It will also produce the advent or appearance of many AVATARS, bringing with Them many and very different kinds of energies to those which hitherto have controlled human affairs and the events and evolution of the other, the subhuman kingdoms in nature. With the reappearance of the Christ as the focal point or the supreme Agent of the planetary heart centre, a new era or "divine epoch" will be instituted. The Avatar of Synthesis will draw very close to humanity and He will inaugurate the "reign of Avatars" Who will be embodied Purpose and spiritual Will; They will initiate both the Hierarchy and Humanity into phases of the divine character of which, at present, nothing is known and for which we have no terminology that could convey the exact facts and nature. All that I am attempting to do here is to give you a general outline of events which may lie centuries ahead but which will inevitably occur—once the Christ is again in physical Presence and recognition on Earth.
H.P.B. speaks in The
Secret Doctrine of the "three periodical vehicles," referring as he
does so to the Monad, the Soul and the Personality; he is dealing, therefore,
with the nine aspects of divinity which connote the nine major initiations and
those divine characteristics through which the three major aspects of divinity
reflect themselves. In this connection, it is well known to students that the
Monad expresses itself through the Spiritual Triad, the Soul through the three
aspects of the Egoic Lotus, and the Personality through the three mechanical
vehicles. It will be obvious to you surely that these three periodical vehicles
are under the influence or impression of the three major planetary centres and
are, therefore, finally conditioned by the three major energies to which I
referred earlier in this section. I do not feel it to be necessary to enlarge
upon this basic relation; it is that which integrates the human soul into the
vast general whole and makes the individual an intrinsic part of the sum total.
TEV 135
1. Cosmic Avatars.
2. Solar Avatars.
3. Inter-planetary Avatars.
4. Planetary Avatars.
5. Human Avatars.
As just said, an avatar is a Ray of effulgent and perfected glory, clothing itself in matter for the purpose of service. All avatars in the strict sense of the word are liberated souls, but the cosmic and solar avatars are liberated from the two lower planes of the cosmic planes. While the planetary and the interplanetary avatars are liberated from the cosmic physical plane, our systemic planes, the human avatar has achieved freedom from the five planes of human endeavour. In a strictly technical and lower sense, a Master in physical plane incarnation is a type of avatar, for He is a "freed soul" and therefore only chooses to incarnate for specific purpose, but we will not deal with Them. Let us again subdivide these groups so as still further to clarify our ideas:
1. Cosmic Avatars: They represent embodied force from the following cosmic centres among others:
a. Sirius.
b. That one of the seven stars of the Great Bear which is ensouled by the prototype of the Lord of our third major Ray.
c. Our cosmic centre.
They represent entities as far removed from the consciousness of Man, as man is from the consciousness of the atom of substance. Thousands of those great cycles which we call "a hundred years of Brahma" have passed since They approximated the human stage, and They embody force and consciousness which is concerned with the intelligent co-ordination of the starry Heavens.
They have achieved all that man can conceive of as the transcendence of will, of love and of intelligence, and in the synthesis of those three have added qualities and vibrations for which we have no terms, and which cannot be visioned by even our highest adepts. Their appearance in a solar system is very unusual, and is only recognised on the highest two planes. Yet, owing to the material nature of our solar system, Their advent is literally the appearance in a physical form of a spiritual Being Who is fully conscious.
BPL – so by this
definition the AOS cannot be a cosmic avatar
Such entities from Sirius appear at the occasion of the initiation of the solar Logos, and They have a peculiar connection with the five Kumaras and through Them (using Them as focal points for force) with the Mahachohan's department in all the occult Hierarchies of the system. Only once has such a Being visited our system, in connection with the appearance in time and space of the five mind-born Sons of Brahma. The effect of such a visit as that of the Avatar from Sirius is seen as the sumtotal of civilisation and culture, viewing these from the standpoint of the entire system and in one flash of time.
An avatar from the cosmic centre will appear as pralaya is nearing and will produce in the body of the Logos that which we call "Death." He is the cosmic Reaper, and (to reduce the above to words of an understandable nature) He belongs to a group which represents the abstracting energy of the cosmos, of which we find faint correspondences in the work of the "destroyer" aspect of the Logos, and in the forces which produce physical death, and the disintegration of the physical body of man. It is not possible to say more on these fundamentally esoteric matters, and the value of what is said lies largely in the bringing to the mind of the student the reality of our cosmic interrelation.
2. Solar Avatars: These avatars are of three types though there are really many more. They are also extra-systemic visitors, and are mainly concerned with certain processes in the system, among others the administration of the law of cause and effect, or of karma. They embody the karma of the past kalpas as far as our Logos is concerned, and give the initiatory impulse to the processes of adjustment, of expiation and of recognition as it concerns the present system as a whole. One such Entity, the "Karmic Avatar" appeared upon the second logoic vibration, being swept in on the second Breath; He has stayed until now: He will remain with us until all the schemes have entered upon their fifth round, and are nearing their "Judgment Day." At that time, He can withdraw, leaving the planetary Logoi concerned to fulfil the karmic purpose unwatched. The vibratory impulse will then be so strong and the realisation of the buddhic principle so consciously vivid that nothing can then arrest the onward march of affairs. Under Him work a number of cosmic entities who, as stated in the Secret Doctrine,41 have the privilege of "passing the ring-pass-not"; these are, nevertheless, not avatars for They are Themselves evolving through the administration of karma. It is Their work, and opportunity to progress. An avatar can learn nothing from the place of His appearance. His work is to apply the force of some type of electrical energy to substance in one of its many grades, and thus bring about anticipated results.
Another type of solar avatar, Who can be seen appearing in the schemes, has relation to the heart centre of a planetary Logos, and appears on the higher planes (never on the lower) when the heart activity is making itself felt, and when the energising process is seen to bring about three things:
a. An expansion of consciousness.
b. An increase of spiritual light and brilliancy.
c. Planetary radioactivity.
It is this planetary phenomenon which produces (in connection with the fourth kingdom in nature) the throwing open of the door of initiation to man. Such avatars do not come in connection with any particular Hierarchy but only in relation to the total system. They produce the blending of the colours, and the synthesis of the units in their groups.
BPL – perhaps AOS
could be a solar avatar
At the initiation of a planetary Logos, an avatar may appear
in His scheme on the seventh globe from that cosmic centre or star which is ensouled by the particular Rishi
Who (in the constellation of the Great Bear) is His cosmic prototype. This is, for the Entity concerned, the taking
of a physical form, for our higher planes are but matter from Their standpoint.
This has been emphasised frequently, as its
significance is not yet sufficiently grasped.
By means of the appearance of this Avatar on the seventh globe, the
planetary Logos is enabled to preserve continuity of cosmic consciousness even
when in physical incarnation; this solar
avatar performs the same function for the planetary Logos as the Guru does for
His disciple. He makes certain
events possible by means of the stimulation and protection of His aura, and He
acts as a transmitter of electrical energy from the cosmic centre. We must be careful to hold this analogy very
lightly, for the real work accomplished cannot be grasped by man. This avatar has naturally a direct effect
upon the centres of the Heavenly Man and therefore upon the units or human
Monads, but only indirectly and upon the Monad on its own plane. This influence meets with little response
from the Monad until after the third Initiation when its conscious life becomes
so strong that it grips afresh its egoic expression in one direction, and
awakens to planetary realisation in another. This
type of avatar appears only at the time of the initiation of a planetary
Logos. The number of
initiations taken by a planetary Logos in this system vary from two to
four.
3. Interplanetary Avatars. A very interesting group of avatars is here to be found. They are mainly concerned with three things: first with the superintendence of the transfer of force units or egoic groups from one scheme to another (not with individual units from chain to chain). They appear usually twice in the history of a scheme, and though unable to take physical bodies of grosser material than those formed of atmic and the buddhic substance, they work with impulse in mental matter and thus effect these group transfers. They Themselves are subdivided into three groups:
BPL – so individual
units transfer chain to chain but egoic groups transfer scheme to scheme. Can
work or impulse mental matter so AOS could be also one of these
a. Those effecting the transfer from the minor schemes or Ray manifestations on to the third Ray; They concern Themselves with the result of the merging of the polar opposites in the four lesser schemes until but one is left; and then with the transference of the life and quality of this remaining one on to the third Ray.
b. Those dealing with the transference and interaction of the life forces between the three major Rays.
c. Those producing the final systemic transfer at the end of the age.
Secondly, certain avatars from the fourth Creative Hierarchy, for esoteric and for us inexplicable reasons, leave Their Own Hierarchy, and appear in one or other of the deva Hierarchies. This happens only once in the history of each scheme and occurs at the time of its densest physical appearance, and has relation to the transference of deva impulse from one scheme to another. They are connected in this way with the appearance of the self-conscious units, being the primal embodiment of the latent self-consciousness of the atom of deva substance. They set the type for the devas of any particular scheme.
Once in the history of each scheme, an avatar from the constellation Capricorn appears on mental levels. This level is the lowest one on which these interplanetary deities appear. No more can be communicated on this matter. "The mystery of the goat" lies hidden here. This avatar makes His appearance in the third round of the third chain, and disappears in the fifth round of the fourth chain.
BPL – how is an avatar
from Capricorn an ‘interplanetary avatar’ – surely he would be cosmic or
‘constellational’. So anyway the Av from cap arrives an
leaves at the same time as SK no?
These interplanetary avatars come in, as the products of much earlier kalpas when systemic conditions are refined enough to permit of Their appearance. They are the nirmanakayas of an earlier solar cycle Who now again take the opportunity to effect (in an active sense and through physical manifestation) certain uncompleted work.
4. Planetary Avatars. These emanate from the central planetary Logos of a scheme and embody His will and purpose. They are of two different kinds. The first type is a manifestation on etheric physical levels of the planetary Logos Himself for a specific length of time. It involves the definite taking of a physical body by one of the Kumaras. Such an avatar is to be seen in Sanat Kumara, Who, with the three other Kumaras, embodies the four planetary quaternic principles. In a very real sense, Sanat Kumara is the incarnation of the Lord of the Ray Himself; He is the Silent Watcher, the great Sacrifice for humanity.42
As noted in the above paragraph, there are secondly three Entities Who embody planetary principles. They are (speaking from the present standpoint) the dynamic energy which holds together the three lower kingdoms, viewing these kingdoms as units and not as differentiations. They are closely connected with the energy aspect of the three earlier chains, and it only needed the work of an interplanetary avatar (at the formation of the triangle which resulted in the individualisation period in Lemurian days) to enable Them to take etheric bodies and incarnate among men. They act as focal points for the energy of the planetary Logos on His own plane. The first Kumara is in a mysterious sense the energy which produces self-consciousness in the human family. The three other kumaras, or the three Buddhas of Activity, act as similar focal points for the energy which animates the three lower kingdoms, and which produces their differing grades of consciousness. It is not possible to express this great mystery more clearly but if the student couples these few hints with those earlier given in the Secret Doctrine, the mystery of the "Holy Four" may be somewhat clarified from the standpoint of energy and evolution.
The times and seasons of their appearing vary according to the particular karma of the Lord of the Ray, and nothing in connection with these great cycles, and incarnation periods, can be revealed to the unpledged and the profane.
5. Human Avatars. These are fully dealt with by H. P. B. and there is nothing further to add to her information, for the time is not ripe.43 All the above has its place here, as it concerns the mystery of force and consciousness, and the fullest manifestation of a planetary Logos and of a solar Logos in a dense physical body is hidden in the appearance of these various avatars and in their effect.
TCF 729
BPL so essentially an avatar is the embodiment of a higher electrical energy being applied in a lower level. – He is a ‘shock’ from the rod!
(d.) The Future Coming of the Avatar.
THE COMING AVATAR
"From the zenith to the nadir, from dawn to fall of night, from the emergence into being of all that is or may be to the passing into peace of all that hath achieved, gleameth the orb of blue and the inner radiant fire.
From the gates of gold down to the pit of earth, out from the flaming fire down to the circle of gloom, rideth the secret Avatar, bearing the sword that pierceth.
Naught can arrest His approach, and none may say Him nay. To the darkness of our sphere He rideth alone, and on His approach is seen the uttermost disaster, and the chaos of that which seeketh to withstand.
[Page 748]
The Asuras veil their faces, and the pit of maya reeleth to the foundation. The stars of the eternal Lhas vibrate to that sound,—the WORD uttered with sevenfold intensity.
Greater the chaos becometh; the major centre with all the seven circulating spheres rock with the echoes of disintegration. The fumes of utter blackness mount upwards in dissipation. The noise discordant of the warring elements greets the oncoming One, and deters Him not. The strife and cries of the fourth great Hierarchy, blending with the softer note of the Builders of the fifth and sixth, meet His approach. Yet He passeth on His way, sweeping the circle of the spheres, and sounding forth the WORD.
From the nadir to the zenith, from eve unto the Day be with us, from the circle of manifestation to the centre of pralayic peace, is seen the enveloping blue, lost in the flame of achievement.
Up from the pit of maya back to the portals of gold, forth from the gloom and darkness back to the splendour of day, rideth the Manifested One, the Avatar, bearing the shattered Cross.
Naught can arrest His return, none can impede His Path, for He passeth along the upper way, bearing His people with Him. Cometh the dissolution of pain, cometh the end of strife, cometh the merging of the spheres and the blending of the hierarchies. All then is re-absorbed within the orb, the circle of manifestation. The forms that exist in maya, and the flame that devoureth all, are garnered by the One Who rideth the Heavens and entereth into the timeless AEon."
(From the Archives of the Lodge.)
We have touched upon the subject of Avatars and the various classes into which they might be divided. We might now enlarge somewhat more upon the methods. The methods whereby certain cosmic Existences and certain highly evolved Entities appear among men to do a specific work might be very inadequately, and cursorily summarised, as follows:
The method of overshadowing.
The method of embodying some principle.
The method seen in the mystery of the Bodhisattva, or the Christ.
The method of direct incarnation.
The handicap of words is great, and the above phrases but convey a hint as to the true meaning. Therein lies safety for the student, for the real significance would be incomprehensible to him, and would but mislead him and guide him along the path of misunderstanding. Until a man is a pledged initiate, he cannot comprehend the matter. Of these, the most ordinary method is the first. All these methods of manifestation will perhaps be better understood by the student if he interprets them always in terms of force and energy, and if he notes that dim reflections of the same processes, and faint analogies can be traced among the reincarnating jivas. When a man has reached a certain development and can be of service to the world, cases occur when he is overshadowed by a great adept, or—as in the case of H. P. B.—by One greater than an adept. A chela can be a centre through which his master can pour His energy and force for the helping of the world, and in certain important crises men have been overshadowed by more than one of the Great Ones.50 What occurs on lower planes is but a reflection of higher processes, and in this thought may lie illumination. A man is a force centre, either for his Ego, when sufficiently evolved, or, via his Ego, of his group force; when very highly developed he can consciously be overshadowed by an exponent of a different type of force, which blends with his group, or Ray, force, and produces significant results in his life on earth.
Again when an Ego is highly evolved he may choose during any particular incarnation to work paramountly through any one principle among the lower four; when this is the case the man's life on earth is significantly that of an embodied principle. He seems to strike one note and to sound out one tone. His work is clearly to be seen along one line. He is a fanatic of high degree, but accomplishes big things for his subrace, even though the physical brain may not be consciously aware of the egoic impulse. This process has a curious relation to the obscuration, or fading out, of the personality, for the particular principle embodied works through a corresponding permanent atom, and its spirillae become over-rapidly developed, and hence their term of service wears to a close. This is a fact which is nevertheless taken advantage of when a superman, or great adept, becomes the embodiment (during a rootrace) of a principle; the vestures or sheaths of which the permanent atom is the nucleus (through the innate strength of the developed spirillae) are preserved by the aid of mantric formulas. The vibration is perpetuated for a specific length of time, and for as long as the vesture or sheath may be required. A hint is here conveyed which may be of service.
Again, when a man has become a disciple he may, if he so wish, remain upon the astral plane and work there, and—at his pleasure, and under the adjustment of karma by his Guru—he may take immediate physical birth. A hint as to the mystery of the Bodhisattva may be found in these two thoughts, provided the student transfers the whole concept to the etheric levels of the cosmic physical plane, and remembers that on these levels the adept works altogether as a part of a group, and not as a separated Identity, as does the ego in the three worlds. Therefore, the energy pouring through Him may be:
a. That of a particular centre in the body of the planetary Logos in its total force.
b. That of a particular set of vibrations within that centre, or a part of its vibratory force.
c. That of the energy of a particular principle, either one of His own higher principles which He is seeking to bring to bear upon the earth, by taking incarnation for that specific purpose, or the energy of one of the planetary logoic principles, as it pours through Him via a particular spirilla or life current in the permanent atom of the planetary Logos.
When these types of force are centralised in any particular adept, and He is expressing simply that extraneous force and nothing else, the effect is shown on the physical plane in the appearance of an avatar. An avatar is, but an adept is made, but frequently the force, energy, purpose or will of a cosmic Entity will utilise the vehicles of an adept in order to contact the physical planes. This method whereby cosmic Existences make Their power felt can be seen working out on all the planes of the cosmic physical plane. A striking instance of this can be seen in the case of the Kumaras, Who, under certain planetary forces, and through the formation of a systemic triangle, gave the impulse to the third kingdom which produced the fourth by bringing it into conjunction with the fifth. These Kumaras, Sanat Kumara and His three pupils, having achieved the highest initiation possible in the last great cycle, but having as yet (from Their standpoint) another step to take, offered Themselves to the planetary Logos of Their Ray as "focal points" for His force, so that thereby He might hasten and perfect His plans on Earth within the cycle of manifestation. They have demonstrated three out of the four methods. They are overshadowed by the planetary Logos, and He works directly as the Initiator (in relation to man) through Sanat Kumara, and with the three kingdoms in nature through the three Buddhas of Activity,—Sanat Kumara, being thus concerned directly with the ego on the mental plane, and His three Pupils being concerned with the other three types of consciousness, of which man is the summation. At the moment of initiation (after the second Initiation) Sanat Kumara becomes the direct mouthpiece and agent of the Planetary Logos. That great Entity speaks through Him and for one brief second (if one can use such a term in connection with a plane whereon time, as we understand it, is not) the planetary Logos of a man's Ray consciously—via His etheric brain—turns His thought upon the Initiate, and "calls him by His Name."
Again the Kumaras are embodied principles, but in this connection we must remember that this means that the force and energy of one of the principles of the Logos are pouring through Them via that which—to Them—corresponds to the Monad. Through Them, during Their period of incarnation and voluntary sacrifice, the great Prototype of the planetary Logos begins to make His Presence felt, and force from the constellation of the Great Bear faintly vibrates on earth. At initiation, man becomes aware consciously of the Presence of the planetary Logos through self-induced contact with his own divine Spirit. At the fifth Initiation he becomes aware of the full extent of this planetary group influence, and of his part in the great whole. At the sixth and seventh Initiations the influence of the planetary Prototype is sensed, reaching him via the planetary Logos working through the Initiator.
The method of direct incarnation was earlier seen when the Kumaras were in physical form. This only applied to some of Them; Sanat Kumara and His Pupils are in physical form, but
have not taken dense physical bodies.
They work on the vital etheric levels, and dwell in etheric bodies. Shamballa, where They
dwell, exists in physical matter as do the Kumaras,
but it is matter of the higher ethers of the physical plane, and only when man
has developed etheric vision will the mystery lying beyond the
The mystery of the Bodhisattvas51 has been touched upon by
H. P. B. and until students have assimilated and studied what she has said,
there is no more to add. Apprehension
of truth is ever the factor that calls for fresh revelation.
A very interesting period will come about the year 1966 and persist to the end of the century. It is one for which the Great Ones are already making due preparation. It concerns a centennial effort of the Lodge and of the Personages taking part therein. Each century sees a centennial effort of the Lodge along a particular line of force made to forward the ends of evolution, and the effort for the twentieth century will be upon a larger scale than has been the case for a very long time, and will involve a number of Great Ones. In a similar effort during the nineteenth century, H. P. B. was concerned, and a fairly large number of chelas. In the effort immediately ahead, several of the Great Ones are concerned and the Master of the Masters Himself; in Their "forthcoming" for work three out of the various methods of appearing mentioned earlier will be seen in full activity, and it is on these three that we might now touch.
In the appearing of the Bodhisattva Himself, the mystery of the Bodhisattva will be seen in its fullest sense, and it is not for us here to enlarge upon it. Suffice it to say that the vestures of the GREAT ONE will be used, but time will show whether the coming Lord will clothe upon those vestures a physical vehicle at this particular juncture, or whether the astral plane may not be the field of His activity. If the student ponders upon the consequences entailed in the appropriation of this vesture, much light upon probable happenings will be thrown. The vestures act in a dual capacity:
a. They are very highly magnetised, and therefore have a profound and far-reaching effect when utilised.
b. They act as a focal point for the force of the Lord Buddha and link up the coming Lord with Him, enabling Him to increase His Own stupendous resources by drawing upon still higher force centres, via the Lord Buddha.
This force will find its expression upon the astral plane, producing vast results of a quieting nature and bringing, by reflex action, peace on earth. The transmutation of desire into aspiration, and the transformation of low desire into high desire, will be some of the effects, while the result of the force flowing through will produce profound reactions of the deva denizens of that plane. Through the vibration thus set up will come the possibility of many (who would otherwise not do so) taking the first initiation. Later, towards the end of the greater cycle, the coming Avatar will again employ the vestures with all that is entailed thereby, and will take a physical body, thus demonstrating on the physical plane the force of the Logos in the administration of the Law. When He comes at the close of this century and makes His power felt, He will come as the Teacher of Love and Unity, and the keynote He will strike will be regeneration through love poured forth on all. As He will work primarily on the astral plane, this will demonstrate on the physical plane in the formation of active groups in every city of any size, and in every country, which will work aggressively for unity, co-operation and brotherhood in every department of life—economic, religious, social and scientific.
These groups will achieve results now impossible, owing to the retention of buddhic force, but later this force will be set loose on earth via the medium of the Great Lord, operating as an aspect of the Logos, and as a focal point for the consciousness and energy of the Buddha.
It is this impending probability which is held in mind during the century at the annual recurrence of the Wesak festival. Students would do well to further the ends of the occult Hierarchy by a similar concentration at the time of the festival, thus setting up currents of thought which will have a great appeal in the occult sense of that term.
Indication of the nearing of this event will be seen in the reaction which will be set up during the next twenty-five years against crime, sovietism, and the extreme radicalism which is now being made use of by certain powers to achieve ends contrary to the plans of the Lord. The era of peace will be ushered in by a gathering together on earth of the forces which stand for construction, and development, and by a conscious deliberate banding together of groups in every land who embody the principle (as far as they can vision it) of Brotherhood. Watch the signs of the times, and be not discouraged over the immediate future. The appearance of the Great Lord on the astral plane (whether followed by His physical incarnation or not) will date from a certain Wesak festival at which a mantram (known only to those attaining the seventh Initiation) will be pronounced by the Buddha, thus setting loose force, and enabling His great Brother to fulfil his mission. Hence the gradual recognition of the Wesak festival, and its true significance in the occident is desirable, and opportunity will be offered to all who are willing to place themselves in the line of this force, and thus become vitalised by it, and consequently available for service. The reaction mentioned above, will also become possible through the pressure brought to bear by the present children, many of whom are chelas and some initiates. They have come in to prepare the way for the coming of His Feet.
When the hour strikes (five years prior to the date of His descent) they will be in the full flower of their service and will have recognised their work, even though they may not be conscious of that which the future holds hid.
When the hour has come (and already a few cases are to be found), many cases of overshadowing will be seen and will demonstrate in a threefold manner. In all countries, in the orient and the occident, prepared disciples and highly evolved men and women, will be found who will be doing the work along the lines intended, and who will be occupying places of prominence which will make them available for the reaching of the many; their bodies also will be sufficiently pure to permit of the overshadowing. It will only be possible in the case of those who have been consecrated since childhood, who have been servers of the race all their lives, or who, in previous lives, have acquired the right by karma. This threefold overshadowing will manifest as:
First. An impression upon the physical brain of the man or woman, of thoughts, plans for work,
ideals and intentions which (emanating from the Avatar) will yet be unrecognised by him as being other than his own; he will
proceed to put them into action, unconsciously helped by the force flowing
in. This is literally a form of higher mental telepathy working out on
physical levels.
Second. The overshadowing of the chela during his work
(such as lecturing, writing, or teaching), and his illumination for service. He will be conscious of this, though perhaps
unable to explain it, and will seek more and more to be available for use,
rendering himself up in utter selflessness to the inspiration of His Lord. This is effected via
the chela's Ego, the force flowing through his astral permanent atom; and it is
only possible when the fifth petal is
unfolded.
Third. The conscious co-operation of the chela is necessitated in the third method of overshadowing. In this case he will (with full knowledge of the laws of his being and nature) surrender himself and step out of his physical body, handing it over for the use of the Great Lord or one of His Masters. This is only possible in the case of a chela who has brought all the three lower bodies into alignment, and necessitates the unfolding of the sixth petal. By an act of conscious will he renders up his body, and stands aside for a specific length of time.
These methods of overshadowing will be largely the ones used by the Great Lord and His Masters at the end of the century, and for this reason They are sending into incarnation, in every country, disciples who have the opportunity offered them to respond to the need of humanity. Hence the need of training men and women to recognise the higher psychism, and the true inspiration and mediumship, and to do this scientifically. In fifty years time, the need for true psychics and conscious mediums (such as H. P. B., for instance) will be very great if the Master's plans are to be carried to fruition, and the movement must be set on foot in preparation for the coming of Him for Whom all nations wait. In this work many have their share, provided they demonstrate the necessary endurance.
Naturally, the first group will be the largest, for it does not necessitate so much knowledge, but more risk is entailed with them than with the others—the risk of a perversion of the plans, and of disaster to the unit involved. The second group will be less numerous, and the last group will involve only a handful, or two or three in certain countries. In this case, it will be verily true that, through sacrifice, the Son of Man will again tread the highways of men, and His physical incarnation be a fact. Very few will be thus available for His use, as the force He carries requires a peculiarly resilient instrument, but due preparation is being made.
Again the method of direct incarnation will be employed by certain of the Masters and initiates through the process of:
a. Physical birth.
b. Appropriation of a suitable vehicle, or body.
c. Direct creation by an act of will. This will be rare.
The second, or middle, method will be the one most
frequently employed. Six of the Masters,
as yet quite unknown to the average occult student by name, have already sought
physical incarnation—one in India, another in England, two in northern America,
and one in central Europe, whilst another has made a great sacrifice, and taken
a Russian body in the desire to act as a peace centre in that distracted
land. Certain initiates of the third
Initiation have taken feminine bodies,—one in
The Master Jesus will take a physical vehicle, and with certain of His chelas effect a re-spiritualisation of the Catholic churches, breaking down the barrier separating the Episcopal and Greek churches from the Roman. This may be looked for, should plans progress as hoped, about the year 1980. The Master Hilarion will also come forth, and become a focal point of buddhic energy in the vast spiritualistic movement, whilst another Master is working with the Christian Science endeavour in an effort to swing it on to sounder lines. It is interesting to note that those movements which have laid the emphasis so strongly on the heart or love aspect, may respond more rapidly to the inflow of force at the Coming than other movements which consider themselves very advanced. The "mind may slay" the recognition of the Real, and hatred between brothers swing the tide of love-force away. The three Masters so closely allied with the theosophical movement are already making Their preparations, and will also move among men, recognised by Their Own and by those who have eyes to see. To those of Their chelas on earth who undergo the necessary discipline, opportunity will be offered to work on the astral plane and, should they so choose, an immediate incarnation, provided they have achieved continuity of consciousness. He Who is known as D. K. is planning to restore—via His students—some of the old and occult methods of healing and to demonstrate:
a. The place of the etheric body.
b. The effect of pranic force.
c. The opening up of etheric vision.
It is not permissible to say more in connection with the plans of the Great Ones. Their appearing will not be simultaneous in time, for the people could not stand the tremendously increased inflow of force, and recognition of Them and of Their methods will depend upon the intuition, and the training of the inner senses. They come with no herald, and only Their works will proclaim Them.
(e.) Impulse and Incarnation. Perhaps light upon this very difficult question of the incarnating jivas, of adepts and of avatars may come if the student remembers that:
1. An ordinary man demonstrates the third aspect of intelligent activity in his personality life, and is evolving consciously the second aspect, or the egoic manifestation on the physical plane.
2. An adept in incarnation is demonstrating fully the second aspect as well as the third, and in his own internal life is in process of evolving the first aspect, or is endeavouring to bring through the monadic life into conscious activity on the buddhic plane.
3. An avatar demonstrates one of two things, according to his peculiar karma:
a. The pure light of the Monad, brought through by means of the perfected Ego and personality on to the physical plane. The line of force extends straight through from monadic levels to the physical.
b. The light of the Logos Himself in one or other aspect,
this being transmitted consciously via the
Monad straight through to the physical plane from the planetary Logos, or even
from the solar Logos Himself.
In the first two cases, desire for sentient existence, or desire for service to humanity, are the factors which produce physical manifestation (one through the force of evolution itself, the other through a conscious act of the will). Desire for sentient existence is but the latent second aspect seeking expression by means of the Not-Self, and in the other case the manifested second aspect consciously utilises form as a means to an end. In the case of all avatars it is the will aspect which is brought into play, and which produces appearance—either the will of the perfected adept, such as the Buddha Himself, or (as in the case of the true Avatar, Who is, and Who has not achieved) the will of the planetary Logos or of the solar Logos, taking form for a specific purpose. It involves a higher display of the creative faculty than that displayed by the Adept in the creation of His body of manifestation, the Mayavirupa.52 The terms "appropriation of a physical body" and "creation of a physical body" must be extended to include all the planes of the solar system, and not just our physical plane, the seventh subplane of the cosmic physical. TCF 760
This will be brought about in three ways:
1. Man's truer understanding of his own animal nature.
2. A comprehension of the laws of individualisation, and the effect of the influence of the fourth, or human, kingdom upon the third, or animal, kingdom.
3. The work of an Avatar of a lesser order Who will come in the beginning of the next century to reveal to man his relationship to the third kingdom. His way is being prepared by the many who in these days are developing public interest through the various societies for the benefit and protection of animals, and through the many stories to be found in books and current periodicals. TCF 814
It will be apparent,
therefore, that the real and esoteric astrology will deal with four kinds of
force, when it seeks to explain the nature of the Energies which influence any
human being:
1. The quality of the
solar system.
2. The quality of the
Logos of the planet as it pours through the chains and globes and rounds in a
sevenfold differentiation.
3. The quality of our
earth's complementary planet.
4. The quality of the
attraction of our earth's polar opposites.
BPL – note more than one ‘polar opposite’
This involves
information as yet veiled in deepest mystery, but which will unfold as the true
psychology is studied, and which will eventually embody itself in a fourth fundamental of the Secret Doctrine
so that later students will have the three as they are now found in the Proem
to that book, plus the fourth.29 This
might be expected in this fourth round.
The true astrology will reveal the nature of this fourth proposition at
some later date. More attention will
eventually be paid to the planetary influences, and not so much to the signs of
the zodiac where the nature of an Ego is concerned. The great signs of the zodiac concern the
Heavenly Man, and necessarily, therefore, the Monads of every human being. The planetary influences must be studied to
find out the quality of a man's Ray, and this in the above indicated threefold
manner. Man is the Monad,
therefore, he expresses a small part of his enfolding life. In this solar system he is essentially the
Ego.
Astrologers should
study the planetary schemes in the light of the Heavenly Man, viewing them as
an incarnation of a planetary Logos, and thus strive to cast the horoscope of
the planetary Logos. They cannot succeed
in doing so, but in the attempt may learn much and achieve new light upon a
most difficult subject.
In considering this question of the adaptation of the form to vibration, or the construction of a vehicle which will be a fitting instrument for spirit, the following factors must be borne in mind:
1. That it is the quality of the indwelling life which decides the type of form.
2. That these qualities are the sumtotal of the attributes of divinity which the indwelling life has succeeded in unfolding.
3. That these qualities—as may well be surmised—fall into the usual septennate.
4. That they fall also into two groups, those which concern the lower principles, and are, therefore, four in number, and those which concern the higher and middle and are, therefore, three.
This is true of all men, of the Heavenly Men and of the solar
Logos likewise, and there is a mysterious analogy concerned in the
manifestation of the three higher principles in man (which may be considered as
demonstrating through the perfected Adept, the Bodhisattva) and the three
higher principles of the solar Logos as they demonstrate through the major
three aspects. They form but one
principle showing forth in three ways.
So it is with the unmanifested Monad (unmanifested from the standpoint of the lower man). That
Monad can—at a certain very advanced stage in evolution, and one far beyond
that of the Adept—have its triple simultaneous manifestation, and show forth as
a Master in the three worlds, as a Bodhisattva on His own plane and as the
emancipated Dhyani Buddha; yet these Three will be
but One, will be the result of a great spiritual vibration and will perform the
triple work which may (from the standpoint of the three worlds) appear as the
work of three separate great Existences.
They are forms of three monadic "vestures," worn by the one
Monad as a man wears his three bodies simultaneously, and functions in them
separately.30
One or other of these three can, if so He will, occupy a body on the physical plane which will not be simply a created mayavirupa. This is done in one of two ways: either through the occupancy of a willingly vacated body, as was the case when the Christ occupied the body of Jesus, or by a divine overshadowing of a disciple, as has been and will be the case. The quality of the form occupied or used, and the nature of its work depends upon which of the three higher aspects of the initiating impulse, is manifesting. Very rarely a more mysterious phenomenon occurs and the overshadowing Buddha, Bodhisattva, or Adept each makes His "appearance" upon earth thus demonstrating the three aspects of knowledge, love and will and all taking form.
BPL – would this be
through three separate bodies at the same time – a kind of triplet thing?
This may seem to be a great complexity, but it is not so much stranger after all than the phenomenon of the Monad (in time and space and during evolution) demonstrating forth as the Triad, the Ego and the Personality. This type of triple Avatar only makes its appearance under a peculiar series of cycles concerned with a group of Monads who were the most progressed and advanced at the opening of the mahamanvantara. As yet, there are not many progressed enough to do this triple work; the Buddha and nine others being the only Ones as yet remaining in touch with our particular planet in this particular manner. A few are as Christ is, and have the power to make a dual appearance. This type of monad is only found on Rays two, four, six.
BPL – second ray line monads can manifest simultaneously as Boddhisattva and Adept? But not Buddha?
TCF 1195
On the Way of Descending Approaches, the Buddha from the mental plane and also upon it, embodied in Himself the blazing enlightenment which is the result of a rare occurrence—a Cosmic Touch. He challenged the people to the Path of Light, of which knowledge and wisdom are two aspects. These, when brought into relationship with each other, produce the light. In a curious and esoteric manner, therefore, the Buddha embodied in Himself the force and activity of the third ray, of the third aspect of divinity—the divine cosmic principle of Intelligence. By its fusion with the ray of our solar system (the ray of Love) He expressed perfectly the significance of light in matter, of the intelligence principle as found in form, and was the Avatar Who carried in Himself the fully ripened seeds of the past solar system. We should not forget that our present solar system is, as was stated in A Treatise on Cosmic Fire, the second in a series of three systems.
Then came the next great Avatar, the Christ, Who, enfolding in Himself all that the Buddha had of light and wisdom (being fully enlightened in the occult and spiritual sense) on the Ray of Descending Approach, embodied also the peace of inclusiveness, which comes from the Touch of Divine Acquiescence. He was the embodied force of submission, and He carried the divine approach to the astral plane, the plane of feeling.
Thus two great
stations of energy and two major powerhouses of light have been established by
these two Sons of God, and the descent of the divine life into manifestation
has been greatly facilitated. The Way is
now opened so that the ascent of the sons of men can become entirely
possible. It is around these two ideas of divine descent and of human
corresponding ascent that the coming new religion must be built.
Stations of power exist and have been founded through the work of the various World Saviours. These stations of power must be contacted by humanity as time transpires, through their individual re-enactment (on a tiny scale) of the cosmic approaches, or the touches of divinity, dramatically engineered by the cosmic Avatars, the Buddha and the Christ. It is because the Christ has approached closer to humanity by focussing divine energy upon the astral plane through His divine acquiescence that He is the First Initiator.
From one point of view, these two centres of force constitute the Temples of Initiation through which all disciples have to pass. This passing is the theme of the coming new religion.
Mankind has
entered into the
Later, the Avatar will emerge Who will embody in Himself all that the Buddha had of enlightenment and all that Christ had of acquiescing love. He will, however, also embody the energy which produced the Approach of Appropriation, and when He comes forth, there will transpire a great appropriation by humanity of its recognised divinity, and the establishing upon earth of a station of light and of power which will make possible the externalising of the Mysteries of Initiation upon earth. This approach is the cause of much of the present turmoil, for the Avatar is on His way.
BPL so a human avatar – a divine embodiment
of three energies – how linked with the seventh ray avatar, the rider on the
white horse and the AOS? Or is this one coming in the second decanate of Aquarius?
Much of the above can mean but little to those who are not yet upon the path of accepted discipleship. We are here dealing with some of the major mysteries. But a mystery only remains a mystery when ignorance and unbelief exist. There is no mystery where there is knowledge and faith. The coming of the Avatar Who will fuse in Himself three principles of divinity is an inevitable future happening, and when He shall appear "the light that always has been will be seen; the love that never ceases will be realised, and the radiance deep concealed will break forth into being." We shall then have a new world—one which will express the light, the love and the knowledge of God.
These three
Temples of the Mysteries (of which two are already existing, and the third will
later appear) are each of them related to one of the three divine aspects, and
the energy of the three major rays pours through them. In the corresponding approaches upon the path
of ascent by humanity, it is the energy of the four minor Rays of Attribute
which produce the power to make the needed approach. Through the active work and the guidance of
the "presiding guardians" of these temples, the fifth kingdom in nature
will be brought into manifested being.
Over the
BPL –
is it possible from a cosmic perspective that Buddha anchored a fifth ray
energy, Christ a sixth and now the coming Avatar a seventh? Thus building
temples on the mental, astral and physical planes respectively?
All that the
student can grasp is that the Plan will be the dynamic impulse of this third
and vital energy which will pervade the outer court of the
BPL
If the seventh ray avatar is one and the same as the above then He will be
overshadowed then by the AOS bringing all three temples into relationship as an
expression of ONE life. If AOS is a representative from the cosmic mental plane
and thus a synthesizing factor in AGNI the Solar personality, then the
reflection is the synthesis of the human personality understood as a planetary
being.
The
Finally will come
the initiation of the Transfiguration, wherein the light breaks forth, the
Touch of Enlightenment is given, and the soul and the personality stand forth
as one. This process requires also the aid of the Buddha and the inspiration of
the Christ, and it is "occultly guarded" by
the Avatar of the physical plane.
In all the above information there is given a hint as to what will take place when human personalities are actively functioning and steadily awakening. The rapid coming of the Avatar Who will found the station of light and power upon the physical plane is dependent upon the rapid unfoldment and appearance of integrated personalities who love and think and seek to serve. There has here been given a new hint upon one of the more esoteric aspects of the work of the New Group of World Servers, and a hint at the same time as to the reason that this Treatise upon the Seven Rays has been written. An understanding of the rays and of the impelling forces in, through, and with which the personality has to work was essential if the work of this third Avatar from cosmic sources, was to be made possible. EP 2 282
Vulcan controls the anvil-like processes of time and strikes the blow which shapes the metal into that which is desired, and this is true today as never before.
He it is who is forging the way for the coming Avatar Who will—at the right moment—come forth, embodying in Himself the Will of God which is the divine will-to-good, to peace through understanding, and to right relations between men and between nations.
The Taurian influence must now be regarded as being of exceeding potency today, particularly from the angle of the subjective spiritual values; it is Taurus which is the ruler and the guiding influence of that which is occurring everywhere. EA 375
At the present time, and at the immediate point of tension, Christ has added to His two immediate and constant tasks that of hastening the coming of the Avatar Who waits for the perfected work of the Hierarchy, focussed in the Christ, and the powerful work of Shamballa, focussed in the Lord of the World. When the exact moment has arrived, the work of the Buddha, representing Shamballa, and of the Christ, representing the Hierarchy, plus the sincere demand of Humanity, will bring about an arrangement or an alignment which will release an evocative Sound which will be extra-planetary, and then the Avatar will come.
Ask me not for the date or the hour, brother of mine, for I know it not. It is dependent upon the appeal—the voiceless appeal—of all who stand with massed intent; it is dependent also upon the hour of exact alignment and upon certain aspects of work being done at this time by the senior Members of the Hierarchy, and also upon the steadfastness of the disciples in the world and the initiates—working in their various Ashrams. To this must be added what Christians call the "inscrutable will of God," the unrecognised purpose of the Lord of the World Who "knows His Own Mind, radiates the highest quality of Love, and focusses His Will in His Own high Place outside the Council Chamber of Shamballa."
That the Avatar will come is a predictable certainty. That His forerunner will be the Christ is equally sure. When Christ comes it will be for the advanced units of the human family; they will recognise Him because He has always been with us, whilst His advent will evoke a responsive vibration from the masses, but not straight recognition. In connection with the Avatar, it will be a process of hierarchical recognition of an overshadowing Presence within Whose aura the planetary Logos will take His stand as the planetary Representative. Then from Shamballa will descend a stream of spiritual potency, qualified by the will-to-good, and this will reach the attentive Hierarchy. The Members of this Group will, through the medium of the Christ, pour light and healing energy upon the Earth and peculiarly into the consciousness of men. I am not able to express the effect of the outpouring from Shamballa in clearer terms. We are told in the Bible that Christ will come in the air, and that He will bring the "healing of the nations" in His wings. I would call your attention to this thought and to its appositeness to this day and generation. I make no prophetical predictions, I only indicate possibility.
When the Avatar has made His appearance, then will the
"Sons of men who are now the Sons of God withdraw Their faces from the shining light and radiate that light upon the sons of men who know not yet they are the Sons of God. Then shall the Coming One appear, His footsteps hastened through the valley of the shadow by the One of awful power Who stands upon the mountain top, breathing out love eternal, light supernal and peaceful silent Will.
"Then will the sons of men respond. Then will a newer light shine forth into the dismal weary vale of earth. Then will new life course through the veins of men, and then will their vision compass all the ways of what may be.
"So peace will come again on earth, but a peace unlike aught known before. Then will the will-to-good flower forth as understanding, and understanding blossom as goodwill in men."
So speaks a prophetic passage in the ancient Archives of the Hierarchy which deals with the present cycle of distress (written in June, 1943). For this time men must prepare. You will know when the Avatar links up with the planetary Logos because I will then give you the final Stanza of the Great Invocation (given out in April, 1945). Its use will serve to bring the Coming One to recognition and enable Him to draw upon the resources of the Avatar in the task of world reorganisation and regeneration. He will again come as the World Saviour, but owing to the stupendous nature of the work ahead, He will be fortified and buttressed by the "silent Avatar" Who (occultly speaking) will "keep His eye upon Him, His hand beneath, and His heart in unison with His." RI 95
See you, therefore, the necessity of eventually organising a group in the world which will be so constituted and so carefully chosen and interiorly related that all its members are initiates, all have created their own "rainbow bridges" with understanding and accuracy, and all can now work in such complete unity that the group antahkarana becomes a channel of unimpeded communication direct from Shamballa to the group because every member of the group is a member of the Hierarchy. In this manner the three planetary centres arrive at the needed relationship, and another great triangle reaches true functioning activity. When this takes place, a revelation undreamt of will be manifested upon the Earth; a new divine quality, of which no knowledge at present exists, will make its presence felt, and the work of the Buddha and of the Christ, and the work of the coming Avatar, will be superseded by One for Whom both Shamballa and the Hierarchy have unitedly waited and of Whom the doctrine of the Messiah and the doctrine of Avatars have been and are today only the dim distant symbols. They preserve this concept of the Great Revelation in the consciousness of men, in the expectancy which the Hierarchy evidences, and through the "preparatory work" now being undertaken at Shamballa.
The group, therefore, to whom I address this instruction is not the group or groups who will first receive these papers. The instruction is intended for a group which will come later and which will prepare the way, and of which some of the more advanced aspirants can form part if they "walk humbly with their God." This, my brother, is one of the most advanced injunctions in any of the world Scriptures and is found in The Bible. It has no reference to humility as usually interpreted and understood. It signifies the ability to view all life with a sense of divine proportion and from the angle of spiritual mathematics, and (paradoxical as this may sound) with no sense of dualism. The usual meaning is not correct. It involves acceptance and comprehension of purpose, and this in such a manner that the consecrated personality—under control of the Monad, via the antahkarana, and in cooperation with the one known God—walks the ways of Earth as a channel for the three divine qualities (love, will and intelligence), but also as a channel for that which these three qualities will enable him later to sense, know and reveal. RI 258
Just as there is a group of Contemplative Initiates, called in the Eastern phraseology "Nirmanakayas," Who function in deep meditation at a point midway between the Hierarchy and Shamballa, so this much higher group of Ray Lords function in the deepest cosmic meditation between our planet, the Earth, and our sister planet, Venus. You would find it useful to read with care The Secret Doctrine and A Treatise on Cosmic Fire and refresh your minds as to this relationship. A lower correspondence to these two important groups has been forming midway between the Hierarchy and Humanity, and to it we give the name of the New Group of World Servers. All these three groups are fundamentally "transmitters of energy"; the two highest are exceedingly susceptible to cosmic impression and to the vibratory quality of the extra-planetary body of Avatars Who hold Themselves in readiness to function as destroying or building Energies in any part of our solar system and are under the direction of the Solar Logos.
The Avatar of Synthesis, Who is working in cooperation with the Christ, is one of Them. Bear in mind that these extra-planetary Avatars have not arrived at Their high state of spiritual unfoldment on our planet or even in our solar system. Their origin, source and spiritual relationships are a great mystery even to the planetary Logoi—to Whose help They go when the invocative appeal of any planet is adequate. Think not that They come to put wrong right or to arrest evil. A few, a very few, may do so, but They work along the line of the seven ray energies in the solar system and produce certain energy effects desired at any particular time; the constructive work of the Avatar of Synthesis will be apparent to you in the name He is known by; He is coming to the Earth in order to further the manifestation of unity, of oneness and of inter-relation, and He comes, therefore, to wield and apply first ray energy. He will charge or galvanise the three groups—the directing Agents in Shamballa, the Nirmanakayas and the New Group of World Servers—with dynamic energy and, in a mysterious way, relate them to each other so that a new synthesis and alignment will be present upon the Earth. All these Avatars embody energy to the extent that any particular planet is capable of receiving it. RI 735
There is one
aspect of initiation which is apt to be overlooked. Every initiation is a process of energy
transmission from a higher centre of energy to a lower; every initiation
charges the initiate with electrical force, and this charging and re-charging
is related to what H.P.B. calls "the mystery of electricity " These
transmissions of energy enhance the magnetic-attractive force of the initiate,
and at the same time are eliminative in their effects. In this fact lies a
great planetary truth and the key to the science of planetary redemption. When the spiritual and the electrical charging
of the three major centres on the planet—Shamballa, the Hierarchy and
Humanity—has reached a high stage of receptive efficiency, a certain cosmic Avatar will "become conscious of the
vibratory quality of the little point of light within the solar sphere"
and will then "turn His gaze and send His force unto that point of light, and cosmic evil will be driven out and find
no more a place on Earth." RI 736
Close to our
earth, on the road to rebirth, is a great Life in process of taking etheric form. This
Life, being on the evolutionary arc and not constituting the life of a decaying
shell, is having a real effect in the
inauguration of the New Age. This
effect is twofold:—through the emanations from the astral body of this great
Life the work of breaking down the separative wall of
individualism which demonstrates in man as selfishness and in nations as
nationalism is carried forward. Through
this rapidly integrating etheric body this Life is bringing the etheric body of
our planet into a state of increased rapid vibration. Reference will be found in the Treatise on
Cosmic Fire to an avatar from Sirius
who comes to bring about certain planetary effects. This Life
is not that avatar but is in the nature of a forerunner—of a
In the past we have had world Saviours—Sons of God who have enunciated a world message and brought an increase of light to the peoples. Now, in the fullness of time, and through the work of evolution there is emerging a group who perhaps will bring salvation to the world, and who—embodying the group ideas and demonstrating the group nature, manifesting in a small way the true significance of the body of Christ, and giving to the world a picture of the true nature of a spiritual organism—will so stimulate and energize the thoughts and souls of men that the new age will be ushered in by an outpouring of the love, knowledge and harmony of God Himself.
Religions in the past have been founded by a great soul, by an Avatar, by an outstanding spiritual personality, and the stamp of their lives and words and teaching has been set upon the race and has persisted for many centuries. What will be the effect of the message of a group Avatar? What will be the potency of the work of a group of knowers of God, enunciating truth and banded together subjectively in the great work of saving the world? What will be the effect of the mission of a group of world Saviours, not as Christs, but all knowers of God in some degree, who supplement each other's efforts, reinforce each other's message, and constitute an organism [Page 330] through which the spiritual energy and principle of spiritual life can make their presence felt in the world?
Such a body now exists with its members in every land. Relatively they are few and far between, but steadily their numbers are increasing and increasingly their message will be felt. In them is rested a spirit of construction; they are the builders of the new age; to them is given the work of preserving the spirit of truth, and the reorganizing of the thoughts of men so that the racial mind is controlled and brought into that meditative and reflective condition which will permit it to recognize the next unfoldment of divinity.
Connected with these two groups, the reactionary doctrinaires and the subjective band of mystics, is the majority of the new generation of young people who are part of neither band and whose ideas are largely disorganized by the recognition of both. This majority do not belong to the past and refuse to accept the authority of that past. They do not belong to the inner group of Knowers who are working at the task of swinging the thoughts of men into right channels, for they hare not reached as yet the point of knowledge. They only recognize two things: their need for freedom, and an intense eagerness for knowledge. They despise the tradition of the past; they reject the old formulations of truth ; and because as yet they stand on no sure ground but are only in the position of seekers and enquirers, we have our present state of world upheaval, of apparent license and disruption. It should not be forgotten that this world state is therefore the result of the clashing of the three types of force prevalent in the world of today.
1. That emanating from the holders with the old tradition, who, emphasizing the forms and the past produce the destruction of those forms.
2. That emanating from the inner group of mystics, [Page 331] who, under the guidance of the planetary Hierarchy are building the new form.
3. That emanating from the masses who belong to neither group and who are wielding force as yet blindly and often unwisely until such time comes when they recognize those constructive channels into which it can wisely be poured.
Hence the problem of this transition period and hence the necessity for the giving out of teaching which will enable the seeking aspirant and enquirer to find himself. Hence the need for the laws of the soul and for the truth as to individual unfoldment to be made clear to those who, rejecting the old tradition, and refusing recognition to the mystic, yet seek to know themselves as liberated souls. With that knowledge will come the steady growth of the Building Mystics, for when a man has found his soul and recognizes its relationship to its mechanism of expression, the threefold lower man, he automatically passes into the consciousness of the subjective life, begins to work with cause and is no longer lost in the world of effects. Then he finds himself standing shoulder to shoulder with the mystics and knowers of all time. This is the trend of the religious impulse at this time and this is the glory of the coming age. TOWM
1. The Spirit of Peace descended upon Christ. The New Testament bears witness to a somewhat similar event when, at the Baptism, we read that "he saw the Spirit of God, descending like a dove and alighting upon Him." (St. Matt. III.16.) This Spirit is a Being of tremendous cosmic potency and is today overshadowing the Christ in much the same manner as Christ (two thousand years ago) overshadowed or worked through the Master Jesus. This Spirit of Peace is not the sum total of an emotional and static calm, bringing to an end the turmoil on the Earth and instituting an era of peace. He is, in a mysterious sense, the Spirit of Equilibrium; He works with the Law of Action and Reaction and the inevitability of His activity will be recognised. His work will demonstrate in two ways—fully when the Christ appears among men and slowly and gradually until that time:
a. The chaos,
turmoil, emotional disturbance and mental unbalance found in the world today
will be (under this Law) balanced by a corresponding cycle of calm, emotional
quiet and mental poise, thus releasing humanity into a new phase and experience
of freedom. The adjusted peace will be commensurate to the experienced
disturbance. ROC 76
The Appearance of Avatars
Since the year 1400 (a date to which I referred earlier)
there have been constant appearances of lesser avatars, called forth in
response to minor crises, to national dilemmas and religious necessity. They
have taken the form of those men and women who have championed successfully
some truth or some right cause, some human right or correct human demand. All
these people have worked actively upon the physical plane and seldom received
recognition for what they truly were; only history, at a later date, laid
emphasis upon their achievement. But they changed the current of men's
thoughts; they pointed a way to a better life; they pioneered into new
territories of human achievement. Such a one was Luther; another was
1. Racial Avatars. These Appearances are evoked by the
genius and destiny of a race. The typical man (in quality and consciousness,
not necessarily physically) foreshadows [Page 298] the nature of some race.
Such a man was Abraham Lincoln, coming forth from the very soul of a people,
and introducing and transmitting racial quality—a quality to be worked out
later as the race unfolds. Coming forth correspondingly from the realm of
cosmic evil, and responsible for the focus of
materialism upon the planet today was
2. Teaching Avatars. These Appearances sound a new note in the realm of thought and of consciousness; they reveal the next needed truth; they pronounce those words and formulate those truths which throw light upon the spiritual development of humanity. Such Avatars were Plato, the first Patanjali and Sankaracharya; they emerge upon the second ray line of energy, in the department of the Christ and are expressions of hierarchical force. When I say the department of the Christ, I would remind you that the name "Christ" is that of an office—an office that has always had its Head. I do not mention the Christ or the Buddha as among these Avatars because They are Avatars of another class and of infinitely greater potency.
3. Ray Avatars. These great Beings come forth at relatively long intervals when a ray is coming into manifestation. They embody the quality and the force of a particular ray. Next century, when the seventh ray has achieved complete manifestation and the Piscean influence is entirely removed, the seventh ray Avatar will appear. His work will demonstrate the law, order and rhythm of the creative process as it works out on the physical plane, blending spirit and matter. And as this ray is called the Ray of Ceremonial Order or Ritual, [Page 299] He will be largely instrumental in producing those conditions which will permit of the reappearance upon Earth of the Mysteries of Initiation, of which the Hierarchy is the custodian. He is necessarily connected with the Great White Lodge on Sirius. This fact does not, however, concern us now, for we await the coming of a still greater Avatar.
4. Transmitting Avatars. These manifestations of divinity appear at those great cyclic moments of revelation when humanity needs the expression of a new truth or the expansion of an old one in order to progress still higher on the evolutionary ladder. These Avatars issue forth in response to demand and are not so much concerned with racial development as They are with the subjective unfoldment of consciousness and with the stimulation of humanity as a whole. Of these Avatars the Buddha and the Christ are outstanding examples. They were not only human-divine Avatars, and hence able to link humanity with the Hierarchy, but They were something far greater and more important. They had reached the point where They could act as Transmitters of certain cosmic principles which—focussed in Them in an extra-planetary sense—could stimulate the deeply hidden and latent corresponding principle in humanity. They transmitted and brought something from outside the planetary life—from the very Heart of God to the heart of man. The Buddha, because He achieved illumination, stimulated the light in the world, in humanity and in all forms. He served the soul of man. The Christ, because of His stupendous achievement—along the line of understanding—transmitted to humanity, for the first time in human history, an aspect and a potency of the nature of God Himself, the Love principle of the Deity. Prior to the advent of the Buddha, light, aspiration, and the recognition of God Transcendent had been the flickering expression of the human attitude to God. Then the Buddha came and demonstrated in His Own life the fact of God Immanent as well as God Transcendent; the idea of God in the universe and of God in humanity evolved. The Selfhood of Deity [Page 300] and the Self in the heart of individual man became a factor in human consciousness. It was a relatively new truth to be grasped by humanity. It had always been known by disciples and initiates.
However, until Christ came and lived a life of love and service and gave mankind the new commandment to love, there had been very little emphasis upon God as Love in any of the world Scriptures. After He appeared as the Avatar of Love, then God became known as Love supernal, love as the goal and objective of creation, love as the basic principle of relationships, and love working throughout all manifestation towards a plan motivated by love. This divine quality Christ revealed, and thus altered all human living and human goals. At that time too there came a great impetus and extension to the work and growth of the Hierarchy, as there was in a lesser degree when the Buddha came. Many initiates became Masters; many Masters passed to still higher work, and many disciples took their places in the ranks of the initiates. There was numerically a great influx of aspirants into the ranks of accepted disciples.
I have considered some of these Avatars in my earlier writings under different names and categories. I deal with Them here simply in an effort to reach a wider public with the teaching on the doctrine of Avatars or of divine Appearances. The Bible is full of such Appearances, but little is really understood about Them. The above are the more familiar groupings.
In September 1940 I gave an interpretation of a new Stanza of the Great Invocation, and in that communication I spoke of Divine Embodiments as the highest type of Avatar for which humanity could look at this point in its evolution. I spoke of the activity of the Hierarchy and of Shamballa, should these two divine Agencies decide that intervention in the form of a widespread cataclysm (engulfing all peoples) was necessary, and I referred to the emergence of inspired leadership as another and lower aspect of divine guidance and participation.
[Page 301]
Such inspired leadership is now being given to humanity by Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt, in contra-distinction to the focussed leadership of the forces of materialism through Hitler and another man in his group. But it is not with this form of leadership as expressive of the avataric principle that I deal here. Such leadership is called forth by elements present in humanity itself. I deal now with a fifth type of Avatar, greater than the other four. These Avatars have not, in this world cycle, experienced human life.
5. Divine Embodiments. These Avatars appear rarely; and when They do, the effectiveness and results of Their work are very great. They issue forth into manifestation via the centre at Shamballa, because They are an expression of the will nature of Deity; They embody divine purpose; the energy pouring through Them and transmitted by Them is focussed through the Lord of the World; They can only be reached by the united voices of the Hierarchy and of humanity speaking in unison; Their service is evoked only by realised need, and only after those who call Them forth have added to their faith strenuous action and have done their utmost, alone and unaided, to overcome evil.
They never descend lower than the mental plane, and the main emphasis and attention of Their work is directed to the Hierarchy; the Hierarchy is Their transmitting agency; They occasionally reach those thinking people, focussed on the mental plane, who have clear vision, potent resolve, directed will and open minds, plus of course, essential purity of form. These Avatars express the Will of God, the energy of Shamballa, and the impulse lying behind divine purpose. When They do come forth, it will be the destroyer aspect of the first ray of power which They will express; They bring about death—the death of all old and limiting forms and of that which houses evil. Their work will, therefore, fall into two categories:
a. They will destroy the forces of evil, using the agency of the Forces of Light.
[Page 302]
b. They will reveal as much of the divine purpose as humanity is able to grasp through its best minds and most dedicated aspirants; They will clarify the vision of the world disciples and of all who have the disciplined will-to-know and who are dedicated to and expressive of the will-to-good. This knowledge and this will are needed in the coming period of readjustment.
How They will bring the present
evil conditions to an end and how They will destroy the present evil state of
materialistic aggression I may not reveal. It is not yet certain that human
development and understanding and the massed intent of humanity will be
adequate to the needed demand and strong enough to call Them
forth. Time alone can determine that. God grant that the aspirants and
disciples of the world will awaken to the opportunity and the imminent and
waiting possibility. The plight of vast groups of people upon the planet today
lies heavy upon the heart of the Hierarchy. But to bring release and the
Appearance of the Power that can liberate, human cooperation is needed. Nowhere
is this more desperately needed than among the German people in their unhappy
land. God grant, therefore, that those Germans who have vision may join the
forces of those who are seeking to free
When the Avatar comes He will convey to humanity something for which we have as yet no true name. It is neither love nor will as we understand them. Only a phrase of several words can convey something of the significance and then only feebly. This phrase is "the principle of directed purpose." This principle involves three factors:
); "The Lord (Christos) shall be revealed with his mighty angels in
flaming fire" (2 Thessal. i.
7, 8). The Holy Ghost descended on the Apostles like "cloven tongues of
fire," (Acts ii. v. 3); Vishnu will return on Kalki,
the White Horse, as the last Avatar amid fire and flames; and Sosiosh will be brought down equally on a White Horse in a
"tornado of fire." "And I saw heaven open and behold a white
horse, and he that sat upon him . . . . is called the
Word of God," (Rev. xix. 13) amid flaming Fire. Fire is AEther in its purest form, and hence is not regarded as
matter, but it is the unity of Aether -- the second
manifested deity -- in its universality. But there are two "Fires"
and a distinction is made between them in the Occult teachings. The first, or
the purely Formless and invisible Fire concealed in the Central Spiritual Sun,
is spoken of as "triple" (metaphysically); while the Fire of the
manifested Kosmos is Septenary,
throughout both the Universe and our Solar System. SD I p87
. When the close of
the Kali age shall be nigh, a portion of that divine being which exists, of its
own spiritual nature . . . shall descend on Earth . . . (Kalki
Avatar) endowed with the eight superhuman faculties. . . . He will re-establish
righteousness on earth, and the minds of those who live at the end of Kali Yuga
shall be awakened and become as pellucid as crystal. The men who are thus
changed . . . shall be the seeds of human beings, and shall give birth to a
race who shall follow the laws of the Krita age, the age of purity. As it is said, 'When the sun
and moon and the lunar asterism Tishya and the planet
Jupiter are in one mansion, the Krita (or Satya) age shall return.' "
SD I p378
According to the
teachings, Maya, or the illusive appearance of the marshalling of events and
actions on this earth, changes, varying with nations
and places. But the chief features of one's life are always in accordance with
the "Constellation" one is born under, or, we should say, with the
characteristics of its animating principle or the deity that presides over it,
whether we call it a Dhyan Chohan,
as in
* It is complained by
the author of the version on, and translator of, "Prometheus Bound"
that in this tracing of Io's wanderings, "no consistency with our known
geography is attainable" (p. 191, Vol. II). There may be good reason for
it. First of all it is the journey and wandering from place to place of the
race from which the "tenth," or Kalki
Avatar, so called, is to issue. This he calls the "Kingly race born in