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Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781578632046 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Red Wheel/Weiser |
| Publication date: | 01/01/2000 |
| Series: | Occult Survey of Past and Future Problems |
| Edition description: | Revised ed. |
| Pages: | 104 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.25(d) |
Read an Excerpt
Adepts of the Five Elements
By David Anrias
Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC
Copyright © 2000 David AnriasAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-57863-204-6
CHAPTER 1
THE CHANGING AGE
BY the quiet sea, alone in my two-roomed hut, I sat meditating during the early hours of the morning. Outside I heard the first bird, his song attuned to the first light of day. All else was still, save for the gentle waves breaking against the beach. In the general sense of quiet I became suddenly aware of the presence of my Master, His aura permeating the place with a profound sense of peace. My mind instantly ceased to speculate upon this problem or that, but became merged in His consciousness. I was intensely aware of that rare quality possessed by Him alone, controlled power combined with a subtle mentality capable of responding to the influence of the furthest cosmic murmur ; and thus lifted, for the moment, into oneness with Him, I was enabled to see, as it were with His eyes, and to comprehend some of the underlying reasons for the present confusion.
As the earth comes under the influence of a particular zodiacal sign, mankind as a whole, for the duration of that major period or cycle, responds to its particular element. Towards the end of a given cycle, a cosmic readjustment of the four elements in their relationship to our earth is inevitable, and they become re-polarised through the chief characteristics of the zodiacal sign which is to become dominant. Therefore at this particular period which is one of transition between one dispensation and another, there is a powerful element of conflict between the passing Pisces cycle and the Aquarian cycle, which is to influence the world for the next two thousand years.
Such an important change is always anticipated by the Great Hierarchy who invisibly guide man's destiny. Certain Adepts, having acquired a great spiritual affinity with the new sign through meditating upon it several centuries in advance, become attuned to its highest rate of vibration. Similarly They acquire the power to transmute its baser elements in order to counteract, as much as is karmically permitted, the Dark Forces endeavouring to delay the advent of the New Age.
Needless to say, some of the magnetic forces pouring through the zodiacal signs have more affinity with the sign of the new Air Age than others, and the sign most likely to be athwart its development is Pisces, the influence ruling the previous cycle.
Those signs having the greatest affinity with Aquarius are Libra and Gemini, being of the same airy element, likewise Sagittarius and Aries, which are similarly in benefic aspect to it, forming a sextile instead of a trine. The two latter signs are, in addition, complementary to Aquarius, since their fiery element is easily co-related to the element air.
The magnetic forces of the two remaining signs Scorpio and Cancer, like Pisces, are not likely to have much affinity with those of Aquarius ; for Scorpio is in square or evil aspect to this sign, and Cancer is both negative and conservative, its main characteristic being a powerful inclination to cling to the past. Again the forces of the three earthy signs will prove even more of an obstruction, consisting as they do of the densest matter of all.
Neither Virgo nor Capricorn have much affinity with Aquarius, whilst Taurus, being a fixed sign, is in square aspect to it and so is likely to set up the greatest resistance of all to those cosmic changes that are having a stupendous effect upon the rising generation and even upon the planet itself.
This being so, it inevitably follows that those Adepts who are endeavouring to manipulate the spiritual forces associated with the New Age will have an exceedingly difficult task during the next few centuries, for not only have They to anticipate the future to a considerable extent, but to avoid nullifying the work of those among Their Brother Adepts, who, for the sake of the majority who still cling to traditions and old religious customs, guard the expiring forces of the passing Age. The task of these Adepts is an equally difficult one, since They are ever contending with those destructive powers who endeavour to take advantage of a changing Era to cause misery, unrest and chaos wherever possible.
Through the medium of my Master's consciousness I was enabled to realise much that had hitherto seemed obscure to me, and to so many others, with regard to that great outpouring of spiritual force at the close of a minor cycle of the Kali-Yuga about 1890, which resulted in the founding of the Esoteric Section of the Theosophical Society. As every occult student knows, a vast amount of arcane knowledge was given to the world through the great initiate H. P. Blavatsky. By an act of sacrifice on the higher planes on the part of the White Lodge, the whole aura of the earth became charged up by currents of spiritual energy. These currents began to encircle the earth at an increasingly high rate of vibration, stimulating the more sensitive types towards greater and greater efforts in their desire for spiritual wisdom. Their physical-etheric centres became more and more responsive to the influence of the higher planes, in spite of the fact that many of them were actively employed in mundane work. Needless to say, these men and women were subjected to a very great strain, such as the potential occult student or mystic of the past, who retired as a matter of course to the seclusion of temple or monastery, had never experienced. This practice of withdrawing from the world in order to contact spiritual verities through deep meditation continued throughout the Pisces cycle, the twelfth sign and the twelfth house being alike in creating the desire as well as the suitable conditions for such a life. But with the new cycle these methods could not endure, Aquarius tending to turn forces outwards instead of inwards by means of community-work and similar public activities associated with the eleventh house.
Inevitably there must be a period of transition between any two cycles, when the only possible course is to adopt methods of occult instruction combining as far as possible the old with the new. Therefore the training of the first Western group of occult students was largely coloured by Indian methods, and comprised strict instructions to be rigidly adhered to.
After Madame Blavatsky's death, Dr. Annie Besant endeavoured to maintain this same Indian discipline, which she herself had quickly mastered and scrupulously carried out in everyday life, despite the fact that she was freely mingling with people in the outside world. How far this was achieved through strength of will and how far through reverting to congenial customs associated with her immediate past life as an Indian, it is impossible to say. It soon became evident to the White Lodge that whilst an Indian initiate functioning through a Western body might quickly dominate that body through the old Indian higher vehicles retained for the purpose, it was all but impossible for the average Western occult student to maintain the old Eastern standards of physical purity under modern conditions.
Other difficulties also arose. The Secret Doctrine was the chief object of group-study, but the higher mental body of the average bewildered Western student was usually discovered to be insufficiently equipped for the task. Likewise early meditation on an empty stomach, often between 6 and 7 a.m., although comparatively easily sustained in India, where both long custom and climatic conditions were favourable, seemed all but impossible in the West.
About 1912 the Adepts who had sponsored the Theosophical Society realised that what was possible for an initiate possessing a powerful will as well as the means of creating her own surrounding conditions, was not feasible for the average Western pupil still hampered by past karma or a delicate body.
Therefore these particular Masters effected a transference of occult force, hitherto wholly confined to the higher mental plane, to the lower mental, and later to the astral plane by means of group ceremonial magic.
Naturally this transference of force involved a great sacrifice on Their part,1 and required the co-operation of another Adept, who had been associated with purely Western methods of occult training through several centuries, having retained a physical body suited to this particular type of work.
As the reason for the aforementioned change of policy was never explained, many members, imagining that it implied failure to maintain the original standards inaugurated by H. P. Blavatsky, resigned from the Society. Those who had joined it at a period when occult study pure and simple was de rigueur, left it, largely because their karma was not of the kind that could be worked out through ceremonial and the group-karma which this form of activity inevitably entails.
For the benefit of those unconversant with the technicalities of astrology, I must here point out that the element water rules the emotional or astral plane, with which ceremonial magic is closely associated. Henceforth the Theosophical Society, unconsciously for the most part, embarked upon a minor cycle demanding activities in connection with this emotional or watery element, which, strange to say, predominated over all the others in the horoscope of its founding in November, 1875. This astrological fact had been viewed with misgiving by some of the Adepts, who, nevertheless, with Their far-seeing eyes, saw that it would afford immediate opportunities for growth for certain types of egos.
CHAPTER 2
ADEPTS OF THE EARTH
NEPTUNE, associated at its highest with spiritual love and the mystical element in Christianity, was entering the earthy sign Taurus at the time of the founding of the Theosophical Society, thus considerably mitigating the uncompromising and stubborn element of that sign, and creating conditions in which reincarnated mystics of the past might recover some of their old memories and religious experiences. The fact that Neptune is the only planet in an earthy sign is also significant, inasmuch as it gives but little scope for the gratification of personal ambition, and creates a tendency to turn inward, in order to contact the higher planes through meditation.
Through personal devotion to the Master Jesus during the Christian era, certain egos have developed this power of meditation to a fine point. For such as these, ceremonies are not necessary, neither do they feel impelled to express themselves through service.
Instinctively, in their present incarnation, they are drawn towards cathedrals or the ancient churches of the past, and the Master Jesus becomes for them a living reality during meditation, as they contemplate the exquisite stained-glass windows, depicting His life of sacrifice. Here in these sacred places where the earth is blessed, they dimly sense that the astral or emotional element is stilled, subordinated to the vibration of that Great Adept who guards the heart of the mystic and the active devotee alike.
The life of the pupil who is approaching the path through mysticism is usually so planned that he is able to remain in one place during the difficult process of learning to still the mind and make it responsive to the influence of his Master. Often he is unconsciously drawn to a centre which has been previously magnetised by an initiate of his own nationality, as it is much easier to tune-in to the Master through the particular occult rate of vibration of one's own country than through that of another.
When the mystic has perfected his faculty of inner response to his Master, he is able to contact Him no matter what his surrounding conditions, and here the passivity of the mystic becomes merged into the activity of the occultist.
Whilst meditating upon the influence of the aforementioned magnetised centres, I was transported in thought by my Master to the old Chelsea church in the vicinity of which, before leaving for the East, I had undergone my own mystical training, and whither I had afterwards returned to complete it in a more positive sense.
He conveyed to me that wherever a great initiate has endeavoured to realise for himself some of the fundamental truths of occultism, the ground about his dwelling-place takes on something of his magnetic and spiritual quality. Indeed, it is not too much to say that the physical-etheric conditions created by such a one may persist for several centuries after his death.
The Chelsea church and the ground near by, which used to be a beautiful garden bordering the river, thus still retain something of the vibrations of Sir Thomas More, who lived there for a considerable time before enduring the martyrdom so frequently the lot of the initiate who dies for the sake of some ideal beyond the comprehension of his contemporaries. Through being in touch with these conditions I contacted something of the personality of this remarkable man, who combined the inner powers of the mystic with the trained brain of the executive thinker ; and later on I began to realise that His living presence still overshadows this magnetised spot. I sensed the same restrained and disciplined mind awaiting that time when England will be capable of responding to occult leadership inspired from Higher Sources. In anticipation of this development, various centres magnetised by Him in the past are kept guarded in order that certain advanced egos who have karmic associations with England, may at some future time be enabled to make an etheric or even a physical contact with the English Adepts who guide the destiny of their race.
At these centres, if they have developed a sufficient degree of clairaudience, they will receive occult training suitable for their work in the outer world. Those whose past karma permits them to become more sensitive and acquire a certain amount of clairvoyance, will be entitled to an occult exposition of the general plan of the national future, which, as they will be impressed, must be kept in mind during their work in the present.
In this connection it was also shown to me that many of those egos, who, either as kings or in other positions of authority have made important links with a particular country, reincarnate in that country in order to raise it up and to work out that specific form of karma which can only be generated in positions of responsibility.
After this brief glimpse into the future of my own race, my thoughts were led back to the present ; I realised that the most advanced types were responding to the Uranian influence now everywhere operative and tending to develop an international spirit in all the leading cities of the West. With the ever-increasing facilities for travel, with the wide-flung effects of the radio and the translation of successful plays and films into several languages, a new cosmopolitan viewpoint has become evident everywhere ; this is reflected in the art, the literature and even the architecture of the age, since the huge Atlantean structures of New York are being repeated on a smaller scale in every city of the world.
It was shown to me that this ever-increasing international spirit has been much fostered by the Master Rakoczi, His marvellous mind behind every activity and trend of thought.
In the field of politics, He is especially active, particularly in those countries which might prove a danger to their neighbours and precipitate war. Often at times of crisis He will counteract such tendencies by impressing with sudden and illuminating suggestions the minds of those few statesmen who are capable of responding to His Uranian personality. I saw that it will not be long before a group of such men will combine to bring about world- peace and evolve a comprehensive Uranian scheme in order to maintain it, thereby creating entirely new political standards for their successors.
My Master then conveyed to me that the vibrations of Uranus and Neptune are far too high to influence the average man of to-day without becoming distorted as soon as they come into contact with his imperfectly co-ordinated vehicles. The close opposition of these two planets lasting for several years within comparatively recent times, precipitated upon the earth great spiritual forces which, as the majority of mankind were not sufficiently evolved to utilise them, became expressed in various ways as intensification of egoism.
Amongst other undesirable manifestations, an enormous increase in homo-sexuality became apparent, Uranus being associated with the positive side of sex-perversion, and Neptune with the negative. Their reverse lunar motion is connected with this development and tends to make those who respond to the lower influence of these planets intensely individualistic through a re-polarisation of the astral and etheric bodies. The emotions in consequence seek a twisted and distorted form of expression, and there is an increasing desire for new and strange sensations to be gratified at all costs. This re-polarisation is also considerably enhanced by the fact that Uranus tends to govern the minds of men and the emotions of women, whilst Neptune often sways the emotions of men and the minds of women.
Each sex, instead of finding its complement in the other, becomes frustrated and turned inwards on itself through the powerful reverse lunar motion of these two planets, the vibrations of which are frequently used to precipitate karma of an emotional nature in order that the ego may become free of all personal desires in future lives.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Adepts of the Five Elements by David Anrias. Copyright © 2000 David Anrias. Excerpted by permission of Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC.
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Table of Contents
Contents
Preface
The Changing Age
Adepts of the Earth
Adepts of the Water
Adepts of the Air
Adepts of the Fire
Adepts of the Ether
Appendix