Shamballa and the Father's House

[Nick the Pilot]

Andrew,

You said,

"what I resist - and can never entertain seriously, since it makes no sense to me - is the notion that HPB's presentation is the last of the Wisdom of the Mahatmas."

--> Certainly, HPB will not be the last. We have had a good discussion about her successors on the Theosophy Forum. The jury is still out, however, as to who her real successors are, and who are just "pretty pretenders."

"HPB's writings ... are a bit poorly organized, and rough going in spots."

--> I have dedicated myself to making her writings more understandable. I plan to spend many more years working on this.

"I know of one such Server...."

--> It is good to be able to spot these people every once in a while. When we find them, we know instinctively they are Helpers.

By the way, I recently read in a Christian thread where one CR member cited a confusing Christian teaching: The Virign Mary gave birth to Jesus, yet is said to still be virgin, and the CR member just could not make heads or tails of the mystery. I thought it would be good to give the Theosophical explanation of the story.

The Virgin Mary is the anthropomorphized symbol of the waters of Genesis 1:2. Jesus is the anthropomorphized symbol of the Light of Genesis 1:3, which sprang from the Waters, and is composed of "millions of sparks of Light reflected in the Waters." Even though the Light sprang from the Waters, the Waters are themselves unaffected by the appearance of the Light. (The "Waters" remain unchanged from universe to universe, while the coming and going of the "Light" signals the beginning and ending of each universe.) Thus, the Waters (called by the name Mulaprakriti in Theosophy) are still there, unaffected — the Virgin Mary is still virgin.

[AndrewX]

Originally Posted by Nick the Pilot

By the way, I recently read in a Christian thread where one CR member cited a confusing Christian teaching: The Virign Mary gave birth to Jesus, yet is said to still be virgin, and the CR member just could not make heads or tails of the mystery. I thought it would be good to give the Theosophical explanation of the story.

Yes, I rather tend to like the esoteric explanations, as they dismiss with such absurdities as "virgin birth."

We know, for example, that the virgin birth is a feature of many world religions, and that Christianity borrowed this teaching from the more ancient traditions. Christianity borrowed damn near everything, and there's nothing wrong with that ... yet to then slice away the roots, deny them altogether, and claim some sort of "special divine status" apart from these ancient sources - is most SHAMEFUL.

How much more sense many of the Christian teachings would make, if we could but see how they can be traced to prior revelations, and existing traditions - even from time immemorial!

HPB did a marvelous job of showing the true roots of the Christian, Hebraic, and even the Eastern teachings, did she not?


Just last night I came across something else on virgins, which I think would be interesting to share, in light of the post you just made, Nick ...

"The mystic word Alm, which the prophet Mahomet prefixed to many chapters of the Koran, alludes to her as the Alm, the immaculate Virgin of the heavens. And -- the sublime ever falling into the ridiculous -- it is from this root Alm that we have to derive the word Almeh --the Egyptian dancing-girls. The latter are "Virgins" of the same type as the Nautchnis in India, and the (female) Kadeshim, the Holy Ones of the Jewish temples (those consecrated to Jehovah, who represented both sexes), whose holy functions in the Israelite fanes were identical with those of the Nautchnis. SD2 463

And here are a couple of relevant entries from de Purucker's online Glossary, but we still have to get past that `Christ' word ():

Virgin In ancient mystic philosophy the feminine potency of nature as well as cosmic space which is often referred to as the immaculate celestial virgin (cosmogonically undifferentiated cosmic matter, alaya, mahabuddhi, etc.), or the astral light which is sometimes called the celestial virgin. Again, it refers to the numerous Queens of Heaven, such as Isis, Moon, Ashtoreth, Nuah (the Chaldean feminine Noah considered as one with the cosmic arc), Belita, Diana, Artemis, Ark, etc. -- most of these names having reference to the moon. However, a sharp distinction should be made between the idea of the virgin connected with the lower planes of matter, including celestial bodies such as the moon, and the immaculate or undifferentiated cosmic virgin which is the immaculate spatial mother of the cosmic deep. On lower planes the Mother-Virgin is the various wombs of hierarchies, a feminine Manu or Prajapati, through whom pour the seeds of life from higher cosmic planes. The cosmic virgin is immaculate, and the zodiacal sign Virgo is her emblem; in human affairs she represents the nature of humanity before the division into sexes, in commemoration of which the sign Virgo became divided into Virgo and Scorpio. The name may also be used of a virgin male such as a kumara.

The ideas of the Virgin Mary in orthodox Christianity have been taken over from the pagans, as for example from the mother in the triad which heads all cosmogonies of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea (Isis, Juno, etc.). The word Mary from the Hebrew would seem etymologically cognate with the Latin mare (sea); the Hebrew word meaning bitter, and the sea likewise being bitter it is also cognate with other words meaning water, as in the Jewish expression, the waters of space, or the feminine productive principle. See also IMMACULATE CONCEPTION; VIRGIN BIRTH

Virgin Birth Often applied to any kind of reproduction which is not sexual, including that of human races before the separation of the sexes. In a mystical sense, it applies to some of the rites of initiation, where the candidate has to go through by an anticipatory process the experiences which mankind will live through in the course of the next two root-races. Among these was the experience of the mystical virgin birth. The corresponding fact concerning mankind of the future is, that there will be in due course of evolutionary time no more sexual birth, which will then have run its course and will have disappeared, but instead, reproduction will be by the power of kriyasakti: by thought and will.

The mystic Christ, by whatever name, is said to be virgin-born, as emanating from the higher nature of the individual, not engendered by the terrestrial nature. The symbol has often been materialized, so that the divine quickening or overshadowing of a human virgin, whether man or woman, is spoken of as being a virgin-born.

Anyway, all the poor suicide bombers in Muslim countries, dying as martyrs so they can have their allotment of "virgins" ... oh dear, I suspect they're every bit as disappointed as the Christian who keeps looking in vain for those pearly gates!

I insert the sarcastic face, and I can smile, but really we know that this is not a laughing matter. People such as this are prime candidates for the Invisible Helpers ... and I suspect sometimes they have quite a bad time of it - before they find the peace they are seeking.

Makes me think of the Beatles song, `Let It Be' ...

Namaskar,

~andrew

[Nick the Pilot]

Andrew,

The word "virgin" is appropriate, because it is referring to Mulaprakriti — the pre-cosmic pre-matter of the universe. It is important to note that Mulaprakriti is the most basic "substance" of the universe, and everything else is built from it — even the Son. There is a very virgin quality to it, and so to describe it as virgin is correct. (Although anthropomorphizing such a cosmic principle into the mother of Jesus is stretching it too far.)

~~~

Regarding the seven principles of man, and your contention that all seven of them are awakened in today's Adepts, I would like to share a passage I was just reading this morning.

"In future aeons (during the Sixth Round) there will be an analogous process taking place in regard to the Buddhi-Principle — that is, a process akin to the awakening of the Mind-Principle (which occured during the Third Race). Then in still more future cycles (during the Seventh Round) a similar process will happen for the Atman-principle. Then, instead of being partly unfolded, as at present, the Saptaparna (the 'seven-leaved man-plant') will be fully expanded" (The Divine Plan, p. 305)

According to Theosophy, one principle is awakened each Round, and all of our seven principles will be full awakened at the end of the Seventh and last Round — millions of years from now.

[AndrewX]

Originally Posted by Nick the Pilot

According to Theosophy, one principle is awakened each Round, and all of our seven principles will be full awakened at the end of the Seventh and last Round — millions of years from now.

What's interesting about this, as I understand it, is that we are both well ahead, as well as tremendously behind schedule, in terms of our spiritual evolution. I'd have to ponder on that, to try and remember how this relates to the various principles, and which unfolds during which phase - or round ...

... but the cause for the delay would appear to be the failure on the Moon Chain.

As for being ahead of schedule, this we owe utterly and completely to the Lords of the Flame, if I remember correctly. Because we are in the 4th round, I believe it should kama-manas, and not the Manas of the Spiritual Triad which is receiving the focus.

A much greater stimulation will occur in the 5th Round, that of Manas proper ... but in many ways we are racing ahead at this point, despite the majority of Humanity remaining in the `Atlantean,' or emotional state of consciousness. And really, it is because the consciousness is being stimulated in this way, our evolution artificially hastened, that we run into various sorts of dangers (such as planetary disaster, due to misuse of the energy of the atom).

Also, Initiation, though a truly Universal process, does not occur in other schemes of our Solar System in quite the way it is now occurring on planet Earth. A certain risk, in connection with an over-developed manas, and ahankara, defintely seems to come about. I'm pretty sure the best antidote is spontaneous spiritual Service, as the natural outflow of the creative intellect and a loving mind ...

- even if it is a bit challenging sometimes (for me, at least) to just put the silly book down, and get on with it!

So, here's to the 6th Principle - counting upward!

Namaskar,

~andrew

[Nick the Pilot]

Andrew,

You said,

"... we are both well ahead, as well as tremendously behind schedule, in terms of our spiritual evolution."

--> This begs the question — where should we be? We should be half-way developing the Kama Principle — half-way to developing our full emotional abilities. I think most people are about half-way there, so we seem to be right on schedule.

"... but the cause for the delay would appear to be the failure on the Moon Chain."

--> What failures on the Moon Chain?

"As for being ahead of schedule, this we owe utterly and completely to the Lords of the Flame, if I remember correctly. Because we are in the 4th round, I believe it should kama-manas, and not the Manas of the Spiritual Triad which is receiving the focus."

--> Some of us are ahead of shedule. Those of us who have developed a significant amount of intelligence are called Fifth-Rounders. There are a few such people around (though not a lot of such people, it seems unfortunate to say). Gautama, of course, was the best example of a Fifth-Rounder.

"... in many ways we are racing ahead at this point, despite the majority of Humanity remaining in the `Atlantean,' or emotional state of consciousness."

--> That seems to be where we should be, and most of us are.

"...it is because the consciousness is being stimulated in this way, our evolution artificially hastened..."

--> I am reminded of the Theosophical quote, which said such people are busy developing the intellect (scientists, doctors, etc.), while a few of us are developing the things of the next race — spirituality. It has been said to let the scientists keep doing what they are doing because it is important. But the small number of us who are doing spiritual development is even more important.

"A certain risk, in connection with an over-developed manas, and ahankara, defintely seems to come about."

--> All of us are amazed at the mental geniuses we see in the news, and perhaps saddened that they do not have the maturity or spirituality to go along with it.

"I'm pretty sure the best antidote is spontaneous spiritual Service, as the natural outflow of the creative intellect and a loving mind ..."

--> That, and developing spirituality, the Sixth Principle.