October 1949

We now come to another point in our study of this subject: This concerns one of the most difficult problems confronting the Masters at this time; it presents also an unique problem to the Christ. The daily physical life of the Masters, of the Christ, and of those Members of the Hierarchy (initiates and accepted disciples) Who function in physical bodies, has had its orientation upon the subjective levels of life; the majority of Them, and particularly the senior Members of the Hierarchy, do not as a rule intermingle largely with the public or walk the streets of our great cities. They work as I do from my retreat in the Himalayas, and from there I have influenced and helped far more people than I could possibly have reached had I walked daily in the midst of the noise and chaos of human affairs. I lead a normal and, I believe, useful life as the senior executive in a large lamasery, but my main work has lain elsewhere – widespread in the world of men; I reach this vast number of human beings through the medium of the books which I have written, through the groups which I have started and impulsed, such as Men of Goodwill and the Triangles, and through my disciples who talk and spread the truth as I have sought to present it.

So it has been with the work of all the Masters, except two or three Who have undergone special training in order to do some special preparatory work for the externalization of the Hierarchy. The English Master is one of these, and another Master also Who works, relatively unknown, in North America. I have referred to Him before as the Master P – though that is not, in reality, His initial.

This rule of solitariness or of withdrawing applies to all the Masters and to the Christ, for it is in the solitude of the mind, and as far as possible in the solitude of physical location, that the various branches of the great White Lodge have chosen to work ever since Atlantean days. It is not the solitude of a separative spirit, but the solitude that comes from the ability to be non-separative, and from the faculty of identification with the soul of all beings and of all forms. This can best be accomplished in the intense quiet of those “protected” areas where the Masters in the various branches of the Brotherhood have chosen to dwell. This solitude and physical isolation enables Them to work almost entirely from the level of the buddhic or intuitional plane, perfecting the Science of Impression, influencing and working through those minds which are susceptible to Their mental impression. This applies equally to Masters in physical vehicles and to Those Who have “no anchorage” in the three worlds; it applies also to disciples who are in or out of the body, according to their destiny, immediate karma or form of service. St. Paul, for instance, was in the initiate stage of learning rightly to withdraw and to work in what Patanjali calls “isolated unity” when he spoke of himself once as “being caught up into the third heaven” and there learning the untold beauties of the divine life.

The problem, therefore, before the Masters and Their disciples is to work (when the externalization takes place) in the midst of physical plane existence, no longer withdrawn, isolated and protected, but functioning openly in the middle of events and physical realities and all the diversity of contacts which the three worlds present. It is perhaps helpful to remember that when the Christ was in physical presence on earth two thousand years ago, the population of the world was relatively small compared to that today; contact between peoples was practically nil, and where it existed was usually of a strictly military or commercial nature, with a somewhat exclusive interchange of scholastic ideas and personnel between the rare centers of learning. It was easy in those days to withdraw into the desert and to disappear into the unfrequented place and to recharge and revitalize the spirit, to touch again closely the Sources of inspiration on the higher levels of consciousness, and thus reorient the working instrument in the three worlds to the higher field of contact and inspiration. Much of this can be noted in the Gospel story of the life of Christ and of the Master Jesus.

When the Christ reappears and the Hierarchy externalizes itself on earth, conditions will be totally different; there are today no empty spaces; the population of the world is enormously enlarged and is growing from year to year; no locality is isolated or unattainable; the jungles are open territory to the explorer and to the numerous commercial agents; vast cities cover the planet and oceans are traversed by multitudes of ships; the airways of the world are travelled by millions of passengers annually; the land is divided into minute sections by railroads, highways, speedways and myriads of lesser roads and streets. In fact, every living unit in the world is in touch with thousands of other units and can – through the many means of information – be in touch with millions; the news presses grind out the news from hour to hour and the eyes of millions are ceaselessly glued to the printed page at all hours of the day or night; the ears of other millions are daily and hourly attuned to the voice of the radio. Only the inner perceptive sense remains inactive, for only advanced humanity lives constantly in touch with the world of Spiritual perception and intention.

The conditions, therefore, confronting the Hierarchy constitute a serious and drastic problem. As far as we can, we will attempt to consider these conditions, for some understanding of the problem is necessary if right work is to be done.

Necessarily, the problem is one of a change in the orientation of perception but not necessarily in modes of living or in any definitely physical plane adjustments. Hierarchical orientation has for some centuries been one of a very strict internal consolidation, in order that the magnetic aura of the Hierarchy may unfailingly respond to impression from Shamballa, and also be of so potent a nature that it can form a protective screen around the human family. Forget not the nature of the protective service which the Masters have assumed on behalf of mankind, standing between humanity and the emanations and influences and the magnetic aura of the Black Lodge.

This internal consolidation has been greatly strengthened during the past one hundred years. Because of this, and because of the resultant clarity of impression and of the potent outgoing influence, the Plan for humanity – as a Whole – was imparted with emphasis to disciples in the Ashrams, and by them was formulated clearly and presented to humanity.

H.P.B. (one of the first working disciples to go forth on the externalization impulse and with first ray energy driving him) gave the background of the Plan, under impression from me; the more detailed structure and the sweep of the hierarchical intention have been given by me in the books which A.A.B. has introduced under her own name to the public (in so doing acting under my instructions). For the first time in human history, the purpose of past events – historical and psychological – can be clearly noted as the foundation for all present happenings, thus bringing the mysterious Law of Karma in an easy manner to public attention. The present can also be seen, indicating the way of the future and revealing clearly the Will-to-Good which is animating the entire evolutionary process – a process in which humanity (again for the first time) is intelligently participating and cooperating. It is this cooperative participation, even if unconsciously rendered, which has made it possible for the Hierarchy to grasp the opportunity to bring to an end the long silence which has persisted since Atlantean days; the Masters can now begin to undertake to renew an ancient “sharing of the secrets,” and to prepare humanity for a civilization which will be distinguished by a constant intellectual perception of truth, and which will cooperate with the externalized Ashrams in the various parts of the world.

The internal consolidation is now being somewhat loosened, if I may use such an inadequate expression, and a majority of the Members of the Hierarchy are withdrawing Their close attention from reception of impression from Shamballa and are now orienting Themselves – in an entirely new and directed manner – to the fourth kingdom in nature. At the same time, a very powerful minority of Masters are entering into a much closer association with the Council of Sanat Kumara.

In this way the potent and dynamic influence of Shamballa will be strengthened instead of lessened by the reorientation of the majority of the Masters and initiates. These statements have, of course, implications which will not be understood by you and which will necessarily pass unnoticed; you will respond, however, to the realization that the minority – in renewed and closer contact with Shamballa – have to master the technique of relationship; this will entail much use of the sacrificial will. The reason is that They are (on a higher turn of the spiral) submitting to a forcing process which will make great demands upon Them, but which will serve to release the majority to a new and more potent form of immediate Earth service. In other words: a few of the Masters and higher initiates are undergoing a special and applied stimulation and are undertaking work for which the united Ashrams, in their higher brackets, have hitherto been responsible. This subjects Them to a great strain and forces Them to use the will aspect of Their divine natures in entirely new and unknown ways. They relinquish much, in order to enable the entire Hierarchy to give far more in radiance, guidance, and magnetic invocative strength than has even before been the case.

The majority of the Masters and initiates, in Their turn, also relinquish much in order to work exoterically among men. They subject Themselves voluntarily to an active stimulation from the senior “contacting minority” but relinquish the “joy of Shamballic contact”. Temporarily, the training which the majority have been receiving in “cosmic orientation,” in the use of the will-to-be (a meaningless phrase to you), and in the “bliss of receptivity to the will-to-good of Sanat Kumara” is given up. The entire attitude of the group of Masters, initiates and disciples who are to be responsible for the externalization of the Hierarchy and for the preparation for the reappearance of the Christ is focused upon the expert use of the Science of Contact. This time, the science is used upon a wide and telepathic scale, with the souls of men, and upon the technique of expressing spiritually the nature of “isolated unity” in the cities, jungles and the massed inhabited areas of the earth. This involves, as you can well imagine, the use of an expert ability to remain untouched by the evil rampant upon the physical plane, and yet to remain in complete sympathetic and understanding contact with all humanity and with all events that affect humanity. It was prophecy which impelled the Christ to say, when last in public appearance among men, that His disciples were “in the world and yet not of the world”; Christ depicted in simple yet profoundly revealing terms the life of the Members of His Ashrams (the entire Hierarchy) when again He would walk with Them in the plain sight of humanity. He pictured Them as one with the Father (the Council of Life in Shamballa), and yet as one with Him (as the hierarchical Head), and as one also with all that breathes and that inhabits form. I advise all disciples who seek to cooperate with the impending activity of the Hierarchy to study with care the seventeenth chapter of the Gospel of St. John; this was written by that disciple of love, under the influence of the energy emanating from the buddhic vehicle of the Christ, which is also – as you have been told – identical with the buddhic vehicle of the Buddha. The identity of the two vehicles is symbolic of the entire teaching anent “isolated unity” and divine participation, which the Masters in Their Ashrams are teaching Their disciples of all grades, these days, as the first step toward the externalization of Their activities.

An intensive training process, therefore, is being carried out in every ashram and along identical lines, resulting in the “isolation,” occultly understood, of certain Masters and initiates. They have been thus isolated in order that They may work more readily and easily with Shamballa; They can thus form a dynamic and galvanic storehouse of energy (the energy of the divine Will) and thus make it available for the use of the other Members of the Hierarchy, as They stand in “isolated unity” upon the highways of Earth, and thus are “in the world and yet not of the world”. The learning of this lesson calls into activity the sacrificial will of both the hierarchical groups; this remains the binding cord between Them and that aspect of the antahkarana along which energy can flow in a new and electric fashion from Shamballa, via the hierarchical minority referred to above, and into the large group of Masters and initiates and disciples to whom is committed the task of consolidation. All this constitutes – for the Members of the Hierarchy – a definite process of testing out and of trial, prior to and preparatory to some of the higher initiations.

Again, the Members of the Hierarchy are not only sensitive to impression from the two other planetary centers (Shamballa and Humanity), but They are acutely aware of the Forces of Evil which are fighting furiously against the externalization of the spiritual work. The energy which cosmic evil generates is active along three main channels:

1. From the center of cosmic evil upon the cosmic astral plane. Of this center you can know nothing, and its emanations and its magnetic aura can only be understood and recognized or interpreted by the senior Masters and by initiates of still higher rank. As the potency of the astral plane (which is so familiar to us all) weakens, and glamor and illusion are negated by a rapid spiritualizing of humanity, the power of cosmic evil will correspondingly weaken and the Forces of Evil will be unable to reach the planet with their present easy effort. It is against the impact of this emanating evil that the Hierarchy stands in protection of humanity. Hitherto it has been the task of Shamballa, working through the Hierarchy, to protect humanity from the “intention to destroy” of the cosmic Forces of Evil, but – in the coming cycle and as a result of the triumph of the Forces of Light in the world war – the potency of Shamballa can be combined with that of the “protecting Agents of Light.”
2. From the Black Lodge which is the externalization of the center of cosmic evil on Earth. Just as the White Lodge is the representative or correspondence of the cosmic center of light upon Sirius (the true Great White Lodge), so the Black Lodge is also representative of ancient and cosmic evil. The Black Lodge is also far more advanced in externalization than is the White Lodge, because materialism and matter are, for it, the line of least resistance. The Black Lodge is therefore far more firmly anchored upon the physical plane than is the Hierarchy. It requires a much greater effort for the White Lodge to “clothe itself in matter and work and walk on material levels” than for the Black Lodge. Owing, however, to the spiritual growth of mankind and to the steady, even if slow, orientation of mankind to the spiritual Hierarchy, the time has come when the Hierarchy can materialize and meet the enemy of good upon an even footing; the Hierarchy need not be further handicapped by working in substance whilst the Forces of Evil work both in substance and in matter. Once the reappearance of the Christ and of the Hierarchy is an accomplished fact, these Forces of Evil face sure defeat. The reason for this is that the trend of human living and thought is turning steadily towards the subjective spiritual values, even if these values are interpreted in terms of material well-being at present and of better living conditions for all – with peace and security also for all. The Black Lodge or the planetary center of evil works almost entirely upon the astral plane, and is impressed directly and guided in detail from the cosmic astral plane.
3. From the negative or purely material forces of the planet, which are not necessarily either good or bad but which have been used instinctually and oft unconsciously by humanity for purely material ends, and are therefore basically anti-spiritual and subject to the influence of human desire – a desire oriented towards selfishness, and therefore towards separateness. This form of evil is being combated today by the New Group of World Servers. Of this battle you know something because every thinking man and woman is immediately implicated.

I have spoken of the evil present in the planet in very simple terms, and there are phases of it to which I have not referred; the interlocking and interpenetrating of the grades of evil are far more numerous and intricate than you surmise.

In summing up, I would say that the present reorientation of the Hierarchy, in relation both to Shamballa and to Humanity, ushers in the cycle of complete defeat of cosmic evil upon our planet, leaving only an isolated and weakened Black Lodge to die a slow death; this permits the purification of human desire to such an extent that “matter will be redeemed by the sacrificial will of Those Who know, by the will-to-good of Those Who are, and by the goodwill of those sons of men who have turned their faces to the light and who in turn reflect that light.”

As all disciples know, one of the problems with which they are constantly confronted is an extreme sensitivity to the thought currents of those with whom they are immediately in contact. The more advanced the disciple, the greater is his problem. The theory that if one lives and works on a high level of consciousness one is immune to that which emanates from the lower level does not in practice hold good. The occult law proclaims that the greater can always include the lesser, and just as that is true of the planetary Logos (Who is the sumtotal of all lesser forms within His manifested universe), so the same law applies also to all human beings. The disciple, therefore, can always include that which emanates from those who are below him on the ladder of evolution. The more a disciple is under the influence of the Law of Love, the more easily does he tune in and absorb the thoughts and register the desires of those around him, and particularly of those who are tied to him in the bonds of affection and of karmic relation. As disciples proceed from initiation to initiation, the will aspect fortifies the intellect and directs the expression of the energy of love, and thus the problem lessens, for the initiate learns certain protective rules which are not available to the neophyte. The latter must learn, first of all, how to identify himself with others, as the basis of a higher identification which conditions the senior initiates in the scale of being.

The preparation of the Members of the Ashrams found within the Hierarchy, Who must emerge from Their retreats and live among men in the ordinary intercourse of daily life, has necessitated much discussion and instituted a drastic training system within the Ashrams. Into the nature of this training  I cannot enter, for it differs for disciples upon the various rays and the theme is too large at this point for our purpose. The problem has been how to preserve the sympathetic, sensitive rapport and to lay the basis for the higher, inclusive identification, and yet at the same time preserve a spiritual detachment which will enable the disciple to do his needed work, unhampered and unimpeded by the distress, the anxiety or the thought activity evoked by the minds and the desires of those with whom he is working.

The necessary detachment cannot be based upon the innate instinct of self-preservation, even when that is carried into the realm of the soul; it must be motivated by an occult absorption in the task, and implemented by the will which keeps the channel of contact open between the disciple and the ashram and between the disciple and his sphere of activity; this channel must be kept entirely clear of all lower identifications. This might be termed a method of eliminating all tendencies to register anything save a wise apprehension of the point in evolution of those contacted; a sound appreciation of the problem to be faced on their behalf, and a process of directing the needed energy of love in such a manner that the stream of projected love not only aids the recipient, but protects the disciple from undue contact; it will then evoke in the person to be helped, or the group to be aided, no reciprocal personality expression; instead, it lifts the entire quality of the personality life or the group life on the purificatory way on to higher levels of awareness.

A great part of the work to be done by the disciples who are emerging from the ashrams, and will continue thus to emerge, is of a purificatory nature at this time, and increasingly so for the rest of this century. On the Path of Probation, the aspirant is taught to purify himself and his three vehicles of contact; upon acceptance into an ashram, a large measure of the needed purification has been achieved. From then on, no emphasis should be laid by the disciple on the purification of his own nature, for this would produce too close and intimate a self-focus and tend to an over-stimulation of the personality vehicles. But the lessons learnt upon the Probationary Path will be found by him to be simply the foundation for the Science of Purification or – if I may use a word made familiar to you through the war experience – of Decontamination. This will be brought into full expression by the working disciples who will be responsible for the preparation of the world for the reappearance. This purificatory process falls into the following stages:

1. The stage wherein the tainted area, the hidden evil, or the diseased factors are recognized and duly contacted in order to ascertain the extent of the purificatory measures required. This is a point of danger for the disciple.
2. The process of discovering the magnetic areas, magnetized in past centuries, and even aeons, by Members of the Hierarchy. This is done so as to make available the transmission of energies there stored. In the cycle which is now close at hand, these magnetic centers will be largely tapped or utilized by the world disciples responsible for the purificatory work.
3. The stage wherein the disciple withdraws his attention from the source of difficulty and concentrates upon certain mantric usages and certain hierarchical formulas, thus setting loose the energies needed to destroy the germs of evil, latent or active, thus eliminating certain materialistic tendencies, and strengthening the soul of all that is to be purified and the life to be found within every form. It is wise to remember that, for instance, as the Master works with His disciples and strengthens the life within them and evokes their soul into potency from latency, every form and every atom within their various bodies is equally energized and aided. It is this fundamental process which will guide the disciples and the initiates in the coming work of world purification.
4. The stage of withdrawing of the purifying energies; this is to be followed by a period of stabilizing the purified form and starting the life and soul within it on a new cycle of spiritual growth.

I have worded all this in such a manner that it will be evident that the work to be done is not confined only to humanity, but also to the forms of life in the other kingdoms in nature.

The study of this Science of Applied Purification isone which is engrossing the attention of all the ashrams at this time; disciples in the first ray ashram, in the second ray ashram and in the seventh ray ashram, are peculiarly active along these lines, for the destruction of evil is the work of the first ray, and in so destroying its effects purity is achieved; the fostering of good then becomes possible and is the work of the second ray, of the Builders; and the bringing of spiritual energy into contact with substance, and consequently with matter, is the unique work of the seventh ray because it is now in manifestation. The rays which are active and in manifestation at this time and in this cycle are there in conformity to the Plan and in preparation for the externalization of the Hierarchy and the reappearance of the Christ. These rays are particularly involved, and therefore the initiates and the disciples in the ashrams of the Masters are also particularly implicated.

The Science of Applied Purification is also the Science of Applied Energy, with the specific objective in view of “eliminating the undesirable and that which hinders the entrance of the light, and thus providing space and entry for the desired, for the good, the beautiful and the true”. In the application of this science there is of course no infringement of the human prerogative of free will. This ancient science is concerned primarily with the purification and with the redemption of matter, and it is entirely in the hands of human beings, under the direction of the Hierarchy. This direction may be consciously or unconsciously registered. The Science of Redemption (to which I have several times earlier referred) is in reality the applied art of esotericism and of spiritual living which is already being taught to mankind; they are steadily learning to redeem the bodies through which they function. It is in reality the art or science of relationship between the Life and the lives, as H.P.B. expresses it.

As far as the other kingdoms in nature are concerned, the purification is applied by the Hierarchy, through the medium of human beings, and this can be seen in process at this time. This present activity, carried on now largely unconsciously, will be redoubled and carried forward consciously by trained initiates and disciples, working through and with aspirants. It is this that is now being studied in the various hierarchical ashrams, and when applied – after 1975 – will bring about great and important changes in world living.

Another matter to which the Hierarchy is at this time attending, in view of the coming adjustments required, is the discovery of aspirants and those who are close to accepted discipleship in all lands, in order that the language problem will present little difficulty. Having discovered such people, Their next step is to subject them to a process of training in telepathic susceptibility, so that they will be sensitive to hierarchical impression. At the same time, their intuition will require stimulation but – as the intuition is useless and inaccessible without a high grade intelligence – all these people must be sought for upon mental levels. The possession of the abstract mind is not sufficient. It is useful, in that it guarantees the ability of the aspirant to construct the antahkarana; it is nevertheless quite possible to possess a well developed abstract consciousness and yet to be quite devoid of all intuitive perception.

For example, this is the major limitation of Z…He is a sound abstract thinker and they are somewhat rare, being, usually impractical idealists. He is not, however, the least intuitive as yet. He could easily be – given certain needed surrenders.

Basically speaking, the intuition is not the revealer of esoteric truths. They come along another line of spiritual perception. The intuition is essentially the organ of group perception and that which eventually elevates the personality to its rightful position as the agent of the Soul in the group.  Z…has a sound theory as to group attitudes and group work, and he will be exceedingly surprised at these comments of mine. But – as long as he insulates himself from warm group contacts and fails to seek (in the name of service) the love of the group, and as long as he fails to recognize error and his own part in any current mistakes whenever they occur, and as long as he transfers responsibility to others when he is himself to blame, he will fail to register intuitive information, because his personality reactions will intervene. He must not be deceived by the fact that people like him on the platform; that is group work, but not essentially working with the group. He must learn that at present he is the onlooker at the group and as yet not a part of it, and that he is primarily focused on “delivering the goods” (if I may use your American phrase) to his personality and its acclaim, and not to the group. This will be hard for him to realize and he must be given time. He wants to make good, spiritually and esoterically, but needs to grasp the fact that this is done through love and understanding and not through the intellect. He is insulated by his own strong desire to make good, according to his own theories and to his personality, thus proving to himself the grasp his soul may have over that personality. This creates barriers, but the insulating and separating wall between him and his co-workers is very thin and could easily be “rent in twain,” if his pride would permit and if he would descend to a recognition of equality with all the group with whom he is associated, and with the most unimportant members of that group; this he does not yet do – in spite of what he believes about himself.

The searchlight of the Hierarchy is sweeping the planet at this time singling out men and women, here and there, from the mass of men. They indicate esoteric possibility, and in their lives love of humanity and love of the Christ is a basic and fundamental factor.

The ordinary devoted person, who constantly pledges and dedicates himself to the Christ or to the Masters in a spirit of adoration, will not be chosen for this specific training. Their own attitudes and development come violently between them and their objective. The man who forgets about himself, and who is more interested in helping unhappy human beings, but who is nevertheless staunchly convinced of the factor of the unseen worlds, is the man for whom search is at this time being made.

When these men and women are found, the work of the discovering initiate is to see to it that information comes to the aspirant in some form or another anent the hierarchical Plan, concerning the reappearance of the Christ (under some name familiar to the aspirant’s religious background), and about the fundamental and needed occult truths – with particular emphasis upon the Law of Cause and Effect, and secondarily upon the Law of Rebirth. The Law of Cause and Effect is of far greater importance than the Law of Rebirth, because it necessitates action upon the part of the aspirant, and that action inevitably conditions the future. There is nothing he can do about the Law of Rebirth but submit to it and be grateful that opportunity continues to present itself.

As regards the many other adjustments which Members of the Hierarchy in all Their many differing grades will have to make in what might be called Their personality lives and habits, I have naught to say. I know well the questions which will arise in your minds, and I would like to touch upon one or two of them. For instance, some of you are asking:

1. How will these Members of the Hierarchy in Their various grades appear on earth? Will They come through the methods of ordinary birth, of childhood and maturity? Some initiates may follow this ordinary pattern, some are already passing through it today and are in the stages of infancy and adolescence; to them will be given a large share of the preparatory work. Some will not pass through these relatively limiting phases, but will pass back and forth between the outer world and the world of hierarchical endeavor; they will be sometimes present in physical bodies and sometimes not. This method of activity will not be possible as long as the present rules of national and civilian identification, of passports and of drastic airport and seaport inspection are required by the authorities; such people as these “transmitting initiates” would not be able to identify themselves. This form of appearance is therefore postponed for some time. Some of the Masters will create what is called in the language of the East the “mayavirupa” – a vehicle of expression which is built of atomic physical and astral substance and of concrete mental substance. This They can create at will, use at will and cause to vanish at will; Their problem is not, therefore, so acute in the matter of appearing and of reappearing as is that of the initiate who cannot thus create to suit his purpose and his service.
2. Will all the Members of the Hierarchy make Their appearance at the same time? Certainly not. The appearing of these initiates and Masters will begin with isolated members appearing and living among men, coming forth one by one, doing the required work, returning through the portals of apparent death to the inner subjective Ashram, and then again appearing by one or other of the methods mentioned above. This process has been going on for some time and began around the year 1860. The work of these disciples in the human consciousness is already being recognized, and already they have succeeded in changing the consciousness and the thinking of many millions. Their ideas are already permeating world thinking. I would remind you also (for your encouragement that I myself am among this number of working initiates (for, in the last analysis, that is all that any Master is), and that I, from my physical anchorage, i.e., my physical body and my location in northern India, and in collaborating with a disciple, A.A.B., and also with F.B., have done much to bring certain concepts (old and yet new in their presentation) to the consciousness of humanity. I have also done much to stimulate from latency to potency the instinctual goodwill of men. I mention this for this is not a unique achievement; there are many other Masters Who – with Their disciples – are to be found today actively functioning in human affairs and struggling, under adverse conditions, to change the trend of human thinking from a frank materialism to a genuine spiritual aspiration.

There are many other questions arising in the minds of my readers, and the less advanced they are the greater the questioning and the greater the emphasis upon the materialistic, and therefore non-important, aspects of this entire subject. With them I have no intention of dealing, though I know well what they are, and so does A.A.B. They are of no vitality, and will answer themselves in due time.

When the task of the preparation of men’s minds is further advanced, when the knowledge of the existence of the Masters and Their hierarchical endeavor and of the united Hierarchy of our planet are a commonly recognized truth, and when active goodwill is recognized as a real national asset in all lands, then the speed of the externalization of the Hierarchy will be greatly increased; then the five spiritual centers will begin to take definite form, and will call also for recognition; the groups there working will be known, and they will also be in close touch with each other. From that time on, the network of initiates and disciples under the direction of the Masters will be worldwide, and in every field of human expression the opinion of these men and women, and of the Masters presiding at the five centers and in Their affiliated groups, will be regarded as of immense value by all governmental, economic and social organizations.

Then – under a great wave of spiritual inspiration – the divine spirit of expectancy for the reappearance of the Christ will sweep through the world; it will then be regarded as credible and creditable, and His coming will provide the germ for all world hope; the reason for this will be that the most respected, enlightened and cultured people on the planet will be looking for Him. And then, my brothers, He will come, bringing new energies of love and compassion and implementing the spirit of fresh enlightenment; to these important events must also be added the new revelation for which all men wait and to which they will be able to respond, owing to the needed and new stimulation.

Many who are reading this section of my instructions will be disappointed (so futile and silly is the human mind in so many cases) because I do not choose to consider now the means whereby the Members of the Hierarchy will adjust Themselves to modern living conditions, as to what food They will eat and whether They will marry or not marry. One thing only will I say: They will take modern life and what it means and will proceed to demonstrate how that life (the normal product of the evolutionary process) can be lived divinely; They will express the highest ideal of marriage (I would here remind you that many of the Masters are married and have raised families) and demonstrate the principle which underlies the perpetuation of the race of men; They will also show how all life is one life, that the form nature is ever a sacrificial unity in the vast scheme of divine manifestation; They will show us also that whatever we do, whether we eat or drink, all must be done under correct, temperate and natural law and in a spirit of loving understanding, and ever to the glory of God. They will express ordered, temperate living in all things, and will demonstrate also the possibility of the existence of people on earth who have no wrong inclinations and no bad qualities in their natures. They will stand forth as living examples of goodwill, of true love, of intelligent applied wisdom, of high good nature and humor, and of normalcy. They may indeed be so normal that recognition of what They are may escape notice.

They will, finally, demonstrate to all around Them the significance of right motive, the beauty of selfless service and a vivid intellectual perception. This, my brothers, is such a platitudinous statement, from the point of view of the nice well-meaning person, that its value may escape your attention. Yet it is a statement that, any initiate will tell you, warrants your closest attention and consideration – a consideration which must be followed by an effort to express these same qualities upon your way towards the Door of Initiation.

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Excerpted from “The Externalization of the Hierarchy – Section IV – Stages in the Externalization”

By Alice Bailey & Djwhal Khul