The Northern Path of Vidar: A False Method of Initiation

(“Vídar stabbing Fenrir” by W. G. Collingwood; 1908 (elongated)

From time to time, after the death of Rudolf Steiner in 1925, certain charismatic individuals have arisen within the anthroposophical movement offering novel and captivating interpretations and perspectives concerning spiritual science. Even though these individuals invariably attracted a number of dedicated and loyal followers within anthroposophy, unfortunately their ideas are actually antithetical and contrary to the anthroposophical knowledge as conveyed by Rudolf Steiner. As such, they have led many sincere anthroposophists astray.

Some examples of popular but misguided anthroposophists are Valentin Tomberg (1900-1973), Sergei O. Prokofieff (1954-2014) and Judith von Halle (b.1972). In Tomberg’s case, he distortedly viewed anthroposophy as just an “elevated theory” that leads to the “mysticism and magic of thinking.” This completely misrepresents anthroposophy as a “spiritual science.”

In Prokofieff’s case, he erroneously maintained that Rudolf Steiner’s mission was to establish the “New Mysteries” of Michael; when in fact Steiner’s mission was to establish “spiritual science.” As a spiritual science, anthroposophy was intended to study and better understand the new “Christ-Mysteries” (or “Mysteries of the Son”) established by Christ-Jesus himself.

In Von Halle’s case, her unauthenticated claims of experiencing stigmata, inedia and mystical visions indicate that she is pursuing more of a Mystic-Christian path of development, rather than a Rosicrucian-Christian path of initiation. Since anthroposophy, as a spiritual science, naturally promotes the intellectual initiatory path of Rosicrucian-Christianity, rather than the emotional initiatory path of Mystic-Christianity, von Halle’s personal path is an anomalous and intrusive deviation within anthroposophy.

The latest, controversial “anthro-celebrity” to arise is a Norwegian veterinarian and writer named Are Thoresen (b.1952). Thoresen’s ubiquity is a product of Zoom technology, which became popular during the police-state pandemic lockdowns. During that time, since anthroposophists around the world had great difficulty meeting in person, some lecturers such as Thoresen embraced Zoom technology to promulgate their ideas. Unfortunately, Thoresen’s novel and sensational “Northern Path of Vidar” is entirely antithetical to Rudolf Steiner and to anthroposophical spiritual science.

Although Thoresen has written several books and recorded some YouTube lectures, this critique of his radical ideas will focus entirely on a two-and-a-half page writing of his simply entitled “Article Number 1.” Though brief, the Article has sufficient detail to convincingly show the extent of Thoresen’s heterodox view of Steiner and anthroposophy.

Thoresen has subtitled “Article Number 1”: An investigation of the difference between “Knowledge” and “Path,” relating to the “Michael-School,” as described in “the 19 Class lessons of Rudolf Steiner,” and the “Vidar-School,” as described in my book “Travels on the Northern Path of Initiation.” Key to critiquing this Article is understanding what Thoresen means by “path” and by “knowledge.”

“Path” to Thoresen means “path of initiation.” “Knowledge” to him is any collection of esoteric information that is not a system of initiation. These definitions are rather idiosyncratic, since there can be a “path of knowledge,” as well as a “path of initiation.” Nevertheless, using Thoresen’s definitions we are in a better position to understand what he is saying.

In the very first sentence of the Article, Thoresen states: “the path into the spiritual world that he [Rudolf Steiner] had offered, and perhaps himself opened …” Using one of Thoresen’s definitions, he is saying “the path of initiation that Steiner offered/opened.” This is a clear indication that Thoresen is making the same mistake that Prokofieff made; which is that Rudolf Steiner’s mission was to establish a new Mystery path of initiation.

This of course is entirely erroneous; Steiner consistently declared and demonstrated that he established the first authentic “spiritual science” in human history. Anthroposophy as a spiritual science (just like the physical sciences) is a “path of knowledge” and not a “new path of initiation.” In fact, Steiner was clear that there already existed only two effective paths of Christian initiation: (1) the path of Mystic-Christianity, and (2) the path of Rosicrucian-Christianity. Moreover, the initiatory path of Rosicrucian-Christianity had been specifically formulated to satisfy the requirements of modern esoteric development in Western society (the ancient Yoga path of initiation, though effective, was historically designed for an Eastern physiology). In the words of Rudolf Steiner:

It will suffice, if we consider especially the three main types of initiation; the ancient Yoga, the really specific [Mystic] Christian initiation, and that initiation which is entirely appropriate for men of the present day, the Christian-Rosicrucian initiation.
(From a lecture given on 30 May 1908 entitled: “Christian Initiation” and published in The Gospel of St. John)

Even though the Rosicrucian-Christian initiation was first established around the thirteenth century, Steiner is clear that it is still the best and only one for modern Western initiation. That being the case, there would be no need for Steiner to introduce another path of initiation to replace the Rosicrucian-Christian path. Likewise, there is no need for Thoresen to introduce a “new path of initiation” at this particular time either.

It also didn’t take long for Thoresen to denigrate Rudolf Steiner in his Article. In the very first sentence he states that Steiner’s “path into the spiritual world … was subsequently shut …” This clearly suggests that Steiner’s anthroposophical work was a failure. However, since Steiner did not establish a “new path of initiation”; but rather endorsed Rosicrucian initiation?he had no “path” to shut.

Nevertheless, as a spiritual scientist, Rudolf Steiner researched and described (as much as publicly possible) details of Rosicrucian initiation in such books as How to Know Higher Worlds and An Outline of Esoteric Science. This information was not establishing a new path of initiation; but was simply revealing previous secrets of the Rosicrucian path in a spiritual scientific way. Since the initiatory path established by the high initiate Christian Rosenkreutz and endorsed by Rudolf Steiner continues to be the exclusive path for today’s humanity, it was hardly “shut due to his [Steiner’s] follower’s lack of commitment.

Thoresen in the second paragraph of his Article continues to maintain that Steiner’s “path of initiation” not only failed, but caused damage to Steiner’s health as well. As stated by Thoresen: “This inability of his friends and students to really walk the path that he had opened and/or described also caused a “back-firing,” hurting Rudolf Steiner himself.” While Rudolf Steiner, at a certain point, was certainly upset and frustrated by the internal wrangling, lack of cooperation and slow progress of many anthroposophists, that’s why he proactively arranged the Christmas Conference of 1923/24 to positively rectify the situation.

With the formation of the General Anthroposophical Society and the School of Spiritual Science, the spiritual sponsors of anthroposophy not only endorsed Steiner’s efforts, but increased their spiritual outpouring. As described by Rudolf Steiner:

It may now be said that ever since the founding of the [General] Anthroposophical Society at the Goetheanum those spiritual powers from whom our revelations are received look down upon us with even greater benevolence than before. Therefore in this respect a heavy care has been removed from the Anthroposophical Society.
(From a lecture given on 12 August 1924 as an “Address on the Christmas Foundation Meeting” and published in Cosmic Christianity and the Impulse of Michael)

According to Thoresen, however, he erroneously states: “The expected answer from the spiritual world concerning the progress of the Anthroposophic Society did not come. Rudolf Steiner said that his construction of a spiritual school for esoteric science had failed.” Thoresen also quotes Ita Wegman as saying that Steiner’s esoteric work had been stopped by “old forces”; and this resulted in his death. With these statements, Thoresen continues to denigrate and disparage Rudolf Steiner and anthroposophy.

Besides, esoterically understood, “old forces” or “spiritual forces from the past” are luciferic forces. Anthroposophy is a spiritual endeavour of St. Michael that was sanctioned and sponsored by the bodhisattvas of the West: Christian Rosenkreutz and Master Zarathas. These powerful spiritual sources of anthroposophy are more than capable of resisting any luciferic attack on the essential work of Rudolf Steiner now and in the future.

As for Steiner’s unexpected death, rather than any conjectured anthroposophical “work-stoppage,” it was more likely the physical result of being previously poisoned, and being physically drained during his illness by a constant flow of advice-seekers.

In paragraph three, Thoresen refers to some “supposed” communications from Steiner after death where he apparently conveys that “he could work no further, and had to die, because there were no ears or eyes to hear or see what he wanted to bring. He also added that the mysteries now were hidden and would remain so until he came back.” It’s sheer nonsense to think that Steiner would have said such things since there has always been a multitude of dedicated anthroposophists now and in the past studiously devoted to the teachings of spiritual science. Moreover, for any anthroposophist with eyes to see and ears to hear, the soul and spirit of Rudolf Steiner continues his essential anthroposophical work “from the other side.”

As for any “mysteries” being hidden today, it is true that the ancient pagan Mysteries have receded from human history; but they’ve been replaced by the new Christ-Mysteries of the Son. As succinctly stated by Rudolf Steiner in a lecture given on 27 November 1906 entitled “Esoteric Christianity”:

At the time of Christ Jesus, to the Mysteries of the Spirit were added the Mysteries of the Son, and these have been ever since the time of Christ … The Mysteries of the Son are cultivated in the Rosicrucian Mystery which is also Christian … Today we will concern ourselves with the Mysteries of the Son, and see how they differ from the ancient heathen Mysteries.

The truth is, the Christian esotericism is the most profound which has ever been brought to mankind … by that very Being Himself with whom one must be united.

The Christ-Mysteries of the Son are certainly not hidden today. In fact, spiritual science was established to help understand these Mysteries; one prime example being the “Mystery of Golgotha.”

In paragraph five, Thoresen posits a number of questions, specifically insinuating that the School of Spiritual Science established in 1923-24 is no longer functional or relevant. He states the following:

Is therefore this path that Rudolf Steiner gave in 1923-24 still closed? Or partly closed? Can it be re-opened if the 19 lessons are repeated and read by anthroposophists all over the world? Is the path somewhat reduced or made difficult? Are any of the anthroposophists able to travel this path? What is the foundation of the closing?

To find an answer to these questions, Thoresen states that he ventured “into the spiritual world through another path, the Nordic path.” Since there are only two safe and effective Christian paths of initiation recognized by spiritual science, Mystic-Christian and Rosicrucian-Christian, Thoresen’s “another path” is cause for concern, hesitation and suspicion. Furthermore, he states that after entering the spiritual world he contacts a spiritual entity, who he calls “Vidar.” Thoresen further states: “The answer from Vidar concerning the spiritual school, referred to as the Michael school today, was that it was both too old, too lofty, too difficult and not allowed today.”

Once again, Thoresen openly disparages and denigrates the anthroposophical work of Rudolf Steiner; in this case he specifically discredits and dismisses the School of Spiritual Science (also referred to as the “Michael School”). In paragraph one, Thoresen acknowledges that establishing the School of Spiritual Science (the “esoteric school”) was a “huge task” for Rudolf Steiner; and that it was “founded by the archangel Michael himself.” It’s entirely beyond reason to think that the mighty Archangel Michael would labour in the spiritual world from the thirteenth to the nineteenth century to establish an esoteric Christian school on earth that would be “too old” (after only 100 years); and would be “too lofty, too difficult and not allowed today”; and which “is and was locked with both key and lock by the spiritual world for at least some hundreds of years.”

On the second page of his Article, while continuing to criticize the Michael-School (the School of Spiritual Science), Thoresen actually correctly characterizes the School, and demonstrates his own misunderstanding. For example, Thoresen states: “The Michael-school contains a lot of lofty knowledge given by an Arkai, Michael himself, and also of material for discussion or for meditating, but it is no longer a path, it is today only knowledge.” The truth of the matter is that spiritual science in general, and the School of Spiritual Science in particular, were never established as a “path of initiation” by Rudolf Steiner. They were always established as a “path of knowledge” (just like any other science).

Thoresen then goes on to say: “Even the Mantras are, according to the conversations Steiner had with friends, not working as a path, more like developing one’s own soul or spirit.” Once again this is entirely correct in that the Mantras of the Nineteen Lessons of the School of Spiritual Science were never intended as a “path of initiation”; but as a “path of knowledge” to “develop one’s own soul or spirit.” Thoresen further misunderstands the transformative effects of the Michael path of knowledge in spiritual science and in the School when he declares: “if we only work with the Michael-School Knowledge, this work will not give us the living experience that walking a path will give …” Rudolf Steiner makes it clear that:

What we learn through spiritual science makes our soul different from what it was before … Spiritual science does not merely signify the acquisition of knowledge; it signifies most pre- eminently an education, a self-education of our souls. We make ourselves different … One ought not simply to say that only a person who has gone through esoteric development can attain to a connection with the spiritual world; esotericism does not begin with occult development. The moment we make any link with spiritual science with our whole heart, esotericism has already begun; our souls begin at once to be transformed.
(From a lecture given 03 April 1912 and published in Spiritual Beings in the Heavenly Bodies
and in the Kingdoms of Nature)

As to a spiritual being known as Vidar, we know from the clairvoyant research of Rudolf Steiner that Vidar was once the guardian angel of Gautama Buddha, who has since advanced to the rank of archangel. Knowing this, it is inconceivable that a junior archangel such as Vidar would deprecate and replace an indispensable esoteric school established by St. Michael (himself advanced to the rank of archai) with his own Vidar School.

Since the entity referred to as “Vidar” by Thoresen is obviously an imposter, this logically calls into question the veracity of Thoresen’s entire range of supersensible perceptions. Other statements made by him in this Article help us to gain a clearer understanding of Thoresen’s false Vidar. For instance, near the bottom of the second page Thoresen writes: “After venturing through the three realms of the elemental world, we reach the guardian on the threshold of the spiritual world, and this guardian today presents himself as Vidar.” This is entirely at odds with the Rosicrucian path of initiation as described in the writings and lectures of Rudolf Steiner. In this case, at the threshold of the spiritual world stands the “lesser guardian of the threshold,” a fearful astral apparition of one’s unredeemed negative karma, not an actual spiritual being such as Vidar.

We also know from spiritual science about a second spiritual guardian, “the greater guardian of the threshold” not specifically mentioned by Thoresen in his Article. This guardian is not a karmic apparition; but rather an actual spiritual being who guards the entrance to the higher levels of the heavenly worlds until we are sufficiently prepared. This guardian is also not Vidar or St. Michael (as conjectured by Thoresen) but Christ-Jesus. As explained by Rudolf Steiner:

“This “Greater Guardian of the Threshold” now becomes for him the Ideal, the Example that he will do his utmost to follow … For now this Greater Guardian changes for the eyes of the pupil into the figure of Christ …”
(From Chapter V in An Outline of Esoteric Science)

The entire esoteric significance and purpose of the “lesser guardian” is to block entry into the spiritual world until we have faced and transformed this “dark side” of ourselves. Otherwise, all experience and perception of the spiritual world would be corrupted and distorted by our negative karma from the past. As explained by Rudolf Steiner:

“Horrid as it may be, the [lesser] guardian’s appearance is, after all, but the consequence of our past lives. It is only our own character, awakened to an independent [astral] life outside of us.”
(From Chapter 10 in How to Know Higher Worlds)

“If we were to enter the world of soul and spirit without encountering the [lesser] guardian of the threshold, we would succumb to one deception after another, because we would never be able to distinguish between what we ourselves were bringing into this world and what really belongs to it.”
(From Chapter 5 in An Outline of Esoteric Science)

Obviously, since there is no mention by Thoresen of encountering or passing by the lesser guardian of his unredeemed karma, the Vidar-path into the spiritual world will unavoidably result in falsehood and deception. Furthermore, Thoresen states that the Vidar-path of initiation “will lead us onto two paths of knowledge: the mysteries of the spirit and the mysteries of the earth …” Since “the mysteries of the spirit” (as quoted previously) are associated with the pre-Christian past, as are “the mysteries of the earth,” the Vidar-path of initiation is clearly luciferic. If Thoresen’s false Vidar is an actual spirit entity, then he is obviously a luciferic being or even Lucifer himself.

In the Article, Thoresen has also referred to the Vidar path of initiation as “the Nordic path” or “the Northern Path of Initiation.” Interestingly, in a lecture given on 21 December 1919 entitled “The Three Streams in the Life of Civilization” (and published in The Cosmic New Year), Rudolf Steiner equates the primitive “mysteries of the earth” with the “mysteries of the North,” as in the following:

I shall speak of this stream as “the Mysteries of the Earth”, the Mysteries of the North or of the
Earth. Now this stream which developed first as primitive spirituality out of the Mysteries of the
Earth …”

Referring to Steiner’s quotation, any renewal of the “mysteries of the earth, ”also referred to as “the mysteries of the North” (as Thoresen is attempting to do), would be a luciferic reversion to the pre-Christian past.

Thoresen makes a number of idiosyncratic statements about the elemental world that are not supported by anthroposophical spiritual science as well. For example, he states: “After entering the elemental world we must/can go through the three realms of the elemental world and finally reach the etheric or spiritual world “behind.” As stated by Rudolf Steiner, the etheric world is synonymous with the elemental world. One does not have to go through the elemental world to reach the etheric world. As stated in a lecture entitled “Concerning Man’s Etheric Body and the Elemental World” (and published in The Threshold of the Spiritual World):

“Man, as an etheric being, stands in an etheric, or elemental world. Man is always “experiencing” the fact, although in ordinary life he knows nothing of it, that he, as an etheric being, inhabits an elemental world.”

Furthermore, what does Thoresen mean by “the three realms of the elemental world”? According to spiritual science, the etheric world has four levels or gradations: (1) warmth ether, (2) light ether, (3) chemical (or sound) ether, and (4) life ether. As well, within the etheric world there are four classes of elemental creatures: (1) earth elementals (gnomes), (2) water elementals (undines), (3) air elementals (sylphs), and (4) fire elementals (salamanders). Where does the number “three” come in?

Thoresen also erroneously states that “This elemental world was partly closed at the time of Rudolf Steiner, and through this world the higher spiritual world could not be reached, or according to Rudolf Steiner it could be reached, but it was too dangerous.” This was only true up until 1879, when St. Michael won a decisive battle in heaven and banished the renegade ahrimanic beings to earth. In consequence, the spiritual world was opened to human intellection as never before in history. In the words of Rudolf Steiner:

“[S]pirituality will come to human beings because Michael won his victory in 1879. The fact that we have a science of the spirit is also entirely due to this. Otherwise the truths concerned would have remained in the spiritual worlds; they could not have come to dwell in human brains and would not exist for the physical world.”
(From a lecture given on 27 October 1917 entitled “The Fallen Spirits’ Influence in the World” (and published in The Fall of the Spirits of Darkness)

In conclusion, then, even a basic analysis of a two-and-a half page Article by Are Thoresen is more than sufficient to demonstrate the antithetical and inimical regard towards anthroposophy, Rudolf Steiner and the School of Spiritual Science. As well, the “Northern Path of Vidar” is not just a false path of initiation; it is clearly a luciferic path. Consequently, “anthroposophists beware!”

Outer and Inner Alchemy: The Transmutation of Lead into Gold

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The following article is a sub-chapter in my publication: The Seven Great Mysteries of the Mystic Brotherhoods (2020) which is available from Amazon.com.

Long before modern empirical science confirmed it, Hermetic philosophy recognized that everything in the universe vibrates; and that the difference between matter, energy, mind and spirit is simply a matter of vibratory degree. This universal truth was ideologically formulated as the Hermetic principle of vibration: “Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates” (The Kybalion; 1940).

It was also understood, even from ordinary observation, that it was possible to change vibratory levels simply by raising or lowering the degree of vibration. For example, the dull grey colour of a particular metal could be changed to a dull red colour simply by applying heat; that is, by raising the vibratory level of the metal. Moreover, by continuing to increase the amount of heat energy, the dull red will become bright red, then orange, then yellow and then white.

Similarly with sound. Take a particular guitar string that produces an “A-note” when plucked. Simply by continually stretching the string, the vibrations per second (“hertz”) will increase from 440 vibrations per second (an A-note), up to 783.99 vibrations per second (a G-note).

It was also commonly known that raising and lowering the degree of vibration will also affect the various states of matter; of solid, liquid and gaseous. By lowering the temperature (vibrational degree) of liquid water, for example, it becomes a solid―that is, ice. Alternatively, by raising the temperature of liquid water, it becomes a gas―that is, water vapour.

The process of raising or lowering vibratory levels was referred to in Hermetic philosophy as “transmutation.” It was on the basis of Hermetic transmutation that later medieval and Renaissance alchemists experimented with the possibility of transmuting gold from another “base” (less valuable) metal, such as lead. While the alchemical idea of transmuting gold from another metal was always theoretically possible, the difficulty was in knowing exactly how to do that. It took until 1924 and the development of high-energy nuclear reactors for modern science to initially transmute mercury into gold. Not surprisingly, the enormous energy, technology and financial cost involved makes the nuclear transmutation of gold far too difficult and expensive to mass-produce.

Even if Rosicrucian alchemists had discovered an easier method of synthesizing gold, they would never have publically revealed so valuable a secret. The unbridled ability to manufacture gold would certainly have imperiled established trade and commerce, with the distinct possibility of inciting social upheaval and even causing widespread cultural warfare. Besides, the Rosicrucian Fraternity was strictly pledged to use their vast esoteric knowledge only to compassionately assist struggling mankind to attain closer union to God through Christ-Jesus.

The experimental preoccupation of Hermetic and Christian alchemists with the properties of minerals, metals and plants was not simply out of philosophical curiosity, but because of a deeply devotional desire to discover healing remedies for human sickness and suffering. In the succinct words of famous Christian alchemist, Paracelsus: “All that man needs for health and healing has been provided by God in nature, the challenge of science is to find it.” It was the altruistic goal of health and healing, then, that inflamed the hearts of sincere alchemists to seek an elixir of immortality to defeat death, a cure-all “panacea” to dispel disease, and a universal solvent to abolish uncleanliness.

While it is well recognized that Hermetic and Christian alchemists were deeply interested in the transmutation of minerals, metals, and plants for the purposes of healing, it is lesser known that they were even more devoted to “inner alchemy”―that is, the internal transmutation of the soul and spirit. In the immortal words of The Kybalion:

Mind (as well as metals and elements) may be transmuted, from state to state; degree to degree; condition to condition; pole to pole; vibration to vibration. True Hermetic Transmutation is a Mental Art.

To change your mood or mental state―change your vibration.

The alchemical goal to transmute base metal into gold was therefore not only an external undertaking in outer Nature; it was also symbolic of the internal, psychological striving to transmute the base elements of the lower personality into the golden spirituality of the higher-self. To this end, the experimental laboratory of the Hermetic alchemist was not a sterile and lifeless environment; but rather, a hallowed sanctuary where the living cosmos of Nature cautiously yielded up her secrets. As for the Rosicrucian alchemist, the transmuted spiritual gold of the higher-self was naturally equated with becoming more Christ-like in perfection.

The key to the inner alchemy of the soul; that is, the alchemical secret to transmuting thoughts, feelings and actions is to understand and apply the Hermetic principle of polarity:

Everything is Dual; everything has poles; everything has its pair of opposites; like and unlike are the same; opposites are identical in nature, but different in degree; extremes meet; all truths are but half-truths; all paradoxes may be reconciled. (The Kybalion)

This Hermetic principle recognizes that every distinct vibratory level in Nature manifests within a specific range that operates between two boundaries―one high and one low. These boundaries are known as “poles” and the range between is called a “spectrum.” Visible light, for example, is a range or spectrum of colours bounded at the low end by the vibratory pole of red, and at the high end by the vibratory pole of violet.

In accordance with the Hermetic principle of polarity, any transmutation of colour must occur within the polarized spectrum of light. In other words, the vibratory degree of the colour blue cannot be attained by transmuting a musical note, or by transmuting water, or by transmuting the emotion of fear. Blue can only result from the transmutation of another colour; either by raising the vibration of a lower colour (say red), or by lowering the vibration of a higher colour (say violet).

This is the reason why the transmutation into gold must always involve another metal. Metallic gold cannot be transmuted from water, or from hydrogen gas, or from chocolate. Even with nuclear reactors and particle accelerators, the artificial synthesis (transmutation) of gold always begins with another metal: either platinum, mercury or bismuth.

In order for the inner alchemy of the soul to be effective, then, the various polarities have to be recognized and adhered to. To Hermetic philosophy, thoughts and feelings also have a vibratory nature; though in this case they are vibrations in “soul space” and not “physical space.” Therefore, the Hermetic principle of polarity applies to thoughts and feelings as well.

Take for example the feeling of courageousness. When psychologically examined, courageousness exists along a spectrum of feeling ranging from complete cowardice to total bravery. If one happens to be burdened with cowardly feelings, these negative emotions can be overcome by employing the transmutation techniques of inner alchemy. For this to be effective, it’s first necessary to determine along which spectrum of emotion cowardice is situated. Once the correct emotional spectrum has been identified, then it is a matter of concentrating the will on the corresponding positive emotion; in this case, courageousness or bravery. Through repeated and concentrated will-power, the lesser, negative emotion will in time be transmuted into the higher, positive emotion.

Once again, as a crucial reminder, for the inner alchemy of soul transmutation to be effective the correct spectral polarity of emotion must be utilized. In this case, cowardice will not be transmuted by concentrating on feelings of joy, or peacefulness, or affection, or contentment. Figure 1 below is a brief list of some other familiar emotional polarities:

Figure 1: Table of Some Familiar Emotional Polarities

Transmuting negative thinking and unhealthy mental states employs exactly the same procedure as that for feelings, emotions, desires, passions and moods. Once again, the key to mental alchemy is to repeatedly focus the will on the positive pole of the negative mental condition to be transmuted. Over time, the positive cognitive condition will gradually replace the negative, unhealthy one.

By diligently applying the esoteric science of physical and psychological alchemy, the sincere practitioner will gradually gain a healthy mastery over the body and soul; thereby unfolding latent spiritual powers and abilities. The primary goal of the Rosicrucian alchemist was always to continually follow in the footsteps of the Great Alchemist―Christ-Jesus. All of the many so-called miracles that were performed by Our Saviour were the result of vibrational transmutation. By raising the vibrational level of his physical body, he was able to levitate above the water. By raising the vibrational level of two fish and five loaves of bread, he was able to feed a multitude of five thousand. By raising the vibrational level of water, he was able to transmute it into wine. As described by Levi H. Dowling (1844―1911) in The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ (1980):

As Jesus stood apart in silent thought his mother came and said to him, “The wine has failed; what shall we do?” And Jesus said, “Pray, what is wine? It is but water with the flavouring of grapes. And what are grapes? They are but certain kinds of thought made manifest, and I can manifest that thought, and water will be wine” … The servants brought the water pots, and filled them to their brims. And Jesus with a mighty thought stirred up the ethers till they reached the manifest, and lo, the water blushed, and turned to wine.

The Secret Process of Cosmic Evolution

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The following article is taken from a sub-chapter in my publication: Following Christ Across the Threshold: The Non-Initiate’s Guide to Entering the Spiritual World (2019). For those who are interested further, the book is available from Amazon.com.

In order to better understand the process of crossing the threshold during sleep and after death, it is necessary to explain certain universal laws that apply throughout the cosmos. For example, in order to better understand why the discarnate soul (in sleep or in death) descends to the centre of the earth before ascending into planetary space, it is necessary to know more about the “universal law of vibratory rhythm.” Likewise, in order to better understand why the unbounded soul in heaven is reborn into a confined body on earth, it is also necessary to know about the “universal law of recapitulation.”

To begin with, it is encouraging to note that today both physical science and esoteric science agree that our expanding universe had a “point” of origin in the primeval past. Nevertheless, the physical science of cosmogony contends that the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago as an infinitely-small, infinitely hot, and infinitely dense point of origin termed a “singularity.” Within this singularity was contained all universal matter, energy, space and time.

Esoteric science, on the other hand, asserts that the universe began as a tiny “seed” of cosmic creation conceived vast ages ago within the infinite and eternal mind of God. Within the divine point of universal genesis was contained all potential matter, energy, space and time―as well as consciousness (mind) and life. Remarkably, Georges Lemaître (1894‒1966), the Catholic priest, astronomer and physicist who first mathematically postulated an expanding universe from a primordial beginning (later known as the “Big Bang”), perceptively termed the point of origin, the “Primal Atom” or the “Cosmic Egg.”

To esoteric understanding, then, all life in the universe began as a divinely-conceived cosmic seed (or egg). This explains why, even today, all life on earth springs from a seed or egg. Life does not spontaneously generate from inanimate matter (“abiogenesis”). The observable fact that only life can reproduce life―that a new life-form can only proceed from an egg or seed produced by another life-form―was succinctly expressed by English physician William Harvey (1578‒1657) with the famous Latin phrase: “Omne vivum ex ovo” (“All life comes from an egg”).

Predictably, as the infinitesimal seed of cosmic creation first began to grow and expand, structural formation was extremely primitive and initial progress was excruciatingly slow. One noticeable characteristic of cosmic expansion was an inherent propensity (or universal law) to formulate and to replicate germinal centres of activity. Over vast stretches of time, these elementary centres of activity gradually developed into rudimentary subatomic particles, then into basic atomic particles, then into simple molecules, and eventually into stars and galaxies.

Since life and consciousness were also contained within the divine seed of cosmic creation, elementary life-forms also began to slowly develop as the cosmos continued to expand in time and space. As with universal matter and energy, life-forms also conformed to the intrinsic universal compulsion to formulate individual centres of activity, and then to replicate them. Moreover, as with the development of matter and energy, life-forms slowly progressed from rudimentary to complex over vast periods of cosmic time.

Elementary life-forms that arose at the beginning of time were exceedingly tenuous and diaphanous, being formulated out of etheric and astral substance. Consequently, they would be invisible to physical sight; and would therefore be undetectable and unacknowledged by the physical science of today.

In any event, all life-forms (as well as all matter and energy) were additionally subject to a universal law of vibratory rhythm; that is, everything in the universe fluctuates between periods of contraction and expansion, and between periods of activity and rest. Even the entire universe itself undergoes vast periods of cosmic expansion and cosmic collapse; between vast periods of cosmic activity and cosmic rest. In esoteric fact, our present universe is now expanding from a previous cosmic collapse (which has occurred a number of times during the exceedingly-remote and primeval past.

The alternation between activity and rest is readily observable with the various life-forms existing on earth. For example, plant-life tends to be more active during the sun-lit, daytime hours; and more at rest during the dark, nightime hours. Likewise during the seasons: plant-life growth and activity occurs mostly during the warm summer months; whereas during the cold winter months, plant-life will undergo a period of repose and dormancy.

Not only plant-life, but animal-life and human-life also visibly alternate between activity and rest. The most noticeable and familiar alternation is that between wakeful activity (usually during the day) and restful sleep (usually during the night). As with plant-life, the alternation between activity and rest for animal-life and for human-life is also affected by the cycle of the seasons. Many animals in cold northern climates will restfully hibernate during the winter months, and resume normal activity when spring re-arrives.

Unfortunately with modern-day human-life, particularly in urban settings with artificial light and climate-controlling technology (such as furnace-heaters and air-conditioners), the seasonal rhythms are much easier to ignore. Nevertheless, in more rural settings, human-life still responds to the seasonal alternation between wintery indoor quietude and reflection, and summery outdoor recreation and activity.

In the case of all life-forms on earth, there is also an alternation between physical life and physical death. Physical life is characterized by growth and activity; whereas in death all physical activity observably ceases. Especially in the case of human-life, the alternation between physical life and death is often compared to that of waking and sleeping. Death is popularly described as the “big sleep,” and after death one is described as “resting in peace.”

In order for life-forms (in general) to continue to exist after death, it is necessary to reproduce; that is, it is necessary to produce another similar life-form. In the case of complex, multi-celled life-forms, such as plants, animals and humans, physical reproduction is accomplished by generating a miniature single-celled genetic “blueprint” of the parent life-form. In this connection, biological science currently contends that all physical life-forms on earth began as a single cell. In other words, the reproductive process of generating a fertilized seed or egg can be seen as an accelerated repetition of the entire evolutionary process of a life-form from the very beginning.

It’s a little-acknowledged fact of life that in order to reproduce a new life-form (be it plant, animal or human) it is necessary to restart from the evolutionary beginning as a single cell. In other words, in order to reproduce an existing, complex life-form it is necessary to go back in time and recapitulate the entire evolutionary process up to the present day. Fortunately the recapitulation process is highly accelerated and much more refined than the original evolutionary process.

For example, the developing human child from fertilized ovum to birth, recapitulates in nine months what previously took millions of evolutionary years to accomplish. Moreover, each time a new life-form is reproduced, imperceptively-small improvements are incorporated into the fertilized egg or seed. Thereby, the life-form continues to progressively evolve and advance. Positive improvements are added to the recapitulation process, so that evolutionary progress spirals upward, rather than simply going around and around without any positive development.

From the foregoing information, it will be better understood that in order to begin spiritual life on the other side of the threshold (even temporarily, as in sleep) it is necessary to go back in time to the very inception of human life in the cosmos. Currently, this entails a superphysical descent into the dark subterranean underworld through the anachronistic, residual matter and energy from previous archaic periods of planetary development―first the Ancient Moon Period; then the Ancient Sun Period; and lastly the Ancient Saturn Period.

Together with traveling back in time, the descent into the underworld also entails a supersensible contraction towards the centre of the earth. When human individuals experience an analogous intrapsychic contraction toward the centre of their being, this serves to strengthen separate ego-awareness. When the non-initiate or deceased soul experiences a contraction toward the centre of the earth, then they become increasingly conscious of the planetary-ego (and not their own).

Unfortunately over time, the evil influence of the sun-demon Sorath has corrupted the planetary-ego, resulting in it becoming the subterranean source of black magic on earth. Thankfully, with Christ-Jesus becoming the new regent of the earth, the false ego of the planet is slowly being transformed into the divine ego of our Saviour.

In accordance with the universal law of vibrational rhythm, the centripetal contraction toward the centre of the earth is rhythmically followed by a centrifugal expansion toward the planetary or cosmic periphery. Likewise when the non-initiate or the incarnating soul is returning to earth from the heavenly regions, there is a gradual contraction of expanded cosmic consciousness down to physical-sensory awareness. In the case of a newly-incarnating soul, they begin the contraction process by psychically connecting with the fertilized ovum provided by the future parents. Once the incarnational process is complete, then the soul begins a new physical life of expansion, growth and development, in accordance with the universal law of vibrational rhythm.

Spiritual Warfare in the 21st Century: Donald Trump vs The New World Order

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The following article is the “Introduction” to my most recent publication (October 2018), which bears the same title as this excerpt. Since the “Introduction” was intended to provide a synopsis of the book’s more detailed, comprehensive and convincing content, it should also give the reader of this website article a reasonable idea of what the book is about. Similarly, the illustration that is used here is a smaller detail of the larger image that was used on the front cover of the book (please refer to the description in “MY Books”). It is currently available from Amazon.com.

A RATHER STRANGE and disturbing social upheaval has been covertly and pervasively occurring throughout the Western world―particularly in America―since the early 1990s. A creeping form of radical-socialism has been gradually infecting Western political parties, academic institutions, medical professions, mainstream news agencies, television and film industries, literary publishing and everyday social interaction for the past three decades.

Perplexingly ironic, as the former Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc States were finally divesting themselves of the failed and oppressive socialist/communist ideology of the past, intellectuals and ideologues throughout the Western world began to eagerly embrace and apply the fundamental tenets of radical-socialism.

This “Westernized” form of socialist ideology is unabashedly atheistic and openly hostile to religion, particularly Christianity, in all its denominational forms. Hypocritically, however, this same “atheistic-socialism” openly supports and defends Muslim believers, who are considered members of a “victimized minority.”

The philosophical underpinning of atheistic-socialism is the classic Marxist belief that the social interaction of humanity throughout the ages has entirely and exclusively been a perpetual class struggle between the have-nots and the haves; the poor and the wealthy; the oppressed and the oppressors; the victims and the victimizers. In more Marxist terminology, historical class conflict has been between the “proletariat”―the peasants, labourers and workers; and the “bourgeoisie”―the nobility, landowners, and capitalists.

However, in recent times various activist groups―each one claiming “victimized” status―have adapted basic Marxist ideology to suit their own particular causes and agendas. For example, radical-feminists contend that it is men who are the real historic victimizers and that women are their primary victims. Alternatively, Black, Hispanic and Indigenous activists each claim that they are the continued victims of White, European-based culture. Homosexual activists assert that they are the victims of heterosexual, Judeo-Christian society. All these activists, therefore, blame a common oppressor for their perceived victimized condition―wealthy, White, conservative Christian men.

Moreover, in keeping with classic Marxist ideology, each of these socialist-inspired activist groups fervently believes that the solution to their perceived oppression is not gradual social change and reform; but the revolutionary overthrow of prosperous, White, Christian, male-influenced culture and society.

In essence, then, what is currently taking place throughout Western society is a fierce cultural war being waged by numerous left-leaning activist groups whose primary goal is the destruction of European-based Christian culture. In addition, their ultimate goal is to replace democratic governance through majority rule with an exclusively-atheistic, secular society where political, economic and cultural power is autocratically determined and enforced by centralized State-control that is driven by uncompromising, totalitarian-style minority activism.

In Western nations, this radical atheistic-socialism―recently termed the “alt-left”―has been opportunistically embraced by “left-wing” and “neo-liberal” political parties; but rejected by “right-wing” and “neo-conservative” political parties. Consequently, in America it is the Democratic Party (in general) that espouses and promotes alt-leftist atheistic-socialism; while the Republican Party (in general) rejects and opposes this ideology.

The radical alt-left agenda was enormously accelerated in America during the eight years (2009 to 2017) of Democratic Party President, Barack Hussein Obama. Primarily through executive order and veto power, Obama enacted and enforced radical-socialist national and international policy on climate change, economic regulation, religion, abortion, de-militarization, same-sex marriage, gun control, immigration, taxation, free-trade and deficit spending.

Moreover, through presidential appointment, Obama politicized and “weaponized” the US intelligence community (FBI, CIA and NSA), the Justice department, the IRS, the Supreme Court and district court systems with radical-socialists and alt-left loyalists. Radical-socialist ideologues within the Democratic Party and their wealthy financial backers (such as George Soros) were totally confident that these “deep-state” operatives in government―together with the predominantly left-leaning communications media in radio, television and newspapers―would guarantee another presidential election victory in 2017.

Moreover, Soros and his billionaire cohorts in the Democratic Alliance had decided that Hillary Rodham Clinton would be the next American president; and had set up a “dirty-tricks” Democratic Party campaign organization (headed by Soros-lackey John Podesta) to further continue and advance their accelerating alt-left cultural revolution.

Despite pre-election propaganda by major leftist-media (such as ABC, CNN, MSNBC, the NY Times and Washington Post) that Hillary Clinton would win the presidential election by a “landslide victory”; despite the DNC (Democratic National Committee) and the Clinton election organizers conducting a corrupt, “shady-tactics” campaign in order to guarantee victory; and despite the Clinton campaign spending a record-breaking $1.2 billion to securely win the presidency―political newcomer and New York businessman, Donald J. Trump, derailed the entire alt-left revolutionary momentum by explosively winning the 2016 presidential election.

In the hours, days, weeks and months after Donald Trump’s huge presidential victory (304 Electoral College votes to Clinton’s 228), the alt-left―worldwide―went into complete emotional meltdown which quickly developed into a collective psychological malaise characterized by acute fear, paranoia, anxiety, depression, anger and hatred: labeled by conservative observers as “TDS―Trump Derangement Syndrome.”

From Trump’s powerful campaign speeches delineating his vision to “Make America Great Again (MAGA),” alt-leftist leaders and those supporting atheistic-socialism soon realized that their secular revolution was now in serious jeopardy. In the White House was everything they professed to hate―a wealthy, conservative, White, Christian male!

Moreover, Trump’s vision for America was entirely contrary to atheistic-socialism: (1) instead of global homogeneity, this new president favours strong national sovereignty, legal immigration, enforced border control and a strong military; (2) instead of an entirely secularist society, this new president is intent on defending religious freedom and Judeo-Christian values and culture (such as pro-life, pro-marriage and pro-family); (3) instead of continuing to centralize authoritarian State control in Washington D.C., this new president has promised the American voter to “drain the swamp” of federal government corruption, to wrest economic power from the corporate and media elites, and to wrest political control from the self-serving Democratic and Republican establishments―thereby returning democratic power back to the American people.

Not surprisingly, then, the alt-left and their pervasive zealots in government, business, media communications, academia, psychiatry, intelligence agencies and movie industries have collectively declared war on Donald J. Trump. While radical-socialism publicly professes to promote tolerance, inclusion, diversity, political-correctness, minority rights and respect for others, the alt-left revolutionaries are hypocritically intent on destroying President Trump by whatever means available: Soros-funded riots, fake news reports, FBI surveillance, kangaroo-court challenges, drummed-up impeachment―even public outcries of assassination!

Since atheistic-socialism ideologically rejects divine moral-inspiration, divine good-counsel and divine wise-direction, it instead zealously strives to replace the ultimate moral authority of the one true God with the authoritarian and despotic control of a centralized State bureaucracy. In consequence, alt-left activist groups and political parties (either knowingly or unknowingly) play into the hands of unscrupulous billionaire globalists, such as George Soros, whose corrupt political agenda is to weaken America in order to covertly establish an elitist-controlled, one-world government―historically termed the “New World Order.”

President Trump, then, as the peoples’ representative of “middle America” (not the leftist corporate, intellectual and media elites in New York, Washington and California) has deliberately, knowingly and sacrificially taken on the stupendous task of resisting, opposing, undoing and defeating the domestic and international forces of the New World Order.

Moreover, on an even deeper and more universal level, since the atheistic alt-left has declared war on Christian persons, groups, beliefs, history, institutions and traditional values it is not just a cultural war that has been sweeping somnolent Western society during recent times; it is obviously a fierce spiritual battle as well. As such, the alt-left revolutionary “movement” unconsciously plays into the diabolical hands of dark spiritual beings, particularly the Antichrist, who are also intent on destroying Christianity and establishing their own evil world-domination and global-control in the near future.

Donald Trump, then, as the presidential defender of religious freedom and Judeo-Christian culture (in America and abroad) at this critical time in world history is clearly a “warrior of light,” pre-destined by advanced spiritual forces to help bring America (and by extension, the rest of the world) back to the one true God of love. And while Donald Trump, as American president, clearly occupies a central role in this spiritual struggle, true victory over time will only be achieved when the vast majority of decent, honest, ethical, caring, religious, truthful and peace-loving citizens around the world rise up in unison to actively resist atheistic-socialism and the evil architects of the New World Order.

Divine Gender, the Trinitarian Nature of God and Spiritual Love

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The following article is a brief excerpt from my 2017 publication entitled Gender and Sexuality: In Light of Esoteric Science, and is available from Amazon.com

From what has been discussed thus far, it is obvious that esoteric science fully agrees with traditional Western theology that the One God is a perfect unity of three deific personifications―or simply, “three divine persons.” Furthermore, this “Trinity” of divine persons is agreed to be co-existent, co-equal and consubstantial with one another.

There is, however, a couple of noticeable differences. In Western theology, the divine Trinity is understood to be Father, Son and Holy Spirit; whereas the esoteric understanding of the divine Trinity is Father, Son and Holy Mother.

Moreover, in Western theology it is believed that the divine person of the Father eternally generates (or “begets”) the divine person of the Son; and together, the Father and the Son eternally generate (or “spirate”) the Holy Spirit. The esoteric understanding, however, is that the divine person of the Father together with the divine person of the Holy Mother eternally generate the divine person of the Son.

Esoterically speaking, then, the divine person of the Son is not a third gender; but rather the perfect union of the only two genders in real (divine) existence―the Heavenly Father (divine masculinity) and the Holy Mother (divine femininity).

Given the real-existence and complementarity of the Heavenly Father and the Holy Mother, it’s abundantly obvious that divine gender is transcendently more alive, personal and powerful than the various cosmic manifestations of universal gender. The infinite and eternal rhythmic interplay between the divine masculine (Heavenly Father) and the divine feminine (Holy Mother) is superlatively beyond any mechanical-style, vibratory oscillations that generate subatomic particles. As well, divine gender is transcendently superior to any back-and-forth mental vacillations which generate human thoughts and ideas. Divine gender is even infinitely grander than the recurring collapse and expansion of the entire universe.

The two divine genders, then, are much, much more than simply being universal forces of Nature; or universal mental operations in Nature; or universal principles (laws) of Nature. The two divine genders transcend the entire natural world; but are likewise much more than being simply supernatural forces, supernatural operations or supernatural principles (laws). The two divine genders are fully-alive, deific personifications―divine persons―who have eternally existed in perfect, mutual complementarity.

Esoteric science and Western theology also mutually accept the revelatory truth that “God is love.”How this is esoterically understood is that the spirit-nature of God is synonymous with divine love; that is, divine love is the spirit-nature of God. In this light, the two gender distinctions of God’s spirit-nature are also correctly understood to be two distinctions of divine love. The Heavenly Father, then, is the perfect personification of divine “masculine” love; and the Holy Mother is the perfect personification of divine “feminine” love.

The eternal, back-and-forth contraction and expansion of God’s spirit-nature, then, is best understood as an eternal interchange and infinite reciprocation of divine love between the Heavenly Father and the Holy Mother. Moreover, the Eternal Son is best understood as the perfect union of divine masculine and divine feminine love. As the divine offspring, the Eternal Son is eternally generated by the mutual love of the Heavenly Father and the Holy Mother (see Figure 1 below).

The divine Trinity, then, is best understood as a transcendent, “familial” love-relationship of divine Father, divine Mother and divine Progeny (Son). Of course when applying human familial terms and interactions to God’s Trinitarian spirit-nature, it must be kept in mind that they are all raised to a degree of infinite and eternal perfection (unlike the finite and temporal limitations of human nature).

Figure 1: The Trinity of Divine Love

The co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial love of the three persons of God is logically the highest and most perfect expression of love in reality. As such, the love of the Trinity serves as the goal and ideal of all love relationships in the created universe. In other words, the principles of universal gender strive to best reflect and manifest the divine gender expressed in Trinitarian love.

Of course the perfect love as expressed in divine gender is transcendently beyond what manifests as human sexuality and procreation. Human sexuality and procreation are temporary, limited, imperfect and undeveloped reflections of divine love as it manifests in the physical world.

Anthropo-Sophia and the Blessed Virgin Mary

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The following article is an excerpt from a publication of mine entitled: Mary and the Divine Sophia: The Salvation of Universal Wisdom (2016), and available from Amazon.com.

It is very unfortunate that in the present day there are a great many authors who write with such “esoteric” authority and conviction, but who have had little or no direct spiritual experience about what they write. Predictably, the information they convey with such weight and command is rife with error and falsehood.

Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than when they emphatically expound on the “being” of anthropo-sophia. If these pseudo-authorities had actually experienced the “lesser guardian of the threshold” for themselves, they would have a much clearer understanding of what Rudolf Steiner means by the “being” of anthropo-sophia.

For those who may be unfamiliar, the lesser guardian is a fearful astral figure that is objectively materialized out of an individual’s collective karma; that is, out of the accumulated effects of good and bad deeds that were performed throughout an individual’s incarnational history. The lesser guardian is invisible to ordinary sight; and only becomes visible to supersensible sight when an individual attempts to consciously cross the threshold into the spiritual world. The lesser guardian, then, is a spectral apparition, a personal astral creation. As figuratively described by Rudolf Steiner in Chapter 10 of Knowledge of the Higher Worlds and its Attainment ( 1986):

But now all the good and evil sides of thy bygone lives shall be revealed to thee. Hitherto they were interwoven with thine own being; they were in thee and thou couldst not see them, even as thou canst not behold thine own brain with physical eyes. But now they become released from thee; they detach themselves from thy personality. They assume an independent form which thou canst see even as thou beholdest the stones and plants of the outer world. And . . . I am that very being who shaped my body out of thy good and evil achievements. My spectral form is woven out of thine own life’s record.

It will be gathered from the above that the Guardian of the Threshold is an (astral) figure, revealing itself to the student’s awakened higher sight …

So, if the lesser guardian is simply an astral materialization of accumulated karma, why does Steiner refer to it as “that very being” in the above quotation (and elsewhere)? The reason is to disclose and emphasize the supersensible fact that objective materializations in the astral world which issue from human activity are more than just ephemeral, inanimate creations that quickly disappear without effect.

Instead, these astral materializations will often assume a distinct human-like form; and being composed of astral substance, they possess a certain vitality as well as a degree of elemental mentation and sentience. Moreover, these humanly-generated astral formations will very often detach themselves from their human creator, and lead an independent existence in astral space; thereby affecting other astral formations in the superphysical environment.

While it’s important to recognize that astral materializations such as the lesser guardian exhibit a “being-like” quality of existence, it’s equally important to understand that these being-like astral formations are not “beings” in the usually-understood sense of existing as spirit-filled “persons,” such as human beings and celestial beings. An astral materialization such as the lesser guardian does not possess an organized assemblage of interpenetrating body and soul vehicles, such as an etheric body or an intellectual soul. Nor is the divine nature reflected in these astral materializations as an individualized spiritual-self. Moreover, a being-like astral creation does not have an extensive evolutionary history belonging to a particular life-wave, such as the angels, or the archangels, or the thrones or the seraphim.

From what has been described, then, it is clear that anthropo-sophia is a “being-like” astral materialization, and not a “being” in the same sense as a “human being,” as an ego-indwelt human “person.” Even though cosmic wisdom-sophia is as old as the universe, anthropo-sophia is only a recent manifestation.

Anthropo-sophia is essentially an objective materialization of spiritual-truth (cosmic wisdom-sophia) that has been consciously acquired by the human intellect through spiritual scientific means. As such, she only came into existence with the establishment of anthroposophical spiritual science by Rudolf Steiner in the early 1900s. Anthropo-sophia began as a personal materialization of the spiritual-truth acquired by Steiner himself; somewhat similar to the personal generation of the lesser guardian. But as more and more of his pupils began to apply the techniques of spiritual science to intellectually acquire spiritual truth as well, anthropo-sophia very quickly transformed from being a personal astral materialization, into becoming a collective one.

Since cosmic wisdom-sophia is a universal feminine-principle, the human-like form assumed by anthropo-sophia is predictably a feminine one. Moreover, even though she only recently came into materialized existence, she assumes the form of a “mature” woman due to the tremendous outpouring of spiritual truth that was acquired and conveyed by Steiner himself. As more and more individuals intellectually acquire cosmic wisdom-truth through spiritual science, anthropo-sophia naturally increases in astral stature, beauty, strength and influence. Moreover, as an astral “being-like” manifestation, anthropo-sophia is imbued with a degree of vitality, sentience and mentation.

Given that anthropo-sophia has only recently come into astral existence, it is somewhat perplexing why some anthroposophical writers have erroneously suggested that the Blessed Virgin Mary (of St. Luke’s gospel) and anthropo-sophia are one and the same being. As recognized by spiritual science, the Blessed Virgin Mary was the first and only physical incarnation of the heavenly-Eve. Since the heavenly-Eve has been a part of human evolution since its very inception, she is a human “being” in the fullest sense of the term, and is not a “being-like” astral materialization like anthropo-sophia..

What is equally perplexing is the assertion by some anthroposophical writers that the heavenly-Eve is not an actual human being but simply a pristine aspect of the earthly-Eve’s etheric body that was preserved from Luciferic corruption (and the resultant “fall” into physical incarnation) during ancient Lemurian times. If this were true, then the incarnation of the heavenly-Eve as St. Luke’s Mary is nothing but the physical embodiment of an uncorrupted etheric body-fragment.

According to this ill-conceived notion, then, the immaculate mother of St. Luke’s Jesus-child would have had no individualized soul or indwelling spirit. As such, she would have been a plant and not a human being! On strictly logical grounds, then, the idea that the heavenly-Eve is simply preserved etheric forces is obviously absurd. If these pseudo-esoteric authorities had taken the time to combine all that Rudolf Steiner revealed concerning the heavenly-Adam, they would have a correct understanding of the heavenly-Eve.

What is strangely ironic in this instance is the fact that it is usually the same self-styled esoteric authorities who claim that the heavenly-Eve―a real human being―is nothing but an etheric materialization, who also assert that anthropo-sophia―an astral materialization―is a real human being! As previously mentioned, this confusion on their part is a clear indication that they “know not of what they speak”; and should therefore keep esoterically silent.

Divine Love and the Transmutation of Evil

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The following article is the Conclusion from my most recent book publication entitled From Darkness to Light: Divine Love and the Transmutation of Evil (2016). For anyone interested in delving more deeply into this important (though little understood) subject, the book is now available from Amazon.com.

1. Salvation From Supernatural Evil is a Free-Will Choice

IT SHOULD BE esoterically obvious from all that has been written thus far, that without the benevolent assistance of many highly-advanced celestial beings mankind would become easy prey for supernatural evil. The perpetrators of supernatural evil are far too powerful, and far too clever, for unassisted human beings to overcome on our own.

Furthermore, even though Christ-Jesus has successfully triumphed over Lucifer, Ahriman and Sorath, he does not impose his own success on the rest of humanity. Instead, he freely offers his power, capacity and assistance to overcome evil for anyone who sincerely chooses. Unfortunately, many in our day have not chosen to do so. Far too many people continue to happily endorse the atheistic and materialistic world-view of empirical science. Far too many people continue to be mesmerized by the hedonistic technology of secular society. Far too many people continue to evade spiritual reality with escapist movies, books, games, drugs, sports and music. The discerning observer of modern life cannot help but painfully conclude that supernatural evil will continue to plague somnolent humanity for the foreseeable future.

2. The Tragic Irony of Evil: Opposing God is Opposing Our Own True Self

It is still somewhat of a cosmic mystery to understand why otherwise highly-advanced beings such as Lucifer, Ahriman and Sorath willingly choose to engage in evil; that is, freely choose to act contrary to God. The undeniable spiritual fact is that all sentient beings are children of God; and therefore the divine spirit is mirrored in every self-conscious being. Furthermore, the highest self of all self-conscious beings―holy and evil―is their God-self, their true eternal life and reality.

Moreover, according to logical reasoning, the triune God is perfectly free and infinitely happy. So it also logically follows that for all created beings―including the supernatural perpetrators of evil―the highest freedom and happiness can only come from spiritual union with God.

So, when Lucifer, Ahriman or Sorath flee from the divine light of truth and the divine warmth of love, they are truly and tragically fleeing from their own highest spiritual selves. Separating from God through sin is in fact separating from who they are in reality. Moreover, running from this spiritual fact does in no way change it. Only by embracing the truth of their ultimate being, in sincere humility and gratitude, is there lasting salvation from a sorrowful life of evil.

3. Divine Love is the Best Way of Dealing with Evil

I John 4:18 states in part that “perfect love casts out fear.” What is also implied with this spiritual truth is that “perfect (divine) love casts out evil.” After examining in some detail the nature, genesis and supernatural perpetration of evil, as well as the celestial beings who benefit humanity and oppose evil, what comes into clear intellectual focus is the convincing conclusion that the best way of dealing with evil is through divine love.

The foremost exemplar of divine love in all of human history is, of course, our saviour Christ-Jesus. Through his life on earth, his gospel teachings and his resurrected presence in the Church, Christ-Jesus has provided mankind with a sure path of holiness that will overcome evil and lead directly to God. Our Saviour has taught and demonstrated that we are not to hate, revile or despise the evil enemies of mankind; but instead, to love them. This, of course, does not mean that we are to befriend our supernatural enemies and overlook their evil ways; but rather, to remind ourselves that they too are children of God, albeit lost and mistaken. Hopefully, one day, they will realize the error of their evil ways, and turn back to their true home in God.

Furthermore, regarding the supernatural perpetrators of evil with infinite compassion does not mean that the forces of holiness do nothing about evil in their midst. Since all persons under unwarranted attack have a right to appropriate self-defense, the benevolent celestial beings have every right to resist, repel, disable, disarm, deactivate, neutralize, subdue, contain, incarcerate and imprison the perpetrators of evil who intend to do others (and themselves) harm. Self-defense, in this case however, is not undertaken in a spirit of revenge or retaliation; but in the spirit of Michael―the spirit of divine justice, fairness and doing what is morally right in the eyes of God.

Since all sentient beings possess the divine gift of free-will, perpetrators of evil cannot be forced against their will to be holy. The free-will decision to turn from evil to holiness is what is understood as “redemption.” The will to do evil can only be overcome and reversed through a personal act of redemption. The material or superphysical manifestations of evil, however, can be transformed or transmuted. For example, by raising the vibratory level of etheric debasements, such as electricity and magnetism, these manifestations of evil can be transmuted back into light and chemical ether, for the positive benefit of earthly evolution.

Furthermore, much of modern technology―such as computers, robotics, genetic modification and automation―is a “double-edged sword”; it can be used for the benefit of mankind, or for earthly destruction. Modern technology, then, must be increasingly wrested from the control of Ahrimanic spirits and put into the hands of Michael and other Christ-imbued beings. Similarly, the various forms of artistic expression―such as filmmaking, theatre, painting, sculpture, computer graphics and music―must increasingly be directed away from Luciferic fantasy and illusion; and instead, directed towards the uplifting expression of true spiritual beauty.

In summary, by assisting our planetary-spirit, Christ-Jesus, with the transmutation and transformation of the “old” universe into the “new heaven and the new earth,” the supernatural perpetrators of evil will be increasingly surrounded by the light of divine truth and the warmth of divine love. Consequently, this will increasingly limit the dark places they can hide; and more importantly, it will increasingly limit their ability to debase matter, energy and mind to use as weapons in their arsenal of evil. In time, by increasingly protecting ourselves, and them, in a cosmic cocoon of holiness, this will incite the larvae of evil to metamorphose into the prodigal butterflies of spiritual redemption.

No doubt, transforming the universe to this supernal degree of divine love will take many aeons to accomplish; but after all, this is the divine plan of creation―the destiny of the Logos-Word as the image and likeness of God.

The Slow Befriending of Anthroposophy and Catholicism in Our Time

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The following article has been taken from my book publication entitled The Greater and Lesser Mysteries of Christianity: The Complementary Paths of Anthroposophy and Catholicism (2015); and is in fact the concluding chapter. For anyone interested in pursuing this topic more thoroughly, the book is available on Amazon.com.

EVEN THOUGH FEW present-day anthroposophists and few current Catholics recognize and understand the two-millennial division of Christian teaching into exoteric mystery-wisdom and esoteric mystery-wisdom, there are still noteworthy examples in recent years which show that each side is beginning to amicably learn more about the other.

Even though the anthroposophical leadership in Dornach, Switzerland does not officially converse with the Catholic Church, and even though the Vatican Curia in Rome does not officially converse with the General Anthroposophical Society, individual anthroposophists and Catholics have begun to slowly befriend each other.

It will probably come as a complete shock and surprise, to both anthroposophists and Catholics alike, to discover that Karol Josef Wojtyla (1920‒2005)―before he became Pope John Paul II―was involved with an anthroposophical group in Poland that was studying the art of speech and working with Rudolf Steiner’s mystery dramas. Moreover, before he became Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (b.1927) was the head (or “prefect”) of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 1981 to 2005. In this capacity (where he was nicknamed, “God’s Rottweiler”), Cardinal Ratzinger’s primary function was to defend and reaffirm traditional Catholic doctrine. During that time, he was friends with Dr. Martin Kriele (b.1931), a well-respected German constitutional lawyer who was both Catholic and anthroposophist. In an interview given in 1988, Kriele stated:

I don’t withhold [from the Catholic Church] that I’m an anthroposophist and I must say that it’s caused me not the slightest difficulty and even the ultimate arbiter [of the Church], so to speak, Cardinal Ratzinger, knows me to be an anthroposophist. He is today the ultimate defender of the faith and he took no offense from that.

Moreover, in Kriele’s experience, Catholics were much more accepting of him being an anthroposophist, than anthroposophists were of him being a Catholic. As he indicated in the same interview quoted above:

Catholicism, meanwhile, has become much more open. It’s often happened to me that my coreligionists respond not with hostility but with interest when I say that I am an anthroposophist. When, among anthroposophists, I mention that I am a Catholic, however, they act like they are about to cross themselves [as protection from the devil].

In Kriele’s opinion, this fearful and widespread anti-Catholic reaction among anthroposophists is misplaced and anachronistic. As he explained:

It seems to me that those who behave thus are seeing the reality around them not through their own eyes but through those of Rudolf Steiner seventy years hence. Not quite of course―Steiner himself had positive relations with Catholics. He even on January 30^th, 1924―after the Christmas meeting!―went as far as to say that the Catholic church is the only important institution that truly presents to the world the mystery of the spirit that has veiled itself with sensory impressions (Mystery Centres of the Middle Ages; GA 233a); awareness of its role, however, usually being absent … Anthroposophists who orient themselves only by Steiner’s explanations of forms of Catholicism of his own time and ignore his favorable expressions mistake the present reality; for example, that the church today recognizes religious freedom as an inalienable right, for other religions as much as itself. Further, supremacy of the conscience over dogma is now officially taught and also that departure from the church need not rank one among unbelievers. (Ibid.)

While John Paul II and Benedict XVI are certainly two examples of celebrated Catholics who have had an arm’s-length brush with anthroposophy, many other ordinary Catholics have also had similar favourable associations. For example, many Catholic parents have positively enrolled their children in anthroposophically-inspired Waldorf schools, or Camphill communities. Other Catholics have been pleasantly involved with anthroposophically-inspired Biodynamic farming; while others have enjoyably attended anthroposophically-inspired eurythmy performances or Mystery plays.

In other instances, some Catholics in recent years have deliberately delved much deeper into the anthroposophical material of Rudolf Steiner. During the early 1990s, for instance, Vatican scholars at the Institute for Philosophy in Liechtenstein (a Catholic research centre) studied Rudolf Steiner as an eminent spiritual philosopher, and concluded that anthroposophy was reasonably harmonious with accepted Catholic doctrine.

So, has there been a reciprocal interest on the part of anthroposophical groups to study Catholic doctrine and teaching? There doesn’t appear so―but in fairness, it is much more difficult to study a religion than it is to study a science (including a spiritual one). Religion requires emotional commitment, dedicated devotion, communal activity and repeated practice. A science, on the other hand, can be more easily understood in an objective, intellectual way. So for anthroposophists to truly understand Catholicism, they would actually have to practice or apply it for a certain length of time. Nevertheless, present-day anthroposophists can still achieve a much deeper understanding and appreciation of today’s Catholicism just by having Catholic speakers and experts attend anthroposophical group meetings; or by personally attending and observing a Christmas or Easter Mass.

Since the very beginning of anthroposophy, there has always been a small percentage of Catholics involved. One of the founding teachers of the first Waldorf school, for example, was Dr. Karl Schubert (1889‒1949), a Catholic anthroposophist that Rudolf Steiner held in high esteem. Even at the Christmas Conference in 1923, when the General Anthroposophical Society was officially established, Rudolf Steiner was accompanied by a Catholic priest named Father Trinquero.

Throughout the history of anthroposophy, most Catholic members have preferred to quietly practice their religious faith without widespread Society attention or notice. Moreover, they have generally preferred to keep these two areas of their lives separate, without making public efforts to unite or integrate them. There have been, of course, a few exceptions by some present-day anthroposophists who are favorably disposed to Catholicism. Prominent anthroposophical writers, Robert A. Powell (b.1947) and Christopher Bamford, for instance, have attempted to imitate the Catholic veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary by instituting the “Hermetic” celebration of the “Virgin Sophia”―the Holy Spirit of Wisdom.

Unfortunately, Powell, Bamford and other like-minded Catholic supporters within anthroposophy have been vocal champions of Valentin Tomberg, the controversial anthroposophical convert to Catholicism (please refer to Chapter 5 for more detail). Not surprisingly, then, those anthroposophists who regard Valentin Tomberg with suspicion and derision very often regard the Catholic-friendly “Tombergians” within anthroposophy with equal suspicion and wariness. Many members have also mistakenly concluded that all Catholic anthroposophists are Tomberg supporters; and this quite naturally raises questions about Catholic inclusion.

Clearly the lesson to be learned from the continuing Tombergian divisiveness is that efforts to interfuse and amalgamate anthroposophy and Catholicism (even well-intentioned efforts) are unhealthy, unproductive and mutually ruinous. Not just institutionally, but even within the sanctity of our own souls, it is vitally important to maintain a healthy autonomy between the religion of Catholicism and the (spiritual) science of anthroposophy. By doing so, these two crucial streams of Christian mystery-teaching will truly complement and elevate each other, now and into the future.

The Riddle of the Knights Templar

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Over the centuries, so much frivolous fantasy and fabrication has grown up around the Knights Templar which disregards the obvious fact that they were a Christian militaristic order—established and sanctioned by the Catholic Church—that was instituted in medieval times to protect pilgrims journeying to the Holy Lands. They were not a secret occult brotherhood that later morphed into Freemasonry in Scotland and elsewhere.

In an effort to provide some historical clarity on the Templars from an esoteric Christian perspective, the following article has been excerpted from my previously published book, The Son of Love and the Birth of the New Mysteries (2015), which is available from Amazon.com.

[“The Discovery of the True Cross” by Gustave Dore (1877)]

The Riddle of the Knights Templar

It is worth clarifying, at this point, the ever-popular misconception that the Knights Templar also functioned as an important esoteric conduit into medieval Europe for the vanishing mysteries of the ancient Middle East. As a Christian, monastic, military order officially endorsed by the Catholic Church at the Council of Troyes in 1129, the Templar mission was to provide protection to European pilgrims travelling at that time to Jerusalem and to the Holy Land. Templar knights were required to take the monastic vows of poverty, chastity, piety and obedience, and to strictly adhere to a detailed code of conduct known as the “Latin Rule” which was established by advocate St. Bernard of Clairvaux and founder Hugues de Payens.

Though the Templars certainly came into armed contact with militant Moslem brotherhoods such as the Order of Assassins, as a fervent and dedicated Christian order, they had no interest in becoming a secret repository for old pagan mystery knowledge. However, since the Order’s headquarters in Jerusalem was the captured Al Aqsa Mosque on Temple Mount, which was believed to be the ancient site of King Solomon’s temple, it was later rumoured that the Templars may have unearthed long-forgotten secrets of Solomon, or the Hebrew Ark of the Covenant or the sacred chalice of Christ-Jesus’ Passover meal.

Moreover, the lurid accounts of Templar knights worshiping a heathen idol called “Baphomet” (a mistranslation of “Mahomet” = Muhammad), or engaging in acts of sexual depravity, or conducting ceremonial blasphemy against the crucifix was entirely fallacious information obtained from knights under horrific duress by King Philip IV of France. The sinister king of France was heavily indebted to the Templar Order to help finance a protracted war for control of the English monarchy; so to avoid repayment and to seize their communal wealth, Philip arrested, tortured and executed innocent Templar knights, including the grand master of the order, Jacques de Molay. Philip also falsely arrested and expelled Jewish citizens from French territories in order to seize their assets as well.

When King Philip began to levy unfair taxes against the French clergy in order to continue financing his costly war, he was soundly condemned by Pope Boniface VIII. Whereupon, Philip abducted the pope by surprise retaliation in Italy and installed his own puppet pope, Clement V, in Poitiers, France. Under pressure from King Philip, Pope Clement ordered all Christian monarchs in Europe to arrest the Templars and to seize their assets. Further military threats by Philip forced Clement to officially dissolve the order in 1312 and to turn over most of their remaining assets to the Knights of St. John (also known as the Knights of Malta or the Knights Hospitallers).

While some Templars certainly found safe haven in Scotland and Switzerland, which were outside the sphere of papal influence at this time since both territories had been previously excommunicated, many knights simply joined other orders, particularly the equally powerful Order of St. John. The Templar Order in Portugal continued to survive with the assistance of King Denis by simply changing its name and re-instituting as the Military Order of Christ. Some Templars in other countries were arrested and tried, but never convicted. Some knights were even pensioned off and left to retire peacefully. Remarkably, a misplaced document was found in the Vatican Secret Archives in 2002 that records the trial of the Templars and the fact that before dissolving the order in 1312, Pope Clement in 1308 actually absolved the accused Templars of all heresies against them. Unfortunately, that did not prevent the corrupt Philip IV from burning alive at the stake Grand Master de Molay and Normandy Master de Charney in Paris on March 19, 1314.

Templars and Freemasonry

So any modern-day orders, particularly Masonic, claiming to have a Templar connection are clearly spurious. The Templars were a Catholic monastic order established in the Middle Ages to provide military protection for Christian pilgrims to the Holy Lands. This once-essential service is no longer required, and since the Order has been officially dissolved in its original form by the Church, there are no recognized Templar knights remaining today. Without official Catholic approval, any group or individual claiming to be Templar is simply bogus. Moreover, it would be interesting to know if any of these Masonic would-be Templars take strict monastic vows of poverty, chastity, piety and obedience; or faithfully abide by the 72 instructions of the Latin Rule.

Though some Masonic legends claim that Freemasonry was actually started by exiled Templars or that persecuted Templars took safety within certain Masonic orders (in Scotland, for example), such conjecture makes no logical sense whatsoever. Firstly, feudal brotherhoods of stonemasons were in existence long before the Order of Templars was endorsed by the Church in 1129; so the Templars certainly didn’t establish Freemasonry. Secondly, while it is possible that desperate Templars could have temporarily hidden out in the guarded lodges of stonemasons, it is more likely that as Christian warrior-monks they would have sought refuge in any number of sympathetic monastic orders in Europe at the time.

The idea, however, that there was close contact between Templars and stonemasons is certainly logical. Since the Templars established a network of stone temples, castles and fortifications stretching from Britain to Jerusalem, they obviously would have employed an army of talented stonemasons to do the necessary construction. But since one was a military monastic order and the other was a practicing guild of tradesmen, their only commonality was their Christian faith and loyalty to the Holy Church.

The only reason that de-Christianized Freemasonry includes degrees and orders of pseudo-Templarism is the mistaken mystique that the Templars were not dedicated and devout Christian military monks but deceitful purveyors and practitioners of ancient pagan mysteries. Since modern Freemasonry cloaks itself in secrecy and deceit, it quite naturally looks for these qualities in other brotherhoods.

Templars and the Holy Grail

The truth is that the Templars did uncover and safeguard certain sacred treasures that had been acquired in the Middle East; but these were sacred relics associated with Christianity, not fragments of old pagan mystery knowledge. The Templars were documented to have possessed a piece of the true wooden cross of Christ. Also, the mummified head that the Templars were falsely accused of worshiping was actually a relic that the Order was known to possess, the head of St. Euphemia of Chalcedon. Also, the recorded “confessions” of the tortured knights in Paris makes mention of the Order possessing a red, monochromatic, full-length image of a man on linen or cotton cloth. This was clearly a reference to the famous Shroud of Turin, since the first known public display of the shroud in 1357 was by the family of the grandson of Geoffrey de Charney, the unfortunate Templar who was burned at the stake with Grand Master de Molay in 1314.

On a much deeper esoteric level, the Templars did indeed unknowingly stumble across an essential aspect of the mystery of the Holy Grail. Through their intense devotion and enthusiastic fervour as faithful servants of Christ-Jesus, Templar knights were to passionately feel that their entire lives had been turned over to the Risen Saviour. When they thought, it was Christ-Jesus thinking in them; when they felt, it was Christ-Jesus feeling in them; when they acted, it was Christ-Jesus acting through them. Every breath they took was intimately felt to be Christ-Jesus breathing in them; the beating of their heart and the coursing of blood through their veins was experienced as the life of Christ-Jesus in their bodies. As described by Rudolf Steiner in a lecture on 2 October 1916:

The blood of the Templars belonged to Christ Jesus―each one of them knew this. Their blood belonged to nothing else on earth than to Christ Jesus. Every moment of their life was to be filled with the perpetual consciousness of how in their own soul there dwelt―in the words of St. Paul―”not I, but Christ in me”! And in bloody and severe combat, in devoted work such as the Crusades demanded, the Templars put into practice what they had spiritually undertaken to do … to establish more firmly in earth existence the impulse which came from the Mystery of Golgotha. (Published in The Knights Templar: The Mystery of the Warrior Monks; 2011)

By mystically uniting their own blood with the spiritualized blood of the resurrected Saviour in the etheric sphere of the earth, the Knights Templar inadvertently experienced a form of Christian initiation whereby they contacted the real presence of Christ-Jesus in the supernatural realm. By uniquely experiencing the “sangréal” (Spanish for ‘royal blood’) of Christ―the “san gréal” or ‘Holy Grail’―the Templar initiates actually reflected the egohood of Christ-Jesus in their souls; thereby releasing true supernatural light into the world. Once again, as described by Rudolf Steiner:

Something quite remarkable and powerful had thus entered into the circle of the Templar Order without their having known the rules of Christian initiation other than through sacrificial service … This experience of the Templars meant that the Mystery of Golgotha was understood, and also experienced, at a higher stage than before. Something was now present in the world with regard to the Mystery of Golgotha which was previously not there … These external deeds and the enthusiasm that lived in these deeds drew out the souls of the Templars so that these souls, being separated from the body, outside the body, lived with the spiritual progress of humanity and penetrated in soul and spirit the secrets of the Mystery of Golgotha. They then underwent many and deep experiences, and not for the individual soul alone but for all humanity. (Ibid.)

Tragically, however, in spite of its grandeur and sublimity, the unintentional and spontaneously generated initiation of the Templars caused them to become anomalies in progressive human development. Their accelerated esoteric advancement placed them outside the stream of exoteric Christianity to which they properly belonged; but their connection to the medieval Roman Catholic Church excluded them from the normal stream of esoteric Christianity as well.

The Templars, then, became a religious order without a spiritual home. Moreover, since their abnormally rapid attainment prematurely expanded their consciousness beyond the safe confines of the body, the Templars also unknowingly opened themselves to Luciferic assault. Due to his diabolic lust for gold and power, Philip IV became the eager agent of Luciferic powers who sought to destroy the Templars and thereby halt the influx of Christ-light that was pouring into the world through them.

Thankfully, in the great hall of cosmic justice, the cruelly-murdered Templar knights found fair and lawful recompense. Their premature deaths flooded the supernatural world closest to the earth with radiant Christ-light that illumined and inspired the Christian souls descending to birth into Renaissance Europe. Many an enlightened intellect during that period could trace the source of their brilliance to Jacques de Molay and to the Christ-filled Templars on the other side of the veil.

The “Unutterable” Mystery of the Abyss

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According to Rosicrucian initiate, Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), there are seven “inexpressible” or “unutterable” mysteries of life which previously have never been spoken of outside the ranks of the hidden, esoteric brotherhoods. It is only in our age that it has become possible to speak of them openly. One of these is the “Mystery of the Abyss.”

In order to clarify this “inexpressible” mystery, the following article has been taken from my book, The Star of Higher Knowledge: The Five Guiding Mysteries of Esoteric Christianity (2015), which is available from Amazon.com.

Supersensibly perceived, the actual point of death is when the etheric body, astral body and ego-bearing soul together sever all connection with, and permanently exit, the physical body. Once the etheric vehicle has sufficiently withdrawn, what generally occurs is a loss of consciousness; what is esoterically termed, the “soul-slumber.” As described by Yogi Ramacharaka in The Life Beyond Death (2010):

The soul leaving the physical body (in the ‘Astral body’) is plunged into a deep sleep or state of coma resembling the condition of the unborn child for several months before birth. It is being prepared for re-birth on the Astral Plane … This period of soul-slumber is like the existence of the babe in the mother’s womb―it sleeps that it may awaken into life and strength.

Not only is the soul slumber a time of rest and recuperation for a world-weary soul, but it also protects the unprepared soul from consciously experiencing some of the shattering events that occur relatively soon after death.

If full clairvoyant consciousness is present, as was the case with Christ-Jesus, immediately upon exiting the physical body there ominously appears before the discarnate soul a yawning chasm of nothingness that separates the sensory world left behind from the supersensible world yet beyond. This terrifying drop into seeming oblivion is esoterically termed, the “Great Abyss.”

Various ancient cultures were knowledgeable about the Great Abyss, and incorporated their understanding in mythological imagery. The ancient Greeks, for example, referred to this fearful boundary between the world of the living and the world of the dead (Hades) as the river Styx. They also believed that newly-departed souls needed to cross this perilous boundary in order to properly live in the afterworld. Also, in ancient Hindu mythology, what separated the earth from the realm of the dead (Naraka) was called the river Vaitarani. Only sinful souls were forced to cross this difficult and terrifying river. In Japanese Buddhist tradition, the dead needed to cross the river Sanzu to reach the afterlife. It was further believed that good souls could use a special bridge to cross the frightening Sanzu, while evil souls had to wade through deep, serpent-infested waters.

To modern-day esoteric understanding, the Great Abyss is simply the large sphere of etheric force and substance that surrounds and penetrates the earth; what can correctly be termed, the “planetary etheric vehicle.” Nevertheless, encountering this etheric region in an out-of-body condition can be a terrifying experience for the unprepared. Etheric substance is clairvoyantly characterized by extreme emptiness. It has a disturbing quality of being “emptier than space,” a sort of negative space. As such, this vacuum of etheric emptiness has a relentless, centripetal sucking action.

When this planetary region of etheric emptiness is encountered after death, or through initiatory development, it is a daunting confrontation―like standing at the precipice of a bottomless pit that is irresistibly drawing the soul in. Moreover, while the sphere of planetary ether that extends above the surface of the earth exudes warmth and light, the levels that extend into the subterranean regions of the earth are comprised of corrupted and debased etheric substance. To the esoteric investigator, electricity is light ether that has been corrupted by Luciferic activity; magnetism is chemical (sound) ether that has been corrupted by Ahrimanic activity; and nuclear energy is life ether that has been corrupted by asuric activity.

Not only does the Great Abyss draw the soul into it, then, but the subterranean ethers also have a strong tendency to pull the deceased’s etheric body downwards. As the various mythological stories indicate, an exemplary soul will predictably pass through (or “cross”) the planetary etheric void in their journey after death, while an evil soul will be drawn in and become tethered to the subterranean earth. Typically, the excarnate etheric body is sloughed off from the astral vehicle after several days, and then dispersed into the planetary and superplanetary ethers. In contrast, an etheric body hardened by immorality or drawn to the earth by strong passion (such as despair, revenge, lust or hatred) will not easily disintegrate, but may instead haunt or roam the earth as a ghostly “spectre” for many years.

Despite never having encountered the Great Abyss before, Christ-Jesus had no difficulty facing the void and passing through it. Similar to his physical levitations on water, crossing the Great Abyss was easily accomplished through the superplanetary forces of the indwelling Christ-ego hypostatically united to the Word and the Son. Moreover, by resolutely focusing on the golden light of the mystic star, attention was “directed to the Father” (that is, trained on his highest, spiritual nature), which provided an etheric sphere of protection around him. By floating in this “bubble zone,” Christ-Jesus was securely ferried to “the other side.”

[“The Temptation of Jesus” by James Tissot (1895)]

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