What follows has been pulled from the foundational Western esoteric books, as in those by Alice A. Bailey, Helena Blavatsky and Helena Roerich. These quotes are not all-inclusive, but relate to the United States in the present day. Topics are listed somewhat in alphabetical order. There is a key to the abbreviation at the beginning of the endnotes. [Bracketed] material, bolding and italics have been added by the compiler. But first, some history will outline what follows.
History, From Helena Roerich
Yes, in a certain epoch, in some countries there appears one or another envoy, who brings the message and benevolent help from the Stronghold of Knowledge, which are usually rejected. The East, once upon a time, understood how to accept these messages—of course, not always—but the Western nations were very stubborn in their rejection. Only once were the advices and help accepted by the so-called New World, precisely in the time of [George] Washington, at the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America. The result of this acceptance was the powerful development of the United States. Who knows, even at present, somewhere such help was offered, but in our age of deterioration and the reign of human madness, it was certainly rejected.
And so, let us be witnesses to the karma of rejection of the great help. If, in former ages, many decades sometimes were needed to reveal the consequences of such refection, nowadays dates are much shorter. Under the unprecedented acceleration of the cosmic influence of new combinations of the rays, all events acquire an entirely different tempo. So much has already happened, even in the course of the past year [1936]! Therefore, let the wise ponder upon events and look for causes in the past, and sometimes, in the very recent past. During a grave time one must think about new sowings of causes. Let us hope that enlightened minds will be found, who will arrest a total destruction by laying timely benevolent foundations.
In all ages the Elder Brothers rendered help to people, but the profound ignorance and intolerance that reigned in the ruling circles rejected the salvation of whole countries. Human egoism hates most of all those who are able to foresee, who know more than the self-satisfied ignoramuses. What a minute number of people really wish to learn; everyone is interested only in teaching others! But during all his life the wise one collects the honey of knowledge like a bee, gathering it through observing seemingly most insignificant circumstances. (LHR vol.2, 1937)
[Note: Roerich never mentions the Constitution of the United States, and in Alice Bailey’s books it is mentioned only in the context of blacks, which are termed ‘negroes’ in her books, as was the convention at the time. (See also the topic ‘Race Relations’, below)]
We also know that [George] Washington was advised by a mysterious professor, whose counsel he applied in life with historic success. At the time of America’s Declaration of Independence, when preparing to separate from England, a remarkable incident took place. During the proceedings at this historic convention there came a moment of hesitation and uncertainty. Suddenly, a tall stranger stepped out from amid the Assembly and delivered a fiery speech, which he ended with the words “Let America be free!” The enthusiasm of the Assembly was kindled, and the Declaration of Independence was signed. But when the delegates sought to greet the person who had helped them to make the great decision, the stranger had disappeared. Thus, through the whole of history is seen the Helping Hand of the Great Community of Light. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the Western Christian Church was aware of the existence of a mysterious Spiritual Abode in the heart of Asia headed by Prester John, as this great Spirit called himself. This Prester John[1] from time to time sent to the Popes and other heads of the Western Church admonishing and warning notes. We know as a historical fact that one of the Popes sent an embassy to Prester John in Central Asia. One can well imagine the purpose of such an embassy! And, of course, after diverse misfortunes and vicissitudes, this embassy returned, unable to find the Great Abode.
Yes, history knows a number of outstanding persons whose destiny it was to play an important role in the advancement of human evolution, who had previously visited this Stronghold of Great Knowledge. Thus, Paracelsus spent a certain period of time in one of the Ashrams of the Trans-Himalayan Stronghold, obtaining great knowledge. Later, Paracelsus wrote many volumes, but often he had to use the most obscure language in order to escape the persecution which in those times was powerfully directed against any illumined bearer of knowledge. Dreadful are the crimes of ignorance against knowledge!
Dark the pages of true history! Let us also not forget Cagliostro, who escaped execution only through the intercession of a mysterious stranger. When the latter appeared before the Pope at Rome the execution was stopped, and later Cagliostro disappeared from his prison. Let us also not forget our own H. P. Blavatsky, who was so slandered. She spent three years in one of the Ashrams of Tibet, and then returned to the world with great knowledge and resplendent evidence regarding the Mahatmas. Had there not been so much malice and envy around her, she would have written two more volumes of The Secret Doctrine, in which she would also have included an account of the lives of the Great Teachers. But people preferred to kill her, and her work remained unfinished. Thus history repeats itself, and that is how the karma of humanity is built. And so, do work on the path you have chosen, and the blessing of the Hierarchy of Light will be with you. But please take this advice—continue as wisely as you have started. (LHR vol.2, 12 Apr 1935)
From Blavatsky
Pure Anglo-Saxons hardly three hundred years ago, the Americans of the United States have already become a nation apart, and, owing to a strong admixture of various nationalities and inter-marriage, almost a race sui generis, not only mentally, but also physically. “Every mixed race, when uniform and settled, has been able to play the part of a primary race in fresh crossings,” says de Quatrefages. “Mankind, in its present state, has thus been formed, certainly, for the greatest part, by the successive crossing of a number of races at present undetermined.” (“The Human Species,” p. 274.) Thus the Americans have become in only three centuries a “primary race,” pro tem., before becoming a race apart, and strongly separated from all other now existing races. They are, in short, the germs of the Sixth sub-race, and in some few hundred years more, will become the coming new race, most decidedly the pioneers of that race which must succeed to the present European or fifth sub-race, in all its new characteristics. After this, in about 25,000 years, they will launch into preparations for the seventh sub-race… (SDII 444)
The formative energies of the United States
Ancient history: The United States of America was the centre of old Atlantis and hence inherited a psychic and ancient religious form which was existent and potently alive in that part of the world for many centuries. (DON 46)
The personality: Is ruled by Gemini and the 6th ray in its personality, speaking to divisions that lead to unity and “the fanatical adherence to an ideal which is responsible for the potent changes”. (DON 52)
If the idealism of the United States of America can be illumined by the law of love and not by personality self-expression, then the pattern which underlies the structure of the States may be seen in lines of light and we shall look for future racial light instead of the many separative national lines. At present it is the personality ray of the United States which controls. (DON 58)
This vast land is ruled by Gemini, linking it therefore closely with Great Britain and also by Aquarius as the ruler of its soul ray. This combination of a sixth ray personality, ruled by Gemini, and a second ray soul (as has Great Britain), ruled by Aquarius, is potent for future power and usefulness. The capital city, Washington, is ruled by Cancer and Sagittarius, and it is this fact which leads the United States to act like the Crab (Cancer) and be pre-occupied with its own house which it carries on its back and to vanish into hiding at the first signs of trouble. Because also the Sagittarian influence is strong, there is a potent determination to stick one-pointedly to any decision made. This its sixth ray personality enforces at times almost to the point of a fanatical blindness and to the detriment of the long range vision which is needed at such times as these. (DON 89)
A particular problem for the US personality: The problem of shifting idealism is great, as I have said, and the temptation is to hide behind the glamour of fighting for an ideal rather than react to world need, and omit to react to the ray of the soul which is the second ray of love. (DON 99)
The conflict in the United States is between a love of freedom which amounts almost to irresponsibility and license, and a growing humanitarian ideology which will result in world service and non-separateness. The rays of energy governing the United States are the 6th Ray of Idealism, which is the energy of the country's personality, and the 2nd Ray of Love-Wisdom, which governs the soul of the country. I would here point out to you that it is the soul ray of the United States which relates it to Great Britain. The sixth ray personality energy (at the present stage of unfoldment) produces an idealism which requires transmuting and changing from an idealism intensely preoccupied with the preservation of a high standard of living and physical comfort to an idealistic appreciation of the real spiritual values; these are at present veiled and hidden in the material philosophy of the country. The youthful interpretation of this idealism can be seen in the complete conviction of the American people that everything in the United States is better than anything anywhere else, in its willingness to tell all the world what should or should not be done, in its revolt from all controls, in its unthinking acceptance of any information which falls in with its preconceived ideas and prejudices; the mature aspect of American idealism leads its people to a prompt response to the good, the beautiful and the true, to the expression of an active humanitarianism and an invocative spiritual approach to reality.
It is interesting to note the unusual alignment of ray energies to be found at this time in the United States:
The energy of the soul...Ray of Love-Wisdom...Ray II
The energy of the personality...Ray of Idealism...Ray VI
The energy relating the two...Ray of Harmony through conflict...Ray IV
These Rays—2, 4, 6—are all on the second line of spiritual energy and lack all the stiffening and strengthening dualities of the first line of ray energy—l, 3, 5, 7—which are governed by Will or Power. The American civilisation, with all its clamour of youthful precocity, is in reality the heir of the passing sixth ray civilisation, the Piscean; therefore, you have here the reason for the tendency of the American people to adopt violently conditioning idealisms and ideologies. It is the idealistic tendency in conflict with pronounced materialistic trends of this particular modern era which will finally evoke the harmony which will liberate the spirit of America, which will reveal to its people that it is one world and which will enable the people of this land to harmonise with the rest of the world and draw forth the loving response of other nations. It is for this that the men of goodwill must work. (RI 630)
Ray 2 and the special relationship with the UK: Britain and the US are united via Gemini and the 2nd ray, hence their close tracking and the ‘special relationship’ between the two nations. (DON 54)
Ray 2 and wisdom: The US is said to carry the note of the wisdom aspect of the 2nd ray into the immediate future, however long that ‘immediate future’ may be. It is said to represent the ‘intuitive faculty’, instead of the hard, ruling energy of Britain. The US is likened to a feminine nation. (DON 55)
Rulers of DC: [The capital] Washington is ruled by Cancer (soul) and Sagittarius (personality). (DON 69)
Ruler of New York: The force expressing itself through the centre, New York, is the force of the sixth Ray of Devotion or Idealism. Hence the conflicts everywhere to be found between the varying ideologies, and the major conflict between those who stand for the great ideal of world unity brought about by a united effort of the Forces of Light, backed by the cooperative effort of all the democratic nations, [the UN] and the separative materialistic attitude of those who seek to keep the United States from assuming responsibilities and her rightful place in world affairs [Wall Street being representative]. This latter group, if they succeed in their endeavour, will deny the United States her share in the "gifts of the Gods in the coming age of peace which will succeed this point of critical suspension," as The Old Commentary phrases it.
The sixth Ray is either [Page 98] militant and active, or mystical, pacific and futile, and these two aspects at present condition the United States. The keynote of this world centre is "I light the WAY;" this is the privilege of the States if its people so choose and permit worldwide humanitarian, self-sacrifice (self-initiated) and a firm decision to stand by righteousness to govern their present attitudes and policies. This is slowly coming to pass and the selfish voices of blind idealists, the fearful and the separative are dying out. All this is happening under the inspiration of service, motivated by love. Thus the two major democracies [US and UK] can eventually restore world order, negate the old order of selfishness and aggression and usher in the new order of world understanding, world sharing and world peace. Peace will be the result of understanding and sharing, and not the origin of them, as the pacifists so often imply. (DON 98)
Shifting rays: I would remind you that we are in a period of shifting rays and that they change both for individuals and nations, for hemispheres and planets. All can move off a minor ray on to a major, if destiny decrees. A study of the above tabulation will give much light to the inter-human relation. Three great countries hold the destiny of humanity in their hands at this time: The United States of America, Great Britain and Russia. Great fusing, racial experiments are going on in all these lands; the rule of the people is being developed in all of them, though it is as yet in an embryonic stage. In Russia it is being retarded by a dictatorship which will shortly end; in the States by corrupt politics, and in Great Britain by ancient imperialistic tendencies. But democratic principles are being developed, if not controlling; religious unity is being established though it is not yet functioning, and all three countries are learning very rapidly, though the United States at present is learning the most slowly. (DON 101)
[Note the rays in manifestation (EPI 26)]:
Ray One---- Not in manifestation.
Ray Two---- In manifestation since 1575 A.D. [500 year cycle]
Ray Three-- In manifestation since 1425 A.D. [900 year cycle]
Ray Four--- To come slowly into manifestation after 2025 A.D.
Ray Five---- In manifestation since 1775 A.D. [350 year cycle, being withdrawn]
Ray Six- Passing rapidly out of manifestation. It began to pass out in 1625 A.D. [1500 year cycle]
Ray Seven-- In manifestation since 1675 A.D. [700 year cycle]
Further quotes from Roerich
Culture: Today, every country must think about the best ways of preserving its cultural treasures, and must, by no means, try to stop the activities which beautify the image of the nation and the country. These activities attract the attention of the whole world toward the possibilities of the cultural significance of America. Let us not conceal from ourselves that until now America has not been among the so-called leading cultural countries. America has been considered only from the standpoint of the dollar and mechanical civilization. And the formulae pronounced by an American official, whose words you have quoted, only prove the aforesaid. If we were to talk to such an official about the Banner of Peace and about the cultural activities of our organizations, he would sincerely wonder, “What is the use of bothering about such annoying and unnecessary things? But since they are so eager to concern themselves about culture, why do they not use their apparently not meager imagination and their knowledge of art for organizing something like a gambling club, and let us say, a movie theater with modern shows slightly risqué? It would be acceptable and pleasant and very profitable.” Such people will never be able to grasp the meaning of culture. How can they comprehend the historical significance of the union of the true representatives of culture, united under the Banner of Peace?
In his essay, N.K. has given a remarkable definition of culture. He says: “An ignorant person must become civilized first of all; then educated; then after education is acquired, a person becomes intelligent; then comes refinement and realization of synthesis, which is crowned by the acceptance of the idea of culture.”
Not a single narrow specialist, regardless of how high his professional skill, can be considered a cultural leader. Culture is synthesis; culture understands and knows the foundations of life and creativeness because it is the cult, or worship, or reverence of creative fire, which is life. But who has realized the foundations of life?
But the new events are coming, and a revaluation of values is predicted. Consciousness is growing and there is nothing that can stop this growth; this gigantic wave will overthrow everything in its way. There is safety only in finding oneself in the launch directed by the powerful Hand of a Pilot not of this world. All those who sit in the launch are advised not to push one another, not to change seats, not to lean overboard, and not to look back; instead, they should make every effort to ride with the rhythm of the speeding launch, which can no longer stop, even if someone falls overboard, for the salvation of the rest of the people depends just on this speed. Therefore, let us gather all the fire of our spirit and, with the understanding of all the danger of this time, let us increase the tempo of our work; let us rise in our thoughts, so that we can realize the majesty of events and of everything that is timely. Avoid an indifferent attitude toward details which may not seem important to you. Now, at this time, the least little detail should be considered, the least action should be cautiously started. Verily, light-mindedness in these days of extreme tension approaches treachery. It is especially difficult if the right moment is missed. (LHR vol. 1, 3 Jun 1931)
Medicines: My answer to your question about the significance of concentration upon the little finger was confirmed by the Teacher. Not wishing to give an incorrect interpretation I always verify my answers. To me personally it is entirely of no importance on what to concentrate in order to obtain certain results. Believe me, my dear friend, the entire pharmacy mentioned in many occult books is very harmful, because the development of each person is entirely individual. Even in the practice of medicine patent remedies are regarded by enlightened physicians as quite dangerous. In America frequent cases of dangerous poisoning from patent medicines have been disclosed. So much the more is caution needed in those methods which apply in dealing with the subtlest energies. But the coarseness of contemporary consciousness is amazing, and people attempt to approach the most subtle manifestations with an axe. (LHR vol. 2, preface)
Sixth Root Race: And now regarding your question about the Sixth Race. Yes, in many Theosophical books, even in The Secret Doctrine, we find the indication that the Sixth Race is gathering in America. But precisely in The Secret Doctrine I encountered a contradiction. In one place it is mentioned that it is in America that the sixth sub-race of the Fifth Race is commencing to be formed, while in another part it is given as the Sixth Race. Certainly, there is a vast difference between the concept of a sub-race and that of a root race. One should also take into consideration the possibility of a misprint. At the birth of America the majority of migrants belonged to the sixth and even the seventh sub-race of the Fifth Race. It is rather remarkable that no one pays any attention to the strange fact that almost nowhere in Theosophical literature is our country mentioned, as if a sixth part of the world had no place in the cosmic plan and in evolution. Almost no one asks, “Why is this and what is the reason for it?” I will answer, That which is secret is carefully guarded, and if it were announced prematurely that his country has a great future, it would be torn to pieces. Moreover, the Teaching of the Secret Doctrine would not have been accepted. As for the sixth Race, those single individuals who belong to it are indeed born in all countries, and at the proper time the majority of them will be assembled in the principal and safe place. Just as the seeds of the Fifth Race were saved, so, also, the seeds of the Sixth will be safeguarded. (LHR vol.2, 6 Jun 1936)
Stirring the soul of the nation: You have already received the call to battle and the command to attack as if the fire were raging behind you. We ask you not to delay in applying this command as, verily, there is fire behind you, and every wrong step or delay may burn you. Go forward—forward without looking back—because it is necessary to rescue from destruction all that can be saved. “Let them understand in America that the crisis in the country itself [1931] is nothing less than a battlefield.” There is no better possibility! The Teaching says that while the human spirit is in happy and comfortable harbors it will never awaken. Therefore, only in the days of shocks is it possible to expect spiritual ascent and the realization of true values. The threatening time will compel many to look for a way out and salvation. Try to be at your best, and connect yourselves with the great Focus without delay! Let nobody be deceived by apparent calmness, as it is very deceptive—such calmness may be more dangerous than a storm. (LHR vol.2, 17 Jun 1931)
Women: But the violated equilibrium has had such a terrible effect on the life of the whole planet that it is now in danger of destruction! And cosmic justice and goal-fitness once more come to the rescue by bringing forward more and more talented women. In the younger countries destined for evolution, one may observe the way in which woman expresses herself. Thus, in America, there are already women ministers, women diplomats, ambassadors, state governors, directors of the largest firms, aviators, lawyers who win the most complicated cases. Also, a trusted personal secretary of the President is a woman. Indeed, in America women are the main promoters of education and culture. Even most of the “wunderkinds” are to be found among little girls. All these are good omens of the coming epoch. (LHR vol. 6, Jun 1935)
Temple of the People
A warning: The deep, unprejudiced thinker of the present era can hardly fail to perceive the rapidity with which a large portion of the people of the United States, as well as other nations, are preparing the way for the overthrow of that for which the nation has stood since the commencement of its life as a nation, that is, individual Liberty, religious freedom, political freedom; and it is being done so subtly and secretly, under a mask of morality, righteousness and unselfishness, and done by the Judases whom the people themselves have raised to power, wealth and influence, and have so raised by the aid of the laws they have made. In their inception the plans for thwarting the will of the people are quietly, secretly formed; but their finished presentation to the public at large is accompanied by such a blare of trumpets, ringing of bells and fair speeches that the power of prevision in the people is obscured. All unperceived by them is the worm in the bud that is growing to unprecedented size and strength and will have eaten the heart of the fruit – individual Liberty – ere its ravages become evident to the naked eye. (TT 519)
Further quotes from Alice Bailey
Capitalism: …it is a rampant capitalism which makes the United States one of the most feared of the nations, plus her gestures of armed power; it is the fast dying imperialism which handicaps Great Britain and a clinging to responsibilities and territories which she is realizing could well be turned over to the United Nations; the hope of Great Britain lies in her socialistic tendencies which enable her to take the "middle path" between the communism of Russia and the capitalism of the United States. It is the smug greed of the nations which escaped the war which is hindering progress; it is the devious actions of the Jews and the hatred which they cultivate which tend also to undermine the hope of peace; it is the chaos in India and China which is complicating the work of the well-intentioned; it is the unchristian and undemocratic treatment of the Negro peoples in the United States and Africa which is contributing to the ferment; it is the blind inertness and lack of interest of the masses of the people which permit the wrong men to be in power; it is fear of the rest of the world which makes the Russian leaders keep their peoples in ignorance of the attitude of other nations on world affairs; it is the wrong use of money which colours the press and the radio in Great Britain and still more in the United States, thus keeping much of the truth from the people; it is the upheaval of labour everywhere which feeds the turmoil and forces unnecessary suffering upon the public; it is powerful, political and international distrust, lying propaganda and the apathy of the churches which still further complicate the problem. It is—above all else—the refusal of that public to face life as it is and to recognize the facts for what they are. The mass of men need arousing to see that good comes to all men alike and not just to a few privileged groups, and to learn also that "hatred ceases not by hatred but that hatred ceases by love". This love is not a sentiment, but practical goodwill, expressing itself through individuals, in communities and among nations. (PH 173)
If the United States can equally renounce its gross materialism, it can give a lead to the world along spiritual lines which will be beyond anything yet demonstrated and, aided by Great Britain, the two great democracies, expressing right human relations and the fellowship of man, can do great things for the race. Great Britain is learning a sense of values, and being drawn away from materialism through great privation; it is hoped that she will consciously renounce materialism.
I would like to remind you here that the spiritual Hierarchy of our planet cares not whether a man is a democrat, a socialist or a communist, or whether he is a Catholic, a Buddhist, or an unbeliever of any kind. It cares only that humanity—as a whole—avail itself of spiritual opportunity. It is an opportunity which is present today in a more compelling way than ever before. (RI 748)
The United States and London are ruled by Gemini and therefore it is in that country and Great Britain that the great conflict between capital and labour will be solved; two groups which involve the interests of the very rich and the very poor. (UA 12)
There may be an aristocracy of birth in Great Britain but in the United States there is an aristocracy of money equally as distinctive, exclusive, and rigid in its barriers. Who shall settle the quarrel, which is best or which worst? (UA 102)
The capitalistic spirit and the latent fascism of the United States are at this time a definite menace to world peace, and the capitalists are blocking the efforts of the men of goodwill. Great Britain is at present impotent, financially ruined, her old imperialistic policies entirely in the discard, and her people discouraged: she is therefore so preoccupied with the struggle to live (and she will live) that there is little time, interest or energy left to make the vision true. There is, as you know, always a correspondence between the individual man and the world of men as a whole. Just as today practically every human being has something wrong with him physically—eyes, ears, teeth or bodily ills of some nature—so humanity is sick and awaiting healing. (EH 662)
Russia would gladly train the world in the ideals of communism, [This is no longer the case] and would gather all the money in the world into the coffers of the proletariat, eventually producing the greatest capitalistic system the world has ever seen. Great Britain would gladly train the world in the British concepts of justice and fair play and world trade, and would do it more cleverly than any other nation because of vast experience. The United States would also gladly undertake to force the American brand of democracy upon the world, using her vast capital and resources in so doing, and gathering into her banks the financial results of her wide-spread financial dealings, preserving them safely by the threat of the atomic bomb and the shaking of the mailed fist over the rest of the world. France will keep Europe in a state of unrest as she seeks to regain her lost prestige and garner all she can from the victory of the other allied nations. Thus, my brother, the story goes—each nation fighting for itself and rating each other in terms of resources and finance. In the meantime, humanity starves, remains uneducated, is brought up on false values and the wrong use of money; until these things are being righted, the return of the Christ is not possible.
In the face of this disturbing financial situation, what is the answer to the problem? There are men and women to be found in every land, every government, every church and religion, and every educational foundation who have the answer. What hope is there for them and for the work with which they have been entrusted? How can the people of the world, the men of goodwill and of spiritual vision help? Is there anything they can do to change the thinking of the world in regard to money, and to deflect it into channels where it will be rightly used? The answer lies within these people themselves. (ExH 627)
Like all young people, symbolically speaking, the people of the United States show all the characteristics of adolescence. Again, symbolically speaking, the people of the United States are of the ages seventeen to twenty four. They shout freedom and still are not free; they refuse to be told what to do because it infringes upon their rights, nevertheless they allow themselves to be guided frequently by the inept, the partisan politician and by the inadequate; they are broadly tolerant and yet most intolerant of other nations; they are ready to tell other nations how to handle their problems but as yet evidence no ability to handle their own, as witness the treatment of the American Negroes and the withholding of equal freedom and opportunity from them. They are restlessly experimenting with all phases of life, with every kind of idea and all kinds of relationships. The creative power of the race shows itself as yet in a wonderful control of nature and in great construction projects which bring water under control, or which relate all parts of this vast country through roads and waterways. America is a great battleground for experiment along creative lines; it is profoundly interested in trying out every kind of ideology. The fight between capital and labour will reach its climax in the United States, but will also be fought out in Great Britain and France. Russia already has her own solution but the lesser nations of the world will be guided and conditioned by the result of this battle in the British Commonwealth of Nations and in the United States.
Order must be brought about in the States and this order will come when freedom is interpreted in terms of self-chosen discipline; a freedom which can turn into license and which is interpreted by each individual in the best interests of himself constitutes a danger to be avoided. It is a danger of which the best minds are deeply aware.
Like all young people, Americans feel superior to more mature fellow nations; they are apt to think that they have a higher idealism, a saner outlook and a greater love of freedom than other nations; they are apt to forget that though there may be some backward nations, there are many nations in the world with as high an idealism, as sound a body of motives, and with a more mature and experienced approach to world problems. Again, like all young people, the American is intensely critical of other people, but often blind to and always resentful of criticism. Yet there is as much to criticize in America as there is in any other nation; all nations have a vast housecleaning to do, and the difficulty at this time is that they must do it alongside of the strict fulfilling of their international relationships. No nation can live unto itself today. If it attempts to do so it treads the way of death and that is the true horror of the isolationist position. Factually today we have one world and this sums up the psychological problem of humanity. The goal is right human relations; nations will stand or fall just in so far as they measure up to that vision. The era ahead of us—under evolutionary law and the will of God—is to see the establishment of right human relations. (PH 26)
The country which is the most free from selfishness today is Great Britain; she is experienced, old, and therefore mature in her thinking; she has learnt much in a relatively short time and her judgment is sound. The most [Page 429] selfish country in the world today is France, with the United States (though along totally different lines) running her a close second; both are materially selfish and capitalistically engrossed. Russia is also selfish but it is the selfishness of a fanatical ideal, held by an immature, a too young a people. The selfishness of the United States is also due to youth, but it will eventually yield to experience and to suffering; there is—fortunately for the soul of this great people—much suffering in store for the United States. (RI 429)
National chakras/centres: In connection with the United States of America, Chicago is the solar plexus centre, whilst New York is the throat centre and Washington the head centre. The heart centre is Los Angeles. (ExH 85)
The Constitution: Under the constitution of the United States, all men are regarded as free and equal; the Negro, however, is not free or equal, particularly in the southern states. The situation in the West Indies more closely resembles that in the northern states, where conditions are somewhat better but where there is still no equality of opportunity and much racial discrimination. The treatment of the Negro in the southern states is a blot upon the country; there the fight is to keep the Negro consistently down, to refuse him equality of education and of opportunity, to keep his standard of living at the lowest possible level and well below that of the white, to refuse him political recognition and, in a democratic country where all men are entitled to vote, he is prevented from sharing in this constitutional privilege. In the northern states these conditions do not exist to the same extent, but the Negro is steadily discriminated against, is refused equal opportunity and has to fight for every privilege. A few corrupt and ignorant senators consistently outrage the good intentions of the mass of American people by perpetuating these evil conditions and fighting by every possible means to prevent their being changed; they play upon the fears of their constituents and block every move made to bring about a better and cleaner situation which would be in line with the constitution. These shortsighted politicians attempt to sidetrack the issue and throw dust in the eyes of their constituents by fighting for the freedom of distant small nations in Europe; at the same time they steadily defy their own constitution by refusing freedom and liberty to the Negroes of their own country. For their attitude and conduct there is today no possible excuse. It remains a mystery in the minds of other enlightened nations why the broad-minded people of the United States—vociferous in their demand for their own personal freedom and insistent upon the defense of the constitution—permit this condition to exist and perpetuate in office these men who bring about a constant infringement of the constitutional rights of American citizens. (PH 112)
On the other hand, the much vaunted democracies have much to learn. Men are not truly free, even in democratic countries; the Negroes, for instance, lack their constitutional rights in parts of the United States; and in South Africa, their educational facilities and their opportunity to work and live as free men are not equal to those of the white race; in the southern states, the Constitution of the United States is infringed every day by those who believe in white supremacy—a supremacy which will be put to a crucial test when Africa awakes. This attitude of the United States and their failure to live up to the Constitution where Negroes are concerned, have greatly weakened the faith of other countries in the wonder of America, and the situation in South Africa is not honoured by thinking men. I mention these two situations because there is widespread evil even in the democracies; a true house cleaning is sorely needed. (RI 746)
The Declaration of Independence: There have been in the history of the past two thousand years, four great symbolic happenings which have sequentially presented (to those who have eyes to see, ears to hear and minds to interpret) the theme of liberation—and not simply of liberty.
1. The life of Christ Himself. He, for the first time, presented the idea of the sacrifice of the unit, consciously and deliberately offered for the service of the whole. There had been other World Saviours, but the issues involved had not so clearly been expressed, because the mind of man had not been ready to grasp the implications. Service is the keynote of liberation. Christ was the ideal Server.
2. The signing of the Magna Charta. This document was signed at Runnymede, during the reign of King John on June 15th, 1215, A.D. Here the idea of liberation from authority was presented with the emphasis upon the personal liberty and rights of the individual. The growth and development of this basic idea, mental concept and formulated perception falls into four phases or chapters:
a. The signing of the Magna Charta, emphasising personal liberty.
b. The founding of the French Republic with its emphasis upon human liberty.
c. The Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights, determining national policy.
d. The Atlantic Charter and the Four Freedoms, bringing the whole question into the international field, and guaranteeing to men and women everywhere in the world liberty and freedom to develop the divine reality within themselves.
The ideal has gradually become clarified so that today the mass of men everywhere know what are the basic essentials of happiness.
3. The Emancipation of the Slaves. The spiritual idea of human liberty, which had become a recognised ideal, became a demanding desire, and a great symbolic happening took place—the slaves were freed. Like all things which human beings enact, perfection is nonexistent. The Negro is not free in this land of the free, and America will have to clean house in this respect; to put it in clear concise words, the U.S.A. must see to it that the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are facts and not a dream. Only thus can the inevitable working of the Law of Karma (which is our theme today) be offset. The Negroes are Americans, as well as the New Englanders and all other stocks which are not indigenous in this country, and the Constitution is theirs also. As yet the privileges it confers are withheld by those who are the slaves of selfishness and fear.
4. The Liberation of Humanity by the United Nations. We are participating in a great spectacular and symbolic happening and are watching it in process. The liberation of the individual has moved onward through the symbolic liberation of a section of humanity (the remnants of the first two races, the Lemurian and the Atlantean) to the liberation of millions of human beings, enslaved by the forces of evil, by millions of their fellow men. The ideal has worked through into a practical worldwide effort upon the physical plane and has demanded worldwide sacrifice. It has involved the entire three worlds of human evolution, and for this reason the Christ can now lead His forces and aid human beings to liberate mankind. (EH 261)
Evil: Forget not that the Forces of Evil are still powerful, particularly on the physical plane, and that there are many channels through which they can work. Germany is defeated, but is still capable of a final effort of destructiveness and violence. Japan is well on the way to defeat, but is still powerful. The hierarchy of evil on the inner side is being pushed back by the Forces of Light, but its grip on humanity has not relaxed. It is through ignorance that these forces can still attain much power—the ignorance of humanity itself. Nations and people are still ignorant of the true nature of each other; the world is full of distrust and suspicion. Humanity as a whole knows little about Russia, for instance. The true significance of its ideology is misunderstood because of the initial mistakes of those who engineered the revolution; the license of unruly men in the early days gave onlooking humanity a wrong slant on what was happening.
But those days are over. In the fires of suffering and through deepened understanding, this great and composite nation will advance towards a demonstration of brotherhood which may yet set an example to the entire world. China needs a full literacy; her citizens as a whole know nothing of other nations; on a higher turn of the spiral, that educational supremacy which distinguished an oligarchy of learning in the days of China's ancient glory will again distinguish the masses of her people. The great continent of Europe and the British peoples are still unaware of the real significance of the Western hemisphere and of the United States—with its exuberant youthfulness. They find it as irritating as their deeper maturity and wide experience proves irritating to Americans. Americans, both in the northern and in the southern hemispheres, are still basically ignorant of the history of the nations from which they spring, because they have laid the emphasis upon their relatively brief history and have been brought up on a biased and oft prejudiced picture of European culture and of British aims. This ignorance throughout the world plays right into the hands of the Forces of Evil and—beaten as they now are on the physical plane—they will give more violent battle to world goodwill on the planes of emotional decision, and on mental levels to those ideologies which are of benefit to the whole of humanity.
Physical plane methods having resulted only in the complete devastation of Europe and in casualties which (if civilian men, women and children are included) amount to untold millions, the forces of evil will now endeavour to utilise the character of humanity as a whole (at its present total point of development) to hinder the Forces of Light, prevent the attainment of world tranquillity and world understanding, and thus delay the day of their own final defeat. This defeat, when accomplished, must include the three worlds of human evolution—mental, emotional and physical. For long these evil forces have used psychology in order to reach the ends they had in view, and have used it with amazing success; they are still using it, and can be depended upon to employ its methods to the uttermost. They use the press and the radio in order to distort human thinking; they present half-truths, impute false motives, rake up past grievances, foretell (with foreboding) imminent difficulties; they foster ancient prejudices and hatreds, and emphasise religious and national differences. In spite of much shouting, demanding and proposed organisation, there is no truly free press anywhere; particularly is it absent in the United States, where parties and publishers dictate newspaper policies.
The main reason why there is no really free press is based on two factors: first, the fact that humanity is not yet free from its predetermined reasonings, its basic ignorances of factual history, or of nations and their psychology; humanity is still controlled by racial and national bias and by prejudice. Secondly, the fact that all this is nurtured and kept alive by the forces of evil, working upon the inner side of human affairs and dealing mainly with the psychological angle because it is so exceedingly potent. This they will increasingly do as this planetary war draws to a close; they will seek to offset the work of the Hierarchy, to hamper the activities of the New Group of World Servers and to cloud the issues involved to such a degree that the men of goodwill everywhere will be bewildered and will fail to see the clear outlines of the factual situation or distinguish between what is true and what is false. Forget not, the forces of evil are exceedingly clever. (ExH 452/3)
Faults: The economic situation also provides a symbol of this condition. The nations divide themselves into the "Haves" and the "Have Nots," and thus bring in the present era of gangsterism. Organised gangs in the United States came into being as an expression of these tendencies in national life. In the international world, three nations are now playing the same part. The allied nations and the United States are recognising the menace of national and international gangsterism and are endeavouring to crush it. But—and this is the point of importance—these conditions have been made possible by humanity as a whole. (ExH 182)
Every nation has its outstanding faults and of these the other nations are more conscious than of the virtues. The livingness of America is forgotten in the irritation evoked by our bombastic boasting. The inherent justice of the British is overlooked when the Britisher is seen refusing to explain himself. The brilliance of the French intellect is not emphasised by those who are aware of France's complete lack of any international consciousness. And today the U.S.A. with its youthful exuberance, its promising surety, and its juvenile ability to settle all problems, their own and the rest of the world, is working out that inheritance towards a future of wonder and usefulness and beauty unparalleled.
The same criticisms and the same recognitions of virtue could be posited for all and every nation and it is the same with people. (UA 146)
In the United States, this fourth energy is peculiarly active, because of the conflict of races, nations, ideas, political theories, immature development, corrupt politics, and childish selfishness; this is more prevalent among the leaders in the municipalities and in politics than it is among the masses of little people in every state, who are basically sound though easily misled by their so-called leaders; the southern states are, however, almost unbelievably degenerated and deluded. Remember always, as we look at these various nations dispassionately, that we are concerned with the same trends and ideas which are to be found in each individual aspirant—the conflict of ingrained personality habits and thoughts and faults, with a steadily increasing soul pressure. The United States, though one of the younger nations, is—owing to the many racial types represented—one of the oldest; this curious balancing must inevitably lead to a rapid development, with a consequent assumption of power, a growing incentive to love and a shouldering of responsibility.
The thing we have to develop in the world today is the world citizen and bring to an end this crude nationalism which has been the source of so much world hate. I know nothing more pernicious than the slogan "America for the Americans." I know nothing more insular than the habit of the British to regard all others as foreigners, or the belief of the French that the French are the leaders in all civilised movements. All that sort of thing has to go. I find the same people in the many countries in which I have lived. Some countries may be more physically comfortable than others but the humanity in that country is the same. (UA 219)
Health: In the consideration of racial and national diseases, I do not intend to point out that tuberculosis is distinctively a disease of the middle classes in every country, that diabetes is a major trouble among the rice-eating peoples of the world, and that cancer is rampant in Great Britain, whilst heart disease is a prime cause of death in the United States. Such generalisations are both as true and as false as statistics usually are, and nothing is gained by labouring these points. These difficulties will all be offset in due time through the growth of understanding, by the intuitive diagnosis of disease, and by the magnificent work of scientific and academic medicine, plus a truer comprehension of right living conditions. (EH 250)
International relations:
Is fusing the nationals of many nations into one federated state with many subsidiary states (DON 51)
The United States will therefore represent a fusion of races, with the Anglo-Saxon element dominating. (EPI 387)
Is “spiritually and intimately associated — in its form aspect — with Brazil, Russia and Italy; hence the early influx of certain types of emigrants into the country and hence also the pull of the South American countries upon the American consciousness, and the growth (rightly or wrongly) of the ideal of Pan-America.” (DON 56)
The United States must not forget either that she is a section of the entire European continent transplanted across the ocean and that European history, successes, mistakes and sins are here also — a thing that many people are very apt to do, thus shifting responsibility. (DON 77)
There is a much closer relation between the United States of America and Great Britain than between any continental power, for Gemini is the ruling sign of both countries, and they have, in many ways, a synchronous vibration. There is however little of the Taurian influence in the States and consequently you have the attitude of frequent misunderstanding which exists between the two powers. They are very close to each other and the welfare of each means much to each of them, so much so that the tendency to misinterpretation of each other's actions and motives is not aided by the fluidity of Gemini. Nevertheless, the arrogance and self-will of the Bull must give way to the fluid understanding of the inclusive Gemini consciousness, and this is a hard thing for the British temperament at this time to grasp. They are so sure of their rectitude and so convinced of their wisdom that they are apt to forget that good intentions are oft offset by bad methods. The British are just and wise, but their self-sufficient technique and their blindness to other peoples' point of view has not aided world peace and is indicative of the control of Taurus. I would add here that the belief of the German race that they constitute the super-race, the intense nationalism of the French which leads them to feel that they have a superior culture to any other race, the sure pride of the British which leads them to regard themselves as eternally in the right, and the noisy self assertion of the United States which leads them to regard their country as the hope of the world have in reality little to choose between them and are all equally indicative of personality control. This is, as you know, a thing to be overcome in all nations and individuals. (DON 82)
Thus the influences pouring into the United States today are very many; they relate the country practically to every country in Europe; this leads at times to chaotic conditions and to much confusion of thought. Yet it produces a richness in the national life which is a good augury for the future. A study of what I have said and a consideration of the various tabulations will prove how utterly impossible it is for the American people to dissociate themselves from Europe and the rest of the world. (DON 92)
Israel (see Zionism)
Isolationism: [This was more so in the past, prior to the World Wars. Now the problem is interventionism, but the tendency to isolationism is still there.]
This isolationist spirit was one of the dangers to which the neutral powers were at one time prone, particularly the United States, and the physical warning as to this danger was given to them in the magnetic storms which severed contact between them and Europe and dislocated their relationship between states within America itself. (DON 65)
The work of the Hierarchy is handicapped by the attitudes of men with no perspective and much selfishness, of no cruelty but of stupid thinking. These men—in the houses of legislature in the various United Nations, in Parliament, in Congress, and in the churches—plead for the cessation of the war before victory is won and before the enemies of humanity are beaten to their knees in supplication for mercy and in a demand for peace. They see the end of business as they have known it; they see the familiar landmarks of their comfortable world disappearing; they dislike the results of the war as it affects them; or they cannot bear the general suffering and prompted by pity they demand an immediate peace. Others are prompted by isolationism and the desire to withdraw from participation in the misery of war; others hate those whose duty it is to carry the war to a successful climax, or see their particular ambitions threatened by the conditionings of a changing world. They would sacrifice future generations, as I have said above, to their short-sighted policy and feeble judgment. They spread disunity, therefore, and shackle the hands of those administering in high places. Their efforts prolong the war, dishearten the fighting forces, break down national and military morale, and lay a poor foundation for the work of the post-war world. There are many of these in every nation, there are too many in the United States of America; there are none in the U.S.S.R., and hence her triumphant march forward. (ExH 427)
The intense isolationism and the "hands off" policy of certain groups in the United States, the demand for a white Australia or South Africa, the cry of "America for the Americans", or British Imperialism, the shouting of France for recognition, are other instances. They all indicate inability to think in larger terms; they are an expression of world irresponsibility; they indicate also the childishness of the race which fails to grasp the extent of the whole of which each nation is a part. War and the constant demand for territorial boundaries, based on ancient history, the holding on to material, national possessions at the expense of other people will seem some day to a more mature race of men like nursery quarrels over some favourite toy. The challenging cry of "This is mine" will some day no longer be heard. In the meantime, this aggressive, immature spirit culminated in the war of 1914-1945. A thousand years hence, history will regard this as the acme of childish selfishness, started by grasping children who could not be stopped in their aggressive ways because the other nations were still too childish to take strong action when the first indications of the war were seen. (PH 13)
Money/finances: …for the citizen of the United States values money only for the effects on his life which it can bring and for what it makes possible. Hence also the rapid response of the American continent to every form of idealism, to the need of others, even of its enemies, to compassion for all suffering and to a pronounced progress towards a well-defined humanitarianism. This they may call the democratic ideal but it is in truth something which grows out of and eventually supersedes democracy—the ideal of spiritual government—a government by the highest and the most spiritual to be found in the land. Hence also their unrealised esoteric motto: "I light the Way." (DON 60)
This is key to the present world order and the results it has produced: “The motives of the United States are very mixed motives: greed of money or its equivalent, such as oil, and at the same time sincerely good intentions for the establishment of human freedom in a democratic world—modelled, of course, on American democracy. Other motives are an appreciation of the armed fist and, at the same time, a longing for economic sharing and for that essential kindness which is such a strong American characteristic—a mass characteristic. These mixed motives will produce eventually a very confused world, one in which it will be found that humanity has learned very little as the result of the World War (1914-1945) and is acquiescent to the cycle of well-intentioned money control.” (ExH 638)
The People awakening: Relating to the gradually awakening soul of humanity en masse: “The growing recognition by those in authority that the man in the street is becoming a factor in world affairs. He is reached on all sides by the press and the radio, and is today intelligent enough and interested enough to be making the attempt to form his own opinions and come to his own conclusions. This is embryonic as yet, but the indications of his effort are undoubtedly there; hence the press and radio control which is found in all countries in some form or another, for there can never be any permanent evasion of the hierarchical structure which underlies our planetary life. This control falls into two major categories:
Financial control, as in the United States.
Government control, as in Europe and Great Britain.
The people are told just what is good for them; reservations and secret diplomacy colour the relation of the government to the masses, and the helplessness of the man in the street (in the face of authorities in the realm of politics, conditioning decisions such as war or peace, and theological impositions, as well as economic attitudes) is still pitiful, though not so great and so drastic as it was. The soul of humanity is awakening and the present situations may be regarded as temporary.” (ENA 107)
Great Britain is at the point of emergence from the nationalistic thoughtform; the United States and Russia are arriving—the first at the point of tension where the concept is concerned, and the other at the point of crisis. (RI 624)
The influence of Mercury as it relates Scorpio and Gemini is to inaugurate that final stage in consciousness which will place the soul within the form surely in the place of power, swinging the earlier achieved balance and control definitely into the realm of the soul. It is this which, in the Scorpio experience, produces the terrific experience of the disciple and which, at this time, is one of the predisposing causes of the present world conflict. It is of interest to note that the struggle is going to be conditioned primarily by decisions arrived at in London (which is ruled by Gemini) and in the United States (which is also governed by Gemini). Humanity is now upon the Path of Discipleship as I have frequently told you and Scorpio rules that path; Gemini governs the way of many changes which conditions the struggle which began in Aries, focussed in Cancer, is brought to a crisis in Scorpio and ended in Capricorn. When Gemini, Scorpio and Mercury are correctly related we shall see the United States moving also on to the Path of Discipleship through a release from its present self-centred policy, its well-meaning evasion of responsibility and its innate fears and distrust. When the focus of the power in London is also rightly oriented and is released into increased effectiveness by drastic purification of motive, then the united effect of both these clarifications will be human liberation. These facts are being slowly realised in London, ahead of the realisation which is more slowly awakening in the States. (EA 361)
A man born in Central Russia, for instance, knows nothing but Communism; he cannot imagine another suitable form of government; again, a man born in the United States or in Great Britain boasts and is pleased that he was born in a democracy, but the accident of birth accounts largely for his attitude. Men need to remember these things and not blame each other for the place in which they are born! (RI 744)
True Democracy is as yet unknown; it awaits the time when an educated and enlightened public opinion will bring it to power; towards that spiritual event, mankind is hastening. The battle of Democracy will be fought out in the United States. There the people at present vote and organise their government on a personality basis and not from any spiritual or intelligent conviction. There is a material, selfish aspect to Democracy (rampant today), and there is a spiritual aspect, little sought after; there are material and spiritual aspects to Communism, but its adherents know them not, and only a ruthless materialism is conveyed to them.
There is again the ideology of Socialism which is regarded [Page 747] by some as a basic evil. Socialism can degenerate into another form of totalitarianism, or it can be more democratic than the present expressions of Democracy. These issues will emerge clearly in Great Britain, where the socialist point of view is gaining ground among the masses, but which at present is a mixture of nationalisation of the public utilities and of free enterprise—a combination which may have true value, if preserved. (RI 747)
It could be noted also that the emotional pattern of the United States at this time is expressed in terms of sentiment and of personal desire. It is capable of being translated in terms of true benevolence. The mental pattern for the States is to be seen as mass information through the schools, the radio and the newspapers. Later this can be transmuted into intuitive perception. The soul pattern in the States today works out through the acquisitiveness of the nation and its love of possessions which it attracts to itself through the misuse of the law of love. The eventual expression of this will be the changing of the attitude which loves the material into that which loves the real, and the acquisition of the things of the spirit instead of those of the form. (EP I 393)
…human beings everywhere are searching for spiritual release and truth, and that the truly religious spirit is more fundamentally alive than at any previous time. This is especially true of those countries which have suffered the most in the late world war (1914-1945). Countries, such as the United States and the neutral countries show, as yet, no sign of any real spiritual revival. The other countries are spiritually alive—not along orthodox lines but in a true search and a vital demand for light. (RC 137)
Race relations: The Negro cannot be discriminated against for all time; he cannot be asked to defend his country and then have his country refuse him the ordinary rights of citizenship. Public opinion is on the side of the Negro and there is a steadily growing determination among the white citizens of the western hemisphere that he be given his constitutional rights, equal commercial and business opportunities, equal educational facilities and equally good living conditions. It is for the people of America to speak with a clear voice and demand that Negroes be given their just rights. Every white American should shoulder his responsibility for this minority and study the Negro problem; he should learn to know the Negro personally as a friend and a brother; he should see to it that he plays his part in changing the present condition. (PH 116)
On the other hand, the much vaunted democracies have much to learn. Men are not truly free, even in democratic countries; the Negroes, for instance, lack their constitutional rights in parts of the United States; and in South Africa, their educational facilities and their opportunity to work and live as free men are not equal to those of the white race; in the southern states, the Constitution of the United States is infringed every day by those who believe in white supremacy—a supremacy which will be put to a crucial test when Africa awakes. This attitude of the United States and their failure to live up to the Constitution where Negroes are concerned, have greatly weakened the faith of other countries in the wonder of America, and the situation in South Africa is not honoured by thinking men. I mention these two situations because there is widespread evil even in the democracies; a true house cleaning is sorely needed. (RI 746)
Rays incoming: The third effect of the coming in of this [seventh] ray is one that may at first repel—it will cause a great destruction in the animal kingdom. During the next few hundred years many of the old animal forms will die out and become extinct. To supply the wants of man, through disease, and through causes latent in the animal kingdom itself, much destruction will be brought about. It must ever be borne in mind that a building force is likewise a destroying one, and new forms for the animal evolution are, at this time, one of the recognized needs. The immense slaughter in America is part of the working out of the plan. The inner life or fire which animates the animal groups, and which is the life expression of an Entity, will, under this seventh influence, blaze up and burn out the old, and permit the escape of the life, to newer and better forms. (TCF 465)
The Reappearance: The work of Christ in relation to the war has also been handicapped by the commercially minded in all nations, particularly in the neutral countries, who have profited by the war, as well as by "big business" interests in many lands. These are focussed at this time through certain monied groups in every powerful nation, particularly in the United States. He has been hindered also by those individuals who seek to exploit the plight of suffering humanity to their own financial advantage. (ExH 478)
One of the English Masters has in hand the definite guidance of the Anglo-Saxon peoples towards a joint destiny. The future for the Anglo-Saxon is great and not yet has the highest flow of the tide of its civilisation been reached. History holds much glory for England and America when they work together for world good, not supplanting each other or interfering with each other's empire but working in the fullest unison for the preservation of the peace of the world and the right handling of world problems in the field of economics and of education. (ExH 507)
The Master Who concerns Himself especially with the future development of racial affairs in Europe, and with the mental outgrowth in America and Australia, is the Master Rakoczi. He is a Hungarian, and has a home in the Carpathian mountains, and was at one time a well-known figure at the Hungarian Court. Reference to Him can be found in old historical books, and He was particularly before the public eye when he was the Comte de St. Germain, and earlier still when he was both Roger Bacon and later, Francis Bacon. It is interesting to note that as the Master R. takes hold, on the inner planes, of affairs in Europe, His name as Francis Bacon is coming before the public eye in the Bacon-Shakespeare controversy. He is rather a small, spare man, with pointed black beard, and smooth black hair, and does not take as many pupils as do the Masters previously mentioned. He is at present handling the majority of the third ray pupils in the occident in conjunction with the Master Hilarion. The Master R. is upon the seventh Ray, that of Ceremonial Magic or Order, and He works largely through esoteric ritual and ceremonial, being vitally interested in the effects, hitherto unrecognised, of the ceremonial of the Freemasons, of the various fraternities and of the Churches everywhere. He is called in the Lodge, usually, "the Count," and in America and Europe acts practically as the general manager for the carrying out of the plans of the executive council of the Lodge. Certain of the Masters form around the three great Lords an inner group, and meet in council with great frequency. (IHS 59)
The United States will have a preparatory school somewhere in the southern part of the Middle West, and an extensive occult college in California in a place later to be revealed. This school will be one of the first started when the Great Lord begins His earthly career, and during the next five years the seeds of it may be laid if students rightly apprehend the work to be done. (LOM 307)
In the era which lies ahead, after the reappearance of the Christ, hundreds of thousands of men and women everywhere will pass through some one or other of the great expansions of consciousness, but the mass reflection will be that of the renunciation (though this does not mean that the masses will by any means take the fourth initiation); they will renounce the materialistic standards which today control in every layer of the human family. One of the lessons to be learnt by humanity at the present time (a time which is the ante-chamber to the new age) is how few material things are really necessary to life and happiness. The lesson is not yet learnt. It is, however, essentially one of the values to be extracted out of this period of appalling deprivations through which men are every day passing. The real tragedy is that the Western Hemisphere, particularly the United States, will not share in this definite spiritual and vitalising process; they are at present too selfish to permit it to happen.
You can see, therefore, that initiation is not a ceremonial procedure, or an accolade, conferred upon a successful aspirant; neither is it a penetration into the Mysteries—of which the mysteries of Masonry are, as yet, only the pictorial presentation—but is simply the result of experiencing "livingness" on all three levels of awareness (physical, emotional and mental) and—through that livingness—bringing into activity those registering and those recording cells within the brain substance which have hitherto not been susceptible to the higher impression. Through this expanding area of registration or, if you prefer it, through the development of a finer recording instrument or responsive apparatus, the mind is enabled to become the transmitter of higher values and of spiritual understanding. Thus the individual becomes aware of areas of divine existence and of states of consciousness which are always eternally present but which the individual man was constitutionally unable to contact or to register; neither the mind, nor its recording agent, the brain, were able to from the angle of their evolutionary development. (RC 128)
The three synthesizing nations: It will also be apparent to you if you have rightly understood the above suggestions that the Shamballa force is working through that community of federated nations called the British Empire and is expressing the will-towards-synthesis and the will to just and legal procedure. It is the force of the Hierarchy which can express itself increasingly through the United States of America, for an intuitive recognition of subjective realities and a real sense of the higher values can and frequently do control the impulses governing this group of federated states. The will-to-be of Humanity with its almost extravagant emphasis upon human values and the will-to-rule creatively is the contribution of the U.S.S.R., that great federation of republics. Thus the influence of the three great world centres about which I have earlier written can be seen expressing itself through these three groups of nations. At the same time, the Shamballa force is active in all of them, for it produces federation and synthesis. Its first great expression or demonstration of the spirit of fusion took place in the 18th and 19th centuries, and led to the formation of such countries as Italy and Germany which were created out of many smaller states, duchies and kingdoms. A history of the trend towards fusion in the modern world would prove a most illuminating study. It would be found that the first faint indications were felt around 1575 A.D. This was due to the fact that permission for the inflow of this force was given when demanded at the Centennial Conference of the Hierarchy, held in 1425. (ExH 133)
The keynote, however, of human living will be struck by Russia, Great Britain and the United States — not because of their power, their historical past and their material resources or territorial extent, but because they are in a position to fuse and blend the many types, because they are far-visioned in their world purpose, because they are not basically selfish in their intent, and because the government of the peoples reaches down into the depths of each nation and is fundamentally for the people. Their basic Constitution, Magna Charta and Bill of Rights are human. Other nations will be gradually swept into line with these fundamental spiritual requirements, or — if they are already based on these human principles and not on the rule of a powerful minority, exploiting an unhappy majority — they will cooperate freely with these greater nations in a federation of purposes and of interests until such time as all the nations of the world see the vision clear, forego their selfish aims and agree in the unity of the work to be done for the whole. Humanity will then emerge into the light of freedom with a revealed beauty and a spiritual purpose, hitherto unknown. (DON 105)
There was a time—a hundred years or more ago—when a just distribution of the world's wealth would have been impossible. That is not true today. Statistics exist; computations have been made; investigation has penetrated into every field of the earth's resources and these investigations, computations and statistics have been published and are available to the public. The men in power in every nation know well exactly what food, minerals, oil and other necessities are available for worldwide use upon just and equitable lines. But these commodities are reserved by the nations involved as "talking and bargaining points". The problem of distribution is no longer difficult once the food of the world is freed from politics and from capitalism; it must also be remembered that the means of distribution by sea, rail and air are adequate.
None of this will, however, take place until the United Nations begin to talk in terms of humanity as a whole and not in terms of boundaries, of technical objectives and fears, in terms of the bargaining value of oil, as in the Near East, or in the language of mistrust and suspicion. Russia distrusts the capitalism of the United States and—to a lesser degree—that of Great Britain; South America is rapidly learning to mistrust the United States on the ground of imperialism; both Great Britain and the United States mistrust Russia, on the basis of her spoken word, her use of the veto and her ignorance of western idealism.
Yet it must be remembered that there are statesmen in Great Britain, the United States and Russia who are endeavouring to work for the common man and to speak on his behalf in the conclaves of the nations. As yet selfish opposition has rendered their work futile and the monied interests in many countries have negated their efforts. (PH 175)
Zionism: The area of difficulty [post-WWII]—as is well known—is the Near East and Palestine. The Jews, by their illegal and terroristic activities, have laid a foundation of great difficulty for those who are seeking to promote world peace. As a Jewish member of my Ashram pointed out (and I commend him on his soul vision), the Jews have partially again opened the door [Page 430] to the Forces of Evil, which worked originally through Hitler and his evil gang. The "sealing" of that door had not been successfully accomplished, and it is the part of wisdom to discover this in time. These Forces of Evil work through a triangle of evil, one point of which is to be found in the Zionist Movement in the United States, another in central Europe, and the third in Palestine. Palestine is no longer a Holy Land and should not be so regarded.
I would have you bear these points in mind while you investigate the world picture. This picture is taking shape and warrants recognition. It involves the Jews (who are not a nation but a religious group) the Near East and Russia. In the maps which are to be found in the Archives of the spiritual Hierarchy, the entire area of the Near East and Europe—Greece, Yugoslavia, Turkey, Palestine, the Arab States, Egypt and Russia—are under a heavy overshadowing cloud. Can that cloud be dissipated by the right thinking and planning of Great Britain, the United States and the majority of the United Nations or—must it break in disaster over the world? Will it present a task too hard for correct handling by that inexperienced disciple—Humanity?
In what I have written above you have the picture of the true situation; it is one which finds Great Britain temporarily weakened and ineffective (except for the clear thinking of her people and her political maturity); it finds the United States, unused to power, somewhat arrogant, with a strong superiority complex, inexperienced and yet at the same time exceedingly well-intentioned and fundamentally sound. It is the mass of the people who are sound in their thinking and not their representatives in Congress. (RI 430)
First of all, the outer, physical war is only just over; two years is a short time since the firing ceased and no country has as yet recovered from its dire effects. There is no true intercourse between nations and no true understanding. Today the United States permits the raising of funds in order to arm the Zionists against Great Britain, an ally and a friendly power; it is authorising propaganda against Russia, also an allied and friendly power. There is no true effort anywhere (carried on with fixed determination and right compromise) to bring to an end those economic conditions which are the major cause of war and which are responsible for breeding hatred among nations. (ExH 614)
There are two ways in which that freedom of choice can be infringed: First, as in Russia, by keeping the citizenry in ignorance of world affairs, and secondly, by giving them biassed news and misinformation, or a garbled or distorted slant on world affairs, as is the case in most other countries, particularly in the United States. An instance of this can be seen in the fact that the Arabs never got a true hearing in the American newspapers or on the radios; the American people were "pressured" (I think that that is the word you use) into an acceptance of the Zionist position—the motive being oil and mineral riches. (RI 749)
As the disciple confronts both the inner and the outer events and possibilities, he is apt to register a sense of complete frustration; he longs to help, but knows not what to do; his grasp of the menacing difficulties, his analysis of his resources and of those with whom he works, and his clarity of perception as to the forces ranged against him, make him feel inclined to sit back and say: What is the use of any effort I can make? Why not let the two forces of good and evil, of the Black Lodge and the Spiritual Hierarchy, fight it out alone? Why not permit the pressure of the evolutionary current, eventually and at long last, to bring cessation to the fight and the triumph of the good? Why attempt to do it now?
These are natural reactions when considering the present field of conflict, the prevalent greed and the international and racial antagonisms, and the selfish motives which control so many national units, plus the dull apathy of the masses, and in particular, the growing suspicion and distrust between the United States and Russia—a situation in which both groups are almost equally to blame. This war-generating situation is fostered behind the scenes by the highly clever and strongly anti-communistic power of the Roman Catholic Church, with its organised political plans—plans which are growing notably in the United States. To these, the intelligent thinker adds the reactionary activities in every land, and the fight for oil which governs the policies of Russia, the United States and Great Britain. To these factors must be added today the struggle between Hindu and Moslem for the control of India, and the fight over Palestine—fomented by the Zionists, and not by the Jews as a whole—a fight in which the Zionists prevented the displaced Jewish persons (only 20% of the whole) from discovering how welcome they are in many countries throughout the world; a fight which has greed and not any love of Palestine behind it, and which is governed by financial interests and not by the humanitarian spirit which the Zionists claim and which would force them to accept the offers made by Great Britain, Canada, Chile, Belgium and many other lands. (ExH 615)
The test, as far as the nations are concerned, lies in their willingness to give refuge to the Jews, and such a refuge would have been offered if the partitioning of Palestine had been refused. The unwillingness of the nations to admit the Jews (though many have willingly offered), and particularly the refusal of the United States to admit them, is separative, wrong and based upon political expediency. The test, as far as the United Nations is concerned, was whether they would endorse partition, and thus perpetuate the spirit of aggression and territorial greed, against which the Forces of Light were arrayed in the last war. The United Nations has already made a major mistake by their original admittance of Russia—a totalitarian power, as was Germany—to their councils. Now they have made another. In the first mistake they precipitated into the United Nations the element of conflict and that spirit of "fanatical imposition" which is distinctive of the totalitarian ideology; in this second case, through the endorsement of partition, they perpetuate the ancient technique of taking what is wanted (with force of arms, if necessary) from the rightful owners. It was a test for the United States, for it is the American Jews who have created the situation, with relatively little help or endorsement from the Jews of other nations. The United States, urged by expediency, by the financial weight of the Zionists, and by the strategic position of Palestine, have thrown the weight of their influence into the conflict on the side of aggression and of territorial theft. They could have worked for the Principle of Harmony and permitted time and the non-separativeness of the nations to adjust and solve the Jewish problem. (ExH 636)
Book abbreviations
Alice A. Bailey:
DON: The Destiny of the Nations
EA: Esoteric Astrology
EH: Esoteric Healing
ENA: Education in the New Age
EP: Esoteric Psychology
ExH: The Externalisation of the Hierarchy
IHS: Initiation Human and Solar
LOM: Letters on Occult Meditation
PH: Problems of Humanity
RC: The Reappearance of the Christ
RI: The Rays and the Initiations
TCF: A Treatise on Cosmic Fire
UA: The Unfinished Autobiography
Helena Blavatsky:
SD: The Secret Doctrine
Helena Roerich:
LHR: Letters of Helena Roerich
Temple of the People:
TT:Teachings of the Temple
[1] Prester John is put forward these days as the stuff of legend and fantasy, i.e., a nice story, but not to be believed by ‘reasonable people’. The linked web page is testament to the doubts of nations expressed in the quote.