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Master Jesus is the theosophical concept ofJesus inTheosophy and theAscended Master Teachings.
The Master Jesus is one of theMasters of the Ancient Wisdom in Theosophy and is one of theAscended Masters (also collectively called theGreat White Brotherhood; with white being in reference to the light) in theAscended Master Teachings, a group of religions based on Theosophy. The Master Jesus is regarded by Theosophists, was regarded byAlice Bailey, and was later regarded by students of the "Ascended Master Teachings" as the Master of theSixth Ray.[1]
It is believed by Ascended Master Teachings organizations that the Master Jesus was "Chohan of the Sixth Ray" until December 31, 1959, when, according toElizabeth Clare Prophet,Lady Master Nada fully took on that Office in theSpiritual Hierarchy. According to Prophet, Jesus became World Teacher, along withKuthumi, on January 1, 1956, succeedingMaitreya, who took the Office of "Planetary Buddha" and "Cosmic Christ".[2][3] This belief is not accepted by adherents of traditional Theosophy and the followers of Alice A. Bailey andBenjamin Creme; they believe that the Master Jesus is still the Chohan of the Sixth Ray and that Maitreya is still the World Teacher.[citation needed]
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According to Elizabeth Clare Prophet, theProphet of theChurch Universal and Triumphant, the largest Ascended Master Teachings religion, the Master Jesus incarnated twice as the Emperor of Atlantis, once in 33,050 BC and again in 15,000 BC.[4] He did this in order to aid thewhite magicians in the war of the white magicians and theblack magicians that was going on inAtlantis at that time.
According to Alice A. Bailey, the Master Jesus was previously incarnated asJoshua, the Hebrew military leader in the 13th century BC, andJoshua the High Priest in the sixth century BC.[5]
According to the Ascended Master Teachings,[6][7][8][9][10] Jesus was also incarnated asJoseph of thecoat of many colors in the 17th century BC/16th century BC (approximately between 1650 BC and 1550 BC), as well asKing David (who livedc. 1037 BC until around 970 BC), andElisha in the 9th century BC.[11]
It is believed in the Ascended Master Teachings that Jesus’ fatherSaint Joseph was one of the incarnations ofSt. Germain, and that his motherMary, upon herAssumption became either adeva[12] or anarchangel and is now the twin flame (celestial wife) of theArchangel Raphael.[13]
According to the Ascended Master Teachings, each of theMagi who came to visit the babyJesus was an incarnation of one of the ascended masters:Caspar, who gave the gift ofgold to Jesus, was an incarnation ofDjwal Khul;[14] Balthasar, who gave the gift offrankincense to Jesus, was an incarnation ofKuthumi;[15] and Melchior, who gave the gift ofmyrrh to Jesus, was an incarnation ofMorya.[16]
According to the Ascended Master Teachings, to prepare for his ministry, Jesus first studied at theBrotherhood ofLuxor (amystery school inEgypt), and then went to India to study under theGreat Divine Director,Maitreya, andLord Himalaya, the Manu of theFourth Root Race (Atlantean).[17]
The followers of Benjamin Creme and Alice A. Bailey believe in theNestorian/GnosticChristology, promulgated byC.W. Leadbeater, which asserts that the powerful being known as theMaitreya overshadowed the Master Jesus during theMinistry of Jesus, such that there were two beings in one body. Maitreya was theChrist and the Master Jesus wasJesus of Nazareth; the combination of the two beings functioned asJesus Christ.[18][19] Those adherent to the Ascended Master Teachings believe in the existence of the Maitreya; however, they believe that although he encouraged the mission of Jesus, he did not actually overshadow Jesus.[20]
Theosophists and those adherent to theAscended Master Teachings alike believe that the Master Jesus underwent the fourth level of initiation (thecrucifixion) at hiscrucifixion inJerusalem. According to Alice A. Bailey, for most people at the fourth initiation the crucifixion is symbolic as a severe life test of renunciation, but for Jesus it was literal.[21]
Traditional theosophists believe that the Master Jesus and Maitreya souls' separated from each other just after theAscension (which for Jesus was only to the fourth and not the fifth level of initiation) and do not believe that the Master Jesus went to Kashmir; they believe he went directly to Shamballa to be with the Lord of the World,Sanat Kumara, for a time, until he then incarnated again soon after asApollonius of Tyana.[22]
It is believed in the Ascended Master Teachings that whenJesus ascended on the 3rd day after the resurrection, helevitated fromJudaea toKashmir.[17]
In either case, whether he went directly to Shamballa or to Kashmir when he ascended, presumably heteleported to a location above Judaea briefly ten days later on the 50th day after his resurrection in order to observe from afar the events of theDay of Pentecost (or possibly he observed these events byremote viewing). In both traditional Theosophy and the Ascended Master Teachings it is believed that these events were coordinated by theMaha Chohan, who, it is asserted by both C.W. Leadbeater and Elizabeth Clare Prophet, is the representative of theHoly Ghost on Earth.[23][24]
In the Ascended Master Teachings, it is believed that the Master Jesus lived in Kashmir until he was 81, and then, assuming he had been born in 6 BC, in AD 75, heascended toShamballa to be with the Lord of the World,Sanat Kumara.[17]
Helena Blavatsky, a founder of theTheosophical Society, wrote in 1877: "Apollonius, a contemporary of Jesus of Nazareth, was, like him, an enthusiastic founder of a new spiritual school. Perhaps less metaphysical and more practical than Jesus, less tender and perfect in his nature, he nevertheless inculcated the same quintessence of spirituality, and the same high moral truths."[25] Some Theosophists such asC.W. Leadbeater and the teachers ofNeo-Theosophy, Alice A. Bailey and Benjamin Creme, have written that the Master Jesus was also incarnated as Apollonius of Tyana after his incarnation as Jesus of Nazareth. It is believed that he attained the fifth level of initiation (theresurrection) when he became anAscended Master at the end of his life as Apollonius of Tyana. However, if Apollonius was a contemporary of Jesus as Blavatsky wrote, Jesus could not have reincarnated as him. Benjamin Creme gets around this by claiming that Jesus lived from 24 BC to AD 9[26] (instead of the usual dates given of Jesus' lifetime as being c. 6 BC to c. AD 30 or AD 33). This means that Jesuscould have incarnated as Apollonius of Tyana, since according to Creme, Apollonius lived from AD 16 to c. AD 97.[27] However, one of the possible chronologies of Apollonius of Tyana's life sometimes cited give his life span as being from AD 40 to AD 120,[28] thus making it possible that, even if the usual dates of Jesus' lifetime are accepted (c. 6 BC to c. AD 30 or AD 33), hestill could have incarnated as Apollonius of Tyana. However, other modern scholarship, more often cited, gives the dates of Appolonius' life span as c. AD 15 to c. AD 100, thus making it problematic, realistically speaking, that Jesus could have incarnated as him.[29]
Jesus' incarnation as Apollonius of Tyana is accepted by the followers of traditional Theosophy, of Alice A. Bailey, and of Benjamin Creme, but not by those who are adherent to theAscended Master Teachings, who believe that the incarnation as Jesus was his last embodiment on Earth.
C.W. Leadbeater stated that the Master Jesus, after his resurrection in the body of Apollonius of Tyana, incarnated in India as theTamil religious reformerRamanuja, a leading figure within theBhakti movement inHinduism; thus, by incarnating as Ramanuja, Jesus became anAvatar. According to Leadbeater, the Master Jesus incarnated as Ramanuja as part of his spiritual work as Master of the Sixth Ray of Love-Devotion (bhakti is theSanskrit word fordevotion).[30]
That Jesus incarnated as Ramanuja is believed by many traditional Theosophists, but not by those adherent to the Ascended Master Teachings.
According toBenjamin Creme, the Master Jesus visited theAmericas (as well asPolynesia) not immediately after his resurrection as recounted in theBook of Mormon, but in the late 7th century and early 8th century, after having descended to the continent of America from his dwelling place in Shamballah with Sanat Kumara.[31] Like theMormons, Creme believes that this visit gave rise to the legend ofQuetzalcoatl.
Benjamin Crème asserted that, in the late 1970s, the Master Jesus appeared toSpencer W. Kimball, thenpresident ofthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in theWashington D.C. Temple.[32]
Creme stated that since 1990 the Master Jesus has been living in secret in Rome.[33] AfterMaitreya makes hisEmergence (theDay of Declaration), Creme asserted, the Master Jesus in hisimmortal body will assume thepapal throne for the next 2,000 years of theAge of Aquarius.
According to the Ascended Master Teachings, the Master Jesus has a sumptuous retreat (residence on the etheric plane) aboveJerusalem called theResurrection Temple. Often his mother Mary (now married to the Archangel Raphael, as noted above, and serving the Solar Logos with him in thesolar corona) descends to serve with him at the Resurrection Temple doing sacred rituals and answering prayers.[17]
Ascended Master Teachings groups describe the Master Jesus as having atwin flame (celestial spouse) namedLady Master Magda, one of whose two known incarnations wasMary Magdalene; the other wasAimee Semple McPherson.[34]
According to the Ascended Master Teachings, the Ascended MasterJohn the Beloved, who was Jesus’ best friend during his lifetime, has a retreat (residence on the etheric plane) aboveArizona where he teaches a variety ofwhite magic that involves the mastery of theelemental spirits governing the realms of earth, air, water, and fire. It is believed that the Master Jesus often teleports over to John the Beloved's retreat to say hello to his old friend.[35]
In the teachings of theAetherius Society, headquartered inHollywood, Los Angeles, California, it is promulgated that since his resurrection, the Master Jesus has been dwelling mostly on thehigher planes of Venus in order to work with theMaster Aetherius, but when his presence is required, heteleports to or takes aflying saucer to Earth as needed.[36]
The scholarK. Paul Johnson maintains that the "Masters" thatMadame Blavatsky wrote about and produced letters from were actually idealizations of people who were hermentors.[37] In an article inThe New York Times,Paul Zweig maintains that Madame Blavatsky's revelations were fraudulent.[38]
However, the Master Jesus was never one of the "Masters" that Madame Blavatsky claimed to have met. He was added as a "Master" byAnnie Besant andC.W. Leadbeater in their 1913 bookMan: Whence, How and Whither.[39]
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