Theos-Talk Archives (April 2003 Message tt00189)

Teaching the Soul Direct:
A Conversation Between Charles Johnston and Madame H. P.
Blavatsky
by Charles Johnston

[From a conversation between Charles Johnston and Madame
Blavatsky]

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Then she told me something about other Masters and adepts she had
known ... , from Northern and Southern India, Tibet, Persia,
China, Egypt; of various European nations, Greek, Hungarian,
Italian, English; of certain races in South America, where she
said there was a Lodge of adepts.

"It is the tradition of this which the Spanish Conquistadors
found," she said, "the golden city of Manoah or El Dorado. The
race is allied to the ancient Egyptians, and the adepts have
still preserved the secret of their dwelling place inviolable.
There are certain members of the Lodges who pass from centre to
centre, keeping the lines of connection between them unbroken.
But they are always connected in other ways."

"In their astral bodies?" "Yes," she answered, "and in other ways
still higher. They have a common life and power. As they rise in
spirituality, they rise above difference of race, to our common
humanity. The series is unbroken. Adepts are a necessity in
nature and in super-nature. They are the links between men and
the gods; these 'gods' being the souls of great adepts and
Masters of bygone races and ages, and so on, up to the threshold
of Nirvana. The continuity is unbroken."

"What do they do?"

"You would hardly understand, unless you were an adept. But they
keep alive the spiritual life of mankind."

"How do the adepts guide the souls of men?"

"In many ways, but chiefly by teaching their souls direct, in the
spiritual world. That is difficult for you to understand. But
this is quite intelligible: At certain regular periods, they try
to give the world at large a right understanding of spiritual
things. One of their number comes forth to teach the masses, and
is handed down to tradition as the founder of a religion. Krishna
was such a Master, so was Zoroaster; so were Buddha and
Sankaracharya, the great sage of Southern India. So also was the
Nazarene [Jesus]."

"Have the adepts any secret records of his life?"

"They must have," she answered, "for they have records of the
lives of all Initiates. Once I was in a great cave-temple in the
Himalayan mountains, with my Master. There were many statues of
adepts there; pointing to one of them, he said: 'This is he whom
you call Jesus. We count him to be one of the greatest among us.'

"But that is not the only work of the adepts. At much shorter
periods, they send forth a messenger to try to teach the world.
Such a period comes in the last quarter of each century, and the
Theosophical Society represents their work for this epoch."

"How does it benefit mankind?"

"How does it benefit you to know the laws of life? Does it not
help you to escape sickness and death? Well, there is a
soul-sickness, and a soul-death. Only the true teaching of Life
can cure them.. The dogmatic churches, with their hell and
damnation, their metal
[FOOTNOTE: Streets paved with gold]
heaven and their fire and brimstone, have made it almost
impossible for thinking people to believe in the immortality of
the soul. And if they do not believe in a life after death, then
they have no life after death. That is the law."

"How can what people believe possibly affect them? Either it is
or it isn't, whatever they may believe."

"Their belief affects them in this way. Their life after death is
made by their aspirations and spiritual development unfolding in
the spiritual world. According to the growth of each so is his
life after death. It is the complement of his life here. All
unsatisfied spiritual longings, all desires for higher life, all
aspirations and dreams of noble things, come to flower in the
spiritual life, and the soul has its day, for life on earth is
its night. But if you have no aspirations, no higher longings, no
beliefs in any life after death, then there is nothing for your
spiritual life to be made up of, your soul is a blank."

"What becomes of you then?"

"You reincarnate immediately, almost without an interval, and
without regaining consciousness in the other world." ... .

"So that is what the adepts sent you forth to teach?"

"Yes, that and other things - things which are very important,
and will soon be far more important. There is the danger of black
magic, into which all the world, and especially America, is
rushing as fast as it can go. Only a wide knowledge of the real
psychic and spiritual nature of man can save humanity from grave
dangers."

"Witch-stories in this so-called nineteenth century, in this
enlightened age?"

"Yes, Sir! Witch-tales in this enlightened age! And mark my
words! You will have such witch-tales as the Middle Ages never
dreamt of. Whole nations will drift insensibly into black magic,
with good intentions, no doubt, but paving the road to hell none
the less for that! Do you not see the tremendous evils that lie
concealed in hypnotism? Hypnotism and suggestion
[FOOTNOTE: Advertising, political campaigns, etc., etc., are
built on "suggestion." The opposite of this is "inspiration,"
such as that used by Gatto in his teaching methods. One enlivens
and allies itself to the potential "greatness" in each of us, the
other enlivens and allies itself to the weaknesses of man
entangled in his sensations and personality; one manipulates and
bewitches, the other sets-fire-to and transforms.]
are great and dangerous powers, for the very reason that the
victim never knows when he is being subjected to them; his will
is stolen from him. These things may be begun with good motives,
and for right purposes. But I am an old woman, and have seen much
of human life in many countries and I wish with all my heart I
could believe that these powers would be used only for good! If
you could foresee what I foresee, you would begin heart and soul
to spread the teaching of universal brotherhood. It is the only
safeguard!"

"How is it going to guard people against hypnotism?"

"By purifying the hearts of people who would misuse it. And
universal brotherhood rests upon the common soul. It is because
there is one soul common to all men, that brotherhood, or even
common understanding, is possible. Bring men to rest on that, and
they will be safe. There is a divine power in every man which is
to rule his life, and which no one can influence for evil, not
even the greatest magician. Let men bring their lives under its
guidance, and they have nothing to fear from man or devil."

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