The ''Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ'' (full title: ''The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ: The Philosophic and Practical Basis of the Religion of the Aquarian Age of the World and of the Church Universal'') is a book by Levi H. Dowling. It was first published on 1 December 1908. Dowling said he had transcribed the text of the book from the

akashic records In the religion of theosophy and the philosophical school called anthroposophy, the Akashic records are a compendium of all universal events, thoughts, words, emotions and intent ever to have occurred in the past, present, or future in terms of ...

, a purported compendium of mystical knowledge supposedly encoded in a non-physical plane of existence. In the later 20th century, it was adopted by

New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars conside ...

spiritual groups. The title is derived from the practice in

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of Celestial o ...

of naming time periods in terms of constellations and their dominant positions in the sky, according to the earth's axial precession. In that system, the

Age of Aquarius The Age of Aquarius, in astrology, is either the current or forthcoming astrological age, depending on the method of calculation. Astrologers maintain that an astrological age is a product of the earth's slow precessional rotation and lasts for 2 ...

is approaching.

Composition

* SECTION I (

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): Birth and Early Life of Mary, Mother of Jesus * SECTION II (

Beth Beth may refer to: Letter and number *Bet (letter), or beth, the second letter of the Semitic abjads (writing systems) *Hebrew word for "house", often used in the name of synagogues and schools (e.g. Beth Israel) Name *Beth (given name) lists p ...

): Birth and Infancy of John, the Harbinger, and of Jesus * SECTION III (

Gimel Gimel is the third letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician Gīml , Hebrew Gimel , Aramaic Gāmal , Syriac Gāmal , and Arabic (in alphabetical order; fifth in spelling order). Its sound value in the original Phoenician and in all d ...

): Education of Mary and Elizabeth in Zoan * SECTION IV ( Daleth): Childhood and Early Education of John the Harbinger * SECTION V ( He): Childhood and Early Education of Jesus * SECTION VI ( Vau): Life and Works of Jesus in India * SECTION VII ( Zain): Life and Works of Jesus in Tibet and Western India * SECTION VIII (

Cheth Heth, sometimes written Chet, but more accurately Ḥet, is the eighth letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician Ḥēt 𐤇 , Hebrew Ḥēth , Aramaic Ḥēth , Syriac Ḥēṯ ܚ, Arabic Ḥā' , and Maltese Ħ, ħ. Heth originall ...

): Life and Works of Jesus in Persia * SECTION IX ( Teth): Life and Works of Jesus in Assyria * SECTION X ( Jod): Life and Works of Jesus in Greece * SECTION XI ( Caph): Life and Works of Jesus in Egypt * SECTION XII ( Lamed): The Council of the Seven Sages of the World * SECTION XIII (

Mem Mem (also spelled Meem, Meme, or Mim) is the thirteenth letter of the Semitic abjads, including Hebrew mēm , Aramaic Mem , Syriac mīm ܡ, Arabic mīm and Phoenician mēm . Its sound value is . The Phoenician letter gave rise to the Greek mu ...

): The Ministry of John, the Harbinger * SECTION XIV ( Nun): The Christine Ministry of Jesus—Introductory Epoch * SECTION XV (

Samech Samekh (Phoenician ''sāmek'' ; Hebrew ''samekh'' , Syriac ''semkaṯ'') is the fifteenth Letter (alphabet), letter of the Semitic abjads, including the Hebrew alphabet. Samekh represents a voiceless alveolar fricative . Unlike most Semitic ...

): The First Annual Epoch of the Christine Ministry of Jesus * SECTION XVI (

Ain Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where it ...

): The Second Annual Epoch of the Christine Ministry of Jesus * SECTION XVII ( Pe): The Third Annual Epoch of the Christine Ministry of Jesus * SECTION XVIII ( Tzaddi): The Arrest and Betrayal of Jesus * SECTION XIX ( Koph): The Trial and Execution of Jesus * SECTION XX ( Resh): The Resurrection of Jesus * SECTION XXI ( Schin): Materialization of the Spiritual Body of Jesus * SECTION XXII (

Tau Tau (uppercase Τ, lowercase τ, or \boldsymbol\tau; el, ταυ ) is the 19th letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the voiceless dental or alveolar plosive . In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 300. The name in English ...

): Establishment of the Christine Church

Major points

The ''Aquarian Gospel'' makes the following claims, among others: * The revelation of ''The Aquarian Gospel'' was prophesied 2,000 years ago by Elihu, who conducted a school of the prophets in Zoan, Egypt. He said thus: ::"This age will comprehend but little of the works of Purity and Love; but not a word is lost, for in the Book of God's Remembrance a registry is made of every thought and word and deed. ::And When The world is ready to receive, lo, God will send a messenger to open up the book and copy from its sacred pages all the messages of Purity and Love. - ''Aquarian Gospel'' 7:25-26 *There are 18 unknown years of Jesus' life missing in the Bible (ages 12–30). Like Nicolas Notovitch did before in his ''The Unknown Life Of Jesus Christ: By The Discoverer Of The Manuscript'' (1887), the ''Aquarian Gospel'' documents these 18 years as a time when Jesus travels to the centers of wisdom in western India, Tibet, Persia, Assyria, Greece, and Egypt. In each of these capital cities, he is educated, tested, and teaches the religious leaders. Jesus inevitably proves that he is 'God's chosen one' (the Christ) in these locales and brings back this multi-cultural wisdom and confidence to Galilee and Judea. * Jesus puts on the role of The Christ, but is not automatically Christ by nature. By making himself, through desire, effort, ability and prayer, a fit vessel, Jesus enabled The Christ to dwell within him. Christ is therefore used as a term for the seemingly perfect human being that Jesus exemplified, a human being that has been "Christened" (anointed) and therefore made holy. * Jesus came to Earth to show the way back to God via his lifestyle and teachings. He is the example we must model our own lives after, if we seek salvation. * Reincarnation exists and karma (''"You reap what you sow"'') is the explanation for various injustices. Reincarnation allows people to settle debts they have incurred in past lives. * Humanity has forgotten God and is currently working its way back to fully remembering God. * Time is separated into ages. These ages last approximately 2,000 years. We are now nearing the start of the Aquarian Age. * All souls will eventually mature and evolve towards the perfect, like Jesus the Christ. * No soul is ever abandoned by God. * The trinity is strength, love and wisdom.

Difficulties

In his 1931 book, ''Strange New Gospels'', the biblical scholar Edgar J. Goodspeed noted: ::"Augustus Caesar reigned and Herod Antipas was ruler in Jerusalem." This opening sentence of the new gospel does not encourage any very high hopes as to its historical value. It is generally accepted that Antipas never rules in Jerusalem but in Galilee. Of course Dowling means Herod the Great." * Also, that Dowling has borrowed a number of details from the apocryphal Gospel of James, a work that may not be older than the fifth century, such as details about the childhood of Mary and her marriage to Joseph, the birth of Jesus in a cave, and the account of the death of Zacharias which differs from the account given by

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...

and other early Fathers. * Goodspeed notes that the many ancient religions and philosophies taught, in many different countries, to young Jesus in the book seem "colored by

Christian Science Christian Science is a set of beliefs and practices associated with members of the Church of Christ, Scientist. Adherents are commonly known as Christian Scientists or students of Christian Science, and the church is sometimes informally know ...

." Eric Pement has pointed out difficulties in Dowling's text: * The book depicts Jesus as visiting the cities of Lahore, India (pre-Partition in India, now in Pakistan), Shri

Jagannath Jagannath ( or, ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ, lit=Lord of the Universe, Jagannātha; formerly en, Juggernaut) is a deity worshipped in regional Hindu traditions in India and Bangladesh as part of a triad along with his brother Balabhadra, and sister ...

in the temple at Puri in

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

, India, and Persepolis in

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. Only the temple at Puri existed at that period; Lahore did not exist during the period in question, and Persepolis had already been destroyed by

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

. The book asserts Jesus had remained in the Jagannātha Temple of Puri for four years, preaching among the downtrodden and low caste people. * Dowling and

Edgar Cayce Edgar Cayce (; 18 March 1877 – 3 January 1945) was an American clairvoyant who claimed to channel his higher self while in a trance-like state. His words were recorded by his friend, Al Layne; his wife, Gertrude Evans, and later by his s ...

both claimed to have produced an account of the life of Jesus through the transcription of the

, but there are significant differences between their accounts. * Dowling claimed that Jesus knew Meng-tse of

Lhasa Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level city, prefecture-level Lhasa (prefecture-level city), Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Regio ...

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

but Meng-tse lived 300 years before Jesus' time. Supporters of Dowling argue that within

theosophical Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion a ...

thought, figures such as Meng-Tse, Matheno,

Miriam Miriam ( he, מִרְיָם ''Mīryām'', lit. 'Rebellion') is described in the Hebrew Bible as the daughter of Amram and Jochebed, and the older sister of Moses and Aaron. She was a prophetess and first appears in the Book of Exodus. The Tor ...

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

, Elijah and

Vidyapati Vidyapati ( – 1460), also known by the sobriquet ''Maithil Kavi Kokil'' (the poet cuckoo of Maithili), was a Maithili and Sanskrit polymath-poet-saint, playwright, composer, biographer, philosopher, law-theorist, writer, courtier and ...

exist in an

ascended Ascendency or ascendancy is a quantitative attribute of an ecosystem, defined as a function of the ecosystem's trophic network. Ascendency is derived using mathematical tools from information theory. It is intended to capture in a single index ...

state. As such, they communicated with Jesus after they had passed on from earthly existence.

Aquarian church

The Aquarian Christine Church Universal, Inc. (ACCU) is a denomination based on the ''Aquarian Gospel''. Members are commonly called Aquarians, but the proper term would be Aquarian Christines. The name Christine is used in the ''Aquarian Gospel'' instead of Christian, emphasizing that the church is the Bride of Christ. The church was incorporated in 2006, but had existed for numerous years previous to incorporation. There are no paid professional clergy. The teachings of the Aquarian Church are based primarily on the ''Aquarian Gospel'', but also on other writings by Levi Dowling, and share many teachings with the

I Am Activity I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plural ...

(I Am Movement) and

Ascended Master Teachings Ascendency or ascendancy is a quantitative attribute of an ecosystem, defined as a function of the ecosystem's trophic network. Ascendency is derived using mathematical tools from information theory. It is intended to capture in a single index ...

. Some of the teachings include a Triune God composed of God the Father, Christ the Son and the Mother Holy Spirit, release from the cycle of rebirth through the Ascension Process, the equality of the races and sexes and the transformation (transmuting) of the individual and the world through the study and practice of the teachings. The

Moorish Science Temple of America The Moorish Science Temple of America is an American national and religious organization founded by Noble Drew Ali (born as Timothy Drew) in the early twentieth century. He based it on the premise that African Americans are descendants of the Moa ...

, a religion predominantly adhered to by African-Americans, founded five years after the publication of the ''Aquarian Gospel'', takes much of its " Holy Koran" from the ''Aquarian Gospel''.

References

Text sources

''The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ''
(A digital transcription of a portion of the original 1911 edition, with links to the page scan images, refer to th

''The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ'' (1911)
at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

.
''The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ''
(e-text) at the

Internet Sacred Text Archive The Internet Sacred Text Archive (ISTA) is a Santa Cruz, California-based website dedicated to the preservation of electronic public domain religious texts. History The website was first opened to the public on March 9, 1999 by John Bruno Hare ...

External links

* Online text of the 1911 edition.
Introducing the Aquarian Gospel
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ, The 1908 non-fiction books Books about Jesus Gospels Modern pseudepigrapha New Age books