The Great White Brotherhood, in belief systems akin to
Theosophy
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 ...
and
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 ...
, are said to be perfected beings of great power who spread spiritual teachings through selected humans.
The members of the Brotherhood may be known as the
Masters of the Ancient Wisdom
The Masters of the Ancient Wisdom are claimed to be enlightened beings originally identified by the Theosophists Helena Blavatsky, Henry S. Olcott, Alfred Percy Sinnett, and others. These Theosophists claimed to have met some of The Masters du ...
, the
Ascended Masters, the Church Invisible, or simply as the Hierarchy.
The first person to talk about them in the West was
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
(Theosophy), after she and other people claimed to have received messages from them. These included
Helena Roerich
Helena Ivanovna Roerich (born Shaposhnikova; russian: Елéна Ивáновна Рéрих; 12 February 1879 – 5 October 1955) was a Russian theosophist, writer, and public figure. In the early 20th century, she created, in cooperation with t ...
,
Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley (; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, painter, novelist, and mountaineer. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pro ...
,
Alice A. Bailey
Alice Ann Bailey (June 16, 1880 – December 15, 1949) was a writer of more than twenty-four books on theosophical subjects, and was one of the first writers to use the term New Age. Bailey was born as Alice La Trobe-Bateman, in Manchest ...
,
Guy Ballard
Guy Warren Ballard (July 28, 1878 – December 29, 1939) was an American mining engineer who, with his wife Edna Anne Wheeler Ballard, founded the "I AM" Activity.
Ballard was born in Newton, Kansas and married his wife in Chicago in 1916. ...
,
Geraldine Innocente
Geraldine Innocente (died June 21, 1961, p. 237) is the founder of a New Age church she named The Bridge to Freedom, which was established in 1951 by her and other Students of the Ascended Masters, after she received what was believed to be an Ano ...
(
The Bridge to Freedom
The Bridge to Freedom, an Ascended Master Teachings religion, was established in 1951 by Geraldine Innocente and other students of the Ascended Masters, after she received what was believed to be an "anointing" to become a "messenger" for the Gre ...
),
Elizabeth Clare Prophet
Elizabeth Clare Prophet (''née'': Wulf, a.k.a. Guru Ma) (April 8, 1939 – October 15, 2009) was an American spiritual leader, author, orator, and writer. In 1963 she married Mark L. Prophet (after ending her first marriage), who had founded T ...
, Bob Sanders, and
Benjamin Creme
Benjamin Creme (5 December 1922 − 24 October 2016) was a Scottish artist, author, esotericist, and editor of ''Share International'' magazine.
He asserted that the second coming, prophesied by many religions, would come in the form of ''Mai ...
.
History
The idea of a secret organization of enlightened mystics, guiding the spiritual development of the human race, was pioneered in the late eighteenth century by
Karl von Eckartshausen
Karl von Eckartshausen (; – ) was a German Catholic mystic, author, and philosopher.
Born in Haimhausen, Bavaria, Eckartshausen studied philosophy and Bavarian civil law in Munich and Ingolstadt. He was the author of ''The Cloud upon the Sa ...
(1752-1803) in his book ''
The Cloud upon the Sanctuary''; Eckartshausen called this body of mystics, who remained active after their physical deaths on earth, the ''Council of Light''. Eckartshausen's proposed communion of living and dead mystics, in turn, drew partially on Christian ideas such as the
Communion of the Saints
The communion of saints (), when referred to persons, is the spiritual union of the members of the Christian Church, living and the dead, but excluding the damned. They are all part of a single " mystical body", with Christ as the head, in which ...
, and partially on previously circulating European ideas about
secret societies
A secret society is a club or an organization whose activities, events, inner functioning, or membership are concealed. The society may or may not attempt to conceal its existence. The term usually excludes covert groups, such as intelligence a ...
of enlightened,
mystical
Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in u ...
, or
magic
Magic or Magick most commonly refers to:
* Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces
* Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic
* Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...
adepts typified by the
Rosicrucian
Rosicrucianism is a spiritual and cultural movement that arose in Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts purported to announce the existence of a hitherto unknown esoteric order to the world and made seeking its ...
s and the
Illuminati
The Illuminati (; plural of Latin ''illuminatus'', 'enlightened') is a name given to several groups, both real and fictitious. Historically, the name usually refers to the Bavarian Illuminati, an Enlightenment-era secret society founded on ...
.
The ''
Mahatma Letters
''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett'' is a book published in 1923 by A. Trevor Barker. () According to Theosophical teachings, the letters were written between 1880 and 1884 by Koot Hoomi and Morya to A. P. Sinnett. The letters were previousl ...
'' began publication in 1881 with information purportedly revealed by "
Koot Hoomi
Koot Hoomi (also spelled Kuthumi, and frequently referred to simply as K.H.) is said to be one of the Mahatmas that inspired the founding of the Theosophical Society in 1875. In Theosophy it is believed that he engaged in a correspondence with tw ...
" to
Alfred Percy Sinnett
Alfred Percy Sinnett (18 January 1840 – 26 June 1921) was an English author and theosophist.
Biography
Sinnett was born in London. His father died while he was young, as in 1851 Sinnett was listed as a "Scholar – London University", liv ...
, and were also influential on the early development of the tradition. Koot Hoomi, through Sinnett, revealed that high-ranking members of mystic organizations in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
and
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, ...
were able to maintain regular
telepathic
Telepathy () is the purported vicarious transmission of information from one person's mind to another's without using any known human sensory channels or physical interaction. The term was first coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Frederic ...
contact with one another, and thus were able to communicate to each other, and also to Sinnett, without the need for either written or oral communications, and in a manner similar to the way that
spirit medium
Mediumship is the practice of purportedly mediating communication between familiar spirits or spirits of the dead and living human beings. Practitioners are known as "mediums" or "spirit mediums". There are different types of mediumship or spir ...
s claimed to communicate with the spirits of the dead. The letters published by Sinnett, which proposed the controversial doctrine of
reincarnation
Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a ...
, were said to have been revealed through this means.
![Helena Petrovna Blavatsky](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Helena_Petrovna_Blavatsky.jpg)
Eckartshausen's idea was expanded in the teachings of
Helena P. Blavatsky as developed by
Charles W. Leadbeater
Charles Webster Leadbeater (; 16 February 1854 – 1 March 1934) was a member of the Theosophical Society, Co-Freemasonry, author on occult subjects and co-initiator with J. I. Wedgwood of the Liberal Catholic Church.
Originally a p ...
,
Alice Bailey
Alice Ann Bailey (June 16, 1880 – December 15, 1949) was a writer of more than twenty-four books on theosophical subjects, and was one of the first writers to use the term New Age. Bailey was born as Alice La Trobe-Bateman, in Manchest ...
and
Helena Roerich
Helena Ivanovna Roerich (born Shaposhnikova; russian: Елéна Ивáновна Рéрих; 12 February 1879 – 5 October 1955) was a Russian theosophist, writer, and public figure. In the early 20th century, she created, in cooperation with t ...
. Blavatsky, founder of the
Theosophical Society
The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the aim to advance the ideas of Theosophy in continuation of previous Theosophists, especially the Greek and Alexandrian Neo-Platonic philosophers dating back to 3rd century CE ...
, attributed her teachings to just such a body of adepts; in her 1877 book ''
Isis Unveiled
''Isis Unveiled: A Master-Key to the Mysteries of Ancient and Modern Science and Theology'', published in 1877, is a book of esoteric philosophy and Helena Petrovna Blavatsky's first major work and a key text in her Theosophical movement.
The ...
'', she called the revealers of her teachings the "Masters of the Hidden Brotherhood" or the "
Mahatma
Mahatma (English pronunciation: , sa, महात्मा, translit=mahātmā) is an honorific used in India.
The term is commonly used for Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who is often referred to simply as "Mahatma Gandhi". Albeit less frequent ...
s". Blavatsky claimed that she had made physical contact with these adepts' earthly representatives in Tibet; but also, that she continued to receive teachings from them through psychic channels, through her abilities of spirit mediumship.
Ideas about this secret council of sages, under several names, were a widely shared feature of late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century
esotericism
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas a ...
.
Arthur Edward Waite
Arthur Edward Waite (2 October 1857 – 19 May 1942) was a British poet and scholarly mystic who wrote extensively on occult and esoteric matters, and was the co-creator of the Rider–Waite tarot deck (also called the Rider–Waite–Smith o ...
, in his 1898 ''Book of Black Magic and of Pacts'', hinted at the existence of a secret group of initiates who dispense truth and wisdom to the worthy. A young
Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley (; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, painter, novelist, and mountaineer. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pro ...
, reading this, wrote to Waite and was directed to read von Eckartshausen's book. Crowley's search for this secret wisdom eventually led him to become a neophyte in the
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn ( la, Ordo Hermeticus Aurorae Aureae), more commonly the Golden Dawn (), was a secret society devoted to the study and practice of occult Hermeticism and metaphysics during the late 19th and early 20th ce ...
, which represented itself to be the visible and earthly outer order of the Great White Brotherhood. Within the Golden Dawn itself, its teachings claimed to be derived from a similar body of initiates which in that tradition were called the
Secret Chiefs
In various occultist movements, Secret Chiefs are said to be transcendent cosmic authorities, a spiritual hierarchy responsible for the operation and moral calibre of the cosmos, or for overseeing the operations of an esoteric organization that ...
.
The actual phrase "Great White Brotherhood" was used extensively in Leadbeater's 1925 book ''The Masters and the Path''.
Alice A. Bailey
Alice Ann Bailey (June 16, 1880 – December 15, 1949) was a writer of more than twenty-four books on theosophical subjects, and was one of the first writers to use the term New Age. Bailey was born as Alice La Trobe-Bateman, in Manchest ...
also claimed to have received numerous revelations from the Great White Brotherhood between 1920 and 1949, which are compiled in her books known collectively by her followers as the ''
Alice A. Bailey Material.'' Since the introduction of the phrase, the term "Great White Brotherhood" is in some circles used generically to refer to any concept of an enlightened community of adepts, on Earth or in the hereafter, with benevolent aims toward the spiritual development of the human race, and without strict regard to the names used within the tradition.
Dion Fortune
Dion Fortune (born Violet Mary Firth, 6 December 1890 – 6 January 1946) was a British occultist, ceremonial magician, novelist and author. She was a co-founder of the Fraternity of the Inner Light, an occult organisation that promoted ph ...
adopts the name to refer to the community of living and dead adepts.
The
ritual magic
Ceremonial magic (ritual magic, high magic or learned magic) encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic. The works included are characterized by ceremony and numerous requisite accessories to aid the practitioner. It can be seen as an e ...
ians of the
Western mystery tradition
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas a ...
sometimes refer to the Great White Brotherhood as the "Great White Lodge", a name that appears to indicate that they imagine it constitutes an
initiatory
Washing and anointing (also called the initiatory) is a temple ordinance practiced by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and Mormon fundamentalists as part of the faith's endowment ceremony. It is a sacred ordinance fo ...
hierarchy
A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an important ...
similar to
Freemasonry
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
.
Gareth Knight
Sir Gareth (; Old French: ''Guerehet'', ''Guerrehet'') is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend. He is the youngest son of King Lot and Queen Morgause, King Arthur's half-sister, thus making him Arthur's nephew, as well as brother to ...
describes its members as the "Masters" or "Inner Plane Adepti", who have "gained all the experience, and all the wisdom resulting from experience, necessary for their spiritual evolution in the worlds of form." While some go on to "higher evolution in other spheres", others become teaching Masters who stay behind to help younger initiates in their "cyclic evolution on this planet". Only a few of this community are known to the human race; these initiates are the "teaching Masters". The
AMORC
The Ancient and Mystical Order Rosæ Crucis (AMORC), also known as the ''Rosicrucian Order'', is the largest Rosicrucian organization in the world. It has various lodges, chapters and other affiliated bodies throughout the globe, operating in ...
Rosicrucian order maintains a difference between the "Great White Brotherhood" and the "Great White Lodge", saying that the Great White Brotherhood is the "school or fraternity" of the Great White Lodge, and that "every true student on the Path" aspires to membership in this Brotherhood. Some of Aleister Crowley's remarks appear to indicate that Crowley identified the Great White Brotherhood with the
A∴A∴
The A∴A∴ ( ) is a magical organization described in 1907 by occultist Aleister Crowley. Its members are dedicated to the advancement of humanity by perfection of the individual on every plane through a graded series of universal initiation ...
, his magical secret society.
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
n
Gnostic
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...
master
Peter Deunov
Peter Dunoff ( ; bg, Петър Дънов ; July 11, 1864 – December 27, 1944), also known by his spiritual name Beinsa Douno ( bg, Беинса Дуно, links=no ), and often called the Master by his followers, was a Bulgarian philosopher an ...
referred to his organization of followers as the
Universal White Brotherhood
The Universal White Brotherhood (UWB) is a religious movement founded in Bulgaria in 1897 by Peter Deunov. It was later established in France in 1937 by Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov, one of Deunov's followers.
Their teachings are also known as "Dun ...
, and it is clear that he too was referring to the
Western esoteric community-at-large. When ex-communicated as a heretic on 7 July 1922, he defended the Brotherhood as follows:
‘Let the Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church may refer to:
* Eastern Orthodox Church
* Oriental Orthodox Churches
* Orthodox Presbyterian Church
* Orthodox Presbyterian Church of New Zealand
* State church of the Roman Empire
* True Orthodox church
See also
* Orthodox (di ...
resolve this issue, whether Christ has risen, whether Love is accepted in the Orthodox Church. There is one church in the world. But the Universal White Brotherhood is outside the church - it is higher than the church. But even higher than the Universal White Brotherhood is the Kingdom of Heaven. Hence the Church is the first step, the Universal White Brotherhood is the second step, and the Kingdom of Heaven
Kingdom of Heaven may refer to:
Religious
* Kingdom of Heaven (Gospel of Matthew)
**Kingship and kingdom of God, or simply Kingdom of God, the phrase used in the other gospels
* Kingdom of Heaven (Daviesite), a schismatic sect, founded by Will ...
is the third step - the greatest one that is to be manifested.’ (24 June 1923).
Similarly,
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
n teacher
Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov
Omraam Mikhaël Aïvanhov (Mihail Ivanov; January 31, 1900 – December 25, 1986) was a Bulgarian philosopher, pedagogue, mystic, and esotericist. A leading 20th-century teacher of Western Esotericism in Europe, he was a disciple of Peter Deunov ...
(
Deunov's principal disciple) formally established
Fraternité Blanche Universelle as an "exoteric" esoteric organization still operating today in Switzerland, Canada, the USA, the UK and parts of Scandinavia.
The term ''Great White Brotherhood'' was further developed and popularized in 1934 with the publication of "Unveiled Mysteries" by
Guy Ballard's "I AM" Activity
The "I AM" Activity Movement is the original ascended master teachings religious movement founded in the early 1930s by Guy Ballard (1878–1939) and his wife Edna Anne Wheeler Ballard (1886–1971) in Chicago, Illinois.Saint Germain Found ...
. This Brotherhood of "Immortal Saints and Sages" who have gone through the Initiations of the Transfiguration, Resurrection, and the Ascension was further popularized by
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 ...
developed by
The Bridge to Freedom
The Bridge to Freedom, an Ascended Master Teachings religion, was established in 1951 by Geraldine Innocente and other students of the Ascended Masters, after she received what was believed to be an "anointing" to become a "messenger" for the Gre ...
,
The Summit Lighthouse
The Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) is an international New Age religious organization founded in 1975 by Elizabeth Clare Prophet. It is an outgrowth (and is now the corporate parent) of The Summit Lighthouse, founded in 1958 by Prophet's ...
and the
Church Universal and Triumphant
The Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) is an international New Age religious organization founded in 1975 by Elizabeth Clare Prophet. It is an outgrowth (and is now the corporate parent) of The Summit Lighthouse, founded in 1958 by Prophet's ...
, and The Temple of The Presence.
Benjamin Creme
Benjamin Creme (5 December 1922 − 24 October 2016) was a Scottish artist, author, esotericist, and editor of ''Share International'' magazine.
He asserted that the second coming, prophesied by many religions, would come in the form of ''Mai ...
has published books — he claims the information within them has been telepathically transmitted to him from the Great White Brotherhood.
Founding of the Great White Brotherhood
In 1952,
Geraldine Innocente
Geraldine Innocente (died June 21, 1961, p. 237) is the founder of a New Age church she named The Bridge to Freedom, which was established in 1951 by her and other Students of the Ascended Masters, after she received what was believed to be an Ano ...
, messenger for ''The Bridge to Freedom'', delivered this address purported to be from
Sanat Kumara
According to the post-1900 publications of theosophy, Sanat Kumara is an "Advanced Being" at the Cosmic level of initiation who is regarded as the "Lord" or "Regent" of Earth and of humanity. He is thought to be the head of the Spiritual H ...
describing the founding of the "Great White Brotherhood":
:" . . . I had nothing to work with but Light and Love, and many centuries passed before even two lifestreams applied for membership - One, later became Buddha (now, Lord of the World, the Planetary Logos
Gautama Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...
) and the Other, became the Cosmic Christ (Lord
Maitreya
Maitreya (Sanskrit: ) or Metteyya (Pali: ), also Maitreya Buddha or Metteyya Buddha, is regarded as the future Buddha of this world in Buddhist eschatology. As the 5th and final Buddha of the current kalpa, Maitreya's teachings will be aimed at ...
, now the Planetary Buddha). The Brotherhood has grown through these ages and centuries until almost all the offices are held now by those belonging to the evolution of Earth and those who have volunteered to remain among her evolution. . .."
Members of
The Bridge to Freedom
The Bridge to Freedom, an Ascended Master Teachings religion, was established in 1951 by Geraldine Innocente and other students of the Ascended Masters, after she received what was believed to be an "anointing" to become a "messenger" for the Gre ...
believe that on July 4, 1954
Sanat Kumara
According to the post-1900 publications of theosophy, Sanat Kumara is an "Advanced Being" at the Cosmic level of initiation who is regarded as the "Lord" or "Regent" of Earth and of humanity. He is thought to be the head of the Spiritual H ...
stated through Geraldine Innocente:
:" . . . Thus We took Our abode upon the sweet Earth. Through the same power of centripetal and centrifugal force of which I spoke (cohesion and expansion of the magnetic power of Divine Love), We then began to magnetize the Flame in the hearts of some of the Guardian Spirits who were not sleeping so soundly and who were not too enthusiastically engaged in using primal life for the satisfaction of the personal self.
:"In this way, the Great White Brotherhood began. The Three-fold Flame within the heart of
Shamballa
In Tibetan Buddhist tradition, Shambhala ( sa, शम्भल ',''Śambhala'', also ''Sambhala'', is the name of a town between the Rathaprā and Ganges rivers, identified by some with Sambhal in Uttar Pradesh. In the Puranas, it is named as t ...
, within the Hearts of the Kumaras and Myself, formed the magnetic Heart of the Great White Brotherhood by Whom you have all been blessed and of which Brotherhood you all aspire to become conscious members. . . . "
Great Brotherhood of Light
The Great White Brotherhood, also known as Great Brotherhood of Light or the Spiritual Hierarchy of Earth, is perceived as a spiritual organization composed of those
Ascended Masters who have risen from the Earth into immortality, but still maintain an active watch over the world. C.W. Leadbeater said "The Great White Brotherhood also includes members of the Heavenly Host (the
Spiritual Hierarchy directly concerned with the evolution of our world),
Beneficent Members from other planets that are interested in our welfare, as well as certain unascended
chelas".
The
Masters of the Ancient Wisdom
The Masters of the Ancient Wisdom are claimed to be enlightened beings originally identified by the Theosophists Helena Blavatsky, Henry S. Olcott, Alfred Percy Sinnett, and others. These Theosophists claimed to have met some of The Masters du ...
are believed by Theosophists to be joined together in service to the Earth under the name of the Great White Brotherhood. The use of the term "white" refers to their use of white magic, as opposed to black, and is unrelated to race besides common psychological relation and its implications. The later versions of Blavatsky described the masters as ethnically
Tibetan
Tibetan may mean:
* of, from, or related to Tibet
* Tibetan people, an ethnic group
* Tibetan language:
** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard
** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...
or
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n (
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
), not
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
. Recent skeptical research indicates, however, that this description was used by Blavatsky to hide the real identity of her teachers, some of whom are said to have really been well known Indian rulers or personalities of her time.
Most occult groups assign a high level of importance to the Great White Brotherhood, but some make interaction with the Ascended Masters of the Brotherhood a major focus of their existence. Of these several, the most prominent are the
"I Am" Activity
The "I AM" Activity Movement is the original ascended master teachings religious movement founded in the early 1930s by Guy Ballard (1878–1939) and his wife Edna Anne Wheeler Ballard (1886–1971) in Chicago, Illinois.Saint Germain Found ...
, founded in the 1930s, The Bridge to Freedom, the
Church Universal and Triumphant
The Church Universal and Triumphant (CUT) is an international New Age religious organization founded in 1975 by Elizabeth Clare Prophet. It is an outgrowth (and is now the corporate parent) of The Summit Lighthouse, founded in 1958 by Prophet's ...
, and The Temple of The Presence. Belief in the Brotherhood and the Masters is an essential part of the
syncretistic
Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, thu ...
teachings of various organizations that have continued and expanded the Theosophical philosophical concepts. Information given by the Summit Lighthouse and the I AM movement is suspect, since none of the writers of these groups are Masters of any Brotherhood. Examples of those believed to be Ascended Masters would be, according to different unconfirmed sources are the
Master Jesus
Master Jesus is the theosophical concept of Jesus in Theosophy and the Ascended Master Teachings.
Position in the Hierarchy of Masters of the Ancient Wisdom
The Master Jesus is one of the Masters of the Ancient Wisdom in Theosophy and is one of ...
,
Confucius
Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...
,
Gautama Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...
,
Mary the Mother of Jesus
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
,
Hilarion
Hilarion the Great (291–371) was an anchorite who spent most of his life in the desert according to the example of Anthony the Great (c. 251–356). While St Anthony is considered to have established Christian monasticism in the Egyptian d ...
,
Enoch
Enoch () ''Henṓkh''; ar, أَخْنُوخ ', Qur'ān.html"_;"title="ommonly_in_Qur'ān">ommonly_in_Qur'ānic_literature__'_is_a_biblical_figure_and_Patriarchs_(Bible).html" "title="Qur'ānic_literature.html" ;"title="Qur'ān.html" ;"title="o ...
,
Paul the Venetian
Paul the Venetian or the Venetian Chohan is one of the "Masters of the Ancient Wisdom" in the teachings of Theosophy and is regarded as one of the ascended masters in the Ascended Master Teachings (also collectively called the ''Great White Brothe ...
,
Kwan Yin
Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with Karuṇā, compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk reli ...
,
Saint Germain, and
Kuthumi
Koot Hoomi (also spelled Kuthumi, and frequently referred to simply as K.H.) is said to be one of the Mahatmas that inspired the founding of the Theosophical Society in 1875. In Theosophy it is believed that he engaged in a correspondence with tw ...
. These sources say that all these peoples put aside any differences they might have had in their Earthly careers, and unite instead to advance the spiritual well-being of humanity.
[Sinnett, Alfred Percy. '']The Occult World
''The Occult World'' is a book originally published in 1881 in London; it was compiled by a member of the Theosophical Society
The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the aim to advance the ideas of Theosophy in cont ...
''. Boston: Colby & Rich, 1882.
Agni Yoga
The Great White Brotherhood is the name given in some metaphysical/occult circles to adepts of wisdom in or out of earthly incarnation who have assumed responsibility for the cosmic destiny of the human race, both individually and collectively.
Nicholas Roerich
Nicholas Roerich (; October 9, 1874 – December 13, 1947), also known as Nikolai Konstantinovich Rerikh (russian: link=no, Никола́й Константи́нович Ре́рих), was a Russian painter, writer, archaeologist, theosophi ...
and his wife,
Helena Roerich
Helena Ivanovna Roerich (born Shaposhnikova; russian: Елéна Ивáновна Рéрих; 12 February 1879 – 5 October 1955) was a Russian theosophist, writer, and public figure. In the early 20th century, she created, in cooperation with t ...
, inspired by the
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 ...
writings of
H.P. Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
, published the "
Agni Yoga
Agni Yoga (russian: А́гни Йо́га) or the Living Ethics (russian: links=no, Жива́я Э́тика), or the Teaching of Life (russian: links=no, Уче́ние Жи́зни), is a Neo-Theosophical religious doctrine transmitted by ...
" series of books. Their contents, claimed to be inspired by the Master
Morya, described the work of the White Brotherhood and the Spiritual Hierarchy.
See also
*
Ascended masters
*
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
*
Communion of Saints
The communion of saints (), when referred to persons, is the spiritual union of the members of the Christian Church, living and the dead, but excluding the damned. They are all part of a single " mystical body", with Christ as the head, in which ...
*
Masters of the Ancient Wisdom
The Masters of the Ancient Wisdom are claimed to be enlightened beings originally identified by the Theosophists Helena Blavatsky, Henry S. Olcott, Alfred Percy Sinnett, and others. These Theosophists claimed to have met some of The Masters du ...
*
Secret Chiefs
In various occultist movements, Secret Chiefs are said to be transcendent cosmic authorities, a spiritual hierarchy responsible for the operation and moral calibre of the cosmos, or for overseeing the operations of an esoteric organization that ...
*
Marina Tsvigun (''Maria Devi Khristos'') of the Ukrainian White Brotherhood
Notes
External links
The Great White Brotherhood- website for books and messages from The Great White Brotherhood
The Stairway To Freedom- website for The Stairway To Freedom book dictated by The Great White Brotherhood
{{Ascended Master Teachings
Ascended Master Teachings
New religious movements
Spiritual evolution
Theosophical philosophical concepts