Ascended masters, also known as Mahatmas, are believed in several theosophical and related spiritual traditions to be spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans. Through a series of spiritual transformations, or initiations, they are said to have achieved a higher state of being.
Although the terms mahatma and ascended master are often used synonymously, the Ascended Master Teachings define them differently, associating "ascended master" with a higher level of spiritual attainment, specifically the Sixth Initiation or Ascension. This contrasts with "Masters of Light", "Healers", or "Spiritual Masters", who are said to have taken the Fifth Initiation and reside in a fifth dimension.
The term ascended master was first used by Baird T. Spalding in 1924 in his series of books Life and Teachings of the Masters of the Far East (DeVorss and Co.). Godfre Ray King (Guy Ballard) further popularized this concept of spiritual masters who had once lived on the earth in his book Unveiled Mysteries:
Definition Adherents of the ascended master Teachings hold that the beliefs surrounding ascended masters were partially released by the Theosophical Society beginning in 1875, by C.W. Leadbeater and Alice A. Bailey, and began to have more detailed public release in the 1930s by the ascended masters through Guy Ballard in the I AM Activity.King, Godfre Ray. The Magic Presence. Saint Germain Press 1935. page 89, 95 However, theosophists maintain that the concept of an ascended master is an exaggeration and corruption of the more modest theosophical concept of "Master of the Ancient Wisdom".
Guy Ballard said his work Unveiled Mysteries was dictated to him by the ascended master Saint Germain.King, Godfre Ray. Unveiled Mysteries. Chicago, Illinois: Saint Germain Press, 1934, p. vii: "The time has arrived, when the Great Wisdom, held and guarded for many centuries in the Far East, is now to come forth in America, at the command of those Great Ascended Masters who direct and protect the evolution of mankind upon this Earth."Saint Germain Foundation. The History of the "I AM" Activity and Saint Germain Foundation. Schaumburg, Illinois: Saint Germain Press, 2003. Other Ascended Master Teachings are contained in The Bridge to Freedom (1951),The Bridge to Freedom Journal (1951-1961) Reprinted by Ascended Master Teaching Foundation, 1989. Mark Prophet and Elizabeth Clare Prophet's The Summit Lighthouse (1958) (reorganized as the Church Universal and Triumphant in 1975),Lewis, James R. Church Universal and Triumphant in Scholarly Perspective Center For Academic Publication 1994. The Temple of The Presence (1995),White Paper - Wesak World Congress 2002. Acropolis Sophia Books & Works 2003 The Hearts Center (2005), the I AM University (2004), and various other organizations such as The White Eagle Lodge (1936) and the Aquarian Christine Church Universal (2006).Braden, Charles S. These Also Believe, MacMillan Publishing Company 2000, pp. 257–307.Watson, Jacob L. "Initiations of the Aquarian Masters: The Theosophy of the Aquarian Gospel" Outskirts Press, 2009.
Peter Mt. Shasta, who claimed to have met the ascended masters Saint Germain, Kuthumi, and El Morya, has been releasing the ancient teachings in a more modern and simplified form, emphasizing the teaching that the masters can work with those who have an open heart and the desire to benefit humanity.Mt. Shasta, Peter, Adventures of a Western Mystic: Apprentice to the Masters (Church of the Seven Rays, 2010)
Beliefs about ascended masters
The term ascended master was first introduced in 1934 by Guy Ballard with the publication of Unveiled Mysteries, a book which he said was dictated to him by the ascended master St. Germain.King, Godfre Ray. Unveiled Mysteries. Chicago, Illinois: Saint Germain Press 1934 page vii: "The time has arrived, when the Great Wisdom, held and guarded for many centuries in the Far East, is now to come forth in America, at the command of those Great Ascended Masters who direct and protect the evolution of mankind upon this Earth."Saint Germain Foundation. The History of the "I AM" Activity and Saint Germain Foundation. Schaumburg, Illinois: Saint Germain Press 2003 Other Ascended Master Teachings are contained in The Bridge to Freedom (1951),The Bridge to Freedom Journal (1951-1961) Reprinted by Ascended Master Teaching Foundation, 1989 The Summit Lighthouse (1958) (known also as The Church Universal and Triumphant), The Aetherius Society (1955), The Temple of The Presence (1995), the I AM University (2004), the White Eagle Lodge (1936) and the Aquarian Christine Church Universal, Inc. (2006).Braden, Charles S. These Also Believe Macmillan Publishing Company 2000, pp. 257-307Watson, Jacob L. "Initiations of the Aquarian Masters: The Theosophy of the Aquarian Gospel" Outskirts Press 2009
In Ascended Master Teachings there is also mention of Serapis Bey, a being who was incarnated as a high priest in one of the "Temples of the Sacred Fire" on Atlantis, and who migrated to Egypt at the time of the destruction of Atlantis.Prophet, Mark L. and Elizabeth Clare Lords of the Seven Rays. Summit University, Livingston, Montana, USA, 1986, p. 149. It is also believed that he was incarnated as the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III (who constructed the Temple of Luxor to the god Amon)Prophet, Mark L. and Elizabeth Clare Lords of the Seven Rays, p. 153. and also as Leonidas, the King of Sparta,Prophet, Mark L. and Elizabeth Clare Lords of the Seven Rays, p. 150. who was killed in 480 BC defending the pass of Thermopylae against the invasion of ancient Greece by Emperor Xerxes I of the Persian Empire.
Other beliefs about ascended masters Belief in the ascended masters and their Great White Brotherhood is an essential part of the beliefs of various organizations that have continued and expanded the concepts released in the original Saint Germain instruction in the 1930s through the "I AM" Activity. Examples of those believed by the ones proposing these teachings to be ascended masters would be the Master Jesus, Confucius, Gautama Buddha, Mary the mother of Jesus, St. Paul of Tarsus ( Hilarion), Ashtar Sheran, Sanat Kumara, Melchizedek, Archangel Michael, Metatron, Kwan Yin, the Count of St. Germain and Kuthumi.
Jesus
Jesus is believed to be one of the Masters of the Ancient Wisdom in Theosophy and is one of the ascended masters in the Ascended Master Teachings. The Master Jesus is regarded by Theosophists as the Master of the Sixth Ray.Bailey, Alice A, A Treatise on Cosmic Fire (Section Three - Division A - Certain Basic Statements), 1932, Lucis Trust, 1925, p. 1237.
It is believed by Ascended Master Teachings organizations that the Master Jesus was "Chohan of the Sixth Ray" until December 31, 1959, when, according to Elizabeth Clare Prophet, Lady Master Nada fully took on the Office in the Spiritual Hierarchy in his place. According to Prophet, Jesus became World Teacher, along with Kuthumi on January 1, 1956, succeeding Maitreya, who took the Office of "Planetary Buddha" and "Cosmic Christ".Prophet, Mark L. and Elizabeth Clare Lords of the Seven Rays Livingston, Montana: Summit University Press 1986 page 225
According to Elizabeth Clare Prophet, Prophet of the Church 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.Prophet, Elizabeth Clare and Prophet, Mark (as compiled by Annice Booth) The Masters and Their Retreats Corwin Springs, Montana:2003 Summit University Press Pages 142-143
According to Alice Bailey, the Master Jesus was previously incarnated as Joshua, the Hebrew military leader in the 13th century BC, and Joshua the High Priest in the sixth century BC.Bailey, Alice A. Initiation, Human and Solar New York: Lucis Publishing, 1922, p. 56.
According to the Ascended Master Teachings,I AM Ascended Master Dictation List, Saint Germain Press Inc., 1995, Listing of Ascended Masters by The I AM ActivitySchroeder, Werner. Ascended Masters and Their Retreats, Ascended Master Teaching Foundation, 2004. Listing of those who are believed to be Ascended Masters by The I AM Activity and The Bridge to FreedomBooth, Annice. The Masters and Their Retreats Summit Lighthouse Library, June 2003. Listing of those who are believed to be Ascended Masters by The I AM Activity, The Bridge to Freedom, and The Summit LighthouseShearer, Monroe & Carolyn. I AM Adorations, Affirmations & Rhythmic Decrees, Acropolis Sophia Books and Works, 1998. Listing of Ascended Masters by The I AM Activity, The Bridge to Freedom, The Summit Lighthouse, and The Temple of The Presence Jesus was also incarnated as Joseph of the coat of many colors in the 17th century BC/16th century BC (approximately between 1650 BC and 1550 BC), as well as King David (who lived until around 970 BC), and Elisha in the 9th century BC.Prophet, Elizabeth Clare and Prophet, Mark (as compiled by Annice Booth) The Masters and Their Retreats Corwin Springs, Montana: Summit University Press, 2003, p. 143.
Sanat Kumara
According to the post-1900 publications of Theosophy (specifically, the writings of Charles W. Leadbeater, Alice Bailey, and Benjamin Creme, as well as the Ascended Master Teachings of Guy Ballard, Elizabeth Clare Prophet, Geraldine Innocente, Joshua David Stone, and other Ascended Master Teachings teachers), Sanat KumaraSanat Kumara at ascension-research.orgA Progress Report On Our Ascension at luisprada.com is an "advanced being" of the Ninth Initiation (the highest initiation possible on planet Earth) who is regarded as the Lord or Regent of Earth and of humanity, and the head of the Spiritual Hierarchy of Earth who dwells in Shamballah.
It is believed by these authors that he is the founder of the Great White Brotherhood, which consists of Masters of the Ancient Wisdom (Fifth Initiation), ascended masters (Sixth Initiation), Chohans and Bodhisattvas (Seventh Initiation), Buddhas (Eighth Initiation), and highly spiritually-evolved volunteers from other worlds, who have all joined to advance spiritual evolution on Earth.Schroeder, Werner. Ascended Masters and Their Retreats, Ascended Master Teaching Foundation 2004. Describes the founding of Shamballah by Sanat Kumara
Sanat Kumara was mentioned briefly by the theosophist Helena Blavatsky.Blavatsky, Helena Petrovna. The Secret Doctrine: The Synthesis of Science, Religion, and Philosophy, Theosophical Publishing House, 1888. Sanat Kumara - Volume I: pp. 89, 457–458; Volume II: pp. 106, 140, 319, 584. She claimed he belonged to a group of beings, the "Lords of the Flame", whom Christian tradition have misunderstood as Lucifer and the fallen angels.Blavatsky, Helena Petrovna. The Secret Doctrine: The Synthesis of Science, Religion, and Philosophy, Theosophical Publishing House, 1888. Volume II, pp. 243 ff.
Sanat Kumara gained greater prominence when her follower Charles W. Leadbeater wrote that Sanat Kumara was the "King" or Lord of the World, and the head of the Great White Brotherhood of Mahatmas who had revealed the principles of theosophy.Leadbeater, C.W. The Masters and the Path. Adyar, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1925 (Reprint: Kessinger Publishing, 1997), pp. 296-299.
Maitreya
Initiation According to C.W. Leadbeater, Initiation is a process by which "we try to develop ourselves not that we may become great and wise, but that we may have the power and knowledge to work for humanity to the best effect."Leadbeater, Charles W. The Masters and the Path, Adyar, Madras, India, Theosophical Publishing House, 1925, p. 166. According to Alice Bailey, Initiation is the "process of undergoing an expansion of consciousness"Bailey, Alice A. Initiation, Human and Solar New York: Lucis Publishing, 1922, p. 12.
Periodization The fall of man