WHO ARE THE MASTERS?

Masters are those rare spiritual beings who have achieved oneness with divinity and are here on Earth to work selflessly to aid and teach humanity and to assist in manifesting God's plan on Earth. They were like us but through the hard work of many lifetimes, they have been able to lift themselves out the prison of materiality, and into the spiritual realm.  Spiritual Masters work selflessly to inspire humanity to seek the divinity within themselves and they are able to expedite the progress of their disciples because of their close connection to divinity.

Throughout the ages, mankind has been visited by these spiritual teachers whose sole purpose is the spiritual upliftment of humanity. Jesus Christ was one, as were Buddha and Mohammed. These three are well known to us, but there are many others whose names we do not know.  Some taught publicly and others remained anonymous. These individuals were called by different names, at different times, in different countries. They have been given many titles such as Master, Elder Brother, Avatar, Enlightened One, Savior, Messiah, Messenger, Guru, or Living Saint.   The teachings they offered have been given many names as well, such as Enlightenment, Salvation, Realization, Liberation, or Awakening.  The words used may be different, but in essence they all mean the same thing.  Spiritual Masters have taught the timeless spiritual truths or ageless wisdom in a variety of ways, their teachings reflecting the environment and period in which they live.

Great Spiritual Masters like Krishna, Buddha and Christ have led to the formation of religions dedicated to following the teachings of these avatars. Each spiritual master has offered their own unique path towards the highest Truth. However, although the outer forms may differ, the ultimate realisation is the same.   The Master teaches and demonstrates the path.  The onus remains on us to make the effort, with the Master's help, to acquire the skills to make the journey. 

Here is an eloquent definition of the masters from the Alice Bailey book, "Initiation : Human and Solar", page 24-25:

"These spiritual personalities, these adepts and Masters, have wrestled and fought for victory and mastery upon the physical plane, and struggled with the miasmas, the fogs, the dangers, the troubles, the sorrows and pains of everyday living.  They have trodden every step of the path of suffering, have undergone every experience, have surmounted every difficulty, and have won out.  These Elder Brothers of the race have one and all undergone the crucifixion of the personal self, and know that utter renunciation of all which is the lot of every aspirant at this time.  There is no phase of agony, no rending sacrifice, no Via Dolorosa that They have not in Their time trodden, and herein lies Their right to serve, and the strength of the method of Their appeal.  Knowing the quintessence of pain, knowing the depth of sin and of suffering, Their methods can be exquisitely measured to the individual need; yet at the same time Their realisation of the liberation to be achieved through pain, penalty, and suffering, and Their apprehension of the freedom that comes through the sacrifice of the form by the medium of the purificatory fires, suffices to give Them a firm hand, an ability to persist even when the form may seem to have undergone a sufficiency of suffering, and a love that triumphs over all setbacks, for it is founded on patience and experience.  These Elder Brothers of humanity are characterised by a love which endures, and which acts ever for the good of the group; by a knowledge which has been gained through millennia of lives, in which They have worked Their way from the bottom of life and of evolution well nigh to the top; by an experience which is based on time itself and a multiplicity of personality reactions and interactions; by a courage which is the result of that experience, and which, having itself been produced by ages of endeavour, failure, and renewed endeavour, and having in the long run led to triumph, can now be placed at the service of the race; by a purpose which is enlightened and intelligent, and which is co-operative, adjusting itself to the group and hierarchical plan and thus fitting in with the purpose of the Planetary Logos; and finally They are distinguished by a knowledge of the power of sound.  This final fact is the basis of that aphorism which states that all true occultists are distinguished by the characteristics of knowledge, dynamic will, courage, and silence.  "To know, to will, to dare, and to be silent."  Knowing the plan so well, and having clear, illuminated vision, They can bend Their will unflinchingly and unswervingly to the great work of creation by the power of sound.  This leads to Their silence where the average man would speak, and Their speaking where the average man is silent."

REFERENCES:

Bailey, Alice, Initiation: Human and Solar, Lucis Trust, New York, 1951