IV. The Gospei . i54

n
INTRODUCTION
The title of this work, the Esoteric Basis of Christianity y implies the existence of a foundation or origin of the Christian religion other than that which is commonly accepted. It also implies that there are some hidden or inner truths or doctrines which lie deeper than those forms, creeds, or doctrines which are associated with the term Christian in the popular conception. The historical difficulties of the Bible narrative, the want of reliable information respecting the central figure of the Gospels, the uncertainty respecting the date and authorship of the various books of the Old and New Testaments, the obscurity of the early centu- ries of the Christian era, and the astonishing contradictions among various sections of the Chris- tian community respecting the very essentials of their faith, though all claim their authority from the same records : these matters are well known to all who have passed beyond the mere Bible-class curriculum, and are seeking for more light and certainty than can be afforded from the orthodox
ii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
presentations. They find but little encouragement in their search, from the accredited teachers of the religion they are seeking to understand. Their very attitude of mind is regarded as a want of faith^ and they are repelled and alienated where they should find sympathy and help.
There are thousands of such, to whom the traditional teachings have become for ever imposs- ible, but who still feel that behind the exoteric forms and records there is a real basis of truth, which those forms serve to conceal rather than to reveal. Such a basis is presented in Theosophy, and we shall now attempt to outline its teachings and method in the relation of some of its funda- mental principles to Christian doctrine and tra- dition.
That which has been the highest and noblest theme of human thought and aspiration in all ages, that which is the object alike of philosophy, of science, and of religion, is the Truth concerning the nature of the great First Cause, which some name God^ the nature of Man, and the relation which subsists between these two, God and Man. The very slightest acquaintance with the nature of the problem, with the limitations of human knowledge contrasted with the infinitude of time and space, and the unlimited possibilities of pro- gress and evolution which lie behind and in front of the individual and the race, suggests at once that in the very nature of the case there must be
ISTRODUCTIOS ill
a knowledge which is exoteric or revealed, in so far as it has already been discovered or made known to mankind ; and an esoteric or hidden knowledge, in so far as that knowledge is still beyond his reach, is still veiled in mystery. But further than this, it is clearly seen that the knowledge which is exoteric, in so far as it has already been discovered and formulated, may be beyond the reach of any but the most highly trained intellects or the deepest intuitions, and ' must therefore be esoteric for the great majority. I Any religion, or philosophy, or science which is to be presented in a popular form, in a form which can touch the minds of the masses, must be pre- I scnted in popular language, in language, that is to say, of common and familiar experiences of every- day life. But in doing this, the subject presented is degraded and obscured just in proportion as it is one requiring the utmost refinements of language and thought. In philosophy, this is well recognis- ed; and very little attempt is made to popularise this department of human research, because any such attempt would necessarily stultify the result. In science, all that is popularised is the merest I externals of the phenomena of the world of sense L perception ; and it is well understood that a man [ must qualify himself by much arduous work, if he would understand well a mere portion of the results which have been already attained in the field of inductive research.
IV THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIASITY
But when we come to religion, to that which should be the height and depth of all knowledge, which should unite philosophy and science, and claim as its own their utmost efforts and furthest results, we find quite a different method ; an assumption of superiority and an independent order of phenomena, which separates it from all other departments of human experience, and makes of it the great exception.
We speak in this respect not of religion per se, considered apart from any particular forms or creeds, but of the Christian religion in its tradi- tional methods and ecclesiastical authority. The effects of that tradition and authority are too clearly written on the page of history, for any mistake to be made as to the relation which it bears, in its authoritative presentation, to science and philosophy. The influence of ecclesiasticism has ever been on the side of darkness and bond- age, not for freedom and light. The darkness and cruelty of the Christian era has been deepest, when the authority of the Church was most supreme. Every advance in knowledge and freedom during the present century has been won in the face of bitter opposition on the part of orthodox religion . It is little wonder, therefore, that at the present day, thinking men and women of all classes should find themselves compelled, to repudiate Christi- anity ; that science and philosophy will have none of it; and that even social and moral reforms are
INTRODUCriON
brought about in spite of, ratlicr than through its influence and initiative.
Were it not " Bible truth ", it would be con- sidered the greatest insult to human reason, that any should be found who could accept as history the Bible narratives. But the children of Christian parents are brought up by the million to accept the Bible as literal history, presumably because their adult parents do so also. From thousands of pul- pits, and in thousands of Sundiiy schools, the Bible stories are put forward as reliable history. The result is deplorable, and is seen in two ways ; in the narrowness and bigotry of ' orthodoxy ", cramping and warping the judgment and intui- tion ; and in a reaction which throws men alto- gether out of a religion which tliey have discovered to have been playing them false, into a life of irreligion, if not of positive vice. We can excuse childish things in children, but it is lamentable to find that the teachers and leaders should thu.s discredit their religion with those who are no longer babes.
If it were well recognised that religion, like philosophy and science, is necessarily progressive ; that it has its outer or popular form, and its inner or esoteric aspects; and if it were a legitimate step for all who were qualified to pass naturally from the exoteric to the esoteric, finding at each step I those who could initiate them into a deeper know- ledge, which would harmonise their own expe-
VI THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
ricnce and those of their fellows, in all departments and phases of human nature, then it is possible that religion might occupy the highest place of honour, and its representatives belong to the best and noblest of the race.
But as it is, there is no choice offered us but to accept or reject an exoteric form, antagonistic to our deepest convictions, to our commonest expe- riences, and to our innate sense of justice and moral- ity. And if behind the exoteric forms, we desire to discover a deeper meaning, a hidden truth which we may suspect to exist, we find, not help, but antagonism from those who would profess to be our guides and teachers in the " mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven. "
If therefore there exist such a thing as an esoteric basis of Christianity, an inner truth underlying the external forms and doctrines, either not yet discovered, or if known at one time, now lost and obscured, such an esoteric basis is no part of the teachings and methods of professed Christianity ; and it is more than likely that any attempt to dis- close it will meet with strenuous opposition and denunciation from those who should be the first to welcome it.
That form of truth which satisfies one race or generation, is always found to be insufficient for the next. There is no standing still, but always transition. Those who cling to the old forms remain behind as the ' orthodox ' ; they are the
IXTRODUCnON vit
drag, preventing the cycle from moving too fast. Those who press forward and anticipate the new departure, are always in the minority, and have to suffer denunciation and persecution. The concepts of 'God' and of his relation to human nature which are found in the old theology, may still be popular; but the " new theology " is evidence that the time is close at hand, when the teachings which have been put forward by the few will become generally recognised. It is more than likely that many of the teachings now put forward by Theo- sophy, and which meet with the most vehement opposition and denial, will be quietly appropriat- ed in the next century, and become well recognised tenets of orthodox Christianity. There are already signs of it on every hand in the literature of to-day.
The question here, let it be noted, is not one as to the necessary existence of mystery within mystery in the department of religion, as in all other departments of human experience; but as to whether the particular forms and doctrines of the Christian religion arise from, or contain within them the highest and furthest results of human knowledge, and an adequate answer in terms of those results, to the great problem of our own nature and existence.
That traditional and historical Christianity does not comply with these results is clear enough, in its divorce from science and philosophy ; but it
V i i i THE ESOTERIC BA SIS OF CHRIS TIA NIT Y
may be that Christian doctrine really does contain the necessary elements, and that in its origin and inception it was not so divorced. This is a matter upon which considerable light is likely to be thrown by historical and critical research ; but we wish to approach the matter now from a different point of view, and in relation to general principles rather than to a line of evidence requiring peculiar qualifications for its successful application.
Looking over the vista of human history, we are able to trace a cyclic law of rise and fall, a rythmic outbreathing and inbreathing like that of summer and winter, producing well-marked epochs of activity and repose, periods of revival alter- nating with a time of decline or stagnation. Families, communities, nations, races, all come under the operation of this law. The cycles which we are able to trace, however, in what is known to us of his- tory, must be regarded merely as minor cycles, included within the operation of some larger pe- riod, of which our historical records cannot give us any adequate account. That which has com- monly been regarded as ancient history, is beginning to be understood as being very modern indeed, in comparison with the real antiquity of man ; and the proofs are gradually accumulating of the existence, in remote ages, of a degree of civilisa- tion which equalled, if indeed it did not far sur- pass, our present boasted achievements. In the light of the teachings of Theosophy we trace this
INTRODUCTION IX
rythmic or cyclic motion deeper than the mere external events of history ; these events being in themselves effects, not causes. Like the rise and fall of the tides, due not to the actions or qualities of the individual or combined drops of the ocean, but to great cosmic laws which the ocean as a whole must obey ; so the great cosmic laws of BEING carry with them the tide of human evolu- tion, in rise and fall, of which the events of history are but the merest ripples left on the sands of time, quickly effaced and obliterated.
It comes to pass, therefore, that in human his- tory certain results are attained, certain periods are observable, in which great progress is appa- rently made in literature, science, art, philoso- phy, or religion; but these results, instead of being handed on intact for future races to work upon and enlarge, become obscured or altogether lost ; to be re-stated or re-discovered in a later age. From this it results that certain knowledge which at one time was exoteric, may in course of time become esoteric ; either because it has been altogether lost, or because those who still hold it, find it impossible to communicate it, owing to the condition of the community or race at some particular period.
In using the terms exoteric and esoteric, there- fore, I do so in a purely relative sense. There is no such thing as the esoteric per se. The whole uni- verse is an open book, were we but qualified to
% THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
read it. And not merely so, but it is a part of our theosophic faith, that as we cast aside the limita- tions which veil our sight, the limitations of our physical sensations and desires, that which is now hidden from us becomes ours by natural right.
Seeing then that Christianity in its traditional form and orthodox presentation is so little in har- mony with the furthest results of human know- Itidge, with certain well-established principles of reasoning, inductive and deductive, we might suspect that the operation of this cyclic law has caused it to lose its real meaning and true presen- tation, and left us only the shell or exoteric form of that which was once a living truth. We might suspect this not merely because of the inadequacy of Christianity, but because we trace this process of deterioration in the history of all religions, and we cannot grant to Christianity any exceptional position in this respect ; unless indeed it is one of exceptional deterioration.
Let it be understood, that when I speak of Christianity ^ I speak of Christian doctrine by what- ever Church or section it may be formulated, whether Roman Catholic or Protestant. I do not speak of the Christian /// so far as that is ethical or moral. I speak of eccle- siastical and historical Christianity ; and since certain doctrines accepted by one portion of the Christian community are repudiated by another, it is out of the question to consider here as to whether
INTRODUCTION xi
I they are or are not " truly Christian " ; it is suffi- cient that they are, or have been, associated with some portion of the community which claims to rest its teachings on the authority of the Christian Scriptures. The doctrine of vicarious atonement is largely repudiated to-day by men of eminence in the Protestant Church : but there can be no doubt as to the applicability of the term Christian to this doctrine. Wc hear something nowadays about a " new theology " and a " higher criticism ", all of which is so much acknowledgment that the theo- logy and exposition of the past has been inade- quate, if not false ; but still the forward movement in this respect is an attempt to adjust Christian doctrine to the imperative demands of human pro- gress, rather than a true enlightenment originating in the Church itself.
Now it is our contention in this work, that there is a true esoteric basis underlying the historical records of Christianity ; esoteric in the sense that the original meaning has been entirely lost Or obscured, with the result that Christianity has nothing left but the merest husk and shell of ■jwhat were once spiritual truths. Upon the basis of KOteric records, for the most part purely allegor- al and symbolical, but having an inner meaning time well understood, the Church has |liilt its fabric of Christian doctrine ; accepting : exoteric and outward records as literally and Kstorically true, and investing the very letter and
Xii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
word with a supernatural and arbitrary authority which it was never intended to bear.
If this be so, how shall we regain that which has been lost ; how shall we succeed, not merely in freeing ourselves from the false doctrine, but in gaining the deeper knowledge, the esoteric truth which the outward forms only serve to conceal ?
It is at this point that Theosophy comes forward with a clear and definite message. It offers not merely an exposition of the exoteric records, a key which harmonises these records with the profoundest philosophy and the truest science ; but it discloses the very source and fount of hidden truths, an inexhaustible mine of esoteric knowledge underlying the broken and fragmentary records of all ages, and uniting these into one harmonious whole.
When I speak of Theosophy y I mean something more than the teachings which have been brought into prominence through the Theosophical Society, and originating in their present form in the teachings of H. P. Blavatsky. Primarily it is to those teachings we are indebted for the present exposition ; but in putting forward modern Theo- sophy as our immediate guide in the matter, it is necessary to guard against one or two popular misconceptions.
In the first place Theosophy is not a new sys- tem, much less is it a new religion, or a new creed. It is the oldest of the old. It has meant in previous
t:
IXTRODUCTION
ages, and it means to-day, the highest and noblest | conceptions of the nature of the sou! and of the \ nature of the divine which have ever been present- ed to or recognised by the human mind. It means infinitely more even than that ; for it means divine wisdom, or the wisdom of divine beings ; while at the same time it carries with it the idea that such divine wisdom has been and can be attained by human beings, as the natural and legitimate gi of their own evolution,
Theosophy claims the best that has ever been 'taught by the noblest teachers the world has ever Tcnown ; not merely because the best and noblest must necessarily be a part of that wider know- ledge which is included in the term, but because through its teachings we discover certain unifying principles which are found to be embodied in all these teachings ; though in their historical develop- ments they have led to various and conflicting religious forms and systems.
But the exposition of Theosophy by its modern representatives must necessarily be partial and faulty, and liable on every side to misrepresenta- tion and perversion. Thus we find many writers of acknowledged authority putting forward our identical teachings, and yet using every opportun- ity to disparage and misrepresent our aims and methods. Prof. Max Miillcr in his recent work on " Theosophy, or Psychological Religion ", puts certain views which in the main arc iden-
XIV THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIASITY
tical with those we are endeavouring to teach ; his book being indeed a valuable contribution to our own literature. Yet with regard to the use by us of the term Theosophy he says that : " This venerable name, so well known among early Christian think- ers as expressing the highest knowledge of God within the reach of the human mind, has of late been so greatly misappropriated that it was high time to restore it to its proper function ". Now it is quite possible that some of our writers may have laid themselves open to a charge of misuse of the term, but it is also more than probable that the Professor is only echoing the popular misconcep- tions regarding the subject. But, to quote his own words : * ' It should be understood once and for all that one may call oneself a Theosophist without being suspected of believing in spirit-rappings, table-turnings, or any other occult sciences and black arts. " We must add to this, that it should be understood once and for all that one may call oneself a Theosophist, and may also be a member of the Theosophical Society, without being identified as such with any particular doctrines or statements put forward in theosophical literature. The Society is absolutely unsectarian, and its teachings eclec- tic. Its members belong to many religions and many phases of thought, and nOne are bound by the opinions and teachings of Others. Theoso-^ phy cannot be hardened into a creed or a formal system, for its very essence and genius lies in ita
»
INTRODUCTION XV
escape from the bondage of forms and formulas. It is the one truth which underlies all forms | all phenomena, all experience. Every system of | religion arises from the attempt to formulate this underlying truth, to give it a definite expression in human language. The impulse is given by some great teacher, whose words in course of time be- come authoritative, and give rise to various creeds and dogmas or articles of faith. But these, from the very nature of the case, are inadequate and temporary, and as such must pass away with the 'dianging ages. But if we can catch the underlying 'principle which the form is intended to express, we iger dependent on those forms of faith which place one religion in antagonism to anothei". The value of modern Theosophy does not lie in any mere formulated doctrine which would sup- plant the creed Or faith of other religions. It is not tagonistic to any form of religion, but only to le dogmatism, intolerance, and bigotry which therefrom. Its value lies in the disclosure of hidden and forgotten principles, which are iplicable to human experience at all times, and ider all conditions, and not merely to one lion of the community, to one phase of thought,
period of human evolution.
Customs, manners, forms of thought and religion,
.nge with the changing ages. But what we
iquire is the TRUTH underlying all these changes ;
TRUTH which changes not, and which is yet
xvi THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
expressed in each and all of these tempDrary niani- festations.
Now that TRUTH is Theosophy ; and we shall reach it and understand it just in proportion as we recognise in its modern presentation, and in every presentation, an attempt — necessarily imperfect — to express this esoteric truth ; and not a form of doctrine, adequate in its mere intellectual expres- sion, to teach us the deep mysteries of our own nature and of the universe around us.
Most people, however, require a definite creed. They have been brought up to understand that all that it is needful for them to know for their 'sal- vation ' can be expressed in a form of words ; and it is very difficult for such to grasp the genius of Theosophy, in the freedom which it effects from all forms of doctrine. Thus the popular conception will represent Theosophy as a creed^ as a new religion, in spite of all we may say. And there is indeed a distinct danger that modern Theosophy may, in course of time, follow the same lines as other teachings, and harden into a mere dogmatic form of faith.
When we examine in the light of Theosophy the sacred books of various religions, and the original sayings, so far as these are available, of the world's greatest teachers, we are able to perceive a singular uniformity. We might readily suspect that this uniformity is something more than a coincidence, apart even from the consideration that — as there
INTRODUCTION xvii
can only be oneTRUTH — the highest and best teach- ing must always approximate to this, and therefore present a considerable amount of correspondence, when we strip it of all merely fortuitous circum- stance, in the mode of its presentation.
But Theosophy gives us an actual basis for this uniformity, by disclosing once more the existence of a Hierarchy of Initiates , who preserve from age to age the esoteric teachings which would other- wise be entirely lost. There are several considera- tions which would point to the existence of such a Hierarchy — of some original source from whence all great teachers have derived their knowledge — apart from the actual evidence which Theosophy offers. The very proposition that there does exist a unifying TRUTH, an esoteric knowledge or Then- Sophia, within the reach of every member of the human race, and the natural goal of his develop- ment, carries with it the idea that such knowledge must have its living representatives.
We may state the proposition in another way. Absolute knowledge, absolute wisdom belongs only to the supremely divine, to ' God ', what- ever may be conceived of under that term. But between that supreme divine intelligence which comprehends all, and the highest knowledge which is disclosed to us in exoteric forms, or which we are at present capable of grasping with our finite intellect, there is a great, a seemingly infinite gulf. Is there naught to fill that gulf.? Are there no
11
xvin THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
intelligences, no beings representing all the degrees and planes of knowledge, wisdom, and power, which lie in front of man's evolution, just as behind him lie the grades and degrees of the lower kingdoms of nature. If the gulf between a moneron and a man is bridged by ascending grades of conscious- ness ; if between an aborigine and a Plato we can trace all degrees in an ascending order of human evolution : is it not a matter of absolute certainty that the further stages of evolution — which we can perhaps as dimly conceive as the beetle which we crush under our foot can conceive of the intelli- gence which crushes it — should have their repre- sentative beings ? If the whole creation moves in orderly succession towards one great end ; if evo- lution has any meaning whatever as an intelligent purpose of a divine wisdom ; if man must have reached his present stage through the lower de- grees in the scale of Being, through ages and aeons of evolution stretching behind, and with ages and aeDns stretching in front : is it not an absolute and logical necessity that there should be those in front of us, the ** Elder Brothers " of the Race, who have passed through the stage at which we now stand, who have perfected themselves through the same trials and difficulties with which we now contend, and without which we could not reach that higher goal which can only be won by individ- ual effort and conquest ?
Furthermore, that which we may call the econ-
IXTRODUCTION
ftpmy ol experience, deinands that the results attained by the race as a whole should not be lost. But nothing is more clear than that we possess En exoteric records a merest fractional part of the wesults which have been attained in various ages. Are those results lost for ever, or perchance only fto be rc-discovercd in some happier period of human history? Have the great teachers and re- formers been mere isolated individuals, appearing fortuitously at various times ; and do the portals of 4ie grave close over their efforts, and cut them off pr ever from human progress and human endea- vour?
Who are those whose names arc most honoured
pn the records of history — the great Masters and
Vorld Saviours ? They arc those who have taught
»nd practised the highest renunciation, who have
ihown the deepest love for humanity ; those whose
Stearts respond to every cry of human suffering,
sand who in their love and pity would spend their
Jife's blood from age to age for the salvation of
bheir fellows. And how else should the world be
■saved, but b}' the continued efforts of these from
^ge to age ? For when we have realised the unity
pf Humanity, the great principle of Human Bro-
liierhood ; when we have realised that the individ-
lal cannot separate himself from the race, either
1 the past, the present, or the future ; when we
; understood that it is neither an accident of
■ibirlh, nor yet an arbitrary divine will which makes
XX THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
one man to be born a philosopher and another man a clown : \vc shall see that the unity and con- tinuity of the whole demands the connecting link which is only supplied by the law of Karma, work- ing through reincarnation ; and not merely bring- ing about the pcrfectment of the individual, but ensuring the results of that perfectment for the progress of the whole.
And thus we teach that behind the ever-chang- ing scene of human history, with its apparently fortuitous events, there are those who watch over and help On the progress of human knowledge and perfection. From the '* Silent Watcher *', down to the man who still moves among his fellows, not boasting of or acknowledging his connection with the great Lodge of Masters, there is an unbroken line of Initiates ; of those who have entered into a higher knowledge and a nobler purpose than that which the great majority of their fellows can as yet recognise. Hear what is said in the Secret Doctrine of this same *' Silent Watcher". '' He is the ' Initiator *, called the ' GREAT SACRIFICE *. For, sitting at the threshold of LIGHT, he looks into it from within the circle of Darkness, which he will not cross ; nor will he quit his post till the last day of this life-cycle. Why does the solitary Watcher remain at his self-chosen post ? Why does he sit by the fountain of primeval Wis- dom, of which he drinks no longer, as he has naught to learn which he does not know— aye,
INTRODUCTION xxi
neither on this Earth, nor in its heaven? Because the lonely, sore-footed pilgrims on their way back to their homCy are never sure to the last moment of not losing their way in this limitless desert of illusions and matter called Earth-Life. Because he would fain show the way to that region of freedom and light, from which he is a voluntary exile himself, to every prisoner who has succeeded in liberating himself from the bonds of flesh and illusion. Be- cause, in short, he has sacrificed himself for the sake of mankind, though but a few Elect may profit by the GREAT SACRIFICE. *'
Unlimited are the possibilities which lie in front of us, yet each step must be won by trial and effort. We can only claim at any time such know- ledge as we are fitted to receive, and in the very nature of tiie case we can only receive that for which we have fitted ourselves. If we do nqt kjiow, it is because we are not fitted, because we have not learnt how to ask aright. Let none ask to be initiated as a favour. When he is ready he may demand it as a right, nor can it be refused ; but the pass-word must first be given, the pass-word which none can be told, but each must find for himself.
The progress of the individual is not in separa- tion from his fellows, but in closer union and identity. All great teachers have taught that indi- vidual progress is attained through renunciation ; that the more we seek our individual good and
xxii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIASITY
happiness, the more we shall miss it. The know- ledge of unity in diversity is the sum of all know- ledge. The practice of altruism is the first essential of progress. The Brotherhood of Human- ity is the sum of all doctrine, and of all practice. All TRUTH is before us as an open book ; there is nothing esoteric save that which is so by reason of our individual limitations. Men speak of revelation f as if they had only to be told the truth on divins authority in order to recognise and accept it. But if they cannot recognise the word of God speaking in all ages, in all history, in all nature, and in their Own hearts : the traditional authority which may attach to a particular book or a particular Church will only lead them into the grossest error and superstition. Nowhere is this seen more clearly than in the doctrine of personal salvation which the Christian Church has promul- gated. The idea of enjoying a heaven of bliss, when friends, relations, even the most dearly loved ones may be doomed to unspeakable torture for ever and ever, beyond the reach of our help, is so utterly diabolical, that only those can profess to believe it whose moral sense has been utterly ruined by the terrorism of a traditional authority, under whose sway it has been their karma to fall.
But not so have taught the great Masters, and
not so teaches Theosophy to-day. It says : —
Canst thou destroy divine COMPASSION ? Com-
INTRODUCTTOS
I passion is nO attribute. It is the LAW of laws— L ete-nal Harmony, Alaya's self ; a shoreless uni- 'ersal Essence, the light of Everlasting Right, and [fitness of all things, the law of Love eternal. "
The more thou dost become at one with it, I thy being melted in its beint., the more thy Soul I unites with that which Is, the more thou wilt ■become COMPASSION AUSOLL'TE ". [Voice of the P Silence) .
The world has never been without its Initiates, who have all derived their teaching from the one Central Lodge, and have all taught the same eso- teric doctrine ; sometimes in one form, sometimes in another, according to the particular needs of those whom they addressed. But it may be ask- , how are we to recognise who among the great teachers have been really Initiates ; who are those whom we may regard as speaking with authority ? ; would reply, that no authority can be given, «ior is it needed. The question carries with it an Kmplied principle which has been the curse of man- ind in all history; the implication that a 'man may bring with him a supernatural or divine author- ■ty other than which is contained in the message |ie delivers. Men ever seek after a sign, and ask credential. Wherever a belief in the super- natural prevails, such signs are demanded, with ^the result that the slightest exhibition of ab- normal powers is magnified into a miracle, and ftnadc the basis of a superstitious and credulous
xxiv THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
faith. The existence of abnormal phenomena is a matter of scientific evidence. Modern ' miracles ' are not one whit less numerous than ancient ones, but it is only a certain section of the community who now claims them as miracles, or as a basis for do^ma. A miracle is simply an unexplained phe- nomenon having a supposed religious significance. The Roman Catholic Church has still her miracles by which she holds sway over her devotees. The Protestant Church asserts the age of miracles to be past, yet still holds to the miraculous in Bible narrative as proof of doctrine. Spiritualists invest their phenomena with a supernatural author- ity, and very many give a servile and superstitious obedience to the ravings of any one claiming to communicate with the '* spirits. '* Material- istic science falls into the opposite error, and in denying the supernatural denies also the super- physical. Those who deny the existence of a spirit- ual world, refuse to believe in certain abnormal phenomena, because those phenomena have igno- rantly been labelled miraculous or supernatural, whereas they are only super- physical. We do not reach the spiritual world immediately we part company with the material plane of sense-per- ception ; and science must sooner or later recognise the teachings of Theosophy with regard to the existence of various ^/a;/^s of matter and conscious- ness transcending the physical ; of which the 7th or highest can alone be called the truly spiritual;
ISTRODUCTIOS XXV
and the phenomena of which are utterly beyond our reach in our present stage of evolution. Most so called psychic phenomena belong only to the astral plane (See diagram, page 30).
But if we wish to know who are the true Initiates we must be able to recognise for ourselves the one message, the one truth which they all proclaim. It is no use asking for credentials ; the message must be its own justification. Those who ask for creden- tials are just those who least understand what they demand. Orthodoxy is always demanding such credentials, and persecuting and rejecting the noblest and best teachers, because in the very nature of the case they cannot comply with the demand. Theosophy claims to come from those who know. But it does not ask acceptance of its teachings on that account, but for the inherent •truth of the teachings themselves, which are found to har- monise with the facts of our own experience, and with the teachings of the best and wisest in all ages. We cannot be far wrong when we can lay claim to the best and furthest results that have been reached in any age or by any teacher, so far as these are known exoterically. But there is a deeper truth, an esoteric teaching which we also disclose.lt is no use, however, to look for that, if we cannot discern the truth in all its numerous forms and symbols. Of what use is it to look for the precious metal, if we cannot recognise its signs in the ore and dross ? Theosophy enables us to
xxvi THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
detect the pure metal in the slag-heaps and rub- bish of exoteric creeds and religions. For it is the fate of all things that come into this lower world to be materialised and debased, to take a physical and outward form, which often totally obscures the pure incarnating ray.
And in proportion as men worship the outward form, they miss the inner truth ; nor can a physical phenomenon ever be a demonstration of a spiritual truth, save in so far as all phenomena are the witnesses of eternal verities. Theosophy finds its justification in all phenomena, not in any special ones.
The message of Theosophy, therefore, both in its explanation of things present, and in the vista of human attainment which it discloses, is clear and harmonious. But if we are to reach to the goal of our perfection we must comply, at every step, with the necessary conditions. These condi- tions arc not arbitrary, but natural ; they are not pains and penalties andpious mortifications imposed by a Church in the name of deity, but the natural conditions of our own inner nature in its relation to the outer. Why the upward road of our • evolu- tion should only be accomplished through pain and suffering is not yet clear ; but that road is hard enough, without introducing arbitrary and unnat- ural difficulties. It is so hard indeed, so difficult even to discover, that men prefer the easier way of compliance with outward conditions, and deem
INTRODrcriO?/
I:
at it may be accomplished by religious obser- ances. Here again the Church has ever been an infaithful witness, lulling men into a fancied iirity through the observance of her ordinan- .. Yet still it is true that " narrow is the gate, ind straitened the way, that Icadcth unto life, and iv be they that find it."
The conditions, we say, are natural, not artifi- ;ial. And the natural law which operates is one which all religions recognise in theory, but fail to carry out in practice, because natural law hus been from spiritual law, and religion invested with a supernatural qualitj'. The natural law of lur progress is simply our renunciation and disen- tanglement from the illusions of physical life and sensation. " The self of Matter and the SELF of Spirit can never meet. One of the twain must disappear ; there is no place for both ". (Voice of the SiUiici). How much this implies is not even guessed at by the great majority. The very nature pf the illusion is misunderstood, otherwise men uld not speak of passing beyond the veil at .th. Renunciation of the world, of all that m:ist iold dear, will not in itself bring spiritual know- fedgeor enlightenment ; and if performed merely it the dictates of a religious authority or an emo- ional fervour, will often lead to deeper obscurity. The spiritual life and knowledge which we must ■in is no mere quality of religious devotion. It is real and true knowledge of the unseen world, of
xxviii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
that i«;/^r world on which the outer rests, and from which our own phenomenal lives, and all pheno- mena of nature springs. * God ' works in the stone as well as in the human heart, and the method by which we apprehend his work is that which we call the natural law of each. In neither the stone nor the human heart do we look for direct inter- vention of an arbitrary will. That which the heart can manifest forth of the divine nature by reason of its complex organism and subtle qualities, is infinitely more than the stone can reveau through its inertness and unawakened consciousness. And if the heart be near or far from ' God ', it is so Only in this sense, that it can respond more or less to the vibrations of a higher plane. The stone is dead and inert because it cannot so respond. But the heart may also be dead to the divine order of nature, in which case it acts only under the in- fluence of physical and vital laws, nor can it when once dead respond to the higher vibrations, any more than the dead flower or the stone can open and unfold to the magnetic influence of the sum- mer sunshine. The organism must be responsive, whether it be in stone or in plant, in animal life, or in the human heart and mind ; nor can we presume to find throughout the whole range of the seen and the unseen aught but the appropriate operation of natural law, which indeed is the very nature and Being of 'God ' ; and which, could it be altered or changed by caprice, w^ould shatter at a
INTRODUCTION xxix
blow our faith in the immutability of the divine Word ; that faith which alone makes life bearable in a world which otherwise were one of mocking shadows. Be assured that though with * God ' all things are possible, the stone cannot speak with the human tongue, neither can the heart which is dead to the higher vibrations, receive the divine influence, though it may still sei*ve the physical man for a brief span of years.
Spiritual knowledge is a real knowledge of our own SELF ; accurate, scientific, assured, and there- fore potent ; not helpless and inane as at present, a mere something which we hope to have revealed to us when we pass the portals of the grave. The mere religious ideal or faith is of no service here. All such ideals will have their due fulfilment ; but they are not the reality. So long as there inheres in them a personal quality, they are temporary and finite ; they are part of the hopes and desires of our lower nature, and belong not to that ONE REALITY which lives and moves in all, and is free from all conditioning qualities.
To renounce everything in this world under the stimulus of religious enthusiasm is comparatively easy : we see examples of it in every form of religion. It is not the result of any one ' faith *, but is produced under the influence of the most diverse forms of belief. The extreme sacrifice of life for a religious ideal is also exemplified in various forms of religion, and when examined
XXX THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIASITY
in the light of a higher doctrine, which takes no account of the truth or falsehood of one religion as against another, and which understands the term * life * in a much higher sense than mere physical existence, it is seen to be only an exalted form of selfishness.
We say again, that the straight and narrow Path^ which few find, lies outside of the quality of any mere religious belief, though a man may be found willing to die a physical death for the sake of that belief. It is far easier to die such a death, under the inspiration of a religious ideal, than it is to find the straight and narrow way which leadeth to life ETERNAL. For the life ETERNAL, that which we call the ONE LIFE, lies outside and beyond all personal aspirations, and hopes, and fears. It lives and moves in all, and has lived and will live from eternity to eternity, ever the great enigma to all that is personal and temporary. The personal devotee who loses his life for his faith^ does so in the hope of a personal reward, it is still the personal *' I " who will meet in heaven with all *' I " hold blessed ; ''my " friends, **my" loved ones, '* my" ideal of a personal God and a personal Saviour .This is not a renun- ciation, but an intensification of the personal, and therefore temporary and finite. Far deeper than that lies the PATH to life ETERNAL. It lies with- iti, not without ; in the innermost of our own Being, in that Life which is itself the ONE LIFE,
iNTRODucrroy
he ONE BEING. The life eternal which wc nust find will never be found in a heaven of ^personal bliss, where we seem to approach ' God ' s we would approach the throne of an earthly To know ' God ' is to know our own life jid Being as part of his Life and Bsini;, and to merge all personal interests in that larger lifewhich ' no respecter of persons ". Let those who can ■Ao so, put away from themselves all that conceit which places them in sOme specially favoured relation to a ' God ' who takes a personal interest in every little triviality of their life. For if we are [to understand the term ' God ' in any sense which equate to the conception of the universe in its totality, as the sum of all Being, all conscious- , and all manifestation, and not merely as an xpression of one or other of those anthropo- morphic conceptions which have gathered round ipecial names of the deity in various ages : then are must recognise that that ONE LIFE, expressing ielf in countless forms of manifestation, is subject > no such qualities as those of like or dislike, of ivc or hatred, of good or evil ; but that as it lives "and moves, and has its being in and through all, there are no individual interests, whether it be those of an atom or an insect, a man or an arch- [jingel, which are more or less to it than any other, (ind if any say that their God is a jealous God ■ if any other qualities be given, we may readily ssent — ^only that God is a God and not GOD ; is
xxxii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
some concept of God, coloured and limited by personal considerations.
But this concept of an impersonal God is deep, mystical, esoteric, hidden. Nor can we wonder that its place should be taken by exoteric forms of religion, based on the personal needs of devotees. Yet, perchance, if the priesthood itself had not lost the esoteric doctrine, the exoteric forms would be less conflicting and degrading.
But if we would penetrate the secret of our own life, the riddle of the Sphinx, the mystery of the ages : we need in a superlative degree the quality oi faith. Not faith in a creed or doctrine, not faith in something done for us, but faith in what wc can do ourselves, that is to say faith in the possibilities of our own nature. Faith governs all action in which we look forward to results not yet realised. The agnostic scientist, who devotes his life to the experimental methods of inductive philo- sophy, has faith in a certain inviolable order of nature. If he thought that order could be altered at any time by supernatural agency or caprice, his faith and motive for work would be shattered in a moment. Apart from the arbitrary use of the term, as the faith, we find that all religions have this ele- ment in common, that is to say, a belief in some- thing in human destiny which transcends those aflFairs which pertain to our temporary physical life. But faith, l\ke intuition, is apt to shade oflFby imperceptible degrees into imagination. It needs
ISTRODUCTIOS xxsill
checked by reason and confirmed by expe- rience. Now the faith of the theosophist partakes of this religious quality in the highest degree, with- out being limited by the creeds or beliefs of any particular religion. It is a far deeper and truer faith in the ideal of human perfection than any 'hich can be offered by any one religion, because recognises al! religions as more or less imperfect orts towards this perfection. But the great dis- tinction lies in this, that the perfection which Theosophy discloses is a nainnii process, and is not arbitrarily separated from " natural law ", nor it the meie perfection of isolated personalities, It the perfection of humanity as a whole, through e great evolution in which the whole ' creation ' lartakes, Thus al! science and ali philosophy, as ell as ail religion, belongs to Theosophy ; which greater than any one, as the whole is greater than 'a part. It lifts us above the region of sectarian [Strife, to the apprehension of a deeper principle of ■unity ; enabling us to lay the foundation for a lnobier and better social life, in which the observ- ance of a particular form of religion will no longer constitute the test of respectability, or serve as a ■cloak for hypocrisy.
As there is only one RELIGION, so there is only o Thea-sophia, of which all exoteric teachings 2 but broken and reflected lights. For all that ; can have in outward form must come from those rho know. And in all ages, these, watching over the
XXXlV THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
progress of their fellows, have given out again and yet again, in many and divers forms, from their own store of knowledge, for the enlightenment of the world. But the history of all such efforts has been one of gradual debasement and obscuration. Men cannot as yet distinguish the pearl of truth from the earthly scrapings they rake together in their short and passion-driven lives. Therefore, lest the pearl itself should be defiled, it is concealed in a shell, in an exoteric form of doctrine, in allegory and fable, which those who lack the necessary qual- ifications cannot penetrate. This was the invariable method. All great teachers have had their exoteric doctrines for the uninitiated, their esoteric teaching for the few. A thorough understanding of this gives us the key to much that is obscure in ancient mythology and symbology. We find the same alle- gories among nations widely separated by geo- graphical barriers, and by other circumstances which make it highly improbable that they could have borrowed from each other, or have derived their teachings from any but a common and very ancient source.
There must have existed at one time a perfect art of symbology and mythology, a rare genius for expressing and yet concealing the profoundest secrets and teachings of that ancient wisdom or TheO'Sophia, which is the root and origin of all the historical records and systems. This art was a faithful following of the symbology of ' nature ' in
rxTRODUcrrox
her outward manifestation ; for in her outward garb she ever displays to us her deepest secrets , yet conceals them so efTcctuallj' that we see naught but common objects, where wc might perceive the glory of the divine presence. The art, and the understanding of it has been so utterly lost these many centuries, that men now read their Bible allegories with no further discernment than the literal narrative ; and accept as ' gospel truth ' in their own Scriptures the most absurd and im- probable fables, while denying in other records the veracity of similar stories. The art is lost. It was a copying of the divine expression in the visible symbology of nature ; a deep spiritual intuition of eternal verities, which, when brought into the realm of time and space, can only produce an allegory and a symbol, behind which is that mystery which only the Myotic can sense. Nor is the iiiateria!i5m of the present cycle more apparent than in that loss. To the learned theologians and philologists of the Schools, the Bibles of the world have become a mere dead-letler narrative, behind which there is no esotericism. To the learned scientists, nature presents no higher aspect than that of a fortuitous conglomeration of unconscious and irre- sponsible atoms oi dead matter.
Part of the veil hiding the inner meaning oF the ancient records has been drawn aside in Ma- dame Blavatsky's great works : " Isis Unveiled ", ^Ljlnd the ' ' Secret Doctrine ". We find the profound-
xxxviii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
field for expansion. The well-known historical conflict between science and religion, however, is misnamed. It is not really a conflict with religion^ but with a special form of ecclesiastical authority and dogmatic theology. We can conceive of no religion properly so called which is not also scien- tific, nor of any science which is not religious. True science must include spiritual and psychic, as well as physical man. Something more than half of man belongs to the invisible world. Can we imagine what the history of the Christian era would have been, had the Church not asserted her dogmatic and arbitrary authority ? Can we ima- gine what society would be like to-day, if all the strife and bitterness of creed and sect were broken down ? The majority of professing Christians are not merely afraid of being unsettled in their faith by the advances of modern science and criticism, but they carry their distrust into their social rela- tionships, and label their fellows with credit or dis- honour, according to their profession of belief. From this springs all the hypocrisy and shallow veneer of our social order ; while underneath are unspeakable evils which modern Christianity is powerless to touch ; at the very name of which indeed all respectable people draw aside their gar- ments and pass on.
If criticism succeeded in destroying the histori- cal validity of the Gospel history, what would be left of modern Christianity ? Are professing Chris-
W ISTRODUCTIOS xxxix
Ctians prepared for such a result ? Perhaps it is be- cause they are not prepared that the matter is still so uncertain. Religion must rest on the basis of all history and all science ; and when Christianity has become thus expanded, the particular events on which it is supposed to rest will have lost their importance.CouId those supposed events be proved, beyond possibility of doubt, to be false as his- tory, the effect would be disastrous in the extreme, would destroy at one blow the faith of thou- sands, and fill our lunatic asylums. Such proofs and such changes must come gradually. It is notable that when Mr. Sinnett suggested to one of the Masters as a conclusive proof of the possibility of certain occult powers, that a copy of the London times should be reproduced in India on the same by that it was published in London, the reply sive it could not be given, for it would throw ^ousands into a state of the utmost perple.\ity and distress.
But to-day there arc many Christians who, likc lllary Magdalene, are saying: " They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we know not where they have laid him. " To such wc would point to the risen Christ, to that Logos, which was- in the beginning, which has been from all ages,, and ever will be " the light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world. ". Th-nt Christ ^Kannot be limited to one historical personality.
xl THE ESO TERIC BA SIS OF CHRIS TIA \ITY
Let them no longer seek for the living among the dead. Whatever we may think of Jesus of Nazareth as a manifestation of the Logos, it is w^ith the indwelling Christ in our own hearts that we have to do, in the working out of our salvation. For the divine man^ the Higher Self, is the Christ, This was taught in the schools of initiation ages before the Church limited the divine manifestation to one particular man. It is the esoteric teaching of the
DIVINE NATURE OF MAN.
The divine man, the divine * Son ', is and ever has been perfect and complete in his own essential nature as the ** only begotten of the Father. " And even as the Sun ever shines in the glory of the heavens, though his light may be hidden from us by the clouds and storms of our terrestrial sphere, so that divine light which emanates from the source and root of our Being, shines behind and within our human nature, but can only shine through, in proportion as we clear away the gross- ness of our physical and lower nature, in which the pure rays of Alaya are blurred and distorted, or altogether lost. The vibrations of the lower must be attuned to those of the higher, before the out- ward man can act in the power of his inner nature. And as the Sun loses naught of his glory and splendour, though the rays which he sends to this earth are absorbed or lost in the grossness of the material world, so neither does the divine Ego lose aught of its essential nature, though the ray which
INTRODVCTIOS
xli
fincarnates in each one of us as the informing prin- ciple of our present personalities, maybe blurred and marred, or lost altogether in the darkness of our physical mind, or the mire of our sins. If that ray be withdrawn or wholly lost, the man dies the soul death, though among his fellows he may have a name that he lives, These are the withered bran- ches that are cut off from the vine. There is nothing immortal in our nature save that which is divine, or which can assimilate itself with the divine.
And that divine light which is the Christ, % ibrates through the whole universe ; not in man only, but in every atom of ' matter ' also ; and as it vibrates there, the ' matter ' responds, begins to unfold, to seek outward towards the light which seems to come as an external sensa- tion. Thus we get what is nOw called evolution. All evolution is religion. It is the seeking back to the divine. At first unconscious (in our limited sense of the term) in mineral and stone. Then c.-^panding into larger sensation in lowly forms of life in plant and cell. And as the oi^anism Incomes responsive to the vibrations, the impulse passes on to forms of ever-increasing beauty and complexity. From vegetable to animal, from animal to man ; ever and ever moulding the organism into higher and higher manifestations, the ONE LIFE works in and through all. But Man as we now know him is still imperfect, is still only jbatf-way on the great journey. And up till now
xlii THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
that ONE LIFE, working in his nature, is felt after rather than perceived ; it is an instinct giving rise to religion, rather than a true knowledge of his own nature ; it is regarded as an external object of search and worship, and is not recognised as the real SELF.
But now let those who can,step from the exoteric to the esoteric ; let them no longer look outside for that which dwells within ; let them no longer look in the outward expanse of space or of time for that kingdom of heaven which cometh not by observation. Let them loDk beneath the surface of this changing world of phenomena, for the chang- Icss BEING from which all phenomena spring. Let them no longer rely on historical events, but on ever present verities. Historical events are but the accidents of eternal verities.
The eternal verities of Christianity — if indeed we can apply that term to this teaching which so much transcends the common acceptation — are neither the historical narratives of the Gospels, not yet any event that can be looked forward to as as a particular external phenomenon. The very fact of these being time phenomena, precludes them from the category of eternal verities. Time phenomena are but the symbols of the everlasting noumenon.
There never was a time since man became man — that the birth of the Christ was not. And mystic as that birth is, deeply hidden in the mys-
ISTHODUCTIOS
Jiliii
■tery of our spiritual and divine nature, it could Illy be dimly presented in the myth of an immac- ulate conception.
It was thus represented ages before the Church
appropriated the myth, and materiahsed and de-
Kbased it by making it an actual physical birth of a
particular man. There never was a time since man
became man- — that the Christ was not crucified and
resurrected ; for that also is a symbol of an ever
present fact of our dual nature, human and divine.
And in so far as the personal Jesus enables us to
understand the character of the Christ, whether by
his actual life and example, or by the mystical and
allegorical events which have been attached to his
personality : we are able to accept his mission and
aching at their true value and for their own sake,
lipart from the authority and dogma with which
ftiey have become invested. But the revelation of
Kthe Christ is not limited to jesus of Nazareth,
otherwise Paul could not have written that " our
■Fathers... drank of a spiritual rock that followed
l.-tiiem : and the rock was Christ " (i Cor. x. 4.)
■ Neither is our salvation accomplished by the mis-
Jsion of Jesus of Nazareth ; but by the indwelling
\Ckrist, fulfilling that mission in all humanity, and
tin all ages. Thus Jesus also speaking as the Chrhlos,
Stays to the Jews ; ' ' Your Father Abraham rejoic-
i to see my day ; and he saw it and was glad —
rily, veril}', I say unto you, Before Abraham
5, 1 am. " (John viii. 56). No clearer indication
xliv THE ESOTERIC BASIS OF CHRISTIANITY
than this could possibly be given, that the 'day ' of the Christ is not identical with the mere historical life of Jesus of Nazareth. That life only person- ifies the work of the Christ from the beginning, and through all time. Yet the Church has been no wiser than the Jews, who took his words in their literal and personal application ; for they have made all their dogmas rest in the personal histor- ical Jesus.
But those who take their stand on eternal principles c;ui watch without alarm the change of creeds and opinions. They are no longer in bond- age to the letter, or to the law. They have entered into that freedom in which all things become law- ful, though all things may not now be expedient.
Let those who can enter now into this freedom, and passing from that exoteric religion of Christi- anity which rests on particular facts or isolated events, let them lay hold of the hidden spiritual verities, of which all facts and all events are a sym- bol and a revelation.