Alice Bailey & Djwhal Khul - The Rays and the Initiations - Part II - Section I - The Seven Groups of Ashrams within the Hierarchy

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The Rays and the Initiations - Part Two - Section One - The Aspirant and the Mysteries of Initiation

These two historical periods (not events, except in so far that all Time is a sequence or pattern of events) covered vast cycles; aeon by aeon, the work went on until we have today the three major centers in the planet, demonstrating great activity, much more closely related than ever before, and ready now to enter into a third historical period. In this coming cycle we shall see the first stages of the great spiritual fusion towards which all evolution tends; it will take the form of the externalization of the Ashram, so that the Hierarchy (or the center where the love of God is known and the purpose of Sanat Kumara is formulated into the Plan) and Humanity will meet on the physical plane and occultly know each other. Two centers then will be "visible in the light" - the Hierarchy and Humanity. When these two centers can work in full cooperation, then Shamballa will take form and will no longer be found existing only in cosmic etheric substance, as is now the case.

What this means, how it will be accomplished, and what the implications are, will be revealed in such a distant future that we need waste no time considering it. We are working and living in the initial stages of the period wherein preparation is being made for the emergence of the Hierarchy into the world of men. This emergence is at present purely on to mental levels, but when the thought-form of exoteric existence is created by Humanity itself and the invocative cry is intense enough, then the Great Ashram will slowly make its appearance upon the physical plane.

On that plane, the distinction between the two centers [383] will be preserved, but the inner relationship and the spiritual fusion will steadily proceed until:

Soul and personality are one,
Love and intelligence are coordinated,
Plan and fulfilment are achieved.

All this will be brought about through the invocative spirit in man, plus the initiatory process, carried on in the Ashrams of the great Ashram. What this coming process will entail of change in civilization, in human nature and in the group expression of the human spirit - religions, society and politics - it is not possible here to say; so much lies hidden in the free will and right timing of mankind. But that future of spiritual cooperation and interplay within and without the great Ashram is assured, and for it all true disciples are working. The world situation today is therefore one of great interest. Humanity, the world disciple, is in process of recovering from a major test, prior to a great step forward towards a conscious approach to more spiritual living; this, factually, means a definite approach to the Hierarchy.

In the meantime the Hierarchy is orienting itself to a much closer rapport with humanity, and to an interior reorganization which will make it possible to admit disciples in large numbers into the great Ashram. This will lead to the implementation of the lesser Ashrams and also to a preparation for the transmission of more of the Will energy, through the great Ashram, into the throat center of Sanat Kumara, Humanity.

The seven major Ashrams are each responsive to one of seven types of ray energy and are focal points in the Hierarchy of the seven rays. The central, senior and major Ashram is (at this time) the repository of second ray energy, as this ray governs this second solar system. It is the Ashram of Love-Wisdom - the Ashram in which the Buddha and the Christ received Their initiations and through which each of Them works. It will be obvious that if the process of invocation and evocation governs the interplay of the planetary centers, you have in this fact another reason why the senior Ashram is second ray in quality. Invocation is related [384] to radiation. Evocation is related to magnetism. These are two points worthy of your consideration.

The other six major Ashrams came sequentially into being as the invocation of primitive man reached such a point of intensity of expression that a response was evoked from Shamballa, via its ray Representatives, working with directed energy in the three worlds. A "point of radiatory force" was established, at first in relation to the second ray Ashram, and later to the other Ashrams. One by one, as the rays cycled into activity in the three worlds and eventually on the physical plane, the seven Ashrams were founded, developed and expanded until the time arrived - several aeons ago - when all seven Ashrams were fully organized, and through them passed a steady flow of human beings liberating themselves from the three worlds.

In the earliest times this flow of disciples was exceedingly small. One by one, individual aspirants found their way out of the ranks of humanity and inside the ring-pass-not of the Hierarchy. In the beginning, only the first two initiations were given and only through the instrumentality of the second ray; and at these initiations the World Teacher of the period officiated.

Then at a time when the seventh Ray of Ceremonial Order (the ray which plays so potent and mysterious a part in the phase of discipleship called initiation) was in cyclic activity, a much greater number of disciples appeared, prepared for initiation; the initiatory process was then administered in a seventh ray Ashram; this seventh ray Ashram was the second to be formed, owing to the fact that the seventh ray is the relating factor between life and matter upon the form side. Again, so the ancient Archives tell us, there came a great crisis in the evolution of humanity; this necessitated one of the rare cyclic changes which have distinguished the fluid policy of the Hierarchy. Men began to demonstrate responsiveness to the Law of Integration and personality appeared with all its potentiality for good and evil. Man became an integrated unit in the three worlds. A great possibility then emerged; man could, through training [385] and the use of the mind, make contact with the soul. This had not hitherto been done except to a slight degree. This crisis therefore led to the creation, or rather to the appearance, of the initiatory process to which we have given the name of the third initiation.

The Hierarchy for the first time realized the complete success of the vast work, carried on in the human center for millions of years. Soul and personality could be and were intelligently fused. This is one of the reasons why the Hierarchy regards the third initiation as the first major initiation; it marked a point of complete soul-personality integration. In the earlier initiations, the soul was present but was still only occasionally in control; constant failure in the three worlds was still possible, and the relation between the man in the three worlds and his soul was nebulous and largely potential. You will realize what I mean when I point out that many thousands of people in the world today have taken the first initiation and are oriented towards the spiritual life and the service of their fellowmen; their lives, however, frequently leave much to be desired, and the soul is obviously not in constant control; a great struggle is still being waged to achieve purification on all three levels. The lives of these initiates are faulty and their inexperience great, and a major attempt is instituted in this particular cycle to achieve soul fusion. When that is attained, then the third initiation (the first, hierarchically speaking) is taken. Today this triple process of preparation, purification and fusion is the ordinary practice of the disciple and the process has prevailed for untold years; but when this fusion first occurred, it marked a great hierarchical event. It was a crisis of supreme spiritual import.

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