Dane Rudhyar, Occultism, Kumaras, Masters of the Wisdom, and the Future of Humanity in the 21st Century

by Robert Wilkinson

It’s been many years since we first explored this subject. There is a lot of misunderstanding and superstition about occultism and occultists in our world, as well as whether there are or are not “Masters of the Wisdom.” Dane Rudhyar had a bit to say on these subjects and more.

I was reminded of something I wrote about these things long ago when I read an article today about occultism and occultists on Astrodynamics, the website hosted by Spiritual Sister and Astrologer Lynn Hayes. The article is called “Occultists and Astrology” and it bears checking out, since she opens the door to a vaster understanding of the problems we’ve inherited from “old” astrology, such as “evil planets” and “evil aspects.” Readers here know I completely reject the concepts of “good and bad planets and aspects” as an obsolete way of viewing the planetary functions and dysfunctions, as well as the shifts in phases of development represented by the various aspects.

Anyway, due to some things she raised about the place of “magic” juxtaposed with astrology and astrologers, it got me to thinking about the nature of what a true “occultist” is and is not. As this has been an element of my Spiritual Quest since 1974, when I first understood a greater Way (“There is no religion higher than Truth”), it began a remembrance of deeper and higher standards and duties which ultimately call all sincere Disciples of Truth to their Higher Function. That led me back to this article first published in 2004 over at the original Salon Aquarius Papers blog site.

Rather than link to the original article re-posted here in 2005, I’m reprinting it with a few edits for readability. The information is just as valuable and worthy of contemplation today as it was 9 years ago, so enjoy exploring an entirely different view of some pretty heavy spiritual matters!

For your reconsideration, “Dane Rudhyar, Occultism, Kumaras, Masters of the Wisdom, and the Future of Humanity”

Many years ago, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting the venerable Dane Rudhyar on several occasions. A European born in the 19th century, (bio here,) besides being a classical pianist of some note and a philosopher of the first degree, he was one of the most prolific astrological writers in history between 1935-1980.

He was the first astrologer to formulate what is now known as "humanistic astrology," or "person-centered astrology," when he joined astrology, humanistic psychology, and holistic philosophy in his masterwork "The Astrology of Personality." His books are (with a few exceptions) not standard astrology, where one can find the answer to the meaning of a Venus in Libra or Mars in the 10th house and other questions of chart interpretation, though occasionally his work addresses those questions. Instead, he was a true astrological philosopher with a vast scope of vision and interest.

One of his most remarkable works is not astrological, per se, but a work outlining how esoteric philosophy and history, aka "occultism," are crucial to our understanding of how we as 20th and 21st century beings fit in with human evolution as a whole. This work, titled "Occult Preparations for A New Age," takes us through such subjects as "Counterculture - Past and Present," "The One Planetary Tradition," "Time and the Cyclic Structure," "Planetary and Social Cycles," "The Greater Faith," and "Avatars and Seed Men," to name a few of the chapter titles. In one chapter of particular interest, he ties together the mysterious and remarkable woman Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, the "Masters of the Wisdom," and the true nature of occultism and occultists.

These are not the idle rants of a deluded charlatan or superficial thinker, nor someone who had anything to do with witchcraft, blood sacrifices, or paganism, these usually (and incorrectly) identified with the term "occult." True occultism has nothing to do with any of these things, nor with any practices associated with worshiping Gaia, Nature, Goddess energy or other worthy ritual forms. Rudhyar's take on occultism is vaster and more noble than anything usually associated with the term, so for an interesting glimpse into the mind of one of the greatest philosophers our world has ever produced, I'll give you a fragment of the chapter on "Blavatsky and the Occult Brotherhood."

The true Occultist lives, thinks, and essentially acts in a planetary (and at times superplanetary and "heliocosmic") world of forces, which constitute the true "astral" realm - a world of energies guided by the archetypal patterns of the so-called "causal" aspect of the cosmic and planetary Mind. He works for humanity rather than for individuals, save in exceptional cases and for more-than-personal purposes. His work is moved by a deep unfaltering love for mankind.

Throughout The Mahatma Letters, and in countless statements made by H.P.B. and William Q. Judge... the basic keynote for entrance upon the path that leads to the true Occultism of the Elder Brothers is sounded forth: consecrated service for humanity in a total surrender of the ego and its lesser goals and narrow possessive loves. In The Mahatma Letters, in a letter from Morya, one reads:

"It is he alone who has the love of humanity at heart, who is capable of grasping thoroughly the idea of a regenerated practical Brotherhood who is entitled to the possession of our secrets. He alone, such a man, will never misuse his powers and there will be no fear that he should turn them to selfish ends. A man who places not the good of mankind above his own good is not worthy of becoming even our chela - he is not worthy of becoming brighter in knowledge than his neighbor."

This is the acid test of the kind of Occultism of which H.P.B. became the emissary. Any other kind will sooner or later lead to the dark path of the "Brothers of the Shadow."

Let me repeat here what has already been said concerning the Kumaras or Promethean Spirits. In their nature, Love and Knowledge are two poles from whose interaction power is released. If they are eager to break through the inertial Ring of Saturn and the all-too-spiritual glory of King Jupiter so that evolution can forever go along its essential spiral path, and if they are ready to suffer the nearly inevitable consequences of their compassionate involvement in the development of self-consciousness and responsibility in Man, it is because of their boundless compassion; this compassion encompasses all who are able to resonate to their everlasting Call. This ability to resonate and respond is inherent, though so often undeveloped, in all human beings since the most ancient coming of these exalted beings and the sacrificial grafting of their power of universal Love and occult Knowledge onto the wild animal-like nature of earthbound mankind.

This power is for us all consciously to use at this crucial period of human evolution. It is a time which, at the level of the strictly human consciousness, repeats the great transformation that was induced at an unconscious level in the Earth's biosphere millions of years ago under the impact of the Venusian Host. It is for Man now consciously to choose between the way of spiritual integration through Love and that of slow gradual decay through selfishness, fears, greed, and lust.

We are coming to the turning point. Everything depends on the clarity of our knowing and the purity and compassion of our loving. Knowledge and Love are both essential. Knowledge alone is dark; Love alone is possessively blind. All deep and radical spiritual transformations able to alter the total reality of Man require an illumined mind and an all-encompassing heart.

To which I'll add only that not all who claim to speak for the Masters of the Wisdom do so, and many of their more evolved disciples go about the business of helping humanity without notice or publicity. So please take all claims of those who "channel" a Master or Archangel or “higher being” with a grain of salt. The point is not to know glamorous things about the Masters, or even to pretend to speak to or for them. Though it feeds the lower ego, it’s still a dangerous and misleading illusion.

The point of the whole thing, if we are to accept the source material, is that we are all here to become enlightened in our own way so that we may serve the evolutionary need of our times, freed from the traps of glamor, illusion, Maya, and fear. Selfless service is ever the mark of the true disciple of Truth. And to quote the founders of this noble endeavor, "There Is No Religion Higher Than Truth." Namaste.

© Copyright 2005, 2006, 2013 Robert Wilkinson

Comments

[Debbie]

AMEN to that! Good reading Robert, I too am a fan of Dane Rudhyar's work and anyone else who "keeps it real" namaste

[Moe]

Robert,

Have been a loyal reader but have a question. In some of your posts you mention Helena Blavatsky. I am reading her "Secret Doctrine" and would like to know your views on Lucifer that she calls the true entity worthy of worship. Please elaborate on this.

Keep up the good work!

[Robert]

Hi Debbie - Glad this was a good one for you.

Hi Moe - Great question! HPB did not believe that Lucifer and the Devil were the same entity. In fact, Lucifer is the antithesis of the Devil of Christian philosophy. She uses the name "Lucifer" in its original meaning, "the morning star, the planet Venus," or, as an adjective, "light-bringing," or "bringer of the dawn." This "light bearer" helps us in our search for light, and as such is the antithesis of darkness, or evil.

Gnosticism considers Lucifer not as the Devil, but as a liberator or guiding spirit. In occult philosophy, the Ageless Wisdom was brought to the Earth by the Venusian Host, linked above. When Venus came to our solar system (relatively recently compared to the other planets) it was "the morning star," and marked the dawning of the Light of the Ageless Wisdom for primitive humanity.

HPB was adamant that the being called Lucifer in Christian dogma was never the representative of the evil in ancient myths but, on the contrary, the light-bringer. According to HPB the church turned Lucifer into Satan (which means "the opponent") to misrepresent pre-Christian beliefs and fit him into the newly minted Christian dogmas.

Remember that early Christianity, once co-opted into an official religion, had to pirate all the preexisting belief systems to assert its preeminence over all of them. Therefore there was an effort to make many of the ancient holy days and "gods" fit into the new system. That's why Christmas is the old Saturnalia. (There's no way the historical Jesus was born in December if we are to believe the synoptic Gospels.) And of course Eostre, honoring Ostara, a "pagan" goddess of Spring worshiped by the Germans and Anglo-Saxons, became Easter, and conflated with the resurrection of Christ.