The Gods of Eden
by William Bramley
8
Melchizedek's Apron
OF ALL THE Biblical kings, few are more colorful or legendary than Solomon. Wealthy beyond imagination, wise beyond words, and a slave driver unequalled, Solomon's most famous accomplishment was the construction of a magnificent complex of buildings, which included an opulent temple reportedly made of the finest stone and generously ornamented with gold. In the political sphere, Solomon made history by re-establishing long-severed ties between the Hebrews and Egypt. Not only had Solomon become an advisor to Egyptian pharaoh, Shishak I, he also married the pharaoh's daughter.
During the time he spent in Egypt, Solomon took instruction in the Brotherhood. Upon returning to Palestine, Solomon erected his famous temple to house the Brotherhood in his own country. Naturally, Jehovah was the principle god of the new temple, although Solomon permitted the adoration of other local gods such as Baal, chief male god of the Canaanites. Solomon's temple was modeled after the Brotherhood temple in El Amarna, except that Solomon omitted the side structures which had caused the El Amarna temple to be shaped like a cross.
Building Solomon's temple was no small task. To carry out this architectural feat, Solomon brought in special guilds of masons to design his buildings and to oversee their construction. Those special guilds were already important institutions in Egypt, and their origins are worth looking into.
Architecture is an important art that shapes the physical landscape of a society. One can tell a great deal about the state of a civilization by looking at the buildings it erects. For example, Renaissance architecture imitated classical Roman architecture with its grand and ornate designs, indicating a culture undergoing intellectual and artistic ferment. Modern architecture tends to be efficient, but sterile and dehumanized, revealing a culture which is very businesslike, but artistically stagnant. Architecture tells us what class of people most influence a* culture. The Renaissance was led by thinkers and artists; our modern era is being fashioned by efficiency-oriented business people.
In ancient Egypt, the engineers, draftsmen, and masons who worked on the big architectural projects were accorded a special status. They were organized into elite guilds sponsored by the Brotherhood in Egypt. The guilds served a function roughly similar to that of a trade union today. Because the guilds were Brotherhood organizations, they used many Brotherhood ranks and titles. They also practiced a mystical tradition.
Evidence of the existence of these special guilds was uncovered by archaeologist Petrie during his expeditions to the Libyan desert in 1888 and 1889. In the ruins of a city built around 300 B.C., Dr. Petrie's expedition uncovered a number of papyrus records. One set described a guild that held secret meetings around the year 2000 B.C. The guild met to discuss working hours, wages, and rules for daily labor. It convened in a chapel and provided relief to widows, orphans, and workers in distress. The organizational duties described in the papyri are very similar to those of "Warden" and "Master" in a modern branch of the Brotherhood which evolved from those guilds: Freemasonry.
Another reference to the guilds is found in the Egyptian Book of the Dead, a mystical work dating from about 1591 B.C. The Book of the Dead contains some of the philosophies taught in the Egyptian Mystery Schools. It quotes the god Thot saying to another god, Osiris:
I am the great God in the divine boat;. . . I am a simple priest in the underworld anointing [performing sacred rituals] in Abydos [an Egyptian city], elevating to higher degrees of initiation;... I am Grand Master of the craftsmen who set up the sacred arch for a support.*1
"Grand Master" is the most common title used by Brotherhood organizations to designate their top leaders. The above quote is significant because it states that one of Egypt's Custodial "gods," one who traveled about in a divine "boat," was a top leader in one of those ancient guilds. It also indicates that this "god" was responsible for initiating people into the higher degrees of mystical Brotherhood teachings. This is further testimony of the direct role that Custodians were said to play in directing the affairs of the corrupted Brotherhood.
It is interesting to note that the Book of the Dead also contains a reference to the battle between the ruling Custodial "gods" and the "snake" (the original uncorrupted Brotherhood). In praises sung to the Egyptian "gods," we read:
Thine enemy the Serpent hath been given over to the fire. The Serpent-fiend Sebua hath fallen headlong, his forelegs are bound in chains, and his hind legs hath Ra carried away from him. The Sons of Revolt shall never more rise up.2
The Egyptians often portrayed their "gods" with animal heads or features as a way of symbolizing traits and personalities. In the above quote, the Serpent is given four legs. The Serpent later came to symbolize darkness, which the sun-god Ra "defeated" every morning by bringing about the new day. Before that mythology was invented, however, the Serpent was a literal enemy of the ruling "gods." Some of the Serpent's followers were known as the "Sons of Revolt," who were dedicated to destroying the chief Custodial "god" and establishing in his place the dominance of the "Serpent" (the early uncorrupted Brotherhood) on Earth. After the defeat and corruption of the "Serpent," it appears that the "Sons of Revolt" turned around and rebelled against the corrupted Brotherhood when the Brotherhood began to send out conquerors from Egypt. It was not long, however, before the revolutionary groups were reabsorbed back into the corrupted Brotherhood organizations and began contributing to the Brotherhood's artificial conflicts, as we shall see later.
The Brotherhood's masons' guilds survived down through the centuries. Guild members were often free men, even in feudal societies, and were therefore frequently referred to as "free masons." The guilds of free masons eventually gave birth to the mystical practice known today as "Freemasonry." The mystical Freemasons became a major Brotherhood offshoot that would take on great political importance later in history.
As spiritual knowledge within the Brotherhood was being replaced in ancient Egypt by incomprehensible allegories and symbols, costumes became increasingly important because of their symbolic value. The most visible and important piece of ceremonial garb in many Brotherhood organizations, including Freemasonry, has long been the apron.
The symbolic apron, which is worn at the waist like a kitchen apron, provides a stunning visual link between the ancient Custodial "gods" and the Brotherhood network. Many Egyptian hieroglyphics depict their extraterrestrial "gods" wearing aprons. The priests of ancient Egypt wore similar aprons as a sign of their allegiance to the "gods" and as a badge of their authority. On display at the Egyptian Museum in San Jose, California, is an ancient Egyptian statuette discovered in a tomb in Abydos. The statuette depicts an Egyptian prince holding his hands in a ritualistic posture that Dr. Lewis of the Rosicrucian Order describes as "familiar to all Rosicrucian lodge and chapter members."3 A prominent feature of the statuette is the triangular apron worn by the prince. The Egyptian Museum believes that the statuette was carved as early as 3400 B.C., during Egypt's first dynasty. If this date is accurate, then the symbol of the apron and one of its associated mystical rituals came from that period of Egyptian history when the "gods" were said to be so literal that furnished homes were built and maintained for them.
The earliest ceremonial aprons appear to have been simple and unadorned. As time went on, mystical symbols and other decorations were added. Perhaps the most significant change to the apron occurred during the reign of the powerful Canaanite priest-king, Melchizedek, who had achieved a very high status in the Bible. Melchizedek presided over an elite branch of the Brotherhood named after him: the Melchizedek Priesthood. Beginning around the year 2200 B.C., the Melchizedek Priesthood began to make its ceremonial aprons out of white lambskin. White lambskin was eventually adopted by the Freemasons who have used it for their aprons ever since. If the Custodial "gods" and the Brotherhood had confined their activities to the ancient Middle East and Egypt, the rest of human history would have been much different and this book would never have been written. Instead, the Brotherhood network was expanded throughout the entire eastern hemisphere by aggressive missionaries and conquerors. One of their targets became India.
Hinduism was about to be born.
9
Gods and Aryans
INDIA: THAT LAND of mystery. It is a place where the spiritual arts flourish and the material arts wane. It is a country where nearly all life is held sacred, yet millions starve. To many people, the nation of India and the religion of Hinduism seem almost inseparable, as though they were created together and together they may one day die. The Hindu religion is adhered to by nearly 85% of India's almost 800 million population, yet the India we have come to know and most of the religion it practices today were not created in India at all. The caste system, the majority of the Hindu gods, the Brahmin rituals, and the Sanskrit language were all brought in and imposed on the Indian people by foreign invaders many centuries ago.
Somewhere between 1500 B.C. (the time of Thutmose in in Egypt) and 1200 B.C. (the time of Moses), the Indian subcontinent was invaded from the northwest by tribes of people known as "Aryans." The Aryans made themselves India's new ruling class and forced the native Indians into a servient status.
Precisely who the Aryans were and exactly where they came from is a puzzle still debated today. Historians have generally used the word "Aryan" to denote those peoples who spoke the Indo-European languages, which include English, German, Latin, Greek, Russian, Persian, and Sanskrit. "Aryan" also has a narrower racial meaning. It has quite often been used to designate mankind's non-Semitic white-skinned race.
There are many theories about where Aryans first came from. A common hypothesis is that Aryans originated in the steppes (plains) of Russia. From there they may have migrated to Europe and down into Mesopotamia. Others believe that the Aryans arose in Europe and migrated eastward. Some theorists, occasionally for racist reasons, claim that Aryans were the founders of the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations and were therefore the world's first civilized peoples. This theory was promoted during the brutal Nazi regime of Germany to bolster its "Aryan supremacy" idea. The Nazis even claimed that Aryans were originally created by godlike superhumans from a different world. A similar belief was expressed earlier in history. When Spanish conqueror, Pizarro, invaded South America in 1532, the South American natives referred to the Spanish invaders as Viracochas, which meant "white masters." Native legends in South America told of a master race of huge white men who had come from the heavens centuries before. According to the legends, those "masters" had reigned over South American cities before disappearing again with a promise of return. The South American natives thought that the Spaniards were the returning Viracochas and so they initially allowed the Spaniards to seize the Americans' gold and treasures without resistance.
Whatever the true origin of the Aryan race may or may not have been, many religious and mystical beliefs have been expressed throughout the world about the supposed superiority of the Aryan race over other races. Such beliefs are sometimes labelled "Aryanism." Aryanism is the elevation of white-skinned Aryans over other races based on the notion that Aryans are the "chosen" or "created" race of "God" (or Custodial "gods"), and Aryans are therefore spiritually, socially and genetically superior to all other races. Considering the dismal purpose for which mankind was reportedly created, Aryanism would simply mean that Aryans were, at best, superior slaves. There is little glory in that. Other races, however, such as the Japanese, also possess similar legends of having been born of extraterrestrial "gods."
Aryanism should be distinguished from simple pride in racial heritage. It is natural for people to group together on the basis of common heritage, interests, or aesthetics. Every such group tends to have a certain amount of pride in the thing which holds them together. This will be true of stamp collectors joining a philatelic society or of black people participating in a black consciousness group. People will band together on the basis of almost anything they find mutually important or enjoyable. There is no harm in people feeling pride in their racial heritage. The harm comes when this pride turns into prejudice against those who do not share the same traits. After all, skin color is ultimately superficial. When we recognize individuals as spiritual beings, the bodies they animate become no more important than the cars they drive. Despite this, racial distinctions are one of the easiest ways to polarize people into factions. Racism has been one of the most successful tools used on Earth to keep humans disunited. The type of Aryanism described above has contributed greatly to this polarization and has done much to promote the nonstop racial conflicts which have plagued mankind throughout history.
Not all Brotherhood organizations had an Aryan tradition. In the many that did, being an Aryan was considered vital to spiritual recovery. This belief hastened materialism by twisting the urge for spiritual survival into yet another obsession with the body, this time concerning skin color. The fact is, skin color appears to have no bearing whatsoever upon one's inherent spiritual qualities, or upon one's ability to achieve spiritual salvation.
The Aryans invaded India just before monotheism was created in the Brotherhood, but at a time when the Brotherhood had already begun sending out missionaries - and conquerors. In India, the Aryan conquerors established a complex religious and feudal system known today as "Hinduism." Hinduism proved to be yet another branch of the Brotherhood network. Some Brotherhood organizations in the Middle East and Egypt maintained close ties with the Aryan leaders in India and frequently sent students to be educated by them. Because of the Aryan invasion, India became an important world center of Brotherhood network activity and remains so today.
The Aryan leaders of India claimed obedience to the same type of space age Custodial "gods" found in Mesopotamia and Egypt. Many of the human like "gods" worshipped by the Aryans were called "Asura." Hymns and devotions to the Asura are found in a large collection of Hindu writings known as the Vedas. Many Vedic descriptions of the Asura are intriguing. For example, the Hymn to Vata, god of wind, describes a "chariot" in which the god travels. This "chariot" has a remarkable similarity to Old Testament descriptions of Jehovah. The first four lines of the Hymn declare:
Now Vat's chariot's greatness!
Breaking goes it, And thunderous is its noise.
To heaven it touches,
Makes light lurid [a red fiery glare], and whirls dust upon the earth.'
The rest of the Hymn describes wind in a very literal and recognizable manner. The four lines quoted above, however, seem to describe a vehicle which travels rapidly into the sky, makes a thunderous noise, emits a fiery light and causes dust to whirl on the ground, i.e., a rocket or jet airplane.
Other remarkable translations of the Vedas have been published by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKC), a worldwide Hindu sect founded in 1965 by a retired Indian businessman and devoted to the Hindu deity, Krishna. ISKC translations depict ancient Hindu "gods" and their human servant kings traveling in spaceships, engaging in interplanetary warfare, and firing weapons which emit powerful beams of light. For example, in the Srimad Bhagavatam, Sixth Canto, Part 3, we read:
One time while King Chitraketu was travelling in outer space on a brilliantly effulgent [shining] airplane given to him by Lord Vishnu [the chief Hindu god], he saw Lord Siva [another Hindu god].. ..
The Srimad Bhagavatam tells of a "demon" race which had invaded three planetary systems. Opposing the demons was the Hindu god Siva, who possessed a powerful weapon that he fired at enemy airships from his own:
The arrows released by Lord Siva appeared like fiery beams emanating from the sun globe and covered the three residential airplanes, which could then no longer be seen.2
If accurate, these and other translations of the Vedas give us human like "gods" centuries ago who cavorted in whizzing spaceships, engaged in aerial dogfights, and possessed fatal beam weapons.
As in Mesopotamia and Egypt, many Hindu gods were obvious fabrications and the apparently real "gods" had an enormous mythology woven about them. Behind the blatant fictions, however, we find important clues regarding the character of mankind's Custodial rulers.- Hindu writings indicate that people of diverse races and personalities made up the Custodial society, just as they do human society. For example, some "gods" were portrayed with blue skin. Others displayed a kinder and more benevolent attitude toward human beings than others. By the time of the Aryan invasion, however, the oppressive ones were clearly the dominant ones. This was evident in the social system imposed on India by the Aryans. That system was unmistakably designed to create human spiritual bondage. As elsewhere, this bondage was partially accomplished by giving spiritual truths a false twist. The result in India was a feudalistic institution known as the "caste" system.
The Aryan caste system dictates that every person is born into the social and occupational class (caste) of the father. An individual may never leave that caste, regardless of the individual's talent or personality. Each stratum has its own trades, customs, and rituals. Members of the lowest caste, who are known as "outcasts" or "untouchables," usually perform menial work and live in abject poverty. Untouchables are shunned by the higher classes. The highest castes are the rulers and Brahman priests. During the Aryan invasion, and for a long time thereafter, the highest castes were composed of, naturally, the Aryans themselves. The caste system is still practiced in India today, although it is no longer quite as rigid as it once was and the plight of the untouchables has been eased somewhat. In northern and some parts of western India, the lighter-skinned Indians who descended from the original Aryan invaders continue to dominate the upper castes.
Force and economic pressures were the initial tools used by the Aryan invaders to preserve the caste system. By the 6th century B.C., distorted religious beliefs emerged as a third significant tool.
The Hindu religion contains the truth that a spiritual being does not perish with the body. Hinduism teaches that upon the death of the body, a spiritual being will usually search out and animate a newly-born body. This process is often called "reincarnation" and results in the phenomenon of so-called "past lives." Many people are capable of recalling "past lives," sometimes in remarkable detail.
Evidence accumulated from modern research into the phenomenon of "past lives" indicates that highly random factors usually determine which new body a spiritual being takes on. Such factors may include a person's location at the time of death and the proximity of new bodies (pregnancies). Whether a person chooses a male or female body may depend upon how happy she or he was in the life just ended. Because of these variables, the taking of a new body by a spiritual being is a largely random and unpredictable activity in which sheer chance often plays a role. The Aryan religion distorted an understanding of this simple process by teaching the erroneous idea that rebirth ("reincarnation") is governed by an unalterable universal law which dictates that every rebirth is an evolutionary step either toward or away from spiritual perfection and liberation. Each Hindu caste was said to be a step on this cosmic staircase. If people behaved according to the laws and duties of their caste, they were told that they would advance to the next higher caste at their next rebirth. If they failed in their duties, they would be born into a lower stratum. Spiritual perfection and freedom were achieved only when a person finally reached the highest caste: the Brahmans. Conversely, the caste into which a person was born was considered an indication of that person's spiritual development, and that alone justified whatever treatment the person received.
The purpose of such teachings is clear. The caste system was designed to create a rigid feudalistic social order similar to the one created in Egypt under the pharaohs, but carried to an even greater extreme in India.
Hindu reincarnation beliefs accomplished two other Custodial aims. Hinduism stressed that obedience was the principle ingredient bringing about advancement to the next caste. At the same time, Aryan beliefs discouraged people from making pragmatic attempts at spiritual recovery. The myth of spiritual evolution through a caste system hid the reality that spiritual recovery most probably comes about in the same way that nearly all personal improvement occurs: through personal conscious effort, not through the machinations of a fictitious cosmic ladder.
Symbolism had a limited, yet important role in Hinduism. One of Hinduism's most important mystical emblems is the swastika—the "broken cross" symbol which most people associate with Naziism. The swastika is a very old emblem. It has appeared many times in history, usually in connection with Brotherhood mysticism and in societies worshipping Custodial "gods." While its exact origin is unknown, the swastika appeared already in ancient Mesopotamia. Some historians believe that the swastika may have also existed in India before the Aryan invasion. This is possible because several pre-Aryan cities of India were engaged in trade with other parts of the world, including Mesopotamia. Whatever its origin may have been, after the Aryans invaded India, the swastika became a prominent symbol of Hinduism and Aryanism.
As for the swastika's meaning, we discover that the swastika was a symbol of good luck or good fortune. It is ironic, therefore, that nearly every society using it has suffered rather calamitous misfortune. An intriguing study of the swastika was published in 1901 in the Archaeological and Ethnological Papers of the Peabody Museum. According to the author, Zelia Nuttall, the swastika was probably related to stargazing. Ms. Nuttall points out that the swastika has appeared in civilizations with a developed science of astronomy and has been associated with calendar-making in some ancient American civilizations. On page 18 of her article, the author states:
The combined midnight positions of the Ursa Major or Minor [two constellations visible from Earth, usually called the "Big Dipper" and "Little Dipper," respectively], at the four divisions of the year, yielded symmetrical swastikas, the forms of which were identical with the different types of swastika or cross symbols ... which have come down to us from remote antiquity. ...
Because of the swastika's frequent association with Custodial "gods," it may have begun as a symbol representing the home civilization of Earth's Custodial masters somewhere within the Big or Little Dipper.
Hinduism is a curious religion in many ways. It tends to absorb and incorporate almost any new religious ideas imposed upon it, but without throwing away the old ideas. For this reason, the Hinduism of today is actually a mishmash of several major religions which had swept through India in the past, such as the Aryan religion which still predominates, and Buddhism and Mohammedanism which both arrived later. There is evidence that a tradition of wisdom existed in India long before the Aryan invasion and that that tradition also constitutes a portion of the Vedas.
The Aryans' violent gods, strange mystical practices, and oppressive feudalism did not go unchallenged. In the Biblical story of Adam and Eve, we noted the attempt of early Homo sapiens to obtain the knowledge they needed to escape their enslavement. In the seventh century B.C., another attempt was made. A popular nonviolent movement emerged in India to challenge the Aryan system. This movement was one of the few major efforts by human beings to replace Custodial religions with practical methods designed to bring about spiritual freedom. The leaders of the new movement wanted to replace garbled mysticism and blind faith with a realistic approach to spiritual recovery rooted in tested principles, much like the approach used by the original uncorrupted Brotherhood.
For lack of a better term, I will refer to this pragmatic type of religion as "maverick" * religion. Maverick religions are those which have broken from Custodial dogma and have attempted a practical or scientific approach to spiritual salvation. Although no maverick religion in the past brought about wide-scale spiritual recovery, they nonetheless kept the hope alive while perhaps pointing out a few of the steps needed to get there. **The term "maverick" comes from America's Old West. It denoted any grazing animal, such as a cow or horse, which did not have an owner's brand. The word itself comes from Texas cattle owner Samuel Maverick (1803-1870) who refused to brand his calves. Those unbranded animals were dubbed "Mavericks" and any found roaming loose were considered owned by no one. From this came the definition we are familiar with today: a maverick is a person or organization not "owned" or "branded" by anyone, but who acts in an independent manner, usually in a break from established convention.
10
The Maverick Religions
THE MAVERICK RELIGIOUS movement of India was a major historical event. It attracted millions of adherents and had a strong civilizing effect on Asia. The movement brought about the creation of the so-called "Six Systems of Salvation." These were six different methods, developed at different times, for achieving spiritual salvation.
Perhaps the most significant of the Six Systems, because of its similarities to Buddhism, was the system known as "Samkhya." The word "Samkhya" means "reason." The precise origin of Samkhya teachings is unknown. Samkhya doctrines are usually attributed to a man known as Kapila. Who Kapila was, where he came from, and exactly when he lived are still topics of speculation. Some people place Kapila around 550 B.C., during the lifetime of Buddha. Others believe that Kapila may have lived earlier. Some people contend that he did not exist at all because of the extraordinary mythology which arose around him. Whoever Kapila was, or was not, some of the teachings attributed to him laid significant groundwork for later maverick philosophies. For example, the Samkhya system correctly taught that there were two basic contrasting entities in the universe: the soul (spirit) and matter. It taught further:
Souls are infinite in number 1 and consist of pure intelligence. Each soul is independent, indivisible [cannot be taken apart], unconditioned, incapable of change [alteration], immortal. It appears, however, to be bound in matter.* * Common sense tells us that there would be a limit to how many souls existed. "Infinite" may mean a number so large so as to be uncountable.
Samkhya teaches that each person is such a soul, and that every soul has participated in the creation and/or perpetuation of the primary elements which constitute the material universe. Souls then created the senses with which to perceive those elements. People therefore had only themselves, not a "God" or Supreme Being, to applaud (or blame, depending upon one's perspective) for the existence of this universe and for all of the good and bad within it. The soul's liberation from captivity in matter, according to the Samkhya, comes about through knowledge. Author Sir Charles Eliot describes the Samkhya belief this way:
Suffering is the result of souls being in bondage to matter, but this bondage does not affect the nature of the soul and in one sense is not real, for when souls acquire discriminating knowledge and see that they are not matter, then the bondage ceases and they attain to eternal peace.2
Several questions arise from these Samkhya teachings. First, how could all spiritual beings have helped create the universe? One peek at a physics book tells us that the universe is an enormously complex affair. Even the great scientist Albert Einstein did not have it all figured out. How, then, is it possible that all of us "lesser mortals," including drunken winos sleeping off stupors in downtown alleys, could have once had something to do with creating this world? The answer may lie in the fact that matter is built on simple arithmetic and is far less solid than it appears.
The basic building block of physical matter is the atom. An atom is made up of three main components: "protons," "neutrons," and "electrons." Protons and neutrons are joined together to form the nucleus (core) of the atom. Electrons orbit at tremendous speeds around the nucleus and thereby form the "shell" of the atom. The entire arrangement is held together by electromagnetic force.
What makes one type of atom different from another? Nothing more than the number of electrons and protons. For example, hydrogen has only one electron and one proton. Add one more electron and proton to an atom of hydrogen and, voila!, you now have helium. Add 77 more electrons and protons, along with a generous helping of neutrons, and you suddenly own gold. Take some away to get cobalt and then add some more to form zinc. There are 105 basic elements, each existing simply because they have a different number of electrons and protons! As we can see, physical matter is built upon idiotically simple arithmetic which anyone can do. The reason this arrangement seems to work is that the addition and subtraction of electrons and protons causes a change in the energy created by the atom. Since matter is just condensed energy, a change in an atom's energy through this simple arithmetic will cause a change in the physical substance which the atom produces. The universe only gets complicated after the substances start interacting.
Another point is that physical matter is far less solid, and much more ephemeral, than it appears. Atoms consist almost entirely of empty space. If the nucleus of a hydrogen atom were to be enlarged to the size of a marble, its single electron would be a quarter of a mile away! The heaviest atom with the most neutrons, protons and electrons is uranium with 92 electrons. If a uranium atom were enlarged to a half-mile in diameter, the nucleus would be no larger than a baseball! This reveals that atoms are composed almost entirely of empty space and that matter, even the heaviest granite, is therefore surprisingly ephemeral. Our physical perceptions do not detect the almost illusory nature of matter because the physical senses are constructed to accept the illusion of solidity caused by the extremely rapid motion of atomic particles. (Move something back and forth, or around and around, fast enough and it will appear solid.) If we could see matter for what it truly was, we would see the most solid object as a piece of wispy fluff.
As time went on, many incorrect tenets were added to the basic Samkhya teachings, causing the Samkhya system to eventually decay. The other maverick systems suffered the same fate. In the system of "Yoga," for example, people reverted back to "god" idolatry as part of their road to spiritual freedom. In another of the Six Systems, "Mimamsa," an attempt was made to maintain the Aryan creeds and to incorporate them into the new maverick tenets. This did not work because one cannot mix doctrines aimed at enforcing rigid obedience with teachings designed for spiritual freedom and expect to achieve the latter. To be successful, true spiritual knowledge seems to require the same precision demanded of any other science. Diluting successful spiritual knowledge with erroneous teachings will destroy that precision.
The Indian maverick movement eventually came to a grinding halt as more and more of the Aryan ideas it sought to replace became incorporated back into the movement. At the same time, many maverick teachings were taken out of context and absorbed into the Hindu religion. The result has been a hopeless spiritual mishmash in India ever since.
Before its ultimate decay, the Indian maverick movement brought about one of the largest single religions in history: Buddhism. Founded around the year 525 B.C. by an Indian prince named Gautama Siddharta (who was later known as the "Buddha," or "Enlightened One"), Buddhism spread rapidly throughout the Far East. Like the Samkhya system, Buddhism in its original form did not worship the Vedic gods. It opposed the caste system and it did not support Brahminical (advanced Hindu) doctrines. Unlike many modern Buddhists, early Buddhists did not worship Buddha as a god; instead, they respected him as a thinker who had designed a method by which an individual, through his or her own efforts, might achieve spiritual freedom by way of knowledge and spiritual exercises. It is difficult to determine how successful early Buddhists actually were in achieving their aims, although Siddharta did claim to have personally attained a state of spiritual liberation.
Buddhism, like the other maverick systems, underwent a great deal of change, splintering and decay as the centuries progressed. This caused the loss of most of Siddharta's true teachings. In addition, many teachings and practices not created by Buddha were later added to his religion and mislabeled "Buddhism." A good example of this decay is found in the definition of "nirvana." The word "nirvana" originally referred to that state of existence in which the spirit has achieved full awareness of itself as a spiritual being and no longer experiences suffering due to misidentification with the material universe. "Nirvana" is the state striven for by every Buddhist. "Nirvana" has also been translated as "Nothingness" or the "Void": horrible-sounding concepts which have come to imply to many people today that "nirvana" is a state of non-existence or that it involves a loss of contact with the physical universe. In truth, the original maverick goal was to achieve quite the opposite state. Buddha's true state of "nirvana" included a stronger sense of existence, increased self-identity, and an ability to more accurately perceive the physical universe.
If we compare maverick religion to Custodial religion, we discover a number of very distinct differences by which a person may distinguish between them. A chart comparing the key philosophies by which they most strongly differ might look something like this:
Custodial Religion- Source or inspiration of teachings is said to be a god, angel, or supernatural force; not a human being.
Maverick Religion- Source or inspiration of teachings is said to be an identifiable human being.
Custodial- Belief in a single Supreme Being, or God, is a principle cornerstone of faith. (In earlier times, worship of many human like "gods.")
Maverick- Belief in a Supreme Being is usually tolerated, but is a minor or nonexistent part of doctrine. Emphasis is placed on the role of the individual spiritual being in relation to the universe.
Custodial Religion- Physical immortality is an important or desired goal in many Custodial religions.
Maverick- Spiritual freedom and immortality are sought. Endless existence in the same physical body is deemed unimportant or undesirable.
Custodial- Adherence to doctrine, based upon faith or obedience alone, is stressed.
Maverick Religion- Observation and reason are held to be the proper foundations for adhering to a doctrine.
Custodial-Severe or fatal physical punishments are sometimes employed or advocated during the religion's history to deal with nonbelievers or backsliders.
Maverick- punishments or duress are very mild to nonexistent. Severest punishment is usually formal exclusion of an individual from the religious organization.
Custodial- Belief that being born in a human body, either once or many times through reincarnation, is part of a broad spiritual plan which will ultimately benefit every human being.
Maverick-Belief that there is no hidden spiritual purpose to human existence and that the process of death-amnesia-rebirth causes spiritual decay.
Custodial-Belief that there are "higher forces," "gods," or supernatural entities which control people's individual or collective fates. Human beings have no control over those forces and can only yield to them.
Maverick-Belief that there is no hidden spiritual purpose to human existence and that the process of death-amnesia-rebirth causes spiritual decay.
Custodial- Belief that only one Supreme Being alone created the physical universe.
Maverick- Belief that everyone has something to do with the creation and/or perpetuation of the physical universe.
Custodial-Human suffering, toil, and enslavement are part of a broader spiritual plan which will ultimately lead to salvation and freedom for those who obediently endure it.
Maverick Religion- Human suffering, toil, and enslavement are social ills that have no constructive purpose and stand in the way of spiritual salvation and freedom.
Custodial- Spiritual recovery and salvation depend entirely upon the grace of "God" or other supernatural entity.
Maverick- Spiritual recovery and salvation are entirely up to the individual to achieve through his or her own self motivated effort.
Some readers will observe that many Custodial and maverick elements listed above are mixed together in some religions. A good example of this is Hinduism. Such mixtures are usually concocted when maverick ideas are incorporated into a Custodial religion, or when Custodial doctrines are added to maverick teachings. When either happens, the full benefits of the maverick teachings are lost. This is especially clear in modern Buddhism where rituals, idolatry and prayers to Buddha have almost entirely supplanted the practical system Buddha had tried to develop.
Although Buddhism did not free the human race, it left the hope that freedom would one day come. According to Buddhist legend, Gautama knew that he had not accomplished his goal of creating a religion that would bring about full spiritual liberation for all mankind. He therefore promised that a second "Buddha," or "Enlightened One," would arrive later in history to complete the task. This promise constitutes the famous "Mettaya" ("Friend") prophecy which has become a very important element of modern Buddhist faith. Because Buddhism did not originally express a belief in a Supreme Being, the Mettaya legend did not suggest a messenger or a teacher from "God." Mettaya would simply be an individual with the knowledge and ability to get the job done.
Precisely when in history "Mettaya" was to arrive is hotly debated in some circles. Many Buddhist sources say that Mettaya would come five thousand years after Buddha's death; others have said half of that. Many Buddhist leaders have come along in history claiming to be Mettaya. None of them were successful in bringing about the world promised by Buddha, so most Buddhists still wait.
As time went on, the Metteyya prophecy decayed with the rest of Buddhism. The legend was slowly absorbed into a very destructive doctrine being spread by Brotherhood sources in the Middle East and elsewhere: the doctrine of the "End of the World," also known by such dramatic names as the "Day of Judgment," the "Final Battle," "Armageddon," and others.
End of the World teachings have had a catastrophic effect on human society. It is therefore of paramount importance to understand more about where, and why, those teachings began.
11
Doom Prophets
ASK ALMOST ANYONE, "DO you believe in a future Judgment Day of some kind?" Chances are that she or he will answer "yes." Next to a belief in God, belief in a Judgment Day may be the most widespread religious concept in the modern world. Even many people who are openly atheistic often experience an "innate" feeling that some sort of grand judgment or realignment lies ahead.
Most Judgment Day teachings are found in the writings of religious prophets who claim to have received mystical revelations from God concerning the future of the world. This type of prophetic writing is usually called an "apocalypse." The word apocalypse comes from the Greek words "apo-" (off) and "kalyptein" (to cover). An apocalypse is therefore "the taking off of a cover," i.e., a revelation.
Most apocalypses follow a similar pattern: Mankind will suffer upheaval during a future global cataclysm. The cataclysm will be followed by a Day of Judgment in which God or a representative of God will decide the fate of every person on Earth. Only those people who are obedient to the religion preaching the apocalypse will be granted mercy on the Day of Judgment. Everyone else will be doomed to death or eternal spiritual damnation. The Judgment Day will be followed by a Utopia on Earth to be enjoyed only by those who believed and obeyed.
Despite promises of a universal Shangri-La, these teachings often terrified people, and they still cause unease today. As we shall discuss shortly, fearsome apocalypses give spiritual truths another false twist and, more obviously, they subdue people into obeying a specific religion or leader. End of the World doctrines also make people afraid to explore competing religious systems, such as those offered by religious mavericks. Judgment Day teachings ultimately amount to extortion: obey or die.
The question is: who implanted apocalyptic beliefs on Earth? A Supreme Being is usually cited—but is a Supreme Being truly the source? A careful look at history reveals that apocalyptic teachings first arose out of Custodial activity and from sources within the corrupted Brotherhood network. End of the World doctrines were disseminated by early Brotherhood missionaries and conquerors hand-in-hand with monotheism. It is therefore not surprising to learn that Final Battle doctrines have some roots in a famous Brotherhood symbol discovered on ancient Egyptian relics. That symbol was the mythical bird known as the phoenix.
The phoenix is a fictional bird which is said to live five hundred to six hundred years before burning itself to death in a nest of herbs. Out of the ashes emerges a small worm which grows back into the phoenix. The phoenix repeats this life-death-rebirth cycle over and over again, endlessly.
The phoenix legend is an allegory (a story with an underlying meaning), or symbol, designed to impart a deeper truth. Precisely what that truth is has been lost, and so we find people interpreting the phoenix legend in a variety of ways. For example, many people see the phoenix as a symbol of resurrection or spiritual survival after death: a soul is born into a body, the body flowers, the body undergoes the fiery rigors of life and death, and the soul remains intact to rise and build again. Others see the phoenix as a symbol of the birth-growth-decay cycle upon which the physical elements of the universe seem to operate, behind which there lies an indestructible spiritual reality.
Regrettably, the phoenix legend, like so many other mystical allegories of the Egyptian Brotherhood, distorted important truths. The legend came to convey the false idea that there exists some kind of unalterable "law" or "plan" which mandates that spiritual existence must consist of an arduous phoenix-like process of growing, dying by "fire," emerging out of the ashes, growing again, dying again, and so on forever. While this process does seem to regulate life on Earth, it is neither natural, inevitable nor healthy.
Many "End of the World" teachings take the philosophy expressed in the phoenix myth and apply it to the entire human race. When they do so, they often express the notion that human societies must endure continuous "ordeals by fire" as part of God's great plan. Most apocalypses then veer from standard phoenix allegory by proclaiming that this process will culminate in a great "Final Battle" followed by a Utopia. These beliefs encourage people to tolerate, and even welcome, a world of unremitting physical hardship, conflict, and death: the kind of world that ancient writings say Custodians wished their work race to live in. Judgment Day prophesies even spur some people into working to bring about a "final battle" because those believers think that it will mean the dawn of a Utopia.
"End of the World" teachings were widely disseminated in Persia somewhere between 750 B.C. and 550 B.C. by a famous Persian prophet named Zoroaster.* Zoroaster is cited by historians as one of the earliest prophets to preach the type of monotheism first created by Akhnaton. Zoroaster was an Aryan mystic and priest who also taught a form of Aryanism. Persia at that time was an Aryan nation dominated by an Aryan priest caste. Some Brotherhood branches today state that Zoroaster was an emissary of the ancient Brotherhood. * Zoroaster probably lived closer to 550 B.C. than to 750 B.C., although there is debate on this issue. Traditionally, he has been placed 258 years "before Alexander," which some scholars interpret as 258 years before Alexander the Great destroyed the first Persian Empire in 330 B.C. Zoroaster is also known as Zarathustra—a name that provided inspiration for a famous symphonic work composed by Richard Strauss entitled Thus Spake Zarathustra. Strauss's composition became the theme song of the American motion picture, 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Zoroaster's cosmology (theory of the universe) was based on the concept of a struggle between good and evil. Zoroaster said that this struggle was to take place over a period of 12,000 years divided into four stages. The first stage consisted solely of spiritual existence during which time a chief god designed the physical universe. During the second stage, the material universe was created, followed by the entrance of the chief god's opponent into the new universe for the purpose of creating problems. The third phase consisted of a battle between the chief god and his rivals over the fate of the many souls who came to occupy the universe. In the fourth and final stage, the chief god was to send in a succession of saviours who would finally defeat the opponent and bring salvation to all spiritual beings in the universe. According to Zoroaster's model, the world is in the fourth stage.
Zoroaster appears to have been a sincere and honest reformer. He taught some good lessons about the nature of ethics and its importance to spiritual salvation. He stressed that people have free will. In other matters, however, Zoroaster's religion fell well short of ideal. To understand why, we need only look at Zoroaster's "God."
The God of Zoroaster was named Ahura Mazda, which means "lord" or "spirit" ("ahura") of "knowledge" or "wisdom" ("mazda"). Zoroaster states that when he was a 30- year-old priest, Ahura Mazda had appeared before him saying that he, Ahura Mazda, was the one true God. Ahura Mazda then proceeded to impart to Zoroaster many of the teachings which constituted Zoroastrianism. When we look to see what sort of creature Ahura Mazda was, we discover good evidence that he was but another Custodian pretending to be "God." Ahura Mazda is depicted in some places as a bearded human figure who stands in a stylized circular object. From the circular object protrude two stylized wings to indicate that it flies. The round flying object has two jutting struts underneath that resemble legs for landing. In other words, Ahura Mazda was a humanlike "God" who flew in a round flying object with landing pads: a Custodian. The implication is that Zoroaster's monotheism, with its apocalyptic message, was spread in Persia with Custodial assistance much in the same way that Judaism had been spread under Moses.
As noted earlier, Zoroaster was an Aryan living in a region ruled by other Aryans. Aryan domination was so strong that the name of Persia was eventually changed to "Iran," which is a derivative of the word "Aryan." Zoroastrian works speak of a god fighting for the Aryan nations and helping them bring about good crops. Through its writings (primarily the Zend Avesta), and through its secret mystical teachings, Zoroastrianism did much to spread philosophies of Aryanism to other organizations within the Brotherhood network. We shall see examples later.
Apocalyptic doctrines continued to be spread after the death of Zoroaster, especially by Hebrew prophets. The warnings of those Hebrew prophets can be found in the later books of the Old Testament. One of those prophets was Ezekiel, whose description of bizarre flying objects we looked at in Chapter 7. According to Ezekiel's narrative, he was taken aboard a strange craft for the very purpose of being given an apocalyptic message to spread, indicating once again that Custodians were the ultimate creators of Judgment Day teachings.
As year 1 A.D. approached, the Hebrew religion had become well-settled in the Middle East. It was, however, undergoing many changes, some of which were caused by the extension of the Roman empire into Palestine. The Romans, who had themselves been driven to conquest by strange mystical religions with definite Brotherhood undertones, often made life difficult for the Jews. In this milieu a number of Jewish sects arose which were often at odds with one another, except in regard to one matter: the Romans were not welcome in Palestine. Some Hebrew sects, such as the Sadducees, proclaimed the coming of a Messiah from "God"—a Messiah who would prevail in the eternal struggle of good against evil and bring freedom to the oppressed Jews. This idea became quite popular among the Hebrews of Palestine, even though its strong political slant made it dangerous.
Old Testament messianic prophecies began as early as 750 B.C. with the prophet Isaiah. Jewish apocalypses appeared sporadically after that, yet often enough to keep fear of a world cataclysm alive. Examples include prophet Joel circa 400 B.C. and Daniel circa 165 B.C. Ironically, the prophecies were quite dire and expressed tremendous hostility against the Jewish people themselves even though the Hebrews were meant to ultimately benefit from the prophecies. Old Testament seers described the people of Israel as wicked and sinful. They quoted "Jehovah" threatening all manner of calamities against the people of Israel, and against the oppressors of Israel. No one was to be spared. To give the flavor of these predictions, here is a quote from the last book in the Old Testament, written shortly before 445 B.C.:
For look, the day comes that all will burn like an oven; and all the proud; and all those who act wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that comes shall burn them up, said the Lord of hosts [angels], that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
But to you who fear my name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and you shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.
And you will tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day that I shall do this, said the Lord of hosts.
Remember the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded to him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.
Observe, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:
And he will turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, so that I do not come and destroy the Earth with a curse.
MALACHI 4:1-6
The above passage preaches the coming of a special messenger from God named Elijah, who was the Hebrew's competition against Mettaya of the Buddhist religion. The Buddhists, perhaps sensing the one-upmanship or falling prey to corrupted Brotherhood influences, reshaped the Mettaya legend to resemble monotheistic apocalypses. This created the illusion that the Hebrews and Buddhists were waiting for the same person when, in fact, they were not. Brotherhood monotheists were (and still are) waiting for a messenger from God coupled with a Day of Judgment. The Buddhists were simply awaiting a friend who is smart and caring enough to finish Buddha's work without the necessity of the entire world ending. Modern Hebrews are still waiting for Elijah to appear, while Christians believe that Elijah was John the Baptist, the man who baptized Jesus Christ.
Old Testament prophets expressed another important idea. "Jehovah" would continue to manipulate people into war:
For I [God] will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle ... Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations .. .
ZECHARIAH 14:1-2 (written c. 520 B.C.)
This is a startling quote because it states "God's" intention to bring many nations into a conflict by first supporting one side and then backing the other. Such actions are textbook Machiavelli. "God's" intention to make brother fight brother was expressed in the same year by prophet Haggai:
And I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the heathen; and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother.
HAGGAI 2:22
Bible believers still think that a Supreme Being is behind the vicious Machiavellian intentions described in the Bible. The "ancient astronauts" theory seems to provide a true breakthrough by pointing to a brutal technological society, not a Supreme Being, as the more likely source of such machinations.
When people adhere to apocalyptic prophecies, they usually do so because they believe in predestiny. Predestiny is the idea that the future is already created and unalterable, and that some people have a special ability to see that future.
Does pre-destiny really exist?
For the sake of discussion, let us assume that it does: at any given moment in the present, there is a future already created that is as solid and as real as any moment in the past or present. Perhaps time is not as linear as we have believed.
If such a future already exists, does that mean that it is inevitable and must occur?
No.
Here is a simple two-part exercise to illustrate this:
Part 1: Find a timepiece and note the time. Calculate what time it will be in exactly 30 seconds. Now decide exactly where you will be standing when that 30-second moment arrives. Watch the clock and be sure you are standing at the spot you chose.
You have just created a prophecy and fulfilled it.
Part 2: Look at the clock again and decide on a new location. Ten seconds before the 30-second moment arrives, rethink whether you want to fulfill the prophecy. If you do, be at the place you decided upon; if you do not, choose a new location at random and be there when the 30-second moment arrives.
Repeat the above exercise several times.
Which of the two parts above created the stronger and more solid future? The answer, of course is Part 1. Which of the two futures would a prophet be more likely to foresee? The answer again is Part 1. The point being made is that the future is shaped largely by intention backed by action: the stronger the intention and the better its back-up by action, the more solid the future will tend to be.
The future is therefore malleable. A future reality, no matter how solid it is or how many prophets have agreed to its existence, can be changed. It will be irreversible only if people continue to perform, or fail to perform, those actions which will cause that future to come about, and no one does anything effective enough to counter those actions or inactions.
Some people would argue that the true seer would foresee the change of mind in Part 2 of the above exercise. If this is true, then the prophet has gained an extraordinary ability to influence the future, for he or she may now contact the subject of his or her vision and persuade that person to change his or her mind, or the seer may take actions to ensure or prevent the consequences of the decision.
Prophecy has really only one value: as a tool to either change or ensure the future. The problem with a seer who foresees a tragic event which later comes true is that he or she divined insufficient information to do anything about it. For example, the famous American prophet, Edgar Cayce, predicted a worldwide holocaust in the 1990's. Because of Mr. Cayce's reputed ability to perceive such things, many people are convinced that such an event lies in the future. Perhaps it does. Unfortunately, Mr. Cayce was not able to expand enough on his prediction to offer the detailed information which might be used to alter the events he predicted. His prophecy is therefore woefully incomplete.
As we shall see in this book, there have been many "End of the World" episodes in world history. They have all fulfilled the religious prophecies except on one very crucial point: not one of them brought about a new era of peace and salvation as promised. Despite that dismal record, many people today are preaching that yet one more "End of the World" or "Final Battle" is about to make life better.
Shortly before the year 1 A.D., a controversial religious leader was born who tried to prevent himself from being declared an apocalyptic Messiah. He was unsuccessful and would be nailed to a wooden cross as a result. We know him today as Jesus Christ, and his story is an important one.
next
https://exploringrealhistory.blogspot.com/2021/04/part-4-gods-of-eden-jesus-ministry.html
The Jesus Ministry
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