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Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Four

Hoffman's portrait of ChristPart 166 of the Aquarian Gospel for Awakening

The multitudes would hear what Jesus had to say, and so they built a platform in the temple court, and Jesus stood upon the place and taught. He spoke in parables; he said,

A man possessed a vast estate; he planted out a vineyard, placed a hedge about it, built a tower, installed the press for making wine. He placed his vineyard in the hands of husbandmen and then he journeyed to a distant land. Now, in the vintage time the man sent forth a servant to receive and bring to him his portion of the fruitage of the vines. The husbandmen came forth and beat the man; laid forty lashes on his back and cast him out beyond the vineyard gate. And then the owner sent another man to bring to him his own. The husbandmen laid hold of him and sorely wounded him and cast him from the vineyard, leaving him half dead beside the way.) The owner sent another man to bring to him his own. The husbandmen seized hold of him and with a javelin they pierced his heart; then buried him beyond the hedge. The owner was aggrieved. He thought within himself, What shall I do? and then he said, This will I do. My only son is here, and I will send him to the husbandmen, They surely will respect my son and send me what is mine. He sent his son; the husbandmen took counsel with themselves; they said, This is the only heir to all this wealth, and if we take his life the vast inheritance is ours. They took his life and cast him out beyond the vineyard hedge. The day will come; the owner will return to reckon with the husbandmen, and he will seize them every one, and cast them into scorching fires where they shall stay until they pay the debts they owe. And he will place his vineyard in the care of honest men. (Aquarian Gospel 154:1-13)

There is not much to say about this parable because it is the same as that in the regular Gospels. It is portraying of how Israel persecuted and even killed the messengers of God through the centuries, and how they are now about to murder the greatest of all, one who had attained the status of a son of God. But the consequences will be terrible and tremendous suffering will come upon those who committed the crime and those who did not approve yet did not oppose it. Tremendous karma will be created and tremendous will be reaping of it. Furthermore, others will be entrusted with the spiritual wealth that was rejected by those to whom it was originally offered.

Certainly when we see the great sufferings that came to the generation of those involved in the death of Jesus we see this parable is no exaggeration. However it must be pointed out that few things are more outrageous than the false assertion that the Jewish nation through the centuries has been responsible for the death of Jesus. This is an excuse for inexcusable deprivations and persecutions aimed at them. It is one of the most shameful aspects of Western civilization.

Then turning to the priests and scribes he said, Did not your prophets say, The stone the builders cast away became the capstone of the arch? You men who pose as men of God, as husbandmen, lo, you have stoned and killed the messengers of God, his prophets and his seers, and now you seek to slay his son.

I tell you men, the kingdom shall be snatched away from you, and shall be given unto people who are not a people now, and to a nation that is not a nation now. And men whose speech you cannot understand, will stand between the living and the dead, and show the way to life.

The chief priests and the Pharisees were deeply moved with anger when they heard this parable and would have seized the Lord and done him harm, but they were sore afraid; they feared the multitude. (Aquarian Gospel 154:14-19)

I tell you men, the kingdom shall be snatched away from you, and shall be given unto people who are not a people now, and to a nation that is not a nation now. And men whose speech you cannot understand, will stand between the living and the dead, and show the way to life. The first part is well known, prophesying that those who would come to believe in the revelation of Jesus would be a new nation that would inherit the blessings which Israel enjoyed in the past. The interesting part is the second which speaks of those who “will stand between the living and the dead, and show the way to life.” This implies that true Christians are in touch with all the living, whether embodied or disembodied, and can show the way to life in union with God. Those who do not fit this description are not Christians.

And Jesus spoke another parable; he said, The kingdom is a-like a certain king who made a feast in honor of the marriage of his son. He sent his servants forth to call the people who had been invited to the feast. The servants called; but then the people would not come. And then the king sent other messengers abroad to say, Behold, my tables now are spread; my oxen and my fatlings are prepared. The choicest viands and the richest wines are on my boards; come to the marriage feast. The people laughed and treated with disdain his call, and went their way; one to his farm, another to his merchandise; and others seized the servants of the king; abused them shamefully; and some of them they killed. And then the king sent forth his soldiery who slew the murderers and burned their towns.

And then the king sent other servants forth; to them he said, Go to the corners of the streets, the partings of the ways, and to the marts of trade and say, Whoever will may come up to the marriage feast. The servants went their way and called; and lo, the banquet hall was filled with guests. (Aquarian Gospel 154:20-30)

This is a continuation of the same theme and contains no new or noteworthy elements.

But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man who had not on a wedding robe; he called to him and said, Friend, why are you here without a wedding robe? Would you dishonor thus my son? The man was dumb; he answered not. And then the king said to his guards, Take you this man and bind him hand and foot and cast him out into the darkness of the night. The many have been called, but none are chosen to be guests who have not clad themselves in wedding robes. (Aquarian Gospel 154:31-35)

It was the custom at the time of Jesus that wealthy people would send magnificent clothing to those they invited to a special feast. Instead of little cards with their names on them, their clothing was proof that they were truly invited. In this parable a man managed to get into the feast, but had no garment. The term “wedding robe” is used here in the sense that those who are destined to be “wed” to God will possess a special “robe.” The initiate of a valid spiritual system is given the power to develop an entirely new level of being, known to the yogis as a “sadhana body.” The Taoists are very insistent on this and refer to the “divine embryo” which evolves into the vehicle through which divine consciousness is perceived and united with. Sri Ramakrishna spoke of this body, saying that it is through the sadhana body, produced by spiritual practice, that aspirants actually come to see and know God. The wedding robe and the sadhana body are the same thing.

Read the next section in the Aquarian Gospel for Yogis

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The Aquarian Gospel—Commentary and Text

The Aquarian Gospel for Awakening—A Commentary on the Aquarian Gospel
by Swami Nirmalananda Giri (Abbot George Burke)

  1. The Mother of Jesus
  2. Prophecies of the Births of Saint John the Baptist and Jesus
  3. The Birth of Jesus
  4. Revelations in the Temple
  5. Coming of the Wise Men
  6. Herod’s Reaction
  7. Revelations in Egypt
  8. The Two Selfs
  9. Deliverance From Gods and Demons
  10. About God the Tao
  11. From India to Chaldea
  12. The Wisdom of Buddha
  13. God and Prayer
  14. The Mission of Jesus and John the Baptist
  15. Sin and the Forgiveness of Sin
  16. The Universal Law of Man’s Free Will and the Divine Will For Man
  17. Understanding Death
  18. The True Teacher
  19. The Value of Ritual
  20. The Law Behind All Laws
  21. Opening To The Truth
  22. In the Temple at the Age of Ten
  23. Revelation to the Teachers and People in the Temple
  24. Jerusalem to Nazareth
  25. Nazareth to India
  26. What is Truth?
  27. What Is Man?
  28. What is Power?
  29. Understanding
  30. Wisdom
  31. Faith
  32. Healing and Healers
  33. Conflict Over Caste
  34. The Destiny of All Men
  35. God and Man
  36. The Voice in the Heart
  37. Seeing the Unseeable
  38. To God Through Man
  39. Who Is Jesus?
  40. The Real Versus The Apparent
  41. The Brotherhood of Life
  42. God…and Man
  43. Relating To God
  44. The Worthy Host
  45. Come to the Light
  46. The Kingdom Revealed
  47. The King Revealed
  48. Perspective On Death
  49. Fire and Sword
  50. Evolution: The Path of Glory
  51. The Real Heaven
  52. Getting to the Essence
  53. New Perspective on Religion
  54. In Tibet and Ladakh
  55. Words to the Worthy
  56. The Thirty-Eighth Chapter
  57. The Origin of Evil
  58. The Silence
  59. The Source of Healing
  60. The Fivefold Gospel
  61. Homecoming
  62. In Athens
  63. The Oracle of Delphi
  64. The Real God
  65. Return to Egypt
  66. First Steps to Wisdom
  67. Strong in Will and Intent
  68. Here Comes the Ego
  69. Blessed are the Merciful
  70. Claiming Our Freedom
  71. The Great Test
  72. Comprehending Death
  73. The Christ!
  74. The Asembly of the Masters
  75. The Seven Pillars of the Aquarian Age – I
  76. The Seven Pillars of the Aquarian Age – II
  77. The Declaration of Jesus
  78. John the Baptist – I
  79. John the Baptist – II
  80. John the Baptist – III
  81. Baptism – Jesus and John
  82. Self-Examination and Temptation
  83. The First Disciples Follow Jesus
  84. Jesus’ First Sermon
  85. The King and the Kingdom
  86. Dealing With Challengers
  87. The First Miracle of Jesus
  88. Kings and Kingdoms
  89. The Temple of God
  90. What Is A Messiah?
  91. The Laws of Healing
  92. Nicodemus Finds The Kingdom
  93. The Prince of Peace
  94. Dealing With Spiritual Opposition
  95. The Opened Gate
  96. John the Baptist Speaks of the Christ
  97. John Speaks Further About Jesus
  98. The Woman at the Well
  99. The Disciples and Samaritans at the Well
  100. Jesus in Sychar
  101. More Wisdom In Samaria
  102. The Imprisonment of John the Baptist
  103. In Jerusalem
  104. The Insights of Jesus
  105. Sabbath Wisdom
  106. Prayer and Good Deeds
  107. Divine Laws and Principles for Seekers of the Divine
  108. A New Understanding of the Ten Commandments
  109. Aspects of the Higher Law – 1
  110. Aspects of the Higher Law – 2
  111. Aspects of the Higher Law – 3
  112. Aspects of the Higher Law – 4
  113. Chapter One Hundred One
  114. Chapter One Hundred Two
  115. Chapter One Hundred Three
  116. Chapter One Hundred Four
  117. Chapter One Hundred Five
  118. Chapter One Hundred Six
  119. Chapter One Hundred Seven
  120. Chapter One Hundred Eight
  121. Chapter One Hundred Nine
  122. Chapter One Hundred Ten
  123. Chapter One Hundred Eleven
  124. Chapter One Hundred Twelve
  125. Chapter One Hundred Thirteen
  126. Chapter One Hundred Fourteen
  127. Chapter One Hundred Fifteen
  128. Chapter One Hundred Sixteen
  129. Chapter One Hundred Seventeen
  130. Chapter One Hundred Eighteen
  131. Chapter One Hundred Nineteen
  132. Chapter One Hundred Twenty
  133. Chapter One Hundred Twenty One
  134. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Two
  135. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Three
  136. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Four
  137. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Five
  138. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Six
  139. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Seven
  140. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Eight
  141. Chapter One Hundred Twenty Nine
  142. Chapter One Hundred Thirty
  143. Chapter One Hundred Thirty One
  144. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Two
  145. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Three
  146. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Four
  147. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Five
  148. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Six
  149. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Seven
  150. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Eight
  151. Chapter One Hundred Thirty Nine
  152. Chapter One Hundred Forty
  153. Chapter One Hundred Forty One
  154. Chapter One Hundred Forty Two
  155. Chapter One Hundred Forty Three
  156. Chapter One Hundred Forty Four
  157. Chapter One Hundred Forty Five
  158. Chapter One Hundred Forty Six
  159. Chapter One Hundred Forty Seven
  160. Chapter One Hundred Forty Eight
  161. Chapter One Hundred Forty Nine
  162. Chapter One Hundred Fifty
  163. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-One
  164. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Two
  165. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Three
  166. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Four
  167. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Five
  168. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Six
  169. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Seven
  170. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Eight
  171. Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Nine
  172. Chapter One Hundred Sixty
  173. Chapter One Hundred Sixty One
  174. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Two
  175. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Three
  176. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Four
  177. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Five
  178. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Six
  179. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Seven
  180. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Eight
  181. Chapter One Hundred Sixty Nine
  182. Chapter One Hundred Seventy
  183. Chapter One Hundred Seventy One
  184. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Two
  185. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Three
  186. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Four
  187. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Five
  188. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Six
  189. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Seven
  190. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Eight
  191. Chapter One Hundred Seventy Nine
  192. Chapter One Hundred Eighty
  193. Chapter One Hundred Eighty One
  194. Chapter One Hundred Eighty Two

The Text of the Aquarian Gospel—by Levi Dowling

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