As Jesus and the eleven went out, a Roman guard approached and said, All hail! Is one of you the man from Galilee? And Peter said, We all are men from Galilee; whom do you seek? The guard replied, I seek for Jesus, who is called the Christ. And Jesus answered, Here am I. The guard spoke out and said, I do not come in an official way; I bear to you a message from the governor. Jerusalem is all alive with vengeful Jews who swear that they will take your life, and Pilate would confer with you, and he would have you come to him without delay. And Jesus said to Peter and the rest, Go to the vale, and by the Kidron wait for me, and I will go alone and see the governor.
And Jesus went up with the guard, and when he reached the palace, Pilate met him at the gate and said, Young man, I have a word to say that may be well for you. I have observed your works and words three years and more; and I have often stood in your defense when your own countrymen would fain have stoned you as a criminal. But now the priests, the scribes and Pharisees have stirred the common people to a stage of frenzied wantonness and cruelty, and they intend to take your life. Because, they say, that you have sworn to tear their temple down; to change the laws that Moses gave; to exile Pharisee and priest and seat yourself upon a throne. And they aver that you are fully in league with Rome. The streets of all Jerusalem are filled this moment with a horde of madmen all intent to shed your blood. There is no safety for you but in flight; wait not until the morning sun. You know the way to reach the border of this cursed land. I have a little band of guards, well horsed and armed, and they will take you out beyond the reach of harm. You must not tarry here, young man, you must arise and go.
And Jesus said, A noble prince has Caesar in his Pilate Pontius, and from the point of carnal man your words are seasoned with the wise man’s salt; but from the point of Christ your words are foolishness. The coward flees when danger comes; but he who comes to seek and save the lost must give his life in willing sacrifice for those he comes to seek and save. Before the pasch has been consumed, lo, all this nation will be cursed by shedding blood of innocence; and even now the murderers are at the door.
And Pilate said, It shall not be; the sword of Rome will be unsheathed to save your life. And Jesus said, Nay, Pilate, nay; there are no armies large enough in all the world to save my life. And Jesus bade the governor farewell, and went his way; but Pilate sent a double guard with him lest he should fall into the hands of those who were alert to take his life. But in a moment Jesus disappeared; the guards saw him no more, and in a little while he reached the brook of Kidron where the eleven were.
Now, just beyond the brook there was an orchard and a home where one, Massalian, lived, where Jesus oft had been. Massalian was his friend, and he believed that Jesus was the Christ that Jewish prophets long ago had said would come. Now, in the orchard was a sacred knoll; Massalian called the place Gethsemane. The night was dark, but in the orchard it was doubly dark and Jesus bade the eight disciples tarry by the brook, while he, with Peter, James and John went to Gethsemane to pray. (Aquarian Gospel 163:1-29)
Here we find the surprising fact that Pilate was a friend of Jesus and wanted to protect him, though Jesus resisted his insistence that he leave Israel. Yet in the end Pilate gave Jesus over to his murderers because he feared accusations might be brought against him to Caesar by the toadies of Rome, the high priest, his father-in-law and much of the Sanhedrin.
The priests, the scribes and Pharisees…intend to take your life. Because, they say, that you have sworn to tear their temple down; to change the laws that Moses gave; to exile Pharisee and priest and seat yourself upon a throne. And they aver that you are fully in league with Rome. What a list of absurdities! Jesus had no interest in any of these things, especially not to change the Law of Moses into a new law as contemporary Christians claim. Jesus brought to Israel not a new religion but the primal revelation of the Indian sages that transcended all the superstitions cloaked as religions. Yet after his departure from Israel we see that his disciples entered into a betrayal much more shameful than that of Judas. They made a reconciliation with the ignorant religious system Jesus had disproved when he was only twelve years of age, claiming that he had renewed it by becoming a blood sacrifice to appease God. What a monstrous, blasphemous claim. So today everyone thinks Jesus’ mission was to create a reformed, spiritualized Judaism.
They sat beneath an olive tree, and Jesus opened up the mysteries of life to Peter, James and John. He said, The Spirit of eternity is One unmanifest; and this is God the Father, God the Mother, God the Son in One. In life of manifests the One became the Three, and God the Father is the God of might; and God the Mother is omniscient God, and God the Son is love. And God the Father is the power of heaven and earth; and God the Mother is the Holy Breath, the thought of heaven and earth; and God the Son, the only son, is Christ, and Christ is love. I came as man to manifest this love to men,
As man I have been subject unto all the trials and temptations of the human race; but I have overcome the flesh, with all its passions and its appetites. What I have done all men can do. And I am now about to demonstrate the power of man to conquer death; for every man is God made flesh.
I will lay down my life, and I will take it up again, that you may know the mysteries of life, of death, and of the resurrection of the dead. I lay me down in flesh, but I will rise in spirit form with power to manifest myself so mortal eyes can see. So in a trinity of days I will show forth the all of life, the all of death, the meaning of the resurrection of the dead. And what I do all men can do.
And you, my three, who constitute the inner circle of the Church of Christ, will show to men the attributes of all the Gods. And Peter shall make known the Power of God; and James shall show the Thought of God; and John shall demonstrate the Love of God. Be not afraid of men, for you have been sent forth to do the mighty works of God the Father, God the Mother, God the Son. And all the powers of carnal life cannot destroy your life until your work is done. I leave you now, and I will go out in the darkness all alone and talk with God. By sorrow I am overwhelmed, I leave you here to watch with me. (Aquarian Gospel 163:30-47)
The Spirit of eternity is One unmanifest; and this is God the Father, God the Mother, God the Son in One. In life of manifests the One became the Three, and God the Father is the God of might; and God the Mother is omniscient God, and God the Son is love. And God the Father is the power of heaven and earth; and God the Mother is the Holy Breath, the thought of heaven and earth; and God the Son, the only son, is Christ, and Christ is love. God never changes. If he is triune, then he has been triune from eternity. And Jesus clearly states that here. The unmanifest is one and three simultaneously even before there is manifestation.
When manifestation occurred, the triune nature of God was revealed. God the Father is power in the sense of being the substratum of power behind all things. The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, is knowledge and wisdom. God the Son is love because he holds every atom of creation in his consciousness and wills their evolution and return to the Father as divine sons.
I came as man to manifest this love to men. As man I have been subject unto all the trials and temptations of the human race; but I have overcome the flesh, with all its passions and its appetites. What I have done all men can do. Jesus had long ago passed from humanity to perfect divinity, but he returned to us in a mortal, limited body because he was to show to other humans the pattern of loving sacrifice that must be followed by us all. Since Jesus assumed all the condition of a human being he has proved that we can follow him without excuse. That, too, is a matter of love.
And I am now about to demonstrate the power of man to conquer death; for every man is God made flesh. Our immortality is evidence of our innate divinity through which death can be conquered.
I will lay down my life, and I will take it up again, that you may know the mysteries of life, of death, and of the resurrection of the dead. Life, death and resurrection are not just conditions, but powers possessed by each human being. We know this because Jesus has demonstrated this. It is not easy to keep in mind when studying the life of great Christs such as Jesus and Buddha that they are showing us human potential, because their divinity is so much in the foreground and our divinity is so much in the background and even invisible. So we think that to equate ourselves with them is arrogance and blasphemy. But to do otherwise is ignorance and blasphemy of ourselves.
I lay me down in flesh, but I will rise in spirit form with power to manifest myself so mortal eyes can see. Jesus’ body was completely transmuted into divine consciousness. It was no longer material but spiritual, yet that does not mean it was a mere appearance, a phantom. Just the opposite: it was in the condition of total reality, for spirit alone is ultimately real.
So in a trinity of days I will show forth the all of life, the all of death, the meaning of the resurrection of the dead. Life and death are but alternating steps in the journey of the spirit that ends in the transmutation of both into changeless immortality that is resurrection into Spirit.
And what I do all men can do. This needs no comment, but I did not want to put it with the other statements so the point Jesus is making will be absolutely clear. Jesus is showing to the world the power of humanity which is innately divine. Our lives in gas, mineral, plant, animal, human and superhuman forms are dreams. Rising to divinity is the only real awakening.
And you, my three, who constitute the inner circle of the Church of Christ, will show to men the attributes of all the Gods. And Peter shall make known the Power of God; and James shall show the Thought of God; and John shall demonstrate the Love of God. This was done both in the teaching and the daily life of each of the three. So powerful was Saint Peter that his shadow cured the sick. So wise in the mysteries of God was Saint James that he was the head of the first Christine community. Saint John throughout his life wrote and spoke of the love of God, and the last words he spoke on earth were: “My little children, love one another” as his deified body dissolved into light and was pure spirit. (It is this “transmogrification” alone that Taoists consider proof of the ultimate attainment.) All three wrote epistles found in the Bible that reflect the traits Jesus attributed to each.
Be not afraid of men, for you have been sent forth to do the mighty works of God the Father, God the Mother, God the Son. And all the powers of carnal life cannot destroy your life until your work is done. I leave you now, and I will go out in the darkness all alone and talk with God. By sorrow I am overwhelmed, I leave you here to watch with me.
Then Jesus went three hundred cubits toward the east, and fell upon his face and prayed; he said, My God! my God! is there a way by which I may escape the horrors of the coming hours? My human flesh shrinks back; my soul is firm; so not my will, but thine, O God, be done. In agony he prayed; the strain upon the human form was great; his veins were burst asunder, and his brow was bathed in blood.
And then he went back to the three, and found them all asleep; he said, O Simon, Simon, do you sleep! Could you not watch with me a single hour? Be vigilant, and watch and pray that your temptations be not too great for you to bear. I know the spirit is alert and willing; but the flesh is weak.
And then he went again and prayed, O Father, God! if I must drink this bitter cup, give me the strength of soul; for not my will, but thine be done.
And then he went again to his disciples; lo, he found them still asleep. He wakened them and said to James, Have you been sleeping while your master has been wrestling with the greatest foe of men? Could you not watch with me a single hour?
And then he went again and prayed. O God, I yield to thee; thy will be done.
And then again he went back to the three, and still they slept. He said to John, With all the love you have for me, could you not watch with me a single hour?
And then he said, It is enough; the hour has come, and my betrayer is at hand; arise and let us go. And when they came again to Kidron, lo, the eight disciples were asleep, and Jesus said, You men, awake; behold, for the betrayer of the son of man is come. (Aquarian Gospel 163:44-61)
My human flesh shrinks back; my soul is firm;…I know the spirit is alert and willing; but the flesh is weak. This is an important lesson. The body often seems to have an existence completely independent of the mind (buddhi: intelligence) and spirit. Its drive for preservation of physical life is a powerful, even overwhelming, instinct. Therefore we must never think that our aspirations and inspirations are invincible. In a moment the body can sweep them away. Tremendous will is always a necessity at every step of spiritual life.
In agony he prayed; the strain upon the human form was great; his veins were burst asunder, and his brow was bathed in blood. If this great effort and concentration of will were necessary for Jesus, they are certainly necessary for us. Jesus has not done everything for us, nor has he made anything easy. Make no mistake: we must all tread the path he trod.
And then he went again and prayed, O Father, God! if I must drink this bitter cup, give me the strength of soul; for not my will, but thine be done. We cannot depend on ourselves alone. We need the infinite power and grace of God. True, we are divine, but finitely so. In the last steps of the Great Journey we require the assistance of Infinite Divinity to persevere and reach the Goal.
Have you been sleeping while your master has been wrestling with the greatest foe of men? The greatest foe of men is not “the devil” but humanity itself. For spiritual life leads to the “death” of humanity in the revelation of our divinity. Being a human being has become a habit with us, and the body has powerful subliminal impulses to sustain it. Even great masters must sometimes contend with this power. Patanjali wrote in Yoga Sutras 2:9: “Abhinivesha is the strong desire for life which dominates even the learned.” Abhinivesha is the desperate will to live rising from false identification of the Self with the body; an instinctive and unreasoning clinging to life and a dread of death. Even great yogis can have a subconscious impression (samskara) of this but they can master it. Two examples are given in Autobiography of a Yogi.
Lahiri Mahasaya encouraged Sri Yukteswar to attend the Kumbha Mela at Allahabad in January, 1894. There he met Mahavatar Babaji. Later, when he met with Lahiri Mahasaya in Benares the following occured:
“‘Gurudeva, the divine master asked me to give you a message. “Tell Lahiri,” he said, “that the stored-up power for this life now runs low; it is nearly finished.”’
“At my utterance of these enigmatic words, Lahiri Mahasaya’s figure trembled as though touched by a lightning current. In an instant everything about him fell silent; his smiling countenance turned incredibly stern. Like a wooden statue, somber and immovable in its seat, his body became colorless. I was alarmed and bewildered. Never in my life had I seen this joyous soul manifest such awful gravity. The other disciples present stared apprehensively.
“Three hours passed in utter silence. Then Lahiri Mahasaya resumed his natural, cheerful demeanor, and spoke affectionately to each of the chelas. Everyone sighed in relief.
“I realized by my master’s reaction that Babaji’s message had been an unmistakable signal by which Lahiri Mahasaya understood that his body would soon be untenanted. His awesome silence proved that my guru had instantly controlled his being, cut his last cord of attachment to the material world, and fled to his ever-living identity in Spirit.”
When Yogananda returned to India in 1935 the following conversation took place.
“Arrangements were recently made for Master to visit Kidderpore [a section of Calcutta], but he failed to go.” Amulaya Babu, a brother disciple, made this remark to me one afternoon; I felt a cold wave of premonition. To my pressing inquiries, Sri Yukteswar only replied, “I shall go to Kidderpore no more.” For a moment, Master trembled like a frightened child.
(“Attachment to bodily residence, springing up of its own nature [i.e., arising from immemorial roots, past experiences of death],” Patanjali wrote, “is present in slight degree even in great saints.” In some of his discourses on death, my guru had been wont to add: “Just as a long-caged bird hesitates to leave its accustomed home when the door is opened.”)
Jesus had been struggling with abhinivesha; and so must we all some day.
Read the next section in the Aquarian Gospel for Yogis