~~*  Pilgrimage to the Golden City-Page 5  *~~

~~*Monastic Life*~~

Among this august host of gods, goddesses, masters, angelic beings and inter-dimensional intelligences were Jesus, Buddha, Lao Tsu and just about every god and enlightened being presented by every religion, myth, and mystery school of the entire world. The wealth, straight-laced suit and tie, socially sophisticated air of the people threw me off, but I could not deny the apparent accumulation of spiritual understanding they had amassed that so eerily matched experiences of my quest.

How did these people see what I had experienced? Where did they get this knowledge?

Mark and Elizabeth Prophet, the Messengers of the Masters, had geared up the organization and they were riding the crest of the wave of interest in alternative religions of the late sixties and early seventies.

The Monastery headquarters consisted of a turn of the century mansion, located in the heart of the high-end district of Broadmoor called La Tourelle, thus named because of the magnificent tower made of red brick with a marble stairway that spiraled in its center. The slate tile roof and French imported drain spouts spoke of a time long ago. The brick walls of this structure were three feet thick.

It didn't take long for me to get deeply involved with both the teachings and people of the Summit Lighthouse. Soon I was conscripted onto the staff and began my intense regimen of chanting, meditation and strict discipline as shared by all the staff. At the peak of my rigorous lifestyle I was meditating and or chanting up to 16 hours a day. More of my time was spent negotiating psychic and spiritual realms in a trance like altered state, than time-spent conscious of my immediate surroundings.

Hours on end were spent with Elizabeth as her personal eyes into the invisible world as well as her bodyguard. We practiced various rituals to protect the work and activity of the organization on spiritual planes. A room in the apex of that tower is where I spent day and night, often alone but more often with Elizabeth, as she edited copious amounts of literature and the frequent books they produced through channeling. Because of the status of Mark and Elizabeth as Messengers of the Great White Brotherhood, it seemed proper to them that we also acted as their guardians. So, along with my spiritual duties, I and several others, I attended the Messengers wherever they went, always on guard. Frequently we slept on the floor outside their luxuriant master bedroom. Most of the other staff had quarters in the servants' house, a large building separate from the mansion.

The spiritual beings that were the real backbone of the organization regularly expressed themselves through the Messengers. Weekly oracles and quarterly conferences, filled with outpourings of teachings to facilitate and cultivate contact with the spiritual hierarchy and develop spiritual attainment, were the heartbeat of the organization. Regularly gurus, spiritual teachers, pundits and politicians attended and added to the meetings. It seemed as though the organization was a point of confluence for the energies that were molding the present social and political climate.

Wealth accumulated and the worldwide scope of influence increased as the years went by. As strict vegetarians we often fasted and went to great lengths to purify ourselves. The organization always did everything in a big way with high standards of excellence. All of the literature was printed on huge privately owned printing presses. The work force was strictly room and board with an occasional subsistence for private needs. Most of the staff had income from other sources to sustain them in their stay at headquarters. The political bent was very conservative. Every effort was made to keep abreast of world political trends.

~~*Beyond Human Imagination*~~

The teachings themselves were a very comprehensive accumulation and synthesis of the world's religions as interpreted by the Messengers. Obviously Jesus and Buddha held prominent places in the hierarchy. Art, music and various disciplines of culture and science were compelled to take on spiritual significance and integrated into our study. Indeed the cosmology of the Summit Lighthouse was all encompassing and it ascribed spiritual significance and power to every aspect of life, color and form. The scope of its extent was ever pressed beyond the reaches of human imagination. An array of sound, color and form was woven into the cosmology with a spiritual entity of some kind linked to each aspect. From the most basic to the most complex elements of existence, a hidden influence seemed to emanate. The entire plane of reality was catapulted into a realm of dark or light power that would enhance or inhibit your spiritual growth. Only colors with pure and high vibrations could be worn.

~~*Attaining Higher Consciousness*~~

Everything was manipulated to advance the cause of attaining higher consciousness. Layer after layer of jargon from the world's religions were cleverly woven to cover what plainly was an Eastern mystical world view which was - as from their vantage point - the paradigm of truth. The essence of the teachings revolved around the notion that each being has at the core of his consciousness a "Divine Spark" which is intrinsically a part of God. The fundamental aspect of man and his consciousness was said to be God. Because reincarnation and a doctrine of Karma were also held, the awareness of this divine nature was said to be clouded by deeds, dark forces, and illusion that must be escaped. Mantras and prayers, thought forms and visualizations; meditations and spiritual exercises faithfully applied, were said to grant spiritual liberation.This present article, which is limited in scope, cannot do justice to address the teachings of the Masters from an apologetic standpoint.

~~*World Travel*~~

World travel was an intrinsic aspect of the promotion of the Masters' work. As a result, several world tours were taken to key places of spiritual or political importance. We traveled and performed magically mystical rituals everywhere. Regularly we had interviews with such personages as the Dalai Lamaof Tibet, Indira Ghandi and political leaders from around the globe.

I recall on the Autumn Equinox of 1972 scaling the sides of the Great Pyramid of Gheza with three of my comrades to perform rituals and meditate at its peak. The full moon was in Aries, the sun in Libra and all of the planets were in "auspicious" places. Europe and Africa, the Middle East and far reaches of the world became the haunts of our spiritual practices. Our intent was to weave a web of a spiritual nature to work in conjunction with the Masters, to raise the world out of the mire of ignorance and darkness into a new age where everyone would be God conscious all the time.

Sitting on the Great Pyramid of Gheza with East Indian "rudraksha" and  white coral  prayer  beads looped about my neck. Autumn Equinox with the full moon in Aries and the sun in Libra waiting for sunrise.

~~*In Pursuit of Enlightenment*~~

Subjectively, many experiences on the spiritual plane that were clearly delineated in many of the mystery writings became mine, including the awakening of the "shakti" force of kundalini. I can recall my desire for spiritual attainment being so profound that I added my own regime of spiritual discipline to that already imposed on me by the Messengers.

Each night at the Monastery I would arise, go to one of the elaborate rooms in the mansion, practice hatha yoga and pray to the Masters. Part of my little ritual consisted of breaking bread and drinking a sip of wine and asking Master Jesus to cause these elements to become to me what they should be. It is difficult to express how these things completely engulfed my soul. All of this agenda and activity was purposed to maintain an altered state of consciousness in pursuit of enlightenment.

~~*Unraveling of Spiritual Discipline*~~

In 1972 Mark Prophet died of a stroke and the entire operation fell into the hands of Elizabeth. The shakeup was very profound. Its magnitude can only be measured in my life by an oppressive stress that permeated my days. I found myself immersed in what I would consider impure and divergent thoughts.

It was customary for me to afflict myself stringently. I wore a horse hair shirt, a belt of woven thorns, and regularly flagellated myself in an attempt to subdue my carnal nature. Now for some reason at Mark's death these "primal carnal urges" seemed intensified. Temptation seemed everywhere and overwhelming. My youthful vigor at the age of 25 was breaking loose, violating my years of careful control.

A young lady on staff approached me and forthrightly told me she was "practicing" on me to capture my heart. Though I never consummated the relationship, I may as well have. The entire affair broke me so utterly down that it was, as it were, an imploding of my psyche. My vows of celibacy were now being resisted by raging passion. I walked around numb for weeks only to finally acknowledge my inability to maintain the level of "God consciousness" that I presumed I had attained to. I couldn't understand what was going on. Years of spiritual discipline seemed to unravel at my feet.

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