Soul Travel and the Spiritual Masters – Harold Klemp

 

 

 

   I am really more interested in having an individual open up to divine love than to achieve anything else, including Soul Travel. Soul Travel is the natural way to for expansion of consciousness and travel into the spiritual worlds of God. Yet all that it is, is one means available for you to find the love of God.

   The path of ECK is much broader than Soul Travel, of course. There are many ways that Divine Spirit , the ECK,expresses Itself to the human race, but many of the ways seem so commonplace that the average person doesn't see or hear them anymore.

   This includes all the sounds of nature: the sound of a gentle breeze, rustling leaves in Autumn, the chirping of crickets, the purring of a cat, the low hum of a refrigerator, the laughing of children at play, and hundreds of other examples.

   You mentioned your practice of former times where you went off by yourself to commune with God and nature. If you could recapture that,you would find  much of the spiritual unfoldment you are looking for.

   Our society admires more mental things today: food for thought—either in writings or speeches. From this material, the Living ECK Master looks for an avenue to Soul that will result in the human mind stepping aside for the moment, letting the miracle of divine illumination occur.

   You do not have to Soul Travel to be successful in ECK. Another way to God-Realization is to give tender love and care to every action, because of your love for God.

   A direct and simple way to God is to find someone or something to love everyday. Then at bedtime, , let your thoughts gently drift back to this moment of love in your day. Contemplate on that love with joy. Your contemplative exercises can be as simple as that.

 

 

 

   To imagine Soul Travel is the first thing one must do before actually getting out of the body.

   A girl who plays second base for a baseball team in town is called a "natural." But she works hard at her fielding and hitting. Her brothers are all good ball players, and in her mind shes imagines herself every bit as good as they are. And so she is good, not only because of her imagination, but mainly because she practices harder than the other girls on the team.

   Keep on imagining that you do Soul Travel, and one day you will suddenly do it. You will have no more doubt about the difference between imagination and Soul Travel. Wait and see!

 

 

 

   Your question about the pyramids is a real chance for you to learn Soul Travel.

   Soul learns by doing things. Studies show that a person learns faster by doing, rather than by just listening to others. If your question about the pyramids is more than idle curiosity, I'll get you started in your research.

   The historical starting point for the pyramids goes back to Atlantis, the continent that once included the Bahamas, where you now live. It was an advanced civilization that boasted giant pyramids. They were the inspiration for later replicas in Egypt and Central America.

   The Atlanteans had developed science beyond anything known today, including exotic means of space travel for the colonization of nearby planets. The huge continent eventually broke up and sank, but only after many years of cataclysms that left little trace of its former greatness.

   During the final series of earthquakes and volcanoes about 12,000 B.C., the Atlanteans packed their goods and fled to Europe, Africa, and the Americas. They took along the culture of their motherland, thus accounting for the similarity of architecture and customs found in widely scattered places like Egypt and Central America, both of which are sites of colossal pyramids.   The Egyptian pyramids and the smaller monuments built in the same complex were mainly for religious reasons. After the death of the pharaoh, the Egyptians took it for granted that the king would continue with the duties and rituals he had enjoyed as ruler in his earthly life. Therefore, the pyramids held a duplicate of all possessions he had owned on earth, for use in the afterlife.

   Viewed from above, the shape of a pyramid suggests a flood of light from heaven shining upon the earth. But if one looks at it from ground level, the pyramid seems more like a stairway to heaven.

   The grandest pyramids were from the golden age of the Old Kingdom of Egypt. The builders still had knowledge of highly advanced Atlantean measuring and cutting methods. This somewhat explains the remarkably close fit of stones in the Great Pyramid. But if we even mentioned antigravity devices as building tools, critics would use that as a blade against ECK doctrines, which care only about showing Soul the way out of Its material prison.

   Today's archeologists say that the pyramids were built by slaves, who dragged tons of stone up temporary ramps along the sides of the pyramids. This is certainly true of later pyramids, which were of a cruder construction than those of the Old Kingdom of about 2500 B.C.

   In his talks, the Living ECK Master usually avoids talking about scientific marvels of Atlantis. He would rather have spiritual seekers go to the inner planes for their own understanding of ancient world history as it really happened.

   Here's the way to do that: First, learn all you can about the pyramids from books on Egypt and Atlantis. A strong desire to learn ancient history will tell the Mahanta that you really do want to know about them. Second, take any questions that come up in your research to the Mahanta in contemplation.

   To get you started, look for these books in a good library: Atlantis: The Antediluvian World by I. Donnelly (New York: Harper,1949), The Testimony of the Spade by Geoffrey Bibby (New York: A. Knopf, 1956), and The History of Atlantis by Lewis Spence (Philadelphia: David McKay & Company, 1927).

   The reference librarian may be able to help you if the books are not in the library's listings. Or you may visit a book dealer who specializes in finding out-of-print books, since these are old titles.

   Saturate yourself with the subject of the pyramids. Take questions to the Mahanta, the Inner Master. Chant a sacred word, such as the name for God, HU, and ask for answers to come in the best way. They may come during Soul Travel, or in a dream. Or the Mahanta may guide you to a new book.

   Research into the past for a study of the pyramids is a wonderful idea because underneath the wealth of history is a pattern of the ancient people who either obeyed or abused the laws of Divine Spirit. Their mistakes can benefit you,if you learn to avoid them.

   I hope this gets you going in the right direction. Whether or not you do such in depth research is entirely up to you. Frankly, if it's done leisurely, a study of this sort can be highly enjoyable.

 

 

 

   Some animals do. They're the same as people, in that animals have many different levels of consciousness.

   Like us, all animals dream. Some remember, many don't. Specially gifted ones , like spiritually advanced people, do Soul Travel. In time, scientific research will be able to expand its knowledge of what happens when people and animals sleep.

   You can begin exploring your interests in these fields of knowledge through dreams or Soul Travel. Eventually, science will catch up to the knowledge of those who already can explore the spiritual states of living beings — human or animal — by Soul Travel.

 

 

 

   First,I would like to ask, Do you have any recall of either the Light or Sound of ECK?

   Have you had any dream with the Mahanta, the Inner Master, at any time? Some people don't until several years after they begin the study of ECKANKAR. Others would frankly be more comfortable in another study, for there is one provided by God to fit each of us.

   What would happen to your emotions if you were to recall a Soul Travel experience before proper preparations were made to build spiritual stamina?

   It is hard to say.

   For instance, a woman today wanted to see a past life where she had been an initiate of the Living ECK Master of the times. She carried a haunting fear that she had done something terrible to him in that lifetime and that the consequences had come with her into the present time. After months without an answer, the past records opened to show her as an initiate of the Tibetan ECK Master Rebazar Tarzs. 

   She had gained a high degree of unfoldment then, but one willfull act against him — without cause — had thrown her off the path of Light and Sound. She saw the exact violation, which i won't dwell on here. The point of the example is that the truth almost drove her to despair.

   Several weeks ago, an impatient member of ECKANKAR begged to have his karma speeded up. He wanted to advance rapidly on the path to make up time lost in recent years by squandering pearls of opportunity. He has no idea what he is asking. The path of ECK is only for the Soul that is sincere about returning to God. My only function is to give It assistance in Its own efforts towards that supreme goal.

   I won't hold you to the way of ECK if you feel it is not for you. You are not ready for Soul Travel now, It would not be good for you. In ECKANKAR: Illuminated Way Letters Paul Twitchell stated: "There are those who cannot see anything in ECK beyond that which is known as Soul Travel alone. They limit themselves to the possibility of falling into the psychic trap of Kal Niranjan, the king of the negative power." Look to your dreams for one month, keep a dream notebook, and see what results you get.

 

 

 

   Do not be too concerned if your memory of the inner experiences goes more into the background for awhile. The ECK Masters work with the individual through the different planes in order to maintain balance in the physical, everyday life.

   Look to the Mahanta for spiritual insight. This may come through gentle nudgings on how to try something new with the spiritual exercises. Do those things in your contemplations that you like to do.

   It is often very effective to finish contemplation as usual, then, when going to bed for the night, simply say to the Mahanta in everyday language: " I give you permission to take me where i am ready to go. This is in your hands. " Go to sleep without another thought of it.

   Take your time, and don't hurry. It is better to go slowly and learn the lessons of Divine Spirit well.

 

 

 

   This is a reaction of the human consciousness to the infusion of Divine Spirit. It is similar to the reaction that occurs when a wire is stretched across the positive and negative poles of a battery. Spirit will have Its way, and after several months this discomfort will pass.

 

 

   It is a great privilege for Soul to incarnate into the Physical Plane. The lessons of Soul that are gained here cannot be done as well elsewhere.

   You have contact with the Sound and Light of ECK. This brings with it an assurance and confidence that allows one to live each moment with fullness of heart.

   Just about everyone benefits from the expansion of consciousness, also known as Soul Travel. This may come as an increased awareness and insight into everyday situations, or in spiritual understanding. Not always will one experience sensational out-of-body travels.

   This is better, because when one reaches the Soul Plane, there is no more Soul Travel.

 

   Soul Travel brings Soul through the lower worlds — the Astral, Causal, Mental, and Etheric Planes — until one reaches the Soul Plane. There Soul Travel stops because it is limited to the regions of matter, energy, space, and time. Here, one begins to work with seeing, knowing, and being. It is a whole new ball game.

   The veil lifts gradually from our spiritual eyesight as we become ready to look farther into the spiritual realities. The pace is measured so that the individual can maintain his balance while still living in the physical body.

 

 

 

   There are walk-ins for several different reasons, but you can read more about this in books at the library or newsstands.

   When someone puts too much attention on a negative thing such as walk-ins, he himself could become party to such an intrusion either as victim or perpetrator. This is why i put no emphasis on it in the outer works of ECK.

   Can Soul operate more than one physical body at a time on this planet?

   Yes, It can. But it is a skill usually reserved for those who have put a great deal of energy into spiritual unfoldment, like the ECK Masters.

   Some of the old saints could run two or more bodies at once. A case in point is Padre Pio, who gave his whole life in service to God. How many are willing and able to do that?

 

 

 

   First, not everyone fights in such inner battles. Among the more adventurous dream travelers are those born in January. They may often fight such battles. But other people, even some born in January, choose inner experiences that are better suited to their peaceful natures. You are one of these.

   No Soul is forever separated from the Mahanta through some accidental mix-up of signals on the inner planes. The "Far Country" may not be the best description of the nearness of your own inner worlds. You cannot become lost in them, because the Far Country is your own personal universe.

   The Mahanta is simply there to acquaint you with your own worlds of being.

 

 

 

   First of all, I'm glad to see you using the word continuing. It means that you at least have a little experience with Soul Travel.

   You are right, it is only fear that stops us from progress with Soul Travel. What happens when you love someone or something with your whole heart? Right, fear is pushed out of your mind!

   Therefore, can you go into contemplation by putting a thought into your heart about something you did once that made you happier than you'd ever been before? Then take with you the thought: I love God with all that is within me.

   I hope that this will help you get over your fear. It is quite a natural thing, but you will see it growing less powerful as you keep on with the spiritual exercises.

 

 

 

   When it happens, you'll know. You won't need to ask anyone to verify a Soul Travel experience, because it is literally out of this world.

   A word of caution, however. Should you have one, be most careful with whom you share it. You are the genuine authority on that experience. Unless the person you confide in has Soul Traveled, he or she may dismiss your experience as only a vivid dream.

   Don't let anyone make you doubt your spiritual experiences.

 

 

 

   The ECK works in Its own way with each of us. It will bring whatever is right for our spiritual progress.

   Some initiates never have Soul Traveled nor seen a particular manifestation of Divine Spirit, such as the Blue Light. We are all different.

   It is of singular importance for us to contact the Mahanta, the Inner Master. Depending upon our station in life, we may become aware of either Light, Sound, or the appearance of the Inner Master. These are inward expressions.

   Other valid signs of the ECK reported by initiates include a knowingness of divine intervention during the waking life. Otherwise it can be an impression of help from a mysterious source that one immediately accepts as the Holy Spirit.

   It is not good if someone has too many striking inner experiences, because all they may do is put him out of step with his friends and family. The secret of ECK is to live in step with all of life if that is possible.

   The moment of passing from this life, or what is called translation, can be a wonderful experience, the highlight of Soul's chapter on earth. There is nothing special that one on the path of ECK has to do to prepare outwardly for the event. Make the usual arrangements for the disposal of the physical remains. Leave it in the hands of Divine Spirit to decide when the body is no longer suitable as a house for Soul.

   I will be with you at the moment chosen for this occasion. This is usually a pleasant and invigorating time in one's life. As one enters into it, there come the memories of having done it before. All fear and doubt vanish. The radiant form of the Mahanta appears and takes the individual to the worlds of light above.

 

 

 

   Those inner experiences you describe are usually Soul Travel. It takes a very strong desire to do it, unless the Mahanta gives you a special hand. People must want to Soul Travel very much, otherwise they won't develop themselves spiritually for the journey. The worlds of God can overwhelm people who are not prepared for them.

   So how can you get these dramatic inner experiences? Start by doing your spiritual exercises every night before you go to bed. Then, develop methods to remember your dreams better by using a tape recorder or taking notes.

   Invent new ways of doing the spiritual exercises given in this book and other ECK works. Make them more dramatic and appealing, to fit you personally.

 

 

   It's good to be a Hound of Heaven, but not at all costs. 

   We cannot force ourselves into a Soul Travel experience if that's not the best thing for us. Twenty years of trying is hardly a split second in eternity for Soul, but to us it represents much of our spiritual life.

   Try backing off Soul Travel and master the dream state first. The dream state is just another aspect of Soul awareness, so it's the place to set a good foundation for Soul Travel.

   Remember to pursue Mastership gently and not push. Instead of pushing to do Soul Travel, back up and learn all you can about the dream state. Both it and Soul Travel are doors to the same spiritual worlds. So experiment with your dreams.

   If done right, you'll soon find yourself awake in the other planes without the need for Soul Travel of the popularly imagined kind: A big rocket that blasts you to the stars. Dreams are a gentler, equally effective doorway to spiritual exploration.

 

 

 

   I can appreciate your hesitation in regard to the teachings of ECKANKAR. I had the same uncertainties when i wrote to Paul Twitchell years ago as i looked for a spiritual path. 

   Soul Travel is one of the foundations of ECKANKAR. It ranges from the unmistakable state of becoming aware of yourself in the Soul body, while traveling on one of the neighboring planes, to more subtle ones, such as having an insight into a concern that previously seemed beyond your abilities to solve.

   The dynamic kind of Soul Travel is unforgettable for anyone who is able to have it. It occurs through the practice of the spiritual exercises of ECK.

 

 

   Once anyone has met an ECK Master, like the Tibetan Rebazar Tarzs, physically or on the inner planes, there is no further question that he or she is a real being.

   But not everyone has earned the privilege.

   It is interesting to note that when one first steps onto the path of ECK, he may have a number of experiences that give proof of Soul's existence beyond death. He is also shown the reality of the ECK Masters of the Order of the Vairagi.

   Then, over the years, he unfolds. Sometimes he does so without recognition of his expanded state of consciousness. His inner and outer experiences reach a new level, but his awareness of this is nonexistent until a radical change occurs in his everyday life. This jars him in the awakened state, and what he discovers is often unsettling. His experiences have toned down and interwoven themselves into his everyday life.

 

 

 

   The ECK Masters will not embarrass anyone who really wants to reach God-Realization. They well remember their own trials as they struggled to reach the mountain of God.

   They are usually so down-to-earth and matter-of-fact that people immediately feel comfortable with them, as they would with an old friend.

 

 

   The Mahanta, the Living ECK Master is the spiritual leader of ECKANKAR. He is the spiritual guide for those on the path of ECK.

   Sometimes people don't understand the role of a spiritual guide — whether it's Christ, or the Mahanta, or Buddha, or the leader of a church somewhere who has a very definite, direct connection with Holy Spirit. So let me explain.

   Over all creation is the creator, God, whom we know as SUGMAD in the ancient teachings. The name doesn't make any difference. The creator is one and the same. The Voice of God is the active force that goes out and was responsible for the actual creation of all the universes. This Voice of God is what is known as the Holy Spirit. Or sometimes the Spirit of God, the ECK, the creative force, or whatever. But it's a neutral force. It simply obeys or does the will of the creator.

   Now a true spiritual master is in tune with the Voice of God. A human manifestation that people can see and understand. In that role, his will is that of Divine Spirit. And that's all.

   In ECKANKAR this divine force works both in the Outer Master and also through the Inner Master. That means those on the path of ECK have the additional benefit of a Master who can come to them in the dream state and teach them there. Or sometimes by direct Soul Travel. Sometimes through contemplation. The Inner Master is there, working when the individual sleeps, or prays, or meditates, or contemplates. And the Outer Master is out here to provide the books, the discourses, and to give talks and things of this nature. But the Outer and Inner Master are not two separate things — they're just two different aspects of one being who serves the Holy Spirit.

   In his physical body, the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master is like everyone else and can only be in one place at one time. In the Soul body, however, he is like the air that you breathe. He is everywhere. As the ECK, he can easily be with you and thousands of others in the very same moment.

   To put it another way, you can think of the Inner Master, the Mahanta, as a body and yourself, as one tiny cell within his body. Millions of other cells are in it too. The Mahanta is always with the cells within his body, whether they are in his toe, or in his head.

   The sole purpose of the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master is simply to help Soul find Its way home to God.

 

 

   It is Soul recognizing the Mahanta. This makes Soul happy. Out here, it explains why you cry.

 

 

   People expect a lot of flashy speeches, but the Living ECK Master purposely keeps things on an even keel. It is all too easy to sway people's emotions with the right words so they make a decision to follow ECK against their will.

   It's a spiritual crime to do such a thing.

   A part of the seeker's test is seeing beyond the outer personality of the Living ECK Master. ECKANKAR is for the simple and pure of heart, for truth does not make a whole lot of sense to the intellectuals of society.

 

 

 

   Someone once had an interview with a number of ECK Masters. She wanted to know why they served God. All of them began their reply with: "Because I like to…"

   In addition, she learned that each did what he could do best. This was the secret of their Mastership and service to God.

   The ECK Masters are agents of God whose only concern is to bring spiritual upliftment to each individual who is ready for it. At times this mission has been very difficult.

   About three thousand years before the Christian era, the ECK teachings were taught openly in Egypt (Editor's note: Hermetics people!) by Gopal Das. Severe persecution by the followers of the main religion, as well as by proponents of astrology, forced the Nine Unknown ECK Masters to submerge the teachings.

   For almost five thousand years since then, the ECK Masters have worked quietly in the background, bringing spiritual upliftment in whatever way possible, even though not as direct as ECKANKAR.

 

 

 

   My training began several lives ago. In this life, I was put into the stern training of strict schooling as a youth, to prepare me for my mission in this cycle of time.

   A number of people are being tested all the time to become members of the Vairagi Order of ECK Masters, which they must be before they are next in line for Mahantaship. But first, they have to go through all the ECKANKAR initiations leading up to that level. One who to become the Mahanta is told of his chosen role when he is an adult, but then years of silence may follow as he goes through even stricter training.

   All this is necessary for him to overcome the heavy resistance that he will meet from the negative force later in his duties as the spiritual leader. God appoints the Mahanta, and his predecessor announces him to the world.

   There are many ECK Masters of every race. Men and woman of all races belong to the Order of Vairagi. God makes no distinctions between age, race, sex, or creed. Neither does the Mahanta, the Living ECK Master. He serves all people with complete love.

 

 

 

   Actually, the Mahanta saw my deep desire for truth. He led me step-by-step because of my willingness to follow him. This eventually led to an experience told in my autobiography Child in the Wilderness.

   It was on a bridge, with a stranger, that the limitations of my lower self were torn away. I felt alone, exposed, and afraid. And this was during the experience of God-Realization! Also in my book i treat some of the misconceptions that people carry about God Consciousness.

  My goal now is simply to serve God. There is nothing else to do. Service to God is life; anything less is nothing.

 

 

   By the time one receives the higher initiations in ECK, most of the communication between the Living ECK Master and initiate is done through the inner channels.

   One of the stages that we come to is learning to work in harmony with all life. This sounds too pat, too flat. But when we can see the Mahanta in all we meet — can see the Light of ECK in the eyes of people passing us in the street — then we can only give love in return to all life.

   To qualify for Mastership, Soul must know discrimination in Its love. Warm love for our dear ones, charity (detached love) for the rest of creation.

   No one has the capacity to love all life without injury to himself. That is the purpose of discrimination. The ECK Masters practice detachment, but this does not mean lack of compassion. Nor does this mean interfering in someone else's affairs.

   Perhaps the hardest part of my duties is picking up a letter from my desk where someone asks relief from a crushing weight of karma and i know that it must be worked through. There is no shortcut available to him.

   Of all those who work in the spiritual field, some are able to move quietly and cooperatively among people, while others generate a storm of controversy and disruption wherever they go. Why is that? All Souls being equal as the spark of God? There is always more to learn about acting as a vehicle for Divine Spirit — what it means and how it's done.

   The ECK Masters work strictly through the spiritual hierarchy. That is step number one. They are not in competition with each other. They know their common mission is to serve the great SUGMAD, as God is called in the ancient teachings. Secondly, they do so in harmony, nurturing the plus factor, the building element in all they do

 

 

 

   Life requires that Soul have every experience. No thought or deed is ever lost — but all is recorded in the Book of Life. Thus Soul learns to have compassion and charity, and to give service to other beings.

   The spiritual giants have suffered the edge of the sword that wounded the heart, leaving them to cry in despair to God to give them a reason for their anguish.

   The greater our consciousness, the more deeply we feel the slights of neglect, lack of consideration, and abuse by people who use our good nature against us. But there is a turning point where the Wheel of Fire, which is slavery to karmic destiny, loses its power over us. Henceforth we emerge from the fog of unknowing and travel freely in the sparkling lands of ECK.

   The Masters in ECK are in a state of vairag, or detachment. It is a state of consciousness that is won the hard way, but when the trials are done and Soul is aware of Its relationship with God, then immense love and compassion are the reward.

   You cry with the grieving in their sorrow, laugh with the joyous in heart, sit in silence to listen to the heart of someone who has touched the hem of the Lord. You are an inspiration to the weak, a solace for the broken in spirit. Thus you are a Saint, a shining light to all who enter your circle of influence.