Who is Maitreya? (The False Prophet, That's Who!)

 
 
  He has been expected for generations by all of the major religions. Christians know him as the Christ, and expect his imminent return. Jews await him as the Messiah; Hindus look for the coming of Krishna; Buddhists expect him as Maitreya Buddha; and Muslims anticipate the Imam Mahdi or Messiah.
 
  Although the names are different, many believe that they all refer to the same individual: the World Teacher, whose personal name is Maitreya (pronounced my-tray-ah).
Preferring to be known simply as the Teacher, Maitreya has not come as a religious leader, or to found a new religion, but as a teacher and guide for people of every religion and those of no religion.
At this time of great political, economic and social crisis Maitreya will inspire humanity to see itself as one family, and create a civilization based on sharing, economic and social justice, and global cooperation.
He will launch a call to action to save the millions of people who starve to death every year in a world of plenty. Among Maitreya's recommendations will be a shift in social priorities so that adequate food, housing, clothing, education, and medical care become universal rights.
Under Maitreya's inspiration, humanity itself will make the required changes and create a saner and more just world for all.
 
Q. What is the relationship of Benjamin Creme to Maitreya?
A. All the Masters of Wisdom are direct disciples of Maitreya. Benjamin Creme is a disciple of one of these disciples.
Q. What does Maitreya think is the most urgent problem in the world at present?
A. The most important action with which Maitreya is concerned is the saving of millions of people who currently die from starvation in a world of plenty. He says that nothing so moves Him to grief as this shame: “The crime of separation must be driven from this world. I affirm that as My Purpose.” So the first aim of Maitreya is to show humanity that we are one and the same: wherever we live, whatever our colour, background or religious belief, the needs of all are the same.
Equally important and just as urgent is the saving of our planet from the destruction on which it is set from our misuse of the resources of the planet. Governments today are more and more becoming aware, after many years of information from scientists, that global warming is a reality. Global warming is now understood to a degree, but man’s responsibility for it has not yet dawned on all the national authorities. This is one of the most important realizations that we have to make – that man is responsible for at least 80 per cent of the warming up of the planet, and if this continues it will drastically affect our daily lives. Maitreya and the Masters alone have the exact knowledge of how to proceed but we already know the first steps to take (the need to restrict carbon emissions and so on) but the urgency of action is probably not fully realized by governments. Maitreya will emphasise how really urgent this action is. The destruction of trees on the planet – for example, an area the size of Belgium of primal forest is destroyed every year in Central and South America – has a profound effect on essential oxygen in the world.
The necessity for sharing the resources of the planet is the number one action which Maitreya will emphasise. This will create the trust which will open the way to the solution of all further problems, national and international.
 
Q. I have read your information about Maitreya but I don’t know how to ‘give it a place’ in my everyday life. I believe it but it also seems unreal. Can you help?
A. Maitreya’s coming is about world change: change in our understanding of the needs of the planet, the ecological balance; the change in our economic systems so that all people are fed and cared for properly; change in relationships between people everywhere. The true understanding that humanity is one will show the absolute necessity for this profound transformation. It is the making of a new world.
You are not alone on the planet and therefore you will see that these changes relate to you and your life, and this will give a deepening sense of the reality and meaning of Maitreya’s coming.
Maitreya does not come alone but is head of a substantial group of perfected men, the Masters of Wisdom. As humanity takes seriously the advice and guidance of Maitreya and the Masters, there will begin this process of world change, which eventually will cover every aspect of our lives. This will of course affect you as it affects everyone else. Think about the coming of Maitreya in this way and I think you will get a deeper understanding of what His coming means to us.
Q. How hands-on will Maitreya work in relation to humanity when He is openly accepted? How much will He direct things or will He only respond with advice?
A. Maitreya is here to advise, guide and teach. He is not here to direct our actions and will not do so. He is a teacher. The Masters, His immediate disciples, will be available with Their higher knowledge and experience for help and advice, as also will Maitreya. But we have to want what we have to do. Maitreya will outline the broad general direction of our thinking. That is: a sense of the oneness of humanity; the absolute necessity for the sharing of the world’s resources; and the ending of war and terrorism as a way of solving international problems. When we show that we understand this, as much help and advice as we can use will be provided. But we have to want the changes for ourselves; willingly, gladly make these changes. The Masters do not come to tell us what to do. Maitreya has said: “I am the Architect, only, of the Plan. You, My friends and brothers, are the willing builders of the Shining Temple of Truth.” The temple of truth being the new civilization.
Q. If we think that we have recognised Maitreya when He is talking to media, but He is still undeclared as Maitreya, how should we respond to this? How should we act in relation to the media?
A. We should do nothing in relation to the media other than make known that Maitreya and His Group are in the world. It is not our task to point Him out to the media. They, like all humanity, have to make the recognition for themselves. If people believe, rightly or wrongly, that Maitreya is the Christ, the Imam Mahdi, Maitreya Buddha, the Messiah or Kalki Avatar, and accept His advice because of that, it does not mean that they are in themselves ready to make the changes which must ensue to preserve the world and humanity with it. We have to recognize Maitreya, not because we think He is Maitreya, or the Christ or the Messiah, or whoever, but because we agree with what He is saying, that we want for the world what He says is necessary for the world: justice and sharing and freedom for all people, rather than because we think He is the World Teacher or some great spiritual being.
Q. Will Maitreya look physically like Himself – that is, as He really is – when His first interview takes place, or will He be in a different ‘guise’ – as He usually is when He appears to people?
A. When He appears to people He is usually using a ‘familiar’, a created person through which some part of His consciousness manifests. But when He appears openly to the world, although not using the name Maitreya, He will appear as in fact He is, in the self-created body in which He manifests now in the world.
Q. If you are correct in thinking that the Christ and the Masters are in and coming into the world, is this not something altogether too big, too great an experience for ordinary people to deal with?
A. You will find that Maitreya and the Masters, although from our point of view perfected, spiritual beings, are straightforward, simple, and totally respectful in their approach to humanity. They do not, and will not ever, behave like remote Gods of popular imagination. They are men, like us, but men without fault. They have a ready sense of humour, simplicity of approach, and They know better than we do ourselves the inner spiritual nature of all people. Maitreya is the Lord of Love, the Spiritual Hierarchy is the Centre in the planet in which the Love of God is expressed and that exemplifies Their approach to us. It is unconditional.
 
Q. You have said that one of Maitreya’s priorities would be to find solutions to the conflict in the Middle East, and that it will not be solved until He has actually come forward. Is that because the different people involved in the Middle East (Muslims, Jews, Christians), will respond to Him as their World Teacher, and will recognize that He has come for all of them, and that their separatism will start to change from that response?
A. The fundamentalists of all religions will probably be the last people to recognize and respond to Maitreya, but eventually they will.
The Palestinian/Israeli problem which is central to the problems of the Middle East, I believe will only be solved through the action of Maitreya. But even Maitreya cannot impose a solution, He can only advise. But His acceptance by countless millions in the world as a spiritual teacher and guide will make it easier for the most fanatical Israeli Jew or Palestinian Muslim to accept the necessity of living together side by side. This can only take place when justice is given to the Palestinians. When justice is done and seen to be done, fully and completely, then the solution will become acceptable by the Muslims, and, even if grudgingly, by the Israelis. They have eventually to learn to live side by side and they can only do so in a state of justice. Otherwise there would inevitably be perpetual war between the two.
Unless the Middle East problems are solved there will never be peace in the world and we know, if there is no peace, then the future for humanity would be very bleak indeed. Muslims await the Imam Mahdi, and the Jews await the Messiah, and many will be ready to recognize Maitreya as such. This will, I am sure, soften their stance in relation to each other.
But the important thing is that justice must be given to the Palestinians. The West Bank was gifted by the late King Hussein of Jordan as a homeland for the Palestinians and that means the whole of the West Bank, not the fraction which has been offered to the Palestinians so far. It requires the return of the 4.7 million refugees, mainly in Lebanon, to their homeland, and the status of Jerusalem – which is of major importance to the Muslims, the Jews and the Christians – to be changed into an open, central city for all three groups. I believe it will take Maitreya to bring this reconciliation about, but so it will be.
Q. I used to believe your information and hoped to see Maitreya all these years, but the story is getting harder and harder to believe. Why can’t He just come into full public view now? Surely things in the world can’t get much worse? Many people can’t stand to hear or see the news any longer – there is too much suffering and too much wrong.
A. I can understand this feeling but it is just a feeling and does not take into account the Law that Maitreya cannot ignore: that is the Law of human Freewill. At any time in the last 30 years, if we had ourselves taken some steps to right the wrongs of today, to implement the principle of sharing, to restore justice and peace to the world, then we would have seen Maitreya openly long ago. Blame ourselves and not Maitreya (or me!)
Q. Once Maitreya is in the world and we start to take action, will our actions be potentized or made more effective by Him?
A. Maitreya is in the world, but once He emerges openly, every action that we take in the right direction – that is towards oneness, justice, freedom for all people – will invoke His help and energy. He will potentize our actions and the changes will proceed with enormous speed and order.
Q. After the Day of Declaration will everybody be aware of the fact of Maitreya’s presence and that of His group, the Masters of Wisdom?
A. I cannot speak for everybody, but the vast majority of humanity will have heard His words telepathically on the Day of Declaration, and it seems obvious that the time and resources of media from then on will be devoted to making known the advice and priorities of Maitreya. One must remember that there will be no recording of the telepathic message that Maitreya will give and no doubt there will be misremembering and misquoting of His meaning. But Maitreya will be available for clarifying in the normal way, in further interviews, the exact meaning of His words.
 
Q. When we see Maitreya on television, your Master has said we will experience His ray or energy. Will that be like a preview of the Day of Declaration with a blessing taking place?
A. It will be a spiritual experience, but always at the level of the person. People can only take what they can take, they can only be who they are. Some people will immediately sense and recognize Maitreya as the spiritual giant that He is. Others will respond more to what He says, it will satisfy their sense of justice and purpose. But that spiritual outflow will always take place. I doubt that it would be as strong as on the Day of Declaration.
Q. In 1990 Maitreya held a conference in London and invited politicians, members of royalty, journalists, diplomats, etc. Have there been any similar events since that occasion?
A. No, but Maitreya has continued to make individual contact with many leaders in every branch of human activity.
Q. If a new Messiah comes does this mean that the end of the world is near?
A. Maitreya is here, as the World Teacher. Is this the end? On the contrary – this is the beginning of a new time for humanity. But a humanity chastened and relieved of its illusions and destructiveness. For two thousand years, the Christian groups have taught this account of the return of the Christ, coming on a cloud in the last days of the world, the ‘end days’. This, I submit, is a completely wrong interpretation of Christian scriptures which has distorted Christians’ expectations of the Christ’s return. The so-called ‘end times’ are to do not with the end of the world but with the end of the Age of Pisces, inaugurated by the Christ through Jesus 2,000 years ago. He promised to return, at “such a time as you think not” – to inaugurate the new age, that of Aquarius. This time He has come Himself to expand the teaching given through Jesus and to prepare the world for the Aquarian experience.
What we have to look forward to is not the end of the world, which will not take place for millions of years ahead, but for the creation of a new civilisation based on higher and truer spiritual values than were possible for humanity at the time of Jesus. Jesus Himself, now a Master, works with the Christ on a daily basis and will reform the Christian churches and teaching, as His part in the Great Plan.
Q. One of the most surprising facts I’ve learned from reading Share International is that Maitreya and the Masters seem to have a wonderful sense of humour. This makes Them more real and closer, somehow. I hope it is not disrespectful or offensive to say that some of the miracles are very amusing, like gems popping out from under someone’s big toe.
A. I quite agree. When people come to know the Masters more closely they will recognize that They are filled with the joy of life and have an extraordinary and quick sense of humour. The inventiveness of their imagination is one of the outstanding qualities of their activity.

Q. Why will Maitreya appear in the United States instead of in other countries?
A. He will appear in other countries. He will appear first in America in such a way that He can speak to millions of people. Then in Japan. Which country do you think has the largest and most influential media network in the world? If He appears on a major network in America He can be heard immediately by millions of people not only in the US but, through the internet, all over the world.
Eventually, after the Day of Declaration when He is known and accepted by humanity, He will make a pilgrimage around the world.

Q. Does Maitreya think we will change the world if we are selfish and competitive?
A. Yes. Not everybody is selfish and competitive. Probably the majority of people are partly selfish and partly altruistic; people are mixed, not one hundred per cent this or that. There are degrees of selfishness and altruism. There is a great body of people who are ready for an unselfish action, ready to see justice in the world and therefore sharing.
Way back in 1924 Maitreya said, in the Agni Yoga books: “There was a time when 10 true men could save the world. Then came a time when 10,000 was not enough. I shall call on one billion.”
About five or six years ago, I asked my Master whether Maitreya had His one billion yet. Yes, I was told, Maitreya had 1.5 billion people He could call on. So it was 1.5 billion people out of 6.5 billion in the world – people whom He knew to be of goodwill; ready to change, altruistic and ready to see new structures and new ways of living. Now, there are 1.8 billion people He can call on – more than enough.
Besides, we have no alternative. If I offer you life or death – what are you going to take? Maitreya will say: “You have a choice. Choose life, if you are sensible, and create a brilliant, golden, civilization, better than anything the world has ever seen. Or face annihilation.” Which are you going to choose?
There has never been an Avatar, a Teacher, of such potency as Maitreya. Have no fear. The world will change quickly from being greedy and selfish to showing the true quality of humanity.
From Maitreya’s point of view humanity is wonderful. Maitreya loves humanity. Not only because He is the Lord of Love – that is why He is able to love humanity – despite everything, despite all our greed and selfishness. But He also sees the light of divinity in humanity. He is the head of the kingdom of souls and He sees the soul of humanity and that soul is in every single human being. No matter how selfish or hateful we might seem, He sees that light of divinity in us, and on that you can rely.

Q. Why do we have to wait to see Maitreya? Not everyone can wait for this to happen!
A. You will have to wait because there is a moment which is the best possible moment for Maitreya to appear and that moment He will choose. You have to trust Him. That is the thing. People don’t have the trust. You have no one else to trust.

Q. After Maitreya officially announces Himself to the world on Declaration Day, how long will it be before He introduces the Master Jesus to the world – a matter of weeks or months or a year or two?
A. About three months.
 
Q. Could you please help us to know how to approach Lord Maitreya to influence us to do the right thing in our own sphere?
                                                   
A. We have a photograph of the ‘hand’ of Maitreya. Get a copy of that ‘hand’ and invoke His help. Look at the hand and ask Him through the hand. Ask Maitreya whatever it is you need help for. That is all you need to do if you want help.
Q. How should we address Maitreya, for instance, if we want to ‘talk’ to Him or ask for His help?
A. Maitreya has given a simple, direct means of contacting Him. Use the ‘hand’ of Maitreya which is given for this purpose. Simply look at it and that immediately draws His attention to the person asking for His help.
 

The approach of Maitreya

  The last few years a number of events occurred in which Maitreya left a personal 'calling card.' In several issues of Share International magazine photographs of these phenomena were published, including the following explanatory comments.
 

The hand of Maitreya

  In the October 2001 issue of Share International magazine, a full-page photograph of the hand of Maitreya was published. In response to inquiries from readers,
 

Benjamin Creme explains the phenomenon:

 
 This is the hand of Maitreya, portrayed on a mirror in a bathroom in Barcelona. The lady-owner went into the guest bathroom and saw a handprint on the mirror and cleaned it off. She thought no more about it. A few days later when she went into her own bathroom she saw the same handprint on the mirror. Luckily, instead of wiping it off, she got in touch with her son, a co-worker in the Share International group in Barcelona. He took a picture of it and sent it to me, and my Master confirmed it as the hand of Maitreya.
 

                                   Like the Turin Shroud

  It is a fantastic hand. It is ‘real’, three-dimensional in appearance, similar to the print on the Turin Shroud of the body of Jesus after the Crucifixion. The image also has extraordinary healing properties, but not in the way you might think. In the case of the healing waters Maitreya has magnetized all over the world, the water itself is imbued with energy from the constellation Aquarius. However, in the case of the image of Maitreya’s hand, the energy does not reside in the photo, but is invoked from Maitreya when you place your hand over the image or simply look at it. You are, in effect, calling forth his healing or blessing or help – whatever is possible within the karmic law. The same effect can be produced even with a photocopy of the image.

Until we see his face

  This is extraordinary. It makes Maitreya's energy, his help, in one way or another, available to whoever asks. If what you are asking is: "Dear Maitreya, would you please suddenly appear before me," I don't think that that is going to be answered. Every time he appears it takes energy. He has much to do, he has a world to save, and he won't want to waste that energy. I say this seriously, because I know people who give out the story that if you want Maitreya to do something you just have to ask and he does it. It is not true. Maitreya appears to thousands of people all over the world, but he does it in his own timing, and for his own reasons ― for reasons of helping people.
The appearance of the hand at this time has great significance. It means Maitreya is very near to coming out. Until we see his face it is the closest he can come to us.

From Maitreya's messages

• Message 90: My Hand shall guide you and protect you.
• Message 115: Take My hand, My friends, and let us walk blithely together into the radiant future.
• Message 123: Take My hand, My friends, and I shall take you to a New Country in which your true nature as Gods shall flourish.
• Message 130: Take My hand, My friends, and let Me lead you over the river.
• Message 132: Take My hand, My friends, and let us together walk that Path and know the meaning of Life, know the blessing of Love, know the purpose of God.
• Message 140: Take My hand and let Me lead you to God.

Maitreya's teachings

  In April 1988, Maitreya began to present forecasts of world events and fragments of his teachings through a close associate in London. This information was published in Share International magazine, and press releases of his forecasts were sent to the media.

Maitreya's purpose in releasing this material was to further prepare humanity for his emergence and to help us understand the spiritual laws governing our lives, primarily the Law of Cause and Effect. Following are excerpts from Maitreya's teachings on:

• Between 1977 and 1982, Maitreya telepathically communicated fragments of his teachings to Benjamin Creme at Creme's regular public meetings in London. A recurrent theme was the need to end the suffering of millions of people who go hungry or starve in our world, which actually has a surplus of food. This imbalance is one of the primary reasons why Maitreya returns at this time.

• "How," Maitreya asks, "can you be content with the modes within which you now live: when millions starve and die in squalor; when the rich parade their wealth before the poor; when each man is his neighbor's enemy; when no man trusts his brother? For how long must you live thus, my friends? For how long can you support this degradation?"

• Since that message was given in 1979, we have been shocked by the horror of recurring famine in Africa and the ongoing misery in other nations. Gradually we have come to recognize that world hunger is unnecessary as well as immoral since it is due not to a lack of food or food production capabilities, but to the social, political and economic injustices that produce poverty. It is the poor who go hungry, whether in a 'developed' or 'developing' nation, and both domestic and international institutions maintain and exacerbate that poverty. Thus the gap between rich and poor grows ever wider; it now represents the single greatest threat to world peace.

• Among the attitudes that keep these institutions in place is complacency. Maitreya calls complacency the root of all evil in the world. It leads both individuals and institutions to become estranged from the realities of life, and it prevents us from finding effective solutions to our problems. Complacency is ultimately self- destructive, and whole societies can be destroyed by it.

• Maitreya makes clear that we can, if we choose, change our ways and put an end to hunger and to the monumental array of man-made crises we now face: "The problems of mankind are real but solvable. The solution lies within your grasp. Take your brother's need as the measure for your action and solve the problems of the world. There is no other course."
  When we begin to follow this advice and institute the principle of sharing, peoples and nations will begin to trust one another; once there is trust, there will be justice; and once there is justice for all, we will have a genuine and lasting peace.

• A new energy pervades the planet now. This Energy of Equilibrium flushes out negative forces and then creates a state of alertness in individuals. Under the influence of this energy more and more people will revolt. People will not accept imposed solutions.

• Suppression or repression will collide against a growing awareness among the people. Where the people's voice is not heard, there will be revolutions. This is not prediction, but recognition of an inevitable effect. The same Law of Cause and Effect that applies to nature applies to human beings.

• The new politics will no longer be molded by the 'isms' of capitalism or socialism, but created from self-respect in individuals and nations. Liberty, freedom and salvation will be the objectives of everyone.

• The fact that 'all men are brothers' will be increasingly translated into structures and practical programs that reflect this reality. Nations can and will experience brotherhood, common goals and common aspirations.

• The 'engines of war' have been switched off. The cold war is over. But that energy cannot just disappear; it has to go somewhere. It has found a new womb: the commercialization created by market forces. This represents a serious new threat to the world. Market forces are the forces of wickedness, confusion and chaos, and its children are competition and comparison. They have created social and natural havoc. People have been condemned to death, literally, in the name of profit and loss.

• The new creed of the superpowers has become 'the economy,' which is the soul of commercialization. Commercialization is more destructive than any nuclear bomb. The quality of commercialization is greed, which means making money while others starve.

• Commercialization has affected all nations and will result in a final collapse of the world's stock markets. After this crash, the first duty of governments will be to feed people with the right food. Their second duty will be to ensure adequate housing. Next will come health and education.

• In the new systems, social consciousness will guide market forces, not the other way around.

• Society as a whole is attempting to emerge from its bondage, and the eruption of crime, corruption, drugs and violence are the inevitable prelude. Crime and violence, like any problems, require a proper analysis of their causes.

• The politicians alone are to blame for the desperation of those addicted to drugs. If people are so straitened in life that they cannot even eat properly, they will lead desperate lives. If people are deprived of a future, deprived of nourishment, they will end up on drugs to help them forget their desperation. And from drugs it is not far to crime.

• Strong policing will be needed to crack down on the organized gangs of drug producers, but it is not the answer to the individual drug user. Drug addicts are suffering from spiritual starvation, from extreme self-alienation. Life becomes purposeless and people want to bring their lives to an end, and so they commit slow suicide by way of drugs.

• If life has no meaning, then meaning is what must be restored. For this to occur, it is necessary for the person to experience a sense of his own worth. There is no substitute for dealing with the individual's internal world.

• At the moment, prison is the only alternative for violent and dangerous criminals. But the problem of crime cannot be cured by sentencing people to prison. Eventually, certain judicial reforms will take place, and minor or petty crimes will not lead to prison sentences.

• When world tension begins to decrease, when the principle of sharing begins to be implemented through a variety of social, economic and political reforms, people will feel less threatened and there will be less and less crime.

• The environment will become the number one issue throughout the world. This growth in concern is the result of increasing Self-awareness. There is a link between the inner and the outer environment: the moment you become aware of yourself this awareness then leads you to look into the outer environment.

• There are also connections between the negative forces generated by humanity and what happens in nature. These connections will be increasingly seen and understood as such. Many natural disasters are responses to human activities.

• The use of nuclear energy also generates repercussions under the Law of Cause and Effect. There is a difference between using energy within its natural evolutionary base, and manipulating energy. The latter leads invariably to trouble because natural equilibrium is disturbed. A windmill uses the power of the wind to generate energy. A 'controlled' underground nuclear explosion manipulates energy, disturbing the earth's balance. This can and does result in earthquakes.

• Human beings are linked to one another and, in principle, a thought can be picked up by anyone, anywhere, in a moment. Nuclear weapons are interlinked via both energy and thought formation. The energy behind all acts of nature and all mental acts is one.

• We will see a new equilibrium in the world; both people and nature will respond constructively. People will be able to live in closer contact with nature and there will be greater harmony. There will be no need for nuclear energy: the power of the sun will be used. Because of the greater harmony between nature and humanity, people will be happier, for to disturb the environment is to disturb our own nature.

• Maitreya says: "I have not come to found a new religion. I have come to teach the art of Self-realization, which is neither an ideology nor a religion, but benefits people of all religions and those who have none. I seek to express that which I am through you; for this I come."

• The Self alone matters. You are that Self, an immortal being. Suffering is caused by identification with anything and everything which is not the Self. Ask yourself, 'Who am I?' You will see that you are identified either with matter (the body), or with thought (the mind) or with power (spirit). But you are none of these. Mind, spirit and body are the temples of the Lord. The Self experiences in these temples the supreme Being and Becoming of the Lord.

• One of the easiest ways to know me, Maitreya says, is to be honest in your mind, be sincere in your spirit, and practice detachment. Any action performed with dishonesty of mind, an insincere spirit and attachment is destructive. For example, when you think one thing, say another, and do something which is different again, you are lost. Honesty of mind leads to honest speech and honest action. This harmony leads to peace and happiness. Without detachment there is no salvation.

• Be what you are. Do not surrender your self-respect, your dignity, to others. Do not allow anyone to cast his shadow over you. A Master gives experiences, but does not cast his shadow.

• Do not follow one another. If you practice honesty of mind, sincerity of spirit and detachment, you will know me, you will know the Lord.

• Maitreya says: Without disturbing anyone, I will choose my moment.

• Even when you see me, do not run after me. If you run after me, you will lose me. If you parade me, you do not know who I am. I cannot be monopolized -- I belong to everyone.

• I have not come to create followers. Each of you should continue to develop within your own religious tradition. Respect your own religions, your own ideologies -- in brief, your own thoughtform, and you will experience the Master.

• I do not want you to believe in me. I want you to experience me.

• If you take one step towards me, I will take two steps towards you. I will lend you my strength. I am always with you.

Maitreya's priorities

  To help humanity in its task of global transformation, Maitreya the World Teacher has formulated certain priorities. They cover the essential needs of every man, woman and child: an adequate supply of food; housing for all; health care and education as universal rights. Other top priorities include the restoration of the environment and the establishment of peace.

The key to achieving these goals is a more equitable sharing of the world’s food and resources. According to Maitreya: "Without sharing there can be no justice; without justice there can be no peace; without peace, there can be no future."

• Humanity at a crossroads
• Economic injustice and social upheaval: is sharing the answer? 
  (An interview with Benjamin Creme)

Humanity at a crossroads

Humanity is at a crossroads. One path into the future leads to increasing social and economic division, environmental destruction, war and planetary peril. The other path leads to increasing social harmony, economic and environmental balance, and a golden era of peace.
Fortunately, at this critical point in history, we have in our midst a group of extraordinary spiritual teachers to help guide us along the path to peace. But we must willingly accept this guidance and take action to resolve our most dangerous global problems.
Among the most dangerous is the growing disparity between the world's 'haves' and 'have-nots.' As an example:
* The world's 225 richest people have a combined wealth of over $1 trillion, equal to the annual income of the poorest 47 per cent of the world's people.
* Among the 4,4 billion people who live in developing countries:
* nearly three in five live without basic sanitation
* nearly one in three are without safe drinking water
* one-quarter lack adequate housing
* one in five live beyond the reach of modern health services
* one in five children are undernourished, and an equal percentage do not get past grade five in school
* Even in the US, the world's wealthiest country, some 12 million families are at risk of hunger, and at least 700,000 people are homeless on any given night.
This growing divide between the wealthy and the poor threatens us all, as the resulting crime, social unrest, civil war, illegal immigration, and environmental degradation do not respect national or local boundaries.

Global consumption

The greed of a few has placed the future of the planet in jeopardy. Global consumption of goods and services, disproportionately by the world's wealthiest 20 per cent, topped $US 24 trillion in 1998, twice the figure for 1975. The UN Human Development Report concludes that the "runaway growth in consumption is placing unprecedented pressure on the environment." This report and others cite the destruction of the world's forests; depletion of the world's fisheries and fresh water supplies; pollution of air and water; depletion of the world's top soil; desertification; species extinction; a dramatic increase in fossil fuel burning and resulting global warming trends. The list of growing environmental problems is nearly endless.
Some of the earth's life support systems are already nearing the "point of no return," says Worldwatch's Brian Halwell. "We cannot sustain this level of consumption forever."

Sharing is the answer

What could cause humanity, particularly those in the developed world, to change to a less destructive, more sustainable lifestyle before it is too late?
The writing is already on the wall, according to former US Federal Reserve Bank Chairman Alan Greenspan. "It is not credible that the United States can remain an oasis of prosperity unaffected by a world that is experiencing greatly increased stress," Greenspan says. But the "stress" of collapsing economies in Asia and Russia ― and increasing turmoil in Latin America and Eastern Europe ― not only affects the oasis of the United States, but the rest of the world as well. The world economy is "in a mess," concedes a senior official at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Efforts by the Federal Reserve and the IMF to prop up the global economy are dwarfed by the sheer size of the 'global casino' that has contributed to the problems in the first place. Some $1,5 trillion in currency changes hands electronically every day in search of speculative profits unrelated to any exchange of real goods and services. This flow of capital, when shifted away from countries like Thailand and Indonesia, has caused severe economic hardships, which have rippled across the globe. With Japan, the world's second largest economy, already in deep recession, the outlook is not bright.
When the US's "oasis of prosperity" begins to dry up, as it must in the current global financial crisis, stock markets in the West will plunge. This collapse will provide an opportunity for governments to re-evaluate their economic priorities, says futurist Benjamin Creme. The nations of the world will meet together to discuss how to cope with the future in an orderly fashion.

Solutions at hand

Fortunately, the answers to these seemingly intractable problems are readily available.
For many years, Creme has spoken and written about the presence in the world today of a group of great spiritual teachers, known in the East as the Masters of Wisdom. At their head is Maitreya, who, Creme says, is here to inspire humanity to see itself as one interdependent family.
Maitreya will help us see that the world's food, raw materials, energy and technological resources belong to everyone and must be shared equitably. These resources, Maitreya says, are given by divine right for the sustenance of all humanity, not for the use and misuse by a relative few. He will recommend a re-ordering of economic priorities so that adequate food, housing, education and medical care become universal rights.

The next steps

The immediate priority will be the saving of millions of people now starving to death in the developing world. Maitreya will propose a crash program of aid on a world scale to alleviate this suffering.
As humanity begins to accept the Principle of Sharing, and people call on governments to implement this principle, each country will make an inventory of its assets and needs. These statistics will provide a United Nations agency, set up for this purpose, with the information required for a rational redistribution of the world's resources. That which each country has in excess of its needs will be put aside, in trust for the world.
The plans for such a redistribution program ― drawn up by economists, financiers and industrialists of great achievement ― are already in existence, awaiting only the demand of humanity for their implementation. A sophisticated form of barter, on a global scale, will eventually replace the present economic system.
There will be opposition to such plans from some of the more privileged members of society who will see a loss of their traditional status and power. But the need for change will become so obvious that they will find themselves increasingly powerless to halt the momentum.
Another top priority will be saving, protecting, and healing the environment. This will require the creation of economic systems based on the principles of sustainability and sufficiency, rather than the present system of overproduction and waste, Creme says. The goal is to supply the needs of all while maintaining the planet's health.
With the transformation of economic structures, people throughout the world will increasingly be able to live decent, dignified lives. The incidence of large families will diminish, particularly in the developing world, where it is mainly an insurance for old age. The earth's population will gradually decline to a more natural level.

Humanity's choice

The bright future ahead for humanity is dependent on the decisions we make today. Maitreya and the Masters will advise and guide, but the future rests in our hands.
Maitreya will present humanity with two alternative scenarios of the future ― either to continue in the selfish, greedy ways of the past and destroy ourselves, or to accept the Principle of Sharing and create a brilliant new civilization where all may participate as full members of the human family.
Maitreya is in no doubt about the choice humanity will make. He says: "The success of my mission depends on you: you must make the choice ― whether you share and learn to live peacefully as true men, or perish utterly. My heart tells me your answer, your choice, and is glad."

Economic injustice and social upheaval:
is sharing the answer?

Monte Leach, US editor of Share International magazine, interviews Benjamin Creme 
[from the July 1993 issue]
Monte Leach: According to the World Bank, there are now 1,7 billion people throughout the world living in poverty. In the developed world, economic recession is pervasive. What are we doing wrong? In your view, what's the problem?
Benjamin Creme: The major problem is the fact that we have come to the end of our civilization. We are witnessing the breakup of the civilization of the last 2,000-odd years and the beginnings of the process of creating a new civilization. This is why Maitreya is in the world, to inspire and guide us, to educate us in the creation of the correct structures ― political, economic, and social ― which will allow us to go forward in our evolution on the right premises.
At the moment we see a super-division of the world, a separation into major groups ― the developed and the developing world. The developed world usurps and wastes three-quarters of the world's food and 83 per cent of the resources. The Third World, as it is called, has to make do with the rest. As a result, 38 million people are, at this moment, starving to death in a world with a huge surplus of food. We have a 10 per cent per capita surplus of food in the world, so no one need starve.
What is required is a reassessment of who and what we are in our relationship to each other. Maitreya says the first step we have to take to address these problems is to see ourselves as one, brothers and sisters of one humanity. We have to get that sense of globality, that we are one people, one group ― and therefore the food, raw materials, energy, scientific know-how and educational facilities of the world belong to everyone. These resources are given so that all people may evolve correctly according to the plan which underlies our evolutionary process. As a result, we must share these resources more equitably. When we share, Maitreya says, we will create justice in the world, and when we create justice, and only then, will we have peace. He has come to show us how to have peace. If we do not accept the process towards peace, there will be no world, because we can now destroy all life on this planet many times over. We have the nuclear arsenal to do this.

ML: The major threat, as you see it, to international security is not nuclear arms per se, it is the tension which underlies the economic situation.
BC: According to Maitreya, what he calls the "engines of war" have been switched off. The Cold War is over. No one any longer believes that the US and Russia are going to destroy each other in a nuclear holocaust. But the energy which sent the planes into the sky and the tanks and troops into the battlefield does not just disappear. It is a destructive force which he says has been going around the world looking for a new home. He says it has found a "new womb." That new womb is commercialization based on market forces, which, he says, are based on human greed. Maitreya calls market forces the forces of evil because they have inequality built into their very structure. They help a few to achieve a better standard of living, but at the expense of millions who suffer a lower one. Commercialization is gripping every nation in the world as the market forces concept begins to dominate even in the previously communist bloc. We are finding a situation where the rise in tension is so great it has within it the seeds of a third world war, and that war would destroy all life.
ML: Many people would argue that market forces are the saviour of mankind. Many nations are heading that way in the developing as well as the developed world. They say: "This is the way out. The communist system has failed. What other choice do we have?"
BC: The communist system did not fail. It was never tried. We never saw communism in the so-called communist bloc. What we saw was a kind of state capitalism. What we are seeing now is a breakup of the totalitarian political system ― which is not the same thing as communism ― and the gradual transformation of capitalism. Maitreya says the symbol for the new economic situation, which will be neither capitalism nor communism, can be witnessed in the coming together of communist East Germany and capitalist West Germany. The reunification of Germany gives us the possibility for the creation of what he calls a social democracy or a democratic socialism ― something which is neither classical capitalism nor communism. He says eventually this will be the norm in Europe and throughout the world.

ML: How does that relate to what you were talking about in terms of sharing?
BC: Unless we share the resources rather than compete for them, we cannot create that new situation. We have enough food and resources in the world for the needs of all people, but the major nations ― the US, the European states, Japan and one or two others ― completely dominate the scene and usurp and misuse most of these resources. So there is not enough for others at a price that they can afford to pay. The Third World is strapped for its very existence. That is why there are 38 million people starving there.
If we had a drought in California, Florida, Britain or France, for example, we would be able to buy food grown elsewhere. The reason why millions die is not from drought but because they do not have the finances to replenish that which is lost through drought. If you have an economic system which is not based on competition, greed and self-service, which is what market forces are about, then you can redress this whole situation.
Maitreya says that any government which follows market forces blindly is leading its nation to destruction. He says this civilization is literally at the end of its tether. It is coming to a halt. What we are witnessing today is not simply a recession or slowdown of production. We are witnessing the death throes of the current civilization because it is based on wrong premises.
Market forces assume that everyone starts at the same point. But everyone does not start at the same point. No two nations start at the same point. No two individuals within those nations start at the same point. There are extraordinary discrepancies in living standards. How many people imagine that the world can go on indefinitely in this hideous situation? For how long do people imagine that the people of the Third World will put up with this state of affairs? The answer is sharing, a sharing of resources.
ML: In other words, the current system will collapse.
BC: Maitreya says we are witnessing its collapse. He says it is inevitable, and that there will be a world stock market crash which will begin in Japan. Maitreya said this in 1988, and since then the stock market of Japan has lost nearly 60 per cent of its value. Maitreya says it is a bubble; it will burst inevitably. How it bursts depends on ourselves, but it has to burst and let out all the corruption and inequality which prevents the demonstration, as he would say, of the true inner spiritual nature of humanity. We are wasting the resources of countless millions in the world by condemning them to an enforced poverty and degradation, and the misery of undernourishment and starvation.

ML: You are saying it will literally take a collapse for the changes that you are recommending to be made, and nothing short of that will be enough. Perhaps we can see the error of our ways.
BC: Many people see the error of our ways. I am not alone in pointing these out. But governments, and people who keep the governments in power ― enormous vested interests in the world in all sectors, the simple greed, the self-protective mechanism of humanity ― prevent these changes from taking place. Almost everybody would admit these changes would be useful, but maybe impractical to implement.
Maitreya says if they do not take place, we will destroy ourselves. He says that it will take the collapse of our economic system, as we have known it, to bring us to a sense of reality, to realize that we cannot go on indefinitely in a world where one-third of the population uses three-quarters of the world's food and 83 per cent of the other resources. The crime, drug addiction and social unrest in the developed world are a direct result of this imbalance in the world's resources. Even the distortion of the world's long-established weather patterns is the direct result of this disequilibrium created by man's disharmonic thought patterns.
ML: When do you see this collapse occurring?
BC: Maitreya has said it will be very soon. Obviously, we see what is happening in Japan. In 1989 the stock exchange stood at 38,000 to 39,000. Today [i.e. 1993.ed] it is around 16,000. It will go up a little bit and then down a lot, and then go up another little bit and down again, but heading down overall, until even the Japanese government can no longer keep the financiers in check. They will start jumping out of high windows like we would be doing here if the same situation were pertaining.

ML: What happens after that?
BC: Maitreya says when that happens the priorities of all governments will change. He says the number one priority of all governments will become the provision of correct, adequate food for all the people: it is the number one necessity; two, the provision of adequate shelter for all the people; three, the provision of adequate health care; and four, educational facilities for all the people. These are the basics which do not seem too much to ask for: enough food, shelter, health care, and education. Yet there is no country in the world ― not even the US, the most powerful militarily, and once the richest, country in the world ― where these four requirements pertain as a universal right. He says that when they do, they will transform the world.
Humanity is going through a great spiritual crisis, Maitreya says. It is a crisis of identity, to find out who we really are as spiritual beings. As souls we are one. There is no such thing as a separate soul. On the physical plane we have the illusion that we are separate, but in fact we are one. Therefore, we can make this step forward in our evolutionary advance only when we create right human relationships. That is the next spiritual ideal to be achieved by humanity.
The first step is the sharing of the world's resources, because if we do not do this we will destroy ourselves. It is as simple as that. We have free will. Maitreya is not going to interfere and make sure that we do not destroy ourselves. He is going to present us with these alternatives: carry on as we are today in the old, greedy, selfish, competitive ways of the past and destroy ourselves, or else accept that we are one, accept the Principle of Sharing; implement it, create justice in the world, and therefore peace, and begin the construction, under his inspiration, of a most brilliant and wonderful civilization such as this world has never known.

ML: How will it work exactly? Will the changes occur on a national basis? For instance, in the US, will we say: "We need to change our priorities?" Or will it happen internationally through the UN or some other forum?
BC: I would suggest it is a combination of both. The UN will become the major debating chamber of the world. All world problems will be debated there and resolutions passed which will implement the new system. An entirely new UN agency will be set up specifically to oversee the process of sharing the world's resources.
But I must emphasize that we have free will; nothing will be forced on humanity. When humanity of its own free will accepts the Principle of Sharing and asks Maitreya and his group of Masters, who are likewise returning to the world (there are already 14 Masters in the world), how do we do this, how do we set about sharing, then we will find that the plan is already there.
There is a group of high initiates who have worked out with the Masters over many years a whole series of interrelated plans which will solve the redistribution problems which today are at the heart of the economic problems. It is really a problem of redistribution of resources. That redistribution results from a change of consciousness. Humanity is approaching a point where it is undergoing a great shift in consciousness, beginning to recognize itself in relation to each other and to cosmos, to nature, to what we generally call God, in an entirely new way. Maitreya says that everything, every single thing in cosmos, is interconnected. There is no break at any point. What we do to ourselves, we do to nature. What we do to nature, we are doing to ourselves, as God, because we are reflections, points of consciousness of that total consciousness that we call God.
Throughout the whole of cosmos this process is enacted and re-enacted; every thought, every action is setting into motion a cause. The effects stemming from these causes make our lives. If we have an underground nuclear explosion, for example, we will certainly have an earthquake. Every effect streams from a cause.
Maitreya will emphasize ― and we ought to know it by now, we have had thousands of years to understand it ― that everything in life obeys the Law of Cause and Effect. We cannot go on creating wrong conditions and expect there will be no effects. If we create conditions of imbalance in a nation, inevitably we get crime. Just making a stronger police force or army will not solve the problem. We have to combat the source of the crime ― inequality, imbalance. The whole process of evolution is moving towards oneness, fusion, synthesis. Market forces, which are based on division, separation and competition, act against the evolutionary process. That is why Maitreya calls them the forces of evil. They have their place, but only a very limited place. When they are followed blindly, they lead inevitably to destruction.

ML: Will Maitreya be openly advising humanity? Right now I think it would be fair to say that very few people know about his presence in the world.
BC: Maitreya will be openly advising. He will come forward as the World Teacher for all groups, religious and non-religious alike. He will be looked towards by religious groups as their expected Teacher ― the Christ for Christians, Maitreya Buddha for Buddhists, the Messiah of the Jews and the Moslims, Krishna for the Hindus ― but in fact, he is really a teacher, an educator for the whole of humanity, showing us how to become what we are, spiritual beings, and therefore how to create the environment in which that spirituality can be expressed. It cannot be expressed in the midst of these divisions and separations, this competition based on market forces.
ML: If I am a farmer in the US, for instance, if I am growing food and I put a lot of hard labour into it, should I not reap the benefits of doing that work? Sharing sounds great, but will we actually implement it when the time comes?
BC: According to Maitreya, we shall. He knows already that humanity is ready for sharing and will accept the Principle of Sharing. That is why he can be here.
Of course, the farmer in the US producing food should reap the benefit of his labour, but the poor peasant in Zaire or Zambia should also reap the benefit of his hard labour. That does not pertain today. In the developed world, we produce so much that we dominate the world's markets. We lay down the price of our goods and, because of our resources, the price of the goods of the Third World also. We demand from the developing countries the raw materials and products at a price which leaves them able to live only at a very low level, with more than a billion people living below the poverty line and 38 million actually starving. Yet we demand for our own resources, for our own production, the top value that we can demand on the world market so that we can maintain what is a very artificial level of living.
People in the US, Europe and Japan live on the backs of the Third World. This is the reality. The reason that we do not see it is simply our complacency. Maitreya calls complacency the source of all evil.

ML: Yet many people here in the US would say we are not complacent. When there is a crisis in Africa or elsewhere, we are right there responding with food and aid.
BC: Of course, but these are individual reactions. In every country you will find those whose hearts respond to human need. But it is an on-again, off-again affair. Humanity as a whole, through its agencies, the governments of the world, does not address these problems on a global scale. We would not put into power, perhaps, a government whose number one priority was the saving of the starving millions if it meant the reduction of the living standards of our own nation. Nobody can win votes on that basis, or so the politicians think. The time is coming when they will not win any votes at all unless they put that issue at the forefront of their priorities.
What we are going to witness is the creation, by Maitreya, of a world public opinion focused, galvanized, centered on sharing as a divine right. Maitreya says: "When you share, you recognize God in your brother." He says the problems of mankind are real, but solvable. The solution lies within our grasp. He says: "Take your brother's need as the measure for your action and solve the problems of the world. There is no other course." He will galvanize and potentize world public opinion which, when so organized, no government on earth can withstand. It is that world public opinion which eventually will force all the governments in the world to accept the Principle of Sharing because it will be seen that we have no alternative. We either share or we die. It is as simple as that.

ML: The power in essence will be from the people, and not from any teacher like Maitreya.
BC: Exactly. Maitreya does not come with power. He comes with the power of inspiration and guidance, but not with autocratic power. He says that from now on governments everywhere will be by the people, for the people. We are already witnessing it. Look at what has happened in the former Soviet Union. It is chaos at the moment, but who brought down the Berlin Wall? Who opened up the Soviet Union to glasnost? Mr Gorbachev was mainly responsible for ending the Cold War and for glasnost in the Soviet Union. Of all the world leaders, he is the one most responsive to the mental impress of the Lord Maitreya.
We are witnessing the galvanizing of humanity, the people of the world, to take upon themselves responsibility for their own lives. Over the last few years, that has been happening all over the world. The dictatorships of the world are going. That is why the Soviet Union broke up ― not from the collapse of communism, but from the collapse of political totalitarianism, which is something else.
We are also seeing the collapse of economic totalitarianism. The economic system, largely based on market forces, is approaching its death. There is a third totalitarianism yet to break up ― religious totalitarianism. Religious totalitarianism is reaching the acme of its power. We see that in the rise of fundamentalist groups in all religions, even in the tolerant Buddhist and Hindu faiths. It is expressed in Islam very powerfully today and in Christianity too. It will be the last to disappear, but eventually totalitarianism in the churches will go. Then humanity will know freedom for the first time: political freedom, economic freedom and justice, and freedom of thought and belief.
 

Maitreya's forecasts (1988 - 1993)

Since April 1988, through one of Maitreya’s closest associates in the Asian community of London, Share International has received a series of articles outlining Maitreya’s teachings and drawing attention to developments which He expects to take place in the world.

The forecasts were given primarily to illuminate one of the most important spiritual laws governing our lives: the Law of cause and effect. By grasping and working within this law, Maitreya says, we can resolve the present social, political, economic and environmental crises.

Benjamin Creme writes in MAITREYA’S  MISSION, Volume Two,  “They (the forecasts) are predictions of trends and events set in motion by humanity itself under the Law of Cause and Effect. Maitreya seeks to illuminate the working of that law for us through His scientific understanding of the law in action. He is not enunciating divine fiats nor seeing into the future by clairvoyance, divine or otherwise. He is showing that our actions, if pursued, eventuate through the Law of Cause and Effect, in specific events. However, humanity has free will and at any time can change the course of those events, for better or worse. Under the Law of Free Will, Maitreya may not interfere and impose solutions which we might prefer to the results of our own actions.”
 

Highlights of Maitreya's public emergence

The existence of great spiritual teachers, known as the Masters of Wisdom, became public knowledge in 1875 through the writings of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, founder of the Theosophical Society. Blavatsky, who worked directly with the Masters, revealed that these perfected beings have guided humanity from behind the scenes of everyday life for countless millennia. Periodically, at times of great human crisis, they send one of their own into the world to show humanity the way forward. We know some of these teachers as Krishna, Confucius, Zoroaster, the Buddha, the Christ, and Mohammed. Anticipation of the imminent appearance of the Master of all the Masters, the World Teacher, Maitreya, grew and waned in the early part of this century.   Near the end of World War II, Maitreya announced his intention to physically enter the everyday world at the earliest possible moment, along with a group of Masters, when humanity had achieved a measure of peace and had begun to implement the principle of sharing. Since 1974, information about Maitreya's emergence has been presented to the public by Benjamin Creme, chief editor of Share International magazine. His training for this work, under a Master of Wisdom, began in 1959. July 1977: Maitreya leaves his ancient Himalayan retreat, taking up residence in the Indian-Pakistani community of London. Since then he has lived in London as a seemingly ordinary man concerned with modern problems ― political, economic, and social ― directing his transforming energies to every part of the world. The timing of Maitreya's emergence has been governed by many factors. These include humanity's response to his energies and the need for humanity, through the world's media, to invite him forward, so that our free will is not infringed. March 1978: Maitreya begins to emerge as a spokesman in the community where he lives. He is not a religious leader, but an educator in the broadest sense ― pointing the way out of the world's most critical problems. May 1982: At a Los Angeles press conference, Benjamin Creme reveals that Maitreya lives in London, and invites the media to investigate. Reports of the press conference itself are the extent of the media's coverage. August 1987: Creme announces that "in the coming three or four months, Maitreya will be working intensively to bring about a breakthrough in international relationships in the world." An armaments agreement soon follows between the USA and USSR that no one thought possible. 1988: Maitreya begins to appear, both in person and in dreams, to well-known leaders in various countries, and to many ordinary citizens. World détente, and the ensuing release of tensions, allows more open signs of his presence. Manifestations of crosses of light in the windows of people's homes are reported in the US media and seen by many thousands. Maitreya appears miraculously 'out of the blue' on June 11, 1988, at an open-air prayer/healing meeting in Nairobi, Kenya. He is photographed addressing thousands of people in their own language, who instantly recognize him as the Christ. 1988 - 1993: Through one of Maitreya's closest associates in the Indian-Pakistani community of London, Share International magazine receives a series of articles. These outline Maitreya's teachings and draw attention to developments and happenings which he expects to take place in the world, both in the short and the long term. Outer events have demonstrated Maitreya's insight. As early as 1988, he foresaw the release of Nelson Mandela (in 1990) and the process of détente in South Africa. In the same year he stated that governments everywhere would have to give way to the "voice of the people," a statement which found its most impressive proof in Eastern Europe. Furthermore, weeks or months ahead of time, Maitreya forecast the cease-fire between Iran and Iraq; the global rapprochement between guerrilla forces and national governments; the internal problems of the Soviet Union; the establishment of peace in Lebanon. He also forecast the election of a Democrat as President of the United States and the positive developments in relations between Israel and the Palestinians. A major event which, Maitreya says, we may expect to see in the near future, and which he announced as early as 1988: an international stock market crash, beginning in Japan. 1991 - present: Maitreya appears miraculously before large groups of people all over the world. In most cases, he magnetizes water in the vicinity before his appearance. Many people report healings from this water. In Tlacote (Mexico), Nordenau (Germany) and Nadana (India) healing wells charged by Maitreya attract growing numbers of visitors. By means of these and other 'miracles,' Maitreya seeks to create a climate of hope and expectancy into which he can emerge as the Teacher for all humanity. Upcoming events Television interview: A major American television network has requested an interview with Maitreya, and he has accepted the offer. The interview will take place at a time of Maitreya's choosing, as yet unannounced. Important note:  Share International will NOT have any prior notification of the time of the interview. As soon as we have additional information about this interview, we will post it as a Special Bulletin on the home page. Day of Declaration Maitreya will be invited by the international media to speak directly to the entire world through the television networks linked together by satellites. On this Day of Declaration, we will see his face on the television screen wherever we have access. The biblical statement, "All eyes will see him," will be fulfilled, in the only way in which it can be fulfilled. We will see his face, but he will not speak. His thoughts, his ideas, his call to humanity for justice, sharing, right relationships and peace, will take place silently, telepathically. Each of us will hear him inwardly in our own language. In this way, he will re-enact on a worldwide scale the true happenings of Pentecost 2,000 years ago. At the same time, the energy which he embodies ― the Christ Principle, the energy of love ― will flow out in tremendous potency through the hearts of all humanity. He has said: "It will be as if I embrace the world. People will feel it even physically." This will evoke an intuitive, heartfelt response to his message. Simultaneously, on the outer, physical plane, there will be hundreds of thousands of miracle healings throughout the planet. In these three ways we will know that Maitreya is the World Teacher, come for all groups, religious and non-religious alike. Our response to this experience will determine the entire future of this planet. Maitreya will present us with a choice: either we continue as we are now, in the old, greedy, selfish, complacent ways of the past, and destroy ourselves, or we accept the principle of sharing, accept that we are one, and begin the creation of a civilization such as this world has never yet seen. Maitreya already knows our answer. He has said: "My heart tells me your answer, your choice, and is glad."                      Maitreya and Jesus     Jesus of Nazareth and the Christ are not one and the same person. This is one of the most difficult claims for many Christians to accept in connection with Maitreya, the World Teacher, and it therefore needs some further explanation.

  Maitreya & Sai Baba

 

The relation of Sai Baba to the Christ:

 
  The Christ is a planetary avatar, Sai Baba is a cosmic avatar. He is a Spiritual Regent, sent into the world by the Lord of the World, Sanat Kumara, on Shamballa. A regent "stands in" for the king. Similarly, a Spiritual Regent "stands in" for God, for the Logos, Whose reflection Sanat Kumara is. Sai Baba embodies the energy of Love at a cosmic level (the Christ embodies this energy at the planetary level) and his work, in part, is to prepare humanity for the work of the Christ. By awakening the love principle in humanity, Sai Baba will prepare people for the Initiatory work of the Christ. As the Hierophant, the Initiator, at the first two planetary initiations, the Christ will lead humanity gradually out of the strictly human kingdom into the Hierarchy, the Kingdom of Souls, or the Kingdom of God. That is his major work in the coming age of Aquarius. These two Great Ones work together in daily contact, complete harmony and shared purpose in the evolution of mankind.

Maitreya & Buddha

The Buddha (Master) is the brother of Maitreya. They were among the first group of our humanity to take initiation and have been at the forefront of humanity ever since. He overshadowed Mithras, Memnon and Gautama. He now dwells on the highest center of our planet, Shamballa. He acts as the Divine Intermediary between Shamballa and Hierarchy, and is deeply engaged in the process of Maitreya's mission as World Teacher. He will send two initiate disciples to reform Buddhism.
Maitreya and the Buddha were among the first group of earth humanity to 'achieve', that is, take initiation, way back in early Atlantean times. They have been at the forefront of humanity ever since. The Buddha is deeply engaged in the process of Maitreya's mission as World Teacher.
Buddha, Gautama (c563-483) Avatar, was overshadowed by The Buddha.

Maitreya & Krishna

Sri Krishna (5.0) (c3000 BC) Avatar. Maitreya overshadowed Sri Krishna. Despite the discolouration that has occurred by its dissemination over the centuries, the Bhagavad Gita remains a fairly accurate allegorical statement of his teaching for that time. 

Maitreya & Krishnamurti

Krishnamurti (4.0) (1895-1986) was one of a small group that were prepared as a possible vehicle for Maitreya to manifest through. Maitreya then decided that he would come in person so no longer required a disciple to overshadow. Krishnamurti established himself as a great teacher in his own right, with a tremendous following throughout the world. In Share International magazine Maitreya's associate has said: "he was a true disciple of Maitreya. The teachings of Krishnamurti are the teachings of Maitreya."
Krishnamurti is due to reincarnate before the end of the 20th century.
 
 
 

50 Frequently asked questions A list of the most asked questions since 1977 answered by Benjamin Creme. More answers in: Search engine of this web site Archives of Share International Comments on world events since 9/11 2001

How will we recognize the Christ? If Maitreya is the Christ, then who or what is the anti-christ? What is the essence of his teaching for the new age? What will Maitreya’s initial task be? When Christ was here before, he went through a cycle of events, and was crucified and killed. What is to prevent that from happening again? Will the Christ have a long ministry compared to the three years Jesus had? What will be some of the attributes or characteristics of the Aquarian Age? How can we be sure that he, the Christ, will not be rejected? Will Maitreya become a public figure? Why when Maitreya comes on major television will he not use his own name? Since he is the World Teacher, does that mean he will be more involved in certain fields of human endeavour than in others? Why does Maitreya appear differently to different people? Why, if Maitreya appears before 600 or even more people at a meeting of a religious group in Britain ―  as in Edinburgh and York ―  do we see nothing about it in the media? How are we to know for certain that Lord Maitreya is not the false Christ? (1) Will the United Nations be the governing body of the world, or (2) will there be another organization and (3) will Maitreya 'head up' this organization? How do we know ‘your’ Christ is who you say he is and how do we know he is not someone who is trying to obtain some form of powerful position in the world with the purpose of world domination? When you say that Maitreya has been here since 19 July 1977 and that the Master Jesus is in Rome, do you mean in a physical body? Which of the world’s major religions, if any, do you expect will disappear first, once Maitreya begins his work openly? Many who read Alice Bailey's books say that the Christ does not actually come back in the body, but in men's hearts. Why does the Avatar have to be personified by one human individual? Don’t you think we have advanced enough for the (Christ) Principle without needing the form (the man)? Are any of the Masters in female bodies? Is the shock of a stock-market crash likely to jolt the consciousness of humanity because of the hardship that will ensue? Did Maitreya establish both capitalism and communism? The principle of sharing which you advocate sounds like some glorified form of communism where we all become equally poor. What exactly is the principle of sharing? You talk a lot about politics and economics, which are all very materialistic, but is this what the Christ is all about? Could you explain the relationship between the disciple Jesus and the Christ? What is the relation between Sai Baba and Maitreya? What is the role of the Buddha in our planetary Hierarchy? What is his relationship to Maitreya? I have read that Buddha brought Light, Christ brought Love, and that the next Avatar will bring Power. Is this the aspect which the Christ Maitreya is attempting to bring forth at this time, or is there yet another Avatar to come? Could you expand on the work of the New Group of World Servers, whom you mentioned before as being sensitive to the energy of the Avatar of Synthesis? If Maitreya can divide his consciousness into thousands of separate areas of attention, is he indeed present at the moment of consecration in the Roman Catholic and Anglican masses, and does his blessing remain in the consecrated Host which is revered in the Roman Catholic churches? Or, since the Master Jesus is in charge of the Christian religion, is it rather his presence in this ritual? When one feels very strong energies, how can one tell whether it is from the soul, a Master, or, dare I hope, Maitreya? For instance, this always happens when I read the Messages from Maitreya. Does Maitreya use any of the many statues of him to transmit his energies through? Is it possible for ordinary people, longing to see him, to make contact with Maitreya inwardly? Can the Christ come to us in a sleep state to aid us? I believe that coming with Maitreya are certain great devas or angels. Can you tell us anything about them and the significance of this for humanity now? (1) Is Maitreya without sin? (2) Was he born of a virgin? What has Maitreya told you about his physical immortality? I mean, he seems to have lived in the Himalayas for a very long time. The Christ is formless, but he is also centered within his mayavirupa body in London, and his light-body lies asleep in the Himalayas. Where is his center, his focal point of existence? Does he meditate from his light-body? Considering what humanity has done in the name of Christ in the past, what does the Christ plan to do in the future to avoid this? How much in evidence will Maitreya be? Will we be able to see and hear him regularly on radio, tv, read about him in the press? Will he have an official mouthpiece ―  a newspaper or a magazine? Will the Christ travel to all countries of the world? Will the Masters also travel around the world? Will his journeys be similar in style to those of the present Pope? Will he be more or less accessible? Will he have specific and differing ‘missions’ in the various countries? Will Maitreya teach each nation about its soul purpose and its part in the Plan? Do you think the governments of the world will accept the Christ at first? Will London remain his 'headquarters'?  Q: How will we recognize the Christ? Benjamin Creme: How shall we recognize him? How shall we be sure that the one we see is indeed the Christ? There are many men in the world today who are giving very sound instruction, very beautiful teachings, and some of them are claimed to be the Christ by their followers. We know there are, today, many people who claim to be the Christ or Maitreya; and we know, too, that there is a prophecy which says that before the Christ comes there will be many false Christs, false teachings about the Christ, and that: “if someone points to a man and says, ‘that is the Christ, lo, here! or lo, there!’ do not believe him.” No one will point to the true Christ and say: “That is the Christ.” The recognition of the Christ is up to each one of us, individually. The Christ is the Embodiment of the energy we call the Christ Consciousness or Christ Principle, the energy of the Cosmic Christ. It is released into the world for us by Maitreya, the Christ, and to the degree that it manifests in us, we will recognize him. He will show that our political and economic life has to make a complete change of direction and become the spiritual activity which essentially it is; that our educational systems, our science and culture, should, again, take on a new, spiritual, connotation. He will speak across the whole range of human activity, and it will be by the breadth of his teaching, the universality of his viewpoint, that we may recognize him; by his tremendous spiritual potency, his extraordinary aura of purity, sanctity; by his obvious love and capacity to serve; by all of these we may recognize him. Many people will follow the Christ without recognizing him, without even knowing he is in the world. But they will follow that man because they believe in what he is saying, in what he stands for: sharing and brotherhood, justice and freedom for all mankind. He will be the spokesman for a certain type of group thinking along these lines. Not the Preacher of old. He has said that many will be perhaps surprised at his appearance. He comes, not as the Head of the Christian, or any other church, for that matter. It may be that the orthodox Christian leaders will be among the last to recognize the Christ. He is not the one and only Son of God, but the friend and Elder Brother of Humanity. The radio and television networks of the world will be linked up, and he will make his appeal, his call, to mankind. By mentally overshadowing all mankind simultaneously, he will come into telepathic rapport with all humanity everywhere, and we shall hear his words silently entering our minds, in our own language. We in the United Kingdom shall hear him in English, the French in French, the Russians in Russian, and so on. It is in this way that we shall know that he is truly the Christ. Thus will be repeated, only now on a world scale, what happened at Pentecost; and in celebration of this event, Pentecost will become one of the major festivals of the new world religion which the Christ will eventually inaugurate. Our response to his call will determine the future of the world.   Q. What is the essence of his teaching for the new age? BC: His teaching will be released in phases, each phase being relevant to the needs of humanity at each stage over the next 2,350 years or so. In the first place, we will find that he will lay the emphasis on the oneness of humanity, on the fact of the human soul, and on the need for sharing and right relationships. He will teach, again, the Law of Cause and Effect and its relation to the Law of Rebirth, showing the need for harmlessness in all relationships. When these ideas have permeated society and brought about the changes in our political, economic and social structures, he will set about the inauguration of the new world religion, bringing together the approaches to God of the East and the West, God immanent and God transcendent. He will teach the Mysteries of the Path of Initiation, the scientific path to God. Initiation will be central to the new world religion. Above all, he will reveal a new aspect of God. This is the New Revelation which he brings. Q. What will Maitreya’s initial task be? BC: In the first place, he will be concerned with inspiring humanity to create the conditions in which world peace can be guaranteed. He will show that this requires, above all, the acceptance of the principle of sharing. This will insure a harmonizing of the imbalance caused today by the tremendous discrepancies in the living standards of the developed and the developing nations. His immediate proposal will be to launch a crash programme of aid to save the starving millions in the Third World. Then, over the next few years, the restructuring of society along more just lines will gradually form the basis for a new civilization. He will inspire humanity to create the new world. His initial task is really one of reconstruction.  Q: When Christ was here before, he went through a cycle of events, and was crucified and killed. What is to prevent that from happening again? BC: It is very difficult to crucify someone whom you cannot see, and Maitreya can appear and disappear at will. You could fire a cannon at him, an 18-inch shell, and it would just bounce off him and fall to the ground. He created his own body, and if you can create your own body you can keep it intact. He is inviolable. Q. Will the Christ have a long ministry compared to the three years Jesus had? BC: Yes. The whole of the Age of Aquarius (the next 2,350 years). Q. What will be some of the attributes or characteristics of the Aquarian Age? BC: The outstanding quality of the energy of Aquarius is synthesis, hence the result of its action will be a blending and fusing of the present divided and separative humanity into a whole. A new sense of oneness (with all creation) will replace the present sense of separation. In the social and political sphere this will demonstrate as brotherhood, justice and sharing. The present fear and confusion will give way to a new freedom and sense of meaning and purpose in life. It will be an age in which humanity ―  for the first time as a whole ―  realizes and manifests its inherent divinity. Cooperation will replace competition; tolerance and goodwill will supersede division and hate. Q: How can we be sure that he, the Christ, will not be rejected? BC: The answer, of course, is that we can’t be sure. But it’s up to us to make sure he is not rejected. His is the task to lead and guide, but we willingly must follow. Otherwise he can do nothing. His hands are tied by Law. The decision rests with humanity. The decision is ours, but as I explained, we have no alternative but to go forward through sharing and cooperation, and this is what the Christ will teach. Humanity is now absolutely up against it. It is in an impasse and there is no way out; it is staring mankind in the face. So much so, that all the uneducated and most of the educated peoples of the world are now terrified of the future. They see ahead of them nothing but destruction of one kind or another: destruction through pollution, ecological destruction; through famine; destruction through over-population; through nuclear war; or a combination of all of them. There is no way out at all. The Christ comes with a set of proposals which entail a complete redirection of human thinking and feeling. If we follow these, we go forward. We can reject them. It’s up to us. He said recently: “Many will accept me, but not all. Nevertheless, my Army of Light will surely triumph.” And a long time ago, he said: “The end is known from the beginning,” and you can assume that, though one cannot say (I cannot say, with any authority), “Yes, he will not be rejected, this time. He will be accepted by mankind,” I know that he has come at the earliest possible moment ―  but not too soon. There has been preparation going on for many years. The externalization of the Hierarchy actually started as far back as 1860. Certain disciples came in, such as H.P. Blavatsky and others, who have been releasing to the world the New Age teachings. I don’t mean just the occult teaching. I mean new ideas of philosophy, of politics, of economics, etc. Mankind is now adult, and is prepared in an altogether different way than before (when Christ came in Palestine). The Piscean experience, the spread of education throughout the world, modern communications, have made it possible for a Teacher to come and speak to a really adult world for the first time. So the hope is ―  and I would say the almost certain fact is ―  that mankind will not reject him. Note from Benjamin Creme: In many of the Messages, since the above answer was given, Maitreya himself makes it clear that he is in no doubt about man’s response. In Message no. 11, he says: “My heart tells me your answer, your choice, and is glad.” In Message no. 65, he is explicit: “Therefore, my friends, have no fear that mankind will reject me. my plans are safe in your hands.” In Message no. 77: “I know that within men sits a divine Being, whose Plan it is that love and justice should triumph. This being so, the end is assured.” In Message no. 78: “But, my friends, I know beforehand your answer and choice. Through your love ―  the love in your heart for your brothers ―  have no fear, my dear ones, you will choose correctly.” Q: Will Maitreya become a public figure? BC: Yes, he will become a known spokesman; both the stimulus behind, and the spokesman for, a certain type of group-thinking, concerned with sharing, brotherhood, justice; covering the political, the economic, the social and also the philosophical, religious and scientific fields ―  across the whole gamut. It is really somebody talking across the whole range of human needs that you should look for. He will be the spokesman for that type of group-thinking, of those who are enunciating the principles which have to govern our life in the new age: Sharing, Justice, Freedom, cooperation, Goodwill. These are the principles which we will come to realize are the principles of Aquarius. In one word you can call it synthesis, universality. Q. Why when Maitreya comes on major television will he not use his own name? BC: For a number of reasons. One is that many people would not know who Maitreya is. He wishes to be introduced to the world as a man among men, but who has ideas which, so far, most people have not thought about for the reconstruction of the world. In that way he does not make a division between Christians, Buddhists, Moslims and Hindus. If he was introduced as the Christ, say, then Christians would be divided. Some would say "Halleluja! The Christ is here!" Others would say "He is not the Christ, he is a fake, he is the anti-christ." Or, if they liked his ideas, they might accept him whoever he was. If they do not like his ideas, which many fundamentalist Christians, in my experience, do not, even without seeing him ―  they are convinced already that he must be the anti-christ, they do not like the idea of sharing, they do not seem to like justice and peace in the world ―  they will automatically reject him.  Because he has not come down in a cloud into Jerusalem as they expect, they have a prejudice from the start. If he called himself the Christ, there would be this huge division among Christians as to who he was. If he called himself Maitreya then the Buddhists would be divided. (I know dozens of people who call themselves Maitreya. They are no more Maitreya than you or I.) If he comes out as a man among men, people without prejudice can approach what he is saying and respond to it, yea or nay, without being influenced by the idea that he is the Christ, or Maitreya Buddha, or the Imam Mahdi, or the Messiah. These names get in the way of their spontaneous response to the ideas. We have to think the ideas are good ideas; we have to want sharing and justice and peace, and if he is advocating a way towards sharing and justice and peace we would be inclined to say "Good thinking. I would like to talk more with that man, I would like to ask him a few questions."  Q. Since he is the World Teacher, does that mean he will be more involved in certain fields of human endeavor than in others? BC: Many people, particularly Christians, see him as the head of the Christian Church, but in fact this is not the case; the Master Jesus is the head of the Christian Churches. The World Teacher is the stimulus behind a whole range of activities, not only religion. He is as much the stimulus behind the scientific discoveries and the educational concepts which are today engaging men’s minds as he is with religious matters. He will inaugurate the new world religion which will engage a large part of his energy, but he is the recipient and transmitter of a great rainbow of energies from various sources which stimulate many different facets of our life. One of his major tasks will be the synthesizing of humanity through the energy of the Avatar of Synthesis and the energies of Aquarius, and through galvanizing the United Nations Assembly, bringing the world together and filling it with a sense of its wholeness. That is a great and continuing task, which will be spread over a good many years. When we have really set the world to rights he will begin to inaugurate the new world religion. Q: Why does Maitreya appear differently to different people? BC: Almost weekly, Maitreya appears miraculously ‘out of the blue’ at fundamentalist, orthodox religious meetings around the world, always in a form that the group can recognize ―  if they are Hindus, as the people’s idea of what Krishna will look like; if Jews, as their idea of the Messiah; if they are Muslims, as their idea of the Prophet, the Imam Mahdi or the Messiah; if Buddhists, their idea of Maitreya Buddha. He can change his appearance at will. He can be old or young, man or woman, fair or dark. In this way, everyone can identify with him. He speaks to the gatherings in their own language, and then disappears again. He appeared in this way in June 1988 in Nairobi, Kenya, before 6,000 people who recognized him as the Christ. The event, through photographs, was seen on CNN and BBC television and other world media. List of Maitreya's appearences Q. Why, if Maitreya appears before 600 or even more people at a meeting of a religious group in Britain ―  as in Edinburgh and York ―  do we see nothing about it in the media? BC: The people before whom he appears are in every case fundamentalist Christians of one persuasion or another; denominationally they vary tremendously, but the consistent factor is that they are all extremely dogmatic in their beliefs. Maitreya appears to them to ‘soften them up.’ These are the groups from whom, throughout the world, he expects the major opposition and rejection. If he appears as the World Teacher and they are expecting the Teacher in their own terms ―  as the Christ, Maitreya Buddha, Krishna, the Imam Mahdi, the Messiah ―  with their very fixed views they would be inclined to reject him. The most important thing is the creation of the healing waters, which is done first. When Maitreya has magnetized the waters, in due course ―  it might take a few weeks ―  he finds a group of fundamentalists in a town nearby and appears before them. He speaks to them in their own language and many healings take place during the process. He does not say: “I am Maitreya”; “I am the Christ”; or “I am the Imam Mahdi,” he just appears, out of the blue but in a form which they will recognize ―  as he did in Nairobi in Kenya, on 11 June 1988, an appearance of which we have photographs. Maitreya leaves it to the groups, in the thoughtform in which he has appeared to them, to recognize him or not. Some of them will say: “Beware, it could be the anti-christ: before the Christ comes, the anti-christ is coming.” That is why they do not speak out, and if they do not speak the media does not speak. Occasionally at these meetings there have been representatives of religious newspapers who do not write about it. Why not? I think they do not know what to do with this information: it is too ‘hot.’ Either they believe it is the Christ or they believe it is the anti-christ; or they are mystified because he has not said who he is. Perhaps 80 per cent of the people believe they had an experience of the Christ, or the Mahdi, or the Messiah ―  whomever it happened to be ―  and they are perfectly content to accept that and just wait for something more to happen in connection with it. That must do something to their awareness, even if they do not talk about it except among themselves. When eventually they see Maitreya on television they will say: “That’s the one who appeared to us ―  perhaps he is all right after all; perhaps he is not the anti-christ.” The appearance in Nairobi was reported and photographed because the editor of the Swahili edition of the Kenya Times was present and wrote it up. It was picked up by various media and was a two-day wonder around the world. The media in general, as ordinary men and women, are deeply, profoundly sceptical, and professionally, not only sceptical, but cynical in the extreme. Q. How are we to know for certain that Lord Maitreya is not the false Christ? BC: There is not only one 'false Christ.' There are several well-known teachers who believe themselves, or are believed by their followers, to be the Christ, and from my personal experience alone I know of scores of deluded people who are convinced that they are the Christ. Discrimination and spiritual recognition are the key. I suggest that on the Day of Declaration, by the overshadowing and telepathic rapport which he will establish with all humanity simultaneously, you will have no doubts about his true status. A tree is known by its fruits and it is by his love, wisdom, spiritual potency and work for humanity that you will recognize Maitreya and know him for what he is. Q. (1) Will the United Nations be the governing body of the world, or (2) will there be another organization, and (3) will Maitreya 'head up' this organization? BC. (1) There are no plans for a one-world government. The UN will become (as it is now to some extent) a debating chamber to air and settle international problems. (2) No other such organization is planned. (3) Maitreya will not 'head up' any organization, but will act only in his capacity as World Teacher. Q. How do we know ‘your’ Christ is who you say he is and how do we know he is not someone who is trying to obtain some form of powerful position in the world with the purpose of world domination? BC: This is a question often put to me by fundamentalist Christians. A tree is known by its fruit, and the Christ must be known by his words, his deeds, and, above all, his energy. If one man could achieve world domination (which, in today’s world, I very much doubt) then it could only be someone of the stature of the Christ. The fundamentalists, of course, are afraid that Maitreya might be the anti-christ, with which fallacy I have dealt many times, here and elsewhere. On the Day of Declaration, I submit, everyone ―  even the fundamentalists ―  will know, through the overshadowing of the minds of all humanity ―  a Pentecostal experience for all ―  that Maitreya is the Christ.    Q: If Maitreya is the Christ, then who or what is the anti-christ? BC: According to the Ageless Wisdom, the anti-christ is not one individual who lives at a certain point in time, but is an energy released before the advent of the Christ. It comes to pave the way for the building forces of the Christ by destroying the old crystallized ways that block new growth for society. While the anti-christ is an energy, it does manifest through individuals and has done so at different times throughout history, most notably through the emperor Nero in Roman times, and more recently through Hitler and some of his closest associates. With the defeat of the Axis powers during World War II, the work of the anti-christ energy was completed for this age and will not manifest again for over 3,000 years. The anti-christ does exist, not as an individual who comes before the Christ, but as an energy. Fundamentally, the anti-christ is the First, or Will aspect of God, in its destructive form. It is that energy which destroys thus making way for the new energies of the Christ. The anti-christ energy sweeps away the old, outworn forms and prepares the way for the incoming, creative energy. This destructive force has already worked out through the disasters which have devastated the planet: world wars; the starvation of millions every year; earthquakes and other natural disasters. Q: When you say that Maitreya has been here since 19 July 1977 and that the Master Jesus is in Rome, do you mean in a physical body? BC: Yes. Q. Which of the world’s major religions, if any, do you expect will disappear first, once Maitreya begins his work openly? BC: None of them. It is not Maitreya’s task to stimulate the destruction of any of the major religions ―  quite the contrary. His main work, in the first place, will be to stimulate economic, political, and social change. When he does eventually inaugurate the new world religion based on initiation, its adherents will be drawn, as is already the case, from all religions.    Q: Many who read Alice Bailey's books say that the Christ does not actually come back in the body, but in men's hearts. BC: In The Reappearance of the Christ, the Master DK says quite emphatically that he was talking about the Christ’s physical appearance in the world. This, he said, was one of the most important statements in the book. The Christ, he emphasized, will appear in a physical body, visible to all. Q. Why does the Avatar have to be personified by one human individual? BC: This question, I think, arises from the mistaken idea that an Avatar (in this case the Christ) is some kind of abstract Principle which might embody itself in many individuals simultaneously. Many people see the Christ in this sense, separating the man ―  Maitreya ―  from the Christ Principle which he embodies, and looking for a multiple manifestation of the Christ. The Christ Principle does indeed manifest through millions today, but this is only one of the three ways in which Maitreya promised to appear ―  on mental, astral and dense physical levels. My submission is that all three forms of his manifestation have taken place.    Q. Don’t you think we have advanced enough for the (Christ) Principle without needing the form (the man)? BC: Take a look at the world and decide for yourself. How do you think we are doing with the Christ Principle, given the nuclear threats, the starving millions, the thousand million poor? We are indeed fortunate that, for the love of humanity, the man, the Son of Man, has graced us with his presence. Furthermore, the primary reason for his physical return is to lead his group, the Spiritual Hierarchy of Masters, back into the world.   Q: Are any of the Masters in female bodies? BC: The time for that is not yet. All the Masters take a male body in their last incarnation, and there are definite, energetic reasons why this should be so. A Master is a totally soul-infused personality. There is no such thing as sex ―  male or female ―  on the soul level. There is only polarity of energy ―  positive and negative polarities of one energy. The Masters have brought both of these into complete equilibrium, so, in a sense, they are neither men nor women. They take a male body for its energetic qualities. The relationship between spirit and matter on this planet at this time is such that they must anchor powerfully in the world the positive aspect of that energy, as a balance to the negative aspect as it expresses itself in matter. In about 350-400 years time, this will change. It is a gradual process, and that energy relationship between spirit and matter, as we term them, will change sufficiently to allow Masters to take female bodies too, which then they will.    Q: Is the shock of a stock-market crash likely to jolt the consciousness of humanity because of the hardship that will ensue? BC: The Master has said: "Verily, verily! Humanity has for long suffered from the disease of speculation." The symptoms of this disease are world poverty, crime, drug abuse, violence and war. The basic cause is age-old human greed based on separation and fear. Under the leadership of the Christ, the Lord Maitreya, the Masters will help humanity to see this and evoke from them a greater sense of their interdependence. The very presence of Maitreya, known to all, will go far to make this transformation possible. When humanity gains that sense of interdependence it will lose its fear and thus its greed. Naturally this will not take place overnight but nor will it be too long delayed. The economic collapse and the transformation which will ensue will prove a potent teacher. The relative strictures of a transformed economy will bring to humanity a new sense of reality, and in this way the changes will be logical and acceptable.     Q. Did Maitreya establish both capitalism and communism? BC: No. Both capitalism and communism are man-made, but in response to ideas sent into the mind-belt by Hierarchy. There are no plans to 'unite' these two systems. The key to their eventual correct relationship lies in the acceptance of the principle of sharing.    Q. The principle of sharing which you advocate sounds like some glorified form of communism where we all become equally poor. What exactly is the principle of sharing? BC: First of all, I am sure it is not the aim of communism that “we all become equally poor” but simply equal. Whether that equality is always achieved is another matter, but surely social justice is a laudable aim, and if it were allied with individual freedom I think few in the West could quarrel with it. It would seem that Mr Gorbachev has set in motion precisely such a move towards greater individual freedom. To my mind, the need for sharing is self-evident: there are so many people in the world, around six billion, with varied requirements depending on the size of their nation and self-sufficiency. These nations grow or produce so much food, raw materials, energy, technology, often far greater than their individual needs, and seek to sell their surplus (there is an estimated ten per cent surplus of food in the world). Many of the poorer (usually ex-colonial) nations are far from being self-supporting and often cannot produce even enough food for their people who, as a consequence, become the starving millions of the world. Is it not simple common sense ―  not to mention simple Christian (or Buddhist or Jewish) compassion ―  for the rich nations to share surpluses with the poor nations and so prevent the misery ―  and the crime ―  of starvation in the midst of plenty? The Christ says, in Message no. 82: “When you share, you recognize God in your brother,” and in Message no. 52: “Take your brother’s need as the measure for your action, and solve the problems of the world. There is no other course.” He should know. True happiness lies not in democracy or communism, but in an awareness that is free of any ideology.    Q: You talk a lot about politics and economics, which are all very materialistic, but is this what the Christ is all about? BC: Yes, indeed. Absolutely. It is not primarily as a religious leader that he is coming. You may look for him rather as an educationalist in the widest sense of the word, advocating changes in our political, economic and social life. All of these are fundamentally spiritual. Spirituality does not refer to religious matters only. Everything that lifts men above their present level, whether on the physical, emotional, mental or intuitional level, is spiritual. We must broaden our concept of what is spiritual in order to recognize the Christ. He comes to show that the spiritual life can be lived in every department of human living ―  not alone in the religious field; that the scientific path to God, about which he will teach, is wide enough and varied enough to accommodate all men. Everyone, in the future, will come to realize the spiritual basis of life, and will seek to give it expression in his work. And whereas today only the seer or the mystic knows the true meaning of reality, this will be the experience of all men, whatever their way. Not all men are religious; religion is a way, a specific way. The Christ will show that all of us can come to an awareness of the ways of God. He will show the path to that, the scientific path, the path of initiation; and under the guidance and stimulus of the Christ and his disciples we shall know God ―  truly know and see God, in this coming age. Large numbers of humanity will stand before the Hierophant, the Lord of the World Himself, and in doing so will see the Face of the Father, the Face of God. This is an occult fact and is the promise given by the Christ to the world. This will be his main function in the coming age ―  to lead humanity into the Spiritual Kingdom, the Kingdom of Souls, or the Kingdom of God ―  which already exists, and has always existed, as the Masters and initiates of the Hierarchy. Under the guidance of the Christ all of us will enter that Kingdom. This is his mission, to establish the Kingdom of God, outwardly, in the world. He will fulfill that mission if we respond to the need of the time, which is the transformation of society along more spiritual and just lines.    Q: Could you explain the relationship between the disciple Jesus and the Christ? BC: The disciple Jesus, who is now the Master Jesus, was born in Palestine as a third degree initiate. The five major Initiations which take one to Liberation have their symbolic enactment in the life of Jesus. That is what the Gospel story is really about. It is a very ancient story and has been presented to mankind again and again, in different forms, long before the time of Jesus. He was, and still is, a disciple of the Christ and made the great sacrifice of giving up his body for the use of the Christ. By the occult process of overshadowing, the Christ, Maitreya, took over and worked through the body of Jesus from the Baptism onwards. In his next incarnation, as Apollonius of Tyana, Jesus became a Master. He lives now in a Syrian body which is some 600 years old, and has his base in Rome. He has, in the last 2,000 years, worked in the closest relation to the Christ, saving his time and energy where possible, and has special work to do with the Christian Churches. He is one of the Masters who will very shortly return to outer work in the world, taking over the throne of St Peter, in Rome. He will seek to transform the Christian Churches, in so far as they are flexible enough to respond correctly to the new reality which the return of the Christ and the Masters will create. I am afraid that the Churches have gone very far away from the religion which the Christ inaugurated; which is to do with sharing, with love, with brotherhood and right relationship. But this monolithic institution has grown up in the name of that simple man and transformed his simple teaching into ... well, you know what it has taught.    Q: What is the relation between Sai Baba and Maitreya? BC: The Christ is a planetary avatar, Sai Baba is a cosmic avatar. He is a Spiritual Regent, sent into the world by the Lord of the World, Sanat Kumara, on Shamballa. A regent 'stands in' for the king. Similarly, a Spiritual Regent 'stands in' for God, for the Logos, Whose reflection Sanat Kumara is. Sai Baba embodies the energy of Love at a cosmic level (the Christ embodies this energy at the planetary level) and his work, in part, is to prepare humanity for the work of the Christ. By awakening the love principle in humanity, Sai Baba will prepare people for the initiatory work of the Christ. As the Hierophant, the Initiator, at the first two planetary initiations, the Christ will lead humanity gradually out of the strictly human kingdom into the Hierarchy, the Kingdom of Souls, or the Kingdom of God. That is his major work in the coming age of Aquarius. These two Great Ones work together in daily contact, complete harmony and shared purpose in the evolution of mankind.    Q. What is the role of the Buddha in our planetary Hierarchy? What is his relationship to Maitreya? BC: The Buddha no longer retains a physical vehicle, but dwells on the highest center of our planet, Shamballa, which is in matter of the two highest ethers in the Gobi desert. He acts as the ‘Divine Intermediary’ between Shamballa and Hierarchy, bringing the Plan from Shamballa to the three Great Lords of Hierarchy (the Christ, Manu, and Lord of Civilization) Who approximate it to the possible and work it out through humanity. He is the brother of Maitreya. They were among the first group of Earth humanity to ‘achieve,’ that is, take initiation, way back in early Atlantean times. They have been at the forefront of humanity ever since. The Buddha is deeply engaged in the process of Maitreya’s mission as World Teacher.    Q. I have read that Buddha brought Light, Christ brought Love, and that the next Avatar will bring Power. Is this the aspect which the Christ Maitreya is attempting to bring forth at this time, or is there yet another Avatar to come? BC: The Christ does indeed bring the Power or Will aspect of God into the world. In the last two thousand years since his advent in Palestine through Jesus, he has become the Embodiment of the Will, as well as the Love and Light, of God. Through his advocacy, humanity’s little separate self-will will come into correct alignment with the Will of God for the first time. As far as the individual disciple is concerned, this Will aspect only makes itself felt around the time of the third initiation. Its energy comes from the monad or divine spark, whereas the energies of Love and Light come from the soul. To the purist, of course, all three aspects come from the monad, but at-one-ment with the soul brings in Light and Love alone. Quite apart from this, of course, there will be many further Avatars in humanity’s long evolution to perfection.    Q. Could you expand on the work of the New Group of World Servers, whom you mentioned before as being sensitive to the energy of the Avatar of Synthesis? BC: When he came before in Palestine, the Christ found that there were not enough servers, disciples, in the world through whom he could work, who could have prepared the way for him, and through whom he could construct the new civilization of the time. Also, he had not yet that deeper relationship and at-one-ment with the Will aspect of God ―  which in the last two thousand years he has achieved ―  necessary for him to complete his task. He is now an Embodiment of the Will as well as the Love aspect of God. In 1922, therefore, he inaugurated the New Group of World Servers, which is the most important group existing in the world, although it has no outer form or organization. Each member of it is related subjectively (i.e. on the inner, soul level) to Hierarchy; they know and understand the Plan and their part in it. On the outer plane there are two groups: one large group, unaware of their subjective link with Hierarchy and working only under impression from the Masters; the other, a small inner nucleus which works consciously on the outer plane under the direct supervision of the Masters. Made up of men and women of all levels of society, the New Group of World Servers has members in every country in the world, without exception. Since 1922, apart from the war years, they have been active in placing before humanity the very principles which will govern our lives in the future ―  principles of right relationship, sharing and justice. They are to be found in the educational, political, economic and scientific fields. They are the forerunners of the Christ, the vanguard, sent ahead to prepare the way. From their understanding of the Plan, from their altruistic love of humanity, from their desire to serve, they are the guarantee of the correct working out of the Plan of the Hierarchy of which they are also a part. So in this way, the work of Hierarchy does not infringe human free will. The New Group of World Servers forms a bridging group between humanity and Hierarchy. It is several million strong today.    Q. If Maitreya can divide his consciousness into thousands of separate areas of attention, is he indeed present at the moment of consecration in the Roman Catholic and Anglican masses, and does his blessing remain in the consecrated Host which is revered in the Roman Catholic Churches? Or, since the Master Jesus is in charge of the Christian religion, is it rather his presence in this ritual? BC: It is always the energy and blessing of Maitreya which consecrates the Host at this ritual. This is the most valid and authentic part of the Christian Church service. Of course, the wafer and the wine are not turned into the ‘body and blood’ of the Christ. This is a symbolic act in memory of him. The energy transmission, however, is indeed real.    Q. When one feels very strong energies how can one tell whether it is from the soul, a Master, or, dare I hope, Maitreya? For instance, this always happens when I read the Messages from Maitreya. BC: It is impossible to read the Messages from Maitreya, especially aloud, without invoking his energy. That is one reason why they were given. The first part of the question is more difficult to answer ―  it really is a matter of experience and discrimination. It is usually more correct to assume that the energy is from one’s soul.     Q. Does Maitreya use any of the many statues of him to transmit his energies through? BC: Yes, most certainly. One example is a famous statue in wood in the Koryuji Temple in Kyoto, Japan, dating from the sixth and seventh centuries. For centuries it has been known as 'the statue of the golden light' because of the radiance which is sometimes seen to emanate from it.    Q. Is it possible for ordinary people, longing to see him, to make contact with Maitreya inwardly? BC: It depends on what is meant by ‘make contact.’ If it means can ‘ordinary’ people receive communications, messages, enlightenment, guidance, from Maitreya, then the answer is no. He does not make that kind of contact. I know that many people claim such contact ―  and often send me the results ―  but my information is that these claims are mistaken, and the nature of the received material bears this out. If it means can people invoke his energy, his love, then the answer is, assuredly, yes. He himself has said: ‘‘My help is yours to command. You have only to ask.’’ (Message no. 49)     Q. Can the Christ come to us in a sleep state to aid us? BC: Yes, he frequently uses this form of contact.    Q. I believe that coming with Maitreya are certain great devas or angels. Can you tell us anything about them and the significance of this for humanity now? BC: The Christ was called, by both Gautama Buddha and St Paul, ‘‘the Teacher alike of angels and of men,’’ and that is precisely what he is. He is as much a teacher for the devas as he is for the human evolution. As the Master DK has shown (in the books of Alice A. Bailey), he will bring ―  in fact, has brought ―  into the world, certain great devas who will work closely with humanity and teach us many aspects of the art of living.    Q. (1) Is Maitreya without sin? (2) Was he born of a virgin? BC: (1) Maitreya is totally perfected in a planetary sense. Even in a systemic sense he is without that sense of separation which we call sin. (2) No. He is a resurrected and ascended Master. In his present manifestation in the modern world (London), he is in a self-created body ―  a mayavirupa.    Q. What has Maitreya told you about his physical immortality? I mean, he seems to have lived in the Himalayas for a very long time. BC: Maitreya has lived in his retreat high in the Himalayas (at about l7,500 feet) for the last 2,000 years in a ‘body of light,’ that is, the resurrected and ascended body of a perfected Master of high degree. That body is now ‘at rest,’ as he has termed it ―  a state of suspended animation. The body in which he now lives and works in London is self-created especially for this mission and will remain as it is today for the next 2,500 years.    Q. The Christ is formless, but he is also centered within his mayavirupa body in London, and his light-body lies asleep in the Himalayas. Where is his center, his focal point of existence? Does he meditate from his light-body? BC: The Christ is not formless but, of course, the energy he embodies, the Love energy, the energy which we call the Christ Principle, is formless. His consciousness is centered in the mayavirupa (self- created body). He meditates and lives and works as a normal man, in the mayavirupa, which is a completely real body.    Q. Considering what humanity has done in the name of Christ in the past, what does the Christ plan to do in the future to avoid this? BC: Mainly, be present. One could give a lecture on the Christ’s plans, teachings and work in the coming time to inspire humanity into making a change of direction, but the great difference this time is the fact that he has promised to stay with us to the end of the Aquarian Age, i.e. approximately 2,500 years. No theologians or priests will be necessary, therefore, to interpret (or misinterpret) his teachings.    Q. How much in evidence will Maitreya be? Will we be able to see and hear him regularly on radio, tv, read about him in the press? Will he have an official mouthpiece ―  a newspaper or a magazine? BC: There will not be an official ‘mouthpiece,’ an official magazine, or whatever, for Maitreya. As he is an advisor, a teacher, he will appear often (I do not know how regularly) on radio and tv; he will be quoted in newspapers and so on. His teaching will be mainly through television and radio. This is the revelatory phase ―  prophesied by the Master DK through Alice Bailey to begin after 1975.    Q. Will the Christ travel to all countries of the world? Will the Masters also travel around the world? BC: Some will and some will not. Certain Masters have been designated for particular posts in specific centers ―  the five major spiritual centers and two minor ones. However, the Christ will make a journey ―  I do not know how soon after the Day of Declaration ―  to all countries of the world, so that all of us will have the opportunity to see him more personally.    Q. Will his journeys be similar in style to those of the present Pope? Will he be more or less accessible? BC: The sheer logistics, the technical problems, make that a difficult question to answer. I would think that his tours would be similar to those of the Pope but, naturally, on a far larger scale. The Pope attracts mainly Roman Catholics and other interested people, but the Christ will attract the attention of millions, even billions, of people of all faiths and of no religious background at all. I am sure he will attempt to make himself even more accessible than the Pope does today. One difference will be that with Maitreya there is no danger of assassination. He is and will be invulnerable. That is one danger and worry which will not engage the minds of the governments whose work it will probably be to organize his tours. For him personally it will be a gigantic task.     Q. Will he have specific and differing ‘missions’ in the various countries? BC: No doubt his functions will differ from country to country, and he will go with that purpose in mind. I think he will try to use his good offices in whatever capacity they can best be used. He is here to serve the world, and I think it is in that light that he will present himself to the world. He will not present himself as knowing everything and come to do everything for us, but if people and governments ask his advice or ask for his judgement ―  his sometimes ‘Solomon’s’ judgement ―  in decisions, for instance, in the Middle East or Northern Ireland, he will certainly give his guidance and help. Despite the fact that these situations seem insoluble, it may be that people will accept from Maitreya advice and suggestions that they would never accept from lesser beings.     Q. Will Maitreya teach each nation about its soul purpose and its part in the Plan? BC: Yes. Not only Maitreya but the Masters, too, will elucidate the inner destiny of the various nations. Each nation has some unique contribution to make to a civilization, while some nations, because of their rays (each nation has a soul ray and a personality ray), their size, whether male or female, have often a decisive role to play. Each nation has an occult purpose and ‘motto’ or role in the unfolding evolution of the race.     Q. Do you think the governments of the world will accept the Christ at first? BC: Some undoubtedly will, while some may be slower to accept his counsel. I am thinking of countries like Russia and China, which have no religious means by which to approach him. The peoples of these countries, however ―  like the people elsewhere in the world ―  will force their leaders to implement the principle of sharing. In a very real sense, despite their lack of personal freedom, these countries are already nearer to the implementation of sharing and justice than are the Western democracies.    Q. Will London remain his ‘headquarters?’ BC: No. In a sense, he will not have any ‘headquarters.’ His residence in London now is, I believe, a temporary measure. His journey around the world should take several years ―  two or three years, at least. Then he will go, from time to time, to any other particular country or countries where the need for him is the greatest, where he can be of most use, can best serve at that time.   Benjamin Creme: a messenger of hope     Benjamin Creme, a British artist and long-time student of esoteric philosophy, has become the principal source of information about the emergence of Maitreya, the World Teacher. Born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1922, Benjamin Creme began studying art at an early age, developing into an accomplished painter in the modernist style. He befriended and collaborated with many of the leading figures of the time in British art, music and literature. His paintings have been exhibited in a number of prestigious galleries. Listen to Mr. Creme's lecture in Tokyo, Japan on May 10, 2003 (Real player needed) Training Throughout his early years Creme also studied various aspects of esoteric philosophy, in particular the teachings released in the late 1800s through Helena Blavatsky and the Theosophical Society, and more recently through Alice A. Bailey. Although these teachings led him to believe in the existence of the Masters of Wisdom ― a group of perfected individuals who are the custodians of the Divine Plan for this planet ― it nevertheless came as a complete surprise to him when, in 1959, he was contacted by one of the Masters. He was told, among other things, that Maitreya, the World Teacher ― the Master of all the Masters ― would return in about 20 years and that he (Creme) would have a role to play in the event if he chose to accept it. More than a decade later, in 1972, Creme began a period of arduous training under his Master's direction to prepare him for his coming task: announcing to a skeptical world the emergence of the World Teacher, awaited by people of every religion under his various names ― the Christ, Messiah, Imam Mahdi, Krishna, Maitreya Buddha. Creme's constant contact with a Master of Wisdom gives him access to up-to-date information on Maitreya's emergence, plus the total conviction needed to present this story. Lecturing From 1975 to 1979, Creme lectured, by invitation, throughout Europe. During his first US tour in 1980, he spoke to large audiences in many major cities. Since the early 1980s, his tours have included Western and Eastern Europe, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico and two trips a year through the US. He has been interviewed on more than 300 radio and television programs in the US alone. Creme's books on the reappearance of the Christ have been translated into seven languages and are published throughout the world by groups responding to his message. He is also co-editor of Share International, a monthly magazine that focuses on the political, economic, social and spiritual changes now occurring globally. The magazine is read in more than 70 countries. Benjamin Creme receives no payment for this work and makes no claims about his own spiritual status. These facts, along with his authenticity, intelligence and humor, lend credibility to an otherwise incredible story, and prompt dozens of well-known broadcast personalities to agree with Canadian Broadcasting host/producer, Max Allen, who said: "The Maitreya story is important and Creme is an admirable spokesman." Since his first public talk in 1974, millions of people have heard Creme's message of hope, and many have been inspired to help make it known on a worldwide scale. "My job," Creme says, "has been to make the initial approach to the public, to help create a climate of hope and expectancy. If I can do that, I'll be well pleased." Read more on Benjamin Creme... Listen to Mr. Creme's lecture in Tokyo, Japan on May 10, 2003

 

Etheric planes

Above the dense physical-solid, liquid, and gaseous are four planes of still finer matter which constitute the etheric envelope of this planet, and of which the dense physical planes are a precipitation. It was not until some 20 years later, through the building and use of Wilhelm Reich's orgone accumulator, that I again became aware of this ocean of energy of which we ourselves are a part, and proved to myself conclusively the existence of the etheric planes.
At the age of 14, I read what was for me an extraordinary book: With Mystics and Magicians in Tibet, by Alexandra David Neel (1868-1969) (see photo). This French woman of indefatigable courage, determination and resource managed, disguised as a Lama, to penetrate the forbidding barriers around that mysterious country, gained permission to stay, and placed herself under the tutorship of a true Lama. She describes various esoteric practices, some of which she learned, including the creation by thought of a "familiar"; in her case of a jovial fat monk who soon got out of her control and had to be de-materialised. These practices obviously involved considerable concentration and mind control, but I found a little success with some of them, including Tumo, a system for creating internal heat in cold weather.
In the late 1940s, through a study of Wilhelm Reich's work (1897-1957) (see photo), and the use of the orgone accumulator, I became consciously aware of, and extremely sensitive to, energy currents; so much so that eventually I could tell when an atomic bomb had been exploded in the Pacific or wherever. Across these thousands of miles, I registered the shift in the etheric currents caused by the explosions. Inevitably, a day or two later, would come the report that America, Russia, or Britain had tested a "device" of such and such a size.
 

The Power of the Mind

In the early 1950s, I happened on a book by Rolf Alexander: The Power of the Mind. The magazine article which drew my attention to it had, of course, concentrated on the most sensational aspect of the book ― "cloud-busting," the breaking up of clouds by the power of thought alone. Rolf Alexander, a Canadian, was called to Tibet and trained by a Tibetan Master of Yoga, and his book outlines a practice to bring the instinctive, subconscious mind under the control of the directive conscious mind. The latter is only too often fragmented and partly submerged in the subconscious computer activity of the former, and a great deal of its available energy is lost. The method used is self-hypnosis. The freeing of the conscious, directing principle from its involvement in the activity of the subconscious mind (which should proceed automatically) releases large stores of mental energy and leads directly to the focus and concentration which precede meditation. And so I began to meditate.

Alice Bailey

I also began to read. I read, among many others, the Theosophical works of H.P. Blavatsky (see photo) and Leadbeater; Gurdjieff, Ouspensky and Nicoll; Paul Brunton; Patanjali; the Alice Bailey and Agni Yoga Teachings; Swamis Vivekananda, Sivananda, Yogananda; Sri Ramana Maharshi (see photo), whose Path of Self-knowledge I sought to follow. Through his meditation on "Who am I?" (and, I know now, through the Grace of my Master), I found myself precipitated into a sense of identity with the whole phenomenal world: the earth, the sky, the houses and people; the trees and birds and clouds, I saw to be myself. I disappeared as a separate being, yet retained full consciousness, a consciousness expanded to include everything.
I saw that this was the true Reality, that one's normal waking consciousness simply covers this, keeps it hidden, through wrong identification with oneself as this body. I also saw this phenomenal world as a kind of ritual, a ritualised shadow-play, acting out a dream or desire of That which alone existed, alone was Real, which was also myself.
How did I come into this work? In late 1958, I was told by a fellow disciple who had the "connection," that I was receiving "messages." This surprised me and I had no sense that it was true. I was told that the messages "bounced off" me, but if I did such and such, in time I would receive correctly.

                                                                                                              The start of the work

I must have done the right thing, because one night, early in January 1959, so clearly there was no mistaking, I heard inwardly the instruction: Go to so and so (a place in London) on such and such a date and time, some three weeks ahead. On the night, there were people waiting there to meet me.
That was the start of a flow of messages which came in gathering momentum. Some, apparently, I missed (I was told later when I missed one) and I became so afraid of missing them that I gave them to myself. I sent myself on several rendezvous, where nothing happened and no one came, but gradually I settled down; I did not miss them and I stopped making them up.
I was told to get a tape-recorder and received many long dictations of various kinds. Some contained advice, guidance, or spiritual instruction. I was not told the identity of the Master (or Masters) who spoke thus, telepathically, to me, and I think I was too shy to ask, although I was told I could ask questions. It was not until years later that I learned his name and also that I would have been told had I asked long ago.

"Affirm his coming"

One night, early in 1959, during such a transmission, I was told to turn off the tape-recorder. There followed a discourse on his Reappearance by Maitreya, the Christ, Head of our planetary Hierarchy. He said also that I would have a part in the Plan. At that time I believed that the World Teacher would come from one of the higher planets, probably from Venus, and this information from Maitreya caused a complete upset to my thinking. In a transmission soon after this event, my Master, referring to this new-found knowledge, added: "The time is coming when you will be expected to act upon it." And in another: "Affirm his coming!"
I cannot claim that I took these exhortations to heart and that that is why I am engaged in this work of preparation for the Christ. On instruction, I put these tapes away for 17 years and I am afraid I needed a rather strong push from the Master to launch me into this work.

De-glamorisation

Towards the end of 1972, when I was rather in the doldrums and least expecting it, that wise and wily one whom I have the privilege to call Master, pounced. He took me in hand, and subjected me to the most intensive period of de-glamorisation, disillusioning, training and preparation. For months we worked together, 20 hours a day, deepening and strengthening the telepathic link until it was two-way with equal ease requiring the minimum of his attention and energy. He forged in this period an instrument through whom he could work, and which would be responsive to his slightest impression (of course, with my complete cooperation and without the slightest infringement of my free will). Everything I see and hear, he sees and hears. When he wishes, a look from me can be a look from him; my touch, his. So, with the minimum expenditure of energy he has a window on the world, an outpost of his consciousness; he can heal and teach. He himself remains, in a fully physical body, thousands of miles away. I am not suggesting that I am his only "window on the world." I do not know how rare this is, but I am sure that it is not unique. It constitutes a definite stage in the Master-disciple relationship. He has asked me not to reveal his identity for the time being ― not even to the members of the group with which I work, and through which he works. I know of two reasons (there may be others) for his request, and respect them, but I may say that he is one of the senior Members of the Hierarchy, a Master of the Wisdom, whose name is well-known to esotericists in the West. His inspiration has heightened tremendously the conceptual power and intensity of my paintings.
Two small episodes, among many which illustrate the loving concern of the Great Ones, and their lively sense of humour, as well as the ability to use their powers at long distance:
The first occurred early in 1973, during the period of most intense preparation and training. For some time I had been smoking small cigars, and the Master frequently urged me to stop smoking these "filthy weeds" as he called them. His technique of discouraging me was to assign some meditation or exercise every time I made to light one.
One day, preparing to keep an appointment somewhere, I laid this small box of cigars on the corner of my bed while I changed clothes. When I was ready to leave, it had, literally, disappeared. I asked the Master, of course, if he had done something to it. He claimed complete ignorance of, or interest in, the "filthy weeds." I was certain of where I had left them, but nevertheless made a thorough search, without result. "Are you sure you didn't hide them?" I repeated. He swore his innocence: he had better things to do with his time and energy. At last I said: "All right, I'll just get some more on the way out." Immediately, they lay on the bed-corner where I had left them.
The second episode concerns a bird and occurred about two and a half years ago. Each year, we are visited by large numbers of swifts who dive and wheel outside our windows all day long and nest under the eaves.
Early one hot summer morning, one of these marvellous birds flew through an open bedroom window, straight through the closed venetian blind. It dropped with a thud on to a large tin of floor varnish which stood under the window, bending the handle and top of the tin with the impact. It lay there panting, its eyes staring and its enormous wings lying awry, one on, and one over the side of, the tin. The Master asked me to look closely and carefully over the bird and I felt his energy pouring through my eyes. At once, it relaxed and closed its eyes.
The Master assured me that there were no bones broken, but that it was severely bruised and shocked. He told me to open the window at the bottom and to go down and have breakfast. Half an hour later, I returned to find the bird gone, healed and restored to the morning air.
These two little episodes may surprise those students who remember the Master Djwhal Khul's statement that the Masters are not interested in, and do not concern themselves with, the personality lives of disciples. While I am sure that, in general, this is true, I am equally certain that there are exceptions to this rule. It depends entirely on the type of relationship the Master is seeking to build, the degree of trust he seeks to elicit, and the karmic relationship existing between himself and the disciple.

Transmission Meditation

In March 1974, he gave me a list of 14 names of people to invite to a talk at my home on "meditation and allied subjects." They all came.
I talked about the Hierarchy of Masters, about meditation, and its role in bringing about soul contact. Under instruction, I presented them with the following offer: I invited them to take part in a group work in which their occult meditation would proceed under the guidance of a Master of the Wisdom, in exchange for which they would act as transmitters of the Hierarchical energies, thus forming a bridging group between Hierarchy and the disciples in the field.
The Master arranged a short transmission to show them what was involved. Twelve of the fourteen agreed, two feeling that they were not ready for this kind of work.
The group was formed in March 1974 to channel the spiritual potencies. We met twice weekly, at first, for about one and a half to two hours. The question of a name for the group came up, but the Master's instruction was, and still is, that no name should be used; no organisation built; no officers appointed; no fence erected around ourselves and our ideas; the maximum openness maintained.

The Tetrahedron

At the same time, the Master gave me the blueprint for building the transmitter-transformer instrument which we use in this work, and which I also use in healing. It is a tetrahedron in form and is based on the principle that certain shapes have inherent energetic properties.
Tetrahedron
A great study is going on today into the nature and energetic properties of the pyramid. The Great Pyramid at Giza is really an Atlantean instrument, based on the power of shape. The aim of Atlantean man was to perfect the astral-emotional vehicle, or body. Just by being the shape it is, the pyramid, when aligned with the north and south poles, draws energy from the etheric and astral planes. This was transmitted for the benefit of the population of the great city which lies buried beneath the sands around the Pyramid and the Sphinx.
The aim of our present, fifth, root race, the Aryan, (nothing to do with Hitler's notion of Aryan man) is to perfect the mental vehicle. When aligned north and south, the Tetrahedron automatically draws to itself and transmits energy from the mental planes. This principle is behind our use of the instrument. The instrumentation ― quartz crystal, magnets, gold and silver discs and wires, focuses and potentises all the energies channelled through us by Hierarchy; the shape itself transforming them downwards on to the lower mental planes where they can be more readily absorbed by many people. Without this transforming work, which the instrument carries further, the Hierarchical energies, streaming as they do in the main from the Buddhic level (the level of the Spiritual Intuition), would "bounce off" the masses of people, and their effect would be limited. This is behind the need of Hierarchy for Transmission groups, using some form of meditation or prayer.
Under the Master's instruction, I built also a Spiritual Energy Battery which can be attached to the transmitter. So far we have used it only once, to demonstrate, I suppose, the principle.
The group's personnel has changed many times, only four of the original group remaining. Its numbers have grown and fallen, but always seem to stabilise at around 12 fully active members, with many less active or regular participants, and a great many offshoots, both here and abroad. Nowadays, we meet regularly three times weekly to transmit the energies from Hierarchy for anything from four to seven or eight hours on end. Only the most dedicated and committed people, of course, can maintain that intensity of rhythm, so numbers are, necessarily, kept low. In addition, we hold a regular weekly public meeting at the Friends' Meeting House, Euston Road, London, in which the audience is invited to share in the transmission of the energies which are sent then.

Messages by Maitreya

In June 1974 began a series of overshadowing and transmitted messages by Maitreya, inspiring us, and keeping us informed of the progress of his externalisation. We were privileged also to become aware of the gradual creation and perfectionment of his body of manifestation ― the Mayavirupa. In the period from March 1976 to September 1977, these communications from Maitreya became very frequent indeed.
During the first year of the group's life, we held an open meeting at each full moon where interested friends of the members could join in the transmission. At these full-moon meetings, I would give a short talk, usually about the reappearance of the Christ and the Hierarchy of Masters, or, on occasion, on the significance, from an esoteric astrological point of view, of the particular full-moon energies.

Lecturing

Towards the end of 1974, the Master said, several times: "You know, you must take all this to the public. It is of little use giving this information to the 20 or so people, only, who are here."  The pantomime began: I would remonstrate, plead not to have to "go public,"  he would assure me that he was only joking: "I have other plans for you," he would say, and I would relax again.  But in January 1975, he finally said: "I mean it. Give this information (he had dictated a mass of information on how the Plan would work out) to the groups, of all backgrounds and teachings. Tell them what you know. The hope is that from the more focused minds of the groups will go out a telepathic interplay with the general public, so that when you go to them, they will be somewhat prepared.
I didn't like it. I didn't like it at all. I liked what I was doing. I liked working quietly, esoterically, knowing I was doing something useful, but neither too strenuous nor making too great psychological demands on me. I did nothing about the groups until several firm pushes from the Master at last got me moving. In March or April I wrote hopefully to 40 or so groups working along spiritual lines, offering my services as a speaker on: "The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of the Wisdom." The response, not surprisingly, for I was quite unknown, was not altogether overwhelming. I had, I think, about six or seven replies. Three of these groups were interested to know more ― all newish groups run by young people ― Centre House, Gentle Ghost and the Franklin School, and I gave a talk at each, the first at Centre House, on May 30th 1975.
I was very nervous. Although I knew my material, I did not have it in any sort of order. The Master, in his kindness, dictated for me a list of headings which I could glance at, and, in fact, so overshadowed me throughout the talk, that he practically gave it. Just before the end, I was suddenly overshadowed by Maitreya himself, my heart melted, and I had the greatest difficulty in keeping my voice steady. The following words were put into my mind:
"When the Christ returns, he will not at first reveal his Presence, nor will the Masters who precede him; but gradually, steps will be taken which will reveal to men that there lives among them now a man of outstanding, extraordinary potency, capacity for love and service, and with a breadth of view, far beyond the ordinary. Men and women, all over the world, will find themselves drawn into the awareness of the point in the modern world wherein this man will live; and from that centre of force will flow the True Spirit of the Christ, which will gradually reveal to men that he is with us. Those who can respond to his presence and his teaching will find themselves somewhat reflecting this love, this potency, this breadth of vision, and will go into the world and spread abroad the fact that the Christ is in the world, and that men should look to that country from which a certain teaching is emanating. This will take place in a very, relatively, short period of time, and will lead to conclusive evidence that the Christ is in our midst.
"From that time onwards, the changes which will take place in the world will proceed with a speed unprecedented in the whole history of the planet. The next 25 years will show such changes, changes so radical, so fundamental, that the world will be entirely changed for the better."
No one was more surprised than I was to hear this statement. Not until I heard it back on tape was I sure, even, that it made sense.

Maitreya's manifestion was complete

On July 7th 1977, Maitreya himself informed us that his body of manifestation ― the Mayavirupa ― was totally complete, that he had "donned" it, and that his Body of Light (his Ascended Body) was now at rest in his mountain Centre in the Himalayas. On July 8th, we were told, the Descent had begun. On Tuesday, July 19th, my Master told me that Maitreya had now arrived in his "point of focus," a well-known modern country. I had a lecture meeting that night at Friends' House, but was told to keep the information to myself, as yet. During our Friday Transmission session, the Master told me that Maitreya had been resting, acclimatising himself, for three days, and that on that day, July 22nd, his Mission had begun. This information I could share with the group.
About midnight, the transmission ended and we congregated as usual for tea before dispersing. My wife turned on the television, where the late-night film featured some family drama with Bette Davis in the leading role. Some of the group watched, but understandably, my thoughts were elsewhere. I made some sarcastic remarks about the film and its actors (usually I admire Bette Davis as an actress very much). When I could bear it no longer, I said I had some rather more important news to tell them ― that the Christ was now in the everyday world in full, physical presence, and beginning his mission.
Many, many times since, to scores of audiences, I have made this announcement, but never again with the sense of having, even in a small way, shared in a great planetary event. The tears of joy on the faces of the group around the table showed that they, too, felt the same.

Maitreya's public messages

  At the beginning of September 1977, I was asked if I would take the messages from Maitreya publicly. On September 6th 1977, the first public message was given, at Friends' House, Euston Road, "experimentally," to find out, I suppose, how I stood up to the demonstration of this kind of overshadowing and telepathy in public ― a very different thing from the privacy of one's own group. These have continued until now. At the moment of going to press (1980) we have received 85 messages. These are conveyed by me to the audience; no trance or mediumship is involved, and the voice is mine, very obviously strengthened in power and altered in pitch by the overshadowing energy of Maitreya. They are transmitted simultaneously on all the astral and mental planes, while I supply the basic etheric-physical vibration for this to take place. From these subtle levels, the messages impress the minds and hearts of countless people, who are gradually made aware of the thoughts and the presence of the Christ. He releases in this way fragments of his teaching, to prepare the climate of hope and expectancy which will ensure his being accepted and followed, quickly and gladly.
 
  It is an enormous, and embarrassing, claim to have to make ― that the Christ is giving messages through oneself. But if people can rid their minds of the idea of the Christ as some sort of spirit, sitting in "heaven" at God's right hand; if they can begin to see him as indeed he is, as a real and living man (albeit a divine man) who has never left the world; who descended, not from "heaven," but from his ancient retreat in the Himalayas, to complete the task he began in Palestine; as a great Master; an Adept and Yogi; as the chief actor in a Gospel Story which is essentially true, but much simpler than hitherto presented; if people can accept that possibility, then the claim to receive telepathic communications from such a closer and more knowable Being is also, perhaps, more acceptable. In any case, I leave it to a study of the quality of the messages themselves to convince or otherwise. For many people, the energies, which flow during the overshadowing, convince. Many who come to these meetings are clairvoyant in various degrees, and their visions of the overshadowing as it takes place is for them the most convincing evidence of all.
Perhaps the above will help to explain why I speak of the Masters and the Christ and their reappearance with conviction. For me, their existence is a fact, known through my direct experience and contact. It is in the hope of awakening others to the reality of that fact, and to the further, momentous, fact of their return now to the everyday world to lead us into the Aquarian Age, that this book is written.
Benjamin Creme
London 1980
(From the book: The Reappearance of the Christ and the Masters of Wisdom, by Benjamin Creme)
 

Listen to audio & video recordings

Messages from Maitreya the Christ

During the years of preparation for his emergence, from 1977 to 1982, Maitreya gave 140 Messages through Benjamin Creme during public lectures in London. (read more on this)

• Introduction to the Messages (1 min)
• Listen to Message 10 (9:46 min) Read this Message
• Listen to Message 11 (10:58 min) Read this Message
• Listen to Message 13 (14:22 min) Read this Message
• Listen to Message 52 (9:18 min) Read this Message
• Listen to Message 81 (8:04 min) Read this Message
• Listen to Message 82 (9:46 min) Read this Message
• Listen to Message 104 (9:28 min) Read this Message
• How do we start changing the world? (2 min)

Benjamin Creme talks and interviews

View videos of Mr. Creme's public lectures and media appearances

Mr. Creme's lecture in Tokyo, Japan on May 2003 (audio only).
Mr. Creme interviewed by Frank Sontag (KLOS radio) on Sunday 29 July, 2002 (audio only)  

• Mr. Creme -- Frank Sontag -- Part 1 
• Mr. Creme -- Frank Sontag -- Part 2 

Maitreya Blessing and Message through Mr. Creme
Breaking the biggest story in history -- a documentary based upon Benjamin Creme's November 97 press conference (29 min)
On Transmission Meditation (audio)
Full-length talk by Benjamin Creme, 
The overcoming of fear (audio, 67 min)

Excerpts from talks by Benjamin Creme

• Why has Maitreya come? (2:30 min)
• The Christ: Is he here to fix the world for us? (3 min)
• When will Maitreya appear on television? (1 min)
• When will the Day of Declaration take place? (0:30 min)
• What will happen on the Day of Declaration? (1:30 min)
• What can we do to help the world? (1 min)  
• We must end hunger first (0:30 min)
• Maitreya and sharing (1 min)
• Will sharing be enforced? (4:15 min)
• Implementing the principle of sharing (3 min)
• On the impending world stock market crash (5 min)
• What will the new politics be like?  (2 min)
• On capitalism and communism  (1:30 min)
• The transformation of South Africa (2 minutes)
• On the environment (4:30 min)
• On education (4 min)
• On health (3 min)
• On stress (2:30 min)
• On work & leisure (3 min)
• On hope (1 min)
• The Masters and our free will (2:15 min)