Could I do better if I had been born someone else?

“I must point out that it is easy to make excuses and say, ‘If I had been born so-and-so, I could have done better’, but this is not so, it is the foolish talk of a child. Each and every one of you can, in the quiet of your own room – which is your mind – draw inspiration which comes from within. The more people who do this, the more will follow those people, because they will see within you the Light – they may not know that they see it, but they will see it.”

The Master Aetherius, ‘Cosmic Logic’ – November 28th 1954
You Are Responsible!, p.113

This statement is typical of the Cosmic Masters. On the one hand it may seem: uncompromising – unsympathetic – and hard-line. On the other hand it is: empowering – compassionate – and infinitely inspiring.

Such is surely the nature of wisdom … !

The Master Aetherius is telling us that no matter what the circumstances of our birth, we can all draw inspiration from within ourselves. All of us … !

You can only do your best by being yourself

This is not some sickly-sweet ‘New Age’ platitude. It is literally true.

“ … ‘If I had been born so-and-so, I could have done better’, but this is not so … ”

The Master Aetherius is telling us that being born a different person would not enable us to do better.

What a strangely beautiful and profound thought …

We could not do any better other than by being born ourselves …

If we had been born richer, cleverer, taller, more beautiful, more charming, with better parents, with better health, with better friends, with better education … etc … We could not do better with any of these things!

Why?

Because the very challenges that karma presents us with at our birth, are the EXACT lessons we need. Karma doesn’t make mistakes. Whatever ‘lot in life’ we were handed at birth, is the right lot – and given to us for very definite reasons. These reasons are governed by our past actions and our future destiny.

Who handed us this lot?

We each handed it to ourselves!

Not the little conscious mind of us – but the great big soul of us; the supra-conscious; the Higher Self – which always works for God in every way.

Do we all have the same potential?

The Master Aetherius is not saying that everyone has the same potential within a given time-frame. Some people are born with karmic patterns such that they can attain Mastery even as young adults. Others are born with karmic patterns where such an attainment will be at least several lives away, even working full-throttle.

The point is that the advanced person has already learned various lessons before their birth. It is not easier for this person, it’s just that they have already done most of the work, which the less advanced person has not done.

But, on the other hand, in essence we do all have the same potential, given the same effort over the same period of time. Masters don’t become Masters because they are lucky; and unadvanced people are not unadvanced because they are unlucky. It is, basically, all simply a matter of effort. We are not yet Masters because we have not put in enough effort on the path.

Excuses

The Master Aetherius tells us that the idea of blaming our birth is an excuse – and a childish one. On reflection, this is obvious. How can we achieve our potential without facing our own karmic lessons?!

If we were born into a situation governed by the karma of a great Adept, rather than our own, it would not help us at all! It would be like putting a child at kindergarten into a post-graduate course.

We can all find inspiration within

We can all find inspiration within – all of us. We are not all capable of finding the same level of inspiration straight away, but we can all make a start. A big start.

Then, eventually, we will be able to find the same level of inspiration as that of a great Master.

Compassion

Some people use karma as an excuse not to help others. They say that we should not help people because we would be interfering with their karma.

This is an utterly disgusting and extremely foolish ‘interpretation’ of karma.

No action of ours can interfere with the karmic law – it is perfect.

On the contrary, karmic experience drives us to a state of compassion – where we see that “SERVICE IS THE ONE AND ONLY WAY.” (Note 1)

Whatever the circumstances of your birth, they have been designed by your own Higher Self to make you more compassionate; to raise your consciousness in the direction of selfless service.

So, please, please, do not decide not to help little children in need, or homeless drug-addicts etc, based on their karma. Whatever good you do for them, must be within the range of their karmic pattern, or it could not happen. Plus, though this should not be your motive, you will be improving your own karma. This will speed up your journey to Mastery.

We can’t all be the same, but we can all be better

We all suffer. Everyone has some bad memories or trauma of some kind or another. Some people have more than others, yes – but we all have some.

The question is – how we react to such pain. Some people become bitter, jealous, spiteful, sadistic, power-hungry etc – others become spiritually detached, compassionate, humble, thoughtful etc.

There is no experience which ‘makes your soul bad’. We choose, from each experience, whether to become better, worse, or much the same. Sometimes this choice is of course very difficult.

Judgementalism

We should be extremely wary of judging others when it comes to any of these things. Sometimes judgements have to be made – such as in our choice of spiritual teacher, or life partner, or even friend. But this kind of essential judgement is very different from wanton judgementalism, designed to make ourselves feel superior. Judgementalism, ultimately, is foolish – because karmically speaking, we are simply inviting ourselves to fall into that river wherein another has fallen. (Note 2)

Some people do have terrible starts in life – through health, poverty, abuse etc. It would be heartless and ridiculous to dismiss the suffering of such people as “just something they have to get over”. This is not the message of the Cosmic Masters. Such people need help – and should be helped. (Note 3)

But, nor should such things be used as an excuse. Some people have terrible childhoods and become wonderful people. Other people seem to have every conceivable advantage and become awful people.

The true victory within

The purpose of this extract is not that we become insensitive to the childhood troubles of others – or even ourselves. Such things have to be dealt with, to one degree or another, in one way or another. This can even apply to past lives. The Master Aetherius does not say that these problems do not exist, or even that they might not be very painful or important.

The point here is not whether they exist, but that they can be overcome. And yet, even more than that, that it is by overcoming these self-same troubles, that we become the best people we can possibly be. Paradoxically, in a sense, our greatest limitations are our greatest opportunities for growth – it is the barriers to light that are the keys to light – but only when conquered in our own hearts and minds.

This conquest is our victory. This is the best and only true victory within the soul of man – the victory of our Higher Selves over our lower selves.

Note 1: Quotation from an article by Dr George King entitled ‘The Greatest Event Ever Reported’ in The Aetherius Society Newsletter – July 1967; Vol. 6; Issue no. 13–14

Note 2: This concept is based loosely on the last sentence of ‘The One Energy’, given by a Lord of Saturn on November 23rd, 1957. (Available as an Altar Card.)

Note 3: Just because someone is suffering, or in a very difficult situation, does not mean that they are less spiritually advanced than someone who is leading an easy life. In fact very often the exact opposite may be true! Karmic experience is all about the lessons an individual needs in order to become more advanced.

About the author
Mark Bennett is the co-author of two books, both of which he wrote with international bestselling author Richard Lawrence, namely Prayer Energy and Gods, Guides and Guardian Angels, which was voted “best book on spirituality 2007” by readers of Kindred Spirit magazine. He is the youngest International Director of The Aetherius Society, whose teachings he chose as his spiritual path at an early age.