Functions of a Master
by Athos A. Altomonte

Learning without words

‘Time is the soul's money'; this is a pearl that opens the conscience. We could quote hundreds of these pearls, at the risk of boring the most pragmatic readers.

Reality is not only praxis, though; it is also a subtle phenomenon, mostly unknown. A long time ago I decided to direct my energies towards that subtle reality. I know I've been weighed, measured and accepted in a teaching where words are often useless. This is the special part I would like to share.

The prolix man will find it difficult to imagine that beyond a certain level a master doesn't teach with words but with acts. Mimic is the psycho-dramatic representation of a ‘mental synthesis', a form of psychic precipitate able to open the mind more than a thousand words.

This teaching method is not very well known; nevertheless it is fascinating.

The function of a true master is to replace the soul of the apprentice

The teaching is necessary. It can be of different levels depending on the ability to interact of the apprentice and the master (empathy bridge called ‘mental synchrony'). The roles are indispensable. The ability of the apprentice is not to carry out orders (he is not a dog to be trained) but to ask the right questions; when the master answers them he can transmit his teaching and therefore himself. (See ‘The Bread of knowledge').

With regards to the metaphor of the ‘master that must be killed' (in the past they used strong words because the listeners were less sensitive than today) I would say that what must be ‘killed' is the memory of the embodied part. It is the immanent part, the physical image and the personality, to prevent us from turning them into an ‘object' of adoration as it happens for devotional temperaments in popular cults. By ‘killing' the immanence we exalt transcendence, which is the spiritual essence and the intellectual substance that the master transmits with his teaching. To support this concept is the fact that all philosophies or mysticisms have represented initiatory transmission in the shape of dialogue between a greater (master) and a lesser (disciple). This concludes the exoteric form of initiatory tradition.

Inner dialogue, an occult aspect of the initiatory teaching

Many people have heard about occult teaching. Ancient initiates discovered it and passed it on in their mysteries. Since then many people have looked for it in the strangest places; very few people understood that the occult is the ‘hidden' part of ourselves, which we can connect to through a very particular form of inner dialogue .

In the ‘mysteries' this form of dialogue is not between ‘man and man', but between man and divinity. The multitude looks for the divinity ‘outside', but they don't find it. The initiate can find it because he looks inside himself.

When the initiate looks at his ‘inner sky' (dome or vault of conscience) he finds the fragment of God that rules him; this is what Plato called ‘monad'. Monad is spiritual energy. It is the ‘sun' inside every man and woman. Spiritual conscience, which reflects the soul, ‘communicates' with the physical expression; it doesn't happen in reverse, until the fragment of lower conscience (physical reason) hasn't found the strength to start the process of reintegration (mental Alchemy).

Knowledge by contact

What is the purpose of a master, then? At this point the answer is not difficult. His function, as he knows well, is to replace the guide of the subtle conscience. A true master doesn't work for himself, but to help the apprentice build the link (Royal Arch) with the conscience of the soul. Once the conscience of the soul ‘reaches' the physical mind (see Freemasonry, initiation to the 3 rd degree), the initiate doesn't need any more external guides. He starts his work, which is the same as the soul aimed at. We should now consider extremely significant factors that we can't mention yet.

It is fair to mention what originates from the connection between personality (see physical identity) and superior Ego (see subtle identity). ‘Their' link starts the inner dialogue that gives the so-called ‘knowledge by contact'. In other words it means that the contact between physical and subtle identities produces the ‘transfer' of information known as occult teaching.

This exchange is not a futile form of mental embellishment, but it joins the destiny of the initiate to the soul. This is the only way to bring them back to the project of ‘elective group' made by other ‘similar' souls. This group is the true eggregore of the Initiate.

This information can open panoramas useful to those who aspire to the operative branch of initiation. In order to represent the domain effect that follows true initiation, it would be more suitable to use geometry, mathematics and especially the knowledge of sonorous forms and their colors.

This would be the access to an intellectually exalting environment, where new fellow travelers are welcome.