The Initiates of the Flame by Manly P Hall

Description

In the world today, there exist individuals who, like ancient temple priests, safeguard the sacred spiritual flame within humanity. These purified souls have renounced worldly life to protect this inner essence, concealed beneath the ruins of human existence.

We observe the rise and fall of nations throughout history, pondering which will follow the path of its predecessors into obscurity. Amidst the material world’s haze, we discern an overarching justice, a reward dispensed not by man but by an invincible, eternal flame—an unseen hand guiding human affairs. This spiritual flame, the essence of God, remains constant on the sacred cosmic altar, nurturing all creation.

The decline of past civilizations—Greece, Rome, and Egypt—offers insight into their downfall. When the inner flame waned, so did the vitality of their societies. Degeneracy, lust, hatred, and fear infiltrated their souls, overshadowing the spiritual light. The priests lost connection with this flame, and the nation perished.

However, the flame itself never perished; it cannot, for it embodies life. It rekindled elsewhere, giving rise to new great nations. This pattern persists through history, linked by a universal spiritual thread—the thread of the living fire, present in all religions, binding them with shared ideals and needs.

In the Grail and King Arthur’s Legends, we find this thread entwined around the Table of the King and the Temple of Mount Salvart. It also weaves through the roses of the Rosicrucians, among the lotus petals, and amidst the temple pillars of Luxor. There is but one religion—the worship of God, the spiritual flame of the universe. We are the Flame-Born Sons of God, sparks emanating from the infinite.

Within us, the flame burns, and the lower self must serve the higher. Through service and love, we kindle this inner light, eventually joining the true Initiates—those who dedicate all to the Infinite in the name of the inner Flame.

Let us discover this Flame within ourselves and serve it, recognizing it in all living beings, uniting us as part of the eternal Flame—the spirit’s fire, the life force of the universe. The writer dedicates this book to the one Fire emanating from God, concealed within each living entity, to be honored upon the Flame’s altar.