The quality of a Master
[…] What is a Master valued for?
A Master’s worth is his capacity to merge into God and to no longer exist. Here again, that can be found in our spiritual traditions: fana (in Sufism), self-annihilation (among Christians), pralaya (for Yogis and the Vedanta). There is always the very idea that we should no longer exist, that one should annihilate one’s self into God and make that self disappear.
What will be left, then? God and only God.
The greatest Masters, whatever their approaches or the path they followed, have all developed their total capacity to annihilate the self (fana al fana). When they are performing their spiritual work, they are no longer there.
Is a spiritual Master perfect? No, he can’t be perfect since he is human and perfection does not belong here below. Only God is perfect.
Where does perfection abide then? When the self disappears, God is there. […]
Excerpt of Transmission and Masters
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Let us read even further about the issue:
[…] Theo. – Now tell me, why should the Masters have to come back and live with us after they have attained that high level?
The Elder – They willingly offer themselves to humankind. They are like vessels we are invited to board in order to return to the Source, to God.
Theo. – Does it take a long time?
The Elder – No more than an instant. God and only Him inhabits their interiority. The Masters welcome us with Love into their hearts.
Theo. – Hearts they have already offered to God!
The Elder – Hearts that have been totally offered and accepted. God dwells there permanently and forever, and from these offered hearts He can rule the human beings’ world. […]
[…] Theo. – As I understand it, any seeker, whether an aspirant or a disciple, may at any time join the Ultimate through his Master’s divine heart?
The Elder – That’s it! The Master’s heart is just as a gate opening onto eternity, and as I usually say to you, the best key to that gate is Love.
Theo. – Now what if the aspirant can’t open that door, supposing he doesn’t like the Master’s personality, for instance? How could he develop love, then?
The Elder – That is why you must focus on Master’s heart rather than on the individual and the specific physical person you can see. But you are forgetting that, most of the time, the very personality of the aspirant is what constitutes the major obstacle. […]
[…] Theo. – Your friend Malik had really clarified for me the high spiritual competence of a Master of Wisdom, but the experience I’ve had in the mountain allowed me to access a dimension that left me completely amazed. Could you please tell me more about the idea of having a Master.
The Elder – A Master of Wisdom comes down to Earth for a very specific task. It does not qualify him for any personal work. He is duly mandated. The ancient Taoists would speak of a celestial mandate. All Masters of Wisdom belong to a spiritual tradition. Each one of the Masters had his own Master, or sometimes several Masters belonging to that very tradition or to another one. He started with being an aspirant, and quickly became a disciple. […]