The Age of Aquarius is upon us.

And all over the world, the subtle and complex changes that accompany the changing of the seasons are felt in small and large measures alike. For the seasons have changed and with this change come startling new developments that will help catapult mankind to finer and higher spirals of evolution. First, let us compare this new age with its predecessor then examine the multi-faceted features of this age where we are in right now.

The previous age, the Age of Pisces, was an age characterized by secrecy. Secret groups and organizations filled the earth. The teachings of the spiritual masters remained in secrecy in large parts of the planet. And there were reasons for this secrecy. The main portions of the masses of Earth were mired in the quicksand of ignorance. World education was badly needed. And so, people all over the world did not easily comprehend the great spiritual teachings. The result? Most esoteric teachings were articulated underground, in the halls of secret mystical organizations.

Now, in this new age, this status quo is about to change. The Age of Aquarius is characterized by world education to a level we have not achieved before. Fundamental learning, so necessary to grasp the higher principles of spiritual evolution, is now disseminated to a large portion of humanity. The advent of the global village and the creation of the internet superhighway are the building blocks of world education in this new age. The internet has made accessible the great spiritual teachings to large masses of mankind. Humanity is now undergoing a renaissance of learning in the arts, sciences and humanities. In addition, the esoteric realms of thought are becoming known by more and more people. Secrecy, so prevalent in the previous age, is now replaced by openness. Openness to new ideas. Openness to new cultural systems. Openness to the influx of new races, through tourism and immigration. Openness to new disciplines. Openness to new ways of expression and new ways of living.

Mystical groups and spiritual organizations of an esoteric nature shall have increasingly more importance as this age goes on. But unlike the previous age, there will be more openness rather than secrecy. Esoteric groups, which have a service component in their mission statement, will have more success. Preferably they must combine their esoteric curriculum with a real background in philosophy, psychology, the sciences and mathematics. Only those groups, which combine the spirit of scientific inquiry with a love for esoteric learning, will become the new torches of humanity, the nodes of light, which will help advance spiritual evolution.

Another feature of this age is the exaltation of the mental realm. I mean not the lower mind but the higher mind, its concepts, precepts and paradigms. Computation and cognition will reach a level not yet reached before in the previous eras of evolution. The development of humanity will be seen in a better light as a step born out of the previous ones, emphasizing this time the power of the illuminated mind. To advanced students of the spiritual path, the previous stages will be seen as the necessary initial steps of the ladder that leads to higher and higher rungs of glory. Philosophy, the mother of the sciences, provided the initial spark. The great philosophers of East and West blazed the pioneering trails to glory. Names like Pythagoras, Heraclitus, Parmenides, Socrates, Plato, Zoroaster, Lao Tzu, Chuang Tzu, Vardhamana Mahavira, and Plotinus were the champions of philosophy. Then this mother field gave birth to eventual children like chemistry, biology, physics, ecology, mathematics, sociology, history and psychology. In turn, these children gave birth to sub-disciplines of their own. As an example, psychology is very fortunate to have Carl Jung grace its presence and quicken the awesome sub-disciplines of Analytical Psychology and Archetypal Psychology. All these esoteric disciplines have had major parts in the theater of the Web of Life. Now, the game becomes more interesting as more players enter the scene and contribute to the eternal symphony of evolution.

In the Age of Aquarius, the esoteric realms, which were accessible to only a few in the past, will now become more widespread. More and more people are interested in esoteric philosophy nowadays. The younger generation, composed of intelligent and curious teenagers, is delving more and more into arcane stuff like Wicca, astrology, tarot, Kabbalah, rune craft, divination, astral phenomena, meditation, nature magic, shamanism, psychic powers, Gnosticism, the grail quest and spirituality in general. There are advantages and disadvantages of this curiosity. The advantage is that they get to acquire knowledge and participate in the great dance of spiritual development. The disadvantage is that these kids will obtain the wrong information from the wrong hands. Or that they will obtain only partial knowledge about certain aspects of the spiritual path without the synthesis that is absolutely necessary for correct understanding. Synthesis is extremely important in the esoteric realm, more so than in the esoteric fields. It is synthesis of knowledge that leads to wisdom. It is synthesis that leads to spiritual insight. It is synthesis that leads to spiritual illumination. Therefore, synthesis is a goal to be achieved at all costs.

Thus, the spiritual teachers and masters of the Age of Aquarius must possess both knowledge and wisdom, both in the esoteric and esoteric realms. Versatility is to be extolled. A multi-faceted spiritual teacher must be preferred over a narrow-minded one. The new generation of spiritual teachers must have a good background in the natural sciences, philosophy, mathematics, social sciences, literature and the humanities to be able to serve the greatest number of people. And, of course, spiritual teachers must be knowledgeable about the esoteric realms of thought. The best spiritual teachers are those who will be able to merge both the esoteric and the esoteric realms. This is a prime requirement of the Age of Aquarius: to merge the feminine and the masculine mind. To synthesize insights from the various fundamental fields of thought. Above all, spiritual teachers who have a good background in psychology and counseling will have a paramount place in this new age.

In the United States and other countries, the Aquarian Tabernacle Church is at the forefront of spiritual development, making Sacred Wisdom accessible to the populace and maintaining a blog, the Panegyria Journal online, for the dissemination and celebration of spiritual wisdom. This is an example of Wisdom being propagated more and more to the world population at large, a singular facet of the Age of Aquarius. In the Philippines, the Kore Grove of the Anam Cara Philippines Learning Organization is also in this nexus, valiantly and cheerfully making Wiccan, Druidic and Gnostic wisdom accessible to the masses.

The Age of Aquarius is upon us. And now, it is the turn of Humanity to partake of its gifts and turn them to advantage. The gifts of Eternity are not to be taken lightly. They must be absorbed, assimilated, savored and transformed. Only by transforming our inner selves can we gain mastery of our outer selves. And that is the central message of this Age of Accelerated Evolution.