The Role of Women on the Spiritual Path
According to the Agni Yoga teachings, the coming age of Maitreya is the age of Women. For long have women suffered in the hands of suppression, politics and domination. The coming age must be an age where women can express themselves more freely and creatively to bring about a wholesome change in society. In the coming age women must play an active role in the betterment of human society.
That indeed doesn’t mean it must be achieved through a militant form of feminism and tooth and nail competition with the opposite sex. This maybe an ideal for some. But the Esoteric teachings rather suggests a more healthier approach where men and women work together as friends instead of competitors.
On the esoteric path women have great responsibility because the degeneration of every civilization starts with the degradation of the image of woman. When women are used for materialistic purposes or when they are used to promote sexual perversions, society also becomes degenerate. So protecting the integrity, purity and freedom of women is pivotal for a wholesome humanity.
“Woman in the ancient world was worshiped. She was not an advertisement in pornographic magazines. She was not a symbol of sex, of lust. She was a symbol of beauty, purity, and fragrance. Se when people think about woman, they must not think about sex, body, or legs. They must think, first, that this woman has a special, divine, or universal quality in her spirit that causes flowering.” – Torkom Saraydarian
Today feminism is in rise but many times we have seen instead of helping women flower in their own way it coerces them to behave like men. It is an absolute disgrace when religion, politics and feminist ideals are used to make a man out of a woman. On the spiritual path women are not coerced or taught to behave in a particular manner. They are only taught how to express their sacred femininity in the most complete sense and become active workers in the transformation of Society.
In the Past century, we saw great women who became a force for social and spiritual change. Madame Blavatsky formed the Theosopical society in the late 1800s, the teachings of Agni Yoga was spread through Helena Roerich and Alice Bailey gave us the teachings of the Tibetan Master. These three women not only changed the esoteric structure of occultism forever, they were also a very potent spiritual force that has inspired millions of both men and women all over the world today. Moreover the social reforms and the fight for freedom by Annie Besant has also inspired many people likewise. These women achieved great things only because they did not waste their time and energy to compete with men, in unnatural expression of sexuality or by becoming slaves of materialism.
Today women are told they are free but often times such freedom is abused when women fall victims of materialism, enslaving forms of sexuality and morally degrading impulses. According to Torkom Saraydarian, every New Age women have certain responsibilities,
“Women not only have a unique role to play with their family, but also a unique responsibility:
- to protect life
- to protect the right development of life
- to evoke the highest latent in man
- to protect beauty
- to protect peace and harmony
- to protect the agelong fruits of the labor of humanity
- to protect the Teaching from degeneration
- to encourage the best in all fields
- to strive towards the future
- to learn and teach the laws of sacrifice and service
- to produce the highest survival techniques
- to inspire creativity in all fields
- to reveal the future possibilities of life after death
- to explain the law of love and compassion
It is very beautiful to see women fighting for women’s rights, but it would be even greater if women would form a new group, a new organization, which would reveal to humanity the responsibilities of women and fight to restore those conditions in which women would be able to perform their responsibilities.”
Apart from being victims of advertisement, pornography, materialism etc, women today are also victims of ugly social customs like arranged marriages in some parts of the world which is destroying their lives and encroaching on their freedom. Marriage is a sacred relationship upon which the society is formed. When marriage gets degraded and people marry only out of ulterior motives, when two strangers who don’t even know or love each other are forced to form families, it results in degradation of society.
“When we deceive in love, when we create friendships for ulterior purposes, when we marry only for security or wealth or position, we are destroying value. And when enough people destroy value, civilizations collapse, nations fall, systems die, and great dreams that have been sustained for ages come to nothing.”
~ Manly P. Hall
Love has No Enemies 1964, p.14
All that being said, the Greatest role of women in this world for which we all should be grateful is the role of mother. If we have spiritual mothers who are able to raise morally good children, we will have heaven on earth in no time. But, often times under the pressure of society, husband, in-laws, advertisement, materialism, outdated social customs, a woman fails to be an ideal mother. So it is absolutely necessary for women to solve the problems that’s obstructing them from becoming good mothers. Women can be the saviors of humanity just with the role of being a mother if they know how to truly love and nurture their child.
It is indisputable that the world we live in has many traps that prevents women to flower both spiritually and emotionally. Some women feeling repressed revolt and often fall victims of pornography and their sexuality get misused. The true revolt women can organize is not the enjoyment of more rights, sexual freedom or work rights or political rights. These things will automatically follow in the right manner if women can fulfill their role as mothers and educators of the society. The laws we have in this society are created by human beings. If we raise good children it will result in good laws and governance for the future generation.
Every man who is a politician, a dictator, a monopolist, a opportunist, an aggressor etc etc was raised by a mother. And perhaps if they were all raised in a totally different and holistic way, they wouldn’t have become what they are today. It is indeed not the fault of their mothers because they are also victims of an opressive society. But, if mothers can freely raise their children in a spiritual way, if they can nurture them with morality then perhaps we wouldn’t have an ugly society anymore.
“In the ancient times they understood that the woman is so important and that when woman degenerates in any civilization, that civilization ends. That is why we say, “The homes are built or destroyed by mothers.” It is very powerful!
Don’t forget. A great woman can give birth to a great child. The father is okay. The father is beautiful, but the child is not nine months in the father. In that nine months it is so secret. In that nine months you are not just building the muscles and bones. That is what people normally think, but you are building the emotional mechanism there, secret mechanisms, the mental mechanism, the motives, the future, the visions, dreams, aspirations, the spiritual insight and foresight. You are building all these in your body, and if you don’t have all these things, what are you going to give to your baby? Are you giving freeways, accidents, hurts, irritations, jobs, and on and on? What are you going to give to that baby who is given to you as a gift?” – Torkom Saraydarian
Through the right holistic education, both men and women can become efficient members of the society and they can become a force for change. Education is always the key to transformation. There are many esoteric books which women today can read an use in order to bring about a change both in their consciousness and in the society.
Some recommended books are listed below:
- Woman the Torch of the Future by Torkom Saraydarian
- Education begins before birth by Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov
- Education in the New Age by Alice Bailey
- Woman: From Agni Yoga Teachings by Helena Roerich
- Sex, Family & Women in Society by Torkom Saraydarian
With an active role in the department of politics, education and finance, women can bring about a positive change in this world. To achieve this we need educated and holistically motivated women of goodwill. We cannot achieve a social transformation if women do the same thing opressive patriarchy has done to women in the past. Genuine feminism should be based on a healthy relationship between both men and women. Radical feminism that thrives upon competition, antagonism towards men, masculine form of female liberation etc should be done away with. Because a healthy society is only formed when men and women work together, when they are not competing, when they are not trying to outsmart and rise above each other. Only with the spirit of cooperation we can save humanity.
"The universal disorganization which we see today, the threatening degeneration of many countries, is the result of this continuing imbalance through the subservience and oppression of woman. By degrading woman, man degrades himself; and without the revival of true chivalry and gentleness the spirit cannot rise."
