Remarks by the Biographee
by Richard Kieninger
A book as limited in size as The Ultimate
Frontier precludes complete development and explanation of its subject; yet
its scope provides a basic introduction to the teachings of the Brotherhoods.
In some respects the presentation of information may have seemed cursory, but
the average reader was probably best served by having followed the same
sequence of instruction that had been carefully designed for my understanding
as a youth.
Persons who are predisposed toward formalized philosophy might have preferred
the tenets of the Brotherhoods’ belief to have been developed step by step from
a priori foundations, but to undertake a logical argument on this basis
would be unprofitable since philosophers are not yet in agreement as to what
constitutes a truth firm enough to be regarded as a basic philosophic foundation.
For example, mathematicians and physicists agree to ignore the many unprovable
foundations of science so long as these arbitrary assumptions continue to work
in practical applications. Even empiricists are often forced to accept as fact
many things which are but subjectively self-evident.
In any event, it is highly improbable that the cosmology known to the
Brotherhoods could ever have been imagined by man—let alone proven logically by
him. The realm of scientific philosophy lacks objective evidence of the planes
of existence beyond the physical, and without acceptable observations, an
hypothesis cannot be derived nor understanding be achieved. Unfortunately,
scientists will never acquire objective knowledge of the other planes of
existence because the necessary evidence can only be obtained through mental
experiences which are wholly subjective. Inasmuch as observations must be
reproducible under laboratory conditions in order to be admissible to the body
of scientific knowledge, the powers of Mind are officially cast into limbo.
Thus we are faced with a crippling shortcoming in man’s search for truth.
Science has by its own rules limited itself to material phenomena and excluded
itself from analyzing man’s place in the cosmos. I don’t quarrel with this
sensible limitation, but I find it unfortunate that scientists have not as yet
been able to extend their thoughtful probings to a disciplined study of the
phenomena of the higher planes of existence. Essentially this has been the work
of the Brotherhoods; and when a man sincerely undertakes the quest for higher
understanding, he attracts the assistance of the Brothers who traveled that
same path before him.
Our knowledge about the world has its root in man’s perceptions of existence
through his five basic senses. Observation and logical inference have thereby
brought him into possession of a great deal of knowledge concerning his
physical environment. The next step is taken when an individual has intensified
his senses beyond the physical; for from that point onward, his increased
perceptions of nature allow him to know things about his environment that are
closed to the average man. The Ego who has advanced to the point where he is
acceptable for admission into the Brotherhoods knows that the Brotherhoods’ philosophy
is truth because by then he is able to rely on empirical evidence—subjective
though it may be. Men who have developed clairvoyant abilities are generally
unable to convince those who haven’t yet come to possess these powers that
there are other planes of existence. Clairvoyants find it is like describing a
rainbow to a man blind since birth.
Fortunately, the current popularity of psychology mitigates an otherwise gloomy
prospect for mankind’s future. Even though psychology is not yet a science (being
essentially still in the stage of amassing observations), many of the
reasonable conclusions it has synthesized after a century of analysis have
earned it respect in scientific circles. The psychologist’s evident ability to
predict human behavior has led to several accepted “laws” which are of
practical use. Parapsychology is likewise beginning to draw attention to the
case for man’s extrasensory perceptions, and sheer weight of evidence may
eventually force the scientific philosophers to accord serious consideration to
the “sixth sense.”
Perception of reality is obscured by one’s environmental conditioning to accept
current popular belief as the highest good. The scientist and philosopher who
critically seek truth know all too well just how difficult it is to be honestly
objective. And ultimate truth is all the harder to come by when “truths” of
many colors and postures are imposed by national and religious groups.
Equally confusing is the attempt to discern the hallmarks of emotional
maturity. However, the Brotherhoods long ago recognized the highest values in
human behavior and described these goals as the virtues. Now men outside the
Brotherhoods have arrived at nearly the same conclusions as a result of
psychologists’ recent efforts to ferret out the ideal characteristics
exemplified by the completely mature person. We might expect a person of
balanced emotional maturity to be considered the epitome of social
acceptableness; but although he may be admired and respected, today’s world
remains aloof from him. Our society instead rewards the person who conforms to
its current modes of behavior. Evidence of strength of character in a man marks
him as a disquieting and irritating influence. Life is by its nature a
continual series of frustrations and conflicts, and maturity is measured by
one’s ability to deal effectively with them as they arise.
One’s development of character and wisdom is not enhanced by following
emotional whims and group manias, nor can the adventure of life yield Egoic
advancement if the mind is clouded by alcohol, drugs or tranquilizers. Sanity
grows upon the sharp point of contact with reality and keen alertness to its
challenges; whereas avoidance of life and one’s problems is delusory.
Individuality and moral integrity protect one from being stampeded with the
multitude who surge blindly to the command of the impersonal though
all-powerful fad maker—they. On every side we are coerced to strive for social
acceptance, and our children are made to sacrifice all too much on the altar of
popularity. To have achieved perfect adjustment to a society that is childish
is to have regressed. Our social aspirations are presently geared to glamour,
and young and old alike have become willing pawns of the “image makers.” The
manipulators of glamour and advertising have carefully designed these forces to
make us discontent with what we are and possess so that we are moved to
purchase and consume whatever goods are represented to advance one’s status. As
a result of this insidious conditioning, we worship celebrities who are
renowned for little more than their well-knownness, glorify the executive and
his attendant wealth symbols, and emphasize sex for the wrong purposes.
Most people bend their energies to the pursuit of power, property and plaudits
instead of to the pursuit of maturity. The former lead to folly and
disillusionment whereas the latter brings contentment, confidence and
self-respect. Almost everyone thinks pleasure should bring happiness, and so it
follows that sex has become much indulged in; but lack of maturity keeps such
activity from delivering real satisfaction or contentment. Hazy misapprehensions
about the rather rare state of psychological maturity restrict its popularity
as a goal. Admittedly, it is difficult to have aims beyond one’s own horizons
of understanding. Moreover, nobody can portray the advantages of maturity to a
childish person because no amount of description can convey the feelings of an
emotion to a person who has not already experienced that emotion. The
short-range advantages of pleasure seem apparent, and the long-range advantages
of maturity are obscure and more difficultly realized; therefore, the majority
of mankind has always accepted the quicker goal and has barely considered the
greater goal.
One of life’s cruelest deceptions lurks in the shallow ambitions of man;
because when they are satiated, the result is boredom, discontent, and
dejection. The hoped-for happiness is a will-o-the-wisp that leads the pursuer
to seek newer pleasures after each in its turn proves as devoid of innate joy
as the last. Nonetheless, perennial happiness is possible for the possessor of
psychological maturity. Not so much because of his maturity per se but because
of the attitudes that make maturity possible. Selfless work for others, love of
humanity, kindness, love of nature, active furtherance of high principles, and
communion with higher sources are the demonstrated wellsprings of undiminishing
human joy.
The philosophers of the eighteenth century were stirred to great hope for
mankind when the concept of Reasonable Man was propounded. As far as this two
hundred-year-old dream is concerned, it has been attained only but limitedly.
The Brotherhoods assert that about one person in 2,500 can be considered
emotionally mature. Upon these few men and women rests the stability of
society, and this is all the more remarkable since few hold high positions of
temporal power. Perhaps no more than ten thousand men and women of the upper
echelons of reasonable maturity keep the world on even keel. Most of these ten
thousand are educators, philosophers, moralists and humanitarians; and they together
with an unintended following of perhaps fewer than one million persons of
goodwill and practical good sense comprise an informal association for the
preservation of mankind. The rest of mankind are drifters who miserably fail to
sustain civilization if the percentage of mature individuals within their
society falls to a low percentage of the population.
In the democratic nations of Western Civilization, the
average citizen sells himself out at the polls. I believe Freud was on the
right track when he stated that democracy fails because of the emotional flaws
in man. The British and American traditions of democracy continue to be
undermined by universal suffrage. Western Civilization is producing some of the
most exalted men and women to be seen for many millennia, but decadent and
irresponsible individuals are multiplying far more prolifically and,
consequently, so is their voting power. The hard-won freedoms of the
democracies are being thoughtlessly surrendered by “emotional peasants” in
exchange for “security.”
espite these drawbacks, the Brotherhoods insist that a democratic form of
government is best for mankind; but They admit it can survive only among a
citizenry almost wholly composed of emotionally mature individuals. The
Brotherhoods expect to prove their contention by assembling the truly capable
and mature persons of the world into a single group. If men of maturity and
wisdom fail to unify themselves in this way soon, it could well mean the end of
political and philosophical freedom anywhere on Earth for all time to come.
Future seismic activity and political disintegration should serve to alert the
mature individuals of the world who have been tardy in perceiving the
imperative importance of so uniting. Even now, eminent social and economic analysts
are warning us of many destructive trends that indicate a likely collapse of
our present way of life in the very near future. I suppose I too could be
classed as a prophet of doom, except that I foresee the wonderful
nation-to-come being prepared under expert guidance. Whatever dire cataclysms
man brings upon himself for the remainder of this century can be tolerably
viewed by understanding that the imminent breakdown is for the greatest good in
the long run. A totally fresh start can be made more easily for the world after
a complete collapse of what now exists.
Our sick world is beset by problems that cannot be solved by the conventional
power plays of times past, and I am doubtful that enough politicians throughout
the world will adopt attitudes likely to solve the dilemmas of our times. At
any moment, rulers may thrust us into a crisis that can swiftly compound into a
debacle of unimaginable destruction. That is a sickeningly pessimistic outcome
to visualize, but it is realistically probable. I would like to be able to
console myself with the dream that mankind’s sanity will prevail to save
civilization, but reasonable men are unable to comprehend the motives of
madness and therefore they have been repeatedly overwhelmed by lunatics.
Madness will be at the helm during most of what remains of the century, and it
is painfully obvious that we are particularly unable to control madness in
other countries.
A sense of hopelessness is coming more into the open as we talk to the man on
the street. He still has goals for himself, but his long-range dreams for
mankind are very tenuous. He advises others to grab what they can out of life
while some measure of stability still exists. He extends this prerogative to
politicians and surrenders his concern for the outcome of the fiscal policies
of his government. Emotional tautness of unremitting anxiety can fray the lines
of rationality.
There are many thoughtful men and women who are sorely saddened by the prospect
of seeing human beings reduced to a stone-age existence again. The likelihood
of one’s grandchild being a stupid, snarling, short-lived, malnourished clod is
crushing to one’s sensitivities. One cries out in anguish at the thought of
mankind’s achievements going to naught. Yet no one is more sympathetic to this
pathetic state of affairs than the Brotherhoods, for they have watched
civilizations obliterated many times over. In certain instances, men of quality
who have cried out against the insanity of it all have been granted solace by
the Brotherhoods who took them in and enlisted their talents. One of the
principal purposes of the
If the average man of today were transported to a civilization like that of
ancient Lemuria or the coming
The very minimum of government is a Lemurian principle lest the government
operate in the environment of the citizens against Cosmic Law. The purpose of
Lemurian government is to provide public services inexpensively; and although
there are government administrators in the Lemurian scheme of things, there
will be no politicians. Democracy will be exercised by referendum and not by a
legislature of representatives bending to pressure groups and lobbies seeking
legislative favoritism; nor will organized political parties vie for control of
government policies. The executive officers of the government will not be the
leaders of the people but will be strictly public servants having supervision
over only their respective departments and offices. The people will look to the
Adepts and great philosophers among them for inspiration and counsel, and then
they will act for themselves.
Lemurian economic policies will seem quite different from the traditions we
follow today. Machinery will put an end to hard labor, and automation will
reduce the workweek to a few hours. The cost of necessities such as food and
rental of housing will permit the wage earner a comfortable surplus for savings
and luxuries. Automated farms will produce food very inexpensively, and
radically simplified distribution methods without middlemen’s markups will hold
retail food prices close to the cost of rain, sun, fertilizer and seed. Hard
goods will be made to last for generations so that natural resources are
conserved. Designs in the styling of appliances and automobiles will be such
that they will look attractive indefinitely as well as outlast the owner’s
lifetime. Production methods today are geared to produce the greatest profit
for the stockholders; therefore, continual style changes accompanied by
advertising that has conditioned us to scorn the old and worship the latest
models makes us discard what is still useful. Just in case some people might
prefer to get the maximum usage out of an item, defects are purposely
engineered into it so it will need to be replaced early. The savings involved
when one needs to buy only one automobile instead of ten during his lifetime is
considerable. Our present industrial and finance system is designed to keep us
from catching up, and it has come to depend upon the exchange of goods and
services at maximum production capacity in order to avoid collapse.
The great increase in the amount of leisure time to be enjoyed in the Lemurian
system will be occupied by closer interpersonal relationships and by schooling.
Education will be a lifetime avocation in the
Meanwhile, there are citizens of the world who are able to understand that they
must create a new, protected society in order to escape the exploitive elements
of the present order of things. The Adelphi Organization is already established
and is available for them to escape to. There they can ready themselves and
their children for participation in the
The