"The Great Esoteric Tradition of Devotion To The Adept-Realizer"
an excerpt from Part Three of The Aletheon by Avatar Adi Da Samraj
Note: Extra paragraph breaks have been added to Avatar Adi Da's original text, to assist reading on a computer monitor.
Spiritually Realized Adepts (or Transmission-Masters, or True Gurus) are the principal Sources, Resources, and Means of the esoteric (or Spiritual) Way. This fact is not (and never has been) a matter of controversy among real Spiritual practitioners.
The entire Spiritual Way is a process based on the understanding (and the transcending) of attention, or the understanding (and the transcending) of the inevitable and specific results of egoic attachment to, or egoic reaction to, or egoic "self"-identification with every kind of conditional "object", other, or state.
This Spiritual understanding (or real "self"-understanding) is expressed in a simple traditional formula (and prescription for practice): You become (or duplicate the qualities of) whatever you meditate on (or whatever you identify with via the "surrender" that is attention itself).
Since the most ancient days, this understanding has informed and inspired the practice of real practitioners of the Spiritual Way. Likewise (since the most ancient days), and on the basis of this very understanding, Spiritual practitioners have affirmed that the Great Principle of Spiritual practice is the Spiritual Company of the Realized Adept, or the practice of life as "self"-surrender to the bodily Person, the Transmitted Spiritual Presence, and the Realized State of a Spiritually Realized Adept (or True Guru) of whatever degree or stage.
The traditional term "Guru" (spelled with a capital "G") means "One Who Reveals the Light and thereby Liberates beings from Darkness". This term is also commonly (or popularly) interpreted in a general (or everyday) sense (and spelled with a small "g") to mean "teacher" (or anyone who teaches anything at all to another).
Thus, Adepts have certainly (and rightly) been valued simply (or in the general sense) as (small "g") "gurus" (that is, simply because they can instruct others about many things, including the Spiritual Way).
However, the function of instruction (about anything at all) can be performed by anyone who is properly informed (or even by a book that is properly informed) — and, indeed, even the specific function of Spiritual Instruction is secondary to the Great Function of the Adept ( As Guru, with a capital "G").
Adepts inevitably (or, at least, in the majority of cases) Instruct (or Teach) others, but the function of Instruction (about the Spiritual Way) is then passed on through good books (containing the authentic Word of Teaching), and through informed others (who are, hopefully, true practitioners), and so forth.
The Great Function of the Adept-Guru is, however, specific only to Adepts themselves, and this is the Guru-Function (and the Guru-Principle) supremely valued by Spiritual practitioners since the most ancient days.
The specific Guru-Function is associated with the Great Principle of devotional Communion with the Adept-Guru (and with the unique Spiritual understanding of attention).
Therefore, since the most ancient days, all truly established (or real) Spiritual practitioners have understood that devotional Communion with the Adept-Guru is, Itself, the Great Means for Realizing Real (Acausal) God, or Truth Itself, or Reality Itself.
That is to say, the Great Means (or Secret) of Realization in the Spiritual Way is to live in, or to spend significant time in, or otherwise (and constantly) to give attention to the Company, Form, Presence, and State of an Adept who is (truly) Realized in one or another of the esoteric stages of life.
The Essence of the practice of devotional Communion with the Adept-Guru is to focus attention on (and thereby to, in due course, become Identified with, or Realize Indivisible Oneness with) the Realized Condition of a True Adept-Guru (especially One Who Is presently and constantly In Samadhi — or in the actual State of True Realization, however, and by whatever term of reference, Realization is described in any particular tradition or school).
Therefore, the practice of devotional Communion with the Adept-Guru is the practice of ego-transcending Communion (and, Ultimately, Indivisible Oneness) with the Adept's own Condition, Which Is (according to the degree or stage of the Adept's characteristic Realization) Samadhi Itself, or the Adept's characteristic (and Freely, Spontaneously, and Universally Transmitted) Realization (Itself).
The Aletheon by His Divine Presence, Avatar Adi Da
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False Religion and 
