16

The Master El Morya, Chief of the Darjeeling Council, is the Great Being whose responsibility is the guardianship and evolution of the great Asiatic continent and its peoples, as well as the supervision of the Governments of the World.

At this time in the history of humankind's evolution, sincere people are seeking earnestly to know "God's Will", and it is to the fact of the Great Exponent of the First Ray, El Morya, who represents, the Will of God to the Earth, that all must come in order to understand more fully the Divine Plan and the voluntary part each one may play in fulfilling it. For this reason, the Beloved Sanat Kumara has directed the consciousness of humanity toward the Presence of El Morya during the period that his Retreat is open, so that all who are desirous of absorbing his Consciousness and becoming an active and actual part in expanding the Kingdom of Heaven may have the opportunity of acquainting themselves, firsthand, with his Consciousness, his Flame and his Ray.

The exquisite White Palace which is the home of El Morya in India is built in the oriental style of the Taj Mahal. We stand at the foot of the long column of marble steps leading to the massive golden doors, on each of which is a Crest of a great "M R" held within a chalice. The doors open silently and the splendor of the magnificent entrance hall is revealed.

The gracefully carved double stairway arches over a most exquisite life-size tapestry of King Arthur, sitting with his Knights at the Round Table. Into it have been woven the glorious colors that only the Kashmiri Weavers could have drawn forth. Looking upward, a great prism in the vaulted ceiling has caught the natural rays of the sun, and pours them in a veritable rainbow of color into the hall below. The door on the right is closed, and again we note the Crest of the Master woven into its elaborate design. A golden plate signifies, in Sanskrit, that it is the Council Room of The Brotherhood.

In the exact center of the entrance hall is a beautiful replica of the Taj Mahal, its tallest minarets about five feet high, complete in every detail, and the lily pool in front of it is filled with sparking effervescent water and fragrant lotus blossoms of every size and color.

The door on the left hand side of the hall is open, and we can see an exquisite drawing room, with a fire burning on the grate, and a large vase of roses on the carved rosewood piano, the music still open upon the rack, as if someone had just been playing there. A fine china tea service is set before the fire, and, although the whole atmosphere is the personification of splendor and elegance, there is an atmosphere of homeliness and warmth that enters deeply into the heart.

Suddenly, framed in the open door, stands the beautiful figure of our host, smiling gently, 'his soft brown hair falling in waves on his shoulders. He is wearing the snow white, tapered trousers and soft soled, seamless shoes of the East, with the over-tunic which reaches to the knees. Around his waist is the Royal Blue girdle, tied on the right side, each end embroidered with the same unique design that we noted on the doors, the "M R" with the Grail.

Coming forward with outstretched hands to greet us, we enter the warm embrace of his Loving Presence, and are happily drawn into the room which we observed from the hall. We note the beautiful oil paintings, a lovely English Manor House hanging over the mantel piece, and woven tapestries containing phrases from those songs which our Master wrote not so long ago, are grouped along the walls.