On several occasions, Master KPK had spoken about the importance of celebrating the festivals of Good Friday / Passover and Easter.
On 3 April 2021, during the online lecture to members of “Merry Life” teachings, he had explained the esoteric understanding of the festivals and their times. Please see below the extract on this teaching.
As per this understanding, Good Friday will be this year Friday 5th of April 2024, and Easter Sunday, 7th of April.
With clarifications I did with Sri Kumar for the production of the Astro Diary of WTT, he had explained that in years where Good Friday is at the very end of Aries and the following New Moon is already in Taurus, the third Friday in the month of Aries preceding New Moon might be taken as Good Friday.
For cases, where the new moon is at the very beginning or early days of Aries, the Master gave different indications like celebrating in such years Good Friday in the third week of Aries, not around New Moon. He said that it is not possible to always reconcile lunar and solar rhythms, but that the Good Friday should be in Aries, not Taurus.
Nicholas Roerich: Chalice of Christ
“Some of you may have been going through the sublime thought of Good Friday this weekend but the truth is Good Friday is next Friday.
I have given this information in the little book on Good Friday. It is hinted at in the ‘Spiritual Astrology’ of Master EK. It was also hinted at in varieties of ways by Madame Blavatsky in The Secret Doctrine.
Good Friday or the festival of Passover is an age-old tradition. It did not start with Jesus the Christ. It was there before and Jesus Christ, in tune with the time plan, took birth and conducted his work and in tune with the time plan he departed. That is where he is great.
But the tradition of Good Friday emerges from a deeper understanding of astrology which we call esoteric astrology. Later, it developed into exoteric astrology.
Good Friday happens on the Friday which is very near to the New Moon of Aries. It was also so with Jesus the Christ. His crucifixion was on Friday. He went through the Passover on Saturday and successfully ascended on Sunday which we call Easter Sunday.
But this is an annual process for all beings who are on ascent; for all disciples to ascend. This arc is very important because Sun is in exaltation in Aries. Moon recedes towards the Sun. Around the New Moon the mind, the personality, everything joins the soul. The soul escapes from the body into higher realms.
According to the plan, some of them may pass over into higher circles, some of them will come down to serve the humanity.
From Taurus onwards via Gemini and Cancer and some of the others, like aspirants and humanity at large, they go through the cycles again and again and again.
Passover is a function of passing over into higher circles consciously. Passover is a function that enables a disciple to consciously pass over into higher circles. It has to be practised on every Friday night because every weekend is meant for it.
From Friday to Sunday, it is a weekly Passover which we have to relate to.
Instead of visualising the weekends to relate to the practices of Passover, the impact of Kali is such that we, the humanity at large, enters into weekend programmes, picnics, parties, indulgence into senses, into food, into sensuous enjoyments, all kinds of things and returns on Monday to join the work again.
That is a weekend programme which is absolutely the reverse of the Passover. It is on account of Kali that most of the people utilise the weekend to get weakened bodily, sensuously and mentally.
But weekend is meant for strengthening oneself with the like of buddhi, soul and super soul. The reverse is worked out because when we do not have the right knowledge and the right practice, we do not adopt to the time plan.
The Old Testament says that the whole creation is made in seven days. Four days from Thursday night to Monday you move forward and on Friday you return back. Friday, Saturday and Sunday are to return. Friday night, Saturday night Sunday night are meant to return back to your source. From Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday you can expand into objectivity. Weekly activity can also be seen as a movement into objectivity and subjectivity.
Likewise, the monthly activity can also be seen in that manner. From New Moon to Full Moon expand into objective world. From Full Moon to New Moon, you withdraw gradually and by around the New Moon you be with yourself, relating to the personality, relating to the soul, and the soul integrating with the super soul.
These are the rhythms that the time cycles teach us. Time cycles are essentially important for disciples. We have to follow the time cycles and move forward. Because Time is the other name for the Lord in creation and beyond Time it is Absolute God. It is Time and Space, presided over by Absolute God, that conduct the whole creation.
We move forward and backward even on a daily basis. As you awaken, you move with your awareness into objectivity. As you slip back into sleep you withdraw your awareness into your own source. It is a daily happening. Within a day there are quarterly happenings. Within the week there is a movement towards objectivity and subjectivity and within a year also you do that.
Passover is essentially meant for passing over to higher circles specially for those who have fulfilled their obligations in relation to the physical plane. It is a great festival.
Passover is a great festival where man consciously passes over via his forehead and Sahasrara. That is the theme.
In the case of Jesus Christ, it so happened that it was not only nearing the New Moon, it was also a solar eclipse day which confirms that it is a New Moon because solar eclipse happens only during New Moon times and not during Full Moon time.
Full Moon time we have the lunar eclipse. When Jesus Christ passed over, it was a solar eclipse. That is the second dimension.
The third dimension is, which I have been giving you through the teachings of Blavatsky. The lunar phases are different from the solar days. In Secret Doctrine, Madame Blavatsky writes very clearly and these dimensions I have brought out of The Teachings of Madame Blavatsky via Vaisakh Newsletter.
We shall have to separately follow the tithis or the moon phases. Do not mix it up with the dates which are coming from Roman times as solar days. Before solar days there was also prominence for the lunar calendar.
Even the Jewish system follows the lunar calendar. Indian system follows the lunar calendar. While solar calendar is popular, lunar calendar holds certain secrets and we shall get into them when we get into the inner side of our being.
So, when Jesus passed over, around Friday it started. The New Moon was approaching, the solar eclipse had happened and it all happened in the far end of the month of Aries.
Therefore, next week Friday stands greater eligibility to conduct the Good Friday function. …
The Jews conduct this festival of Sabbath every Friday which is very age-old. The Indians relate to Krishna or the World Mother on Friday evenings. Even the latest religion that we have, Islam, they also take Friday as very important. Jumu’ah, they call it. It is a day to return and relate to the Divine more and more. By Sunday, you can experience the soul that you are, in three days’ time.
This is how festivals are conceived in an esoteric manner. But mostly festivals are done putting on new clothes, taking nice showers here and there, putting on lot of ornaments, making social parties, and spending time in dance and song. That is festival of personality. This is a different festival; it is a festival of the soul.”
Nicholas Roerich: Christ in the Desert, 1933
