Life and Teachings of the Masters of the Far East

In 1924 Spalding published the first volume of Life and Teaching of the Masters of the Far East. It describes the travels to India and Tibet of a research party of eleven scientists in 1894. During their trip they claim to have made contact with "the Great Masters of the Himalayas", immortal beings with whom they lived and studied, gaining a fascinating insight into their lives and spiritual message.

This close contact enabled them to witness many of the spiritual principles evinced by these Great Masters translated into their everyday lives, which could be described as 'miracles'. Such examples are walking on water, or manifesting bread to feed the hungry party. These books have remained consistently popular with spiritual seekers, those interested in the philosophy of the East and those who enjoy a good story because of their accessible nature and easy-to-follow format. However, despite most of the action taking place in India, the Great Masters make it clear that the greatest embodiment of the Enlightened state is that of the Christ (as personified by Jesus): “The Masters accept that Buddha represents the Way to Enlightenment, but they clearly set forth that Christ IS Enlightenment, or a state of consciousness for which we are all seeking - the Christ light of every individual; therefore, the light of every child born into the world.”

Since 1924, when these writings first appeared, they have influenced and inspired generations of seekers. Astonished at the interest in his discoveries and experiences, he wrote Volume 2 (1927). Volume 3 (1935) followed along with a 30 city tour. Volume 4 (1948) and Volume 5 (1955) were compiled from his question and answer material and Volume 6 (1996) contains historical reference to his articles for the Mind Magazine 1935-37.