Another recipe for salvation?

By editor in Teaching Anatomy May 23, 2025

Nowadays, no one is surprised by speeches claiming that the world stands at the edge of an abyss, and that someone has brought humanity a teaching which is supposed to help save those who follow it — or miraculously transform the world. Such saviours are anticipated and appear constantly. In our time — especially frequently. The trend itself is easy to understand. The world truly does stand at the edge of an abyss; this is becoming an increasingly evident fact. Consequently, there are more and more people promising salvation, and more and more people readily believing those promises. And “salvific” teachings spring up like mushrooms after rain.

Against this background, the Teaching of the United Temple may initially get lost. Because at first glance it may seem similar to the rest. There is a person claiming to receive knowledge from a higher source. There is a teaching based on this knowledge, which is meant to positively influence the situation and help the world step back from the edge of the abyss. Seemingly, the same pattern.

Exactly: seemingly. But in fact, things are quite different.

First of all, salvation, in the context under consideration, is a religious concept. And the Teaching of the United Temple is not a religious teaching. There is no mysticism in it. And its very source of information is not some supernatural being graciously condescending to help sinners be saved, but Nature — of which we are all a part. We humans live in it, and it in turn needs us as an important part of itself, on which much depends. A living organism fights against an illness that has flared up in one of its parts — in humanity. This is not mercy, nor a desire to force anyone to worship or offer supplications and praises, but a natural process. Nature helps us, and through ourselves we shall heal and improve it. That is why there is no mystical hysteria or religious exaltation in the Teaching, and no heavy dread of the end of the world — the very dread upon which “salvific” cults are essentially based. Everything is simpler. The global situation is deteriorating — in the sense that there is more aggression, greed, selfishness, immorality of all possible kinds, pride, and intellectual narrowness. All this is unlikely to lead to universal happiness and prosperity. Therefore, something must be done. People need help in finding the right path — one that leads away from the edge of that very abyss. Nature helps by imparting to people knowledge about the true structure and purpose of the Universe, and about the place of the human being within it. The idea is that this will push them towards coming to their senses. And there are no cries about an approaching doomsday and no exhortations to drop everything and start striving to be among the saved.

A brief note. Obviously, every teaching considers its own worldview to be the true one. But then one must look at the teaching itself — analyse it to determine how reasonable its offered worldview actually is. In other words, the mere claim to possess the Truth says nothing either for or against any given teaching. People are inclined to consider certain views to be true. This even leads to paradoxes: for example, there is a widespread belief that no point of view is the indisputable Truth. Yet this very belief is presented precisely as such a Truth.

Let us move on. Secondly, what is usually meant by “salvation”, again in the religious sense of the word? It is a swift deliverance (granted by the mercy of higher powers, supported by worship of them and certain religious practices) from the burden of sins or other spiritual weights, opening the way to heaven or some equivalent thereof. Or the chance to avoid perishing in an impending apocalypse. Or both at once. Does the Teaching offer anything of the kind? To begin with, it does not promise heaven after death. It says that a person’s path into the world of the Spirit is far longer, and runs through a series of lives, each of which will have its own challenges, its own sufferings and labours. Thus, the most alluring offer — a personal ticket to paradise in the shortest possible time — is not presented. As was said above, there is no intimidation about the inevitable apocalypse. That is to say, the focus here is not on the individual, but on the collective. It is not so much oneself that needs saving, but the world — the world in which we are yet to live many lives, gradually developing and becoming better. And catastrophe is not inevitable. The point of the Teaching’s emergence is precisely to help prevent it. To help preserve our common home, not to open the road to paradise for those found more righteous than the rest, who are doomed to perish. Feel the difference? This also leads to another distinction between the Teaching of the United Temple and religious doctrines that promise personal salvation. It lies in the fact that the Teaching does not focus on a mercantile aspect. Usually, appeals are made either to give away one’s possessions (which will not be needed anyway in light of the approaching apocalypse, or are simply unneeded for one seeking posthumous rewards), or to donate them to the salvific teaching. Both options are viewed as weighty arguments (addressed to higher powers) in favour of the donor’s worthiness of salvation. And the second variant has become a goldmine for all sorts of fraudsters posing as saviours. Why do you need money and property here, if you are aiming for heaven? Give it all away, and you’ll get there — even if the world ends. And the main thing is, you won’t be able to sue the fraudster after death for deception. A virtually win-win scheme. But there is nothing of the kind in the Teaching. There is nothing to buy, because you won’t end up in heaven after death anyway. There is nothing to buy off, because sins cannot be cancelled, no matter how much you pay. Property and money are not evil, if earned honestly and used with dignity — and there is no need to part with them. Especially since apocalypse is not inevitable. The whole point is precisely to avoid it. Therefore, the Teaching does not extort money from its followers and does not swindle them out of property by means of fear and promises of bliss. No. Live well and use what you have. Simply be human, and use your wealth not to the harm of the world and other people, but to their benefit.

Thirdly, the Teaching does not offer easy paths. It does not promise that by practising certain rituals or following certain ceremonies, you will rapidly attain spiritual perfection and become worthy of entry into heaven, nirvana, the eternal light, the abode of perfect souls, etc. (underline as appropriate). Nor does it promise that some supernatural and mighty being will appear and save the entire world (perhaps with human assistance, or perhaps alone). And it certainly does not promise a recipe for swift and universal enlightenment — such that within a few years humanity will be utterly transformed and enter the fabled New Era. There are no fast tracks here. Great deeds require great effort and much time. To walk the path of personal perfection to the end, one must live more than one life, and in each, work hard, struggle, and suffer. And no one will come to defeat evil in an epic battle and then lead everyone into the light. And there is no way to rapidly transform people and the world. That takes a great deal of time. A very great deal. Because people change over the course of many lives, and the world changes with them.

So what does the Teaching offer? Essentially, it offers three things: knowledge about the world and about humanity, methods for improving the world and humanity, and the opportunity to make use of this knowledge and these methods. It sets out signposts and marks out a path. And it is for us to walk this path and change ourselves and the world. No one will come and save either us or the world. Not even the Teaching of the United Temple will do that. It is a path and a means. A path and a means for those who truly can do everything in the best possible way: for people themselves. Nature offers a hint, and it will also give strength to those who grasp that hint. It is exactly that — a hint, not a riddle. It need not be solved. One must only wish to understand it. And wish to make the effort. And yes, strength will be needed. It is not easy to change oneself and the world. But no one else will do it for us.

From the above, one can draw a conclusion as to whether the Teaching is one of those salvation recipes being revealed one after another in today’s partly religious, partly materialistic, but mostly superstitious society. The conclusion is obvious: it does not belong among them. And anyone disinclined to take this on trust is free to check for themselves — by acquainting themselves with the Teaching and studying it. It is available to all. Incidentally, this is one more aspect that sets it apart from some of the more esoterically alluring salvation recipes.