It has frequently been stated in Theosophical literature that when the
pupil reaches a certain stage he is able with the assistance of his
Master to escape from the action of what is in ordinary cases the law
of nature which carries a human being into the devachanic condition
after death, there to receive his due reward in the full working out
of all the spiritual forces which his highest aspirations have set in
motion while on earth. As the pupil must by the hypothesis be a man of
pure life and high thought, it is probable that in his case these
spiritual forces will be of abnormal strength, and therefore if he, to
use the technical expression, "takes his Devachan," it is likely to be
an extremely long one; but if instead of taking it he chooses the Path
of Renunciation (thus even at his low level and in his humble way
beginning to follow in the footsteps of the Great Master of
Renunciation, GAUTAMA BUDDHA Himself), he is able to expend that
reserve of force in quite another direction--to use it for the benefit
of mankind, and so, infinitesimal though his offering may be, to take
his tiny part in the great work of the Nirmânakâyas. By taking this
course he no doubt sacrifices centuries of intense bliss, but on the
other hand he gains the enormous advantage of being able to continue
his life of work and progress without a break. When a pupil who has
decided to do this dies, he simply steps out of his body, as he has
often done before, and waits upon the astral plane until a suitable
reincarnation can be arranged for him by his Master. This being a
marked departure from the usual course of procedure, the permission of
a very high authority has to be obtained before the attempt can be
made; yet, even when this is granted, so strong is the force of
natural law, that it is said the pupil must be careful to confine
himself strictly to the Kâmaloka while the matter is being arranged,
lest if he once, even for a moment, touched the devachanic plane, he
might be swept as by an irresistible current into the line of normal
evolution again. In some cases, though these are rare, he is enabled
to avoid the trouble of a new birth by being placed directly in an
adult body whose previous tenant has no further use for it, but
naturally it is not often that a suitable body is available. Far more
frequently he has to wait on the astral plane, as mentioned before,
until the opportunity of a fitting birth presents itself. In the
meantime, however, he is losing no time, for he is just as fully
himself as ever he was, and is able to go on with the work given him
by his Master even more quickly and efficiently than when in the
physical body, since he is no longer hampered by the possibility of
fatigue. His consciousness is of course quite complete, and he roams
at will through all the divisions of the Kâmaloka with equal facility.
The chela awaiting reincarnation is by no means one of the common
objects of the astral plane, but still he may be met with
occasionally, and therefore he forms one of our classes. No doubt as
the evolution of humanity proceeds, and an ever-increasing proportion
enter upon the Path of Holiness, this class will become more numerous.