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Samael Aun Weor

Samael Aun Weor (סמאל און ואור; March 6, 1917 – December 24, 1977), born Víctor Manuel Gómez Rodríguez, was a teacher and author of over sixty books of esoteric spirituality. He formed a new religious movement under the banner of "Universal Gnosticism", or simply gnosis, and taught the practical and esoteric principles to awaken and fundamentally change the psychological condition.

He first made a name in the Gnosticism of his native country of Colombia, before moving to Mexico in 1956, where his movement gained increased popularity, and his works became popular among practitioners of occultism and Western esotericism, and were translated into other languages. His doctrine is studied widely to this day.

In 1948, Gómez referred to himself as the name of his being, Aun Weor, which means "the verb or messenger of God." In 1954, after undergoing a ceremony he described as the birth of "Inner Christ," he adopted the name of Samael Aun Weor, which he used until his death in 1977. Samael Aun Weor referred to his teachings as "The Doctrine of Synthesis", which not only emphasizes the existence of the perennial philosophy, but that its highest teleological function is the accomplishment of "Christification" and "Final Liberation".

Early life
Victor Manuel Gómez Rodriguez was born in Bogotá, Cundinamarca, Republic of Colombia, son of Manuel Gómez Quijano and Francisca Rodríguez de Gómez. He was baptized in the Roman Catholic Church, but later rejected the Church of Rome. His childhood and family life are not well known, except that he had a brother, and his father remarried after a divorce.

He was sent to a Roman Catholic Jesuit school but soon dropped out, disappointed by religion; he was twelve years old at the time. Instead he said he invested most of his time in the study of metaphysical and esoteric treatises. At the age of 17, he was asked to lecture at the local Theosophical Chapter, and a year later was admitted into the occult society Fraternitas Rosicruciana Antiqua (F.R.A.).

Early adult life, marriages, and children

Few details of his life are known between the mid-1930s and 1950. He became a spiritual vagabond of sorts, traveling with neither home nor income. At one point he said he had lived with a tribe of indigenous people in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in northern Colombia, learning the healing secrets which would later form the foundation of his medical treatise, Occult Medicine and Practical Magic. It was also during these years that he described his first experience of the Illuminating Void meeting his "Inner Being" or Atman whose name is "Aun Weor", meaning in Hebrew "Strength and Light".

He was briefly married to Sara Dueños and they had a son named "Imperator". However, in 1946, he met and married the Lady-Adept "Litelantes" (born Arnolda Garro Mora) with whom he lived for 31 years and had four children: Osiris, Isis, Iris, and Hypatia. Samael Aun Weor explains that as soon as he met her, this "Lady-Adept" Genie began to instruct him in the Science of Jinnestan or Jinn State also known as Djinn State or Djinnestan, which involved placing the physical body in the fourth dimension. In Aztec religion this practice is known as Nahuatlism, and according to Aun Weor it is related with hyperspace.

Career as an occult teacher and leader
By 1948 he had started teaching a small group of students. In 1950, under the name "Aun Weor", he managed to publish The Perfect Matrimony, or The Door to Enter into Initiation with the help of his close disciples. The book, later entitled The Perfect Matrimony, unveiled the secret of sexuality as the cornerstone of the world's great religions. In it he addressed topics such as sexual transmutation, "white tantra", and esoteric initiation.

According to his diary, writing about sex in such a candid manner was met with disdain by the majority of the public at the time. Seen as immoral and pornographic, Aun Weor found himself fleeing angry mobs attempting to silence him through violent means. From March 14 to 19 of 1952 Aun Weor spent five days in jail for "committing the crime of healing the sick". ) The account of his incarceration is recounted in a personal diary he later published as Secret Notes of a Guru.

After March 19, 1952, Aun Weor and some disciples built and lived near the Summum Supremum Sanctuarium, an "underground temple" in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia. On October 27, 1954, Aun Weor received what is referred to as the "Initiation of Tiphereth", which, according to his doctrine, is the beginning of the incarnation of the Logos or "Glorian" within the soul. He states that in his case the name of his Glorian has always been called "Samael" through the ages. From then on, he would sign his name Samael Aun Weor.

Aun Weor stated that this union of Samael (the Logos) with Aun Weor (the human soul) is the Maitreya Buddha Kalki Avatar of the New Age of Aquarius. Upon being asked exactly what such a title meant, he replied: "A messenger or avatar, in the most complete sense of the word, is a courier, a man who delivers a message, a servant or maid of the Great Work. So, the word avatar must not fall into misinterpretations, it must be specified with complete clarity. I am, therefore, a servant or crew member, or messenger who delivers a message. Some time ago I said that I am a cosmic mailman, since I am giving the content of a cosmic letter. Therefore, my beloved brethren, the word avatar must never lead us to arrogance, since it only means nothing other than an emissary, a servant, a crew member who gives a message, an epistle, and that is all. In regard to Buddha Maitreya, we must analyze these two words a little in order not to fall into misinterpretations. The Innermost-Buddha in itself is the real Being, the Innermost of each one of us. Thus, when the Innermost or the real Being of somebody has attained its proper intimate Self-realization, then he is declared a Buddha. However, the term Maitreya is individual and collective; thus, from the individual point of view, it represents a teacher whose name is Maitreya, but from the collective point of view Buddha Maitreya must be understood—in the most complete sense of the word—as any initiate who has managed to Christify himself, and that is all."

Although he would declare himself as the true Kalki Avatar many times throughout his works, he regularly rejected idolization: "I, Samael, am not in need of henchmen or followers, but only imitators of my doctrine: Gnosis. I do not follow anyone, nor do I want anyone to follow me. What I want is for each one of you to follow his own Self. I am only a lighthouse in the sea of existence, and I do not need clientele in order to subsist. Since I am against the slavery of souls, I do not want to enslave any soul, nor do I agree with executioners of ideals. Masters exist in abundance, and I am only one of many; thus, those who want to find the Masters will find them inside, within the profundities of their own inner consciousness."

Living in Mexico City
In 1956, he left Colombia and went to Costa Rica and El Salvador. Later in 1956, he settled permanently in Mexico City, where he would begin his public life.

Before 1960, he had arguably published 20 more books with topics ranging from endocrinology and criminology to kundalini yoga. He founded numerous Gnostic Institutions and created Gnostic centers in Mexico, Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Venezuela. A "triangle" relationship was established between the Universal Gnostic Movement founded by Samael Aun Weor, the South American Liberation Action (ALAS) in Argentina headed by Francisco A. Propato, Ph.D. (graduate of La Sorbonne and Spanish translator of The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam ), and the Sivananda Aryabarta Ashram directed by Swami Sivananda in India.

In spite of its success, the development of the Gnostic Movement was not without dramatic setbacks, according to its followers. By the time of publishing the revised edition of The Perfect Matrimony (1961), the movement had fallen apart. Aun Weor wrote that "those who did not leave the Gnostic Movement can be counted on the fingers of one hand." However, by the time of his death, Samael Aun Weor had completely re-established the broad international reaches the movement previously held.

Into the 1960s, he continued to write many books on topics, such as hermetic astrology, flying saucers, and the Kabbalah. However, he also wrote sociopolitical works such as the Platform of POSCLA (Partido Socialista Cristiano Latinoamericano, or Latin-American Christian Socialist Party) and The Social Christ. Topics such as the "false" doctrines of Wall Street materialism, atheism, and particularly Marxism-Leninism are discussed. POSCLA's motto was given as, "All for one and one for all," and its method, the conscious practice of ahimsa.

Final written work
In the last decade of his life, he penned works such as Parsifal Unveiled, which details the esoteric symbolism of the Wagner opera, and Gnostic Anthropology in which he heavily criticized the theories of Darwin, Haeckel, "and their followers". The books The Great Rebellion, Treatise of Revolutionary Psychology, and The Revolution of the Dialectic provide a ground work for the vast knowledge of esoteric psychology purported to be found rooted in every genuine religion. During this time, he was preparing the highest vehicle of his doctrine, The Pistis Sophia Unveiled, in which he meditated, verse-by-verse, upon the Gnostic text Pistis Sophia.

Death
By 1972, Samael Aun Weor wrote that his death and resurrection would be occurring before 1978. In the chapter entitled The Resurrection, in his work The Three Mountains (1972), he stated that the eight years of ordeals within the Trial of Job would occur between his 53rd and 61st birthdays. Furthermore, in the same work, it is stated that this ordeal occurs prior to resurrection, and the one going through it is "deprived of everything, even of his own sons, and is afflicted by an impure sickness." By August 1977 he had developed stomach cancer. During this time he continued to speak to both his students and the general public, giving radio and television interviews while touring Mexico. Eventually he was forced to stop, due to debilitating stomach pain. As his condition steadily worsened, he would mention to those at his bedside, "Don't cling to my battered body, instead cling to my doctrinal body." Aun Weor died on December 24, 1977.

Years before his death, he declared he would adopt the use of a duly prepared ancient Egyptian "mummy" as a vehicle for further work, a vehicle better prepared than his own "physical body". Many of his followers expected him to return publicly shortly after his death. According to his own statements he planned to remain incognito for a certain time so that “the leaven will ferment.”

Doctrine of Synthesis
The Doctrine of Synthesis is a term Aun Weor used to describe the teachings he delivered through his books and lectures, because it is an amalgam of an extensive variety of teachings.

Although many of the metaphysical concepts expounded by such authors as Blavatsky, Steiner, and Gurdjieff provide a conceptual foundation in Aun Weor's teachings, he considered these works and movements conceptual preparation for the real unveiling of occultism or gnosis that he taught.

Aun Weor emphasizes that his doctrine is experiential, and must be put into practice for it to be of any value to the student. Throughout his works there are hundreds of techniques and exercises that are of help in the development of psychic powers, for example leaving the dense physical body at will (astral projection), in order to be taught in the schools of the "Higher Worlds." The techniques are always combined with meditation and sexual transmutation, and the perfection of such powers may take more than one lifetime.

It is stated that if a student is successful in awakening consciousness, he or she will eventually experience a continuous state of vigilance not only during the day but also while the physical body is sleeping, and most importantly after death. This is significant because Aun Weor states that those who have a sleeping consciousness are not aware of their postmortem condition, just as they are not aware when they are physically sleeping. The awakening of consciousness allows a student to continue to work regardless of their physical state.

Religion
Religions are viewed as idiosyncratic expressions of immutable and eternal values. Religions are said to be born and die in time, yet their spiritual values always remain eternal. When a religious form has fulfilled its mission, it begins to degenerate and dies, then a new messenger appears and delivers a doctrine appropriate for that culture. Different cultures require different doctrines for their development and this results in a vast difference of religious doctrines. Nevertheless, if one understands their core values, all religions naturally support each other. It is stated that any authentic religion possess what are called "The Three Factors of the Revolution of the Consciousness" which are practical aspects of daily life:

 * 1) Death: The psychological work of eliminating the ego.
 * 2) Birth: Giving birth to the superior potential of the soul, which is done through chastity and sexual transmutation.
 * 3) Sacrifice: To work to aid suffering humanity "without desiring the fruits of action, without desiring reward; pure, sincere, disinterested sacrifice, giving one's life in order for others to live, and without asking for anything in return."

Among these 3 factors, Aun Weor highlights that the first one is the most important. A teaching that is missing any one of these components is considered incomplete or degenerate.

Psychology
The basis of Aun Weor's practical work is of a psychological nature. He states in many of his books that the purpose of his doctrine is to affect a psychological change. The terms Gnostic, Esoteric or Revolutionary Psychology are used to describe the psychological methods taught, and are said to be synonymous with the psychological teachings of religion.

A fundamental axiom presented is that an ordinary human being is not really human at all, but rather an intellectual animal (a rational animal) with consciousness asleep. According to Samael Aun Weor, a true human being is someone who has no psychological imperfection, an image of God, as in Jesus' saying, "Become perfect as your Father in Heaven is perfect." He believed himself to be an example of such a 'human being'. Aun Weor writes of the awakening of consciousness as being very similar to the traditional Buddhist understanding, and throughout his works he describes many analogous processes as they are spoken of in different religions.

In order to awaken the consciousness correctly, Aun Weor stated it was necessary to annihilate the ego. He taught that one's ego is really not one but many, or a multitude of independent, contradictory desires. Likewise, each person's ego is said to actually contain many "I's," many "egos," many "aggregates." Each desire is an "I" and each "I" has its own specific causes and conditions that lead to its personification at a particular time. This is the mechanism behind what is commonly called "changing one's mind" (metanoia) because when one "I" changes to another a literal exchange of personified psychological aggregates has taken place. This "doctrine of the many", the Plural 'I' or Pluralized Ego, is the same as that taught by G.I. Gurdjieff and his disciple P. D. Ouspensky and is one of the reasons Aun Weor was sometimes accused of plagiarism. To this he responded that Gurdjieff was not the author of this doctrine and that its origin is found in Egypt and Tibet.

Consciousness
Consciousness is described as a state of being, very closely related to God. The consciousness within the normal person is said to be 97% asleep. Consciousness asleep is consciousness that is subconscious, unconscious, or infraconscious, which are various levels of psychological sleep. Psychological sleep is a way to describe the lack of self-awareness, meaning that the common and ordinary person is not aware of 97% of what constitutes the ordinary state of being. A consciousness asleep is caused by what Aun Weor calls identification, fascination, or the incorrect transformation of impressions, which all imply a type of consciousness that is not aware of its own processes. It is said that to awaken consciousness one must understand that his or her consciousness is asleep. This implies that one must begin to understand every impulse, action, thought and movement one makes, a feat that is said to be accomplished through the mental discipline of meditation and self-observation. Furthermore, it is stated that the awakening of consciousness is the only way to acquiring gnosis and achieve a true and radical change by removing the spurious psychological aggregates that cause unnecessary suffering. The awakening of consciousness goes hand in hand with the transmutation of sexual energy because the higher states of consciousness depend upon the energy of sexual transmutation.

Psychological aggregates
The purpose of the psychological work is to dissolve all the psychological aggregates one has accumulated. The term "psychological or mystical death" is often used to describe the process one must undergo in order to reach liberation. "Psychological aggregates" are commonly known simply as aggregates in Buddhism, yet it is taught that other religions used a more veiled or less sophisticated method to describe them, such as: the Legion that Jesus is described as removing from a man in  and Luke 8 in one of the alleged Miracles of Jesus; overcoming the tortures of the 49 Self-willed demons of Yaldabaoth written in the Pistis Sophia; the killing of the "unbelievers" in Islam; Moses escaping the tyranny of the Egyptians; Arjuna fighting against his own blood (the ego); the demons of Seth that attack Osiris; Jesus throwing the merchants out of the temple; the archetypal death and resurrection of the "Solar Hero" exemplified in the stories of Jesus and Osiris; the descent to Dante's Inferno (representing our unconscious) or Paradise Lost's Pandemonium in order to accomplish a great task, such as those performed by Hercules or Orpheus; the archetypal Dragon (ego) that must be slayed by the Knight, etc. Aun Weor states that this specific paradigm is called "The Doctrine of the Many" and has been taught in esoteric schools and religions since the beginning of time. The anatomy of the pluralized self being the divine spark imprisoned within hundreds of psychological aggregates.

In order to achieve psychological transformation, extensive methods of meditation, self-observation, and sexual transmutation are taught and prescribed for daily exercise. The goal of psychological work is the awakening of consciousness and ultimately the state of Paramarthasatya.

Physiology and sexology
"We understand people of normal sexuality to be those who have no sexual conflicts of any kind. Sexual energy is divided into three distinct types. First: the energy having to do with the reproduction of the race and the health of the physical body in general. Second: the energy having to do with the spheres of thought, feeling and will.  Third: the energy that is found related with the Divine Spirit of man.

Indeed, sexual energy is without a doubt the most subtle and powerful energy normally produced and transported through the human organism. Everything that a human being is, including the three spheres of thought, feeling and will, is none other than the exact outcome of distinct modifications of sexual energy."

Basic physiology is studied, mostly endocrinology and the hormonal influence of primary and secondary sexual characteristics. It is taught that there are three fundamental nervous systems, the cerebrospinal nervous system, grand sympathetic nervous system, and the parasympathetic nervous system. These nervous systems are referred to as the "Three Brains" or three centers of the intellectual animal, and are named the intellectual center, the emotional center, and the motor-instinctual-sexual center. Each center is studied in relation to the types of energies or "occult hydrogens" that animate them, the frequency at which each center operates (sexual center being the fastest, then emotional, then intellectual), and how psychological aggregates form and act within each center: psychological aggregates that are expressed through the intellect one way and through the emotions in a different way.

Three centers and three traitors
The three centers are directly related to the Trinity, Trimurti, or threefoldness of creation, the intellect being related to the Father (Kether, affirmation, positive), the emotion related to the Son (Chokmah, denial, negation), and the sexual center related to the Holy Spirit (Binah, reconcile, neutral). The primary energy of the intellectual brain (Father) is the air, which is then placed in the bloodstream which is related to the emotional brain (Son), and lastly the final condensation of blood is found in the semen or sexual hormones, which is directly related to the Holy Spirit: that which impregnates or manifests creation, Shakti, etc.

Aun Weor teaches that psychological aggregates form in one of these three centers; therefore, it is said that there are three fundamental defects: the demon of the mind related to the intellectual center, the demon of desire related to the emotional center, and the demon of evil will related to the motor-instinctual-sexual center. They are collectively referred to as the "Three Traitors", and many references to religion are found that are held to symbolize them, for example: Judas (desire), Pilate (intellect), and Caiaphas (will) who crucify Jesus; Jubela, Jubelo, and Jubelum who murder Hiram Abiff; Seth, in the form of the serpent Apophis and its two monstrous helpers Sebau and Nak murders Osiris; the three Furies who attack Orestes; the three daughters of Mara who attack Gautama Buddha and who are conquered through right Thinking (Intellectual Center), right Feeling (Emotional Center), and right Action (Motor-Instinctual-Sexual Center) (see Noble Eightfold Path).

Lunar and solar bodies
Occult or esoteric anatomy and physiology is also studied, which refers to the study of the supra-sensible bodies of minerals, plants, animals (rational and irrational), and human beings. It is said that everyone contains seven bodies, closely related to the Theosophical septenary, which Aun Weor calls physical, vital, emotional (astral), mental, causal, buddhic and atmic. Aun Weor differentiates between an intellectual animal and an authentic human being through the differences in the vehicles of emotion (astral body), mind (mental body) and will (causal body). Intellectual animals (ordinary man and woman) are said to contain the Lunar Astral Body, the Lunar Mental Body, and the Lunar Causal Body, each referred to by different names in different schools of Occultism. It is stated that these lunar bodies are the result of mechanical evolution through the mineral, plant and animal kingdoms and therefore, they are of an infrahuman or animal quality. The only true difference between the rational animal and irrational animals is the intellect, which gives the former the ability to become human, or as Aun Weor states, the intellectual animal has the "seed" or potential of a human latently existing within its sexual organs.

What are called authentic human beings, although physically appearing identical, have crystallized the solar bodies: solar astral body, solar mental body, and solar causal body. Lunar bodies are vehicles that receive the energy of creation (that is, God) at the level of an animal, while the solar bodies permit the reception of a much greater voltage allowing greater levels of wisdom and superior emotion to be incarnated. Aun Weor states that the solar bodies are collectively referred to as vehicles of the "soul".

Aun Weor states that the solar bodies are formed in the same manner that physical bodies are formed: through use of the sexual function. In order to form the solar bodies, sexual transmutation is taught via the hetero sexual magic of married couples engaged in coitus without orgasm or seminal ejaculation. Sexual magic is the arousal of sexual energies through the act of coitus between husband and wife, but instead of expelling those energies through orgasm they are transmuted into higher octaves of energy. Each successive Solar Body is the result of the saturation of transmuted sexual energy at its respective octave: first, the "Christ Astral" is formed by transmuting the sex energy into a second octave; second, the "Christ Mind" is formed by saturating, condensing or crystallizing the sexual energy into a third octave, and the causal body or "Christ Will" is formed by transmuting the sexual energy called "Hydrogen SI-12", into a fourth octave. The "birth" of the solar bodies is what Aun Weor states is the true meaning of being "born again." It is taught that the solar bodies are referred to in the Bible as the three sons of Noah or the three companions of Daniel in the (alchemical) furnace of Nebuchadnezzar.

Three forms of sexuality
The topic of sexuality is approached from a very stern point of view, and it is indeed the crux of Aun Weor's entire message. He states that there are three fundamental types of sexuality: suprasexuality, which is the sexual functioning of someone like Buddha or Jesus, who naturally transmutes all their energy perfectly; normal sexuality, which is defined as those who have no sexual conflict of any kind whatsoever and who transmute their sexual energy or use it to procreate the species; finally, the two spheres of infrasexuality, as described in the Kabbalistic texts: Nahemah's sphere of influence which includes fornication, adultery, addiction and prostitution and Lilith's sphere of influence, a category which includes homosexuality, masturbation, abortion, bestiality, sado-masochism and any other "abuse" of the sexual energy. In response to his harsh views towards sex (especially for a "New Age" teacher), he wrote:

"Many hypocritical Pharisees hate us because we are not complaisant with whoredom, because we condemn crime, yet they state that this is why we hate. This is how they imprecisely judge us. What happens is that all of those hypocritical Pharisees from Spiritualism, Theosophism, Rosicrucianism, Aquarianism, etc., yearn for a sanctimonious mastery where masters are complaisant with crime; a type of spiritual whore-master who, complaisant with crime, goes around from lodge to lodge, from school to school, from sect to sect. This is why we, those who truly love humanity, are hated by hypocritical Pharisees."

Soteriology
Soteriology (study of salvation) is presented in the light of every notable religion yet usually with special differences not held by orthodox interpretations. There are many degrees of salvation generally accomplished by paying one's karma, removing the psychological imperfections and finally creating the solar bodies. The idea held by many religions that belief in God alone achieves salvation is categorically rejected.

Many different levels of salvation are explained, each depending upon the willpower of the individual accomplishing it. For those who do not remove their psychological imperfection (ego) – which is the cause of karma and the suffering of humanity – after approximately 108 rebirths they will have their ego removed forcefully through mechanical devolution within the infradimensions (Hell). Here it is said that "Mother Nature" mechanically pays out one's accumulated karma through a great deal of suffering over thousands of years until one is returned to the state of an innocent elemental, or Essence. This is said to be a state of being that is total happiness, yet not cognizant happiness and therefore not complete happiness. Hell is not taught as a place of eternal damnation, just a place to pay one's karma, and in fact it is seen as a part of God's grace because if the ego is not removed forcefully, these souls would continue to suffer indefinitely. It is held that after Hell, the elemental is reinserted into the mechanics of evolution in order to once again attempt to gain conscious happiness: They are first inserted at the basic level of existence (minerals), and through millions of years, transmigrate through increasingly complex organisms until the state of intellectual animal is reached again.

For those who do work on themselves, depending on the degree of perfection, happiness and wisdom they wish to attain, two distinct paths emerge: the Straight Path of the Razor's Edge and the Spiral Path. The Spiral Path involves reaching a state of relative enlightenment by choosing the enjoyment of the Higher Worlds (Heaven or Nirvana), and occasionally returning to a physical body in order to pay out a little more karma and help humanity in the process. Aun Weor refers to these as the Pratyeka Buddhas and Sravakas, and that the vast majority who reach this state choose the Spiral Path because it is very easy and enjoyable. The dangerous Straight Path of the Razor's Edge is the Path of the Bodhisattva who renounces the happiness of the Higher Worlds (Nirvana) in order to help humanity. In the doctrine of Aun Weor, the Bodhisattva has a very specific definition, as it is not merely someone who has taken the Bodhisattva vows. It is the physical (Malkuth), vital (Yesod), astral (Hod), mental (Netzach) and causal (Tiphereth) vehicles – in other words the human soul – of a self-realized spirit, (Geburah-Chesed) who has chosen the Straight Path of the Razor's Edge in order to incarnate the Christ (Kether-Binah-Chokmah). In other words, the Bodhisattva is the "Son" of a self-realized God who is trying to return to the Absolute or 13th Aeon of the Pistis Sophia.

Christology
Christ is viewed as the savior but not as traditionally understood by contemporary Christianity. Instead, Christ is an impersonal force or intelligence that emanates from the Absolute as the Trinity and is also referred to as the Cosmic Christ. Christ is said to have existed before Jesus, and is represented in different traditions with names such as Thoth, Ormuz, Ahura Mazda, Osiris, Zeus, Jupiter, Quetzalcoatl, Okidanokh, Kulkulcan, Chrestos, Baldur, and Avalokitesvara. It is held that Christ enters into and exalts any individual who is properly prepared, which denotes the complete annihilation of the ego, the exhaustion of all karma and the birth of the solar vehicles, the latter is necessary to handle the super high voltage of Christ. Aun Weor writes that only those who choose the previously mentioned Straight Path of the Razor's Edge can incarnate the Christ because the Spiral Path is not a path of total sacrifice. Likewise, any true Bodhisattva has incarnated the Christ or is in process of doing so. It is said that in history Christ incarnated in Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, Krishna, Moses, Padmasambhava, John the Baptist, Milarepa, Mahavatar Babaji, Joan of Arc, Fu Xi, Ramakrishna as well as many others now forgotten by time (or made up in works of fiction) e. g. Zanoni

It is important to notice that some of these individuals represent Christ as an impersonal force, e. g. Jesus, meaning that although he was an individual Christ, he taught the doctrine of the Cosmic Christ, intentionally molding his physical life after the psychological processes that one undergoes to incarnate the Christ. As with Buddha, Jesus is seen as a Bodhisattva who came to help humanity. Jesus is viewed as the Savior of the World because he is a Paramarthasatya (an inhabitant of the Absolute) that physically incarnated specifically for the sake of poor suffering humanity. According to Aun Weor, Jesus purposefully played out physically the internal or psychological struggle one must undergo in the path of Self-Realization; thus, the Gospels are a mixture of reality and kabbalistic, initiatic symbolism. According to Aun Weor, there is the historic Christ as depicted in Christian Churches; then, there is the Christ of Transubstantiation to be known exclusively through the Gnostic Church; and finally, there is the Apocalyptic Christ who is to come with the New Jerusalem, after the Great Cataclysm that will consume the world.

Anthropology
His work Cosmic Teachings of a Lama states that life on Earth did not occur through abiogenesis, but instead through pansperma. To Aun Weor, the theories of abiogenesis are similar to those of spontaneous generation, and that Pasteur had already implicitly refuted the former when the latter was empirically disproved. Furthermore, while evolution is a verified fact of nature, speciation through Darwinian evolution has never been witnessed and is "an absurd theory without basis or foundation." Instead, the sum of zoological variation is determined by the seeds of life traveling throughout space (protected by electromagnetic "whirlwinds") which determine the evolution and devolution of life on any planet. Life, according to Aun Weor, is eternal, however its expression is divided into evolutive and devolutive modes: species evolve, reach a pinnacle, and necessarily devolve and return to a germinal state.

Man, therefore, is not the outcome of the evolution from a common ancestor to the primates, but rather the exponent of an eternal anthropic principle. Monkeys, apes, and other primates are instead the outcome of certain sub-sects of ancient humanity copulating with animals, and are in a complete state of devolution.

"They say that the human being comes from the ape. They came out with the theory of the cynocephalus with a tail, the monkey without a tail and the arboreal men, all of them children of the noeptizoids, etc. But, which of these would then be the missing link? On what day have they found a monkey that is capable of speaking, that is gifted with speech? It has not appeared until now. Therefore, these materialistic gentlemen are ludicrous. They only present us suppositions and not facts.

Therefore are not the materialists refuting the theories of Darwin himself and his henchmen? Does the human being come from the ape? Upon which basis do they sustain this theory? How do they demonstrate it? Until when are we going to wait for the supposed missing link? We want to see that specie of ape speaking like people. That ape has not appeared, therefore such an ape is only a supposition of nonsense that has no reality."

He does state however that evolution within a species is possible, yet that no species can evolve from another species. Furthermore, he states that the human or 'intellectual animal' naturally evolves in time, for example our society is an evolution from previous societies - however the evolution of species can never achieve spiritual liberation because it will always return to devolution. Spiritual liberation requires a 'revolution of consciousness'.

Eschatology
In many books Aun Weor wrote about the "Final Catastrophe" or Apocalypse which was central to the framing of his teachings. His work The Aquarian Message is a commentary on the Book of Revelation, which affirms the notion that present civilization will end and a future one will emerge. Only those souls who remove their ego in the present time will avoid the Second Death and re-transmigrations. A specific date is never given, only that this civilization is in the twilight of its existence.

The Social Christ and POSCLA
Aun Weor wrote about social problems in the books The Social Christ and The Social Transformation of Humanity. The Social Christ is primarily concerned with a comprehensive critique of Marxism or Dialectical Materialism, but deals also with the injustices of the Capitalist system;

"We are filled with horror in the presence of so much infamy. The ones that cannot pay for a stall in the public markets are persecuted, but they flatter and butter up the powerful gentlemen that steal millions of pesos from the people.""In this way the capitalists fertilize the soil and prepare it in order that in it the filthy flower of Communism can germinate."

All political systems, Aun Weor states, are a reflection of our own psychology, and he explains that in order to finally finish with oppression it is necessary to change our own psychological state through the Death of Ego, combining this with non-violent resistance and the unionization of workers."The struggle for the triumph of social justice is very long and hard, but we must never use violence, nor revolutions of blood and liquor."

In order "to start a new age and realize the Social Christ on the face of the earth," Aun Weor formed a political party called 'POSCLA', The Christian Socialist Party of Latin America, which he later disbanded as a formal organization.

Medicine and elemental magic
In his works, Occult Medicine and Practical Magic, Igneous Rose and others, Aun Weor taught about elemental magic. In the former work he expressed his opposition to the medicine of modern science, allopathy, and called for the Gnostics to learn the ways of Indigenous and Elemental Medicine.

Aun Weor taught that all the plants of nature are living Elemental Spirits, similarly to Paracelsus and many other esoteric teachers. He states that it is the Elemental Spirits who cure, not simply the 'cadavers of the plants'. Plants should be treated as living beings, harvested at the proper hours etc. He stated that the Elementals of all plants are aspects of The Divine Mother in the form of Mother Nature. In 'Occult Medicine and Practical Magic' he spoke about the healing methods of the Kogi Mamas, who diagnose sicknesses by means of clairvoyance.

Criticism
The Roman Catholic Church has labeled Aun Weor's neo-Gnostic Movement as a pseudo-church and some Roman Catholic authors have accused Aun Weor of trying to seduce Roman Catholic priests and nuns to abandon their vows of celibacy and practice the sexual teachings promulgated by the neo-Gnostic Movement; these authors also believe that the current wave to discredit the legitimacy of the Roman Catholic Church comes from the same source while others go so far as to label it heresy.

As of 11 February 1984 or thereabouts, the Ministry of Tenerife, Spain, denied incorporation to Aun Weor's Universal Christian Gnostic Church of Spain operating from 38 San Francisco St., in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, on the grounds that said organization is not a legitimate church as it does not have any record of incorporation as such in any country whatsoever.

In 1990, after numerous consultations with high-ranking members of the Roman Catholic Church and other figures who preferred to remain anonymous such as lawyers, public prosecutors, psychiatrists and psychologists, Pilar Salarrullana, who has been a political figure since 1974 and is considered an expert on sects, published Las Sectas (The Sects: a living testament to Messianic terror in Spain), which became a best-seller with six editions the first year alone and, in spite of its popularly inquisitorial tone, it denounces the Gnostic Movements among others as some of the most dangerous anti-social plagues in Spain.

In 1991, F. W. Haack (1935–1991), who was chief delegate of the Evangelical Church with responsibility for sects and ideologies, attacked Weor's ideology in a German book published in Zürich — nevertheless, the Gnostic branches of the movement in Germany and Switzerland are still active and expanding. The Gnostic associations are active in Switzerland with a moderate following of Italian-, French- and German-speaking members.

Publications
Aun Weor wrote over sixty books, covering a broad range of esoteric, philosophical, and anthropological subjects. The following is taken in part from the "Bibliography of Samael Aun Weor" although a more accurate list may exist.

 * 1950 - The Perfect Matrimony, or The Door to Enter into Initiation (Revised and expanded in 1961. See below) ISBN 978-1-934206-68-3
 * 1950 - The Revolution of Beelzebub, 2007 ISBN 978-1-934206-18-8
 * 1951 - The Zodiacal Course, published in English as part of Practical Astrology, 2006 ISBN 978-1-934206-38-6
 * 1952 - Secret Notes of a Guru
 * 1952 - Treatise of Occult Medicine and Practical Magic (Revised and expanded in 1978. See below) ISBN 978-1-934206-32-4
 * 1952 - Gnostic Catechism
 * 1952 - Christ Consciousness
 * 1952 - The Power is in the Cross
 * 1952 - The Book of the Virgin of Carmen
 * 1953 - The Seven Words (Included in the collection "The Divine Science," ISBN 978-1-934206-40-9)
 * 1953 - Igneous Rose, 2007 ISBN 978-1-934206-26-3
 * 1954 - The Manual of Practical Magic, published in English as part of Practical Astrology ISBN 978-1-934206-38-6
 * 1954 - Treatise of Sexual Alchemy
 * 1955 - The Mysteries of the Fire: Kundalini Yoga ISBN 978-1-934206-10-2
 * 1955 - Cosmic Ships ISBN 978-1-934206-39-3
 * 1956 - The Major Mysteries ISBN 978-1-934206-19-5
 * 1958 - The Magnum Opus
 * 1958 - Universal Charity
 * 1958 - Esoteric Treatise of Theurgy (Included in the collection "The Divine Science," ISBN 978-1-934206-40-9)
 * 1959 - The Mountain of Juratena
 * 1959 - 'Fundamental Notions of Endocrinology and Criminology' ISBN 978-1-934206-11-9
 * 1959 - Christ Will
 * 1959 - Logos, Mantra, Theurgy (Included in the collection "The Divine Science," ISBN 978-1-934206-40-9)
 * 1959 - The Yellow Book ISBN 978-1-934206-53-9
 * 1960 - The Aquarian Message ISBN 978-1-934206-31-7
 * 1961 - Introduction to Gnosis ISBN 978-1-934206-73-7
 * 1961 - The Perfect Matrimony (revised), 2009 ISBN 978-1-934206-68-3
 * 1962 - The Mysteries of Life and Death (Included in the collection "Beyond Death" ISBN 978-1-934206-33-1)
 * 1963 - Marriage, Divorce and Tantra (Included in "Introduction to Gnosis" ISBN 978-1-934206-73-7)
 * 1963 - Gnosis in the Twentieth Century
 * 1963 - Great Supreme Universal Manifesto of the Gnostic Movement
 * 1964 - The Social Christ
 * 1964 - Christmas Message 1964-1965 ("The Dissolution of the I") Title given by students. Available as Elimination of Satan's Tail ISBN 978-1-934206-17-1)
 * 1964 - Grand Gnostic Manifesto of the Third Year of Aquarius
 * 1965 - The Social Transformation of Humanity
 * 1965 - Supreme Christmas Message 1965-1966 ISBN 978-1-934206-82-9
 * 1966 - The Book of the Dead (Included in the collection "Beyond Death" ISBN 978-1-934206-33-1)
 * 1967 - Platform of POSCLA
 * 1967 - Christmas Message 1966-1967 ISBN 978-1-934206-69-0
 * 1967 - An Esoteric Treatise of Hermetic Astrology, published in English as part of Practical Astrology ISBN 978-1-934206-38-6
 * 1967 - Christmas Message 1967-1968: The Solar Bodies and Gnostic Wisdom published in English as The Doomed Aryan Race, 2008 ISBN 978-1-934206-30-0
 * 1967 - Flying Saucers, included in Cosmic Ships ISBN 978-1-934206-39-3
 * 1968 - Constitution and Liturgy of the Gnostic Movement (For Second and Third Chamber Students ONLY).
 * 1968 - We'll Reach the One Thousand, But Not the Two Thousand (Title given by students).
 * 1968 - Supreme Christmas Message 1967-1968
 * 1969 - Esoteric Course of Kabbalah, published in English as Alchemy & Kabbalah ISBN 978-1-934206-36-2
 * 1969 - Christmas Message 1968-1969: The Gnostic Magic of the Runes, 2007 ISBN 978-1-934206-29-4
 * 1969 - Christmas Message 1969-1970: My Return to Tibet, a title given by students in Spanish and published in English as Cosmic Teachings of a Lama, 2007 ISBN 978-1-934206-21-8
 * 1970 - Fundamental Education ISBN 978-1-934206-34-8
 * 1970 - Beyond Death ISBN 978-1-934206-33-1
 * 1971 - Christmas Message 1971-1972 (Parsifal Unveiled)
 * 1971 - Christmas Message 1971-1972: The Mystery of the Golden Blossom ISBN 978-1-934206-43-0
 * 1972 - Grand Gnostic Manifesto 1972
 * 1972 - Christmas Message 1972-1973: The Three Mountains, 2007 ISBN 978-1-934206-28-7
 * 1972 - Gazing at the Mystery ISBN 978-1-934206-25-6
 * 1973 - Aztec Christic Magic ISBN 978-1-934206-27-0 (Lessons date from 1957)
 * 1973 - Christmas Message 1973-1974 (Yes, There is a Hell, a Devil, and Karma) ISBN 978-1-934206-51-5
 * 1974 - The Metallic Planets of Alchemy
 * 1974 - The Secret Doctrine of Anahuac
 * 1975 - 'The Great Rebellion' ISBN 978-1-934206-22-5
 * 1975 - Liturgy of the Gnostic Movement (For Second and Third Chamber Students ONLY).
 * 1975 - Revolutionary Psychology ISBN 978-1-934206-24-9
 * 1976 - Sacred Book of Gnostic Liturgy (For Second and Third Chamber Students ONLY).
 * 1977 - The Mysteries of Christic Esoterism
 * 1977 - The Kabbalah of the Mayan Mysteries
 * 1977 - Esoteric Course of Theurgy (Included in the collection "The Divine Science," ISBN 978-1-934206-40-9)
 * 1978 - Gnostic Anthropology' ISBN 978-1-934206-16-4
 * 1978 - Didactic Self-knowledge (Collected Lectures).
 * 1978 - Christmas Message 1977-1978: Treatise of Occult Medicine and Practical Magic (revised) ISBN 978-1-934206-32-4
 * 1978 - The Initiatic Path in the Arcana of Tarot and Kabbalah ISBN 978-1-934206-37-9
 * 1980 - For the Few
 * 1983 - The Revolution of the Dialectic ISBN 978-1-934206-02-7
 * 1983 - The Gnostic Bible: The Pistis Sophia Unveiled ISBN 978-1-934206-81-2
 * 1991-2014 - New Order Messages in Hight Octaves more Enlightenment, see at http://sawzone.org and http://www.samaelsirio.com/index.html  (you can see and download all the New Order Messages).

title: Samael Aun Weor


text: User talk:70.48.58.224

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: User talk:70.48.58.224


text:
Ted Curson

Theodore Curson (June 3, 1935 – November 4, 2012) was an American jazz trumpeter.

Life and career
Curson was born in Philadelphia. He became interested in playing trumpet after watching a newspaper salesman play a silver trumpet. Curson's father, however, wanted him to play alto saxophone like Louis Jordan. When he was ten, he gained his first trumpet.

He attended Granoff School of Music in Philadelphia. At the suggestion of Miles Davis, he moved to New York in 1956. He performed and recorded with Cecil Taylor in the late 1950s and early 1960s. His composition "Tears for Dolphy" has been used in numerous films. He was featured in a profile on composer Graham Collier in the 1985 Channel 4 documentary 'Hoarded Dreams'

He was a familiar face in Finland, having performed at the Pori Jazz festival every year since it began in 1966. In 2007, he performed at Finland's Independence Day Ball at the invitation of president Tarja Halonen.

A longtime resident of Montclair, New Jersey, Curson died from a heart attack in the township on November 4, 2012.

As leader

 * Plenty of Horn (Old Town, 1961)
 * Ted Curson Plays Fire Down Below (Prestige, 1963)
 * Live at La'Tete De L'Art (Trans-World, 1962)
 * Tears for Dolphy (Fontana, 1965)
 * The New Thing & the Blue Thing (Atlantic, 1965)
 * Urge (Fontana, 1966)
 * Ode to Booker Ervin (Columbia, 1970)
 * Pop Wine (Futura, 1971)
 * Cattin' Curson (Marge, 1975)
 * Blue Piccolo (Whynot, 1976)
 * Jubilant Power (Inner City, 1976)
 * Quicksand (Atlantic, 1977)
 * Flip Top (Arista/Freedom, 1977)
 * Fireball (Trio, 1979)
 * Blowin' Away with Dizzy Reece (Interplay, 1978)
 * The Trio (Interplay, 1979)
 * I Heard Mingus (Trio, 1980)
 * Snake Johnson (Chiaroscuro, 1981)
 * Traveling On (Evidence, 1997)

As sideman
With Bill Barron
 * The Tenor Stylings of Bill Barron (Savoy, 1961)
 * Modern Windows (Savoy, 1962)
 * Now, Hear This! (Audio Fidelity, 1964)

With Charles Mingus
 * Mingus (Candid, 1961)
 * Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus (Candid, 1961)
 * Mingus Revisited (Limelight, 1965)
 * Mingus at Antibes (Atlantic, 1976)

With Cecil Taylor
 * Love for Sale (United Artists, 1959)
 * Into the Hot (Impulse!, 1962)
 * In Transition (Blue Note, 1975)
 * The New Breed (ABC Impulse!, 1978) (reissue of tracks from Into the Hot)

With others
 * Pepper Adams, California Cookin' (Interplay, 1991)
 * Ran Blake, Film Noir (Arista Novus, 1980)
 * Nick Brignola, Baritone Madness (Bee Hive, 1978)
 * Bill Dixon & Archie Shepp, Bill Dixon 7-tette/Archie Shepp and the New York Contemporary 5 (Savoy, 1964)
 * Graham Collier, Hoarded Dreams (Cuneiform, 2007)
 * Eric Dolphy, Candid, Dolphy (Candid, 1989)
 * Eric Dolphy, Outward Bound (Poll Winners, 2011)
 * Gil Evans, Into The Hot (Impulse!, 1962)
 * Andrew Hill, Spiral (Arista/Freedom, 1975)
 * Karin Krog, Joy (Meantime, 2008)
 * Teo Macero, Impressions of Charles Mingus (Palo Alto, 1983)
 * Misha Mengelberg & Piet Noordijk, Journey (MCN, 2011)
 * Mark Murphy, Living Room (Muse, 1986)
 * Sal Nistico, Neo/Nistico (Bee Hive, 1978)
 * Archie Shepp, Fire Music (Impulse!, 1965)
 * Archie Shepp, Quartet (FreeFactory, 2009)
 * Andrzej Trzaskowski, Seant (1966)

title: Ted Curson


text:
Abby Lockhart

Abigail Marjorie "Abby" Lockhart, M.D. (née Wyczenski) is a fictional character from the NBC medical drama series ER, portrayed by Maura Tierney. She first appears as a guest star in the first half of the sixth season, before becoming a main character later that season, appearing until the beginning of the fifteenth season. Tierney returned to make one final guest appearance later in season fifteen.

Beginnings
The character Abby Lockhart first appears in season 6 of ER in the episode "Great Expectations", guest starring as Carol Hathaway's (Julianna Margulies) labor and delivery nurse. Three months later, she became a regular character. She first made an appearance in February 2000 as a third-year medical student beginning her ER rotation. On her first day, she meets Dr. Luka Kovač (Goran Visnjic), her first teacher, with whom she will experience both a professional and personal relationship, and who will become the most important character in her long-running story. Lockhart's first months in the ER prove challenging for her, transitioning from OB nursing, to the ER. In that time, she sees Carter stabbed, and a medical student, Lucy Knight killed by a patient with schizophrenia. She also has had to speak to superiors Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes) and Mark Greene (Anthony Edwards) about John Carter's (Noah Wyle) growing drug addiction. Although Carter is hostile at first, he and Abby become friends over the course of the next season.

Abby's medical training had gone into hiatus and she had become a full-time obstetrics nurse to provide for her then-husband Richard Lockhart's medical school education. Once they divorced, she resumed her medical training. At the start of season 7, Weaver breaks the news that her registration for her final year of medical school has been denied due to lack of payment. Abby confronts her ex-husband, who has stopped paying her tuition because had become bankrupt. She resumes her part-time OB nursing job. Soon, Weaver offers her a full-time ER nursing position, which she accepts. After several rewarding years as a nurse, Abby gets her ex-husband to sign off on a loan so she can finish medical school. The loan defaults, but John Carter pays the deficit. After she fails her first board certification exam, she passes on her second try. This leads to the earning of her MD in the Season 10 finale. Abby's first day as a doctor begins when Pratt and Chen fall victim to a road rage incident. Abby is called in as a doctor to help save her friends' lives.

In the 2000–2001 season, Abby is visited by her mother, Maggie Wyczenski (Sally Field), who has bipolar disorder. Abby's childhood is revealed to have been very difficult: she was forced to cope with her mother's erratic behavior and long absences and had to take care of her younger brother Eric (Tom Everett Scott). Eric is introduced in later episodes. He is in the US Air Force but goes AWOL and is showing signs of bipolar disorder. He refuses to accept it and clashes with both Abby and Maggie as a result. Abby eventually reconciles with her mother during the beginning of Season 13 as Maggie is taking medications for her disorder regularly, and Abby is grateful for her support when her son Joe is born prematurely.

Abby's father, Eddie, left the family when Abby was a child, due at least in part to Maggie's uncontrollable behavior. Abby reunites with her father (Fred Ward) in season 13, when he initially approaches her under the guise of being a patient named Eddie Jackson before finally revealing his true identity to her. Abby tells him to stay away from her, although she later considers inviting him to her wedding.

Abby dates Dr. Kovač, Dr. Carter and Jake, a medical student, but eventually reunites with Kovač, with whom she has a son. They later marry. She befriends many colleagues in the ER throughout the series, co-workers such as Susan Lewis, and Kerry Weaver. Her closest friend is Dr. Neela Rasgotra, who graduates medical school with her and lives with her during some of Neela's hard times. As Carter is phased out of the show and Weaver departs midway through Season 13, Abby and Luka Kovač are the senior figures on the show until their departure in 2009.

Personal life
Prior to beginning medical school at County, Abby was married to Richard Lockhart; she and Richard were expecting a child at one point, but Abby chose to have an abortion, since she was afraid the child would have bipolar disorder like her mother. Abby never told her family about the pregnancy and Richard was unaware of it until after the abortion. The marriage began to break down after a short time, with Richard frustrated at Abby's abortion and depression, and Abby angry over his insensitivity, since she was working overtime at home and at work to help pay for his medical schooling. They finally split for good when Richard cheated on her and part of the divorce agreement was that he would pay for her medical schooling. Abby chose to keep her married name of Lockhart, claiming "it's the only good thing I got out of the whole mess."

Soon after taking the position in the ER, Abby begins a relationship with Dr. Luka Kovač, who is initially a mentor figure to her until she has to quit medical school. The beginning of their relationship is strained when they are attacked by a mugger on their first date, whom Luka kills in defense. She and Luka stay together for about a year, but their relationship becomes more strained after the arrival of Abby's mother and the increasing closeness between Abby and Dr. John Carter, and a heated argument leads to their break up at the beginning of the eighth season.

Despite an initial period of awkwardness and jealousy after their romance ends, Luka and Abby become good friends again. She criticizes him when he behaves badly towards other staff and during his subsequent depression but nonetheless from Seasons 9-11 the two are very close friends, although their mutual attraction is still sometimes visible. In season 8 Abby's neighbor, Brian, attacks her for protecting his abused wife, leaving Abby with a horribly bruised face. After allowing her to recover at his apartment, Luka traces Brian to a bar and beats him to a pulp, threatening to kill him if he comes near Abby again.

Abby's next relationship is with Dr. John Carter. Abby discovers Carter shooting up on painkillers during season 6. She tells the senior doctors about it, and at their urging and with their help, Carter enters a rehab program. Once he returns, he sees Abby at an AA meeting. She tells him that she is a recovering alcoholic and had been sober for five years. She agrees to become his AA sponsor. Abby and Carter develop a very strong friendship, which strains her relationship with Luka. Several months later, Abby has a particularly horrible birthday and starts drinking again. When Carter catches her having a beer a few weeks after she was attacked, he confronts her, and she tells him not to worry about her. When Dr. Mark Greene passes away at the end of season 8, Carter seeks solace in Abby. She returns to her AA meetings, telling Carter she is doing it for him, and they are a couple throughout season 9. Abby continues drinking on occasion, however, and Carter compulsively tries to "fix" and "change" her. At one point, Carter is ready to propose to Abby at a special dinner he's arranged for her. After Abby states that she is not changing, he puts the ring back in his pocket; although they discuss it briefly in a later episode, he never proposes again. Their relationship is badly strained when Carter's grandmother (Frances Sternhagen) dies, and Abby's brother, Eric, conclusively diagnosed with bipolar disorder, acts out at the funeral and falls into the grave. Soon after, Carter flies to the Congo and joins Luka, who is volunteering with Doctors Without Borders. On his return, Abby is extremely hostile towards him, kicking him out of her apartment, asking for her key to be returned and returning things of his. When Carter goes to Africa for a second time to recover the body of Luka, who, in a plot twist, has not actually died, he sends Abby a letter, ruling out all hope of reconciliation. Abby and Carter remain friends after a period of distance between them, especially when Carter returns to Chicago with his pregnant girlfriend Kem, however they are not in contact after Carter departs County in season 11.

Abby briefly dates a medical student named Jake in season 11, but their relationship fizzles when Abby does not respond positively to Jake's desires to stay in Chicago to be with her. She also begins to grow closer in her friendships with Dr. Susan Lewis and Dr. Kerry Weaver. Her closest friend is Neela Ragostra, a bond formed while both were medical students in season 10. Dr. Lucien Dubenko, Chief of Surgery, is attracted to her for some time, but Abby does not return his affections, seeing him as just a friend. Nonetheless, Lucien remains rather protective of her for several seasons.

In season 12, Abby rekindles her relationship with Luka in the episode "The Human Shield" when her attempt to vent her frustration at him turns into a kiss and subsequently sleeping together. Initially, they decide to remain friends, but soon become lovers, noting that they always seem to find their way back to each other. Three weeks into their relationship, it is revealed that Abby is pregnant. Despite clearly wanting another child, his own having perished in Croatia, Luka states that he will support whatever choice she makes, as long as they can still remain together. After a week or so of uncertainty, Abby decides to keep the baby. Luka proposes to Abby while she is pregnant, but Abby is not comfortable with the idea because of her past problems, and later claims she 'doesn't need a white dress' to prove she loves him. Their baby, a son named Josip (after Luka's father), or Joe for short (after Joe Frazier, the boxer whom Abby's long-disappeared father was a fan of) is born prematurely by emergency C-section at the beginning of season 13. Abby has to have an emergency hysterectomy. Joe spends several weeks in the hospital's NICU, requiring surgery during his stay. Abby and Luka's relationship becomes strained during this period, but they appear much happier in later episodes, caring for their now healthy baby boy.

Throughout season 13, Abby is shown growing into her role as Joe's mother, first by taking time off to be with her seriously ill baby, then by participating in activities like Mommy and Baby classes and walks in the park, and then later by gradually reintroducing herself into the ER world. Mid-season, tension develops between Abby and Luka, partly as the result of Luka's apparently paranoid behavior regarding Curtis Ames (Forest Whitaker), a disgruntled former patient who has sued Luka due to a stroke he suffered that cost him the use of his arm. Not realizing that Ames approached her and Joe in the park posing as a friendly stranger, and has been stalking both her and Luka for some time after he lost the case, Abby brushes off Luka's concerns. However, Ames breaks into Abby and Luka's apartment with a gun, and demands to see Luka. Abby tries to bargain with him, telling him that she is a recovering alcoholic, and recounting an occasion where she felt she had hit 'rock bottom'. Luka is taken hostage, threatened and has his hand crushed by Ames, but survives when Ames commits suicide. In the next episode, an emotional Abby asks Luka to propose to her again. She says if they got through the shooting incident and the Curtis Ames nightmare, they can get through anything - he proposes and the couple get engaged. Later Luka realises that Abby is freaked out about planning the wedding, so he decides to prepare a surprise wedding for her. At first, she has her doubts but eventually she agrees and asks Neela Rasgotra to be her maid of honor.

At the end of the thirteenth season, Abby and Luka plan to honeymoon in Hawaii. However, the night before they are due to depart, Luka receives a phone call from Croatia informing him that his father is ill, so the honeymoon is put on hold until Luka can return from his urgent trip abroad. After Luka's departure, Abby has a tough time with the stern new ER Chief Kevin Moretti (Stanley Tucci), who plans to mold the department into a more efficient and professional work environment, but Moretti quickly tells Abby he is very impressed with her work. Despite this, she seems to dislike him more than many of the other residents. In season 14, Abby is struggling to deal with Luka's absence, raise Joe and work at the ER; in "Gravity", Joe is injured after falling off a jungle gym at the playground and Abby ends up relapsing at the episode's end. She approaches Dr. Janet Coburn (the O.B. Chief) who appears to have been her AA sponsor in the past. Abby's drinking problem continues to escalate, and she realizes how bad it is in "Blackout" when she shows up drunk to a party in honor of Pratt and Morris passing their boards. Abby finds herself waking up at 3am in Moretti's apartment realizing, after sobering up at the airport when trying to find a flight to Croatia to see Luka, that she slept with him.

Soon after Luka arrives back in Chicago, he gets news that his father has died. Abby tells Luka to take Joe to Croatia for the funeral while she seeks help for her alcoholism- though she does not initially reveal the infidelity that her blackout caused. Upon her return to the ER, Abby faces the reality of her situation; she must tell her co-workers the truth about her disease. The only negative reaction at work is from Sam (Linda Cardellini), who displays disgust at Abby's weakness, but the two women mend fences when Sam tells Abby she was being harsh because of her own long history of being around alcoholics who refused to clean up their lives. Abby goes to Croatia and confesses her blackout and subsequent actions to Luka. Luka is angry that she cheated on him and put their son's life in danger. When they return to the States, he decides to move out of the apartment, though he does not seek separation or divorce papers. He decides to work at a long-term care facility and soon has a change of heart about Abby's mistake, especially after a tense conversation with Dr. Moretti. Moretti also attempts to apologize to Abby, but she coldly rebuffs him. At the conclusion of the 14th season, it would appear that Abby and Luka are willing to continue to work on their marriage, with Luka forgiving Abby with a kiss. Abby's happiness at this is tempered when the ambulance she walks past explodes, jarring her and mortally wounding her friend and colleague Dr. Gregory Pratt.

At the beginning of the 15th season, we learn that Abby has sought a position at a hospital in Boston where she and Luka plan to move with their son for a new start. In the third episode, Abby's secret that she has accepted the job and resigned from County is slowly revealed to the others in the ER, although Abby asks them to keep it secret because she does not want it to be a big deal. Long-serving nurse Haleh Adams shows the departing Abby a closet wall where all the past doctors and employees have put their locker name tags. Abby then adds both hers and Luka's tags to the wall. Abby finally leaves, saying goodbye to most of the staff who are gathered in the ambulance bay. She is picked up by Luka who has arrived in his car with their son.

Career as a doctor
In 2003, Abby starts her final year of medical school and newcomer Samantha Taggart replaces her as the central nurse character on the show. As both a nurse and later a doctor, Abby has a tendency for sarcasm towards troublesome patients (and her co-workers), but she exudes gentleness and security as well. Although she is not as intellectually gifted as Neela Rasgotra, John Carter, or Gregg Pratt, she has many years of experience and one of the highest patient-satisfaction scores. It is a mark of Kerry Weaver's confidence in Abby that, when she has her hip-replacement surgery in Season 12, she asks Abby to be her son Henry's legal guardian if something happens to her. Towards the end of her final quarter of medical school, she is told that someone has anonymously paid off the balance on her tuition. She later discovers it was Carter. Abby goes on to graduate from medical school and finally becomes Dr. Abby Lockhart. By season 14, Abby is a fourth-year resident. She applies for an Attending position at County when she becomes frustrated by the endless delays and interviews for a position at an upscale medical facility, although this is partly because she wants to keep her options open if Luka decides to reconcile with her. She gets the other position, but Dr. Pratt uses his pull to get County to offer her the Attending position, which she accepts, one episode before Luka decides to forgive her.

After leaving with Luka to work in Boston, Abby appears once more in season 15 episode 20, "Shifting Equilibrium", during a phone call with Neela, who needs Abby's encouragement to leave County. Abby is seen in her new home looking after a group of young children for her after-shift daycare, including a three-year-old Joe.

title: Abby Lockhart