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The Secret Chiefs are said to be transcendent cosmic authorities, a Spiritual Hierarchy responsible for the operation and moral calibre of the cosmos, or for overseeing the operations of an esoteric organization that manifests outwardly in the form of a magical order or lodge system. Their names and descriptions have varied through time, dependent upon those who reflect their experience of contact with them. They are variously held to exist on higher planes of being or to be incarnate; if incarnate, they may be described as being gathered at some special location, such as Shambhala, or scattered through the world working anonymously. One early and influential source on these entities is Karl von Eckartshausen, whose ''The Cloud Upon The Sanctuary'', published in 1795, explained in some detail their character and motivations. Several 19th and 20th century occultists claimed to belong to or to have contacted these Secret Chiefs and made these communications known to others, including H.P. Blavatsky (who called them the "Tibetan Masters" or Mahatmas), C.W. Leadbeater and Alice A. Bailey (who called them Masters of the Ancient Wisdom), Guy Ballard and Elizabeth Clare Prophet (who called them Ascended Masters), Aleister Crowley (who used the term to refer to members of the upper three grades of his order, A∴A∴ ), Dion Fortune (who called them the "esoteric order"), and Max Heindel (who called them the "Elder Brothers"). ==Sufism== In certain esoteric teachings of Islam, there is said to be a cosmic spiritual hierarchy〔Renard, J: Historical Dictionary of Sufism, p 262〕〔(Markwith, Z. The Imam and the Qutb, the Axis Munid in Shi'ism and Sufism )〕 whose ranks include ''walis'' (saints, friends of God), ''abdals'' (changed ones), which is headed by a ''Ghawth'' (helper) or ''Qutb'' (pole, axis). The details vary according to the source. One source is the 12th Century Persian Ali Hujwiri. In his divine court, there are three hundred ''akhyār'' (“excellent ones”), forty ''abdāl'' (“substitutes”), seven ''abrār'' (“piously devoted ones”), four ''awtād'' (“pillars”) three ''nuqabā'' (“leaders”) and one qutb.
〔 Quoting ''The Mystics of Islam'' by Dr. Reynold A. Nicholson〕 Another is from Ibn Arabī, who lived in Moorish Spain. It has a more exclusive structure. There are eight ''nujabā'' (“nobles”), twelve ''nuqabā'', seven ''abdāl'', four ''awtād'', two ''a’immah'' (“guides”), and the qutb. According to the 20th century Sufi Hazrat Inayat Khan, there are seven degrees in the hierarchy. In ascending order, they are Pir, Buzurg, Wali, Ghaus, Qutb, Nabi and Rasul He does not say how the levels are populated. Pirs and Buzurgs assist the spiritual progress of those who approach them. Walis may take responsibility for protecting a community and generally work in secret. Qutbs are similarly responsible for large regions. Nabis are charged with bringing a reforming message to nations or faiths, and hence have a public role. Rasools likewise have a mission of transformation of the world at large.〔(The Spiritual Hierarchy, from the Spiritual Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Secret Chiefs」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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