George King (religious leader)

George King (23 January 1919, Wellington, Shropshire – 12 July 1997, Santa Barbara, California) was a British author, esotericist, and spiritual figure who founded the Aetherius Society, a new religious movement, during the mid-1950s.

George King
Born	(1919-01-23)23 January 1919 Wellington, Shropshire, England, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Died	12 July 1997(1997-07-12) (aged 78) Santa Barbara, California, United States
Nationality	British
Occupation(s)	Writer and founder of the Aetherius Society
Years active	1954–1997
Known for	Aetherius Society
Notable work	Contact Your Higher Self Through Yoga (1955) The Twelve Blessings (1962) The Nine Freedoms (1963)

Biography

George King was born on 23 January 1919, in Wellington, Shropshire, England and brought up in a protestant family with strong occult interests.^[1][2][3] His father (also called George King) was a school teacher and mother Mary a nurse and later small business owner. The family relocated on several occasions as his father sought better appointments, settling for a period in North Yorkshire. King was educated at Guisborough Grammar School. In 1937 King at the age of 18 left the family home and moved to London. Led by his belief in pacifism he became a conscientious objector during the Second World War, serving in the Auxiliary Fire Service. Later he worked as a chauffeur and security officer.

As a youth and young man King studied theosophy, spiritualism, anthroposophy, rosicrucianism and yoga.^[4] In 1954, he claimed that a voice told him "Prepare yourself! You are to become the voice of Interplanetary Parliament".^[5] Afterwards in 1955, he founded the Aetherius Society and published the book Contact Your Higher Self Through Yoga.^[6] In 1959 he was interviewed on BBC television about his beliefs and experiences.^[7]

George King died in Santa Barbara, California, on 12 July 1997, at the age of 78, according to the Aetherius Society.^[8] However, his death was not reported in major newspapers.

Reception and criticism

King has been described as a mystagogue and a religious virtuoso in the manner he formed and led the development of the Aetherius Society as a 'magico-religious' organisation.^[9]

His claims have been denounced as pseudoscience by skeptics such as James Randi.^[10]

Publications

Selected writings:^[11]

• 1955. Contact Your Higher Self Through Yoga. Los Angeles: Aetherius Society.
• 1958. Life on the Planets. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1961. You Are Responsible!. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1962. The Twelve Blessings. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1963. The Nine Freedoms. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1964a. The Flying Saucers: A Report on the Flying Saucers, Their Crews and Their Mission to Earth. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1964b. Contact Your Higher Self Through Yoga. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1966. A Book of Sacred Prayers. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• c. 1975. The Five Temples of God. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1979. Operation Sunbeam: God's Magic in Action. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society. [First published in 1958.]
• 1982. Operation Space Magic: The Cosmic Connection. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1987. Operation Space Power: The Solution of the Spiritual Energy Crisis. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1988. Life on the Planets. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society. [First published in 1958.]
• 1989. Contact with a Lord of Karma. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• n.d. The Practices of Aetherius. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.
• 1996. With Richard Lawrence. Contacts with the Gods From Space: Pathway to the New Millennium. Hollywood, CA: Aetherius Society.