Ramtha first made himself known to JZ Knight in 1977 when he appeared to her. July 7, 1977, at 2 p.m. in her kitchen in her home in Tacoma, Washington. "Ramtha" (the name is claimed to be derived from Ram and to mean "the God" in Ramtha's language).

Ramtha described himself as having lived on Earth some thirty-five thousand years ago. He was born in Lemuria, a section of the ancient continent of Atlantis. When Ramtha was still a youth, the Atlatians misused their vast technology and created a disaster—the northern half of the continent, including Lemuria, was destroyed. The Lemurians had to seek a new home in the south; Ramtha's family relocated to Onai, the great port city of Atlantis.

After the disaster, the Atlatian social system fell apart and was replaced with a feudal-like structure with the Lemurians at the bottom. After his mother's death, Ramtha fled to the mountains to nurture his anger. It became focused on the Atlatians, and he soon returned to Onai as the head of an army. He conquered the city and found a new life as a warrior. He became a conqueror who was stopped only by an assassin's sword.

He survived but had to endure a lengthy healing process. He used the time to contemplate the Unknown God that is found in the life force. The death wish that had dominated his life to that point and led him to become a warrior was replaced with a desire to embrace life. His search for the Unknown God led him to contemplate the wind. The wind was powerful, free-moving, without boundaries, limits, or form. The image of the wind beckoned to Ramtha to exist unbounded by the common human limitations, including death. His contemplation over several years led first to an out-of-the-body experience. But as his concentration continued, his bodily vibration changed, and he rose as a body of light. He had conquered life, and, leaving his earthly existence, he ascended.

Now, thirty-five thousand years later, he returned to teach what he had learned through the instrument of JZ Knight. He deliberately chose a woman as his channeler to reinforce the divine feminine. The essence of his teachings was that each person is a god, a master, who has forgotten his or her origin. In remembering and understanding one's true nature, the individual can become a creator who can have whatever he or she desires.