Text Shows N. Sri Ram Knew
That Leadbeater’s Writings Are
False
E. L. Gardner
Using a subtle language in the 1960s, Mr. N. Sri Ram, President
of the Adyar Society (left), agreed with E. L. Gardner (right) in
that
Leadbeater’s writings are delusional.
(Photo taken in the UK in 1959)
A 2012 Editorial Note:
“We
must now be realistic,
or we
do the cause great harm.”
(E.
L. Gardner, in 1963)
Mr.
N. Sri Ram, the president of the Adyar Society between 1953 and 1973, may have
forgotten, in the 1960s, that conscious falsehood is not acceptable in
theosophy.
Using a subtle, indirect and elegant language, he clearly agreed with E.
L. Gardner in that C. W. Leadbeater’s writings are delusional.
Surprisingly enough, however, and perhaps due to some good-willing
political calculation, Mr. Sri Ram did not remove the false portraits of
imaginary “Masters” from the meeting-rooms of the Esoteric School all over the
world, and preserved the old Egyptian
Rite, the Liberal Catholic Church, the Co-masonry and other activities which are entirely based on the same imaginary clairvoyance.
Sri Ram’s daughter, Mrs. Radha Burnier, has led the Esoteric School
since 1978. She presides over Adyar Society since 1980. Although she has been following her father’s behavior
so far, there can be no doubt that the next step ahead is still to liberate
Adyar once and for all from such well-documented falsehoods. The rejection of known illusions can take
place through a firm top-down decision, or it can also occur from the bottom
upwards, as in a slow-motion, grassroots awakening. Decade after decade, this step-by-step process
has been happening already.
Life is about learning, and the evolution of every theosophical
association depends on its ability to seek for actual truth, and give up all known
errors and delusions. Such a choice often requires “political courage”, though.
The Adyar Society, the United Lodge of Theosophists and the Pasadena Theosophical
Society are certainly no exceptions to the rule. Every group and association
has to make difficult choices.
An important aspect of the following text by Gardner is that it gives a direct
testimony as to Mrs. Annie Besant’s final years, and on her karma for
having abandoned truth, ethics, and the teachings of true Theosophy. See on this topic the subtitle “Annie Besant’s Part”, which gives
a profound lesson to thoughtful students.
The reader must take into consideration that E. L. Gardner was perhaps
the first Adyar Society author - in the second half of the 20th century
- to show pseudo-theosophy for what it is. Few historical documents about the
1900-1934 period were available by then to Adyar members. His views were
therefore limited. He did not know, for
instance, that the so-called “occult powers” of Mrs. Annie Besant had been
false from the very start: she developed them side by side with C.W. Leadbeater, in mediumistic séances of imaginary
contacts with Masters during the 1890s, in the London Lodge of the T.S. and
under the leadership of A. P. Sinnett. [1]
Besides being valuable and significant in itself, the effort made by E.
L. Gardner in the 1950s and 1960s created the conditions for the vast work developed
by Geoffrey Farthing from the 1970s
and up to his death in May 2004. Both theosophists
lived in England. The movement owes them a great debt of gratitude.
The original subtitle of Gardner’s text was “Developments in the Theosophical Society”. It was first published in
1963 by the Theosophical Publishing House, TPH (London), as a pamphlet with 23
pages.
(Carlos Cardoso Aveline)
There Is No Religion Higher
Than Truth
E.L. Gardner
Front cover and opening page of the pamphlet written
by Edward L. Gardner
Foreword
For help in preparing and presenting this statement I am much indebted
to Mr. V. Wallace Slater and Mr. L. H. Leslie-Smith, and to the latter also for
the final section.
E. L. Gardner - October 1963
E. L. Gardner - October 1963
There Is No Religion Higher
Than Truth
About
forty-five years ago an announcement of the Coming of the World Teacher was
made by Mrs. Annie Besant and Bishop C.W. Leadbeater. Most of the Sections and
Lodges of The Theosophical Society accepted this proclamation with confidence
and diverted much of their energy to the Star Campaign - in preparation for his
Coming.
Obviously there has been no
Coming. Bishop
Pigott, writing some years ago, expressed the truth of the matter in the words “Leadbeater
was wrong”. Naturally that had been the suspicion of many in the 1930’s, but
there was little evidence and no proof of the actual cause of that catastrophic
error.
It has, however, now become known that the source of the proclamation
was Bishop Leadbeater himself. In letters he wrote to Mrs. Besant during the
years 1916-20 that have recently been examined he tells repeatedly of the
intention of the “Lord Maitreya” to come again - as he did “twenty centuries
ago”.
As Truth is a priority among
Theosophists, it is my hope that the following explanatory analysis of
important events in the history of the Society will be helpful.
A witty satirist declared: “He
who never makes mistakes makes nothing else”. But there are mistakes and mistakes. The most misleading,
far-reaching and disturbing are those that are honestly believed to be truth. It is with these that we are concerned here.
C.W. Leadbeater’s Writings
Charles Webster Leadbeater became a welcome exponent of Theosophy soon
after joining the Society in the 1880’s. Many of his early contributions in
articles, special manuals, treatises and books are still widely held as good,
useful and instructive; and I would add my own warm indebtedness to him during
several years of my early membership. Later, in studying “Man, Whence, How
and Whither”, I questioned some of the statements; and with “The Masters
and the Path” I had serious doubts, apart from the wisdom of publishing
such a book. Then, however, came Mrs. Besant’s whole-hearted endorsement of his
views - and I put all suspicions on the shelf until further evidence or proof
appeared. The evidence and the proof, though long delayed, have now emerged.
A number of letters sent by C.W. Leadbeater, then living in Sydney, to
Annie Besant, President of The Theosophical Society, at Adyar, between 1916 and
1920 are concerned with the “Lord Maitreya” and the Liberal Catholic Church,
which was then being founded. These have
but recently come to my knowledge.
The claim of the Liberal Catholic Church for support from Fellows of The
Theosophical Society was based on the belief, expressed in this correspondence,
that the World Teacher, the Lord Maitreya, had “brought it into being” and “approved”
its liturgy. Mrs. Besant accepted the information in good faith and announced
the founding. A letter dated April 7,
1920 contains the following:
“He (the Lord Maitreya) told us to ask questions from the Master K.H.
upon points as to which we were uncertain - and the information which we gained
in this way was of the very greatest value to us.”
The questions put by Bishop
Leadbeater to the Master K.H., and said to have been answered by him, run to
several thousand words. They relate to the celebration of Mass, the effect of
consecration and of priesthood, and to numerous details of ecclesiastical
procedure. The answers to these many questions all support and endorse the
clerical views of Bishop Leadbeater himself. Evidently the “Lord Maitreya”
knew nothing of the Master K.H.’s strong views on religions and
sacerdotalism. “The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett” had not at that
time been published. Letter No.10, signed
by the Master K.H., states:
“The chief cause of nearly two thirds of the evils that pursue humanity
... is religion under whatever form and in whatsoever nation. It is the
sacerdotal caste, the priesthood and the churches; it is in those illusions
that man looks upon as sacred, that he has to search out the source of that
multitude of evils which is the great curse of humanity .... The sum of human
misery will never be diminished unto that day when the better portion of
humanity destroys in the name of Truth, morality and universal charity, the
altars of their false gods.”
And in Letter No.134 the
Master M. speaks of:
“… Invisible results proceeding from erroneous and sincere beliefs. Faith
in the Gods and God, and other
superstitions attracts millions of foreign influences, living entities and
powerful agents ..... who delight in personating gods. (.....) These are the
gods the Hindus and Christians and Mahomed and all others of bigoted religions
and sects worship.”
These extracts from letters written by the Masters K.H. and M. furnish
convincing evidence of “unconscious kriyashakti” projections by Bishop
Leadbeater. The extracts would also seem to imply that the liturgies of
churches devoted to the adoration and worship of personal gods - the projected mental images of the worshippers
- induce a kind of refined idolatry.
Moreover, the imminent Coming
of the World Teacher is the theme of Leadbeater’s letters:
“Close and perfect is the communication I have opened. (...) I have chosen you
to hold it .... occupy till I come.”
He quotes these words as from
the Lord Maitreya. Yet Krishnamurti - the Chosen Vehicle - was beginning to rebel, and a
few years later utterly repudiated all connection. Later, Bishop Pigott, Presiding Bishop of the Liberal
Catholic Church, wrote:
“The Lord did not come in the way foretold. (....) The Lord has not
come, so far as we know .... Leadbeater
... was wrong about the Coming ..... Theosophists are in no sense bound to accept
Leadbeater as an infallible teacher.” (August,
1952).
An Occult Phenomenon
With the advantage of forty
years perspective, plus the letters to Annie Besant and the events of 1920-30,
it is now clear (as some have long known or suspected) that the Lord Maitreya
and the Masters with whom Leadbeater was on such familiar terms were his own
thought-creations.
Yet I feel certain that there was no intention to deceive. Bishop Leadbeater’s honesty and sincerity were
undoubted. His clairvoyance was unquestioned. It was by that faculty that he
discovered the boy Krishnamurti, who has at any rate turned out to be a great
leader of thought, widely acknowledged all over the world. This discovery in
itself was no small feat, and it was not an isolated case. And Leadbeater’s
frequent references to the Masters were, from his own point of view, utterly
sincere and true. Nor was it a case of a split mind. The projection was a vivid
example of the phenomenon of “unconscious kriyashakti”. The explanation of this
phenomenon given below, which I wrote for “The Theosophist”, is reprinted from the issue of July, 1963.
Kriyashakti Conscious and
Unconscious
Mind and Memory
The Sanskrit word “Kriyashakti” is defined as the Power of Creative
Thought. It is a well-known term in
Occultism, and its meaning has been abundantly demonstrated during the past few
decades in research work on the mysteries of the human mind. The description of
the mind by Patanjali, given long ago, is still much to the point:
“The mind may be compared to a lens in the form of a sphere, so
constructed as to be capable of giving a three-dimensional image inside itself
of every external object.” (Book 1, 41-Stephen’s
translation.)
Personal memories consist of such images imprinted on the mind, in size
minute but readily expanded when the higher mental ray of light is focused on
them. Such a momentary focus is all that
one needs to recognize a familiar face and figure. Some of the imprints in the
sphere of the lower mind are very clear images because of frequent repetition -
for example, those of parents, children and other relatives, friends and
acquaintances - but others need some scrutiny by the focused ray in order to be
remembered. Pictured forms can also be
built in the mind by the ray itself.
Unconscious Thought Power
Any memory record can be
strengthened by repeated recollection and, occasionally, the picture will
become most pronounced: for instance, the mental imprint of the betrothed, a
cherished friend, a revered teacher, an historical figure who has fired the
imagination. Indeed, in cases of extreme contemplation, the mind, or part of it, may
be filled by the hero - hence the Napoleons, Henry VIIIs, Jesus Christs, etc.,
in mental asylums.
They have mentally conceived and created a form - and stepped into it. Unconscious creative thought may also follow
long-continued contemplation of a religious symbol, such as a crucifix. Deep
and sincere yearning to share the agony of the Adored can cause stigmata to appear on hands and
feet. Mento-etheric repercussion is the simple reason. The same kind of effect - a
bruise on the body - may follow from a very vivid dream in which one shrinks
from, but receives, a severe dream blow. Psychotherapy is becoming familiar
with all of these.
Mental Automatism
Mind and emotions are of the
second and third elemental kingdoms, and the essence of which these are
composed is itself very much alive. A memory training course will speedily
prove this, and is well worth the experiment. Although well-planned exercises
enable one to memorize verse and prose easily, retain figures and dates by
association devices and so forth, one soon realizes that the mind is a separate
entity from oneself. When well drilled it can take things over on its own. Long
passages can be recited and simple calculations made without higher mental
attention. Indeed, much routine work can be handed over. A common experience
will illustrate this automatism. A pleasing melody or a catchy tune is heard
and hummed repeatedly; then one tires of it, yet it continues and may become an
obtrusive nuisance. The will must be invoked to curb or dismiss the tune.
Obviously the mind, though mine, is not I.
Visualization
We all have the ability to
visualize mentally. Some find it easy, many do it only with difficulty. A good
example of an expert’s skill in this art is given by a chess master playing a
number of games blindfold. On the chessboard two armies of 16 pieces face each
other, and the board is of 64 squares, black and white. Countless combinations
are possible, and all the games differ. Yet a blindfold master, playing against
20 opponents simultaneously, recently won 16 of the 20. Such an amazing feat of
clear and detailed visualization is convincing evidence of the power of
creative thought. The thought-form of the chess-board and the pieces in each game is
brilliantly real.
Master and Chela
The automatism of the
elemental essence of thought-forms is used, it is said, in the occult
relationship of Master and chela. A mental image of the chela is made by the
Master, with a “radio” link between image and chela. This image is isolated in
the Master’s “cave” and records the chela’s progress. The reverse process, though less efficient, is also
possible. By intense contemplation a devotee can imprint the picture of a
Master in his mental aura. Any link that a Master might make with the chela’s
pictured thought-form depends, however, on the clarity and purity of the created
form. Conscious Kriyashakti builds the form, but unconscious Kriyashakti may
endow it with the emotional vibrations of the chela. Therein lies the extreme hazard of the venture.
Skandhas
The pure elemental essence of the mental plane, untouched by human
emotion or thought, is of the clarity of “rock crystal” (Patanjali). But the
slightest personal vibrations allowed to enter any thought-form are
enhanced and used by the elemental life. Thus, the elemental enclosed within
the consciously created form, if vitalized by the skandhas of its creator - i.e., personal desire vibrations - will
be awakened into a desire to live.
And, should its creator weaken, it may
become his Frankenstein. Such is the vivid description given by H.P.Blavatsky
of the possible result of unconscious Kriyashakti. (“The Secret Doctrine”, Adyar
edition [2], volume V, 560.)
Subjective to Objective
Built by thought within the mind, the created form is subjective. When endowed with the skandhas of its creator and thus aroused, in a measure, into a life
of its own, it may be reflected in the Astral Light (Pure Elemental Essence,
the universal matrix) and become objective. This property of
the Astral Light as a medium of impressions - a matrix - that may actually
crystallize thoughts is referred to in “The Key to Theosophy”. After the death of the physical body, the content of
the mind being mirrored in the golden glow of the Astral Light, one is
surrounded by one’s own creations and hence very much at home.
“The Methodist will be a Methodist, the Mussulman, a Mussulman, at least
for some time, in a fool’s paradise of each man’s own creation.”
This is the early devachan of
Loka II, and probably pleasant enough while it lasts. Many dream experiences
illustrate this mirrored objectivity of one’s thinking. The Astral Light
is, however, but “the shadow of Divine Light”. (“The Secret Doctrine”, Vol.
V, 566.)
The Hazard
A clear and finely built thought-form of a Master may, occasionally, be
the skilled product of conscious Kriyashakti by a devotee. If its rock crystal purity be undisturbed, the form
may presumably provide a medium for communication. But if its elemental life is
affected by the skandhas of
its creator - though quite unconsciously conveyed - then absorption and
enhancement by the elemental will merely mean the birth of an attractive royal
edition of its creator. Thus one’s own
thought-creation of a Master may provoke the dangerous illusion of being the
Master himself. And mental clairvoyance assists its realistic objectivity. The
results of such a mistaken identity could well be disastrous.
On the large scale of religious movements and nations, the power of
creative thought - conscious and unconscious - is abundantly evident. The mentally
projected figure of an “Almighty God”, or the “God of our Fathers”, is still a
popular idol, though being widely challenged today. As the Master K.H. wrote:
“The word ‘God’ was invented to designate the unknown cause of those
effects which man has either admired or dreaded without understanding them.”
And H. P.B. said:
“It is not the Ever-Present God - the Divine Plenum - that is rejected,
but the humanized God of religious dogma which man has shaped from his own
brain-fabric.” (“The Secret Doctrine”, vol. I, p. 75.) [3]
Mistaking the False for the
True
The President, Mr. Sri Ram, commenting on this article in “The
Theosophist”, under the title “Mistaking the False for the True”, says that it:
“(....) Throws a clear light on a phenomenon which occurs among people
of all religions, namely, that of an image formed subjectively, partly out of
material from the creator’s thought-environment, and partly out of ideas
generated by his own personal emotions and desires, assuming an objectivity, a
full-scale reality, that is completely convincing to him. Many a vision takes place in this manner and is
afterwards proclaimed to others and becomes the basis of a legend. The image is
really a projection from the person’s own mental make-up, to use a modern
psychological term, but it gains a strength and a vitality from his
sub-conscious reactions, which give it the character of an independent entity. The process
involved in this phenomenon is well illustrated by what is said about ‘elementals’
in early Theosophical literature, artificial entities which are either created
for a specific purpose and maintained by deliberate design and volition, or,
coming into existence more naturally through repetitive or collective thought,
get strengthened through interchange with the psychic condition of their
unconscious progenitors and thus prolong their life for as long a period as the
impulse might last.”
“Mr. Gardner points out that while an image of some loved and reverenced
person, or Teacher, if it be of rock-crystal purity, as he calls it, can be a
medium for communication with him, any unconscious desire vibrations - also any
established tendencies of thought - will affect the image - and it may then
become a ‘talking image’ reflecting the subconscious mind of its creator. H.P.B.
refers in her writings to the ‘enormous mysteries’ of the human mind and of the
deceptive nature of the psychic realms to which it is related.”
The Only Safety
There are many people today
in different parts of the world who give out messages which by their content
may well be judged to come from their own subconscious minds, but are invested
by them with the authority of some well-known historical figure or of one of
the Teachers associated with the Theosophical movement. It is a very great
pity that the names of these Teachers, who are objects of the deepest reverence
to those who know anything of Them, should be bandied about and turned into
trade-marks for the most commonplace outpourings, usually containing, besides
some ethical injunctions, a reference to current events, thus giving the
message a certain contemporary colour, and also embellished quite often with
picturesque phrases which are particularly fascinating to the minds of their
promulgators. The only safety for anyone who does not wish to be misled with
regard to such messages or by any other kind of psychic revelation lies in
weighing for oneself impersonally every statement, from whatever source it
might purport to come, strictly on its intrinsic nature and merits.
Annie Besant’s Part
The overriding factor in the
acceptance by T.S. members of Leadbeater’s views was Annie Besant’s
whole-hearted endorsement and approval. Her authority and prestige were enough
to satisfy most members. In 1912 she shut herself off from investigation of the
inner planes. This she did because she could not both continue that and also do
the political work for India that she felt so imperative. The strain would have
been too great. Thenceforward, without any longer checking occult matters, the
President loyally accepted the statements of Leadbeater and others.
My last interview with Mrs. Besant was in 1930, on her return from a
short continental tour with Bishops Leadbeater and J.I. Wedgwood. Certain incidents on that tour had opened her eyes,
and she saw clearly much that had been obscure. It was plain that she knew the
truth, and it was devastating. The dreadful burden was that she herself might
have prevented the illusion and its results if she had retained her occult
faculties and had checked statements instead of blindly accepting them. Indeed, Mrs. Besant
had earlier been well aware of the possibility of the disastrous error that had
now disrupted the activities of The Theosophical Society for many years. She had written that there are -
“Subtle temptations that do not touch the lower nature but dare to raise
their heads against the higher ... subtle temptations than ensnare the inner
man. He must have gained utter control of the mental images he has himself
created ere he will be able to hold his own unshaken.” (“In the Outer Court”, fifth edition
(1955) pp. 46-7; see also p.41; older editions, p.70 and pp. 63-64.)
On her return to India Mrs. Besant became mentally and physically ill,
and died in 1933 at Adyar.
Twenty-one Fateful Years
It may be useful to tabulate
some of the outstanding facts already mentioned and others that are personally
known to me.
*1909 onwards:
Krishnamurti was found by Leadbeater clairvoyantly, as he similarly
discovered a number of other outstanding young people both before that time and
after. Then Krishnamurti was adopted by
Annie Besant. This was followed some years later by the announcement of the
Coming of the World Teacher. The Star campaign was opened, and a monthly
magazine, Herald of the Star, was
launched. There was general acceptance among members of The Theosophical
Society of the Coming and Krishnamurti was named as the Chosen Vehicle,
privately at first and publicly later. Great activity ensued in many
Sections: a stadium was built near Sydney; in Holland a castle with 5,000 acres was given, a camp was formed and much
money spent on improvements; in California the Happy Valley estate was
purchased for the future.
*1912:
Annie Besant entered Indian politics to assist the aim of Dominion
Status. She shut off her clairvoyant
faculties and inner contacts.
*1916-20:
Letters from Leadbeater to Mrs. Besant announcing founding of Liberal Catholic
Church with approval of “the World
Teacher”, who had also approved the liturgy. This was accepted and endorsed by
her.
*1925:
At the Holland Camp Mrs. Besant announced the initiation of several
Arhats - all to assist the Coming of the World Teacher.
*1928-29:
Krishnamurti withdrew from The Theosophical Society and from all
connection with the Star activities, renouncing everything.
*1930:
I had my last interview with Annie Besant. Everything connected with the Coming closed down. The
castle and land in Holland were returned to the donor; the Sydney stadium was
sold; Star shops were closed, etc.
Krishnamurti on “The Beloved”
It is appropriate to give here an extract from “Who Brings the
Truth?” by J. Krishnamurti, published in 1927.
“When I was a small boy I used
to see Sri Krishna, with the flute, as he is pictured by the Hindus, because my
mother was a devotee of Sri Krishna. She used to talk to me about Sir Krishna,
and hence I created an image in my mind of Sri Krishna, with the flute, with
all the devotion, all the love, all the songs, all the delight - you have no
idea what a tremendous thing that is for the boys and girls of India. When I
grew older and met with Bishop Leadbeater and The Theosophical Society, I began
to see the Master K.H. - again in the form which was put before me, the reality
from their point of view - and hence the Master K.H. was to me the end. Later on, as
I grew, I began to see the Lord Maitreya. That was two years ago, and I saw him
then constantly in the form put before me ... It has been a struggle all the
time to find the Truth, because I was not satisfied by the authority of
another, or the imposition of another, or the enticement of another; I wanted
to discover for myself and naturally I had to go through sufferings to find
out. Now lately, it has been the
Buddha whom I have been seeing, and it has been my delight and my glory to be
with him.”
“I have been asked what I mean
by ‘the Beloved’ - I will give a meaning, an explanation, which you will
interpret as you please. To me it is all: it is Sri Krishna, it is the Master
K.H., it is the Lord Maitreya, it is the Buddha, and yet it is beyond all these
forms. What does it matter what name
you give?”
“The Beloved” of Krishnamurti appears to be identical with H.P.B’s “Ever-Present
God, the Divine Plenum” , referred to on
page 14 [See subtitle “The Hazard”, above] .
The Ancient Wisdom Stands
That The Theosophical Society’s
work and reputation suffered seriously is unquestionable. These mistakes
wrought great havoc, the end of which is not yet. But what has the founding of
a church or the supposed Coming of a World Teacher to do with Theosophy? The
basic principles are unaffected by such events. The three Fundamental
Propositions of the Proem is the first volume of “The Secret Doctrine” and
the ideals expressed in “The Mahatma Letters” remain untouched.
Theosophists are said to have as bond of union a common search and
aspiration for Truth. We must, then, like
the research scientist, be prepared to go wherever Truth shall lead, even to
the most unexpected and surprising conclusions. An open mind is essential. We do not believe
statements because some exalted person made them - nor because they are written
in some scripture. Everything has to be brought to the bar of reason, common sense
and experience. Yet an open mind should not be an empty or vacant mind. It is perfectly consonant with firm convictions,
provided we are ready to modify them in the light of any future knowledge that
may come to us. Truth can be neither confirmed nor falsified by what we happen
to think. If an idea is true, disbelief will not make it untrue; if it is not
true, the sincere belief of millions cannot turn fancy into fact.
Principles, Not Personalities
We have seen how, in all
honesty, extraneous ideas can be thrown across the Theosophical trail, and how
a great many may be diverted from their search. But none who keeps to basic
principles can be put off the scent or go astray. We must now be realistic, or
we do the cause great harm. False images
of leaders must be got rid of. While absorbing their wisdom, let us be careful
not to put any of them, past of present, on imaginary pedestals. We can best
show gratitude for devoted lives and benefits conferred by appreciating also
imperfections and mistakes, and by amending and correcting so far as lies in
our power. We owe it to them to do that; it surely is our duty. But in doing
this let us not be merely destructive, but critically constructive. No mistake
can affect Theosophy itself. The Ancient Wisdom is greater than all its
exponents. It is principles that matter, not personalities.
Let us then try to get back to “those fundamental principles that are in
every human being”, as Mr. Sri Ram puts it. With
utter honesty and freedom of outlook let us see how far the teachings of the
Ancient Wisdom will stand up to critical scrutiny in this latter part of the
twentieth century. We shall find that many of the ideas propounded in “The Secret
Doctrine”, which challenged orthodox religion and science eighty-five years
ago, and were then bitterly attacked and laughed to scorn, are generally
accepted today. For example, the probable
age of the earth and of man upon it, the fact that matter is nothing but
energy, and that there is a subtle homogeneous base from which all forms
derive. Other Theosophical concepts are likewise taken as probable or possible
and are current in the thought of the world.
Questing and Questioning
There is a body of
Theosophical teaching, available to all but obligatory on none, which does make
life intelligible and also death negligible. Study of it gives an increasing
realization of what Man is, and his all-important place, part and purpose in
the universe. Theosophy is not a faith once for all delivered to us. It is a
limitless fount of Wisdom from which our intuition may draw as it is able. It
is ever flowing, never stagnant. Not only then must we be ever questing, but
also questioning. For there must necessarily remain an element of doubt until
we can really know in our own experience.
The Guiding Inspiration
The founders of our Society
have often been accused of fraud and charlatanry. But charlatans and swindlers
seek riches or power or fame [4] ;
they do not court abuse, hardship and all manner of misunderstanding, which our
founders got and yet continued on their chosen way. Why did they do it? What inspired these totally
dedicated people with burning enthusiasm to establish The Theosophical Society?
They
themselves declared that they were instructed and guided to do so by certain
personages - Elder Brethren, Masters of the Wisdom - who existed but to forward
Man’s spiritual evolution. From Them,
they said, came the teachings, and They were the real Founders. That was the
inspiration that upheld and guided them to the end of their lives.
NOTES:
[1] See “Autobiography
of Alfred Percy Sinnett”, Theosophical History Centre, London, UK, 1986, pp.
48, 34, 38 and others. (C.C.A.)
[2] Adyar
Edition. This is the edition of “The
Secret Doctrine” adulterated by Annie Besant. It was only in 1979 that the
Adyar Society finally abandoned Besant’s version of the work and adopted, in
English, the original text by H. P. Blavatsky.
In several other languages, however, the Besant edition is still
misleading the readers. (C.C.A.)
[3] In Annie Besant’s
version. (C.C.A.)
[4] “Charlatans and
swindlers seek riches or power or fame”. This is a significant point. Mrs. Annie Besant and Mr. Charles Leadbeater were
not founders of the movement. They tried to officially present to the world a
“Lord Christ” and his “new Church”. If
they had they succeeded, they would have obtained an incalculable amount of
fame and power, worldwide. Even their failed
attempt to fabricate their Christ was enough to give them a large amount of fame
and power. (C.C.A.)
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Date
of publication online, July 2012.
Always visit www.BlavatskyArchivesOnline.com
, www.Esoteric-Philosophy.com, www.TheosophyOnline.com and www.FilosofiaEsoterica.com .
If
you want to have access to a daily study of the original teachings of
Theosophy, write to lutbr@terra.com.br and ask for information on the e-group E-Theosophy.
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