Planets
Sacred Planets
Blavatsky spoke about the seven sacred planets of antiquity as follows:
It is then the “Seven Sons of Light”—called after their planets and (by the rabble) often identified with them—namely Saturn, Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, Venus, and—presumably for the modern critic, who goes no deeper than the surface of old religions—the Sun and Moon, which are, according to the Occult teachings, our heavenly Parents, or “Father,” synthetically. Hence, as already remarked, polytheism is really more philosophical and correct, as to fact and nature, than anthropomorphic monotheism. Saturn, Jupiter, Mercury, and Venus, the four exoteric planets, and the three others, which must remain unnamed, were the heavenly bodies in direct astral and psychic communication with the Earth, its Guides, and Watchers—morally and physically; the visible orbs furnishing our Humanity with its outward and inward characteristics, and their “Regents” or Rectors with our Monads and spiritual faculties. In order to avoid creating new misconceptions, let it be stated that among the three secret orbs (or star-angels) neither Uranus nor Neptune entered; not only because they were unknown under these names to the ancient Sages, but because they, as all other planets, however many there may be, are the gods and guardians of other septenary chains of globes within our systems.[1]
Mercury
- For the Theosophical magazine, see Mercury (periodical)
- For the publishing house, see Mercury Publishing Company.
Mercury is the smallest and closest to the Sun of the eight planets in the Solar System, with an orbital period of about 88 Earth days. According to A. P. Sinnett Mercury is part of the Earth Chain, being its Globe E. Mme. Blavatsky rejected this interpretation, while Annie Besant and C. W. Leadbeater remained to sustain it.
See also: Controversy about Mars and Mercury
Uranus
Blavatsky claimed that, from an occult perspective both Uranus and Neptune were not completely connected to our sun:
Nor do the two last discovered great planets depend entirely on the Sun like the rest of the planets. Otherwise, how explain the fact that Neptune receives 900 times less light than our Earth, and Uranus 390 times less, and that their satellites show a peculiarity of inverse rotation found in no other planets of the Solar System. At any rate, what we say applies to Uranus, though recently the fact begins again to be disputed.[2]
Nevertheless, in a conversation with students, she entertained the idea that Uranus could be one of the "secret planets" of the ancients, for which they used the Moon as a substitute:
Mme. Blavatsky: The other [secret planet] is what I cannot explain. It was as the substitute of this planet that the moon was taken, and it was seen at a certain hour of the night just as though it was near the moon, but it was not; it is this planet which was not known at all. I think sometimes they do not give the name, but as to my astronomical ideas, I would not trust them.
The Chairman: It is not Herschel [Uranus] is it?
Mme. Blavatsky: I thought it was at one time, and yesterday evening I was thinking a good deal about it, but I am not sure. . . . And, mind you, the motion is retrograde. Therefore I do believe it is Herschel; but I would not swear to it. . . . The influence of this secret planet passes through the moon, i.e., the occult influence of this secret planet; but whether it passes so that it comes in a direct line, or how, I cannot explain. That is for you mathematicians to know better than I can.[3]
However, in The Secret Doctrine, she states that neither Uranus nor Neptune are part of those sacred planets. (See Sacred Planets)
Neptune
Blavatsky wrote:
The true Eastern Occultist will maintain that, whereas there are many yet undiscovered planets in our system, Neptune does not belong to it [our solar system], his apparent connection with our sun and the influence of the latter upon Neptune notwithstanding. This connection is mayavic, imaginary, they say.[4]
She was asked later about this statement:
In The Secret Doctrine it is stated that Neptune does not belong to the solar system, but is “mayavic.” What is meant by this? Neptune was discovered independently by two mathematicians, and not by the telescope directly. It obeys the law of gravity, and produced perturbations upon Uranus, which led to its discovery.[5]
She responded:
The passage in The Secret Doctrine so loosely referred to will be found in Vol. I, p. 102. . . . Notice that the supposed connection is said to be mayavic, and not the fact of the existence of the planet.[6]
Additional resources
- Mercury in Theosophy World
Notes
- ↑ Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine Dialogues (Los Angeles, CA: The Theosophy Company, 2014), 96-97.
- ↑ Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 575.
- ↑ Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine Dialogues (Los Angeles, CA: The Theosophy Company, 2014), 96-97.
- ↑ Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, The Secret Doctrine vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 102.
- ↑ Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Collected Writings vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 292.
- ↑ Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Collected Writings vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 292.
