Theosophical Notes (periodical)
Theosophical Notes was a periodical published in California by Victor A. Endersby and his wife Frances. It was issued monthly from December, 1950 until April, 1978, with a hiatus from May to December 1957 after Frances died. It covered a huge range of topics from the perspective of the teachings of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and William Quan Judge. Mr. Endersby wrote every article until the final years when Walter A. Carrithers, Jr., and Richard Sattleburg also contributed.
Jerry Hejka-Ekins of Alexandria West Library wrote a history of the endeavor:
His primary audiences was those students who had more than a superficial knowledge of Theosophical teachings. Consequently, the magazines's circulation never exceeded a few hundred copies. At first his audience was mostly among associates of the United Lodge of Theosophists and the independent minded Canadian Section of the Adyar Society, but he quickly found interested readers among disenfranchised Point Loma tradition Theosophists. By the early 1960s, his reputation bean to spread, and he gained a few serious students in the greater Adyar T.S.[1]
The viewpoints in the early volumes of Notes consistently reflected the Endersby's thirty-year dedication to the U.L.T. ideals... The early volumes adhered to the tradition of anonymity. The only hint of authorship was a Berkeley post office return address. That does not mean that the "Editors" identities were unknown; rather, it was sort of an open secret. Articles in Notes covered everything from early Theosophical history to current politics, but every subject was tied to a Theosophical application.[2]
Among the subjects that especially interested Endersby was refuting Neo-theosophy; misuse of authority in Theosophical organizations; attempts to unify the Theosophical Movement; debunking rumors; opposition to wars, McCarthyism, and social injustices. In the 1960s he added articles about space probes, plate tectonics, and ancient civilizations. From 1961 to 1969 he produced a biography of Madame Blavatsky "serially in special issues separate from the magazine," that was published in book form as The Hall of Magic Mirrors.[3]
Index and availability online
The Union Index of Theosophical Periodicals provides a listing of the articles printed in this journal. This periodical is not yet available in digital form.